Report on the Great Patriotic War between 6pm on the 22nd of July and 6pm on the 1st of August 1942.
The 27th of July 1942, 1am Moscow Time, 6,5°C
Yesterday, our Breakfast was a bit lighter than usual. The city hadn't gotten any new supplies in days. It seemed priority was given to supplying our troops in
Jaworow in the hope to hang on to the recently recovered province. Sergeant Bylinkin notified me that the central ammunition stores were dangerously low, and that we would have to make do with the ammunition we had in case we came under attack. At 8am, almost as if they could smell our lack of ammunition, the German 11 PzD attacked from
Przemysl. After the fiasco with the flame-throwers and the Hungarians, they had changed their approach. The first shots sounded on Horodotska street, more precisely at the bridge across the railway branch connecting Lwow Central Station with Lwow-Persenkowka Station. A smaller secondary attack around the bridge at Liubinska street started fifteen minutes later. Both attacks were supported by FlaK-88s and PaK-43s, with the Panzers staying out of sight for the moment. The enemy infantry was moving slowly and carefully across both bridges, they probably didn't know our situation. To make matters worse, the amount of troops in the city was cut in half in the previous days, with only
Popov's XXIX GvSK and 10 TTGvD remaining. The order came in from Lt. General
Popov's HQ to conserve ammunition and attempt to slow down the enemy movements rather than stopping them. Shoot to kill only. We all needed to buy time until we could get more ammunition. The attention of the FlaK-88s was soon diverted by our own bombing raids on both bridges. With only few bombs available, the effect wasn't as hoped, and despite a few holes, none of the bridges was sufficiently damaged to have much impact on German military vehicles. By 10am, German vehicles started crossing the bridge, a few were knocked out by our Artillery and Il-10's, but the vehicles and tanks kept coming as our stockpiles of 100mm, 122mm and 152mm rounds were quickly dwindling. Shelling was halted, at least on our side.
Our guards riflemen were using the city as cover to fight small groups of Germans at very short distances, making every bullet and grenade count, before quickly retreating before the German big guns started to hit their position and the Panzers could be brought to bear. A real game of cat and mouse. Our snipers were only taking shots at relatively short ranges, below 400m for stationary targets, and below 250m for moving targets. The Germans were definitely losing more men than we were, but we were losing ground, and didn't have the ammunition to take it back. My whole sniper team was anxious, Germans were closing in, and I had ordered them not to do anything about it until they got too close for comfort. No 1km trick shots, no massed fire, one shot, one kill, that's what was expected of us. Doing the highest possible amount of damage with the rounds we had was the name of the game.
At 1pm, with Germans about 700m away from the Church, the Horodotska Street Bridge exploded. It seems our engineers had gathered enough explosives to blow the bridge sky-high. They had managed to place them and trigger them without getting shot. A brave operation, further delaying the German advance, at least along Horodotska Street. A 4pm, we could finally start shooting stationary targets at a range where it was hard for a well-trained marksman to miss. By nightfall, we had expended more than half of our limited ammunition supply, wounding or killing over 60 enemy combattants. I decided against ordering our Rifle squad and Machine-Gun squad downstairs to hand over some of their ammunition. If this situation continued, they would need their ammunition to secure our position, or in the worst case, our retreat.
The night brought some calm, as the Germans halted their advance, probably consolidating their new front line, less than 100m from the church at the closest point. Only three of us remained on night watch high above the streets outside. Myself, Sr. Sergeant Bondarchuk, and Yefreitor Gribkov, one in each tower. With 60 rounds left between the three of us, there wasn't much point in keeping up anyone else. The most experienced marksmen would hold the fort, while the rest got some much-needed sleep, especially those who had been on night watch the previous night. Shortly before midnight, my radio operator, who had been sleeping next to his radio set, came to me with sleepy eyes and his radio set in hand. He handed me the reciever:
"Mam, Lt. General Popov on the radio, it's for you."
"Thank you private. Keep watch while I take this."
Private Neyizhkaha turned to peer at all the places we knew the Germans were, or at least had been before darkness fell. It was a moonless night, and half of our floodlights were out, having been captured, or put out of action by German snipers and/or Artillery. There was some movement on the German side, but we had no idea what they were doing exactly.
"Lt. General, to what do I owe the pleasure."
"Captain. I've been talking on the Radio with my immediate superior, General Sokolovskij, since things calmed down, and I've been ordered to leave Lwow, and relocate North, to Krasne. My HQ is using up supplies that could be used on the front, and 10 TTGvD should be enough to push a single German Panzer-Division back out of the city with the fresh supplies that have started to arrive. There should be enough to replenish 10 TTGvD's stockpiles, but not enough for both it and My HQ unit. We'll be gone by 2am. I'm re-assigning you and your unit to 10 TTGvD, you will now report directly to Maj. General Novikov N.A.'s HQ. The German front line being so close to your location, and with my own unit redeploying away from the front, I've decided to, somewhat belatedly, fulfil your request for a medic. Sr. Sergeant Yelena Mikhaylova is one of the best medical instructor under my command, she should be reporting to you before 1am. Good luck Captain. You're going to need it, now more than ever."
"Thank you Lt. General, it was an honour."
"The honour was all mine. Dismissed Captain."
By 0:30am, the city was abuzz with frantic activity. Lots of lorries, motorcycles, and horse-drawn carts were moving around in the dark. Supplies had arrived and now the race was on to resupply all of 10 TTGvD before dawn. Maj. General's quartermaster contacted us over the radio to know if we needed more supplies, and by 2:45am a GAZ-MM lorry halted outside the church. As Bylinkin's men brought a box of high grade 7.62 rounds up into the tower, they were followed by a combat medic. Due to the commotion, everyone in the tower woke up. Our assigned medic was a rather short woman in her late '20s with a kind face. She saluted and introduced herself:
Sr. Sergeant Yelena Mikhaylova, Red Army Guards Medical instructor. Within a regular company, there is a medical section counting a Sr. Sergeant or Sergeant and 4 Medics (Private). In Capt. Goloniewsky's Platoon, she's on her own.
"Captain, Sr. Sergeant Medic Mikhaylova, reporting for duty, Mam."
"Welcome to St. Elizabeth Church, Sr. Sergeant. You're just in time for the show. At dawn, all hell will break loose out there. Germans have been digging in and moving vehicles all night. Who knows what they brought into the city under the cover of darkness. The front line is less than 100m that way. That's the closest they've ever gotten to this place, we're in their way now. Whichever way they go now, they will be exposed to our sniper fire. Of course, what they don't know is that 10 TTGvD has been fully resupplied overnight. I'm sure Maj. General
Novikov N.A. has a nasty plan to push them back out of the city come morning. We only have you to rely on for emergency medical care in case things go wrong, be it a little, or a lot. I would like to suggest you set yourself up near the base of the main tower. That way you're at little risk of taking a stray bullet, or some shrapnell from a shell."
"Mam, that makes sense, I will get my affairs set up right now, Mam."
"Sr. Sergeant, any suggestions concerning our general health? It would be helpful for us to be in the best possible shape for the battle tomorrow."
"Mam, if I may be so blunt, I recommend for you to get some sleep while you can, Captain."
Having spent some of the previous nights with Sergei, I was getting quite sleep-deprived. Add in the stress of the battle, and I wasn't anywhere close to what you'd call well-rested.
"Private Lobovskaya, you're on watch. You will wake me at 5:30am tomorrow, or if the Germans start shooting, whichever occurs first."
I don't know what tomorrow will bring, it will likely be hairy, at least for a while. Just in case something goes wrong, or I loose contact in the confusion, I'm sending off this letter before I go to sleep,
Let's put these krauts in the ground,
Capt. Irina Alexandrovich Goleniewsky (aka. 11)
This is the last letter we got from our woman in
Lwow. I may have to go there to investigate what happened since, and where she has gone.
Arctic Front (XXXIV GSK / 1st AG / Leningrad HQ):
Snowstorms have slowed down the movements of our mountaineers, and only 2 more empty provinces have fallen under our control. Instead of looking at the map of the slow inexorable march of our Mountaineers through the Arctic part of
Norway. Let's look at the next potential target for our troops in the Far North.
Narvik.
Some interesting intelligence was gathered by V Flot Podlodok, as it passed
Narvik. It looks like a small-scale operation to take the city from the sea isn't on the cards. Not with such a high concentration of
German units, including King Tigers. Also of note is the
Norwegian Navy, which is parked off the coast with no-where to go. A landing in
Tromso could easily be supplied by air. It could be a diversion to draw
German troops out of
Narvik itself. The terrain North of
Narvik suits our Mountaineers who should be able to hold off the Panzers in the mountains. Of course, the safest option is to not do anything, keeping the Mountain Rifles in reserve for policing duties, and in the unlikely case that the
Swedes stir up trouble. Of course, eventually we can connect the
Tromso area with the
Finnish road network, but that will take time. Building a port in
Tromso also seems like a waste of resources because it would need to be cleared of Ice for a large part of the year to function. The same issues we already have in
Murmansk.
Finland (NKGBF / Leningrad HQ):
At 3am on the 23rd, 8 Finnish Partisan units revolted, taking control of small areas of land in the Finnish hinterland. The NKGBF is on the case, with it's Mounted Brigades riding to deal with those foreign agents, fascist agitators, and their converts.
The first unit on the scene was 3 NKGBFKB. The plan was for the mounted state security force to root out Partisans in
Nurmes (2). However, the 2nd Finnish Partisans had other ideas, and attacked them in
Juuka (1) instead, at 10am on the 25th of July. The result was a confused mess where both sides charged into each-others staging province, until our Mounted security forces gained the initiative and pushed them all back into
Nurmes (2), ending the skirmishes in
Juuka (1). Of course, ex-Finnish Army Generals were found to be in command of newly set up rebel HQ's. Resistance in
Nurmes (2) ceased at 3pm.
The NKGBF is slow to move towards the more remote areas of the
Finland SSR. In some areas, mud is slowing down the horses of the mounted brigades, further compounding the travel times. Temporary reinforcements would really help to contain the spread of the insurgency. Some voices in the Red Army have suggested sending in the VDV, as they could be dropped right on top of the slippery insurgents, and fighting a badly-armed foe with inferior numbers would still be good training. As the battle of
Slagelse showed, our Paratroopers could really use some more training, preferably without the risk of one of the remaining Divisions shattering and surrendering. Unless someone can come up with a better immediate use for the VDV, they will be brought in as soon as they have fully recovered from the 2nd battle of
Copenhagen.
1.
Juuka (Defence - Forest - Victory)
25 Jul 42 10:00
SU: 3 NKGBFKB (Cavx2 - Maligin, L1)
5.998 men / 1 KIA
Fin (Nurmes): 2 FinPar (Mil -)
2.999 men / 15 KIA
2.
Nurmes (Attack - Forest - Victory)
25 Jul 42 11:00 - 15:00
SU (Juuka): 3 NKGBFKB (Cavx2 - Maligin, L1, OD)
5.997 men / 1 KIA
Fin: 2 Corps (HQ - Heinrichs, L3), 2 FinPar (Mil)
3.089 men / 18 KIA / 3.121 POW
Anti-Partisan Operations (including the previous anti-partisan operation)
NKGBF: 109.951 (+11.995) / 68 KIA (+2) (ground)
Fin: 40.375 (+6.088) / 391 KIA (+33 / ground) / 25.857 POW (+3.121)
Baltic Sea (XXXIII SK / VDV / RBBF / Leningrad HQ):
Finally, at 10pm on the 23rd of July,
Copenhagen (1) fell. Disappointingly, the veteran 13 Infanterie-Division that had made the operation so difficult managed to slip away into Sweden. With transit rights still in effect, it can only really go to
Norway, which is probably where it came from. At 11pm, troops from 111 SD took possession of the city. A welcome surprise was that not only the Harbour installations, but also the massive Air Base cum Airport, and the many factories in the city, were fully operational. It still wasn't over though, trapped in a corner, 135. Sicherungs-Division was desperately trying to fight it's way out. The Garrison forces are severely disadvantaged as they lack any training or equipment to help them attack across the straight into
Copenhagen (2).
The Garrison troops could take no more, and at 11pm on the 25th, they stopped their desperate strait-crossing attacks. Casualties were below 30 on our side, and over 900 on theirs.
At 3am, on the morning of the 26th of July, elements of the recently arrived 124 SD crossed the strait unopposed to accept the surrender of 325 Sicherungs-Division in
Guldborgsund. Three hours later, it was all over. All axis forces had been evicted from
Copenhagen and it's vicinity.
The 1st of August saw a cross-strait attack on
Slagelse (3) by an Italian Infantry Division that had just arrived in
Odense. It wasn't really much of a battle, the first two small boats with Italian Infantry started to cross the strait, and our riflemen opened fire, killing most of the occupants of the first two boats. A third boat wisely returned to the opposite coast, but was still taken out by a well-aimed Mortar shell. All that remained were 22 Italian corpses, floating in the bay.
The
Öresund is open to our shipping. Guarded by our newly gained Naval Base and Air Base in
Copenhagen, we should be able to protect the impending Lend-Lease convoys from the
USA. Our Red Banner Baltic Fleet is now free to move into the
Atlantic, opening up the possibility of future landings in
Norway, or even on the
German Atlantic Coast. V. IAK has been brought in to provide Air Cover to our naval operations, as well as to our troops in the area. Another benefit is the fact that
Germany has lost it's land connection to
Norway, through
Sweden, so whatever troops they have there can only be evacuated by sea.
1.
Copenhagen (Attack - Urban - Victory)
21 Jul 42 01:00 - 23 Jul 42 22:00
SU (Öresund / RBBF - Amphibious Invasion): 111 SD /1 (Infx2 - Komarovskij, L2, Eng) (Slagelse): 2 VDD (Parx3), 1 VDD (Parx3)
23.995 men / 594 KIA
Ger: 13 ID (Infx3 - Buchs, L3)
7.885 men / 222 KIA
2.
Copenhagen 2 (Defence - Urban - Victory)
24 Jul 42 00:00 - 25 Jul 42 23:00
SU: 111 SD /1 (Infx2 - Komarovskij, L2), 111 SD /2 (Inf, Art, AT), 124 SD (Art, AT)
21.795 men / 29 KIA
Ger (Guldborgsund): 325 SD (Garx2, AA - Lemelsen, L2, BM)
6.998 men / 953 KIA / 6.045 POW
3.
Slagelse 2 (Defence - Plains - Victory)
01 Aug 42 06:00
SU: 124 SD (Art, AT - Simoniak, L2, Trk), 123 SD (Art, AT)
21.990 men / 0 KIA
Ita (Odense - Strait Crossing): 32a DF (Infx2 - Calcagno, L2)
5.998 men / 22 KIA
Air Battles (Baltic):
3.
Southern Baltic (Soviet Intercept - Victory)
26 Jul 42 14:00 - 18:00
VMF: 2 KPA - CAG - 28 La-7VM, 28 Il-10VM - 84 airmen - Leningrad (Pommeranian Coast) - Air Capt 1C Falaleev, L4
8 KPA - CAG - 32 La-7VM, 32 Il-10VM - 96 airmen - Moskva (Pommeranian Coast) - Air Capt 1C Knriukni, L2
120 planes / 180 airmen / 2 downed / 3 KIA
Luftwaffe: Seeaufklärungsgruppe A - Nav - 25 Ju-290A-5 - 225 airmen - ? - Oberst Ritter, L3, FD
25 planes / 225 airmen / 5 downed / 45 KIA
5.
Copenhagen (Soviet Intercept - Victory)
26 Jul 42 22:00 - 27 Jul 01:00
VMF: 8 KPA - CAG - 32 La-7VM, 32 Il-10VM - 96 airmen - Moskva (Pommeranian Coast) - Air Capt 1C Knriukni, L2
2 KPA - CAG - 27 La-7VM, 27 Il-10VM - 81 airmen - Leningrad (Pommeranian Coast) - Air Capt 1C Falaleev, L4
VVS: V IAK - Intx4 - 496 Yak-7 - 496 airmen - Lwow - Lt. Gen. Av. Skripko, L4
614 planes / 673 airmen / 15 downed / 22 KIA
Luftwaffe: JG 77, JG 71, JG 52 - Intx3 - 328 Me-109G - 328 airmen - ? - Genlt. von Greim, L4, SAT
328 planes / 328 airmen / 28 downed / 28 KIA
Northern German Front (2 AG & Arm AG / Moskva HQ):
Jurbarkas, before the war. A small town along the Memel river, it was once again the location of heavy fighting as 2 AG moved riflemen into the area, only for them to come under attack from fresh
German Infantry.
1am on the 23rd saw a two-pronged attack on
Lida (8), featuring an Armoured Cavalry Division and a Motorised Rifle Division, both part of 2ya Tankovaya Armiya. News from
Jurbarkas (1) at 5am put a damper on the newfound optimism as the province was finally vacated by our troops, leaving behind over 1.800 of their comrades, and having killed a mere 500 in return. It was a desperate 2-day defensive action against overwhelming numerical superiority. 2nd Army Group bought itself time, with blood. A well-rested 76 GvSD managed to slip into
Domonovo (6) at 5pm, just in time to protect 5 retreating disorganised Divisions from the wrath of a pursuing Hungarian Infantry Division. Too bad for the Hungarians.
After a full three days of fighting, the men of 1 Pesi Divize had had enough. The Slovak advance into
Valdemarpils (2) was halted at 9am on the 24th, at the cost of 330 Soviet, and over 900 Slovak lives. An hour later, 102 SD managed to cut off the retreat of 79 ID. This lead to the simultaneous start of 2 battles. The battle of
Joniskis, (5) and that of
Pasvalis (3), the former was a breakout attempt by 79 ID, assisted by 16 PzGD from the outside, the latter a 4-pronged Red Army attack to break the encircled Division once and for all. The race was on. All that was only the start of a fresh flurry of Wehrmacht activity, another attack on
Kaunas (7), and an attack on
Panevezys (4) went in at 11am, the former looked especially shaky, with only a single Division left in the city. The remaining 6.520 men of 79 ID surrendered at 8pm, ending the third battle of
Pasvalis (3) in our favour, they had lost another 10% of their number in their final battle, with a mere 50 Soviet casualties to show for it. The spoiling attack on
Panevezys (4) was halted by the Wehrmacht at the same time with casualties 4-1 in our favour. To relieve some pressure from the attack on
Kaunas (7), 6 SD attacked
Raseinai (9) at 10pm, forcing 14 PzD to break off it's part of the assault on the city.
The 25th started off with some bad news,
Joniskis (5) had fallen, the riflemen had held the Panzer-Grenadieren at bay long enough for 79 ID to be captured, they were never going to hold back such a well-equipped formation indefinitely. Casualties were manageable at below 500, but they were 3-1 in the enemy's favour. What had seemed an easy win, soon became a tough battle due to German reinforcements. Only a fool will indefinitely fight a battle he cannot win.
Domonovo (6) was vacated by our Guards riflemen at 9am, their spirits were high, and they remain a force to be reckoned with. The 5th Battle of of
Kaunas (7) ended in defensive victory at 1pm. The good news continued with an offensive victory in
Lida (8) at 2pm, with casualties 2-1 in our favour no less.
Three German attacks started at 8 am, just after breakfast on the 26th. A half-hearted single-Division assault on
Kaunas (22) to distract 78 SD from it's attack into
Raseinai (9), a two-pronged attack on 7 KavD in
Alytus (10), and a two-Division foray into
Nowogrodek (16), presumably to chase
Novikov's Il-10s away from it's home base. The latter is protected by armoured cavalry, so it may prove a tough nut to crack. Just to be sure, 9 TD (yes, the first T-34s on the front), launched a spoiling attack into the Marshes around
Grodno (14) at 10am. At 4pm, King Tigers burst into
Jurmala (11) on the Southern coast of the Gulf of Riga. The rifle Division on the spot isn't fully organised, let's hope the can hold long enough to secure the retreat of 91 SD. The attack on
Raseinai (9) was finally called off at 7pm. A second Panzer-Division had managed to reinforce the German defences, and victory had become unlikely to say the least. The decision came too late for over 1.000 riflemen who didn't return from the battlefield, more than twice the enemy losses.
Our Armoured Cavalry showed they were just as tough on the defensive as on the offensive, with a defensive victory in
Alytus (10) against three times their number at 5am. Buoyed by that success, 7 KavD attacked across the river Memel, into the marshes at
Merech (12). At noon, 7 KavD was attacked in
Alytus (18) again, it had to cut short it's own offensive into
Merech (12), which was just as well as the casualty ratio was particularly bad but the absolute numbers were low at about 100 dead. The battle of
Jurmala (11) was also cut short, as our riflemen simply were exhausted and disorganised. They were never expected to hold back a sPzD indefinitely, just long enough to cover the retreat of 91 SD. As soon as that latter Division arrived in
Jurmala (13) at 2pm and was, in turn, attacked by 1 sPzD and it's feared King Tigers, they held out until midnight, suffering 230 casualties for 30 Germans killed. In
Slonim (15) 28 ID managed to sneak into the wrong province, and found itself under attack at 11pm, from 4 Red Army Divisions, of which 3 were fresh Divisions of 11ya Mot Armiya.
The 28th of July started off with good 4am news from
Grodno (14), an offensive victory with roughly even casualty numbers. 10 am saw the start of a three-pronged German attack on
Panevezys (17), including the feared 16. PzGD. Maj. General
Tamruchi did manage to counter the high speed 'Blitz' tactics used by
Höpner's forces. The battle for
Slonim (15) was won decisively at 7pm. Motorised Riflemen are rushing into the province as we speak, hot on the tail of fleeing German Infantry.
Nowogrodek (16), and it's Air Base, was lost at 10pm on the 29th, after 2 days of fighting. Casualties were in the enemy's favour, but not dramatically so. Considering the enemy's numerical superiority, this went just as well as could be expected. The defeat in
Panevezys (17) at 11pm was more one-sided with over 1.300 Soviet casualties, for less than 400 of the enemy. The enemy had managed to coordinate an enveloping attack on the province from three directions, including a PzGD and a PzD, to devastating effect.
The fact that our armoured Cavalry isn't unbeatable became clear once again in
Alytus (18), where they were forced to retreat in the face of 2.5 times their number at 11am on the 30th, after three days of fighting. The casualty ratio was in 3-2 our favour, though, the armoured sides of the GAZ half-tracks doing their part.
As soon as 4 PzD arrived in
Panevezys (21), at midnight, it was attacked by 80 SD, which had tried to beat the Panzers there.
Malkowicze (19) came under attack at 4am, three Soviet Divisions defending marshland against a single German Infantry unit wasn't a massive threat, but our units were recuperating, and thus not fully organised. Colonel General
Chuikov was on the scene to lead the defence, he was significantly more skilled than Generalleutnant
Krüger, and managed to win the battle by 9pm, with an 8-1 advantage in casualties.
The first of August started off well with the first Soviet Attack by two Tank Divisions, on a Division of German Mountaineers in
Alytus (23) at 3am, and then another T-34 charge into
Grodno (20) at 4am. Our Armoured Cavalry charged into
Domonovo (24) at 6am, to try and dislodge the German Infanterie-Division from the forest. It soon became clear that T-34s weren't built to fight entrenched Infantry in swaùpland, and the attack into
Grodno (20) was called off after 2 hours and 18 Soviet casualties. Then, just as I was finishing up my report, the news came that the
Panevezys (21) offensive had been halted. Too bad, as it had turned decidedly in our favour, having been reinforced by two Rifle Divisions since it started. Casualties were in our favour, with almost 1.000 Axis casualties, for less than 700 of our own.
Map of
Moskva HQ's front line (pink). The previous report's front line is indicated in Yellow. The smaller circles indicate small scale battles (in number of troops killed).
Our T-34's are starting to arrive on the front, but
German reinforcements have also been trickling into the area, time will tell whether our Armoured forces manage to make a big dent, or whether the effect will be to simply draw more
German units into the area. More Axis forces are definitely arriving:
Bulgarian reinforcements have been detected by signals intelligence, and Hungarians have popped up in battle a few times.
1.
Jurbarkas 7 (Defence - Plains - Defeat)
21 Jul 42 22:00 - 23 Jul 42 05:00
SU: 61 SD (Art, TD - Horujenko, L2), 8 SD (Art, TD)
21.919 men / 1.847 KIA
Ger (Taurage): 162 ID (Infx2, AT, AA - Sachs, L3), 168 ID (Infx2, AT, AA), 197 ID (Infx2, AT, AA), 76 ID (Infx2, AT, AA), 57 ID (Infx2, AT, AA), 88 ID (Infx2, AT, AA), Kav-Kdo (Cavx2)
53.970 men / 536 KIA
2.
Valdemarpils (Defence - Plains - Victory)
21 Jul 42 12:00 - 24 Jul 42 09:00
SU: 16 SD (Art, AT - Klyuchko, L2, DD)
10.997 men / 1.847 KIA
Slo (Ventspils): 1 Pesi Divize (Infx3 - Kubela, L1)
8.996 men / 969 KIA
3.
Pasvalis 3 (Attack - Forest - Victory)
24 Jul 42 10:00 - 20:00
SU (Ukmerge): 235 SD (Art, AT - Malyshev, L2, BM) SU (Aizkraukle): 105 SD (Art, AT) SU (Panevezys): 43 SD (Art, AT) SU (Birzai): 80 SD (Art, AT)
43.869 men / 55 KIA
Ger: 79 ID (Infx2, AC, TD - de Angelis, L5)
7.101 men / 624 KIA / 6.520 POW
4.
Panevezys 8 (Defence - Forest - Victory)
24 Jul 42 11:00 - 20:00
SU: 6 SD (Art, AT - Tamruchi, L3), 142 SD (Art, AT), 43 SD (Art, AT)
32.992 men / 116 KIA
Ger (Siauliai): 36 ID (Infx3 - von Kempski, L4)
8.521 men / 413 KIA
5.
Joniskis (Defence - Forest - Defeat)
24 Jul 42 10:00 - 25 Jul 42 01:00
SU: 102 SD (Art, AT - Cheremisov, L2)
10.996 men / 428 KIA
Ger (Pasvalis): 79 ID (Infx2, AC, TD - de Angelis, L5) Ger (Dobele): 16 PzGD (Mec, Mot, AC, TD, SP Art - Röttiger, L3, BM)
16.099 men / 174 KIA
6.
Domonovo 3 (Defence - Forest - Defeat)
23 Jul 42 17:00 - 25 Jul 42 09:00
SU: 76 GvSD (AT, Eng - Barinov, L3)
10.992 men / 360 KIA
Hun (Swislocz): 12 Gly (Infx2 - Vastagh, L1)
5.994 men / 196 KIA
Ger (Swislocz): 9 ID (Infx3), 19 ID (Infx3)
17.993 men / 147 KIA
7.
Kaunas 5 (Defence - Urban - Fort Level 2 - Victory)
24 Jul 42 11:00 - 25 Jul 42 13:00
SU: 78 SD (Art, AT - Remizov, L4, BM)
10.998 men / 233 KIA
Ger (Ariogala): 58 ID (Infx3 - Steiner, L4, BM) Ger (Raseinai): 14 PzD (Arm, Mot, Mot-AA, Eng) Ger (Mariampolé): 7 PzD (Arm, Mot, TD, Mot-AA)
23.989 men / 380 KIA
8.
Lida 3 (Attack - Plains - Victory)
23 Jul 42 01:00 - 25 Jul 42 14:00
SU (Zabloc): 7 MSD (TD, Eng - Malyshev, L2, BM) SU (Nowogrodek): 5 KavD (L Arm, Mecx2, AC)
20.992 men / 466 KIA
Ger: 20 ID (Infx3 - Erfurth, L3)
8.995 men / 807 KIA
9.
Raseinai (Attack - Plains - Defeat)
24 Jul 42 22:00 - 26 Jul 42 19:00
SU (Panevezys): 6 SD (Art, AT - Tamruchi, L3, OD)
10.972 men / 1.015 KIA
Ger: 14 PzD (Arm, Mot, Mot-AA, Eng - Behlendorf, L4, BM), 4 PzD (Arm, Mot, AC, Eng)
15.640 men / 461 KIA
10.
Alytus 3 (Defence - Plains - Victory)
26 Jul 42 08:00 - 27 Jul 42 05:00
SU: 7 KavD (L Arm, Mecx2, AC - Levandovski, L3)
9.998 men / 73 KIA
Ger (Merech): 1 GbjD (Mtnx3, Eng - Hube, L3, BM), 225 ID (Infx2, AT, AA)
17.997 men / 219 KIA
Hun (Swislocz): 10 Gly (Infx2)
5.999 men / 87 KIA
11.
Jurmala (Defence - Plains - Defeat)
26 Jul 42 16:00 - 27 Jul 42 12:00
SU: 16 SD (Art, AT - Klyuchko, L2, DD)
10.983 men / 268 KIA
Ger (Tukums): 1 sPzD (H Arm, Mot, AC, Eng - von Thoma, L3, BM)
7.991 men / 103 KIA
12.
Merech 2 (Attack - Marsh - Defeat)
27 Jul 42 10:00 - 12:00
SU (Alytus): 7 KavD (L Arm, Mecx2, AC - Levandovski, L3)
9.925 men / 104 KIA
Ger: 1 GbjD (Mtnx3, Eng - Hube, L3, BM), 162 ID (Infx2, AT, AA), 225 ID (Infx2, AT, AA)
25.990 men / 5 KIA
13.
Jurmala 2 (Defence - Plains - Defeat)
27 Jul 42 14:00 - 28 Jul 42 00:00
SU: 91 SD (Art, AT - Kamkov, L2)
10.292 men / 231 KIA
Ger (Tukums): 1 sPzD (H Arm, Mot, AC, Eng - von Thoma, L3, BM)
7.647 men / 31 KIA
14.
Grodno 2 (Attack - Marsh - Victory)
26 Jul 42 10:00 - 28 Jul 42 04:00
SU (Zabloc): 9 TD (Arm, Motx2, TD, Eng - Beloborodov, L3)
10.992 men / 297 KIA
Ger: 209 ID (Infx2, AT, Eng - van Faber du Faur, L3)
7.934 men / 126 KIA
Hun: 10 Gly (Infx2)
5.876 men / 127 KIA
15.
Slonim (Attack - Forest - Victory)
27 Jul 42 10:00 - 28 Jul 42 19:00
SU (Korelicze): 36 MSD (SP Art, Eng - Maslennikov, L3), 57 MSD (SP Art, Eng), 3 KavD (L Arm, Mecx2, AC) SU (Lesna): 217 SD (Art, AT)
42.844 men / 134 KIA
Ger: 28 ID (Infx3 - Leeb, L4)
8.995 men / 588 KIA
16.
Nowogrodek (Defence - Forest - Defeat)
26 Jul 42 08:00 - 29 Jul 42 20:00
SU: 6 SD (Art, AT - Tamruchi, L3), 142 SD (Art, AT), 43 SD (Art, AT)
32.992 men / 116 KIA
Ger (Siauliai): 36 ID (Infx3 - von Kempski, L4)
8.521 men / 413 KIA
17.
Panevezys 9 (Defence - Forest - Defeat)
28 Jul 42 10:00 - 29 Jul 42 23:00
SU: 6 SD (Art, AT - Tamruchi, L3), 142 SD (Art, AT), 43 SD (Art, AT)
32.992 men / 116 KIA
Ger (Siauliai): 36 ID (Infx3 - von Kempski, L4)
8.521 men / 413 KIA
18.
Alytus 4 (Defence - Plains - Defeat)
27 Jul 42 12:00 - 30 Jul 42 11:00
SU: 7 KavD (L Arm, Mecx2, AC - Levandovski, L3)
9.821 men / 605 KIA
Ger (Mariampolé - River Crossing): 170 ID (Infx2, Art, AT - Krüger W., L3, BM) Ger (Merech - River Crossing): 225 ID (Infx2, Art, AT), 1 GbjD (Mtnx3, Eng)
25.908 men / 905 KIA
19.
Malkowicze (Defence - Marsh - Victory)
31 Jul 42 04:00 - 21:00
SU: 11 Mot. Armiya (HQ - Chuikov, L4, DD), 31 SD (Art, TD), 14 TTGvD (H Arm, Gdsx2, Art, Eng), I SK (HQ, Infx2, AT)
30.075 men / 105 KIA
Ger (Domonovo): 19 ID (Infx3 - Krüger W., L3, BM)
8.996 men / 849 KIA
20.
Grodno 2 (Attack - Marsh - Defeat)
01 Aug 42 04:00 - 06:00
SU (Zabloc): 15 TD (Arm, Motx2, TD, Eng - Cherniakovskij, L3)
10.999 men / 18 KIA
Ger: 86 ID (Infx2, AC, AT - v Langermann und Erlenkamp, L2, BM)
7.998 men / 8 KIA
21.
Panevezys 10 (Attack - Forest - Defeat)
30 Jul 42 00:00 - 01 Aug 42 18:00
SU (Pasvalis): 80 SD (Art, AT - Feklenko, L2), 43 SD (Art, AT), 105 SD (Art, AT)
43.957 men / 677 KIA
Ger: 4 PzD (Arm, Mot, AC, Eng - Hammer, L2)
7.714 men / 964 KIA
Southern German Front (3 AG & 4 AG / Brjansk HQ & Odessa HQ):
German Panzer-Grenadieren surrender to Soviet Riflemen in
Sambor, they're part of Maj. General
von Manstein's 10 PzD. They overextended so much they found themselves cut off from their own lines by riflemen on foot. I guess the shoe's on the other foot now. I'm sure
Germany won't miss those shiny new Panzer IV's.
Another German probe on
Turka (1) started at 7pm on the 22nd, and was called off 2 hours later with few losses on our side. There was more good news at 10pm, when the Germans retreated from
Rozyszcze (2) after a tough three day battle resulting over 500 dead soviets, and over 900 dead Germans. The celebrations were still ongoing at midnight, when another Infanterie-Division managed to sneak into the province before we could occupy it, prompting another battle for
Rozyszcze (5).
At 6pm the next day, came the news of a decisive Soviet victory in
Zolkiew (3). German units, including King Tigers have been ousted from the province, with heavy casualties almost 2-1 in our favour. An hour later, one of our Rifle Divisions attacked an out of supply Italian Infantry Division in
Kowel (8).
It was until 9pm on the 24th before things developed in the South. The titanic struggle to take back
Jaworow (4), with Heavy tanks on both sides, had come to an end, after 2 days of intense fighting, we had won, it had cost us about 2500 lives for 1800 of the enemy, but is was a victory nonetheless. At the same time, the battle for
Rozyszcze (5) ended in a clear victory, with casualties nearly 3-1 in our favour.
After retreating eastward instead of westward in the aftermath of the battle of
Jaworow (4), 10 PzD found itself in
Sambor (6) on the 25th of July, where it was promptly attacked, at 3pm, by a fresh Soviet Rifle Division. Maj. General
Model's Panzer Division was at risk of being encircled. They had to break contact and get back to
Jaworow (4). The Wehrmacht continued to probe further East in the centre of the front, attacking into
Konczyce (7), which was held by a half-organised rifle Division.
The 26th of July started with 2 German attacks at 4am, one on
Turka (11), and one on
Rozyscze (9), we had superior numbers in both cases, but in the latter case, our troops were tired from previous fighting, but not exhausted. 10 PzD had found itself entirely cut off, by 4am, and as the encircled 10 PzD's situation became desperate, the Wehrmacht pulled out all the stops to try and save
Model's Division, striking
Jaworow (10) and
Lwow (12) simultaneously at 8am. 10 PzD's 5.729 remaining men surrendered at 6pm in
Sambor (6)
. With no way out, no spare parts or Ammunition for their fighting vehicles, and no rations, the only option was to give up. They did put up one hell of a fight right up until their surrender, with a casualty ratio of 4-1 in their favour in their final battle. Midnight brought some mixed news.
Konczyce (7) had fallen, but casualties were in our favour.
Three days of fighting in
Kowel (8) ended with the Red Army halting it's offensive at 2am on the 27th, after the Italians were reinforced by German Motorised Infantry. Casualties were in 2-1 in our favour. At 4am, after 24 hours of fighting, our defences in
Rozyszcze (9) repelled the German offensive targetting them, all for the price of 200 dead riflemen, and three times as many Wehrmacht personnel. 3rd Army Group proceeded to take the initiative, attacking
Luboml (15) as the battle for
Rozyszcze (9) ended. Around tea-time, 33 SD managed to sneak into
Janow (14) before German Infantry managed to take the province unopposed. This was little more than a delaying action as our riflemen where quite tired from previous fighting already.
Jaworow (10) was lost at 8am on the 28th, with over 1.100 Soviet Casualties, and less than 250 German ones. Our riflemen had held on for a lot longer than expected, in the face of overwhelming numbers and Heavy Tanks. As 62 SD retreated into
Lwow (12), it became even more important to hold the city. Later in the day, it would become clear that 2 SD, which had been in reserve for the battle of
Jaworow (10), had withdrawn the wrong way, swept up in the panicky retreat of 62 SD, they moved towards the west, where they found themselves surrounded by
Germans and had to surrender. Another 10.994 can be added to the list of likely POWs. Then there was some good news from
Turka (11), The province had been held once again, with casualties 5-1 in our favour. Another province that held fast was
Lwow (12), where a thinned defensive line managed to keep 11 PzD at bay for two days despite an initial shortage of ammunition and other supplies, until the attackers relented at 10am. The Axis couldn't help itself and attacked
Turka (13) again one hour later, with King Tigers attempting to cross the river San under fire. Unsurprisingly, this latest attack petered out by 3pm, with over 200 axis casualties for less than 50 of our own.
The 29th started off with yet another attack on
Turka (16), starting at 5am. A single Panzer-Division across the river San was unlikely to make much of a dent.
Janow (14) was lost at 11am on the 30th, our riflemen were too exhausted to continue to offer resistance after three days of struggle. Casualties were 3-1 in our favour, with 'only' 215 Soviet lives lost.
Exactly one day later, at 11am, 3rd AG could celebrate a hard-fought offensive victory in
Luboml (15). The 4 day battle cost 1.800 German and close to 1400 Soviet lives. 169 SD managed to slip into
Zamosc (), part of Western Poland, at 3pm. The riflemen immediately came under fire, from Bulgarian Infantry.
The new month started out with a 5am victory in
Turka (16). After three days of fighting one Panzer-Division after another in their attempts to cross the San river, the defenders held, and the Panzers stopped trying. Casualties were 3-1 in our favour, with almost 1.500 killed Germans. Another single-Division attack on
Lwow (17) started at 6am. This time 4 LeichteD was having a go. 10 TTGvD was temporarily reinforced by a very disorganised 62 SD.
Turka (18) came under attack again, at 7am, for the 11th time. At the same time, 122 SD attacked three German Divisions, including a PzD, in
Przemysl (21), on it's own. This wasn't as mad as it sounded, as this attack would distract 4 LeichteD from it's push into
Lwow (17). Then, at 9am, 42 SD re-occupied
Sambor (), where It was promptly attacked by German tanks and Bulgarian Infantry. Luckily, our riflemen had the river Dniestr to aid them in their defence. 10 am saw the end of both the battle for
Lwow (17), and the latest battle for
Turka (18). For both defensive victories, enemy casualties were an order of magnitude higher than ours.
After lunch, at 1pm, 3 Rifle Divisions launched an offensive from
Turka into
Jaworow (19). Hitting the flank of the axis attackers of
Sambor (22). It was called off at 6pm, and that was just as well, as casualties were not in our favour, our riflemen losing over 400 of their number for about half as many Axis soldiers killed.
Map of
Brjansk HQ's front line (blue). The previous report's front line is indicated in Yellow. The smaller circles indicate small scale battles (in number of troops killed).
Things have somewhat stabilised, and with several successful counter-attacks, the Red Army has taken back some initiative. Bulgarian troops have been met in battle, as well as more Italians. Of course, any Bulgarian Division on the main front isn't defending it's homeland, opening up an opportunity for a future surprise invasion of
Bulgaria.
1.
Turka 7 (Defence - Forest - Victory)
22 Jul 42 19:00 - 21:00
SU: 48 SD (Art, AT - Mitrofanov, L2, BM), 10 SD (Art, TD), 56 SD (Art, AT), 181 SD (Art, AT), 180 SD (Art, AT)
54.247 men / 22 KIA
Ger (Gorlice - River Crossing): 216 ID (Infx2, AC, AT - Völckers, L3, OD), 228 ID (Infx2, AC, AT)
15.992 men / 151 KIA
2.
Rozyszcze 2 (Attack - Forest - Victory)
20 Jul 42 12:00 - 22 Jul 42 22:00
SU (Kamien Koszyrski): 104 SD (Art, AT - Tiulenev, L3) SU (Poryck): 87 SD (Art, TD)
21.887 men / 554 KIA
Ger: 45 ID (Infx2, AC, AT - Felber, L3)
7.998 men / 951 KIA
3.
Zolkiew 3 (Attack - Plains - Victory)
21 Jul 42 04:00 - 23 Jul 42 18:00
SU (Wlodzimierz Wolynski - River Crossing): 122 SD (Art, AT - Nikishin, L3) SU (Lwow): 169 SD (Art, AT) SU (Krasne): 72 GvSD (AT, Eng)
32.988 men / 658 KIA
Ger: 6 sPzD (HArm, Mot, TD, Mot-AA - Angern, L3, BM), 95 ID (Infx2, AC, AT)
13.914 men / 756 KIA
Hun: 9 Gly (Infx2)
5.218 men / 378 KIA
4.
Jaworow 8 (Attack - Plains - Victory)
22 Jul 42 04:00 - 24 Jul 42 21:00
SU (
Lwow): 72 GvSD (AT, Eng - Badanov, L3, BM), 10 TTGvD (H Arm, Gdsx2, Art, Eng) SU (Turka): 10 SD (Art, TD)
43.982 men / 2.498 KIA
Ger: 93 ID (Infx2, AT, Art - von Bismarck, L2, BM), 10 PzD (Arm, Mot, TD, AC - Model, L6, BM, DD), SS-Verf (WSS),
2 sPzD (HArm, Mot, AC, Mot-AA), 10 PzD (Arm, Mot, TD, AC)
24.699 men / 1.804 KIA
5.
Rozyszcze 3 (Attack - Forest - Victory)
23 Jul 42 00:00 - 24 Jul 42 21:00
SU (Kamien Koszyrski): 104 SD (Art, AT - Tiulenev, L3) SU (Poryck): 87 SD (Art, TD) SU (Luck): 113 SD (Art, AT)
32.270 men / 396 KIA
Ger: 62 ID (Infx2, AT, Eng - von Knobelsdorff, L4, BM)
7.996 men / 1.051 KIA
6.
Sambor (Attack - Woods - Victory)
25 Jul 42 15:00 - 26 Jul 42 18:00
SU (Turka): 27 SD (Art, AT - Mitrofanov, L2, BM) SU (Stryj): 74 SD (Art, AT)
20.918 men / 474 KIA
Ger: 10 PzD (Arm, Mot, TD, AC - Model, L6, BM, DD)
6.091 men / 160 KIA / 5.729 POW
7.
Konczyce (Defence - Forest - Defeat)
25 Jul 42 19:00 - 27 Jul 42 00:00
SU: 5 SD (Art, AT - Zhmachenko, L3)
10.995 men / 173 KIA
Ger (Bereza): 18 ID (Infx3 - Koch-Erpach, L4)
8.998 men / 307 KIA
8.
Kowel 3 (Attack - Forest - Defeat)
23 Jul 42 19:00 - 27 Jul 42 02:00
SU (Kamien Koszyrski): 130 SD (Art, AT - Petin, L2)
10.994 men / 269 KIA
Ger: 2 ID(mot) (Motx2, TD, Eng)
7.988 men / 437 KIA
Ita: 41a DF (Infx2 - Gariboldi, L1)
5.989 men / 219 KIA
9.
Rozyszcze 4 (Defence- Forest - Victory)
26 Jul 42 04:00 - 27 Jul 42 04:00
SU: 104 SD (Art, AT - Tiulenev, L3), 87 SD (Art, TD)
21.620 men / 208 KIA
Ger (Bereza): 60 ID (Infx2, AC, AT - Raus, L3, BM)
7.998 men / 600 KIA
10.
Jaworow 9 (Defence - Plains - Defeat)
26 Jul 42 08:00 - 28 Jul 42 08:00
SU: 62 SD (Art, AT - Rogachev, L2, Trk), 2 SD (Art, AT)
21.991 men / 1.178 KIA / 10.994 POW
Ger (Jaroslaw - River Crossing): 2 sPzD (HArm, Mot, AC, Mot-AA - Jodl A., L4, OD), SSD 'LSAH' (WSSx2, AC, Mot-AA)
Ger (Przemysl): 93 ID (Infx2, AC, AT)
22.201 men / 237 KIA
11.
Turka 8 (Defence - Forest - Victory)
26 Jul 42 04:00 - 28 Jul 42 09:00
SU: 48 SD (Art, AT - Mitrofanov, L2, BM), 10 SD (Art, TD), 56 SD (Art, AT), 181 SD (Art, AT), 180 SD (Art, AT)
54.008 men / 333 KIA
Ger (Gorlice - River Crossing): 216 ID (Infx2, AC, AT - Völckers, L3, OD), 228 ID (Infx2, AC, AT)
15.989 men / 1.599 KIA
12.
Lwow 7 (Defence - Urban - Fort Level 2 - Low Supplies - Victory)
26 Jul 42 08:00 - 28 Jul 42 10:00
SU: XXIX GvSK (HQ, Gdsx2, AT - Popov M.M., DD), 10 TTGvD (H Arm, Gdsx2, Art, Eng - Novikov N.A., L3, BM)
18.722 men / 180 KIA
Ger (Przemysl): 11 PzD (Arm, Mot, Mot-AA, Eng - Heinrici, L5, BM)
7.995 men / 518 KIA
13.
Turka 9 (Defence - Forest - Victory)
28 Jul 42 11:00 - 15:00
SU: 48 SD (Art, AT - Mitrofanov, L2, BM), 10 SD (Art, TD), 56 SD (Art, AT), 181 SD (Art, AT), 180 SD (Art, AT)
53.993 men / 44 KIA
Ger (Gorlice - River Crossing): 4 sPzD (HArm, Mot, AC, Eng - von Cochenhausen, L3, Eng)
7.996 men / 101 KIA
Hun (Uzhorod): 29 TP (Infx2, AT, AA)
7.997 men / 102 KIA
14.
Janow (Defence - Forest - Defeat)
27 Jul 42 18:00 - 30 Jul 42 11:00
SU: 33 SD (Art, AT - Kholostyakov, L2)
10.388 men / 215 KIA
Ger (Dywin): 214 ID (Infx2, AT, AA - von und zu Grote, L3)
7.975 men / 686 KIA
15.
Luboml 5 (Attack - Woods - Victory)
27 Jul 42 04:00 - 31 Jul 42 11:00
SU (Poryck): 14 SD (Art, AT - Trofimenko, L3) SU (Wlodzimierz Wolynski): 74 SD (Art, AT - Lazarev, L3, BM)
21.988 men / 1.385 KIA
Ger: 60 ID (Infx2, AC, AT - Raus, L3, BM), 231 ID (Infx2, AC, Eng), 45 ID (Infx2, AC, AT), 231 ID (Infx2, AT, Eng)
6.091 men / 160 KIA
16.
Turka 10 (Defence - Forest - Low Supplies - Victory)
29 Jul 42 05:00 - 01 Aug 42 05:00
SU: 48 SD (Art, AT - Mitrofanov, L2, BM), 10 SD (Art, TD), 56 SD (Art, AT), 181 SD (Art, AT), 180 SD (Art, AT)
53.488 men / 506 KIA
Ger (Gorlice -
River Crossing): 3 PzD (L Armx2, Mot, Eng - von Manstein, L7, OD, BM, Trk), 4 sPzD (HArm, Mot, AC, Eng),
8 PzD (Arm, Mot, AC, Mot-AA - Kirchner, L4, BM)
33.982 men / 1.497 KIA
17.
Lwow 8 (Defence - Urban - Fort Level 2 - Victory)
01 Aug 42 06:00 - 09:00
SU: 62 SD (Art, AT - Rogachev, L2, Trk), 10 TTGvD (H Arm, Gdsx2, Art, Eng)
21.183 men / 17 KIA
Ger (Przemysl): 4 LeichteD (Motx2, AC - Geib, L4, DD)
6.996 men / 129 KIA
18.
Turka 11 (Defence - Forest - Low Supplies - Victory)
01 Aug 42 07:00 - 09:00
SU: 48 SD (Art, AT - Mitrofanov, L2, BM), 10 SD (Art, TD), 56 SD (Art, AT), 181 SD (Art, AT), 180 SD (Art, AT)
52.439 men / 7 KIA
Ger (Gorlice - River Crossing): 216 ID (Infx2, AC, AT - Völckers, L3, OD)
7.997 men / 205 KIA
19.
Jaworow 10 (Attack - Plains - Defeat)
01 Aug 42 13:00 - 18:00
SU (Zolkiew): 56 SD (Art, AT - Novikov V. V., L3, BM)
10.937 men / 410 KIA
Ger: 2 sPzD (HArm, Mot, AC, Mot-AA - Jodl A., L4, OD), SSD 'LSAH' (WSSx2, AC, Mot-AA), 5 PzD (Arm, Mot, SP Art, TD)
23.023 men / 162 KIA
Bul: 11-va ZP (Infx2, ??)
7.675 men / 48 KIA
Hungarian Front (3 AG & 4 AG / Brjansk HQ & Odessa HQ):
Drohobycz (1) was first on the Hungarian Army's hit-list, the 10th attack on the province started at 7pm on the 22nd of July, and ended 2 hours later with little effect on the more numerous and entrenched defenders.
Things stayed quiet until the 11th Hungarian offensive on
Drohobycz (4) started at 10am on the 25th of July.
The 28th saw some more action as Hungarian forces charged across the Western Bug into
Husiatyn (2) at 11am, with both numbers, and the river, working in our favour, it took just an hour for the Hungarians to call off the attack. Casualties were 102-1, with only a single unlucky rifleman that got killed.
Dolina (3) came under fire at 5am on the 29th, after less than an hour, the Hungarians thought better of their offensive, ending a battle they couldn't hope to win with less than 30 Hungarian casualties.
Due in large part to a lack of supplies on our side, our defeat, after 5 days of fighting in the 11th defensive battle for
Drohobycz (4) was still somewhat unexpected when it was announced at 6am on the 30th. Casualties were over 3.000 in total, and nearly 2-1 in our favour. The reinforcement of the Hungarian attack by 2 fresh Divisions is what finally tipped the balance in the enemy's favour.
For the Hungarian front, the month of August started off with a 6am Soviet offensive into the hills of
Svalava (5) started. With our riflemen outnumbered 2-1, we had to hope their superior equipment would save the day, a doubtful proposition. There was more action as 51 SD managed to slip into
Stanislawow (), after the Hungarian Army had left it unoccupied. As our riflemen got there, they came under fire from three directions, as the Hungarians were also moving several units into the city and the surrounding forests. As it dragged on, the battle for
Svalava (5) took a turn for the worst, our riflemen got bogged down and casualties were rapidly mounting. 4ya Armiya called it a day at 3pm, having lost nearly 450 riflemen, and the Hungarians barely more than a third that many.
Map of 4ya Armiya's front line (teal). The smaller circles indicate small scale battles (in number of troops killed).
The Hungarian Army continues to be thorn in our side. 4ya Armiya did recover
Stanislawow, but the city is already contested, and no reinforcements seem to be forthcoming, not on our side anyway. Hungarian attacks continue to chip away at our defences, with our defenders sometimes plagued by supply issues as well. How long will it take for them to poke another hole in our line? Or maybe, 4ya Armiya will see the light and attempt to cut off Hungarian troops in the Eastern Salient around
Stanislawow.
1.
Drohobycz 10 (Defence - Forest - Victory)
22 Jul 42 19:00 - 21:00
SU: 27 SD (Art, AT - Vinogradov, L2), 183 SD (Art, AT), 176 SD (AT)
31.906 men / 40 KIA
Hun (Svalava): 24 Gly (Infx2, AT, AA - Stomm, L3, BM), 30 TP (Infx2, Art, AT)
15.991 men / 137 KIA
2.
Husiatyn (Defence - Plains - Victory)
28 Jul 42 11:00 - 12:00
SU: 24 SD (Art, AT - Makeev, L2), 141 SD (Art, TD)
21.814 men / 1 KIA
Hun (Kolomyja): 13 Gly (Infx2 - Barabas, L1)
5.996 men / 102 KIA
3.
Dolina 2 (Defence - Forest - Victory)
29 Jul 42 05:00
SU: 121 SD (Art, TD - Larichev, L2, DD), 55 SD (Art, AT)
21.992 men / 7 KIA
Hun (Svalava): 31 TP (Infx2, AT, AA - Decleva, L2), 'Szent Laszlo' Ply (Infx2, AT, AA)
15.995 men / 28 KIA
4.
Drohobycz 11 (Defence - Forest - Defeat)
25 Jul 42 10:00 - 30 Jul 42 06:00
SU: 27 SD (Art, AT - Vinogradov, L2), 183 SD (Art, AT), 176 SD (AT)
32.044 men / 1.404 KIA
Hun (Uzhorod): 25 Gly (Infx2, AC, AT - Kiss L., L2), 16 Gly (Infx2, AC, AT), 20 Gly (Infx2, AC, AT), 32 TP (Infx2, Art, AT)
39.990 men / 2.607 KIA
5.
Svalava 2 (Attack - Hills - Defeat)
01 Aug 42 06:00 - 15:00
SU (Skole): 182 SD (Art, TD - Ermakov, L2), 143 SD (Art, AT)
21.946 men / 445 KIA
Hun: 32 TP (Infx2, Art, AT - Brunswik, L1), 4 TP (Infx2, Art, AT), 27 Gly (Infx2, AC, AT), 24 Gly (Infx2, AT, AA), 30 TP (Infx2, Art, AT)
45.993 men / 157 KIA
Bombardment:
The wreckage of one of the many Ju-88A-4's that were shot down over
Pasvalis. This was a rare case where
German bombers managed to do some damage on the ground. Of course, they paid a heavy price.
7 Bomber and Assault Aviation Divisions were deployed and have been flying Ground Attack missions in support of ground troops. All of the raids were flown during daytime to allow the units some time to repair and recuperate, as dedicated German AAA regiments are quite prevalent amongst German Divisions. IV IAK-PVO also took part in a bombing raid of it's own initiative, thought the Yak-7s are utterly unsuited for attacking targets on the ground, and the resulting German casualties were insignificant.
-
Province (Number of Missions / Aircraft lost / Bombing casualties)
I BAK -
Ftr, Tacx2 - 124 La-7, 200 Yak-4 - 524 airmen - Kyiv - Lt. Gen. Av.
Golovanov, L3-4, CB
- Taurage (2 / 40 / 473)
- Zelva (2 / 1 / 304)
- Dywin (1 / 2 / 171)
- Luboml (1 / 1 / 200)
- Svalava (1 / 1 / 77)
II BAK -
Ftr, Tacx2 - 124 La-7, 200 Yak-4 - 524 airmen - Homel - Lt. Gen. Av.
Yakovlev, L3-4, TB
- Stanislawow (3 / 4 / 518)
- Kowel (4 / 4 / 959)
- Uzhorod (1 / 26 / 115)
II ShAK
- Ftr, CASx2 - 124 La-7, 248 Il-10 - 620 airmen - Vitsyebsk - Chief Marshall Av.
Novikov, L3, TB
- Lida (3 / 1 / 245)
- Swislocz (6 / 7 / 833)
- Bereza (3 / 2 / 207)
- Zelva (3 / 75 / 232)
IV ShAK
- Ftr, CASx2 - 124 La-7, 248 Il-10 - 620 airmen - Kyiv - Lt. Gen. Av.
Rudenko, L2, TB
- Jaworow (9 / 19 / 1.477)
- Przemysl (3 / 7 / 217)
I ShAK
- Ftr, CASx2 - 124 La-7, 248 Il-10 - 1.296 airmen - Kyiv - Lt. Gen. Av.
Zhigarev, L3, TB
- Rozyszcze (3 / 0 / 287)
- Sambor (3 / 0 / 202)
- Przemysl (2 / 3 / 274)
- Uzhorod (1 / 19 / 134)
V ShAK
- Ftr, CASx2 - 124 La-7, 248 Il-10 - 620 airmen - Kaunas - Lt. Gen. Av.
Goryunov, L2
- Dobele (2 / 1 / 214)
- Tukums (3 / 1 / 403)
- Ariogala (2 / 7 / 148)
- Raseinai (2 / 3 / 280)
- Joniskis (2 / 13 / 166)
III ShAK
- Ftr, CASx2 - 124 La-7, 248 Il-10 - 620 airmen - Riga - Lt. Gen. Av.
Kutakhov, L3, TB
- Raseinai (8 / 20 / 1.129)
- Jurbarkas (6 / 25 / 707)
- Mariampolé (6 / 20 / 998)
III IAK -
Intx4 - 496 Yak-7 - 496 airmen - Homel -
Lt. Gen. Av. Vorozheikin, L4
- Zelva (1 / 1 / 6)
VII IAK -
Intx4 - 496 Yak-7 - 496 airmen - Moskva -
Lt. Gen. Av. Eremin, L3
- Joniskis (1 / 0 / 5)
With both 1 DBAD and 2 DBAD in action, even more damage could be done with Logistical strikes. After infrastructure in
Brzesc-
Litewski was reduced to pre-historic levels. Logistical Strikes on
Switaz started, in an attempt to avoid another breakthrough across the Bug river :
-
Province (Number of Missions / Aircraft lost / Heavy AAA guns destroyed (10 AA guns / Level) / Infra damage / Supplies destroyed (Tonnes) / Fuel destroyed (cubic metres))
I DBAK -
Str - 162 TB-3 - 648 airmen - Homel - Lt. Gen. Av. Kalinin, L2
- Switaz (6 / 3 / 0 / 3,0 / 191 / 11.185)
- Wolkowysk (6 / 0 / 0 / 4,8 / 34.990 / 10.382)
- Jaworow (2 / 3 / 0 / 2,3 / 23.807 / 74.316)
Three Axis bombing missions managed to kill Soviet Servicemen on the ground, right before being intercepted by the VVS, the others were intercepted before they could do any damage.
-
Province (Number of Missions / Aircraft lost / Bombing casualties)
Luftflotte 'Mahnke' -
Ftr, Tacx2 - 112 FW-190D, 174 Ju-88A-4 - 808 airmen - Genlt. Mahnke, L3, SAT
- Kaunas (1 / 38 / 149)
Luftflotte 'Bülowius' -
Ftr, Tacx2 - 106 FW-190D, 173 Ju-88A-4 - 798 airmen - Genlt. Bülowius, L4, TB
- Kaunas (1 / 53 / 190)
Luftflotte 'Dörstling' -
Ftr, Tacx2 - 84 FW-190D, 186 Ju-88A-4 - 828 airmen - Genlt. Dörstling, L3
- Pasvalis (1 / 47 / 190)
Bombing Totals (last 10 days):
SU Bombing losses: 529 KIA
VMF (Surface Fleet) losses: CA -8% / 106 KIA
Axis Bombing losses: 10.964 KIA / 3 AAA guns / 10,07 Infra / 59,0 Supplies / 95,9 Fuel / 2,4 Naval Bases
Map of Bombings and Air Battles over the main front. Each bomb stands for one day of bombing missions, with the size of the bombs indicating the size of the Aeroplanes dropping them. 50 kg for CAS, 100 kg for Tac, and 500 kg for Str. (the latter is not to scale). The counters indicate where various wings are based, and the Yak-7 silhouettes with numbers on the wings indicate the Aerial Battles.
Map of Bombings and Air Battles over the main front. Each bomb stands for one day of bombing missions, with the size of the bombs indicating the size of the Aeroplanes dropping them. 50 kg for CAS, 100 kg for Tac, and 500 kg for Str. (the latter is not to scale). The counters indicate where various wings are based, and the Yak-7 silhouettes with numbers on the wings indicate the Aerial Battles.
Air Battles:
1.
Taurage (Luftwaffe Intercept - Victory)
22 Jul 42 20:00 - 00:00
VVS: I BAK - Ftr, Tacx2 - 121 La-7, 198 Yak-4 - 517 airmen - Homel - Lt. Gen. Av. Golovanov, L4, CB
IV IAK-PVO - Intx4 - 496 Yak-7 - 496 airmen - Kaunas - Lt. Gen. Av. Rychagov, L2, SAT
815 planes / 1.013 airmen / 40 downed / 56 KIA
Luftwaffe: JG 2, JG 26, JG 109 - Intx3 - 333 Me-109G - 333 airmen - ? - Genlt. Klepke, L3, SAT
333 planes / 333 airmen / 25 downed / 25 KIA
2.
Kamien Koszyrski (Soviet Intercept - Victory)
22 Jul 42 20:00 - 00:00
VVS: VI IAK - Intx4 - 496 Yak-7 - 496 airmen - Lwow - Lt. Gen. Av. Rog, L3
496 planes / 496 airmen / 6 downed / 6 KIA
Luftwaffe: StG 1, SkG 1 - CASx3 - 223 Hs-129 - 223 airmen - ? - Genlt. Kitzinger, L4
223 planes / 223 airmen / 42 downed / 42 KIA
4.
Mariampolé (Soviet Intercept - Victory)
26 Jul 42 17:00 - 21:00
VVS: IV IAK-PVO - Intx4 - 496 Yak-7 - 496 airmen - Kaunas - Lt. Gen. Av. Rychagov, L2, SAT
496 planes / 496 airmen / 5 downed / 5 KIA
Luftwaffe: KG 28, KG 51 - Tacx2 - 176 Ju-88A-4 - 704 airmen - ? - Reichsmarschall Göring, L3, CB
176 planes / 704 airmen / 12 downed / 48 KIA
6.
Uzhorod (Hungarian Intercept - Victory)
27 Jul 42 08:00 - 12:00
VVS: II BAK - Ftr, Tacx2 - 124 La-7, 200 Yak-4 - 524 airmen - Homel - Lt. Gen. Av. Yakovlev, L4, TB
II IAK-PVO - Intx4 - 496 Yak-7 - 496 airmen - Lwow - Lt. Gen. Av. Astakhov, L4
820 planes / 1.020 airmen / 26 downed / 50 KIA
RHAF: I Vly, I Ely, II Ely - Intx3 - 372 CR.32 - 372 airmen - ? - Vezds. (Lt. Gen. Av.) Rakösi, L1
372 planes / 372 airmen / 67 downed / 67 KIA
7.
Zelva (Luftwaffe Intercept - Victory)
27 Jul 42 17:00 - 20:00
VVS: II ShAK - Ftr, CASx2 - 124 La-7, 248 Il-10 - 620 airmen - Nowogrodek - Chief Marshall. Av. Novikov, L3, TB
III IAK - Intx4 - 496 Yak-7 - 496 airmen - Homel - Lt. Gen. Av. Vorozheikin, L4
868 planes / 1.116 airmen / 75 downed / 127 KIA
Luftwaffe: JG 2, JG 26, JG 109 - Intx3 - 317 Me-109G - 317 airmen - ? - Genlt. Klepke, L3, SAT
317 planes / 317 airmen / 21 downed / 21 KIA
8.
Kaunas (Soviet Intercept - Victory)
28 Jul 42 05:00 - 09:00
VVS: IV IAK-PVO - Intx4 - 496 Yak-7 - 496 airmen - Kaunas - Lt. Gen. Av. Rychagov, L2, SAT
496 planes / 496 airmen / 17 downed / 17 KIA
Luftwaffe: JG 54, KG 26, KG 27 - Ftr, Tacx2 - 112 FW-190D, 174 Ju-88A-4 - 808 airmen - ? - Genlt. Mahnke, L3, SAT
286 planes / 808 airmen / 38 downed / 54 KIA
9.
Uzhorod (Hungarian Intercept - Victory)
29 Jul 42 07:00 - 10:00
VVS: I ShAK - Ftr, CASx2 - 123 La-7, 245 Il-10 - 613 airmen - Lwow - Lt. Gen. Av. Zhigarev, L3, TB
II IAK-PVO - Intx4 - 496 Yak-7 - 496 airmen - Lwow - Lt. Gen. Av. Astakhov, L4
864 planes / 1.109 airmen / 19 downed / 29 KIA
RHAF: I Vly, I Ely, II Ely - Intx3 - 316 CR.32 - 316 airmen - ? - Vezds. (Lt. Gen. Av.) Rakösi, L1
316 planes / 316 airmen / 31 downed / 31 KIA
10.
Joniskis (Luftwaffe Intercept - Victory)
29 Jul 42 08:00 - 11:00
VVS: V ShAK - Ftr, CASx2 - 121 La-7, 245 Il-10 - 611 airmen - Nowogrodek - Lt. Gen. Av. Goryunov, L2
VII IAK - Intx4 - 496 Yak-7 - 496 airmen - Rezekne - Lt. Gen. Av. Eremin, L3
862 planes / 1.107 airmen / 13 downed / 14 KIA
Luftwaffe: JG 4 - Int - 71 Me-109G - 71 airmen - ? - Genmaj. Fisser, L1, SAT
71 planes / 71 airmen / 24 downed / 24 KIA
13.
Kaunas (Soviet Intercept - Victory)
30 Jul 42 17:00 - 20:00
VVS: VII IAK - Intx4 - 496 Yak-7 - 496 airmen - Rezekne - Lt. Gen. Av. Eremin, L3
496 planes / 496 airmen / 27 downed / 27 KIA
Luftwaffe: JG 106, KG 54, KG 55 - Ftr, Tacx2 - 106 FW-190D, 173 Ju-88A-4 - 452 airmen - ? - Genlt. Bülowius, L4, TB
279 planes / 452 airmen / 53 downed / 79 KIA
14.
Pasvalis (Soviet Intercept - Victory)
31 Jul 42 05:00 - 07:00
VVS: VII IAK - Intx4 - 471 Yak-7 - 471 airmen - Rezekne - Lt. Gen. Av. Eremin, L3
471 planes / 471 airmen / 23 downed / 23 KIA
Luftwaffe: JG 50, KG 50, KG 76 - Ftr, Tacx2 - 84 FW-190D, 186 Ju-88A-4 - 828 airmen - ? - Genlt. Dörstling, L3
270 planes / 828 airmen / 47 downed / 93 KIA
Air Totals (last 10 days):
VVS: 11 battles / 82 Ground Attack / 14 Log. Bomb. / 403 (46 Yak-4, 133 Il-10, 120 La-7, 98 Yak-7, 6 TB-3, 0 Li-2) / 624 KIA
VMF (Air Fleet): 5 battles / 5 Port strike / 20 (10 La-7VM, 10 Il-10VM) / 30 KIA
Total SU: 15 battles / 82 Grd Attack / 14 Log. Bomb. / 423 / 654 KIA
Luftwaffe: 10 battles / 3 Ground Attack / 1 Naval Strike / 271 (74 Me-109G, 50 FW-190D, 100 Ju-88A-4, 5 Ju-290A, 42 Hs-129) / 611 KIA
RHAF: 2 battles / 98 (98 CR.32) / 98 KIA
RBAF: 3 battles / 33 (33 He-51) / 33 KIA
Axis: 15 Battles / 1 Naval Strike / 402 / 742 KIA
Air Totals (GPW - Last 40 days):
VVS: 33 battles / 448 Ground Attack / 44 Log. Bomb. / 1.802 (262 Yak-4, 515 Il-10, 626 La-7, 338 Yak-7, 14 TB-3, 47 Li-2) / 2.724 KIA
VMF (Air Fleet): 17 battles / 1 Naval Strike / 5 Port Strikes / 465 (232 La-7VM, 233 Il-10VM) / 698 KIA
Total SU: 44 battles / 448 Grd Attack / 44 Log. Bomb / 1 Naval Strike / 9 Port strike / 2.267 / 3.422 KIA
Luftwaffe: 35 battles / 6 Ground Attacks / 7 Naval strikes / 1.342 (379 Me-109G, 408 FW-190D, 477 Ju-88A-4, 36 Ju-290A, 42 Hs-129) / 3.061 KIA
RHAF: 6 battles / 305 (158 Ju-87, 188 Ju-86K-2, 132 CR.32) / 478 KIA
RBAF: 3 battles / 33 (33 He-51) / 33 KIA
Axis: 44 Battles / 6 Ground Attacks / 7 Naval Strikes / 1.680 / 3.572 KIA
Mediterranean (Odessa HQ):
At 7am, on the 29th of July, the Leninets-class (Series II) submarines of VIII Flot Podlodok were the unlikely actors of our first naval victory in the Mediterranean. Catching a fleet of 10 already damaged Italian troop transports by surprise in the Eastern Ionian Sea, they inflicted further damage on them, sinking 2 troop transports. The ships were filled with
Italian troops, but they were able to save the vast majority of them, and load them onto the remaining ships. Out of torpedoes, our submariners went their merry way after confirming to the Navy HQ in
Mythiléné that the transports were headed into the small port of
Patra. Probably to offload the troops and start some hasty repairs to the remaining ships.
Counter Admiral
Golovko, of
I Avianosets Flote, thought otherwise. With the Black Sea Fleet covering the Central Aegean Sea, he sent out all for of his CAG wings for a series of Port Strikes on
Patra, moving the Carrier Fleet into the
Northern Aegean Sea so his aeroplanes didn't have to fly as far on the second mission. After the second mission, only a single transport ship remained, and the docks had been blown to bits, making any further repairs impossible until the port facilities had been repaired. Upon returning to the
Northern Aegean after their second run, I KPA and II KPA were intercepted by a single wing of Bulgarian Heinkel He 51 biplane Interceptors. (It should be noted that Bulgaria never had any He 51s in it's tiny Air Force. Also the He 51 was a significantly worse fighter than the CR.32 the Hungarians are using, as the CR.32 replaced the He 51 in the Nationalist Spanish Air Force during the civil war. It did prove a decent ground attack plane.)
Port strikes continued the next day, with another Air Battle taking place, and the final troop transport sent to the bottom by Il-10VM-launched torpedoes.
The obsolete He 51s being no match for our modern Carrier-based fighters, Counter Admiral
Golovko was ordered to find the
Bulgarian fleet. After a single bombing run on
Varna on the 1st of August, it was confirmed that the
Bulgarian navy consisted entirely of Transport ships, with no military vessels to speak of. The port was protected by Anti-Air Artillery, and the same He-51s intercepted our CAGs over it, downing a single aeroplane, for 12 of their own. The
Bulgarian fleet is thus not a threat, and any attempt at an invasion by them could easily be foiled by the Red Navy. To save the CAGs some attrition, the mission was called off.
Greece, Bulgaria, and the surrounding seas and waterways. The playground of our Mediterranean Navy, for now. Torpedoes indicate Port strikes, Red ones are port strikes by our Navy Air Fleet (VMF)
Sea Battles (Mediterranean):
1.
Eastern Ionian Sea (Naval Battle - Victory)
29 Jul 42 10 :00 - 03 Jul 42 01:00
VMF: VIII Flot Podlodok - 2 SS - 10 x Leninets Series II - 530 sailors - Mytiléné - V.Adm. Rakov L2, Spt
2 naval units / 10 ships / 530 sailors / 0 ships / 0 sailors KIA
Regia Marina: 8a SqT, 9a SqT - 2 TP - 10 Troop transports - 960 sailors - ? - Contrammiraglio Gaspari, L2
2 naval units / 10 ships / 480 sailors / 8a SqT (TP -37,5%), 9a SqT (TP -14,3%) / 3 ships / 249 sailors KIA
Air Battles (Mediterranean):
11.
Northern Aegean Sea (Bulgarian Intercept - Victory)
29 Jul 42 23:00 - 30 Jul 42 02:00
VMF: I KPA - CAGx2 - 64 La-7VM, 64 Il-10VM - 192 airmen - Kyiv (CV) - Air Ctr. Adm. Vershinin, L3
II KPA - CAG - 64 La-7VM, 64 Il-10VM - 192 airmen - Minsk (CV) - Air Capt 1C Sudets, L3
256 planes / 384 airmen / 1 downed / 2 KIA
RBAF: 6-ti IP - Int - 122 He-51 Sokol - 122 airmen - ? - Gen-Lt. (Maj. Gen) Ayrjanov, L1
122 planes / 122 airmen / 20 downed / 20 KIA
12.
Northern Aegean Sea (Bulgarian Intercept - Fog & Rain - Victory)
30 Jul 42 06:00 - 09:00
VMF: I KPA - CAGx2 - 64 La-7VM, 64 Il-10VM - 192 airmen - Kyiv (CV) - Air Ctr. Adm. Vershinin, L3
II KPA - CAG - 64 La-7VM, 63 Il-10VM - 190 airmen - Minsk (CV) - Air Capt 1C Sudets, L3
255 planes / 382 airmen / 1 downed / 1 KIA
RBAF: 6-ti IP - Int - 102 He-51 Sokol - 102 airmen - ? - Gen-Lt. (Maj. Gen) Ayrjanov, L1
102 planes / 102 airmen / 1 downed / 1 KIA
15.
Varna (Bulgarian Intercept - Victory)
01 Aug 42 12:00 - 14:00
VMF: I KPA - CAGx2 - 64 La-7VM, 64 Il-10VM - 192 airmen - Kyiv (CV) - Air Ctr. Adm. Vershinin, L3
II KPA - CAG - 64 La-7VM, 63 Il-10VM - 190 airmen - Minsk (CV) - Air Capt 1C Sudets, L3
255 planes / 382 airmen / 1 downed / 1 KIA
RBAF: 6-ti IP - Int - 89 He-51 Sokol - 89 airmen - ? - Gen-Lt. (Maj. Gen) Ayrjanov, L1
89 planes / 89 airmen / 12 downed / 12 KIA
Later on, in the Gulf of Taranto, our Submarines spotted the
Italian Battleship
Giulio Cesare, escorted by a Flotilla of Maestrale-Class Destroyers. Luckily, the
Italian Destroyers didn't spot them when they were taking this picture. They managed to move on undamaged and unencumbered. With our Carrier Fleet in the Black Sea, our Red Navy was unable to send a suitable force to Intercept the
Italian Battleship with any real chance of success.
Convoy Raiding:
Baltic Sea: 16 Axis convoys sunk
North Atlantic: 8 Axis convoys sunk
Aegean Sea: 7 Axis convoys & 1 escort sunk
Central Med: 21 Axis convoys & 1 escort sunk
Total (last 10 days): 52 convoys and 2 escorts sunk
Total GPW (30 days): 148 convoys and 5 escorts sunk.
Total numbers (GPW):
Total Ground losses:
SU: 5.462.163 (+1.109.466) / 96.214 KIA (+21.076) (95.277 (+20.547 / ground), 937 (+529 / air)) / 57.778 POW (+10.994)
Ger: 3.082.994 (+570.690) / 90.407 KIA (+21.699 / ground) / 18.294 POW (+18.294)
Hun: 846.948 (+155.049) / 10.468 KIA (+3.921 / ground)
Ita: 21.748 (+11.987) / 242 KIA (+241 / ground)
Slo: 25.932 (+8.996) / 2.775 KIA (+ 969 / ground)
Axis: 3.977.622 (+746.722) / 163.491 KIA (103.892 (+26.830 / ground), 59.599 (+11.109 / air)) / 18.294 POW (+18.294)
Total Navy losses:
VMF: 2 Naval Battles / 6 Naval strikes / 9 Port strikes / BB -10% / CVL -32% / CA -15% / CL -30% / DD -57% / TP -4% / 1.131 sailors KIA (+106)
Kriegsmarine: 1 Naval Battle / 1
DD / 1.280 KIA
Regia Marina: 1 Naval Battle / 2
TP / 327 KIA
Royal Bulgarian Navy: 310 KIA
Axis: 148 Convoys / 5 Escorts
Air Totals (GPW - Last 40 days):
VVS: 33 battles / 448 Ground Attack / 44 Log. Bomb. / 1.802 (262 Yak-4, 515 Il-10, 626 La-7, 338 Yak-7, 14 TB-3, 47 Li-2) / 2.724 KIA
VMF (Air Fleet): 17 battles / 1 Naval Strike / 5 Port Strikes / 465 (232 La-7VM, 233 Il-10VM) / 698 KIA
Total SU: 44 battles / 448 Grd Attack / 44 Log. Bomb / 1 Naval Strike / 9 Port strike / 2.267 / 3.422 KIA
Luftwaffe: 35 battles / 6 Ground Attacks / 7 Naval strikes / 1.342 (
379 Me-109G, 408 FW-190D, 477 Ju-88A-4, 36 Ju-290A, 42 Hs-129) / 3.061 KIA
RHAF: 6 battles / 305 (
158 Ju-87, 188 Ju-86K-2, 132 CR.32) / 478 KIA
RBAF: 3 battles / 33 (
33 He-51) / 33 KIA
Axis: 44 Battles / 6 Ground Attacks / 7 Naval Strikes / 1.680 / 3.572 KIA
Total Losses (GPW):
158.545 (+32.850 (SU)) / 187.274 (+58.022) (Axis)
Anti-Partisan Operations (including the previous anti-partisan operation)
NKGBF: 109.951 (+11.995) / 68 KIA (+2) (ground)
Fin: 40.375 (+6.088) / 391 KIA (+33 / ground) / 25.857 POW (+3.121)
These last 10 days, it was the Axis which overextended, and 2
German Divisions were forced to surrender to our forces, including 10 Panzer-Division. We did lose a Rifle Division in the South. As for casualties, the death toll was in our advantage, even before we add in the impact of the VVS. The Luftwaffe ramped up it's operations, disrupting our ground attack operations, and flying several of their own. That said, the VVS's Yak-7's gave them a warm reception, shooting down countless enemy aeroplanes. The scope of the war increased, with the appearance of Bulgarian troops, and limited Red Navy operations in the Aegean. The Finnish uprising is far from over as the NKGBF's mounted brigades are still moving into position to even start to grapple with the insurgents. Paratroopers will probably be called in to assist as soon as they're reorganised. Outside Finland, things are looking up: The main front has been stabilised, and the Armoured Army Group is starting to put pressure in the area between
Kaunas and
Brzesc Litweski. No further cities were lost despite the thinning defences in
Riga,
Kaunas, and
Lwow. A foray into
Zamosc, in Western Poland, will probably be pushed back, but it's bound to rattle the
Germans. As always, your input is valued,
Greetings,
'Odin'