Chapter Thirteen: Mortar

  There were three machine gun bunkers in total. Two of them were controlled by the guerrillas, and the other one was initially controlled by Soviet soldiers but later taken out by Muhamed.

  This outpost was taken down cleanly and efficiently; what's left is just mopping up the battlefield.

  Dulani was just about to stand up and leave the machine gun bunker when he was grabbed by Muhammad.

  "Rat-a-tat." Just then, a sound came from not far above their heads. With this sound, one side of the machine gun bunker was hit, sending dust flying everywhere.

  There are still people on the roof! Muhammad hid behind the machine gun bunker, not daring to show his head. He knew that position was at the top of the sentry post, where the searchlight was located.

  There are three machine gun emplacements outside, and the searchlight is at the very top. There must be a sentry post there too. Wherever the searchlight goes, bullets can follow.

  Moreover, because of its highest position, it also posed a threat to the three machine gun emplacements. The shelters of the machine gun emplacements were built to fire outward, so the outer shelters were very thick, but the back was almost defenseless.

  That's a blind spot, although Khwaja is an excellent sniper, but in that position, he can't get the shot off.

  Dulani came back from the brink of death with a lingering sense of panic in his heart, and if it weren't for the instructor's timely grab, he would have been dead by now.

  "How about it? Are you scared?" The voice came again from beside his ear.

  "It doesn't matter," Dulaney said. What's there to be afraid of? If it weren't for the instructor, he would have died several times already. "I'll go up and take out that Soviet guy."

  "No, bravery is not recklessness," Muhammad said: "Protect yourself first, then strike at the enemy."

  Muhammad said: "It's a pity, if there was a mortar, that would be best."

  In this dead angle area, direct-fire weapons have a big disadvantage, while mortars, with their curved trajectory, are just the thing for dealing with such targets.

  What a pity, the readily available weapons are not always available. Many people in the guerrilla squad still use the outdated Aifleld rifle. It's already good if they have an AKM. As for dealing with tanks, they don't even have rocket launchers, let alone howitzers.

  Throwing hand grenades, even if they can't reach, also requires taking great risks.

  Mohammad had just finished speaking when he heard Durrani say: "Sir, I know where the mortar is. I'll go get it."

  Having said that, Duranni bravely jumped out of the bunker and ran forward.

  Are you looking for death? You just said it yourself, to protect yourself first. What's wrong with this Duranni, doesn't he know how to hide? Moreover, when running, one must dodge left and right, can't run in a straight line! Running in a straight line on the battlefield is simply asking for death.

  Dulani didn't care about all that, he took three steps and did two, running to the front of the truck.

  Some of the guerrilla fighters had scattered, and a few remained on one side of the truck, using it as cover to confront the sniper above.

  "Unload one of the mortars from the truck," Duranni said, nimbly jumping onto the vehicle.

  There is a mortar on the truck! This discovery was made on the way here, when Durrani opened the box on top of the bumpy car and found cylindrical objects inside, knowing that this thing was a mortar.

  This mortar, Duranni didn't know how to use it either. Duranni was only familiar with guns and wasn't even proficient in using them. He had also learned to fire rocket launchers, but ended up getting blown away last time. This mortar was an even newer thing for him, and he had no idea how to operate it.

  Although Dulaney couldn't use it, he knew that the instructor was all-powerful and could even turn tank shells into powerful roadside bombs, so operating this mortar would be a piece of cake.

  The truck, which was closest to the machine gun nest near Mohammad, and from the sound of gunfire, there were no more than two shooters on top of the outpost, and those shooters' main attention was focused on the machine gun nest, so they didn't see Durani take something out of the car from an open box.

  Another guerrilla, Herman, followed Duranni, carrying a box of shells, and the two, listening to the bullets whizzing in another direction, made a dash for the machine gun emplacement.

  "Be careful!" Muhammad saw two people running over with loads and was worried about their safety.

  Sure, here is the translation:

  As expected, the shooter on the roof discovered that the two people's tracks were different and immediately turned the muzzle.

  No time for hesitation now, Muhammad's machine gun spat out flames once again, firing towards the top of the sentry post.

  Although it's a blind spot and your own bullets can't reach there, this shot can also force the opponent to temporarily stop shooting.

  "Rat-a-tat..." The metallic chain rattled on and on, pouring into the machine gun, the sentry's bunker was shot to dust.

  "Ah..." Suddenly, a voice entered Muhammad's ears, and then the machine gun in his hand fell silent.

  Damn it, jammed! Because nobody loaded the ammunition belt just now, this damned machine gun has malfunctioned at the most critical moment.

  Suddenly, several shots rang out, and Muhammad saw Durrani fall to the ground.

  Dulani threw the mortar he was carrying with all his might in the last moment before falling down.

  Herman narrowly carried a box of shells into the machine gun bunker, sat down, and just avoided being hit by that bullet.

  Although Durrani fell, Muhammad did not hesitate for a moment to mourn his comrade. That was something to be done after the battle. Now, the most important thing was to take down that outpost!

  "Quickly, open the box and take out the shells." Muhammad said as he lifted up the mortar that Durrani had thrown over.

  Muhammad was at a loss whether to laugh or cry.

  Dulani threw over just a mortar tube.

  Just by looking at the barrel, Muhammad could also tell that it was a Soviet infantry's most common 82mm caliber M1937 mortar.

  The Soviets have always been proponents of artillery, even in infantry units, they are equipped with a large number of mortars, so it's not surprising that the truck is carrying mortar supplies.

  The technology of mortars has not undergone significant changes, except for the differences in caliber. Therefore, this type of mortar has been in service from World War II to the present day.

  This 82mm caliber mortar can hit a distance of three kilometers, which is sufficient in terms of range. It's also no problem to deal with the sentry position above our heads.

  It's just a military blindfolded Du Lannuo, carrying over, is only a cannon barrel!

  Mortar, it's not just about having a barrel, there are other accessories needed. However, this kind of mortar weighs over 100 catties, and Dulaney alone can't carry it.

  According to the formation, a general artillery mortar class has two guns. One gun requires five people: one person carries the gun, one person carries the gun mount, one person carries the base plate, and two people carry ammunition. After entering the position, choose a solid place, flatten it slightly, and then fix the base plate firmly; Then connect the barrel and base plate, with one person holding the barrel and another installing the gun mount and sight. After installation is complete, it's time to fire: one person is in charge of observation and command, one person is in charge of aiming and adjusting the firing distance, one person is in charge of loading ammunition, one person is in charge of passing ammunition, and one person is in charge of opening the ammunition box.

  Now, this Durrani just opened the box containing the mortar tube and thought it was a mortar, unaware that without a base plate and tripod, the mortar is unusable.

  These people still need to be trained properly.

  If it were someone else, this mortar would really be unusable. Fortunately, Muhammad has a trick up his sleeve.

  At this time, the sentinel on their heads was pressing them down and they couldn't lift their heads. If they charged hard, there would definitely be casualties. If they didn't charge, as time passed, if the Soviet reinforcements arrived, they would have to eat their words and retreat.

  Underneath this machine gun nest was a huge granite boulder, absolutely solid. Muhammad raised the barrel and made an angle with the ground, aiming at the outpost that was still firing.

  Everything is based on experience, and at this moment, Muhammad's pair of hands carry too many hopes.

  "Fire the cannon." Muhammad said.

  Herman had now opened the breech and grabbed a shell, inserting it into the barrel, ready to let go.

  "Wait, set the fuse!" Muhammad said.

  Muhammad's attention was focused on how to aim, completely relying on experience, or using his hand to support it, which was also the first time for him.

  As a result, after aiming well, he saw that Herman's shell had an empty head.

  Did you prime the fuse? Upon hearing Muhammad's words, Herman suddenly remembered that he had just opened the box of shells and a few other small things.

  Luckily, Muhammad had taught them how to dismantle shells a few days ago, and this thing was no different.

  Herman hastily put the shell back on the ground and took out a fuse from the box and screwed it in.

  "Let go." Muhammad said.

  Herman's hand relaxed, and the shell slid into the breech.

  These were the most critical few seconds, Muhhamad kept the cannon's elevation angle just right, with both arms steady as a rock.

  He seemed to feel that after the shell entered the barrel, it slid down like a child on a slide, almost in less than a second, and reached the bottom. At this time, the chrysanthemum hurt a little. Its bottom heavily hit the striking pin at the bottom of the barrel. With this strike, the shell suddenly came to its temper, the propellant was ignited, and the explosive in the tail of the shell began to burn violently. Muhammad almost felt the barrel expand a bit. Then, he heard a "boom" sound, and the shell had already flown out of the barrel. Although Muhammad was prepared, the air flow that burst out at the moment when the shell came out still made him feel like a small boat in a stormy rain, almost being overturned on the ground. The roar of the shell going out made his ears always ringing, and he could hardly hear Herman's voice beside him.

  This simple launch method is similar to a grenade launcher. Although Muhammad had also launched mortars in his previous life, the largest caliber he had used was no more than 60mm. Now this 82mm caliber mortar, launching it like this, is taking a big risk.

  With Muhammad's hope, flew past.