Tank Warfare on the Eastern Front 1943-1945: Red Steamroller

As if Model did not already have his hands full fending off both the Western and Bryansk Front attacks, Rokossovsky’s Central Front joined Operation Kutusov on the morning of 15 July by attacking AOK 9’s salient near Teploye. Major Sauvant’s Tigers occupied excellent overwatch positions on high ground and they proved a formidable obstacle to the Soviet 16th and 19th Tank Corps. Over the course of 15–17 July, Sauvant’s 16–20 Tigers knocked out 54 Soviet tanks at the cost of only two Tigers destroyed.¹³⁵ Nevertheless, Model could not hold off three Soviet fronts indefinitely, even by shuffling his Panzer-Divisionen around the perimeter of the shrinking Orel salient. Instead, Model opted on 16 July to pull AOK 9 back to its original start line for Zitadelle and leave just 4.Panzer-Division and Sauvant’s Tigers to hold off Rokossovsky, while he shifted the rest of his armour to deal with Popov and Bagramyan. Model sent Harpe to lead the effort to contain Bagramyan’s breakthrough. Luftflotte 6 also received significant reinforcements, including Hans-Ulrich Rudel’s anti-tank Stukas from III./StG 2 and Hauptmann Erich Hartmann’s III./JG 52.¹³⁶ Harpe used the 18. and 20.Panzer-Division to block Sakhno’s 5 TC while Luftflotte 6 tried to gain air superiority from 1 VA, but failed. Luftwaffe aircraft losses over the Orel salient mounted rapidly and Luftflotte 6 was unable to give Model the amount of air support needed to mount successful counter-attacks on the ground. Rudel was shot down (but survived) and even Erich Hartmann’s elite Jagdgruppe had its hands full with 1 VA’s more numerous fighters.¹³⁷ Bagramyan continued to advance, but Zhukov denied him further reinforcements for the moment and demanded that he push east toward Bolkhov rather than south to cut off the Orel salient. Zhukov was apparently worried about pushing too much armour off into a void when he knew that Model still had powerful mobile reserves and he decided to reign Bagramyan in and conduct Kutusov in an orthodox, set-piece style rather than as a bold battle of manoeuvre. Zhukov had been defeated by Model in the Rzhev salient only seven months prior and now decided to play it safe – which saved Model’s two armies from encirclement.

In the past, the Soviets had been unable to get three Fronts to work simultaneously against a single German army, but now the operational-level efficiency of the Red Army had increased to the point where coordinated action was achieved and the Germans were being pounded from all directions. Soviet artillery was particularly dominant, gradually wearing down every German front-line position. Faced with a deteriorating situation, Model opted to conduct spoiling attacks with his panzers to knock the Soviets off balance. On 17 July, 2. and 8.Panzer-Divisionen mounted a sharp counter-attack against Panov’s 1 GTC that knocked out 25 tanks. However, Rendulic’s XXXV Armeekorps was gradually being worn down by continuous infantry and artillery attacks from Popov’s 3rd and 63rd Armies, forcing it back toward Orel. Model authorized Rendulic to conduct tactical withdrawals as needed, without the permission of either Hitler or the OKH. By the time that Zhukov finally allowed Rybalko’s rebuilt 3rd Guards Tank Army (3 GTA) to be committed on Popov’s Front on 19 July, Rendulic had already pulled back to shorten his lines and the Soviet armoured fist hit empty positions.