allonlinenovel Chapter 168 Jedi Ambush
Chapter 168 Jedi Ambush
Cruwell received a report from the front that the New 28th Division on the Chinese left wing had been defeated in the Koumlubissou Valley, and there should be no organized enemy resistance along the line. The African Corps should take this opportunity to make a detour from the left before the British 7th Tank Army in the east could react, encircle the main Chinese 114th Tank Division north of Kom Ombo, and completely defeat the Chinese Second Army.
Rommel in Luxor immediately agreed to Kluwer's plan and even transferred the 1th Tank Division of the 15st Tank Army to launch an attack with three tank divisions, attempting to encircle the 114th Tank Division north of Kom Ombu.
However, neither Rommel nor Krouwel anticipated that Kuang Zhengqi and Pu Zhengsong were waiting for them in the desert 15 kilometers south of Kumrubiso. Here, nearly all of the Second Army's tanks, tank destroyers, and heavy artillery were concentrated. Their original plan was to ambush Krouwel's 3rd Tank Corps, but Rommel unexpectedly sent the 1th Tank Division of the 15st Tank Corps as well. The Germans had nearly 450 tanks and numerous tank destroyers, while Kuang Zhengqi and his men had only a little over 300. This outnumbered them 1.5 to 1. Furthermore, the Germans possessed the most advanced Panther modified models. Although the Second Army was the ambush force, it was clearly outnumbered.
Upon receiving the news, Kuang Zhengqi and Pu Zhengsong immediately made adjustments. They concentrated their M6B1 tank destroyers on the front, using the M6A1s as cover. The M4s were divided into two columns, ambushing on the left and right flanks, waiting for the enemy's formation to disorganize before launching a full-scale counterattack. Meanwhile, the M5A1 light tanks circled the rear, destroying the German supporting firepower (88mm anti-tank guns, etc.) at all costs!
As the commander of the vanguard battalion of the 3rd Tank Division, Lieutenant Colonel Christian commanded his Leopard Modified Column to rush to the front. The Christian Battalion lost 28 tanks in the blocking battle of the 14th Division. He commanded 37 Leopard Modified tanks to rush all the way and was the first to enter the ambush circle of the Second Army.
The person in charge of commanding the tank destroyer column was the new deputy commander of the mechanized brigade, Colonel Zhang Lingpu, who had 50 M6B1 tank destroyers and 24 M6A1 heavy tanks. In addition, Major General Wang Kexia, deputy chief of staff of the Second Army, personally commanded the heavy artillery regiment and several rocket artillery battalions to ambush 1000 meters behind Zhang Lingpu, waiting for an opportunity to cover the German tank cluster with firepower.
Seeing that the German army had entered the excellent shooting range of 2000 meters, Zhang Lingpu immediately ordered all tank destroyers to launch an attack!
“BOOM—BOOM—BOOM—BOOM—”
The powerful 105mm tank guns rapidly fired at the enemy, focusing particularly on Christine's tank battalion. Countless armor-piercing shells pierced the German tank formation, instantly destroying over a dozen tanks. Some stumbled to a halt with their tracks destroyed, while others burst into flames. The tank crews scrambled to escape, and several tanks exploded, their turrets flying dozens of meters.
"Boom!" A bullet whizzed past the edge of Christine's No. 155 tank turret, making the crew break out in a cold sweat. The commander quickly reversed the vehicle and retreated in a zigzag curve.
"A large number of enemy M6 tank destroyers are blocking the front. Requesting reinforcements, requesting reinforcements!" Christine kept shouting and ordered her subordinates to disperse and hide.
The other German tank battalions that followed began to disperse in all directions as the vanguard battalion became chaotic. However, in this desert area, many tanks gathered together, and the yellow sand was so thick that no one could see the situation outside. The enemy's artillery fire continued to fly, and tanks were constantly being hit, causing further chaos in the German camp.
The commander of the 3rd Tank Division immediately ordered the Christian Battalion to charge forward, and the 213th Tank Regiment to follow at full speed. At this time, the enemy's tank destroyers must be destroyed. Otherwise, once the entire tank unit has coordination problems, the enemy's rocket launchers and heavy artillery group coverage attacks will have a fatal impact on the tank division.
The following 15th and 21st Tank Divisions received a report from the 3rd Tank Division and immediately split into two groups, dispersing to both sides. The Type and Type light tanks moved quickly and had to go around, find the enemy's artillery group and destroy them.
The commanders of the German tank divisions were highly skilled in their battle preparations. They knew that if the enemy was blocking their frontal attack with tank destroyers, they would likely have artillery groups behind them and tank columns lying in ambush on either side. Spreading out the tanks in attacking formations would reduce the damage from enemy artillery fire and effectively defend against surprise attacks from enemy tank columns.
Sure enough, just as the Christian Battalion rushed forward, countless artillery fire covered the 3rd Tank Division's camp. Thousands of clustered artillery shells fell, immediately enveloping the German 3rd Tank Division. Explosions were everywhere, the entire area was filled with smoke, and dust was raised hundreds of meters high.
The 3rd Tank Division was suddenly attacked, and countless tanks, armored vehicles, transport vehicles, etc. were hit, resulting in heavy losses. The commander of the 3rd Division promptly ordered the troops to disperse, reducing a lot of losses.
Dozens of tanks from the Christian Tank Battalion and the 213th Tank Regiment that had escaped the disaster rushed frantically towards Zhang Lingpu's tank destroyer column. Zhang ordered the heavy tank battalion to move forward and provide cover, and the tank destroyers quickly turned around and attacked the galloping German tank column.
"Boom--", the No. 155 tank once again dodged a shell, but this shell accidentally hit the No. 183 behind it. At a distance of only 1000 meters, the 105mm caliber armor-piercing shell blew the No. 183 tank into scrap metal, and no crew member was spared.
"Damn it!" Christine cursed and ordered the gunner to immediately lock onto the tank destroyer that was attacking him. The tank destroyer quickly retreated and a heavy tank immediately blocked its way.
"Boom——", the shell fired by No. 155 hit the heavy tank. Since the 155 attack destroyer vehicle uses high-explosive bombs, it is like a tickle for the M6A1 heavy tank!
"Damn it, where did this M6 heavy tank come from!" the driver cursed angrily. He knew that he had to adopt a roundabout evasive strategy before the gunner finished reloading.
Sure enough, the heavy tank's artillery fire slowly aimed at him, and Christine shouted: "Back up, back up quickly!"
As the 155 tank moved, the heavy tank's gun barrel also moved. Then, the tank destroyer appeared from the side, its gun barrel also pointed coldly at Christine. The driver was startled and quickly zigzagged to the left, trying to avoid it. Unexpectedly, a Panzer IV tank also rushed over, and the two vehicles collided, blocking the 155's path.
Christine screamed in her heart: It's over!
"Boom——" "Boom——"
Two shells flew at the same time and hit the Panther tank No. 155 almost at the same time. Christian, the former elite tank commander of the German Army, disappeared from this world along with his newly formed tank crew!