German Armor vs. French Armor 5/40 issue

[SGTGunn]

Hi,

I'm playing a long campaign as the Germans, and I'm fighting my first battle against the French - an Advance mission - and I'm a bit disgusted at my tanks seemingly utter inability to defeat the armor of their French counterparts. One particularly galling example follows. A lone French H-39/SA18, buttoned and suppressed by artillery is attacked by 10 PzKw IIIe, 3 PzKw IVc, and 1 PzKw IId. The majority of the German panzers are Veteran experience level. After two turns of firing a maneuvering, and achieving about 12 ineffectual hits on the H-39, the German Tanks close to point blank range and surround the H-39 from 4 sides. They open fire at between 50-100m and achieve over a dozen hits with 37mm, 75mm and 20mm - including several "extra penetration" hits. The H-39 is unscathed!!! It's not like this is a Char B1 or S-35. I realize that the French tanks were well armored and that the German's 37mm and short 75mm were hardly stellar anti-armor performers, but this seems a bit ridiculous. I feel like I'm shooting a Jagdtigers with 75mm armed Shermans.

Almost all of the tank kills I've managed against the French have been either close assaults with infantry and pioneers, or I just shelled a tank with heavy artillery until it blew up of the crew bailed out an ran away. I've killed a total of 2 French tanks with my panzers - and one kill on an S-35 required several point blank shots in the rear with a short 75mm at 50m. I'm beginning to wonder how the French lost.

Adrian