章 334: Chapter 411 Planning (6)
As a surprise force, paratroopers often achieve unexpected results.
However, because they are fighting alone and are often dropped behind enemy lines, paratroopers face great danger. First, on the way to the target, the plane may encounter enemy fighter formations or hit enemy anti-aircraft positions. Once the plane is destroyed, the soldiers on board have little chance of survival.
Second, when paratroopers land, they are often large targets and have no ability to fight back in the air, so the risk of being killed in the air is not small.
Finally, after landing, it is difficult to regroup due to the large dispersion area. In World War II, an American airborne division dropped more than 8,000 people but could only gather less than 2,000. Moreover, during the descent, weapons and supplies may be lost, and after landing, they may only be able to passively take hits. Being behind enemy lines without the cooperation of friendly forces, they may be surrounded. Hence, there is a saying that paratroopers are naturally surrounded.
Wilhelm wanted to equip the paratroopers with better and stronger weapons. "Any progress on the airdropped armored vehicles?"
Student respectfully reported, "The paratrooper motorcycle developed by BMW has passed the drop test and can be put into actual combat."
The airdropped paratrooper motorcycle first appeared in Britain during World War II, packed in special equipment and dropped onto the battlefield along with paratroopers.
This foldable motorcycle weighs only 32 kilograms without fuel and can reach a maximum speed of 48 kilometers per hour. Relying on two fuel tanks with a total capacity of 3.6 liters located on the front lower sides of the frame, it can travel continuously for about 145 kilometers. Due to its simple operation, a skilled soldier can open the special device and start the motorcycle in 11 seconds.
However, the practicality of this motorcycle is average. The motorcycle weighs only 32 kilograms, while a person generally weighs around 60 to 70 kilograms. Due to the weight difference, there will be a significant discrepancy between the landing points of the motorcycle and the soldier during parachuting. Although the container carrying the motorcycle is marked with a conspicuous color, it is still particularly troublesome to find.
Even if found, due to the small engine displacement (only 98 cubic centimeters), the power is much less. Although it can reach 48 kilometers per hour under ideal conditions, how can there be ideal conditions on the battlefield? Many battlefields are full of shell craters, and once steep terrain is encountered, the motorcycle cannot handle it. On the harsh battlefield roads, it was discarded by many soldiers, sometimes not even faster than walking.
Under Wilhelm's instructions, BMW designed an off-road motorcycle, reducing parts as much as possible and using various new lightweight materials, creating a motorcycle weighing 100 kilograms with a speed of 100 kilometers per hour. Although it cannot be folded like the British motorcycle, it completely outperforms in terms of performance.
Student continued to report, "A DFS 230 glider can transport a jeep and four fully armed soldiers."
Wilhelm nodded slightly, his main concern being the tanks that could be put into combat.
How to make tanks fly was researched by various countries during World War II, but perhaps none had bigger ideas than the Soviet Union's "flying tank."
The Soviet army believed that if tanks could be airlifted to distant places for combat, they could achieve unexpected results. However, if tanks were airdropped by transport planes alone, they could not carry crew members at the same time, resulting in separation of people and tanks, which is not conducive to the rapid deployment of tanks into combat. In the end, the Soviet army thought of combining gliders with tanks.
After a large bomber or transport plane, the mother ship, towed the "flying tank" to the airspace near the enemy target and released it, the "flying tank" could glide rapidly to the battlefield like a glider, avoiding the problem of separation between people and tanks. It also avoided the problem of transport planes flying into the battlefield and being exposed to enemy fire due to noise, making it easier to achieve a surprise attack on the enemy.
It is the A-40, also known as KT-40 or "Tank Wing," mainly consisting of two large upper and lower wings, similar to early biplanes. The wings, made of high-quality wood and other materials, could mount a 5-ton tank underneath. The tank became the body of the entire glider, and the wings became the wings of the tank, which could carry crew members inside. When the "flying tank" landed, the tank's tracks acted as the aircraft's landing gear.
In 1942, the Soviet army developed the T-60 tank, which had great combat potential. The T-60 was about 4 meters long, 2.3 meters wide, 1.7 meters high, with armor thickness ranging from 15 to 35 millimeters, a crew of two, a maximum speed of 44 kilometers per hour, a range of 450 kilometers, and armed with a 20-millimeter cannon or machine gun. The Soviet army believed that if the T-60 could fly long distances, it would achieve great combat effects. Thus, a T-60 tank was mounted under the A-40 "Tank Wing," becoming one of the rare "flying tanks" in the world.
Soon after, the prototype "flying tank" began its first test flight.
The entire prototype "flying tank" weighed about 8 tons (with the glider weighing over 2 tons), had a wingspan of about 15 meters, a total length of about 11.5 meters, and a maximum speed of 160 kilometers per hour. After the test flight began, a large mother ship towed the "flying tank" from the airport runway and slowly ascended into the air. Underneath the wings was a T-60 tank without a turret, weighing about 5.8 tons. Just as the Soviet commanders and technical experts were excited about the successful flight of the "flying tank," a problem occurred.
The "flying tank" was heavy and created a lot of drag. Although the towing mother ship was the largest capacity model available, it was still insufficient and struggled, with the engine beginning to overheat. This was a very dangerous signal. As is well known, the engine is the heart of an airplane. If the engine fails, the plane may crash at any time. As the engine became increasingly strained and the mother ship had not yet flown to the designated airspace, the frightened pilot had to painfully decide to release the "flying tank" early to prevent the mother ship and the "flying tank" from crashing together!
Fortunately, the "flying tank" performed well after separating from the mother ship. The pilot, Anokin, began to fly the glider towards a small field below. He operated the glider while starting the engine. Then, he operated the tank's drive system. The tracks began to turn quickly. Finally, the "flying tank" successfully landed on the ground. Anokin dismantled the flying wings of the "flying tank" and successfully returned to base driving the "flying tank."
Although the "flying tank" achieved some success in its first test flight, there were no new test flights, nor was it quickly put into mass production for actual combat. It merely became a fleeting moment in the history of the development of unique weapons in the world.
In fact, the Soviet army did not lack the desire to put the "flying tank" into actual combat, but technical limitations made it impossible. At that time, the Soviet army had no large aircraft capable of towing the "flying tank" for long-distance combat. Developing a new large transport aircraft would require time and financial resources. After all, the situation was critical at the time, and the Soviet army needed weapons that could be quickly put into actual combat.
The Soviet army once tried to "slim down" the "flying tank" T-60 to allow the mother ship to tow it in the air for long-distance combat. The problem was that slimming down the T-60 could not significantly reduce the armor needed for self-protection; most weapons, ammunition, and fuel had to be removed. However, if the "flying tank" lacked sufficient weapons and ammunition, it would not be able to deliver a fatal blow to the enemy and might even be destroyed by the enemy. Moreover, if the "flying tank" lacked enough fuel, it would not be able to fight for a long time. Clearly, a "flying tank" with such poor combat capability could not be put into combat. Therefore, the "flying tank" project was secretly canceled shortly after the first test flight.
Wilhelm had also considered this method before, but after discussing it with engineers, he found it to be even more useless than chicken ribs.
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