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The Soviet tank force had an estimated strength of 15,000 tanks at the beginning of the invasion. By October that force had, in the central sector, been reduced to 150. [ 49 ] Despite the clear victories being won and the rapid advances deep into Soviet territory, the Luftwaffe had lost nearly 1,000 aircraft destroyed within the first two ...
The Soviet Union had around 23,000 tanks available of which 14,700 were combat-ready. [161] Around 11,000 tanks were in the western military districts that faced the German invasion force. [11] Hitler later declared to some of his generals, "If I had known about the Russian tank strength in 1941 I would not have attacked". [162]
Again, the Luftwaffe interdicted and the three bomber groups flew ground support missions at Ostrov, cutting off all supply lines to the city and destroyed 140 Soviet tanks for two bombers lost. More Soviet air strikes against the spearheads were repulsed with high losses. [110] On 7 July, Soviet aviation did play an important role in slowing ...
The German air arm was to help prevent a total collapse of Army Group Centre. Despite the Soviets' best efforts, the Luftwaffe had contributed enormously to the survival of Army Group Centre. Between 17 and 22 December the Luftwaffe destroyed 299 motor vehicles and 23 tanks around Tula, hampering the Red Army's pursuit of the German Army. [96] [97]
The three Soviet fronts had altogether 2.5 million men (including 78,556 soldiers of the 1st Polish Army), 6,250 tanks, 7,500 aircraft, 41,600 artillery pieces and mortars, 3,255 truck-mounted Katyusha rocket launchers (nicknamed 'Stalin's Organ'), and 95,383 motor vehicles, many manufactured in the US.
Hermann Göring, the first Supreme Commander of the Luftwaffe (in office: 1935–1945) Robert Ritter von Greim, the second and last Supreme Commander of the Luftwaffe (in office: April–May 1945) The Luftwaffe [N 2] (German pronunciation: [ˈlʊftvafə] ⓘ) was the aerial-warfare branch of the Wehrmacht before and during World War II.
[16] [c] The Luftwaffe destroyed numerous Soviet cities through bombing, including Minsk, Sevastopol, and Stalingrad. 20,528 tons of bombs were dropped on Sevastopol in June 1942 alone. [170] German bombing efforts on the Eastern Front dwarfed its commitments in the west.
Luftwaffe Fw 190, one of the German single-engine fighters targeted by Pointblank.. At the January 1943 Casablanca Conference, the Combined Chiefs of Staff agreed to conduct the Combined Bomber Offensive (CBO), and the British Air Ministry issued the Casablanca directive on 4 February with the object of: [6]