Chapter 35: One Man Stands Firm

For the powerful KV2 heavy tanks equipped by the Soviets, the German army, which had encountered this monster tank for the first time in the offensive operations a few days ago, had already fully experienced its powerful single-vehicle combat performance.

In the Battle of Lasenia a few days ago, the German 6th Armored Division and the Soviet Red Army 2nd Tank Division staged an epic and legendary asymmetric tank battle near the bridgehead of the Dubissa River.

After the Soviet 2nd Tank Division temporarily retreated after a series of counterattacks launched because of the exhaustion of ammunition and fuel, a lone KV2 heavy tank accidentally left the main force and was left between the two bridgehead positions of the German army.

However, the crew members did not abandon the vehicle because of their firm belief, but chose to make a last-ditch effort to strike the German invaders to buy time for the transfer and withdrawal of the main force.

In order to remove this nail embedded in their own path, the German 6th Armored Division, which knew little about the KV2 heavy tank and did not take it seriously, launched the first wave of attacks soon after hasty preparations.

After a brief first wave of confrontation with this stout giant, the German army, which tried to take a detour from a distance from the KV2 in order to pursue a marching speed not lagging behind the main force, not only failed, but also suffered heavy casualties under the continuous bombardment of the KV2's 152mm cannon, losing more than a dozen troop transport trucks and 251 half-track troop transport vehicles.

Realizing that this seemingly bulky armored behemoth was actually far less easy to deal with than they had imagined, the German army immediately called in support. A German anti-tank artillery company equipped with 6 PAK38 50mm anti-tank guns, used manpower to advance to a distance of about 500 meters, and then fired at the lonely KV2.

The strongest anti-tank gun of the German army, which could easily destroy the Soviet T26 and BT series light tanks, was like scratching an itch on the majestic body of KV2. The continuous attacks not only did not cause any damage to the Soviet heavy tank, but the annoyed KV2 crew immediately turned the turret and used the 152mm cannon to kill all the German small water pipe anti-tank guns.

The German army, which failed in another wave of attacks, naturally refused to give up. Various light and heavy weapons including 35t, 38t, Panzer III and Panzer IV and even 75mm infantry guns were put into battle. After playing table tennis for several hours, they still could not hurt the motionless armored behemoth.

The exasperated German commander, in addition to being shocked by the strength of the opponent's Soviet tanks, decided to use his own trump card weapon - 88mm FLAK36 anti-aircraft gun.

But the 88mm anti-aircraft gun at that time was far less flexible than the 88mm gun equipped on the Tiger tank later. The huge gun carriage and gun shield made it impossible to push this heavy anti-aircraft gun by manpower. It needed to be dragged to the designated position by a crawler tractor before it could be deployed and fired.

Knowing that the 88mm anti-aircraft gun was a huge target and difficult to maneuver, the German army deployed the 88 gun at a distance of two kilometers from the KV2 heavy tank for the sake of caution.

Although the 88 gun, which was specially designed for air defense, had excellent accuracy and a long range, it could accurately hit the huge KV2 heavy tank even at a distance of two kilometers.

However, the 88mm armor-piercing projectile that flew for two kilometers in the air had its armor-piercing power severely reduced by air resistance when it hit the KV2 heavy tank. The remaining penetration depth could not penetrate the heavy armor of the KV2 heavy tank at all, which was still futile.

The unwilling German army decided to take a risk, reloading the 88 gun onto the half-track tractor and continuing to advance towards a suitable gun position closer to the KV2 heavy tank in order to try to destroy this terrible steel behemoth after shortening the firing distance.

But this time, the goddess of luck obviously did not favor the German army again.

The direction of the German 88 gun was roughly determined by the trajectory of the armor-piercing shells that hit the vehicle body several times before. The KV2 heavy tank equipped with a full-time commander discovered the threat in time after the German 88 gun tractor moved to a position less than 700 meters away from the enemy, and then notified the gunner to decisively fire and directly blasted the 88 gun that had not yet been deployed off the vehicle into the sky.

With the passage of time and the arrival of night, the German army, which had been delayed by this armored behemoth of the Soviet Red Army for a whole day, had to call off the troops and temporarily withdraw the large forces to the starting position.

That night, the German engineers, who had no idea how thick the armor of the opponent's KV2 heavy tank was, took advantage of the cover of the night and approached the KV2 tank in the dark. They placed TNT explosives that were enough to blow down a civilian house on the sides of the chassis and near the tracks of the relatively vulnerable tanks, hoping to completely destroy this terrible tank.

But the result after the loud explosion was still disappointing to the German army. The comprehensive defense design of the KV2 heavy tank made the side weaknesses of ordinary tanks non-existent on it. The TNT explosives that were enough to blow down a two-story civilian house only broke the tracks of the KV2.

The KV2 crew, annoyed by the explosion, even operated the machine gun in the car to fight back against the German engineers who were waiting to confirm the results of the battle nearby, and these poor German engineers were so scared that they immediately withdrew to their own positions without looking back.

After daybreak, the KV2 tank, whose tracks were blown off, could no longer make any effective maneuvers, which obviously provided a great opportunity for the German army's double-teaming tactics.

Relying on several 35T light tanks to continuously fire guerrilla guns at a long distance to attract firepower, the German tractor, which had circled around the immobile KV2 tank, finally transported another 88 gun to a high ground behind the KV2 and deployed it.

This time, the 88 gun, which had a good output environment, finally showed its power. With its ultra-high firing rate of one round per 8 seconds, it fired 6 shots at the back of the KV2 tank's big head, finally destroying this indestructible Soviet armored behemoth on the spot.

The German engineers who were ordered to confirm the results of the battle and deal with the wreckage were still frightened by the horror they encountered last night. Fearing that the KV2 tank was not completely destroyed, the German engineers also stuffed several M24 grenades into the turret through the bullet holes penetrated by the 88 gun armor-piercing shells. After a few muffled bangs, the undefeated myth of the KV2 tank was completely ended.

Although the result of the battle ended with the final victory of the German army, the shock brought to the German army by the monster-level tank of the KV2 heavy tank was undoubtedly extremely huge.

The complete formation of an elite armored division was delayed for two days under the obstruction of the KV2 heavy tank. Although the main reason for this result was that the Type 3 and Type 4 tanks and anti-tank guns equipped by the German army during this period were not strong enough, it was not because of any problems with the German army's own combat effectiveness or combat command.

But after this battle, the German frontline troops, who were deeply impressed by the amazing combat power of the KV2 heavy tank, no longer dared to underestimate this "toilet head" monster in their eyes.

Once the Soviet KV2 heavy tank appeared on the battlefield, it meant that the time had come for the German army to exert its full strength.