[BroJoeK]

Reily: "German tanks used diesel! I knew that even as a kid.
Also as I remember the movie it gave little mention of Bastogne."

That's a common misunderstanding which I myself was surprised to learn is untrue.
In WWII, only the Soviets used diesel in their T-34 tanks.
Every other major force, including the Germans, used gasoline.

So that fuel dump was indeed a big deal.
Even more, the whole effort was Hitler's attempt to repeat what Rommel had accomplished in North Africa, when he overran British posts, capturing fuel & other supplies kept there.

[central_va]

WWII Japanese tanks were crappy POS but they had two things going for them: good optical sights and diesel engines.