163: Chapter 163 Airdrops and Pre-constructed Defenses!

The convoy of the First Company of the National Defense Force kicked up a long dragon of dust in the vast sea of sand. They were not venturing deep alone on this trip.

In the center of the convoy, a heavy truck carried a special "piece of equipment"—a military-grade, large-scale atmospheric water generator urgently provided by China.

This boxy machine could condense several tons of drinking water from the dry air every day, serving as their lifeline for long-term stationing in the desert.

The convoy rolled southward, while thousands of kilometers away in Beijing, Lin Zhou's office had turned into a temporary war command center.

The sounds of phone calls and video conferences rang out one after another, and he was running on a twenty-four-hour cycle. He was finalizing critical orders for the future base. Without delay, he dialed the number of the chief project engineer at a heavy industry group.

"Hello, is this 'Great Wall Heavy Industry' in the north? I'm looking for Chief Engineer Wang. I'm Lin Zhou, and Director Zhou introduced me."

The voice on the other end of the phone was calm and professional: "Hello, Mr. Lin. Director Zhou has already reached out. We have reviewed the preliminary requirements you sent over—the prefabricated fortifications for the 'Ironforge' gold mining area. The requirements are very high, needing to withstand direct hits from 155mm howitzers and blasts from heavy siege explosives."

"That's correct," Lin Zhou said in a deep voice, "I need a true fortress, not a temporary shelter. I just sent the detailed, high-precision topographic maps and geological survey reports of the gold mining area to your encrypted email."

"I need you to immediately design a complete, modular defense system based on the terrain. It must integrate all the needs for housing, office work, medical care, and storage for two hundred people, while also including core protective modules such as the main defensive positions, guard towers, an underground command center, and ammunition depots."

The sound of keyboard typing came from Chief Engineer Wang's side as he reviewed the data: "Received... Hmm, Gobi terrain, with low hills and rock formations that can be utilized... Very good. Mr. Lin, your requirements are very clear. We have off-the-shelf 'Great Wall' series field fortification modules that can be rapidly assembled."

"Based on your terrain, we can design a three-layered defense perimeter, with the core area even capable of going underground. However, a customized combination containing all functional modules will take time; it will take at least 24 hours to produce the final plan and production sequence."

"That's fine. But the biggest problem is that these 'iron lumps'—a single standard module weighs over ten tons, and the complete defense system will likely total over a thousand tons. How do you plan to transport them to Sudan, Africa?" Lin Zhou pointed out the crux of the matter.

Chief Engineer Wang laughed on the other end of the line: "Mr. Lin, we are only responsible for production. As for how to get them to the battlefield, that is a problem for Director Zhou and his team to consider. According to him, we just need to pack all the components and transport them to the designated airbase within 48 hours."

"Airbase?" Lin Zhou's mind shifted, and he immediately understood the implication.

Hanging up the phone, he did not hesitate and dialed that number directly.

"Director Zhou, it's me, Lin Zhou. I've placed the order for the fortifications, including all living and defensive modules; the total weight is expected to exceed 1,500 tons. Now, everything is ready, except for the 'East Wind'—."

Director Zhou on the other end of the line was silent for a moment, weighing his options. Lin Zhou could even hear other people whispering in the background on his end.

In fact, a small emergency meeting was underway in Director Zhou's office.

A general wearing an air force uniform pointed to a world map covering the entire wall, his expression grave: "Chief, there is no global precedent for a one-time, cross-border airlift of over 1,500 tons of heavy supplies. We would need to mobilize at least one regiment of Y-20s to conduct multi-wave, non-stop relay transport. Fuel, flight paths, airspace coordination with countries along the route, mid-air refueling... This is an extremely complex systems engineering project. The cost will be astronomical."

Director Zhou tapped his fingers on the table and said: "Cost is secondary. The key lies in the value of this operation. Haven't you all been complaining about not having the opportunity to conduct a full-load, full-process, cross-border heavy-duty air drop combat drill? Now the opportunity has arrived."

He looked at the air force general: "Define this operation as a 'saturated long-range projection drill for the strategic transport force.' From picking up the cargo at the factory, airport loading, long-distance flight, to the final heavy-duty air drop, every step must follow combat standards. We can use this to test the limit performance of the Y-20 fleet and hone our long-range support capabilities. This opportunity is priceless."

The general immediately straightened his posture, his voice rising a few notches: "I understand! Let's treat it as a massive, large-scale exercise that we organized ourselves! I'm going back to draft the plan immediately!"

A consensus was reached at the meeting. Director Zhou picked up the phone, his tone becoming relaxed yet resolute: "Little Lin, we'll cover your 'East Wind.' And it'll be a Category 12 typhoon at that."

"Air transport?!" Lin Zhou asked, feigning surprise; he needed to confirm this bold idea.

"Yes, air transport." Director Zhou's voice revealed a smile, "The shipping cost is astronomical, but this time, we'll charge you half price. We have our own considerations here as well. For our strategic transport force, this is an excellent training opportunity. Therefore, we will bear half the cost; consider it payment for the training. On your end, just be ready to clear an open area to serve as the drop zone and prepare to receive it."

Lin Zhou's hand tightened around the receiver. He understood that this was not "payment for training"; it was clearly China using an inconspicuous way to provide him with the most critical and timely support.

"Thank you, Director Zhou!"

"Don't thank me. Hold your position and don't let our investment go down the drain—that would be the best thanks for me."

The agreement was reached. A cross-border military logistics operation that could be called luxurious kicked off.

A few days later, the First Company of the National Defense Force finally arrived at the designated defensive location of the "Ironforge" gold mining area. The soldiers had just finished constructing temporary bunkers and sentry posts in the sweltering heat.

At dusk, just as the soldiers were gnawing on their dry rations and gazing at the blood-red sunset, a dull, continuous roar came from the horizon.

"Look! What is that! A fleet of aircraft!" A sharp-eyed sentry pointed at the sky and shouted.

In the afterglow of the sunset, five massive Y-20 transport planes could be seen flying in a neat formation, their enormous fuselages blocking the light as they bore down from the distant horizon.

They showed no signs of landing, but instead began to circle above the camp.

"Prepare to receive the air drop!" He Jun bellowed at the top of his lungs.

All the soldiers rushed out of their temporary bunkers, heads tilted back, their gazes completely captivated by the scene in the sky.

The tail cargo doors of the transport planes opened one by one, and immediately after, packages comparable to shipping containers were pushed out of the cabins.

In the air, the large parachute packs on the packages deployed in response, and dozens of white, round main parachutes opened in succession under the twilight sky, forming a slowly descending array of canopies.

Those packages were of astonishing size; as they fell, they cut through the air, emitting a heavy whistling sound.

The soldiers could even clearly distinguish that they were all heavy prefabricated fortification parts gleaming with cold metallic light. From massive living cabin sections to thick defensive armor modules, everything was there, signaling that a complete fortress was about to descend from the sky.

"My god... First time seeing such a spectacular air drop..." a soldier from Western Europe murmured to himself. He had been a mercenary for fifteen years, traveling to war zones all over the world, but he had never seen such an extravagant and overwhelming logistical supply operation.

Dozens of heavy air-drop packages, following precise calculations, slammed one by one into the designated drop zone planned on the perimeter of the camp.

When the heavy packages landed, the impact caused the entire Gobi desert to tremble.

This was likely the largest tactical air drop operation since World War II.

After circling in the air once to confirm the success of the air drop, one of the lead planes dipped its wing, leading the formation as they flew off into the distance, leaving behind only the gradually dissipating contrails in the sky and the soldiers on the ground who were still looking up, lost for words.

Looking at the "packages" scattered everywhere, He Jun turned back and shouted to the soldiers who were still frozen in place: "What are you all standing there for! Get to work!"