"Tank! The German tanks are here! In groups, detouring south of Bill Hakim!"

Someone suddenly shouted in the combat room of the British 8th Army Command in the bunker of the Fortress of the Port of Tobrook. Then the noisy combat room suddenly became quiet. Even the staff members who were passing in and out of the orders and news stopped and turned their eyes to their commander, Lieutenant General Alan Cunningham.

The terrible German armored forces began to act. They came very quickly, as if a gust of wind blew from Benghazi to Tobrook. And they launched the action faster. When everyone thought that these Germans were going to rest for a while, they actually started to attack and fight the slow Italians. After everyone was a little unacceptable to the fast pace of the Germans' war.

"How many have you come?" Lieutenant General Alan Cunningham, who was studying the map, stood up and asked the staff member who rushed in in a panic.

"There are 200-300 tanks, or more," said the staff officer. "One of our patrol teams touched them and retreated, not touching too much."

"What's going on with Bill Hakim?" Alan Cunningham asked again.

"It is being bombarded violently!" A consultant soon answered.

"Where is the defense line between the 1st Division of South Africa and the 5th Division of India?"

“No attack.”

After asking two questions, Alan Cunningham had concluded that the German armored cluster was ready to detour from south of Bill Hakim.

"Tell Major General Craig to let his armored cluster be dispatched immediately!" Lieutenant General Alan Cunningham did not hesitate and immediately issued an order to attack the commander of the armored cluster, Major General Michael Moore Craig.

It was not Alan Cunningham who was frivolous, but he had no choice. Now the sea control and air supremacy are basically on the side of Germany and Italy. Although he leaned against the supply port of Tobrook, he could not get too much supply from the sea. If the supply line on land was cut off by the German armored cluster, then the 150,000 troops here in Tobrook could be eliminated by hunger.

Moreover, the terrain around Tobrook is relatively flat. Although there are valleys and hills, it is quite convenient to detour. If Alan Cunningham does not move, the 150,000 troops will be surrounded by the Germans in the afternoon.

At this time, Lieutenant Rudolph von Ribbentrop was sitting in the back seat of a brand new SD.kz.251 armored reconnaissance vehicle. While feeling the bumps of the half-tracked armored vehicle, he held a telescope and searched the desolate sand in front of him.

On both sides of the semi-track armored vehicle that Lieutenant Ribbintrov was riding, there were two semi-track armored vehicles of similar models, one mechanized reconnaissance. The armored platoon belonging to it had 5 SD.kz.251 series armored vehicles and 9 three-wheeled motorcycles. These 5 SD.kz.251 semi-track armored vehicles can also be equipped with weapons and equipment as needed.

Because the British equipment forces here in North Africa are relatively strong and the number of tanks in the German armored forces is not large, one of the five semi-tracked armored vehicles under Lieutenant Ribbintrov is equipped with a French SA37 47mm anti-tank gun. And two of the other four SD.kz.251 semi-tracked armored vehicles are equipped with 20mm machine guns, and two are equipped with machine guns.

In addition, the nine BM brand tricycles all had a mg34 machine gun on them.

Although it is only a platoon, their firepower is probably comparable to a battalion of the Italian army in North Africa.

So just now they easily defeated an English armored patrol team and easily destroyed several British armored cars with the 47mm cannon installed on a half-track car.

"Lieutenant Ribbintrov, huge smoke and dust were found in front of him!" The voice of Sergeant Schumacher, the commander of the No. 5, came from Lieutenant Ribbintrov's headphones.

Lieutenant Ribbintrov quickly raised his telescope and the blue sky was indeed filled with yellow smoke and dust. This should be the dust caused by the tracks and wheels of a large number of armored vehicles rolling over the sand.

"Lt. Schwarzenegger, I am the first platoon leader Ribbintrov." Lieutenant Ribbintrov picked up the phone and called on his own platoon leader Lieutenant Schwarzenegger. "I found the situation ahead, and it seems that the British armored cluster is right in front, please give me instructions."

"Get closer and see clearly!" Lieutenant Schwarzenegger's order came over.

"As for the order." Ribbentrop adjusted the frequency and began to send orders to his subordinates. "Everyone, we are going to go to the front fire reconnaissance! Sergeant Schumacher, check your 47mm cannon, and we will all count on you when we meet the British cruiser tank later."

"Secretary, don't worry, I will blow up all the cruiser tanks!"

The French SA37 47mm anti-tank gun is a treasure, and it can wear 72mm uniform vertical armor at a distance of 1,000 meters. The Matilda No. 2 tank that is not necessarily good at fighting the British, but it is only a small disc to deal with the thin skin and large filling Crusader cruiser tanks.

Hearing Sergeant Schumacher's words, Lieutenant Ribbentrop laughed: "Okay, then we'll kill a few British crusaders."

This is easy to say, but it is not easy to do. Because the SD.kz.251 armored reconnaissance vehicle is an armored vehicle after all, and the British Crusader tanks can easily kill it!

The five armored vehicles and nine motorcycles under Lieutenant Ribbintrov continued to move forward and walked forward for about 10 minutes. The smoke and dust in front became bigger and the buzzing sound of the increasingly louder motor came.

"Now, stop moving forward!" Lieutenant Ribbentrop knew that the opponent's tank was about to appear soon, so he ordered his five armored vehicles to stop moving forward. "Sergeant Schumacher, prepare to open fire!"

"Prepare!" Sergeant Schumacher replied.

"Okay, I want to see who you are?" Lieutenant Ribbintrov raised his telescope and stared at the front. About 5 minutes later, steel monsters slowly moving forward appeared in the sand and dust ahead. Through their huge outline analysis, Lieutenant Rudolph Von Ribbintrov knew that they were mostly Crusader cruisers tanks.

"Let's fire!" Lieutenant Ribbintrov shouted with a telephone.

"boom!"

Before he finished speaking, the 47mm anti-tank gun had already started, and a flame broke through the air at an extremely fast speed. Before the human mind could react, the shell had already hit a British tank 1,000 meters away, and then a ball of fire rose into the air.

"I've hit it!"

There was a burst of cheers coming from Ribbintrop's headphones.

At this time, he had already seen the appearance of the tank under the smoke and dust, which was the British Crusader cruiser tank. The number seemed to exceed 100, but he did not see that the Matilda 2 tanks were too maneuverable and were usually pulled near the battlefield by heavy trucks. It is estimated that they are still in the car now.

"Sergeant Schumacher, continue to open the fire, and leave after fifteen rounds." Lieutenant Ribbintrov picked up the phone and shouted, "Other vehicles are now leaving the cigarette tank and retreating!"

The fire reconnaissance mission has been completed so far, fighting with the British Crusader tanks is not what the armored reconnaissance platoon should do. So the function of Sergeant Schumacher's 47mm cannon is actually to cover the retreat of a big guy.

...

"Admiral, the enemy's main force has taken the bait, with at least 100 cruise tanks." Lieutenant General Alfred Goldz, chief of staff of the African Army, took a report paper from a communications soldier riding a motorcycle, took a look, and then laughed.

"It has not been hooked yet," Rommel shook his head and said to Lieutenant General Goldz, who was in the same armored command vehicle as him. "It will be counted as hooked until the British tanks silly hit our 50mm anti-tank gun."

The ineffective 37mm anti-tank gun is now disappearing from the German army, but the elimination speed is not too fast. After all, the urgency of the army's equipment upgrade after the Western Front was not too great. Moreover, the huge shipbuilding plan occupies a lot of resources, so only a few troops have completed the comprehensive upgrade of anti-tank guns. However, the few divisions owned by the African Army are all a few troops that have completed the upgrade, and they have all replaced the Pak38 50mm anti-tank guns.

Although this anti-tank gun is not as powerful as the French SA37 47mm anti-tank gun, it is also sufficient to deal with British Crusader cruiser tanks and Matilda No. 2 tanks.

"It depends on Lieutenant General Thomas' ability now!" Rommel picked up his arms and muttered as he looked around. At least 100 No. 4 tanks and more truck armored vehicles lined up in the sand. If Feng Thomas could not win, it was time for them to go up and support.

And a little further away, hundreds of caliber wasp self-propelled cannons had already been formed, with their muzzles raised high, just waiting to open fire.

"It's just a few half-track cars, there's no need to chase after it." Major General Craig, the commander of the British armored cluster, was giving orders at this time, "let all Matilda tanks get out of the car and then form an attack formation with the Crusader cruiser tanks.

In addition, let the 3rd Indian Motorized Infantry Brigade cover Left Yi; the Polish Brigade and the 1st Free French Brigade cover the tank attack!"

Then he looked at the sky with concern again. It seemed that it would not rain in the sky in North Africa, and it would always be blue and white clouds. Although no trace of German bombers was found (Major General Regg guessed that they might be entangled by British fighters), they would definitely come soon.
Chapter completed!