Defense of the Caucasus 1942-1943
Defense of the Caucasus (Battle for the Caucasus) is a major defensive-offensive operation of Soviet troops during the second period of the Great Patriotic War in the Caucasus and Transcaucasia.
From July 25 to December 31, 1942, an offensive was carried out by the Germans, who managed to capture part of the territories;
From December 31 to October 9, 1943, Soviet troops launched a counteroffensive, recaptured territory and forced German troops to retreat.
By the beginning of autumn 1942, German troops were able to conquer most of the Kuban and North Caucasus, but after the defeat at Stalingrad they were forced to retreat again, as they suffered serious losses and feared that Soviet troops would encircle them. In 1943, the Soviet army planned an operation, as a result of which German troops were to be surrounded in the Kuban territory and defeated, but the operation failed - the Germans were evacuated to Crimea.
Background and balance of power
By June 1942, the Soviet army was in a weakened state after the failure at Kharkov. The German command, seeing that the Soviet troops could not provide worthy resistance, decided to launch an offensive in the Caucasus, taking advantage of the situation. After a series of battles, German troops were able to conquer several cities, including Rostov-on-Don, which opened the way for Hitler to the Caucasus.
The Caucasus, like Ukraine, was a very important strategic point that German troops sought to capture as early as possible. The Caucasus and Kuban contained large reserves of Soviet oil, grain and other crops, which could provide serious support for the German army to conduct further battles on the territory of the USSR. In addition, Hitler hoped that by reaching the sea he would be able to turn to Turkey for help. Moreover, the German command also counted on the help of the residents themselves, since they were aware that part of the local population did not accept Soviet power.
After the fall of Rostov-on-Don, communication between the Soviet command and the Caucasus could only be carried out by sea or by railway passing through Stalingrad. That is why Stalingrad became an important point that the Germans needed to capture. Despite the fact that Hitler threw enormous forces into the fight at Stalingrad, he was never able to take the city. The Germans lost the Battle of Stalingrad. They suffered significant losses and, largely thanks to this, later they never managed to conquer the Caucasus.
Progress in the defense of the Caucasus
The battle took place in two stages. During the first stage of the German army, it was not without difficulty that they managed to take whole line cities: Stavropol, Armavir, Maykop, Krasnodar, Elista, Mozdok and part of Novorossiysk. In September 1942, the German army approached the Malgobek area, where it was stopped by Soviet troops.
On September 9, after fierce three-day fighting, most of the city of Novorossiysk, located on the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus, was abandoned. The eastern part of the city was held by Soviet troops until the complete liberation of Novorossiysk in September 1943. For the courage shown by the defenders of the city, Novorossiysk was awarded the title “Hero City”.
The first stage of the battle for the Caucasus took place from July to December 1942. The German army was able to approach the foothills of the Caucasus Range and the Terek River, but this victory was not easy - Hitler’s troops suffered colossal losses. The original plan to capture Transcaucasia was never completed, despite the fact that the Germans were still leading in this operation - Soviet troops were able to stop the German offensive in time and force the army to stop fighting, since most of the army was simply destroyed. Türkiye also failed, because it never decided to enter the war and come to the aid of Hitler.
The German offensive failed largely due to the victory of Soviet troops at Stalingrad. Hitler, who laid too big hopes to take this city, he simply did not foresee the possibility that the Soviet army could defend Stalingrad and, consequently, one of the routes to the Caucasus.
As a result of numerous losses, by the beginning of 1943 the German army was numerically inferior to the Soviet army several times.
The second stage of the battle for the Caucasus can be considered a counter-offensive of Soviet troops, which became extremely successful for the Soviet Union. Territories previously captured by the Germans were recaptured, North Ossetia, Kabardino-Balkaria, Rostov region, Stavropol Territory and other areas were completely liberated. Oil fields and grain crops were again returned to the control of the Soviet Union, which gave a colossal advantage in the war.
Despite the fact that the Soviet army was able to achieve serious successes, it cannot be considered that the victory definitely belonged to the Soviet Union, since the main goal that Stalin set for his army - to capture and destroy the Germans in Kuban - was never achieved. The German army fled to Crimea, however, despite this, the Caucasus returned again to the command of the USSR.
The meaning and results of the battle for the Caucasus
The successes of the Soviet Union in the battle for the Caucasus can be considered one of the most important parts of the general counter-offensive of the USSR in the second period of the war. At this time, the Soviet army not only began to recapture its territories and return captured people, but also greatly increased its combat power and could give in on equal terms in battles with the German army. The return to the jurisdiction of the USSR of such an important strategic point as the Caucasus can be considered as one of greatest victories USSR in the Great Patriotic War.
Unfortunately, the battle for the Caucasus also had negative consequences. Part of the population was accused of assisting the enemy and many of the local residents were later exiled to Siberia.
With the victory at Stalingrad and the battle in the Caucasus, the victorious march of the Soviet Union in the Second World War began.
At the end of November 1942, an event occurred on the Stalingrad front that determined a radical turning point in the Great Patriotic War.
22 fascist divisions were surrounded. The encirclement ring tightened, and Soviet troops began to destroy the German group that had fallen into the cauldron. The Nazis still hoped for a breakthrough from encirclement and were in no hurry to withdraw the divisions of Army Group A, which had cut into the Caucasus mountains like a deep wedge.
The threat of encirclement by Hitler's armies in the Caucasus was real for the Nazis. This situation was seen by the command of the Soviet army, but also by the command of the Wehrmacht. Both sides needed time and additional forces to redeploy.
The Nazis set themselves the task of fighting surrounded for as long as possible in order to have time to withdraw troops from the Caucasus, organize a new front and transfer additional forces to it. The Soviet command did everything to destroy the fascist group surrounded at Stalingrad and free up additional forces to carry out the plan to encircle German troops in the Caucasus.
Random photos of the Caucasus
Preliminary plans for preparing Soviet troops for an offensive and organizing the encirclement of fascist groups in the Caucasus by the beginning of January 1943 had already resulted in the main task for the Transcaucasian Front. The task was set in the order of the Headquarters to launch an attack on Krasnodar, Tikhoretsk and cut off the Nazis’ retreat from the Caucasus.
The most shortcut offensive, there was a path from Goryachiy Klyuch and Tuapse to Krasnodar. But it was winter. There were persistent rains and snow in the mountains. The roads are muddy. The Nazis managed to gain a good foothold in their positions and held significant forces in the Tuapse and Dzhubga directions.
The second, more realistic direction of development of the offensive was Maikop. The fascist defense here was weaker, and the neck of the emerging cauldron of encirclement was narrower. The headquarters nevertheless insisted on organizing the main strike in the Krasnodar direction. In the Maykop direction, it was decided to launch a diversionary strike in order to draw part of the fascist forces there.
At this time, the line of defense in the Caucasus had already stabilized, although fierce, protracted and bloody battles did not stop in the gorges. The Nazis suffered heavy losses and lost their offensive capabilities. Soviet troops managed to withstand the enemy's onslaught on the defensive, gained combat experience, were determined to avenge their Motherland, and were eager to fight.
To carry out a diversionary strike, intensive work was carried out in the Maikop direction. Ammunition, weapons, medicines, and food were prepared. But, first of all, a road was built from the Black Sea coast to the western spurs of the high-mountain plateau Lago-Naki.
It was planned to transfer troops along this road to break through the enemy’s defense line towards Maykop. All efforts were devoted to the construction of a mountain road through the Main Caucasus Range. The road was built by sapper battalions, civilians, and prisoners of war.
In two months of intensive work, the road was built from the village of Lazorevskoye, along the valley of the Psezuapse river, through the Khakuch pass to the village of Shpalorez (Armenian) in the Absheron region. To break through the defense line, the 9th Mountain Rifle Division was sent to the aid of the 31st Infantry Division, which held the defense between the Tsitsa and Pshekha rivers.
She stood in the city of Batumi guarding the border. The 121st regiment of the division fought at the Klukhor Pass. The Nazis had already broken through to the southern slopes of the mountains and there were less than a hundred kilometers left to Sukhumi. The mountain riflemen managed to stop the Nazis and drive them back over the pass. On November 29, 1942, the division began to be transferred to the Tuapse region. Some units were transported by rail, others on military transports "Krasnaya Kuban" and "Dmitriev", as well as the cruiser "Red Crimea".
Thus, the Black Sea Group of Forces of the Transcaucasian Front received reinforcements. In early December, the division, having moved to Lazorevskaya, began preparing for combat operations in the mountains. Unit commanders went to the front line to prepare for the offensive. At that time, there were fierce battles for the villages of Maratuki, Kushinka, Chernigovskaya, Kamenka and Tsitsa. The main dominant heights were occupied by the Nazis. They managed to thoroughly fortify themselves and build winter heated dugouts and dugouts.
At the heights of Kapchal, Oplepen, Volchi Vorota and Shapka, trenches were dug in several tiers and bunkers were installed. Mortar and long-range batteries were installed in the Shkolnaya, Lysachka and Fern glades. The most convenient place for the attack was the valley of the Tsitsa River and the adjacent rocky spurs of the Lago-Naki plateau. Before the war, intensive deforestation took place here, and the slopes of low altitudes were clean.
This sector of defense was occupied by the 31st Infantry Division, under the command of Colonel Bogdanovich, which fought back here from the city of Maykop. Here it was decided with the help of the 9th Mountain Rifle Division under the command of Colonel M.V. Evstigneev to break through the front. From the left flank from the 31st division to Mount Geiman, soldiers of the 383rd, 328th and 336th rifle divisions held the defense. From the right flank, high on the rocks, on Mount Matazyk, soldiers of the 33rd Border Regiment of the NKVD fought.
They were opposed by the fascist troops of General Lantz’s strike group “Tuapse”, the 1st, 4th, 97th, 101st Jaeger Divisions and the 46th Infantry Division. When all the necessary preparations were made, the commander of the 46th Army, Lieutenant General K.N., came to Lazorevskaya to visit the officers of the 9th Guards Rifle Division. Leselidze and set a combat mission for them.
To accomplish the task, on December 29, 1942, the division marched from Lazorevskaya to the front line, through the Main Caucasus Range, into the valley of the Pshekha River. Sleet and heavy rains complicated the advance of the soldiers. Small streams turned into powerful streams along which horse-drawn carts with cannons and ammunition had to be waded. The semi-trucks, loaded with shells, got stuck in the ruts of the still fragile mountain road.
On the southern side of the Khakuch pass, on the banks of the river of the same name, there is a field hospital. The wounded were brought here from the front line and transported further to Lazorevskaya. To encourage the troops going to the front line, at the pass, on two huge Caucasian fir trees, banners and large portraits of the leaders - Lenin and Stalin - were installed. Between them there was a road to the front line. The soldiers called this section of the pass “Lenin Gate”.
It was here that one and a half trucks arrived with New Year's gifts for the soldiers from the residents of Georgia. The Georgian delegation held a rally and presented gifts to the soldiers. Heavy, long-lasting snowfalls in the mountains were just beginning. The division managed to make its heroic march through the pass. Overcoming snow drifts, frost and blizzard, on January 6, 1943, the main group descended into the valley of the Pshekha River.
Crossing the pass was a difficult ordeal for the soldiers; they walked waist-deep in deep snow, carrying ammunition, rifles and duffel bags with the necessary soldier's equipment. The sleeping bags that got wet in the rain had to be thrown away because they were useless. It was forbidden to make fires, and there was no question of drying clothes. They slept with their backs pressed against each other.
The division was greatly stretched along the valley of the Psezuapse River, and the food supply was disrupted. We constantly had to pull stuck artillery and convoys out of the mud and snow. They overcame the most difficult pass in New Year holidays, then their path lay along the valley through the settlements of Shpalorez (Remote), Upper and Lower Tuba, Rezhet, Kushinka to Mount Shupsa, where the 31st Infantry Division was defending at the foot of the mountain.
Mount Oplepen (1010) was smoking from forest fires. There had been continuous fierce fighting here for three months. Every meter of the slopes is strewn with fragments of mines, shells and hand grenades. After a short rest, having crossed to the right bank of the Pshekha River, the division slowly advanced along the steep and wooded slopes of Mount Shupsa. There are still trenches and trenches dug by the Cossacks of the 4th
Kuban Cavalry Corps. They also retreated here after the battles near Maikop and Belorechenskaya and were preparing to repel fascist attacks in the mountains. A little lower on the spurs of Mount Shupsa, on the interfluve of the Pshekha and Tsitsa rivers, in front of the heights of Shapka and Mount Zheltaya (447, 1), the 31st Infantry Division stopped the Nazi advance.
On January 11, 1943, the 9th Guards Rifle Division joined the 31st Rifle Division and took up defensive positions on the right flank. The movement of the division, although carefully disguised, could not be hidden from the attention of the Nazis. The Nazis brought up reserves to the intended breakthrough site and installed additional bunkers and minefields. The Nazis were also preparing for the decisive battle. Shells and mines were delivered to the Shkolnaya and Lysachka clearings. Long-range artillery and batteries of 4-barreled mortars were stationed here.
The offensive was scheduled for January 12 at dawn together with the soldiers of the 31st division, but the Nazis were ahead of the attackers. Before the attack signal, they unleashed a barrage of fire from all types of weapons. Long-range artillery and mortar fire was especially destructive. Every meter of the Red Army defense was targeted by the Nazis. After the artillery shelling, the Nazis launched a counterattack on the positions of the mountain riflemen. The soldiers of the 9th Guards Rifle Division, despite the losses, repelled the Nazi attack. The offensive was postponed for a day to remove the dead and wounded.
On January 14 at 2 o'clock in the afternoon, the 9th Mountain Rifle Division attacked the fascist positions along the entire front. Mountain riflemen had to climb up steep, icy slopes facing enemy machine guns. The enemy's machine-gun and mortar fire was so strong that not a single unit of the division was successful in the offensive.
Having advanced 700 meters along the entire front, they left 800 people lying dead in the snow. It was very difficult for the orderlies to carry the wounded out from under heavy fire. The deep snow and the slopes of Mount Shapka overgrown with small bushes also interfered. I had to roll back and dig in.
The command demanded a frontal assault on the well-fortified fascist defense line, although there was no continuous defense of German troops on the right flank at the foot of the Lagonaki plateau. For several more days, the 9th Guards Rifle Division conducted unsuccessful attacks on the fortified fascist heights. Although the soldiers showed miracles of courage, the division suffered losses and could not break through the front line.
The division command realized that it was difficult to storm steep, well-fortified, icy heights head-on. Moreover, the approaches to them were mined, and every meter was shot through with all types of weapons. On January 18, forces were regrouped for a new offensive. The main attack of the mountain riflemen was planned to be carried out on the right flank. Here the Tsitsa River flows along a rocky and wooded ridge
Lago-Naki plateau. In this direction it was possible to bypass the enemy’s fortified site and reach his rear between the villages of Chernigovskaya and Samurskaya. On January 19, this was done. The weather in the mountains had calmed down, the heavy snowfalls had stopped, and it was 20 degrees below zero. The 36th Mountain Rifle Regiment of the 9th Mountain Rifle Division was left in its previous positions in front of Mount Shapka and Zheltaya. The 193rd and 1329th regiments, clinging to the spurs of the Lagonaki ridge, began to bypass the Nazis from the right flank.
They moved at night, along two parallel routes in a difficult forest, they entered the rear of the fortified fascist defense. On the morning of January 20, the 1329th regiment, without meeting the enemy along the way, captured the Maznikov farm and went deep into the rear of the Nazis. Having crossed the Pshekha River, he established control over the valley.
The 193rd regiment was discovered by the Nazis. A battalion of German infantry attacked the mountain riflemen at night, hitting them from the rear. Hand-to-hand combat ensued. By morning, some of the fascists were destroyed, others were put to flight. Thus, the regiment, with a slight delay, linked up with the 1329th regiment in the Maznikovo farmstead. The battle in the rear of the enemy's fortified defensive line, which stood on commanding heights, brought confusion and panic. German intelligence reported that the valley of the Pshekha River was blocked by mountain riflemen.
The Nazis had to urgently withdraw troops from fortified positions on Mount Shapka, Zheltaya, Fern Polyana, Chernigovskaya, Lysachka, Oplepen and break through the encirclement that had been created. To help those surrounded, the fascists from Apsheronsk transferred two battalions of rangers. But the 1329th Regiment prepared an ambush for them. Noticing an approaching column of fascists rushing to help their own, the mountain riflemen opened heavy fire on them and then went on the attack. Due to the suddenness of the attack, the Germans, abandoning the wounded, equipment and heavy weapons, retreated into the forest, where they scattered in small groups.
On January 20, simultaneously with the regiments operating behind German lines, after mortar shelling of enemy positions on Mount Shapka and Zheltaya, the commander of the 36th Mountain Rifle Regiment, Lieutenant Colonel D.O. Markov led the regiment on the attack and immediately captured the dominant heights. Having left strategic heights, the Nazis still did not want to lose them completely. They resisted desperately. It took the mountain riflemen five days of stubborn fighting to cover 8 kilometers from the village of Chernigovskaya to the village of Samurskaya.
The western edge of the Chernigov spur Oplenya was cleared of fascists by the 31st Infantry Division. The fleeing Germans, abandoning their weapons and equipment, tried to break out of the encirclement and escaped from under fire through the forests towards Apsheronsk.
On January 25, Samurskaya was liberated from the Nazis. The enemy's resistance was completely broken. The entire German defensive line collapsed. They began to quickly roll back to the Kuban plain in order to avoid a larger encirclement than at Stalingrad.
This is how the most important battle took place, from which a radical turning point in the liberation of Kuban and Adygea took place. The 2nd battalion of the 23rd NKVD border regiment, under the command of Major N.M. Piskun, operated on the right flank. Having liberated the villages of Temnoleskoye, Mezmay and Guamka and united with the 1st battalion, 33rd NKVD regiment, after the battle for Nizhny Novgorod, he came under the command of the 193rd mountain rifle regiment, 9th mountain rifle division.
The task set by the front headquarters of the 9th Guards Rifle Division together with the 31st Rifle Division was completed. They broke through the enemy's defense line and put them to flight. On January 29, without allowing the enemy to come to his senses and developing the offensive, the 9th Guards Rifle Division liberated the villages of Belorechenskaya and Khanskaya. In Belorechenskaya, 150 wagons with weapons, ammunition and military equipment were recaptured from the Nazis.
The Nazis left the city of Maykop, the capital of Adygea, without a fight, hastily retreating towards Armavir, although they prepared very carefully for defense. On the southern side of the city along the Vodorazdelny ridge, trenches and trenches were dug in full profile, which are reminiscent of the war to this day. On February 12, soldiers of the 31st SD and 9th Guards Rifle Division, 40th and 10th Rifle Brigades of the 46th Army liberated the city of Krasnodar.
About the Luftwaffe and the Air Forces of the Black Sea Group of Forces operating in the territory of Maykop and Adygea
Question to I.V. Bormotov Tell us about the fascist air forces operating in the skies of Adygea in 1942.
Answer: In the battles in the Kuban and Caucasus, the German 4th Air Fleet, commanded by General Richthofen, operated. There were more than 1,000 Richthofen aircraft in the air during the battles in Kuban.
Question: Which fascist air forces were based directly in Maykop?
Answer: The Adolf Hitler air regiment, the Diamond Division of the Luftwaffe of the 4th Air Fleet of General Richthofen, was based in Maykop. Aircraft of the FW-189 type (Focke-Wulf) of the 14th reconnaissance group under the command of Oberleutnant Lang of the 8th Air Corps
There were also two airfields in the city: the large one was located behind the station, where Me-109 fighters (Messerschmitts) and Yu-52 transport aircraft (Junkers) were based, the small one was located at the exit to the village of Khanskaya (where the Cheryomushki microdistrict is now located), there there were reconnaissance aircraft - FV-189 spotters, nicknamed “frames” for their specific appearance.
The 77th dive bomber squadron of Major Orthofer was stationed in Belorechenskaya. Aircraft of the Ju-87 type (Junkers).
Question: What forces did the Soviet pilots oppose them with?
Answer: The Air Force of the Black Sea Fleet under the command of V.V. Ermachenkova. These are squadrons of the 5th Guards, 40th and 62nd Air Regiments. They were based at the airfields of Abkhazia (Babushera), Alakhadze and Lazarevsky.
The aircraft in service were Pe-3 reconnaissance aircraft, LI-2 transport aircraft, PS-84, TB-3, DB-3f, SB and I-15 BIS fighters.
Question: What do you know about Soviet aircraft that did not return from a combat mission to their airfields?
Answer: In the mountains we often found the remains of planes that crashed during the war. These are four planes in the area of the village of Guzeripl, one plane in the area of the Babuk-aul shelter, one plane on Mount Outl, one plane in the valley of the Khakodz River, two near Maykop.
Question: Tell us about the crews who died near Maykop.
Answer: One crew of the TB-3 aircraft, piloted by Captain S. Gavrilov, was shot down on October 23 during a landing on the fascist airfield in Maykop. The second plane, shot down by the Nazis, crashed into the slope of the Vodorazdelny ridge on the eastern outskirts of the village of Krasnooktyabrsky. The crew of the plane was buried on Kubanskaya Street near the Maikop - Autotourist enterprise.
Brief information about air battles in 1942 in Adygea.
The state of affairs at the front before the occupation of the city of Maykop.
The threat of German occupation loomed over the North Caucasus in the summer of 1942. On July 24, enemy troops retook Rostov-on-Don and began rapidly moving south.
In the summer of 1942, on the eve of the German occupation, the fighters of the extermination battalion, as well as full-time employees of the NKVD and NKGB, were transferred to a barracks position. By this time, party leaders had drawn up a special action plan in case of invasion by enemy troops. However, the implementation of the plan turned out to be difficult due to the unexpected capture of Maykop by German troops for the city and regional leadership.
Having systematic communication with the command of the Red Army, the city leadership did not have information about the threat to the city of Maikop in the near future. In addition, trench constructions were made around the city of Maykop, and at least for a long time, there must be a battle for Maykop. However, German troops entered the city without a fight and unexpectedly not only for the city leaders, but also for the command of the Red Army.
The interaction of German and Luftwaffe tank formations, according to the German military, in the battles in Kuban was ideal. The aircraft of the 500th Fighter Bomber Squadron, under the command of Major Dearing, conducted aerial reconnaissance, had stable communication with the tanks by radio, dropped capsules with intelligence data, showed the tanks the directions of attacks, provided fire support for the attackers, reported on the defensive lines of the Soviet troops and the escape routes of the retreating columns.
During the attack on Maykop, the Nazis managed to capture very valuable documents from the headquarters of the Soviet troops, among which were updated topographic maps Western Caucasus. The maps from Maykop to Tuapse showed all the defense communications of the Soviet troops, detailed information about all settlements and concentrations of forces for their defense, intelligence information about Turkey and diagrams of fortified areas under construction on the Soviet-Turkish border. This was the most valuable material for the Nazis, because... they advanced with outdated maps.
On the western outskirts of Maykop, near the last houses near the road leading to the village of Khanskaya, there was a light tank dug into the ground and wire barriers. Near the station there was a one and a half ton vehicle, with an installation of four machine gun barrels in the back. Trenches were dug near the bridge over the Belaya River, and there were two anti-aircraft guns on the eastern outskirts. Very little was done to defend Maykop, although there were many retreating troops. But without weapons they could do little to help Maikop.
Meanwhile, for several days there was already a continuous flow of retreating Red Army soldiers and refugees through Maykop. What looked especially alarming was that for three days they retreated in the direction of Armavir, along Nekrasov Street, since Northern (now Hakurate), which led directly to the Kuzhorsky crossing, was dirty and broken (the townspeople drove their cattle along it to pasture), and then turned in the opposite direction, to Tuapse.
However, reports from the Sovinformburo reported that units of the Red Army fought stubborn defensive battles in the area of the village of Kushchevskaya, and city institutions continued to work, preparing for a planned evacuation.
On August 9, at approximately 10 a.m., low-flying German planes appeared in the sky above the city, bombing and machine-gunning columns of retreating Red Army soldiers and refugees. In response, an anti-aircraft gun opened fire on them from the direction of the station. During the day, planes appeared more than once; they circled especially intensely over the bridge over the Belaya. Leaflets were dropped from planes saying: “Wait for us in the evening.”
Appearing once again over Maikop in the afternoon, German planes dropped bombs between the city and the village of Khanskaya. Following them in the afternoon, German tanks entered Maykop, followed by machine gunners. These were the shock units of the 1st Tank Army under Colonel General E. Kleist, advancing from Armavir in the direction of Tuapse. German researcher W. Thieke argued that the assault groups of the 13th Panzer Division.
A noteworthy fact is that the German tanks were marching and not in combat formation, apparently not even expecting resistance: “The guns were covered, the hatches were open, and the tankers were looking out of them.” From occupied Maykop, the regional party committee and regional executive committee moved to the village of Khamyshki, where the Tula district committee of the CPSU (b) was located.
Having taken a short break and regrouped their forces, the Wehrmacht troops continued their attack on the Caucasus. For several days, equipment was moving through Maikop to the mountains: “tanks, guns, vehicles - French and Czechoslovak, many of our lorries and ZISs.” German troops were rushing to the sea, but tanks were useless on narrow mountain roads. Therefore, the 97th Bavarian Jäger Division, Lieutenant General Rupp, quickly marched from the direction of Armavir to replace the 13th Panzer and 16th Infantry (Motorized) Divisions in conducting combat operations in the mountains.
Along the entire front line, the roads leading into the mountains were clogged with convoys and convoys of retreating Red Army units. Carts with the wounded, refugees, groups of tired and battle-weary soldiers, and collective farm livestock being driven over were all drowned in continuous clouds of dust. Under the scorching August sun, under constant shelling from enemy aircraft, under the howl and roar of aerial bombs, a mass of people moved towards Tuapse.
The German combat group Jordan, reinforced by the 97th scooter battalion, was advanced into the Belaya River valley as an advance detachment. They were followed to the villages of Abadzekhskaya, Kamennomostskaya and Dakhovskaya by the 207th German Jaeger Regiment under the command of Colonel Otte.
The 204th German Jaeger Regiment of Colonel Nobis advanced to the Absheronsky region and reached the village of Samurskaya.
The 1st battalion of the 207th German Jaeger Regiment, with the strength of two companies, entered into battle with the garrison of Soviet troops in the village of Kurdzhipskaya. During the battle, the Germans captured one anti-tank gun, 17 vehicles and several field kitchens.
A company of the 97th German reconnaissance battalion of the 207th Jaeger Regiment reached the village of Alekseevskoye (Khamyshki) and, not reaching it 6 km, began clearing the rubble on the road.
On August 28, 1942, having received stiff resistance from Soviet troops on the passes of the Main Caucasus Range, the Nazis abandoned attempts to pass through the mountains along roads No. 3 and No. 4, and only cover was left in these directions. The main forces of the 44th German Corps were concentrated on the Maikop-Tuapse road. Here heavy, protracted battles unfolded in the valley of the Pshekha River, both at an altitude of 1010.3 m. (Oplepen), and in the vicinity of Khadyzhenskaya. Having encountered stubborn resistance, the German units at this line stopped the offensive and went on the defensive.
The left flank of the 97th Jaeger Division in the area of the station. Dakhovskaya was supported by the SS Westland regiment from the SS Viking division. The Walloon battalion, located in Abadzekhskaya, consisted of Belgian volunteers.
In August - September 1942, the 3rd German reconnaissance squadron of the 14th reconnaissance group (Pz) under the command of Lieutenant Lang was based at the airfield of the city of Maykop. The squadron was armed with FW-189 (Focke-Wulf) aircraft. The symbols (Pz) indicated that they were equipped to cooperate with tank units. In addition, two more aviation units were based in Maykop. In Belorechenskaya there was the 77th squadron of dive bombers under Major Orthofer - “Ju-87” (Junkers). Communication between the headquarters of the Luftwaffe and the ground forces was provided by the 2nd company of the 32nd German aviation signal regiment.
Reasons for the capture of Maykop.
The reasons for the sudden capture of Maikop by German troops are related to the general tragic circumstances battle for the Caucasus in the summer of 1942
Parts of the North Caucasus Front, weakened in previous battles, were forced to retreat under the pressure of enemy forces that were much superior in technology. German aviation reigned supreme in the air, bombing all railway junctions and communication routes. The command of the North Caucasus Front (commander - Marshal of the Soviet Union S. M. Budyonny, member of the Military Council - Secretary of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks) L. M. Kaganovich) sometimes lost control over the situation and did not always have accurate information about the location of their own units. Inconsistency and sometimes even contradiction in the actions of the army and local leadership played a role. Only by the end of summer - beginning of autumn 1942 was it possible to stop the German offensive in the mountains, but by this time a significant part of the territory of the North Caucasus was already occupied by the Wehrmacht.
Wehrmacht troops in Maykop.
A special 49th Mountain Rifle Corps under General of the Mountain Troops Rudolf Conrad was trained to conduct combat operations in the mountains. The corps consisted of the 97th and 101st Jaeger divisions, which had experience in fighting the war in France and Yugoslavia.
The advancing tank armies were covered and corrected their movement from the air by Luftwaffe squadrons. In the battles in the Kuban and Caucasus, the German 4th Air Fleet was commanded by Richthofen. There were more than 1,000 Richthofen aircraft in the air during the battles in Kuban.
Maikop housed the headquarters of the 44th Army Corps, headed by the commander, General of Artillery de Angelis, and the headquarters of the 49th Mountain Rifle Corps, headed by General of the Mountain Troops Conrad.
By November 10, 1942, the number of occupation troops in Maikop, together with various police formations, already amounted to 20 thousand people. There were also two airfields in the city: the large one was located behind the station, where Me-109 fighters (Messerschmitts) and Yu-52 transport aircraft (Junkers) were based, the small one was located at the exit to the village of Khanskaya (where the Cheryomushki microdistrict is now located), there there were reconnaissance aircraft - FV-189 spotters, nicknamed “frames” for their specific appearance. Flight crew of up to 200 people. was located in the town of the Lesomebel plant.
The attack on the Caucasus was part of Hitler's Barbarossa plan. In the Caucasus, he needed the oil of Maikop and Grozny. The Fuhrer's adventurous plan to seize the Caucasus, codenamed "Edelweiss", was not crowned with success thanks to the courage and perseverance of the Soviet soldiers.
Throughout 1942 and the beginning of 1943, the city of Maykop was on the lips of Hitler and his military leaders. Fascist troops were sent through Maikop for the main attacks on Tuapse, tank and mountain rifle armadas of the fascists were brought in and out.
Fascist units of the 1st Mountain Infantry Division "Edelweiss" and the SS Panzer Division "Viking" passed through Maykop twice. Here were the headquarters of the 49th Mountain Rifle Corps, the headquarters of the field gendarmerie of Army Group A, the headquarters of the SD field troops, the headquarters of an anti-tank gun detachment, the headquarters of the Air Force, an airfield, two concentration camps and a hospital.
From Maikop, the fascist command of the 49th Mountain Rifle Corps, which included the 1st, 4th and 97th Mountain Rifle Divisions of the Wehrmacht, led the entire military campaign in the North Caucasus, especially in the Tuapse direction.
The Adolf Hitler air regiment, the Diamond Division of the Luftwaffe of the 4th Air Fleet of General Richthofen, was based in Maykop.
Combat episodes in the skies of Adygea
1. Air battle over Dakhovskaya.
At the beginning of October 1942, the weather in the mountains was sunny and clear. Residents of the village of Dakhovskaya witnessed a real air battle in the sky above Dakhovskaya.
Six fascist “Messeshmites” attacked three of our “hawks”. The roar of engines, the crossfire of onboard machine guns, everything mixed into one deadly carousel.
The Hawks withstood the attack, the Messers knocking out one fascist vulture. The battle took place right above the rock of the Azish-Tau ridge. The damaged Messerschmitt, releasing a plume of smoke, losing altitude, began to fall towards the Bachurino stream and Shivreva Garden. Somewhere there, in the wooded mountains, the fascist vulture found its eternal refuge.
The remaining fascists turned around and began to leave towards Maykop. One of our “Yastrebki” was unlucky; after releasing a thin stream of smoke, it began to go towards the mountains along the Belaya River gorge with the goal of crossing the Main Caucasus Range. Two “hawks” turned around and began to accompany him.
In 1986, when a modern combat fighter disappeared from the Khan airfield in the mountains of Adygea, rescuers took part in the search for the aircraft. The fighter was not found, but four crashed planes from the war were found in the search area.
Among them, our “hawk” is almost completely intact. He landed in the alpine glades of the Armenian Range, just opposite the grandiose waterfall of the White Victoria River. Below, the river is squeezed into a canyon and its entire bed falls from a large stone ledge.
The hawk did not have enough space in the clearing to slow down, and he rolled down the slope, knocking down a pine tree and hanging on it. Rescuers removed the rapid-fire cannon from it and brought it to the Fisht tourist shelter for the museum. Who knows, maybe it was the same “hawk” that took part in the air battle over Dakhovskaya. Someday, young researchers of the exploits of our grandfathers will find out which military unit this plane belonged to and the fate of the pilots who flew on it.
2. Successful combat operation
The spring of the difficult year of 1942 arrived. Maykop switched to wartime operating mode. Factories and factories worked in three shifts, producing food, grenades, shells for the front, and sewing soldiers' clothing. In the building of secondary school No. 5 on Pushkinskaya, not far from the church, the Maikop Flight School is located. Young cadets made training flights from the Maykop airfield, hastily preparing for combat operations in the air.
But not all city residents were preparing for defense against the enemy. There were also those who were waiting for the Nazis. There were also saboteurs and spies. Several times in a row the posts of the cadets guarding the school were cut out. The school command strengthened the posts to 3 people, but the attacks did not stop. Then a plan was devised to eliminate the sent sabotage groups operating inside the city.
It was announced on the radio several times that an enemy air raid was expected with the aim of bombing the Maikop airfield, factories and factories of the city. Strict demands were made on the city population and plant management to darken facilities so that not a single light could be seen from above.
The planes from the Maikop airfield were transferred to the reserve airfield. Ambushes were set up around factories and the flight school to catch saboteurs. At night, “enemy” aircraft began circling over the city. To designate targets for bombing, saboteurs lit signal fires around machine and machine tool factories. And at Lesomebel, a timber warehouse was set on fire. The flames of the fires marked triangles for ground targets. The saboteurs were waiting for the bombs to be dropped. But the planes, having circled over the city, landed safely at our airfield. And they were piloted by cadets of the Maikop Flight School.
The operatives were able to neutralize enemy sabotage groups while preparing and lighting signal fires. After this successfully carried out operation, raids on the posts of cadets guarding the flight school stopped.
3. Messerschmitt.
In the autumn of 1942, when the Nazis captured almost all the settlements of the Maikop region, many more Red Army soldiers who did not have time to retreat with their units were hiding in the forest.
The Nazis hunted for them, but at the same time they were afraid to go deep into the forest. In order to identify such groups, a German ME-109 aircraft - a “Messerschmitt”, as it was popularly called - appeared every day in the White River valley.
You could use it to set your watch. Accurate to the minute, he appeared in the sky above Dakhovskaya, made a turn over a wide valley and left along the gorge to Maykop. Its heavy oppressive roar could not be confused with anything.
And then one day three Red Army soldiers emerged from the forest in the hope of meeting local residents and getting food. They climbed to the top of the mound in the area of the fifth dairy farm and began to watch the road.
At this time, making his daily visit to Dakhovskaya, a Messerschmitt appeared. When he reached the mound, the Red Army soldiers, raising their rifles in unison, fired at him in one gulp.
The fascist plane swayed, nosed down and, releasing a plume of smoke, began to descend sharply. He was lucky that on the path of the fall there was a wide and flat Deguak clearing. Having landed the downed plane, the fascist pilot jumped out of it and began to run away into the bushes. As he walked, he took off his military uniform and remained in his underwear.
The Nazis alerted the Dakhovsky garrison, taking with them policemen, horses and bulls, they rushed to the rescue of the German vulture.
It took them a lot of work to drag such a colossus to the village. We collected almost all the reins and the long ropes available in the village for attaching the plane to the bulls.
The ubiquitous boys and girls still managed to inflict yet more significant damage on the fascist bastard. While the sentry was distracted, the boys managed to cut leather from the plane seats, and the girls cut multi-colored wires into beads for themselves.
Especially among the kids, the nimble, freckled girl Masha Belousova distinguished herself. Now a respectable grandmother, Maria Kolesnikova.
The next day, SS men in black raincoats and high-crowned caps arrived in Dakhovskaya.
Approaching the plane, they lined up German guards and, in front of the residents of the village, whipped the short and fat sergeant major on the cheeks.
Then they sent a repair team from the Germans, dismantled the plane into parts and took it to the airfield in Maykop.
Early in the morning of the same day, a missing German pilot turned up. He spent the night somewhere in the forest. Having suffered a fair amount of fear and frozen, he went out to the German bunker, which stood over the cliff of the Belaya River.
The fascist sentry noticed him and opened fire on him. The pilot fell and screamed hysterically in German. The Nazis brought their frightened fellow tribesman to the village, fed him, changed him and sent him to Maykop.
4. On Mount Abago. 1942 The Nazi plane Heinkel 111 crashed on Mount Abago. Parts of the fuselage were scattered across the slope. The location of the aircraft is above the forest zone in the alpine zone, on the right side of the path along the route to the top. The fascist plane that crashed contained aerial bombs, which were neutralized by sappers. Some of the parts from the aircraft engine were removed for the museum of the Caucasus tourist center by the former senior instructor of the tourist center, Boris Viktorovich Kolosov. It would be interesting to know the aircraft number, in what year it was produced in Germany. For what purpose and where was he flying? But a new generation of search engines will be able to solve this mystery.
5. In the Gorely tract. In the Gorely tract, not far from the village of Guzeripl, on February 18, 1943, a Soviet U-2 plane crashed while performing a combat mission. It was discovered by residents of the village of Khamyshki: Vagin Alexander Panteleevich, Balandyukov Nikolai Pavlovich, Dubovsky Tikhon Sergeevich. The plane's cargo included letters and newspapers to the front.
Dubovsky Tikhon Sergeevich recalls: “I, N.P. Balandyukov. and Vagin A.P. Before the war, they worked as prospectors, mining gold from Guzeripl to the upper reaches of the Belaya River. We knew all the passes through the Main Caucasus Range. The war began, all three of us went to the front and all three were wounded and discharged. In Guzeripl Vagin A.P. was appointed head of the operational group, and N.P. Balandyukov and I. went to work in a state reserve as observers. We were given the task of exploring the Belorechensky Pass. We went down the Belaya River. Not reaching about 6 km to the village of Guzeripl, we discovered a U-2 aircraft in the area of the Goreloye tract on the left side along the Belaya River. Somehow we crossed the log. When we approached the plane we saw our U-2. There are two people in it. On the same day, the Northern Department of the State Reserve was informed. The plane crashed in 1942 on February 18-19. We learned this from newspapers and letters that were on the plane. We discovered the plane on February 18, 1943.
The plane fell horizontally, knocking off the top of a tree; it hit the boulder directly with its engine. The pilots' legs were broken. They were on their shoulders. The back of the plane was intact and the letters and newspapers were not jammed. We took two TT pistols from the pilots and handed them over to the police in Guzeripl. From the documents we learned the names of the pilots. It was Shulgin and Biryukov.”
The bodies of the dead pilots were taken to the village of Guzeripl and buried in mass grave. The bodies were taken out by KGZ observers Alexey Fedotievich Tsirkunov, Alexander Vasilievich Nikiforov and deputy. Director of KGZ Arkhangelsky Konstantin Grigorievich.
6. About Kryukov. On May 15, 1942, near the village of Dagestanskaya, the plane on board of which was pilot Hero of the Soviet Union N.V. Kryukov died. He received the title of hero for the first air raid on Berlin in July 1941. On the day of death, the crew bombed and sank a German transport in the Black Sea.
7. Hawk. While searching for a jet plane that crashed in the 80s, the rescue team of the Adyghe Control and Rescue Service, while combing the Armenian Ridge, discovered a Soviet fighter from the Great Patriotic War. Rescuers removed the gun from him and brought him to the Fisht tourist shelter. It was suggested that it would be nice to restore this aircraft and place it in Guzeriple in memory of the defenders of the Caucasus during the Great Patriotic War.
During the search work, we learned that in an air battle over Dakhovskaya, a German plane was shot down and crashed into the upper reaches of the Hakodz River. Our fighter, releasing a thin stream of smoke, turned around and flew towards Mount Fisht, trying to reach the airfield in Lazarevskoye. We do not know what his future fate is.
Ivan Nikolaevich Zubritsky, a resident of the village of Khamyshki, who worked as a huntsman for a long time in the Caucasus, also told us about this fighter. state reserve. “After the war, I grazed cattle at the sources of the Teplyak River and on the Armenian Ridge. And many times I heard stories about a fighter plane lying on a ridge. I searched many times, but could not find it. Before us, Armenians from the Black Sea coast grazed cattle in this place. And then one day they came to visit us, and I asked them about the site of the plane crash. They said that approximately in the middle of the Armenian ridge, on a side ridge descending towards the Belaya River, on the edge of the forest on the western side, there was a Soviet Yak fighter. I went looking for the plane and immediately found it. When landing on an alpine, the plane rolled into the forest area, cut off a fir and hung on it. It is very well preserved." Maybe this is the same Soviet plane that fought an air battle with fascist fighters over Dakhovskaya? Or maybe another? I would like to know the pilot’s combat fate.
Ivan Nikolaevich Zubritsky remembers well how the Germans came to Khamyshki. The streets of the mountain village were filled with cars, motorcycles with sidecars and cyclists. He was especially surprised by the large, healthy horses of the German breed, which he had never seen before. The Nazis installed mountain cannons in the village and fired at the Belaya River valley.
8. Fiery landing. On the night of October 23-24, 1942, a landing force of marines of the Black Sea Fleet Air Force (Black Sea Fleet Air Force) was dropped into the city of Maykop to destroy the fascist airfield based on the northern outskirts of Maykop. The 30-minute battle of paratroopers to destroy enemy aircraft went down in the history of the Great Patriotic War as a heroic feat of sailors.
The situation on the fronts in the battle for the Caucasus in October 1942 was difficult. The fascist command, trying to gain a foothold on the Black Sea coast, began to transfer selected troops to the Caucasus. Among them is the 8th Aviation Corps of General Richthofen, which was located at the Maikop airfield.
The Aviation Corps carried out regular raids on the bases and ships of the Black Sea Fleet, on the positions of our troops on the passes of the Main Caucasus Range, and bombed Sochi, which became a hospital city. The best Luftwaffe aces were assembled as part of the corps.
Attempts by our aviation to destroy the airfield from the air did not bring desired results. The fascist airbase was reliably protected by anti-aircraft weapons and fighter aircraft.
Commander of the Air Force of the Black Sea Fleet V.V. Ermachenkov ordered the crews of the 5th Guards, 40th and 62nd air regiments, together with paratroopers, to launch a combined attack on the Maykop airfield.
Both paratroopers and pilots carefully prepared for the operation. And then the day of the operation arrived. On the afternoon of October 23, 1942, the crew of the Pe-3 aircraft of the 27th separate squadron took an aerial photograph of the Maikop airfield and established the presence of 39 aircraft on it.
On October 23, at 21:30, Vasily Vasilyevich Ermachenkov, a member of the Military Council, Rear Admiral Nikolai Mikhailovich Kulakov, and the commander of the air brigade, Lieutenant Colonel Nikolai Aleksandrovich Tokarev, came to the airfield in Babushery (the village of Dranda near the city of Sukhumi) to see off the military operation and said parting words.
The first to take off into the night sky was the LI-2 transport aircraft, piloted by Captain P. Malinovsky, with a group of cover and destruction of the airfield security. Following him, the heavy four-engine bomber TB-3, captain S. Gavrilov, took off with a sabotage group. On the first there were 18 paratroopers, on the second 22 of them, two guides-representatives of the Maykop partisan detachment.
Immediately before the amphibious landing at the Maikop airfield, nine DB-3F aircraft from the 5th Guards and two SB from the 40th Aviation Regiment were scrambled to bomb the city of Maikop, as well as two I-15 BIS fighters from the 62nd Aviation Regiment. under the command of the flight commander of the third squadron, Captain Alexei Furletov. In total, according to the operation plan, the following aircraft were used: transport aircraft - one LI-2 (or PS-84), one TB-3, nine DB-3f, two SB, two I-15 BIS. Total: 15 aircraft.
The bombers made 5-6 bombing runs against ground targets in the city of Maykop. Following them, attack aircraft appeared, who brought down their fire on searchlight installations and on enemy anti-aircraft batteries. Five enemy searchlights were destroyed.
At 22:45, bombers began bombing the station, railway warehouses, woodworking plant and airfield. Three minutes before the start of the landing on railway station More than 300 incendiary bombs were dropped on Maikop. It was a full moon, the night was starry and cloudless. The fires that broke out in the area of the airfield lit up the entire area. A sheaf of tracer bullets fired at the planes served as a good guide for the landing.
The air strike on the airfield and the approaches from the city failed to suppress the Nazis' air defense systems. As a result, only half of the paratroopers landed at the airfield, the rest landed to the west of it.
There was no question of a sudden night landing. The Nazis were in full combat readiness. The night bomber raid brought the entire airfield defense and ground guards to their feet. The landing planes, caught in the pincers of searchlights, were fired upon from all types of weapons.
At 23:29, the LI-2 aircraft with a cover group reached eastern outskirts enemy airfield and, being in the beams of powerful searchlights, began landing troops under fire from anti-aircraft batteries and machine guns. The landing was led by its commander, Captain Mikhail Orlov. At 23-30 the landing of the first group was completed. The paratroopers were thrown out from a low altitude and landed in a group. Having landed, they immediately entered into battle with the airfield security. They began to make their way to enemy planes, set them on fire and blow them up. The task of destroying the enemy airfield had to be carried out mainly by the group of foreman Pavel Mikhailovich Solovyov. They destroyed three machine gun emplacements, damaged 10 and burned 13 enemy aircraft.
The TB-3 plane with the sabotage group reached the battlefield north of the center of the airfield with a delay of 1.5-2 minutes. The Nazis concentrated all the fire of anti-aircraft machine guns and cannons on the second aircraft, thereby allowing the first landing group to complete the task. The plane was already over the center of the airfield when an anti-aircraft shell hit the gas tank located in the wing of the plane. Paratroopers began to jump out of the burning plane. When the gas tank exploded, some paratroopers were doused with gasoline, and they flew down like burning torches, knocking out the flames. Two failed to do this. The parachutes of Alexander Malyshkin and Mikhail Maltsev burned out in the air.
22-33 minutes later the plane went into a sharp descent, hit the ground and exploded. Only the ship's commander, Serafim Petrovich Gavrilov, managed to escape.
The searchlights directed all their light power at the descending paratroopers and blinded the paratroopers. Illuminated by searchlights, the paratroopers were covered in streaks of tracer bullets and exploding anti-aircraft shells. Tracer bullets and shells burned through the parachute canopies.
Having landed, the second group of saboteurs began to destroy enemy aircraft. After a 30-minute battle with the Nazis, two green rockets soared into the sky. It was the commander of the parachute detachment, Pavel Mikhailovich Solovyov, who gave the signal to complete the operation and the departure of the paratroopers into the forest.
On the morning of October 24, a Soviet reconnaissance aircraft was sent to photograph the Maikop airfield, the crew of which included pilot Skugar and navigator Vasilevsky. Deciphering the photographs showed that during this operation 13 fascist aircraft were burned and 10 were damaged.
It was also established that during the battle 40 Nazis were killed, four of whom were killed personally by the commander of the parachute detachment, Sergeant Major Pavel Mikhailovich Solovyov. Of the 40 paratroopers who flew out on a combat mission, three returned to the base without landing, the rest entered into battle with the Nazis. Some of the paratroopers returned from a combat mission, and some died. The dead were included in the list of missing persons. Two partisan guides from Maykop, Tereshchenko Vladimir Aleksandrovich and Sukhanov Gavril Ivanovich, and the crew of the TB-3 aircraft died in the downed plane.
The paratroopers, fighting off the Nazis, went into the forest east of the city Maykop. In small groups, alone, with the help of partisans, they went to the location of Soviet troops behind the front line to the intended collection point - the village of Alekseevskoye (Khamyshki). A light field airfield for receiving U-2 aircraft was located here.
Extracts from the Central Naval Archive have been partially preserved without a fund number, inventory or file. These extracts were made specifically from the archive to prepare material for the newspaper “Flag of the Motherland” “With a parachute behind enemy lines” by Georgy Fedorovich Lyuchin. Special correspondent of the Red Banner newspaper of the Red Banner Black Sea Fleet “Flag of the Motherland”, located in the city of Sevastopol Lyuchin G.F. - author of excellent articles about the Maykop landing. From the laconic and dry reports on the planning, conduct and summing up of the military operation at the fascist airfield in Maykop, we can imagine a picture of the battle carried out by the paratroopers.
We present extracts from the Central Naval Archive in the form in which they were received by the editors of the newspaper “Flag of the Motherland”:
Sheet 201.“Airborne landing at the Maikop airfield (on the night of October 24, 1942).
The increased activity of enemy fighter aircraft in early October 1942 in the Tuapse direction greatly complicated the regrouping of our troops and constrained the combat operations of our aviation to cover the northern section of sea communications along the Caucasian coast and the port of Tuapse.
Systematic aerial reconnaissance established that the largest concentration of enemy fighter aircraft was at the Maikop airfield, where up to 30-50 aircraft were constantly based.
In accordance with this, a decision was made - on the night of October 23, 1942, to carry out a landing in order to destroy enemy aircraft at the Maikop airfield.
To carry out the intended operation, a PDO release plan was developed, which included:
1. By the actions of a parachute detachment dropped from aircraft, destroy enemy aircraft at the Maikop airfield.
2. The release, actions and withdrawal of the PDO will be provided from the air by night attack aircraft and bombers by:
a) suppression of ground-based air defense systems at the airfield (mainly searchlights);
b) creation of large light landmarks to ensure tactical parachute landing at the airfield;
c) prevent the movement of reserves to defend the airfield from the city.
3. After completing the PDO operation, retreat to the east, into the forest to join the partisans, with further crossing the front line and returning to your unit.
Progress of the operation.
On 10/23/1942, in the period from 11.30-12.30, one Pe-2 of the 27th UAE carried out reconnaissance of the Maikop airfield from an altitude of 7200 meters. According to aerial reconnaissance and decryption of photographs, it was established that at the Maikop airfield there were 28 Messerschmitt-108, 4 Junkers-88, 3 Junkers-52 and 4 communications aircraft located in the northwestern part of the airfield.
In addition to organized weather observation, 1 DB-Z aircraft of the 5th GAP was assigned, which from 18.30 to 20.30 carried out aerial weather reconnaissance along the route and in the target area.
The material part of transport aircraft and bomber groups was concentrated at the Lazarevskaya airfield. The observation group for the results of the operation - one Pe-2 aircraft, three Yak-1 aircraft - were located at the Alakhadze-Lazarevskaya airfield.
Sheet 202. At 21.19-21.21, the first group of bombers, consisting of four DB-3s, took off from the Babushery airfield with the task of suppressing the enemy’s airfield defenses.
At 21.35, the TB-3 aircraft with 20 people from the sabotage group and the PS-84 with a cover group took off with the task of dropping paratroopers at the Maikop airfield. The drop height is 600-400 meters.
At 22:50 two I-15 aircraft took off from the Lazarevskaya airfield for assault operations against enemy searchlights at the airfield.
At 22.20, two SB aircraft took off with the task of creating light landmarks for transport aircraft using incendiary bombing operations.
From 22.45 to 23.26, four DB-3 aircraft from an altitude of 2100-3600 bombed the Maikop airfield, having the main task of diverting anti-aircraft artillery fire during the airdrop by bombing operations.
At 23.24 the first SB plane. and at 23.27 the second SB plane. 144 ZAB-1 and 184 ZAB-2 were dropped from a height of 400-600 meters in one pass. The bombs were dropped precisely in a given area. Two large fires arose, which served as a light guide for transport aircraft to reach the target for dropping PDO.
At 23.29, the SP-84 transport aircraft with the PDO reached the eastern edge of the airfield and began the drop. At 23.30 the drop was completed.
The TB-3 plane departed somewhat north of the center of the airfield with a delay of 1.5-2 minutes. One minute before approaching the airfield, the plane was caught in the beams of searchlights and anti-aircraft batteries transferred fire to it.
Sheet 203. At 11:32 p.m., paratroopers were dropped from the TB-3 aircraft on the eastern part of the airfield. At the moment when the TB-3 plane was over the airfield, the plane caught fire in the air due to a direct hit by a projectile on the gas tank, but continued to fly along the horizon and drop paratroopers. At 23.33 the plane went into a sharp descent and hit the ground.
Five DB-3 aircraft of the 5th GAP from 23.30 to 04.00 continuously bombed the road leading from the city to the airfield (station area), delaying the advance of troops to the airfield and diverting air defense systems.
After the airborne paratroopers were dropped, the entire air defense and ground defense system was switched to destroying the paratroopers. PDO actions took place on an individual basis. The withdrawal of the PDO occurred according to a signal given by the detachment commander Solovyov at 00.10 minutes on October 24, 1942. The PDO withdrew in separate groups. When retreating, the groups fought with German patrols and pickets to the front line.
Groups of paratroopers retreated to the front line at night. During the day, the groups moved only through the forest. The paratroopers arrived at the unit in small groups: the first group of 12 people arrived 9 days after the operation, at our border outpost in the village of Khamyshki. The rest arrived in different time. Of the 37 people dropped, 21 returned to the unit. The rest died on the TB-3 plane and at the airfield during the destruction of the planes.
The information was prepared by I.V. Bormotov. based on materials by Bormotov I.V. and Krinko E.F. April 22, 2011.
The Germans as part of the regiment marched to the village of Chernigovskoye and passed through the “Wolf Gate” to the village of Kushinka on August 17, 1942. By order of Commander S.M. Budyonny, the “Wolf Gate” was blocked on the night of August 18-19 and not a single soldier of the regiment came out of the cauldron.
On August 20, 1942, the Germans were forced to withdraw to the left bank of the river - Pshekha in the center of the village of Chernigovsk, leaving on the right bank of the river its two farms with the old names: Popovsky (closer to the center) and Tserkovny.
After this, despite repeated attempts to capture them again, they did not succeed, thanks to the resistance of our troops, until the liberation of Kuban began.
The liberation of the village of Chernigov did not happen on January 25, as written by the authors, but earlier, because on January 23 (even if I was mistaken in my book of memories according to more recent data by two days), and not later than January 25, our whole family was already in our Tserkovny farm.
Sidrak Agopovich Yazichyan is the author of the book “Memories under the gun of a WWII veteran.
A week-long tour, one-day hiking and excursions combined with comfort (trekking) in the mountain resort of Khadzhokh (Adygea, Krasnodar Territory). Tourists live at the camp site and visit numerous natural monuments. Rufabgo waterfalls, Lago-Naki plateau, Meshoko gorge, Big Azish cave, Belaya River Canyon, Guam gorge.
Battle for the Caucasus (July 25, 1942 - October 9, 1943) - battle armed forces Nazi Germany, Romania and Slovakia against the USSR for control of the North Caucasus. The battle is divided into two stages: the German offensive (July 25 - December 31, 1942) and the Soviet counteroffensive (January 1 - October 9, 1943).
A PTRS-41 anti-tank rifle crew and a machine gunner on the river bank.
Soviet paratroopers loading into a TB-3 bomber on the North Caucasus Front.
Four Wehrmacht mountain rangers on a march through the Caucasus mountains.
Soviet soldiers knock out the Germans from the western part of the Krymskaya village.
Soviet soldiers during the battle in the village of Krymskaya.
Romanian artillerymen insert a mine into the barrel of a 120-mm mortar of the 1942 model in the Caucasus.
German signalmen setting up a walkie-talkie, Kuban, p. Red October, April 1943
Residents of liberated Krasnodar at the intersection of Krasnaya and Sverdlov streets.
A soldier of the Romanian mountain units with a captured Soviet banner in a field in the Caucasus.
Battery artillerymen P.S. Tarakanov fire directly at the enemy from a 45-mm anti-tank gun.
Soldiers of the 2nd Romanian Mountain Division at a ZB-53 machine gun in a position on the street of Nalchik.
Fires in the port of Batumi after a German air raid.
German mountain rangers in the Caucasus.
Soviet tankman on a captured German tank Pz.Kpfw. IV in Ordzhonikidze.
German soldiers in the Caucasus walk along the slope of a mountain.
In the area of Maykop and Krasnodar. German soldiers approach an oil storage facility set on fire by retreating Red Army units.
A German anti-aircraft battery is firing in the Kuban area.
A group of German prisoners of war in the area of the Khaznidon River.
Soviet mounted reconnaissance in the Caucasus mountains.
Soviet infantrymen are fighting a defensive battle in the foothills of the Caucasus.
Guardsmen-mortarmen fire in the Ordzhonikidze area.
The battle in the village of Gizel, district of Vladikavkaz (at that time Ordzhonikidze), where the advance of German troops in the North Caucasus was stopped. November 7, 1942
Mountaineer warriors under the command of Lieutenant A.S. Efremov climb the glacier to defend the mountain pass. North Caucasus, 1942
LaGG-3 No. 915 “For Soviet Georgia.”
Soviet infantrymen on the defensive in the North Caucasus.
A ceremonial meeting on the occasion of the awarding of the 2nd Guards Rifle (future Taman) Division with the Order of the Red Banner for the liberation of the North Caucasus and Kuban.
Commander of the 2nd Guards Rifle Division V.F. Zakharov.
Soviet troops enter liberated Krasnodar.
"Blue Line" - line German fortifications on the Taman Peninsula. The presence of a 400,000-strong military group and a shortened front line allowed the Germans to create a very dense defense here. The fighting here continued from February to September 1943, until finally German troops were evacuated to Crimea. For the liberation of the Taman Peninsula, the 2nd Guards Rifle Division received the honorary title “Taman” on October 9, 1943.
To break through the Blue Line.
Crew of a 37-mm anti-aircraft gun, North Caucasus.
Killed German soldiers at the site of the fighting to break through the Blue Line (the Blue Line has been taken!).
Commander of the women's air regiment E.D. Bershanskaya sets a combat mission for her pilots.
Fighter pilot, Hero of the Soviet Union, Yakov Antonov, captured by the Germans.
On August 25, 1942, Antonov, while carrying out a mission to cover the attack on a German airfield near Mozdok, was shot down. According to Soviet documents, he died. In fact, shot down by the commander of the 77th German Fighter Squadron (JG 77), Major Gordon Gollob, Antonov bailed out, landed successfully and was captured. According to some sources, he was transported to a prisoner of war camp near Mozdok, according to others, he escaped from captivity. Nothing is known about his further fate.
A column of German StuG III assault guns on the march to the Caucasus.
Soviet intelligence officers overcome a water obstacle. Krasnodar region.
A group of Il-2 attack aircraft of the 7th GShAP in the air.
Guard Captain V.B. Emelianenko in the cockpit of his Il-2 attack aircraft at the airfield in the village of Timashevskaya.
Residents of the village of Krymskaya meet Soviet soldiers-liberators.
Soviet mountain rifleman V.M. Kolomensky.
Hero of the Soviet Union, Major Yakov Ivanovich Antonov from the 25th IAP in German captivity, surrounded by German pilots who listen with interest to their colleague.
Group photo of pilots and aircraft technicians of the 859th BBAP near the A-20 Boston aircraft.
Armored train of the Azov flotilla “For the Motherland”.
German armored personnel carriers in the Kuban steppe.
The grave of Wehrmacht Major General Albert Buch, killed near Novorossiysk.
German 75-mm mountain gun Geb.G.36 in the Caucasus.
German mountain riflemen at rest.
Transportation of ammunition by German mountain units in the Caucasus.
Observation point of mountain rangers in the mountains of the Caucasus.
Briefing of Soviet paratroopers before loading into a TB-3 bomber.
The commander of a squadron of Soviet A-20 Boston bombers assigns a combat mission to the flight personnel.
Lieutenant Seregin's platoon before the attack, Tuapse area.
German soldiers watch burning oil fields in the Maykop region.
German tanks and motorcycles against the backdrop of Mount Beshtau in the Caucasus.
Soviet soldiers, supported by T-34 tanks, are fighting for the village of Krymskaya.
KV-1S tanks of the 6th Guards Separate Tank Regiment breaking through in the attack. North Caucasus Front.
KV-1S tanks of the 6th separate breakthrough tank regiment before the march. North Caucasus Front.
Commander of the 52nd Red Banner Tank Brigade, Major V.I. Filippov.
German machine gun point on the Chmahara pass. Western Caucasus.
Red Army soldiers capture a German Pz.Kpfw tank that was knocked out on the battlefield near Mozdok. IV.
Soviet liberation soldiers march through the streets of the Krymskaya village.
Soviet armor-piercing troops in position in the Zheleznovodsk area.
Captain I. Rudnev's scouts go on a mission. North Caucasus.
Political instructor I.I. Petrov conducts propaganda work on German positions using a primitive tin pipe.
Soviet infantry in the battle for the village of Krymskaya.
A German tankman watches a burning oil storage facility in the Maykop area.
Defense of the Caucasus (Battle for the Caucasus) is a major defensive-offensive operation of Soviet troops during the second period of the Great Patriotic War in the Caucasus and Transcaucasia.
The operation took place in two stages: from July 25 to December 31, 1942, an offensive was carried out by the German army, which managed to capture part of the territories; from December 31 to October 9, 1943, Soviet troops, launching a counteroffensive, forced the Nazis to retreat and recaptured the territories captured by the enemy.
By the beginning of autumn, the enemy had conquered most of Kuban and the North Caucasus, but after the Battle of Stalingrad, the Nazis retreated because they suffered significant losses. They were afraid that they would be surrounded. But, unfortunately, the operation planned by the Soviet High Command, as a result of which the enemy was to be surrounded and defeated on the territory of Kuban, failed, and the Nazis were evacuated to Crimea.
The situation on the eve of the battle
The German command, seeing that Soviet troops, after unsuccessful battles near Kharkov, could not provide a worthy rebuff, decided to attack the Caucasus. The capture of the Caucasus, as well as Ukraine, was very important for the enemy, since the Caucasus and Kuban contained large reserves of oil and grain, which could provide the enemy with significant support for further military operations on the territory of the Soviet Union. It should also be noted that Hitler hoped that having reached the sea, he would be able to turn to Turkey for help.
After Rostov-on-Don was captured by the enemy, our Headquarters could communicate with the Caucasus only by sea or by rail, which passed through Stalingrad. However, the Germans suffered Battle of Stalingrad a crushing defeat, which is why later they were never able to conquer the Caucasus, since they suffered significant losses on the Volga.
From battle to battle
During the first stage of the battle for the Caucasus, Hitler’s army captured cities such as Stavropol, Armavir, Maykop, Krasnodar, Elista, Mozdok. Part of Novorossiysk was also captured. However, in September 1942, in the Malgobek area, the enemy met resistance from Soviet troops and was stopped by them. During the first stage of the battle for the Caucasus, the enemy managed to approach the foothills of the Caucasus Range and the Terek River. However, the Soviet army was able to stop this offensive in time; the Nazis suffered significant losses here; in fact, most of the German army was destroyed. Hitler's hopes for help from Turkey were also not realized.
The second part of the battle for the Caucasus was a counter-offensive by Soviet troops. They not only recaptured territories previously captured by the enemy, but also completely liberated North Ossetia, Kabardino-Balkaria, Rostov Region, Stavropol Territory and other areas. Oil and grain reserves were again ours, and this gave a huge advantage during military operations.
But still, despite the serious successes of our troops, the main goal that Stalin set for the Soviet army - to capture and destroy the Germans in the Kuban - was not achieved. The Germans relocated to Crimea, but the Caucasus became ours again.
The meaning and results of the battle for the Caucasus
The significance and results of the battle for the Caucasus are great. The Soviet army not only began to return occupied territories and captured people, but also very noticeably strengthened its power. Now she could engage in battles with the enemy on equal terms. The liberation of such an important strategic region as the Caucasus is one of the greatest victories of the Soviet Union in the Great Patriotic War. The further victorious march of our army, now to the West, began precisely with the victory at Stalingrad and the battle for the Caucasus.
The Battle of the Caucasus - a major defensive-offensive operation Soviet army in the second period of the Great Patriotic War.
The battle for the Caucasus took place in two stages: first, the German troops took the initiative, the German offensive lasted from July 25 to December 31, 1942, and then the Soviet soldiers began their counteroffensive, which lasted until October 9, 1943.
In the fall of 1942, German troops occupied most of the Kuban and North Caucasus, but after the defeat at Stalingrad they were forced to retreat due to the threat of encirclement by Soviet troops. In 1943, the Soviet command, which planned to lock the Germans in the Kuban and deal a decisive blow to them, was unable to carry out its plan - German troops were evacuated to Crimea.
Background and balance of power
In June 1942, the Soviet army on the southern front was weakened after the battles near Kharkov, the German command decided to take advantage of the situation and break through to the Caucasus. After a short offensive, several cities fell, including Rostov-on-Don, which opened the way to the Caucasus for the German army.
The Caucasus was an important strategic point for Hitler, since it was there that the Soviet oil reserves were located, which he dreamed of capturing. In addition, the Caucasus and Kuban were sources of grain and other products that could significantly support the German army during the long war. Hitler was also aware that many residents of Transcaucasia did not accept Soviet power, so the chance of victory was extremely high.
When Rostov-on-Don fell, the Soviet Union's connection with the Caucasus was carried out only by sea and railway through Stalingrad. In order to cut off all supply routes for food and weapons, Hitler made a decision, but this operation not only ended in failure for the Nazi troops, but also gave a significant advantage to the Soviet troops, starting in the war. The war entered a new stage, and for Hitler it became increasingly difficult to conquer new territories of the USSR.
Progress in the defense of the Caucasus
The battle took place in two stages. The first stage is the offensive of German troops in the Caucasus and the conquest of part of the cities.
German offensive:
- August 3 - Stavropol captured;
- August 7 - Armavir captured;
- August 10 - Maykop captured;
- August 12 - Krasnodar and Elista were captured;
- August 21 - the German flag appeared on Elbrus;
- August 25 - Mozdok captured;
- September 11 - part of Novorossiysk was captured;
- September 1942 - the Germans were stopped in the Malgobek area.
The first stage of the battle for the Caucasus took place from July to December 1942. German troops were able to approach the foothills of the Main Caucasus Range and the river. Terek, however, suffered significant losses. Although many cities were captured, the Germans failed to carry out the attack plan, since they never reached Transcaucasia and lost a huge part of their army in the process. In addition, Türkiye, on whose support Hitler was counting, never decided to enter the war.
One of the significant factors in the failure of the German offensive is that Hitler focused on the battle of Stalingrad.
By the beginning of 1943, the German army in the Caucasus began to be significantly inferior in number and power to the Soviet one.
The second stage of the Battle of the Caucasus is characterized by a Soviet counter-offensive and is generally considered quite successful for the Soviet Union. Kalmykia, Checheno-Ingushetia, North Ossetia, Kabardino-Balkaria, Rostov Region, Stavropol Territory, Cherkessk Autonomous Okrug, Karachay Autonomous Okrug and Adygei Autonomous Okrug were completely liberated. The Maikop oil fields, as well as the most important agricultural areas of the country, were returned to the control of the Soviet government.
The German army suffered huge losses and was forced to retreat, but it is impossible to unambiguously interpret the results of the battle for the Caucasus as a victory for the Soviet Union, since the Soviet army was unable to carry out the original plan and, having surrounded the enemy in the Kuban, destroyed it. The Germans evacuated to Crimea.
Results and significance of the battle for the Caucasus
The successes of the Soviet Union in the battle for the Caucasus can be considered a very important part of the counteroffensive: the positions of the Soviet army in the south were strengthened, air bases and the fleet were recaptured. The Caucasus was of great strategic importance, so the seizure of territories was an extremely important step in the victory over Germany.
Unfortunately, it was not without negative consequences. Part of the population of the Caucasus was accused of supporting the invaders and exiled to Siberia.
In general, the battle for the Caucasus became one of the most victorious and notable operations in the second period of the Great Patriotic War.