"Blitzkrieg", and offensive strategy still relevant today as it was in WW2

[AZADPAKISTAN2009]

Blitzkrieg​

Blitzkrieg is a method of warfare which translates into LIGHTNING ATTACK in German, whereby an attacking force, spearheaded by a dense concentration of armored and motorized or mechanized infantry formations with close air support, breaks through the opponent's line of defense by short, fast, powerful attacks and then dislocates the defenders, using speed and surprise to encircle them with the help of air superiority


The strategy was used in WW2, effectively by Germans to capture large territory.
Germans blitz thru to France using the strategy and occupied France , and in a swift reversal
Berlin itself fell to an attack from Allied forces including Soviets at the conclusion of WW2 in Europe

Using the strategy The mechanized Group moved rapidly across the border
Provided with air support

And columns of troops, 50,000 to 100,000 troops followed behind on foot or horses

During the end of the war, the opponents especially the Soviet Tanks matched Germans tanks in firepower and the Germans were pegged from their Western / Eastern front

The Soviets copied various tactics and showed their own lethal Armored division capabilities backed with artillery to soften up city defenses

In the final battle, almost 200,000 German Troops were stationed in North of Prussia , who were not called up to support the defense from behind Soviet lines a tactical mistake on part of germans


The lessons learned from this offensive

a) Tanks + Air support wins you Territory, the ground troops capture and fortify an area
b) Never extend the distance between your Tanks and Footsoldier's division where Tanks run out of supplies and support
c) Simple soldier formations were not able to defend against Tanks / Artillery
d) Allied forces ran across a massive challenge to cross River Protecting german region in Berlin, and Germans had forgotten to destroy one of the bridges The tanks managed to get over the one remaining bridge till it broke down.
e) While Germans had missiles these did not win them any territory
f) Allied forces/Soviets had a secret pact to destroy German and zones were divided and Berlin was under Soviet Zone of influence , which is why they went in Berlin for final attack


Soviet Tanks which tilted the balance in Europe

Soviet Generals in final days of wars avoided German columns of soldier groups and forced their Tanks to go deep into cities to cause massive havoc and capture the big cities

The German soldier resistance was cleaned up by foot soldiers


During peak battles, the war saw battle between forces on both side with up to 2000+ Tanks



Considering the Success of Blitz in WW2 one can imagine importance of Tank Programs like Al Khalid 1 and Al Khalid 2

 

[War Thunder]

Blitzkrieg is a method of warfare which transforms into LIGHTNING ATTACK in German, whereby an attacking force, spearheaded by a dense concentration of armored and motorized or mechanized infantry formations with close air support, breaks through the opponent's line of defense by short, fast, powerful attacks and then dislocates the defenders, using speed and surprise to encircle them with the help of air superiority


The strategy was used in WW2, effectively by Germans to capture large territory.
Germans blitz thru to France using the strategy and occupied France , and in a swift reversal
Berlin itself fell to an attack from Allied forces including Soviets at the conclusion of WW2 in Europe

Using the strategy The mechanized Group moved rapidly across the border
Provided with air support

And columns of troops, 50,000 to 100,000 troops followed behind on foot or horses

During the end of the war, the opponents especially the Soviet Tanks matched Germans tanks in firepower and the Germans were pegged from their western / eastern front

The lessons learned from this offensive

a) Tanks + Air support wins you Territory, the ground troops capture and fortify an area
b) Never extend the distance between your Tanks and Footsoldier's division where Tanks run out of supplies and support

And scorched earth tactics deny the enemy of any gains with capturing territory through Blitzing through their ranks. Which is and will always be relevant.
Soviets successfully employed the strat to counter German offensives through huge stretches of Soviet land.

 

[war&peace]

Blitzkrieg is a method of warfare which transforms into LIGHTNING ATTACK in German

ٰi guess you meant to say "translates"

 

[denel]

ٰi guess you meant to say "translates"

well corrected

 

[Indus Pakistan]

At a technical level it is a concentrated combined arms attack involing all branches of the armed forces. Most armies today are trained and capable of such operations. Indeed as eary as 1920s British officer and strategist Basil Liddel Hart had suggested such a form of attack and it was German Army that fully adopted this type of warfare in late 1930s. Soon after in WW2 all armies including US, British and Russian also adopted this tactic after the German success at outset of the war.

As I said all armies are able to employ and carry out Blitzkrieg attack including Pak and Indian armies. However theory is one thing but it requires one other very vital ingredient for Bltzkreig to succeed.

• the willingness to take heavy losses in men, then replenish but keep moving forward.
• the willinness to take heavy losses in ammunition, equipent then replenish but keep moving forward.

This is where are Pak and Indian Armies are singularly not able to handle. Like a guy who takes punches and gets stunned, stalls, then sits down PA and IA lose momentum as they take the spearhead takes the punches. This leads to the entire attack grinding to a halt. For those who question or want to know where I conclude this please study the German attack at Battle of Bulge when they were almost defeated yet managed to pierce Allied lines as deep as 30 miles in 4 days.

For comparison Pakistan Army has singularly failed to capture Jammu and thereby cut off Kashmir from in India when the distance is only 20 miles. The terrain is flat compared to the hilly, forrested terrain the Germans cut through. On other hand Indians have not managed to carry out a armoured thrust of 15 miles across flat ground to capture Lahore in 70 years.

In short we are [Paks/Indians] are all talk and no action.

 

[AZADPAKISTAN2009]

Well during the early phases of War

• Germans had the most advanced , agile Tank in market, it had a great success rate while moving
• British Tanks comparatively were older tech and their turret was the fix to the body so accuracy was compromised
• US tanks were preferred by Allied forces towards the end (UK/French)

Start of War 1938/1939 british Tank
VICKERS LIGHT TANK MK VIB

VICKERS MEDIUM MK II TANK

End of War 1945
Pictured
COMET Tank

So during the early phases of war , German enjoyed supreme success on background of their Tank's technology



However towards end of war Germans Manufacturing sector was destroyed due to Bombardment

While American Tank manufacturing was quite healthy

First Generation Anti Tank Weaponry
PIAT

Bazooka (Surprisingly old tech)

German anti Tank options for Soldiers

Germans were fighting with WW1 Rifles towards the end of war due to shortages in ammunition



The Rhine River Crossing

Upon seeing advancement by Allied forces, Hitler had ordered all bridges to Germany be destroyed, however 1 bridge was left undestroyed which allowed the allied forces an entry point into Germany

Hilter ordered Airforce to attack this bridge eventually it collapsed after a while but by then ample Allied troops had crossed over to Otherside of river

 

[litman]

what if the enemy has got tactical nukes like Nasr?

 

[AZADPAKISTAN2009]

Germans had the V2 Rockets
Which were used for Aireal damage however

• These never won them any Territory, they had no GPS system

V1 , Perhaps (first generation cruise missile )

V2 Heavier Missiles

The Rocket Tech Germans had was far advance but it could not defend them against the incoming Armored divisions




NASR:
Well it is a Tectical weapon , not fair to compare the NASR which is far more advance to WW2 weponry, you can destroy half a city with Nasr

 

[KhanBaba2]

Before armour , there was a period of trench warfare. A small force could keep away a huge force by digging trenches. Armour destroyed that concept because the foot soldiers did not have any significant way of destroying armour. Armoured helicopter gunships made things even more difficult.

Today they can fight back with ATGM and MANPADS. I wonder if trench warfare will make a comeback with infantry well supplied with ATGM and MANPADS.

 

[LeGenD]

The most recent case study of Blitzkrieg-style warfare is Operation Iraqi Freedom (2003); brilliantly executed conventional military offensive by any measure.

In fact, Operation Desert Storm (1991) drew global attention to Blitzkrieg-style warfare after a long time.

Excellent book for reference: https://kansaspress.ku.edu/978-0-7006-1300-7.html

I am surprised that you didn't discuss aforementioned military operations. In fact, German version of blitzkrieg look premature in comparison to modern American extrapolation of AirLand Battle.

For reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AirLand_Battle

 

[AZADPAKISTAN2009]

The biggest advantage of Blitz, of course, is rapid capture of ground, 30-50 miles over a few days

• Obliterate obstacles in the way, don't worry about pockets of few soldiers

The weakened state of German airforce by that point also made great difference

In Africa the decisive battle, for Allied forces again was built on more tanks, soldiers, and trucks

The battle pitted Montgomery (UK General) Vs Rommel (German General)
Fought in desert regions of Libya-Egyptian borders

• They had 1,000 Tanks, Germans and Italians had only 550 tanks
• Germans had 115,000 Troops vs almost 200,000 Troops for Allied forces

For germans controlling Egypt was a chance to block supplies to UK coming from Far East colonies

After initial success, the german General faced shortages because Libyan supply route was interrupted by Allied forces, and supplies from Germany by sea were blocked by Allied forces as well

In a way that also signifies the importance of having ample assets and Production rates

War in Africa

a) Axis , went over ambitious with less equipment and production
b) Air force played vital role for Allied forces success

Africa was also a battleground for Tanks, Artillery and Troops
Mousalini (Italian) had desire to take over British area of Egypt & Modern day Sudan

German Top Ace on field General Rommel was sent by Hitler to Aid , Italians losing cause in Africa which also weakened German positions in Europe

The italians did not had tanks like German , they were not quite as successful as Germans in Tank battles

Italian "Fiat" Tanks

Destroyed tank in desert

 

[AZADPAKISTAN2009]

If we look at the usage of Tanks, world war it is highly debatable that the Tanks are a very important commodity for National Defence

We should never overlook their importance

Modern warfare has improved defences against the Tanks

a) Shoulder fired ammunition has improved
b) The Gunship Helicopters
c) Missile systems launched from Figther Jets have improved
d) Precision (Self-guiding) Bomblets which are launched at high altitude and them home in on convoys

However, companies are still improving the existing systems

a) Better decoy system against Missiles
b) Self-protection tech vs RPG
c) Stealth Tanks which can make it hard for air jets to lock-in

AL KHALID TANK​

Today Al Khalid Tanks play a vital role in National Defence, modernized tank which is continuing to evolve and the Version 2.0 is also being constructed and continuously researched

Top product for HIT Pakistan , Industries

The Tank Manufacturing is a vital asset for Pakistan

2nd Half of Defence " T-129 Turkish Gunship "

The T-129 will modernize the Pakistani Blitz attack with providing Top quality air support, freeing up JF17 Block III fleet for other duties, step in right direction for Ground forces​

 

[TheNoob]

Amazing thread.
I am surprised at how much proper research you have done.

Alas, most will just GO MUH EVIL NAZI and end it there. lol

 

[Hex0maniac]

blitzkrieg German panzer div uses forests of Belgium and France as there cover which both armies did not anticipated

I never saw a single clip of Al-Khalid tanks maneuver in forest , furthermore all of our concerned borders are vast plain areas with good visblity (because of agriculture lands).

tanks size also played important role Panzer 2 and 3 are fairly small machine thus less visible and more maneuverable in dense forest

Panzer 2

panzer 3

both are fast and agile machine and hard to target.

in Iraq war A-10 sorties are must to protect abrams.

and we do require large amounts of A-10 ground attack aircraft or Atak gunship like defence its a must.

 

[Mrc]

Air is essential the quicker you take control the better. . We need a dedicated fixed wing tank attack plateform