Chapter 282 Minesweeper Tank
If there are mine-sweeping tanks, then it goes without saying how to fight this battle.
Landmines would be something that hinders the advance of enemy troops, but has no effect on the Soviet army.
In other words, the German armored forces were trapped in the quagmire of vast landmines, while the Soviet army was able to come and go unimpeded.
So, even with a small number of Soviet tanks, it is possible to win.
The problem is that...Shuerka and others don't know how far the minesweeper tank has been developed.
But it seems that there is no other choice now. After Major Zakhakovic reported the problem to Zhukov, Zhukov seemed to agree with Shulka and others.
"We can't attack rashly!" Zhukov said: "The enemy's attack is obviously scrupulous, and they are very cautious in their steps. I believe that these **** invaders are worried about the counterattack of the Fourth Tank Brigade. If Let them know that the 4th Tank Brigade has only 20 tanks, or that the 4th Tank Brigade was wiped out by them during the attack, then they will safely move towards Moscow and attack from all directions at the same time. It's dangerous!"
This is also one of the reasons why Zhukov kept the Fourth Tank Brigade strictly confidential. They must not let the enemy know that the Fourth Tank Brigade is too weak to organize a counterattack.
Then Zhukov confessed: "Persevere, our reinforcements will arrive soon!"
Although this sentence was just mentioned casually, Zahakavic and others were curious and excited.
Needless to say I am excited, it is of course a good thing to have reinforcements.
The curiosity is because the Soviet army at this time can be said to have basically evacuated all the troops in the rear. Even if there are reinforcements, they are militias without combat effectiveness... Although these militias are enthusiastic, they are poorly trained and equipped. In front of the German armored troops It can almost be said to be vulnerable, it can only be regarded as cannon fodder for death, and sometimes it is even used by the German army, such as defeating the Soviet army's defense line like driving ducks.
So, which support army is worthy of Zhukov's proposal? !
Shulka knows what reinforcements this is... Far Eastern Front.
The Soviet Supreme Command has been afraid to transfer the Far East Front Army to reinforce Moscow because it is worried that Japan will cooperate with the German army to launch an attack.
(Note: At this time, the Japanese Kwantung Army was stationed in Northeast China and stared at the Soviet Army. In 1939, it fought the Battle of Nomonhan two years ago, and the Japanese army suffered a disastrous defeat.)
The Soviet Supreme Command learned from the spy at this time that the Japanese army had no intention of attacking the Soviet army, so it urgently dispatched reinforcements from the Far East.
These units are very different from the units with poor quality and poor equipment that the Soviet army hastily formed.
First of all, most of them are Siberians who have lived in cold Siberia for a long time. They have long been accustomed to the cold and have a set of methods of fighting in the cold, which is very suitable for fighting in Moscow in winter.
Secondly, quite a few of them are veterans who fought against the Japanese two years ago and have rich combat experience and training. (Note: The Battle of Nomonhan lasted for four months)
So, modern historians believe that the reason why the German army was unable to capture Moscow during World War II was that, apart from the weather, there was this new force that came to support it from the Far East.
Of course, the fourth tank brigade should be added now.
Hearing this, Shulka couldn't help secretly heaving a sigh of relief.
From the very beginning, Shulka was worried that he would not be able to support the reinforcements of this army... He kept Kyiv so that the German army attacked Moscow one month earlier, which gave an extra month of gap between the arrival of the Far East reinforcements and the German attack.
Now, he seems to be filling the void.
Then, Zhukov gave an order, and Kalashnikov rushed to Moscow that night.
Kalashnikov hugged Shulka warmly when he saw him.
"Comrade Shulka!" Kalashnikov patted Shulka on the shoulder and smiled: "I heard about your combat deeds. They all said that it was a wrong choice for me to leave the Fourth Tank Brigade..."
"Why?" Shulka asked suspiciously.
"Because if I were still by your side, I might be a hero by now!"
"Do you think so too?" Shulka asked.
"Sometimes I do think so!" Kalashnikov replied: "But I don't regret it, because I think you are right. I like my current life and study those equipment!"
"That's good!" Shulka breathed a sigh of relief, and then asked, "Has the demining tank been developed yet?"
"Of course!" Kalashnikov replied: "I have brought it!"
The experimental site is also in the basement... It was originally cleared out to park tanks, but there are only 26 tanks left, and a large area was circled by the guards for experiments.
As Shulka imagined, the demining tank is actually a large hollow iron roller added to the front of the tank.
"We use T26 to modify!" Kalashnikov introduced: "The reason is that the safety and mobility of T26 are much better than other tanks, and the weight is also lighter!"
Everyone nodded in agreement.
In fact, the best tank is the T34, but the T34 should be used in combat, and it would be a waste of money to convert it into a mine clearance tank.
"We designed the rollers in front of it to be as wide as the tank!" Kalashnikov continued: "In this way, it can ensure that the tank tracks will not be damaged by mines!"
This is the lesson of attracting the stone roller before.
The stone roller is not as wide as the tank, so some mines or even anti-tank mines will inevitably slip through the edge and be run over by the tank tracks, and then there will be a "boom"...don't worry about this problem now.
"Its height!" Kalashnikov stepped forward and patted the tall roller: "It almost reached the height of the tank, and we only leaked a little space above the tank. We installed a downward-looking periscope here!"
"Will this increase its protection?" Shulka asked.
"Yes!" Kalashnikov raised his thumb and shook Shulka: "Nothing can escape your eyes, Comrade Shulka...that is to say, it can not only clear mines, but the front roller can also serve as a protective shield." We set its thickness to 15mm. If the enemy anti-tank wants to penetrate it, it has to go through two layers, which is 30mm, plus the T26's own 15MM armor thickness, which is 45MM. This is almost That's the armor thickness of a T34!"
Shuerka looked at Zaha Kavic and the others, seeing them nodding repeatedly.
If the frontal protection reaches the level of T34, it will be better coordinated with T34.
"How about muddy terrain?" Major Gavrilov asked.
"That's not a problem, Major!" Major Zahakavic said: "The temperature has dropped, and most of those muddy places have frozen!"
(end of this chapter)