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Post by redrobin65 on Oct 3, 2018 15:40:53 GMT
May 16th, 1940, OKW Headquarters, Berlin
The tension in the room was so thick, it could be cut with a knife. Around the table were generals from the Heer and Luftwaffe, no Kriegsmarine personnel were here. Due to the failure in Norway, the naval forces had become much less important. Hitler had a strange expression on his face that seemed halfway between fury and…something else. Field Marshal Keitel was pointing to a map.
“We are not going to cross the Scheldt, too dangerous right now. We think we can force a Meuse crossing. Once we do that…”
Hitler interrupted. “Why aren’t you across by now?”
General Franz Halder fidgeted. “The Canadian planes are unstoppable. They’ve hit our forces on the ground, especially the ones near the Meuse, very hard. Many bridges through the Ardennes have been destroyed. They’ve targeted our supply lines in particular.”
Hitler frowned and turned to Goering. “Well, why can’t you stop them?”
Goering looked at the ground. “They are too fast and fly higher than some of our bombers. Those weapons they carry can do significant damage to our formations. I sent 40 bombers to hit the French airfields this morning, three returned. And the bombs they drop wreck our airfields. You remember the one near Aachen…”
“Yes, yes, I know,” said an irritated Hitler. “We’re still moving forward. Halder, tell Guderian and Kleist to hurry up and cross the Meuse. Inform Sixth Army to try and cross the Scheldt.”
“Mein Fuhrer, the British and Belgians are still strong in that area. Also, Sixth Army is strung out across Belgium. They are suffering under Entente air attacks, and are watching their southern flank. Von Reichenau thinks that the French are going to attack.”
Hitler’s face turned a slight shade of purple and he gritted his teeth. “You have your orders, Field Marshal. Also, what on earth is the Eighteenth Army doing? They should be in Amsterdam now!”
“The Dutch flooded the plains to make the Water Line. We’re bringing up some Rhine barges, but it will take a few days. The Eighteenth Army’s supply lines are in chaos. The British bombed them, and we can’t do much about it since the Canadians hit our airfields in the north.”
A vein was outlined on Hitler’s neck. “Tell von Kuchler that he is to attack tomorrow. I want the Netherlands defeated.”
Keitel’s eyes widened. “Tomorrow? But…”
“JUST DO IT!!”
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Oct 3, 2018 15:45:01 GMT
May 16th, 1940, OKW Headquarters, Berlin
The tension in the room was so thick, it could be cut with a knife. Around the table were generals from the Heer and Luftwaffe, no Kriegsmarine personnel were here. Due to the failure in Norway, the naval forces had become much less important. Hitler had a strange expression on his face that seemed halfway between fury and…something else. Field Marshal Keitel was pointing to a map.
“We are not going to cross the Scheldt, too dangerous right now. We think we can force a Meuse crossing. Once we do that…”
Hitler interrupted. “Why aren’t you across by now?”
General Franz Halder fidgeted. “The Canadian planes are unstoppable. They’ve hit our forces on the ground, especially the ones near the Meuse, very hard. Many bridges through the Ardennes have been destroyed. They’ve targeted our supply lines in particular.”
Hitler frowned and turned to Goering. “Well, why can’t you stop them?”
Goering looked at the ground. “They are too fast and fly higher than some of our bombers. Those weapons they carry can do significant damage to our formations. I sent 40 bombers to hit the French airfields this morning, three returned. And the bombs they drop wreck our airfields. You remember the one near Aachen…”
“Yes, yes, I know,” said an irritated Hitler. “We’re still moving forward. Halder, tell Guderian and Kleist to hurry up and cross the Meuse. Inform Sixth Army to try and cross the Scheldt.”
“Mein Fuhrer, the British and Belgians are still strong in that area. Also, Sixth Army is strung out across Belgium. They are suffering under Entente air attacks, and are watching their southern flank. Von Reichenau thinks that the French are going to attack.”
Hitler’s face turned a slight shade of purple and he gritted his teeth. “You have your orders, Field Marshal. Also, what on earth is the Eighteenth Army doing? They should be in Amsterdam now!”
“The Dutch flooded the plains to make the Water Line. We’re bringing up some Rhine barges, but it will take a few days. The Eighteenth Army’s supply lines are in chaos. The British bombed them, and we can’t do much about it since the Canadians hit our airfields in the north.”
A vein was outlined on Hitler’s neck. “Tell von Kuchler that he is to attack tomorrow. I want the Netherlands defeated.”
Keitel’s eyes widened. “Tomorrow? But…”
“JUST DO IT!!”
Nice update redrobin65. Why do i have a feeling the Germans assault will not go as planned. |
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stevep
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Post by stevep on Oct 3, 2018 15:56:51 GMT
May 16th, 1940, OKW Headquarters, Berlin
The tension in the room was so thick, it could be cut with a knife. Around the table were generals from the Heer and Luftwaffe, no Kriegsmarine personnel were here. Due to the failure in Norway, the naval forces had become much less important. Hitler had a strange expression on his face that seemed halfway between fury and…something else. Field Marshal Keitel was pointing to a map.
“We are not going to cross the Scheldt, too dangerous right now. We think we can force a Meuse crossing. Once we do that…”
Hitler interrupted. “Why aren’t you across by now?”
General Franz Halder fidgeted. “The Canadian planes are unstoppable. They’ve hit our forces on the ground, especially the ones near the Meuse, very hard. Many bridges through the Ardennes have been destroyed. They’ve targeted our supply lines in particular.”
Hitler frowned and turned to Goering. “Well, why can’t you stop them?”
Goering looked at the ground. “They are too fast and fly higher than some of our bombers. Those weapons they carry can do significant damage to our formations. I sent 40 bombers to hit the French airfields this morning, three returned. And the bombs they drop wreck our airfields. You remember the one near Aachen…”
“Yes, yes, I know,” said an irritated Hitler. “We’re still moving forward. Halder, tell Guderian and Kleist to hurry up and cross the Meuse. Inform Sixth Army to try and cross the Scheldt.”
“Mein Fuhrer, the British and Belgians are still strong in that area. Also, Sixth Army is strung out across Belgium. They are suffering under Entente air attacks, and are watching their southern flank. Von Reichenau thinks that the French are going to attack.”
Hitler’s face turned a slight shade of purple and he gritted his teeth. “You have your orders, Field Marshal. Also, what on earth is the Eighteenth Army doing? They should be in Amsterdam now!”
“The Dutch flooded the plains to make the Water Line. We’re bringing up some Rhine barges, but it will take a few days. The Eighteenth Army’s supply lines are in chaos. The British bombed them, and we can’t do much about it since the Canadians hit our airfields in the north.”
A vein was outlined on Hitler’s neck. “Tell von Kuchler that he is to attack tomorrow. I want the Netherlands defeated.”
Keitel’s eyes widened. “Tomorrow? But…”
“JUST DO IT!!”
Nice update redrobin65 . Why do i have a feeling the Germans assault will not go as planned.
As in OTL the allies have one big bonus that make final victory very likely, namely the nature and character of the German leader.  Sounds like he's going for his eastern front tactic of "I want everything now, regardless of resources on the ground" and its likely to prove even less successful here, what with the Canadian presence and the information their supplied.
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Post by redrobin65 on Oct 4, 2018 2:24:45 GMT
The German Eighteenth Army had taken serious casualties in the Netherlands. Hitting the Water Line with old school infantry attacks had cost them. Their commander, Field Marshal Georg von Kuchler, hadn’t been very enthusiastic about that. However, the 9th Panzer Division had been nearly demolished by Canadian and British planes on the 13th. The Eighteenth Army would have to make a crossing. Von Kuchler chose two main locations: Muiden in the north and Gouda in the center, while severe pressure would be applied in other locations.
Artillery pummeled the Dutch 4th Infantry Division near Muiden and the 7th Infantry Division near Gouda. The Luftwaffe tried as well bombing and strafing enemy forces when they could. They took losses to RAF Spitfires flying from The Hague, but inflicted a good amount of damage to the defenders.
The 4th Infantry Division had been fighting for most of the war and had fought a brutal battle in Utrecht on the 15th. As such, there were critical shortages of shells for artillery and bullets for machine guns. Their ranks were depleted and many of their men were wounded in some way, even if it was minor. The 7th Division was in a similar state.
The German SS Der Furher Regiment and the 256th Infantry Division crossed near Muiden using Rhine barges that were needed back home (which would have unpleasant consequences) while the 22nd Air Landing Division and the 208th Infantry Division assaulted Gouda.
At Muiden, the SS troops had good artillery support and a zealous devotion to Hitler. They and the Heer troops behind them pushed through the little town, engaged in a brutal, no-holds-barred fight with the Dutch. Eventually, the side with more manpower, artillery, and ammunition emerged victorious. The shattered remnants of the Dutch 4th Infantry Division (those that didn’t surrender) withdrew towards, and eventually through, Amsterdam.
Down at Gouda, the commander of the German 208th Infantry Division saw an opportunity to cut off Dutch troops manning defensive positions just north of him. Who could stop them? Most of the 7th Infantry Division had either surrendered or withdrawn. After consulting with the commander of the 22nd ALD, the two divisions pushed towards Aalphen aan den Rijn, cutting off the depleted Dutch 1st Infantry Division. After a breakout attempt that failed miserably, they surrendered, leaving 5,000 troops to march into captivity.
The Water Line collapsed. Some Dutch troops surrendered, but many either made their way to Zeeland or were evacuated from their country by the Royal Navy. The Government and Royal Family did just that, along with many civilians and soldiers. A decree was issued: keep fighting.
Over the next few days, the Eighteenth Army advanced, securing places like Leiden, Amsterdam, Rotterdam and The Hague. Zeeland was left alone, as the Germans were exhausted and had too many supply issues. For now, the Eighteenth Army would dig in while parts of it were gutted, despite the apprehension of von Kuchler. All of its reserve divisions would be withdrawn and moved back to Germany to reequip before being included in the next scheme. They had won, at a serious cost.
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Oct 4, 2018 2:51:24 GMT
The Water Line collapsed. Some Dutch troops surrendered, but many either made their way to Zeeland or were evacuated from their country by the Royal Navy. The Government and Royal Family did just that, along with many civilians and soldiers. A decree was issued: keep fighting.
I did not expect this to happen, good update redrobin65. |
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stevep
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Post by stevep on Oct 4, 2018 10:39:19 GMT
The Water Line collapsed. Some Dutch troops surrendered, but many either made their way to Zeeland or were evacuated from their country by the Royal Navy. The Government and Royal Family did just that, along with many civilians and soldiers. A decree was issued: keep fighting.
I did not expect this to happen, good update redrobin65 .
Well it was hinted that bad things were going to occur for the Dutch and their forces had already taken losses but frontal assaults like this, especially with minimal preparation against established defensive lines are going to be costly, in men, material and to a degree morale. [Even the most committed troops will not be happy if they think their lives are being spent carelessly, especially with WWI in recent history.]
Its going to take time to regroup the Army and replace losses and the Germans may not have that, at least in terms of winning on the big battle against the western allies.
At least elements of the nation and military have escaped to fight on in exile, probably with better morale and definately with more hope of early liberation than OTL.
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Post by redrobin65 on Oct 4, 2018 16:31:56 GMT
Compared to other formations, the German 6th Panzer Division was relatively intact. Ignoring the shortage of fuel and replacement ammunition, they had brushed aside French Reserve companies to reach Montherme, where they would cross the River Meuse. Their commander had heard of everything that happened near Sedan and was grateful that his division was in one piece.
The 6th Division was mainly equipped with Czech made Panzer 35/38(t). The French 4th Light Cavalry Division had a mixture of Somua S35 and Char B1 bis tanks. The 5th Motorized Division had many armed half-tracks and artillery to back them up. The French also had friendly air cover.
The Luftwaffe had tried to make a token effort to contribute to the attack and paid a heavy price. Three dozen aircraft were destroyed when six CF-18s dropped 2000lb Paveway II guided bombs on their airfield. M.S.406Bs from the Armee de l’Air tangled with Bf109s while attempting to stop the Ju87s. The Stuka formation was decimated and dropped their bombs all over the town. Any civilians who hadn’t evacuated paid a serious price, but the 4th LCD and 5th MD got off without any serious casualties.
German light artillery opened up on the French positions as boats carrying infantry and Panzers began to cross; the bridge had been blown up. The French batteries responded. They had much more artillery than the 6th Panzer could ever dream of. Explosions rocked the other side of the river and plumes of water rose up among the boats. German troops ducked as machine gun fire raked their boats. A boat carrying a platoon of Panzer 38(t)s took a direct hit from a 75mm shell and sank.
As the Germans landed on the other side, they found themselves under heavy fire from the French. Engineers suffered appalling casualties, hampering the whole process. The infantry could only duck and hope for the best. Panzers were destroyed as they rolled off their barges, even when they tried to engage French armour. The 37mm gun on the 35(t) and 38(t) could penetrate the S35 at close range from certain angles, but not the Char B1 bis. The French infantry fought their German counterparts at close quarters while the Panzer force was slowly but surely destroyed.
All of this was too much for the 6th Panzer Division. Trying to undertake an opposed river crossing against a numerically and quantitively superior enemy could not be done by them. Generalleutnant Werner Kempf ordered his division to retreat across the river, which was easier said than done. A few boats made several crossings but were targeted in French air raids. The pressure on the 6th Panzer Division was immense, being pummeled by artillery and air strikes. Eventually, the evacuation was canceled after dozens of boats were sunk by artillery or air attacks. The remnants of the 6th Panzer surrendered in the evening.
A similar scene played out an hour north at Dinant in Belgium, where the 7th Panzer Division did not successfully cross in the face of determined French and Belgian opposition. The situation for them deteriorated when their commander, Erwin Rommel, along with his entire staff, was killed in an air attack.
All of this paled to the dramatic battles going on around Sedan…
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Oct 4, 2018 16:35:29 GMT
Compared to other formations, the German 6th Panzer Division was relatively intact. Ignoring the shortage of fuel and replacement ammunition, they had brushed aside French Reserve companies to reach Montherme, where they would cross the River Meuse. Their commander had heard of everything that happened near Sedan and was grateful that his division was in one piece.
The 6th Division was mainly equipped with Czech made Panzer 35/38(t). The French 4th Light Cavalry Division had a mixture of Somua S35 and Char B1 bis tanks. The 5th Motorized Division had many armed half-tracks and artillery to back them up. The French also had friendly air cover.
The Luftwaffe had tried to make a token effort to contribute to the attack and paid a heavy price. Three dozen aircraft were destroyed when six CF-18s dropped 2000lb Paveway II guided bombs on their airfield. M.S.406Bs from the Armee de l’Air tangled with Bf109s while attempting to stop the Ju87s. The Stuka formation was decimated and dropped their bombs all over the town. Any civilians who hadn’t evacuated paid a serious price, but the 4th LCD and 5th MD got off without any serious casualties.
German light artillery opened up on the French positions as boats carrying infantry and Panzers began to cross; the bridge had been blown up. The French batteries responded. They had much more artillery than the 6th Panzer could ever dream of. Explosions rocked the other side of the river and plumes of water rose up among the boats. German troops ducked as machine gun fire raked their boats. A boat carrying a platoon of Panzer 38(t)s took a direct hit from a 75mm shell and sank.
As the Germans landed on the other side, they found themselves under heavy fire from the French. Engineers suffered appalling casualties, hampering the whole process. The infantry could only duck and hope for the best. Panzers were destroyed as they rolled off their barges, even when they tried to engage French armour. The 37mm gun on the 35(t) and 38(t) could penetrate the S35 at close range from certain angles, but not the Char B1 bis. The French infantry fought their German counterparts at close quarters while the Panzer force was slowly but surely destroyed.
All of this was too much for the 6th Panzer Division. Trying to undertake an opposed river crossing against a numerically and quantitively superior enemy could not be done by them. Generalleutnant Werner Kempf ordered his division to retreat across the river, which was easier said than done. A few boats made several crossings but were targeted in French air raids. The pressure on the 6th Panzer Division was immense, being pummeled by artillery and air strikes. Eventually, the evacuation was canceled after dozens of boats were sunk by artillery or air attacks. The remnants of the 6th Panzer surrendered in the evening.
A similar scene played out an hour north at Dinant in Belgium, where the 7th Panzer Division did not successfully cross in the face of determined French and Belgian opposition. The situation for them deteriorated when their commander, Erwin Rommel, along with his entire staff, was killed in an air attack.
All of this paled to the dramatic battles going on around Sedan…
Nice update redrobin65 |
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James G
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Post by James G on Oct 4, 2018 16:35:44 GMT
Rommel dead! Yep, that's a biggie indeed.
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Oct 4, 2018 16:43:32 GMT
Rommel dead! Yep, that's a biggie indeed. Well he was not big in this universe compared to what he was in ours, so his death will not have that much effect on a Germany how has its hands full. |
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James G
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Post by James G on Oct 4, 2018 17:08:59 GMT
Rommel dead! Yep, that's a biggie indeed. Well he was not big in this universe compared to what he was in ours, so his death will not have that much effect on a Germany how has its hands full. True, but Canadians will still know his name and there will be books written about him that others in the world - probably after his death - will read: originals and probably a WI thread on Alternate Timelines about him too! |
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stevep
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Post by stevep on Oct 4, 2018 22:20:00 GMT
Well two of the 10 panzer divisions being mauled very badly in a single day and an even bigger battle at Sedan. I think the German panzer arm is going to be significantly reduced very quickly. Especially since with the victories at Montherme and Dinant the allies can move units to support Sedan, especially air power because of its flexibility.
Given that most of this fighting, at least on the ground, is being done by French units their going to have a hell of a different image to post-1940 in this world compared to ours.
There's probably going to be a hell of a lot of fighting ahead because without an eastern front to tear up German resources and manpower their going to have a lot more for fighting in the west, although without much of Europe to loot materially they won't have the same resources in total, even with continued support from Stalin. What could be more decisive possibly is a collapse of morale as a lot of Germans were worried about a long attritional war in the west again. OTL this was changed by a quick and cheap victory but here it sounds like its going to be a quick, expensive and demoralising defeat. However a lot would depend on what sort of group might manage to overthrow the Nazis, would really have to be a large chunk of the army, and what terms they would try and seek.
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Post by redrobin65 on Oct 6, 2018 2:16:05 GMT
Germany
XIX Corps
2nd Panzer Division (moderate losses before battle)
1st Panzer Division
(10th Panzer Division remnants withdrawn)
XIV Corps
2nd Motorized Division
13th Motorized Division
29th Motorized Division
(Ad Hoc) XXXIII Corps
6th Infantry Division
27th Infantry Division
The Allies
French Seventh Army
XXXXI Corps
21st Infantry Division
60th Infantry Division
68th Infantry Division
I Corps
1st Light Mechanized Division
25th Motorized Division
9th Motorized Division
I Canadian Corps
1st Canadian Mechanized Division
2nd Canadian Mechanized Division
MFOHMFOHMFOH
The German advance on Sedan faced serious resistance. The 2nd Panzer Division had clashed with the French 1st Light Mechanized Division for days, taking losses all the while. The 1LMD had retreated to the northern edge of the town, joined by the 2nd Canadian Mechanized Division. The 2nd Mechanized had successfully fought the 10th Panzer Division, destroying that formation. Their morale was high, and their ammunition was decreasing. TOW missiles were in high demand. A fresh batch had thankfully arrived on the 17th.
German infantry and armour attacked the joint French/Canadian force at the edge of the town. Fighting was intense; the German commanders were well aware of the importance of crossing, but so were the Allies. The Armee de l’Air was out in force, with M.S.406B fighters and LeO 451 bombers attacking German troops. CF-18s once again made their appearance, with an entire squadron dedicated to bombing enemy positions.
Eventually, the French and the Canadians withdrew over bridges that were blown soon after. They did this because fixed river defences were easier to work with than street to street fighting.
As night fell, the Germans took the opportunity to get their barges ready. The Allied air forces did little to interfere with this, as they were more than happy to let the Germans try to cross and be destroyed in the process. German artillery opened up at six in the morning, but it was not close to adequate. General Heinz Guderian knew this, which was the main reason that the Luftwaffe was making such a large effort today.
Allied aircraft attacked German airfields whenever they could. Wellingtons, Whitleys, LeO 451s, A.143s, and of course CF-18s had dealt great damage to airfields. Because of this, the Germans could ‘only’ put up 650 aircraft: 500 bombers and 150 fighters. To defend the airspace around Sedan, the Allies had 250 AA guns, 40 SAM launchers of various types, and 400 fighters, 56 of which were CF-18s.
The Hornets encountered the raid 108km north of the town over Clervaux in Luxembourg. Each CF-18 carried four air-to-air missiles. They fired off the longer range AMRAAMs first, then the shorter and medium-range Sidewinder and Sparrow missiles. Terrified German aircrews watched helplessly as bombers and fighters all around them blew up, destroyed by weapons that they could not counter. The RCAF planes didn’t fire all at once. Instead, they fired in groups of four one after the other. This meant that there was only a five-minute gap between the last group leaving and the first group returning. When it was all over, the Luftwaffe had taken thousands of casualties in the air alone.
Things weren’t much better on the ground. The 1st Panzer Division crossed right in the center of Sedan. The 29th Motorized Division crossed near Wadelincourt while the 2nd Motorized Division would do the same at Donchery. All three of these crossings failed miserably.
Directly on the other side of Sedan was the 1st Canadian Mechanized Division. Consisting of Regular soldiers with the best equipment in the entire Canadian Army, the Germans took punishing casualties before they even began their crossing. The 120mm guns on the Leopard 2A4s and 2A6Ms extracted a heavy toll on the boats and the tanks. 155mm artillery hit the other side of the river, killing and wounding many Germans. Machine guns tore through some of the weaker boats, causing the Meuse to run red with blood. TOW missiles slammed into barges carrying Panzers, which caused significant damage to the assault force. The Leopards didn’t need to maneuver very much; no shells had any hope of penetrating their composite armour. 1st Panzer wouldn’t cross.
Though they managed to get across the river, the 29th Motorized Division was stopped in its tracks by the French 25th Motorized. The fact that the 25MD could call on an air force that was not busy getting destroyed helped matters.
Donchery was reduced to rubble as the German 2nd Motorized Division fought with the French 60th Infantry Division. The same problems plagued the Germans: lack of an effective air or artillery bombardment, no air support whatsoever, an alert defender, and dwindling ammunition supply.
The grand attack on the Meuse was a dismal failure. May 17th would go down in history as one of the worst days in history for any German army. The Luftwaffe saw 618 aircraft destroyed, 2,110 killed, and 32 wounded. The Heer would take 22,234 killed and 31,450 wounded. France suffered 4,403 killed and 7,207 wounded. Canada saw 33 killed and 10 wounded.
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Oct 6, 2018 8:35:52 GMT
Germany
XIX Corps
2nd Panzer Division (moderate losses before battle)
1st Panzer Division
(10th Panzer Division remnants withdrawn)
XIV Corps
2nd Motorized Division
13th Motorized Division
29th Motorized Division
(Ad Hoc) XXXIII Corps
6th Infantry Division
27th Infantry Division
The Allies
French Seventh Army
XXXXI Corps
21st Infantry Division
60th Infantry Division
68th Infantry Division
I Corps
1st Light Mechanized Division
25th Motorized Division
9th Motorized Division
I Canadian Corps
1st Canadian Mechanized Division
2nd Canadian Mechanized Division
MFOHMFOHMFOH
The German advance on Sedan faced serious resistance. The 2nd Panzer Division had clashed with the French 1st Light Mechanized Division for days, taking losses all the while. The 1LMD had retreated to the northern edge of the town, joined by the 2nd Canadian Mechanized Division. The 2nd Mechanized had successfully fought the 10th Panzer Division, destroying that formation. Their morale was high, and their ammunition was decreasing. TOW missiles were in high demand. A fresh batch had thankfully arrived on the 17th.
German infantry and armour attacked the joint French/Canadian force at the edge of the town. Fighting was intense; the German commanders were well aware of the importance of crossing, but so were the Allies. The Armee de l’Air was out in force, with M.S.406B fighters and LeO 451 bombers attacking German troops. CF-18s once again made their appearance, with an entire squadron dedicated to bombing enemy positions.
Eventually, the French and the Canadians withdrew over bridges that were blown soon after. They did this because fixed river defences were easier to work with than street to street fighting.
As night fell, the Germans took the opportunity to get their barges ready. The Allied air forces did little to interfere with this, as they were more than happy to let the Germans try to cross and be destroyed in the process. German artillery opened up at six in the morning, but it was not close to adequate. General Heinz Guderian knew this, which was the main reason that the Luftwaffe was making such a large effort today.
Allied aircraft attacked German airfields whenever they could. Wellingtons, Whitleys, LeO 451s, A.143s, and of course CF-18s had dealt great damage to airfields. Because of this, the Germans could ‘only’ put up 650 aircraft: 500 bombers and 150 fighters. To defend the airspace around Sedan, the Allies had 250 AA guns, 40 SAM launchers of various types, and 400 fighters, 56 of which were CF-18s.
The Hornets encountered the raid 108km north of the town over Clervaux in Luxembourg. Each CF-18 carried four air-to-air missiles. They fired off the longer range AMRAAMs first, then the shorter and medium-range Sidewinder and Sparrow missiles. Terrified German aircrews watched helplessly as bombers and fighters all around them blew up, destroyed by weapons that they could not counter. The RCAF planes didn’t fire all at once. Instead, they fired in groups of four one after the other. This meant that there was only a five-minute gap between the last group leaving and the first group returning. When it was all over, the Luftwaffe had taken thousands of casualties in the air alone.
Things weren’t much better on the ground. The 1st Panzer Division crossed right in the center of Sedan. The 29th Motorized Division crossed near Wadelincourt while the 2nd Motorized Division would do the same at Donchery. All three of these crossings failed miserably.
Directly on the other side of Sedan was the 1st Canadian Mechanized Division. Consisting of Regular soldiers with the best equipment in the entire Canadian Army, the Germans took punishing casualties before they even began their crossing. The 120mm guns on the Leopard 2A4s and 2A6Ms extracted a heavy toll on the boats and the tanks. 155mm artillery hit the other side of the river, killing and wounding many Germans. Machine guns tore through some of the weaker boats, causing the Meuse to run red with blood. TOW missiles slammed into barges carrying Panzers, which caused significant damage to the assault force. The Leopards didn’t need to maneuver very much; no shells had any hope of penetrating their composite armour. 1st Panzer wouldn’t cross.
Though they managed to get across the river, the 29th Motorized Division was stopped in its tracks by the French 25th Motorized. The fact that the 25MD could call on an air force that was not busy getting destroyed helped matters.
Donchery was reduced to rubble as the German 2nd Motorized Division fought with the French 60th Infantry Division. The same problems plagued the Germans: lack of an effective air or artillery bombardment, no air support whatsoever, an alert defender, and dwindling ammunition supply.
The grand attack on the Meuse was a dismal failure. May 17th would go down in history as one of the worst days in history for any German army. The Luftwaffe saw 618 aircraft destroyed, 2,110 killed, and 32 wounded. The Heer would take 22,234 killed and 31,450 wounded. France suffered 4,403 killed and 7,207 wounded. Canada saw 33 killed and 10 wounded.
Nice update redrobin65, so the grand attack on the Meuse ore lets call it the Battle of the Meuse is another nail in the coffin to Germany ability to conduct offensive warfare. |
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stevep
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Post by stevep on Oct 6, 2018 10:59:31 GMT
Redrobin65
Well that was decisive. The Canadians may have used up a lot of their more difficult to replace munitions but the Germans have used up a lot of their manpower and the Luftwaffe losses are simply shattering. Both in numbers of men and machines destroyed and the impact on morale. I suspect the Fat one will carry the can and it will have a new head but I suspect its too little too late even if Germany had the time to rebuild. The fact that there are so few just wounded compared to the numbers killed shows how devastating the defeat has been. They might have occupied the Netherlands and much of Belgium but I can't see them getting much further and down-time forces are probably enough to hold the line or even win an offensive, even without what the Canadians can bring to the war.
Steve
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Sounds like he's going for his eastern front tactic of "I want everything now, regardless of resources on the ground" and its likely to prove even less successful here, what with the Canadian presence and the information their supplied.