"I called this the [Emergency Rations for Low Temperature Environments], and William called it [Bruno's Restaurant Specials]. Sorry, but maybe you didn't know, Bruno's is a cheap restaurant, right in the Phil Barracks..."Sergeant Karl was very talkative, stirring the ingredients in the small aluminum pot with a stainless steel spoon as he spoke.

"I know that restaurant, I've been to dinner with a few friends before, and the chowder there tastes good." Second Lieutenant Cyril filled out the day's form, then tucked the notebook back into his leather map bag.

This is the twelfth day the team has spent on the Norwegian ice field, and they have conducted several experiments in a cold environment over the past week. The experiments included the thermal insulation effect of winter combat uniforms, the marching speed of soldiers in extremely low temperature conditions, the effect of conventional weapons in an environment of minus 20 degrees Celsius, and the practical use of military supplies and field rations in low temperature environments.

Second Lieutenant Cyril joined the team halfway, and the original commander unfortunately suffered from severe diarrhea, and was sent to Narvik by a Junker aunt, and Cyril, who came at random, became the new commander of the test team.

Cyril knew that at present, in Norway, there were no less than sixty test teams like him, and there might be different individual content in each team, but most of the tests were overlapping, and the command seemed to want to get an accurate data, and the specific reason was not what his level was qualified to query.

The Germans had never had a real winter suit before, and the European combat environment did not require special cold equipment and clothing, because the army command felt that it was a waste of luxury to distribute these equipment to soldiers who did not need it most of the time.

German soldiers are usually given a set of winter underwear made of chemical fibers, two pairs of wool-blend socks, and a warm sweater modeled after the American army. You saw that right, the style of this sweater was completely copied from the wealthy American Army, and even retained the V-shaped collar that the Americans liked, and the German soldiers liked this standard sweater so much that they wore it under their combat uniforms, and then fashionably exposed the collar of their shirts.

Thanks to the sullen Führer, the German military uniform was unusually beautiful, but historically with the British naval blockade of Europe, the material of the uniform became more and more inferior. Cotton and wool were replaced by man-made fibers and low-quality animal hair, and the faux linen became coarser and coarse, and the German uniforms after four or a year could barely stand up to washing, and after a few washes, they would be wrinkled to the point that ironing would not help, so those crisp German combat uniforms only existed in documentary films.

In the middle of the war, every time the German army needed a field parade, it was common to issue a new uniform to the receiving troops, in order to preserve the dignity of the German army on film without demoralizing the people in the rear.

Here I have to mention Rommel's African Army, this guy has offended too many colleagues, and his subordinates are regarded as a group of miscellaneous people raised by his mother, so it is not their turn to change uniforms, so in all the documentary films and photos, Rommel and his African Army are full of crumpled uniforms, then again, the tropical cotton uniforms of the African Army are really not afraid of washing, and even if you want to wash you, you have to have water.

However, when the Afrika Army was in trouble, in fact, everyone's life was quite sad, when the Afrika Army was eating fly omelette in the desert, most of the German troops on the Eastern Front almost forgot what the egg looked like.

The topic returns to the winter equipment of the German army, except for a set of summer uniforms, the German soldiers are a set of field uniforms that do not change all year round, except that the material is slightly thicker and the inside is lined with cotton, and there is not much difference from the summer uniforms in other aspects.

Due to the British blockade, the cotton lining in the uniform was quickly changed to man-made fiber, which worked in dry conditions, but once it got wet, it completely lost its ability to keep warm. As a result, after the German soldiers wore this uniform and sweated profusely in the snow, their body temperature would drop to the point where they could not exercise normally in a very short time.

Then let's talk about the military coat, which has almost become a symbol of the German army, which completely inherited the design of the Prussian kingdom, and in the minds of some high-ranking generals, it may have become a continuation of Prussian glory.

The problem is that this thing is only suitable for autumn and winter use in Europe, and when it encounters low temperatures of minus 30 degrees Celsius on the eastern front, it hardly plays a role in keeping warm. There are more than 10 styles of this kind of coat, and the fabric used is also very different, usually the soldiers get a coat made of artificial linen and wool blend, and the inner layer will be added with some rayon or wool lining, which is enough to keep warm in the winter of Western Europe, but wearing this to the Eastern Front, there is no doubt that it will freeze into a pen.

The German overcoat was so powerful and handsome that it was a classic design until the 21st century, but this style has been handed down from the time of the flintlock pistol, when everyone lined up to die generously, and only the cowardly cowards would lie on their stomachs in the mud.

In fact, this problem exists in all European armies, and the armies of every European country are equipped with a beautiful military coat, and it seems that everyone regards the overcoat as an army tradition, and does not consider whether this thing is still suitable for the ever-changing mode of warfare.

So the German soldiers wore this cumbersome clothing, staggering through knee-deep snow, and the coat soaked in the snow would become heavier than the rifle in the hand, and then frozen into a hard shell by the cold temperature, so that you could easily erect it in the snow and fasten a steel helmet to attract the attention of Soviet snipers.

In addition to the Type 35 coat, the Germans did not have stronger cold equipment at the moment, but there was a rabbit skin jacket, but because of the limited quantity purchased, it was only used by some mountain troops. Compared with the regular infantry in the plains, the cold equipment of the mountain troops is indeed a little better, they have special mountain short windbreakers, which will be lined with sheepskin, and they will also purchase some warm clothes by themselves, as long as they are willing to spend money, the material is not a problem at all, and these guys are doing their best to pick a few edelweiss.

In the end, the Germans are still too poor, military spending will never be enough, and the German army equipment seems to be very advanced, but compared with the Second Reich or even the Prussian era, whether it is workmanship or materials, it cannot be compared at all.

By the middle of the war, raw materials were scarce in Germany, and the soldiers at the front were all they could get their hands on a large number of inferior goods made of alternative materials. In particular, food and clothing, which should be paid special attention to, are directly related to the combat and morale of the front, but the Nazi top brass has never paid attention to them as if they were in a nightmare.

Many warm clothing did not begin to equip the troops until four or three or even four years, and the German army on the Eastern Front had already suffered heavy losses, and the Soviet army began to enter a major counteroffensive.

Finally, when it comes to the feet, the German soldiers, like the American GIs, have a pair of infamous blended socks, which are dyed a beautiful German gray on the German side, which is particularly absorbent, and if you can't find a way to dry it before you go to bed at night, you'll be 100% in the trenches.

The problem became even more serious when encountering the low temperature environment on the Eastern Front, the sweaty socks clinging to the skin of the feet, and the soldiers would soon get chilblains when encountering low temperatures from the outside world, which was a fatal problem on the front line with poor medical conditions, because the rotten wounds could easily turn into gangrene, and the field ambulance station did not prepare a second treatment plan except for amputation.

The German soldiers had a pair of marching boots that made the infantry of all European countries blush, the original style continued the standard of the Prussian era, which could cover the entire calf, but in 39 years, in order to save materials, Hitler ordered a special truncation of 10 centimeters, and the beautiful boots were made into nondescript medium boots.

The reason why the Germans were equipped with marching boots was that the roads in Germany were as rubbish as those in Russia in the early days, and when the snow melted and autumn rains came, the mud on the roads could reach as deep as the calves, and if the soldiers were equipped with short leather shoes and leggings like the French army, the soldiers would not get enough money to buy shoes.

Although it makes people blush a little, boots eventually became a tradition in the Prussian army, and the Soviet Union in the east was even more exaggerated, and the poor road conditions led to the fact that almost everyone in Russia at that time had a pair of leather boots, and the shoemaker was the most popular trade.

Although the German military boots are handsome, they are not as warm as imagined in the extreme cold, especially when standing still for a long time in the trenches, the soles of the boots with non-slip steel nails will take away the last trace of warmth on the soldiers' bodies.

But now that the Germans have a new Führer, he will not allow his soldiers to fall into that tragic situation again. The German army's winter test of new equipment is in full swing in the polar region of Norway at the moment.

PS: Thank you for your support, I am not in good shape today, but my thinking has not been affected.

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