Two Hundred and Seventy-Seven Crossing the River

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Several artillery officers were writing and drawing on the ground, and from time to time a few stood up to observe the situation on the other side with scissor periscopes. The six 150mm heavy artillery deployed here are fiercely attacking the opposite target.

In addition to the cannon that Rennes saw just now, not far from where their tank was parked, there are five other cannons extending to another block. In order to cover the infantry and armored vehicles crossing the river, the 1st SS Armored Division also brought in four 75mm caliber field guns, and deployed seven Bofors 40mm anti-aircraft guns and three 88mm anti-aircraft guns around them. .

"It's really costing money." Ren got into the chariot and put on his earphones to weaken the deafening cannons. These cannons have been firing for almost ten minutes, and they are still roaring tirelessly.

"Bowman! Start the engine. Clark! Check the guided machine gun ammunition! Bruce, reload the high-explosive bomb." Ryan pressed the throat communicator and issued a combat order: "Be careful when driving on the pontoon, the turret is slightly to the left Tilt a little, our army's artillery suppression over there is weaker."

"This is tank 113! This is tank 113! Please call back!" Then he changed the frequency and began to test the radio system.

"This is Tank 112. I will follow you. Leave the right side to me! I will try my best to help you eliminate any threats." Marcus' voice came over.

Another voice came from the earphones, it was the company commander tank: "I am Carter, I can hear your voice clearly, you can start to act! There will be infantry following us, don't slow down when crossing the river."

"Forward! Forward! Let's go." Ren shouted loudly. With his shout, the No. 113 tank began to shake slowly, and then with the sound of metal impact and friction, accompanied by the bumps and ups and downs of the surface, the No. 113 tank with side skirts took the lead and rushed towards the engineers. The pontoon bridge has just been erected.

On both sides of the floating bridge, there are simple machine gun positions. Two g42s and one 75mm anti-tank gun were firing fiercely at the opposite side. Obviously, the firepower of the French army was suppressed by the fierce German grenadiers. Judging from the movement, the counterattack from the other side was obviously not strong.

It is said that the pontoon bridge has been erected, but it is actually a few meters away from the opposite bank, and then an iron plate is laid down hastily, which becomes a downhill leading to the bottom of the river. Because of the desperate counterattack of the French soldiers, the corpses of several German engineers were lying here and there, so it was clear at a glance why the pontoon bridge was not erected to the opposite side.

With the shaking of the tank, the Rennes crew finally came to the area where they fought. Rounding a low wall, their tanks came into view of the German covering forces. There was a sound of cheers,

Ren saw grenadiers waving to them.

Showing his head, he used a telescope to carefully look at the French positions on both sides of the opposite bank. Ren ordered Andre: "On the left, do you see the broken tree? Yes, it is the one on the left. About two meters to the side, there is a deliberate area, give it a shot first, so as not to cause trouble for a while."

"Boom!" After adjusting the angle, without the slightest hesitation, Andre carried out Ren's order, and the shell hit the target accurately, bringing up a cloud of black smoke. There didn't seem to be any worthwhile targets there, but it's safe to say there wasn't any threat.

Reloading a high-explosive shell again, Ren got into the turret and buckled his hatch cover hard. Then his tank began to drive onto the pontoon bridge cautiously, heading towards the opposite bank bit by bit.

"Da! Da da da!" The French defenders on the other side saw that something was wrong. A machine gun position hidden in a corner opened fire violently. The bullets hit the German tank like a storm, splashing Mars.

Ren and others sat in the tank, as if listening to the sound of raindrops hitting the roof of the car. Although the sound was not obvious inside the tank, it could reflect the intensity of the battle. He leaned his eyes on the driver's periscope and carefully checked the surrounding situation.

"Boom!" A shell landed in the river not far away, and the French artillery began to counterattack. Although the accuracy was not very good, it could be easily judged by the sound of the explosion that the caliber of the shell was not small.

"Marcus! Did you find anything?" Ren pressed the communicator and asked Marcus who was still not on the bridge.

The voice of Marcus in the headset came over immediately: "I didn't find any heavy weapons! But I have been helping you observe your right side, and you need to solve the left side by yourself."

"Bowman! Keep going! Don't let the tank go off! They're shooting at us, I'm afraid there's hidden anti-tank fire."

"Boom!" On the German position, a sniper pulled the trigger. The bullet from the G43 automatic sniper rifle flew across the river and hit a French soldier on the forehead. The grenade in the French soldier's hand It fell into the trench with smoke, causing screams from the surrounding French soldiers.

"Boom!" The grenade exploded, kicking up a cloud of dust and splashing gravel. But after only a short while of silence, the whole position became lively again, and various weapons fired violently at the Leopard tank that had reached the middle of the river, and the bullets were as dense as raindrops.

However, it is clear that the French army lacks the support of heavy weapons. After all, Germany's artillery strikes on the French defense line on the other side are very intensive, and the French have no way to deploy their heavy weapons here with so much firepower. But it would be a big mistake to say that the French gave up resistance.

Soon, Rennes encountered his first major trouble since he started crossing the river. A French tank braved the German artillery fire and drove up the opposite river bank bit by bit.

However, as soon as this cumbersome French tank appeared, Rennes discovered it. He said loudly to Andre: "Left side! 11 o'clock direction, a French tank! Shoot out the high-explosive bombs first!"

"Boom!" Without the slightest hesitation, a high-explosive bomb hit the face of the French tank directly. This is a Mas 35 tank equipped with a 47mm gun. It was hit on the face by such a gun, although It wasn't penetrated, but it was also severely shaken. The entire tank stopped there, motionless.

The s35 is the best French tank during World War II. It has better mobility, stronger firepower and armor protection. It is better than the P-3 tank equipped by the German army in terms of protection, but its firepower and power are slightly inferior.

However, due to the poor tactics of the French army, they only used tanks to carry out some individual combat operations, so they did not give full play to their due role. The turret and hull of this tank are cast steel with graceful arcs. The s-35 tank has a combat weight of nearly 20 tons and a crew of 3 people. The front armor of the turret is 55 mm thick, the body armor is 40 mm thick, and the weakest rear part is also 20 mm thick. The protection effect is quite good.

The s35 is equipped with a 47mm cannon, which is the most powerful tank gun in the hands of the French armored forces, almost the same as that equipped on the b1 heavy tank. The power system is an eight-cylinder gasoline engine with a power of 190 horsepower and a maximum speed of 40 kilometers per hour.

However, like other French tanks, the weakness of the s35 tank is that the commander is overburdened. The commander not only has to command the tank, but also be responsible for loading, aiming and shooting the artillery and machine guns. due efficacy.

But now this tank obviously does not have the ability to fight again, and the second armor-piercing projectile of the Leopard tank arrived as scheduled. The shell tore open the hull of this advanced French tank with devastating force, destroyed the equipment inside, and killed the personnel inside. After the loss of this tank, the confidence of the French defenders was obviously destroyed, and the counterattack gunfire began to slack.

Clark controlled the guided machine gun in front, and had already fired two machine gun drums. The French army's defense line on the river beach was collapsing. Many French soldiers crawled out of the trenches and fled backwards, but were knocked down by German snipers and machine guns on the opposite bank. Clark had already killed at least ten French soldiers, but he was still relentless.

"Ren! Our tank is about to enter the water! Get ready." Bowman's voice came over, and then the whole tank began to tilt down.

"Our upper armor is exposed, look around carefully! Don't be attacked!" Ren shouted loudly.

As soon as their tanks entered the water, before the tracks left the pontoon, the No. 112 tank behind couldn't wait to rush up the pontoon, and Marcus' voice followed: "Ren! You continue to help me Cover left, I'm on the bridge!"

Ren didn't answer, because their tanks had already rushed to the opposite bank with the river. The feeling of touching the ground is really good. The tank tracks rolled up the sand and dripped the icy river water, which seemed to have a chill.

"Company commander! I've landed on the other side! The French troops are retreating! I'm expanding the bridgehead! Where's our infantry? Where's the infantry supporting us?" Ren asked loudly while pressing the communicator.

"The infantry will have to wait for Marcus to cross the river before they can keep up. Now it's up to you." Carter's voice came from the earphones.

"Tell the support firepower that we need rear cover! Extended shooting! Extended shooting!" Ren asked for support, adjusted the frequency of the communicator, and began to issue his own order: "Bowman! Reverse! Try to find some cover ! Clark! The machine guns continue to fire, suppressing the enemy fire directly ahead."

The leopard tank was clumsily twisting its butt on the river beach. It didn't look good, but this tank was like a primitive monster, standing upright in the rain of bullets. No matter how the French soldiers attacked, the tank still operated normally. Its turret sprayed flames, and the French soldiers who tried to get closer were swept to the ground one by one.

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