Having taken down the two nearest British soldiers, Count Wolfgang von Bruchsal finally had a moment to untangle the parachute harness from his body. Skillfully undoing the buckles, he remained vigilant, scanning his surroundings. Within seconds, two paratroopers from his own unit landed somewhat awkwardly a dozen meters away. He was about to call out to them to quickly release their parachutes and search for the equipment they parachuted down with when he caught sight of four British soldiers crouched behind a ridge less than a hundred meters to the north. They were armed with rifles and continuously firing at the descending German paratroopers!
The count quickly replaced the magazine in his pistol, renowned for its craftsmanship but with a range of only 70 meters, not suitable for open-field combat. Despite more German paratroopers landing nearby, this young lieutenant, who had served in the army for a long time and had extensive ground combat experience, dared not let his guard down. He shouted loudly, "Attention! Pick up your weapons and attack the enemy to the north!"
Some of the recently landed individuals were disoriented at first, but many paratroopers swiftly retrieved their Mauser 98K rifles and MP38 submachine guns from their personal gear and launched short charges. Once they gained firing angles, they opened fire without hesitation. The crisp sound of gunfire filled the air as those four British soldiers barely had time to flee or resist before they were all neutralized!
With the immediate threat eliminated, more British soldiers within rifle range were converging from their hiding spots, attempting to launch attacks while the German paratroopers were still getting their bearings. The count, not one to lag behind, retrieved a Mauser rifle from a fallen German paratrooper previously killed by British soldiers. After loading the bullets, he took aim and fired at a distant figure clad in khaki. The first shot seemed to miss, prompting the figure, about 300 meters away, to quickly duck, while British helmets around them remained conspicuous in the sunlight!
As the crackling sound of bullets came flying back from the British soldiers, the count crouched and advanced several steps, then assumed a standard infantry position, lying prone behind the ridge along with the paratroopers. After bracing his rifle against the ridge, stabilizing it, he aimed and fired at a British infantryman sprinting in the distance!
Crack!
With a gentle push of the shoulder against the stock and his left eye closed, the count kept his right eye focused. The figure beneath the crosshair promptly fell unnatural. The count swiftly worked the bolt, skillfully seeking out the next target.
With more German paratroopers joining the firefight, the British soldiers could no longer advance. They remained stationary, crouching or lying prone, exchanging fire with the German paratroopers across several square fields. After emptying the internal magazine of five bullets, the count dropped the rifle, glanced back at the parachuting reinforcements, and strained to pick out familiar voices. Suddenly, white parachutes and canvas-colored bundles came into view.
"Karl, Eberl, follow me!"
The two paratroopers, who had been engrossed in firing their rifles, reluctantly moved aside from the ridge as their commander gestured, leading them stealthily southward—where the advancing British infantry was also being halted by the German paratroopers. Among them, an MG34 pinned down more than twenty British soldiers in place. At this moment, the British surely missed their own tank units; even the oldest "Little Willie" tank could have made a significant difference in this scenario!
The British forces guarding Belfast were not without tanks and armored vehicles. However, in the preceding half-hour, any vehicles exposed near the positions and roads had received special attention from the German Stuka dive bombers. Though armored vehicles hidden in warehouses and concealed spots had been urgently dispatched to the German drop zones, the German fighter planes, not missing an opportunity to gain battle honors, unleashed relentless attacks. The Stukas swooped in while even the Bf-110 fighters descended, strafing the rapidly moving vehicles with 20mm machine gun and 7.92mm fire. The sound of gunfire and explosions filled the air, as one British vehicle after another lost power after being hit or turned into burning fireballs!
Gathering two more soldiers from his platoon along the way, Count Wolfgang von Bruchsal anxiously assembled the four packages labeled with unit numbers. In ancient times, esteemed counts probably wouldn't have to do manual labor themselves, but here, the young lieutenant officer personally unpacked the heavy and oil-stained equipment from inside the pouches. Gun barrel, gun carriage, gun wheels, and a simple optical rangefinder—like performing magic, the paratroopers quickly assembled the components from the four pouches into a 75mm-caliber gun. This was the unique LG40 used by the German Air Force—a recoilless gun successfully developed by Krupp in 1939 and mass-produced in 1940! Due to the extensive use of lightweight alloys, the combat weight of this gun was only 145 kilograms, equivalent to the weight of two adults. Although lighter, its range and firepower were not compromised. Especially when using armor-piercing shells, it could easily destroy most British tanks and armored vehicles!
When the paratroopers dragged in the parachutes containing the shells from nearby, the count personally adjusted the muzzle and then turned to the paratroopers directly behind the gun, shouting, "Clear the area! Quickly clear the area!"
Due to the special firing mechanism of the German recoilless gun, an unusually long flame spewed from the muzzle. In the paratrooper combat regulations, the area 50-100 meters behind it was designated as a danger zone; neither ammunition nor personnel were allowed to stay there. Additionally, the gun produced a very loud noise when fired, which could seriously damage the gunner's hearing. The regulations also stipulated that when firing the LG40, gunners had to wear earplugs or cover their ears as much as possible!
Despite these constraints, in this era, being able to parachute along with paratroopers with large-caliber artillery was quite rare. As the German paratroopers dispersed from the area behind the gun, the count ordered, "Fire!"
After a flight of more than 400 meters, the shell plunged into a ridge where many British infantrymen were hiding, resulting in a thunderous explosion that sent those unlucky individuals flying in various strange positions. The Browning light machine gun, which had been clamorous just moments ago, fell silent. Witnessing this scene, the British soldiers seemed stunned like startled sparrows. With over two hundred assembled German paratroopers, the count and his gun crew continued to fire. In close-range artillery fire, the LG40, which utilized direct fire mode, was just as accurate as tank guns. Except for one stray shell, each roar of the LG40 took out a British firepower point. With a maximum range of 6.8 kilometers, it was enough to support the eager paratroopers in breaking through the British infantry's defense and advancing into the outskirts of the airport!
Seeing no more significant targets in his line of sight, the count decisively ordered his gunners to drag the recoilless gun towards the airport—to reduce weight, engineers had used fighter aircraft tires, allowing two soldiers to swiftly move the LG40!
As the German paratroopers swiftly launched a fierce counterattack on the outskirts of the airport, the three German paratrooper platoons directly airdropped into the airport area found themselves struggling under the attack of the superior British forces. Meanwhile, two makeshift armored cars equipped with steel plates in both the driver's cabin and cargo compartment slowly moved along the airport runway, continuously firing the two water-cooled heavy machine guns mounted inside the cargo compartment at the retreating German paratroopers on the other side of the runway. Many British infantrymen also engaged in firefighting with the German paratroopers, taking advantage of the remaining machine gun nests and artillery positions around the runway.
Following a series of previous battles, the British technical department had evidently learned that German individual anti-tank weapons were effective only at a distance of about 50 meters, and relayed this information to the frontline officers, soldiers, and militia. As long as they maintained a distance of around 200 meters, British armored cars and heavy machine guns could leverage their firepower advantage. Moreover, the previously bombed fuel depot at the airport continued to emit thick smoke, serving as a cover for the British forces against the German assault. Several Bf-109s made repeated dives but were unable to provide support due to obstructed visibility, and one of them was even hit by the remaining British anti-aircraft fire.
With their assault thwarted, the stranded German wounded soldiers could only struggle helplessly and cry out amidst the cruel and intense battle, where everyone was too preoccupied to lend aid to anyone else. Several minutes later, more than twenty Ju-52 transport planes arrived over the airport as planned, scattering the second wave of German airborne troops onto this strategically vital British airfield!
Suddenly, British anti-aircraft guns and a considerable number of machine guns and rifles shifted their firepower back to the sky. Watching the dark-red bullets and tracer rounds flying into the air incessantly, the besieged German paratroopers in various corners of the airport should have felt fortunate. For there is perhaps nothing more helpless in the world than dangling from a parachute and watching as enemies desperately fire upon you!
Facing the current dilemma, the German paratroopers would surely recall the "giants." These majestic aerial monsters were always able to deliver formidable Panzer III and IV tanks to the fiercest frontlines of battle. As soon as they appeared, enemy soldiers often trembled in fear, and those firepower points constructed using warehouses or fortifications were simply no match for their tank guns. What the paratroopers needed to do was to follow the airborne tanks in assault after assault!
However, not to mention that the production output of these "giants" was far from sufficient to meet the demand, the dense buildings in the Belfast harbor area and the annoying "Churchill Asparagus" in the surrounding fields posed fatal threats to the glider operations. Therefore, even if the German Air Force forcibly deployed DFS230 assault gliders and Me321 heavy gliders, the excessively high casualties would outweigh the benefits!
As expected, many of the second wave of German paratroopers, some of whom had not even landed, were killed, and those who landed wounded fared no better. More individuals found themselves directly exposed to the British gunfire. If it were not for the timely arrival of the German paratroopers advancing from the periphery, the Battle of Belfast Airport would undoubtedly have become one of the most tragic battles in the closing stages of the British Campaign!