Chapter Nine Hundred and Seventieth Is Really Amazing

The smoke cleared, and the iron wings of the U.S. Navy and Air Force began to rule the sky.

The losses in Gutuli have been counted. The armored unit responsible for supporting the "Drysdale Detachment" has been wiped out. Seventeen tanks have been lost, more than forty armored vehicles and trucks have been lost, and more than one hundred casualties have been lost.

These losses are nothing in a battle, but it happened in less than ten minutes, and the opponent was only one enemy tank. What if there are more such tanks? Do you want to run away together?

Colonel Puller has already reported the situation to the Division Headquarters of the First Marine Division and the Military Headquarters of the Tenth Army, but the higher-ups haven't responded yet, so it is estimated that there has been an uproar. He himself climbed to a hilltop in the Gutuli ring position to inspect the artillery observation post that had been destroyed by shelling.

Several tattered corpses have been frozen in the cold wind, and this is only part of the casualties. The military uniform of the corpse was badly torn, and there were many holes in the gray skin. A soldier handed over a few arrow-shaped projectiles and said, "This is what killed more than 20 people at the observation post."

After receiving the distorted projectile, Colonel Puller immediately felt the insidiousness of this thing. Its shape allows it to fly at a higher speed, and after being injected into the human body, it will continue to twist, causing irreparable wounds, and being hit by it will either kill or maim.

Another officer said: "We made a preliminary estimate that a single enemy shrapnel shell can cover an area of ​​more than 5,000 square meters, and at least more than 6,000 arrow-shaped projectiles will fly out.

Inversely, it can be concluded that the enemy's main gun has a caliber of more than 120mm. A typical Soviet tank has heavy armor, high mobility, and the main gun is extremely powerful. "

Colonel Puller came to the veritable 'Road to Hell' two kilometers away, where the wrecked vehicles were still parked, and several engineering wrecking trucks were dragging them aside. After all, whether it is support or evacuation, the road must be kept clear.

"According to our close observation at the time, this tank was equipped with two different types of artillery side by side. The thick one was so powerful that the frontal armor of our 'Pershing' could not resist, so that it was easily destroyed."

A tank commander showed Colonel Puller a wrecked 'Pershing' with holes in its front armor and steel armor plates twisted like dough. And behind the armor plate is a bleak scene, the corpses of several crew members have been brought out, all of them died terribly.

Ordinary trucks were destroyed by machine guns, and armored vehicles by forty-millimeter secondary guns. For example, an M3 half-tracked personnel carrier was penetrated by small-caliber armor-piercing projectiles, and the steel plate in front of the cab did not provide any protection. The American officers and soldiers present were extremely frustrated.

"This is a tank we have never encountered before. It is much more powerful than the t-34-85 equipped by Beibang before. The 'Pershing' is not an opponent at all. The 90mm main gun is like a jingle gun in front of it. Penetrate each other's frontal armor, not to mention 'Sherman'.

Maybe give the m46 'Patton' a try. However, until there is no solution, our tank soldiers don't want to encounter this kind of tank again. There is only one road here, and it is not suitable for roundabout operations. The terrain is very unfavorable to us. "

The officer's words made Colonel Puller frown. The 'Patton' is currently the best tank in the United States, but its main gun is also only 90 mm in caliber, so it may not be better than the 'Pershing'. "We need more tanks. A powerful tank, stronger than the enemy's."

Easier said than done, the U.S. military currently has no tanks that can compete with the IS-7. And even if there were a design to rival it, tanks would not be shipped from the factory to the battlefield immediately.

We must know that although the U.S. military was inferior in strength before, it had an absolute advantage in firepower, and now it seems to be showing signs of change, which is very worrying. During the day, there are powerful navy and air force planes to help take care of them, but at night..., are you waiting to be beaten?

"What about the Drysdale Detachment?" asked Colonel Puller again.

The staff officer replied immediately, "The backup armored unit failed to keep up, and we have lost contact with the 'Drysdale Detachment'.

The Air Force plane said that the detachment was surrounded on the road six kilometers ahead and could not retreat, and it is likely that it will not last until tonight. "

This is good, the "Drysdale Detachment" was originally going to assist the 1st Marine Division headquarters that was besieged ahead, but now it has paid itself out. This is the formation of a reinforced battalion, and more than a thousand people are in vain. There are only about 2,000 U.S. troops left in Gutuli.

And there is more than one troublesome thing. With the support of powerful tanks, will the volunteers who have been defending and fighting in the blocking war take the initiative to attack Gutuli? This was the real headache for Colonel Puller.

On the other side of the battlefield, before Zhou Qingfeng led the team to leave the battlefield and return to the position, the head of the 178th Regiment to which he belonged was furious. Hearing that the small platoon leader of the tank platoon of the regiment led the team to find the US military to get diesel at night, his first reaction was that this guy had something wrong with his mind.

And finally waiting for the people in the tank platoon to return with a dozen cars full of food, drink and a lot of cotton clothes that are in short supply. The deputy of the platoon took a tank and ran to rescue the small platoon leader who hadn't come back without saying a word. All of this was not reported to any leader of the regiment headquarters, let alone approved!

"Unorganized and undisciplined, does that look like a revolutionary fighter?" The head of the regiment was about to die of anger. He originally wanted to use this tank platoon, which he had finally acquired, as a fixed firepower point. Anyone who has seen is-7 will be deeply impressed by its thick pipe, but who knows that these grandchildren are not obedient at all.

"A bunch of bastards, it's great to drive a tank? Later, when the American planes come, let's see what they do?" The group leader felt sorry for those tanks, which were said to be the latest good things from the Soviet Union, and he lost one of them. no.

"Commander, this batch of American cotton coats will come in handy. There are more than 300 sets. I will distribute them to the soldiers on the front line, and everyone agrees. It's just that there are too few. It would be even better if we can seize some more." All right."

The political commissar of the regiment came over with a smile on his face, and kept praising the supplies brought back by the tanks.

When it comes to cotton-padded clothes, the head of the regiment can't hold back his face. Now the entire Ninth Corps is short of warm clothes, and any cotton coat is extremely precious. And the tank platoon leader named Zhou Qingfeng not only brought cotton-padded clothes, but also gloves and cotton-padded shoes.

With these things, the soldiers can move their hands and feet and fight. You must know that American gloves and cotton shoes are really light and warm!

Hearing that the political commissar still wanted to capture it, the head of the regiment became angry, "How can the Americans be so easy to fight? This 1st Marine Division is really evil. It has a strong will to fight and is more troublesome than other American troops. Our three regiments fight The 'Drysdale Detachment' has been fighting for a day and has not been defeated."

The head of the regiment wanted to talk about his impressions of the first US Marine Division in the past two days, but his orderly suddenly ran over laughing, and shouted cheeringly: "Head, we have made a fortune. Our tank platoon Got another batch of spoils, and this time brought back all the American tanks."

Got something good again? Hey... It seems that this tank platoon is really amazing!