BATTLE OF THE TANKS

Evening Star, Issue 23864, 19 April 1941, Page 9

BATTLE OF THE TANKS

BRITISH MACHINES SUPERIOR , SHELLS CUT THROUGH ENEMY ARMOUR LIKE CHEESE LONDON, April 18. An officer of a famous .British mechanised regiment declared that not a single British tank has been put out of action by gunfire, whereas British shells go through the German tanks [ike going through cheese. But numerically the Germans have the upper hand, he added, advancing in swarms, with motor cycle infantry in support. Backing up the enormous German land army is a powerful air fleet. Thev fly over in batches of 20 and sometimes 40, unload their bombs, and then return for more. The Athens correspondent of ' The Times ' describes enemy tank activity in the tremendous battle northward of 'LarLssa Plain. After long periods of silence along the mountain front German tanks appear, first the fast doubleenders, which go as quickly in reverse i as ahead", and then the heavy units, generally of 35 tons. Our men wait till the tanks are close up, and then I the anti-tank guns and rifles open fire at a range at which the thickest armour can be penetrated. A New Zealander described how he awaited such an attack. " A tank, with the hatches open, came right up under a bluff where we were cooking j soup, and the crew fired. One of us emptied the scalding contents of the cauldron into the open tank." _ | These attacks are usually m the of reconnaissances, and arc rarely persisted in when it is discovered that a position is strongly held. Allied forces in the last few days have beaten off scores of such attacks, but still the tanks come on seeking weak spots. ' The Times ' estimates that Germany i now has 15 armoured divisions. Put-ting-the strength of a division at KKI machines, this would represent a firstline force of 0,000 machines.

Such of the cable news in this issue as is so headed has appeared in ‘ The Times,’ and is sent to this paper by special permission. It should be understood that the opinions are not those of ‘ The Times 1 unless expressly stated to be so.