Chapter 13 Part 2 (2) The French planes that bombed Jinzhou

After the Japanese army captured Shenyang, the main force of the Northeast Army retreated to Jinzhou for defense, but the Japanese army did not stop there. On September 24, Japanese aircraft conducted reconnaissance on Jinzhou and carried out the first bombing. On October 8, the Japanese army bombed Jinzhou again.Especially the second bombing.The first "bombing" was actually a handy work by the Japanese army in addition to reconnaissance.The participant of this reconnaissance turned out to be the Japanese army's think tank, the Kwantung Army staff officer Ishihara Waner, the planner of the "September 18th" boarded the back seat of a legally made "Boutez" plane, and brought several modified artillery shells. The bomb was thrown down after reconnaissance of the position of the Northeast Army, and the bombing was completed; the second bombing was ordered by Shigeru Honjo. Four Type 88 reconnaissance planes flew to Shenyang and joined the 10th Independent Flying Squadron led by Lieutenant Hanazawa Tomoo at Songjiawazi Airport in the west of Changchun. The team dispatched five "Bautez" fighter jets and two " Type 88 reconnaissance aircraft, the Japanese planes of the two squadrons carried a total of 75 bombs of the 25 kg type.These enemy planes flew at an altitude of 1,300 meters.After flying about 240 kilometers, they arrived in Jinzhou at 13:40. They bombed the east and northwest of Jinzhou successively, and they were all fired from the Northeast Army.

After the bombing, Hirata led the team to fly directly back to Shenyang, while Huaze's five "Bautez" fighter jets landed at Dashiqiao Airport for refueling due to their low fuel capacity and short range, and flew back to Shenyang Dongta Airport at 18:00.This battle killed 16 residents and seriously injured 12. This is the famous "Jinzhou Bombing". The Japanese bombing of Jinzhou aroused very close attention and condemnation from the international community. On October 9, U.S. Secretary of State Stimson notified the cabinet meeting of the Japanese bombing of Jinzhou for the first time, and summoned the Japanese ambassador to the United States, pointing out that Japan’s actions in Jinzhou violated the spirit of the League of Nations resolution.British Foreign Secretary Riding said in instructions to the British ambassador to Japan that he was "distraught by reports of the bombing of Jinzhou".At the request of the Nationalist Government, the Council of the League of Nations convened the meeting originally scheduled for October 14 ahead of schedule.Faced with the international attention caused by the bombing of Jinzhou, Japan itself admitted that "the Japanese bombing of Jinzhou made the air in the League of Nations worse, which is very unfavorable to Japan."

For a moment, as if one hair could affect the whole body, the Japanese bombing became a major international event.And if you look at the Chinese archives at that time, you will also find that the Japanese air superiority and aircraft assistance are important reasons for the Chinese generals to explain the defeat of the battle. They generally turn pale when they talk about the Japanese air superiority. However, few people noticed that a group of French aircraft participated in the Japanese bombing of Jinzhou twice.These French "Bautez" aircraft were called "Baozhen" aircraft by the Japanese army according to the homonym, and they were widely used after the "September 18th" Incident.

How could the Japanese army have French aircraft? Ironically, these planes were the equipment of the Northeast Army. At least 15 of the Northeast Army's "Boutez" planes fell into the hands of the Japanese army in Shenyang on the night of "September 18". On the eve of the "September 18th" Incident, the Japanese army cunningly held a number of receptions hosted by geisha in Shenyang, luring many Northeast Army officers who were unaware of the situation into the bureau, causing many Northeast Army troops to be leaderless when the incident happened.Many officers of the Northeast Army’s aviation unit were also invited to the Naniwa-dori Street in the Japanese Concession to participate in the party. On the weekend, the Northeast Army’s various types of aircraft at Shenyang Airport were completely undefended. As a result, the main force of the Northeast Air Force was easily captured by the Japanese army (Jin Enxin, the major general of the Kuomintang Air Force and the squadron leader of the Northeast Air Brigade at the time, recalled that during the "September 18th" incident, he led 12 planes to fly back to Beiping from Shenyang, But there is no other supporting evidence, doubtful).

According to Japanese statistics, the various types of aircraft captured by the Northeast Army at Shenyang Dongta Airport include the British-made "Vimey" 720-horsepower bomber; the legal-made "Bautez" 450-horsepower fighter-bomber; The "Junker" 310-horsepower reconnaissance bomber; the Japanese-made "88-type" reconnaissance plane and "A-type" fighter plane, a total of about 200, of which there are more than 60 available for immediate use, and the largest number is the French " This is a new plane that Zhang Xueliang just imported from France after the incident in the Middle East.After the Japanese army used the Russian workers originally employed by the Northeast Army to check and test the flight, they painted these planes with the national emblem of Japan and renamed them "Baozhen Type". The "January 28th" operation launched in Shanghai.

The reason why the planes of the Northeast Army suffered such concentrated and heavy losses is that Zhang Xueliang commanded troops to investigate Shi Yousan’s rebellion in Beiping, and transferred a large number of planes to the pass. They went to various airports in the Northeast, but they were all captured by the Japanese army.What is even more ironic is that the Japanese army had only 12 aircraft in the Northeast at that time, and the air supremacy should have belonged to the Northeast Army. Being bombed by one's own plane is really a useless thing.Fortunately, the officers and soldiers of the Northeast Air Force are bloody men.After the fall of Shenyang, they returned to Guannei in various ways and joined the Central Air Force of the Kuomintang. After the July 7th Incident, most of them participated in the air battle against the Japanese army.Among them, the most famous is Gao Zhihang, the "God" of the Chinese Air Force. This outstanding Chinese ace pilot and commander is a former member of the Northeast Air Force.

With such a group of men, the Northeast Air Force can finally get rid of Shenyang's uselessness of throwing planes.