Empire Conquest-Chapter 784 - 64: Charging Ahead
"Head, lower left."
"I see it."
Responding briefly, Lian Mingyang’s attention returned to the dashboard in front of him, but only glanced momentarily before looking ahead.
It was 8:45.
On the road to the northeast, an armored unit was advancing northward.
Indeed, it was the 04101 Armored Battalion.
The tops of turrets and infantry fighting vehicles, backs of the vehicle bodies, and sides of the turrets and bodies were brushed with fluorescent paint in an inverted "V" for identification purposes.
In the air, it was very clear through the low-light night vision equipment.
As to why this symbol was used, rumors suggest it originated from the Sri Lanka pacification operation, the inadvertent act of a soldier.
This way, using the low-light night vision equipment, one could instantly identify which tanks and vehicles were allies, minimizing the chances of friendly fire.
Actually, everything appeared green in the low-light night vision equipment.
As for the fluorescent symbols, they simply appeared a bit brighter.
For a long period, night combat was always a weakness of the Empire Army. During the Boi War, the Imperial Army suffered greatly in night operations.
Subsequently, the Empire Army invested significant efforts to solve the night combat issue.
The result was that various types of night vision equipment, including low-light night vision devices, became standard for the troops.
Night vision goggles had long since become standard equipment for the Air Force and Special Forces, and Land Air Force helicopter pilots each had one.
Actually, on the Boss Bay battlefield, the Empire Army had already showcased extremely strong night combat capabilities, with operational efficiency at night even surpassing daytime. Key target bombing operations were almost exclusively conducted at night, and the "Attack-11" was primarily deployed nocturnally.
At this moment, Lian Mingyang was wearing binocular low-light night vision goggles.
This night vision equipment, weighing less than 1000 grams and attached directly to the flight helmet, was standard gear, providing pilots with a visual range of about 1000 meters at night. Although not sufficient for combat, it was more than adequate for piloting helicopters.
After surpassing the ground-based armored forces, Lian Mingyang opened the formation communication channel and issued the first command.
Slow down.
Reduce flying speed from 220 kilometers per hour to 150 kilometers per hour.
Of course, it was also necessary to check the status of the helicopter and weapons, and prepare for combat.
In standard air-ground coordinated tactics, armed helicopters typically operate about 50 kilometers ahead of the armored group, eliminating threats along the way.
They also intercept enemy armed helicopters if necessary.
Since they needed to provide cover for armored forces, there was no need to advance too far forward.
The "battle line" was not a single line, having a defense depth ranging from several kilometers to dozens of kilometers. If armed helicopters tasked with covering advanced too quickly and distanced themselves from the rear armored units, it could create gaps, allowing the enemy to exploit them.
Moreover, maintaining an appropriate distance allowed for support from ground units.
The most crucial among these was the field forces’ self-propelled air defense systems.
Truth be told, the Empire Army was likely the least concerned with air defense globally.
However, this was not entirely the Army’s fault.
At the root, it was related to the Air Force.
According to the rules established during the "separation," air defense systems at campaign level and above, with ranges exceeding 60 kilometers, primarily for battle zone air defense, were assigned to the Air Force.
In the Air Force’s combat theory, ground-air defense weapons were merely a component of the fighter-jet-centric air defense system.
Actually, in the Air Force’s planning, defense systems were merely a supplement to the existing air superiority system; the most effective air defense method was to seize and maintain air supremacy.
With absolute air supremacy, is additional air defense needed?
As such, the Army could only develop field air defense systems.
Because the Empire Air Force was strong enough and consistently pursued an offensive strategy, the Empire Army hadn’t faced severe aerial threats in the past few decades.
Frankly, if the air defense cover provided by the Empire Air Force wasn’t secure enough, having advanced field air defense systems would essentially be ornamental. Against modern aerial forces, the operational efficiency of field air defense systems was nearly zero.
This is not an exaggeration.
In the internal joint exercises of the Imperial Army, the Army’s field air defense systems never successfully intercepted any long-range strikes initiated by the Air Force.
In fact, the greatest value of field air defense systems was forcing the Air Force to develop weapons with longer ranges.
On this basis, the Empire Air Force was the first to propose the concept of "out-of-area weapons," and developed various strike munitions with ranges over 80 kilometers, such as glide bombs with wings and rocket boosters, capable of being launched at high altitudes over 100 kilometers away.
However, these are side discussions.
Strictly speaking, it was only after the advent of armed helicopters that the Empire Army recognized the significance of field air defense systems.
Simply put, regardless of how advanced the fighter aircraft or how far-reaching the regional air defense missiles controlled by the Air Force are, they are ineffective or incapable of reaching armed helicopters flying at treetop levels.
Thus, the responsibility of combating armed helicopters fell onto the Army’s field air defense systems.
In fact, during the Boi War, when the Empire Army Air Force lost several thousand helicopters, it was evident that small-caliber High-altitude Guns posed a sufficient threat to low-altitude targets.
