In September of 1942 38A was assigned the following mission: To draw enemy reserves away from the city of Voronezh with the goal of assisting the offensive of the Voronezh Front (the objective of the front’s offensive was to capture the city of Voronezh). The mission was to be carried out by the forces of 38A’s left flank with the main effort directed towards Olkhovatka. Opposing 38A’s planned offensive was the sector of 377ID, where the enemy held carefully prepared defensive positions. 240RD, 104RBde, 253RBde, 86TBde and 150TBde were the units initially assigned to the mission by 38A command.
A successful breakthrough at Olkhovatka would have enabled the Red Army to advance on the west side of the Don, along the German Don frontline, towards Voronezh. To prevent this, the 377ID’s main effort in September was to establish and strengthen defensive positions in the Olkhovatka area, which was on the division’s right wing and in the sector of 769IR.

• Two operations – 16 turns for each side (Olkhovatka-Gnezdilovo, September 15-17, 1942), dedicated the Soviet offensive northern of Voronezh.
• Precisely recreated area of over 80 sq. km: river Don, plains with harsh terrain and settlements.
• Historical organizational structure of units at the time of the offensive.
• Includes a digital book with over 120 pages of translated original Soviet and German Army documents that were used in recreating the events of the operations. The book provides a window into "primary sources" (war diaries, orders, combat reports, etc. from various national archives) and presents readers with an unprecedented level of detail. Click on "View the manual" in the right sidebar of the store page.