Chapter 367 Armored Personnel Carrier
After some discussion, Charles and Estiny finally decided that the thickness of the additional armor should be 20MM.
This has many benefits for tanks.
First of all, it is more maneuverable. When there is no war, the additional armor can be removed and transported by car, and then installed again when there is a war.
This not only increases the tank's mobility but also reduces the burden on the engine and increases its motoring time.
Secondly, with the addition of this 20MM additional armor, its front armor reaches 45MM thickness.
Originally, the German anti-tank rifles could penetrate the "Char A1" head-on at a distance of about 200 meters, but now they are basically immune to it and cannot penetrate it even at 50 meters or even closer.
Finally, of course, it will have more advantages in tank battles.
20MM of additional armor may not seem like much, but having it or not is often the difference between life and death on the battlefield.
However, Estinni's mind was always on upgrading the tanks and strengthening their firepower. After the protection problem was solved, he began to consider modifying the tank guns and even developing new tanks.
Charles reminded: "These are not things that can be accomplished in a short period of time, Colonel. We should consider what other aspects can be improved."
Estinni was stunned. The three major features of a tank are power, defense and firepower. Apart from these, what other improvements can be made?
"You may have noticed that tanks are faster than infantry," said Charles. "This makes the troops move out of sync."
"Yes." Colonel Estiny nodded.
Although the speed of the "Char A1" is not fast, it can reach a maximum speed of 15 kilometers. However, the marching speed of fully armed infantry is about 5 kilometers per hour.
Due to this influence, tanks often need to stop and wait for the infantry to catch up during marches.
The 1st Tank Brigade could accept this because the tanks could be repaired while stopped, which was not considered a waste.
Besides, there is actually a solution.
"We can equip the infantry with cars, General," Brownie interrupted, "and sidecars, so that the infantry can catch up with the tanks. Of course, this requires your support."
Brownie was full of anticipation when he spoke, which meant that the 1st Tank Brigade would be fully mechanized.
He had never dared to think about it before. The military would definitely not agree. When other troops didn’t even have a few cars in the logistics department, they actually wanted to fully mechanize it?
But if Charles, a military strategist and capitalist, were here, this might not be a dream.
"Just a car?" Charles asked back with a smile on his face.
"It's just a car!" Brownie nodded affirmatively. With this generous attitude, he showed Charles that he was "not greedy".
However, Brownie did not understand what Charles meant.
Charles smiled and said, "We know that cars are not safe on the battlefield. They have no protection. Soldiers are concentrated in cars and march along the road. If they are ambushed by the enemy, they will suffer heavy casualties."
Brownie took it for granted that this was Ciel's excuse for "not wanting to give" and rushed to say:
"I will solve these problems, General. It is not difficult."
"For example, we can send out three-wheeled vehicles to conduct reconnaissance, which can ensure the safety of the front. We can also mix tanks and cars, so that if they are attacked, the tanks can provide cover for the infantry in the first time."
"We will also carry out targeted training for this, and the soldiers will get off the vehicle as quickly as possible and be ready for battle!"
…
"Are you sure?" Charles asked with a hint of teasing in his eyes.
"I'm sure!" Brownie nodded firmly, looking excited.
So this is possible?
My God, that's hundreds of cars!
Estiny seemed to notice something strange. He asked doubtfully, "But General, besides cars, do we have any other options?"
"No, there is no other choice," Charles replied calmly, "but we can use our own cars."
"Self-made car?" Brownie and Estiny looked at each other. What was that?
Charles hummed, and then gave a plan: "You know, our engine has reached 130 horsepower. If we use this engine to produce a slightly smaller car, and then add the necessary protection to it so that it can block bullets and shrapnel..."
Estiny exclaimed, "So it becomes an armored personnel carrier."
"Yes." Charles said, "This way it will not have the problem mentioned above. Even if it encounters an ambush, it will not collapse instantly. At the same time, it can also cooperate with tanks on the battlefield to form another kind of firepower."
Charles thought this way: Tank troops are a combination of tanks and infantry. When tanks are difficult to upgrade, upgrading infantry is a good choice.
Once the armored vehicles are deployed, the infantry's defense, firepower and mobility will achieve a qualitative leap, and the overall combat effectiveness of the 1st Tank Brigade will rise to another level.
Charles looked at Brownie helplessly: "This type of armored vehicle is already in production. I originally planned to equip the tank brigade with it. Since you insist on using cars, then as you wish, I can consider equipping them with other troops..."
(The picture above shows the M3 reconnaissance vehicle designed by the US military in 1938. It can carry 8 people. It actually adds necessary protective steel plates around the car to increase defense. The machine gun is detachable. The highlight is that there is also a protective steel plate on the front windshield, which can be lowered to provide protection for the driver during combat. The driver observes the front through the small holes on the steel plate)
"No, no." Brownie rushed to Charles and smiled cautiously, "You are right, General. Cars cannot meet the needs of the tank brigade at all. The tank brigade needs to move quickly in the enemy's hail of bullets and artillery fire. The idea of using cars is simply crazy."
"You can use a sidecar for reconnaissance," said Charles. "It can indeed reduce the risk of being ambushed."
"So what? The car has no protection at all!"
"You can also mix tanks and cars."
"Tanks couldn't protect cars at that time. This was a stupid solution."
"You can also strengthen your training."
"I...no one wants to train with cars, General, it won't work!"
…
Estiny laughed, "Don't worry, Brownie, the general will give it to us. It won't mean much to other troops."
Brownie's face instantly lit up with joy. He looked at Charles excitedly and asked, "General, is that so? That's for us?"
Charles nodded slightly.
What Estinni said was right. As the saying goes, "the best steel should be used on the blade." This kind of armored personnel carrier that increases infantry protection is designed to allow the infantry to keep up with the tanks and move in unison with them in order to achieve the purpose of rapid penetration. It cannot be said that it is "meaningless" to equip other troops with it, but it is not very meaningful.
After receiving a positive answer, Brownie cheered, and couldn't help but excitedly stepped forward to hold Charles' hand, and kept shouting:
"That's great, General, thank you very much!"
"You are a good man, General!"
…
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
