Chapter 93 New Equipment
The Soviet-made KV-2 tank that appeared on the battlefield in Central and Eastern Europe shocked the whole world with its strong and almost indestructible armor and powerful 76.2mm tank gun, while the more maneuverable T-34 tank became the number one enemy in the eyes of the German armored forces.
In order to deal with these two tough opponents, Germany began to step up the development of the Panther V tank equipped with a 75mm tank gun and the Tiger VI tank equipped with an 88mm tank gun.
However, before the two new types of tanks were put into use, the Germans could only use the Panzer III and Panzer IV with upgraded artillery on the front line.
If the generation gap between German and Soviet tanks was only very small and could be easily overcome, then the Soviet tank was an unmatched monster for the Northwest II tank, which was only equipped with a small-caliber 37mm gun.
In other words, if the Soviet Union had not been destroyed by Germany in the end, it would only be a matter of time before overwhelming numbers of Soviet tanks appeared on the Mongolian border.
So could Germany ultimately defeat the Soviet Union and destroy the Bolshevik regime?
the answer is negative.
Not to mention that the Soviet Union had foreign aid from Britain and the United States, Germany was equivalent to fighting against three major powers on its own. Even if Germany and the Soviet Union fought one-on-one, given the Soviet Union's vast land area, Hitler had never imagined invading the area east of the Ural Mountains.
The result is clear. When Germany is unable to completely defeat the Soviet Union, the Northwest, in addition to clinging to the support of Britain and the United States, must also develop its own air-to-ground equipment that can at least fight against the Soviet army.
On November 7, 1941, Lieutenant General Zhou Lian, Director of the Artillery and Artillery Shell Production Bureau under the Northwest National Defense Army Armament Development and Procurement Administration, led Dai Jiliang, Zhang Xueliang and other members of the Military and Political Committee into an artillery test site deep in the Qinling Mountains. He was born in Kaiyuan, Fengtian, graduated from the 5th artillery class of Baoding, served in the Northeast Army for a long time, and entered the Northwest to serve in 1935.
"Your Excellency, Deputy Commander-in-Chief."
Zhou Rangquan, speaking with his hometown accent, pointed at a cannon wrapped in oilcloth and introduced it to everyone present.
"This is a 57mm 49-caliber dual-purpose anti-aircraft and anti-ground missile that we developed with our own technical strength."
Zhou Lian explained in detail.
"As an anti-aircraft gun, its firing height is between 6500m and 9000m, which can fill the current firepower gap between our 88mm anti-aircraft guns and 40mm anti-aircraft guns. Its theoretical firing rate is 80 rounds/minute, the actual firing rate is 48 rounds/minute, and the maximum initial velocity is 1350m/second. When it is used as a flat-fire gun, the maximum range is 11000m. If used as an anti-tank gun, it can penetrate 70mm thick vertical armor at a distance of 1000m, and can penetrate 50m thick vertical armor plates at a distance of 1500m."
Dai Jiliang listened silently and did not take Zhou Rangquan's bragging seriously. In fact, he knew very well that the so-called independent research and development was just a gimmick. In fact, a large part of the design of this artillery was based on the imported 40mm Bofors anti-aircraft gun.
But at this moment, he would not dampen the enthusiasm of the Artillery Research Institute. At least the Artillery Bureau had expanded the ratio of bore diameter to tube diameter, increased the initial velocity and penetration power of the shells. Although it was not very useful in air defense, it at least enabled the Northwest Army's anti-tank artillery units to have the ability to fight against the Soviet Army's active tanks. If it could be installed on new models of tanks, it would also be a powerful weapon.
Dai Jiliang's silence made Zhou Lian a little uneasy, but Zhang Xueliang was very interested, partly because Zhou Lian was originally from the Northeast Army: "Just listening to what you say, Brother Quan, I can't tell what you mean. Why don't we fire a few shots for everyone to see?"
Zhou Lian saw Dai Jiliang nodded slightly , so he immediately responded: "Well, please invite your Excellency, the Deputy Commander-in-Chief and several committee members to the test artillery range. Today we will demonstrate two projects, one is anti-aircraft guns hitting flying targets, and the other is the actual firing of armor-piercing shells." Zhou Rangquan did not boast. Amid the rumbling of artillery fire, the flying target towed by the calibration aircraft was shattered in mid-air by the concentrated fire of the 57mm anti-aircraft gun, and the three-inch steel plate was penetrated by the flat-fire 57 gun from 1,000 meters away.
Just as the members of the Military and Political Committee were drooling over the new gun, Dai Jiliang called Zhou Lian over and asked, "How much does this gun cost? How many rounds can it last? If it is produced at full capacity, what will be the annual output?"
"Your Excellency, the 57mm high-altitude gun has different configurations when used as an anti-aircraft gun, a regimental gun, or an anti-tank gun, and the factory price is also different. Generally speaking, making one gun is equivalent to making two 75mm mountain guns at present."
This number made everyone present gasp in amazement. If Zhou Rangquan was not lying, then in the short term they could only equip the troops from the Northwest.
"This is mainly due to the high chamber pressure, which leads to higher requirements for the processing of the barrel and special gun steel. As for the barrel life, it is also affected by the chamber pressure. If it is used as an anti-aircraft gun, it is 600 rounds, but if it is only used as an infantry gun and anti-tank gun, the barrel life can be extended to 1,000 rounds."
As there were many people around and many gossips, Zhou Lian set up a small ambush and concealed the barrel life of 100 and 200 rounds respectively, but this did not affect Dai Jiliang's judgment.
"If the Military Affairs Bureau approves the construction of a 57-gun production line immediately, the first batch of qualified artillery pieces will be produced between April and May next year. The initial estimate is that the monthly output in the first year will be between 20 and 30 pieces. Once the production line is stabilized, the monthly output can reach 50 pieces by then."
"With such a low barrel life, it is obvious that the 57 gun is not suitable for use as an anti-aircraft gun."
Dai Jiliang made such a judgment. Of course, this is also because the Northwest's four-level air defense system is now basically complete, and Dai Jiliang is not prepared to further complicate it.
"The cost of a single gun is so high that it is not suitable to equip divisions and regiments. It is better to produce it as a special anti-tank gun. Write a report to the Military Affairs Bureau tomorrow and ask Han Guangqi to allocate the cost of two production lines. At the same time, a reasonable transition plan should be made for the transformation of the original 37mm anti-tank gun production line."
"Starting two production lines at the same time?"
Such urgency could not but surprise Zhou Lian. Just when he wanted to ask Dai Jiliang for clarification, Zhou Rangquan suddenly remembered something and asked with understanding.
"Your Excellency, is this for Project No. 3?"
Dai Jiliang glanced at Zhou Lian and knew that he was trying to convey some information to his old employer. However, Dai Jiliang was not afraid of Zhang Xueliang and the members of the Military Commission present spreading the news, so he admitted it directly: "Yes, the extra production line is indeed used to produce the tank gun of the Type 3 tank."
At this point, Dai Jiliang warned Zhou Lian: "Brother Rangquan, don't think that everything will be fine just because you have the multi-purpose 57mm gun. The Artillery Bureau must keep a close eye on the world trend and see clearly the use of new weapons on the European battlefield. Although we cannot catch up with them for a while, we must also know what they rely on so that we can catch up and not fall too far behind."
Zhang Xueliang echoed, "Your Excellency's words are correct. In the past, we had no foundation and could only buy second-hand goods from the foreign devils. Now that we have the ability, we can't say that we will catch up with them immediately, but at least we have to keep up with them, so as not to fall too far behind."
Zhang Xueliang instructed: "I heard that Germany is developing tank guns with larger calibers. The Artillery Bureau cannot rest on its laurels and must make preparations for the development of 75mm tank guns. In the future, we will not only build 75mm tank guns, but also 90mm tank guns and even 107mm tank guns."
Dai Jiliang looked at Zhang Xueliang in surprise, wondering what his high-profile instructions were for. However, Dai Jiliang believed that Zhou Lian was a smart man and would not dare to easily side with his old boss. Therefore, he did not interrupt Zhang Xueliang's lecture, giving face to this nominal deputy.
After Zhang Xueliang finished speaking, Dai Jiliang asked, "Just now, Deputy Commander-in-Chief Zhang mentioned the development of the 90mm tank gun. This is of course a future expectation, but the development of the 90mm light howitzer has been going on for some time. What stage has it progressed to now? When can it be equipped to the front-line troops?"
90mm light howitzer? The representatives of various local armed forces who were still using the small number of 75 mountain guns and 82 mortars that had slipped through the fingers of the Northwest Army immediately perked up and listened attentively to Zhou Rangquan's answer. Even the noise of the discussion about the 57 guns just now subsided inadvertently.
"The Artillery Research Institute has completed the ballistic design work, and the prototype gun will be ready by the end of December."
Zhou Lian replied that the so-called 90mm light howitzer is a new type of artillery developed by the Northwest to replace the existing 75mm mountain and field artillery of the division. It has a range exceeding that of the existing 75mm mountain artillery while retaining the indirect fire function of the howitzer, and in order to adapt to China's road conditions, it has a lightweight design. In terms of performance, it will be no less than the 105mm field artillery currently assigned to the Northwest Army at the army group level, and will become the main long-range support weapon at the Northwest division level.
"If it passes the test, it is expected to be finalized by the middle of next year, and the first batch of artillery will be produced before the end of next year to equip divisional units."
"So if you want to change your outfit in large numbers, you'll have to wait until around 1943."
This time point was not too late for Dai Jiliang, so he did not urge for it. Obviously, he wanted to take his time and do a good job, rather than rushing to launch and then hastily eliminate the product.
"Okay, I'll wait for your good news."
Then everyone answered the question in the conference room of the artillery test site. Zhou Lian continued to make some reports on artillery production. In the report, a series of unimaginable figures such as "annual production of 240 88mm anti-aircraft guns, 190 105mm heavy field guns, and 160 155mm heavy howitzers" shocked all the committee members present. "This is a naked threat."
On the train back to Xi'an, the former commander of the Tenth Corps, Xiang Yuren, complained to Guo Yangfen of the Shanxi faction, Weng Juqing, and others who were part of Yang Hucheng's old army.
"The Northwest is preparing to tear its face off and start a large-scale annexation. It looks like you and I will have no choice but to be obedient citizens in the future."
"I don't think so."
Fang Xian, a native of Huangpi, Hubei, who defected from the Kuomintang to the Northwest, shook his head.
"The reason why Northwest China disclosed its strength to us is probably because of the last American military observation group. I think since the Americans knew about it, they couldn't hide the news, so they simply brought it out to intimidate us. Zhang Hanqing sang the same tune and put on a good show."
Chen Guangzao, deputy head of the battlefield service group who was from the same school as Xiang Yuren, sneered: "What difference does it make? We are already fish on the chopping block of the northwest. There is no chance of escaping annexation. It is only a matter of time. If we invest early, there may be a glimmer of hope. If we invest too much, I am afraid it will be difficult to turn things around."
"It's no secret that the Northwest wants to annex the princes. Anyone who reaches this point will do so."
Zhang Zizhong, who had been keeping a stern face, suddenly spoke in a deep voice.
"However, the South is not us. They have their own system and status. If the Northwest wants to reach the top, that is a hurdle that cannot be overcome."
