Prokhorovskaya battle Bashny.Net

On the eve of great holiday - 65th anniversary of the Great Patriotic War
I want to share the memories of a person who participated in one of the bloodiest meat grinders that terrible war - the Battle of Prokhorov. Unfortunately, the party died a few years ago, but thankfully managed to capture their memories on paper. The most interesting part of his memories and I want to tell you, my friends! This will allow us, after more than half a century, at least in part to introduce the atmosphere of the Second World War, and to understand what took place today Hell veterans, those days boys ...

Actually, the participant in the events.
Kusanin Vladimir (1924-2005) [next]




In August 1942 (I was 18), I was drafted into the Soviet army. We have taken the train in Leninsk-Kuznetsk, Kemerovo region. There I was in the infantry and machine-gun school officer, cadet. Machine gun "Maxim».
In late April 1943goda drove us to the station Dirt Lipetsk region. It dropped out of the cars, as then you can not go by train - German planes bombed and had to walk. Ahead of us was going train, the Germans bombed it, there were many casualties, and some soldiers "crazy." Dirt from the station walked in Belgorod, went on 20 hours a day, resting only from 12 pm to 16 pm. I had a load of 50 kg: hand gun 12 kg, 6 charged disks 5 kg of ammunition in the pouch on his belt, shovel, gas mask, anti-tank grenade, a simple grenade, grenade, helmet, duffel bag, roll from overcoat - an overcoat, a flask with water. In May 1943, two weeks passed. We got to the station "Liski", standing in the woods. We walked along the banks of the Don in June 1943, a strong heat, drink water - no. Here it was the Germans and all the villages are divided. People are not, so somewhere in the ruins of the people. By Don completely as the break-up floating corpses, black, at least a million corpses floated the whole of June. The waters have nowhere to take. German planes bombed the night of Art. Liski.
Then again in 2 days hike and take up defensive positions on July 5 dug in, sat day and again in the campaign, came on a steep bank of the Don and take up defensive positions in the trenches, and on July 10 again in the campaign. July 11 before lunch we were told - engage in battle tomorrow, write letters home. All of the sitting on the road and write a letter, I, too, wrote a letter home tomorrow to join the battle. In these campaigns, I have learned to sleep on the go and even had dreams go and you go automatically to build up all night sleep, wake up in the morning and already the sun was up. We were told the evening of July 11 in the morning at 5 o'clock to go out the front, and breakfast at 6 am to deploy to the front to fight. But we walked and late night, came at 6 o'clock in the morning and to the front, ie, 1 hour later, left hungry. Go back in order, and the Germans as opened mortar fire on us at 6 am on July 12, 1943. Approaching the good night, all of a sudden the smell of gunpowder, night light, a month, you can see in the dark blue smoke, we all came to life, felt: yes, it is advanced!
When the Germans opened up on us mortar fire, gave the command "Turn around! Running march! "We are running, the command" Down! "To" dig in! "Mina began to crumble as the one after the other, I let zalёg and dig. Then he sprinkled the mines for two hours or more.
Finally, the mortar shelling stopped, we command is heard, "Get up! Forward! "Before that, the platoon commander explained to us that the coming of the village ... (forgot the name), and on the right the village Kochetovka, rear, somewhere on this side of the station Prokhorovka to Belgorod 25 km, we will attack.
After the command "get up, come on!" I stood up, I look forward to seeing the village 1.5km ahead and to the left, here and there, the house clogged and abandoned me to 200-300 meters. Right Hollow, tussocks and swamp stretches towards the village of 100 meters. Before the village you can see a black stripe - is the German trenches, moving heads in helmets, slightly noticeable. Our soldiers have risen, they are much less, many are killed and injured by mortar fire, others go forward in the trenches, I went there too. And then we began to swoop down on the German fighters, scribbling machine guns and dropping bombs, artillery began, and then watch the German tanks are on us. I'm closer to the ravine in her swamp, tanks here will not go, they began to push the tracks soldier scribbling machine guns, soldiers, frantic running around on the field. Before the German trenches 700 meters, I lay down, chose the moment when our soldiers to come there and let's scribbling on the German trenches. Issued entire disk, I put a new one, and again put forward (!), But really do not run away, whistling bullets, mines, exploding shells, tanks work at all, the top fighters, artillery, is a continuous hum. From the terrible roar - machine guns, rifles, can not hear, everything merged into a continuous hum, which will not look everywhere you can see the explosions, but crazy men running around on the field and around me incessant explosions, the whistling of bullets! In what the hell I was! Again lay down, come back to scribble on German trenches, beware tanks, much of the fighters but beware of artillery is useless, that it will be! Gul is terrible, so it can not talk, can not hear the voice, the man moves his lips, and the voices are not heard. Somewhere nearby there is a tank battle tanks in 1200, on both sides. The Germans, you see, is perfectly prepared for defense, they all clearly put into the fight.
July 12: 14.00 o'clock I approached the German trenches 500 meters, then again, I decided to lie down and to turn a machine gun on the German trenches! Just I ducked and more do not remember anything. Recovering himself, lying face buried in the ground on the machine gun, I can not breathe, I rolled onto his back, pulling air into itself. But he does not go through the throat, I feel through a wound in the back sucks, squelching blood, I realized that I was injured but I do not know much, I understand that the lungs can not breathe again. Somehow calmed adapted barely breathe a little, so as not to suffocate me crept a soldier, aged 45 years, she asks where the wounded than you do to help? I say in my belt knife, cut the straps and take the haversack, deliver my shoulders, he did it. He says: "I, the same shot in the arm as you tie. I say: "Do not move with me, I will lie down, because I can not breathe. "He says - tell me your address, where you live? I said.
The fight goes full power. I was lying with his back to the ground to stop the bleeding. Everything was thinking what to do, I can not move. If the Germans go on the offensive, they will stay - will finish. I do not remember falling asleep. For the past five days we were always in the campaigns. I woke up the next day already in the early morning by the noise. At 6 in the morning the battle began with a bang. Bullets fly grass head knock, they fall on me, sometimes exploding nearby mines, broken buzz and plop down into the ground next to me. Suddenly, an earthquake, and I fell down on the ground, a terrible explosion, hit me a wave, much moved, laid his ears - a bomb exploded nearby, his head ringing. Fly fighter jets, scribbling machine guns, rumble tanks, guns. The shells, mines, machine guns is a continuous hum. What do I do not know, crawl - I can not move. I was lying, what will happen? Beyond that, I hear, the Germans began to approach me, and we began to move away, I realized that our retreat. Why do not we float the artillery, aircraft, tanks, like the Germans, do we have nothing! We do not regret our commanders, let us with rifles against a German engineering! I hear the approaching German soldiers, on the, they say something, pass near the two, I closed my eyes, I think, would be killed, but they did not stop, and went on our way. I hear the fight on and on goes our way, I realized that the Germans remained in the rear, there is no hope of salvation, lying, what will that God wills. The fight went away! What to do? Suddenly I heard a terrible roar, then the noise in the sky above me. I realized this Katyusha missiles flying toward the Germans !!! Finally, we gave a volley !!! Heard on the German side shells exploding "pa-pa-pa," there is hope for salvation!
Finally, the shells explode stopped, the Germans are silent, there was complete silence - about 10 minutes I lie and laugh with joy! Then again, the Germans began to shoot more.
The fight flared up, I was lying on my back, I zhmus to land me the bullets fly, exploding mines nearby. The shells, shards flying through me, buzz, plop down into the ground by German fighters over me, scribbling machine guns, diving somewhere close, tanks roar, the soul is broken with resentment, but where our something! Suddenly, once again on our side something like zarevёt for so hear me roar Katyusha missiles - flew to the German side, then hear them there began to explode - "pa-pa-pa" !!! This again played our Katyusha salvo, I laughed with joy, heart - joy! Again, there was complete silence. Again, though, and the fight was not, and so the fight is no longer started. The Germans began to retreat we went on the offensive !!! hear from our side the roar of battle is not as strong closer approaches me, I realized that the Germans were retreating. Apparently they penetrated 5-6 kilometers in our direction. I hear, has come close. Could hear their conversation, I closed my eyes and pretended to be dead. Quite a number have been a few people say something to each other in their own language passed me in his side, I breathed easy, now we have to wait for our soldiers, salvation comes, maybe stay alive. Fight farther removed in the side of the Germans!
Finally hear Russian voices, I hear, are nearby, do not touch me. Then, I hear, are two, one says, "And who is, as well, see?" - Come and say, "Oh! Kusanin it! ", ask," are you alive? and you lost the day before, where are you lost? "lifted me sitting ripped tunic, tunic appeared in the formation of blood the size of a baked dish. Took my med.paket, bandaged the wound, looking around the head lay a pot, there are two holes pierced by shrapnel.
Lifted me up by the arm dragged him to the wagon into the ravine, and then bullets whistled, mine exploded, they let me into the funnel themselves, which exploded a bomb near me when lay 7-8metrov diameter, depth of 3 meters. A little subsided, the cart close, they dragged me out of the crater to the carts. I'm barely alive quite suffocating, you can not breathe. They put me on the cart back. In the cart there were many wounded - were heavy, who were unable to move. From a German tank drove into a ravine, about 200 meters from us and would like for us out of a cannon, a shell exploded near half jumped from the cart. They yell all mad, and yet gave a tank shot a shell exploded near the back of my hand. The driver drove like horses over bumps. We were lying throws, survive, not survive, or not remember myself, the tank turned around and went back. The driver brought us out bumps, hollows out on a flat road, dirt, soft, and very quietly, without shaking us all dovёz. Tu was so easy to drive without fear of the weather is excellent, July 13, 1943. The sun, the silence, the way soft, Rolled without shaking 5 kilometers and arrived at a field hospital in the forest stretched canvas big tent, straw on the ground here and lie wounded on the straw. I was immediately brought under the hand of a doctor, he examined me, tied up and laid on the straw. Night of the night and in the morning, I look around me, two of them died. After lunch we loaded the wounded on the car in the back and taken to the railway station and loaded into boxcars on the straw. And went by train to the city of Sverdlovsk evacuation hospital number 3866 former school, where I was treated for two months, and for recovery was sent to a convalescent hospital in the station number 4000 Bazhenov Sverdlovsk region, the former holiday home, where I stayed for 2 months. And just stayed in the hospital for 4 months.

From the hospital I was sent to a distribution point in the city of Sverdlovsk, and from there was sent to the tank school in Upper-Ufaley Nizhny Tagil area. I studied in the School of 6 months. And tanker went to war. Passed Moldova, Romania, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Hungary. In Austria, met the end of the war!

Thank you for attention!

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