Chapter 4019
Chapter 4019
Chapter 4019
The transportation and installation of coastal defense artillery was certainly not as easy and pleasant as Su Zhixing and the children watching and chatting. Despite the support of multiple mechanical power units, a significant amount of manpower was still required to assist in the construction.
For this project, the domestic arsenal dispatched a technical team of more than ten people to Fubo Port to organize the transportation, installation, and debugging work. The special operations division also selected nearly a thousand able-bodied soldiers to follow the instructions of the technicians and be responsible for moving and hoisting the various heavy components into place.
The original plan was to complete the installation of the artillery within ten days of its arrival at port, and to finish equipment testing within a month, followed by an acceptance inspection of the coastal defense artillery fortifications by the special operations division. However, in reality, progress has been much slower than expected, and the project is likely to be delayed.
On the first day after arriving in port, the entire day was spent only completing the unloading and hoisting of two coastal defense guns. Moreover, only a small portion of the disassembled parts of these two guns were transported from the port to the fort.
This wasn't because anyone was being lazy; it was simply that the lifting capacity of the Fubo Port terminal was extremely limited. Just unloading the various installation tools and steam-powered equipment that had been brought on board, and then assembling the lifting equipment on the dock, took a full half-day.
The extremely heavy cannon barrel and base even crushed several sturdy flatbed wagons during the hoisting process. The transport convoy also had to slow down to its minimum speed, constantly laying wooden planks and poles along the way to prevent the wheels from sinking into the loose sand.
Qian Tiandun, who came to supervise the operation, could only shake his head helplessly at the sight. After all, the objective conditions of Fubo Port were such that even if he sent out more people, he couldn't possibly transport these cannons into the fortress by hand alone.
After finishing work that evening, Qian Tiandun convened a meeting with relevant personnel at the dock where the cannons were being unloaded. After consulting with all parties, Qian Tiandun was basically certain that the previously estimated construction period would be difficult to achieve, and the completion date of the installation would need to be postponed by at least another half month.
As for the debugging of the coastal defense guns, it may not be completed for another two months.
Qian Tiandun said with a wry smile, "It seems we have all underestimated the difficulty of this project and are still using past experience to plan our current tasks."
Senior officers like Qian Tiandun were no strangers to building coastal fortifications, dating back to their early days at Shengli Port more than 30 years ago, when many of them personally participated in the construction of the fortifications. Later, when the special operations division marched to Shandong to occupy Zhifu Island and set foot in Liaodong to occupy Lushun Port, they also relied on setting up fortifications at strategic points along the coast to defend their positions.
However, the cannons that Haihan could build at that time were relatively primitive, with smaller calibers and structures that were far less complex than modern cannons. The requirements for the gun emplacements were limited to having a wide field of vision and sturdy bunkers.
The breech-loading cannons used today have much more sophisticated parts; the cannon body alone is divided into three parts: the barrel, the breechblock, and the firing mechanism.
The gun carriage is divided into a more complex upper and lower section. The upper section has an elevation mechanism, a traverse mechanism, a balancing mechanism, a cradle, a recoil system, and a sight. Its main function is to support the gun barrel and adjust the firing direction. The lower section has a saddle-shaped support, a gun disc, a spade, wheels, axles, suspension, brakes, and other components.
The coastal defense artillery pieces transported to Fubo Port for deployment this time include a complex system specifically designed for mounting on gun emplacements, integrating recoil reduction and a rotating chassis. This allows the heavy artillery to quickly adjust its firing direction during combat without significant displacement due to recoil. With the artillery structure becoming increasingly complex, the installation and commissioning of coastal defense artillery has become somewhat unfamiliar even to the special operations division. Qian Tiandun had to admit that relying solely on past experience was no longer suitable.
Faced with that huge pile of scattered iron lumps, the officers were really clueless and could only let the manufacturer's technicians take charge.
Although the effect of increasing manpower was already extremely limited, Qian Tiandun insisted on sending more than a thousand people to the site starting the next day, more than doubling the manpower deployed. The aim was to allow the existing staff to rotate more quickly and maintain sufficient energy and stamina to improve efficiency.
Meanwhile, the Special Operations Division's other plans continued to proceed as scheduled. Takahashi Minami led the Special Operations Division's fleet of twelve ships, departing from Fubo Port, passing through the Gulf of Oman, the Arabian Sea, and into the Gulf of Aden, heading towards the Red Sea.
The Red Sea is long and narrow, and generally there is little chance of getting lost. However, it is still unfamiliar waters for the Haihan Army, requiring repeated voyages to gradually familiarize them with the local hydrology and sea conditions.
The sea route to the Suez region, in particular, is a key focus for the Special Operations Division. If Haihan needs to deploy troops to the Suez region, the sea route from Zhenhai Port at the southern end of the Red Sea to the Suez region at the northern end will become the lifeline for the Special Operations Division's troops deployed on the front lines.
The Bab el-Mandeb Strait, where Zhenhai Port is located, is geographically similar to that of Fubo Port and the Strait of Hormuz, but the area lacks the prosperity of the Strait of Hormuz. There are no large population centers near Zhenhai Port, and the nearest major port is Aden, 500 kilometers away. The surrounding areas can only provide Zhenhai Port with very limited supplies and manpower.
The construction of Zhenhai Port is also slower than that of Fubo Port. Since the start of construction in February two years ago, Zhenhai Port is still just a little-known port at the southern end of Honghai.
The only thing that could bring comfort to the special operations division was that, thanks to the existence of Zhenhai Port, pirate activity in the surrounding waters had decreased by 90%.
Nowadays, any pirate gang with even a little influence in the Gulf of Aden knows that the highly skilled Haihan people are stationed in Zhenhai Port, a more dangerous force than the Europeans. If you encounter a Haihan ship flying the red and blue bicolor flag at sea, the best option is to turn around and get away immediately. Otherwise, if they perceive you as a threat, they will actively pursue and bombard you until they destroy your pirate ship.
This is no joke. According to a pirate captain who paid to redeem himself, several hundred pirates have been kidnapped and forced into hard labor at Zhenhai Port using this method, and their treatment is even worse than that of the black slaves bought from Aden Port.
Most low-ranking pirates were merely dependent on pirate gangs for a living. They would spend any spare money on drinking and gambling, and had no real wealth. Naturally, their bosses were unwilling to pay a large sum to ransom them, so once captured by the Haihan people, the chances of them escaping were extremely slim.
The best course of action, of course, is prevention. As a result, a vacuum of pirate activity gradually formed in the waters several hundred miles around Zhenhai Port. Eventually, some merchant ships and fishermen began to choose to stop at Zhenhai Port for supplies to avoid being attacked by pirates.
If you're lucky, you might even be able to travel alongside the Han Dynasty warships on patrol at sea and receive a free escort service.