Just as Gurdiev agreed and was about to walk outside with Sverin, Sokov unexpectedly called him: "Comrade Colonel, please wait a moment, I haven't finished my words yet."
"Comrade Brigade Commander, please tell me."
The reason why Sokov called Gurdiev was suddenly thinking that the Soviet army's defenses were linear defenses, and the commanders were accustomed to line up their troops and facing the enemy. The 308th Division held its position because the terrain was smooth and it was not conducive to difficulty in defending. If the common defensive formation was adopted, it would probably suffer heavy casualties.
"Comrade Colonel, please come here." Sokov called Gurdiev to the table, then used a pen to draw a sketch on a piece of paper, and said to him: "We should not only deploy strong defensive firepower on the front of the defense, but also find suitable positions in front of the position and establish several side firepower points."
"Side firepower point?" Although the Soviet army had used side firepower point in defense operations in different regions after the outbreak of the war, when Gurdiev heard this fresh word, he was stunned for a moment, and then asked back: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, I don't quite understand. Can you explain it to me?"
Sokov knew very well that people would be skeptical about things they were unfamiliar with, and Gurdiev was no exception. He patiently explained to him: "As the name suggests, it refers to the fire point deployed on the flank of the German offensive route, which can assist in defending the frontal fire point to eliminate enemies entering the range."
Gurdiev nodded in a vague way, and then asked: "If the firepower of our frontal defense is strong enough, I don't think it is necessary to establish a side fire point. Because once this fire point is exposed, it will be easily removed by the enemy."
Regarding Gurdiev's doubts, Sokov said as usual: "When the heavy machine gun we seized, we use 50 rounds of ammunition links to connect each other, with a capacity of 250 rounds. If we shoot at the enemy rushing towards the front, the targets that can be effectively hit are 30. If we shoot at the side fire point, the targets that will hit will rise to 120."
"My God." Svellin couldn't help but exclaim when he heard this: "Shot from the side can actually hit so many targets. Isn't it equivalent to destroying an enemy every two bullets?"
Svelin was a political cadre. When he heard that the number of bullets was equal, the target hit by the side fire point was several times more than the frontal shooting, which made him lose his composure. Gurdiev's performance was much calmer. He did not blindly believe what Sokov said, but asked: "Comrade Brigade Commander, I want to ask, is the data you mentioned reliable?"
"Absolutely reliable." The data Sokov mentioned were all from later books, but the authenticity has not been tested by practice. However, since Gurdiev raised such a question, he still put on a serious look and said: "These data are provided by technicians in the Weapons and Equipment Department."
Originally, Gurdiev had doubts about Sokov, but when he heard that these data came from the Weapons and Equipment Department, the questions in his heart disappeared. He wishfully believed that these data must have been said by Yakov and Sokov during a chat. He knew that Yakov came from the Weapons and Equipment Department, and the data he said would never be wrong.
After dispelling the doubts in his heart, Gurdiev nodded and said, "I understand. After receiving the ammunition, I will set up several side fire points in front of the position. If the Germans don't attack, it won't be fine. If they want to attack, I will definitely make them pay a heavy price."
After Gurdiev left, Sokov asked Samoilov to take Ball and Jurgen to rest, and then said to Bere: "Col. Bere, what are you planning if friendly forces come to take over our defense? Stay or move with us?"
Berek understood why Sokov asked himself this way, staying means that he would fight a bloody battle with the enemy here. Whether he could survive depends on his personal luck. Although it would be much safer to transfer with Sokov, all the existing tanks must be handed over to friendly forces, and he and his subordinates will once again turn from tank soldiers to infantry.
Seeing Bere frowning and thinking hard, Sokov guessed that he might be in a dilemma and didn't know what decision to make, so he took the initiative to ask: "Col. Bere, do you want to hear my opinion?"
"Please tell me, comrade brigade commander." Bile wanted to hear what Sokov was thinking, so he said politely: "I want to hear how you plan to arrange our tank unit."
"Col. Bere, I want to ask you a question before answering your question." Sokov looked at Berere and asked, "Do you think General Rokosovsky's troops can rush into the encirclement from here and join the defenders in the city?"
"It may be possible to break through the encirclement, but you must meet with the defenders in the city..." When Bere said this, he shook his head with a wry smile, "The last time a tank brigade under General Rokosovsky did not successfully break through the German defense line, but they were completely annihilated by the enemy during their advance towards Orlovka."
Sokov heard from Bere's voice that he was not optimistic about the attack launched by Rokosovsky's troops from here, and he felt much more at ease, knowing that the next persuasion would become easier: "Yes, Colonel Bere, last time I led the troops to Orlovka to pick up friendly troops, but within the specified time, they did not arrive at the designated location, so we had to withdraw in the end."
"Misha," Bere, after he finished speaking, asked in his nickname: "It seems that you are planning to let us retreat with you?"
"Yes, Colonel Bilei." Talking to smart people is just a matter of ease. Before he could say his words, Bilei guessed what he wanted to say. But Sokov saw that Bilei seemed to have some concerns and asked quickly: "Do you have any worries?"
"Misa, you should know very well what the terrain here looks like. Our tanks cannot drive down such a steep hillside. Even if we can drive down, we cannot reach the other side without bridges and ferries." Belle frowned and said, "So if we want to retreat with you, we can only hand over these tanks to friendly forces. Have you ever thought that using well-trained tank soldiers as infantry is a waste."
"Col. Bere, I understand your feelings and the feelings of tank soldiers for tanks." Sokov understood in his heart that even if he evacuated this position, he could not stay away from Stalingrad. His superiors would definitely let him enter the city from another direction and continue to command the troops that were standing on Mamayev's hill. If Berere can be with him, then after the counterattack begins, his men will have a well-trained tank unit that can establish more merits. "But even if you hand over these tanks to friendly forces, you can get new tanks soon."
"Is this true, Misha?" Sokov's words surprised Bere, and he asked in surprise: "Will the superiors add new tanks to us in the shortest time?"
"I think there should be no problem." Sokov knew that if he didn't untie the knot in Bere's heart, he would not be willing to follow him. So he smiled and said, "Col. Bere, maybe we just arrived at Ivanovka, and our superiors will order us to return to the city. You must know that the Red October factory we are sticking to is now producing T-34 tanks on a large scale. At that time, Director Peter will allocate dozens of vehicles to us. It is probably not difficult."
Bereh spent some time in the Red October factory, and naturally knew that the factory was still producing tanks, but he was worried that his superiors would not easily deliver the new tank to himself: "Misha, we have received more than 40 tanks from Director Peter. After a few days, we want to get a new tank from him. Even if he agrees, the superiors may not agree."
"You're thinking too much, Colonel Bere." Sokov was very sure of getting a new tank from Peter. Seeing that Berere was still full of concerns, he said to him with a relaxed expression: "If we need some tanks to fight against the attacking enemy in order to defend the Red October factory, I think Director Peter would definitely agree."
Bere stood up and said to Sokov: "Misha, then I will go back to the army first, gather all the soldiers, and prepare for the transfer."
"I need me to accompany you." As Belei's name changed, the two became much closer. Seeing Belei's desire to find his subordinates, Sokov took the initiative to propose, "Maybe I can help you with ideological work."
"No need." Bi Lei said disapprovingly about Sokov's kindness: "I understand my subordinates, and no matter what decision I make, they will firmly obey."
But what Bere didn't expect was that he summoned all his subordinates. He just said that he was about to give up the tank and follow Sokov and others to move towards Ivanovka. The second company commander Ivanzov said excitedly: "Comrade Colonel, how can we retreat at this time? You must know that in the past two days of battle, many good comrades in our army were sacrificed on this land. Even the first company commander Xie Lieda was seriously injured. How can we become deserters at this time?"
Chapter completed!