Before being destroyed, the Chinese tank commander did manage to radio his battalion commander and advise him of the enemy tank and its location. The commander’s attached battery of six self-propelled 122mm howitzers was just coming to a halt on a secondary school playfield about three kilometers away. When called, they would be able to suppress or kill the enemy armor.
Alexander considered his situation. He knew the enemy had artillery support — fairly quick responding and accurate artillery support. He also knew the enemy had another bridge they could cross just a kilometer down river from the Sun Yat-Sen Bridge. This bridge was not visible from his current location but he knew his scouts were there. Finally, the enemy had managed to cross at least two tanks on to his side of the river. While his small contingent of scouts and MPs might manage to keep enemy infantry off of his tank if he pulled them back in, he knew that by himself from his current location, he could not keep enemy armor and artillery off of them. It was time for bold action. “Driver! Guide on the gun, move out!”
Specialist Hernandez launched Traveller out of its shallow hole and simply followed the direction that the gun tube pointed. Colonel Alexander threw open his hatch and went to name tag defilade. Speed would be his primary means of protection now — and while traveling 20 to 40 mph through city streets, he needed more visibility than he could get with the hatch closed.
“Sidewinder Five Niner, Thunderbolt X-ray, over.”
The little radio’s response was barely perceptible, “This is Sidewinder Five Niner, over.” Mundell was whispering.
“Sidewinder Five Niner, I’m heading north alongside the river bank. I’m going to pass under the bridge. What’s your situation, over?”
“My vehicles are just south of the freeway embankment, I’m dismounted with some of my crew under the freeway overpass on Pingchiang Street. I see two tanks covering for a least a company of BMPs that are coming up in a coil about 300 meters north of the freeway. They’re moving off of Pingchiang Street bridge. I don’t see the infantry dismounting yet, over.”
Alexander narrowed his eyes in concentration, “Roger. You have any smoke grenades?”
“I’ve two, a purple and a green.”
“Pop them and toss them out in front of you on the street right now! I’m coming in and I want a diversion. Get back to your vehicles. After you hear the first few main gun rounds I want you to get on the freeway and suppress the infantry with your .50 cals and grenade launchers from behind the guardrail. Do you understand? Over.”
“Yes sir!”
“Thunderbolt out.” Alexander took a deep breath and let the radio dangle from his wrist on its strap. “Driver, stop under the bridge. Loader, do we have a sabot round up?”
Jones replied, “Yes sir.”
“Okay everyone, listen up. The Scouts report that there’s at least two tanks and a company of ‘mech’ out there about two to three hundred meters to our left front. The infantry hasn’t dismounted yet. We’re going to destroy the two tanks first, Jones, get another sabot round ready, then we’re going to engage the APCs with HEAT rounds. Peña, once the tanks are down, I’m going to suppress the APCs with my .50. I want you to fire at will then. If I see a more dangerous target I’ll let you know. Hernandez, we’ll stay as close to the bridge as we can and still engage the enemy, if we have to come out from under the bridge to kill them, I want you to move parallel to the river bank at about ten miles per hour. Everyone understand?”
“Roger,” Peña spoke.
“Yes sir,” Hernandez sounded confident.
“Ready sir,” Jones looked up at his commander while cradling the 105mm sabot round he would shove into the breach as soon as the gun fired.
“All right then, let’s go! Driver, move out 20 meters then guide left until I say halt.” Alexander could hear the APC cannon and machine gun fire. The Chinese were reacting to the sudden appearance of Mundell’s smoke grenades. The tank edged up to the lip of the river’s bank, “Halt!” Perfect. With Traveller’s gun tube on stab, it was already depressed, lowering the profile of the tank. The only portion of the tank that was visible from the enemy’s vantage was the 105mm gun, the two machine guns on the roof, and Alexander.
The TC quickly found the first tank and jinked the turret to the left to line up the gun with the target. He began the familiar litany, “Gunner, sabot, two tanks, left tank first, fire!”
Peña didn’t need to lase or switch to ten-power — the enemy was too close for that, “On the way!”
The sabot round penetrated the Chinese tank in the left side of its hull. It immediately burst into flames and began exploding as the ammunition inside of it began to cook off.
Jones yelled, “Up!”
Peña pulled the gun to the right. The Chinese tank was already swinging its turret to face the Americans. Puffs of smoke appeared on both sides of the tank’s turret and in an instant it was obscured in a thick cloud of smoke. The smoke blotted out the TIS image.
Alexander called, “Gunner, sabot, tank, fire!”
Peña was sure he had already lined up the gun to hit the enemy tank. Unless it already moved out, he would hit it, “On the way!” He squeezed the trigger just as the Chinese tank charged out of the smoke.
The round hit the side of the turret with a shower of sparks. Inside the tank, hundreds of metal flakes knocked loose by the shot peppered the gunner, blinding him. The Chinese crew was stunned but not dead.
“Gunner, HEAT, APCs, fire at will!”
“Up!”
Alexander set to work with his .50 caliber heavy machine gun. Traveller’s muzzle flashed as a HEAT round reached out to its target. A BMP-2 exploded in a ball of flames. The muzzle flash hurt his eyes, even from behind his goggles, but he knew it was much better behind the flash than in front of it. He saw some infantry come boiling out of the BMPs, seeking cover and orienting themselves on their enemy. Small explosions tore at their ranks and several fell from an invisible hand. Alexander grunted to himself — the Scouts and MPs had now gone to work.
The tank’s gun erupted again, and once more they were rewarded with a burning enemy vehicle. Alexander heard the sting of bullets rip the air around him. “Driver, move out. Stay on the river’s bank.”
The tank’s gun remained locked in place, perfectly stabilized, even as the tank moved out at a 15-degree tilt along the river’s edge. Motion offered some protection to the TC. Alexander weighed going to open protected but rejected it. He needed to see and was willing to accept the risk. Alexander heard DPICM rounds impacting behind him near the edge of the airport less than half a mile away.
The tank moved north, then crossed over Pingchiang Street and followed the river’s path as it looped back around to the southwest. After two minutes of action, the tank fired a dozen rounds and hit a dozen vehicles. The broken bodies of the enemy infantry littered the compact killing ground. Some soldiers raised their hands in surrender. Alexander picked up the portable radio, “Sidewinder, Sidewinder, we have enemy trying to surrender in here!” No response. “Sidewinder, Sidewinder, do you copy?”