The decisive battle against the Third Reich

The troops sent by Vatutin to the direction of Butovo were the 5th Soviet Guards Tank Corps.

The 5th Guards Tank Corps is actually an old rival of the German army. Its original designation was the 4th Tank Corps. It had participated in the Battle of Kiev and the Battle of Stalingrad. Due to its outstanding performance in the Battle of Stalingrad, it was Approved to join the ranks of the "Guards".

The designation after joining was the "5th Guards Tank Corps of the Red Army", and the several units under its jurisdiction were changed to the 20th, 21st, and 22nd Guards Tank Brigades, and the 6th Guards Motorized Brigade.

It is called one of the three most elite tank armies by the Soviet army, with more than 400 tanks, most of which are T34 tanks. Only the reconnaissance troops and the 6th Guards Motorized Brigade are equipped with light tanks.

In Vatutin's mind, it should not be a problem to use this elite 5th Tank Army to block the German armored army in the direction of Butovo.

In theory, this isn't really a problem.

Because the 5th Soviet Guards Tank Corps is also an elite force that has been on the battlefield for a long time, the defense and firepower of the T34 tank are comparable to or even better than the German Panzer III and Panzer IV tanks.

(Note: At this time, the No. 3 and No. 4 tanks have been replaced with 75MM caliber anti-tank guns, which are comparable to the 76MM caliber guns of the Soviet T34 tank)

At the same time, the German 48th Armored Corps has been on the battlefield for two days and its combat effectiveness has declined, while the Soviet 5th Guards Tank Corps is completely new.

More importantly...the 5th Soviet Guards Tank Corps has more than 400 tanks, which is almost twice the number of the German 48th Armored Corps.

Vatutin even sketched a blueprint in his mind. If the Soviet Union's 5th Army can block the German 48th Armored Army on the right, or even defeat it, then the German armored force with the "Elephant" The 2nd SS Panzer Army (2nd SS Panzer Army) will become a lone army. At that time, the Voronezh Front can put the 2nd SS Panzer Army in and encircle and destroy it as originally planned.

But the ideal is always full, but the reality is very skinny.

The Soviet response quickly reached the German command.

Just as Vatutin did not expect that the German army would attack in two directions, these actions of the Soviet army also exceeded General Huot's expectations.

After thinking about it, Holt said: "The Soviets thought they could block our attack!"

"Yes!" Lieutenant General Kirchner said: "We found a large number of enemy tanks gathering in the front!"

"We didn't find any signs of the enemy gathering!" Lieutenant General Walter said: "They just buried the tanks in the soil and used anti-tank guns to build fire pocket arrays. It is obvious that the Soviets chose the side with weak combat effectiveness. Launch a counterattack!"

Lieutenant General Walter is indeed an annoying "colleague", and there is no need for him to say these words. While to some extent it is true, it is not because of quality but simply because they are SS, which is nothing to boast about.

In other words, Qinchuan has every reason to believe that if the 48th Armored Corps can possess the equipment and configuration of the 2nd SS Armored Corps, its combat effectiveness will be much stronger than that of the 2nd SS Armored Corps.

Lieutenant General Kirchner gritted his teeth and said nothing. He had learned to tolerate this bastard.

But Qin Chuan is not like that.

"Great!" Qin Chuan said, "The Soviets were fooled!"

"What?" Walter couldn't help but look at Qin Chuan in confusion: "Lieutenant Colonel, what do you mean?"

"Is it difficult to understand what I said?" Qin Chuan replied: "The Soviets were fooled!"

Walter was stunned for a moment, and then he laughed: "Lieutenant Colonel, what you mean is that you successfully made the Soviets think that the 48th Armored Corps was the weaker side, so they concentrated their efforts on attacking our left wing. That's right. ?"

"Yes, General!" Qin Chuan nodded: "Look, it's not difficult to understand, isn't it?"

"You are so funny, Lieutenant Colonel!" Walter put on his signature smile with a bit of disdain.

"Maybe!" Qin Chuan was too lazy to pay attention to the arrogant Walter, and said to Holt: "General, I think it is time for the 1st Infantry Regiment to enter the position!"

"But..." Holt said: "They did not withdraw from the middle area. Not only did they not, they even strengthened the defense there. Your helicopters..."

"General!" Qinchuan replied: "The 48th Armored Corps only penetrated 11 kilometers into the enemy's army, and this road has always been under the control of our army. In other words, we don't need helicopters at all, we only need cars to travel quickly and Get to the front line safely!”

Holt nodded in agreement.

Walter on the other side laughed: "So, Lieutenant Colonel. Are you saying that because there is the 1st Infantry Regiment, the 48th Armored Corps is stronger than us?"

"Isn't it possible?" Qin Chuan asked.

Walter looked at Qin Chuan like a monster.

"Lieutenant Colonel!" Walter said: "Although I know that you are a 'legendary sergeant', and although I know that the First Infantry Regiment has made many military exploits,... the battlefield is not something that can be won by some clever people. I mean, It’s not always so lucky! So I advise you to think more about your own strength!”

"Thank you very much, General Walter!" Qin Chuan replied: "I know what I am doing!"

Qin Chuan can understand why General Walter said this.

ME63 is a high-level secret, and is kept secret from all unrelated people except for a few people. Of course, General Walter is also part of the scope of confidentiality... This is actually in line with the spirit of Hitler's confidentiality order.

Therefore, Lieutenant General Walter simply believed that Qinchuan and his 1st Infantry Regiment should be able to use helicopters to maneuver quickly.

But now Qinchuan actually wants to abandon the helicopter and use a car to drive to the front line, which makes Lieutenant General Walter unbelievable.

You must know that the Soviets invested hundreds of tanks.

And the 48th Armored Corps only invested one infantry regiment... hundreds of tanks against one infantry regiment?

Needless to say, this must be a state of absolute torment.

But Qin Chuan ignored Walter. It was his business what he thought and what the result would be... It would not change because of Walter's thoughts. His destiny was always in his own hands.

General Holt knew about ME63, but he did not explain anything. After thinking about it for a while, he said: "I agree with your request, Lieutenant Colonel. However, I suggest that you better march at night. You know the reason!"

"Yes, General!" Qin Chuan replied.

Qinchuan did know the reason. At this time, the air supremacy was no longer completely in the hands of the German army. In particular, most of the German fighters and bombers were used for coordination with the 2nd SS Armored Corps. This left the 48th Armored Corps' transportation lines insufficiently defended. .

If you take a car on the road during the day and carry the ME63... it is obviously not worth the losses caused by Soviet fighter planes.