The decisive battle against the Third Reich

Qin Chuan couldn't help but be startled when he heard this. He didn't expect that General Strike would directly ask him about his next strategy of fighting... This was a question that should have been answered by the staff officers or several regiment leaders.

"Don't be surprised!" General Strike seemed to have seen through Qin Chuan's thoughts. He explained: "I can only trust the person who can bring me victory, not his military rank!"

General Strike's words are very direct, and they are also the reality of war... Victory is the most important thing. As long as it can bring victory to the troops, there is nothing wrong with asking for the opinion of a sergeant?

Qin Chuan had not considered this issue. Before, he simply wanted to find supplies for the German army and attack the British army at the same time. But what should he do next...

"Have we encountered any difficulties?" Qin Chuan asked.

"Yes!" General Strike said: "We don't have enough cars to take away enough supplies, so we can only stay here!"

Qin Chuan quickly understood what General Strike meant.

The advantage of the German army is mobility. They have tanks and mechanized troops that are much faster than the British army... The British army actually has no practical mechanized troops. This is due to its backward tactical decisions and equipment, "Matilda" tank,

The top speed of the "Valentin" tank is only 24 kilometers per hour. The actual marching speed is not much faster than walking, so there is no need to form a mechanized force.

In contrast, the German armored divisions can be called real armored divisions. Cars, armored vehicles, and tricycles are all on wheels and can maneuver quickly.

This is also one of the reasons why the British army clearly has superior strength on the battlefield but is always in a passive position of being beaten... The German army with greater mobility can easily avoid the British army's sharp edges and attack its weaknesses.

If the German army had to stop at Sidi Oba for supplies... it would undoubtedly be besieged by the British army, and in the end they would not be able to escape the fate of defeat.

"Is it possible for us to find more cars?" Seeing that Qin Chuan didn't speak for a long time, Colonel Slaine interrupted.

General Strike shook his head: "There is desert for dozens of miles around, and the British have got the news that we have occupied Sidioma. Their supply team will bypass here. It is difficult for us to do it in the limited time." Enough cars seized."

The limited time refers to the time it took the British to reach Sidioma.

This won't take long, because Sidioma is only 70 kilometers away from the Gabsali defense line, and the "Stuart" has a top speed of 58 kilometers per hour... Even if it is compromised by the wind and sand in the desert, it will be difficult to get there Sidi Omar also only takes two hours.

Two hours...

That is to say, if we don't start the transfer now, I'm afraid it will be too late.

"Maybe we can ambush along the way!" Colonel Olbridge said: "Our tanks are better than theirs, and we can defeat them on the way here!"

General Strike shook his head again and replied: "Because of the wind and sand, it is also difficult for our reconnaissance planes to find the enemy's position and estimate their marching route, so it is very difficult to ambush!"

Qinchuan could understand this. This was the characteristic of desert warfare... Desert warfare was unlike other terrain operations. Troops only needed to occupy the high ground on both sides of the road and lay out an ambush. The enemy would always have to pass through the high ground to come up. highway.

This is not the case in the desert. You can take roads or not, and some places even don't even have roads.

If you want to ambush the enemy here, you must first detect the enemy and estimate the location where the enemy is likely to pass from the direction of its advance and set up an ambush... Otherwise, if you are not careful, the ambusher may become the enemy's prey.

At this time, Qin Chuan was a little helpless. He thought that all the problems of getting supplies would be solved, but he didn't expect to find himself in such a dilemma.

"If it had been before..." General Strike said: "We might have been able to capture Tobruk in the same way we did before, hoping to get supplies from the British strongholds along the way, but now..."

General Strike smiled bitterly as he spoke.

The officers all understood the meaning of General Strike's wry smile. The British had become smarter and they knew how to bury supplies underground. Then it would not be so easy for the German army to find the British supplies one after another. You will be in a desperate situation without supplies.

"So!" Colonel Olbridge thought for a while and said: "Why don't we defend Sidioma? We have supplies but the British army does not. At the same time, Tobruk may provide us with reinforcements, so we can It is possible to achieve final victory..."

"This is a good idea!" Colonel Slain nodded.

"But there is no other way!" General Strike said: "Because it is impossible to hope that Tobruk will reinforce us. The British strength is several times ours, and their 13th Army has already Tobruk is surrounded and launched a fierce attack, and we... are about to face the British 30th Army independently! "

In other words, the 21st Armored Division had to face three British divisions independently, one of which was the British 7th Armored Division, which had many more tanks than the Germans. In addition, the British army also had air power assistance.

What's worse is that, like other desert areas, Sidi Omar is almost impossible to defend... This is one of the reasons why mobility is so important in the desert. The defending party in the desert usually suffers, unless It can be as strong as the Tobruk defense line or as natural and dangerous as the Halfa Gate.

Therefore, if we defend according to Sidioma, even if we can win in the end, it will be a miserable victory.

The command car couldn't help but fell silent. The officers all frowned and looked at the map on the table, as if a perfect battle plan would suddenly pop up on the map.

Qinchuan also felt powerless about this. The current situation of the German army was either to leave or not to leave... Could it be that the 21st Armored Division could not escape the historical fate of losing both sides with the British army?

Suddenly Qin Chuan thought of something, so he said to General Strike: "General, what if we leave here but can keep this batch of supplies intact?"

"How is this possible?" General Strike replied with a smile: "We have to blow up these supplies before we leave, otherwise they will fall into the hands of the British again!"

"Of course!" Qin Chuan said, "So the British think so too!"

"What do you mean?" General Strike asked in confusion.

Colonel Albridge and Colonel Sline also cast doubtful glances at Qin Chuan.