21st century Goguryeo

Chapter 97

October 31, 2020 10:00 (China Standard Time, 09:00)

The 60th Armored Brigade Encampment, 15 km southwest of Ben-Xi province, China.

On the night of the 29th, the 60th Armored Brigade made its encampment in a large field 15 km southwest of the Ben-Xi province. The field, which would host the largest armored battle in the world’s history, seemed quiet and majestic that morning.

The 60th Armored Division, the only force that had seen combat, was busy supplying munitions and performing maintenance work on the tanks and armored vehicles. The 26th Armored Battalion in particular had seen three battles in the span of two days, so it needed to make more repairs than the others. The day was as sweet as honey, despite the maintenance work they had to do. And the occasional cannon fire from the Chinese artillery, of course.

“Hmm hmm...”

Sergeant First Class Oh Young-taek must have been in a good mood, because he was humming to himself while painting a white scull on the cannon of the K-3 White Tiger tank.

“Sergeant Oh, sir?”

“What?”

“Are you really that happy?”

“Aren’t you? We’ve tied for first place in the battalion. Twenty-three tanks and ten armored vehicles. If our attack had been head-on instead of from the flank, we could’ve taken down more.”

While the sergeant was using his artistic skills to paint each skull mark, the artillery raid-siren suddenly rang again.

“Those d*mn Chinese! I still have a few left!”

“Sergeant Oh, sir, please get inside. Hurry.”

“All right.”

Sergeant First Class Oh Young-taek threw the brush into the paint can and then climbed into the tank.

From the moment the Korean forces encamped here, the Chinese infantry and forces taking cover in the mountains would occasionally fire mortars and cannons. When they did, the artillery brigade would detect the attack with the anti-artillery radars and strike them down with its K-30 Flying Tiger A2. Then, it would retaliate with cannon fire of its own. But the Chinese forces were like roaches; they kept attacking, no matter how many they killed.

Through the data link from the brigade’s anti-artillery radar, the K-30 Flying Tiger A2 armored vehicle near the 712th tank detected the shells flying toward them, then started firing both of its 12mm laser Vulcan beams toward the southwestern sky.

Pewruuuuu! Pewruuuuuu!

Corporal Yeom Hoon-gi and Staff Sergeant Kim Young-joo thought it was a good moment to rest their eyes, but Sergeant First Class Oh Young-taek checked the anti-air monitor. In the northwestern sky, beams of light could be seen. The division’s artillery brigade at the south rear must have been retaliating against the cannon fire, because sounds of cannons rang through the air.

* * *

October 31, 2020, 13:00

Deep in China’s East Sea, N 31° 80′ E 124° 50.’

Lee Bong-chang, the 230-class (SSP-081) submarine belonging to the Maritime Task Flotilla Seven, had gone silent 150 m under the East Sea and, like an assassin, was waiting for its target.

The Lee Bong-chang submarine (SSP-081) was a 600t-class submarine powered by a Hocula system underwater plasma engine. It was secretly developed in 2018 and officially deployed in the middle of 2020. The Lee Bong-chang, along with six identical submarines, had been moving covertly a week before the war broke out.

The Hocula submarines under the 11th Submarine Fleet had two missions. First, to perform reconnaissance on the Chinese navy’s submarines and destroyers, and second, to protect regular Korean ships from the Chinese navy. Consequently, three submarines were deployed to Taiwan’s East Sea territory, while four 230-class submarines were deployed to the West Philippine Sea (South Chinese sea), which was out of Posiden 2’s detection range.

The crew of the Lee Bong-chang, who had sailed silently at 82 m deep, 50 km southwest, for three days, were spending another boring day in the vessel, with nothing to do. Captain Na Won-hyun was also bored, and spent time looking at the picture of his family on the tablet PC.

“Detecting two Chinese submarines.”

The voice of the sonar operator dispelled the crew’s boredom and brought life back into the submarine.

The captain put down the tablet PC and responded immediately. “Location and direction?”

“They are 225 km and 221 km northeast from the Ning-Bo navy base and 135km and 139km away from our vessel. Both are silently sailing east at a speed of 20 knots. I’ll put the scan on the screen.”

The Hocula submarines’ SUSL Hypersonic radar, which was considered the Aegis destroyer under the sea, faintly detected the Chinese submarines. A small object with a depth of 70 m was marked with a red dot on a 3D digital map displayed on the large screen in the center of the submarine’s command center.

When the map narrowed in on the submarine’s silent sailing route, it showed a Korean oil tanker from Oh-Jin Industries sailing along the Sengaku archipelago connected to Japan’s mainland.

The Lee Bong-chang (SSP-081), which received the data link about the Korean ship from the Navy’s command headquarters, immediately understood the Chinese submarine’s intentions.

“Those b*stards! Are they going to try blowing up an oil tanker? Has the type of submarine been determined?”

“Not yet, sir,” the sonar operator said. “We’ll be able to determine its type when we’re 100 km away from it.”

The communications operator took off his headset and shouted, “We’ve received radio contact from the Ham Suk-hun ship. They’re requesting to target the Chinese submarines.”

“This is our area, so tell them we’ll take care of both of the submarines.”

“Yes, sir.”

“We’ll head there first and wait for them. 1-0-0 halfway turn port-side! Diving angle 35 and full speed until we reach depth 150!”

“Halfway turn port-side 1-0-0! Diving angle 35, and depth 150. Full speed ahead!”

After lurking in the deep, dark sea for three days, the Lee Bong-chang (SSP-081) finally fired up its underwater plasma engines. The submarine gradually turned port-side, then descended deeper into the ocean while increasing its speed and maintaining a diving angle of 35 degrees.

* * *

October 31, 2020, 14:30

B2 Bunker, Yongsan-ku, Seoul (ROK Military Joint Command Center)

At 2:00 p.m., the divisions under the 2nd and 5th Corps all reported to the Joint Command Center that they had started their urban occupation operations, and because of this, the command center was as busy as a hotcake stand on fire.

On the screen was round-the-clock footage that the Apollo reconnaissance satellite gathered from each corps’ unmanned reconnaissance drone, and 30 minutes after the occupation battles began, things were going smoothly, as planned.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Kang Ui-sik, who was seated at the center of the Joint Command Center, had his gaze fixed on the digital map on the third screen to the left instead of the footage of the various urban occupation battles.

The map showed the vast fields in Ben-Xi and Sun-Yang, where the 7th Mobile Armored Corps was located. A large-scale armored battle was soon to take place between Korea and China. The battle was expected to be the largest one since World War II, and all of the chairman’s attention was directed there.

“Where is the 3rd Division now?” he asked the operations director, Kim Yong-hyun.

“If you look at the map, they are currently standing by 19 km southwest of Sun-Yang.”

“The Capital Armored Division and the 3rd Division won’t have any trouble facing the 40th Army Group, but I’m worried about the 20th Division. The 65th Army Group, which is coming in from the 20th Division’s rear, is a completely organized army group that hasn’t sustained any losses, and what if the armored and mechanized infantry brigades from the 39th Army Group join in?”

“That’s right, sir. That’s why the 7th Mobile Corps will have its aviation brigade go all-in on the 20th Armored Division.”

“Yes, that is a good plan.

Notify everyone that the time for the operation is 4:00 p.m., and tell the air force at the Sun-an airport in Pyeong yang to make sure we obtain command of the air.”

“Yes, sir.”

* * *

The great Man-ju armored vehicle battle.

October 31, 2020, 15:00

East Chinese Sea territory N 31° 10′ E 125° 30,’ undersea.

The Lee Bong-chang (SSP-081) submarine, which had already arrived and was waiting at the Chinese submarine’s route, had finished identifying the Chinese submarine.

The Chinese submarine was the Song-class submarine under the Eastern Naval Fleet. The Chinese had developed it based on their experiences modifying an old Type-035 Ming Soviet Romeo-class submarine.

Initially, the submarine was criticized for making too much noise, so China went on to develop the modified 039G and 039A. The two Chinese submarines that were coming near the Lee Bong-chang (SSP-081) were the modified 039G Song-class SS320 and SS321 diesel submarines.

The two Chinese submarines were approaching at a top speed of 22 knots, maintaining a distance of 3,000 from each other, not knowing that the 6,000t-class Hocula submarine, Lee Bong-chang (SSP-081), was waiting for them.

“The SS320 and SS321 have passed by the decoy at a distance of 25 km and 22 km.”

Captain Na Won-hyun had sent in the A-1 decoy 30 km west to fool the Chinese submarines, which were passing by it as planned.

“When the SS321 is 5 km away, activate the A-1 decoy.”

“Yes, sir.”

With only its SUSL sonar active, the Hocula submarine waited for the Chinese submarine to be 5 km from the A-1 decoy.

A moment later, the voice of the sonar operator filled the head command center.

“The SS321 Chinese submarine is now within 5 km of the decoy.”

After the sonar operator’s report, Captain Na Won-hyung continued giving orders.

“Activate A-1 decoy.”

“Activating A-1 decoy.”

As the operator gave his answer, the A-1 decoy began to emit the engine sounds of a Korean submarine. For a split second, the Chinese submarines must have panicked at the sound of a Korean submarine coming from their rear, because one opened its rear torpedo launchpad, while the other changed its dive angle to make a quick descent into the sea.

“SS321 opened its launch pads. The SS320 is diving quickly at an angle of 30 degrees. The Chinese submarines are 22 km and 25 km away.”

“Good! Open launch tubes for White Shark A (K-744) 1 and 2.”

“Opening launch tubes for White Shark A 1 and 2!”

“Have one target the SS320 and the other target SS321.”

“Setting targets. Complete!”

“Fire!”

“Fire!”

The weapons operator repeated the order and fired two rounds of the White Shark A supercavitating rocket torpedoes.

* White Shark A mid-ranged torpedo:

The 533mm mid-ranged torpedo, the White Shark, was developed in 2003. The Olympus Base later modified it by equipping it with an underwater plasma engine, turning it into a supercavitating rocket torpedo that was capable of traveling at the speed of Mach 0.8. It had a diameter of 483 mm, length of 4 m, weight of 800 kg, range of 50 km, and a speed of 524 knots.

The two Song-class submarines, which were blundering around after the sudden noise of Korean submarines approaching their rear, noticed the existence of the torpedoes that the Lee Bong-chang submarine (SSP-081) had fired only when the torpedoes were 5 km away.

The SS320 must not have had the time to retaliate against the supercavitating White Shark A torpedo, because it rapidly turned to starboard and released decoys. It even used self-propelled decoy Nixie to escape the shadow of death. But it was useless to use the decoy, because the White Shark A was not an active detection torpedo, and the Lee Bong-chang (SSP-081) had used its supersonic radar to lock on the target. A moment later, the first supercavitating White Shark A torpedo hit the rear of the SS320 submarine, and a ripple came from an explosion 100 m deep.

“SS320 has been hit and sunk! We can hear a loud explosion. The SS321 is five seconds away from impact.”

The SS321 submarine fired two rounds of 533mm Yu-4 torpedoes at the A-1 decoy before realizing that its torpedoes’ range was too short. It sharply turned itself portside and tried to leave the area.

However, a few seconds after the SS320 exploded, the SS321 also exploded, and turned into floating wreckage on the East Chinese Sea.

“We have succeeded in sinking the SS321 as well.”

“Scan the surrounding area again, and we’ll sail promptly back to our original position.”

“Yes, sir. Scanning the surrounding area.”

* * *

October 31, 2020, 16:00 (China Standard Time, 15:00)

The 60th Armored Brigade Encampment, 15 km southwest of Ben-xi Province, China.

The hundred or so K-3 White Tiger tanks stationed at the 60th Armored Brigade’s Encampment all started their engines, the sound reverberating like an actual white tiger’s roar, and prepared to mobilize. They were headed to strike the core of their final target, Sun-Yang.

“From the 26th Armored Battalion, we start mobilizing to the first gathering point.”

The determined voice of the Brigade Commander came on the brigade’s communication line. The 26th Armored Battalion of the 60th Armored Brigade took the lead, and a large-scaled armored battle was about to begin and make history.

The 60th and 61st Armored Brigades and the 62nd Mechanized Infantry Brigade’s armored tanks and vehicles all began to gather in a line at the first gathering point. The sight of hundreds of tanks and armored vehicles all moving while maintaining position was truly something to behold.

In addition, the artillery units that had finished their maintenance at the division and corps encampments raised their cannons high to the sky, ready to fire immediately upon request. The 17th Aviation Brigade’s never-before-seen attack choppers were also standing by, fully armed.

The 65th Army Group, which would counter the 20th Armored Division, had the 1st Armored Division at the lead, while the mechanized infantry divisions and vehicle infantry divisions mobilized to form a broad line, raising a cloud of dust.

The 39th Army Group’s armored brigade and two mechanized infantry divisions, which had briefly moved into Sun-Yang, blocked the path into Sun-Yang.