After the two anti-aircraft artillery ring positions were captured, another company-sized group of German paratroopers also routed the 100 or so American troops guarding the west side of the airfield and stormed the airfield. Pen %Fun %Cabinet www.biquge.info so that the entire Grays Harbor airport was completely occupied by the Germans.

On the west shore of Concepson Bay, skirmishes similar to the battle for Port Grace Airport are everywhere. Because the German airborne troops had chosen to parachute on flat terraces far from the beaches, which were so widespread on Newfoundland that they could not be heavily defended, they did not meet with fierce resistance in most areas. After less than two hours of not even fierce fighting, a large area of leveled terraces on the western shore of Concepson Bay had been taken over by the airborne Germans.

However, in the Allied headquarters in the Churchill Naval Fortress, there was no atmosphere of panic at this time, not only was it not panicked, but there was also a faint sense of joy. That's right, joy! It is the joy of victory in sight!

This joy was not unreasonable, unlike those unprofessional anti-aircraft artillery soldiers who were defeated by the German airborne troops, the staff officers who were able to get a job in the headquarters of Lieutenant General Collins and Lieutenant General Fraser were very professional soldiers. They all knew that the German airborne was a huge mistake - they had made a wrong airborne landing at the wrong time and in the wrong place.

Although the airborne landing seemed quite successful, it caught the American army by surprise and occupied a lot of desolate territory. But it was useless, because the Germans had not taken even a real point until now, and had not even attacked. Therefore, the German troops who parachuted into the west bank of Concepson Bay are still alone troops who can only rely on airlift for supplies. And they don't have any heavy equipment, so they can't stop the counterattack of mechanized troops at all.

Because there are now a large number of Fokker planes circling over Newfoundland, and the American mechanized units lacking air cover are not dispatched, so those German paratroopers are arrogant for a while.

But the sky in Newfoundland is going to be dark after all! At that point, Lieutenant General Collins would be able to send his reserves (all mechanized infantry) to counterattack. There was no need to even use reserves, it was enough to send troops to counterattack directly from the important Allied strongholds on the western shore of Concepson Bay.

Because the U.S. infantry divisions deployed on Newfoundland have a tank battalion, a tank destroyer battalion, and a mechanized cavalry company (cavalry companies without horses ride M8 "Hound Dog" wheeled armored vehicles), and the total number of tanks, tank destroyers, and M8 armored vehicles is about 120-130, plus an equal number of reserve vehicles! Although this level of equipment is not comparable to that of the German Panzer Division, it is definitely not under the German Panzergrenadier Division, and it is not at all something that lightly armed paratroopers can deal with.

In order to deploy armored forces at the beginning of the German landing, Collins did not gather tank battalions and tank destroyer battalions attached to infantry divisions, but scattered them to various important strongholds along the coast of Newfoundland (usually holding beachheads and harbors where landings could be made).

Since the German landing fleet had not yet been found to be close to Newfoundland, Collins was able to send at least 100 tanks, tank destroyers, M8 armored vehicles, and thousands of heavily armed officers and men from his stronghold on the west shore of Concepson Bay as soon as it was dark. If that's not enough, Lieutenant General Collins has tens of thousands of well-armed reserves at his disposal, all of which are heavily armed with tanks and heavy artillery!

In addition, there were many 203mm and 240mm heavy guns used as shore guns in those strongholds, and with their support, it was almost impossible for the US counterattack to fail. So the situation on the Avalon Peninsula can be said to be under control!

"Lieutenant General, the counterattack plan is ready." A staff officer handed the plan he had just made to Lieutenant General Collins, who was working on the map with Lieutenant General Frazier.

"Okay, give it to me." Lieutenant General Collins reached out and took the text of the plan, read it carefully, and then gave it to Fraser, "Tonight is the bad luck of the Germans!" I really can't figure out why they threw airborne troops at Newfoundland? Don't they know that we have 3000 tanks and armored vehicles on this island? ”

Fraser smiled: "They are too underestimated, probably carried away by victory, right?" ”

Collins, a lieutenant general who served as deputy chief of staff of the US Army, couldn't understand things, and Fraser, a vice admiral who didn't know how to fight on land, couldn't understand it, so he was as confident as Collins.

……

"Sir, our people have taken down at least 5 landing sites for ZSO523 assault transport planes to land, and at least 250 ZSO523 planes can complete the assault landing, which is enough."

Colonel Cocker, chief of staff of the 1st Air Assault Corps, handed over a copy of the landing plan that had just been revised to Commander Theodore. Feng. General Shipper Airborne said with a smile: "It seems that the 'Columbus Operation' has been successful. ”

The key to the success of Operation Columbus is not how many lightly armed paratroopers are dropped, but how many ZSO523 air assault transport planes carrying tanks and other heavy equipment can be allowed to complete the landing operation.

Although there is intelligence that the Americans have 2,000-3,000 tanks and tank destroyers on the island of Newfoundland, the General Staff of the German Wehrmacht believes that as long as 100 E-25 tank destroyers and No. 4H tanks are on Newfoundland, they will definitely be able to lay down several key landing sites and ports, and then hold on until the arrival of reinforcements for the landing fleet.

"Let's go down first." Admiral Shipper Airborne had already finished reading the plan that Colonel Cork had just revised, "Just follow this plan?" Let's do it now. ”

"Okay, okay." Colonel Cork said, "Deliver the order immediately." ”

The "airborne plan" has been drawn up a long time ago, but it must be revised to a certain extent in the light of the previous airborne operations before it can be concretely implemented.

Since the airborne operation went very well, the revision of the airborne plan was not significant. At the heart of the plan is 4 of the 5 landing sites to drop 50 ZSO523s each (with a synthetic air assault battalion on them).

On another landing site were 60 ZSO523 air assault transport aircraft, which, in addition to an air assault battalion, also had the command of the 1st Air Assault Corps.

……

"Sir, the second wave of the enemy's airborne forces has arrived, with more than 200 large transport aircraft."

Vice Admiral Collins inside the Churchill Naval Fortress received the news of the arrival of the second wave of German airborne troops at this time, and he thought it was good news! Very good news!

"Haha," Collins smiled at Lieutenant General Fraser beside him, "there are quite a few Germans here, and it seems that the prisoner of war camp we prepared in advance is not enough." ”

"That's a small problem," Lieutenant General Fraser smiled, "Newfoundland is very empty, and there is always a place to stay." But until then, we'll have to arrest them all. ”

"That's not a problem!" Collins was still confident, "Bruce, don't forget that I have an armored division in my hands!" ”

Collins had a 16th Armored Division under the 6th Army of the U.S. Army, which was the Allied General Reserve on the island of Newfoundland. Clarenville, located near the confluence of Newfoundland and the Avalon Peninsula - Clarenville is a military location on Newfoundland after St. John's, itself a small port, two large airports nearby, and a road hub for Newfoundland, making it very easily accessible. If the 16th Panzer Division had set out from there, it would have only been necessary to march 120 kilometers to reach the battlefield on the west bank of Concepson Bay. Moreover, there are roads in good condition along the way, and the armored troops can drive at a speed of more than 40 kilometers per hour, and they can cover the whole distance in 3 hours.

"Set out as soon as it gets dark," thought Lieutenant General Collins, "and be on the battlefield by midnight to-day...... By dawn tomorrow it should be possible to inflict heavy losses on the German airborne forces. ”

He looked at Fraser as he spoke, "Bruce, if we can't wipe them all out tonight, there may be more German troops airlifted over during the day tomorrow, and there will definitely be German troops coming from the sea in a few days, I hope the main force of the Canadian fleet of the Royal Navy can be dispatched." ”

Not to mention, Lieutenant General Collins still attaches great importance to his opponents, and has already considered the problem that he will not be able to completely annihilate the German army and the landing of the German army from the sea for a while and a half.

Vice Admiral Fraser, of course, did not have the authority to use the Royal Navy's Canadian fleet, but he nodded his head again and again, wanting to agree first. But at this moment, suddenly a staff officer reported loudly: "Sir, the German transport plane seems to have landed in the area on the west bank of Concepsin Bay!" ”

"Landing?" Lieutenant General Collins and Lieutenant General Fraser were stunned at the same time.

"What's going on?" Collins asked.

"It's landing, more than 200 transport planes of the Germans are landing!" The staff officer replied, "All the strongholds on the western shore of Concepson Bay report so...... The 2nd wave of German transport planes did not drop parachutes, but began to land in German-controlled areas. ”

Seems a little wrong! Why did the transport plane of the Germans land? Can't you airdrop? What's on it?

And...... All the airfields on the west bank of Concepson Bay were blown up by the Germans themselves with missiles. Although there are quite a few platforms on high ground where transport planes can land, it is impossible to take off large transport planes on that terrain.

That is, the more than 200 "Universiade" that landed there were all disposable! Throwing away more than 200 "Universiade" in one airdrop operation, this trick probably can't even be taken out by the United States, right? And the Germans must have been forced to take out so many "big luck", and the things loaded on these "big luck" must not be airdropped!

Vice Admiral Collins and Vice Admiral Fraser looked at each other, and Fraser said, "There are Royal Navy gunboats and torpedo boats in Concepson Bay, and I can take them to the other side to see what is going on." ”