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Barbarossa - Part 6

© William Waller

At the end of April 1942, the German armies in Russia hung poised for the summer offensive. However, as usual, Hitler was unable to think in proper logistical terms and the objectives he set his various Army Groups were far beyond possible. Nevertheless the initial successes were enough to revise even these grandiose ideas. His original plan had been for Army Group B to strike due east from its base south of Kursk, to capture Voronezh, an important industrial and communications centre. From there General Paulus' 6th Army would head south-east for Stalingrad. Army Group A and the 1st Panzer Army would set off at the same time as Group B, from their base south of Kharkov, to take Rostov. Then the Armies would split, part southwards to the oilfields of the Caucasus, and the other part north east to Stalingrad. It is important to bear in mind the distances involved in these operations, distances which Hitler could as easily measure for himself on any map, but which he seemingly failed to do. Group B's initial target, Voronezh, was about 100 miles from the starting point, and Stalingrad a further 350 miles!! Group B/1st Panzers were firstly to move about 250 miles to Rostov and then the southern thrust to the beginnings of the oilfields at Maykop, 200 miles further on. Finally, the troops making for Stalingrad would have another 250 miles to go. (All these distances are as the crow flies.) Hitler was some 700 miles in a straight line from Group B's base and neither he nor any of his Chiefs of Staff had been to any part of the front line at any time.

These distances are given, not to show how far advances had to be made to attain objectives, but to show how far supplies had to be moved once the troops were at those objectives, whether victorious or not. These miles had also to be guarded against the incessant partisan warfare the Russians carried on, and these miles represented, in the summer, so much excessive wear and tear on tanks and engines as the fine talc-like dust crept into every bearing and cylinder. Without a truly enormous build up of supplies beforehand and the preparation of strongpoints at which machines could be repaired, all of which would take months, the German armies were almost certainly destined to be defeated by logistics, outside any action by the enemy.

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