216 Infanterie Division

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The 216. Infanterie Division - 1941/1942.

Partisan Operations Lokot - Summer 1942.

Unternehmen “Grünspecht IV”.

Operation Grünspecht IV began on July 22, 1942. For this purpose, the battalion was placed under the control of the Royal Hungarian 102nd Light Division and reached the Tarrasowka staging area in the morning of that day. For the “Grünspecht IV” operation, the towns of Kokorewka and Leninsky were to be taken.

The militia was supposed to support the operation. However, the subordinate militia of 150 men and two armored patrol cars were delayed by 1 1/2 hours. After reaching the exit of the town, the two armored reconnaissance vehicles broke down due to engine failure. They failed for the operation. A mine detonated at the intersection of Holzbahnweg and Anmarschweg, killing 3 militia soldiers.

When the railway embankment was reached, the militia reported enemy machine guns. The partisans withdrew after a brief exchange of fire. The battalion command post was then set up on the railway embankment. The militia separated from the battalion and continued westward, bypassing Kokorewka and Leninsky and then attacking from the west. The battalion was supposed to shield the locations from the north.

While the battalion waited on the embankment for the attack to begin, it came under fire from mortars and 7.62-cm anti-tank guns. The railway embankment protected the battalion from the shells so that there were no casualties. At 10:00 hours the battalion commander decided to bring forward his own attack to 11:00 hours. By then the militia should have completed the evasion and begun the attack on Leninsky and Kokorewka.

At 11:00 hours the 1st and 2nd Companies were to attack and take the station and North Kokorewka on both sides of the railway. The 2nd company was able to quickly reach the location and penetrate it. The 1st Company had to fight with bunkers on the railway embankment, which had to be taken out one by one. After the bunkers were eliminated, the train station and the town of Kokorewka were quickly taken. The place was then burned down. The battalion then assembled at the Kokorewka train station and marched back to the old quarters.

Sources: https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Gl ... Bat216.htm
Original Fotoalbum Funker bzw. Nachrichtenabteilung. Einsatz Frankreich und Russland

Cheers. Raúl M

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Hello to all ; more......................

The 216. Infanterie Division - 1941/1942.

Partisan Operations Lokot - Summer 1942.

Unternehmen “Grünspecht V”.

On July 30, 1942, Operation Grünspecht V was carried out. The battalion was subordinate to the Royal Hungarian 102nd Light Division as part of a combat group. The order was to conquer the towns of Altuchowo, Scheshuyeva and Krapjwa and then burn them down. The Kampfgruppe Nord, consisting of the Pioneer Battalion 216, the Aufklärungs-Schwadron 216, 70 men of the III. / Hungarian Infantry Regiment 42 and an signal troop from Nachrichten-Abteilung 216 were supposed to attack and take Altuchyovo from the north and northeast.

The Kampfgruppe Süd, a Hungarian battalion, was supposed to attack and take Shushuyeva and Krapyvana from the east and south. On the night of July 30th, Kampfgruppe Nord marched off at 02:30 hours. The march first led to the railway fork south of Nawlja on the Nawlja - Altuchowo route, where the Hungarian Field Guard 6 was waiting. At 08:15 hours the block site 2.7 km northeast of Scheshuyevo was reached. Due to the poor road conditions, the heavy weapons and vehicles had to be left behind here.

While crossing a forest, the 3rd company was separated from the battalion. This had encountered partisans during the attack and was stranded in front of the forest near Altuchowo. The 2nd and 3rd companies were ordered to attack the forest and then the town from the north. The reconnaissance squadron was supposed to attack from the west. The 1st Company remained as a reserve.

The attack began at 14:15 hours. After a short, violent and well-placed fire from the IV. / Artillery Regiment 216, the units, reinforced by 70 Hungarians, went on the attack. The grove was penetrated after a fierce firefight. The first casualties occurred due to grenade launcher (mortar) fire: Lieutenant Triebsch fell. The enemy stubbornly defended itself on the left wing of the 3rd Company. A platoon from the 3rd Company was deployed to surround the enemy, which succeeded in defeating the enemy and regaining ground. The village of Altuchowo was reached by the first groups. House by house had to be searched systematically. With little resistance, the northern part was in German hands at 15:15 hours.

The Hungarians, who were advancing from the south, had not yet approached, so the combat group had to fight its way further into the western and southern parts of the town. By 16:00 hours the place was firmly in German hands. At 19:00 hours the combat group began burning the place down. The well was blown up with concentrated charges. At around 20:15 hours the destruction was carried out as ordered. The combat group moved to Scheshuyeva and the first parts arrived there at 21:30 hoours. On the march there, a vehicle was destroyed by a mine. One rifleman was killed, Lieutenant Müller and Lieutenant Stollweg and two engineers were slightly wounded. The rest of the combat group moved on to Sheshuyeva. Under the leadership of Lieutenant Kaiser, the 1st company reconnoitred on the morning of the 31st in the area 3 km northwest of Altuchowo and, on the way back, destroyed the remaining buildings, chimneys and wells that had remained standing. The town of Sheshuyeva was also prepared for destruction.

After the 1st company returned at 13:50 hours the burning began. The combat group moved towards Pogreby around 14:00 hours. The following were captured or destroyed during this operation: 2 x 3.7 cm anti-tank guns, 1 x 7.62 cm anti-tank gun, 3 light and 2 heavy machine guns, 1 light grenade launcher, 45 rifles and some vehicles. Large quantities of ammunition, particularly for heavy weapons, were destroyed by fire. The partisans left behind 4 prisoners and more than 80 dead. (Note: This report does not provide any information about German own losses.)

Sources: https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Gl ... Bat216.htm
Original Fotoalbum Funker bzw. Nachrichtenabteilung. Einsatz Frankreich und Russland

Cheers. Raúl M .

Feliz Navidad - Feliz Natal - Frohe Weihnachten - Joyeux Noël - Merry Christmas - Wesołych Świąt!

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The 216. Infanterie Division - 1941/1942.

Partisan Operations Lokot - Summer 1942.

Unternehmen “Grünspecht VI”.

On August 5, 1942, Operation Grünspecht VI was launched. Weak enemy forces had again established themselves in the Kholmetschi, Terebuschka and Gavrilova Guta station areas. The staff and around 2-300 partisans were supposed to be in the Maltsevo and Proletarsky area. The appearance of two tanks had to be expected. The battalion remained under the Royal Hungarian 102nd Light Division. This gave the order: "On August 6th, the Hungarian Regiment 53 will occupy the Terebuschka and Gavrilova Gula train stations. The Schnelle Abteilung 216 (Fast Detachment), starting from Terebushka, attacks Proletarsky, the Pi Btl 216 (Engineer Battalion) from Terebuschka Maizevo, destroys the enemy and destroys the towns ."

Since the battalion had an approach distance of 80 km, it marched out of its accommodation area on August 5th. At around 10 a.m. Chut Cholmetschi was reached and passed through. On August 6th at 1 p.m., the Hungarian 53rd Infantry Regiment advanced on the Kholmetschi train station. The towns of Terebushka and Gavrilowa Guta were then occupied after a short firefight. These locations had already been destroyed in a previous operation.

The Pi Btl 216 reached the Kholmetschi main train station around 6 p.m. and went to rest here. The following were subordinate to the battalion: 2 8.8-cm anti-aircraft guns from the schnelle Abteilung 216, a Hungarian radio troop and a communications troop from the Nachrichten-Abteilung 216 with radio and telephone. On August 7, 1942, the battalion marched from the Kholmetschi train station to Terebushka at 4 a.m. and continued the march in a northwesterly direction directly to Maltsevo. At 6:30 a.m. in front of the forestry department (1 1/2 km northwest of Terebuschka), the head of the marching group encountered three enemy riders who fled in a northwesterly direction. At 7:30 a.m. the tip encountered a deeply mined tree barrier 1 km southeast of Maltsewo.

However, the obstacle could be easily circumvented. A 7.5 cm anti-tank gun was also captured here. A reconnaissance that advanced as far as Malzewo was unable to detect any enemy movements. The 2nd Company was ordered to attack the location. But no sooner had the 2nd Company reached it than it was caught in a fire attack. The 3rd Company was then launched into a comprehensive attack on the town from the east. In the local battle that followed, the partisans also used the two suspected tanks. After a short and difficult fight, the partisans withdrew into the nearby forest. The companies then secured the edge of the forest and began burning the place down. At 11:15 a.m. the schnelle Abteilung 216 reached the town of Malzewo. It then drove back to Chut Kholmetsky via Proletarskij. The battalion moved to Terebuschka with a captured howitzer, took a lunch break there until 3:30 p.m. and marched into the old quarters.

Sources: https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Gl ... Bat216.htm
Original Fotoalbum Funker bzw. Nachrichtenabteilung. Einsatz Frankreich und Russland

Cheers. Raúl M .

Feliz Año Nuevo - Happy New Year - feliz Ano Novo - gluckliches Neues Jahr - Bonne Année - Felice Anno Nuovo - Szczęśliwego nowego roku!