"Compared with what we encountered on the Western Front, the artillery density of both sides is really far different." A German officer said. At this time, on a US landing ship, the Bavarian Army Observation Corps was using a telescope to observe the progress of the landing war in the distance. Compared with the large-scale artillery battles of more than a thousand artillery that broke out on the Western Front between the two sides, the firepower density of the US and Japanese troops was obviously not high-end.

"Japan is a country with very poor industry. Even with the support of the British, the improvement level will be limited in a short period of time. Moreover, the Japanese Army must have hidden some artillery. It is easier to understand that the Japanese Army has weak firepower. What about the Americans? They have to consider the issue of supply and barrel life, and they dare not let go of their hands to fight. However, if you think this battle is worthless just because of this, it would be a big mistake. Some of the actions and measures of both sides at the beach are worth learning from!" Major General Carls said.

When hundreds of various landing crafts launched an attack towards the coast, the Japanese were preparing to fight the decisive battle and the artillery at sea finally opened fire. The deployment locations of these artillery positions were relatively close. Usually, the 6-inch artillery was about 4 kilometers away from the coastline, while the smaller caliber artillery was only 2 kilometers away from the sea surface! Although the Japanese built their fortifications according to the general standards of the Western Front at the time, the facts proved that these fortifications were not enough to face 12-inch and 10-inch artillery!

"Damn it, it's not reachable at all!" Watching a shell landing next to a landing ship about 4 kilometers away from the coastline, a Japanese artillery officer was so angry that he was very angry that the maximum range of the 6-inch howitzer provided by the British was 8,700 meters, and the two sides were about 8 kilometers apart. It is logical that there should be a chance to attack the landing ship in the distance, but you must know that these 8,700 meters must be achieved at the maximum elevation angle. In order to ensure the defense performance of the artillery nest, the artillery nest was covered with a ceiling. Due to the limitations of the ceiling, the elevation angle of these artillery was limited, and the maximum range was only about 7,000 meters! So, this was a little embarrassed.

For landing craft with faster attack speed, the 6-inch cannon also performs poorly. After all, the British used old single-legged gun mounts, and the horizontal firing range was very small, and the firing rate was too slow. It was not enough to catch a landing craft faster than a tank. Compared with the 6-inch howitzers prepared by the Japanese, the 15-pound and 18-pound rapid-fire cannons provided by the British were good. Several landing crafts that were charging were destroyed by dense shells, and more than 80 US Army soldiers were blown into pieces by flying shrapnel before they encountered the land of New Ireland!

The Americans also visited the Western Front. They were very sensitive to the range of artillery. When the landing ship released the landing craft, it happened to be stuck with the range of the British howitzer. Of course, if it was replaced with French guns or Bavaria, the Americans would need to retreat about 3 kilometers more! In the Japanese's not dense rain of bullets, the US Navy released the landing craft one by one.

However, the US escort fleet did not intend to allow these gun positions near the coast. The two armored cruisers Atlanta and Philadelphia began to aim their 10-inch guns at the Japanese gun positions that were spitting flames!

"Use concrete armor-piercing shells! Load No. 3! Prepare for shooting." The two armored cruisers advanced about 3 kilometers and stopped less than 7 kilometers away from the target. In the turret, the gunners methodically put the conventional high-explosive shells back into the ammunition compartment, and then re-lifted the heavy concrete armor-piercing shells. This shell, dubbed "fat man", is a super-heavy shell. Generally, the shells with the former fearless 10-inch cannon weigh more than 220 kilograms, but these specially made reinforced concrete armor-piercing shells weighed nearly 280 kilograms. If you want to fire such a heavy shell, you naturally need to reduce the launching medicine to ensure that the chamber will not explode.

The elevation angle of the 12 10-inch cannons of the two armored cruisers was limited to 22 degrees. The fire controller rebind the firing table. Subsequently, these cannons actually acted as siege mortars in this naval battle!

Boom! Accompanied by a series of dull guns, unlike the slightly sharp sound when ordinary naval guns were fired, more than a dozen specially made reinforced concrete armor-piercing shells drew curves in the air and flew towards the distant targets. The speed of these shells was not so fast that they could be caught with the naked eye. They flew leisurely in the air, reached the highest point of the trajectory and stabbed them suddenly! The round and blunt warhead hit the thick rammed earth layer on the top of the cannon nest. The cannon nest, which was originally designed to resist the 210mm heavy howitzer, was easily broken like an egg at this moment. Then, as the bullet penetrated into it, the delay fuse at the tail of the bullet body was triggered, and with a loud bang, a smoke column that was nearly 100 meters high rose into the air! When the smoke of gunpowder dissipated, a huge bullet crater appeared on the ground, and some red and black minced meat and remaining parts fell around.

"We killed 4, and the Philadelphia next to them killed 3. The Japanese built fortifications for four years are not that strong." Standing on the Atlanta armored cruiser, Colonel Kimmel put down the telescope in his hand and said with a smile. In the initial artillery battle between the two sides, the Americans who had larger and more heavy artillery and made preparations in advance gained an advantage. They easily destroyed or suppressed the Japanese artillery positions located at the forefront. Even if they could not be destroyed due to angle problems, they continued to fire smoke bombs to interfere with the other party's shooting. Just when the Japanese coastal artillery was not suppressed, the first wave of assault composed of tank landing craft and personnel landing craft was almost at the beach. As the landing craft rushed to the beach, the huge landing springboard was opened, and a large number of US troops rushed up! The bloodiest and most intense battle in the landing war kicked off!

"Repeat, George, your man follows the engineers in front and provide cover. The second squad brings a machine gun to the side and unfolds it. I need you to block the Japanese from the flanks that may exist. The remaining two squads are ready to move forward in a ladder, okay, that's it. As soon as the boat stops, we jump! Be sure to move quickly, look at the cover, and then rush up, just like when you train on the exercise field before! Don't stay near the landing craft, this is a target!"

The platoon leader Homan repeated the key points of the attack for the last time on the bumpy landing craft! They were the first wave of landing troops, without heavy weapons, and could only rely on the machine guns and blasting equipment they carried to open a way forward from the mines and barbed wire! At the last moment before the landing, the soldiers checked their weapons and ammunition and their tools for the last time. With the vibration and collision of the hull, the landing craft finally rushed to the beach!
Chapter completed!