Fierce artillery fire bombarded the hilltop, blasting holes in the fortifications on the hilltop. The defending Greek officers and soldiers shivered under the artillery fire.
The constant shelling made all the defenders on the position struggling to hold on, waiting for the shelling to end.
As for the defenders' artillery, they had been destroyed long ago. The suppression from the air and Romanian long-range artillery left no room for the artillery supporting the defenders to survive.
And what can Greece do to compete with Romania? Whether it is quantity or quality, Romania is crushing.
At present, the Greek Army's largest caliber artillery is the French-made M1917 155mm howitzer. Not to mention the Romanian train guns, the 210 and 240 large-caliber guns alone cannot stop it.
Not to mention that in order to compete with the Soviet Union's numerous artillery pieces, Romania also has a large number of various artillery pieces. There are nearly a thousand large-caliber guns of 150 mm and above alone, while Greece only has 85.
There is no numerical advantage or caliber advantage. How can it be compared with Romania? Not to mention that Romania has air supremacy and various aircraft make it more difficult for the Greek defenders.
As the commander, General Mandif personally went to the front line to observe the details of the shelling.
"Yes, the damage rate of artillery strikes to the defenders is very high. Our artillery training has not failed over the years."
Mandif put down the telescope in his hand and casually praised the artillery.
Although there is no large group of followers behind him, the only few people behind him are senior officers. Among them are Lieutenant General Modelk, the former head of the Far East Advisory Group, who served as the commander of the 14th Army, and Lieutenant General Modelk, who served as the commander of the 6th Army.
Lieutenant General Faucto and Lieutenant General Hoffman, the lowest here are Major General Mizik, the commander of the 39th Division currently guarding the position.
Such a group of senior officers coming to the front line to check the enemy's situation naturally makes people nervous. If nothing else, just being hit by enemy artillery shells will paralyze the army's command system. So they don't have their own shining generals.
Instead of wearing uniforms, they wear the same combat uniforms as ordinary soldiers.
After Mandif finished the bombardment, he turned to Major General Mizik and asked, "How is the morale of the soldiers currently?"
Facing the questions from the military boss, General Mandif, Major General Mizik, as the commander of the 39th Division, naturally knew that he could not hide the truth from the general, and there was nothing difficult to say in such a situation where he had an absolute advantage.
"At present, the strength of the soldiers is pretty good. They generally believe that defeating the Greek army will not be difficult for us."
And what Mizik hasn’t said yet is that most of the officers and soldiers of the 39th Division are from the original Bulgaria, and they have an unforgettable hatred for Greece. I believe he doesn’t need to say this, no one here knows it. Look at the people who are included
For the troops fighting against Greece, among its 16 divisions, five divisions mainly recruited soldiers from the former Bulgarian territory.
And these soldiers from Bulgaria are also very willing to fight against their original enemies, so their morale is very high without mobilization.
"Are there any difficulties with materials?"
"Your Excellency, Commander, our division currently has sufficient supplies and does not need additional supplies, but it would be better if you were willing to replenish 20 flamethrowers for our division."
Mizik's words amused Mandif. He looked at Mizik and asked, "Is the flamethrower easy to use?"
"It has miraculous effects on bunkers, tunnels, and caves."
After hearing Mizk's words, Mandif nodded in agreement. "Well, I will assign a company of flamethrowers to you. Each of their companies has 18 flamethrowers, which is enough to increase your attack capability."
The flamethrower that Mizik attaches so much importance to is Romania's single-soldier flamethrower, which was designated as the PZ-2 flamethrower at the beginning of this year.
Research on fire-breathing equipment has been around for a long time, from Greek fire in the Middle Ages to Byzantine firearms, and these have long been lost in the long river of history.
The modern flamethrower was invented by the German R. Fiedler in 1900. It was originally designed as a drill equipment, but the German military believed that the invention had practical significance.
During World War I, the German army's use of flamethrowers greatly shocked the Allied Powers. Subsequently, various countries also developed their own flamethrowers.
As for Romania's flamethrower research, it was improved after the end of World War I by using captured German flamethrowers. However, by the time the 1930s entered, this improved German flamethrower seemed outdated, and Romania began to develop new models.
Flamethrower, last year the University of Iasi invented gasoline coagulation technology, which doubled the performance of the new flamethrower. Its flamethrowing time and distance have been greatly improved.
This PZ-2 flamethrower, total weight, without fuel: 19.1 kg, loaded fuel: 30.1 kg. Effective range: 22 meters. Maximum range: 50 meters.
At present, this flamethrower has been equipped with the Greek army commanded by Mandif. Each division has 18 individual flamethrowers organized into a flamethrower company, and the army has two battalions (four companies in each battalion). In addition, it also uses
A special armored Spitfire company modified from the Jackal IV type (9 vehicles).
While General Mandif was having a conversation, the troops of the 39th Division were already gathering in position, and it looked like they were going to launch an attack.
This naturally attracted the interest of His Excellency the General. Mizik, who was standing aside, took the opportunity to say, "This is the 3rd regiment under our division. We plan to test the enemy's defense after the bombardment is over."
After he finished speaking, Mandif became interested and planned to see the battle of the division.
Without letting him wait any longer, the assembled troops began to rush toward the position. As soon as they rushed, they could see other doorways. The officers and soldiers of the 39th Division were widely spread out, and the distance between everyone was basically 4-6 meters.
, and the officer is still instructing the soldiers to pay attention to the distance.
Naturally, the Greek officers and soldiers on the defensive position were not unaware of Romania's offensive. I saw dense crowds of people immediately appearing on the position where no one could be seen before the shelling.
But this time they not only need to pay attention to the offensive on the ground, but also need to pay attention to the top of their heads. I saw dozens of bombers immediately emerging from the clouds in the sky, and the only anti-aircraft firepower on the position opened fire immediately. They tried to use firepower to deter these bombers.
Bomber bombardment of positions.
But how could this possibly go as they wished? Several bombers came out of the clouds again and rushed toward them. This time, the Romanian Air Force was well prepared for this battle.
Taking advantage of the cooperation between the ground and the air, the officers and soldiers of the 3rd Regiment moved faster. When the formation saw the Romanian army entering the firing range, the defenders and soldiers on the position opened fire. The loud gunfire in the position was mixed with the sound of sharp mortar shells, which made the attacking troops
blocked.
Faced with this situation, the attacking Romanian army fired the infantry artillery that had been prepared, shelling and firing in an attempt to suppress the defenders' firepower.
"boom!"
A heavy machine gun at the defender's position was blown into parts.
"boom!"
A light machine gun that fired happily was also destroyed.
Under the bombardment of Romania's dominant artillery, the firepower on the position decreased rapidly. Seeing that the position was in danger of being breached, a reinforcement force was seen coming up.
"Okay, let's stop the attack. This attack can't defeat the position."
Mandif waved his hand to stop the offensive, but how could Mizk stop the general's order, so the officers and soldiers of the attacking 3rd regiment retreated.
General Mandev was very satisfied with this battle, and he had a clear understanding of the Greek army. These Greek troops had good morale and fighting spirit, but their equipment was too poor, and their technical and tactical levels were not enough. He had no idea how to break this line.
We already have a general idea of the defense line, and then we just need to prepare ourselves.
The Major General Mizik in front of him is indeed capable of bringing a unit that has only been established for less than two years to combat effectiveness. He is a good young man.
Well, Mizik, who is in his forties, is indeed a young man compared to Mandif.
