Chapter 134: The Attack on Lake Salpa
In mid-November, two or three days before the official launch of Operation Uranus, Yuri completed the final reorganization of the 57th Army. Unfortunately, because the 57th Army was not responsible for the main attack mission, during the reorganization process, although the headquarters and the front added less than 4,000 new soldiers to the army, they did not provide the army with heavy firepower equipment including artillery and tanks.
On the last day before the launch of the battle, as representatives of the headquarters and the General Staff, Comrades Zhukov and Vasilevsky personally went to the 57th Army Command on the east shore of Lake Salpa and conveyed the corresponding combat orders to Yuri.
This combat order required the 57th Army to cooperate with the 51st Army on its right wing to seize the narrow passage between the three lakes of Sarpa, Chacha and Balmanchak after the battle was launched. Then, on the front line of nearly 100 kilometers wide north of Lake Balmanchak, an offensive was launched in the direction of Sovietsky and Karachi. At the same time, during the offensive, the troops had to build two offensive fronts, namely the external front and the internal front.
In this offensive plan, the 57th Army Group, located on the left wing, needed to build an external defensive front during the offensive, while the 51st Army Group, which cooperated with it, was responsible for building an internal offensive front.
The reason for arranging such a plan was mainly to prevent the encircled German troops from breaking out. At the same time, to intercept the outer German troops from providing support to the encircled German troops. As the 57th Army Group was building an internal defense front, its mission was to intercept the support of the outer German troops.
From a practical point of view, among the 51st Army and the 57th Army, the 57th Army commanded by Gavril obviously has a heavier task. The reason is very simple. Internally, it needs to face the already exhausted and depressed German 9th Army, while externally, it needs to fight against the elite of the German Army, the 4th Panzer Group commanded by Manstein.
However, commanding operations is not like buying pork, you can be picky, fighting peripheral operations requires the ability to command defensive operations, and Yuri's resume has many wonderful records in this regard. After all, the name of the Soviet Red Army's defense master is not for nothing. Perhaps the Supreme Command and the General Staff had already considered this when they first made the plan. It can also be said that Yuri's appointment as the commander of the 57th Army Group is what everyone expected.
Just when the battle preparations entered the final stage, a small episode occurred: when Zhukov and Vasilevsky inspected the front line of the Battle of Stalingrad, many army commanders proposed that a key factor in whether the battle could achieve final victory was whether the Air Force could gain absolute control over air supremacy. Regarding this issue, Zhukov called Alexander Alexandrovich Novikov, the then Deputy People's Commissar of Defense in charge of the Air Force, and the answer he received was, "The Air Force is not fully prepared," because the Air Force was not fully prepared to fight in adverse weather conditions.
This simple answer may have angered Stalin. Subsequently, the Supreme Command issued a telegram signed by Stalin himself, which put forward three requirements, not only requiring the aviation to cover the offensive of its own troops in the upcoming campaign, but also requiring strong attacks on the German ground forces, and even pursuit. In a small range, some rumors even said that compared with Novikov, Stalin valued Arseni Vasilyevich Vorozheikin, an ace pilot who had achieved excellent results, more. Because before issuing the telegram, Stalin asked Vorozheikin for his opinion, and the answer he got was that the aviation assembled in the Stalingrad area could guarantee the completion of the mission.
Well, Yuri would not believe such rumors . An ace pilot and an air force commander are two different things. They excel in different areas. One is practical combat skills, and the other is command ability. They cannot be confused at all.
Facts have proved that Novikov's suggestion was accurate and on point. On November 19, the day the campaign was scheduled to be launched, a blizzard hit the entire Stalingrad area. This untimely blizzard lasted a whole night, and on the second day, thick fog rose on both sides of the Volga River. The blizzard and the fog were an unconventional and bizarre weather. The aviation unit had no ability to take off and fight in such weather, but the notice of the campaign had already been issued to the grassroots units, and it was too late to change it. Therefore, the originally well-prepared large-scale operation began in a panic.
…
The frozen Salpa Lake is like a piece of white jade, falling on the bank of the winding Volga River. The tranquility here may have lasted for tens of millions of years, but now, this tranquility is broken by the rumbling of artillery.
The battle to attack the landing site on the west bank of Lake Sarpa began in the early morning. The artillery of the front launched an intensive artillery bombardment for 80 minutes on the target of the Soviet attack - the Hungarian positions. The unique whistling sound of the Katyusha rocket launcher even cracked the ice on the lake surface. Unfortunately, the wind, snow and fog blocked the view and the specific situation on the enemy's position could not be seen.
Amid the rumbling sound of the tanks moving forward, there was also the squeaky sound of their tracks. The ankle-deep snow was rolled up by the tracks, leaving behind a patch of black and white mud.
The tanks on the move should be a tank regiment. These tanks look like pieces of black charcoal, and they haven't even been painted. These are tanks that have just come out of the tank factory. They haven't been painted because time is tight and there is no time to do this process.
Accompanied by guards and several army headquarters staff, Yuri walked out of an armored vehicle and walked up a low hill. This hill has no specific name. According to the markings on the military map, it is called "Second Contour Hill". Going down the west slope of the hill and moving 700 meters, you will reach the narrow passage between Balmanchak Lake and Chacha Lake.
In the past few months, in order to prevent the Soviet troops from launching an attack from this line, the Hungarians built a series of fortifications here. These fortifications are mainly defensive tactical areas with a depth of 5-8 kilometers, which are like a belt between the two lakes. Most of this belt is composed of two layers of positions, with 3-4 civil fire points on each kilometer of the front. At the same time, the residential areas in the defense zone have also been built into circular defense points.
The fortifications were well built, but whether they could be held depended on the willpower, skills and tactics of the combat troops, and the Hungarians obviously did not do very well in this regard.
After 80 minutes of artillery preparation, the vanguards of the two divisions of the 57th Army launched an offensive against the Hungarian defense line. The news from the front was that the two vanguards did not encounter much stubborn resistance. They successfully passed through this narrow passage within 40 minutes after the battle started. The fastest advancing unit had captured the railway line and Suguno, the main hub of the railway line in this area. This railway line runs from Stalingrad to Voronezh. To put it bluntly, this is the logistical lifeline of the German Ninth Army.
Going down the west slope of the hill, we saw a dozen Soviet soldiers escorting a large group of Hungarian soldiers coming towards us. These Hungarians looked very embarrassed, with mud and snow all over their grass-green uniforms, and the white floral decorations on their hats could no longer be seen. Everyone's face was filled with fear.
"We must make use of these prisoners," Yuri kept walking, talking to a burly officer behind him with his head tilted, "We must re-reinforce the fortifications in this area. Well, the focus is on the Suguno area. We don't have much time. If nothing unexpected happens, the German reinforcements will probably arrive in the next two to three days."
The burly officer was named Kiatrenko, the same name as Yuri, Yuri Mikhailovich Kiatrenko, and his current position was the Chief of Staff of the 57th Army Group, and he was considered Yuri's assistant. Yuri felt unfamiliar with this man's name, and he probably wasn't a capable person. In the past few days of cooperation, Yuri also noticed that the other party's ability was insufficient, mainly because his thinking was not broad enough, which should be caused by his lack of experience in actual combat. However, this assistant also had an advantage, that is, his execution ability was very strong. As long as the task was assigned, he could always arrange and complete it in time. In other words, this guy was destined to be a deputy, lacking the courage and ability to be independent.
After listening to Yuri's words, Kiatrenko just nodded but did not comment. He did not even say that the placement of prisoners of war required the approval of the Military Committee. He completely followed Yuri's lead.
In fact, Yuri didn't know that he was already a famous commander in the Soviet Red Army. Not to mention his previous achievements, the fact that he led the broken 62nd Army to hold on in the ruined city of Stalingrad under the fierce attack of the German Ninth Army was enough to make many high-level commanders of the Soviet Army look up to him. More importantly, he was too young, and this youth itself was his qualification.
With these foundations, commanders like Kiatrenko who lack front-line combat experience can feel tremendous pressure in front of him. To be honest, Kiatrenko really does not have the confidence to put forward his own suggestions and opinions in front of Yuri.
After passing through the buffer zone on the edge of the lake area, Yuri and his party entered the defense line built by the Hungarians. Before that, the entire Hungarian defense line had been completely defeated. An entire army, more than one and a half divisions in the offensive zone of the 57th Army alone, surrendered to the Soviet army, and the rest were either killed in battle or fled. The fighting in the three major lakes area was over.
