Red Moscow

  Chapter 744 Underwater floating bridge

  Sokov's words made Cuikov and the others stunned on the spot, with incredible expressions on their faces. You know, ever since they received this telegram from the front army, they racked their brains and repeatedly calculated how to get all the troops to cross the river and enter the city in the shortest possible time. Hearing that Sokov had come up with a good solution at this moment, why didn't they be stunned and dubious.

"Tell me, Colonel Sokov." Chuikov was the first to wake up from the shock. He raised his chin at Sokov and asked on behalf of everyone: "What can you do to make everyone All the troops crossed the river and entered the city?"

   "We can build a pontoon bridge." Sokov said with confidence: "As long as there is a pontoon bridge, it will only take more than a day at most to allow more than 30,000 troops to enter the city."

"It's unrealistic," Krylov interrupted before Sukov finished speaking: "If we build a pontoon bridge on the Volga River, it will take half a day for the German planes to blow it up." .”

   "Comrade Chief of Staff," Sokov asked back with a smile on his face: "If the pontoon bridge we built is invisible to the enemy, wouldn't their planes be able to blow up the pontoon bridge?"

Hearing what Sokov said, Krylov sneered: "How is this possible? If the enemy can't find our pontoon bridge, it must be built under the water..." At this point, he was shocked , and then asked Sukov in surprise, "You don't want us to really build the floating bridge under the water, do you?"

"That's right, Comrade Chief of Staff, that's what I think about it." Sokov pointed to the map and explained to Krylov: "In order to conceal the target and prevent the bridge from being bombed by enemy planes, we can use rails and brushes to Asphalt-coated sleepers are used to build a bridge under the water. The bridge deck is 40 to 50 centimeters above the water surface, so that the river cannot flood the exhaust pipes of cars, and the bridge can be completely concealed.”

"Colonel Sokov, have you ever thought that there are fleet ships operating on the Volga River?" Krylov, who was listening to the explanation, pointed to the Volga River on the map and asked: "How do these ships move?" Through the area where we erected the pontoon bridge? You know, the bridge deck is only 40 to 50 centimeters from the water surface, and the waterline of the ship is much deeper."

"Comrade Chief of Staff, if I want to solve this problem, I'm afraid I need to find professionals." After saying this, Chuikov called a staff officer and told him: "Go and call Colonel Tupichev, the chief of the engineering corps. Just say that I have something important to look for him and ask him to come over immediately."

  After the staff officer left, Chuikov said to Sokov in an encouraging tone: "Colonel Sokov, if you have any other ideas, you can tell them."

  Sokov was thinking at this moment, it is said that the idea of ​​the underwater bridge appeared during the Battle of Stalingrad. Could it be that Krylov in front of him was the person who first came up with this idea? Because he was so engrossed in thinking, he didn't hear what Cuikov said to himself.

Seeing Sokov staring at the map in a daze, Chuikov thought he was thinking about letting the ship pass the pontoon bridge, so he raised his hand and patted him on the back twice, saying to him: "Colonel Sokov, don't worry, the ship will pass the bridge." As for the problem of boat passage, I think Colonel Tupichev can figure out a way."

After being shot awake, Sokov realized that he needed to say something more, so he continued: "Even if we have repaired the pontoon bridge, in order to prevent the bombing of enemy planes, we need to prepare a new attack target for them. "

   "New attack target?" Chuikov asked with some surprise: "Colonel Sokov, I don't quite understand what you mean, can you explain it more clearly?"

"We should build a fake pontoon bridge away from the underwater pontoon bridge, so that the enemy will think that we are transporting soldiers, weapons and ammunition to the city through this pontoon bridge." Sokov explained to Chuikov with some complacency: "This way As soon as they come, they will target the bombing and shelling at the fake pontoon bridge. And we can take the opportunity to transport more soldiers and military supplies into the city through the underwater pontoon bridge."

   "If this pontoon bridge is built, how much material transportation can be achieved in a day?"

   "It's hard to say." Sokov never pretended to understand something he was not familiar with, so he replied truthfully: "Comrade Commander, I am not in charge of logistics, so I really can't answer this question."

   "Yes, yes, yes, you are not in charge of logistics, so why would I ask you this question." Chuikov laughed dryly and said, "I should ask General Lobov of the Logistics Department about this kind of thing."

  Tupichev, Chief of the Engineering Corps, followed the staff into the headquarters. He came to Chuikov, raised his hand in salute, and asked, "Comrade Commander, what can I do for you?"

"That's right, Comrade Colonel." Chuikov pointed to Sokov who was standing next to him, and said, "Colonel Sokov suggested to us that we can build a pontoon bridge buried under the water in the Volga River. Fifty centimeters, so that the river will not flood the exhaust pipe of the car, and at the same time, the pontoon bridge can be well concealed."

"Building an underwater pontoon bridge on the Volga River?!" Tupichev was taken aback after hearing what Chuikov said, and then gave Sokov a thumbs up: "Genius, Colonel Sokov, you must be a genius, otherwise you will definitely be a genius." I can't think of such a good way."

   "Comrade Colonel," after Tupichev finished speaking, Chuikov continued: "We now have two problems. One is whether the engineers can build such a pontoon bridge, and the other is how to ensure the passage of the fleet's ships after the pontoon bridge is repaired."

"Don't worry, Comrade Commander. Although the current river is bitter, as long as you can provide me with enough vodka, I think the soldiers can brave the severe cold to complete this arduous task. As for letting the ships pass," Tupiche said. The husband put his right hand under his left armpit and rested his chin with his left hand, staring at the map on the table and thinking. After a while, he raised his head and asked Sokov, "Colonel Sokov, have you ever been to Leningrad?"

"No." Although Sokov has always wanted to go to Leningrad, but because it is under siege by the German army, he has no chance to go there yet. Therefore, when he heard Tupichev's question, he shook his head and replied: "Never Haven `t been there."

"Comrade Colonel, I understand what you mean." Sokov has never been to Leningrad, but it doesn't mean that Chuikov and the others have never been. He guessed the other party's intentions from Tupichev's few words, and asked quickly: "Leningrad is known as the Venice of the North. The hundreds of bridges on the Neva River are Leningrad's unique water city and bridge city landscape, and the opening of the bridge is an unmissable ceremony in Leningrad."

Tupichev may have considered that Sokov had never been to Leningrad, so he specifically introduced to him in detail: "There are more than 300 bridges, large and small, in Leningrad. Every year from April to November, In order to facilitate the navigation of large ships, the bridges on the Neva River are opened in sequence from 1:00 to 5:00 every morning, so that the larger ships traveling on the Neva River can enter the city at night, while the oncoming merchant ships can enter the city. Sail to the Gulf of Finland.

   And we can use this technology on the pontoon. After the pontoon bridge is built, a section of the bridge deck in the middle of the bridge can be moved and usually fixed with fasteners. In the middle of the night, when there is a ship to pass, we open the fastener and use two sets of pulleys to pull up the movable bridge plate, so that the ship can pass. "

After listening to Tupichev’s introduction, Chuikov showed a gratified smile on his face. He turned to Krylov and said, “Chief of Staff, did you hear that? Let him solve it in a few words."

Regarding Chuikov's praise, Tupichev seemed a little embarrassed: "Comrade Commander, this is all thanks to Colonel Sokov. If he hadn't thought of building a pontoon bridge under the water, I would not have thought of this way of opening the bridge to ensure The alley is clear."

  Chuikov looked at his watch and asked Tupichev: "Comrade Colonel, how long will it take you to build the underwater pontoon bridge?"

   After calculating silently in his mind, Tupichev replied: "Comrade Commander, since the narrowest part of the Volga River is more than 1,000 meters long, it will take five days at the fastest to erect such a pontoon bridge."

   "No." Chuikov shook his head and said, "The reinforcements sent by our superiors will arrive in two days. You must build the underwater floating bridge before they arrive."

  (end of this chapter)