News came one after another from Major Gavrilov to Shulka:
The German army concentrated hundreds of bombers to bomb the Kiev Bridge in turn. However, due to visibility reasons and the strong strength of the Kiev Bridge, the effect was not ideal throughout the day. Only two bombs hit the bridge and caused some damage to the bridge deck.
Finally, in the evening, the bridge was blown up, which made the German pilots cheer.
What they didn't know was that this was actually the secret help of General Kilponos... He hoped that the German 1st Armored Group could leave Kiev as soon as possible, so he ordered the soldiers to tie explosives on the bridge, and then waited for the German bombers to dive and drop bombs.
Detonate.
Just hearing a "boom", the bridge deck was split into two pieces.
Because it was raining, it was difficult for the German pilots to see the bridge, and of course they couldn't find the details. What's more... who would have thought that the Soviets would blow up their own bridges?
The German armored group left Kiev that night and headed toward the lower reaches of the Dnieper River.
If it were at other times, it would not be easy for the Soviet army to know this. The reason is that at this time, a large area south of Kiev, that is, the lower reaches of the Dnieper River, was occupied and controlled by the German army. In addition, the Soviet army's communication system was very backward. Even if there was
When guerrillas or civilians discovered German tank units, they were unable to report them in time.
This is also one of the reasons why the German army successfully crossed the river in history but the Soviet army was not aware of it... The Soviet army always thought that the German 1st Armored Group was still concentrated near Kiev, so it did not take the small group of infantry across the Dnieper River into account at all.
Something happened.
But now, because it was expected in advance that the German 1st Armored Division might move, General Kirponos sent scouts with radios across the Dnieper River to conduct reconnaissance.
It was not difficult to do this, because at this time the Dnieper River was still under the control of the Soviet fleet, and the German defenses on the west bank were not consolidated. The Soviet scouts disguised themselves as civilians and sneaked in without much effort.
The West Bank opened an intelligence network.
Therefore, the movements of the German 1st Armored Group can almost be said to be under the control of the Soviet army.
"You are right, Sergeant!" On this day, General Kilponos was so excited that he rushed to the warehouse himself and found Major Gavrilov and Shulka.
"The German 1st Armored Group has left Kiev and is moving south!" General Kirponos said: "In addition, they used planes to lay mines everywhere on the Dnieper River to block the river. It is obvious that they want to cross the river!"
"At the same time!" General Kilponos paused and continued: "Their infantry launched an attack in the direction of Kremenchug last night and occupied the small town. We judge... that they are likely to start from
Build a floating bridge here to cross the Dnieper River!”
"Comrade General!" Shulka said: "This matter... we should not tell the Southern Front, or even tell anyone else!"
Admiral Kilponos couldn't help being stunned when he heard this, and then nodded in agreement.
The answer is obvious. If this information is told to others, especially the Southern Front, will they allow the German 1st Armored Group to cross the river?
They might formulate a defense plan, or even set up an encirclement on the east coast to surround the German 1st Armored Group... It would be fine if they could succeed, after all, the German 1st Armored Group was a serious problem for the Soviet army.
The problem is that the result of this is likely to alert the German army to cancel the plan to cross the river, because as we all know, it is very difficult for the Soviet army to keep its actions secret from the German army at this time, and this also means that the entire Soviet army plan will be aborted.
middle.
Then, the order to prepare for battle was quickly issued.
Mechanized troops require longer pre-war preparations, especially when preparing for long-distance attacks like now... However, this is mainly the responsibility of the logistics troops and tank troops. They need to conduct a comprehensive overhaul of the tanks, cars, etc., and replace them if possible.
Aged parts.
Kleist on the other side has led the German 1st Armored Group to the west bank of the Dnieper River.
Kleist was very careful. He ordered his troops in advance to drive away and control the people near Kremenchug and even on both sides of the road... This would prevent the whereabouts of the tank troops from being exposed.
Kleist believed this because visibility was poor during rainy days and the Soviet army could not observe anything from the air. Even if some civilians on land discovered the German tanks, they would not be able to cross the Dnieper River to report the news.
Unless of course they have a radio station.
However, the Soviet army was equipped with very few radio stations, and it was even less likely that ordinary people would have radio stations.
Admiral Kleist raised his telescope and looked towards the east coast, only a few trees and houses could be seen faintly under the rain curtain.
"Is the 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion ready to respond?" General Kleist asked the adjutant.
"Yes, General!" the adjutant replied.
"If I remember correctly!" Admiral Kleist said: "It will be completely dark at 5:35, right?"
"Yes, General!"
"Then!" Admiral Kleist put away his telescope and said, "Order the pontoon bridge troops to build the pontoon bridge at 5:35!"
"Tonight?" The adjutant was a little surprised. They had just arrived here and barely had time to take a breath. What's more, the rain was getting heavier and heavier. It seemed that it was not suitable to cross the river tonight.
"Of course!" Admiral Kleist replied without explaining anything, and raised his telescope again to observe the nearby terrain.
"Yes, General!" the adjutant responded, then turned around to deliver the order.
Soldiers need to be quick, this is the principle of "blitzkrieg", and Kleist knows this very well, especially now... One more day of delay for the 1st Armored Group means more danger of being discovered by the enemy.
Therefore, Kleist did not plan to make any stops, even though it was indeed not suitable to cross the river tonight.
The difficulty of crossing the river does not lie in building a pontoon...the flow speed of rivers in the Soviet Union is generally relatively low. This is due to the fact that the Soviet Union is mainly a plain and the height of the rivers is generally not large.
For example, the Dnieper River has a total length of 2,200 kilometers, a drop of only 253 meters, and the flow speed in most river sections is less than 1 meter/second.
This made it easy for the engineers to build the pontoon bridge on the river.
The difficulty is that the tanks are driving past, at night, in the rain, and through the pontoon bridge that is constantly shaking...
It was pitch black all around, and the driver in the tank couldn't even see the pontoon bridge below, not to mention the other side. He could only move forward little by little through the rain curtain, following the light of the fluorescent sticks in the hands of the infantrymen in front of him.
This is secondly, the driver must also carefully feel the shaking of the tank, because as long as the position is a little off, the pontoon may tilt under the weight of the tank. If it is not adjusted in time, the person and the tank may fall off in the next second.