Crossing the river smoothly is not an easy thing, there are still hard bones to gnaw next.
There were minefields, anti-tank trenches, and a cone-shaped obstacle made of reinforced concrete in front of the German position. The Germans called this obstacle "dragon's teeth."
"Dragon's Teeth" is actually a fixed obstacle similar to blocking horses. It has appeared before World War II. It was widely used in the Maginot Line and the Siegfried Line built by the Germans.
The "Dragon Teeth" are about one meter above the ground and are distributed irregularly. When encountering such dense obstacles, tanks cannot pass and may even roll over in severe cases. The Germans placed the "Dragon Teeth" on traffic arteries to
To hinder the advancement of tank troops, the Germans sometimes used "dragon teeth" to lay traps to attract Allied tanks to the German anti-tank firepower points, so that they could hit the fire and cause damage to the armored troops.
It is actually very easy to deal with "Dragon Teeth". Manual blasting is the most common, and engineering vehicles can also be used to remove it, or bulldozers can be used to cover it.
The most indispensable thing for the Southern African army is engineering vehicles, especially bulldozers, which are useful in dealing with "Dragon Teeth" and minefields, as well as anti-tank trenches. In order to protect the bulldozer driver, the Southern African military customized bulldozers with reinforced armor.
, works extremely well.
With the help of bulldozers, a safe passage was quickly opened in front of the German position. When light tanks and armored vehicles rushed to the German position, the German army completely collapsed and the battle ended quickly. Dulles did not expect it to be so easy.
After interrogating the prisoners, it was discovered that this force was not a pure German army, but a servant army transferred from Romania. The German army was now stretched thin and unable to control such a large defense area, so it had to use the servant army to make up the numbers.
Unlike the ease in the Spanish direction, the Allies encountered greater difficulties in the Normandy direction, a large part of which was caused by the Allies themselves.
On the day the "D" Day operation was launched, the Allied forces did not encounter decent resistance.
The day of June 6th was spent in calm. The Allies had to wait for reinforcements and did not take the initiative to launch an attack. The Germans were unable to break through the blockade of Allied bombers. The armored forces commanded by Rommel suffered heavy losses. Lundstedt
He also failed to transfer the German troops in Calais to Normandy in time.
On June 7, six more Allied divisions successfully arrived in Normandy. At this time, the Allied forces in Normandy had exceeded 17 divisions, and the headquarters ordered the Allied forces to begin advancing in depth.
The first one to set off was the 8th Infantry Division of Southern Africa. At 11 o'clock last night, after nearly 6,000 construction workers worked around the clock, Christian Construction Company built a simple pontoon bridge at Baojian Beach. Although the freighter could not dock, the 22nd Armored Division
However, the "Leopard" tanks can be disembarked via tank landing ships, which provides the most powerful assistance to the 8th Infantry Division's offensive.
Within four hours, 125 "Leopard" tanks successfully landed.
At six o'clock in the morning, the 8th Infantry Division took the initiative to attack. At this time, the weather was unfavorable and it started to rain lightly again. This made Chief of Staff Blomfield very worried.
"I hope the rain will not get heavier, otherwise our logistics will be in huge trouble." Blomfield is not worried about the combat effectiveness of the troops, but is worried that the logistics cannot be guaranteed.
The simple docks on various beaches are still under intensive construction. Even if the construction is completed, freighters will have to take huge risks to cross the English Channel with high winds and waves. After the operation began, the Allies have lost 11 freighters, of which only four
It was sunk by a German submarine, and the others were sunk accidentally.
"So we have to capture Cannes as soon as possible, so that we can use the airport in Cannes to get supplies." Division Commander Xie Jianye said, "Cannes is the shipping center in northern France and has the largest airport in northern France. As long as we capture Cannes, at least
Allied transport planes can take off and land smoothly.
Compared with sea transportation, air transportation can only solve urgent needs, but cannot fundamentally solve the problem.
But this is not the key. In the first phase of the "Overlord" operation, all tasks centered on opening up a landing site, and even the temporary dock was only a stopgap measure. The real solution to the logistical problem was to capture Cherbourg, which was the task of the US military.
Cherbourg is the largest port in northern France and has complete port facilities. The Germans also knew the importance of Cherbourg. They deployed heavy troops in Cherbourg and built strong fortifications. This was destined to be a fierce battle.
"May God bless us -" Blomfield made the sign of the cross on his chest, the Allies really needed some luck.
At present, luck does not seem to be on the Allies' side.
The attack of the 8th Infantry Division did not go smoothly. The rainy weather for many days had a huge impact on the traffic in France. The Allied bombing for three consecutive days caused devastating blows to the roads and bridges in France. Therefore, the 8th Infantry Division
The first difficulty the infantry division encountered was not the German army, but poor transportation conditions.
"It's terrible. Just now when the engineering battalion was filling the road, they found a 100 kilogram aerial bomb that did not explode. Now the bulldozers are afraid to open the road. No one knows what is in the puddles -" from Madagascar
Sergeant Major Cole, lying on the turret of the Panther tank, complained casually to Commander Henderson.
It is already nine o'clock in the morning, and it has been three hours since the troops set off, and they have only advanced less than one kilometer.
Looking back, I could no longer see the starting position. The rain was getting heavier and heavier, and the visual range did not exceed 100 meters. The troops advanced very cautiously.
I couldn't get up quickly even if I wanted to. The road ahead had been completely destroyed. There were craters one or two meters in diameter everywhere. The craters were full of water. In addition to unexploded aerial bombs, there might also be German mines.
.
"This is pretty good for us. 20 minutes ago, the U.S. 29th Infantry Division was bombed from the air. You would never have guessed that it was a British bomber that dropped the bomb -" Henderson's tank has a car radio, so the information is quite good.
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"The British did it on purpose?" Cole's first reaction was unexpected.
"I'm afraid only God knows -" Henderson was not surprised. The discussion on the car radio just now was very intense.
Although this possibility is low, it is not impossible. During the Battle of Sicily, the transport plane carried by the British airborne troops was accidentally hit by the anti-aircraft fire of the US ground forces.
The Americans definitely said it was a mistaken attack and apologized. I am afraid only God knows what happened.
"This is the reason why I don't want to join forces with the British and American troops. They are not very professional." Cole looked down on friendly forces, his combat capabilities were not very good, and he did a lot of nonsense.
At this time, Second Lieutenant Lin Qian from the engineer team hurried over with two Frenchmen.
"The restoration work is very difficult. I have found two French guides who can take you to Cannes via other roads." Lin Qian was also worried.
"Sir, I am at your service -" The two French guides were enthusiastic, especially working for the southern African army.
After Southern Africa annexed Madagascar, relations with France were tense for a time, and even the "France" sank in Madagascar.
Now Southern Africa has once again become France's "savior". If it is the British or American troops, the French may still have grudges, but not the Southern African army. One moment, another moment.
"Can tanks pass through those roads?" Cole is from Madagascar and speaks good French.
"Yes, the Germans only destroyed these main roads, and it is impossible to cut off all traffic." The young man wearing a peaked cap vowed.
Henderson was communicating with Lin Qian in Chinese.
"Can you trust these two people?" Henderson didn't trust the French very much. It would be great fun if it were a German spy who led the 8th Infantry Division into a trap laid by the Germans.
"It should be possible. These two are members of the French resistance organization. They have been fighting the Germans." Lin Qian still looked very impressed.
The fact that the French government stopped resisting does not mean that all French people are completely at peace. From the Renaissance to the Great Revolution, France has always been the most rebellious country in Europe.
"Come up here and tell me how to go?" Henderson pulled up his peaked cap.
"Put this on--" Cole was more friendly and took off his raincoat and handed it to the peaked hat.
"No, you need it more." The cap was humble, Cole needed to stay healthy.
With the guide's guidance, the troop's advance speed suddenly accelerated, and the engineers felt much more relaxed now. They finally no longer had to touch bombs underwater, which was a bit dangerous job.
Baojian Beach is not far from Cannes. The German 21st Tank Division is still very professional. The reconnaissance post was placed five kilometers away. Before the 8th Infantry Division approached Cannes, the German sentry took the initiative to warn and the sneak attack was established.
Offensive warfare.
The rain has not stopped now, but is getting heavier and heavier.
Just now, Henderson and Cole were dreaming that the 8th Infantry Division could take advantage of the German 21st Tank Division's unpreparedness to launch a sneak attack.
Now the hope has been lost, but Henderson and Cole are not afraid of positional battles. The "Leopard" is still confident of defeating the German Panzer IV.
Different from the useless beachhead, Cannes is the shipping center of northern France. The Germans worked hard and built solid fortifications around Cannes. There are not only complex underground communication trenches, but also high and low light and dark forts with no blind spots.
There were everything from dragon's tooth barbed wire, minefields, anti-tank trenches, etc. There were also tanks on key German positions to assist in defense. This was also a tough battle.
Xie Jianye did not rush to attack, but called for support first. No matter how strong the German position was, Xie Jianye was confident that he would use an iron hammer to smash the German position bit by bit.
The bombers arrived in time, but the bombing effect was not good. The weather was so bad. It was obviously noon, but it felt almost like evening. You had to turn on the lights in the armored command vehicle to see the map clearly.
"Should we ask airborne troops to airdrop at the airport?" Blomfield hopes that things will blossom both internally and externally. The Germans are now hiding in a strong fortress, but the officers and soldiers of the 8th Infantry Division are soaking in the rain. This battle is too frustrating. If possible,
If so, Blomfield would rather wait until the weather clears before attacking.
"No, the loss of the airborne troops would be too great, unless the British or American airborne troops could be summoned -" Xie Jianye died as a fellow Taoist but not as a poor Taoist. This is just talk, it is almost impossible.
Southern Africa did not send airborne troops to participate in the first wave of airborne landings, which originally made the British and American troops very dissatisfied.
Now the Germans are ready. Although Cannes has the largest airport in northern France, everyone knows that airborne landing in Cannes is asking for death. No matter how brave the airborne troops are, they will not carry out such a mission that they know will lead to death.
"Then let's do it ourselves -" Blomfield also knew it was impossible, so he would do it strictly and formally.
At this time, artillery had already begun to bombard the German defense lines, but the effect was also poor.
The fortifications built by the Germans are still very strong. The thickness of the soil on top of the bunkers is more than two meters, the width of the minefield reaches 200 meters, and the anti-tank trenches are wide and deep, and there are four consecutive ones. The Germans are not without the ability to fight back.
, shortly after the southern African artillery opened fire, German artillery counterfire followed one after another.
Fortunately, the German counterfire was not strong enough and not accurate enough, so it did not cause any damage to the southern African artillery.
The intensity of the rain has an impact on southern Africa, and it also has an impact on Germany.
The German artillery did not know the position and distance of the artillery positions in Southern Africa, but the artillery in Southern Africa could easily calculate the approximate position of the German artillery positions.
No matter how cautious the Germans were, the artillery position was definitely within Cannes. If necessary, the southern African artillery could use artillery shells to wash out Cannes inch by inch.
This is what the Germans and Russians did on the Russian battlefield.
Therefore, there is really no tenderness in the war, but only devastation and ruins. Both parties involved in the war will not care about civilian areas and military areas if they are red-eyed. No matter what method is used, they can just destroy the enemy.
According to British military tradition, battle-level firepower preparations usually last a week or even longer.
There was no time in southern Africa to fight quickly, so when the artillery began to bombard the enemy indiscriminately, engineers were dispatched again to clear the German fortifications.
The Germans are still very cunning. The "dragon's tooth" is not only about one meter as it looks, but is more than one meter underground. It is also cast as a whole with concrete, making it very difficult to clean.
This is not a problem for the engineers. In addition to bulldozers, directional blasting is also very effective in dealing with the "Dragon Teeth". Simply stick a bunch of explosive packages on it and blow up a large area easily.
There are advantages to bombing like this. After all, there is a German minefield behind the "Dragon Teeth" array. Under normal circumstances, the density of mines in the minefield behind the "Dragon Teeth" will be smaller.
After all, the Germans don't have many mines to use, so they have to build No. 4 and No. 5 mines with more steel.
Southern Africa has plenty of steel, and any problem that can be solved with steel is not a problem.
The defensive power of the "Leopard" tank is also very strong. As soon as a "Leopard" tank crossed the German minefield, it was attacked by an anti-tank gun.
Fortunately, the anti-tank gun failed to penetrate the armor of the "Leopard" tank.
But this time the attack ended here. The first was just a tentative attack to find the weaknesses of the German position, and the next step was the main event.
