bookpower Chapter 1093
Chapter 1093
The German operation was not smooth. Due to the unfamiliarity with the hydrological conditions in the Great Lakes region, especially the hydrological conditions near the shore of the Michigan Peninsula, several troop transport ships hit reefs and sank or ran aground when approaching the scheduled landing site on the shore.
If this was on the sea, the soldiers who fell into the water would most likely die.
Fortunately, this is not the sea. Although the Great Lakes are large, the wind and waves are much smaller than the real sea. However, in this season, once a soldier falls into the water, even if he does not die, he will lose half his life, especially after dark. The temperature of the lake water is close to zero degrees. If the soldiers are not quickly pulled out, they will soon freeze to death!
“Quick, send a speedboat to rescue people!”
After the troop transport ship hit the reef, other German ships immediately began to move to search and rescue the soldiers who fell into the water.
Due to this situation in the team, General Hoth had to order a temporary suspension of the advance, otherwise the landing troops would be out of touch.
“It looks like it will take quite a while!”
Looking at the busy scene on the lake, General Hoth was a little worried.
He glanced at the time and found that it was no longer possible to launch the attack as scheduled. If the time was delayed, it would affect their overall plan. They needed to break through the enemy’s defenses faster than scheduled, otherwise they would not be able to get support from follow-up troops and airborne troops!
“General, should we send a vanguard to launch the attack first?”
The time is almost up, and they are definitely too late to make it at this speed, so the deputy general suggested selecting a group of elite soldiers to break away from the main force and launch the attack in advance, and then the main force in the rear will set out after it is ready to support the vanguard.
“Well, but you can’t just send one troop, you have to send two!”
……
At 1:15 in the morning, fifteen minutes later than scheduled, in the western coastline of Michigan.
Two patrolling American soldiers completed their inspections and were about to return to the barracks.
Just as they turned around and prepared to leave, they faintly heard a strange sound.
The two soldiers did not care at first. After all, the tide of Lake Michigan rises and falls, and when the wind blows, it is not surprising that the waves hit the coast and make some noises.
However, these sounds seem to be completely different from the sound of the waves, and more like artificial sounds.
After noticing this, the drowsy American soldiers immediately woke up!
A soldier subconsciously raised the flashlight in his hand and cast it into the distance. Then, he saw a scene that he would never forget: on the coastline and on the lake, there were almost all dense enemies! The enemy’s ships of all sizes were endless, and many enemies on the shore had already successfully landed!
“”Germany, the Germans are coming!”
With the first gunshot, the German landing operation finally started!
Almost as Hoth expected, in the early hours of the morning, the US military’s defense was indeed very lax. In fact, because the Germans were delayed on the road, the Germans arrived a little later. At this time, the US military slept more soundly, and the number of US soldiers who remained awake was very small. This allowed the Germans to quietly land some soldiers on the shore before the US military discovered them!
“”Rush forward, the enemy’s troops are not many yet, seize their positions before them!”
After realizing this rare opportunity, the German commander on the front immediately issued an order to attack.
The soldiers left behind on the American positions were awakened by the gunshots, and they hastily launched a counterattack in fear. However, due to insufficient numbers, their firepower was not fierce, and they were unable to completely suppress the German attack, especially at night. As they could not see the situation on the beach clearly, the defenders could only fire blindly and could not aim and shoot accurately, which greatly affected the accuracy of their shooting!
“”Damn it, I can’t see anyone!”
After using up several belts of ammunition, an American machine gunner complained.
The machine guns on the beachhead were powerful weapons. For the unprotected infantry, encountering machine gun fire was basically a one-sided massacre, and the infantry had almost no ability to fight back.
It can be said that this was a great opportunity for the machine gunners to show themselves and show their prowess.
However, the bad weather, coupled with the pitch-black night, made their stage for performance much smaller!
“Quick, fire flares!”
Fortunately, the American commander on the position quickly realized this, and with his order, several flares were launched into the air!
Swish! Dazzling rays of light sprinkled on the earth!
In an instant, the entire beach was illuminated!
And with this burst of strong light, the American soldiers saw an astonishing scene: the beachhead was densely packed with enemies. These German soldiers advanced quickly while constantly counterattacking. Some of the soldiers rushing in front were almost only one step away from their positions!
What’s worse is that in addition to the large number of German troops that have landed on the shore, there are countless ships and warships on the sea that are busy sending out more troops.
“Aim at the enemy positions on the shore and fire!”
Just when the U.S. military was shocked beyond words by the situation on the beachhead, the U.S. positions, which had exposed their positions due to flares, were immediately attacked by the German fleet! In night operations, the problem of lack of sight due to poor light not only affects the U.S. army, but also the German army.
Under such conditions, the German fleet had almost no way to fire, because they did not know the exact location of the enemy positions, nor did they know where their own troops were attacking. If they opened fire rashly, it would likely result in accidental injuries to their own troops.
Moreover, without the specific location information of the enemy, hitting the enemy would only rely on luck!
In this case, the German army actually wanted to launch flares, at least the navy was extremely eager for this. How to do it.
However, the dark environment is beneficial to the German infantry. They can take advantage of the enemy’s obstructed vision to approach the enemy secretly, so the German army did not take the initiative to launch flares.
But if the US army launched flares, the German army would not be polite!
Boom boom boom!
The fierce artillery bombardment launched a fierce attack on the US military position that had just exposed its position like a storm. When the US soldiers were about to shoot the German troops exposed to their sight, they unexpectedly became the enemy’s target!