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“They have no option,” responded Faust. “They’d hoped to take Kiel and cross somewhere along that stretch of the canal.”

“We can’t hold it forever, sir.”

“I agree. Soon, they’ll hold the entire length of the southern bank. Then it won’t take them long to find a weak point, and force a crossing somewhere. If they attempt to cross in our sector, I’ve put a company from the 603rd on standby to either act as a blocking force or support you in a counter-attack.”

“Have the British committed any support for our sector yet?”

“Not for us personally, but elements of the ACE mobile force have started to land, and a battalion has been allocated as a tactical reserve in this sector.”

“They have to be at least twenty-four hours away. And a strategic reserve, sir?”

The senior officer didn’t answer, which said it all.

0725, 9 JULY 1984. 2ND BATTALION, JYDSKE DRAGONREGIMENT, 2ND JUTLAND BRIGADE. SOUTH OF HORSTEN, WEST GERMANY.
THE BLUE EFFECT -2 DAYS

The 2nd Battalion, Jydske Dragonregiment, or Jutland Dragoon Regiment, manoeuvred their tanks into position, ready to react to any attempted assault river crossing by the enemy. Although only Leopard 1s, the twenty main battle tanks could still disrupt any Soviet intentions to expand a bridgehead once they were able to secure a foothold on the northern bank of the Kiel Canal. The small force was split into two units. Half the force was secreted in a large forested area directly south of Horsten; the other half was closer to the canal west of the L126. The tunnel that passed under the canal had been blocked at both ends and booby-trapped, so it would not be passable by enemy soldiers.

Further forward, infantry companies, transported by their M113s, camouflaged themselves and their vehicles, waiting to pounce when called upon. Close support was provided by four M113s with TOW anti-tank missiles and four Land Rovers also mounted with the TOW anti-tank weapon. Dug in, providing they survived Soviet artillery and air-to-ground strikes, they were the perfect weapon to hit any Soviet armour across the other side of the man-made canal. Although the canal was actually wider than the River Eider, because of its solid, man-made banks, it would actually be easier to cross than the riverbanks that had been carved by nature.

The 2nd Jutland Brigade was responsible for the stretch of the canal from the west of Rendsburg where it ran parallel to the River Eider, a mere two to three-kilometre gap at the widest point, to where the river linked up with the canal again near Oldenbuttel. From there, the 1st Jutland Brigade would take over, linking up with the 1st British Brigade at Suderstapel.

0730, 9 JULY 1984. 17TH PANZER GRENADIER BRIGADE, 6TH PANZER GRENADIER DIVISION. SOUTH OF SUDERSTAPEL, WEST GERMANY.
THE BLUE EFFECT -2 DAYS

The Leopard 1 clawed its way across a farmer’s field until it reached the hedge line at the far side. Two hundred metres to the left, a second Leopard manoeuvred into position at the edge of a road, overlooking the open ground to their front. Other main battle tanks of the unit twisted on their tracks until they too were in a position where they could see forward; yet the bulk of their tanks were hidden by foliage at the side or to the front.

The company commander checked in with his men, getting confirmation that they were ready. This would be the third ambush instigated in the last three hours. He was down to seven tanks after amalgamating two weaker platoons. They had to keep hitting the advancing units if they were to give the rest of their division, and the rest of the army, a chance to dig in along the next stop-line. The British were on their way as, further east, was the ACE mobile force.

“They’re coming,” the young company commander informed the remnants of his tank company. “As soon as we’ve fired, we’ll pull straight back through you. Acknowledge.”

“Seven-One-Alpha, understood.”

“Seven-One-Bravo, understood.”

He peered through his scope, watching for the East German T-72s he had been warned were on their way. He shook his head to try and clear his thoughts, focus on the task ahead, sleep clawing at his eyes. They had been battling since the first day of the battle. Leapfrogging the defending reserve units, they doing the same when it was their turn. But always backwards. They had made some counter-attacks to push the Volksarmee forces onto the back foot, but in the end they’d had to retreat. Hamburg had fallen, their defence of the Kiel Canal in this sector had been broken, and apart from a brief respite during the night whilst the Warsaw Pact forces consolidated their position, they had been fighting for four days solid. This was the start of their fifth. Morale was OK but, after losing Hamburg and Lubeck to the enemy, the company commander had to work hard to keep his men focussed. His company, part of 171st Grenadier Battalion, 17th Panzer Grenadier Brigade, 6th Panzer Grenadier Division, started out with thirteen Leopard 1s. Now the major was down to seven.

“Contact, 1500 metres. T-72.”

Before the tank commander could give any more orders, his gunner yelled, “It’s been hit!”

The T-72 slid at an uncontrollable angle as its track unravelled, leaving the Soviet-made, National Volskarmee commanded tank, stranded.

“Fire!” There were no fancy orders, just the commander wanting the enemy main battle tank finished off before its Kameraden joined in the fight. The turret was torn sideways as the armoured piercing round smashed into it. A second T-72 oscillated, its armour smouldering before being immersed in flames. A vehicle shot out from a group of trees where it had been hidden. After firing into the side of the T-72, the low silhouetted Kanonenjagdpanzer, a tank destroyer, reversed at speed, desperate to put some distance between it and the advancing East German unit. Three more T-72 tanks appeared in front of the Bundeswehr defenders. Although weighing in at over forty tons, the T-72 profile was incredibly low, uncomfortable for the crew, but this low silhouette made it difficult to see and hard to hit. Smoke puffed out of the barrels of two of the enemy tanks as the Major’s gunner thrust a fresh round into the breech.

The Kanonenjagdpanzer crashed through the foliage of a low hanging tree as it slipped out of sight and into relative safety. They would move back a few hundred metres and wait to spring a trap all over again.

The Leopard rocked when the gun fired; the 105mm round seemed to arc towards its target.

“A hit! Back, back now!”

The Major was relieved they were up against the T-72M and not the T-64. The East German army had been sold an inferior model of T-72 as opposed to the ones in the Soviet Army. The T-72M had inferior armour and a downgraded weapons system. The Volksarmee were paying the price as a consequence.

The engine strained as the driver applied power, and the tracks gained traction, pulling the tank further into the trees. A 125mm round from one of the enemy tanks stripped branches from the trees as it ploughed into the foliage alongside the rapidly accelerating tank. Three more T-72s had appeared and Seven-One-Foxtrot was no more. The Major winced when he received the call. His company strength was rapidly diminishing, and for the first time in the war, he had doubts about his and his men’s survivability.

0735, 9 JULY 1984. 2ND ZEALAND BATTLE GROUP. SOUTHEAST OF RINGSTED, DENMARK.
THE BLUE EFFECT -2 DAYS

The Centurion tank trundled forward. It may have been over twenty years old, but it was the core mobile weapon of the 2nd Zealand Battle Group (Reserve). It had settled on the edge of a small copse, and the crew were out within seconds, dragging the camouflage netting over the top, tying one edge to the trees they were alongside. A second tank, one of eight tanks belonging to 2nd Squadron, 5th Battalion of the Guards Hussars Regiment, weaved through the trees, stopping just before the edge of the treeline. The small group of tanks, held back in reserve until now, were finally being redeployed further forward, there being an expectation of a Soviet force landing somewhere along the East Zealand coast in the next few days.