artillery arc

Chapter 634 "Only Persistence"

Lieutenant Ilyich heard someone shouting on the radio: "The general is drawing fire for us! Go up and destroy the enemy's new tanks!"

This sentence seemed to ignite everyone's fighting spirit, and Lieutenant Ilyich felt that the tank under his butt was charging even more fiercely.

The infantrymen sitting behind the turret could not hear the sound on the radio, but they could see that the tank with the red flag was being besieged.

"Hurry up!" The sergeant of the "Armored Cavalry" leading Ilyich's vehicle patted his shoulder anxiously, "Hurry up! We can use the bazooka to open the cans of the enemy when we get close enough!"

Ilyich ordered into the microphone: "Charge toward the enemy. Our main guns cannot penetrate the armor of the enemy's new tanks at this distance! Shoot closer! While the general is helping us attract the enemy's attention!"

Infantry Sergeant: "We can also use rocket launchers when we get close. Our rocket launchers are said to be able to penetrate 80 to 100 mm thick armor. As long as we can hit it, it will definitely penetrate it!"

Ilyich: "The infantry brothers also want to help, so just rush to within 100 meters of the enemy's new tanks! While they are besieging the general!"

Lieutenant Ilyich had completely forgotten that he was still suspecting that it might not be the general himself, and his tone became hurried.

The driver replied: "This is already the maximum speed. If you want to go faster, it depends on the ground conditions. You can go faster if you enter a smooth surface! This has nothing to do with me!"

Lieutenant Ilyich gritted his teeth, looked ahead and kept repeating to himself: "Hurry up, hurry up!"

From time to time he glanced at the besieged heavy tank. The enemy was closing the distance, trying to penetrate its solid armor with close-range fire.

The heavy tank had stopped, apparently because its tracks were broken, but the turret was still turning slowly and was not stuck.

It fired, and almost at the moment the muzzle flashed, a new enemy tank turned into a torch, and the rising fireball was even as bright as the sun in the sky.

On the turret of the heavy tank, someone was operating an anti-aircraft machine gun, and bullets kept hitting the approaching Plossen tank.

Could that be General Rokossov himself?

Lieutenant Ilyich was worried. If the general himself died here, what would happen to the war? What would happen to Ant, who had lost the star of victory?
No, Lieutenant Ilyich suddenly remembered that even the military chaplain had told him the contents of the pamphlet distributed by the general, saying that Plossen's defeat and Ant's victory were things that could not be changed by human will.

Therefore, even without General Rokossov, Ant should be able to win.

but--

Lieutenant Ilyich didn't want things to turn out that way. If General Rokossov were alive, things would be simpler.

We must rush forward and kill these bastards who are besieging the general!

He gripped the microphone tightly and said to the driver: "If we still can't penetrate the enemy, you can ram into them and let the infantry use rocket launchers at zero distance!"

The gunner continued: "Not only the barrel! Did you forget that I brought a bottle of vodka? I have stuffed the cloth with it, and it will be a Molotov cocktail as long as it is ignited! As long as we get close enough, it will be easy to destroy the tank!"

Mechanic: "I have another incendiary grenade!"

Driver: "Stop arguing! I really can't go any faster! I've already shifted to the highest gear! I can't go any faster! I might as well pray that the ground under the tracks will turn into a road!"

The tankmen were arguing, and the infantry sergeant patted Ilyich on the shoulder: "Keep steady! I'm going to fire a rocket!"

"Ah? Not too far, right?" Before Lieutenant Ilyich could finish his words, the sergeant fired.

The pungent smell of gunpowder made Ilyich frown. He hurriedly followed the direction of the rocket, only to see the final moment of impact - it actually hit!

Staff Sergeant: "Sokabile, hit it!"

Ilyich turned his head and looked at him in shock, wanting to tell him not to waste the precious bazooka.

"The enemy jumped out of the car!" The gunner's voice drew Ilyich's attention back to the target, and he saw the Prosen tank driver jumping out of the tank.

Ilyich hurriedly operated the anti-aircraft machine gun to fire at the enemy. At the same time, the gunner's complaints came from the headset: "Sukabulie, why don't you give us shells with this kind of warhead! I can hit the enemy tank at a distance of 1500 meters! Isn't this more reliable than a rocket that can only hit meters?"

Because the T34W is a rifled gun, the penetration when firing a shaped charge warhead is extremely mysterious and depends entirely on luck.

But no one in Ilyich's crew knew about this at that time.

Lieutenant Ilyich shouted: "Don't complain, turn the turret 15 degrees left, I see an enemy tank in the distance facing us sideways!"

The target that Lieutenant Ilyich found was at the far end of the enemy's entire formation. It was trying to outflank the Red Flag heavy tank that was lying in wait from the other side, thus exposing its vulnerable side.

Lieutenant Ilyich: "Didn't you say that it's stable within 1500 meters? Keep your boast!"

Gunner: "I've got my aim! Get ready for an emergency stop!"

Ilyich: "Seven-second emergency stop, stop!"

The tank braked, and the sergeant standing on the radiator grille was hit directly on the turret roof by inertia: "Sukabulie! Say hello first!"

The infantrymen on the grille were thrown all over the place, and some even fell off.

The tank's main gun swayed up and down like it was on a small boat. After it finally stabilized, the gunner opened fire.

The armor-piercing shell flew over most of the enemy's formation and hit the side of the enemy tank at the far end.

The enemy stopped, but no one jumped out of the car.

Ilyich made a prompt decision: "Fire one more round! Don't start it right away. The infantry brothers who were thrown off need to climb back up! Fire one more round!"

Loader: "Armor-piercing bullet, okay!"

The gunner immediately opened fire, and this time he corrected his aim. Through Ilyich's telescope, the shell hit the side of the turret and clearly penetrated it. Ilyich immediately took out his notebook and wrote: "The side of the enemy's new tank turret can be stably penetrated at a distance of 600 meters."

While writing, he shouted on the radio: "I have just confirmed that the side of the enemy's new tank turret can be penetrated by our main gun at a distance of 600 meters! Whoever survives must remember to report to the army headquarters!"

These are all valuable experiences that may save the lives of countless tankers in the future.

The radio responded immediately: "Six hundred meters, remember!"

"I just shot through one at a distance of 200 meters!"

"Don't be so pessimistic, the enemies are almost dead! We are going to win!"

----

The commander of the 52nd Armored Battalion, Proshen, put down his binoculars and tore off his Iron Cross.

The commander of the entire armored battalion, whose entire troops were wiped out, was not qualified to wear the Iron Cross.

He picked up the microphone: "Tanks, forward!"

"Battalion Commander, almost all the new tanks are lost. It's useless for us to send a command tank up there!" said the driver.

At the same time, the deputy battalion commander also ran over from the radio car: "Battalion commander! We should retreat! There are tankmen who have escaped, we should bring them back, they are the empire's precious talents! There is no point in you dying for your country now!"

The battalion commander looked at the battlefield filled with thick smoke and flames, looked at the new tanks burning on the battlefield, sighed deeply, and closed his eyes.

After a few seconds, he said, "You're right, retreat."

----

At 7 on July 4, Plossen's Southern Army Group Headquarters.

Marshal Goron got on the armored command vehicle and prepared to go to the new headquarters when he suddenly heard the sound of a tank engine and gearbox outside.

He frowned and asked his adjutant: "Wasn't the tank unit assigned by the headquarters transferred last?"

The headquarters’ security force included a small armored platoon with several old-model Type 4 tanks.

The adjutant replied: "I don't know. Can I go out and take a look?"

Before Marshal Goron could answer, the noisy gearbox noise disappeared and the engine roar weakened a lot. It was obvious that the tank had stopped.

Marshal Goron glanced at his adjutant. At this time, his orderly was carrying a plate full of food onto the armored command vehicle. "Marshal, your dinner. We may not be able to prepare such a sumptuous dinner for a while when we arrive at the new place."

"Put it on the table." The marshal said as he placed the lit cigar in his hand on the edge of the ashtray, preparing to cut off the cigar head to put out the fire and smoke it after dinner.

But before he could pick up the scissors to cut the cigar, he heard the guard outside shouting: "You can't get on the car without permission! Wait a minute!"

Accompanied by the guards' shouts, Schmidt, commander of the 19th Armored Division of the rd Armored Corps, rushed into the command vehicle.

The marshal was very calm: "What's the matter, Your Excellency Major General?"

"Report to His Excellency the Marshal, one of my divisions is completely destroyed."

Marshal Goron was not particularly surprised. He looked at Schmidt, the commander of the 19th Armored Division. It seemed that he had driven a tank in the front line and fought side by side with his soldiers to the end.

The marshal looked at him again and again, then dropped his eyes.

The division commander continued, "But I will not forget my duty, Your Excellency Marshal."

After saying this, he saluted Marshal Goron, turned around and left the armored command vehicle.

Marshal Goron turned around, picked up the cigar that had not been extinguished in the ashtray, and took a long puff with a serious expression.

As soon as he exhaled a puff of smoke, the sound of a pistol was heard outside.

The marshal turned around: "What's going on?"

The adjutant immediately came to the door of the armored command vehicle, leaned against the door frame and looked out, then replied: "General Schmidt committed suicide."

Marshal Goron hurried to the window and looked out, and saw General Schmidt lying in front of his tank, surrounded by the headquarters staff who were watching.

Marshal Goron: "It's meaningless."

He walked around the command vehicle a few times with a cigar in his hand and sighed, "At this point, what else can we say to the soldiers? We can only persevere. We can only persevere."

Adjutant: "I'll draft the order right away."

The marshal nodded.

Then he looked at the sumptuous meal on the table and sighed: "Take this away, I can't eat it now."

Orderly: "You should eat something. You haven't eaten much today."

"How can I eat? Rokossov is almost exhausting our armored forces! Take it away!" Marshal Goron said angrily.

(End of this chapter)