I'm too tired today to have only one chapter, and I'll make it up tomorrow.

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At two o'clock in the afternoon, American fighter jets and bombers launched a bombing of the Metz fortress.

The US 3rd Army did not hide its strategic objectives at all.

Barton's say about this was, "To hell with those attacks that dodge around like!" We'll tell them exactly what I'm going to attack and conquer it! ”

It's just a pretty way of saying Patton, but it's actually a target that can't be hidden...... Patton knew in his heart that the destination of the rear transport supplies would expose this, and unless the US 3rd Army did not need supplies, the Germans would definitely know that the US 3rd Army was targeting the Metz Fortress.

If this is the case, then the US 3rd Army will only be able to catch the Germans by surprise if it is fast.

Patton's information from the French was heartening.

"There are only 10,000 of them!" The staff officer took the information and said to Patton: "The most important thing is that they are not regular troops, the vast majority of them are cadets, and only one regiment is a garrison, but it is also a security regiment, responsible for the logistics and defense of the Metz Fortress!" ”

"Great, their defenses are so weak here?" Barton said.

"Yes!" The staff officer replied: "I think it is because the operation 'Market Garden' carried out by the British and Marshal Montgomery before them has dispersed the German forces, or attracted them to the northern Ardennes and even the Netherlands, and they have not had time to transfer them back!" ”

"I didn't expect Montgomery to do me a favor by accident!" "I think Montgomery must have known this, so he did everything he could to stop us from attacking from here," Barton said happily...... You know? We're in luck, nothing can stop us from going into Germany and destroying their industrial centers! Saar Valley, Ruhr, here we come! ”

It makes sense for General Patton to think so, the US 3rd Army has a total of more than 70,000 troops in two armies, which is seven times the strength of the German army in the fortress of Metz, in addition, the 3rd Army also has a large number of tanks, artillery, etc., not to mention air power.

On the other hand, at Metz Fortress, their tanks were even captured from the French and British for teaching and even targeting, and some of them were used to simulate enemy attacks, and they were all equipped by the cadets for battle.

Considering such a huge disparity in strength, especially since the 3rd Army had won several battles in succession since it landed in France, at this time, the momentum was in full swing, so Patton almost saw the scene of the German industrial area groaning and burning under the tracks of his tanks.

At the forefront was the U.S. 20th Army, which consisted of three divisions: the 5th Infantry Division, the 90th Infantry Division, and the 7th Armored Division.

Barton looked at the map he had gotten from the French...... Originally a French fortress, the German 16th Army launched a strong attack on the fortress after the start of the French campaign in 1940, and the unmotivated French surrendered a week later, which also allowed the Germans to bypass the Maginot Line and make it inoperable.

As a result, the French had a detailed map of the fortress of Metz, but now the fortress of Metz has changed.

Looking at the three "islands" on the map, it didn't take long for Patton to develop a battle plan:

"The 5th Infantry Division will attack the island of Little Solsi, and the 90th Infantry Division will attack the island of Greater Solsi!" Patton pointed to the map and said, "While these two infantry divisions are holding back the Germans...... The 7th Panzer Division passed between the two islands and took the island of Shanbier behind it! ”

"General!" The staff officer couldn't help but gasp when he heard this: "This will make our armored forces be attacked by the enemy from several sides!" ”

The staff officer was right, Patton's plan was a bit of a self-defeating one...... The 7th Panzer Division passed between the small and large islands of Solsi and attacked the island of Shanbier, which meant that the 7th Panzer Division would have to move into the middle of the three German-defended islands, which would have caused the 7th Panzer Division to be flanked by the three islands.

"Don't worry, Thomas!" A confident smile appeared on Patton's face: "Think about this, if you were German, where would you deploy the main force?" ”

The staff officer thought for a moment and replied: "I will deploy the main force on the first line of the large and small Solsi Islands!" ”

"That's right!" Barton nodded and replied: "Even the fortifications, the large and small Solsi Islands are obviously more difficult to break through, and the island of Shanbir is another matter, we use the strongest 7th Panzer Division to attack their weakest part, once we take this Shanbir Island...... Their entire defense will soon crumble! ”

The staff officer nodded in agreement, and although it was a risky plan, it could indeed kill in one blow.

Patton's plan was almost successful, because the deployment of Qin Chuan and others in the Metz Fortress was indeed as Patton said, placing the main force on the first line of two islands, and the rear of the island of Shanbier was the logistics force.

Even in order to minimize the destruction of ammunition by enemy artillery fire or bombers, they put more ammunition on the island of Shanbir in the back, because the island is considered safer.

At eight o'clock that night, the vanguard of the US 5th Infantry Division rushed to the Metz fortress.

The first thing they did was to set up artillery positions near the fortress of Metz and bombard the fortress of Metz.

"The Germans are all recruits!" Patton's order was: "Let them know we're coming, and then stay in a state of euphoria all night, and when we do attack, they'll just watch our tanks go up!" ”

This is a kind of psychological warfare.

It should be said that this was done very successfully, because although Qin Chuan told those recruits again and again: "The Americans usually do not attack at night, they hate the dark, and at the same time, they cannot get air support when they attack at night, so you should rest assured that you should sleep and recuperate!" ”

But sleeping is not something that can be slept on, especially for recruits who have never fought a war, and in this state, they will naturally be nervous and unable to sleep...... They couldn't control themselves, and of course Qin Chuan couldn't either.

On the other hand, the US military also laid searchlights and anti-aircraft guns around it.

Qin Chuan believed that there was also a vehicle-mounted radar, because when the 2nd Battalion of the 1st Infantry Regiment carried helicopters to reinforce the Metz Fortress, as soon as he flew close to the fortress, the searchlights of the American troops flickered around like lights on a rotating stage, and then they fired everywhere as soon as they saw a little wind and grass anti-aircraft guns.

They even sent night fighters to enforce the blockade...... At this time, night fighters were relatively backward, and they were more likely to use flares or searchlights to make the fighters have a certain degree of night combat capability.

This led to the fact that the helicopter formations could not implement reinforcements to Metz.