Steel Soviet Union

In any case, before the 218th Battalion could go on a killing spree in Warsaw like in history, it had already bowed down under the muzzle of the loving father's 122 cannon and surrendered to the Eastern Front. Only this was obvious. What is before us can be determined. 6⃞ 9⃞ s⃞ h⃞ u⃞ x⃞ .⃞ c⃞ o⃞ m⃞

"What are you going to do with that batch of equipment? I took a look just now. They are all brand new self-propelled artillery. The condition of the vehicles is basically very good. If we arm ourselves, this will be a new self-propelled artillery battalion. I know You must have considered this issue, what do you think?”

The news that Kurbalov and his men surrendered a German battalion's self-propelled artillery also reached the ears of the political commissar. When the political commissar who had just led the forward division to the position heard this, he couldn't wait to see it with his own eyes. Look, feast your eyes.

He was also shocked by the row of German self-propelled artillery in front of him, but after the brief shock, Comrade Political Commissar immediately considered a more far-reaching problem: What to do with these valuable and rare weapons next? thing?

Keep these grizzly bears for your own use?

As Comrade Political Commissar said, Malashenko did have such a plan and considered similar issues and situations.

But a more troublesome problem is that Malashenko may not have enough manpower to handle this battalion of self-propelled artillery, and will not be able to form actual combat effectiveness in the short term.

The Grizzly Bear is a new piece of equipment that I have never been exposed to before, and Malashenko does not have professionals who can master this thing. (audience)

It is true that Malashenko had a battalion of German professional prisoners under his command, but you can't let these prisoners continue to use their original equipment and work under you to bombard their former comrades, right? Even if Malashenko wanted to try this idea, his superiors would never agree to Comrade Ma's reckless behavior. This is a fundamental issue of principle.

It is feasible to let the German prisoners teach the professional knowledge and training on how to use it.

But Malashenko did not have time to wait for these "German teachers" to slowly teach his soldiers how to use it. The urgency of the war and the tight time were the most serious problems that Malashenko could not ignore.

The Grizzly Bear is indeed a very good piece of equipment. Its quality is mature and reliable, and its performance is unparalleled. It can not only suppress direct fire but also provide direct artillery support. It is a very good choice for frontal assault or as a support artillery. .

Among the new things that the Germans have come up with in the past two years, Malashenko feels that this Grizzly Bear is probably the only new thing that meets his definition of "good equipment." If conditions permit, it is indeed good to use it for personal use. However, at present, it is true that conditions do not allow it, and Malashenko does not have so much time to waste.

Moreover, the Grizzly Bear can only be regarded as "not bad" or "very good". It has serious shortcomings in high-intensity frontal attack and anti-tank capabilities, and is far inferior to the ISU-equipped equipment of Lao Ma. 152 self-propelled artillery.

The latter can not only do all the tasks that a grizzly bear can do, but can also go to the front line with thicker armor and super-large-caliber armor-piercing projectiles than a grizzly bear, and directly undertake anti-tank tasks. If necessary, it can also launch a charge with the heavy tank troops. It is no problem to equip the Stalin Guards 1st Tank Division for so long. It is also well received and is respectfully called the "Giant Bear" by the soldiers.

You can have it, it smells pretty good, but it’s not necessary.

After much deliberation, the above words were Malashenko's final conclusion for this battalion of Grizzly assault guns.

"I don't have time to wait for this kind of new weapon to the Germans to slowly develop into a combat effectiveness in our hands. Now is the climax of the strategic counterattack, and the distance we advance in a day is often several kilometers in the past. Sometimes, when I’m either fighting or on the road, I really don’t have any extra time to calm down and figure these things out.”

Malashenko's slightly helpless summary was recognized by the political commissar, as evidenced by the slight nod of approval.

"Then since you don't need it, what are you going to do with this stuff? Give it away?"

After hearing this, Malashenko sighed first. To be honest, such a large number of organic special heavy equipment is not that easy to handle.

"If I only get a few, or even a dozen, it would be easy for me to give them away on my own."

"But, this number is a bit too much. If they are all packed into an assault artillery battalion, there will be a total of 45 vehicles, and one of them is not bad."

"The matter has reached this point and it is no longer up to me to make any decisions. It will be left in our hands for the time being. I have to ask a few more big shots to see what to do. Maybe Ke Jing will also be interested in this. I’m interested in the stuff, and maybe he’ll take some away for research. I sent him a telegram a while ago and heard that he’s also working on some new self-propelled artillery.”

"Speaking of this, the frontline heavy tank troops have no equipment pressure, and the R\u0026D force on Kotin's side has been idle recently. Except for the group of people Shashmulin brought to Leningrad, the group of R\u0026D personnel he left behind Some of them had no work to do, but they couldn't be idle, so they simply started working on the self-propelled artillery that they had conceived before. The specific situation was still unclear, but he urged me to go over and take a look when I had time, saying that he lacked inspiration for the next stage of research and development. "

This was how the two men chatted. Many times, the topic would drift to one side without even realizing it. But in the end, the two of them worked together to temporarily solve the problem of these grizzly bears. We, Comrade Lao Ma, do not intend to keep covering this hot potato in our hands. Let whoever wants to take it next take it.

But there was only one thing that Malashenko didn't expect. News about these grizzly bears would spread like wildfire so quickly. Before Malashenko could report to the top, a big boss came to visit him personally. Vatutin's sudden visit shortly after the battle was really unexpected to Malashenko.

"Comrade Commander, why didn't you inform me before you came? I have to at least do some security work and send a capable force to pick you up. This is a frontline war zone. It's too dangerous to do so."

When he saved Vatutin, Malashenko didn't feel anything special yet.

But now, Malashenko really understands the reason why some people in later generations said that Vatutin's death in 1944 was "his own doing". This guy really loved to run around too much! Moreover, he was traveling lightly and without any pomp and circumstance.

Have you ever seen a commander of a front army with a squad of guards, a few entourage, and three or four vehicles, and dare to run around on the battlefield where the enemy and us often enter and kill people with several divisions? ? If you haven’t seen him before, there’s no need to look for him, Vatutin is such a popular person.

Even though he almost lost his life because of this last time, if Comrade Lao Ma hadn't foreseen that something was going to go wrong in advance and came to the rescue, Vatugin would have been buried in the ground like a skeleton and bones, freezing to the core. , but even so, the "old habits will not change", and he can continue to "return to the old business" after everything is done.

Malashenko can save Vatutin once, but only once that can be predicted in advance based on existing history, just like Tiantianya can bring the dead back from the underworld once, but cannot be resurrected twice to extend his life indefinitely.

Malashenko is not a god. It is impossible for him to meet when Vatutin is in danger again and run to the rescue accurately. Strictly speaking, Vatutin should be a dying person. After that rescue, Comrade Lao Ma cannot predict anything that happens in the future.

Therefore, Malashenko, who was anxious and helpless, could only offer kind words to this comrade commander who "loved to run around all the time" and continued to nag him earnestly and sincerely about what he had repeated several times before.

After all, whether in terms of personal emotions or responsibilities, Malashenko does not want anything unexpected to happen to Vatutin. Comrade Lao Ma knows a lot of big bosses and can talk to them. There are also many people with higher status and more prominent status than Vatutin, but there are not many "good leaders" who can urinate into a pot. of.

After experiencing so much together, Malashenko was very convinced that the model superior-subordinate relationship between himself and Vatutin was the kind that most soldiers could only encounter in their lives.

It is no exaggeration to say that working under Vatugin is indeed the "good time" when I can let go and do whatever I can.