The four vehicles of Sudarshan’s anti-tank platoon now staggered to a stop as their crews watched the lead tanks of the Chinese first wave hammering the Indian positions and moving east to west in front of them. They were watching the Chinese from the south. In the chaos of the dust clouds and vast maneuvering forces all around them, these four vehicles operating in single units had failed to attract attention.
Now the four vehicles deployed their weapons and the rectangular launch canisters for the Nag anti-tank missiles slewed into position. By this time the surviving elements of the Chinese first line were moving directly towards Adesara’s lines, oblivious of the threat on their left flank…
A few seconds later the first four Nag missiles slapped out into the thin mountain air and streaked upwards before initiating the dive into the target area. A second later another Nag streaked out, and each NAMICA vehicle went into a salvo-fire mode with fire-and-forget missiles. The fire-and-forget capability of the Nag missile was a force-multiplier in these kinds of situations, and it was the trump card in Sudarshan’s deck.
By the time the missile launches were detected by the crews of the Chinese vehicles at the southern edge of their line, it was far too late. Situational awareness cannot be lost on the modern battlefield because they ultimately decide the fate of battles.
The Chinese lost situational awareness.
And it cost them their advancing armor columns.
Adesara and his men were jerked back from their view when the majority of the surviving Chinese first line vehicles suddenly disappeared in a series of fireballs and staggered to a halt. The thunder of the explosions rippled through the Indian positions. As large licks of flame leapt for the fray skies above, the single remaining T-99 tank crew and several ZBDs deployed smoke and began to traverse backwards. The survivors of the two decimated columns of armor began reorienting themselves to engage the perpetrators of that vicious strike, but the fast retreating NAMICA vehicles were throwing smoke of their own as they buggered out of the area…
That was the cue.
Adesara grabbed the radio again and ordered his remaining Brigade units to pull to the second defensive line to the west while the Chinese vehicles were busy maneuvering around the burning hulks of their column. He noticed however that of all four of his T-72Ms lay within their hull down positions, spewing smoke and flames from their open top hatches. There had been no survivors amongst those four tanks.
He realized that his force was beating the Chinese back, but was also getting mauled in the process.
We cannot keep taking these losses without reinforcements…
Adesara climbed out from his trench and walked westwards towards the second defensive line as his soldiers grabbed their equipment and began doing the same. They were now moving close to the airstrip perimeter.
Adesara realized that if critical reinforcements and air-support did not arrive soon, Indian control of DBO and the Karakoram pass could be lost.
The airbase was alive with the thunder of jets arriving and departing into the clear blue morning skies. The smell of aviation fuel was in the air and men were running about…
As they should. There is a war on!
Feng stood calmly in his winter uniform overcoat on the tarmac in front of the main terminal building as the cold winds swept the base. Despite the morning sun, it was freezing cold out here. He kept moving his gloved fingers to maintain circulation. His gold braided shoulder-boards of a Senior-Colonel glistened in the sunlight. In terms of rank, Feng was the Chinese equivalent of a Brigadier-General of the air-force. And he enjoyed the power that came with it. He had more say in the way things were done and there were now lesser people above him who had the authority to overrule. If he played his cards correctly in this war, he might very well be in line for many higher ranks in his future. And he knew it.
But the war. Yes. It was not going well at the moment out here.
His current commander, Major-General Zhigao had bungled his tasks. An incompetent man Feng could deal with. But an incompetent senior officer unaware of his incompetence was deadly for the pilots Feng saw around him. And that was why he found himself standing on the tarmac this cold winter morning…
As the Tu-154M rolled on to the main tarmac and came to a stop at the signal from the ground controllers, Feng took a deep breath. The aircraft’s engines began spooling down and the engine noise started winding down as well. An honor guard of soldiers ran over in formation and took position near the base of the staircase that was being moved into position. A small square piece of red carpet was also laid out at the base of the staircase. Just as the doors opened, the honor guard snapped to attention with their rifles.
Colonel-General Wencang and Lieutenant-General Chen walked down the stairs as they talked amongst themselves. Wencang put on his gloves and returned the salute from the honor-guard Captain before walking towards Feng and the parked military utility vehicles that would take them to the base operations center.
Feng walked over and saluted the two senior Generals approaching him. The salutes were returned and Chen put out his hand to Feng, who took it.
“Welcome to Kashgar, sir,” Feng was interrupted by the roar of two Su-27s that thundered overhead, maintaining security over the base while the Deputy-Commander of the PLAAF and the unified-MRAF commander were on the ground below.
“Indeed, Feng! Shall we?” Wencang said politely and Feng took the cue. He pointed the Generals to the waiting vehicles and climbed in behind them.
“We have problems,” Feng said as the vehicles moved out.
“More like you have a problem that did you in.” Wencang grunted.
Feng did not reply to that. It was not his place to do so. Wencang continued:
“You need not say it, Senior-Colonel. I have not flown a thousand kilometers for nothing. This is important. Our entire air war in Ladakh depends on good leadership and aggression backed with intellect. The days of the people’s army marching on slogans and blind aggression are over. We need thinking men in thinking positions to fight a digitized war. I am here to take care of your problem. Then I want you and Chen to take care of mine: the Indian air-forces in Ladakh.”
“Ladakh is on fire, gentlemen,” Lieutenant-General Ritesh Gupta, commander of the Leh based XIV Corps, noted to his staff in the operations center. “So. What’s the latest estimate?”
“Initial estimates are still forming up, sir. But based on what we know the Chinese have opened up four major avenues of attack into Ladakh. The northernmost sector is near Daulat-beg-oldi. Here the Chinese are moving along the northern banks of the Chip-Chap river bank and their threat axis is heading towards our airstrip there. Brigadier Adesara is attempting to hold the Chinese advance with a reinforced Brigade and some armor in that sector,” Gupta’s operations chief said and then shrugged before continuing: “but he is heavily outnumbered. We figure he’s facing down at least a division worth of Chinese assault forces, heavy on tanks.”
“What support do we have for Adesara out there?” Gupta asked.
“We are working on that right now. Most of his reinforcements are moving along the Shyok river banks heading north towards the Galwan river sector and then northwards to DBO from there. But they have been bogged down by Chinese artillery and long-range rocket strikes along the MSR. They are taking losses in the open terrain against these strikes. We are knocking out the Chinese artillery using our counter-battery systems but it takes time. Their gun batteries are not proving a problem given their immobility. But their long-range MBRLs are proving a nightmare to find and destroy, since they are shoot-and-scoot systems much like our own. The airstrip at DBO has been utterly destroyed based on overhead imagery. The only other option is air and artillery support but these are already committed to all the raging battles along the entire front. What few systems are available are being dispatched to assist Brigadier Adesara’s forces.”