20_20434After the end of the air battle, when Yang Zhen, who was quite satisfied with the appearance of the air force, put down the telescope in his hand, he found that the central chief not far from him was actually watching the battle like himself. And these central leaders, who had also just put down the telescope in their hands, were obviously very interested.

Seeing the central leaders who were also watching the battle, Yang Zhen, who was taken aback, hurriedly walked over a few steps and saluted: "Why did the leaders come out to watch the battle, this is too dangerous." If a Japanese plane broke through the interception and dropped bombs, and the Japanese planes dropped bombs indiscriminately while they were intercepted, even if even one bomb landed here, several leaders would be in danger. ”

Hearing Yang Zhen's worried tone, the commander-in-chief smiled and pointed at Yang Zhen's words: "With your subordinates here, where can we be in danger?" Besides, if you hide in a bomb shelter, you can still see such a wonderful air battle there? This is a scene that has not been seen in Yan'an in the past, or even on the front line. ”

The commander-in-chief's voice fell, and the chairman over there also said after lighting a cigarette: "Comrade Yang Zhen, today you have taught us lonely and unheard people a wonderful lesson. We finally have an air force capable of fighting tough battles, and this is a great joy worthy of celebration by the whole army. ”

In the face of the chairman's praise, Yang Zhen said with some embarrassment: "Chairman, their achievements today are the result of the strong support of the central government. If it weren't for the central government's transfer of the Xinjiang Air Force to us, which laid a good foundation for us, we would not have been able to achieve the results we have now. ”

"Without the firmness of the Central Committee and the support of the Central Committee, the anti-United Nations aviation forces would not have been able to go where they are today. So the greatest credit, in the center and not in us,. I really thank the central government for its full support for us in terms of talents, and we did not have a situation of personnel and other equipment."

Speaking of this, Yang Zhen looked at the chairman and said apologetically: "Today's situation is my negligence, I didn't remember that Yan'an is across the river from the Japanese army, and it is within the combat range of the Japanese air force in North China, and it is also the key target of the Japanese air attack. I immediately sent a telegram to the Northeast, and I was transferring some of the fighters and the corresponding spare parts and fuel. ”

Hearing that Yang Zhen was going to transfer fighter jets from the northeast, the chairman waved his hand and said, "We are very good and safe here." You don't even need a plane, we don't need it here. I understand your thoughts, and so do the central authorities. But you need it there more. If you transfer planes over, I'll punish you. ”

Regarding the chairman's words, Yang Zhen insisted: "Chairman, I insist on this matter. Yan'an is the central station. The safety here is related to the lifeblood of the whole army, and safety is higher than a qiē. Chairman, you are a military master. In a war that is vital to the survival of the entire nation, you should know in your heart the importance of the security of the commanding organs. ”

"According to the habits and character of the Japanese army, they can't take advantage of the battlefield, they always have to find it somewhere else. Chairman, the security of you and the Central Committee has a bearing on the life and death of the entire army. You and the central security is higher than a qiē. Yan'an's air defense must be taken seriously. ”

Speaking of this, Yang Zhen hesitated for a moment and said: "Chairman, the transfer of some fighter planes from the northeast to Yan'an for air defense missions is not necessarily a bad thing for us, a batch of fighter planes sold by the United States at a very low price is about to arrive, and a batch of fighter planes that we exchanged from the Soviet Union at the beginning of next year is also about to arrive." ”

"Even if some fighters are left to be used as accessories, such a large number of aviation forces in the Northeast Battlefield still seem to be a bit excessive. This also means that a large number of fighter pilots can only sit idle in the rear and do not have the opportunity to fight for a long time. ”

"Transferring them to Guannei, under such a tense situation as the Yan'an air defense formation, we transferred some combat aircraft to take on the air defense combat mission in Yan'an. That is, it can ensure the safety of the central authorities, and it can also allow a group of pilots to gain actual combat experience. It's a win-win-win-win thing. Moreover, it can contain the inability of the Japanese air force to be transferred out of the customs and reduce the pressure on the northeast. ”

Yang Zhen's words fell, but the chairman still expressed his opposition. Although Yang Zhen said it very lightly, the chairman understood it in his heart. Yang Zhen is right, with the planes of the United States and the Soviet Union in place, there will be a blowout outbreak of the air force of the Anti-United Nations. However, according to the operational plan for the next two years and the goal of military construction reported by Yang Zhen, the air defense situation in the entire northeast is still quite grim.

Putting aside operations for a moment, the pressure on the Northeast Military Region can be imagined when such a large number of military industries are concentrated on the ground, and when the number and reserve replenishment capability are inferior to those of the opponent. As a commander-in-chief, this truth will not be clear to the chairman. That's why the objections were clearly expressed.

The chairman's opposition did not change Yang Zhen's mind. After returning to his residence, Yang Zhen immediately sent a telegram to Li Yanping and Guo Bingxun, who were in charge of the overall military situation in the northeast, and dispatched an additional fighter brigade and selected a capable commander to immediately enter the customs and arrive in Yan'an to undertake the air defense task of the central location.

After Li Yanping and Guo Bingxun received Yang Zhen's telegram, they acted extremely quickly. In addition to following Yang Zhen's request, an additional fighter group arrived in Yan'an three days later, and an Il-4 bomber group that had just completed training and modification from Jiangbei was also transferred. At the same time, a group of ground crews, spare parts, and fuel arrived.

Looking at the Flying Snake fighters and Il-4 bombers that landed one after another, the chairman was obviously very dissatisfied with Yang Zhen's hand. However, under the persuasion of the commander-in-chief and other leaders, in the face of the established facts that Yang Zhen had created, he could only reluctantly accept Yang Zhen's first cut and then play.

However, although the chairman expressed anger on his lips, he was still happy in his heart for the achievements of the Anti-Japanese Federation. After Yang Zhen transferred another fighter brigade to hold up an air umbrella for the entire Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningbo border region, not a single Japanese bomb was dropped in the Yan'an area.

And as a person who never defends passively and always believes that offense is the best defense, how can the aviation under Yang Zhen honestly defend passively after arriving in Yan'an? Guo Bingxun dispatched the first Yir 4 bomber group that had just completed the conversion training to Yan'an, and he had no intention of being honestly left behind.

The day after the bomber group arrived in Yan'an, it took the initiative to attack. Taking advantage of the ultra-low-altitude raid tactics at dusk, twelve bombers were dispatched, and with the cooperation of the underground party, the Japanese airfield in Yuncheng was blown up to the ground. Due to the heavy losses caused by the bombing of Yan'an, the 18th Flying Squadron of the Japanese Army, which was being repaired, was completely wiped out in this bombing.

Although Yuncheng Airport is not large, its geographical location is extremely important. It was an extremely important and crucial starting point for the Japanese army's bombing of the rear of the Great Northwest. The Japanese planes that bombed Lanzhou, Xi'an, and the Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningbo border area basically set off from this base.

Except for a small number of bombers from Taiyuan and Xinxiang airfields in Henan, the bombers of the various air groups bombed by the Japanese army in the northwest basically took off from Yuncheng. After the setback of the air raid on Yan'an, the Japanese army, which had always had a strong sense of revenge, mobilized almost all of North China's army aviation to gather at the Yuncheng airfield in an attempt to retaliate in order to completely wipe out the air power that seemed to suddenly appear from the ground.

In order to retaliate, the Japanese army transferred a considerable number of bombers and fighters from Beiping, Xinxiang and even Jinan, and transferred them to Yuncheng Airport to look for an opportunity to retaliate. Unexpectedly, just the day before the operation, it was the first to suffer a heavy blow. Not only did the combat aircraft suffer great losses, but even the bombs and fuel stored on the airfield were also lost in the air raids.

Under the damage of anti-personnel explosive bombs and napalm dropped by more than 20 bombers, the entire Yuncheng airfield was blown up into a sea of fire during the air raid. The fire in the airport burned all night, and the detonation of ammunition and aviation fuel rang all night. After this battle, the Japanese air force at the Yuncheng airfield was greatly damaged and was no longer able to carry out air raids on the rear.

After the complete destruction of the Yuncheng airport, the aviation unit transferred to Yan'an was dispatched several times. Cooperate with the North China troops to carry out anti-sweeping operations, and carry out large-scale bombing of various airports and military production bases of the Japanese army in North China, including the Jinpu Railway and the railway junctions in the Japanese-controlled area of the Longhai Line.

With the full assistance of these bomber groups that attacked from the air, as well as a Soviet No. 2 light bomber group and two A-20 attack aircraft squadrons that were subsequently transferred to Guan, they were able to respond favorably to the Japanese army's sweeping operations in various base areas in North China after the counterattack on the Battle of the 100 Regiments.

Although the high cost of relying on the northeast airlift, including bombs and all fuel, the central government has always been cautious about the use of Yang Zhen's aviation troops transferred to Guannai. However, in a few sorties, these air units still achieved quite good results to the satisfaction of the central authorities.

Only in March 41, he cooperated with the troops of the Taihang Military Region and defeated the Japanese army's repeated sweeps of the Taihang base area. There were even two aviation squadrons dispatched to use napalm to defeat the combat power of a large-scale sweep of the Japanese army. It was advantageous to cooperate with the anti-sweeping operations of the North China troops.

In the second half of '41, these air units played a very crucial role in cooperating with the North China troops, which had already been equipped with a full set of Japanese-style equipment, to fight northward. The air raids on the railway lines in the Japanese-occupied areas almost completely paralyzed the Japanese army's railway transportation during the campaign. The attempt of the Japanese army to mobilize troops from the Kannai battlefield to reinforce the northeast failed, of course, these were all after the plane was transferred, and Yang Zhen, who was facing the chairman's anger, did not know at this time. With regard to Yang Zhen's action of slashing and playing at the same time, the chairman was very satisfied with the results achieved in the building of the air force. But for Yang Zhen's plan, he was still quite unhappy. Yang Zhen's originally planned trip to Chongqing was also shelved.

understands that the central government will do this, and it will definitely not be because of this matter of disobeying orders, and Yang Zhen, who deliberately snubbed himself, did not have other considerations. The chairman did not want to expose the truth of combat strength too early, and he understood it. No one likes to be in a delicate situation throughout the country and expose all the hole cards in their hands. This kind of choice, when the enemy is strong and we are weak, is not welcomed by any commander-in-chief.