Rare footage - Tank ramming

August 17, 1943 the village of Lower Syrovatka Sumy region, Ukraine. T-34 ("Nikolai Darashkevich") 43 3 gv.tp gv.MK rammed Shtug ("Adler") 202 Division SHO

A letter from a veteran of the 43rd Guards. Tank Regiment A. X. Gerbina
August 17th, 1943 started artillery preparation before entering the body through the gap. The fight was put our regiment, and we went on the attack. Our company found itself in a difficult situation: peaty soil and open terrain. German artillery shelling led direct fire. Two or three tanks were hit and began to burn. I could see it, and reported to the commander of a platoon Guards. Art. Lieutenant Alexander Yakovlev. He gave a command to suppress the enemy's guns.
Our tank was the inscription "Nikolai Darashkevich & quot; - Name and surname of our "Bati & quot ;, who died at Stalingrad, the regimental commander. The commander of the tank - Alexander Yakovlev, a former student; gunner - Vanya Vysotsky, the commander of the surname guns do not remember
2 photos via foto-history





Hooked success, we were chasing the Germans. Ahead I saw staff car, rushed to her, and at full speed tank knocked her into a ditch. After that, he chased the second special purpose vehicle, which went from the garden to the road. She came to the rescue of "Tiger & quot ;. I noticed it in the 5 - 8 meters, when a little blown away the dust from the machine.
In such an environment, at a speed of 50 kilometers per hour, I had no choice but to press on the levers and ram the "Tiger & quot ;. This happened at a railway crossing near the station Syrovatka.
...
After ramming a while I was unconscious. When he awoke, he saw a light in the tank, heard the groans of the wounded lieutenant and commander of the gun. I shook radioman Vanya Vysotsky, and we have to save them.
When they went to the attack, then the lever zubchatki I put the "gas & quot ;, so that if push is not stalled the engine. When he awoke, he heard that the engine is running, but the speed is turned off from the impact, the tower with the gun moved from the hull. Legs Yakovleva crushed battery and gun commander clamped between the body of the tank and the end of the tower.
To release the gun commander, by switching speeds I got the barrel of the gun rest against your "Tiger & quot; and moved the tower. This allowed Van pull the gun commander.
The tank looked into one of the two machine gunners, who were assigned to us, an ethnic Kazakh. I asked him where the Germans? He replied that they are not, the crew of "Tiger & quot; I fled. I got out of the tank and saw the German side of the wagon, drawn by one horse. She puts on her wounded. Do this quickly, we took machine guns, grenades and moved forward. Machine gunners from the cart and drove us wounded. It is noticed by the Germans. Their tanks that stood near the church in the village, opened fire. When I heard shells exploding and looked around, he saw a broken wagon, fallen horse killed by submachine Alexander Yakovlev and bashnera. After that, the three made their way to her, but to move us again fired. Remnant temple gunman was killed, the Kazakh. We left two: me and Vanya Vysotsky.



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