artillery arc

Chapter 716 "The Rise and Fall of the Theory of Quick Victory"

At 11 hours on November 3, the 1030st Guards Heavy Breakthrough Tank Regiment broke through the front line.

The 34st Guards Heavy Breakthrough Tank Regiment was reinforced to the th Tank Army and charged together with the Tank Army's TW.

The reinforcement was given to this army because according to aerial reconnaissance, this army might be counterattacked by the Prosen armored forces.

Although the Rokosov I tank equipped by the Heavy Breakthrough Tank Regiment is called a "breakthrough tank", the troops now tend to use it to deal with the Prosen tank forces.

The T54 of the independent armored brigade is used in the same way. It is said that this principle has been written into the new tank combat manual, and this manual is used by the tank drivers and senior officers of the tank units who are being trained in the rear.

Of course, if all tank armies were equipped with T54, there wouldn't be so much trouble, but the current production capacity of T54 simply cannot keep up.

The heavy tank "Revenge for His Heroic Brother" was at the forefront of the entire attack column, and the tank commander Podolskov was observing the front with a telescope.

They had already broken through the line held by Plossen's 377th Infantry Division and were advancing deeper.

The radio carried the chatter of the tankmen from the 11th Tank Army.

"Why do you think our breakthrough distance is so short in this battle plan? In the summer, we rushed for 200 kilometers in one breath before stopping."

"The marshal has his own considerations, you just need to execute them."

"But the Marshal taught us to be more independent. I think we should just run all the way and rush into Melania's territory, and let our Melania Davarishi return to her hometown!"

"I think it's possible! How many days did it take for Prosent to occupy Melania? Thirty days? We can also liberate Melania in thirty days and fire our cannons at Prosent!"

"That won't work. Can you read a map? There's an Oder River between Melania and the capital of Plossen, Plossenia."

"It's all frozen in winter! Let's charge in and end the war before Christmas!"

There was laughter on the radio, and suddenly the bishop of the tank army interrupted: "Enough! What did the marshal say? Arrogant soldiers will be defeated! Quick victory is not advisable!"

The radio channel, which had been lively just a moment ago, suddenly became quiet.

The bishop who was accompanying the army was still saying: "Those who just started the commotion, when you stop to rest tonight, take the initiative to copy the marshal's works! Understand the marshal's spirit!"

There were sporadic responses from the radio, but the bishop did not investigate further: "Now cheer up and fight well! The battlefield will devour those who have a careless mentality!"

Podolskov was shocked. He personally felt that the work of the military bishop was a bit rigid. He thought that it was no wonder that the 11th Tank Army still had such a serious desire for a quick victory. It was all caused by the bishop's incompetence.

Of course he wouldn't say this out loud. He just strengthened the army to participate in the battle and said goodbye to them after the battle.

Podolskov looked ahead through binoculars, his field of vision sweeping across a haystack.

Suddenly, he pulled his sight back and focused on the haystack.

There was no mistake. It was a fake tank made by piling hay on it. The enemy tank was lying in ambush in front!
Podolskov: "Everyone, attention, enemy tanks ahead!"

He switched to inside mode.

"Five degrees left, aim at that haystack! Get ready to stop and shoot!"

In the blink of an eye, the haystack was suddenly pushed away by the muzzle wind of the cannon.

The armor-piercing bullet hit the target accurately - it hit a T34W almost two hundred meters away from Podolskov!

Podolskov turned his head and saw the Prosons' armor-piercing shells hitting the ground far behind the T34W and bouncing off.

Missed?
But the T34 stopped, and the tank crew, covered in blood, began to jump out of the vehicle, and the infantry on the vehicle also rolled off the vehicle.

The enemy's armor-piercing bullet penetrated the T34W!
Podolskov switched the radio mode again: "Attention, the enemy is equipped with new armor-piercing shells!"

More enemy tanks opened fire.

The tankmen of the 11th Tank Army, who had just been chatting and laughing, were now screaming.

"I can't see the enemy!"

"In the village ahead you idiot!"

"The village is two thousand meters away!"

"I've been hit! The turret is stuck and the driver is killed!"

The enemy's armor-piercing shells had little charge, so few T34Ws caught fire, but more and more T34Ws stopped.

At this time, the gunner shouted: "I have completed the range finding, and we can make an emergency stop."

"Stop! Fire!"

Podolskov issued the two orders together.

The gunner fired almost the moment he stopped, apparently using his experience to offset the sway caused by the sudden stop.

Podolskov saw through the telescope that the haystacks were hit by bullets, but unfortunately, because of the hay, he couldn't see the damage clearly, so he ordered: "Fire another shot, it's not sure if they have been destroyed!"

At this moment, the enemy tank started, broke through the camouflage made of hay, and revealed its true form.

Podolskov felt a tingling sensation at the back of his head, and he immediately shouted into the microphone: "It's the enemy's new tank! The T34W can't handle it, release the smoke immediately!"

In fact, some crews of the 34th Tank Army had already released smoke. After Podolskov finished speaking, more crews launched smoke bombs. The Marshal insisted that the T34W be equipped with this smoke launcher. It was said that this was to allow the TW to conceal the enemy's sight and escape more quickly after encountering the Prosen armored forces.

The commander of the 11th Tank Corps said on the radio: "The 1st Guards Heavy Tank is in your hands. We will deal with the enemy infantry!"

"Do not worry."

In fact, Podolskov was a little nervous. After he lost his gunner last time, he knew that the Rokossov-1 type defense was far from being as invincible as everyone thought.

The enemy is equipped with new armor-piercing shells. What if...

He shook off the worry in his mind. His brother had chosen to move forward despite knowing that he was in danger of death. As an older brother, he could not let his brother down, nor could he let down the name of the tank written by the marshal himself.

"Forward! We can't penetrate the enemy's new tanks at this distance! Charge to a distance where we can penetrate them under enemy fire!" Podolskov shouted into the microphone. After he finished speaking, he realized that he was still in radio mode and quickly switched back on.

But his words had been heard by the entire heavy breakthrough tank regiment, and a chorus of agreement came over the radio: "Well said, Boroslikov!"

"You are worthy of being the first one in our group to win a gold star!"

"We'll follow you, charge!"

Before Podolskov could be moved, he saw the enemy opening fire.

He felt a chill at the back of his head, and he felt that he was the target this time.

The next moment the shell hit, making a sharp sound on the front armor of the tank.

Podolskov asked through the inside line: "Who is injured? Is anyone injured? Everyone report the number!"

Driver: “1!~”

Gunner: “2!”

Loader: "3!"

Podolskov breathed a sigh of relief. The enemy's new armor-piercing shells were useless against Rokossov's Type 1 armor!
He stared at the enemy through the telescope, recalling the enemy's armor weaknesses marked in the new identification manual issued by the High Command.

At this time, the enemy tanks released smoke and began to retreat!
Podolskov was shocked: "The enemy retreated! Why?"

At this moment, he saw a Proson soldier suddenly appear in front of him, carrying a rocket launcher on his shoulder - it was not Ant's style, but a style that Podolskov had never seen before, a Proson model!
Podolskov immediately operated the anti-aircraft machine gun and opened fire. The enemy fired rockets while being shot. The fire dragon flew over the top of the turret of the Revenge of His Heroic Brother, and the pungent gunpowder gas rushed into Podolskov's nostrils.

"The enemy has a rocket launcher!" Podolskov shouted into the microphone, "Don't let the enemy rocket launcher get close--"

His words were drowned out by terrified screams: "The enemy has a bazooka!"

"Semyon's car is on fire! Semyon!"

"Ahhhhh Mom!"

"Infantry get off the vehicle and fight, infantry get off the vehicle and fight!"

Podolskov realized that the enemy was trying to make him fall out of the infantry's anti-tank combat range. He shouted: "There is an enemy infantry ambush area ahead, commander, I think we should stop advancing——"

As soon as he finished speaking, a Rokossov Type 1 tank that was advancing suddenly spewed out flames that shot up into the sky, and the tank driver's screams were heard over the radio.

Podolskov: "Back up! Get away from the enemy infantry!"

At this time, the other tanks in the regiment also reacted and began to reverse without waiting for the commander's order.

"Commander!" Podolskov was still shouting, and then he suddenly noticed the tactical number of the burning vehicle in front.

That is the group leader's car.

"Sukabulie! The captain is dead, deputy captain!!"

"He also died. The priest was in charge of the support unit. You are the leader, Podolskov!"

At this time, some Proson infantrymen rushed out of the bunkers howling, carrying rocket launchers.

He shouted in Proson, but Podolskov vaguely heard the pronunciation of "Rokosov".

——Yes, I am flying a red flag.

Podolskov: "Everyone, please pay attention. I am flying a red flag. The enemy will mistake me for Marshal Rokossov's car. I will attract them to besiege me and organize defense around me——"

The next moment, the new Proson tank that had just released the smoke rushed out, and the distance was already within 1000 meters!

Podolskov: "Gunner! Kill him! He thought I was the marshal's car and that's why he came so fast!"

The gunner opened fire without even waiting for the vehicle to stop.

The shell hit the front of the enemy turret accurately, which was marked as the "weak spot" in the headquarters identification manual.

The next moment, the enemy's behemoth slowly slowed down, and then flames spewed out of the turret cover, and the entire vehicle caught fire.

Podolskov: "Weakness works. Repeat, weakness works! Form a formation around me and keep some distance from the infantry!"

At this time, the regimental priest spoke: "Podoliskov, the 11th Tank Army is retreating, let's retreat too. The enemy now has effective anti-tank means, we have to wait for the infantry to come up before continuing the attack." Podolskov looked at the village that was gradually going away and sighed: "Okay."

----

At eight o'clock in the evening on November 11, in the city of Roniezh, the headquarters of the First Antekosalia Front.

The situation on the first day was almost summarized at this time. Pavlov concluded to Wang Zhong: "The increase in the density of enemy forces has indeed made our advancement difficult. In the area guarded by the elite troops, we only penetrated about one kilometer of the defense line on average."

Wang Zhong: "What about non-elite troops?"

"We made a breakthrough in the Moravian positions, but soon encountered a second line of defense formed by the Prosen, and the situation was similar in other areas defended by so-called 'second-class citizens'.

"The enemy took advantage of the lack of motorization of our artillery units, organized defenses outside the range of our artillery fire, and used second-class troops and 'second-class citizen' troops to ensure that our artillery did not dare to advance in a swaggering manner."

Pavlov said as he stuffed the report into Wang Zhong's hands.

"The rest is up to you."

Wang Zhong: "As expected, the Prosens are an opponent that we cannot underestimate. They took advantage of the fact that our artillery is not motorized and used troops with weak combat effectiveness as a barrier, making our artillery dare not follow up rashly and organize a strong defense outside the range of our artillery."

The Russian artillery units on Earth have never been motorized, and often use dozens of pack horses to pull four 76mm anti-tank guns and matching ammunition trucks.

The Russians' heavy artillery units have never been equipped with trucks, but have maintained a large number of mules and horses - just like Sandezi's artillery.

So it is actually not very fair for military fans to slander Sandezi as the "Holy Mule and Horse Empire" all the time. In fact, during World War II, only the US military completely got rid of its dependence on mules and horses, while other countries had to rely on livestock.

Sandezi also had something to say, saying that at least their anti-tank artillery units had completed motorization - in order to keep up with the armored divisions and armored grenadier divisions.

Of course, the situation of Ante in this time and space has improved greatly. On the one hand, the early losses were not as exaggerated as those of the Russians on Earth, and a large number of BT7s were preserved. After the main guns and other things were removed, these tanks became tractors, and a grappling hook was welded on the back, which could be used to tow artillery.

In addition, the assistance from the United States in this time and space was more powerful. In the first two years, there were basically enough trucks and jeeps. Although the supply began to tighten in the third year, Wang Zhong's activeness put the United States in a state of "tightening the supply but not completely tightening it."

Although Ant did not get more tanks, planes and other weapons, he still consumed a lot of transport trucks.

Therefore, the motorization level of the Kosalia Front's artillery is quite high.

But the problem was that the enemy had deployed a bunch of second-rate troops in front of the real defense line. These troops were broken up and scattered in incomplete positions. Before completely clearing out these remnants, the unprotected artillery units dared not advance rashly.

The Prosen people seized this opportunity to organize a defense.

Wang Zhong: "I bet that after a few days when our artillery catches up, the Prosen people will retreat."

Vasily: "Retreat? Isn't it a matter of holding out to the end? Didn't the 'Runaway General' Shipulin go back home to farm?"

Wang Zhong: "I just imagined the most difficult fighting style of the Prosen people. Vasily, you should know that if we continue to advance, we will enter the enemy's territory, right? The supply problems that the enemy encountered in our territory, we will also encounter in the enemy's territory.

“For example, the problem of different railway tracks.”

The spacing between Plosson and Melania's railroad tracks is different from the spacing between Ant's railroad tracks.

Therefore, the supplies transported by train from Proshen have to stop at the border of Ant, unload the goods, and then load them onto trains that can travel within Ant.

In this era, there was no equipment like that at the Seris Port in later generations that could lift the entire train and replace the running mechanism as a whole. The only thing available was loading and unloading.

Therefore, the reason why the Prosen people had such poor supplies after entering Ant was not because of their logistical incompetence, but because of too many objective restrictions.

On the other hand, when Ant's army rushed into the territories of Plossen and Melania, they also had to face problems caused by different railway track standards.

Moreover, when supply was most difficult, Ant relied on local church organizations to mobilize a large number of civilians. However, these favorable conditions were no longer available when they went to the enemy's land.

Wang Zhong told Vasily all of this.

Vasily: "But if we follow Melania and go straight to the Baltic Sea and the Oder River, will the Melania people help us?"

"Not necessarily. You have to remember that most of the secular members of the Eastern Holy Church in Melania fled to Ant and are now fighting in the Melania People's Army. Most of the guerrillas who remain in Melania to fight do not believe in the same faith as us."

Wang Zhong paused and hesitated for a moment whether he should speak directly, but then he said: "Their headquarters is in the capital of the United Kingdom. It is hard to say whether they will fully support us. After all, it is the United Kingdom, right? Their infamous continental balance strategy is very fucked up."

"Europa Troublemaker," Popov said. "If you were more interested in history, Vasily, you would be familiar with this nickname."

"I'm not unfamiliar with it," Vasily protested. "I just didn't think about it that way."

The communications officer came in: "Report, weather forecast."

Pavlov took the forecast and scanned it. "Damn it, it says there might be heavy snow. Our weather station in Kamchatka found signs of a cold front moving south."

Wang Zhong: "Is it snowing heavily at this time? Shouldn't it start in December?"

"The weather forecast says so. If it snows heavily now, there may be big problems with logistics." Pavlov looked at the battle map. "We are fine, but the north is in trouble. In order to recapture Navajo, they launched a second landing operation. If it snows heavily ahead of time and the port freezes, it will be terrible if the landing troops are trapped behind enemy lines."

Wang Zhong was silent for a few seconds, then said, "General Dong treats everyone equally. The previous times we were just more accustomed to him than the Prosen people."

At this time, Emilia and two United States Army Aviation officers entered the headquarters and said to Wang Zhong: "Marshal Davarish, these two liaison officers want to see you."

Wang Zhong: "Why do you call me Davarish?"

"Do you think I should call you sister?" Emilia asked back.

Wang Zhong: "No, Davarish is fine. So how can you, an officer of the United Kingdom, be an introducer to the United States?"

"Because these two have misunderstood our relationship." Emilia said angrily, "Control that reporter Mike. He has gone too far to attract attention. The things he reported about me are not just gossip. I even have your child!"

Wang Zhong pretended to be surprised: "When? Oh, was it that time?"

"Asshole! Not even once! Why are you like this?"

Just teasing you.

Wang Zhong skipped the topic and looked at the two United States officers seriously: "So what do you two have to say?"

"We are preparing to launch a long-range bombing."

Wang Zhong: "Then go ahead and bomb them. No need to tell us. We are also using the Pei-8 to bomb as many large maintenance plants and train dispatching stations as possible behind the enemy lines."

"Well, this time we plan to have the bombers land at the airport in Ant after they finish dropping bombs, replenish their ammunition and rest, and then fly over Plossen at night and bomb again.

"Our staff believes that this will greatly increase the number and efficiency of bombs dropped."

Wang Zhong: “But it will make the pilots exhausted.”

"It's okay. You may not understand the life arrangements of bomber pilots. They have many days to rest between two bombings because the ground crew has to repair the aircraft."

Of course Wang Zhong knew about this. After all, thanks to "The Memphis Belle", a military fan would know this little piece of knowledge: "You can go home after participating in 25 bombing missions."

A quick search would reveal that many Eighth Air Force crews had not participated in 25 bombing missions in a year of service.

A quick calculation shows that the pilots had a lot of free time between bombing runs.

The United States officer continued, "So fatigue is not a big problem during bombing, and the benefits are obvious. The number of bombs dropped in one day will double, and the damage to the Proson Empire will also double."

Wang Zhong nodded.

He remembered that the Eighth Air Force on Earth had also carried out such bombings, and was surprised to find that the conditions at the Russian airport were very poor, and that the Russian Air Force had no control over the air at all. The German fighter planes came upon smelling the scent and bombed the airport full of bombers.

So the "leap bombing" plan was quickly stopped.

But now, this plan suddenly became feasible. The Ant Air Force has recently taken control of most of the air supremacy on the battlefield. The Proson Air Force can only seize the opportunity to launch an attack while the Ant Air Force is returning for supplies.

In this case, as long as the air force attacks the Plossen Air Force Base before the Allied bomber group arrives, they can cover the large group and ensure their safety when landing in Ant.

Wang Zhong: "Okay, I agree with this plan. What do you need me to do? Just issue an order to the Air Force Commander of the Front Army to assist you?"

"We also hope that you can mobilize the pilots." said the UN liaison officer.

"That's easy." Wang Zhong agreed without hesitation. At this time, he saw the weather forecast in his hand and reminded, "But it is very likely to snow heavily here."

The United States liaison officer was an officer of the Army Air Force. He immediately understood what Wang Zhong meant: "Before executing the plan, we will of course carefully confirm the weather conditions. Don't worry about that."

----

On the Plossen side, the Southern Army Group Headquarters.

Marshal Mendel put down today's daily newspaper and said to his chief of staff: "Considering the habit of our junior officers to exaggerate the blows inflicted on them by the enemy, Rokossov's progress today is very negligible."

Chief of Staff: "The plan to build a second layer of positions outside the enemy's artillery range has worked. Next, we should counterattack at night and recapture as many positions as possible, so that the enemy's artillery will still not dare to follow up tomorrow."

Marshal Mendel nodded. "That's it. By the way, didn't they say that the Imperial Academy of Sciences sent some night vision equipment? What do they say about that equipment?"

Chief of Staff: "I have assigned the 603th Armored Grenadier Division to cooperate with the Technical Experimental Unit , but the number of equipment is too small. I personally think it will be difficult to achieve anything great."

Mendel: "It doesn't matter. The key is to let the Ante know that we have night combat equipment, then Rokossov will have more concerns. He taught us this trick, and taught us step by step. It's very impressive."

At this time, the sound of a grenade explosion was heard outside.

Of course, this was not a grenade, but a bomb dropped by an Ante Air Force night bomber.

The Plosson troops have always spread the rumor that in order to carry more bombs on this small wooden biplane, the Ants simply threw grenades directly. The wooden plane, which was originally only able to carry two small bombs, could now carry a sack of grenades at a time. It wouldn't kill many people, but it would cause chaos wherever the plane passed.

Mendel pointed outside: "Can those night vision equipment deal with these planes first to see their strength?"

Chief of Staff: “Let me give them a call.”

"No, let's not fight. The Imperial Academy of Sciences has come up with few reliable things to please His Majesty."

Chief of Staff: "In today's combat, the new tank-killing rocket launcher was well received."

"That's a counterfeit Ante product!" Mendel suddenly raised his voice.

But he immediately suppressed the urge in his heart and sighed.

"Okay, let's launch a night attack first."

(End of this chapter)