Empire Conquest-Chapter 872 - 106: Times Have Changed

King Khalid Military City, Alliance Headquarter.

After receiving the report, Ding Zhennan immediately rushed over. After making some inquiries, he was relieved and no longer worried.

Leading the charge was the assault force commanded by Liu Zunshan, which should not encounter any problems.

While drafting the plan, Ding Zhennan repeatedly emphasized the need to consider the harsh climate conditions of the Boss Bay area.

The primary concern was the sandstorm.

Although high temperatures were also a major issue, once adapted, particularly by increasing related investments such as installing air conditioning in every barracks and shortening outdoor duty times, the impact of high temperatures on the officers and soldiers became minimal. As for the equipment, by increasing maintenance efforts, shortening maintenance intervals, and frequently replacing consumables prone to aging, a high operational rate could also be achieved.

The only unavoidable issue was the sandstorm.

In the past month or so, due to sandstorms, at least 4,000 airstrike missions were canceled, reducing combat efficiency by over ten percent.

The crucial point is that sandstorms cannot be avoided at all!

During airstrikes, if a sandstorm is encountered, not to mention laser-guided bombs, even iron bombs may not function properly.

The Iraqi army used this point to preserve a large amount of main battle equipment, including thousands of tanks.

Ground combat was essentially the same.

Sandstorms not only severely reduce visibility but can also produce strong static electricity, which under certain special conditions can even destroy electronic equipment.

To address the impact of sandstorms, the Empire Air Force urgently launched several sun-synchronous orbit meteorological satellites in early August.

Meteorological satellites can provide a few hours of weather forecasts but cannot eliminate sandstorms.

In the face of sandstorms, one can only maneuver around them.

Ding Zhennan patiently waited for over an hour before receiving news from the front lines.

Actually, it was a report sent back by the "Zhi-10A."

Before the sandstorm arrived, the Marine Corps’ assault force had already maneuvered to the southwest direction of the Iraqi army, which was the upwind direction.

Although they would be swept by the sandstorm sooner, facing away from the sandstorm could protect electronic equipment like infrared imaging devices.

However, those ZT-99ALs were still moving northward.

Evidently, the assault force wanted to move to the upwind point.

The reason was simple, to minimize the impact caused by crosswinds as much as possible.

Although tanks have crosswind measuring instruments that work in tandem with fire control systems, tank commanders would try to reduce the impact of crosswinds during long-distance engagements.

Theoretically, crosswinds are the number one interference factor affecting the accuracy of tank gun hits.

The most effective way to reduce the impact of crosswinds is to be in the direction of tailwind.

Aligning the wind direction with the shooting direction can reduce the impact on projectiles in flight.

This was clearly the key reason behind the assault force’s movement toward the northwest direction.

With about half an hour before the sandstorm arrived, the assault force’s over 30 ZT-99ALs launched an assault.

At the same time, more than 20 infantry fighting vehicles coordinating in combat from the southeast direction also launched an attack on the incoming Iraqi tanks.

The infantry fighting vehicles used wire-guided heavy anti-tank missiles, controlled throughout by the operator, and were not affected by crosswinds.

However, the time was too short.

Nonetheless, it was not necessarily a bad thing.

According to the report sent by the "Zhi-10A," coming from the north was an armored brigade of the Republic Guard, with hundreds of tanks and infantry fighting vehicles, roughly three times the strength of the assault force. If reinforced, there would be hundreds of infantry carrying anti-tank missiles and rocket launchers.

Had it not been for this sandstorm, even if the enemy had been defeated in the end, the assault force would have suffered heavy losses.

The sandstorm from the northeast direction actually protected the assault force.

According to the report from the Joint Command Aircraft, by the time the sandstorm arrived, the assault force had already destroyed dozens of tanks, effectively defeating the Iraqi army.

However, Ding Zhennan didn’t dare to be careless, and he subsequently ordered the Marine Corps Air Force to be ready.

After the sandstorm passed, armed helicopters were to be dispatched immediately to search and eliminate any Iraqi tanks and vehicles not destroyed by the assault force.

In addition, transport helicopters were to be sent out to deliver supplies and provisions.

If necessary, they would also help the assault force repair tanks and vehicles that were damaged or malfunctioning.

In summary, the goal was to restore the assault force’s combat capability as soon as possible so they could continue advancing toward Samawa.

It wasn’t that Ding Zhennan was unsympathetic to the grassroots units, nor was it about trust in Liu Zunshan, but there were temporarily no available armored forces on the front line that could replace them.

The sandstorm also slowed down the advance of the main forces.

Moreover, the logistical support units followed the main forces, with many vehicles temporarily allocated, and hadn’t undergone necessary modifications to cope with the harsh environment of the New Moon Region. For instance, many military trucks hadn’t replaced their air filters and would easily wear out under the disturbance of the sandstorm.

If Liu Zunshan’s assault force stopped, the offensive actions would inevitably be affected and could even come to a sudden halt.

With a division of troops gathered in the barren desert, far from any village or town, the consequences would be unimaginable, especially since the Iraqi army had already spotted this large force.

No matter how difficult it may be, the assault force must continue advancing toward Samawa.

Fortunately, the situation wasn’t as bad as imagined.

Around 9 PM, after the sandstorm weakened, Ding Zhennan received confirmation that the losses of the assault force were not significant. However, close to half of the tanks and vehicles were malfunctioning due to the sandstorm, so only a small group, approximately a reinforced company, could be organized to continue the assault on Samawa.