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In the previous article, we introduced the SU-85 (made by our enemy) used by the 23rd Armored Division, and discussed who their original owners were and how they fell into the hands of the enemy. In this issue, the 210th Assault Artillery Brigade also captured and used the enemy's new tank - T-34/85, but let's take a look at what happened.
It turns out that the T-34/85 in the picture was captured by the 210th Assault Artillery Brigade of the German "Northern Ukraine" Army Group during the battle on April 21, 1944. It was then sprayed with German three-color camouflage and entered The brigade continues to serve. Hans Genge, who participated in this battle, recalled the process of capturing it:
"Hand in hand with Hungarian units, we carried out an assault on a heavily fortified village. The Russians resisted very tenaciously. They contained our side. Action, under precise anti-tank fire, our assault gun fled. After regrouping, we took the village, but the Hungarian infantry suffered heavy casualties... The attack was so rapid that. The enemy panicked and even abandoned a intact KV-85 command tank. I dismantled its radio equipment and brought it back to the country. "
The 210th Assault Artillery Brigade took a series of photos of the trophies. It is worth mentioning that Genge may have thought it was a command vehicle because the so-called "KV-85", the actual T-34/85, carried a radio; but in fact the T-34/85 was equipped with radio communications The ratio of facilities is still higher than that of the early models of T-34.
Judging from the photos, its turret has a typical diamond-shaped emblem - this is the battle emblem of General Katukov's 1st Tank Army, indicating that these two tanks come from this army. The upper part is numbered 21, indicating that it is a tank within the formation of the 21st Guards Mechanized Brigade. But interestingly speaking, these two tanks probably do not belong to the 69th Guards Tank Regiment under the 21st Guards Tank Brigade; they come from the "Popov Detachment" which also belongs to the 45th Guards Tank Brigade. The Ministry clearly recorded that on April 14, 2 The battalion received 20 tanks with 85mm guns, but different units have different names: now we are accustomed to calling it T-34/85; the 11th Tank Army (directly subordinate to the 45th Brigade) named it S -53 tank ; the 45th Guards Brigade simply called it "T-42" .
For the newly mentioned vehicles, the 45th Jintan Brigade (top) and the 11th Jintan Army gave different names; it will not be until the second half of the year that the unified name "T34-85" will be standardized in the army.
You must be familiar with Jintan 45th Brigade. For details, please refer to the first issue of our article "Thousands of Meters Away". From April 20th to 23rd, the brigade's T-34 relied on the new 85mm artillery and cooperated with friendly forces JS-122 and JSU-152 to defeat the fiercely fighting 23rd Armored Regiment in the Zovachov-Olesha village area. 2nd Battalion Panthers. But not the entire brigade fought in this direction. Just the day before at 1600MT (Moscow time, the same below), 7 T34-85s commanded by the tank battalion commander and Captain Popov of the Guards Corps went to the 21st Brigade of the 8th Guards Mechanized Army in the village of Oteiniya The position was reinforced and incorporated into the 21st brigade organization. It was they who faced the 210th Assault Artillery Brigade and the Hungarian unit Genge mentioned on the 20th and 21st - the Hungarian 2nd Armored Division.
The Popov detachment was originally directly under the 21st Guards Mechanized Brigade, but with the addition of another unit, the 17th Guards Mechanized Brigade, and the reorganization and distribution of the 8th Guards Mechanized Army, the affiliation became extremely complicated - Popov Detachment Originally under the 45th Tank Brigade, it was placed under the 21st Mechanized Brigade on the 19th; the 17th Guards Brigade was originally under the 4th Tank Group instead of the 1st Tank Group, and was temporarily placed under the 8th Guards Mechanized Corps. It was originally on the same level as the Popov Group. Can't hit.However, after the battle on the 20th, due to heavy losses and incomplete organization, the 21st Brigade was taken over by the 17th Brigade (yes, an incomplete brigade-level unit with a complete command structure), and Popov's detachment followed suit. Wandering into the former establishment... Damn it, did you spit out grapes or eat grape skins? !
The tanks of the 1st Close Tank Army all have obvious battle emblems-diamond marks. The upper part is the brigade/regiment number, and the lower part is the vehicle tactical number. This is a T-34/85
of the 44th Guards Tank Brigade. Unlike the main force of the brigade that beat the Black Panthers, the Popov detachment experienced a very bumpy experience. During the battle in Oteiniya on April 20, Popov Cluster reported that because nearly 21 brigade troops wavered and retreated under the attack of 10 enemy tanks and failed to notify themselves, the detachment was divided by enemy chartered vehicles. Three T34-85s were hit and burned by the Germans; the next day, the 11th Tank Army reported that a total of four T-34/85s of Popov's detachment were burned in Oteiniya. The remaining three tanks were assigned to the 17th Brigade and participated in the battle on the 21st. Nearly 17 Brigades reported that 2 tanks were burned and 1 was damaged throughout the day. On the same day, a T-34/85 fell into the hands of the 210th Assault Artillery Brigade. Otynia was lost.
Otyiniya defense layout; the red box is the combat position of Popov's unit; cooperating with it is the 3rd Motorized Battalion of the 21st Guards Mechanized Brigade.
html The Battle of Otynia on April 20; according to Captain Popov, because nearly 21 brigade troops abandoned their formation and left, the detachment was divided and surrounded by the enemy.
html The positions of the 13 burned T-34/85s are marked with red lines.
Interestingly, according to Genge’s recollection of the heavy losses suffered by the 2nd Hungarian Division, the 1st division can also be seen in the battle report of the 17th Guards Brigade. The brigade's combat results on the 21st were only two tanks, both of which were damaged, but it was reported that "500 enemy infantry were annihilated and 66 were captured alive." Considering that the 17th Brigade and the Popov Group were retreating, there was still room for leisure. A large number of Hungarian soldiers were captured, which shows how clumsy and inferior the latter's combat skills were!
As for the origin of this T-34/85, at present, it is more likely to come from the Popov detachment of the 45th Tank Brigade. The date of loss may be the 20th (3 vehicles) or the 21st (1 vehicle); its turret The emblem may have been drawn after entering the 21st Brigade. Of course, it is not ruled out that this tank may actually be a command vehicle of the 69th Regiment directly under the 21st Brigade, but this possibility is very small, because the 21st Brigade will not receive the first batch of T34-85 for several days. The 127th Guards Tank Regiment directly under the 17th Guards Mechanized Brigade can basically be excluded. This unit is not equipped with 85mm tanks at this time, and its battle-damaged vehicles are all T-34/76. Another doubt is that according to Soviet army records, the vast majority of T34-85s were burned, and only nearly 17 brigades reported one damaged vehicle. So it is currently unknown whether the damaged vehicle captured by the 210th Assault Artillery Brigade was abandoned, or whether Popov lied about an intact vehicle as battle damage.
The T-34/85 tank was repainted with three-color camouflage and painted with the Iron Cross national symbol.
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