Tank Warfare on the Eastern Front, 1941-1942: Schwerpunkt

Even though the Mozhaisk line had finally been pierced, the Germans lacked the resources to continue the advance, with Panzerarmee 4 reporting that it was only receiving 15–20 per cent of its daily supply requirements.¹²⁷ The fighting at Mozhaisk and Volokolamsk had expended the last appreciable reserves of fuel and ammunition, so a brief lull settled over the Moscow front. Heeresgruppe Mitte had suffered 72,870 casualties in October, including 13,669 dead, as well as about 250 tanks and assault guns lost. Von Bock did have five panzer divisions within 100km of Moscow, but Zhukov had used the time gained at Borodino, Maloyaroslavets and Volokolamsk to rebuild a 50km front protecting the capital. The Red Army’s tankers – from eleven different brigades – had played a major role in slowing and then stopping the German advance. Soviet losses had also been heavy and Zhukov was left with no appreciable armoured reserve, just scattered tank companies supporting knots of resistance at key points. On the German side, the pursuit operation was badly bungled by Reinhardt and Höpner, who essentially delegated authority down to corps, division and even brigade commanders. After winning big at Vyazma, von Bock violated the military principle of concentration by dispersing his armour to pursue multiple objectives, particularly Kalinin.

While Zhukov fought his intense delaying actions throughout October, the Stavka used the time to organize fresh armies that would turn the tide within a matter of weeks. Another seventeen tank brigades arrived at the front during October, replenishing some of the grievous armour losses at Vyazma-Bryansk and in the Ukraine. Most of these tank brigades had been formed in just 1–2 weeks, meaning that training and unit cohesion were minimal, but the troops were fresh and eager to do their part. On paper, these seventeen new tank brigades should have been equipped with 1,139 tanks, including 119 KV-1 and 510 T-34, but Soviet tank production was at its lowest ebb of the war in October 1941 and only 396 tanks were built that month, with just ninety-one being KV-1 and 185 T-34s.

Consequently, the tank brigades were outfitted with anything available, including repaired tanks, obsolescent tanks that had been in storage or training units and the first British-built Lend-Lease tanks that were just arriving. In reality, the new tank brigades averaged thirty-one tanks – not the sixty-seven authorized – and only between none and four KV-1 and one and twenty T-34s. While the T-34 was superior to all current German tank models, many were sent to the front without basic issue items and tools, which meant that the crews could not repair simple problems like thrown track or replace damaged roadwheels – resulting in high non-operational rates due to non-combat defects.

Guderian Tries for Tula, 22 October–30 November

After two weeks of inactivity at Mtensk, Guderian struggled to get his Panzerarmee 2 back into the fight in the last days of October. Aside from a paucity of fuel and ammunition, he only had two panzer divisions from von Schweppenburg’s XXIV Armeekorps (mot.) to continue the advance toward Tula. The Bryank Front’s 26th Army erected a stout defense around Mtensk based upon the 6th Guards Rifle Division and the 11th Tank Brigade.