章 169: Chapter 247 The French Doomsday (17)
Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate, confirming Guderian's concerns.
Early the next morning, shortly after dawn, the sky was gloomy and somewhat oppressive. Massive dark clouds began to gather, thickening and making it difficult to breathe.
Suddenly, it was as if the sky had been torn open, a bright light flashed, splitting the darkness in two. Immediately after, a torrential rain accompanied by thunderous roars descended from the sky, pouring down like a rushing waterfall.
On the unnamed highland marked as "A" by the German army, soldiers were hastily setting up defenses in the pouring rain.
"This cursed weather!" Major and Battalion Commander David wiped the rain from his face, looked up at the pitch-black sky, and called his signalman. "Hans, go to the landing point and see if there are any tents for crossing the river." This time, they brought only weapons, ammunition, and shovels to seize this highland first. Now, with the rain pouring down, everyone had turned into drowned rats.
"Yes!"
Not long after the signalman left, David heard the rumbling sound of engines coming from behind.
David couldn't help but feel delighted. Could it be that the armored units had crossed the river? After waiting for a while, the engine noise became more pronounced, and what appeared before him was a reconnaissance vehicle. Behind it were several more, but the heavy rain obscured the view.
The commander of the reconnaissance vehicle, leaning halfway out, saluted him. "Major David, General Guderian is worried that the enemy might launch an attack opportunistically, so he specifically ordered us to come and assist in fortifying the defenses."
"That's great." David returned the salute, unable to suppress his curiosity. "Is the heavy pontoon bridge built yet?"
The reconnaissance vehicle shook its head. "Not yet. We came across on a light pontoon bridge, which took quite an effort."
Although the reconnaissance vehicle was nearly ten tons lighter than the Jackal tank, it still couldn't pass a light pontoon bridge. To overcome this, they dismantled everything they could from the reconnaissance vehicle, allowing the bare vehicle to barely pass the light pontoon bridge. After crossing the river, they reinstalled everything, which indeed took a lot of effort.
"How many vehicles have you brought?"
"Due to the strong wind, the pontoon bridge was swaying, only five reconnaissance vehicles made it across. It's considered quite a few, isn't it?"
"It's great that you big guys could come and help." David had a rough understanding of the performance of the reconnaissance vehicles. In defensive operations, they should easily handle three or four times the enemy, meaning at least 20 enemy tanks.
The reconnaissance vehicle commander pointed to several boxes hanging on the vehicle. "And I've brought you an additional 50 Panzerfausts and raincoats."
"That's fantastic." They had already brought 50 Panzerfausts before they came, meaning they now had a total of 100. With the assistance of these five tank destroyers, even if the enemy's main armored force arrived, they could resist for a while.
"The enemy forces have reached five kilometers away." Just as David was having soldiers set up cover for these reconnaissance vehicles, a scout on a motorcycle came to report. "Captain, the enemy is five kilometers away. Many infantry and quite a few tanks. I saw at least twenty tanks, possibly more behind them."
"Prepare for battle!" David loudly called to his subordinates. The soldiers crouched in the foxholes they had just dug, checked their weapons and ammunition, and prepared to face the enemy.
This torrential rain came and went quickly. By the time the French army appeared in the distance, the pouring rain had turned into a drizzle.
"Damn, have these Frenchmen gone all out?"
Seeing the looming figures through the telescope, the reconnaissance vehicle commander couldn't help but frown.
Although France quickly fell during World War II, they had designed several decent tanks before that.
During World War I, the Renault FT-17 designed and produced by the French is hailed as the "first tank in the modern sense" because it possessed several key features of modern tanks: a single driver at the front of the vehicle; the main weapon housed in a rotating turret that could rotate 360 degrees; the tank commander responsible for the main field of vision with the highest and widest view; and the engine separated from the crew.
This conceptual and innovative weapon brought numerous foreign orders to France. Exported to at least 27 countries, it is evident that the global users were quite satisfied with the FT17.
Due to Renault and its various improved models producing over 4,000 units, many Renault chassis were adapted into platforms for other new weapons, continuing into World War II.
The French-designed B1 tank, based on available data, surpassed its German counterparts in terms of luxurious attributes during the same period.
The frontal armor of the B1 heavy tank was up to 60 millimeters thick, while the Germans at that time, equipped with the Panzer II (armed with a 20mm autocannon), Panzer III (armed with a 37mm gun), and Panzer IV (armed with a short 75mm gun, a cannon with lower penetration than a Panzer I tank), essentially had no way to penetrate it.
In terms of firepower, the B1, equipped with a 47mm main gun in the turret, could easily penetrate all German tanks, while the 75mm howitzer on the hull made dealing with fortified positions a breeze.
Moreover, on the eve of World War II, France had already produced more than 300 B1 heavy tanks, theoretically capable of dominating the battlefield.
This is why many books mention, when discussing France's defeat, that at that time, German tanks were not as capable as French tanks.
However, due to the B1 heavy tank being dispersed and used by the French as auxiliary support for infantry, unable to concentrate its forces for a breakthrough, it was ultimately cut off and surrounded by the German tank forces infiltrating on various fronts, leading to its defeat.
Of course, the B1 heavy tank had its own drawbacks, such as excessive fuel consumption, a range of only 150 kilometers, slow speed with a top speed of only 28 kilometers per hour, and more. However, these should not be reasons for its dismal combat record. The only explanation is that the French military's combat thinking was too outdated; blaming the weapon would be unjust. The B1 heavy tank was innocent. Otherwise, after occupying France, the Germans wouldn't have continued to modify and use the B1 until 1944...
And now, the French seem determined to take this Highland "A", unexpectedly deploying twelve B1 heavy tanks and an uncountable number of Somua S35 medium tanks and Renault R35 light tanks to assist infantry in assaulting the highland.
"Deal with the enemy heavy tanks first! Fire!" The tank commander, looking through the periscope at the approaching B1 heavy tanks, gave the order to open fire.
"Boom!" The tank destroyer's 50mm tank gun roared. The shell tore through the air, cutting a straight line in the continuous rain, heading directly towards its target and fiercely striking the frontal armor of the leading B1 heavy tank.
Although the B1 heavy tank had frontal armor up to 60 millimeters thick, the reconnaissance vehicle was equipped with a 50mm KwK 39L/60 tank gun, which had a vertical armor penetration depth of up to 88 millimeters at a distance of 500 meters.
Now, due to the weather affecting visibility, they were firing at a distance of 400 meters. The shell directly shredded the frontal armor of the B1 heavy tank, penetrating into the tank's interior. Various fragments bounced back and forth, turning the inside of the tank into a gruesome mess.
Inertia carried the B1 heavy tank forward for a distance before it finally came to a stop.
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