Chapter 526 Vehicle-Mounted Rocket Launcher
Charles was very patient.
He ate and slept on time every day, maintained a stable schedule, sometimes took a nap, and developed the habit of running around the airport a few laps before dinner to ensure his physical strength.
Charles believed that only by taking good care of his body in peacetime could he have capital overdraft during wartime. Otherwise, if he kept in a highly tense state, he would be dragged down in no time.
After all, there was still a long time. The four-year war had only been over for more than a year, and it was not going to end soon as people thought.
Tijani was busy, paying attention to the situation of the Battle of the Somme and gathering intelligence on Namur, while also nervously organizing rocket artillery units for training.
That evening, Charles had just finished running and returned to the headquarters sweating profusely, and Tijani couldn't wait to greet him: "Major General, are two rocket artillery regiments too few?"
The rocket artillery regiment is organized with conventional artillery regiments, with 12 guns per battalion, and a rocket artillery regiment has only 36 guns.
The German army deployed 5 artillery regiments in the river bend area of Namur Fortress alone, not counting the 77MM artillery in the hands of the infantry division.
Charles took the towel from the orderly to wipe the sweat off his face, took a few sips of the warm water handed over, and then replied: "The important thing is never the rocket launcher, general, but the rocket shell."
Tijanyi pondered for a moment, and then understood.
Rocket launchers are different from conventional artillery. They are not consumables, but they are moved immediately after firing. This combat method makes it more likely to survive.
Therefore, the number of rocket launchers is not the point, the point is how many rocket shells can be used, and then cover the enemy artillery positions again and again.
Tijani nodded, and then asked: "So, what kind of vehicle should we use to tow the rocket launcher? I mean, if we need to fire and leave."
Charles asked back: "Why tow it?"
Tijani looked confused: "If it is not towed, should we use people to push it? No, no, although it can be pushed, the speed is too slow!"
"Come with me, General." Charles took his coat from the hanger and put it on, and then took the military cap handed by the orderly and put it on.
The weather in December is already a bit cold, and it has rained a few times recently, and the temperature has dropped sharply. Charles does not want to have any problems at this time.
Take Tijani downstairs, walk through the passage between the buildings and walk along the stone-paved path. A few minutes later, they arrived in front of a warehouse.
There were several guards and patrols standing in front of the door. When they saw Charles and Tijani, they hurriedly stood up and saluted.
The patrol continued to patrol, and the guards at the door pushed the warehouse door to both sides with great effort, and turned on the lights in the warehouse attentively.
Tijani was a little surprised. As the commander of the mechanized division, he was stationed at the airport for a long time, but he didn't know that there was such a "secret space" under his nose.
Following Charles into the warehouse, Tijani was even more confused. There were more than a dozen reconnaissance vehicles parked in the spacious space.
Tijani looked deeper and saw that there were only reconnaissance vehicles and nothing else. If there was any difference, there was canvas covering the rear compartment of the reconnaissance vehicle, as if it was transporting something.
Tijani's face was a little disappointed. He thought there was some new equipment.
The reconnaissance vehicle might make other troops envious, but it was regular equipment for Tijani's mechanized division.
Charles stepped forward and pulled the canvas. When the canvas fell with a "clatter", Tijani opened his mouth wide in surprise and couldn't speak.
After a long while, he looked at Charles in surprise and joy, and said excitedly:
"Rocket launcher, it's actually a rocket launcher?"
"You, you actually installed a rocket launcher with a reconnaissance vehicle?"
"Great idea, Major General, you are simply a genius!"
It was indeed a rocket launcher. Charles installed the 107 rocket launcher on the armored reconnaissance vehicle, but made some minor changes: the protective armor of the armored reconnaissance vehicle was removed and replaced with a rocket launcher, and a rotatable gun mount was added to the rocket launcher.
(The above picture is the Katyusha rocket launcher. The rocket launcher combined with the reconnaissance vehicle and the 107 rocket launcher in this article is not something that has ever existed in history, so this picture can only be used as a substitute. The rocket launcher invented by the protagonist is more advanced. Katyusha uses a guide rail. The rocket is exposed outside and it is easy to cause an accident. It cannot be started with a rocket, otherwise the rocket will fall from the guide rail. This method was eventually replaced by a cylindrical launch tube)
As he said, Tijani stepped forward to touch this and look at that, his eyes full of amazement, and from time to time he shook his head and said to himself: "This is crazy, unbelievable, The combination of the two equipments becomes a new equipment, a brand new equipment! "
Charles raised his head towards the rocket launcher and asked calmly: "Do you know the advantages of doing this?"
Tijani thought for a moment and nodded heavily:
"I can roughly guess, Major General."
"Compared with the traction type, it is simpler, more stable, and easier to control."
"More importantly, it is easier to deploy and can be transferred more conveniently and quickly."
"God, it is simply the perfect combination of "guerrilla tactics"!"
Charles praised secretly in his heart.
Although these are not secrets to Charles, a modern man.
But many generals during World War I were still obsessed with "attack", "defense", and even "cavalry", "trench", and "cannon", and believed that they could solve all war problems.
It is rare and precious that Tijani can summarize the advantages of rocket launchers so quickly.
Charles believes that this may be related to Tijani's lack of actual combat experience.
In an era of rapid development of tactics, combat experience often means being old-fashioned and stubborn, because they firmly believe in their so-called experience and believe that these experiences can bring them victory.
"How many of these guns do we have?" Tijani looked at Charles with expectation in his eyes: "Both artillery regiments have them?"
"No, General." Charles replied: "We may only have time to produce one vehicle-mounted artillery regiment, and the other artillery regiment can only be the original version."
"Understood." Tijani nodded: "Now that supplies are in short supply, it is not easy to have a vehicle-mounted artillery regiment."
Tijani knew this. Other troops could hardly find a pair of boots, but they could be equipped with such high-end rocket launchers. It was simply a world of difference.
If it weren't for Charles, they would never have been treated this way!
What Tijani didn't know was that Charles actually did it on purpose.
The advantage of the 107 rocket launcher is that it can be used in any occasion, in the jungle, on high ground, in trenches, and can be towed by sidecars, horses, or pushed by manpower. The total weight in the marching state is only more than 300 kilograms.
If necessary, the launch tubes can be disassembled and transported one by one, and then assembled at the destination.
Vehicle-mounted rocket launchers are good, but they are still too dependent on roads and the environment.
Changing all to vehicle-mounted rocket launchers will lose flexibility, and it is easy for the troops and even commanders like Tijani to develop an inertial thinking and not develop the guerrilla potential of 107 fire.
So, it is not "too late to produce".
Rather, Charles' goal is very clear:
Two rocket artillery regiments, one vehicle-mounted to deal with German artillery, and the other original version to cooperate with the troops in combat.