The amphibious landing vehicle is more like a light tank, and due to the lack of firepower and armor, its role is to provide temporary fire suppression and cover for the landing force.

It should be said that under normal circumstances, the short-term fire suppression and cover of the landing craft is sufficient, because the Japanese army still uses bolt rifles and machine guns with inferior performance, of course, the "inferior performance" is only relative to the equipment of the US military, so their firepower is far inferior to that of the US army.

As a result, the landing vehicle only needed to provide a short period of time and cover for the landing force, and the follow-up American troops would soon follow the landing and launch an overwhelming assault on the Japanese army.

But......

Just because a landing vehicle can cross a reef does not mean that a landing craft can also cross a reef.

The "avoidance" of the undercurrent, which MacArthur had overlooked, became a reality at this point...... The U.S. troops on the Higgins landing craft following the landing vehicle saw a scene that made them feel horrified, they had thought that the water was 1.2 to 1.5 meters deep, but the reality was that the water was too shallow, and large areas of coral reefs were exposed to the sun, as Major Harland estimated, the deepest water was only 910 millimeters deep.

So there was a scene off the coast of Beato Island that everyone couldn't believe:

The landing force was divided into two parts, the amphibious landing vehicle crossed the reef and rushed to Beato Island, while the Higgins landing craft was blocked by the reef 500 meters away.

500 meters is not a long time, but it makes the landing vehicle and the landing craft two parts that cannot support each other.

At this time, the Japanese opened fire, and the sound of gunfire and artillery soon rang out, and a dense stream of bullets and shells swept across the battlefield like a raging storm.

And the landing force of the US army at this time ...... They didn't even know what to do next, because it was unlike any of their previous training, and the instructor hadn't taught them how to deal with it.

Major General Hill quickly got the information about the landing force from the walkie-talkie.

He couldn't help but be stunned on the spot: "Stranded, how is this possible?" ”

"General, that's true!" The staff officer reminded: "Give the order quickly!" Checkmate...... Those landing craft are paralyzed next to Beato Island and cannot move, they are like targets for the Japanese army! ”

The staff officer was right, while Major General Hill hesitated, the Japanese mortar shells were chasing the landing craft one after another, and as long as one shell hit, the 36 soldiers gathered in the landing craft would be blown into the sky.

But Major General Hill was still unable to give the order.

He wanted to withdraw the landing force, but it was clear that he could not do so...... The landing vehicle has landed on the island, and the landing craft is stranded and cannot move unless the soldiers are allowed to swim back.

He wanted to let warships or carrier-based aircraft bomb to provide fire cover for the landing force, but after thinking about it, he quickly gave up, because Bito Island was only four or five hundred meters wide in total, and it was also shrouded in smoke and water vapor, and the bombing would only cause accidental damage and make the situation worse.

Wu Shimin and others were also trapped on the landing craft, and it was only then that he and the soldiers of the new 28th Division realized that these seemingly advanced equipment could not actually save their lives. In fact, they were surrounded by paralyzed amphibious landing vehicles and broken landing craft, the surrounding waters turned red or pink and churned like fountains, and the waters were littered with half-suspended corpses that appeared and disappeared in the waves of shells or were thrown high into the air again.

"Master!" Wu Shimin shouted in horror at the walkie-talkie: "We are trapped, the landing craft is stranded!" We can't move......"

"Get out of the landing craft!" Zhang Chi didn't think about it, so he ordered: "Charge towards the shore, only when you rush to the shore can you have any hope of survival!" ”

Hearing this, Wu Shimin couldn't help but be stunned.

He breathed rapidly due to fright, and his mind, which was still blank just now, tried to think about what Zhang Chi said: "Only by rushing to the shore can there be any hope of survival!" ”

"That's right! Only by rushing to the shore can there be any hope of survival! It took a while for Wu Shimin to react.

Then Wu Shimin pulled out his pistol and shouted at his subordinates: "Brothers, you are waiting for death on the boat, and those who want to live will rush with me!" ”

As he spoke, he waved his pistol and shouted, "Rush! ”

"Rush!"

……

While the U.S. Marines were still in a hurry, the Chinese soldiers took the lead in jumping into the water and wading waist-deep towards Beato Island.

There seems to be no hope for such a charge...... Because they had no bunkers, no protection, as Major General Smith, commander of the 2nd Marine Division, said, their only armor was the uniforms on their bodies.

What's worse is that the water that reaches the waist will also make the soldiers move very slowly, and the distance of 500 meters usually only takes a few minutes for them, but now it is like a life and death boundary that can never be crossed, because there is not only sea water in front of them, but also a rain of guns and bullets.

But they had no other choice, because they had no way out, and if they remained on the landing craft, they would only wait for death.

The U.S. military also realized this, so more and more soldiers abandoned their landing craft and chose to charge ashore.

Strings of bullets flew in, and immediately a group of soldiers was knocked down in the sea...... The sea undoubtedly increased casualties, as any soldier who was knocked unconscious or injured and unable to get up would be drowned.

Several shells exploded in the seawater, knocking out patches of soldiers to the ground, and the shells were multiplied by the terrain, and the coral reefs they blew up would become good shrapnel, and the sea would push down the soldiers who were struggling to charge towards the shore.

Fortunately, however, the target of the Japanese army was not only the landing craft, but also the landing vehicles that had already landed on the coast and were in a melee with the Japanese troops.

If it weren't for the landing vehicles that attracted some of the Japanese firepower, the Chinese and American soldiers on the landing craft would not have been able to rush to Bito Island.

Therefore, what Major General Shibasaki of the Japanese Army said was actually correct, "The Allies will not be able to capture Bito Island even with a million men in a hundred years!" ”

He just didn't expect that the Americans would have such a thing as an amphibious landing vehicle.

Eventually, after leaving behind a corpse, some of the Chinese and American forces rushed to the shore...... This part of the people is undoubtedly lucky, for they are the living half.

But just because they washed ashore didn't mean they were safe, even though they found a good bunker...... Breakwater.

The breakwater was a dead end for the Japanese fire, and it was difficult for either bullets or shells to reach the corners under the breakwater, but they had no room to move except for hiding there.

Rush out and capture Bito Island as planned?

This is undoubtedly a fool's dream, as their equipment was discarded when they jumped into the water, and most of the radios were unusable due to the flooding.

(To be continued.) )