Wittmann's 111th vehicle crew was very lucky. After more than a day of driving in the forest, their 1st SS Armored Division first drove out of the Ardennes Forest and ran into an unsuspecting Belgian infantryman here.
Division defense line.
"Lucas! Follow Vick's No. 112 tank and attack the Belgian position in front." Wittmann shouted loudly from inside the tank.
In front of them, a Belgian position with heavy machine guns was firing bullets at German tanks in panic.
Since the German troops were not expected to rush out of the Ardennes Forest, the Belgian missing division stationed here did not have much vigilance. They did not even deploy the defensive troops in the trenches.
At this time, after German tanks appeared one after another, these poor Belgian soldiers remembered that nothing was impossible in the war.
"It looks like this battle will be easy, because the Belgians have no weapons that can penetrate our armor." After hearing the sound of the Belgian small-caliber cannon being bounced off again, he controlled the coaxial machine gun to shoot at the Belgian soldiers' mines.
Ao Daodao said.
So far, the battle situation is basically the same as that of the exercises that Wittmann and the others have participated in. Of course, unlike the exercises, the coaxial machine gun in Leo's hand will not only leave behind the smoke and gunpowder smell, but also a large number of corpses.
Due to the sudden outbreak of the war, the Belgian garrison did not even evacuate the local civilians. Although the people fled quickly after the war started, the livestock, cattle and sheep they left behind turned into corpses.
Those poor domestic animals became the targets of bullets, shells and bomb fragments. These animals spread their hooves and fell on the ground, exuding bursts of rotting meat, mingling with gunpowder smoke and tank gasoline exhaust.
And those animals were still lives that were wiped out by the way. Leo and the other tank gunners driving coaxial machine guns, and the Belgian soldiers who were really keeping an eye on them, were the ones who suffered the most tragic casualties.
"This reminds me of the time we fought in Poland," Leicht said after loading another grenade for the cannon: "It was a one-sided massacre. The enemy had no power to threaten us at all."
"Boom!" Just as Leicht finished sighing, the grenade he had loaded was fired, causing a burst of blood mist to splash on the Belgian position once again.
Two Belgian artillerymen once again fired 37mm shells at Wittmann and his No. 111 Panther tank at a distance they thought was close enough.
"Precise hit!" a Belgian fighter shouted, waving his fist.
Unfortunately, before he could lower his fist, the shell that accurately hit the Panther tank was blocked again.
Can't penetrate such a close distance? The Belgian officers and soldiers on the position first lost their psychological defense line. They really couldn't figure out how to deal with the behemoths one after another in front of them.
They didn't have many anti-tank guns, and they didn't have cannons with a caliber exceeding 37 mm. Now, this was the only weapon that could possibly hit German tanks. After firing it at close range at the risk of being destroyed, it still didn't work.
any effect.
Shooting from a static distance was originally the best way to increase the power of artillery fire. But now, even close-range shooting cannot penetrate the armor of the Panther tank, so there is really no way to deal with these German steel beasts.
"Ruers, your company hasten to attack. The machine gun position can no longer be defended!" the Belgian battalion commander who saw all this urgently ordered from behind.
"Batalion Commander..." Luers looked at his superior with an ugly expression.
The machine gun positions could no longer be defended and were clearly starting to collapse!
Standing on the hilltop at the rear, Luers could clearly see the company on the machine gun position fleeing in all directions.
The machine gun position that has gradually disappeared is the only well-arranged position of the missing Belgian division guarding the Ardennes Pass. Except there, other commanding heights are empty of people and equipment.
All the essence was left on that position. Even the only two 37mm anti-tank guns in this division with less than 5,000 men were deployed on the side of the machine gun position.
But even in this position where the best equipment of the entire division was assembled, it was unable to even slightly block the vanguard of the German armored division. Before the German tanks even arrived at the position, the officers and soldiers in the position had already dropped their weapons and went to the position.
Then he fled.
"The machine gun position has been lost, and the officers and soldiers there have no intention of fighting!" Luers finally mustered up the courage and shouted loudly to his battalion commander who was still trying to hold the position.
"We have to hold it!" the battalion commander said with a tearful voice: "The whole division has only one position, which is reasonably well-arranged. If it is lost, we will no longer have a commanding height that can be used to suppress the German army."
It is an incredible thing for a division to use only one company to guard the commanding heights. Unfortunately, in this Belgian garrison division, it just doesn't follow common sense.
They did not even deploy a small number of security forces in the Ardennes Forest, nor did they occupy a few more commanding heights at the Ardennes Pass, which should have been guarded with all their strength, to maintain the density of firepower in the only direction in which the Germans could rush out.
From the division commander to the regiment commander, no one thought of seriously setting up a main defensive position. In the end, it was the battalion commander of Luers who thought of sending a machine gun with the regiment headquarters to guard the most important commanding heights.
"If it really doesn't work, we have to regain the position even if we risk our lives. Otherwise, we won't be able to stop the German tanks that are pouring out." The battalion commander wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said through gritted teeth.
It was too late to send people to re-garrison other mountain passes, and it was impossible to have time to build a second sniper position. The only thing that could stop the Germans was the machine gun position closest to the mountain pass. It was equivalent to a gate and could not be defended.
Stay, the German army's steel torrent, which is like opening a gate, will no longer have any hindrance.
"Battal Commander, the best weapons of our regiment are all left on that position." Luers glanced at the distant position where there was no longer a living Belgian soldier. He turned around and advised: "Even if our company
If we rush forward with all the 3rd company behind the battalion headquarters, we won’t be able to achieve better results.”
In the distance, the soldiers who had retreated from the position had poured into a transfer station on the mountainside in twos and threes. Then, they took the logistics personnel in the transfer station and continued to rush towards the rear. No one tried to stop the pursuit.
The German army, their courage had long been exhausted on that mountain.