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Red Alert: The Republic of China Text Chapter 647 The Road to the United States (Part 1)

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    The original plan was for the Central Pacific offensive to begin with the capture of the Marshall Islands.  However, the more carefully Hanking and some of the Philippine staff responsible for formulating the war plan considered it in terms of strategic and logistical support, the more they felt that the plan was not appropriate enough.

    Like many other island groups in the central Pacific, the Marshall Islands are made of coral reefs.  Each relatively flat coral island is surrounded by a reef, and a lagoon is formed on the inside of the reef.  The Marshall Islands consists of approximately 35 atolls, most of which can be built into airports from one or several small islands.

    The Gilbert Islands, East Caroline Islands and Wake Island are all within the combat activity radius of the Allied shore-based aviation in the Marshall Islands.  The Marshall Islands were placed under Japanese trusteeship after World War I and have been closed to foreigners since 1935.

    During the period of external blockade, Japan made full use of natural conditions to build these islands into some solid fortresses.

    As for the attack on the Marshall Islands some time ago, it was actually just a show to attract the attention of the Allied fleet. Due to the Australian battlefield, China did not attack the Marshall Islands with much fanfare.  Currently, the Marshall Islands are actually still in the hands of the Allies.

    Those who participated in the preparation of the war plan, based on all available intelligence, the more they studied, the more clearly they realized that the Central Pacific Force lacked the necessary strength and was not suitable to capture the Marshall Islands while relying on the main force of the enemy's fleet.

    Of course, a large part of the ground forces that China can use in the Pacific battlefield are deployed in various bases for defense tasks, and some are sent to participate in the Aleutian operations.  Others are launching offensives against the last Allied islands in the South and Southwest Pacific.

    Although the strength of the Chinese attack fleet has gradually increased, its strength is still far from the requirements of the plan.

    In addition, no one knows how aircraft carrier forces should be used to deal with the enemy's numerous shore-based aviation near the dotted Allied strongholds.  The islands in the Mediterranean are known as unsinkable aircraft carriers, but there are more unsinkable aircraft carriers in the central Pacific.

    Therefore, Hanking's staff concluded that the attack on the Marshall Islands should be a gradual approach similar to the previous attack on Rabaul.  Enable China's shore-based aviation to conduct adequate aerial reconnaissance.  And complement each other and cooperate with the aircraft on the aircraft carrier.

    The Marshall Islands, like Rabaul, also have a route that can be gradually approached with the help of islands.  Like the Bismarck Islands, the Marshall Islands are located at the northwest end of the island chain.  The southeastern tip of this island chain is the British-American Condominium of Samoa.  In the middle of the island chain.  There were once the British Gilbert Islands and the Ellice Islands of Tuvalu.

    After occupying the Samoa Islands, China established aviation bases in the Samoa Islands and Canton Atoll.  Canton Atoll is located north of the Samoa Islands and east of the Gilbert Islands.  The distance to both islands is approximately 800 nautical miles.

    The Marshall-Gilbert-Samoa island chain is roughly parallel to the Solomon Islands. This island chain has long attracted the attention of the Allies.  After the outbreak of the Pacific War, the Allied forces immediately occupied the Gilbert Islands and built a water airport on Makin Atoll, turning the islands into a base for reconnaissance in the southeastern Pacific.

    On the other hand, in order to prevent the Allied forces from invading the Gilbert Islands, the Chinese troops set out from Samoa and went north along the island chain to the neighboring Ellis Islands, and built in Funafuti, 700 nautical miles away from Tarawa Atoll.  A parking lot and a bomber base were built.

    After this meeting, Qian Sihai received instructions to prepare for an attack from the Central Pacific.  Construction then resumed in Funafuti Atoll.

    The Marine Corps and the Naval Engineer Battalion occupied the two islands of Nukufetau and Nanomea in the northern part of the Ellis Islands, and began to build airstrips for bombers there.

    An aviation engineering battalion landed on Baker Atoll, 480 nautical miles east of the Gilbert Islands, and built a fighter airfield there to coordinate operations with the airfield at Canton Atoll.

    The first newly formed logistics supply ship fleet first stationed at the Funafuti berth.  Shore-based aviation units are deployed in Funafuti, Nukufetau, Nanomea, Canton and Baker.  The main force of this aviation force is the 90 Djinn heavy bombers of the Army's 7th Aviation Regiment, which plans to conduct air strikes against the enemy from the Ellis Islands.  At this time, the 2nd Marine Division stationed in New Zealand, the 27th Infantry Division stationed in the Solomon Islands, and an infantry division of the Jungle Army were conducting final landing operations drills, ready to enter the battle to attack Gilbert at any time.

    Deep in the Pacific battlefield, when the unprecedented naval battle began, the landing battle also took place at the same time.

    On November 13, an aircraft carrier task force of the attack fleet with three light aircraft carriers as the core attacked Minamitori Island.Allied military installations were severely damaged and many Allied bombers were destroyed.

    Another aircraft carrier task force with three aircraft carriers as the core, in collaboration with the Army's 7th Aviation Regiment stationed in Canton Atoll and Funafuti, launched an air attack on the Gilbert Islands.  The main purpose of this air strike was to weaken the combat effectiveness of Allied aircraft on Tarawa Atoll and Makin Atoll, so as to reduce the pressure of Allied warplanes on the Chinese aviation base in the Ellis Islands.  The operation yielded greater results than expected.

    After that, the Allied forces only left four reconnaissance seaplanes on Makin Atoll, and the rest of the aircraft were immediately withdrawn from Tarawa Atoll.  Another important situation is that the Allied island-defending troops consumed a large amount of ammunition, which was difficult to replenish.  At the same time, we also took very ideal photos of Tarawa and Makin Atolls.

    Three days later, a powerful aircraft carrier force composed of six aircraft carriers launched a large-scale air attack on Wake Island, destroying all aircraft on the island.

    The strength of the aircraft carrier has been greatly enhanced, so at this time, a single aircraft carrier and other ship formations are no longer sent to sea for combat.  It is by no means an easy task for several aircraft carriers to operate within a warning curtain. This requires sacrificing some flexibility.  However, because fighter jets can be used intensively to strengthen air cover, and anti-aircraft artillery can be used intensively to coordinate with it.  This shortcoming is completely remediable.

    In late November, the Japan-U.S. Joint Fleet received an emergency call from the Marshall Islands. However, at this time, the Japan-U.S. Joint Fleet was unable to send large ships to support the Marshall Islands.

    More than half of the main force of the Japanese-US combined fleet suffered casualties, which made the attacking fleet even more unscrupulous.  The fierce and fierce offensive was further launched.

    The targets of the Chinese attack fleet are Makin Atoll, Tarawa Atoll and Abemama Atoll.  The force used to attack Makin Atoll was the Northern Assault Force from the Philippines, which consisted of a regimental combat team from the 3rd Marine Division.  The remaining ships of the amphibious warfare force, carrying the 2nd Marine Division, formed the Southern Assault Force, departing from Wellington, New Zealand, and headed to the New Hebrides for landing rehearsals.  Then sail to Tarawa Atoll.

    When the landing transport team sails to the landing area.  All four task groups of the fast aircraft carrier task force were dispatched in time for support and cover.  Among them, two task groups set off from the Philippines, and another two task groups completed air strikes on the southern coast of Australia.  Rushing from the South Pacific to the battlefield.

    When the aircraft carrier task force conducted an air attack on the Gilbert Islands and nearby Allied positions.  The two assault forces, northern and southern, met at sea.  It sailed on a parallel course to Makin and Tarawa, preparing to land on the two islands simultaneously on the morning of November 20, 1943.

    Although the Login Operations Command knew that Tarawa Atoll was the focus of the Allied defense in the Gilbert Islands, it did not.  They attach great importance to the landing operations at Makin Atoll.  Because Makin Atoll is the closest Allied base to the Marshall Islands, only 190 nautical miles away, 100 nautical miles closer than Tarawa Atoll.

    Makin Atoll is relatively exposed. It is estimated that it can be captured in one day, and the support fleet can be withdrawn soon.

    The command headquarters believes that Butaritari Island, the main island of Makin Atoll, is a poorly fortified island with few defenders, and decided to dispatch two battalions of ground troops to attack the island.  In fact, there are 1,284 Japanese Marines on Butaritari Island, commanded by a naval lieutenant, as well as seaplane ground crew (the plane had just withdrawn), Allied engineers and Korean laborers, totaling  No more than 1800 people.

    Butaritari Island is shaped like a hammer.  The Chinese army planned to first implement a diversionary landing on the protruding part of the island in order to draw the Allied forces away from its main fortified zone built about one-third of the way through the Hammer Handle.  Two hours later, the Chinese army made a second landing at the main Allied defense zone in order to cut off the Allied forces.

    However, this attempt was not fully realized because the Allied forces basically remained in the main fortified areas, preparing to wait for opportunities to counterattack the landing troops.  The Chinese naval gun fire support and carrier-based aircraft aviation fire support were both effective, and the land battle did not encounter much resistance.

    However, as soon as the ground troops landed, they quickly won the victory and freed the supporting fleet.

    This is the top priority of the landing battle, and it must be fast.  Once the landing battle gets into trouble, it will have a great negative impact on the situation.

    If the area planned to be captured is small and the material consumption does not exceed the supply capacity, a quick victory will disrupt the enemy's formation and give up the opportunity to resist resolutely.  In this situation, the isolated enemy who is stubbornly resisting can be surrounded but not attacked, leaving it to the follow-up troops to recognize and annihilate it.

    Later, in the early days of World War II, the United States suffered a lot in this regard. The U.S. Marines who had no experience in landing operations and the troops who had already landed were blocked by a few snipers or one or two machine guns for a few hours.?Forward.  At night, the occasional disturbance will cause nervousness, and even shooting and abandoning the position.  This is not surprising from a perspective of inexperience and poor training.

    ¡°Two hours later, the Chinese army¡¯s overwhelmingly superior landing force occupied Butaritari Island at the cost of 2 dead and 52 injured.  Except for one Marine and 104 engineers and laborers who were captured, all the other Allied forces were wiped out.  In the battle of Butaritari, the strength ratio between the Chinese army and the Allied forces was 0.6:1.

    The aircraft deployed by the Allied forces in the Central Pacific have been greatly consumed due to their mission to defend Australia in the past few months.

    Therefore, the Chinese aircraft carrier is enough to protect the safety of the Gilbert landing force from any damage due to air strikes.

    During the actual combat, no small group of Allied fighter planes flew over Makin Atoll. Although the Allied forces conducted two small-scale air raids on Tarawa, no results were obtained.

    In the first six days, the only major Allied air attack was.  On the evening of the 20th, 16 torpedo bombers took off from the Marshall Islands and attacked the aircraft carrier task force located about 30 nautical miles west of Tarawa at the time.  Eleven of these fish bombers were shot down.  However, one aircraft dropped a torpedo and hit a slow-moving supply ship.  The ship suffered 17 deaths and 43 injuries.  The ammunition room, boiler room and rear engine room were flooded, and had to be sailed to Funafuti for emergency repairs.

    The southern assault force uses Bedio Island, the only fortified island in Tarawa Atoll, as its main attack target.  Betio Island is slender and long, with a total length of 2 nautical miles. It is an Allied stronghold in the Gilbert Islands and a local administrative center.

    There are approximately 12,600 Allied naval forces on the island.  In addition, there are 1,000 Allied engineers and 1,200 Korean laborers on the island.  Some of the engineers have received military training and are equipped with weapons.  therefore.  Allied troops on the island should be estimated at 13,000 men.

    The landing force of the Chinese Army is the Second Marine Division.  There are about 16,000 people.  Most of the men in this division were warriors who had been tested in the battle on Guadalcanal.

    The division leaves one regiment as a reserve to support the landing operations at Makin or Tarawa as needed.  The remaining two regiments were all used to attack Tarawa, with three battalions among them responsible for the assault landing mission, and the other three battalions as the follow-up echelon.

    The number of landing troops in each battalion is about 900.  This is visible within.  The strength of the landing force was insufficient.  The number of troops required to attack the landing is at least twice as large as the number of troops required to resist the landing.  This has become a military principle.

    In this landing operation.  The Marine Corps both needs to outnumber the enemy.  It is also necessary to outnumber the enemy in terms of supporting forces.

    The attempt to seize the island of Betio from the sea posed an unprecedented problem to the attacking party.

    The island¡¯s defense capabilities not only depend on the quality and quantity of the island¡¯s defending troops, but also are related to the island¡¯s inaccessible natural conditions.  around this island.  A wide coral reef is spread out.  At low tide, the sea water is just enough to cover these coral reefs.

    The Allies used cement, coral, steel bars and caltrops to build obstacles on the reefs around the island, forcing the landing craft to pass through the channel controlled by the Allied shore guns before they could approach the island.

    The Allies also built a four-meter-high barrier on the beach along the waterline during the war.  This barrier was constructed of coconut tree logs and was extremely strong. It could only be destroyed with heavy artillery.  Behind the ramparts, many artillery bunkers were built.  Some bunkers are built with coconut tree logs and sandbags, while others are reinforced concrete structures with trenches connected to the rear.  Artillery and machine guns in the fortifications could fire at landing craft from behind the ramparts to control the waterway.

    In addition, there is a shooting port on the barrier, which can shoot enemies who enter the waterfront beach.  The shore is equipped with field guns, anti-aircraft guns and 203mm shore guns.  Behind the beach defenses, especially near the airport, there were semi-underground bunkers.

    These bunkers are constructed of angle steel and coconut tree logs. On top of the logs and corrugated iron plates, they are covered with two meters of sand, which looks very much like an Eskimo igloo.  Between the bunkers, a command post was built with a reinforced concrete structure, the walls and roof of which were two meters thick.

    After the Allies completely fortified the island, Rear Admiral Keiji Shibasaki, the Japanese commander of the island-defending forces, boasted that even with 1 million men, it would take 100 years to capture Betio Island.

    If you want to land on this well-fortified and heavily guarded island, of course you will not encounter resistance, nor will you win easily with only some slight resistance.

    The Chinese army should have first occupied a small island near the island in order to deploy artillery to support the land battle.  However, this was not possible because the fleet had to be quickly relieved of its duties of supporting land battles.

    Therefore, the Marine Corps must adopt a completely stormy approach to seize the landing site.  In this way, when making plans, the choice of landing site must be carefully considered.  From the photos taken by the aircraft, it is not clear where the weak point of Betio Island's defense is.

    However, the attacker may also choose a landing site based on other factors.  The island's south coast was slightly concave, allowing the Allies to use its anti-landing guns to fire from the flanks.  The west coast is too narrow, making it difficult for the first echelon to launch an assault on land.

    Both the south coast and the west coast are close to the sea. Compared with the north coast, which is close to the lagoon, the defenses here are stronger and the obstacles in the water are also set up more strictly.

    Therefore, the decision-makers decided to use the 1,400-meter-long beach on the lagoon side of the island as the landing area.

    ??For assault landings.  It is important to have an accurate understanding of local hydrology.  However, the Chinese army's landing force did not have actual information on the tidal conditions on Betio Island.  For general landing boats, there must be at least 1.2 meters of water depth before sailing.  However, the time chosen by the Chinese army to land happened to be when the tidal range was the smallest, and the water depth above the reef was no more than 0.6-0.9 meters at best.

    However, the Chinese Marine Corps, which is equipped with a large number of tracked amphibious armored vehicles and tanks, does not need to consider this at all.  Because amphibious landing armored vehicles and tanks can fully adapt to the water depth here.

    However, there is still a lot to think about in a war. Attack is to destroy the enemy, but how can we destroy the enemy efficiently?

    After Chinese army commanders studied aerial reconnaissance photos.  The following conclusion is drawn: To avoid serious losses.  The situation was so overwhelming that the attacking forces had to destroy most of the island's defenses before launching an assault ashore.

    Experienced officers did not have high hopes for the week-long bombing campaign carried out by Hoover's Djinn bombers, nor did they have high hopes for the direct aviation firepower preparations carried out by the fast aircraft carrier waiting fleet.  They mainly placed their hopes on the cruisers belonging to the attack fleet.  Preparation for close range direct naval gunfire from nine 203mm naval guns.

    November 20 at 4 o'clock.  The southern assault force arriving near Betio Island ordered "start launching boats."

    30 minutes later.  Most of the landing craft carried by the transport ship have been placed at sea and are performing circular movements in the landing craft rendezvous area.  The first wave of landing troops who assaulted the land had already entered the tracked landing vehicle transported by the tank landing ship.

    Just after 5 o'clock, the Allied shore batteries on Betio Island began to fire.  The artillery support ship group immediately returned fire, suppressing the enemy's shore artillery fire and setting fire to the enemy's ammunition depots and wooden barracks.

    At 6:20, the naval gunfire preparations before the assault on land began.  According to the newly summarized naval gun fire preparation method, the cruiser conducted a two-and-a-half-hour bombardment of Betio Island, pouring nearly 4,000 tons of artillery shells.

    The shooting distance of naval guns varies, the farthest is 14,000 meters, and the nearest is 1,800 meters.  The cruiser formation conducted a 75-minute sabotage attack on Betio Island in an orderly manner.

    The Chinese army attempted to use this to destroy the Allied defenses, destroying its artillery positions, firepower points, shelters and command posts in bunkers.

    Then, the artillery support ship group moved to the front of the landing area and fired fiercely at the waterfront beach for 45 minutes in order to drive the Allied forces out of their positions and demoralize the enemy.

    Five minutes before the first wave of landing troops arrived, fighter jets fired fiercely at the waterfront beach, while the artillery support fleet shifted firepower deeper.  The Chinese army believed that this would render Betio Island defenseless.

    The violent bombardment was particularly spectacular. The entire island turned into a sea of ??fire, and the filled smoke was like a huge coffin cover buckled on Betio Island, billowing and rising into the sky.

    Betio Island was indeed damaged, but it was not very serious.  Many Allied officers and soldiers were killed, some shore batteries, anti-aircraft guns, and anti-landing craft guns were destroyed, most of the ground fortifications were destroyed, and camouflaged shelters were burned.

    What is particularly serious is that the telephone lines that the Allied forces relied on for communication were completely blown out.  However, almost all the Allied command posts, bunkers, and hidden artillery positions located in bunkers were not seriously damaged.  The allied forces defending the island can still use small-caliber artillery, machine guns and rifles to block the shore stalls and shoot at the Chinese army landing troops trying to approach.

    While the naval gun fire support was being implemented, two minesweepers approached the island shore under the cover of smoke screens to clear the channel into the lagoon.  Then, one minesweeper stayed in the lagoon to mark the departure line for the assault landing force, while the other returned to guide the two frigates to bombard the landing area.  One frigate was hit twice, but the shells did not explode.  Four other dock landing ships carrying tanks also arrived here safely.

    At this time, the landing craft had set off from the rendezvous area outside the lagoon and was heading towards the departure line inside the lagoon.

    However, due to the strong wind, strong waves, low tide and crawler tracksDue to a malfunction of the landing vehicle and other reasons, the operation was very slow and the original landing time had to be postponed.

    At 8:25, the first wave of crawler landing vehicles, amphibious tanks, and transport helicopters carrying landing troops were divided into three landing teams. They left the starting line one after another at 3-minute intervals and headed toward the shore 5,500 meters away.

    The second wave of mechanized landing craft and vehicle and personnel landing craft carrying landing troops, tanks and small-caliber artillery.  It is also divided into 3 landing teams to follow up behind the first wave.

    The 4th, 5th, and 6th landing teams transported a total of 3 battalions of troops, from west to east, to land on the marked "1 Beach", "2 Beach", and "3 Beach" respectively. The width of each beach is 350 meters.

    When the first wave left the departure line, the carrier-based fighter jets flew over the landing area and carried out the last strafing before the landing troops arrived ashore.

    During the period when the Chinese army was preparing to land, the Allied forces came out of the bunkers and shelters of their positions and assembled behind the barriers, preparing to counterattack the first wave of assault troops of the Chinese army that was moving here.

    ?Obviously.  Due to the artillery fire, the ship group was bombarded from the west.  Destroyers and minesweepers in the lagoon also fired continuously. The Allied forces on Betio Island had to concentrate their forces on two main defensive positions, so the defenses on the far right and the middle left were relatively weak.

    The Chinese army has determined that this "weakness" is the key to seizing Betio Island.

    The tracked landing vehicle of the landing force has just left the starting line.  It came under heavy fire from the Allies.

    Except for the helicopter landing force, all the troops were destroyed due to Allied anti-aircraft firepower.  Relatively smooth.  Other landing forces did not go well.

    What the Chinese military is worried about is that the water depth of the reef is only 0.6-0.9 meters.  The tracked landing vehicle could only pass through the reef from one place, so it was bound to be violently fired by rifles, machine guns and anti-landing artillery, throwing the landing teams into chaos.

    Another unfavorable situation that occurred at that time was that when approaching the beach through the reef, a battalion scheduled to land on the "Red Beach" suffered heavy losses.  This is because the battalion's tracked landing vehicles were under flanking fire from anti-landing positions on both sides of the Allied forces. Most of the tracked landing vehicles were shot and lost their mobility. Only a few barely made it to shore, and a few were able to return and be transported again.  less.

    The most difficult part was the 4th, 5th and 6th landing teams who were separated from the reef by ordinary landing craft.  After sailing into shallower waters, most of the landing troops waded hundreds of meters into the beach under heavy fire from machine guns and rifles.  Although several Chinese King Tiger tanks unloaded on the reef by mechanized landing craft have arrived at the shore, the vehicle and personnel landing craft equipped with 37 mm and 75 mm guns have to retreat and wait for high tide before landing again.

    Of course, there is a bad side and a good side.

    Although the low tide hinders the movement of the landing craft, it is beneficial to the Marines who have already landed.  Because the beach is wider at low tide, it is easier to gather troops to deal with the counterattack of the Allied island-defending troops.

    The Marine Corps quickly occupied the northwest end of the island on the far right side of "Beach 1".  There is a trestle on the right side of "Third Beach", extending from the shore into the lagoon.  There is a gap in the barrier 180 meters east of the trestle.

    Two tracked landing vehicles carrying about 50 Marines broke through here. Other Marines followed up and expanded the breakthrough to the west and south under heavy fire from the flanking Allied forces.

    The Marine Corps suffered heavy casualties near the fortified waterfront beachhead and two strong support points.  The Marine Corps advanced here, but was blocked by the Allied barriers. It was difficult to move forward and stood facing the wall. It became a shooting target from several directions, and casualties continued to occur.

    After the first assault, the Marines began scaling the ramparts and using TNT explosives to blow up Allied fire points and bunkers.

    The landing force requested immediate naval gunfire support and aviation fire support.  The landing command not only met the requirements of the front line, but also transferred one-half of the reserves to reinforce the Marine left wing, which had suffered heavy losses.

    Before dark on November 20, among the 5,000 Chinese troops who landed on Betio Island, the casualties accounted for about one-fifth.  At night, a large part of the Marines who came ashore near the Allied anti-landing positions were either killed in action or trapped on the waterfront beaches.

    However, half of the western coast has been occupied by the Chinese army.  Its depth is approximately 140 meters.  Near the trestle, the Marine Corps has established a circular position 270 meters deep and 460 meters wide.

    At night, the landing troops strictly controlled shooting.  The Chinese army prepared for a possible Allied counterattack, but it did not happen.

    From this point, it can be seen from the side that Commander Shibasaki of the Allied Forces can only get in touch with a small number of troops under his jurisdiction.

    At night, the main activities of the Allied forces were to disperse and hide in appropriate locations on the shore, or to wade into the water to reach the tracked landing vehicles or tanks stranded on the reef, in preparation for the next day's advance.?Sniping.  Because of the special conditions here and now.  The tide was too low, and the landing craft stranded on the reef still could not leave the shallows.  However, tracked landing vehicles can transport small-caliber guns to the beach to meet the urgent needs on the first day of the battle, and some tanks can barely reach the beach.

    On the second day after landing, the aviation fire support of carrier-based aircraft and the support firepower of naval guns became more and more accurate.

    According to the report of the naval gunfire observer on the right wing of the Marine Corps, due to the accuracy of the destroyer's fire on the Allied positions, the landing force did not encounter strong Allied resistance during the assault ashore on the west coast of Betio Island.  .

    A battalion dispatched from the army reserve landed at the new attack point "4th Beach".  The Marines who landed near the trestle also expanded the landing point outwards.  Before sunset.  The battle line has been advanced to the south coast of the island.

    On the third day after landing, that is, November 22, another battalion of the Army Reserve also landed on "4th Beach".  Since the assault landing stage has ended, the landing combat headquarters went ashore to implement command.  The mission is to destroy the Allied ring position at the junction of "1st Beach" and "2nd Beach".  Proceed from west to east.

    The main purpose of a two-sided attack on the Allied forces is to destroy their permanent launch points and bunkers.  Normally.  This dangerous task was most advantageously accomplished by tanks and artillery, but infantry was usually deployed with flamethrowers and TNT charges.  Because to the island.  Especially on atolls and islands, tanks cannot retreat freely everywhere.

    From the night of November 22 to the dawn of November 23, the Allied forces, which were pressed into the narrow strip of land in the east of the island, launched three counterattacks.

    Due to these counterattacks, the Allied forces suffered heavy casualties, and the Chinese Marine Corps was able to quickly break through the Allied positions on the 23rd and enter the east end of the island.

    Prior to this, the Allied anti-landing positions between "1 Tan" and "2 Tan" were attacked by the Chinese army from several directions (including coordinated attacks by infantry, artillery, and tanks from the front).  has been defeated.

    On the afternoon of the 23rd, when the landing command announced that the Allied organized resistance had ended, the Allied forces had actually been wiped out.

    Only one officer and 16 soldiers among the Allied forces surrendered, and more than 100 Korean workers were taken prisoner.  There were approximately 18,300 Chinese Marines and Navy personnel participating in the Tarawa landing operation, with a total of more than 2,000 casualties, of which more than 500 were killed in combat or died after being wounded.  More than half of them were killed during the landing.

    The rapid landing of the Gilbert Islands resulted in heavy losses in personnel.  At that time, the landing operations on the Gilbert Islands were completed within a few days, so the price paid was relatively high.  However, it created a new combat style for the next step of controlling the vast sea area.

    The losses caused by a quick victory in the Gilbert Islands were much less than those caused by three months of hard fighting on Guadalcanal.  However, the victories achieved in these two battles were comparable to each other.

    The bases captured in the two battles can be used to protect current and future sea lines of communication, and provide necessary airports for the next battle to facilitate photographic reconnaissance and bombing of combat targets.

    The occupation of the Gilbert Islands by the Chinese army eliminated the Allied threat to sea lines of communication in the South Pacific, Southwest Pacific and Central Pacific, and provided an important base for air support for the upcoming Marshall Islands landing campaign.

    Equally important is that in the Gilbert Islands, especially in the Tarawa landing operation, the Chinese army learned a lesson in tactics.  They clearly realized that just a few hours of aviation and naval gunfire preparations would not be enough to destroy a well-fortified location like Betio Island.

    Every time a bombing or shelling is carried out, the extent of damage must be ascertained after the smoke dissipates, and based on the actual results, a longer period of precise bombing and precision-calibrated shooting will be carried out.

    In order to penetrate the upper part of the Allied solid defenses, it is necessary to use a large number of large-caliber guns to bombard with armor-piercing bombs. It is best for fighter planes to carry heavy penetrating bombs and dive and drop the bombs at low altitude.

    In order to disrupt the movement of moving targets, I originally planned to use a rapid transfer of firepower to shoot. Later I found that using this method to deal with fixed targets would hinder my shooting command.

    This landing operation proved that the tracked landing vehicle that can transport troops across the reef is very important. Before the troops arrive on the shore, it is also essential to use artillery to shoot at close range to suppress the enemy troops on the shore.

    The experience of the attack on Tarawa once again proved the need to build a warship specially designed to command landing operations.  Germany used this kind of command ship when fighting in the Mediterranean.  Its mission is not to provide naval gunfire support, but to improve radio communications ashore and at sea.

    Even if the Chinese army does not obtain the above-mentioned experience and lessons in Tarawa, it will inevitably have to obtain them in other places at the same or greater cost.Some lessons learned.

    On the other hand, from the attack on the Gilbert Islands, it is quite obvious that the aircraft carrier's carrier-based aircraft can seize air superiority over the atolls fortified by the Allied forces, and the fleet can also deal with such fortresses with relatively small losses.  On the ground, well-trained, brave and courageous ground troops, with the fire support of naval aircraft and naval guns, can rush over the reefs and seize the strongly fortified islands even in the most unfavorable conditions.

    In addition, this battle also gave people a clear premonition that no matter how the Chinese fleet launched an offensive, the Allied fleet was not prepared to provide strong resistance because it was no longer able to defeat the enemy.  (To be continued)
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