Counter-attacks on the Dniepr late 1943

For your delectation another period newsreel showing troops desperately attempting to hold the positions in Ukraine.

Following the post-Kursk retreat, the first major pause was at this river line.  A formidable waterway, the Dniepr would have made a great defensive position.  However, the fortifications were not built and GröFaZ insisted upon holding the "essential" Dniepr bend - resulting in the usual mess.

Some great shots of troopers advancing behind a Tiger I and much more - enjoy!

Waffen SS in action early 1943

A very nice episode of "Die Deutsche Wochenschau" - this time showing the Waffen SS in action during "Mansteins Counterstroke" in the Charkow area.

Lots of great afv and uniform shots plus a few personalities including the (in)famous Max Wünsche.  Inspirational stuff for anyone modelling the winterised Wehrmacht!

I.R. Großdeutschland in action - Winter 1941

I was browsing YouTube the other day and found this footage. In characteristic propaganda style the troops are depicted as advancing through the mud and snow en-route to ultimate victory.  In reality the average Landser had by now realised just how ill-prepared they were for a Russian winter.

Nevertheless, the troops storming (most probably staged) the Kolkhoz display a nice mixture of dress and the terrain shows that an authentic battlefield can be achieved with a couple of Isbas and a copse or two.  If you happen to have a few dozen barrels to spare this is the scenario for you!

The footage of the mine disposal is, in my opinion, authentic as the soldier handles the landmines very gingerly!

Incidentally, later this week I am going to touch upon the problem of depicting winter 1941/2 in 28mm.  There is a dearth of correctly attired figures but I think I have hit upon a solution.

Welikije Luki - January 1943

Another year, another encirclement -  this time Welikije Luki.  Although over-shadowed by the tragedy at Stalingrad, this battle was yet another case of troops being ham-strung by High Command's insistence that all ground was held "to the last man".

Whether this footage was actually shot in the vicinity is anyone's guess but nevertheless it is of value to both the wargamer and modeller.  Note the extremely high rate of fire achieved by the 7,5cm leIG!

Counter-attack in Latvia 1944

Another good film here.  This time a counter-attack to restore contact with forces in Kurland.

Some very nice StuG shots including some soldiers playing "How many men can we fit upon one StuG"  My  favourite part is the StuG commander letting rip with his MP40!

Counter-attack at Smolensk - StuG footage

Although a fairly short and grainy movie, this excerpt from "Die Deutsche Wochenschau" has some excellent footage of StuG / Infantry cooperation.

The StuG IIIs are mostly of early "G" pattern sporting bolted armour on the hull front.  Again the battered and broken nature of front line equipment should be noted by modellers!

As a bonus, the Sdkfz 252 Munitionskraftwagen and Panzerwerfer Maultier also make appearances.

Winterkampf 1943: Witebsk (?)

Regular readers will be aware of my fascination with the hard fighting of 1943/4. Although by this stage of the war Germany was on the strategic defensive, well planned operations could still achieve success against the Red Army.

Had GröFaZ not insisted upon defending all territories and instead granted a degree of freedom to his commanders, I feel the Soviet Steamroller could yet have been halted even post-Kursk!

This film has a fair mix of footage (some Ferdinand shots clearly not from winter 1943/4) Of special note are the armoured "Maultier" truck supposedly serving with mountain troops and a PaK43 firing a shot or two.!

Modelers and terrain builders should note the trenches: they are both shallow and narrow! Painters should find the grubby and unkempt appearance of the troops into account.

Defensive fighting 1943

Another fairly interesting movie. Unusually the footage doesn't appear overly staged and the less than glamourous nature of positional warfare is shown.

Sturmgeschütz and infantry cooperation is again in evidence. As the most common of of all German AFVs the StuG III was the vehicle most likely to be encountered by the average "Frontschwein"

This newsreel has the "feel" I wish to capture in miniature for Kampfgruppe von Hächtel - there is even a box-body truck in evidence!

Panzerjäger mystery - solved!

Panzerjäger UE in all it's glory!

Deephorse of TMP has supplied a link that identifies this little vehicle as an example of the catchily named:  "3,7cm PaK 35/6 auf Infanterie Schlepper UE(f)"  In other words a 37mm PaK slapped on top of a French UE carrier.

If the link is followed you can see the newsreel shot developed as a still and it is much clearer.

Thanks for sorting that out!

Unusual Panzerjäger continued...

Clockwise from left: Mystery, Pz I A, PZ I B and Pzjäg I.

After floating the matter at TMP it has been suggested that this vehicle may well be a Panzer I with a PaK 36 replacing the turret.  This would make sense as the Pz I was still in action during 1942 and would be far more useful as an improvised self-propelled mounting than as a tank or reconnaissance vehicle.

With this in mind I have been poking around looking for photos of the Panzer I (models A & B) from a similar angle.  Results as per the crude photo-montages.

Clockwise: Mystery, PZ I A & PZ I B.

I am not convinced.  It is certainly not an Ausf B as the rear muffler just isn't there (see Panzerjäger I also) However, is it an Ausf A?  Well, at first I thought it may be but the "A" had twin mufflers on the rear mud-guards.  There is indeed a tubular looking item on the right mudguard bit this is in the wrong place (too far forward) and the wrong shape.

Could it be a Panzer I but have the gun facing the rear?  Possible but to me the angles look wrong, as does the "vertical" plate which is not tall enough.  I would say the clincher against this is that the vertical and side plates are at right angles whereas the Panzer I had "bevelled" corners.

The picture is poor and could indeed distort things but I am still at a loss!

Very perplexing.

Rostov 1942 - Unusual panzerjäger

PaK 38 mounted upon Sdkfz 10.

After years of viewing newsreels and old photos I am fully aware that German soldiers performed unofficial "field modifications" in an attempt to improve their combat effectiveness.   

These oddballs crop up quite often and this suggests to me that such modifications were far from unusual.  Considering the nature of the Ostfront and the strained supply lines, it is logical that troops would make do and mend with what was to hand.  However, many of these conversions are quite elaborate - I would assume the level of modification would reflect the skills of a given unit's workshop personnel.

Anyway, looking at a newsreel concerning the recapture of Rostov in July 1942, I found a couple of interesting vehicles.

The first appears to be a fairly well known modification , whereby the PaK 38 was mounted upon it's Sdkfz 10 prime mover.  Some of these have armour plating on the front and others a more elaborate armoured cab.  In many books this vehicle is said to be a Waffen SS "special" but I have seen plenty of them crewed by Heer soldiers.  In this newsreel there appear to be two examples, one in Army use and the other alongside men of SS Wiking - perhaps it is actually the same vehicle?

Rostov 1942 -  "Ersatz" panzerjäger.

Of greater interest to me is another vehicle shown street fighting in Rostov.  This is clearly a PaK 36 (or it's 45mm Soviet clone) unofficially mounted on some kind of chassis.

This outdated weapon was certainly mounted upon a great many vehicles as an "ersatz" panzerjäger.  Ostfront PaK 36  field-mods I have seen include: Krupp "Protze", Renault UE carrier, Horch 4x4, Sdkfz 10, Bren Carrier and Komsomolets tractor.  However, the vehicle used here is not immediately obvious.

I suspect it is an half-track or "beute" AFV of some description.  I doubt it is another Sdkfz 10 as the details appear incorrect.  Sadly this was the best still I could take from the newsreel in question.

Does anyone have any ideas?

StuG action - Early 1943

Poor sound quality but some interesting shots in this short movie.  Of note is the vehicle stowage - modellers remember you need to clutter your afvs!  Also the "winterkette" on the StuGs.  How accurate the date is I am unsure but the equipment (and abandoned mid-production T34/76) look correct for early 1943.  The houses suggest Central or Northern theatres.

If this doesn't inspire you to get Ostfront skirmishing, nothing will!

Building Fortifications Winter 1942/43

Another very interesting excerpt from "Die Deutsche Wochenschau"  This time the film shows troops constructing a defensive position in the snow.  Plenty of inspiration for those wishing to model such strongpoints.

The use of the sled to quickly position the MG is noteworthy as is the continued use of the 3.7cm PaK (It could be a Russian 45mm - I didn't study too carefully)  Some nice shots of the T34/76C also.

All in all a useful film.

Battle of Kowel April 1944

Readers may appreciate this short film from "Die Deutsche Wochenshau"

The city of Kowel was encircled by the Red Army in March 1944.  In mid-April a combined Army and Waffen SS counter-attack, led by Oberstleutnant Hoffmann, broke the Soviet perimeter and enabled the garrison to withdraw complete with most of their equipment.

In this newsreel there are lot of interesting vehicle and infantry shots that display well the weathered and worn "look" for which I am aiming.