bookrandom Chapter 152 Block, attack, counterattack!
Chapter 152 Block, attack, counterattack!
Von Einstein received an order from the battalion commander to lead his platoon of four Panthers out of the column. At the same time, three armored vehicles followed them to attack the current obstacle.
Von Einstein knew that this was because the Panzer IV had just been attacked. The opponent's anti-tank guns and recoilless guns posed a certain threat to the Panther, but as for his own Panther, as long as he did not give them the opportunity to attack the weak engine and fuel tank, the opponent would not pose any threat to him.
Three armored vehicles, trailing four Panthers, attacked a company-sized cavalry unit—a completely disproportionate force. A few Panther shots destroyed all of Sandenius's anti-tank guns, leaving only a few bazookas. Sandenius was forced to order another retreat to the third line.
The Germans pursued them relentlessly, quickly capturing the second line of defense at Sandneus and continuing their charge towards the third line. The constant barrage of artillery and machine gun fire prevented the cavalry company from raising their heads.
At that moment, a German armored vehicle following behind also ran over a mine. "Boom!" The vehicle exploded from the inside, igniting a raging fire. Fortunately, the German grenadiers had all dismounted and were not affected. The German grenadiers were scattered around, and one group had already circled forward. The crackle of general-purpose machine gun fire rang out, and a hail of bullets poured down on the cavalry company's position.
"Da-a-da-da-da-da!" A barrage of bullets pierced the improvised sandbags, wounding several soldiers. Sandenius had retreated to their last line of defense. The company's armored vehicles, hidden behind, could no longer hold back and decisively rushed out, their mounted M2 heavy machine guns and M1G 20mm rapid-fire cannons continuously firing at the enemy. Sandenius immediately ordered the entire company to withdraw from their positions, using the armored vehicles' cover to quickly break contact with the enemy.
"Boom!" A shell exploded against the side of an armored vehicle. The driver, nimbly steering, dodged the tank's fire. "Ding, ding, dang!" Enemy machine gun bullets struck the armored hull, sending up countless sparks. One pierced the glass, injuring the machine gun operator. The driver, oblivious to all this, saw the infantry retreat and quickly turned, moving in a serpentine curve, to disengage...
North of Binban, behind the German 1st Tank Army, a mechanized column was rushing north. A report came from the advance search armed jeep that a large German oil supply station was found 10 kilometers ahead. The garrison was about a battalion, with a small number of armored vehicles, mainly infantry.
"Each unit will act separately. Light tanks will attack, armored units will coordinate the occupation, and destroyers will ambush on both flanks to guard against enemy reinforcements!" Following Lieutenant Colonel George's order, the mechanized column split into several groups and secretly approached the large German supply depot.
This large German oil base was temporarily built in a desert valley, occupying an area of more than ten miles. Oil supply vehicles from various German units were constantly coming in and out, and multiple defensive positions were built around it, including machine gun fire points, mortars, and a small number of anti-tank destroyers.
George and several scouts hid in a sand dune, observing and mapping the enemy's defenses. The Germans were apparently unaware of the potential for a surprise attack, and had piled up a large number of fuel barrels throughout the base. If attacked, a fire would inevitably erupt!
George whispered to the captain beside him who looked like a combat staff officer, "Are all the troops in place?"
The captain nodded and added, "Major Liu has divided the 24 Hunters into four groups. They can bombard the enemy's firing points at any time. Captain Ma's infantry company has secretly surrounded them and seized several commanding heights."
George nodded. Fighting alongside these Chinese was incredibly efficient. He didn't need to explain the key tactical points one by one; they were already well-informed. George ordered the captain, "Order all units to proceed without waiting for my orders in 15 minutes!"
"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh--", a group of multiple rocket launchers fixed on the back of a jeep emitted dazzling flames, and the rockets flew out rapidly like meteors. In an instant, the German positions located at several commanding heights in the sand valley were covered by artillery fire, and the violent explosion quickly destroyed them.
"Boom!" A Hunter fired an armor-piercing shell from a hidden place, accurately hitting a German Panzer III tank destroyer half buried in the sand. The 105mm armor-piercing shell exploded inside the tank destroyer, and the tank destroyer immediately caught fire.
M5A1 light tanks charged into the valley at full speed, employing both machine guns and artillery to continuously mow down the Germans' light and heavy firepower within the base. Subsequently, over ten armored vehicles and armed jeeps ascended to various commanding heights, firing frantically with machine guns and heavy machine guns. Numerous oil drums were shattered, ignited, and then exploded, followed by subsequent detonations. The entire base was ablaze, and the soaring flames seemed to set the sky ablaze...
"Let's go! Go to the next one!" George and others did not linger in the battle, and immediately evacuated separately and met up at the designated location. The search team had received news that there was a large German ammunition depot 15 kilometers away, and they had to destroy it!
A regiment of the German Light Infantry Division, supported by several Panzer II and Panzer III tanks, had already scaled a large sand dune west of Binban. From this location, they had a clear view of the battle at Binban, several kilometers away. The enemy hadn't established a defensive line here, something the commander of the German Light Infantry Division hadn't anticipated. He had assumed that if the enemy established anti-tank artillery positions there, the 15th Tank Division attacking Binban would be severely threatened.
The commander reported to Lieutenant General Leonard Kate that no enemy was found on the occupied high ground, which made Leonard Kate more convinced that the US military was short of troops on the west bank of the Nile and might have retreated to the Aswan line.
Leonard Kite, without hesitation, immediately ordered all units to launch an all-out attack, determined to completely capture Binban today and, ideally, to take Sabhayeh as well. The commander of the 1st Light Infantry Division also immediately ordered the entire division to advance, circling south along the occupied high ground to seize the valley heights behind Binban town.
Powell and Cheney smiled happily after receiving the report. The German light infantry division had entered the area of their cluster artillery attack. So what were they waiting for? Open fire and fight back!
More than 150 artillery pieces of various types immediately covered the firepower of the German infantry division, especially the US 1st Division and the rocket artillery group brought by Powell. A salvo of 72 rocket launchers poured more than 600 107mm rocket shells on the enemy. An area of more than ten square kilometers was shrouded in violent explosions. The entire sand dune highland was filled with thick smoke and yellow sand, like a sudden sandstorm that submerged everything.
"We are under attack. A large number of enemy artillery fire is hitting us. Request for support, request for support!"
Commanders at all levels of the German 1st Light Infantry Division kept calling out, and their subordinates were in chaos. Both soldiers and officers were desperately trying to escape and break out of this huge fire coverage area.