Not only Colonel Ovitch couldn't figure it out, but the German commander General Kleist and even Major Muller who participated in the battle couldn't figure it out either.
"What happened?" Admiral Kleist personally summoned Major Mueller: "How did you lose?"
Kleist, who was watching the battle from behind, was far away from the front line, so he didn't know the specific situation yet.
"We were ambushed by them, General!" Major Mueller stood up straight, but the bandage on his forehead and the dust on his face still made him look very embarrassed.
"Ambush, what kind of ambush?" Admiral Kleist asked in confusion.
"I don't know, General!" Major Muller replied: "They suddenly appeared behind us!"
"And you actually don't know how they appeared behind you?" Admiral Kleist asked.
Major Mueller looked embarrassed. Although he should know, he really didn't know.
"General!" one of Major Muller's guards replied at this time: "I think I know how they appeared behind us... I found a hole in the ground when I was retreating. At first I thought it was a bomb crater, but now I think
That doesn’t look like a bomb crater!”
"On the ground?" Admiral Kleist couldn't help but frowned: "So, they are hiding underground like mice?"
No one answered because no one could be sure of this.
"This is impossible!" the adjutant said: "Our intelligence did not mention this at all. I mean...if they still have underground fortifications in front of the defense line, our intelligence officers will find it!"
The adjutant's words were reasonable. You should know that it was intelligence obtained by the Brandenburg troops. They even investigated the weapons used by the Soviets in the bunker.
It is conceivable that if there are other underground fortifications, it is unlikely to escape their detection.
The guard recalled it for a moment and replied: "It looks like it was dug temporarily because the entrance of the hole is very rough.
"No, no..." The adjutant still didn't believe it: "They don't have so much time. I mean it will take at least a week to dig a series of underground fortifications to hide enough troops to pose a threat to us. And these Soviets have a few days.
We just evacuated here before!"
After a moment of silence, General Kleist turned his attention to Major Mueller: "How many enemies are behind you?"
"I'm not sure, General!" Major Muller replied: "But the gunshots sounded quite large, there should be a company!"
After thinking about it, Kleist replied: "Then there is only one possibility. Gentlemen, do you think the people here are used to digging cellars?"
Several people cast doubtful glances at Kleist.
"General, you mean..." the adjutant said dubiously: "They are hiding in the cellar?"
Kleist did not answer, but turned his attention to the guard and asked: "Is the hole you found next to the wooden house?"
The guard recalled for a while, then nodded: "It seems so, General, but the wooden house has been bombed into ruins!"
Kleist spread his hands to everyone, and then said: "So, they don't need to spend much time preparing. They only need to dig a tunnel from the cellar, and then they can hide the troops inside!"
Everyone couldn't help but say "oh".
Kleist shook his head and sighed: "A good idea, isn't it? We always think that it will be safe if we blow up the wooden house. Who would have thought that they would be hiding under the ruins?"
"I can't believe it!" said the adjutant: "The Russians would actually think of such a method..."
"The fact is that they thought of it, David!" Admiral Kleist said: "And it has been used on the battlefield, although I don't believe it either!"
"Is there any solution?" Major Mueller looked indignant: "For example, we can blow up these cellars?"
"This is difficult to do!" The adjutant shook his head: "Because we have already blown it up, I mean the wooden house... unless we can move away the pile of rubble! As for the entrance to the cave, we don't know where it is at all.
It could be anywhere near the cabin!”
"Then find it!" Of course Major Muller would not give in. His troops had never suffered such heavy casualties on the battlefield as they did today, especially when he escaped in front of his subordinates.
This was a huge humiliation for him, and he wanted to take revenge, or in other words, wash away the shame.
"How to find it?" General Kleist asked back: "Dig every inch of the land? No, Major, you have to know that it is a battlefield. It is within the coverage of the enemy's frontal bunkers, and their bullets and artillery shells will not hit you."
Hesitantly pouring out towards us, no one can calmly find the tunnel entrance in this situation!"
"But General, what else can we do?" Major Mueller was a little confused.
There was silence in the headquarters because no one could find any suitable solution.
In fact, there is no good way to use this tactic. Let alone Kleist during World War II, there is no effective way to deal with it even on the battlefield decades later... Americans with much more advanced weapons, equipment and tactics are still there.
Defeated in the tunnel battle in Vietnam.
It actually breaks the regular battle into guerrilla warfare, with a few people here and a few people there, and they can also run around so that the enemy's powerful equipment is like hitting a pile of cotton.
General Kleist couldn't help but secretly feel alarmed. Fortunately, only a small group of the Soviets used this tactic. If this tactic was used on a large scale, even in the areas they captured, the German army would be trapped.
In the quagmire.
At the same time, Admiral Kleist was also a little strange...Why wasn't this effective tactic popular among the Soviet army?!
Of course, this is not what he needs to consider.
After thinking about it, Admiral Kleist touched his chin and said to the map: "Gentlemen, what will you do if you are unable to capture a fortress for a long time?"
The adjutant and Major Mueller immediately understood what Admiral Kleist meant: go around and surround it!
This was a common tactic used by the Germans, as they did in most battles, including Brest Fortress.
As a result, the frontal battle of the 333rd Regiment weakened. Instead, fierce gunfire and artillery fire rang out from the defense area adjacent to them, while fighter jets and bombers continued to circle overhead.
Major Gavrilov observed the battle situation outside for a while. After returning to the headquarters, he said to Political Commissar Fomin: "The situation is not good. The enemy seems to want to surround us!"
"If they can't stop the German attack..." Political Commissar Fuming said, "Then we will have to retreat!"
This is common sense, because the bunker fortifications are facing the front, and if the enemy goes around to the back, there is basically no defense.