Mercenary’s War
Chapter 1104 - 1104 One Thousand Eighty-Seven High Stakes Bet

1104: Chapter One Thousand Eighty-Seven: High Stakes Bet 1104: Chapter One Thousand Eighty-Seven: High Stakes Bet Gao Yang had just been awarded in the day and hinted at his imminent departure, yet in the blink of an eye, before the day was even over, he was declaring the need to take immediate action.

When Gilanor learned of Gao Yang’s plan, he couldn’t help but exclaim, “Have you all gone mad?”

Gao Yang urgently replied, “Clearly we’re not mad, pal.

Get the aircraft ready quickly, notify everyone, we must be fast enough.”

After catching his breath, Gilanor immediately picked up the walkie-talkie, ran towards the command building, and loudly called on the air and ground crews serving Gao Yang’s team to assemble.

Gilanor needed to report to Colonel Kuteli for approval before the planes could take off, but Gao Yang’s team had a privilege – if they needed planes, Colonel Kuteli could not refuse approval, and Gilanor could pre-emptively gather the personnel to stand by.

As Gilanor ran off, Dani also came running out of his room while getting dressed.

Upon seeing Gao Yang, Dani immediately asked anxiously, “What happened?

What’s the situation?”

Gao Yang waved at Dani and whispered, “We’ve located Badadi.

He’s in Aleppo, near Aleppo Prison.

We must act immediately.”

Dani was taken aback and exclaimed loudly, “Are you crazy?

Heading to Aleppo now?

Just the few of you?”

Gao Yang nodded and said, “Yes, we can’t afford to miss this opportunity, Dani.

Please contact the person in charge immediately and get in touch with the forces stationed in Aleppo.

We need support from Aleppo, we need a helicopter to pick us up.”

After catching his breath, Dani said immediately, “I’ll report to General Marshall right away.

Ram, are you sure about this?”

Gao Yang replied gravely, “I’ve made up my mind.

No need to rush now.

I figure Colonel Kuteli will arrive soon, and I’ll explain my combat plan to you all after he gets here.”

Dani still looked incredulous, and at that moment, the people summoned by Gilanor had already rushed out, dragging the Su-24 out of the hangar, pulling laser-guided bombs from the ammunition depot, refueling, and arming.

The ground crew quickly got busy.

The helicopters also began fueling up, most importantly attaching the auxiliary fuel tanks.

Damascus was about four hundred kilometers from Aleppo, and taking into account the detours around hazardous areas, the flight distance was roughly four hundred and fifty kilometers.

An Mi-17, if flying at maximum take-off weight, had a maximum range of only 465 kilometers, which meant flying directly by helicopter to Aleppo would only allow for a one-way trip – they would run out of fuel upon arrival.

If the Mi-17 is fully loaded with auxiliary fuel tanks, its range can reach 950 kilometers, which is more than enough to fly to Aleppo.

Upon arriving in Aleppo, Gao Yang and his team could proceed directly to combat operations, then the Mi-17 could wait in the air to pick them up later, with enough remaining fuel to land at an airport near Aleppo without a problem.

However, the Mi-17 is too slow.

By the time it reaches Aleppo, there will be limited time left to quietly approach the target; after all, helicopters are noisy.

This operation must maintain silence when approaching Badadi’s hideout; it can’t be like before, where they would directly land and kick in doors.

Another troublesome aspect is that Badadi’s current guard force is the Iron Madonna, which is much tougher than the Iron Wall.

It’s uncertain how long it will take to get close enough to guide an airstrike.

It’s very possible that they might arrive early but are unable to launch an attack.

In this case, the range of the helicopter becomes even more crucial.

As for the Mi-24, if it is fully loaded with ammunition, its range is only 320 kilometers, which just isn’t enough to get there.

With four auxiliary fuel tanks attached, the maximum one-way range is only 560 kilometers.

Not only does this reduce the number of hardpoints available, and the firepower provided is substantially limited, but the time it can stay in the air is also minimal.

Of course, without ammunition and only auxiliary fuel tanks, the range can stretch to one thousand kilometers; however, if ammunition is to be loaded after arriving in Aleppo, it would be too late.

Moreover, Syrian pilots are quite limited in night operations.

Even if two Mi-24s were brought to Aleppo, it wouldn’t be much use and would more likely expose the operation.

After weighing the pros and cons of various transportation options, Gao Yang ultimately chose to take a fixed-wing aircraft to Aleppo and parachute directly, quietly approaching Badadi’s hideout to deliver a laser-guided bomb straight to the heart, stealthily withdrawing afterward to wait for helicopters from Aleppo to evacuate them.

And if there’s an issue with the helicopters dispatched from Aleppo, they could wait a bit longer for Eileen to pick them up.

After a short wait, everyone arrived.

Upon hearing Gao Yang’s operation plan, each person immediately began to busily fulfill their responsibilities.

Contacting the Air Force in Aleppo, they arranged for pilots to be ready to pick up personnel at the designated location, coordinating a backup plan with Eileen’s aircraft.

Although many people were needed for the operation, the details of the operation plan were kept strictly confidential, particularly the exact location and the plan itself.

Syrian security wasn’t very tight, so if the plan was exposed too early, it would be disastrous.

Therefore, only the highest-ranking individuals in the Syrian Air Force were qualified to know what kind of support they needed to provide.

The work needed careful coordination and secrecy, which was not easy, but there was no alternative.

Half an hour later, the Mi-17 completed refueling and fitting auxiliary fuel tanks.

One copilot and a mechanic sent by Eileen and Colonel Kuteli took off immediately towards Aleppo.

Following closely, the An-26 was ready for takeoff, and Gao Yang’s fully armed team immediately boarded the plane and set off for Aleppo.

The Su-24 was also ready for takeoff, but because it’s much faster, it had to wait a bit longer before departing.

The perfect scenario would be for Gao Yang and his team to arrive in Aleppo and parachute down immediately, quickly getting ready for ground guidance after landing.

At that time, the Su-24 should have just arrived, and the helicopters from Aleppo would definitely have arrived first and would be ready to retrieve Gao Yang’s team after the bombing.

That would mark the completion of this very risky night raid.

But unfortunately, the probability of an operation plan being executed perfectly is almost zero.

There will always be problems somewhere; such is the uncertainty of war.

War does not simply unfold according to one’s wishes.

And once uncertainty arises, how this battle unfolds will rely on Satan’s capabilities.

In plain terms, this operation is a crazy gamble, where anything could happen.

Gao Yang’s mission is to ensure, no matter the circumstances, that he must bring every person back alive.

(To be continued.

If you like this work, you are welcome to vote, recommend tickets, and monthly tickets at Qidian (qidian.com).

Your support is my greatest motivation.

Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read more.)