Chapter 189 English Crossbow

The reason why the PIAT infantry anti-tank projectile is called the "English crossbow" is that it needs to pull the main spring to put it in the ready state every time it is fired... The tension of its main spring is very large, reaching 900 Newtons.

To complete this action, you must use your hands and feet:

The first is to stand up, stand with your feet on the shoulder pad at the bottom, and then hold the handle with both hands and pull it up.

The second is to lie down, holding the handle with your hands and stepping on the shoulder pad with your feet.

No matter which method is used, it is very similar to the ancient crossbow with strong pulling force, so it got the nickname "English crossbow".

Needless to say, its disadvantage is that the firing process is very troublesome. The force of 900 Newtons requires considerable physical strength. If the soldiers are tired after a hard battle or hungry due to lack of supplies, I am afraid that they can't pull this "crossbow" at all.

In fact, not only waiting for firing, but also pulling the trigger is a very laborious thing... The huge trigger is designed so that people can pull it with two fingers, but even so, it is not an easy task.

Its biggest advantage is that it has freed the British army from the era of using anti-tank grenades or explosive packs to blow up enemy tanks at close range.

But soon Qin Chuan and others learned that this "English crossbow" has other advantages...

The tanks drove into Alexandria in the gray sky, and Qin Chuan found that this was not a good time to attack, because the buildings and land inside were almost the same color as the sky, gray and white everywhere.

There was silence all around, and the people may have heard the news that the German army was about to attack, so they hid in the house and did not come out to move.

But Qin Chuan knew that those hiding in the house were not necessarily the people.

The tanks "rumbled" forward, and the tracks "squeaked" on the streets paved with stones, making some metal knocking sounds from time to time. When turning, the rotation of the tracks plus the weight of the tanks would grind some pits on the ground, and the sharp and piercing sound could be heard from a few miles away.

The soldiers followed the tanks nervously, aiming their rifles and machine guns at the buildings on both sides.

Windows or doorways, especially upstairs, any opening could fire a bullet or throw a grenade.

But the Germans could not stop this from happening. Alexandria was too big, with a population of over a million. The 21st Armored Division could not drive out everyone in the house or search and occupy every room as before.

At the same time, the Germans had no time to do this, because it was already light at this time, and the British reconnaissance planes were already hovering in the air... If the Germans were still outside the city, they would probably be bombed by the British at this time.

Of course, the British did not carry out the bombing not because they were worried about the Egyptian people or houses... When the British and American troops fought back to France, they did not consider the safety of the French people, who were also white, and of course they would not care about the lives and property of the colonized Egyptian people.

The reason why they did not bomb was that the Germans could easily hide before the bombing, which would make the bombing ineffective. More importantly, the New Zealand Division's troops were also in the city, and the bombing would inevitably lead to accidental injuries.

The tank turned a corner along the street again. Qin Chuan caught a glimpse of an open window in the gap when the tank turned sideways, so he shouted immediately: "Stop, danger!"

But it was too late. There was only a sound of a mechanism, and a "boom" sounded in front of the tank, and then it stopped moving... The projectiles fired by the "English Crossbow" used hollow charge technology, and the high-speed metal jet formed by it could penetrate 75MM thick armor, while the armor of the "No. 3" was only 47MM.

Since the metal jet is liquid, it will splash inside the tank cabin after penetrating the armor, so most of the tank crew inside cannot avoid being hit...If you are hit in the vitals and die on the spot, you are lucky, otherwise you will feel the pain of the high-temperature jet passing through the body and roasting and scorching the surrounding muscle tissue.

The sound of gunfire soon rang out, and German soldiers raised their guns and leaned out from behind the wreckage of the tank to shoot forward.

Qin Chuan did not do so. He pointed his rifle at both sides of the street... At this time, the most dangerous thing was obviously not the front but the sides. At least there were tank wreckages in front for cover, but there was nothing on both sides.

Sure enough, the next second, the windows on both sides of the street suddenly opened with a "whoosh" sound... Qin Chuan aimed at one of them and pulled the trigger without thinking.

With a "bang", a beam of blood shot out from the darkness of the window. This bullet obviously hit the target.

Then Qin Chuan pulled the bolt at the fastest speed and loaded the gun again, aiming at another window... A gun muzzle was sticking out of another window, it was a Thompson submachine gun.

In this case, the submachine gun with a terrifying 100-round capacity is obviously more lethal than a machine gun. If it is fired, I am afraid that the infantry platoon where Qin Chuan is will instantly become a pile of corpses.

Qin Chuan certainly didn't let it go as he wished. After a gunshot, the submachine gun fell from the window. Then, a New Zealand soldier, holding his neck, slowly appeared at the window. His body slowly lost strength and hung upside down on the window sill. Red blood flowed down along the white wall.

At this time, the German soldiers suddenly realized something, so they turned their guns and aimed at both sides.

This also made the New Zealand army's ambush completely bankrupt, because there were not many windows and doors... This was also one of the reasons why the New Zealand soldiers could not deploy a large number of people.

With preparation, the German soldiers could easily block these windows with firepower... except for grenades.

The New Zealand soldiers seemed to realize this, and then several grenades were thrown down one after another.

Werner was waiting for this moment. He held the submachine gun upside down and "pushed" twice, and skillfully shot two grenades to the other side of the tank...

This is Werner's hobby. Many people find it incredible because it is a grenade, and they will lose their lives if they are not careful.

But Werner's answer is: "If you think of it as a baseball, then it is a baseball!"

This is the truth. Werner is a professional baseball player. The speed of the grenade is much slower than the speed of the baseball pitcher. The possibility of Werner making a mistake is actually very small, so just relax... It is actually a baseball thrown by a bad pitcher.

However, there is only one Werner in the army after all, and there is another grenade that cannot be caught up because it is too far away.

This grenade fell in the crowd, and more than a dozen people were within its killing range.

At this critical moment, a German soldier rushed forward and pressed the grenade with his body...