Word: attack
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Dates: during 1940-1940
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Motorized Infantry, shock troops in armored trucks attached to the Attack Army, machine-gunners on armored motorcycles, followed the assault tanks. Behind them followed motorized field artillery. The job of these forces was to widen and hold the breach made, turn it over to ordinary infantry brought up behind. Maximum speed of the whole armored column was that of the break-through tanks: 18 m.p.h. But with each column, for special demolition duty and advance work, went 170-h.p. Diesel-powered medium tanks capable of 85 m.p.h. on roads, 50 m.p.h. across country on their caterpillar tracks. And the Germans...
...Attack Army's task was to push on & on never to retreat except to resume formation, never to worry about food, fuel, ammunition supply, which would be sent forward to them in due time. Should a Panzer column reach an impasse, its duty was to fan out in all directions, like an exploding projectile: to play havoc upon railroads, telegraph, telephone, power, gas and water lines...
...German Air Force was the capture last fortnight of Rotterdam's airport. Thereafter it helped reduce Eben Emael, some of the forts at Liege, flew interference for the German columns which rolled through, strafed the British and French columns advancing to meet them. Low-flying German attack bombers were largely responsible for the break-through at Sedan by strafing the defenders with machine guns and small bombs. Behind the Allied lines high-flying dive bombers hurtled down from the sky to blast away at air fields and communication lines...
...first few days of the war in the West, Allied pursuit planes did enough damage to force the German bombers to fly in smaller formations, German fighters to patrol in large units to protect them. One notable achievement of the Allied air arm was a violent air attack on the German columns advancing on Sedan. Though outnumbered, they succeeded in destroying pontoon bridges, breaking up tank concentrations. That day the Germans claimed to have downed 200 Allied planes, but the French estimated that at least five German mechanized divisions were temporarily prevented from pouring into the Sedan salient...
...German attack bombers blasted French troops almost at will, indicating a sad numerical weakness in French defensive fighters. The most effective defense then as against all low-flying planes was the aimed fire of the ordinary rifle...