"So, if we use it for defense, we may fall into total passivity!" Shulka said: "Because the Germans only need to discover our perforations and then use artillery to bombard the buildings, which is enough to destroy our self-propelled vehicles.
Artillery destroyed!"
Golikov and Akimovich couldn't help but look at each other, because they knew that Shulka was right. The self-propelled artillery was only protected by a surrounding iron sheet and not even a top protection. If the building was bombarded, it would only fall a few pieces from the top.
If a brick falls, the crew and gunner may be injured.
What's more, when it is bombarded by the enemy, what falls from the top is not just bricks and tiles.
"Then..." Golikov said: "We can only choose to attack!"
If passive defense is negated, then the only option is to attack, and the remaining question is how to attack.
"But, Comrade Shulka!" Akimovich said: "The enemy only attacks during the day. When it gets dark, they organize their defense in place. How should we attack the enemy's 'new type of tank'?"
Shulka understood what Akimovich meant. If you want to use self-propelled artillery to deal with the enemy's "new tanks", then it should be when its "new tanks" appear. Otherwise, at night, the German army will not be able to organize defenses.
You may be foolish enough to deploy the "new type of tank" at the front of the defense line or in a position where it can be easily discovered by the enemy as a target for the enemy.
This is determined by the low reliability of the "Tiger" tank... Even though the Germans knew that the Soviet army had almost no artillery that could pose a threat to the "Tiger", it was very likely that some parts would be damaged after a shot hit.
To be precise, even if the "Tiger" has good reliability, the Germans do not need to put it at the forefront. They should at least use tank bunkers to add camouflage, or hide in buildings for defense... The tank turret can rotate and hide.
In buildings, it is easy to use windows, doors or bullet holes in all directions as perforations.
This made it difficult for the Soviet self-propelled artillery to find targets during the attack. Instead, they would become targets for the enemy's "Tiger" tanks.
Although the self-propelled artillery has strong attack power, it does so at the expense of protection. For example, the frontal armor of the SU76 is only 5mm, and it cannot withstand a light shot from the "Tiger".
"So our targets should not all be the enemy's 'new tanks'!" Shulka said.
"What is that?" Akimovich asked in confusion.
"The enemy's defense line, firepower points, and infantry!" Shulka replied: "The self-propelled artillery is a gun, a gun mounted on a tank chassis! When the enemy's new tank does not appear, it can attack
Other targets...because it's a cannon, it can do this at a greater distance, out of the enemy's visual range!"
Akimovich and Golikov nodded in agreement.
As long as there are artillery observers in front reporting coordinate parameters and providing guidance, the self-propelled artillery can fight. Whether it can hit the target is just a matter of the number of shells and the quality of the gunner.
At the same time, it can also move quickly after firing. In extreme cases, it can even move while firing, so it is much more flexible than a towed artillery.
"So!" Shulka said: "We can wait for the enemy's 'new tank' to appear!"
Golikov nodded in agreement.
At this time, the German army was embarrassed. Their "new tanks" would either be exposed to the Soviet army and become the target of the Soviet self-propelled artillery, or they would stay where they were and watch the Soviet army knock out the German firepower one by one.
After deciding on this battle plan, the next steps will be directed.
The first thing to look for is the self-propelled artillery crew... This crew is a bit troublesome, because it is a combination of tank crew and artillery crew: the driver is a tank crew, and the crew is an artillery crew.
Secondly, artillery observers with night combat experience are needed. They can be said to be the eyes of the self-propelled artillery.
The third step is to train tank drivers, artillerymen, and artillery observers so that they can effectively cooperate during wartime.
Obviously, the third point is the most difficult. The first two points are nothing more than transferring some people from various arms and putting them together.
But Golikov did not pay attention to the third point at all, or it can be said that he did not care about it at all.
Originally, Shulka wanted them to wait for the self-propelled artillery to arrive tonight and allow them to undergo necessary training before going to the battlefield. After all, this was a new piece of equipment that Soviet soldiers had never used before.
However, Golikov thinks this is completely unnecessary.
"This is not actually new equipment, is it?" Golikov said: "The tank drivers are driving tanks they are familiar with, and the artillerymen are operating artillery they are familiar with!"
"That's what I say, but..."
"No buts, Comrade Shulka!" Golikov said: "Let them go, these boys can do it!"
Shulka didn't know what to say. Have the Soviets always been so nervous?
But not to mention, after Golikov's order was issued, the artillerymen, tank crews and observers who had gathered together did not object. In their eyes, this seemed to be normal... Isn't it just the gantry on the tank?
As for the artillery on the chassis, they can deal with it.
Even if they can't deal with it, they will figure it out when they fiddle with it!
As for whether you have time to fiddle with it on the battlefield, or whether you will be blasted into the sky by the enemy...that is a matter of luck.
So what else can Shulka say? He can only let it be!
However, at around 10:20 that night, when the thirteen self-propelled artillery pieces that finally arrived at Stalingrad (the other seventeen were blown up during transportation) appeared in front of Shulka, Shulka and others were still surprised.
Caught off guard...
Not all of these self-propelled artillery are 76MM caliber artillery. Among the thirteen, five are equipped with 76MM caliber, six are equipped with 85MM caliber, and two are equipped with 15MM caliber.
Shulka immediately called Sisoy: "You didn't tell me they have three calibers!"
"But you didn't ask that, Comrade Shulka!" Sisoy replied.
Shulka couldn't help but almost fainted. He thought this was necessary information when handing over equipment, so he didn't ask.
Who knew that Sisoy, a scientist, knew nothing about the information required on the battlefield, so he didn't tell him because Shulka didn't ask him.
"What's going on with them?" Shulka asked: "Which caliber can deal with the enemy's new tanks?"
"Both are OK!" Sisoy replied: "It's just that the distance is different. The 76MM caliber can penetrate at a distance of about two hundred meters, the 85MM caliber can penetrate at a distance of five hundred meters, and the 15MM caliber can penetrate at a distance of seven hundred meters!"
There is still a big gap compared with the "Tiger", because the "Tiger" can destroy all these models at a distance of one kilometer.