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Text Chapter 1066: Easily Landing on the Island

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    On the evening of September 9, the huge fleet composed of the Chinese Navy's Indian Ocean Fleet and the transport fleet of the 8th Marine Division was less than a hundred nautical miles away from Sicily.  Along the way, the fleet's whereabouts were not revealed.  The Indian Ocean Fleet has dispatched many destroyers to clear the way ahead. Once they encounter ships from other countries, they will immediately drive them away.

    In fact, after the war began, shipping in the Mediterranean suffered a devastating blow. It was originally an important transportation route between the East and the West, but after China took control of the Suez Canal, communication between the East and the West was almost cut off.  .  All Allied ships were diverted to the Cape of Good Hope, and only some merchant ships from neutral countries would pass through the canal.  Because during this period, there were also several incidents where spies from the Allied Powers used merchant ships disguised as neutral countries to spy on the intelligence of the Chinese Navy.  Therefore, the Chinese Navy dispatched a fleet to specifically inspect these passing merchant ships.  Under such circumstances, the waterway is even more depleted.

    After nightfall, the fleet implemented a light control. Now Sicily is very close, and the whereabouts will be exposed if you are not careful.  Although there are not many Italian troops on Sicily, the Chinese Navy does not want to leak the news in advance.

    On the battleship ¡®Han Ming Emperor,¡¯ there was only a faint light inside the bridge.  Admiral Li Haitao, commander of the Indian Ocean Fleet, and Lieutenant General Wu Zhiyuan, chief of staff, are looking at a map of Sicily to select a landing site for tomorrow's landing.

    "Commander, Chief of Staff, General Tang Hongtao and General Wang Shaoxuan of the 8th Marine Division are here!" a staff officer entered the bridge and reported.

    "Ah? Please come quickly!" General Li Haitao raised his head and said.  Tang Hongtao is the commander of the 8th Marine Division and a lieutenant general of the Marine Corps.  Wang Shaoxuan is the chief of staff of the 8th Marine Division and a major general of the Marine Corps.

    "Commander Li, Chief of Staff Wu, good evening!" Lieutenant General Tang Hongtao said hello first after entering the bridge.

    No matter what, Li Haitao's military rank is one level higher than his, and he is also the commander of the fleet. Even though he is younger than him, in the army, military rank is always considered, not age.

    "Commander Tang, Chief of Staff Wang, please take a seat quickly. We are selecting a landing site for tomorrow's landing. You two are the chief officers of the Marine Division, and you are here to give us some advice!" Admiral Li Haitao said with a smile.

    Lieutenant General Tang Hongtao and Major General Wang Shaoxuan did not delay, and immediately came to the map next to the bridge.  Tomorrow's landing will be completed by their 8th Marine Division. A suitable landing point can effectively avoid casualties. This is directly related to the safety of the 8th Marine Division. It cannot be careless at all!

    "Commander Tang, Chief of Staff Wang, we initially believe that the landing point is more suitable in Catania. It is located in the east of Sicily and is a good deep-water port. At the same time, the terrain is flat, which is conducive to the landing of the Marine Division and the deployment of troops.  It is also conducive to the use of our heavy weapons. If we land here, the fleet can also provide better fire support for the Marine Division!" said Lieutenant General Wu Zhiyuan, Chief of Staff of the Indian Ocean Fleet.

    Lieutenant General Tang Hongtao and Major General Wang Shaoxuan both nodded. Catania is indeed a very ideal landing point.  The terrain of Sicily is mountainous, especially in the northeastern part of the island, where there are continuous mountains, and only the coastal areas have narrow plains.  There are some plains only in the eastern part of the island where Catania is located, as well as in the southeast and south of the island.  Other parts of the island are also mountainous.

    "Then choose Catania as the landing point! Then we will still have to rely on the fleet to provide us with fire support!" Lieutenant General Tang Hongtao said solemnly.  Although the equipment of the Marine Division is equivalent to that of the Army's heavy infantry division, the Marine Division also has the heavy equipment that the Army has.  However, these heavy weapons cannot be used before going ashore. At that time, the navy's warships can only be relied on to provide fire support for the Marine Division, destroy the enemy's positions, and break down the enemy's resistance.

    "Commander Tang, we are a family! The Indian Ocean Fleet will provide the most complete firepower support for the Marine Division this time. Even if the main force of the Italian Navy comes, we will leave enough warships to provide firepower for the Marine Division.  Support!" General Li Haitao assured.  Judging from the terrain of Sicily, the Marine Division will definitely clear the coastal areas first, and these are within the range of the Navy's naval guns.

    Afterwards, everyone analyzed the intelligence obtained and found that the Italian army only deployed one infantry division on Sicily. The 75th Army Division of the Kingdom of Italy had only more than 12,000 people, no heavy artillery, and only five  Just a dozen light artillery pieces.  There are not many machine guns equipped, and its combat power is relatively low among the Italian Army.  The only thing to worry about is that almost all the people in this division are natives of Sicily, and they are more adapted to the terrain and environment here.  And whether they will fight against the Chinese army in order to protect their homeland.

    Catania is located on the east coast of Sicily, between Messina and Syracuse.On the way to the foot of Mount Etna.  This is an important city in Sicily with flat terrain and an important grain-producing area in Sicily.  After China occupied the Suez Canal, in order to strengthen the defense of Sicily, the Kingdom of Italy deployed some military units in Sicily's eastern coastal cities, such as Messina, Catania, Augusta, Syracuse and other cities.  Shore defense artillery.  However, Italy was still a member of the Allies at that time, and their defense was not very strong.  Take Catania, for example. Italy has only deployed a battalion of 12 155mm coastal defense guns here, under the command of the Army's 75th Division.  For the Chinese Navy's Indian Ocean Fleet, this kind of defense is no different than paper.

    After choosing to land in Catania, the fleet began to move here.  It is expected that the fleet will arrive off the coast of Catania around 8 a.m. on July 10.  Then directly launch a landing here, defeat the defenders here, and then expand to the entire Sicily.

    The Italian army deployed an infantry division in Sicily, but the army was completely scattered throughout Sicily.  In Catania, in addition to a coastal defense artillery battalion, there is also an infantry battalion of more than 600 people, commanded by a lieutenant colonel named Cattelan.  Of course, in the minds of the Italian Army's 75th Division, they are very safe.  Although the war had already begun between Italy and the Allies, the battlefield was in the mountains of northern Italy.  And the Italian Army, which has been preparing for a long time, has entered the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and the final victory is just around the corner.

    At 7 a.m. on July 10, two Chinese Navy destroyers arrived off the coast of Catania.  However, the Italians were unprepared for this.  Even the lazy fishermen are still staying in the port and have not gone to sea.  As for the Italian troops, they stayed in the barracks and slept in, without any awareness of alertness.

    At 7:30, the heavy cruisers Oujiang and Huaihe of the Chinese Navy¡¯s Indian Ocean Fleet arrived off the coast of Catania with four light cruisers.  According to the plan of the Indian Ocean Fleet, they will launch artillery bombardment on the Italian army's shore fortifications in Catania, clear the Italian fortifications before the arrival of the main fleet, and prepare for the landing of the Marine Corps.

    The Chinese side already knows the deployment of Italian troops in Catania through accurate intelligence.  With the firepower of two 'Jianghe' class heavy cruisers and four light cruisers, it was enough to clean up the Italian army here.

    At 7:35, the heavy cruiser 'Oujiang' and the heavy cruiser 'Huaihe' were ready for bombardment. The three triple-mounted 210mm main guns on the battleships were already aimed at Catania.

    "Boom! Boom! Boom!" 'Oujiang, the heavy cruiser opened fire first.  Afterwards, the heavy cruiser Huaihe followed closely behind.  The two heavy cruisers began raining cannon fire on Catania at the rate of one salvo per minute.

    "Boom! Boom! Boom!" The sound of dense explosions rang out from the Italian army's position. The first thing to be attacked was the position of the coastal defense battalion.  Twelve 155mm coastal defense guns were destroyed on the position before they could fire.  At the same time, the shelling also awakened the Italian troops here.

    When Lieutenant Colonel Catlan rushed out of the headquarters in a hurry, he saw that the shore defense position was enveloped in fierce artillery fire.

    "Damn it, where did the enemy come from? Is it the Austro-Hungarian navy?" Lieutenant Colonel Cattelan said with a look of horror.

    "Your Majesty, Lieutenant Colonel, it's not the Austro-Hungarian Empire, it's the Chinese! The Chinese warships are firing at us!" a second lieutenant officer reported. He had just returned from the port and was very aware of the situation on the sea.

    "Chinese! God! It's them! Report to the division commander quickly, the Chinese are attacking us!" Lieutenant Colonel Catlan ordered quickly.

    Afterwards, in order to reduce losses, Lieutenant Colonel Cattelan immediately ordered the Italian troops to retreat.  So when the 8th Chinese Marine Corps Division arrived, there was no Italian soldier here.  The leading battalion of the 8th Marine Division landed in Catania without any obstruction and successfully took over this important city.  Most of the Italian residents here have fled, and the remaining small number are hiding in their homes, looking at these outsiders through the windows with horror on their faces.

    The Italian army¡¯s non-resistance surprised the Chinese army, but it also reduced a lot of trouble.  The 8th Marine Division began to land and at the same time sent troops to attack around Catania to clear out the Italian troops around Catania and ensure the safety of the landing site in Catania!
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