Chapter 4: The Tank Overturns

Muhammad quickly ran a distance, found a nearby rock, and hid. The position from which he had just launched had already been discovered, and remaining there was extremely dangerous

It is impossible to see a rocket with the naked eye, but it is possible to see the person launching it, and it can be eliminated

The driver only released the accelerator when they were one meter away from the giant rock, while simultaneously pulling the left control lever

Be careful! the driver shouted, as they had already sensed the vehicle tilting.

As the tank's tracks made contact with the boulder, the driver pushed the throttle to the maximum; now, it was time to ascend

Rocket! There is a rocket on the right! Immediately brake! At this moment, the periscope of the vehicle commander just caught sight of Muhammad shouldering the rocket launcher, aiming to fire, and he immediately shouted loudly

The four tanks behind stopped promptly, as one tank in front was taken out, and guerrilla fighters were rushing in from both sides. It was evident that this was a meticulously planned ambush by the opposing side

Belikov would not forget that within this guerrilla group, there was a sharpshooter who cunningly shot down his periscope

The person inside was struck twice in succession, particularly the driver, whose head hit the aiming device heavily, causing him to lose consciousness immediately

The vehicle body rotated ninety degrees, with the left side making contact with the ground, causing the entire vehicle to lie horizontally.

If it were not for the fact that the loader died while operating the anti-aircraft machine gun, it would have been entirely possible to use the machine gun to shoot the person carrying the rocket launcher into several pieces

A flame erupted from the rear of the rocket launcher, followed by a magnificent tail flame, gracefully tracing its path as the rocket propelled forward

Several guerrilla fighters who rushed to the front were immediately struck by machine gun fire and fell down

"It must be done, this is an order." Belikov insisted

His tank company has lost two tanks, and that isolated tank numbered 413 is likely also unable to escape misfortune at this moment

Although Berikov was very reluctant to accept that his own company had been ambushed by several guerrillas, he had no other choice now but to seek assistance from above, preferably requesting a helicopter to be dispatched, bringing elite reconnaissance soldiers to eliminate all these guerrillas completely

Finally escaped that damned rocket shell, didn't we? The commander's eyes, before even reaching the periscope, felt the vehicle shudder, accompanied by a terrifying sound that entered his ears. Then, an overwhelming heat surged through his body, and the temperature inside the turret instantly rose by several hundred degrees.

Currently, the driver of 404 is pushing the limits

The vehicle no longer had a periscope, but the gunner still did, and the turret was continuously rotating. Belikov did not believe that the enemy would be so fortunate.

I just collided with the destroyed tank number 402, yet I suffered no losses myself, which is already very fortunate. Now, I hope to maintain this luck. The crew of tank number 404 is praying in their hearts.

Suddenly, Belikov discovered that he could see nothing through his periscope

"Fall back, use the machine guns to eliminate the guerrillas on both sides," Berikov shouted into the radio. "Calling the infantry squad, calling Jalalabad, we need support"

This probability is very low

404, bypass 402, charge forward out of the valley, and be mindful of the rocket launcher nearby" Berikov commanded

With the roar of the engine, the tracks gripped the boulder without slipping and ascended smoothly

At this moment, he quietly poked his head out and saw the burning tank, realizing that he had successfully hit it again

Boom! A violent tremor occurred as the T-62 made intimate contact with the ground

Damn

This cursed valley

For a tank driver, the primary controls are these two levers. Pulling them halfway allows for steering, while pulling them all the way down applies brakes on both sides simultaneously

Because Belikov's periscope was broken, he did not see the guerrillas outside. Although they were lying down, they were still crawling forward, holding some glass bottles in their hands

The brave tank soldiers, faced with a dozen Afghan guerrillas, found themselves utterly helpless, which inevitably infuriated Berikov

Oh no, the engine is overheating, it seems that the piston has seized! Next, the driver saw the engine's tachometer in front of him, which dropped sharply and then came to a stop at zero

When! Bang! Bang! Berikov, inside the turret, heard the sound of metal clashing from outside. He knew that the enemy was using rifles to shoot at his tank

However, both sides are giant rocks, and the road in the middle is blocked by 402, preventing us from passing. 404 exclaimed anxiously.

The driver's instinctive reaction was to immediately pull both control levers sharply backward

"Quack, quack." Just then, suddenly, a strange noise came from the engine compartment at the back.

At this moment, the center of gravity of the tank has not yet completely ascended onto the boulder, thus the T-62 at this time resembles a seesaw, attempting to press down but failing to do so

Slow down, turn, go up

After the driver shouted to brake, the two individuals inside the turret simultaneously gripped the armrests of their seats tightly

They are tank soldiers, not infantry. If 404 were to abandon their armored vehicles, then these few would be captured by the Afghan guerrillas and subsequently eliminated

The body of the deceased loader at the top of the turret fell down from the turret top with this brake

404 has overturned. The tank numbered 405, which was originally intending to follow, hesitated upon witnessing the dire situation of 404 and did not proceed further. It reported to the company commander via radio.

The hatch was closed, and they could only rely on the periscope for observation. The visibility was already poor, and maneuvering around the front posed significant danger. However, the crew of 404 understood that this was an order they had to comply with.

As the drive wheels came to a halt, the two tracks on either side also ceased their movement; however, under the immense impact, they surprisingly slid forward horizontally.

Rockets are uncontrolled, while tanks are in motion. Therefore, when Muhammad launched the rockets, he maintained a certain lead time. The exact amount of this lead time must be quickly estimated in one's mind based on the speed of the opponent's movement and the time it takes for one's own rockets to reach the target, or to put it more simply, it is determined by experience.

With their flesh and blood, daring to charge down like this to strike at their own tank unit, these Afghan guerrillas are simply insane. Belikov wished he could eliminate them immediately, but unfortunately, the peaks on both sides were too steep. After turning the turret around, he found that neither the artillery nor the co-axial machine guns could reach them for the time being

Having consecutively lost two tanks, Berikov knew that the situation was dire

"Report 404, 402 has been destroyed, the front exit is blocked, I collided with 402, the coolant in the water tank is leaking, I fear we won't last a few more minutes," shouted the conductor of 404.

The engine has stopped turning

If the speed increases, it will result in a violent impact; if the speed decreases, it will be unable to surge forward, making it difficult to grasp

Due to the rapid movement of the tank company, when the first tank suddenly braked, the second tank was unable to evade in time, resulting in a collision.

Due to the ambush discovered at the summit, the tank moved very quickly, almost reaching its maximum off-road speed. Therefore, it was nearly impossible to evade the rockets by accelerating. If acceleration was not feasible, then another method had to be employed: deceleration

These tanks are their target

When the sensation of impact was felt, the driver once again pressed the accelerator to the floor, simultaneously engaging the lowest gear

While retreating, they continued to strike at the guerrillas using a machine gun in parallel

The guerrillas approached, and at the same time, the altitude decreased, allowing for the use of a parallel machine gun to deal with them

Damn it, the exit ahead is blocked, what should we do? Turn back? Or force our way through?

The nearly forty-ton iron mass came to a rapid stop, and the individuals inside the tank, although secured tightly to their seats by safety belts, still felt as if they were on a roller coaster, their bodies uncontrollably lurching forward, only to be restrained by the safety belts, which pressed painfully against them

Although tanks may appear to be able to charge through anything and be invincible, in reality, tanks cannot traverse every type of terrain, and they can also overturn.

The driver let out a sigh of relief; the engine had been running overheated. However, as long as they could endure and get through this stretch of road, once they exited the valley, they would be safe

The rocket projectile uses a fast-burning propellant. By the time the rocket projectile exits the launcher, it has already completely burned, resulting in no tail smoke and no flames

The guerrillas on both sides have also charged forward at this moment

The war belonging to Muhammad has just begun

They held some homemade bottles in their hands

As the driver operated the controls, the brake cylinder beneath the control lever pressed hydraulic oil into the brake bands on both sides of the drive wheel, causing the brake bands to tightly grip the drive wheel amidst a smell of burning.

Unfortunately, this type of lens is not applicable in practice

The T-62 does not possess the capability for pivot turns, meaning that if the two tracks rotate in opposite directions, the tank can turn 180 degrees on the spot and then quickly retreat along the same path. However, currently, it can only achieve this through a combination of moving forward and backward several times. Without even mentioning whether the terrain allows for this, time constraints also do not permit it; within a few minutes, the T-404 will lose power due to engine overheating.

Four tanks, without turning, the drivers engaged reverse gear, and they continued to backtrack all the way.

With Berikov's command, the turret of the tank rotated, simultaneously spewing flames to both sides

Muhammad's lead was just right; however, he originally aimed for the back of the turret, but instead, he hit the front of the turret

This is a scene from the television, a spectacular moment from a Hollywood blockbuster

The reason why the RPG-7 rocket has great power is that approximately ten meters after launch, the second stage booster ignites, completing its combustion in an instant, which accelerates the rocket to three hundred meters per second. The immense energy generated by this speed endows the rocket with superior armor-piercing depth

Reversing a bit, the driver of the 404, disregarding the red light indicating the engine was overheating, floored the accelerator, and amidst the thick black smoke, the tank charged towards the massive boulder beside it

After hiding, he quickly reloaded another rocket into the front end of the rocket launcher.

The person behind immediately fell to the ground, while simultaneously seeking cover nearby

The exterior of the tank is made of thick steel; do they really think ordinary bullets can penetrate it? Are these guerrilla fighters out of their minds?