章 78: 78
May 22, 1940
Dunkirk, France
"The tank is coming!"
"Keep in mind. Aim for the turret, aim for the turret!"
The anti-tank gunner swallowed dryly and concentrated all his attention on aiming.
Eventually, Panzer 4 appeared and the gunner pulled the trigger. As a heavy recoil was delivered, the sound of sharp metal rang in my ears.
The bullet that penetrated the armor narrowly missed the crew inside.
The tank commander, who was sticking his head out of the hatch, noticed the firing light of an anti-tank gun and immediately ordered the gunner to turn the turret to the right.
While the turret was rotating, the gunner fired a second round.
This time it was a good hit, wounding the operator and destroying the radio.
"launch!"
When the gunner fired the main gun at the command of the tank commander, a flash of light erupted from the muzzle.
The shooter, who was leaving in a hurry, was swallowed up by an orange flash and disappeared without a trace.
The Allied forces, consisting of a large number of French troops, a small number of British troops, and a very small number of Belgian troops, were desperately holding the defensive line against the onslaught of the German army.
The battle took place not only on the ground but also in the air, with hundreds of aircraft tangled together and flying through the sky, turning and evading, ascending and descending repeatedly.
"Damn Jerry, you are so persistent!"
Captain Oliver Craig swore very harshly, which was unusual for him.
As soon as the battle began, not only did two of our planes crash in succession, but they were also caught by the enemy. Even if he wanted to, he couldn't help it.
The Bf109, with a six-pointed star drawn on its fuselage, tenaciously followed Craig's Spitfire.
Craig repeatedly turned to shake off the enemy, but the enemy did not tire and followed behind him.
"Wow!"
When the enemy plane fired its 20mm cannon, Craig reflexively flinched.
The canopy cracked and shards of glass flew inside, cutting my cheek.
However, Craig was so focused on shaking off the bandit's pursuit that he did not feel any pain.
It was the flight commander who saved Craig from danger. The squadron leader's Spitfire flew in and fired his gun, destroying the canopy of the Bf109 that was chasing Craig.
The Bf109, which lost its pilot, crashed straight to the ground.
"Thank you, flight leader!"
-If you find out, give it a shot later!
Although Craig was finally free, the war situation was still at its worst.
Another friendly plane was hit by an enemy plane and crashed into a ball of fire. Craig gritted his teeth.
The Supermarine Spitfire he drives is Britain's newest fighter jet, and has received attention and love from the Air Force leadership since its debut for its elegant appearance and outstanding performance.
However, due to the somewhat inferior fighter production capacity of Supermarine, which produced the Spitfire, the Spitfire was not produced in sufficient quantities until the outbreak of World War II.
When war broke out, General Hugh Dowding, commander of the Royal Air Force (RAF) Fighter Command, banned Spitfires from France due to a shortage of Spotfires and the need to expand the homeland's air defenses, and replaced them with older, less powerful Gladiator biplanes. Hawker Hurricane fighter jets were deployed to the front line.
However, the situation took a turn when the Allied forces were surrounded at Dunkirk.
Britain, desperate, decided to send its beloved Spitfires into battle, and it was expected that the high-performance Spitfires would be able to fight on par with German fighters.
However, even the Spitfire, for which so high expectations were placed, was no match for the German Air Force.
The German Air Force mainly operated the Bf109F and Fw190 A-3, which had much better performance than the Spitfire MK.I, and many of the pilots who flew them were veterans who had served in Spain, Poland, and Norway.
On the other hand, most of the Spitfire pilots are young chicks for whom this is their first actual combat.
To make matters worse, even the battlefield was not on the British army's side.
While Spitfires launched from airfields in southern England had to cross the English Channel, Bf109s had to sortie from airfields in northern France occupied by the Germans and wait leisurely at high altitude.
Not only were the aircraft's performance different, and the experience was vastly different, but they had to fight on the enemy's home ground, so there was no way for it to be a proper fight.
As soon as numerous Spitfires crossed the English Channel and arrived over France, they were shot down by ambushing Bf109s.
The French Army's MS406, which had fought against the German Bf109 along with the Hurricane and Spitfire, had already disappeared.
The French pilots fought as hard as the British pilots, but their courage and fighting spirit were completely crushed by the overwhelmingly powerful force of the enemy.
The last MS406 crashed after being attacked by a Bf109's cannon.
The German pilot, who was elated by shooting down two enemy planes in succession, spotted a Spitfire flying toward him and quickly attempted to turn.
"Where!"
When the enemy plane came into the line of sight, Craig pressed the button and fired the gun.
Bullets were fired simultaneously from four Browning machine guns, damaging the wings and fuselage of the Bf109.
The German pilot attempted to escape by piloting the damaged aircraft, but Craig never let go of his prey once he had caught him.
As he persistently followed and fired bullets, the other person finally fell, emitting smoke.
"Good!"
Although it may be said that the enemy was caught off-guard and launched a surprise attack, it was an excellent performance considering the difference in performance between the Spitfire MK.I and the Bf109F.
Craig, with his fists clenched, spotted the Bf109 chasing the friendly Spitfire and turned to the left. He was going to put a bullet in the back of the guy's head like the guy he had just dealt with.
However, as soon as Craig began to turn, the enemy plane fired a barrage of cannon fire, shooting down the Spitfire, and then rapidly ascended into the clouds.
Did you realize that you were being targeted? In that short amount of time? Craig broke into a cold sweat.
I already knew that the German army was not an ordinary opponent, but it was clear that this guy was really no ordinary opponent.
-Low fuel! I will return!
On the radio, reports of returning due to lack of fuel increased significantly.
Some pilots were frightened by the monster-like performance of the enemy plane and gave up, but most pilots withdrew due to lack of fuel.
We had already consumed quite a bit of fuel crossing the English Channel, but the intense maneuvering made the insufficient fuel even more scarce.
-Craig, how much fuel do you have left?
In response to the flight commander's question, Craig looked at the instrument panel. He also ran out of fuel.
Still, if we turned around and retreated right away, we could barely reach the airfield.
"I'm willing to give in, too."
-Me too. Just leave now.
"But flight commander, if we withdraw now, our troops on the ground will-"
-If you delay here any longer, you'll end up in the sea, you bastard. Are you planning to swim back? Just go back, refuel and come back. So hurry...
The squadron leader's Spitfire, which was turning north toward England, came under machine gun fire from above. Craig was so shocked he couldn't even scream.
"Hey, that bastard!"
Craig, who escaped the shock only after the squadron leader's plane hit the ground, chased down the Bf109 that shot down the squadron leader.
Craig did not know what the consequences of chasing the enemy plane would mean when turning the nose right away would not be enough.
But what was important to him now was not returning to the mainland, but blowing a hole in that damn Jerry's hole.
Craig chased after the enemy plane, even braving that returning to the mainland would become impossible due to lack of fuel.
Even if I had to crash land at sea or become a prisoner of the enemy, I was determined to catch that guy with my own hands.
But no matter how hard he tried, the distance between him and the enemy never decreased. As if toying with Craig, the Bf109 increased its altitude and entered the clouds.
"shit! How long do you plan on running away?!"
The moment Craig also increased altitude in pursuit of the enemy plane, a new Bf109 appeared right above him. It was a different aircraft from the one he was chasing.
Because it appeared at an unexpected time, Craig didn't even think about reacting. When the newly appeared Bf109 sprayed 7.92mm bullets, red blood was sprayed on the canopy.
Watching the Spitfire crash to the ground, the Bf109 pilot whistled. He then proudly reported his achievements to his colleagues via radio.
"Six planes shot down with this. "Moulders, how many did you catch?"
-I am in my 7th generation. I won, so you buy the drink today, Gallant.
"shit."
***
May 23, 1940
Dunkirk, France
The number of Allied troops isolated in the Dunkirk area is approximately 380,000.
Of these, 200,000 were British soldiers, and the remaining 180,000 consisted of many French soldiers and a very small number of Belgian soldiers.
Although the number of 200,000 cannot be ignored, the troops surrounded at Dunkirk were not conscripts who had been trained in a short period of time, but the majority were professional soldiers who had served in the military for several years, making them the most elite troops among the British army.
Losing them all would have been a death sentence for the British Army.
Even though the Navy and Air Force remain, rebuilding the destroyed Army requires a huge amount of money and time, and there is no way Germany will wait until the reconstruction of the Army is completed.
If, by chance, the German army landed in England, that was the end of England.
Therefore, Britain did its best to rescue the surrounded troops.
All ships of the Navy were mobilized, and civilian ships were also ordered to be used to transport troops.
Anything that could float on the water and accommodate people was mobilized, from fishing boats to cruise ships and leisure yachts.
Civilians also actively cooperated with the government and readily gave up their ships or drove their own ships to Dunkirk.
"conceive!"
"Observe order and board in order."
"Burn the wounded first! "The injured first!"
When the ship arrived at the beach, soldiers flocked to board the ship.
There was no problem with soldiers wearing full military uniforms on large ships such as transport ships or cruise ships, but the story was different for small ships such as fishing boats or fishing boats.
Orders were given to throw away all belongings in order to accommodate at least one more soldier.
In addition to personal belongings, even equipment such as rifles, ammunition, and helmets were thrown away without hesitation.
The soldiers were ready to throw anything to get on the ship.
"Reload complete!"
"Shoot!"
While the ships were transporting the soldiers, Royal Navy destroyers fired their guns to support ground troops fighting the Germans on the front line.
The only battleships and cruisers that could project more firepower than destroyers were the destroyers off Dunkirk, as they were fighting the combined German-Norwegian navy in the North Sea and Norwegian Sea.
When the G-class destroyer's QF 4.7-inch Mark.IX single gun ignited fire, several large fire pillars appeared on land.
Even tanks, known as the kings of ground warfare, could not withstand the bombardment of destroyers.
When the No. 4 tanks attacking the British trenches were hit by 120mm shells fired by a destroyer, they bounced around like a kicked puppy and overturned.
Tank No. 4, which received a direct hit from a shell, was engulfed in a white-yellow flash and completely disintegrated.
In addition to British Navy ships, French Navy destroyers were also mobilized to rescue troops and provide support bombardment.
The 138mm guns mounted on the French Navy's Gepar-class destroyers were insufficiently powerful to deal with battleships, but they were sufficiently threatening to tanks and infantry on the ground.
As the attack suffered from bombardment from British and French naval destroyers, the Germans immediately summoned the air force.
When the Stuka and He 111 squadron, which had been dispatched after receiving the call, appeared on the beach, screams erupted from the mouths of the soldiers on the ship.
"Stukada!"
Stuka was already synonymous with the devil among Allied soldiers.
The soldiers who heard the name Shtuka scattered in all directions.
However, many soldiers did not run away to avoid losing their positions.
Even while the bombing was in progress, the soldiers struggled to board the ship.
"The time is at 4 o'clock!"
"Damn it, why did you keep quiet!"
With the advent of the German Air Force, the movements of the anti-aircraft artillery became busy. Anti-aircraft guns were fired to drive out enemy aircraft, but the German pilots paid no heed and began their attack.
The first shell dropped by the Stuka hit a fishing boat that was leaving with a load of soldiers on board.
The fishing boat hit by the bomb broke into pieces, and pieces of meat that were once people rained down.
The impact of the explosion capsized a fishing boat and two yachts. The soldiers who were relieved on board the ship fell into the sea and were left struggling.
The transport ship took a direct hit from the SC1000 bomb dropped by the diving Stuka, causing a huge explosion and sinking.
The oil that leaked from the sinking ship when its hull was shattered stuck to the soldiers drifting on the surface, and the oil sparked and burned the soldiers.
The soldiers trapped in the oil belt were burned alive on the sea, which was filled with water on all sides.
"Where on earth is our damn air force!"
The soldiers who witnessed the transport ship being sunk before their eyes were furious.
Where are the fighter planes of the Royal Air Force, which are supposed to repel attacks by German planes, cover ships, and support withdrawal operations, and why are they not even visible?
The anger of the soldiers exploded when the pilots, who boasted that they were of a different class from the army ground dogs, were nowhere to be seen when they were needed.
Air Force pilots, whom they despised and eagerly sought, were busy fighting German fighter planes in the skies where the soldiers could not be seen.
Not only could the soldiers not see them due to the bad weather, but the air force was also doing its best to fight the enemy.
However, because the opposing German Air Force was so powerful, the losses of the British Air Force were indescribable.
As not only the Hurricanes but also the newest Spitfires were shot down by the Bf109F and Fw190 A-3, the opportunities for Stukas and He 111s to be active increased even more.
The bombers were divided into two groups: half attacked ships at sea, and half attacked Allied soldiers lining up on the beach to board ships.
Pilots targeting ships mainly targeted heavy and slow transport ships.
Large transport ships, armed only with anti-aircraft machine guns, were very vulnerable to attacks from the sky.
Sensing their fate, the soldiers jumped from the ship into the sea.
A moment later, a loud explosion pierced my eardrums and shook the sea.
What had been a transport ship a moment ago sank into the sea, spewing out scarlet flames and black smoke, along with nearly a thousand soldiers.
Two C-class destroyers of the Royal Navy and a Burask-class destroyer of the French Navy were sunk after being attacked by Stukas and He 111s.
German U-boats also joined the attack and hindered the Allied withdrawal.
"Launch of tubes 1-3."
When the Gisela torpedo launched from a Type 21 U-boat sailed through the current and hit the lower part of the target transport ship, a column of water tens of meters high rose up.
"The ship is sinking!"
"Everyone escape!"
"What about the wounded soldiers?!"
"Why are you asking me that!"
Most of the wounded soldiers on board the torpedo-hit and sinking ship did not survive.
Unlike wounded soldiers, the survival rate of soldiers who could move their arms and legs freely was not that good.
Other ships were also busy avoiding enemy attacks, so they did not have time to rescue the soldiers drifting on the water.
The lucky soldiers were able to cling to the ship's wreckage until rescued, but many drowned from exhaustion, were caught in the explosion and were sucked into the ship's screws.
Not only transport ships but also destroyers became targets of U-boats.
A G-class destroyer carrying 120 British soldiers and 40 French soldiers was hit by a torpedo.
Unfortunately, the torpedo exploded and hit the ammunition store, so the crew did not even have a chance to escape.
Surrounding destroyers belatedly began hunting for U-boats, but the U-boats had already fled to avoid the destroyers' pursuit.
The sea at Dunkirk became a graveyard for British and French soldiers.
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