Added and edited on 01/15/2019

Formation, entry into battle

Officially, the 150th Tank Brigade began to form on the basis of the disbanded 50th Tank Division on September 9, 1941 in the village of Deryugino (north of the city of Dmitriev-Lgovsky) in accordance with order No. 010 of the headquarters of the Bryansk Front of September 8, 1941. In fact, only at 12.00 on September 11, the 50th Panzer Division, withdrawn to the front reserve, concentrated in the forest 3 kilometers north of Deryugino and only then began to reorganize into a tank brigade in accordance with orders No. 0107 (!) Of the headquarters of the Bryansk Front and No. 010 of the headquarters of the 13- th army.

The new tank brigade was formed according to the states No. 010/75 - 010/83 of August 23, 1941, consisting of:

brigade management,

150th Tank Regiment, 3-battalion

150th motorized rifle and machine gun battalion,

150th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion,

150th reconnaissance company,

150th repair and restoration company, 150th

transport company,

150th control company,

150th Medical Platoon.

The 99th and 100th tank regiments of the 50th TD were reorganized into the 150th tank regiment, the 50th motorized rifle regiment - into the 50th motorized rifle battalion, the 50th anti-aircraft artillery division - into the 150th anti-aircraft artillery division .

On September 15, the brigade received 310 vehicles from the 50th Panzer Division: 15 cars, 226 trucks (168 GAZ-AA, 58 ZIS-5) and 69 special (37 GAZ-AA, 32 ZIS-5), which significantly exceeded the regular number of vehicles assigned to the brigade (249 units). Another 264 vehicles were transferred to the reserve of the front, and 1604 non-staff personnel were sent to other units. There were no tanks, no armored vehicles, no motorcycles, no anti-tank guns, no heavy machine guns in the newly formed 150th tank brigade, the personnel were mostly armed with rifles.

On September 16, according to the directive of the headquarters of the Bryansk Front, on the left flank of the 13th Army from among the divisions of the 13th Army (21st and 55th cavalry divisions) and units of the front reserve (283rd Rifle Division, 121st and 150th tank brigades), a task force under Major General Ermakov was formed to close the resulting gap in the front line at the junction of the Bryansk and Southwestern fronts. At 15.00, the headquarters of the 150th tank brigade received an order from Major General Ermakov to subordinate the tank brigade to him, probably at the same time the brigade received an order: on September 18, concentrate in the area of ​​​​the village of Dobrovodye (east of the city of Sevsk) and in the forest north of this village , from where, from 18.00 on September 18, be ready to go on the offensive against the city of Glukhov.

On the same day, September 16, reconnaissance was sent in a south-western direction from a motorized rifle battalion consisting of 17 people on a truck GAZ-AA, which by 24.00 on September 16 reached the village of Berezovo, having established from the words of the local population that the enemy was located 80-90 kilometers south of Berezovo. Sent in the direction of Bardakovka on a truck GAZ-AA another reconnaissance group of 10 Red Army men led by lieutenants Usov and Kadyrov went missing. The motorized rifle battalion itself, on a night march by 8.00 on September 17, moved to the western outskirts of Dmitriev-Lgovsky.

On September 17, the 150th tank brigade received 20 tanks (12 T-34, 8 T-50) and in this composition by the morning of September 18, with a 30-kilometer night march, the main forces moved from the forest north of Deryugino to the forest 12 km east of the city of Sevsk, where it joined with the 121st tank brigade. Sent forward as an advanced detachment in order to cover the location of the main forces of the brigade from the side of Glukhov, the 150th motorized rifle battalion, apparently, on September 18, part of its forces concentrated in the village of Yasnoye Solntse (37 km northeast of Glukhov), where, due to lack of gasoline was forced to stop.

By the morning of September 19, the 150th tank brigade concentrated on a night march near the village of Kruglaya Polyana (south of the village of Yasnoye Solntse), by 12.00 in the village of Yasnoye Solntse, the motorized rifle battalion had completed its concentration. After the 283rd Rifle Division approached there at 23.00 on September 19, Major General Yermakov, with his combat order No. 02, reinforced the division with the 150th Tank Brigade, setting the division the task: “ with reinforced forward detachments, destroy the pr-ka at the turn of Khokhlovka, Esman, to ref. day, the main forces to leave: a) 856 joint ventures with 5 tanks and 2 artillery batteries in the area of ​​elev. 192.4, Vozdvizhensk, Govorunov - capture Gremyachka by the advance detachment; b) 858 SP with tanks to capture the Molchanov district, elev. 217.0, Gorny, Otradnoye, having a forward detachment in the Yurchenko, Lysy district; c) 860th joint venture with tanks to go to the district of Zapolye - Esman, art. Esman, from which to have a forward detachment in the district of Khotminovka - Godunovka» .

The 150th motorized rifle battalion, according to the same order, was to form the reserve of the Ermakov group and " by 12.00 concentrate in the district of Stepanovka, Smokarevka, Sahaidachny in readiness for action in the directions of Marchikhina Buda, Nikitovka, Esman» .

At 18:00 on September 18, the 283rd Rifle Division began advancing to the Stepanovka-Pustogorod line, where, together with the 150th Tank Brigade, it reached by 05:00 on September 20. At 18.00 on September 20, the division continued to move to the previously assigned line Vozdvizhensk - Godunovka. By the end of the day, the 150th tank brigade was in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe villages of Stepanovka, Novina, Vesely Gai. On the same day, September 20, Major General Ermakov issued combat order No. 03, according to which the 283rd Rifle Division was to attack with a reinforced battalion with 1 battery and 3 tanks of the 150th Tank Brigade along the route Zelenaya Dubrava - Vozdvizhensk - Gremyachka, and strike with the main forces in a general direction at the village of Bereza, bypassing Glukhov from the north, in order, in cooperation with the 2nd Guards Rifle Division, which attacked south of Glukhov, to take this city in pincers and capture it. According to this order, the 150th tank brigade attacked Sloat (northwest of the village of Bereza). From the east and northeast, the 121st Tank Brigade attacked Glukhov together with the 858th Infantry Regiment.

In total, during the transition to the Stepanovka area from Deryugino on September 17-20, the 150th tank brigade, without coming into contact with the enemy and, probably, only being subjected to air strikes, lost 1 tank knocked out, 15 vehicles and 4 people killed and wounded. After these first relatively small losses, on September 20, the 150th tank brigade had all the same 20 tanks available (12 T-34 and 8 T-50), 2351 personnel, 10 37-mm anti-aircraft guns, 22 machine guns (4 easel and 18 manual), 1713 rifles.

Attack on Glukhov

By the end of the day on September 21, 1941, pushing back small groups of the enemy, the 283rd Rifle Division, with the support of the 150th Tank Brigade, captured the settlements of Govorunov, Yurchenko, Shlykov, Godunovka, however, attacks on the city of Glukhov were successfully repulsed by the defenders of the city 17- m motorcycle battalion of the 17th tank division (XXXXVI.Pz.Korp, Panzergruppe.2) and the 5th separate machine gun battalion.

On September 22, with the support of the tanks of the 150th Tank Brigade, the 858th Infantry Regiment captured the village of Bereza (3.5 km north of the town of Glukhov), however, by an enemy counterattack, up to an infantry battalion, it was driven back to the edge of the forest southeast of height 214.6 (area of ​​the farm Belovsky). With a repeated attack in cooperation with tanks, the 150th Tank Brigade again took the height of 214.6 and reached the northern outskirts of Glukhov south of the mark of 186.2 with its left flank. The 860th Rifle Regiment, adjacent to the left, reached the eastern outskirts of Rodionovka and marks 201.2, reaching the near approaches to the northeastern outskirts of Glukhov. On September 22, the 150th motorized rifle battalion was located in the rear of the 283rd division, in the village of Mesendzovka (now Masenzovka), and by this time, without participating in the hostilities, it had already lost 13 people missing, incl. from September 16, the reconnaissance group of 12 people sent to Bardakovka did not make itself felt, and when moving from Lemeshovka to Mesendzovka, the Red Army soldier Matvienko from the 3rd platoon of the 2nd rifle company remained missing and went missing.

After the first 2 days of fighting, by September 23, according to the headquarters of the ABTU front, the 150th tank brigade consisted of 16 tanks (12 T-34 and 4 T-50) in service, 3 tanks T-50 requiring current repairs and 1 tank T-50 settled in the swamp.

By 08:00 on September 23, the 856th Infantry Regiment with the 150th Tank Brigade occupied the line Vozdvizhensk - Shlykov - height 183.3 (north of Bereza). By 14.00, the regiment, with its left flank, supported by the battery of the 848th artillery regiment and tanks of the 150th brigade, captured the eastern part of the village of Sloat (west of Bereza), breaking through to the west of the Glukhov-Yampol highway. By the morning of September 24 and then all day long, the 2nd battalion of the 856th Rifle Division, together with the tanks of the 150th Tank Brigade, fought at the turn of the northern outskirts of Sloat - heights 199.0 and 210.3 - the southern outskirts of Bereza.

On the night of September 25, Major General Ermakov gave his troops order No. 07, according to which the 3rd battalion of the 860th joint venture and the 1st battalion of the 856th joint venture, together with 7 tanks of the 150th brigade, were to " active actions in the Vozdvizhensk-Gremyachka area to prevent the avenue from moving to the east in the direction of Chervonny and Esman», well, 2 other battalions of the 856th rifle regiment with the rest of the tanks of the 150th brigade were supposed to go on the defensive at the turn of the Lysogo farm - heights 199.0 and 210.3 (north, east and southeast of the village of Sloat). The 121st tank brigade was now delivering the main blow to Glukhov. The 150th motorized rifle battalion, which still constituted Ermakov’s reserve, received the task by 10.00 on September 25 to concentrate 2 of its companies in the forest area 4 km northwest of the village of Studenok (12.5 km east of Glukhov station) and organize anti-tank defense in this area . The 3rd company of the 150th MSB was to remain at the crossroads of the railway and dirt roads, 2 km east of Nikitovka (24.5 km north of Glukhov).

In total, on September 25, according to the headquarters of the front, the 150th tank brigade now consisted of 21 tanks (12 T-34, 8 T-50 and 1 T-26, it is unknown when and under what circumstances appeared in the 150th brigade), 2436 personnel, 2 armored vehicles, 4 tractors, 223 vehicles (13 cars, 159 trucks, 51 special), 3 motorcycles, 10 37-mm anti-aircraft guns, 30 machine guns (2 anti-aircraft, 2 easel, 26 manual), 4 PPD, 1682 simple and 112 automatic rifles, 15 radios ( 5-AK/RB) .

On the morning of September 25, the 121st Tank Brigade, together with the 860th Infantry Regiment, resumed the attack on Glukhov, but by the middle of the day the situation in the Glukhov region had changed dramatically. From 12.00 from the MTS area, which is near the northeastern outskirts of Glukhov, along the road to Esman, up to 50 German enemy tanks immediately launched a counteroffensive, accompanied by up to 2 infantry battalions. These were the 40th motorized rifle and 39th tank regiments of the 17th tank division, hastily transferred by the headquarters of the 17th TD to Glukhov to hold the city. Immediately defeating the 860th Infantry Regiment that opposed them, German tanks occupied Moskalenkov and Freigoltovo. The tanks of the 121st Tank Brigade were thrown into the battle and transferred to Esman from the reserve of the Ermakov group of the 2nd company of the 150th SME, through the efforts of which the advance of the enemy was first suspended, and later the German tanks retreated back to Glukhov. At the end of the German counterattack, Major General Ermakov decided to temporarily go on the defensive with all his forces.

On September 27, the front line was as follows. On the right flank of the 283rd Rifle Division in the Vozdvizhensk area, the 1st Battalion of the 856th Rifle Regiment and the 3rd Battalion of the 860th Rifle Regiment were defending. Behind them, in the forest north of the village of May Day, there was a tank group of the 150th Tank Brigade, and even further - at the intersection of the railway and dirt roads 2 km southeast of Nikitovka - 2 companies of the 150th MSB. On the Govorunov - Gorely sector, the 2nd and 3rd battalions of the 856th joint venture, supported by the 1st division of the 848th artillery regiment, defended. On the site (suit) Gorely - height 211.8 (southeast of Khotminovka) was located the 858th rifle regiment supported by the 2nd division of the 848th artillery regiment. Behind the junction of the 856th and 858th rifle regiments in the forest near the village of Otradnoye was the 2nd tank group of the 150th brigade. Behind the junction of the 858th joint venture with the neighboring 121st tank brigade, there were 2 companies of the 150th MSB, which, after their change in the village of Esman, the 858th rifle regiment (September 26) were withdrawn to Ermakov's reserve in the forest northeast of Krekotnevo (16 , 5 km northeast of the town of Glukhov, now the northeastern part of the village of Esman). The headquarters of the 150th Tank Brigade was located in the village of Chervonnoe.

On that day, September 27, 1 out of 2 armored cars in the 150th Tank Brigade was blown up in a Soviet minefield - all the known losses of the 150th Tank Brigade in equipment in recent days. On September 28, the 858th Infantry Regiment extended its line of defense to the Zarutsky junction (8.3 km east of the Glukhov station), after which the tanks of the 121st Tank Brigade moved to support this regiment, which were located in separate groups at the line: Grekovshchina - mark 211, 5 - 225.3 - forest to the east of the mark 203.6. The companies of the 150th SME, previously located in the forest northeast of Krekotnevo, occupied a new line of defense: height 200.4 - Gusakovshchina - height 206.5 east of the village of Esman.

At 8:30 a.m. on September 28, the enemy, in about 15 vehicles with 1 37-mm gun, accompanied by motorcyclists, drove up to Gorely to the positions of the 856th Infantry Regiment. From the reports of the headquarters of the 10th motorized division (approx. - arrived in the Glukhov area on September 27-28) it follows that this was reconnaissance from the 17th tank division. In the Gorely area, the enemy deployed in battle formation, but was fired upon by tanks, apparently from the 150th tank brigade, threw 1 motorcycle, a 37-mm cannon and 25 shells towards it and retreated beyond the height of 205.3. Both the motorcycle and the 37 mm gun with shells went to the 150th Tank Brigade as trophies.

Private operation 29 September 1941

In the meantime, on September 27, 1941, the headquarters of the Ermakov task force drew up a plan to conduct a private operation on September 29 with the aim of " seize the most advantageous frontiers for the capture of Glukhov". According to this plan, the 283rd Rifle Division operated in 3 groups: the 1st group, with a strength of at least 1 infantry battalion with 4 tanks, of the 150th Tank Brigade was to capture Hill 200.6, Khotminovka and Godunovka; The 2nd group, with a strength of at least an infantry battalion with 4 tanks of the 121st Tank Brigade, was to capture the grove south of Godunovka and a height of 217.2, and the 3rd group, as part of a rifle battalion with 3 tanks of the 121st Tank Brigade, was to capture Freigoltovo and the height 198.4. The operation was to begin without artillery preparation at 04:00 on 29 September. Tanks, due to their small numbers, were supposed to be used only during daylight hours to repel possible counterattacks and suppress individual firing points.

Opposing the strike group of the 858th Infantry Regiment, which included tanks of the 150th Tank Brigade, the 1st Battalion of the 41st Motorized Regiment (10th MD) by September 29 was defending to the west and southwest of Godunovka, from the Belovsky farm and further southeast. Both Godunovka and Khotminovka were free from the enemy. At 05:00 on September 29, Soviet artillery opened fire on the positions of the 1st battalion of the 41st MP, and at 07:20, according to German data, up to an infantry company and 3 Soviet tanks (i.e. 150th TBR) attacked Godunovka. Without meeting the enemy in front of them, the strike group successfully occupied Khotminovka, Godunovka, heights 205.3, 200, 192.5. Attacking the grove south of Godunovka and Freigoltovo 2, other shock groups of the 858th joint venture with tanks of the 121st brigade, having met strong resistance from the 5th machine-gun battalion defending here, were not successful. At 14.00, a German armored car was blown up on Soviet mines, after which the tanks that made a sortie T-50 The 150th Tank Brigade captured this armored vehicle and towed it to the location of the tank brigade without any losses in combat.

In total, during the hostilities from September 20 to 29, the 150th tank brigade, according to its own data, destroyed 9 tanks, 3 armored vehicles, 13 mortars, 37 vehicles, 7 motorcycles, 700 Germans, but lost 4 tanks knocked out, 41 vehicles, 49 people dead and wounded.

The beginning of the German offensive. September 30, 1941

On the morning of September 29, 1941, Major General Yermakov gave the troops another combat order No. 08 to resume at 12.10 on September 30 after a 130-minute artillery preparation for the attack on Glukhov. The main blow in the direction of heights 205.3 and 204.9 and further to the northeastern outskirts of Glukhov was delivered with the support of 10 tanks of the 121st Tank Brigade of the 858th Infantry Regiment. The 856th Rifle Regiment, defending on the right flank at the Vozdvizhensk-Ivashchenkov line, was supposed to reach the line of the Lysy farmstead (to the north of the village of Bereza) with the left flank - mark 199.0. At the junction of the 856th and 858th regiments, the 150th tank brigade attacked with its own forces from the Levshin - Gorely section to Bereza and further from the northwest to Glukhov. Because Since the 150th Tank Brigade did not have irretrievable losses in tanks during the past battles, its combat strength by September 30 probably still amounted to 21 tanks (12 T-34, 8 T-50 and 1 T-26).

At 7.30 on September 30, after a 30-minute artillery preparation, the German 24th motorized corps (10th motorized, 3rd and 4th tank divisions) went on the offensive with all its might against the 283rd rifle division, thereby forestalling the start of the operational offensive. Ermakov group. In the zone of the 150th tank brigade, the 2nd and 3rd battalions of the 41st motorized regiment of the 10th motorized division attacked, reinforced by units of the 1st company of the 10th anti-tank battalion and the 2nd battery of the 91st anti-aircraft regiment. The left column, consisting of the 3rd battalion of the 41st Marines, 1 anti-aircraft platoon and an anti-tank company, supported by 2 heavy batteries of the 3rd division of the 10th artillery regiment, at 7.30 hit from the village of Sloat to the northeast and at 8.05 reached the village of Shakutovshchina (5 km west of H. Gorely). At 0800 from Bereza, with the support of the 5th heavy battery of the 10th AP, the 2nd battalion of the 41st Marines, reinforced by an anti-aircraft platoon, tank destroyers and sappers, acted as the right column. Encountering only weak resistance from the 856th Infantry Regiment, this battalion soon occupied Hill 204.0 (west of Hill 205.3).

​

Judging by the award list for the deputy commander of the 150th SME, Captain Fyodor Isakov, on September 30, the battalion defended for some time near the Golovachev farm (now does not exist, 1 km west of Gorely village), where it repelled several attacks from the 3rd battalion of the 41st MP, but then was forced to retreat. Isakov organized the rescue of the wounded from the battlefield and brought 27 vehicles out of the attack. At 13.10, repelling counterattacks of the tanks of the 150th Infantry Brigade covering the withdrawal of motorized riflemen, the 3rd battalion of the 41st Marines reached the Gorely farm, on the southern outskirts of which at 15.00 it connected with the 2nd Battalion of the 41st Marines, after which both battalions struck in the northern direction, to Khokhlovka. By 14.00, according to the headquarters of the Bryansk Front, the 150th tank brigade was fighting with the German tanks and motorized infantry that had broken through in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bits concentration near the Zholkev region, but there were no tanks in the 10th motorized division, and these could only be armored personnel carriers.

During the defense of Khokhlovka, the commander of the department of the 150th SME, Red Army soldier Vasily Chesalov, especially distinguished himself, who defeated German intelligence that entered the village with anti-tank and hand grenades, destroying a truck and 12 people in it; the surviving German armored car moved back (note - in the award list for Chesalov, the date of the battle is October 15, but this is not true).

Having occupied Khokhlovka, the 2nd Battalion of the 41st Marines attacked now in a southeast direction, on Chervonnoye, where the headquarters of the 150th Tank Brigade had previously been located. When moving to Chervonnoye, the battalion was attacked at 18.50 by 4 tanks disguised in haystacks T-34 150th Tank Brigade (in the text - 26-ton tanks), lost 1 truck burned, but knocked out 1 tank T-34, after which the remaining 3 tanks fled from the battlefield. In the evening, another 1 tank of the 150th Tank Brigade escorted the column of the 2nd Battalion of the 41st Marines advancing at a great distance, but did not dare to attack.

In fact, this is all that is currently known about the military operations of the 150th Tank Brigade on September 30 against the 10th Motorized Division. According to the front headquarters, by the evening of September 30, in connection with a deep breakthrough in the rear of the Ermakov task force to the village of Kruglaya Polyana, the German 4th Panzer Division (the neighbor of the 10th MD on the right), the 150th Tank Brigade began to withdraw into the forests east of the village of Lemeshovka. According to the reports compiled after the end of the fighting by the headquarters of the 150th Tank Brigade, on the night of October 1, the 150th Tank Brigade covered the withdrawal of the 283rd Infantry Division to the Marchikhina Buda - Lemeshovka line, i.e. left last.

In total, on the day of September 30, the 150th tank brigade, according to its own data, knocked out 4 tanks(note - which raises great doubts) , losing 4 of their tanks. The reinforced 41st Motorized Regiment (10th MD), which opposed it, captured 2 25-ton tanks on September 30 (i.e. T-34), 400 prisoners, 7 different guns, 14 machine guns, over 70 automatic rifles.

Departure to the Khinel forests

From 8.00 on October 1, 1941, the Eberbach battle group from the 4th Panzer Division, with a strike from the 1st tank and 34th motorcycle battalions to the right and the 3rd motorcycle battalion to the left of the Glukhov-Sevsk highway, completed the clearing of the forest northeast of Kruglaya Polyana, while shooting retreating Soviet column, knocking out 2 tanks of the 150th Tank Brigade, of which at least 1 tank T-50 burned down, which is captured in numerous German photographs. After that, no longer meeting resistance, the Eberbach group made a breakthrough along the highway and at 12.05 broke into Sevsk, leaving behind not only the Ermakov group, but also the neighboring 13th Army.

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The main forces of the 150th tank brigade, according to the reports of its headquarters, fought defensive battles on the line of Marchikhina Buda - Lemeshovka on October 1. In reality, the advancing units of the 10th motorized division on October 1 did not reach this milestone. Until evening, the 41st motorized regiment occupied Girin, the 10th reconnaissance battalion - Orlovka. Both points are 6-10 km from Marchikhina Buda.

At 09:00 on October 2, the 10th reconnaissance battalion occupied Marchikhina Buda, and at 09:30 the 41st motorized regiment went there, after which the regiment occupied Baranovka with a strike in a southeast direction at 11:15. At 12.15, the Germans observed how 10 Soviet tanks, previously located in the Barankovo ​​Forest, 1 km south of the Koshlov farm, began to retreat to the northeast, to Khinel - this was the first mention in German sources that day of the tanks of the 150th Tank Brigade.

At 15.10, the left-flank 1st battalion of the 41st MP occupied Khinel, and the right-flank 2nd battalion of the 41st MP, having occupied Khvoshchevka without a fight, advanced another 8 kilometers to the northeast of Khvoshchevka. The Germans noted that Soviet troops retreated into the forest northeast of the village of Khinel.

«… Under the influence of superior enemy forces, units began an unorganized retreat to the Khinel forest, on the way to which there was a single bridge, everything else was a swampy area. In order to save the situation, it was necessary to hold back the enemy for at least 3-4 hours, the brigade, on its own initiative, got involved in battle with the enemy and, using maneuver and ambushes, kept it 6 km away from the bridge until 16.00. During this time, artillery, carts, and vehicles crossed the bridge. At 16.00, a group of tanks with submachine gunners broke through on the left flank and destroyed the bridge. A situation was created in which the tanks were cut off from the infantry, who were in the Khinel forests. Continuing to conduct a stubborn battle on their own until 21.00, the tank regiment of the brigade, in difficult conditions, paved the way through the swamps and joined the infantry by 23.00» .

The headquarters of the 150th Tank Brigade singled out the commander of the 1st battalion of the 150th TP, Captain Fyodor Kaplyuchenko (under his command 10 tanks T-34 4 hours held back the attack on the bridge of 60 tanks, while destroying 7 tanks and 5 armored vehicles), deputy. early brigade headquarters for opera. the work of Captain Sergei Maryakhin (under his command 3 tanks T-34 repelled an attack on the bridge by 17 armored vehicles and an enemy infantry battalion) and the commander of a tank company, Lieutenant Klyuev (organizing a group of foot tankers and arming them with weapons picked up on the battlefield, counterattacked the enemy who approached the crossing and covered the withdrawal of units), but none of them were presented for the award was . In general, the combat operations on October 2 described by the headquarters of the 150th Tank Brigade inspire some doubts. For example, the 10th Motorized Division did not have any tanks, and nothing is known about the participation of tanks of the approaching 3rd Panzer Division in the fighting on October 2.

It is also not clear which of the bridges is generally meant by the brigade headquarters. The most likely bridge across the river Sychevka north of the village of Khinel. Between 16.00 and 18.00, the 1st and 3rd battalions of the 41st Marines, which advanced north of the village of Khinel, collided with the Soviet troops that retreated here, counting 15 Soviet tanks here at once (approx. - 150th Tank Brigade). After that, the battalions repelled a strong counterattack by the Soviet cavalry and motorized infantry with tanks, while the Germans captured 2 guns, 20 trucks and 150-200 prisoners by 20.35. This is all that is known about the battles for this bridge from German documents. There is no mention of any clashes with Soviet tanks on October 3 in the documents of the units of the 10th MD.

In total, in the battles of September 30 - October 3, the 150th tank brigade, according to its own data, destroyed 4 tanks, 2 armored vehicles, 9 motorcycles, 170 Germans, but lost 7 of its tanks, 38 vehicles and 51 people killed and wounded. The 10th Motorized Division, which opposed it, over the same days, among other trophies, captured 3 tanks . 2 more tanks were knocked out on October 1 and captured by the 4th Panzer Division .

Raid of the 21st separate tank brigade on Kalinin- the combat operation of the Soviet troops, carried out on October 17, 1941, on the exit of the 21st separate tank brigade to the rear of the Kalinin group of German troops to facilitate the liberation of the city of Kalinin by the forces of the 16th army.

background

Having broken through the defenses of the Western Front, units of the 3rd Panzer Group, with the support of the infantry divisions of the 9th Wehrmacht Army, covered 215 kilometers from October 2 to 13 and reached the approaches to the city of Kalinin. By October 14, only the 5th and 256th rifle divisions were in the Kalinin area, whose forces were not enough for a solid defense. Therefore, during October 14, most of the city was captured by German troops. The Soviet command did not have sufficient forces to organize a full-fledged counteroffensive, however, vigorous offensive operations were planned by the forces of the task force of N.F. Vatutin and the 21st tank brigade.

The 21st separate tank brigade was formed on October 10, 1941 in the city of Vladimir, consisting of:

• Brigade management - 54 people.
• Control company - 175 people.
• Reconnaissance company - 107 people.
• 21st tank regiment - 422 people.
• 1st tank battalion
• 2nd tank battalion
• Motorized rifle and machine gun battalion - 422 people.
• Anti-aircraft division
• Repair and restoration company - 91 people.
• Motor transport company - 62 people.
• Medical platoon - 28 people.

On October 10, 1941, there were 61 tanks in the brigade: 19 T-34s with 76-mm guns, 10 T-34s with 57-mm guns ZIS-4, 2KhT-26, 5 BT-2, 15 BT-5 and BT- 7, 10 T-60 and 4 self-propelled guns ZIS-30.

On October 12, 1941, the head of the ABTU, Ya. N. Fedorenko, assigned the 21st separate tank brigade the task of following through Moscow to Kalinin after receiving tanks, unloading there and preventing the capture of the city. On October 13, 1941, echelons with tanks from Gorky and Kharkov arrived at Vladimir station. The Kharkov echelon was already fully manned. They were not unloaded, replenished with ammunition and property. By dawn on October 14, five echelons of the brigade arrived at the Kursk railway station in Moscow, where the representative of the General Staff of the Red Army, Colonel Demidov, confirmed the order of General Fedorenko to follow to Kalinin. He could not specify the situation in the city. Upon arrival at the Klin station, the communications officer handed over to the chief of staff of the brigade D. Ya. Klinfeldutopographic maps of the outskirts of Kalinin, but he also could not clarify the situation.

Upon arrival at the Zavidovo station, it became known from the head of the station that Kalinin was already occupied by the enemy, the Redkino station was being evacuated, and there were no more high platforms suitable for unloading equipment in this area. In this regard, the brigade was forced to unload in Zavidovo, and the remaining 5 echelons - at the Reshetnikovo station.

In the afternoon of October 14, thick sleet began to fall, covering the brigade from aerial reconnaissance. On October 16, the 21st Tank Brigade, in rainy autumn conditions, covered more than 10 km along the eastern coast of the Moscow Sea and crossed two rivers: the Lama and the Shosha, losing one tank at the crossing (commander Isaak Okrain), where a company of motorized riflemen was left for defense. On the same day, having defeated the German garrison, the brigade occupied the village of Turginovo. The headquarters is located in the village of Selishche.

Operation progress

The offensive on Kalinin began early in the morning on October 17 in three groups. The first group of the regiment commander M.A. Lukin went west to the Volokolamsk highway in the area of ​​​​the village of Panigino, went to the highway and moved north to the village of Pushkino. The second group of the battalion commander MP Agibalov attacked the village of Pushkino, where the enemy headquarters was located. The third group of senior lieutenant I. I. Makovsky from Turginovo went to Kalinin along the Turginovsky highway.

The tanks of senior sergeant C. Kh. Gorobets and platoon commander Kireev, having entered the Volokolamsk highway, went ahead of the battalion of Major Agibalov with the task of identifying the enemy and destroying his firepower. Agibalov's group for some time moved unnoticed behind the German convoy of vehicles with infantry and armored vehicles. But soon the Germans discovered that Soviet tanks were following them, and fire from anti-tank guns was opened on the lead vehicles. Kireev's tank was hit, and the crew of Gorobets broke away from their column by 500 meters and avoided several powerful enemy air strikes from the air.

In the village of Pushkino, the tankers of the Agibalov group met strong resistance and defeated the German headquarters. During the first two hours of the raid, the group destroyed 10 tanks, up to 40 infantry vehicles, 6 guns and several tractors, up to 15 fuel tankers. Their actions in the area of ​​the village of Pushkino were supported by the second tank column of Major Lukin. Both groups broke through to the village of Troyanovo together.

Tank T-34 No. 3 of senior sergeant S. Kh. Gorobets (driver senior sergeant F. I. Litovchenko, tower gunner Sergeant Kolomiets I. K., gunner-radio operator Pastushin I. I.), broke away from the main group, passed along the avenues of 50 years of October and Lenin, fought his way into the center of Kalinin, and then to its eastern outskirts, where the 5th rifle division held the defense.

The fate of other tank crews was different. While the tank of S. Kh. Gorobets successfully broke through the city, on the streets of Kalinin, 7 other crews from the 1st battalion of Captain M. P. Agibalov were shot down or burned in their tanks.

The crew of the tank of senior political officer G. M. Gnyri (driver Kovalev K. F., radio operator-gunner Borisov V. G., tower shooter Zakharov I. S., machine gunner Ishchenko V. A.), commissar of the 1st battalion 21 1st Regiment, attacked a German convoy on the Volokolamsk Highway, destroying 29 vehicles and 3 anti-tank guns. Then the tank broke into the airfield, located on the outskirts of Kalinin, where there were up to 50 enemy aircraft. One bomber was rammed, the second was destroyed by cannon fire. Gnyri's tank was hit by bomb strikes from rising planes, but he himself, Sergeant Ishchenko and gunner Zakharov managed to break through to their own with a fight.

Another T-34 tank of senior sergeant S. E. Rybakov (driver T. P. Pyrkh, gunner-radio operator Terentyev, company commander Lieutenant Kudryavtsev) broke through to the city in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe current Yuzhny microdistrict. Here they also attacked an enemy airfield, destroyed many enemy aircraft, but the Germans knocked out a tank, surrounded the tankers and took them prisoner; Rybakov subsequently managed to escape.

The tank crew of foreman Alexei Shpak broke through to the southern outskirts of Kalinin, where at that time there was still a battle with the Germans. Destroying enemy equipment, Shpak led his tank to the railway station, where, having entered into an unequal battle, he died.

The T-34 tank of Lieutenant Vorobyov broke through to the southern outskirts of Kalinin, where three firing points and several vehicles were destroyed. In the future, the crew was able to move further into the city center, where, in the continuation of street fighting, he died.

On the streets of the city of Kalinin, the crew of Lieutenant Ya. N. Malev, who managed to destroy several trucks with German motorized infantry, also died.

The crew of the tank of Lieutenant D. G. Lutsenko rammed the German StuG III self-propelled guns of Lieutenant Tachinsky from the 660th battery of assault guns. It was not possible to start the tank, and the crew was taken prisoner, its further fate is unknown.

The crew of Zhurbenko Ivan Grigoryevich was taken prisoner.

During the battle near the village of Naprudnoe, the main gun of Commander Agibalov's tank failed, which became an easy target for German anti-tank guns. The tank was hit, and while covering the retreat of his crew to the forest, Captain Agibalov died.

At the bridge across the Kamenka River near the village of Troyanovo, the caterpillar of the tank of Major M.A. Lukin was torn, and it was not possible to restore it. Continuing a stubborn battle from a stationary vehicle, the tankers used up all their ammunition. Covering the retreat of his crew (driver sergeant Nenenko, tower gunner Sashkov, radio operator gunner Emelyanov, submachine gunner Emelyanov), Major Lukin died.

The group of I. I. Makovsky continued its movement along the Turginovsky highway to Kalinin. Near the village of Pokrovskoye, tankers with motorized rifles defeated the enemy to a battalion, and continued to advance towards Kalinin. In the area of ​​​​the village of Volodino, the group took another battle. On the southern outskirts of the city, the group broke through the defenses and rushed to the railway station area, where the Germans had a fortified point. There, the group suffered heavy losses, Makovsky himself was seriously wounded.

Having met considerable resistance, the battalion commissar of the 21st regiment, Zakalyukin, led twelve T-34 tanks from the Lukin group from the raid and battle into the forest near the village of Troyanovo, where they spent the whole day and night from October 17 to 18, hiding from the Germans, while their fuel and ammunition were not used up. Commissar Zakalyukin and the commander of the 2nd company of the 21st regiment, Senior Lieutenant Boldyrev, picked up three crew members of Major Lukin's tank near the village of Troyanovo, having learned about his death. The situation was unclear, and it was decided to advance to the east, where the 29th Army held the defense.

Side losses

According to Soviet data, during the raid on October 17, 1941, near Kalinin and in the city itself, 38 enemy tanks, up to 200 vehicles, 82 motorcycles, about 70 guns and mortars, at least 16 aircraft at airfields, 12 tanks with fuel, a large number of soldiers and officers, 3 headquarters were destroyed.

In total, in the battles from October 16 to October 19, 1941, 25 tanks (T-34 - 21, BT - 3 and T-60 - 1) and 450 personnel were lost from the 21st Tank Brigade.

Operation results

The sudden breakthrough of the tanks of the 21st Tank Brigade to the near approaches to the city of Kalinin, and then to the city itself from the south and south-west, caused confusion, and in some places panic among the enemy units, inflicted heavy losses on him. However, with this and other attacks on Kalinin, the Soviet command failed to capture the city. The result of the actions of the Soviet troops near Kalinin was the failure of the main task, for which the 3rd Panzer Group of the Wehrmacht was deployed from Moscow to the north. Thus, the 1st Panzer Division, advancing north to Vyshny Volochok, was withdrawn to support the 36th Motorized Division, which was defending in the city. The German occupation of Kalinin began.

The driver of the T-70 tank of the 117th tank battalion, Sergeant Ivan Drogalev, was killed. The tank commander, Lieutenant Nikolai Grechushnikov, was seriously wounded three times in this battle.

In total, on October 20-21, the 58th tank brigade destroyed 4 tanks, 13 anti-tank guns, 1 mortar battery, 3 anti-tank rifles, 10 machine guns, 11-14 bunkers, 1 dugout and up to 195 Germans, but lost all of its 6 tanks (3 T -34, 3 T-70), incl. 1 T-34 - burned out and 5 tanks (2 T-34, 3 T-70) - lined, as well as 12 personnel (2 - killed and 10 - wounded). Of the destroyed tanks, by the end of the day on October 22, only 2 tanks were restored, and therefore, the brigade, apparently, supported further attempts by the 116th rifle division to advance only with the fire of an anti-tank battery.

In total, during the hostilities from October 19 to 23, the anti-tank battery of Senior Lieutenant Shatrov destroyed 1 self-propelled gun along with the crew, 1 armored vehicle, 5 vehicles with ammunition, 3 anti-tank guns, 1 6-barreled and 2 conventional mortars, 1 bunker, 2 dugouts, 1 observation post, up to 2 infantry companies, suppressed 1 enemy artillery and 1 mortar battery, incl. anti-tank gunner junior sergeant Yegor Tolkunov destroyed 1 self-propelled gun, 2 vehicles with ammunition, 1 anti-tank gun, 1 6-barreled mortar, 1 mortar crew, up to 70 Germans with his gun. In general, the successes of the 58th tank brigade for October 20-24, according to the award list for its chief of staff of the brigade, Major Yagovkin, amounted to 6 destroyed tanks, 11 anti-tank guns, 15 machine guns, 12 bunkers, up to 100 Germans. The 58th Tank Brigade itself lost 18 personnel on October 20-25 (2 - killed, 15 - wounded, 1 - for other reasons), the 116th Rifle Division - 1658 personnel.

After the failure of the offensive on October 24, the 58th Tank Brigade was withdrawn to the reserve of the 66th Army in the Grachevaya gully, and on October 25 - to the Pichuga gully and on October 25, according to the front headquarters, there were 668 personnel, 5 tanks (3 T -34, 2 T-70), 3 armored vehicles, 105 vehicles, 4 anti-tank guns, 6 mortars, 6 anti-tank rifles, 19 machine guns (2 easel, 17 manual), 170 PPD and PPSh, 419 rifles. The 116th Rifle Division had 6986 personnel. Thus, since October 20, the strength of the 58th tank brigade has "dipped" by 295 personnel, and the strength of the 116th rifle division by 1,507 personnel.

Until the end of November 1942, the 58th tank brigade (3 T-34s, 2 T-70s) remained in the reserve of the 66th Army (Don Front) in the Pichuga gully northwest of the Chelyuskin farm, had practically no replenishment, but also losses did not carry. On November 10, a military tribunal of the 66th Army under article 58-10, part 2 (“Propaganda or agitation containing a call to overthrow, undermine or weaken Soviet power”) sentenced a certain Red Army soldier Alexander Kharin to 10 years in prison - all known losses 58 th Tank Brigade in those days.

To replenish the tank fleet of the brigade, 7 tanks (5 KV-1 and 2 T-34) were sent from mobile repair bases (2 KV-1 and 2 T-34 - from the 81st PRB and 3 KV-1 - from the 153rd PRB), which were supposed to enter the brigade on November 18. The brigade accepted these tanks a little later. Only by 22.00 on November 22, its tank fleet grew to 7 serviceable tanks (2 KV-1, 3 T-34, 2 T-70), and by 22.00 on November 24 - up to 9 serviceable tanks (2 KV-1, 5 T-34 , 2 T-70s), 3 more KV-1 tanks entered service, probably already during the resumption of hostilities. By November 25, according to the front headquarters, the 58th tank brigade had 686 personnel, 8 tanks, 3 armored vehicles, 105 vehicles, 4 anti-tank guns, 6 mortars, 6 anti-tank rifles, 24 machine guns (2 easel, 22 manual), 174 PPD and PPSh, 454 rifles.

With the start of Operation Uranus, the 16th Panzer and 3rd Motorized Divisions (XIV.Pz.Korp., 6.Armee) that had previously opposed the 66th Army were replaced by the 94th Infantry Division and transferred to the west. On the night of November 24, probably to reduce the front line, the 94th Infantry Division withdrew to new positions. Having discovered this withdrawal, on the morning of November 24, the 66th Army went on the offensive. On the same day, the 58th Tank Brigade was thrown into battle in the sector of the 64th Rifle Division, which reached the MTF area, which was 4 kilometers southwest of Hill 129.6, until evening. The 64th Rifle Division, advancing together with the tankers, captured 4 prisoners, 7 tanks, 27 vehicles, 6 motorcycles, 10 guns, 4 machine guns, 2 warehouses with clothing items on the day of November 24, and by the morning of November 25 reached the line of the path running parallel to the iron roads.

Of the losses of the 58th tank brigade on November 24, only 2 dead tankers of the 116th tank battalion are known (platoon lieutenant Mikhail Shlomov and commander of the T-34 tank, junior lieutenant Alexander Eliseev). Wounded in the leg that day, Junior Lieutenant Nikolai Porosenkov died on November 28 from wounds in a hospital in Chelyuskin. No personal lists of brigade losses for November - December 1942 have been found so far.

On November 25, the 64th Rifle Division, together with the 58th Tank Brigade, had little progress and only reached the railroad line, while during the day the division captured 1 car, 6 guns, 4 clothing and 1 food warehouses, 160 barrels of gasoline. On November 25, the 58th tank brigade supporting it destroyed 1 anti-tank and 1 mortar batteries, 3 machine-gun points, 12 dugouts, over 50 Germans, losing 2 tanks (1 KV-1, 1 T-34) knocked out. The 94th Infantry Division, which opposed the Soviet troops, reported on the destruction of 2 T-34 tanks on the road from Erzovka on November 25. Of the losses of the 58th tank brigade in personnel on November 25, only 1 was known to be killed (platoon of the 117th tank battalion, Lieutenant Sergei Koryagin).

At 18.00 on November 25, the headquarters of the 66th Army, by combat order? 81 / op, ordered the reinforced 58th tank brigade of the 64th rifle division, after a 15-minute artillery raid, from 9.00 on November 26 to resume the offensive and "take over Orlovka with a swift attack in cooperation with the 99th rifle division, destroy the enemy garrison, further develop the offensive in the direction of elevation 128.1 ".

The offensive began according to German data at 10.00 on November 26, but was not successful. Of the losses of the 58th tank brigade on November 26, only 4 were known to be killed (commander of a heavy tank company Ivan Savenkov, tank commanders junior lieutenants Israel Gecht and Mikhail Kadatsky from the 117th tank battalion, commander of the T-34 of the 116th tank battalion, junior Lieutenant Peter Sladkov).

At 18.20 on November 26, the headquarters of the 66th Army, by its combat order? 82 / op, reassigned the 58th tank brigade of the 299th rifle division, ordering this division to change the 64th rifle division overnight, after which "in the morning a decisive blow with its right flank seize high 144, later in cooperation with 116th rifle division in the Orlovka area, the task of the day is to reach the line of the railway (west and southwest of Orlovka); further develop the offensive in the direction of elevation 129.1 ". By the morning of November 27, the shift was completed.

In total, during the offensive from November 24 to November 27, the 64th Infantry Division lost 511 personnel. The 58th Tank Brigade, which supported it, for November 24-26, according to the award list for the chief of staff of the brigade, Major Yagovkin, destroyed 1 tank, 14 vehicles, 3 anti-aircraft and 9 anti-tank guns, 3 6-barreled mortars, 24 machine guns, 4 bunkers, 29 dugouts, scattered and destroyed up to 360 Germans. All these successes in the award list for the commander of the 117th tank battalion, Captain Viktor Deev, are attributed to this battalion. Deev himself was wounded twice during these 3 days, but was hospitalized only after the third wound. On December 2, he died of his wounds in the hospital.