In the early morning, when the fighting on the ground was still in full swing, the two bomber groups sent by the German army had to return with bombs due to extremely low visibility over Dunkirk. The roars of artillery on both sides could even be heard in the sky, but as the king of the sky and the world's number one air force, the German Air Force could only be a boring bystander, which made these pilots feel extremely depressed. While cursing the damn weather in my heart, I turned back unwillingly.
Meteorological conditions remain poor. Major General Jeshunek paced anxiously in his office. Goering's repeated phone calls made him feel tinnitus. He had already ordered the bombers to prepare for attack, but he was unable to do anything in the face of the bad weather at Dunkirk. At this time, the staff sent him a weather report, predicting that rainy weather would continue in southeastern France in the next few days. Jeshunek was a little nervous. He understood that if the opportunity was missed in the past few days, the British army would probably withdraw all the besieged troops to the mainland. He ordered the meteorological department to come up with a more detailed weather report and at the same time connected the phone to the war room.
Boom, boom, boom... "Your Excellency General, here comes Louis Von Howard, deputy national commander of the SS!" The guard at the door knocked on the door and spread his voice into the room. Major General Yeshunek slowly put down the phone and said softly, "Please come in, Your Excellency, Deputy Commander-in-Chief!" There is no use being anxious at this time. Major General Yeshunek must force himself to calm down. Moreover, Yeshunnek Major General Ke knew that Louis von Howard, deputy national commander of the SS, was the most trusted deputy of the almost omnipotent national leader, and he might be able to find a way.
"Major General Jeshunek, I have something important to see you!" Before he could sit down, Louis Von Howard anxiously stated his intention, making the young Air Force Chief of Staff feel that the situation was serious. Louis Von Howard said anxiously, "I think you already know the weather conditions over the Dunkirk area. To put it simply, the Air Force must come up with effective methods now, otherwise the powerful British Royal Navy is likely to Rescue the surrounded British and French forces!"
"Dear Deputy Commander-in-Chief, I am actually thinking of a solution! But you should know how dependent the Air Force is on the weather!" Major General Jeshunek spread his hands with a helpless expression. In fact, there is really no good way now. ,
"I want to know if the elite pilots of the Air Force can carry out regional bombing!" Louis Von Howard immediately interrupted Major General Jeshunek and put forward his own opinion. At this time, no one had time to worry about polite issues. Major General Jeshunek thought for a moment and said, "What a huge area!"
"Forty kilometers long and ten kilometers wide!" Louis Von Howard immediately thought of the length of the coastline in the Dunkirk area, which was exactly what Lin Wei requested.
"Of course, but in this kind of weather conditions, there is no accuracy problem at all! There is no bombing effect at all!" As the chief of general staff of the Air Force, Major General Jeshunek immediately thought of the loopholes in this and proposed objections.
"No problem, what we need is for the transport plane to pour five thousand tons of fuel into the sea, and set off a wall of fire forty kilometers long and ten kilometers wide from the sea to stop most of the ships mobilized by the British. As for the large ships of the British Royal Navy, Although the battleship can rush through the wall of fire, we obviously can't control so much!" Louis, Von and Howard explained Lin Wei's plan one by one, and Major General Jeshunnek's face gradually became dull, like everyone else, Major General Jeshunek was also shocked by this crazy plan.
"This is a crazy plan!" Major General Jeshunek said without any secret after hearing the whole plan; "But there is a great hope of success. The national leader has thought of a genius way! I will go right away. Get ready!" Major General Jeshunek said excitedly. While speaking, he answered the phone in the war room again.
"Select the best pilots from the aircraft waiting for combat at each airport. At the same time, mobilize all the Junkers transport aircraft that can still fly, and notify the oil depots in various places. Currently, all the oil there has been requisitioned! At the same time, aircraft are already waiting for combat at various airports. , immediately carry out continuous bombing of Dunkirk with a small formation of 3 to 5 aircraft. Regardless of the visibility above the target, the bombs must be dropped to harass the enemy's retreat. The two orders are executed separately." Major General Jeshunek shouted .
The rumble of bombers sounded again over Dunkirk. Several newly concentrated anti-aircraft artillery units began to shoot aimlessly in the air, and soldiers jumped into nearby trenches. However, the bombs dropped caused almost no damage. They were either dropped into the sea far away from the beach, or dropped into empty areas where there was no one. Occasionally, a few bombs landed on the beach where soldiers gathered, and the soft sand was like a seat cushion. It absorbed most of the explosive force. Even if the bomb exploded next to it, it would just be a slap in the face.
This aimless and sporadic bombing continues without interruption. But the retreating soldiers soon became accustomed to it. They climbed out of the trenches one after another and did what they were going to do. The soldiers waiting in the back to board the ship even played beach volleyball, just like spending the weekend on the island of England. Leisurely and contented. At this time, the real attack forces were intensively preparing at various airports in western Germany and the Netherlands. The Junkers transport aircraft were simply modified by the mechanics, so that the cabin originally loaded with paratroopers became a cabin filled with plastic Film-packed gasoline and various mixed oils. At the same time, the escort fighter formation has also been prepared and can be put into combat immediately with just one order.
During the battle of the Armored Group on the Western Front, Guderian's 19th Armored Corps turned to the left, hoping to cut off the connection between most of Dunkirk's troops and the coast. In order to support them head-on, all SS troops were fully engaged in the battle. Most of the soldiers remained in high spirits due to the progress made during the night operations. In order to reverse the passive situation, the commander of the British Expeditionary Force, Lord Gott, ordered almost all the remaining armored vehicles of the British and French coalition forces to be thrown into the front of the SS. When the SS armored cluster broke through the third line of defense of the British and French coalition forces, When I arrived, I immediately saw the so-called armored troops that Lord Gott had pieced together.
You can tell whether such a unit is capable of fighting at a glance. It seems that Lord Gott has also been overwhelmed by the combat of the SS armored group. It is no longer possible to think about the war with normal thinking. This is obviously a miscellaneous army. You can almost see any pulleys? The few remaining French B1 heavy tanks, more than a hundred Renault FT-17 light tanks, British Matilda infantry tanks, and some armored tracked vehicles made up this strange armored force in front of them.
This kind of rubbish equipment and rubbish personnel configuration are certainly no match for the veteran Waffen SS armored group. Seeing this weird armored unit, the eyes of the Waffen SS armored soldiers were filled with contempt. Although the current use of tanks by the armed SS is far from the opponent of the 19th Armored Corps personally trained by Guderian, there is still some strong confidence in the face of this kind of force.
Not counting the thousands of Panzer IV tanks on the entire front, the Waffen SS Imperial Armor they faced alone had a quantity of armor that they could never match. Although Lord Gott had recovered from the initial blow and correctly judged the main attack direction of the Waffen SS. However, the lack of armor hardware made it difficult for Lord Gott to make a fool of himself. The organized counterattacks were defeated one by one by the armed SS, and they were forced to organize this last armored force. Behind this armored force, an anti-tank position composed of infantry was rapidly forming.
200 tanks from both sides engaged in a fierce collision in an open field. The battle only lasted an hour, and the experienced Germans let these rookies in the British and French forces know what real tank battles were. Two battalions of Panzer IV tanks from the Imperial Division formed two wedge formations. Then he pressed towards the opponent with all his strength.
Faced with the sudden appearance of such a large British and French armored force on this line of defense, Lin Wei decisively invested three armored divisions (Empire, Police, and Viking). The three divisions advanced hand in hand through the 20-kilometer-wide gap opened by the Imperial Armored Division. In an instant, they broke through the defense line of the 4th Infantry Division of the British Expeditionary Force, which came to block the gap. The division was reduced to pieces.
However, within this period of time, the British and French forces, already motivated by the desire to survive, quickly formed a solid anti-tank position composed of infantry. This complex consists of anti-tank artillery, rocket launchers, anti-tank guns and other anti-tank weapons. It forms a fire network that combines both near and far, and is closely coordinated. Combined with engineering obstacles, it is considered to be enough to defeat the attack of the Waffen SS armored cluster tanks. The subsequent defense area consists of 12 small villages. Each village is defended by an infantry company, equipped with 3-4 anti-tank guns, to organize anti-tank firepower and control the open areas between the villages.
This was not only true on the front of the Waffen-SS Imperial Division. In order to survive, the surrounded British and French forces almost maximized human potential. In front of almost every armored division, after layers of sniping attacks by the British and French forces, there were This is a specialized anti-tank position. If these armed SS soldiers had not known that these British and French allied forces had been attacked in a hurry, they would have really thought that they had fallen into a trap set by the enemy.
The various divisions of the Waffen SS, which had been confused by the smooth attack, threw themselves into continuing to fight without saying a word. It can be said that the armed SS, which had been fighting at high intensity for eight consecutive hours, no longer had the same vigor as when they first started fighting at night. This anti-tank front seemed to have become a boulder on the coast, still standing despite being blown by the wind and waves. After half an hour of attacking, the defending British and French forces remained motionless. The Waffen-SS made no progress.
In Lin Wei's command post, staff officers were busy coming and going, and orders were conveyed from here to the front line. The beeping sound of the radio filled the entire command post.
"Reporting to the leader, the Waffen-SS Imperial Division encountered stubborn resistance and was unable to break through the front!"
"Reporting to the leader, the attack of the Waffen SS Viking Division has been frustrated and the offensive needs to be stopped!"
"Leader, Police Lieutenant General Konrad & Hikulla sent a report that the armored soldiers of the Police Armored Division are extremely sleepy and cannot continue to fight!"
Unfavorable news came out from the mouths of the staff one after another. The anxious attitude of these staff seemed to remind Lin Wei that the current situation was not suitable for continuing the battle. In fact, Lin Wei also knew that the armed SS, who lacked sleep and were given strong orders to attack, were already fighting at a super level. However, the tight time limit prevented Lin Wei from issuing such a combat order.
At this time, it is time to compete with each other's will. Lin Wei had to insist on his opinion, "No, no one is allowed to retreat! You didn't sleep, and the British and French forces you faced didn't sleep either! This is the time to compete for fighting will. If you admit that you are not as good as these rubbish, if you If you are not the best person, then you can ask me to withdraw from the battle! Tell me that you want to withdraw from the battle!" Lin Wei yelled.
The command post was deathly silent, and no one was dissatisfied with Lin Wei's yelling. Lin Wei was right. The Germans didn't sleep, and neither did the soldiers of the British and French forces. Since the two sides are still at the same starting line, will our best soldiers be defeated by those British opponents? Everyone said nothing, silently returned to their posts and started their work.
Lin Wei's orders were accurately issued to the troops, and even Lin Wei's original words were accurately issued. Since our enemies are not sleeping, how can we not be their opponents. "Hold on, hold on, the British will definitely be unable to withstand our attack first!" This is the voice of all armed SS soldiers.
Boom boom..., the armored soldiers expressed their unyieldingness with the artillery fire on their tanks. Everyone seemed to feel that their power had returned to themselves. The struggling British and French forces suddenly discovered that the already weak German armored group once again exerted a combat effectiveness that made these British and French soldiers palpitate.
Ouch..., a Me-109 soared into the sky from the military base in Cologne, and then one Me-109 took off from the base. At the same time, in the surrounding bases, Junkers transport aircraft were loaded with gasoline and mixed fuel. After a shaky takeoff, Germany concentrated almost all the Junkers transport aircraft in the west for this battle. You can imagine what amazing effects it will have once it is put into combat. The two fighter wings and the two transport aircraft wings slowly assembled. As if they had received an order, all the aircraft immediately headed to the English Channel in the northwest. No one knew what consequences they would bring.
In the Dunkirk area, when Britain, France and Germany were fighting a desperate battle, those in the base camp were not idle. They were now urgently contacting their ally, Italian Mussolini. It is hoped that the participation of Italy can accelerate the pressure on the British and French coalition forces and force the stubborn resistance of the British and French coalition forces to collapse.
Although he was very busy with the development of the war on the Western Front, he still took time to write to Mussolini one after another, telling him the news of Germany's successive victories. The first letter, dated May 7, informed the Italian leader that he was attacking Belgium and the Netherlands to "guarantee their neutrality" and said he would keep his friends informed of his progress so that his friends could make timely decisions. Later, on May 13th, 18th and 25th, I wrote several letters one after another, each of which was more detailed and enthusiastic than the last. Although, as Halder's diary confirms, the generals were indifferent to Italy's movements - whether to participate in the war or not -, the Führer, for some reason, attached great importance to Italy's participation in the war. Wait until the Netherlands. Belgium had surrendered, the British and French troops on the northern route were completely defeated, and when the remnants of the British army began to board ships at Dunkirk, Mussolini decided to join the war.
But although Mussolini had repeatedly emphasized that Italy's military power was unparalleled, under the momentum of the French army, the world's largest army, it was still not easy for Italy to make decisions on such important matters. It's no wonder that although Mussolini can be regarded as a rare dictator in the world, there is a sentence that best describes Mussolini, that is, his heart is as high as the sky and his destiny is as thin as paper. A great dictator full of ideals was actually born in Italy. Even with Mussolini's instigation, the Italians were not interested in war at all. This left Mussolini really helpless.
During World War II, Italy was known as one of the three Sith powers, but its war history can be said to be the most speechless. How can a country like Italy be known as one of the three powers? But since it can be known as one of the three powers, Italy should be There are areas where it is stronger than other junior countries. Let’s take a look at Italy’s national situation and strategy at that time. Let’s see what Italy did at that time to be more cost-effective.
When Italy dealt with its World War II strategy, it always wanted to be in line with Germany and Japan and wanted to appear very important. In fact, he was one of the culprits dragging down the entire axis camp. Look at where Italy is located in Greece, the Balkans, and North Africa, and where there are other European Axis forces to fill the gap. The most direct result is the dispersion of military strength. For Italy's most important ally Germany, in order to help Italy's ambitions in the Balkans, the most significant mistake was the invasion of Yugoslavia and Greece, which directly dispersed the already valuable armored forces. and motorized troops, and led to the delay of the invasion of the Soviet Union. In other words, it was a waste of assault force in the main offensive direction, and artificially "advanced" the arrival of winter in time. If Lin Wei didn't know that Germany must need Italian naval help, he would definitely let Italy get away as far as possible.