Chapter 945 D-Day (7)

ps: Due to plot changes, there have been changes from D-Day (2) to (7). Please read it again. We apologize for any inconvenience...

King Higashikanomiya Minuhiko said to Horikichi with a smile on his face: "You see, everyone supports you. The army has brought out elite soldiers and generals like the Guards Division, just hoping to have a great success with you." As. If you feel that the troops are not enough, you can add more. Now the supplies, fleets, troops and even the navy are the strongest. You have opened so many aviation schools, and you have given the navy sergeant room to be promoted to an officer. It’s time for everyone to work together to give the United States a head-on attack.”

Horikichi sighed and said no more, otherwise it would appear that he was being pretentious.

Indeed, as Ishihara Kanji said, the current 2nd Guards Division is not the size and organization in history, but a rare elite, equipped with a tank regiment (the regiment leader is required to be accompanied by a colonel, but because of Kuribayashi Due to Tadamichi's insistence and recommendation, Nishi Takeichi, who was also an American general and the equestrian gold medalist at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics, served as the commander of the regiment.) The 2nd Guards Division was closer to the German 1943 Panzergrenadier Division in terms of organization. , slightly less heavy equipment but one more infantry regiment.

In addition to the armored vehicles, Himmler Organs, and Stalker tank destroyers introduced from Germany, it is also mainly equipped with the newly produced Japanese Type IV tank, the Chito.

The Type IV tank is a new tank that Japan has been developing. The project was officially launched in September 1942. It is Japan's first real medium tank. However, the progress has not been fast. However, with the help of German technical experts in the later period, the progress has improved by leaps and bounds.

The Type 4 is said to be a new tank, but anyone who has seen it will recognize that it is actually a Japanese skinned version of the T-34 model. The chassis uses the T-34 chassis, and the turret uses Japan's original No. 4 turret, but the front thickness is thickened to 70mm. Initially, it was planned to use the newly developed Type 4 75mm tank gun (improved from the 75mm anti-aircraft gun of the Swedish Bofors Company). Later, it was temporarily unable to keep up with the rhythm and directly used the 75mm/L48 tank gun on the No. 4 tank. In order to improve the armor-piercing effect, the troops were also equipped with tungsten-core bullets following Germany's example. Since Japan has no shortage of tungsten, the proportion is relatively high. Each vehicle has one-third of the tungsten-core bullets.

Unlike the T-34 artillery, which is deployed forward, the Chito turret is placed behind and the weight distribution is more balanced. Then the turret was changed to a 5-man crew, and a radio and sight imported from Germany were installed. The overall weight is 26.4 tons, the maximum speed is 42 kilometers/hour, and the single-refueling range is 300 kilometers.

Although it is said to be made in China, Japan has actually slightly changed the design, integrating the respective advantages of the No. 4 tank and the T-34 tank. It is neither as good as the Leopard, nor as good as the T-43/85, and even the T-34 tank. -43/76 are barely enough. The core components inside, such as the B2 diesel engine and tank guns, cannot be produced by ourselves, and the original products can only be used intact.

However, Japan still strives to implement the idea of ​​excellence in production. The armor is much stronger than the Soviet goods, the turret is much better than the rough product of the T-34, and the gearbox has also been improved in a targeted manner. In addition, the large layout has not been adjusted, so there are not many troubles after the trial production is successful, and the performance is relatively stable. Due to the small height and size of the Japanese soldiers, and the redesigned turret, there was no crowding even when the T-34's 4-man crew was replaced by a 5-man crew. Therefore, the German side believes that the overall performance is better than the original T-34/76, basically the same as the No. 4H, and will not be at a disadvantage when competing with the Sherman. If Japan can solve the production problems of engines and tank guns, it can become the main equipment.

But now it seems that the tank gun will be successfully tackled in another year. The imitation level of the B2 engine cannot keep up in the short term. The engine (whether aviation or vehicle engine) has now become a long-standing difficulty for Japan - it can be imitated. Imitation, the performance of the imitation is so different from the original version that it is unbearable, so that it is constantly imported. If this problem is not solved, we will never be able to say that localization has been successful.

Now with a variety of spare parts, Japan's "production" (assembly) speed is very fast, with monthly output exceeding 150 vehicles, and is expected to reach 200 vehicles per month in half a year. The 2nd Guards Division is the second batch of troops to be re-equipped, with a total of more than 80 Chitos equipped. The 1st Guards Division, where Takeda Attack is located, is the first batch of troops to be re-equipped, with more than 160 vehicles currently in place. (Fully equipped with more than 240 vehicles), therefore the 1st Guards Division is positioned as a tank division.

Hearing what Ishihara Wanji said, Horikichi smiled wryly and nodded: "Thank you very much."

Then he said nothing.

"Come, come, drink, drink... have a drink for the victory in the Battle of Sakhalin..." King Higashikata Minuhiko could see that everyone was not very interested, so he cheered everyone up, "The empire is still good. When I bring back rockets and jets in August, they will be even more powerful—the United States doesn’t even have them!”

Just as Japan was discussing the next stage of the war and future prospects, on June 17, the situation in Brazil changed dramatically: the 1st Brazilian Expeditionary Division was wiped out in Germany, the three southern states were occupied and announced their annexation to the American Republic. The forces of various countries in the La Plata Group As they piled up near the border, Chief of General Staff Montero launched a coup, imprisoned President Vargas, and issued an armistice request to the Axis Group, expressing his willingness to withdraw from the Allied camp.

What caught the Americans even more off guard was that Montero not only used his inner troops to control Rio and Sao Paulo, but also reached an agreement with Germany in advance to cooperate with the German fleet to directly blow up the US military aviation base in Rio, and also allowed Shaoken's troops to attack there. Make an appointment to log in.

The police and some internal forces (including the presidential guard) who supported Vargas and the US military tried to fire at Montero's army, but no one could withstand the German armored forces. The jaw-dropping situation in the Icelandic battle appeared, and this time it was even more exaggerated - Iceland was a battle where 30,000 German troops defeated 80,000 British and American troops, and this time Schocken used only less than 8,000 troops to directly defeat a 20,000-man American division.

What shocked the US side even more was that reconnaissance aircraft in the Recife area showed that there were more German fleets coming in, and they would land in Rio in 4-5 days.

In fact, this coup was Montero's mistake. It was originally agreed that the action would be taken at the end of June. At that time, the German army would be divided into two routes, one from the ground in Sao Paulo State and the other from the sea. He promised to use troops to control the Brazilian side and leave the US division to the Germans. Unexpectedly, an accident occurred when connecting the troops. Someone betrayed Vargas. Then Vargas, who had been suspicious, tried to take the initiative, but was placed under house arrest by Montero, who had been in charge for many years. He immediately sent a telegram to Schocken for help.

Schocken knew that his situation was urgent. On the one hand, he asked him to delay as much time as possible, and on the other hand, he rushed to board the ship to attack. He knew that speed was of the essence. He didn't have time to bring the whole division. He hurriedly took more than 10,000 troops near the port to Rio - there were not only troops from the Flying Fortress Armored Division, but also troops from two Marine Brigades.

All the troops were collectively called the Schocken Cluster. Fortunately, the German Marine Corps was formed by the Army's organized system, with the same tactical style and even weapons. After being mixed with the Army, it immediately integrated into one, without any sense of obstruction.

Montero endured for 3 days, but Vargas's absence for three days aroused suspicion from his confidants. Finally, the news leaked and the two sides exchanged fire. The Americans were puzzled at first, but then they immediately reacted and prepared to intervene. But with these precious 3 days, the German landing troops arrived. Finally, Montero had been the chief of staff for many years and knew how to control the dock. The German army did not need to worry about the landing battle. Schauken led his troops to fight. 8,000 against 20,000.

The Brazilians watched in amazement as the Sherman tanks were knocked down by the German Tiger and Panther at a long distance and turned into fireballs, and then saw the German Navy carrier-based aircraft pilots attack at low altitude and kill the defense positions that the US military had worked hard to build for a long time.

When the cannons of the Richelieu and Gneisenau roared outside the port of Rio, the result of the whole war was clear at a glance - the US military began to flee in panic. And those troops that fought with Montero were also cleared one by one. Then other German troops in the American Republic moved in one after another, and the number of troops gradually increased to more than 20,000.

In the flames of war, the once prosperous Rio de Janeiro was reduced to ruins. Hundreds of thousands of Brazilian civilians fled, and the crowded crowds blocked the retreat of the US military. In the end, the desperate American soldiers used tanks and armored vehicles to clear the way and run over the crowds, forming a bloody road. Montero, who was worried about not having reasonable and legal materials, was overjoyed and asked reporters to take countless photos.

On June 18, a news release titled "I Accuse" was released, and the shocking thing was the wreckage and corpses of American tanks that ran over the crowds on the "bloody road". According to the official statement of the Montero government: Because President Vargas was unpopular and was protested and impeached by the Brazilian people, the Americans, in order to support this puppet, ordered the garrison to use heavy weapons including tanks and armored vehicles to suppress the protests. The Brazilian army was unable to fight back, and the military and civilians suffered heavy casualties. In the end, they could only ask the Axis camp to uphold justice and provide assistance...

The whole of Brazil fell into chaos, and the people in other regions were at a loss, not knowing what news was true. Montero can't control many places. The areas in the north and east where the US troops are stationed all refuse to obey Rio's orders. The rest of the areas without US troops are still waiting and watching.

Hoffman was very dissatisfied with Montero's performance. He wanted a Brazil that was completely controlled by the Rio government, not a Brazil that was fragmented and in a mess. However, he still affirmed Schocken's decisiveness. The Supreme Command responded quickly and prepared to send additional forces to the south to reinforce Brazil and help the new Brazilian regime stabilize the situation.

In this case, in addition to the two Marine Brigades that Crank had taken away, Manteuffel, who was the closest and most convenient, led the 7th Armored Division to set sail from the Falkland Islands and prepared to go to the front line of São Paulo State for support. Keitel and Zeitzler decided to send another 100,000 troops and 3 air wings to South America in view of the temporary end of the war on the Eastern Front.

But in this way, the ships were not strong enough, and the original discussion of the South African issue could only be forced to be postponed...