Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 858 The Battle of Penang Island : Suppression of Indian Soldiers

Ten gunboats were moored in the waters near the shore.

Two hundred Taishan Special Forces members, dressed in standard special operations uniforms and carrying individual combat packs, disembarked from the plane and landed on shore one after another.

After the special forces soldiers disembarked, Pan Jiafeng led the pilot and crew members off the plane.

Special Forces Captain Zhou Pomen loudly reported to Fang Wen: "Reporting to the General Manager, the Special Forces team was supposed to send 202 people for this mission, and 202 people actually arrived."

Pan Jiafeng also reported loudly: "Reporting to the General Manager, all the pilots and crew members of the First Aviation Battalion are here."

Fang Wen nodded: "At ease, stand by."

"Yes!" all the soldiers replied in unison, extending their right feet and assuming a resting position.

British Indian infantry and Malay militia soldiers on the dock spontaneously stopped to watch.

This well-equipped, disciplined, and fierce foreign private army stood in stark contrast to the disorganized and demoralized British colonial troops, leaving the island's defenders impressed by its elite status as the Taishan Private Army.

Fang Wen approached Lieutenant Colonel Terry: "What do you think of this unit?"

Lieutenant Colonel Terry couldn't help but praise, "Mr. Fang, this is the most elite ground combat force I have ever seen."

Fang Wen nodded, not caring about the other party's true thoughts. Whether an army is powerful or not will ultimately be tested on the battlefield.

He discussed his unit's camp issues with Lieutenant Colonel Terry.

"Our camp should be located nearby, so they can board the plane and fight at any time."

"I see. There are two warehouses near the dock, and they are quite spacious. I will have someone deliver mattresses and bedding. There will also be someone to take care of our meals. Is that alright?"

"They can cook for themselves; all we need to do is provide firewood and food."

"No problem, I'll arrange it. Let's go to the warehouse first."

After their conversation ended, Fang Wen signaled to the troops to leave 30 men to garrison the dock, while the rest would set off with him.

Upon arriving at the warehouse, they began clearing out the clutter, then received empty wooden crates and mattresses from the British army. They used the crates to build beds, laid out mattresses, and that became their sleeping place.

Seeing the soldiers acting in an orderly manner, Fang Wenze and Terry headed to the command post on the island.

Once inside the command post, he dismissed his staff and communications soldiers, closed the door, and, looking tired and serious, frankly told Fang Wen everything.

“Mr. Fang, I won’t lie to you, Penang is now an isolated island in a dead end.” Terry pointed to the map of northern Malaya, his voice dry and hoarse. “According to the telegrams I received from the front, the Japanese armored forces are advancing continuously, the entire northern Malayan defense line has been completely torn apart, the road defense line and village strongholds have been cut into sieves, and three infantry battalions in the north have lost contact.”

"On the first day of the war, the three major air force bases in northern Malaya, namely Alor Setar, Sungai Padang, and Kulim, were subjected to saturation air attacks by the Japanese. The hangars, fuel depots, runways, and radar stations were all destroyed. More than half of the fighter jets deployed in northern Malaya were directly destroyed on the ground. More than half of the pilots and ground crew were killed or wounded. The air superiority of the entire airspace in northern Malaya was completely surrendered to the Japanese."

"The airports on the southern route were congested and saturated and could not accommodate formation landings. Only the Penang Butterworth Airport had complete air defense facilities and fuel reserves. As a result, 12 Spitfire MK-Vs landed on the island, which became the only remaining air combat force on the northern route."

At this point, Lieutenant Colonel Terry's face was full of bitterness.

"I have been sending telegrams to the headquarters at Fort Corning in Singapore for 48 consecutive hours, requesting the Royal Navy fleet to go north to reinforce the waters off Penang, and to send fighter jets from our headquarters to reinforce the airport and deliver ammunition and fresh water supplies. As long as the Far East Fleet arrives and blocks the northern entrance of the strait, and works in conjunction with the coastal defense batteries, we can hold the island fortress."

Fang Wen remained calm and silent.

He knew more than Lieutenant Colonel Bitree.

Terry was completely unaware that just a day earlier, Admiral Phillips' Z Fleet, located off the coast of Kuantan, had been completely annihilated, with the Royal Navy's two flagship warships, HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse, sinking into the deep sea, and the Japanese having completely gained control of the Strait of Malacca.

Percival had no more main warships left. All the damaged ships were gathered together in Sembawang Port, Singapore, to protect themselves. They were not only unable to go north to aid Penang, but also struggled to hold the waters near Singapore and prevent the Japanese fleet from passing through the Strait of Malacca.

The British Far East Command had no ships to send and no supplies to deliver, and tens of thousands of British troops were tied down on the southern front in central Malaya, putting themselves in grave danger.

"The headquarters will definitely send reinforcements to us. At the latest, air and sea support will arrive by tomorrow..." Terry muttered to himself, more like trying to comfort himself.

Fang Wen did not shatter any hopes, but stated the facts: "Lieutenant Colonel, do not place all your hopes on Singaporean reinforcements. Even if they send troops, it will take time, and what we lack right now is time."

Terry's face turned pale instantly.

"You mean the Japanese army will launch another attack?"

“That’s for sure,” Fang Wen replied.

Just as Terry was about to speak in rebuttal, the communications officer pushed open the door and entered.

"Lieutenant Colonel, a call from headquarters!"

Terry quickly took the telegram and read it. The lines of text were chilling and icy, leaving him disappointed once again.

The Penang garrison held its existing defensive line, tying down Japanese forces on the northern front.

The few words made no mention of providing assistance.

Terry's hopes for reinforcements were dashed, and his arm trembled slightly as he held the telegram.

He turned to look at the composed Fang Wen, "How am I supposed to defend it?"

Fang Wen replied, "What we need to do now is to transport the supplies from the Butterworth Coast logistics camp, freshwater reservoir, and ammunition depot on the other side of the island back to the island. With these supplies, we will have the foundation to fight against the Japanese army."

“Alright, let’s focus on transporting the supplies first.” Terry nodded.

at the same time.

Deep in the rainforests of northwestern Malaya, the Japanese jungle infiltration battalion, which had failed in its raid on the Butterworth coastal logistics camp, gathered its remaining troops on the spot.

The field radio was quickly set up, and the battalion commander dictated to the telegraph operator the battle situation: the air support for the infiltrating troops had been cut off, the British had set up defenses in advance, the attack on the Butterworth coastal camp had failed, and the troops had suffered more than 30% casualties. The telegraph operator then sent the situation to the Guards Division headquarters on the northern front.

The telegram eventually reached the desk of Toyofumi Yamashita, who was traveling with the army on the West Coast Highway.

Inside the command vehicle, Toyofumi Yamashita was quite surprised after reading the battle report.

The original plan for a flanking attack was completely ruined by the defeat of Japanese bombers in the Penang airspace and the British army's advance defenses. The lightly armed infantry, who were isolated deep in the rainforest, had no heavy weapons or armored support, and any further attack would only result in their annihilation.

"Abandon the jungle infiltration and sneak attack plan." Yamashita Toyofumi issued a new operational order: "Recall the remaining rainforest infiltration infantry and return them all to the main force division; consolidate forces along the entire front, with the armored corps leading the way, and the main force division advancing south at full speed along the West Coast Highway 1 to launch a frontal attack on the town of Butterworth. Once we take Butterworth, we have many ways to capture that isolated island."

The military order was issued swiftly, and the remaining 400-plus Japanese soldiers in the rainforest immediately ceased their rest and quickly left the heart of the rainforest, retreating northward to join the main Japanese army corps beside the road.

The Japanese forces on the northern front completely changed their tactics, and the frontal assault strategy was officially launched.

More than thirty Type 97 medium tanks and Type 95 light tanks formed an assault vanguard, their tracks crushing the bushes on both sides of the road, forming a steel assault arrowhead, and took the lead in advancing westward.

Behind the tanks, the infantry regiment and mountain artillery regiment of the Japanese Imperial Guard Division followed.

Along the No. 1 coastal highway on the west coast of Malaya, British temporary field positions were arranged in layers.

These positions were hastily constructed, consisting only of simple bunkers made of sandbags and shallow trenches. There were no anti-tank blocking trenches or anti-tank minefields dug, and the entire army lacked a single anti-tank gun or heavy anti-tank machine gun. The entire northern British defense line had no combat equipment to counter the Japanese armored forces.

This scene is strikingly similar to the German armored forces' raid on the Ardennes, when a French defensive division regiment only had one anti-tank gun to deal with the German tank forces.

Japanese tank units approached the front line and opened fire with Type 97 vehicle-mounted guns, with shells landing on British sandbag fortifications.

The fragile makeshift position was instantly breached, sand and dust flew everywhere, fortifications collapsed, and the Indian infantry and Malay militia soldiers stationed there were killed or wounded in an instant. Without anti-tank weapons to counterbalance them, the British soldiers could only blindly fight back with rifles and light mortars. The bullets hit the surface of the Japanese tank armor, leaving only shallow bullet marks, and were unable to penetrate the armor or stop the tanks from advancing.

The defenses have completely collapsed.

One place, two places, three places...

More than ten British field positions along the highway fell one after another, and the morale of the British soldiers stationed there completely collapsed.

The Malay militia conscripted by the colony were the first to abandon their weapons, ammunition, and field supplies, and scattered and fled.

The lack of command among British junior officers meant that Indian infantry companies were fighting independently and unable to organize a secondary defense.

Organized British garrison troops abandoned their front-line positions and retreated hastily southward along the coastal road, heading straight for Butterworth, a town across the bay from Penang.

The fleeing soldiers dragged the wounded and dragged along the civilian laborers who were providing support, leaving behind large quantities of rifle ammunition, mortars, military rations, and medical supplies along the way.

The retreating teams were disorganized and blocked the entire coastal main road.

Military supplies, logistical provisions, and battlefield medical equipment were scattered along both sides of the road. British troops abandoned military baggage and damaged packs were everywhere, and the retreat scene was chaotic.

The Japanese armored forces did not rush to pursue and massacre, but steadily nibbled away at and occupied road positions and British village strongholds.

Meanwhile, Japanese engineers who arrived later began to repair roads and set up temporary supply points so that logistics troops could keep up.

The defeated British troops flooded into the town of Butterworth, plunging the town across Penang Island into chaos.

The streets, docks, intersections, and open spaces were all crowded with the remnants of the northern front, their clothes dirty and covered in gunpowder. Wounded soldiers cried out in pain, and exhausted and defeated soldiers sat on the ground in groups, their weapons lying haphazardly beside them.

The British officer tried desperately to maintain order, but he couldn't control the demoralized troops.

All the defeated soldiers were talking about the same thing.

That was to take a boat to Penang Island to avoid the onslaught of Japanese armored forces.

At this moment, all the ships at Butterworth dock were requisitioned and were being used day and night to load ammunition, fuel, fresh water, and supplies for the retreating troops. There were no extra ships available to provide evacuation capacity for the defeated soldiers.

After the order to evacuate supplies was issued, the Indian infantrymen, whose morale was already on the verge of collapse, erupted.

Thousands of Indian soldiers blocked the pier, shoved British soldiers, and shouted in protest.

There were even incidents of soldiers ramming supply transport teams and some even seizing dry rations from the shore, causing the situation to completely spiral out of control.

"We want to board the ship! We want to go to Penang!"

"Why should supplies be prioritized while we're left on land to die?!"

Indian soldiers gathered and caused a disturbance, and the crowd continued to push forward. British junior officers drew their guns and shouted at them to intimidate them, but the deterrent effect was negligible due to the disparity in numbers.

Discipline among the colonial garrison had completely collapsed, and the British officers were ashen-faced and helpless.

Just as the situation was about to erupt into a mutiny and conflict, the sound of orderly and steady military boots pounding echoed from the main road of the dock.

Fang Wen led one hundred fully armed Taishan Special Forces members to the scene. The special forces members held submachine guns and had a fierce and intimidating look on their faces.

"Shoot them! Shoot anyone who resists!" Fang Wendao shouted, repeating the order in English.

"Yes." Zhou Pomen led his team forward and, without saying a word, began to suppress the crowd.

Special forces soldiers used rifle butts to smash several Indian army leaders who were instigating the disturbance, and used their fists and feet to subdue the ringleaders.

There were no verbal reprimands, only gun butt strikes and fist and foot beatings.

The rioting Indian soldiers fell to the ground one after another and were subdued. Strangely, not one of them dared to resist.

This group of Indian soldiers, who had been suffering defeats all along and were known for bullying the weak and fearing the strong, dared to riot when faced with British officers, but instantly lost all their arrogance when faced with the murderous Taishan Special Forces members.

After the leader was subdued, the rest of the restless and defeated soldiers all calmed down, stood with their heads bowed, and remained completely silent, becoming utterly docile.

Fang Wen coldly surveyed the entire defeated army.

“I am now in charge of the military police duties. If you cause any more trouble, I will find the ringleaders and shoot them.”

These words terrified the Indian soldiers.

Seeing this, Fang Wen said again, "I don't care what unit you originally belonged to. Now, according to my requirements, who has the highest rank?"

A British officer stepped forward and said, "Sir, my name is Henry, and I am a major, the highest-ranking officer."

Fang Wen nodded: "That's you. Everyone will now be assigned to the Penang Third Operations Brigade. You will be the brigade leader."

"Yes, sir," Major Henry replied with a British military salute.

Subsequently, the more than 2,000 defeated soldiers from the northern front were gathered and reorganized on the spot, with seriously wounded and incapacitated soldiers removed, and then integrated and restructured.

With a leader, they became more disciplined.

After calming the chaos in Butterworth, Fang Wen strode through the crowds at the dock where supplies were being transferred, and stepped directly onto the Taishan gunboat moored on the shore. He warmed up the engine, and the gunboat glided up from the water and took off.

After flying to a high altitude, Fang Wen unleashed his special abilities and combined them with radar detection devices to search for targets.

No aircraft were detected in the nearby airspace.

Fang Wen then investigated the situation below.

On the coastal highway more than 100 kilometers from the town of Butterworth, endless lines of Japanese tanks and infantry marched south at a steady pace.

The nearest Japanese armored assault group is only 110 kilometers from the town of Butterworth. At the current rate of advance by land, the Japanese tank vanguard will reach the northern outskirts of Butterworth in four hours and thirty minutes.

The Japanese army attacked with a fully-equipped armored corps, along with heavy artillery and infantry regiments.

Butterworth is simply not a viable primary battleground.

Fang Wen had no intention of fighting the Japanese army again in Butterworth.

Immediately afterwards, Fang Wen piloted the plane back and landed in the waters near Butterworth.

The plane landed, and Fang Wen jumped onto the dock.

He rushed back to the dock's material dispatch office immediately and met with Lieutenant Colonel Terry, who was directing the transfer of materials.

"Lieutenant Colonel, the Japanese advance force is expected to arrive in four hours. We must complete the transport of supplies within three hours, and we need to allocate two large ships to transport the soldiers from the town. I have already reorganized them into a temporary combat battalion."

Lieutenant Colonel Terry broke out in a cold sweat after hearing this, realizing the critical situation, and immediately ordered the fleet commander to carry out the order.

Fang Wen returned to the special forces team and gave orders to the team leader, Zhou Pomen: "Select 120 special forces engineers, carrying all anti-armor mines and time-delay booby traps, and immediately proceed to the highway pass and the jungle flank passages on both sides of Butterworth's northern outskirts to lay mines."

Zhou Pomen stood at attention and accepted the order: "Understood! I guarantee I will complete the mine-laying mission to impede the enemy!" (End of Chapter)