"Brothers, those despicable Persians are attempting to export the Islamic Revolution to us, trying to turn us into their puppets." Muhammad said, "In order to defend our homeland, we indignantly launched this war, and we have achieved unprecedented victory."
The officers and soldiers of the Thirty-Fifth Brigade gathered on the field. All was silent, with only the voice of Brigade Commander Muhammad echoing in the air.
"The despicable Persians are unwilling to accept defeat. Now, they are attacking again from the swamp side. If they manage to breach our defenses, our compatriots who are still fighting desperately in Basra, Abadan, and along the Karun River will be attacked from both front and back," Muhammad said. "Ahead of us are the Chieftain Tanks of the Iranians. We must use our fighting vehicles to destroy the Chieftains in the swamp and prevent them from breaking through our line! allah is Great! Iraq shall be victorious!"
"allah is Great! Iraq shall be victorious!" The officers and soldiers of the Thirty-Fifth Brigade were all inspired and filled with fighting spirit.
"Now, let's mount our tanks and wipe out those despicable Persians!" Muhammad ordered.
"Yes, sir!" The armored troops of the Thirty-Fifth Brigade boarded their tanks and started their engines.
"Boom, boom boom!" Tank after tank emitted black smoke from the rear, successfully starting up, and advanced toward the swamp in battle formation.
Muhammad climbed into the armored command vehicle behind him, following the Type 63 Armored Vehicle battalion as they advanced with the tank formation. Besides some armored personnel carriers, there were also a small number of 3CY-57-2 Self-Propelled Anti-Aircraft Guns. This twin-barreled 57mm self-propelled anti-aircraft gun used the same chassis as the tank and had a high rate of fire of four thousand rounds per minute, making it a suitable high-altitude weapon for dealing with Iranian helicopters.
All three tank battalions, totaling 108 tanks, were deployed. Because Zhang Yang had detected the Iranians' movements in advance, even though the troops were resting, the Thirty-Fifth Brigade did not relax at all. No soldier was allowed leave, the fighting vehicles were well-maintained, and every vehicle was ensured to have sufficient ammunition and fuel, ready to deploy at any moment.
In this way, the Thirty-Fifth Brigade created a miracle for the Iraq Army: upon learning of an enemy armored sneak attack, they were ready for battle and advancing toward the combat zone within fifteen minutes.
The only deficiency was that all the gunners and tank commanders were studying the T-62 fire control system under Allad's instruction, aiming to be able to shoot accurately at a distance of 1,500 meters. However, they had only been cramming the knowledge for the past few days and hadn't had time for actual firing practice, so the effectiveness remained uncertain.
The T-62 tanks raised their barrels high, constantly jolting and pitching.
Leading the charge was the First Battalion of the Thirty-Fifth Brigade, commanded by Halat. Allad's Third Company was in the Second Battalion behind them.
Several armored reconnaissance vehicles quickly bypassed the rest of the column and drove forward. Their mission was to visually locate the Iranians' whereabouts as early as possible, leaving the formal engagement to the tank battalions.
The tracks of the Type 63 Armored Reconnaissance Vehicle were the first to enter the swamp.
Although it had rained, the sun here was somewhat scorching, and many areas were no longer muddy. The driver only felt constant jolting, and sometimes the tracks would slide sideways, but everything was under control.
The forty-plus-ton T-62 tanks followed into the swamp. Immediately, the engine felt much more strained. The driver downshifted but still had to floor the accelerator to ensure they wouldn't get stuck.
Even the T-62, which was known to be good in swamps, found it difficult. How exactly did the Iranian Chieftains manage it? All the armored troops shared this question, yet they knew for sure that they would soon encounter the Iranian tanks.
The Chieftain Tanks were currently lined up on the temporarily constructed road, waiting for the cement ahead to solidify.
If it weren't for the Hind causing trouble, they would have already driven out of the swamp! Hilad, the commander of the leading Armored First Battalion, stood on the turret, looking back at the waiting Chieftain Tanks, feeling helpless.
The helicopters in the sky had also returned to base. The CH-47 needed to go back to transport cement, and the Cobra had been flying for several hours and needed to return for refueling.
The sky now was dotted with white clouds—a rare good day. However, the sun was already sliding toward the west. In two or three more hours, it would likely be dark. Given the current progress, exiting the swamp just after dark was not a bad outcome, as the cover of night would be very advantageous for the attacking side.
The soldiers had jumped out of the stuffy tanks and were chatting in small groups nearby.
It was good to let them relax a bit. Hilad knew that the working environment for tank crews was extremely harsh: high temperatures, high noise, and polluted air. The inside of a tank was practically a mobile coffin.
Hilad glanced at the young man beside him, then looked toward the distance again.
He saw several small black dots in the distance moving toward them.
What is that? Hilad immediately picked up the high-magnification military binoculars hanging on his chest.
The sight startled him: it was one, no, two armored vehicles. Judging by their appearance, they were likely the Type 63 Armored Vehicles used by Iraq.
The enemy arrived so quickly!
"Quick, the Iraqis are coming! Prepare for battle!" Hilad shouted.
The armored troops, who had been relaxed moments ago, instantly became energized, quickly jumping onto their tanks and starting them up with a rumble.
"The target is still three thousand meters away. Aim carefully. Open fire immediately as soon as they get closer," Hilad commanded over the radio. After shouting, he immediately jumped back inside the turret and grabbed the microphone.
At the same time, he picked up the microphone of the other radio and shouted: "Reporting to the Division Commander, this is Armored First Battalion. We have encountered the enemy. We have encountered the enemy."
Hilad's tank was a command vehicle, so it had two radios: one with lower power, effective only up to twenty kilometers, used for contacting all the combat vehicles below; and one with higher power, sufficient to cover a range of one hundred kilometers, used for contacting higher command.
Therefore, the rear of the tank had two whip antennas. Lower-ranking combat vehicles only had one radio, but to confuse the enemy, all tanks had two antennas, with one being non-functional. Otherwise, in a battle, the enemy would only need to target the tanks with two antennas to hit the command vehicle.
In the No. 30 Mk1 Periscope, the enemy had already driven within two thousand meters.
"First Company prepare Fin-Stabilized Discarding Sabot Projectiles. Destroy the target at eighteen hundred meters. Second and Third Companies maintain vigilance," Hilad ordered.
There were only a few armored vehicles. A single company had twelve tanks, and even if only one out of three shells hit, they could take out the enemy.
The tank engine was running, and the hydraulic motor drove the turret, rotating it toward the direction from which the armored vehicles were approaching. The tank commander had already used the fire control system to track the enemy's route.
"Squad leader, we don't need to get this close. If we get any closer, we'll enter the range of the enemy tanks, and we won't be able to escape," a soldier on the leading armored reconnaissance vehicle said to the squad leader.
Now that the enemy's whereabouts had been discovered, the reconnaissance mission was technically complete, but the stubborn squad leader kept driving forward.
No matter how thick the steel plate of the Type 63 Armored Vehicle was, it absolutely could not withstand an armor-piercing round. Approaching so rashly was extremely dangerous.
The squad leader stubbornly pressed on because he suddenly felt that these Iranian tanks were strange. They were only pointing their barrels at him but hadn't driven up to destroy him. This was incredible. An armored vehicle spotted by a tank usually meant destruction, yet the enemy was staying put. There must be a problem.
He chose to approach slowly, and finally, relying on his vision, he saw something gray-white near where the enemy tanks were parked, something highly inconsistent with the swamp environment.
So, that was the mystery! He smiled, slammed on the brakes instantly, and engaged reverse gear.
"Boom!" The Chieftain opposite finally opened fire.