After the full-line artillery bombardment was launched, the German long-range artillery positions only started to counterattack after more than ten minutes. These were all German large and medium-caliber heavy artillery hidden in the artillery bunker, with about four or five hundred and five hundred balls, and the counterattack was not strong.

From this point of view, the 11-day aerial bombing in the previous stage was effective and destroyed most of the German artillery forces.

The Germans were not fools either. After losing their air superiority, they used the perfect reinforced concrete artillery bunker and camouflage protection net to deceive the air bombing and still retained some artillery power.

After more than two hours of shelling, waves of dense aircraft flew from behind the Allied Position, and the air bombing began again.

Marshal Li Shuanzhu’s three axes are not as simple as after one move and then making the second move, but rather the superposition effect.

While the ground artillery bombarded the entire line, the air bombing was launched, with the purpose of clearing out all the German fish that had escaped the net and slamming the German counterattack forces.

This time, a small number of bombers were not small bombs of 25 pounds and 50 pounds, but a single 120 pound heavy aviation bomb, equipped with the latest delay passivation fuses, high-strength alloy warheads, which were very lethal to reinforced concrete fortifications and commands.

A 120-pound bomb was thrown from the air, and by inertia, it could break a one-meter-thick concrete layer, and then explode inside, forming the accumulation of "cave effect" and "transmission effect", which was enough to collapse the reinforced artillery reinforced concrete bunker.

For such heavy bombs, the Farmer bomber can only hang 6 at a time, and the "Herrorist bomber can hang ten at a time, and will carry out key killings on strong and defensive reinforced concrete positions, hidden departments, and command posts.

Among the four special Hercules bombers, radio stations were equipped for short- and medium-range communications, heavy radios filled the cabin and an additional artillery observer was carried.

Such special aircraft are called artillery calibration aircraft. They can observe the shelling effect in the air, and adjust the shelling range and distance in real time. With the cooperation of flag soldiers, they can carry out accurate strikes on German positions.

Therefore, the artillery coverage tactics of the Ocean Empire were not the chaotic blow of the British and French coalition forces, but the precise strike under the guidance of advanced technology.

The same artillery coverage tactics have completely different strike effects and effects, and their effectiveness is more than doubled.

The Ocean Empire aircraft that controlled air supremacy raged over the Somme River, bombing railways, roads, bridges and other German targets that had a radius of nearly 100 kilometers, preventing German reinforcements from entering the Somme River area and causing major damage to it.

As for the exposed German artillery positions, bombers implemented precise bombing tactics.

The specific tactic is that more than a dozen bombers carrying 20-pound and 50-pound bombs are the first to carry out hollow bombing on the targets to clear away the surrounding air defense forces.

Then several bombers carrying 120-pound heavy bombs entered along the low-altitude bombing route, implemented precise bombing tactics on the target, and finally followed by fighter jets in the fleet to observe the bombing effect.

If it is not ideal, the next group of bombers will be summoned to volley again to destroy the German hidden targets, including solid artillery positions, underground command posts, medium and large garrison covers and ammunition depots.

In this way, even the most solid target will be destroyed.

This is the superposition of effects in Marshal Li Shuanzhu's tactics. He relies not solely on ground artillery or army aviation, but on joint operations, with each other's focus.

After ten o'clock in the morning

Marshal Li Shuanzhu led senior officials of the British and French coalition forces to leave the front-line command post and return to the commander-in-chief in the rear.

This place is about 30 kilometers away from the front line, and is located in a safe rear.

Unlike the Germans who were blasted by violent air, the Expeditionary Forces Command was set up in a solid French castle building in the town of Sbikes. Most of the buildings here are intact, and many local French civilians live here.

In contrast, several towns within a radius of more than 200 square kilometers behind the German defense line have been blown into ruins, with almost no intact building, and there are broken walls everywhere.

"Gentlemen, thank God for our ability to sit in front of the warm fireplace and enjoy hot coffee on this cold winter day. May God bless you!" Marshal Li Shuanzhu raised his glass and said, then took a big sip of coffee.

"May God bless the Kingdom of Great Britain!"

"May God bless France!"

Marshal Li Shuanzhu's eyes swept over Lord Gaff and General Michelle, and a trace of clarity flashed through his eyes.

He could hear a lot from the echoes of the two commanders of the army, Britain and France. The British and French armies have been fighting side by side on the Western Front for more than three years, and the gap is still very deep.

On the battlefield in the northern front of the Somme River, the main force is the Third and Fourth Army of the United Kingdom, and the auxiliary force is the Sixth Army of the France, with a total force of about 620,000.

On the battlefield of the southern front of the Somme River where fierce battle broke out, the main force was the Ocean Empire Expeditionary Force, the auxiliary force was the 10th Army of General Michelle of France and the 5th Army of Lord Gaff of Britain, with a total force of more than 670,000 people.

Among them, the Ocean Empire Expeditionary Force has 300,000, while the British and French have suffered losses to the battles so far. All 38 divisions are not satisfied with the unit, with more than 10,000 people, and only six or seven thousand people. The others are either dead or injured.

The total number of troops in the Allied Powers reached more than 1.3 million, while the opponent's first and second German armies were less than 720,000 (the number after suffering heavy blows), which was nearly 2:1.

If the situation changed after the Imperial Expeditionary Force arrived on the Western Front, nearly one million British and French coalition forces fought against 790,000 Germans, which was not very advantageous.

At this time, you can see the effect of the continuous bombardment in the air, which interrupted all the railways, roads and bridges that the German army reinforced to the front. The lost soldiers could not be replenished in time, the reinforcements could not come up, and the wounded could not go down.

One rises and the other falls, and the strength of both sides quickly changes.

In some areas of the southern line where the attack was the most violent, the comparison of the forces between the enemy and us has reached 3:1 or even 4:1, creating a very good environment for the assault of the armored cluster.

"Gentlemen, we should not be too optimistic about the advantages we have gained for the time being. According to the established combat plan, artillery fire will be used to block the key node areas of roads and bridges that the German army mainly transports troops forward. I require that the artillery fire stop time should not exceed three minutes.

During the day, our Royal Army bomber fleet will take over the battlefield, bombing and strafing any marching queues appearing on the road, and blocking the German reinforcements. This is the key to whether we can win the final victory."

Marshal Li Shuanzhu knocked hard on several key roads on the map to show his importance.

During the day, when the Germans were raging in the air force, it was impossible for the Germans to launch large-scale reinforcements to the front line. The endless plains are an insurmountable death zone.

His advice was very reasonable. He gathered artillery troops on the battlefield in the southern Somme River, with a total of 13 artillery divisions and 21 artillery regiments, most of which were troops under the British and French coalition forces, and many were transferred from the battlefield in the northern Somme River to strengthen firepower.

The actual command of the artillery was in the hands of the British and French coalition forces.

The independent command power obtained by Marshal Li Shuanzhu was limited to the established battlefield range of the Ocean Empire on the Somme Henan Line. The British 5th Army and the French 10th Army that assisted in the attack were not included, and were of a friendly nature.

He was obliged to cooperate with the attack according to the combat plan, but he did not obey Marshal Li Shuanzhu's orders, and it was not a relationship between superiors and subordinates.

Thinking about it with your toes, you will know that both the British and the French have their own empire pride and it is absolutely unimaginable that hundreds of thousands of troops be handed over to a foreigner to command.

Therefore, the accurate implementation of relevant combat plans must be achieved by the cooperation of friendly forces.

Whether the British or French, the Germans who finally slipped over the artillery blockade will become a big trouble for the Imperial Expeditionary Force. This is the coordination problem of the multinational coalition.

"Three minutes, this is probably very difficult?" Lord Gaff's 5th Army of England.

Currently, British artillery is the main force. If a certain section of the road is blocked, several artillery units will definitely take turns to fight. This is passed down like a baton, and the shelling time must be blocked very accurately.

Because artillery positions are often changed, under the current backward communication conditions, it is impossible to have telephone lines to contact each other. Very precise plans are required and strong execution capabilities are required.

"Dear Lord Gaff, General Michelle, the shooting conversion gap is an irregular three-minute period, which is necessary to block the German reinforcements at night. If it cannot be done, I will consider a backup plan." Marshal Li Shuanzhu's tone was very tough, and he glanced at the two military bosses present without any compromise, and knocked on the map with his hands. "If this is not done, too many German reinforcements were put in, causing the attacking troops to suffer heavy damage and finally failed, and the empire will reconsider the plan to reinforce Europe. The consequences of all this will be borne by you two."

"Watt, your Ocean Empire is responsible for the main attack, but I have to bear the final failure. What is this?" Lord Gaff was angry by Marshal Li Shuanzhu's tough attitude, and looked over with a gloomy expression, full of the arrogant expression of the British nobles.

The French Admiral Michelle was not so arrogant, but his tone was not good. He said with a reserved look: "Li, this joke is not funny."

"It's not a joke. After repeated weakening, the total number of enemies in front of our expeditionary force is about 140,000 to 150,000. After several days of continuous artillery fire coverage and bombing, it will be further reduced. This will form a situation that is conducive to our armored cluster assault."

Marshal Li Shuanzhu was in full swing and looked around with an irrefutable attitude, and continued, "If your artillery defense line is released, our chances of winning will be reduced by one point. We will not relax at all when we are deadly, otherwise all previous efforts will be wasted. I will never allow this kind of thing to happen. When necessary, I will directly submit it to His Majesty the Emperor of the Empire and request the revocation of this attack. Anyway, this is not our war, and it is the French who will be unlucky if it is dragged on."

"You..." Lord Gaff stood up so angry that he couldn't say a word.

The French General Michelle was shocked and his eyes were already covered in black lines.
Chapter completed!