In fact, while Marshal Manstein and Lin Wei were racking their brains to get the Imperial Division out of trouble, Marshal Timoshenko was also worrying about the same thing as the two of them. Compared with the two of them, Timoshenko The pressure on the marshal is extraordinary. Now the entire Southwest Front Army's front is being continuously compressed and may collapse at any time. The weight of a front army is not comparable to that of an imperial division.
"Is there any news about the attacks of the 2nd and 5th Independent Cavalry Corps? Has the attack of the Southern Front already caused the German troops in Lochvita to collapse?" Marshal Timoshenko saw the commander of the Southwest Front, Ki, walking in. Admiral Erbonos asked. The current battle situation simply made Marshal Timoshenko feel the atmosphere of doomsday. The Soviet Fifth and 21st Army Groups located in the northern part of the encirclement front fell into a state of disintegration. They were divided on both sides of Priluki, and the troops were in disarray. The Soviet 37th Army, still holding on to Kiev, was almost surrounded on three sides and could only defend within a radius of 25 kilometers. The Soviet 26th Army was still fortified along the Dnieper River, and the remnants of the 38th Army northwest of Kremenchug were also commanded by it.
General Kilponos shook his head in pain and said, "The German troops stationed in Lochwica are the Imperial Division and the Gendarmerie Division affiliated to the German Waffen SS. They are the leader of the organization, General Krupp. The troops established, the first batch of armed SS combat troops totaled more than 30,000 people at full strength, the gendarmerie division exceeded 50,000 people, and the number of tanks was two to three times that of the Wehrmacht of the same level! The second and The Fifth Independent Cavalry Army has been attacking day and night, but now the main position of Lochvita is still in the hands of the Germans, and Lieutenant General Ryabyshev's westward group in the east has made little progress!" Kilpo General North said these words almost in tears. General Kilponos had too much emotion for the Southwest Front and could not even imagine what its future fate would be. General Kilponos knew that once he issued a breakout order, the various armies that had been fighting would definitely be in chaos. This would also cut off the last glimmer of hope for the Southwest Front. Therefore, General Kilponos really could not put the retreat into effect. Two words came out of my mouth.
"Hey..." How could Marshal Timoshenko not know what General Kilponos was thinking? So he asked, "Is there no news from the Supreme Command yet? In this situation, we must break out! But once this happens, it will mean giving up the Southwest Front Army. This order is really difficult to give!"
After speaking, Marshal Timoshenko rubbed his somewhat red eyes and said, as if sighing or expressing emotion, "It's dawn!" General Kilponos followed Timoshenko's gaze. When I went out the window, I saw a red sun rising in the east. Daytime on September 17th has arrived. This is also the decisive day for the Southwest Front. Life or death depends on whether we can break through the Lochvita section today. If we break through, , at least two group armies can be rescued. If the entire Southwest Front Army cannot be wiped out, it will be a sure thing.
"General Kilponos!" Marshal Timoshenko stopped General Kilponos who wanted to go out and said, "Contact Moscow. The high command should know the situation here now. There is something wrong." Leave the final decision to the headquarters!"
Admiral Kilponos paused slightly and said with difficulty, "I know!" He walked out of the office.
At eight o'clock in the morning, General Kilponos contacted the headquarters. After a detailed analysis of the current situation of the Kiev battle, he finally asked, "In view of the current situation, does the headquarters agree to abandon Ukraine?" The person on the phone pondered. After waiting for a long time, Marshal Shaposhnikov who answered the phone said after a while, "The Supreme Leader has agreed to give up!" The last sentence also showed that even Stalin had no hope for the battle. Although the Southern Front was trying to rescue the Southwest Front, it was obvious that Stalin had already seen the large Southeast Army Group heading north to Lochvita. In fact, at this time in Lochvita, a division of armed SS troops had already arrived. The front that was very dangerous yesterday has now been stabilized again. With the arrival of other troops in Lochvita, there is no longer any danger. Got it!
Just like Marshal Timoshenko said, the decision that was difficult to make in General Kilponos's heart has been made by the headquarters with help. No matter how he feels now, it is no longer important anyway. At 8:30 in the morning on September 17, General Kilponos gave an order to the various armies of the Southwest Front that were still fighting. In fact, the text only had two words; "Breakout!" The plan was in accordance with Kilponos's order. The general carried out a general breakout on the route that he had planned a few days ago. According to the breakout route he prescribed for each group army, the 21st Army broke through Romney. At the same time, the Second Cavalry Army attacked Rom from the east. The Fifth Army broke out in the direction of Lochvita, and the Thirty-seventh Army followed suit. The remnants of the 26th Army and the 38th Army broke through Lubne, and the headquarters of each army sent a reply to Priluki saying "I understand." Only the 37th Army Headquarters commanded by Lieutenant General Vlasov did not respond: the Army's connection with Kiev has been interrupted.
Almost at the time General Kilponos ordered the implementation of the general breakout, Marshal Manstein, Chief of Staff of Army Group South, and Lin Wei, who was marching towards Lochvita, also issued almost the same order, "Tighten up." Encirclement, compress the space of the Soviet Red Army, all units attack according to the predetermined plan!" The mentality of the commanders on both sides when issuing the order clearly reflects the mentality of the soldiers of both Germany and the Soviet Union. Now even the most dangerous Lochvita area All Imperial Division soldiers know that their country will soon win victory on the battlefield.
As feared, the Southwestern Front Army Group began to fall into chaos not long after the breakout order was issued. Since the beginning of the war, the Soviet Army Group, which had suffered partial setbacks on the Southern Army Group more than once and had been fighting within a solid defense line so far, The army, due to a complete failure of command, fell into chaos in the first two days of the encirclement battle. The Soviet armies were divided into battle groups that were not connected to each other and could only fight independently according to the situation and terrain. The tightening of the Kiev ring did not go according to plan, but gradually shrank like a balloon with a hole in it. In other words, the German troops in various places did not go through fierce battles. It was entirely because the Soviet Red Army rushed in and out at a loss, helping the German army to compress the encirclement.
The German 24th and 257th Infantry Divisions have now turned northeast to attack the rear of the Soviet troops fortified to the east near Orshica, or force the enemy to move closer to the German 16th Armored Division. The 24th Infantry Division prepared at Noviils Havez for the attack on Orshica. The 31st Infantry Regiment is on the left and the 102nd Infantry Regiment is on the right. The enemy put up extremely fierce and tenacious resistance until the last bullet was fired, causing our army's offensive to make no progress. Even after the 32nd Infantry Regiment joined the battle, there was still no improvement. The 125th Infantry Division crossed over. After crossing the Sula River, it immediately turned north, forcing the Soviet army to withdraw towards the Sula River from the south and southwest. The Soviet army attempted to cross the Sula River near the village of Tarasovka and then fled eastward. They attacked the 125th Reconnaissance Battalion, which had occupied the bridge east of the village. The battalion suffered heavy losses and began to retreat. At this time, Lieutenant Colonel Reinhardt, the commander of the 421st Infantry Regiment, personally led a company reinforced by several anti-tank guns and invaded the village of Tarasovka, fighting with the exhausted 125th Reconnaissance Corps. Battalion rendezvous. Seventeen hundred Soviet troops were captured.
However, the surrounded Soviet troops did not give up the fight. The four divisions launched another attack on the 16th Armored Division on September 20 with part of their strength. The Soviet army crossed the river at Onishki and broke through the encirclement in the northeast. In the afternoon, the 1st Battalion of the 64th German Infantry Regiment, the 2nd Battalion of the 16th Artillery Regiment and later the 1st Battalion of the 79th Infantry Regiment carried out a counterattack. Their first counterattack was repulsed by the heroic Soviet troops. Our infantrymen fixed their bayonets and launched a second counterattack. At this time, the enemy was repulsed, and the breach on the southern flank was closed again. The northern section of the 16th Armored Division was also quiet. In order to reduce the pressure on the first battalion of the 64th Infantry Regiment, which suffered heavy losses, Colonel Hefer, the commander of the 64th Infantry Regiment, ordered his second battalion to attack Krupodelenzu. However, engineers did not repair the destroyed bridge until 7 p.m., so the attack had to be carried out at night.
The 2nd Battalion of the 64th Infantry Regiment encountered a huge column in the darkness. Not knowing whether it was friend or foe, the vanguard unit asked: "Password!" The other party did not answer. At this time, the German machine guns began to roar. After a few minutes the firing stopped and the Soviets came over - but without weapons. The Soviet battle group that was ordered to assault the 1st Battalion of the 64th German Infantry Regiment surrendered.
The attacks launched by the 24th and 125th Infantry Divisions from the south and southwest finally made progress. The 31st Infantry Regiment of the 24th Infantry Division captured the swamps west of Orshitsa. The 5th Company of the 102nd Infantry Regiment used flamethrowers to eliminate the Soviet troops in the permanent fortifications. The Soviet troops gave up their resistance to the German 24th Infantry Division and withdrew to Orshica. They fought hard, like Like wild beasts, they pounced on the security positions of the 16th Armored Division in order to open a passage. They ran rampant in this huge encirclement, trying to find a weakly defended area. The 79th Infantry Regiment was once again in crisis. The Soviet army successfully passed through the position of the first battalion of the regiment and reached the artillery position. The German artillery rotated the artillery 180 degrees and suppressed the crazy and desperate struggling enemies with direct fire. Groups of enemies fell in front of their positions. But new Soviet infantry squads, companies and battalions, as well as artillery, baggage troops and cavalry, continued to appear. They passed over the bodies of their fallen comrades and continued to attack. During this time, the Soviet army temporarily recaptured Solotucci and Petrich from the German armor. The 24th Infantry Division arrived, and its 31st Infantry Regiment assaulted the embankment near Orshica, occupied Orshica, and then established contact with the 16th Armored Division. On the 24th, the gap in the German front was closed.
Let’s not talk about the progress of Army Group South. On September 22, Lin Wei and the leading guard arrived at Lochvita. When they entered the city of Lochvita, Lin Wei saw General Paul Hausser waiting for him. , the entire city of Lochvita is now filled with German patrolling soldiers, and the Soviets who used to live here are no longer visible. Five days have passed since the most dangerous time in Lohvita City. At that time, the most dangerous time , the Southern Front offensive troops in the east had advanced to a position only ten kilometers away from Lochvita, but at noon that day, SS reinforcements arrived. After that, the Southern Front was no longer willing to attack Lochvita. Police pose a threat.
But Lin Wei could still imagine the tragic battle a few days ago from the thick gauze on some soldiers. With a slight nod to these soldiers who fought bloody battles, Lin Wei walked into Paul Hausser's headquarters on the side of the main road in Lochvita. After not seeing General Paul Hausser for a while, he became It was different from Lin Wei's impression. Although he was unshaven, he could not hide the deep joy on his face. Of course, Lin Wei would give a small compliment to the SS general at this time, "Your Excellency, General, the Empire The efforts made by the division in the Lochvita area are very important for the entire Kiev battle!" Lin Wei suddenly pointed his finger to the west and said, "Now the most powerful front army in the Soviet Union, the five group armies have one million People are surrounded there, I wonder if Your Majesty the General is interested in contributing more to the battle?"
"It's my honor!" Admiral Paul Hausser accepted Lin Wei's compliment unceremoniously and pulled out the map. Before Lin Wei could speak, he said first, "According to the current situation, The Soviet Red Army troops preparing to break out from us are two armies, plus the two cavalry corps sent by Timoshenko earlier, there are a lot of people! But the Soviet Fifth Army had already fought with the Southern Army Group's Third Army at the beginning of the war. The Sixth Group Army is fighting fiercely, and it has not been corrected. How much combat power is left is still unknown! The Thirty-seventh Group Army is left. The reconnaissance trends of the Air Force show that this Soviet group army seems to be in trouble. I don’t know what happened, and other group armies Compared with the retreat, their retreat route is messy and seems to be even more chaotic!" A few days are enough for Admiral Paul Hausser to have enough time to understand the situation on the battlefield, especially on the premise that the Luftwaffe has control of the air. Below, the movements of the Soviet Red Army were extremely clear.
"General Paul Hausser, can the number of tanks in the Imperial Division still meet the demand?" Lin Wei asked. After all, World War II was, to a certain extent, a competition between the industries of both sides. If the Imperial Division has been seriously damaged, Lin Wei They will definitely not be allowed to serve as the main offensive force again.
"There is no problem with the tank, it's just a serious problem with the fuel!" What General Paul Hausser said is also true. The long front and the ubiquitous guerrillas put Germany's logistics under a huge test. But in Lin Wei's eyes, this is not a problem at all, not to mention his relationship with Goering, and it requires the fuel of several air force divisions, which is nothing at all to the current German Air Force.
"In this case, the Imperial Division is in the middle, with the Gotz von Bersingen Division on the left and the Netherlands Division composed of Dutch volunteers on the right! The troops of the three divisions can march into the depths of the encirclement!" Lin Wei looked at it! He nodded and said while looking at the map. Seeing the happy look of General Paul Hausser, Lin Wei couldn't help pouring cold water on him and said, "But old general, you only have three days. We must solve the problem in Moscow now." Well, if you want to get involved, it’s best not to waste your time here!”
After a while, all the division commanders of the armed SS who came to Lochwica had arrived, and Lin Wei began to assign tasks. In addition to the westward assault group centered on the Imperial Division, the Gendarmerie Division would also attack eastward. Attacking the Soviet Southern Front, during the three-day storm, the Southern Front's human losses may not be worth mentioning for this front, but the losses of the mechanized troops were very huge. Lin Wei also read the battle report. The Imperial Division and the Gendarmerie Division destroyed two One hundred and eighty-seven tanks, according to the establishment of the Soviet Red Army, this is already the number of tanks for a mechanized army. Now the power in Lin Wei's hands is a bit shabby. Almost all the German troops of the Armed SS have combat missions. For this reason, the supporting troops sent by Lin Wei to the Military Police Division are all troops composed of foreign volunteers. They were the SS15 1st Latvian Division, the SS20 1st Estonian Division and the SS26 Hungarian Division.
In fact, Lin Wei himself was not sure that an assault group composed of these troops would attack the Southern Front. So the focus this time was not on these troops, but on several other troops that had already detoured behind the Southern Front five days ago. Each division, that is to say, the advancing group only played a containment role, and it was the troops of the Frundsburg Division that really played a decisive role.
In the past few days when the Imperial and Gendarmerie divisions were in trouble, the Police Armored Division was ordered to attack westward, cross the Lysadir River, and cut off the Priluki-Romny road. The next day the division captured Sekilenchi and crossed the Priluki-Romny road near noon. At this point, the division has completed its assigned mission. The Police Panzer Division held on to this area for another two days, after which all its battle groups were moved to Romney. At the same time, the SS Viking Panzer Division captured the transportation hub Priluki on the Uday River, thus Blocking the Soviet Union's retreat from here. Before the 20th, the SS Viking Panzer Division was also withdrawn from the shortened front and sent to the Romney area to the east.
At two o'clock in the afternoon on September 22, Lin Wei sent telegrams to the troops of the five military police, imperial, police, skeleton, and Viking divisions on the southern front, ordering these five armored divisions to solve the problems in front of them within three days. All battles begin on September 25th as they move north to participate in the Battle of Moscow, at which time their current positions will be taken by other infantry divisions. When Lin Wei sent the report, the Imperial Division and the Military Police Division had already begun to attack their opponents in accordance with the orders.