Chapter 610 Observer Golikov
"With so many tanks, they 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 Otto Skorzeny's location. Golikov of the Soviet Military Observer 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 He just smiled and said: "It must be the German Hs-123, a biplane ground attack aircraft, a very outdated aircraft.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 was the Il-2, it wouldn't be so easy to be shot down..." Golikov thought, "If the Germans only had the Hs-123 to directly support the infantry and armored troops on the Eastern Front, then General Pavlov's Western Front might really be able to enter Berlin!"
Boom boom boom!
The fireballs from the bomb explosions still rose in the British armored cluster. The British self-propelled anti-aircraft guns shot down some Hs-123s, but more Hs-123s 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, and the large cluster consisting of hundreds of tanks was only damaged. Unlike the Il-2 equipped with 20mm cannons and 82mm air-launched rockets, the Hs-123 is just a small plane with limited ammunition. After dropping the bombs, the only weapons it can use to attack are two 7.92mm small machine guns, which are completely ineffective against tanks and armored vehicles on the ground, and can only kill some infantry at best.
Boom...
The sound of cannons firing came from behind Otto Skorzeny. It was not very loud. This kind of cannon sound did not belong to the Pak40 75mm anti-tank gun standard equipped by the Army Anti-tank Company, nor did it belong to the Flak41 88mm anti-aircraft gun owned by the Army Division-level Heavy Anti-aircraft Artillery Battalion, but to the Pak38 50mm anti-tank gun. The power is slightly insufficient, but for airborne troops, the weight of just over a ton is just right.
Before the sound of the cannon firing disappeared, a cloud of smoke rose from the open and flat land opposite, and it seemed that the shells slightly deviated from the target. Before Skorzeny could say "what a pity" through gritted teeth, the sound of artillery fire continued from the side and rear. The shells that broke through the air crashed into the attackers' ranks in an instant, and a huge steel body immediately burned into a fireball. After moving forward a short distance by inertia, it lay still.
"Hit, hit hard! Kill all the thin-skinned guys, and the remaining thick-skinned tanks will be easy to deal with."
Otto Skorzeny recognized that the destroyed tank was an M3 Grant/Lee medium tank. It was called a medium tank, but it had the size of a heavy tank, but its armor was very thin. A 50mm anti-tank gun could ensure that it would penetrate its front at a distance of 900 meters.
Behind Skorzeny's 11th Company were three artillery squads from an anti-tank platoon, with a total of three 50mm anti-tank guns. However, they did not fire together, but took turns firing. One gun would fire for 3-5 minutes before moving to another position, and then the third gun would fire. This cycle ensured continuous firepower output, which also made the British artillery counterattacks fail. Moreover, these artillery pieces fired very well. They did not target the sturdy Churchill tanks, but only the M3 Grant/Lee tanks and Crusader cruiser tanks with insufficient defense capabilities. Basically, three or five shells could destroy a British tank.
However, the firepower output density of this firing mode was insufficient. Although British tanks were constantly hit on the battlefield, most of the tanks were still advancing steadily. However, Comrade Golikov, who was observing from the rear, gasped repeatedly - the shots were too accurate. Even if it were a Red Army soldier, he would not be so accurate even when shooting!
Moreover, the British M7 self-propelled artillery could not suppress the German anti-tank guns, which showed that the Germans were constantly shifting their positions... The Germans had fought for three years in the World War and had really trained elite troops! It seemed that it would 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 position, and three 50mm Type 36 mortars and three 75mm LG40 recoilless guns were also set up in very concealed positions. The MG42 machine guns that made a harsh sound when shooting were also in place.
And the powerful FG42 paratrooper rifles in the hands of most soldiers were also equipped with optical sights - the German paratroopers would fire at a distance of 600 meters, using the FG42 rifle for accurate shooting, and wait until the enemy rushed to 300 meters in front of the position, and then use the FG42 as a light machine gun.