Battle of the Third Reich Chapter 32: Devil’s Egg
May 28, 1940 at ten o'clock in the morning. Task room of the Air Force airport of the Bournay base in Belgium.
The Chief Operations Officer of the newly formed Reinhardt Direct Aeronautical Division, Wolff, took a pointer and struggling to tap on the blackboard full of route maps.
"Quiet! Quiet! This is not the time for you to express your opinions. Let me finish!"
The colonel looked at the pilots who were whispering about the flight plan and felt that their heads were big. General Reinhardt really did a good job for himself. When I just received my order to be appointed as an aviation division combat officer, I originally thought that the general was repaying his help to him during the last escort. At that time, I wanted to work hard to reward the general's promotion. But he didn't expect that he would hand over to his own flying wing, these were all veteran flying wing, and those pilots also participated in countless air battles. Can you really control such a group of Air Force pilots who are clearly showing their arrogance? It would be better if I knew that I would stay in the base camp and be my **** captain.
"Hey, you guys, don't discuss it yet, listen to me! What is the problem with you?"
Wolf felt that he couldn't help but scold his mother.
"Colonel! I have a question." A pilot stood up, raising his arms.
"Let's talk about it, what's the problem." That's fine. It's better to have a conversation than to ignore yourself and arguing underneath. Colonel Wolf is finally satisfied.
"About this flight plan, we don't understand. The combat methods you mentioned earlier are not suitable for our light fighters. For example, we must keep a distance from the enemy." The pilot seemed to Still a little bit angry. "We are all fighter pilots. Of course, the closer we are to the enemy, the better. How can we keep our distance from them."
Wolf stopped asking. In fact, even he didn't understand why the general had to formulate such rules of war. He opened his mouth and was thinking how to answer.
"It seems that everyone still doesn't fully understand this battle plan. Let me explain it to you." Xu Jun walked in from the door.
"Stand up!"
With a loud shout from Wolfe. The pilots all jumped up from their seats like springs, and changed the expression that didn't care about anything in front of them. They stood up serious and looked at their top commander in awe. Xu Jun gave a salute, and the pilots hurriedly returned the salute neatly.
Xu Jun walked up to Wolfe and asked with a smile, "Wolf, how does it feel to be a combat officer?"
"Report to the general, it's okay."
"Haha, it seems that you have not yet integrated into these pilots. You have to remember that you were a pilot before you were a combat officer. You have to look at your responsibilities from the eyes of a pilot."
"Understood, General." Wolf began to wonder what Xu Jun meant.
Xu Jun turned around and looked at the group of pilots. It turned out to be an elite force. It seemed that everyone was full of their own personalities.
" I heard you guys didn’t understand these combat plans. I can explain these issues to you. But, not here. Gentlemen, please follow me to the tarmac outside, where I’m Everyone has prepared some new toys, then you will understand my plan. Also, take your chair, Wolf, and get one for me." Then Xu Jun turned and walked out of the task room.
The pilots followed Xu Jun to the tarmac, and found that a large area had been cleared, and several planes that had been parked there were moved aside. And there are three heavy-duty flatbed trucks parked in the places where the planes were originally parked. The trucks are full of goods and piled high, but they are covered with tarpaulins. I don’t know what those are, but from the outline it should be. box.
Xu Jun walked to the truck, stopped, and nodded to Hans beside the truck. Hans also nodded in salute. Xu Jun turned to look at the pilots. They are now standing in three small squares according to their respective units, with chairs in their hands.
"Relax, gentlemen, you are the elites I have specially selected from the entire Luftwaffe. Now we are not explaining tasks, we just want to have a good exchange. Sit down now, you don’t want to stay here forever Listen to me, know what I can say." Xu Jun said with a smile.
The pilots also laughed. They set up their chairs and sat down. Xu Jun also sat on the chair Wolf had prepared for him, and took a document handed over by Hans. He smiled and said to the pilots.
"I’m going to apologize to Officer Wolfe first. It’s all because I didn’t explain my plan to him clearly before, but these things hadn’t arrived yet, so I couldn’t explain it clearly to him, ha ha ha, the result Even he did not understand what I wanted you to do. Now that these things arrive, I can let you understand your tasks intuitively."
Xu Jun stood up and paced back and forth in front of the pilots.
"Now everyone should know that the British have been blocked by us at Dunkirk Harbor. Our army units have trapped them there firmly on the ground. There are now a full 200,000 British in the encirclement. , Belgium, the French army. We have surrounded their more than 200,000 troops in other places, and now our victory is near."
After hearing Xu Jun's words, the pilots all let out an exclamation. They knew the scale of the battle was very large, but they didn't expect to surround 400,000 enemy troops. And it was General Reinhardt who planned and commanded this battle. What's more, he is still acting commander-in-chief of the air force. It seems that he would not be able to hold this position without a couple of seconds. They could not help but start because they could become the general's direct force I feel a little proud.
The pilots were all listening to Xu Jun's words seriously, and now they really started to be curious about Xu Jun's air raid plan.
"However, due to the large number of enemies in the encirclement, the army would have to pay a considerable price if they were to eliminate them. Under my command, the soldiers would never be allowed to die in vain. So I decided to take advantage of this. When the enemy is running out of supplies, they are completely trapped and forced to surrender. Then we don’t have to waste the lives of our brave German boys for this doomed army.
However, we are now facing a serious problem. The Brits would never be willing to have their army trapped in that port by us. They were not willing to lose their army in this way. They began to prepare to escape and escape from the sea. And our navy is not strong enough to block their sea passages.
So, I am going to let our powerful air force complete this difficult task. Let you complete tasks that the navy and army cannot accomplish, and block the way from that port to the sea. "
After hearing Xu Jun's words, the pilots below made another noise. Knowing that the mission they were about to perform was so important, the pilots became excited. Xu Jun smiled and looked at the excited pilots below. He was very satisfied with the reaction of those pilots.
He went on to say: "Your task now is to completely cut off the British retreat. I believe that our powerful and elite air force can do this. But don't think that this task is easy. This blockade operation It will be a big test for our Luftwaffe.
Because the British will not wait there foolishly for us to blockade and bomb them, they still have a lot of anti-aircraft weapons, at least those weapons have enough ammunition. And the topography of the port is also very complicated, they have many passages for boarding. Especially there are these three thousand meters of soft sandy beaches, and our heavy bombs can't exert their power on that kind of ground.
The British will also dispatch their elite Royal Air Force to provide cover for their retreat. You will meet a model you have never seen before and a stubborn resistance you have never encountered before. If we are not fully prepared, I can guarantee that we will pay a heavy price for this. If the life of my brave fighter pilot is needed in exchange for victory, this victory will never make me feel any pride or honor. "
When the pilots heard this, they felt that their mission was indeed not as simple as what they had just thought. They were particularly moved by Xu Jun’s last words. They now feel that fighting under such a great and noble commander might be The most honored thing in their life, their attitude towards Xu Jun now changed from awe to admiration. The pilots sat there quietly, waiting for Xu Jun to continue speaking, they believed that Xu Jun must have prepared the best countermeasures for them.
"Because of these problems, I designed the entire air strike plan. And I also prepared suitable weapons for everyone. Now let's take a look at the first toy I prepared for everyone."
Xu Jun nodded to Hans. Hans walked to the first truck and led several air force soldiers to pull down the tarp covering the cargo. Rows of brand new ammunition boxes appeared in front of everyone. Several Air Force soldiers lifted a box from the car and placed it at Xu Jun's feet. Hans also took a square box from the cab and gave it to Xu Jun.
The ammunition box was opened, and a strange bomb appeared in front of the pilot.
"It's a "butterfly" bomb." A pilot recognized the bomb at a glance, and he called out: "I used it in Spain. It's very good against cluster targets."
"Yes, this is indeed a "butterfly" bullet, but I still like his other name, "devil's egg"." Xu Jun opened the square box, and there was an opened "butterfly" "The bullet's submunitions.
"Everyone knows the power of this cluster bomb. Although it is not as powerful as those heavy bombs, it is the most effective weapon against the infantry gathered on the beach on the pier. And the bombs in front of you are already They were modified according to my requirements. They were the first batch of bombs thrown at Dunkirk. Their mission is not to destroy, but to hinder."
"General, this kind of bomb can't deal with roads and buildings. How can it hinder the enemy." A pilot couldn't help but ask a question.
"What is your name?" Xu Jun asked with a smile.
"Hans, Egerhard. Second Lieutenant Bob, Lord General."
"The Fifty-fourth Fighter Wing?"
"Yes, General."
"Haha, good, Bob, catch it."
Xu Jun threw the bullet in his hand at Bob. At that time, the ensign was shocked, and he hurriedly caught the small bomb.
"General, this is too dangerous, please don't throw bombs casually." Bob complained, "Almost scared me to death."
"Haha, my second lieutenant Bob, this is a fuse bomb that will not explode. The exploded bomb is not the most terrifying, the most terrifying is the unexploded bomb, but the more frightening thing is A bomb that knows it will explode but doesn’t know when."
Xu Jun paused and glanced at the pilots who were nodding their heads in agreement.
"And your task today is to throw this kind of bomb. This kind of most frightening bomb." Xu Jun smiled and gestured to Bob, and Bob quickly threw the little bomb back to Xu Jun, Xu Jun continued to talk to the pilots while holding the weird little thing.
"What you cast today will be the specially modified "Devil's Egg". They are equipped with four fuzes respectively.
The first type is an air blast fuze, which will detonate in the air five meters above the ground, which is enough for those British people to enjoy it.
The second type is a timed fuze. The set time is random, ranging from two minutes to two days. Even the installer does not know how long these things will explode after landing. Its function is to keep those British soldiers away from it before it explodes. I believe no one except the British engineers will dare to approach it.
The third type is to deal with those brave British engineers. It contains a mechanical fuze, which is a very sophisticated machine. The fuze is activated ten seconds after it hits the ground. At that time, as long as it is taken off the ground or its posture when it hits the ground, it will immediately explode. Those engineers who have not distinguished it from the time bomb will go to see God before they understand what happened. "
After hearing Xu Jun's words, the pilots burst into laughter.
"What about the last one? General." Wolfe asked with a smile.
"Haha, don’t worry, my combat officer, the most interesting is the last one. It won’t explode even if it’s hit with a hammer. It’s equipped with a radio remote control fuze, only when we think it’s necessary When it explodes, it will explode. As long as the pilot on the plane with the remote control presses the button. Now everyone can know what kind of effect this small bomb can play. "
When the pilots first listened to Xu Jun’s introduction, they just thought this weapon was very interesting, but when they turned their heads and thought about it, they couldn’t help feeling a chill from their backs. It was terrifying, it was a weapon that was both sinister and vicious.
They are now beginning to understand why Xu Jun used this kind of bomb. As long as you spread this bomb all over the coast of Dunkirk, whether it’s a pier or a beach, it will become a dead zone. Anyone who wants to enter those areas will risk their lives, even trained engineers. It is also difficult to guarantee their own safety. Before the British had figured out the structure and characteristics of this bomb, even if they used cannons to cover the shooting, it would be difficult to completely remove all the bombs.
But if bombing by a bomber can do the same thing, why does the general use this kind of bomb?
At this time, Wolfe first raised everyone's questions: "General, in fact, our bombers can control those places all day. Why use this kind of bomb~ IndoMTL.com~ Haha, for two reasons. "Xu Jun nodded to Wolfe in satisfaction. Then said to the pilots.
"You guys might think the same as Colonel Wolfe. I turned out to be the same as everyone thought. We can achieve our goal by bombers alone. As long as the air-blast fuze is installed, the beach will not affect the power of the bomb. /
But when I made this plan, I found a problem. What should I do if the British are in bad weather when they retreat? What if our air force cannot find the target on the ground? I must find a way to be effective in the air force Before the attack, the enemy's retreat was blocked. Only then did I decide to use this bomb.
Now I have two reasons. First, it is now shrouded in clouds and fog, and it won’t clear until tomorrow afternoon at least. We couldn't achieve precise bombing in these two days, so I had to use this kind of bombs to spread all over the coast, at least so that they can be honest during the period from tonight to tomorrow afternoon when we continue to attack.
Secondly, you just need to bombard blindly with this kind of thing, as long as you make sure it falls on the beach on the pier on the coast. It doesn't matter if you can see the enemy or not.
Not only you, all the bomber wing of the entire Second Air Force will participate in this attack.
In addition to dropping bombs there, your mission is to protect those bombers. You may be attacked by the Royal Air Force today, so I have prepared a second toy for you. "
Then Xu Jun asked Hans to pull away the tarp on the second truck.