Chapter 762: More Like Running When It Flies

“The snow has stopped. Looks like we’ll be busy today,” a German Air Force ground crewman said, looking at the weather outside and shaking his head with some disappointment. For the past two days, the entire sky over Crimea had been covered with clouds and bad weather, so the air force pilots and ground crew had gotten a rare break. They had been playing cards in their offices, discussing the overall war situation.

The German aircraft on the Eastern Front had always been in an overwhelmingly advantageous position. The quantity and quality of their fighter planes were roughly superior to their Soviet opponents. As for the skill level of the pilots, it was like a university student虐杀 (slaughtering) an elementary school student. Even when on a mission, the German planes soaring in the sky never took the Soviet planes seriously.

Compared to the fighter units, the pilots who carried out German ground attack missions had a much harder job. They often had to work overtime, flying back and forth between their base and the target. They would drop their bombs over the target, empty their ammunition, and then return sullenly.

However, they often had to face attacks from Soviet ground fire. Sometimes, the Soviets would even use their rifles and machine guns to counter-attack the low-flying German attack planes. It was common for planes to return to their bases with their fuselages riddled with wounds and bullet holes. Sometimes, the armored steel plates behind the pilot’s seat would even be embedded with a dense mass of bullets.

The newer German ground-attack aircraft was the Stuka II. This plane was a general-purpose aircraft with a not-so-fast flight speed. It could dive-bomb but was not as specialized as the Stuka. It could carry a large number of bombs, but certainly not as many as a professional bomber. Its flight speed was similar to the Stuka’s, and its turning ability was slightly better… In short, this plane did not seem to have any particularly outstanding features. It was just very easy to produce.

Yes, easy to produce. As soon as this Stuka II aircraft was born, it had an impact on the entire German industrial system. Many of the parts for this plane were made from the leftover materials from fighter production. The engine also used second-line mature technology and did not occupy any of the production capacity for frontline weapons.

It was under the inspiration of the production process of the Stuka II that the industrial myth of the later Odin helicopter was born, and the famous helicopter manufacturer, Frank Alston. And Germany, after half a year of exploration, had finally begun to experiment on a large scale with semi-automatic production line processes on the King Tiger tank. Germany had also embarked on the fast track of industrial production.

The Stuka II was like a trainer aircraft, very easy to fly and exceptionally smooth. This plane had a very good advantage: it was sturdy. Almost the entire aircraft was reinforced with steel plates for protection, and it was installed with an advanced self-sealing fuel tank. This was one of the reasons it could replace the Stuka as the current standard attack aircraft of the German army. In contrast, the sturdiness of the Stuka could not compare to the Stuka II. Although the difference was not large, the combat loss rate of the Stuka II was indeed lower.

Although the Stuka was more accurate in its bombing, it had design limitations that were difficult to overcome. The Stuka’s bomb load was too small; it could only carry one large bomb on a bombing mission. The Stuka II attack aircraft, on the other hand, could carry two of the same bombs and could also carry some other small bombs. Similarly, apart from its precise dive-bombing, the Stuka had nothing else to recommend it. The advantage of the Stuka II’s turning performance allowed it to maintain firepower over the target for a long time.

Another reason the German Air Force had fallen in love with the Stuka II was that it used a new type of engine. This engine was quite fuel-efficient. Although its flight speed was not satisfactory, its reliability and economy were really hard to refuse.

Of course, the Stuka II had another complete victory over the Stuka, and that was its ease of piloting. The piloting tutorial for this plane was very simple. A novice could drop bombs near the target after simple training. It was precisely because this plane was so simple to operate that the air force generally sent graduating fighter pilot trainees directly to the front line, letting them first fly this attack aircraft to train for actual combat.

Air Force General Kesselring called this plane a “frontline trainer.” He had even said this to his subordinates in public: “The design of this plane is a feat. Its appearance has allowed our pilots to transition from a trainer to a frontline combat aircraft in the most direct way.”

“This plane saved my life. The Soviets were firing at me frantically from the ground. I dodged left and right. A bullet hit my thigh and pierced my wing. If I hadn’t been flying a Stuka II, I probably would never have come back,” a German attack pilot had said of his plane. “Let me go back to the front, you can. But I’ll only fly it. It gives me infinite confidence.”

They were indeed busy. Just as the pilots were talking about the good weather today, an officer walked into the briefing room and gave the order to support the frontline combat: “1st and 2nd attack squadrons, sortie. According to the previously drawn up ‘Queen of Spades’ plan, bomb the Sevastopol area. 14 Stukas from the squadron next door will attack with you. Alright, prepare, and then take off.”

“Let’s go!” The squadron leader snapped his fingers. And then everyone began to change into their gear. Some went to the locker room to change into their flight leather jackets and gloves. Others began to have the ground crew help prepare the plane’s fuel and ammunition. The entire base became a hive of activity. In short, for the air force, a clear day meant a busy day.

“Time to work! Everyone, look sharp!” One pushing the other, a group of young air force pilots, carrying their leather caps, goggles, scarves, and other things, walked towards their planes.

Soon, one after another, the Stuka II attack planes started their engines. The propellers began to spin, and the entire base was filled with a humming roar. On the straight runway, the first plane was already climbing, and not far behind, the second plane was also ready for everything.

For the German Air Force pilots, this was not their first mission. So, rather than a battle, this flight was just a job for them. Soon, these attack planes had formed up in the sky, and then, like a swarm of locusts, they flew towards the area they were to attack.

On the ground, a Soviet soldier was leaning in a trench, looking at the clear sky in the distance. He had been holding this position for many days. It could be said that since Khrushchev had arrived in Sevastopol, he had been stationed nearby. Now he was by a huge crater created by a German shell, and beside him were his laboring comrades.

Several Soviet soldiers had pushed an old Maxim heavy machine gun to the edge of the crater, using this crater as a machine gun position. They had placed ammunition inside and had dug a retreat tunnel behind it. They had put the excavated earth into sacks to be used as sandbags to reinforce the front of the machine gun position.

“You guys are wasting your time. The weather has cleared up now. It won’t be half an hour before the German planes fly over,” a veteran Soviet soldier said, watching the busy young men. He felt it was not worth it for these people to be bustling about here. These surface positions with almost no camouflage could be completely destroyed by just two of those damn German bombers.

The German army had two types of attack aircraft. One was the famous Stuka dive bomber, and the other was a mediocre plane that the ordinary Soviet soldiers did not know the name of. They called that plane the “boot,” a term with a hint of contempt and disdain. Unfortunately, this plane that they called the “boot” was not mediocre at all. The damage and fear it had caused the Soviets was even greater than its predecessor, the Stuka.

“Hey, if we don’t set up a machine gun here, when the Germans attack later, you won’t even have time to cry,” a young soldier replied to the veteran, who had become a master of his craft, with a hint of teasing. “If the enemy comes up from the side later, we’ll be counting on you.”

“I think we might not even make it to that point,” the old Soviet soldier said with a sigh. “It’s not easy to defend this place. It’s not mainly up to me, but to that bunker over there. If it’s there, we’re still relatively safe. If it’s not, then we’ll have to think about retreating.”

The young soldier clearly sneered at the old soldier’s worries. “Comrade Khrushchev has ordered us not to retreat a single step, and we shouldn’t retreat a single step. This is a war for the motherland. We should fight for our country to the end of our lives.”

“Believe me, the only thing in this world worth fighting for until the last moment is your own life,” the old soldier said, looking up. He saw some tiny things at the height of the white clouds in the sky. “Alright, let’s not talk about this. Damn it, the German planes are here! Get under cover, quick! Get the machine gun into the bunker, quick! Quick!”

“You’re really putting on a show. How many German planes are coming?” the machine gunner asked, having no good impression of the old soldier after hearing his words. Now, hearing his shouted warning, he said with a mocking smile, “If you start running first, it’ll look even more like it.”

As soon as his words fell, the old Soviet soldier began to run towards the bunker. He didn’t look back, as if afraid he wouldn’t be able to get a spot inside. The remaining Soviet soldiers burst out laughing, but there were still some cautious ones who looked up at the sky. Above the clouds, the small black dots that had been blurry before were now clearly visible as German planes.

“Air raid!” someone screamed at the top of their lungs.

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