284

Episode 284: Blue Operation (8)

The Soviet Army's new heavy tank, the IS-3, was an innovative tank in many ways.

The hemispherical turret and wedge-shaped frontal armor maximized the advantages of sloped armor to provide significant protection, and spaced armor was introduced on the sides of the hull to increase side protection.

In addition, the IS-3, which boldly went all-in on defense, including completely abolishing the machine gun on the front of the hull, had a relatively light weight of 46 tons in contrast to its powerful protection.

Considering that the Tiger, which had much less protection than the IS-3, weighed 48 tons, it was a deceptive weight.

Of course, there were sacrifices, such as narrowing the internal space and deteriorating the crew's convenience at the cost of protection, but the appearance of the IS-3, which has a frontal vertical armor of 230 mm and a frontal vertical armor that is new to the public, has made sacrifices, but the Germans, who looked down on Soviet tanks, It gave a tremendous shock to the tank crews.

-Kaang!

"It bounced again!"

"What on earth happened to that mushroom-looking guy?!"

"Back up, back up!"

The Panther's 75mm shell and the Tiger's 88mm shell were completely useless against the IS-3.

The tank crews were shocked as if they had been hit on the head with a hammer, seeing even the 88/71 Tiger II and Jagd Panther, which were known to be impenetrable until now, ricocheting like peas.

As the tanks approached, the infantry attempted to block them with Panzerfausts.

"one two… … ."

"three-!"

The warhead of the Panzerfaust fired by the gunner, who took a deep breath and leaned forward, hit the turret of the IS-3, but the warhead only bounced off like previous shells.

Even if you shoot at the wedge-shaped front armor, the result is the same.

"Fuck, it's not working!"

"Rosuke bastards, what did you make this time!?"

On the other hand, Soviet tankers were encouraged by the IS-3's fantastic protection ability, which deflected all the shells coming at them.

Until now, when a German tank fired at a Soviet tank, it was likely to explode like a rice cooker, and the tank crews had no choice but to hope that the enemy bullet did not hit their tank.

"All of the Fasho's shells are bouncing off!"

"Yeah, fuck! "This is a tank!"

"Load grenades!"

"Balsa!!"

The IS-3, which was silently ricocheting while being hit by countless shells all over its body, fired its 122mm main gun.

The power of the 122mm grenade was truly incredible. With just one shot, a large hole was created in the defense line made up of infantry.

The German army, which had been showing signs of victory every day since the start of the Second German War, met a truly powerful enemy.

***

December 23, 1943

free russia vladimir

"It's the Ivans' new tank… … ."

Manstein was lost in thought as he read reports from the front line.

The Soviet army's new tank, which had just appeared on the front lines, had a tremendous impact on the German army.

"It looks just like a mushroom."

"Contrary to its funny appearance, its defense power is said to be at a level that cannot be ignored. From what I heard, it blocked up to 88mm of a Koenigstiger fired from close range... … ."

"Huh, is it that much? "This is not normal."

Manstein clicked his tongue. The fact that it blocked up to 88/71 shots fired at close range means that the armor is not usually thick.

However, when I heard it, surprisingly, the armor was not that thick. When the armor of the destroyed tank was removed and measured, it was found to be only 110mm at maximum.

Although 110mm is not thin by any means, Manstein whistled at the speculation that the shape and slope of the armor seemed to have had a significant impact on the increase in protection.

I used to ignore them as communist Slavs, but seeing things like this makes me feel like I can't ignore them anymore.

No German engineer could have thought of making the turret shaped like a hemisphere and the armor shaped like a wedge.

However, as can be seen from the statement that it was successfully defeated, this tank, which seemed perfect on the outside, had numerous weaknesses.

"Kramer! Shoot the underbody! Or even shoot it into orbit! "Don't let him move!"

"All right!"

-pop!

"That's right… … Defeat confirmed!"

"That monster has been roasted!"

The lower part of the hull could be easily penetrated with 88/71, and the 122mm gun had a slow loading speed and poor accuracy.

Because a large gun was crammed into an already narrow car body, crew habitability was the worst. It inherited all the shortcomings of its predecessor, the IS-2.

The newly introduced wedge-shaped armor had excellent protection, but the welding difficulty was great.

Welding wedge-shaped armor was not an easy problem in the Soviet Union, which lost its territory in the war and faced a shortage of skilled workers, and because low-quality armor materials were used for manufacturing, it seemed to be okay for the first few times, but if it continued, it would be shocked. , a situation occurred where the gloves developed cracks or broke completely.

First of all, the skies did not belong to the Soviet Air Force.

-Why?!

"Stukada!"

"Good!"

The German Air Force, which had complete control of air superiority, launched non-stop sorties and rained fire on the heads of the attacking Soviet troops.

The IS-3, hit by a rocket fired by a Stuka, stood tall and vomited fire and smoke.

No matter how thick the armor was, the upper armor was inevitably thin and was powerless against attacks from the air.

-Quaaang!

"Second generation!"

"The rebels are scattering. "You must have been quite surprised."

"As long as this Rudel keeps his eyes open, Roske can fly and crawl. Hold on tight. "I'll go one more time."

While the Stukas pounded the IS-3 in the air, German tankers quickly penetrated the enemy's flank.

"Fire armor-piercing bullets!"

Spatial armor was also applied to the sides to achieve a protective power equivalent to 90mm of vertical armor, but this level could have been penetrated even by the Panther's 75mm main gun.

All the shells fired toward the side of the turret ricocheted, but the shells that hit the side penetrated the armor and turned the inside of the tank into a sea of fire. There was also a tank whose turret was blown off when the ammunition exploded.

Although there was considerable damage from the German army, the crisis was overcome thanks to the dedicated support of experienced tankers and the Air Force, which dominated the air superiority.

However, even if you manage to get over it for now, it is by no means a problem that has been resolved or something that can be treated lightly.

Manstein immediately wrote a report to send to the Führer.

***

December 24, 1943

New Fuhrer's Residence in Berlin, Germany

Today is Christmas Eve.

It is a holy day, the day before holy Christmas.

But even on this joyous and holy Christmas Eve, I could hardly smile.

"Why is this coming out already? … "War is so shit."

In actual history, the IS-3 appeared in September 1945, four months after the fall of Nazi Germany.

According to one theory, during the invasion of Manchuria, a tank battalion was deployed to battle the Kwantung Army, but the Kwantung Army's resistance was weak and did not leave a noteworthy result.

I don't know if it's true or a later rumor, but the IS-3 that appeared at the Victory Commemoration Parade in Berlin left a deep impression and shock on the high-ranking American and British officers who were in charge of the parade, thanks to its appearance that I had never seen before.

Anyway, I don't understand why a tank that only appeared near the end of World War II appeared in 1943 and not 1944.

I had a rough guess that something like this would happen someday since the IS-2 appeared, but I still think it might be too soon. I mean, not even a year has passed yet.

If this continues, I don't know if the T-44 or T-54 will appear in the near future.

The balance patch is so awesome.

To date, the number of IS-3s that have been seen on the front lines does not exceed 40, and several of them were destroyed by friendly forces during battle and their remains were captured.

Nevertheless, as an expert in this field, Manstein decided that this was not something to just ignore, and wrote a report to me, urging me to be careful.

I also agree with Manstein.

Considering that a more powerful successor, the IS-3, was developed and deployed to the front line less than a year after the introduction of the IS-2, the T-44 or T-54 may appear soon.

It's not a joke, really.

It is unknown why the Soviet Union developed tanks so quickly.

Was the unknown being who sent me here - perhaps God? - working on a balance patch, or was Stalin ruthlessly ripping off his engineers and pulling off a literal miracle?

What is certain is that the Soviet Union is by no means an easy opponent.

No one knows what will happen if the war is not ended quickly.

Brauchitsch and the army generals, who initially dismissed it as nothing more than a small number of specially manufactured tanks, were also astonished by the IS-3's deceptive protection capabilities.

Although there were many things that could make others laugh, such as broken armor or cracks in welded areas due to the use of low-quality armor, it was undeniable that the IS-3 was a very advanced tank despite its numerous shortcomings.

"Königstiger should be able to compete 1:1."

"If it had been produced normally, what kind of performance would it have had?" … ."

In particular, the Soviet Union surprised the generals by showing production that was close to fraud even after losing major territory and industrial zones. Even if there were only a few IS-3s now, there was no idea that hundreds of IS-3s would be pouring into the front lines in a few months.

"We are so fortunate to have our Air Force on our side. "It would have been very difficult if our troops had not had air superiority."

"Wow, that's too much praise. The Air Force just did what it had to do."

In response to Reichenau's complaints, Göring waved his hand, trembling for no reason. His mouth must be very catchy.

Although I was surprised to encounter an unexpected ambush, the atmosphere inside the Presidential Residence was still relaxed.

Even now, there is a line of surrendering prisoners on the front line, and our forces, which have control of air superiority, are launching bombers every day and thoroughly destroying enemy cities.

And we have a nucleus.

The world's only nuclear bomb, not found in any other country in the world.

"Marshal Richthofen, are the preparations going well as you instructed me before?"

"Of course, Mr. President. "If only you would give us instructions, Your Excellency, and if what our scientists say is true, the city where the commies are crouching can be found on the map-"

"iced coffee. Of course, there is that, but what I'm asking about is other preparations."

"As for other preparations, do you mean 'that'? "I have given instructions so that it can be implemented within today."

"Right. Even though we are an enemy country, we are still the same people, so we must do what we can as human beings.

"Our enemies are the human butcher Stalin and his followers, not good citizens."

"I'm offended, but I'm not sure if this is necessary."

Richthofen said as if he was dissatisfied.

"When did they listen when we spoke? And I'm worried that we might be showing them what we have for no reason."

"You might think so. But Marshal, this is all necessary for the evaluation of future generations. "At the very least, it is a process we must go through to leave behind evidence that we did not want to see a lot of unnecessary blood loss."

***

December 25, 1943

soviet right wing

Citizens from all over the world, including Europe and the United States, enjoyed the festive atmosphere by walking through streets decorated with colorful decorations and Christmas trees for Christmas.

Children played in the snow, housewives were busy cooking dinner for their families, and heads of families went to stores to buy gifts for their children who were looking forward to Christmas.

Even though it was wartime, on this day I forgot about the war and fully enjoyed the excitement that Christmas brings and the anticipation of the new year.

However, this was not the case for the Soviets in the far-off frozen land.

There was the Communist Party's suppression of religion, but in the first place, Eastern Europe, which believed in the Russian Orthodox Church, used the Julian Calendar, so December 25th was a day of no significance to them.

What kind of Christmas is this during wartime, when the fate of the country is at stake?

Let alone the festival, people were grateful just to eat one full meal a day.

-Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

The siren rang and people walking on the street dispersed in perfect order and ran toward the bomb shelter.

People who had become accustomed to air raids reflexively looked for air raid shelters when they heard sirens.

"Keep order!"

"Go in one by one, one by one!"

"Don't push!"

While police and military forces encouraged citizens to evacuate, anti-aircraft guns located throughout the city, including on building rooftops, parks, and vacant lots, opened fire on intruders in the sky.

"You bastard pigs! "You're very skinny, aren't you?"

"Still, it's a bit low today, isn't it?"

Less than 10 German bombers appeared over Ufa.

The most recent raid involved more than 100 bombers dropping bombs.

While the anti-aircraft guns were firing, the bomb bay of the bomber opened.

And leaflets pouring in.

"W-what is it?"

"It's a leaflet, right?"

The anti-aircraft artillerymen were relieved when they learned that what the bombers were carrying were leaflets, not bombs.

And I offered a prayer of thanks to God. I was able to live safely today too.

The bombers, who had dropped not even a single leaflet, turned around and quietly disappeared.

-The air raid ends. The air raid ends.

- I repeat. The airstrikes have ended. Citizens, please feel safe and return to your work.

The heavy iron door of the bomb shelter opened and citizens came out, letting out the breath they had been holding.

Leaflets were piled high on the snow that covered the streets.

Despite warnings and surveillance that picking up or possessing leaflets would result in severe punishment, citizens secretly picked up leaflets to avoid other people's eyes and checked what was written on the paper.

-People of the Soviet Union! Instead of submitting to the Communist Party, which treats you like slaves and ruthlessly treats you like animals, stand up and fight! Fight with your own hands and win your freedom!

-The trend has already turned. The Soviet Union can never win the war.

-Raise an uprising right now and drive out Stalin and his gang who are oppressing you. Or don't follow their orders. Obeying their orders without question means you become their sympathizer.

As always with leaflets, the content was there.

You lost the war, so surrender quickly, start an uprising, oust Stalin and win freedom, etc.

But there were also passages that I saw for the first time today.

- Evacuate out of the city as soon as possible. A catastrophe of unimaginable magnitude will soon befall you.

-Get out of the city immediately. Take your families and get as far away from the city as possible.

People simply took the phrase written on the leaflet to mean that they should hurry and run away before this place also becomes a battlefield.

The NKVD, which collected leaflets distributed in the city to check what was written in order to prevent citizens from being misled, did not attach much significance to the words written on the leaflets.

It took a day or two for the German fascists to brag.