Redemption of WWII

Chapter 72 The price of belittling 'tigers'

When the vanguard tanks of the 800th Armored Division of the British Army had just stepped over the limit of [-] meters away from the German tanks, these German tanks began to move. rotation. 【】These movements are like a real tiger pawing deeply after waking up, and raising its head lazily.

The Zeiss tfz88b sight of the 9mm tank gun of the German tank, 'minutes and seconds' is aimed at these 'Sherman m4' tanks of the British army that are moving.Almost at the same time, 40 tanks fired their guns.These guns passed the friction of the rifling of the four-meter-seven-long barrel, and flew forward while spinning at a very high speed.

The distance of 800 meters was almost instantaneous, and the commander of the British tank on the opposite side had no time to react at all, and felt the whole tank shaking non-stop.Then, the metal wall of the tank instantly turned red like a piece of burning charcoal, and finally burst inward.Then a large number of shining metal stages flew into the interior of the tank, penetrating everything that could block their way forward, including of course the lives of the British tankers.

The 20 'Sherman m4's of the British army that were originally traveling all seemed to hit a one-dimensional wall at the same time.It abruptly changed from a driving state to a stopped state, and then was carried away several meters by the inertia of the cannon.This state is like a fast-moving car traveling at a high speed of one hundred kilometers per hour.Then it bumped into a large engineering vehicle parked on the road. Under the action of the reaction force, the car smashed itself and was pushed back a few meters away.The whole picture seems so unacceptable.It's even a little nauseating.

It took less than a second from the firing of the German tanks to the firing of the British tanks.The tanks behind the British army have not yet figured out what happened, and they are still wondering.At this time, the explosions of these hit tanks of the British army broke out from those tanks. The power of the 88mm gun was vividly displayed in front of the British and German troops. 20 British 'Sherman m4' were beaten into wreckage.

20 burning 'Sherman M4's have turned into towering torches in the desert of North Africa.This scene stunned the British tankers who were about to beat up the German tanks.All stared blankly at the burning 20 'Sherman m4' tanks.However, German tanks seem unwilling to give them time to appreciate these torches.

Less than ten seconds after the shooting just ended, the second round of shooting by the German tank started again.This time it was the British tanks of the forward brigade following the 20 tanks just now.Although the distance from the front tank was 200 meters, the commanders of the German tanks had already calculated the coordinates of the next round of shelling when the tanks were loaded and loaded, and they directly communicated the exact coordinates and the elevation angle of the gun barrels. in the gunner's ear.

When the loader enters the gun and closes the rear compartment, the gunner's aiming work has been done, and the hand is pulled on the 88mm trigger again, and at this time the commander's order to fire is transmitted again.The whole process was smooth and flowing, without any delay.However, the instructor-level commanders of the German tanks never even took a look at the operations of these German tankers, and kept their eyes on the command periscope of the tanks.Orders were issued one after another.

This round of shelling was even more serious than the previous round. A total of 27 British 'Sherman M4' tanks were smashed into sieves.All this was less than ten seconds before the first German launch.The speed is so fast that the British tanker, who has always regarded himself as a fast gunner, is ashamed to find a crack in the ground.

The tank commanders of the 88th British Armored Division only reacted at this time, and someone on the line screamed loudly "[-]mm tank gun!"

At this moment, the tank crews of the British army, who were not particularly aware of the situation, were suddenly taken aback.Not for anything else, just because of the phrase '88mm tank gun'.

As early as the Battle of France, the British and French tanks were actually no worse than German tanks.The standard anti-tank guns of both sides at the time were small in caliber, the German 37mm and the British 2-pound (about 40mm) guns.And based on the fact that the goals of tank guns and infantry anti-tank guns are the same, they are both tanks. The main battle tanks of both sides also use the same small-caliber guns.

In May 1940, the Seventh Tank Division commanded by Rommel advanced from Belgium to Dunkirk at high speed, but encountered a British counterattack on the way.Facing the heavy tanks of the British army, the German 37mm anti-tank guns were helpless.At the critical moment, the 88mm antiaircraft guns of an antiaircraft artillery battery lowered the muzzle and fired at the British army, destroying nine British tanks in the blink of an eye, forcing the British army to retreat.This battle left a deep impression on Rommel.Since then, the 88mm anti-aircraft gun has become his handy anti-tank trump card.

In February 1941, Rommel led the African Army to the North African battlefield.Compared with the opposing British army, Rommel's tanks have no advantage in terms of quality or quantity.But this shortcoming gave the 88mm anti-aircraft gun a chance to show its talents.In the battle of 'Salam' in June, the British army launched an attack on the 'Halfaya Pass' occupied by the German army with nearly 240 tanks.When the British tanks approached the German positions, in an instant, the 88mm anti-aircraft guns roared in the pre-dug and cleverly camouflaged fortifications.The British army was caught off guard and retreated in panic.In this battle, the British army left 123 tank wrecks, two-thirds of which were the results of 88mm anti-aircraft guns.

Generally speaking, anti-tank guns are a passive defensive weapon. The usual method of use is to pre-arrange them at places where enemy tanks may pass, and wait for the enemy to come.But Rommel gradually worked out a way to use the 88mm anti-aircraft gun as an active attack weapon.He first arranged the camouflage of the 88mm anti-aircraft guns of several units, and then ordered a small group of German tanks to attack the British positions. Introduce an ambush area.

When the 88mm anti-aircraft guns spoke, the British tanks were in danger. The 22-pound armor-piercing can punch a large hole four inches in diameter in the frontal armor of the British heavy tank at a distance of nearly 2000 meters, but the Germans often waited for them to enter within 1000 meters before firing.At this time, it only took a little more than a second for the 88mm armor-piercing to fly from the muzzle to the target, and the British tanks had no time to react, let alone fight back.

A captured British tanker said dejectedly, "The 88mm anti-aircraft gun looks inconspicuous, but we have nothing against it."

However, a captured senior British general complained incomprehensibly, "This is so unfair! How can you shoot tanks with guns from planes?"

It has to be said that Rommel is indeed very talented in the flexible use of the opponent's weapons.But that's all dead.It can only be used as a passive defense measure, but now this kind of cannon is installed on the tank.This tank is the soon to be famous 'Tiger' tank.Although this kind of tank is still looked down upon by Rommel and the British army.

'Brian', commander of the British Seventh Armored Division, was a believer.But that is only the reverence for the god of the ethereal heart, not the old superstition that all demons and ghosts believe in. 'Brian' is also a major general with a bachelor's degree, and his education is also very high.If someone told him that the German No. 10 tank fired two consecutive shots within 200 seconds, and each shot hit the target, and it was still two targets [-] meters apart.He wouldn't believe it, absolutely not.

If his superior had told him about this, he could only tell his superior tactfully that this is impossible, and this kind of tank would not exist in the world.If this was reported by his subordinate, 'Brian' might raise his hand and give that subordinate a big slap in the face.Scold that subordinate for a meal.

But today he saw with his own eyes that these 'No. [-]' tanks destroyed dozens of his own tanks in two consecutive shots.And it's false hair. 'Brian' rubbed his eyes involuntarily, hoping that his eyes were dazzled, not really clear, but hallucinations. 'Brian' rubbed his eyes and said, "Illusion, it must be an illusion, I'm not afraid, you can't scare me." But the fact of love was in front of 'Brian'.

Dozens of tanks from the vanguard brigade are still carrying out the high-quality spirit of "once hit, every shot must be hit" Ronson lighters, burning like torches tenaciously.What frightened the British army the most was that none of the tank crew members climbed out of the hit 'Sherman M4' tank, and all of them turned into burning flames together with their cars.

"Scatter, hide, attack, retreat." Several upside-down, incomprehensible orders were shouted by 'Brian'.To be honest 'Brian' is kind of half crazy right now.It was all stimulated by the effects of these two rounds of shelling by the German army.

The tankers of the 4th Armored Division of the British Army were confused by these orders at the time, and they all thought, "What's wrong with the commander, is he telling us to hide, or attack, or retreat." So some The 'Sherman m[-]' stopped the attacking pace, and took the S-shaped route one after another, in order to avoid the guns that the German army was about to fire to the greatest extent.Some directly put on the reverse gear and overtake the rear.Some faithfully continued to advance towards the German defense line, panicked and fired at German tanks from time to time.

The entire Seventh Division of the British Army was in a state of chaos immediately, with crashes, rear-end collisions, and flameouts everywhere.The entire tank team was in a mess.It is not only these tanks that are unlucky, but the armored vehicles that follow these tanks have also become the targets of those German tanks.

Dozens of 'Sherman M4's in the vanguard were turned into torches, and the smoke from the gas flames blocked the targets of the follow-up tanks.These German 'Tiger' tanks all aimed at some targets in the rear, and the third round of launching fell on these rear tanks, armored vehicles, and logistics supply vehicles. 'Sherman m4', which is theoretically comparable to the defensive steel plate with 100mm thick armor, failed to block the attack of the German 88mm tank gun, let alone these vehicles with only a dozen millimeters of defensive armor.