Patton, who participated in the Italian campaign, can definitely be described as cunning and cunning. Barton devised two traps for Hubey. Or rather, he designed two preset battlefields waiting for the other to plunge into. One battleground is, of course, West Islamic Abad. This city was a surefire way to attack the Kermanshah. Rapid troops can bypass this place with enhanced logistics, but large forces definitely cannot. In Barton's view, if Hube is responsible, then he should first help the main force to knock down this portal first.

Of course, Patton also considered that Hube might abandon the attack on the ground because the armored forces were not suitable for attack, and that was fine. Barton has designed a second trap outside the city. This trap was the ominous armored unit located northwest of the city mentioned by the German reconnaissance forces. In fact, this unit is mainly a circular defensive position dominated by half-track self-propelled anti-tank guns, anti-aircraft guns, and battle defense guns. Of course, there were also a small number of tanks. Patton arranged for a large number of tankers to move back and forth on the road to convince them that troops were stockpiling fuel. And then make the other side think that a very mobile force is deployed here.

If Hube can abandon the turtle-like shell-like West Islam Abad, then this mobile force deployed outside the city must not be taken lightly. Because it's unavoidable. The other side is a highly mobile force, and if you don't ask for trouble from others, maybe people will still find trouble with you. No matter how elite the armored troops are, they are very passive once they are attacked by surprise in a state of movement. So if Hube decided that it was an armored force, then he had no choice but to eliminate it before making the next move. And if Hube were going to attack on his own initiative. THEN WHAT AWAITS HIM IS A VARIETY OF ANTI-TANK GUNS AND LEVELED 90MM ANTI-AIRCRAFT GUNS. TANK 4, NO MATTER HOW STRONG IT IS, CAN'T STOP THE ATTACK OF THE 90MM ANTI-AIRCRAFT GUN.

In fact, Paul had already fallen into the pit dug by Barton, and he had avoided plans to attack the town according to conventional judgment. But also because of conventional judgment. Fell directly into another Patton pit, both of which were support points reinforced by anti-tank fire. No matter what you hit. The Germans can't take advantage of it! Of course, consumption alone will not work. The goal of the second trap is to draw the other person firmly. It is like the red cloth that constantly teases the bull in the bullring and the javelin that constantly consumes the life of the bull. And what really put the bull to death was the sharp spear in the hands of the bull killer! And the spear in Patton's hand is the armored unit of the fighting dog Walker, an armored force composed of more than 50 tanks and tank destroyers of various types.

Thinking of the scene when the German tanks were desperately attacking the American defense line, Walker suddenly led the team to kill, and Barton woke up laughing from sleep. In order to ensure that the armored unit commanded by Walker would not be discovered, the Americans also specially camouflaged the station, and also specially used a temporary airfield to interfere with the opponent's aerial reconnaissance. In fact, Hube's reconnaissance force was indeed in short supply after several days of long-distance travel. And the Luftwaffe reconnaissance plane was also driven around by the P40. But at the same time, it is precisely because of Barton's high-level arrangement that Hube smells a hint of conspiracy from it.

Unlike ordinary people's thinking, ordinary people think that what they can't see is nothing. Especially when the other side's deployment makes them feel "normal", they will ignore the hidden crisis in the fog of war. For example, this time Patton's game is very "normal" on the surface. A static defense of a city and a "suspected" mobile unit station on the outskirts of the city. In general, that's the standard for the defense of such a city. So Paul and others automatically ignore what they can't see. Because the former is normal.

But Hube is different. It doesn't know what exactly is in Barton's trap. But he never let his guard down on his opponents in the fog of war. From the "abnormal" deployment of the US Air Force, he was keenly aware that the other side might have an "abnormal" force waiting for him.

However, being aware of the dangers does not mean that the problem can be solved. Hubey's dilemma was that the mobile force of indefinite size had to be eliminated, and when attacking this force, he also had to pay attention to the unexposed forces of the other side, he had suspected that this force might be hidden in the city, but at the moment it seemed that the strength in his hands was not enough to attack the opponent and defend in all other directions. There were about 60 tanks in their hands. The total number of assault gun battalions is around 40 vehicles. The latter is good for defense, but if you are offensive, the performance will have to be discounted. And unlike the last time he fought in Italy, he did not have an independent cannon unit, nor did he have an independent medium-caliber anti-aircraft artillery, and all the anti-armor forces had to be drawn from these 100 or so tanks.

"If. We are faced with two fortified positions. And a certain amount of armor was stationed in it. THEN WE CURRENTLY HAVE NOT VERY SUFFICIENT SUPPORT FIREPOWER IN OUR HANDS, ONLY 8 150MM SELF-PROPELLED HOWITZERS AND SOME 105MM ASSAULT GUNS. If we attack it, it will cost a lot, in addition. I'm worried that the other side will have other back-ups. Hube said to his subordinates.

"So I decided to launch a feint against the enemy forces northwest of the town first. Then two cordons were arranged, which were spread out on the left and right wings. I decided to arrange a platoon of tanks and a platoon of assault guns on each side, mixing some reconnaissance vehicles. Your job is to guard against and hold off each other's attacks. We won't keep you waiting too long, and I'll leave enough troops to support you. In the end, the cautious Hube chose to test first. And the results of this trial shocked Hubey.

The attack that the Americans had been waiting for was finally launched. UNDER THE COVER OF 120MM MORTARS AND 150MM HOWITZERS, GROUPS OF GERMAN TANKS APPEARED IN THE FIELD OF VISION OF THE AMERICAN ARMY. "Judging by the shelling fire of the Germans. THE OTHER SIDE DOES NOT SEEM TO BE EQUIPPED WITH MUCH LONG-RANGE FIREPOWER, WHICH MAKES US BREATHE A SIGH OF RELIEF, IN FACT, IF YOU CALCULATE THE RANGE, OUR 90MM ANTI-AIRCRAFT GUN HAS A RANGE NO LESS THAN THE GERMAN 150 CANNON. But in order not to startle the snake, we did not suppress the opponent's long-range firepower, but waited patiently for the German tanks to come to the door. This was how an American officer recalled after the war.

The battlefield was calm except for the sound of motors and the howling wind of the tanks. The position of defense chosen by the Americans was very good. A large number of baggage and non-combat vehicles were placed on the back of a hill, outside the range of howitzer strikes. All front-line anti-tank guns were deployed in the gun emplacements, the line of fire was low, and there were camouflage nets and breasts. There are also civil fortifications at key positions, and it can be said that unless they are directly hit, the damage of simple fragments to the gun position is not great.

The Germans slowly advanced on the basis of past experience. In front was a company of tanks, supported by self-propelled mortars on the flanks, followed by mechanized infantry in half-tracks. However, the distance between the tanks and infantry in front was a little greater. This time it was only a feint, Hube did not even intend to let the infantry get off the vehicle to fight, and the remaining tanks and assault guns were concentrated in preparation for a sudden strike.

The Germans were not quick to attack, slowly approaching their opponents and firing smoke bombs from their mortars. The other party obviously has the idea of sticking to it. Then in the case of the same artillery performance, the tank in the dynamic attack is definitely inferior to the anti-aircraft gun in terms of shooting accuracy and speed. After all, people have fixed guns, and the working space is larger, while the tank needs to stop first and then fire, and the narrow interior also affects the operation. The number of runners in the running group is not as large as the anti-aircraft guns. So the Germans, in order to reduce losses in long-range firefights, constantly fired smoke grenades.

According to the example of the German Army, the distance at which a tank can fire accurately at a stationary target generally does not exceed 1 km. If the opponent is a well-defended hard target, such as the Huaxia Type 29 tank, then the effective engagement distance will not exceed 700 meters. So the German tank forces generally approached 800 meters and began to attack. THE GERMAN TANKS SLOWLY APPROACHED THE OPPONENT'S DEFENSE LINE ACCORDING TO THE PRE-WAR PLAN, THE SLENDER 75MM GUNS ON THE NO. 4 TANK POINTED FORWARD, AND AS THE DISTANCE APPROACHED, THE TANK FORMATION GRADUALLY UNFOLDED, AND THE COMMANDER OBSERVED THE SITUATION AHEAD FROM THE CONNING TOWER ABOVE THE TURRET, THE OPPONENT WAS WELL HIDDEN, AND THE BUNKER AND TERRAIN WERE INTEGRATED. So much so that the Germans could only find a few firing points in the early reconnaissance.

As the distance closed, the American officers and soldiers who went to the battlefield for the first time stood dead from their bunkers against the German tanks looming in the smoke screen in the distance. And constantly estimating the distance between the two sides. When the distance between the two sides was about 800 meters, all the German tanks almost unanimously stopped, and after a short stop, the first round of firing began. A series of fires burst out of the slender barrels and flew towards the American positions in the distance, and several fire points that had been detected in advance were hit by the flying shells. With a violent explosion, parts of weapons and fragments of corpses were thrown into the air, and the bloody scene made many American soldiers vomit for the first time. But even so, in the face of the first tentative attack of the Germans, the Americans held back and did not fight back.

In less than half a minute, the Germans fired three volleys, which, although powerful, were not very effective. The deterrent effect exceeds the tactical effect. But the incessant shooting still shook the nerves of Americans. Many people could not wait to fight back against the German tanks in the smoke.

"900 meters away? It's a bit far. A AMERICAN GUNNER LOOKED AT THE 57MM ANTI-TANK GUN NEXT TO HIM, ESTIMATED THE DISTANCE, AND SHOOK HIS HEAD. After a short pause, the remaining tanks continued to advance, and the Germans approached the red line of American anti-aircraft artillery step by step.

Thanks to the book friends zhouyu1976 and hukaikaka for their tips ~~~~~. (To be continued......)