Chapter 657: Stalingrad Express

Compared to Miss Dora, who needs more than 3,000 men to serve her, the deployment of the slender K5, known as "Slim Bertha", is very quick and easy.

It happened yesterday morning that two K5s were transported to 45 kilometers outside Stalingrad for deployment. The two K5 train gun groups were deployed on the same day and entered combat status and were ready to fire at any time. Just one day later, they received a combat order from their superiors: bombard and suppress the Soviet counterattack forces.

Bombarding at a straight distance of 45 kilometers is a relatively time-consuming and uncertain process for the K5, which needs to observe the landing point of the shells and then calibrate and correct the bombardment coordinates.

No one knows how big the real error of this 283mm shell after being fired at a distance of 45 kilometers. The test firing error accuracy of several hundred meters is normal for this kind of city treasure. If it hits the head of one's own people without being installed properly, it will be a big joke.

Malashenko was just wondering why the German armored soldiers ended the offensive so hastily. The real reason is this.

The German armored soldiers who received the order to retreat urgently were only 500 meters away from Malashenko at the time, which was completely within the error radius of the K5 test. For safety reasons, the German rear commander ordered to end the battle and withdraw the offensive troops before the K5 was about to open fire.

The last time he was pressed to the ground by K5, he suffered basically no damage, just because the artillery coordinates aimed by K5 that time were the Kirov Tank Factory in Leningrad. Malashenko was just unlucky when he passed by.

But this time, Malashenko, who was extremely unlucky and met K5 again after a year, became the persecution.

The luxurious and supreme "Anzio Express" treatment that the Allied Forces on the Western Front could only enjoy in 1944 hit Malashenko directly on the top of his head two years in advance.

Two slender K5s, with 76-caliber 21-meter-long barrels, alternately fired at the predetermined artillery coordinates.

As the fastest-firing railway gun family, the K5 has an ultra-high firing rate of 15 rounds per hour. The alternating firing of two K5s can theoretically shorten the interval between each shell hitting Malashenko's head to 2 minutes.

The strong shock of the two consecutive waves of shells made Malashenko realize that such destructive power was completely beyond his ability to contend with. If he continued to stay in this desolate place, he would be bombarded by the crazy Germans with railway guns until nothing was left! This kind of field defense position, which was temporarily built in the remaining time for lunch, could not withstand the continuous bombardment of railway guns of this level.

Even though he was extremely reluctant, Malashenko had no other choice but to order the troops to retreat immediately to avoid the artillery fire of these slow-reacting train guns.

The order to retreat had just been issued by Malashenko, and the third 255-kilogram 283-mm high-explosive projectile once again hit Malashenko's forehead with a strong whistling sound of friction with the air, with a more accurate posture after the correction of the artillery coordinates.

The GR35 high-explosive bomb with 52 kilograms of Amato explosive contained in the warhead of the projectile exploded directly next to a trench. The huge explosion directly destroyed the 35-meter-long trench and the traffic trench.

No one knew what terrible scene the Red Army soldiers who were hiding in the trenches and trying to avoid the artillery fire encountered at the last moment of their lives.

The K5, which was as powerful as the main gun firepower of the Scharnhorst-class battlecruiser, directly changed the terrain and flattened the entire land. The shock wave storm that swept away human fragments and weapon debris was still powerful even after blowing hundreds of meters away.

Less than a hundred meters away from the center of the explosion of the shell, Malashenko felt that his car was shaking violently like a baby carriage pushed by a strong man. His ears were almost completely deafened and he couldn't even hear what Iushkin, who was close to him and opened his mouth, was shouting.

"What did you say!? I can't hear you! Speak louder!"

Malashenko, who didn't realize the seriousness of the problem, gestured with his hands to indicate that he couldn't hear. Iushkin, who was obviously stunned, immediately made a similar gesture and pointed at his ears.

The two of them looked at each other in shock, and finally they realized that the buzzing sound in their ears caused by the shells was not an illusion. Malashenko, Ivushkin, and even the entire crew of No. 177 were now basically deaf.

Whether his ears were temporarily deaf or completely deafened, Malashenko had no time to think about these details. The only thing he knew was that if he didn't hurry up and run away, he might not even have the chance to recover his hearing in the future.

Since many tanks in the First Guards Heavy Tank Breakthrough Regiment were not equipped with radio stations at this moment, after opening his mouth and shouting a few words into the transmitter that he could hardly hear, Malashenko again risked being hit by the 283mm cannon and leaned his upper body out of the turret, waving his arms desperately at all the crews around him who could still move, and yelling loudly to signal them to retreat quickly.

Malashenko's efforts achieved some results. A dozen tanks nearby were the first to see their comrade leader waving his arms while roaring desperately. From the gestures, it seemed that he was giving an order to retreat. These were the first to see. Among the tanks that Malashenko "personally ordered" was seen the vehicle of Deputy Regiment Commander Lavrinenko.

Unlike Malashenko, who was almost hit by the 283mm cannon directly in his car, Lavrinenko, who was very lucky, was far away from the three fallen cannon projectiles. It was so far away that there was almost no problem with the ears and all the sounds could be heard clearly, including the words that Malashenko was shouting in his mouth that even he could barely hear.

Lavrinenko, who tried to contact Malashenko using the vehicle-mounted radio, was met with silence and no news. Lavrinenko, who had no time to think about the reason, immediately pushed open the turret hatch above his head and talked with Marashchenko. Shenke also boldly leaned out his upper body and started making gestures in the air.

"Are you crazy? Why don't you use the radio? Just yell your orders like an idiot?"

Fortunately, Malashenko, who noticed Lavrinenko leaning out from a hundred meters away, was able to roughly understand the meaning of his gesture.

"The ears can't hear! The Germans have launched such a big cannon, that's all! We have to retreat quickly, otherwise it will be all over!"

With his hands raised, Malashenko opened his arms and gestured to Lavrinenko with the famous imaginary barrel thickness of the German train gun. At the same time, he pointed to the back to signal Lavrinenko to quickly lead his people to retreat. His ears were buzzing until Now I am almost completely deaf and can hardly hear any sound.