Seeing that more than twenty Soviet tanks still had the absolute advantage in numbers and continued to retreat until they disappeared from sight, the German soldiers defending the position finally breathed a sigh of relief. After more than an hour of fierce fighting, about forty to fifty percent of them had fallen, and those who survived all felt a sense of relief as if they had narrowly escaped death. For Lynn, this battle was another close call, but compared to the earlier sense of blindness and helplessness, he had exerted the utmost effort for the final outcome of this battle, and the results showed a qualitative leap. According to his own calculations, he had hit sixteen Soviet soldiers in this battle, and with the casualties caused by grenades, he estimated that over twenty enemy soldiers were killed or wounded, with likely more than ten fatalities. In terms of the efficiency of a single battle, Lynn had the potential to become one of the top marksmen of World War II, but unfortunately, the fading Third Reich could no longer provide him with enough space to excel.
What truly pleased Lynn was the united spirit of his comrades. He believed that if the German army could display such a level of performance in every battle against the Soviets, even if they only maintained half the casualty ratio, there would still be a chance to turn the tide of the war.
But good wishes remained just that—wishes. The victory won at the cost of the lives of fallen comrades was still fragile, and the living faced new life-and-death tests. Without any warning of an air raid, a squadron of notorious Soviet Il-2 "Black Death" ground-attack aircraft suddenly swooped in low. While different types of troops on the battlefield didn't always adhere to strict rules of engagement, these aircraft, equipped with machine guns, rocket launchers, and the ability to carry heavy aerial bombs simultaneously, were indeed dubbed "tank killers". Their thick armor allowed them to ignore machine gun bullets from enemy ground forces, and their relatively slow speed during attacks meant they provided an ideal platform for weapon deployment.
As Lynn watched six Il-2s appear on the battlefield flying just above the treetops, he was equally astonished. At that moment, there were over a hundred German infantrymen searching and clearing the wreckage of Soviet tanks, and two gray-painted Tiger tanks had not yet managed to retreat to the relative safety of the forest. Compounding the issue,
Just like the airstrikes Lynn and his comrades encountered during their retreat, Soviet aircraft attacked their targets with rockets as soon as they arrived on the battlefield. The sight of dozens of aviation rockets trailing flames and smoke through the air was impressive, despite their primitive contact fuzes. Their accuracy and speed were markedly improved compared to traditional aerial bombs. Before the German troops on the ground could react effectively, these rockets had already swooped down upon them. The chain of explosions they caused rivaled the intensity and density of salvoes from large-caliber howitzers, even forming a terrifying "carpet bombing" effect in certain areas.
From the air, the three tanks and one assault gun moving towards the wooded area should have been the most conspicuous targets for the German forces. Indeed, a significant portion of the rockets launched by the Soviet attackers was aimed at them. Within seconds, the fierce explosions engulfed them. Amidst the trees, Lynn anxiously observed the fate of those tanks. As the smoke cleared, Tank Number Four's silhouette emerged first, but to his dismay, it was immobilized in place, with its left track detached from the idler and bogie wheels. The four tank crew members abandoned the vehicle and fled towards the forest—under these circumstances, preserving their lives offered the only chance of repairing the tank!
Next, the two Tiger tanks also returned to view. The leading one was still struggling to reach the nearby woods, while the other, like Tank Number Four, remained stationary, though no visible damage was evident on its tracks. As for the third assault gun, it too was attempting to retreat towards the forest.
Watching the previously indomitable German tanks facing such dire straits against just six Il-2s on the battlefield, Lynn felt a deep sense of loss and helplessness, prompting him to reflect deeply. Ridiculing soldiers for abandoning their equipment in the face of the enemy might not be fair, he realized, especially considering the overwhelming aerial power of the Japanese at that time. Moreover, the disparity in artillery firepower between the two sides, coupled with the lack of modern training for many soldiers, meant that crumbling under pressure was a normal reaction. Even if it were American, British, French, or even German soldiers, they might not necessarily have fared better under the same circumstances.
Thus, factors such as equipment superiority, soldier quality, and military strength collectively determined the outcome of battles. If one side's overall strength was significantly inferior, achieving victory would be exceedingly difficult—despite the individual combat capabilities of the German tanks surpassing those of the Soviet tanks and the infantry being evenly matched, on the Eastern Front at this moment, the Germans not only lost air superiority but also faced a numerical disadvantage of nearly 1 to 3. Even if the war were fought on German soil, the fate of defeat would likely be irreversible!
With these thoughts weighing heavily on him, Lynn watched the overwhelmingly one-sided battle unfold before him. The six Il-2s quickly climbed, turned, and dove back into the attack. German soldiers behind the village attempted to provide cover with smoke launchers for their defensive lines, but before they could fire their rockets, one of the Il-2s spotted them. The black harbingers of death deftly maneuvered in mid-air, then released their bombs from under their bellies. Although the bombs fell several meters away from the six-barreled smoke launcher, the destructive power of several hundred kilograms of aviation bombs was immense. They could sink a ten-thousand-ton ship or cause instant casualties within a hundred meters on land. The intense shockwave from the explosion instantly toppled the smoke launcher that had already been fixed in place and slid it sideways for some distance, while exposed bodies were torn apart by the storm of high-explosive.
Helplessly witnessing all this unfold before his eyes, Lynn knew that many others must share his hopes and experience the same sense of disappointment.
After the intense explosions subsided, only one Tiger tank could be seen struggling to retreat towards the forest amidst the smoke. Its turret and hull were smeared with burning material, turning the majestic king of the land into a pathetic creature, reminiscent of a defeated soldier hearing the call of home, willing to return alive regardless of victory or defeat...
The nearby quad-mounted machine gun roared angrily, not only venting its frustration for its comrades but also fiercely fighting for its own survival. However, its range was so limited, and the battlefield on the other side of the village was so distant that the departing specks of light never posed a threat to the Soviet attackers whistling overhead. Before long, all six Il-2s climbed to several hundred meters in altitude, then descended at a steep angle. From their trajectory, it was clear they intended to "open up" the German tanks' roofs.
As the dull drone of the aircraft engines and the howling of machine guns echoed in his ears, Lynn couldn't bear to watch anymore. The "Butcher" standing up from the shell crater stared blankly towards the village, muttering to himself, whether in prayer for his comrades or curses for the ruthless Soviet pilots—it was hard to tell. Regardless of the circumstances, Lynn found it difficult to harbor hatred towards them. After all, this was war!
Facing the successive strafing runs of the Soviet attackers, the only operational Tiger tank had to maneuver irregularly, swerving left and right along an unpredictable path. The ground around it was pockmarked with the impacts of machine gun bullets, emitting a distinct sound different from that of regular bullets. At this moment, German tank crewmen might have missed the smoke launchers mounted on the sides of the Tiger tank turrets in earlier models, but some tankers had complained that smoke grenades unexpectedly detonated by enemy fire on the battlefield could disrupt their line of sight, leading to the cancellation of this pioneering design. Although the new S-mine launchers (close-range anti-infantry grenade launchers) could also launch smoke grenades, they were mostly used for their intended purpose of launching anti-infantry grenades. Moreover, later models of the Tiger tank omitted this device from the hull and retained only one on the turret roof, rendering its usefulness minimal.