“Have our dispositions been finalised yet, sir?” asked Sergeant Glover, Commander of Delta-Four-Bravo.
“Yes, pretty much. Our combat team has Rossing and Escherde. Charlie has a line north-east to Sarstedt. Alpha covers Jeinsen and Bravo Schulenburg. North of us we have the 3rd Battalion, the Queen’s Regiment and, to the south, 22nd Armoured Brigade. 1RTR in reserve.”
“Having a picnic, no doubt,” commented one of the troopers, which brought a smile to everyone’s face.
“Quite. So, the Soviets are going to walk into over 100 tanks. Just sitting and waiting to hit them where it hurts. And with these new babies,” the Lieutenant said, patting the Challenger tank beneath him, “they won’t know what has hit them. They’ve not had an easy ride so far, but when they meet us, they’ll wish they could turn the clock back.”
“They have a huge wake-up call coming to them, sir,” added Sergeant Glover.
“Too bloody right, sir,” came one comment from the troops.
“Kick arse,” came another. Their confidence in themselves and their equipment was undampened.
“What about the Hinds, sir?” asked Sergeant Glover. “Are we going to get some help?”
“The OC has assured me that we will. Tracked Rapier units are being brought further forward and a Blowpipe section will be moving into the village. So, we’ll have some overhead cover.”
“The Crabs? Been kind of invisible so far.”
“I agree with your sentiments, Sarn’t Glover, but the RAF has been hit pretty hard. They’ve had to move between bases and some of the bases have been put out of action by airstrikes and Spetsnaz activity. There is an invisible battle going on overhead and, at the moment, it appears to be stalemate.”
“We’ll win though, won’t we, sir?” Trooper Mann asked.
“Our fly boys, along with our Allies, won’t let us down, I’m sure.”
“Who are we up against then, sir?” Sergeant Glover steered the conversation back to their immediate issues.
“To our immediate front, we’ll have 10th Guards Tank Division. They’ve been in contact with our covering force from the beginning. Further south, the 22nd are up against 7th Guards Tank Div.”
“Won’t they have been knocked about a bit, sir?”
“Yes, Corporal Tompkins, that is our hope.” Barrett laughed. “But they will have fresh regiments pushed forward now. One or two of the regiments that have been fighting so far will rest and refit and probably be downgraded to the divisional reserves. South of us, Intel think they will have a tank regiment and a motor rifle regiment up front. Between the four, that is still nearly 400 tanks.” Seeing the worried look on some faces, he quickly added, “Our regiment has fifty-six Challengers alone, and the enemy has got to come to us. They will get a bloody nose. This is where we will stop giving ground easily.”
“Infantry as well, sir?”
“South, there will be a full regiment and a battalion from the tank regiment. If we have two tank regiments in our sector, we’ll be up against a battalion from each of the two tank regiments. They have BMP-2s, so don’t ignore them. If they stop, it’s likely they’re going to unleash a Swatter or Sagger missile.”
“T-80s?”
“Yes, Sarn’t. Don’t forget, men, we’re dug in and they have to come to us. After, that is, they’ve negotiated our minefields. The Gunners are going to lay some more FASCAM mines later today.”
“Approach routes?”
“Yes, the bar mines will cover the open ground. So, we need to target any mine roller or mine plough tanks as a priority. If they’re hit, it will slow them down, and we can pound them as they bunch up.”
The sergeant looked uncomfortable as he spoke, not wanting to dampen the troop commander’s, or the troop’s for that matter, enthusiasm. “What’s behind us, sir? Have 2-Div turned up yet?”
“Not quite. Some elements have and they’re digging in further back, covering 1BR Corps rear area. So, if we do have to pull back, we’ll at least have some cover to watch our backs. The majority of the division will probably be in position by end of play tomorrow. So, we have to hold this position.”
“Surely we must have more, sir?”
Barrett looked at his troop sergeant, then at each of his men in turn, knowing the sergeant was voicing the concerns of all his men.
“We still have 4th Armoured Division. They’ve taken casualties, but are being withdrawn. They will have a chance to refit and rest ready to take up the fight again. No doubt they will receive some reinforcements from the UK. They will be our Corps reserve.I have also been informed that 24th Airmobile has been assigned as a reserve. They will be used to block any breakthroughs that occur.”
“With those para nutters coming into the fight, the Soviets best look out,” piped up Trooper Deacon. The group laughed.
“The crap-hats are no bad either,” added Lance Corporal Frith, an ex-para who had decided to become a tankie rather than staying in the Parachute Regiment and jumping out of aeroplanes.
“Look, guys, we have some of the best troops in the world, including yourselves, heaven forbid.” The men laughed, but also bristled with pride. “Our Challengers are a match for any of the Soviet tanks, including the bloody T-80s and T-64s and all the crap they have pinned to it. As for any T-62 or T-72s we come across, they’ll be scrap iron by the end of tomorrow.”
He cast his eye over his men. They had been together as a troop for over a year. His gunner, Corporal Farre, was the longest serving member of the troop, having joined four years ago. He joined as a driver, then moved to gunner, and finally to command his own tank. Now he was Barrett’s gunner, able to take over the tank should the Lieutenant be killed or need to concentrate on troop tactics.
“We keep a grip on our fear. Yes, we will be scared, I will be scared. But if we keep it under control, channel it, we can use those emotions to help us destroy the enemy.”
He caught the eye of every one of his men, his confidence and smile infectious, and slowly every man’s frown disappeared. He slapped the engine deck of his Challenger. “We load, we aim, we fire. We load, we aim, we fire.”
The rest of the troop joined in the mantra. “We load, we aim, we fire.”
“Focus on your specific tasks and hit the enemy for six, and we’ll come through this.” He paused to allow his words to sink in.
“Right, back to your tanks. Delta-Four-Bravo and Charlie you need to move forward to your positions. I have an FFR Land-Rover assigned to take you there.”
He slipped off the rear of the engine deck, bending his knees as he hit the ground. He turned round and grabbed his SMG. “So I’ll be along to each tank to check your camouflage and your fields of fire. Let’s get to it, Sergeant. We’ll check mine before you go.”
“Sir.”
The troopers and NCOs got up off the ground, automatically brushing any dirt or debris off their Noddy suits, not wanting to take any into the fighting compartments of the tanks, their living quarters.
Chapter 12
Lieutenant Colonel Trusov, soon to be a full Colonel now he had command of a full tank regiment and not just a battalion, shuffled through the maps and notes he had made earlier. He was disappointed that his regiment, 62nd Guards Tank Regiment, 10th Guards Tank Division, had been put in reserve, although he and his men could do with the rest, as could their equipment. The T-80s were starting to become troublesome. Breakdowns were becoming more frequent, and even Barsukov was getting impatient with the tank’s auto-loader. He had a knack, as did his driver, of keeping the main battle tank in tip-top condition, but even they were disadvantaged by the lack of spare parts. He had given permission to completely cannibalise one of the T-80s, using as many elements as possible to keep others in his regiment operational. This decision had not been received well by his divisional commander, but Major-General Abramov, the Commander of the 10th, the Uralsko-Lvovskaya Division, had relented, knowing the realities of the situation. He had put a bomb under the supply officer and had even solicited the support of his political officer in order to speed up the shipment of badly needed spares to the front.