They wondered where the enemy was. When would the Germans start firing at them? Would some German tank come swinging out of the woods and blast their little BMP to bits? When would the fighting start? The claustrophobia of the dank interior of the BMP, combined with fears and anxieties about battle, made the riflemen of 1st Squad wish they could get out of the BMP and fight on foot. Then at least they could see their enemy.
The morning had been uneventful. The regiment had crossed the Czech-German border at 0600, after having heard thirty minutes of heavy artillery fire. Demchenko left bis hatch open for the first part of the ride. The terrain reminded him of his native region near Lvov. Then Lieutenant Bobrov told him to shut the hatch. It was against regulations to travel in combat areas with the hatch open, and Bobrov treated the rules very solemnly. They were several kilometers to the rear of the divisional vanguards. The roads through the forest were narrow, and the columns were warned not to bunch up. The first sounds of fighting came around 1000, when lead elements of the division ran into the first German prepared positions about ten kilometers over the border. The Bavarian forest was ill suited for any large-scale fighting with armored vehicles. Any fighting in the woods would have to be done on foot. Work for the infantry!
The first signs of combat came an hour later, when the squad drove past the site of the fighting they had heard earlier. Traffic had slowed due to rubbernecking by the later columns. On the right side of the road, Soviet riflemen guarded three or four NATO soldiers. They wore the old pattern U.S.-style steel helmet. From their gray-green uniform, Demchenko recognized them as German troops. They were a bit older than he expected, maybe reserve troops. On the left side of the road was a burned-out BRM. The BRM was a lot like a BMP-2, but had a different gun and was usually used for scouting. Something, probably a missile, had hit it on the turret front, and the left side of the turret was caved in. It also must have burned and suffered an internal explosion, since the hull was rent open at the seams. Farther over in the clearing were at least two burned-out BMP-2s and a burned-out T-80 tank. Apparently this was an advance guard that was ambushed by German antitank missile teams. A little LuAZ-967M ambulance was carrying away two badly burned tankers on stretchers.
There were other signs of war as well. Not all the civilians fleeing the area had escaped, and the artillery bombardment had killed soldiers and civilians indiscriminately. A small village farther down the road had been the scene of some fighting. Civilian vehicles were strewn around the burned-out buildings, some with dead passengers. Livestock was running tree, and many cows were lying dead or wounded in the fields. There were few signs of German military vehicles, but several dead soldiers lay near the ruins.
Around noon, the 2d Battalion of the 55th Guards Motor Rifle Regiment (MRR) was called forward to deal with German defenses. This was the battalion to which Demchenko's squad was attached. Stashu could hear Bobrov over the vehicle radio speaking with the battalion commander. The platoon was to move down the road about a kilometer, where it would be directed to its objective.
The platoon's assignment was straightforward. The road along which the 55th Guards MRR had to pass went through a large clearing. Some German troops were positioned in a small clump of buildings about 2,000 meters to the right of the road. The Germans had several Milan antitank missile launchers, and were firing on the columns from the 55th Guards MRR as they passed.[13]
The Germans had managed to sneak one missile team forward, and it had hit a few armored command vehicles, which were still burning. Gunfire from a BMP-2 had eliminated this team, but the regimental commander feared that his units would continue to be subjected to missile attack unless the German position was cleared. The regiment's 3d Company/2d Battalion, to which Bobrov's platoon belonged, was being assigned to eliminate the German missile positions in the buildings and deal with any other German forces in the clearing.
Normally, an attack like this would be supported by tanks. But since none were immediately available, and there was some urgency to overwhelm the enemy positions, the attack would be carried out by the BMP company alone. The company was to deploy at the edge of the road and dismount troops 1,500 meters from the building. The idea was to leave the BMP-2s back beyond missile range, but close enough to provide fire support from their 30mm autocannons. The Milan missiles would easily blow apart a BMP-2. The only additional fire support the company would have was a single 30mm AGS-17 Plamya grenade launcher, which would have to be carried forward into range by its crew.
The BMP company had three platoons, of which Lieutenant Bobrov's was one. Bobrov's platoon would be on the left flank of the attack, and the other two platoons to the right. In all, there would be ten BMPs in the attack: three in each of the three platoons, and the company commander's to the rear watching over the action. Lieutenant Bobrov instructed Private Irisbekov to place his BMP in the center, between Sergeant Fastov's BMP on the left and Sergeant Yennakov's on the right. Once the BMPs had been moved into position off the road, Lieutenant Bobrov called the neighboring two BMPs and explained the mission. Bobrov, Demchenko, and the squad leaders and assistant squad leaders of the two neighboring BMPs gathered behind Bobrov's BMP to get instructions.
"This will be a standard dismounted attack," explained Bobrov. "The enemy troops in those buildings in front of us are armed with antitank missiles. Our objective is to capture and hold those buildings and clear out any German troops in the area. On the radio, we will call the objective 'Oreshnik' [14]. We will advance in the BMPs to 1,500 meters from the objective. The squads will then dismount. Sergeants Fastov and Yermakov, you will stay with your vehicles and direct fire support. The assistant squad leaders will take the squads into action. You will advance at a walk to 300 meters. The platoon to our right has a Plamya grenade launcher and it will provide fire support on any observed enemy positions. Cover the last 100 meters in a run. We will give you fire from the 30mm guns. It is important for the squads to stay in radio contact with the BMP. Identify targets for us. Is everything clear?"
"Yes exactly so, Comrade Lieutenant," came the reply. It sounded like a school cheer, more appropriate to a playing field than a battlefield. But routine procedures like this distracted the soldiers from their anxieties, and made the battlefield seem a little more familiar. The platoon sergeants crawled back into the BMPs and awaited the company commander's signal.
At 1245, the company commander fired off a green flare. The engines of the ten BMPs were already warmed up, and the BMPs began their charge toward Objective Oreshnik. The BMPs were stretched out for half a kilometer, with about fifty meters of space between them. The Germans did not begin firing during the approach. The squads sat in the back of the BMPs, mute and anxious. Everyone took the opportunity to check his kit.
The equipment of the Soviet soldier is less elaborate than that of the average NATO soldier. The web gear is very simple, usually just a belt and a harness, which doubles as suspenders. On the soldier's right hip is an ammunition pouch, containing two additional banana magazines for the AKS-74 assault rifle. Each magazine holds thirty rounds, for a total of about ninety rounds of ammunition. Soldiers can be issued grenades, which are carried in the pockets of their uniform or in the gas mask bag on their left hip. On the back of their belt is a water canteen and an entrenching shovel, the most troublesome items. Soldiers can't wear the canteen or shovel while they're riding in the BMP, because they get in the way of sitting down. So they are either attached after dismounting from the vehicle, or left in the vehicle.
13
The Milan is a Franco-German medium antitank missile, common in NATO. The U.S. equivalent is the Dragon and the Soviet equivalent is the AT-4 Spigot. It is operated by a two-man crew and is man-portable.