Chapter 412 Mobile Defense
The German 1st Tank Division rushed to the town of Wallau at full speed on the highway.
The normal cruising speed of the "Upper Silesian" tank is 12 kilometers per hour. Although it is designed to reach a maximum speed of 16 kilometers, it can only be used when necessary in combat.
Otherwise, within fifteen minutes at most it will explode due to engine overheating or even cause an accident.
But even during normal driving, 11 tanks had to be abandoned due to malfunctions.
The 30-kilometer journey took more than two hours, and the drivers didn't rest for a moment. They were so tired that they almost collapsed before they reached the town of Waluo.
The tanks of this period had no power steering, and driving a tank was purely a physical job. In addition, one had to endure the noise and suffocating air in the tank cabin.
Erwin was in Major General Nicholas' car all the way. They slowly followed the tanks and made a battle plan while looking at the map.
"The highway bridge is built over a gully that is more than seven meters deep and more than ten meters wide," said Erwin. "I once targeted this gully when I was the battalion commander of the mountain battalion, so I am familiar with the terrain in that area."
Major General Nicolas stared at the map, as if trying to find the end of the ravine.
"It's actually not very long." Erwin drew a rough line on the map and explained, "It's only about 200 meters long. It's not marked on the map. It's connected to mountains at both ends that tanks can't pass through. If we don't pass through here, we have to go around more than 100 kilometers from Charleroi."
Major General Nicholas was relieved: "This is a good opportunity. Our tanks can hide on the other side of the bridge and wait for the enemy to cross the bridge before opening fire..."
"General," Erwin interrupted Major General Nicolas, "I think this may not work against Charles's troops."
Major General Nicolas looked at Erwin in confusion. "The highway bridge can only accommodate one tank, Captain. Even if the 'Char A1' is powerful, it cannot withstand the attack of dozens of our tanks at the same time. In addition, once a tank is destroyed on the bridge, their way forward will be blocked."
Major General Nicholas felt that this was a nearly perfect battle plan.
Erwin still shook his head.
"I thought so before." Erwin said calmly and helplessly: "This is what I do on the defensive line."
Major General Nicholas suddenly realized that the trenches dug wide by Erwin were equivalent to ravines, and the enemy's sandbag-filled trenches were like road bridges, and they would also be attacked by the cluster of Erwin's tank battalion.
However, Erwin was defeated miserably.
Major General Nicolas asked curiously: "How did they do it?"
Erwin's answer was simple and clear: "Artillery, their artillery is like having eyes, and they can accurately know the position of our tanks from several kilometers away. I think they have deployed a large number of artillery observers on the front line to achieve infantry-artillery coordination."
Erwin's major was artillery, and he had served in the 49th Field Artillery Regiment before becoming the commander of a mountain battalion, so he had a deep understanding of this.
Major General Nicholas was silent for a while, then said thoughtfully: "So, our tanks will be blown up one by one by their artillery, and then their tanks will cross the bridge again."
"Yes." Erwin sighed softly, "I always thought that the gap between us and the Ciel was in equipment, but now I realize that is not the case."
"What do you mean?" asked Major General Nicholas.
"They are a whole, General." Erwin replied: "The aviation forces cooperated with the artillery to suppress our 105mm howitzers, the artillery cooperated with the tanks to suppress our tanks, and the infantry cooperated with the tanks to attack. Each branch of the army is playing to its strengths to make up for the weaknesses of other branches. And we..."
"But they are fighting each other?" Major General Nicholas completed Erwin's words.
Erwin uttered a "hmm" and felt a sense of powerlessness.
What really made him despair was not Charles' bombers or tanks, nor the recent defeat, but the coordination between the various arms of the French army.
How did Charles know these tactics and train his troops to function as a whole?
Such an army is invincible!
Where there is one division, there will be two, and then more and more.
The German army, which only knew how to dig trenches, was no match for them. The war was doomed to fail!
Major General Nicholas seemed to see through Erwin's thoughts. He said expressionlessly, "You think too far ahead, Captain. What we need to do is to fight the battle at hand."
Then his tone turned serious: "If this is the case, our only option is to blow up the bridge!"
However, blowing up the bridge was not the best option. The German army had a large number of cars, tricycles, and artillery. Blowing up the bridge meant that only soldiers could pass through, and the rest would be left on the other side of the ravine.
Erwin thought for a moment and replied, "We may have another option."
Erwin pointed to the town of Vallo, a mile away, on the map and said, "Maybe we can hide the tanks here."
Nicolas immediately understood Erwin's intention. The tanks were hidden in the town of Wallau. Not only could the French army not see them, but they would also be afraid to bomb them at will because many Belgian civilians lived there.
However……
"What's the point?" Nicholas asked. "We can't penetrate the 'Char A1' at this distance. We can only watch them cross the bridge."
"No, General," Erwin replied, "When a dozen 'Charter A1s' cross the bridge, we will launch a sudden counterattack!"
Major General Nicholas stared at Erwin blankly. Is this guy crazy?
Counterattack? Close combat with "Char A1"?
But after thinking about it, Major General Nicholas felt that this might be the only feasible tactic.
Once the "Upper Silesian" tanks were mixed with the "Charger A1", the enemy's artillery would be ineffective.
At this time, the German tanks used their superior numbers to defeat the inferior ones, and even went around the rear of the "Charger A1" at a top speed of 16 kilometers per hour. By then, both the tank guns and the K bullets could penetrate the "Charger A1".
As long as a battle was won, the wreckage of the "Charter A1" tanks would block the highway bridge and make the enemy unable to move.
Thinking of this, Major General Nicholas chose to accept this bold combat plan.
"I will put the other tanks into your tank battalion." Major General Nicholas said: "You command the tanks and I command the infantry. If possible, it would be best to find some artillery support!"
"Yes, General," Erwin replied.
He realized that he had made a mistake before and should have used this mobile defense instead of placing the tanks in the bunkers when defending the line.
Tanks have tracks and engines, they are used for mobility, not turrets!
However, what Erwin did not expect was that he had no chance to verify this tactic at all.
(End of this chapter)
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