Chapter 42: Vanguard Cavalrymen!

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  The two German fighter planes, although in tacit cooperation with the ground anti-aircraft forces, achieved a decent result of shooting down four Allied bombers and one fighter plane, losing one of their own. However, they were chased away once again by the Allied escort fleet. But I believe that the fleeing German pilot was destined to die, and his fate will be sealed in the not-too-distant future.

  I don't know what Hitler and his Air Marshal Goering were thinking. Although when World War II broke out, the German air force taught a lesson to the whole world, with its all-out victories in Poland and France and large-scale operations against the Soviet Union, demonstrating the importance of aircraft in offensive warfare. The Germans' successful close air support tactics, based on many interacting factors, made their opponents tremble with fear.

  However, once they neglected these conditions, Germany's excellent pilots died in batches during battles. For example, in terms of industrial output, the losses of the German Air Force could not be quickly made up for. In the combat regulations of the German Air Force, there was no rotation system for fighter pilots. Pilots had to continuously serve in front-line troops until they were killed or the war ended. It is worth noting that a destroyed aircraft can be rebuilt, but an absolutely excellent pilot cannot be easily trained. Therefore, in various battlefields, the continuous counterattacks of the enemy air forces made the German Air Force lose an average of 16 aircraft and excellent pilots every day. The once invincible German offensive gradually slowed down, which is not without reason.

  In the air force during World War II, Hitler's pilots were absolutely the most tragic. Under the powerful effect of close air support, the "tactical air support" gradually highlighted its importance to the development of the war situation. Hitler and his Luftwaffe marshals required their pilots to perform more than a dozen combat missions per day, each lasting about half an hour. Such high-intensity and high-risk combat missions made it impossible for even an absolutely excellent ace pilot to survive for a week. Therefore, from the mid-to-late period of World War II, the German air force was in decline.

  Everyone looked at the distant warplane and came back to their senses, discussing the intense aerial battle just now.

  "Alright, guys, check your ammo and gear! Once the artillery stops, it's our turn!" I paused for a moment, calling out to Jones: "Jones, don't forget to bring extra flamethrowers, we'll need them!"

  "Aye, Captain!"

  The artillery troops attacking the city, except for the harbor area, dropped a lot of shells, and there were broken bricks and walls everywhere. Although it is said that there are still many civilians in Cherbourg, at this moment they can only be lucky. We waited anxiously, and soon the time for the attack arrived. In the battle to capture Cherbourg, my cavalry unit was about to make a big show again!

  My Ranger battalion was a young force that was truly formed on May 26, 1942, during World War II in the European Theater of Operations. The US Army Department wanted to establish an American unit that could fight alongside British commandos, and thus this unit was named "Ranger" to highlight its American characteristics. It was led by Major William O. Darby. On June 19, 1942, the 1st Ranger Battalion was officially born in Northern Ireland, with most of its soldiers coming from the 1st Armored Division and the 34th Infantry Division. They received training in combat survival and amphibious landings at the Commando Training Center in Scotland. About a month later, 44 Rangers and 5 officers joined Canadian and British commandos to participate in European battles, becoming the first American unit to engage with German forces in Europe. Later, under the leadership of Lieutenant Colonel Darby, the Ranger Battalion advanced into North Africa, conducting infiltration and sabotage missions in Albania and Tunisia, and serving as a vanguard for infantry divisions.

  The Ranger Battalions' outstanding performance not only earned the President's praise but also led to the expansion of the Rangers to a sixth battalion. The 1st, 3rd and 4th Ranger Battalions were combined with other units such as Chemical, Engineer, and Artillery into the '6615 Ranger Battalion', still under the command of Lt Col Darby. In 1943, the 6615 Ranger Battalion achieved outstanding results in the Italian theatre.

  The most famous campaign of the 2nd Dragoons during World War II was their participation in the Normandy landings with the 2nd and 5th Squadrons. On June 6, 1944, the main force for the Normandy landings were the U.S. VII and V Corps, to which the 2nd Dragoons were attached to the latter. The main force of the V Corps was the 29th Infantry Division, with the 1st Infantry Division on its right flank and a temporary cavalry group consisting of the 2nd and 5th Cavalry Groups on its left flank.

  In the minds of most people, American infantrymen during World War II were typically thought to be young, well-educated, and lacking in combat experience. However, for the Rangers, this was not the case. The battlefield was where they excelled. On D-Day, the US military encountered a fierce attack from the German 352nd Infantry Division. When other infantry units were pinned down by enemy fire and unable to advance, the well-trained Rangers broke through the defenses with reckless abandon, disregarding their own lives. Although casualties were extremely heavy - for example, Company C of the 2nd Battalion, which had a pre-battle strength of 70 men, suffered 58 killed or wounded on D-Day, resulting in its disbandment - the bravery and skill of the Rangers earned them the respect of the 29th Infantry Division, with whom they fought side by side. The Deputy Commander of the 29th Infantry Division even went so far as to praise them, leaving behind a famous quote in military circles: "Rangers, lead the way!"

  "Hussars, as vanguard! Depart!"

  Jones' platoon as point unit first entered the A-zone streets of Cherbourg.

  "Clyde, why is it always us up front and not the others?" An American soldier and another private named Clyde were walking at the head of the column; they were Jones's scouts.

  "Look out, Cook, 'cause Lieutenant Jones don't like your ugly mug either, hopes you get shot!" The soldier named Clyde glared at the speaker, Cook.

  "Oh, Clyde, that's really unfriendly of you! I didn't say anything, did I? I just said my hometown Texas is a beautiful place"

  "Shut up, Cook! You'll get us killed if you keep this up!" Clyde was furious at Cook's incessant chatter at a time like this.

  "I'm really sorry, Clyde! I don't know why it is that when I get on the battlefield my talk gets so much worse!" Cook knew that in a situation like this his habit of talking too much was a way to relieve inner pressure, but in certain situations it was against military law.

  "Alright Cook! Hope next time, Ensign Jones, I don't have to be paired with you again!" Clyde said somewhat helplessly.

  Clyde and Cook cautiously moved forward, carrying their Garand rifles, although the devastated city in ruins showed no signs of Germans, as if they didn't care about the US military's formal attack or had already given up resistance. However, the two men felt increasingly tense in the face of this eerie scene.

  "Clyde! Why isn't there any sign of him?" Cook asked, wiping away a cold sweat from his forehead.

  "Steady, Cook! Keep calm and keep the same pace. I think we've been spotted by the Germans!" Clyde, as a veteran who had survived Carrington, was also extremely frightened at present, but he could still control himself.

  "Clyde, what are we going to do?" Cook's voice began to shake as he gripped the gun tightly.

  "Cook, relax, don't let the hidden Germans see through it, they want to put our brothers behind us into an ambush too! Cook, do you see that abandoned house on your right?" Clyde said, desperately controlling his expression.

  "I see it!" Cooke's face was already sweating, and his eyes scanned the terrain to his right.

  "I'll count one two three, regardless of whether there are Germans around us, we'll enter the building together, OK?"

  "Good!"

  "...ow..." Just then, before Clyde's third man could finish his count, a shot rang out in front of Clyde.

  Cook let out a low groan and fell to the ground with his head twisted at an odd angle. A closer look revealed that Cook's helmet had been pierced by a 7.92mm German bullet, creating a hole about the size of a peanut shell. The massive penetration power had snapped Cook's neck, causing his body to contort in an unnatural position, with white brain matter spilling out.

  Clyde reacted quickly, as soon as he heard the gunshot, he rushed into a building on his left that had been almost destroyed by bombing, only to see Cook already shot dead by German snipers.

  "Damn it! So close!"

  "There's a sniper, in the building up ahead!" Jones yelled from behind Clyde and Cook, one hundred meters back, with a clear view of the situation. "Machine gunner, suppress!"

  In war, the best way to deal with snipers using infantry is that once the exact location of the enemy sniper is confirmed, it's best to use machine guns for suppression, as the effective range of machine guns is basically close to that of sniper rifles. Under the cover of machine gun fire, let your own infantry quickly approach the sniper's hiding place and launch a counterattack.

  Allen was Jones' machine gunner and stayed by Jones' side, without waiting for Jones' order, he immediately set up the tripod and aimed at the German sniper hiding in the building in front, it was a burst of precise suppressive fire, the bullets hit the wall of the building where the German sniper was hiding, punching out hole after hole.

  "Baros, Sergeant! Quick, use a grenade!"

  "Follow me! Grenade!" Sergeant Barros, with several American soldiers under him, crouched down and holding their guns, rushed towards the building where the German sniper was hiding.

  Clyde took cover behind a building, heard the suppressive fire of his own machine guns, shifted to the side, didn't see any signs of the Germans continuing their attack, immediately poked out his head, raised his rifle and aimed at the window where the German sniper might still be firing from, in order to cover Sergeant Barros' dash.

  "Damn Yankees! Come on, let's play slowly!" The German sniper Burkman, who was suppressed by the US military machine gun and could not show his head, wiped his steel helmet with a sense of resentment, spat, looked at the trap he had set up at the stairwell, and then slid down along the pre-planned retreat route, rushing to another sniping point!