The Rise of the Third Reich

"With so many tanks, we should be able to break through at once, right?"

On the second-floor balcony of a seemingly abandoned farm less than 3,000 meters away from where Otto Skorzeny was. Golikov of the Soviet military observation group was frowning and talking to himself. Although Stalin had decided to start a war, his mission in Ireland was still not completed. He now needed to observe the fighting between Britain and Germany and try to understand the actual combat effectiveness of the German army.

However, within the first thirteen days after arriving in Ireland, his goal was not achieved, because the British and German sides only set up their own positions on the plains in central Ireland. At the same time, they stepped up the transportation of troops to the island, but did not engage in large-scale fighting. At best, there were only some tentative exchanges of fire. It was not until May 17 that he was brought to the frontier near Trim in the upper reaches of the Boyne River by General Wavell.

According to Wavell, the British armored forces would break through the German infantry's defense line in Trim and then outflank Dublin's rear. After completing the encirclement mission, the British Army will capture Dublin with the support of two old battleships (Utah, leased from the United States, and Centurion, Britain's own).

By observing this large-scale offensive, Soviet military experts can have a very intuitive understanding of the latest tactics of mechanized forces and the combat effectiveness of the German Army, which is very helpful for the offensive they will launch on the Eastern Front.

Just as Golikov stretched his neck and held a telescope waiting to see the German Nazis being dealt with by British imperialism, someone suddenly shouted in English: "Air raid! Air raid!"

Although Golikov didn't understand English very well, he had heard the word "air raid" too many times in the past ten days in Ireland, and he subconsciously wanted to go downstairs and hide in the air-raid shelter.

However, Admiral Wavell next to him looked calm and composed. He just smiled and said: "It must be the German Hs-123, a biplane ground attack aircraft, a very outdated aircraft. The main weapon is a 250-kilogram bomb hanging under the belly and four 50-kilogram bombs mounted under the wings."

What? The biplane Hs-123? This plane has not been eliminated yet? Isn't the German air force very advanced? The port of Belfast has been bombed every day these days, and all the planes that come are monoplanes.

As if seeing the doubts of Soviet friends, Admiral Wavell smiled: "The Germans have turned their attention to the sea since 1940, and their anti-ship aircraft are very powerful. You must have seen it in Belfast... Those huge, fast and high-flying aircraft that can drop remote-controlled glide bombs are simply a complete disaster for the navy.

But it is not suitable to use them to attack moving ground forces. These aircraft are too big and are easily hit by ground fire when attacking at low altitudes. And in order to drop remote-controlled glide bombs at high altitudes, these aircraft are high-altitude models, and their performance at low altitudes is very poor."

Because of the emergence of remote-controlled glide bombs, the German Air Force and Naval Aviation are now eliminating twin-engine medium bombers that can perform dive bombings, and replacing them with aircraft with good medium and high altitude performance. However, high-altitude performance and low-altitude performance cannot be taken into account at the same time. The aerodynamic shape and engine model of aircraft used for high altitude are different from those of aircraft mainly used for medium and low altitude. Moreover, high-altitude aircraft do not need to install speed brakes to perform dive bombing - even for aircraft of the same large series, such as Fw-190, the medium and low altitude models below are different from the medium and high altitude models.

Although the new German models, such as He-219, Do-217, and Ju288, have medium and low altitude models, and also have dive bombing models equipped with speed brakes. However, the German Air Force and Naval Aviation have not equipped many.

Throwing remote-controlled glide bombs at an altitude of more than 6,000 meters is a safe and efficient means of anti-ship combat. Who needs dive bombing?

However, remote-controlled glide bombs are reliable and efficient for attacking surface ships, but they are not suitable for attacking tanks. Not only are they not cost-effective, but who can see the small tanks on the ground at an altitude of 6,000 meters?

When Wavell and Golikov were talking, 24 German HS-123s had already flown over, without the famous Fokker Zero escort - because the HS-123 is a very tough aircraft, and it can take off and land at even the worst field airports, so the HS-123 attack aircraft are deployed very close to the front line, and can reach the battlefield almost as soon as they take off.

"It is indeed a biplane HS-123." Golikov raised his telescope to observe, in fact, he was very familiar with the performance of the HS-123. When the German Air Force equipped this aircraft in large quantities, the Soviet-German relationship was still in the honeymoon period, so Soviet officers had many opportunities to observe the HS-123.

This aircraft was a bit outdated when it first appeared. Now after so many years, it is really a very old-fashioned aircraft, and it can't be compared with the Soviet Il-2 at all.

Hehehe...

A sharp whistling sound interrupted Golikov's thoughts. He looked up in the direction of the sound and saw several Hs-123s diving down from an altitude of more than 2,000 meters, making frightening noises while diving.

However, the British troops on the ground were not frightened by the noises of these German planes. More than a dozen Crusader MK1 and Crusader MK2 self-propelled anti-aircraft guns that followed the tank cluster immediately opened fire on the German planes in the air. The two Hs-123s were immediately beaten into turkeys and fell headfirst with thick smoke.

"If it were the Il-2, it wouldn't be so easy to be shot down..." Golikov thought to himself, "If the Germans only have the Hs-123 on the Eastern Front battlefield that can be used to directly support the infantry and armored troops on the front line, Then General Pavlov’s Western Front might really be able to break into Berlin!”

Boom boom boom!

The fireball from the bomb explosion still rose in the British armored cluster. The British self-propelled anti-aircraft guns shot down some Hs-123s, but more Hs-123s still dropped bombs. However, due to the threat of ground firepower, many Hs-123 aircraft could only drop bombs in a hurry, and the bombing was not very accurate. Only six or seven British tanks were overturned or destroyed. For a large group of hundreds of tanks, it was simply It hurts the fur. Unlike the Il-2, which is equipped with a 20mm cannon and 82mm air-launched rockets, the Hs-123 is just a small aircraft with a limited bomb load. The only weapons that can be used to attack after dropping the bombs are two 7.92mm calibers The small machine gun is completely ineffective against tanks and armored vehicles on the ground. At best, it can only kill some infantry.

boom……

The sound of cannon fire came from behind Otto Skorzeny. It was not very loud. This sound did not belong to the standard Pak40 75mm anti-tank gun of the Army anti-tank company, nor did it belong to the Army division. The Flak41 88mm anti-aircraft gun owned by the heavy anti-aircraft artillery battalion is a Pak38 50mm anti-tank gun. The power is slightly lacking, but for airborne troops, the weight of just over one ton is just right.

Before the sound of cannon fire disappeared, a cloud of smoke rose from the empty and flat land opposite. It seemed that the cannonball had slightly missed its target. Before Skorzeny gritted his teeth and said "It's a pity", the roaring sound of artillery came one after another from the side and the rear. The shells that broke through the air crashed into the attacker's queue in an instant, and a big No. The steel body immediately burned into a fireball, and after moving forward a short distance with inertia, it became motionless.

"Hit, hit hard! Kill all the thin-skinned guys, and the remaining thick-skinned tanks will be easy to deal with."

Otto Skorzeny recognized the destroyed tank as the M3 Grant/Lee medium tank. It was said to be a medium tank, but it had the size of a heavy tank and its armor was very thin. Even a 50mm anti-tank gun can penetrate its front at a distance of 900 meters.

Behind the 11th company in Skolzeny were three artillery squads of an anti-tank platoon, with a total of three 50mm anti-tank guns. However, they did not fire at the same time, but took turns to fire. One gun was marked with 3- The position was moved within 5 minutes, another gun fired next, and then the third gun was switched. The cycle was repeated to ensure continuous output of firepower, and the British artillery counterattack failed. Moreover, these artillery pieces are very powerful and cannot attack the sturdy Churchill tanks. They are designed to attack the M3 Grant/Lee tanks and Crusader cruise tanks with insufficient defensive capabilities. Basically, three or five rounds of artillery shells can destroy a British tank.

However, the firepower output density of this firing mode is insufficient. Although British tanks are constantly being hit on the battlefield, most of the tanks are still advancing steadily. However, Comrade Golikov, who was observing from behind, gasped repeatedly - the shot was too accurate. Even if it were a Red Army soldier, even target shooting would not be so accurate!

Moreover, the British M7 self-propelled artillery can't suppress those German anti-tank guns, which shows that the Germans are constantly shifting positions... The Germans have really become elites after three years of fighting in the world war! It seems that it will be difficult for General Pavlov to liberate Berlin.

When Golikov began to worry about General Pavlov. Captain Otto Skorzeny and his soldiers were already in their respective positions, and three 50mm Type 36 mortars and three 75mm LG40 recoilless guns were also set up in very concealed positions. The MG42 machine guns, which make a shrill sound when fired, are also in place.

The powerful FG42 paratrooper rifles in the hands of most soldiers are also equipped with optical sights. The German paratroopers will fire at a distance of 600 meters, using the FG42 rifles for precise shooting, and wait until the enemy reaches 300 meters in front of the position. When the time comes, use the FG42 as a light machine gun.