After Konev put down the phone, he called Zakharov in front of him and ordered him: "Comrade Chief of Staff, immediately contact the commander of the Cherkasy garrison and order him to take precautionary measures to reduce the number of people inside the city.
casualties among residents.”
Zakharov had seen with his own eyes the huge crater in the village. The thought of an unknown number of aircraft hitting this newly liberated city gave him a headache.
"Comrade Marshal," he asked tentatively after Konev finished speaking: "What precautions should I tell the other party to take?"
When Konev heard Zakharov's question, he realized that he had not spoken clearly. He quickly added: "Comrade Chief of Staff, you and I have seen the power of the V1 missile. If we don't take preventive measures, everything will be destroyed."
Alkaser will suffer huge losses. After the buildings are destroyed, we can build them again, but if residents die in the attack, there will be nothing we can do.”
"Comrade Marshal, I would like to ask, what is a V1 missile?"
"The V1 missile is the kind of aircraft we are talking about." Konev explained to Zakharov: "As soon as Sokov found out the name of the German new weapon, he immediately reported it to me."
"If the commander of Cherkasy asked me what precautions should be taken, how should I answer him?"
"Judging from the intelligence we currently have, the location where the Germans launched V1 missiles is still in Uman." Konev said to Zakharov: "Therefore, the defenders should establish new air defenses in the southwest or west of the city.
position, and when the V1 missiles approach the city, use anti-aircraft artillery to shoot them down."
"Although the flight path of V1 missiles is fixed, it may not be easy to shoot them down at night." Zakharov said worriedly: "The city will definitely still be under intensive bombing."
"Comrade Chief of Staff, your concern is correct. Even if we deploy artillery positions to intercept the German V1 missiles, there will definitely still be a large number of missiles that fall on the city and explode, causing buildings to collapse and residents to
Injured." After Konev considered it for a moment, he said: "Although I believe that the intelligence obtained by Sokov is absolutely true, for the sake of safety, at two o'clock in the morning, the defenders of Cherkasy were ordered to pull
Sound the air raid siren and let the residents in the city hide in air-raid shelters. In this way, no matter how many missiles fall into the city, they will only destroy some buildings at best, but the casualties to the residents can be minimized."
"Okay, Comrade Marshal." Zakharov nodded and replied: "I will contact the commander of the Cherkasy garrison and ask them to take precautions to minimize losses."
In the headquarters of the 53rd Army, Smirnov waited for Sokov to put down the phone and asked curiously: "Comrade Commander, there is a question that I don't quite understand."
"what is the problem?"
"Tell me, why do the Germans launch missiles at night?" Smirnov asked puzzledly: "You know, the visibility at night is not high, and the probability of hitting the target is also low."
Since there was no information about the V1 missile at the moment, Sokov could not tell Smirnov any more details. He pretended to think about it for a while, and then said: "Comrade Chief of Staff, the photo of the V1 missile taken by the scout,
You have seen it. The missile is in the air, trailing a long tail flame behind it. If you choose to launch it at night, people on the ground can clearly observe the flight trajectory of the V1 missile based on the position of the tail flame, even with the naked eye."
Smirnov thought about it carefully and felt that what Sokov said was very reasonable. If the target of the attack was only a few kilometers away, then observers could see the flight path clearly with a telescope. But something like this that flies a distance of one or two hundred kilometers
It is obviously inappropriate to use the original observation method for missiles. When launched at night, observers on the ground can confirm the flight trajectory of the missile based on the tail flame to determine whether it has deviated from the target.
"You are right, Comrade Commander." Smirnov nodded and said: "The Germans chose to discover it at night. First, they wanted to catch our army by surprise, and second, they wanted to see the missile flight more clearly.
traces of."
Besides, Yakov, who returned to Moscow by plane, did not dare to stay for a moment. He took a car that had been waiting by the runway and rushed to the weapons and equipment department.
Fortunately, Ustinov spent most of his time in his office, and Yakov found him in the office smoothly. Seeing Yakov appear, he nodded to him, and took it as a
Say hello, and then ask directly: "Colonel Yakov, did you gain anything from going to the front this time?"
"Yes, Comrade People's Commissar, I have gained a lot from this frontline execution." Yakov took out the document bag from his briefcase, took out the photo Sokov gave him, and placed it in front of Ustinov.
, said to him: "This is the photo taken by the scouts of the 53rd Army."
"Colonel Yakov, is this the new weapon of the Germans?" Ustinov looked up at a few photos, looked up at Yakov and said, "It looks like an aircraft."
"Yes, from the appearance, it does look like an aircraft, but this aircraft is not piloted." Yakov introduced to Ustinov: "The Germans call it a V1 missile, and its range exceeds a hundred
kilometers, and the power of the explosion is huge. If ten of these missiles landed in a residential area and exploded, the entire community could be destroyed."
Ustinov couldn't help but feel shocked. He knew very well that even if the German army used an artillery regiment to carry out violent bombardment of a residential area, it would not be able to destroy the entire community in a short time. Ten V1 missiles could cause
Such huge damage indeed far exceeded his expectations.
After he asked Yakov some details, he stood up suddenly, put the photos back into his briefcase, and tucked them under his arm. After doing all this, he raised his head and said to Yakov: "Yakov
Colonel Koff, let's go."
"Go?" Yakov asked in confusion, "Where are you going?"
"Where else can we go, of course to see your father." Ustinov said: "Such important information must be reported to him as soon as possible."
Although it was already midnight and the Kremlin gates were closed, Ustinov had a special status and could enter at any time, not to mention that he was accompanied by Yakov. Therefore, he arrived at Stalin very smoothly.
Outside the office.
Boskrebyshev was sitting behind his desk dozing off. When he heard someone coming in from outside, he opened his eyes to see who it was. After seeing clearly that it was Ustinov and Yakov,
He quickly stood up, walked out from behind his desk, and took the initiative to greet Ustinov: "Comrade People's Commissar, why did you think of coming here so late?"
Of course, he also saw Yakov who was following Ustinov. But he just nodded, taking it as a greeting, and then fixed his eyes on Ustinov, trying to figure out what he was doing late at night.
Reason for visit.
But Ustinov did not immediately explain his purpose, but asked: "Comrade Boskrebyshev, has the Supreme Commander himself rested?"
"Of course." Poskrebyshev nodded and said, "It's already very late. He must be resting in the lounge inside. Comrade People's Commissar, what do you want? If it's not important, please wait till dawn.
Come back later.”
"Comrade Boskrebyshev, since I came here so late, it proves that what I want to say is very important." Ustinov said: "Please inform me that I have something important and I need to report it to you immediately.
The Supreme Commander himself reports."
"That's right," just as Boskrebyshev hesitated, Yakov, standing behind Ustinov, spoke: "We do have very important things to report to my father. Please inform me.
One sound."
Now that Yakov had spoken, it seemed inappropriate for Boskrebyshev to stop him. He could only politely say: "Please wait a moment, I will go in and report to Comrade Stalin."
Seeing Boskrebyshev push open the closed door and walk in, both Ustinov and Yakov knew in their hearts that they would soon see Stalin.
Sure enough, less than two minutes later, Poskrebyshev appeared at the door again and said respectfully: "Comrade Ustinov, the Supreme Commander himself is waiting for you inside. Please come in!" With that,
He stepped aside and made way for the two of them.
The two walked into the room and happened to see Stalin in pajamas slowly walking out of the small room next to him. After he nodded slightly to the two of them, he said casually: "Comrade Ustinov, you are looking for me so late at night."
,Is there anything important?"
"Comrade Stalin, based on the information we have obtained, we can draw a conclusion." Ustinov said: "The Germans have developed a new weapon."
Stalin sat down behind his desk, filled his cigarette butt with tobacco, and asked casually: "I wonder what kind of new weapon it is?"
Ustinov hurriedly took out the document bag tucked under his arm, opened it, took out a stack of photos, placed it in front of Stalin, and said respectfully: "Comrade Stalin, please take a look at these photos."
Stalin put the pipe in his mouth but did not light it. He picked up the photo Ustinov gave him and looked at it carefully. After looking at it for a while, he put down the photo and asked casually: "This is the German
New weapon? It looks like a very ordinary aircraft."
"This is not an ordinary aircraft." Yakov interrupted: "The Germans call it the V1 missile. Its range exceeds one hundred kilometers, but it is extremely powerful. Its appearance has already posed a serious threat to our army.
The threat. Just the day before yesterday, a German missile attacked the village of Morenchi, causing more than 200 military and civilian casualties. Fortunately, Marshal Konev transferred the headquarters, otherwise our army would have paid an even heavier price.
"
Stalin was startled: "What, Morianqi Village was attacked by German missiles, with more than 200 casualties? Yasha, is this true?"
"Of course it's true." Yakov replied truthfully: "When I heard the news, I thought it was impossible. What kind of bomb could cause such a big damage. But after I called the front army headquarters to inquire,
, make sure this is all true.”
Stalin picked up the photos on the table again and looked at them carefully. After looking at them for a while, he couldn't help but frowned: "Is this kind of weapon really that powerful?"
"Yes, Comrade Stalin." Ustinov said: "According to my analysis, the German V1 missile warhead is loaded with at least 500 kilograms of ammunition, and the damage caused is very terrifying."
Stalin realized the seriousness of the problem and asked with a straight face: "Do we have any way to deal with this new weapon of the Germans?"
Ustinov did not answer this question, but looked at Yakov sideways and said: "Comrade Stalin, I think it is better for Yakov to answer this question for you. You know, he has just returned from the front line, and you know
What method should we use to deal with the German V1 missiles?"
"Oh?!" Stalin looked at his son and said with some surprise: "Yasha, have you gone to the front line?"
"Yes, I arrived at Misha's headquarters yesterday evening," Yakov pouted at the photos on the table and said, "the photos in front of you were given to me by Misha."
Stalin picked up the photos in his hand and said with interest: "Since Xiao Misha gave these photos to you, it means that he told you what methods can be used to deal with the Germans' new weapons, right?"
"Yes." Yakov did not deny this, and admitted readily: "He did tell me how to deal with the new German weapons."
"tell me the story."
"There are two ways," Yakov said, holding up two fingers: "One is to use aircraft to intercept these missiles; the other is to use anti-aircraft fire to destroy them."
After hearing this, Stalin couldn't help but frowned again: "Is it effective?"
"I think it should be effective." Yakov replied: "Misha told me that the German missiles are different from airplanes. They can only fly along a preset route. Therefore, whether we dispatch fighter planes or use high-speed missiles,
Artillery interception can have a certain effect."
"Comrade Ustinov," after listening to his son's words, Stalin turned to look at Ustinov and asked: "Do you think these two methods can be effective in dealing with German missiles?"
"It's hard to say, Comrade Stalin." Ustinov, who was asked by Stalin, replied cautiously: "After all, we have only been attacked by one missile so far. Can we use aircraft or anti-aircraft guns to intercept it?
Missiles in flight are still an unknown quantity."
The phone on the table rang. Stalin picked up the receiver and put it to his ear. After recognizing that the caller was Antonov, he asked seriously: "Comrade Chief of General Staff, what can I do?"
"That's it, Comrade Stalin." Antonov said respectfully on the other end of the phone: "I just received a call from Marshal Konev. He said that the Germans may launch a long-range attack on Cherkasy.
.”
"Long-range attack, what does this mean?" Stalin asked expressionlessly: "Cherkasy and the German defense line are more than 100 kilometers apart, so how could they be attacked from a long-range? Could it be that the Germans are preparing to send out a bomber group to attack the city?
Carry out bombing?”
"It's not about sending out bombers for bombing, Comrade Stalin." Antonov reorganized the words in his mind and continued: "It's about the Germans developing a new type of weapon that can attack targets hundreds of miles away.
Strike. They are preparing to use this weapon to attack Cherkasy."
This chapter has been completed!