In the modern world, offensive operations after artillery preparation, as a rule, are carried out using the release of airborne troops from aircraft. The first such operation "Mercury" was carried out by the Germans during the Great Patriotic War having dropped in 1941 during the capture of the island of Crete. But what should have been a triumph suddenly turned into a tragedy.

Capture Crete

In the spring of 1941, when several months remained before the attack on the Soviet Union, Hitler's headquarters increasingly began to talk about the need to help allied Italy in its actions in Africa and southern Europe. As a result, the Germans decided to conduct a military operation in Africa. But soon after it began, they realized that fighting on another continent was not at all easy. It was not so much about the resistance to the Wehrmacht troops of African states and the opposition of the British, but about the absence of a reliable rear. Constant interruptions in fuel, ammunition and provisions were felt literally every day. German caravans heading for Africa sank English ships. At the same time, the main base of the British fleet in the Mediterranean was the island of Crete. It was necessary to take him, by all means. To solve this problem, the Fuhrer was offered to arrange not a sea, but an airborne assault to capture the island. Hitler was skeptical about this proposal, but after lengthy persuasion, he agreed.

Doomed landing

It was assumed that the manpower of the 7th parachute division would be thrown into Crete. Moreover, this was not the first such operation among the Germans. Earlier, the forces of this 7th division captured objects in Norway, Holland and Belgium. But, the Germans have not yet carried out such a large-scale airborne discharge. About 10,000 paratroopers were to fall on the heads of the defenders of Crete with lightning speed. In addition, a landing of 7,000 people was supposed to be landed from the sea. The Germans did not even have enough aircraft to carry out such a large-scale operation. The landing force was to be delivered to the island in three rounds. Defended by the same Crete, according to German intelligence, only 5,000 British. According to preliminary calculations, they could not hold out for one hour. The Germans thought so. In reality, there was a garrison of 40,000 highly trained soldiers and officers on the island. This fact dramatically changed the balance of power in the event of an air-naval attack on the island. Little of, British intelligence learned the plans for Operation Mercury a few days before it began and had time to thoroughly prepare. The landing turned into a real massacre. The planes were hit by the island's air defense guns, and the parachutists were mowed down from machine guns. In addition, the paratroopers were essentially unarmed. Each of them had only a knife and a pistol. They were supposed to receive machine guns and machine guns already on the ground from the weapon boxes dropped simultaneously with the landing. Of course, they could not do this. Out of 10,000 paratroopers, only 6,000 made it to the ground alive. But a sad fate awaited them. British troops surrounded them and pushed them to the rocks in order to throw them into the sea.

Deadly attack

However, the Germans did not accept defeat. Jaegers and amphibious assault forces were sent to the island to help the remaining paratroopers who were standing tightly. The Junkers with the gamekeepers impudently landed directly on the English airfield. They were shot. The planes were on fire, but the huntsmen jumped out of them under the bullets and instantly entered the battle. At the cost of incredible losses, the Germans literally miraculously captured the airfield. The transfer of reinforcements from the continent began. Despite the numerical superiority, the British were forced to retreat, and a day later to evacuate from the island. The operation ended, as planned, with the victory of the Nazis. But the price paid for it was too high. Of the 22,000 who stormed Crete, 6,500 were killed. 500 German planes flew towards the island per day, of which 270 were shot down or burned on the ground. Hitler was furious, but he could not do anything ...

The unusual nature of airborne operations dictated the development of the necessary specialized equipment, which in turn led to the expansion of the capabilities of military art in general.

The operations of the German paratroopers in World War II had conflicting requirements for weapons and equipment. On the one hand, paratroopers needed high firepower, which they could demonstrate in battle, in order to act decisively and with maximum efficiency, but, on the other hand, the arsenal available to them
was limited to the extremely low carrying capacity of the landing equipment - both aircraft and parachutes and gliders.

During landing operation the parachutist jumped out of the plane almost unarmed, except for the pistol and additional cartridge belts. When paratroopers were introduced into battle by glider landing, the capacity and aerodynamic characteristics of the Goth DFS-230 gliders dictated their limitations - aircraft could accommodate 10 people and 275 kg of equipment.
This contradiction has never been overcome, especially in the part that concerns field artillery and anti-aircraft guns. However, German companies with powerful technical resources, such as the Rheinmetall and Krupp concerns, found many innovative solutions to the problems associated with the mobility and striking firepower of parachute units. On the ground, it was often difficult to distinguish the equipment of paratroopers from that adopted in the ground forces of the Wehrmacht, however, specialized weapons nevertheless appeared, and it not only increased the combat potential of paratroopers, but also influenced the development of military equipment and weapons in the coming half of the 20th century.

Outfit

Protective gear is very important for the skydiver, and for skydivers it started with high ankle boots. They had thick rubber soles, very comfortable, although not suitable for long walks, and provided good traction with the floor inside the fuselage of the aircraft (since they did not use the large boot nails usually characteristic of this kind of footwear supplied to soldiers of other branches of the military). Initially, the lacing was on the sides to avoid snagging with parachute lines, but gradually it became clear that this was not necessary, and after operations in Crete in 1941, manufacturers began to supply parachutists with boots with traditional lacing.

Over their combat uniforms, the paratroopers wore a waterproof canvas jumpsuit that was hip-length. It has undergone various improvements to provide additional protection from moisture when jumping, and was also more suitable for putting on a harness.

Since landing has always been one of the most risky stages of a jump for a skydiver, his uniform was equipped with special knee pads and elbow pads. The legs of the combat kit had small slots on the sides at the level of the knees, into which canvas thickenings lined with plant fluff were inserted. Additional protection was provided by external "shock absorbers" made of porous rubber covered with leather, which were fixed with straps or ties. (Both the thickenings and the jumpsuit itself were usually disposed of after landing, although the jumpsuit was sometimes left to be worn over it with a harness.) The trousers had a small pocket just above the knee level, into which an important sling cutter was placed for the paratrooper.

Sling cutter knife Fliegerkappmesser - FKM

1 - Helmet М38
2 - Jumping blouse with a "chipped" pattern with sleeve insignia
3 - Pants M-37
4 - Gas mask M-38 in a canvas bag
5 - 9 mm MP-40 SMG
6 - Magazine pouches for MP-40 on the belt
7 - Flask
8 - Sugar bag M-31
9 - Folding shovel
10 - Binoculars Ziess 6x30
11 - Boots

As the war gained momentum, the form of paratroopers acquired more and more distinctive features uniforms of soldiers of the ground forces. This well-worn soldier, however, still wears his special paratrooper helmet, by which the paratroopers were easily recognized among other German units.

Probably the most important piece of protective gear. indispensable for both jumping and fighting, was a specific landing helmet. In general, it was an ordinary helmet of a German infantryman. but without a visor and drooping fields that protected the ears and neck, equipped with a shock-absorbing comforter and a chin strap that firmly fixes it on the fighter's head.

German landing helmet

Parachute helmet liner

Diagram of the device of the German landing helmet

Since in most cases paratroopers had to fight for quite a long time without the opportunity to receive supplies, the ability to carry a large amount of additional ammunition was considered important for them.

German paratrooper with a bandolier

The parachutist bandolier of a special design had 12 pockets connected in the center with a canvas strap that was thrown around the neck, and the bandolier itself hung down on the chest so that the fighter had access to the pockets from both sides. The bandolier allowed the parachutist to carry about 100 cartridges for the Kag-98k rifle, which should have been enough for him until the next drop of equipment or the arrival of reinforcements. Later in the war, cartridge belts appeared with four large pockets, which could hold up to four magazines for the FG-42 rifle.

Parachutes

The first parachute that entered service with the German paratroopers was the RZ-1 forced deployment knapsack parachute. Created by order of the Department of Technical Equipment of the Ministry of Aviation in 1937, the RZ-1 had a dome with a diameter of 8.5 m and an area of ​​56 square meters. meters. When developing this airborne means, the Italian model "Salvatore" was taken as a basis, in which the parachute strands converged at one point and from it were fastened with a V-shaped braid to the waist of the parachutist with two half rings. An unpleasant consequence of this design was that the parachutist hung on the lines in an absurdly inclined position facing the ground - this also led to the technique of jumping headfirst out of the plane in order to reduce the impact of the jerk when opening the parachute. The design was noticeably inferior to the Irwin parachute, which was used by allied parachutists and Luftwaffe pilots, and which made it possible for a person to be in an upright position, being supported by four vertical straps. Among other things, such a parachute could be controlled by pulling the support lines of the harness, which made it possible to turn in the wind and control the direction of the descent. Unlike the paratroopers of most other countries, the German paratrooper could not have any influence on the behavior of the parachute, since he could not even reach the straps behind his back.

Another drawback of the RZ-1 was the four buckles that had to be unfastened by the paratrooper in order to free himself from the parachute, which, unlike the similar kind of Allied products, was not equipped with a quick release system. In practice, this meant that the skydiver was often dragged along the ground by the wind, while he made desperate efforts to quickly unfasten the buckles. In such situations, it is easier to cut the lines of the parachute. For this purpose, every paratrooper, since 1937, had a "kappmesser" (knife-sling cutter), which was kept in a special pocket of combat uniforms trousers. The blade was hidden in the handle and opened by simply turning it down and pressing the lock, after which the blade would snap into place by gravity. This meant that the knife could be used with one hand, which made it an important item in the drop kit.
The RZ-1 was followed in 1940 by the RZ-16, which was distinguished by a slightly improved harness and the technique of the halyard. Meanwhile, the RZ-20, which entered service in 1941, remained the main parachute until the end of the war. One of its main advantages was a simpler buckle system, which at the same time was based on the same problematic design of the Salvatore.

Quick release buckle system on the German RZ20 parachute

German parachute RZ-36

Later, another parachute was produced, the RZ-36, which, however, found only limited use during the operation in the Ardennes. The triangular RZ-36 helped control the "pendulum swing" typical of previous parachutes.
The imperfection of the RZ series parachutes could not but slip on the effectiveness of the landing operations carried out with their use, especially with regard to injuries received during landing, as a result of which the number of fighters capable of taking part in hostilities after landing was reduced.

German landing containers

German container for airborne equipment

During airborne operations, almost all weapons and supplies were dropped in containers. Before Operation Mercury, there were three sizes of containers, with the smaller ones being used to transport heavier military cargo, such as, say, ammunition, and the larger ones for larger but lighter ones. After Crete, these containers were standardized - 4.6 m in length, 0.4 m in diameter and a cargo weight of 118 kg. To protect the contents of the container, it had a bottom made of corrugated iron, which crumpled on impact and served as a shock absorber. In addition, the goods were lined with rubber or felt, and the containers themselves were supported by the suspension in a given position or were placed inside other containers.

Dug out of the ground amphibious containers

A platoon of 43 people needed 14 containers. If there was no need to open the container immediately, it could be carried by the handles (four in total) or rolled on the rubber-wheeled cart that was included with each container. One of the versions was a bomb-shaped container, it was used for light loads that were difficult to damage. They were dropped from aircraft like conventional bombs and, although equipped with a brake parachute, did not have a shock absorber system.

German landing gear container found in river by black diggers

Introduction.

I. 1. The birth of the Wehrmacht.

2. The emergence and formation of landing units.

II. 1.Preparation.

2. Equipment.

A. Parachutes and gliders. Jump scheme for parachutists.

B. Aircraft.

B. Weapons and personal equipment.

III. Fighting in 1939-1940

1. Poland, Norway and Denmark.

2. Belgium and Holland; Greece.

IV. Landing on Crete.

1. The alignment of forces.

2. Paratroopers landing.

3. Landing of the gamekeepers.

4. Final phase.

V. Results and significance of the Cretan operation.

Vi. Bibliography.

INTRODUCTION.

"Our shirts are thin, our blood is wild, we are not afraid of the enemy and death" - these are the words of the patriotic "Song of the Parachutist" by Friedrich Schaefer, printed in Germany during the war years even on postcards, clearly show the admiration of the nation for the feats of arms of German parachutists, their role in the propaganda of the Nazi military power. Indeed, in the Wehrmacht, paratroopers have become a model of combat training, courage and resilience, having written more than one bright page in the history of the Second World War.

I am generally interested in military history. And the Wehrmacht, in my opinion, left a noticeable mark on it. This is one of the greatest war machines in military history... Being a model of discipline, skill, perseverance, fighting to the very end, the Wehrmacht was almost an ideal military machine. Their middle commanders were the best in the world, their soldiers were well trained and well armed, and the more I feel a sense of pride in my ancestors who managed to stop this death machine. After all, it was Russia that broke the back of Nazi Germany. And no historian can prove to me that the Allied landings in Normandy played any significant role. Who opposed the Americans and the British in the West? Untrained youths and old people, and elite divisions were all in the East, trying to stop the Russians.

Now they say that the Russians defeated a weak enemy, that the Germans fought very clumsily, sending their soldiers into frontal attacks on fortified positions, under machine guns. This is the impression one might get after watching our films about the war. It remains to be wondered why our army fumbled with the Germans for so long. I would like to dispel this myth a little. This essay tells about the German paratroopers, reveals their training, equipment and several major operations. At the end - the crown of German landing operations - the landing on Crete. More than 10 thousand people took part in the landing. During the landing, half were killed or wounded. Around the many times superior enemy forces. Ordinary troops would have surrendered under such circumstances, but not the German paratroopers ... They dug in and began to resist fiercely, from time to time, attacking just as fiercely. And in the end, their fanaticism, aggressiveness and comprehensive training took over the British. The paratroopers held out until the arrival of reinforcements and crushed the enemy to smithereens.

A typical example of the quality of the German paratroopers: Max Schmeling, nicknamed "Siegfird", two-time world heavyweight boxing champion in 1930-32 landed in the forefront on Crete. He successfully passed through the entire war and after it became an entrepreneur 1.

And although there were no major landing operations after Crete (it is for this reason that I do not write about the further participation of paratroopers in the war), nevertheless, what they managed to do makes them almost heroes. Yes, they are heroes, although they are Nazis. In my opinion, the Wehrmacht, for the most part, was not infected with the ideas of Nazism. His officers were doing their duty honestly and it was not their fault that they were on the side of the losers. I'm not trying to idealize the Germans as some kind of knights. I just want to say that I have an admiration for them, about the same as our ancestors who fought against them.

1/2 /, p. 523

I .1. THE BIRTH OF THE VERMACHT. 2

Wehrmacht ("Wehrmacht", from "Wehr" - weapons, defense and "Macht" - strength) - the armed forces of Nazi Germany in 1935-1945. The basis for the creation and deployment of the Wehrmacht was the Reichswehr, renamed after the introduction of universal military service on March 16, 1935. According to the "Law on the construction of the Wehrmacht," the number of divisions was to increase to 36, and the total number of the ground army to reach 500 thousand people.

The Wehrmacht was headed by the Supreme Command of the German Armed Forces (OKW), which was subordinate to the ground forces, the Air Force, and the Navy. The OKW included: the operational department (A. Jodl), military intelligence and counterintelligence - Abwehr (V. Kanaris), the economic department in charge of supply and armament of the army

(G. Thomas) and general management. The chief of staff of the OKW was V. Keitel. Another supreme military body was OKH - command ground forces(V. Brauchitsch,

F. Halder, F. Paulus). Air Force Commander (Luftwaffe) -

G. Goering. Navy (Kriegsmarine) - E. Raeder. But the most important were OKW and OKH, which, in fact, competed with each other. Reich Chancellor Adolf Hitler was the supreme commander in chief of the Wehrmacht.

On the eve of World War II, the Wehrmacht numbered 3 million; its maximum number was 11 million (December 1943).

2/2 /, p. 111

I.2. APPEARANCE AND FORMATION OF AMBIENT PARTS.

The German military command was interested in the possibility combat use Airborne forces from the mid-30s. The locomotive for the creation of paratroopers was Flight Marshal Goering, the commander of the Air Force. The capabilities laid down in the new branch of the armed forces were perfect for the "blitzkrieg" strategy: offensive operations with the massive use of tanks to break through enemy defenses. The task of the paratroopers was to quickly seize strategically important objects: bridges, communication centers, fortified points, etc.

An additional impetus to the creation of such units was the famous Kiev exercises of 1935, when, in front of stunned observers from various countries of the world, including Germany, the Soviet Airborne Forces landed 2,500 people. It is worth adding that the German command, forced to start from scratch when forming the Wehrmacht, was free from inert ideas about the conduct of modern warfare, unlike other countries except the USSR.

The formation of the Airborne Forces began simultaneously, both in the ground units and in the Air Force. On September 1, 1935, a special elite police detachment from Goering's security was sent to the town of Altengrabov, where the 1 parachute regiment was being manned. It was headed by Major (later Colonel) Bruno Brower. Many fighters received serious combat training in the Spanish civil war, as part of the Condor Legion. The selection itself for the regiment was very tough: 1 person out of 3 candidates. This system was maintained until 1940. OKH, in turn, created a paratrooper battalion in the spring of 1936. Unlike the Air Force paratroopers, who had only rifles, they were armed with heavy machine guns and mortars. The commander was Major Richard Heidrich, later Major General.

Heavy physical and shooting training, the imperfection of the parachute system, numerous trams during landing and even deaths as a result of the non-opening of the parachute, contributed to the creation of informal relations between officers and soldiers, a special atmosphere of belonging to special units and the strengthening of morality in general.

Officially, the Airborne Forces were "legalized" by the decree of the Minister of Aviation E. Milch and with the blessing of Goering on January 29, 1936. In the same year, they announced an admission to a parachute school in Stendal. However, at that time, German military thought had not yet fully decided on the concept of using parachutists. The Air Force headquarters wanted to use them to capture enemy airfields at the beginning of the war, as well as for sabotage. The OKH believed that the Airborne Forces should be used as ordinary infantry. To this end, they must be landed behind enemy lines in large formations, thereby placing the enemy between two fires. In general, both points of view prevailed, which was the reason for the two-sided preparation.

In 1938, Major General Kurt Student, the future commander of the Airborne Forces, a former inspector of flight training for the Luftwaffe, was ordered to form large parts of the Airborne Forces... By September 1939, such a unit was created, although not fully equipped, - the 27th Air Division, its commander - K. Student. For this reason, another airborne unit, Heidrich's battalion, took part in the occupation of Czechoslovakia. Based on this experience, this battalion was transferred to the Air Force, with the renaming of the 2nd Parachute Regiment, with the same commander. Almost all parts of the Airborne Forces were transferred to the Air Force, which will play a disservice to paratroopers in the future, since land operations require close coordination with the ground forces, and cannot be carried out only by the forces of the Luftwaffe alone. At the same time, another important element of the Airborne Forces - the landing (glider) units - remained under the jurisdiction of the army. The pilots of these gliders were ordinary infantrymen trained to fly gliders.

Thus, by the spring of 1940, after comprehensive preparation, the Wehrmacht received two divisions at its disposal: the 7th Aviation Division and the 22nd Infantry Division. The latter was, in fact, an ordinary infantry unit, trained and equipped for airlift. Yes, and it was intended to quickly strengthen the first wave of the landing in the event of the capture and hold in the hands of paratroopers of sites suitable for landing.

II.1 PREPARATION

The training of the German paratroopers in the skills of parachute jumping was of great importance. Insufficiently worked out and primitive equipment for jumping made it necessary to especially thoroughly train personnel. The main techniques, in particular landing, were worked out in the course of long-term sports training. These trainings, together with the study of the parachute, amounted to First stage training of a fighter, after which the course of studying materiel and training in parachute packing began. In the future, the soldier began training in making a jump from an airplane model, and also studied foreign samples of the material part. By the time this part was completed, the cadets were required to fully master the skills of handling a parachute.

At first, both soldiers and officers trained together, according to identical standards, and later the classes for officers became much more complicated. Much attention was paid to the development of initiative among the rank and file personnel, since it was not ruled out that all officers and non-commissioned officers would be completely incapacitated in battle. Under these conditions, the private had to act actively at his own discretion.

After this stage, the paratroopers are sent to a school near Stendhal to complete their parachute training - jumps were made from real aircraft from a maximum height of 200 meters. A paratrooper was considered one who completed at least 6 jumps and completed a special training course. The first jump was carried out alone from a height of 180 meters. Others were group and were produced from lower and lower heights. The course was crowned with a platoon jump (36 people) from a height of less than 120 meters. Upon completion of the landing, the group proceeded to perform a tactical training mission. To confirm the qualifications, an annual recertification was required. Unfortunately, by 1944, these standards had to be changed, due to a change in the nature of the tasks of the paratroopers and their numbers. Any soldier who jumped with a parachute at least once was considered a paratrooper.

II.2. EQUIPMENT.

A. MEANS OF LANDING.

German soldiers used domestic parachutes, very simple in design - RZ. In early 1940, the improved RZ16 parachutes entered service. The reason was the constant reports of dangerous swaying in the air and periodically occurring malfunctions during deployment, very often leading to tragedy. The RZ16 was widely adopted, and the RZ20, released in 1941, was the last massive parachute.

The culture of making parachutes in Germany was not as high as in England or the United States, so their primitive device did not allow them to be controlled in the air. In addition, the fighter descended at high speed and could easily be trammed. By the way, reserve parachutes were not provided.

The white canopy of the parachute (in Crete they were already used with camouflage paint) had a length of 8.5 meters and consisted of 28 parts. The folded dome was put into a cloth bag, the top of the dome with its neck was tied by a thin sling, and the bag itself was rigidly connected to the halyard - a piece of braid with a carabiner at the end. No rings were provided for pulling out - the bag with the halyard was torn off from the parachute and it opened due to a strong jerk at the moment the halyard was completely unwound.

Another means of landing was a glider. The main model was the DFS230. Invented in 1937. It was piloted by one person, in the landing - 8-9 people. He was delivered to the target in a Ju52 towboat, after which they were unhooked and they glided to the target. In order to damp the speed at the ground, a braking parachute was released. Had a glider and armament - 1 machine gun, MG15. In the course of the war, the Air Force considered it expedient to replace it with a more advanced model. It was Go 242. It carried 21 parachutists on board and was also supplied with a braking parachute. For protection, there were 4 MG 15s, in addition, the paratroopers could shoot from personal weapons through the windows in the cargo compartment. During operation, the glider was fitted with 2 engines, thereby relieving them of towing aircraft. This model was used from 1942 until the end of the war.

In preparation for the failed landing in England, it was planned to use paratroopers to capture key points. But they, according to analysts, did not have enough heavy weapons to securely hold the bridgehead. In order to deliver such weapons, a giant glider - Me 321, weighing 40 tons, was developed. It could carry an 88 mm anti-aircraft gun with a tractor and the main German T-IV tank or up to 200 troops. This glider was guided by two pilots. Besides them there were 2 gunners, a radio operator and a loading technician. The takeoff was carried out with the help of 8 rocket boosters and a bunch of three Me 110 fighters. This bulky and awkward bunch required fantastic skill from the crews. Catastrophes on the tests followed one after another, and the list of victims exceeded a hundred (during one takeoff, 129 people died - the crews of the glider and tugs plus 120 landing people) 3. Fortunately, their use as landing craft was abandoned, but as a transport glider, the Me 321 was used in Africa and at Stalingrad. Taking into account the difficulties during takeoff, it was equipped with 6 motors, which also made it possible to do without tugs.

The Fa 223, the first Nazi helicopter, was the real revolution. He could carry 12 people and a mountain rifle gun. Unfortunately (or fortunately), since the model was found to be unstable in the air, it was never used in a real combat situation.

There were many more excellent glider and tow aircraft models, but none of them were fully implemented - Germany simply did not have enough time.

3/9 /, p. 277

SCHEME OF PARCHUTIST JUMP.

During the flight in the Ju-52, the main landing aircraft, which will be discussed below, 12 or 18 people sat inside the cargo compartment, facing each other. When approaching the landing area, the issuer gave the order to stand up and line up along the fuselage. At the same time, the fighters clamped the end of the halyard in their teeth to keep their hands free. After the appropriate order, the paratroopers hooked the hooks of the carbine to the longitudinal beam. The carbine moved freely along it, as the fighter approached the exit from the plane. Approaching the door, the parachutist spread his legs wide, with both hands grabbed the handrails on both sides of the door and suddenly threw himself head down (this maneuver was practiced for a long time in training). When the halyard was unrolled to its full length (9 meters), the soldier's weight and the momentum created by the opposite movement of the aircraft forced him to abruptly rip out the contents of the backpack, opening the neck valves. In the continuing fall, the bag with the parachute dome jumped out - at this moment a small fastener that held the bag together with the parachute was torn off and the bag was pulled off the parachute with a halyard. They remained hanging in the aircraft door, and the spirally rolled lines continued to unwind after the canopy was completely filled with air. All this time the fighter flew to the ground upside down and only the straightened lines sharply "pulled" him into a normal position, which was accompanied by a rather sensitive jerk.

This method of opening the parachute was very different from that adopted in the British and Soviet Airborne Forces, and was recognized by them as rather primitive, especially if we compare the force of the blow when opening the parachute. In addition, diving head down was not bravado, but a necessary element. If the fighter, during the opening of the parachute, would be in a horizontal position, then a jerk in the waist area would "break" him (head to feet) with very painful sensations and with the danger of a tram. And if he was flying like a soldier, then the same jerk would have kicked him up with his feet with a good chance of getting tangled in the lines.

However, the German technique had its advantages. The unpleasant sensations were more than compensated for by the short opening time of the parachute, which allowed the Germans to jump from a lower height than their colleagues from England could afford. In the case when a parachutist fell under fire from the ground, dangling helplessly under the canopy, this played an invaluable role. In the German Airborne Forces, the normal height was considered to be between 110 and 120 meters. But in Crete, in the face of strong opposition from the enemy's air defense, paratroopers were thrown out from a height of 75 meters.

But that's not all. German parachutes did not allow adjusting the speed and location of the fall. To reduce the risk of landing, skydivers were trained to land in a forward tilt position. In the last seconds before touching the ground, the paratrooper had to turn in the wind, making convulsive "floating" movements with his hands and feet. After that, he fell on his side and quickly rolled forward. This explains the fact that the soldier has massive shock absorbers-shields on his knees and elbows, for the most part completely unknown allies of the Airborne Forces. However, even with them, for a heavily loaded German paratrooper who used a primitive parachute (the speed of falling even in calm weather was 3-6 m / s), a "roll-over landing" was associated with a great risk - trams and bruises during jumping were common and common.

After landing, the paratrooper could not immediately free himself from the parachute straps: he had to unfasten 4 rather uncomfortable buckles. It was also quite difficult to extinguish the canopy after landing: the lines were behind the paratrooper's back. While he was trying to reach them, he could blow the wind and drag him to the side. It is not for nothing that in the training of German parachutists there was such a technique as extinguishing a friend's canopy by throwing his body onto his canopy.

However, all the problems of the parachutists did not end there. All their equipment: weapons, grenades, ammunition, walkie-talkies and first-aid kits were in special landing containers. This was due to the fear of incomplete deployment of the parachute due to the hooking of the lines to the items of equipment on the parachutist's body.

The containers were dropped at the same time as the personnel. After landing, the fighter had to find the first container that came across as quickly as possible, open it and arm himself. Prior to that, his only weapon was the LUGER_08 pistol, in common parlance - "Parabellum". Therefore, without exaggeration, the rapid discovery of the container was a matter of life and death.

II.2 EQUIPMENT

B. Airborne paratroopers.

The transport and drop of the landing was carried out using military transport aircraft Ju52, developed back in 1931. Takeoff weight - 10,500 kg, speed - 305 km / h, ceiling - 5500 km, range - up to 1200 km, crew - 3 people (in the landing option) 4. In the early 30s, this machine was the main bomber of the Luftwaffe. In this capacity, the car took part in the Spanish War, after which they began to be transferred to the military transport aviation. The landing variant was designated F and carried 14 people on board, and in addition to them, a 37-mm cannon or a motorcycle under the fuselage. All machines were equipped with a device for towing gliders. The defensive armament consisted of 3 MG15s. The aircraft was in production until 1944; a total of 3900 Ju52s of various modifications were produced.

The reliable and unpretentious aircraft was nicknamed "Aunt Yu" and "Iron Anna" in the Air Force. On April 1, 1939, the first airborne squadron was formed from these aircraft. Soon, two more ecadrilia were added to it. By the summer of 1940, they were transferred to the XI Air Corps, a unit that united everything related to the paratroopers.

By the end of the war, in order to replace the outdated Ju52, a transport modification of the new German He111 bomber - He111N-20 / R-1 was developed. Takeoff weight - 15000 kg, speed - 430 km / h, ceiling - 6700 m, range - 1920 km, crew of 4-5 people and 16 parachutists on board 5. Their serial production was started at the end of 1944 and they did not have a noticeable effect on military operations - the Germans ended the war, mainly with "Aunties Yu".

II.2. EQUIPMENT.

C. WEAPONS AND PERSONAL EQUIPMENT.

The soldiers of the first parachute units were armed with a Czech-made 16/33 rifle, which, after the capture of Czechoslovakia, entered the mountain rifle units under the designation Gew 33/40. The variant for the Airborne Forces provided for a folding wooden butt. The rifle was equipped with a bayonet.

In 1938, especially for the paratroopers, the MR-38 submachine gun, developed by the ERMA company under the 9-mm cartridge, entered service. The weapon is made with the need for compactness and lightness in mind. It allowed only continuous fire. A special device inside the drummer slowed down the rate of fire, which gave the shooter, after some practice, getting the hang of shooting from him in short bursts. The sight is cut at a distance of 200 meters, the front sight is located on a high base and is equipped with a ring-shaped front sight. The heating of the barrel during firing made it necessary to hold on to the magazine, therefore, in order to avoid its distortion, the neck of the magazine was made long. This model became so successful that it was immediately adopted by the Wehrmacht, becoming its kind of symbol. It is this submachine gun that our historians will call "Schmeisser", although H. Schmeisser himself had nothing to do with its development 6. The saturation of the Airborne Forces with these weapons was very high - if during the Cretan operation of 1941 every fourth paratrooper was armed with them, then later all paratroopers had them.

Due to the impossibility of using it at long distances and the weakness of the pistol cartridge, a special automatic rifle was developed - chambered for the 7.92 mm rifle cartridge - FG42. It was supplied only to the airborne units. In essence, the FG42 was a light machine gun. The rifle was supplied with a bipod and a bayonet, a box magazine adjoined horizontally to the left. It contained 20 rounds. There was a flame arrester.

6/6 /, p. 560

To enhance the firepower, there were light and heavy machine guns - MG34, designer L. Stange. Caliber 7.92 mm, weight 11 kg, technical rate of fire 800-1000 rounds per minute. This machine gun is considered the best in the entire Second World War 7.

Of the heavy weapons, the paratroopers had very original samples. The 28/20 mm sPzB is an anti-tank gun. It was used at the beginning of the war, and then it was removed from service, since the armor of tanks was no longer under his strength. Mortars-grenade launchers, screwed onto rifles, with a caliber of up to 60 mm, as well as knapsack flamethrowers were also used. Among the latter, the 1944 model of the year stands out, which even an untrained soldier could use - releasing a fiery jet at 27 meters in 0.5 seconds.By the end of the war, disposable grenade launchers of various designs began to be widely used, and infantry 50, 81 and 120 mm mortars were also actively used.

The artillerymen also had unusual designs - 75 and 105 mm recoilless guns - the world's first guns of such a system. Its essence is that the jet of powder gases after the shot does not rest against the breech, but is partially or completely diverted back through special holes - therefore, there is almost no recoil. Due to this system, the weight of the gun has decreased by 50-60 percent, since the need for recoil devices has disappeared. Of course, she also had a drawback - the exhaust jet, which had a high temperature, posed a danger to the calculation of the gun.

Of the conventional guns, a 75 mm mountain gun was used, plus 37 and 50 mm anti-tank guns. The anti-aircraft gunners had a quad version of the 20 mm Flak 38 automatic cannon. In addition, a 20 mm MG 151/20 machine gun was used.

The main disadvantage of the German Airborne Forces was their insufficient, even at that time, mobility. Their only means of transport was the BMW R75 sidecar motorcycle and its half-track modification. It was believed that paratroopers would immediately land in the desired area, capture it and wait for reinforcements. Therefore, in some situations, for example in Crete, where paratroopers were left to their own devices, they had to use trophy vehicles to achieve at least minimal mobility.

III. COMBAT ACTIONS IN 1939-1940

1. POLAND, DENMARK AND NORWAY.

For the first time, German paratroopers went into battle during the 1939 campaign against Poland. True, due to insufficient staffing, the 7th Air Division was not used. Only individual airborne units were involved, thrown into the rear of the Poles for sabotage and reconnaissance purposes. Nevertheless, some real combat experience has been gained and taken into account in the ongoing development of plans for future campaigns.

When Student in July 1939 reported to Hitler about the state of the units entrusted to him and said that the paratroopers were awaiting orders to take part in the Polish campaign, he heard in response: “They will still see several battles in the West!” 8 Hitler believed it was too early to waste his precious and small cadre of parachutists. In addition, the German command did not want to reveal its trump card (the possibility of a surprise attack from the air on strong enemy fortifications). Therefore, the parachutists received their real baptism during the Norwegian campaign ("Teachings on the Weser"). Although their participation was very limited, the results were rated very positively.

The need to occupy the Scandinavian states was determined by the urgent need to ensure uninterrupted supplies of scarce Swedish ore through the territories of Norway and Denmark. The features of the future battlefield (the presence of densely populated islands in Denmark and a narrow strip of Norwegian territory stretching from north to south) clearly showed that ground forces alone could not do here. The German Navy, which was inferior in size to the Allied Navy, also could not provide significant support. For this reason, special hopes were pinned on paratroopers.

At the very beginning of the invasion, Major Walter's 1st Parachute Battalion took over. The headquarters and 2nd companies were supposed to capture the Forneby airfield, in the Norwegian capital Oslo, and hold it until the transport

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aircraft with the 163rd Infantry Division on board. 3rd company,

Lieutenant von Brandis was to seize Sol airfield, the main base of the Norwegian Air Force, and the 4th company, Captain Guericke, was to capture two airfields at Aalborg and the Danish Vordinburg bridge. The need to capture it was due to the fact that the only way to the capital of Denmark, Copenhagen, passed along it. Finally, the 1st company, Lieutenant Schmidt, remained in reserve.

On the morning of April 9, 1940, the landing began. Walter was unlucky from the very beginning - due to bad weather, 2 J52 collided in the air and died. And they failed to land on the airfield - it was closed by a dense landing and the paratroopers had to return. The planes of the 163rd division found a gap in the clouds and they had to land in a landing method in the enemy-controlled Forneby. The Germans suffered heavy losses, but captured the airfield.

Von Brandis was more fortunate. His unit landed successfully, although they suffered casualties from ground fire and captured Sol. Moreover, they managed to take control of two important bridges that were nearby.

Guericke carried out the part of the assignment entrusted to him even more successfully. The Danish units guarding the Vorthingbor Bridge were so overwhelmed by the spectacle of the paratroopers being dropped from both ends of the bridge that they surrendered without a fight. The capture of both airfields in Aalborg was also successful. Without a single shot, the guards were disarmed - as it turned out, they were asleep (!), Not believing in the threat of the landing.

Rothe Schmidt got the most heroic and, at the same time, the saddest fate. The German mountain rifle division in Narvik (Norway) (see Appendix 2, photo 1), was cut off from support from the sea when the ships covering it, every one of them, were sunk by the British. The next day after that, the British cut it off from the main forces, landing troops on the coast. Therefore, the supply of the division fell on the shoulders of the Luftwaffe, who dropped reinforcements and ammunition to it. Schmidt's company was dropped to unblock the British on the mountain overhanging the strategic Oslo-Narvik highway. Unfortunately for the Germans, they were immediately discovered by the retreating Norwegian units. The determined Norwegians fought back. Most of paratroopers were killed in the downed planes.

The survivors (about 60 people), dug in on the slope of the mountain, which they were supposed to capture, continued the battle in difficult conditions for another 4 days, until all the ammunition came out. And then they gave up. By this time there were 34 of them left. Schmidt himself, seriously wounded in the thigh and in the stomach, led his people to the end.

Since the Schmidt operation failed, the naval command announced that the group in Narvik could be destroyed. And Goering informed Hitler that the supply of units by air was impossible due to bad weather. The British soon took Narvik. The surviving mountain rangers, airborne troops and sailors from the sunken ships retreated to the mountains, where they gained a foothold and repelled all attacks. A week later, the British, under the influence of news from France about heavy fighting, evacuated their corps.

The Germans returned to the city as victors. After the capitalization of Norway, Schmidt returned to Germany (he was awarded the Knight's Iron Cross) 9 and his people.

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III.2. BELGIUM AND HOLLAND; GREECE.

The invasion of Belgium in May 1940 was the most impressive triumph of German paratroopers. Under the command of Student, they carried out a carefully planned operation to breach a gap in the system of powerful defensive fortifications on the Belgian border. This system was built taking into account the experience of the First World War. Its core was the border semi-underground fort Eben-Emael and the powerful fortresses of Liege and Antwerp. The Eben-Emael garrison had 18 artillery pieces placed in concrete casemates with two-meter thick walls. Its eastern face was one whole with the canal embankment, and the other three sides were surrounded by a four-meter thick anti-tank ditch. The fort's armament consisted of 2 x 120 mm, 16-75 mm guns and a significant number of positions with anti-tank weapons, mortars and machine-gun points. In case of bombing, gun turrets could completely descend underground using electric motors. There was protection against gas attacks. This fort could be a tough nut to crack in the path of any army, especially when you consider that maintaining a high rate of advance was the main factor in the "blitzkrieg" strategy. We add that the guns of this monster covered three strategically important bridges leading from the Ruhr Basin to the Belgian coast - Veldweselt, Vrenhoven and Cannes. All bridges were prepared for the explosion, remotely controlled from the command post of Eben-Emael.

The calculation of the Belgians was based on the fact that the Wehrmacht would get bogged down in this web of fortifications, and then the Anglo-French army would come up. In addition to fortifications on the way of the Germans, there was a network of canals and rivers equipped with an emergency flooding system for coastal areas. Without mastering the aforementioned crossings, the Germans would not have been able to maintain the given pace of the offensive. In this case, the replaced "Run to the Sea" of thirty years ago could be repeated, followed by a trench war with known results. That lesson was learned well at the German headquarters. In view of the threat of disruption to the timing of the offensive, the 7th Air Division was tasked with seizing the enemy's fortifications and awaiting the arrival of the main forces. A total of 6,800 paratroopers were involved.

To capture Fort Eben Emael, a special assault group was created, headed by Captain V. Koch. To carry out the operation, he received his company from the 1st battalion of the 1st regiment and the company of Lieutenant Witzig from the 2nd battalion. A total of 438 people. In preparation, an accurate 1: 1 scale model of the fort was made. Training on it began in the winter of 1939.

The detachment was divided into 4 groups. Only the group "Granite", numbering 85 people, under the command of Witzig, was assigned to storm the fort. In addition to conventional small arms, it was armed with 4 flamethrowers, anti-tank rifles, dynamite bombs and shaped charges weighing up to 50 kg. Group "Steel", Chief Lieutenant Altman, was aimed at capturing the Veldweselt Bridge, Group "Beton", Lieutenant Schacht, - Vrenhovensky Bridge, Group "Iron", Lieutenant Schechter, - Cannes Bridge. In the event of a successful mastery of these points, the groups were instructed to hold them at any cost until the main forces arrived. All actions were to be carried out with the help of gliders - in contrast to Holland, where they intended to be thrown out with parachutes. This was explained by the fact that the area of ​​the fort did not exceed one square kilometer, and there was a need for a targeted drop of paratroopers, without wasting time collecting. Everything was decided in a few seconds - the Belgians would not have given more time.

It was May 10, 1940. Before the gliders arrived in the Eben-Emael area, German aircraft dropped a large number of smoke bombs on the fort, setting up a dense curtain. The first to land were the Beton and Stal groups, at 5:15 am and 5:20 am, respectively. They took their targets relatively easily, but their joy was premature - all day they had to repel the fierce counterattacks of the Belgians. Only at 21:40 the main forces approached them and took over the baton.

In Eben Emael they knew about the German offensive, but they believed that they were safe - the fort was far from the front line. Group "Granit" was built at the airfield at 3:30 am, and at 5:20 am 11 DFS230 gliders were unhooked from U52 over the fort. The landing was successful - only 2 gliders, including the one on which Witzig was, missed the fort. In this regard, the attack was led by Oberfeldwebel Wenzel. The Belgians did not expect anything like this at all - they did not even open fire on the gliders that landed on the roof of the fort. Despite the absence of a commander, the attack began without delay. The gliders had not yet completely stopped when the doors opened and paratroopers, hung with weapons and shaped charges, rained down from them. From that moment on, hell began for the Eben-Emael garrison. The Germans first of all filled up the exits from the bunkers with explosions of dynamite sticks, after which they dealt with the artillerymen by throwing grenades into the embrasures and ventilation wells. In the armor caps, gaps were punched with shaped charges, then they acted with grenades or flamethrowers. The protruding guns were disabled by inserting explosive charges inside, which ripped the barrels to the breech. Thus, within a matter of minutes, 7 casemates and 13 guns, including all 120mm, were destroyed. All this happened with minimal resistance from the defenders of Eben-Emael - only in one place the paratroopers were delayed by machine-gun fire from the bunker, but the neighboring group eliminated it from the other side. In an open battle with the enemy many times superior in number (1200 people), the Eben-Emaelia garrison could not - all the exits were destroyed. At 5:40 am Wenzel broadcast to Koch: “We have safely reached the target of the attack. Everything is developing according to plan ”10. True, most of the fort was still in the hands of the Belgians. One tower fired all day on the Cannes Bridge. At 8:30, Witzig finally arrived and took command. The situation has already become more complicated. Belgian troops stationed in the vicinity came to their senses and launched a counterattack, supported by guns. Witzig's men had to take refuge in abandoned casemates, leaving cover aircraft to deal with the attacking Belgians themselves. At the same time, the XI Air Corps, a unit that directly included all the transport aviation of paratroopers and cover bombers, showed itself especially actively.

After sitting underground, the Germans held out in the fort all night from May 10 to 11, after which a sapper battalion came to their rescue. Having received reinforcements the Germans

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began an assault on the remaining shelters and enemy guns. Soon the advance units approached and the fort surrendered, just 24 hours after the start of the invasion of Belgium, opening the way for German troops inland.

The last group, "Iron", had the most difficult fate. The bridge was already blown up when they landed, and then immediately the group came under fire from the last towers of Eben Emael. Schechter was killed and was replaced by Lieutenant Meisner. His unit withstood several major counterattacks, before the advance units did not approach them at 23:30.

So, the crossings across the Albert Canal and most of the bridges were taken and saved from destruction within 24 hours, along which the infantry and tanks rushed to the open French border.

In the "fortress Holland", which is replete with natural obstacles convenient for defense, such as rivers, canals and locks, it was decided to drop several landings. The number of Koch's group, thrown against Belgium, did not exceed 500 people, while 4 times more paratroopers were dropped into the Netherlands, not counting the 22nd Air Division, which, as we recall, was intended to reinforce the landing of the first wave. The main targets of the landing were the bridges at Murdijk and Dordrecht, as well as the airfields at Waalhaven and Valkenburg. For this, the following were allocated: 1st and 2nd battalions of the 1st regiment - to capture bridges; 3rd Battalion - Vaalhaven; 6th company of the 2nd regiment and the 47th infantry regiment - Valkenburg. When planning, the Germans did not know that the Dutch had drawn the correct conclusions from the Scandinavian campaign and had drawn significant forces to the Valkenburg area.

The first to go into battle was the 3rd Battalion, Captain Schultz. The capture of the airfield was very important because it was on it that the 22nd Air Division was to land by landing method. Despite the fact that the paratroopers came under fire right during the landing, they managed to capture the target during a short battle. The groups landed to capture the bridges were the most successful of all (although during the landing, the hero of the capture, Sol von Brandis, died). They almost instantly took the bridges and held them in their hands until the arrival of the main force.

Things turned out much worse in Valkenburg. The Dutch, awaiting an air attack, opened fire on the paratroopers' planes when they appeared in sight. Having lost several dozen planes, the Germans began to land the second echelon by landing method, landing planes near the airfield. However, the forest soil of the airfield was too soft to support the weight of the transporter. The strip was filled with stuck planes and was clogged. Several planes attempted to land directly at the airfield, but the runway was obstructed by bundles of logs prudently set up by the Dutch. After overturning several aircraft, the Germans were forced to retreat. And since the Dutch continued to resist fiercely, then those paratroopers who managed to land had to retreat.

Immediately after the capture of Vaalhaven, Student arrived there, personally taking part in the battle. And on May 14, Holland capitalized. It was not possible to capture the Dutch queen - the British evacuated her on a destroyer. In general, the operation was a success - the country was captured as soon as possible. Even the newest British Spitfires were captured. Ironically, Student could not share the triumph of his people - on May 14, he and a group of accompanying officers were mistakenly fired upon by soldiers from SS units. The general was wounded in the head and sent to hospital in serious condition.

Thus, the use of the Airborne Forces in the war against Western countries was crowned with complete success, achieved at the cost of small losses - 290 killed, 480 wounded and 439 missing. Strong support from paratroopers was a major factor in the blitzkrieg's success. The main conclusion from this campaign is that the success factor was the timely approach of the main forces to help the landed units. Transport aviation lost 150 aircraft, which already then made people think about the possibility of landing in the face of opposition from unsuppressed enemy air defense.

Since Student was in the hospital, General R. Putzier was temporarily appointed to his post. Also, the Airborne Forces have undergone a reorganization. As part of the 7th division, one more, the 3rd regiment appeared. Koch's group was transformed into a Separate Parachute Assault Regiment under the command of Colonel Eugen Meindahl. It consisted of 4 battalions. The XI Corps was officially created, uniting both divisions. In addition to them, the corps included Meindahl's regiment, a bomber air group, transport aircraft and various auxiliary units. The student was appointed commander, who received the rank of full aviation general, but he returned to service only in January 1941. Major General Wilhelm Zusman was appointed to the post of commander of the 7th division.

In April 1941, paratroopers were sent to the Mediterranean Theater, where they took part in the invasion of Greece. After the defeat of the united British and Greek forces, the British retreated in a southern direction - to the Peloponnese peninsula, connected to the mainland by the narrow isthmus of Isthm. The latter was cut by a deep Corinthian canal. The British units tried to cross the canal on the only bridge, blow it up and dig in on the other side. In case of successful implementation of this plan, it would be practically impossible to knock them out of there - the channel was too deep, and its steep high banks, “clad” in granite, did not allow to rise quickly. Proceeding from this, the German command decided to disrupt the enemy's plan and seal it north of the Corinth Canal, riding the isthmus before the British. The operation was attended by the 1st and 2nd battalions of the 2nd regiment, which were to be parachuted from opposite sides of the bridge.

2nd Battalion, Lieutenant Tousen, sank 6 gliders at 4:30. Their task was to directly capture the bridge. Two hours later, bombers attacked the British troops, and at 7:40 am six gliders landed on the bridge under heavy fire. The paratroopers quickly coped with the protection, taking 80 prisoners and 6 guns. However, the Germans did not disable the system for blowing up the bridge, hoping to blow it up in case of an unsuccessful outcome of the operation. At that time, 40 J52 landed troops on the northern and southern shores, in order to detain the enemy and provide support to Toizen's group. The operation was almost completed when fortune suddenly changed the Germans - a camouflaged gun of the British opened fire on the bridge, which was 200 meters from the bridge. One of the shells detonated an explosive charge, mounted on a support, and the bridge collapsed into the water along with the paratroopers. The explosion killed many of Toizen's people, and he himself was wounded. The group of surviving prashyutists, surrounded by the superior forces of the British, could easily have been destroyed. But the enemy, notified of the appearance in his rear of new groups of paratroopers, was nervous. Toizen took advantage of the situation - meeting with an English officer who led the units near the bridge, he cheekily declared that his group was the vanguard of the invasion, and the arrival of a division supported by Ju87 dive bombers was expected soon. The British believed this threat, as a result, wounded and deified Tousen triumphantly accepted the surrender of the garrison. The result of the operation was the awarding of the Knight's Cross to Toysen and the capture of 12,000 English and Greeks. Unfortunately, the order for the operation was given too late - the main forces of the British (50,000 people) managed to evacuate to Crete. If the order for the landing had been given earlier, the capture of the entire English corps in the Middle East would have greatly influenced the further outcome of the North African campaign.

IV. LANDING TO CRETE.

1. POWER SETTING.

Control of Greece did not mean control of the eastern Mediterranean as long as Crete remained in British hands - a strategically important island and a natural springboard for a possible Allied invasion of the Balkans.

The German command, faced with the need to capture Crete and not having sufficient naval forces for an amphibious assault, decided to conduct an airborne operation unprecedented in scale. The plans developed earlier by the Student's headquarters for a landing on Malta, at the mouth of the Suez Canal and in Alexandria were postponed - all attention was paid to Crete. By this time, the composition of the XI Corps had undergone changes: the 22nd Division was sent to guard the oil fields in Ploiesti. Instead, Student received the 5th Mountain Rifle Division of Major General Yu. Ringel. The forces intended for the assault on Crete in the early morning of May 20, 1941 were as follows:

Assault Airborne Regiment, Major General Meindal. The composition of the regiment: 1st Battalion - Major Koch, 2nd Bat. - Major Stenzler, 3rd baht. - Major Scherber, 4th baht. - Captain Guericke.

7th Division, Lieutenant General Süsman. The composition of the division: 1st Regiment - Colonel Brower (1st Bat., Major Walter, 2nd Bat., Captain Burkhard, 3rd Batt.Captain Schultz), 2nd Regiment - Colonel Sturm (1st Batt ., Major Krokh, 2nd Bat., Captain Pitsonki, 3rd Bat., Captain Wiedemann) and 3rd Regiment - Colonel Heidrich (1st Bat., Captain von Heidte, 2nd Bat., Major Derpy , 3rd baht., Major Heilman) 11.

5th Division, Major General Ringel. Composition: 85th, 100th and 95th regiments. We will not dwell on their composition in detail, since the main actions were carried out by paratroopers, and the mountain arrows only strengthened them. There were also auxiliary units, but they did not play any significant role in the capture of Crete. A total of 23 thousand people, and about 10 thousand were parachuted from gliders and parachutes.

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Air support was assigned to more than 500 aircraft from the VIII Air Corps under the command of General von Richthofen. General leadership was carried out by the headquarters of the 4th Air Fleet under the command of Major General von Lehr. The total number of aviation reached 433 bombers and 235 fighters. The transport aviation consisted of 520 U52, 72 DFS230 airframes. In total, this armada transported, in addition to people, 353 guns, 771 motorcycles, 5358 landing containers with equipment and 1090 tons of various cargo.

On the island, 4 main landing zones were outlined, 3 of them fell on the main airfields. The landing was supposed to be carried out in three waves: the first to step on Crete were the Maindal paratroopers, whose task was to capture and hold the airfield in Maleme and numerous roads, bridges and anti-aircraft artillery positions located in the vicinity of the local capital, the city of Hania. They were supported by Heidrich's 3rd Regiment, 7th Division. The need to capture Chania was due to the presence there of the English headquarters and the residence of the Greek king.

The 2nd regiment of the 7th division was to capture the airfield and the town of Rethymnon, and the 1st regiment was to capture the airfield near the village of Heraklion. The goal of capturing all the landing strips was to create a reliable bridgehead and place for unloading heavy weapons and the 5th division during the third wave of the landing. Until this task was completed, the support of the paratroopers was assigned to the Air Force.

The plan of the operation was named "Mercury". It looked simple enough, especially against the backdrop of the overwhelming success of the Airborne Forces in the West. On April 25, the order was given to storm. However, as events showed, everything turned out to be not so simple ...

Firstly, there were not 25-30 thousand garrisons on the island, as it was supposed, but 32 thousand British, Australians (part of the 2nd brigade) and New Zealanders (4th, 5th and 10th -th brigade), and 11 thousand Greek soldiers (this does not include the personal security of the king). In addition, anticipating the landing, the British transferred to the island their best units in the Middle East - the Leicester battalion and about 700 Scottish Highlanders from the Argyll and Sutherland regiments. There were also 45 guns and 9 tanks. There was no aviation at all. The island's commandant was General Freiberg, an experienced and determined military leader. He carried out reconnaissance in advance of the areas where it was possible to land parachutists and ordered to cover them with an almost impenetrable network of obstacles (both against parachutists and against gliders). No less erroneous was the opinion in the German headquarters that the British and Greeks were demoralized by the defeat on the continent.

The mistake of the British was to underestimate the security of the island. They knew about the impending landing on Crete, but did not believe that such a territory could be captured by the forces of paratroopers alone. Therefore, a landing from the sea was expected with a force of up to 10 thousand people. For cover from the sea, a whole fleet was deployed: 4 battleships, 9 cruisers and more than 20 destroyers.

Based on the situation, Freiberg expected a landing of 20-25 thousand people, so the soldiers of the garrison felt confident enough. But, in the end, the protection of the island was still insufficient. For example, the Greeks, who left all heavy weapons on the continent, had one rifle for 6 people, and 3 clips for a rifle (!) 12.

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IV.2. DIRT OF PARACHUTISTS.

Early in the morning of May 20, 1941, after the bombing of the island, the first J52 and J87 appeared over Crete (see Appendix 2, photo 2). Their target was the town of Maleme. Despite the fact that the length of the strip was only 600 meters, mastering it was vital for the operation. Another condition was the elimination of anti-aircraft guns near the strip. The first to land was Lieutenant Gentz's company (90 people). The clock was 7:00. From the ground, intensive fire was opened on the gliders. Despite heavy losses (after two hours there were about 60 killed and wounded), the paratroopers successfully attacked anti-aircraft positions south of the airfield. The vanguard was followed by Koch's 1st Battalion in gliders. Unfortunately, due to an error, the 1st and 4th companies were detached by tugs directly over the British positions. Major Koch and most of his men were wounded in the first minutes of the battle. Under these conditions, the assault on the airbase was not possible. And the 3rd company was landed where it was necessary and joined with the remnants of the scattered and defeated units (the survivors gradually gathered in small groups throughout the day) and successfully suppressed the resistance on the northern and western sides of the airfield.

The 3rd Battalion of the Assault Regiment, dropped with parachutes in the northeastern part of Maleme, scattered greatly during the landing and could not concentrate, as its soldiers landed under a barrage of very dense rifle and machine-gun fire from the British camp located on the dominant airfield altitude 107. Paratroopers were shot in the air, and after landing they were destroyed in hand-to-hand combat.

The regiment headquarters and the 4th battalion successfully landed west of the landing strip, but in this battle the regimental commander Meindal was wounded in the chest and stomach. The command of the regiment was assumed by the commander of the 2nd baht. Major Stenzler (his unit was in reserve, but due to the difficult situation everyone was thrown into battle). The battle lasted all day. The positions around the airfield changed hands. The Germans captured almost all the anti-aircraft guns, after which they shot from them trucks, hurrying to the airfield with reinforcements. By the end of the first day, the paratroopers captured the landing strip. Since another counterattack was expected at any moment, even the moonless night that had descended did not ease the tension of the Germans who were preparing for battle.

Heidrich's 3rd Regiment, assigned to support Meindahl's forces, landed west of the target. They were supposed to capture Hania and Galatas - small settlements, as well as the Souda Bay, suitable for landing seaplanes. In the vanguard, the 3rd battalion landed. Heilman, dropped directly into the positions of the New Zealand soldiers. The latter opened very well-aimed fire. Many parachutists have landed dead. Some of the Germans were carried away by the wind into the sea, where they drowned. One company in full force ended up in the reservoir, where almost all the soldiers drowned. Most of the soldiers landed in the center of the enemy camp and were captured. Only one company (9th) landed where it should be. As a result of such losses, the assault on Chania became impossible. After a bloody battle for a very important height in the Galatas area, the 9th Company was forced to retreat inland.

The release of the 1st and 2nd battalions was made in the area of ​​the Agya prison, adapted by the British for a fortified point and controlling the road to Chania. The paratroopers immediately entered the battle. The sounds of battle caught the attention of George II, the Greek king, who was stationed in a nearby village. Looking out the window, the monarch saw a hundred meters away from the Germans landing. The king was immediately evacuated from the unsafe area, and later taken off the island on destroyer 12.

Meanwhile, von Heirdt's soldiers cleared the prison building and turned it into a regimental headquarters. By evening, the remnants of the 9th Company joined them.

Almost all the circumstances associated with the actions of the first wave turned out in a gloomy way. None of the designated points were securely held by the Germans. Several battalion and company commanders were killed, the loss of personnel was simply monstrous.

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On top of everything else, due to an error of the pilot of the glider, the commander of the 7th division Zyusman crashed and died. His deputy, Meindal, was seriously wounded. However, the headquarters in Athens did not know about this ...

The second wave of troops flew up to Crete at 13:30. She moved towards Rethymnon and Heraklion. The 2nd regiment, with the exception of the 2nd battalion attached to the 1st regiment, landed at Rethymnon. Two companies were thrown out successfully, but were pinned down by enemy fire. And the 3rd company, oddly enough, was blown 7 km away from the target by the wind. Despite all these obstacles, the units were able to get together and capture the hill dominating the Rethymnon airfield. Since the assault was not yet possible due to the strong fortifications of the enemy, the paratroopers dug in and began to wait for reinforcements.

1st regiment with 2nd baht. went to the island later than everyone else.

Since the area was covered with a significant amount of air defense systems, the soldiers had to jump from a great height. Because of this, Brower's men suffered heavy losses from machine-gun fire. And two companies that landed on the western side of the airfield were exterminated to the last man - only five survived. All other parts were scattered and only after dark were able to gather. After assessing the situation, Brower found himself from the attack and devoted the rest of the day to collecting the survivors.

Thus, the position of 7 thousand paratroopers looked extremely deplorable. Having almost completely used up their ammunition, the troops of the tired, wounded and discouraged Germans were preparing for their last battle. In the coming darkness, paratroopers were desperately trying to find places of concentration. It seemed that their destruction was only a matter of time, but the British command, completely entangled in the situation, did not do anything. The outcome of the battle was still uncertain, but the British lost their main advantage - the sea that separated them from the mainland. The gates to the island have already opened ...

In the morning of the next day, the 1st Batt fought at the Maleme airfield. finally took altitude 107. The Germans did not succeed in capturing the strip completely, and the planes loaded with ammunition tried to land right on the coast. But they suffered accidents. Only one successfully landed, which, taking on board the wounded, including Meindahl, flew back to the mainland.

By the end of the first day of the operation, Student finally received reports of the plight of the paratroopers and the death of Zyusman, who was supposed to lead the operation on the spot. The student realized the real threat of a complete failure of the operation. The general firmly rejected the proposal to end the invasion of Crete, thereby leaving to the mercy of fate several thousand elite soldiers entrenched near the English airfields. After a short meeting, he made a decision on the urgent delivery to Malem of the third echelon of the landing - mountain riflemen (see Appendix 2, photo 3). The order was given, regardless of the real state of affairs: the planes would have to land on a small airfield actually in the hands of the enemy.

1IV.2. Landing of the Jaeger.

At 14:00 in Maleme, two companies of paratroopers were swiftly landed - the last parachute reserve. With their help, the airfield was taken, although the strip was still under fire from all types of weapons. At about 15:00 the first U52s appeared, heavily loaded with mountain riflemen, and under the enthusiastic roar of paratroopers fighting along the entire perimeter of the strip, they went to land. But the triumph was quickly replaced by tragedy ..

After the landing of the first planes, the strongest fire fell on them. The huntsmen who were inside the planes barely had time to jump out when they found themselves inside a hellish fire from which few managed to get out. Having received many hits in the air, many U52s, enveloped in flames, fell on the landing strip, others crashed, jumping out of the airfield. Landing planes had to perform incredible maneuvers in order not to collide with debris. The situation was complicated by the fact that Maleme airfield was not adapted to receive such a large number of heavy aircraft. Now it was in real chaos. The paratroopers tried to clear the runway by pulling the debris away with tractors.

No matter how hard the fate of mountain riflemen sent by air was, the fate of 2 baht., Sent by sea, was much more tragic. Their convoy was intercepted by the British fleet 27 km from Chania and defeated. The intervention of the VIII corps' dive bombers saved the case, but from 2 full-blooded baht. 52 people remained. However, by this time, the German aviation declared itself in full force - the outgoing British ships were attacked by dive bombers. As a result, 2 cruisers and 1 destroyer were sunk, two battleships and two cruisers were heavily damaged.

In Maleme, littered with corpses and debris, the battle continued. The Assault Regiment, reinforced by mountain riflemen, went on the attack and established itself on the outskirts of the city and the airport. The shelling of the take-off field ceased and the gates to Crete were fully opened. General Ringel took over the leadership of the operation. The arrival of mountain shooters decided the outcome of the battle - soon the Germans captured the Souda Bay, where seaplanes with ammunition began to immediately arrive. By May 27, despite fierce British resistance, Chania was taken. Assessing the situation as satisfactory, Ringel ordered to move to Rethymnon, where reinforcements were needed.

At Rethymno on May 21, units of the 2nd regiment were driven out of their positions from the hill, where they held out for more than a day. They retreated to an abandoned olive oil factory. For the next 4 days, the paratroopers held out there, repulsing attack after attack under almost continuous artillery fire. By this time, two bloodied battalions held their positions under the onslaught of 7 thousand allied soldiers. The fight was too unequal, and on the night of May 26, 250 German soldiers - all the survivors, having broken through the ring, went to Heraklion. However, the next evening, they were told by radio an order to stop immediately and organize a defense in order to pin down enemy forces in the area. The Australians, who were trying to eliminate the detachment, managed to break through the defenses, but were immediately thrown back by a desperate counterattack. On May 29, the soldiers of the 2nd regiment, inspired by the outbreak of panic in the enemy ranks and having received ammunition with food, resumed their movement to Rethymno, where it was the turn of the British to bustle about building fortifications near the long-suffering factory. As soon as the remnants of the paratroopers on the morning of May 30 launched an attack, units of the 85th Jaeger Regiment approached them and jointly took both the plant and the city.

At this time, at the third airfield - Heraklion - Brower's 1st regiment by the morning of May 21 began an offensive against the city. Unfortunately, the colonel did not know that he was opposed by 8 thousand British and Greeks, who were abundantly supplied with artillery. The offensive was quickly drowned out. Colonel Brower was ordered to stop the offensive, gain a foothold in positions and prevent the outflow of allied forces to Rethymno. On May 24, he received reinforcements - another battalion. In the morning, the 1st regiment launched an offensive, successfully capturing the dominant height over Heraklion. With the arrival of the vanguard of the 5th Division on May 27, the fate of the last stronghold of the British resistance was decided. In fact, this meant the end of the battle for Crete. On the same day, Freiberg gave the order to evacuate troops to Egypt.

On May 23, due to heavy losses from bombing (in total, 3 cruisers were lost, 6 destroyers, 17 ships were heavily damaged), the British fleet withdrew to Alexandria. Taking advantage of this, on May 28, a 6-thousandth detachment of Italian troops landed on the island.

V. RESULTS AND SIGNIFICANCE OF THE CRETE OPERATION.

What were the results of the Cretan landing - one of the greatest operations of the landing troops?

The British managed to take out no more than 15 thousand people from the island. Specifically, the British lost 612 killed, 5135 prisoners and 1224 wounded; New Zealanders - 671 killed, 2,180 prisoners and 967 wounded; Australians - 450 killed, 3000 prisoners. The greatest losses were suffered by the Greeks - only 4 thousand people out of 11 thousand were taken away from the island ... And about 2 thousand people died on the warships of the British Navy.

The victory went to the Germans at a high cost: 3022 killed in the 7th Division and the Assault Regiment, 652 in the 5th Division and 126 people from air support... In addition to them, 3400 were wounded. Of the 520 J52, 185 remained in the ranks ... After the completion of the operation, the 7th division was sent to reorganize and rest in the zone of the Eastern Front (at that time the war with the USSR was not yet going on).

The capture of Crete led to the strongest weakening of Britain's position in the Mediterranean basin since 1797. In addition, it was one of the most brilliant successes of the parachute troops in general, and I applaud them as heroes. But the losses suffered by them were so heavy that Hitler forbade large-scale landings to be carried out in the future. In one of his conversations with Kurt Student, Hitler said: “Crete has shown that the days of paratroopers are over” 13. As a result, the elite troops were out of work and fought as elite infantry until the end of the war.

The last major operation of the German Airborne Forces gave impetus to the birth of similar units in other countries, in particular in England and the United States, where earlier this branch of troops was treated with contempt.

13/9 /, p. 336

Vi. BIBLIOGRAPHY.

1. I.A. Andreev "Combat and transport aircraft",

Young Guard, Volgograd, 1979.

2. S. Voropaev, A. Egazarov "Encyclopedia of the III Reich",

Lockid, M, 1996.

3. Citizen S. "Iron Anna". "Wings of the Motherland". No. 7, 1995.

4. D.M. Gavin "Airborne Warfare"

Military Publishing, Moscow, 1957.

5. A. Gove "Attention, parachutists!"

Military Publishing, Moscow, 1957.

6. A.B. Beetle "Rifles and Submachine guns",

Military Publishing, M. 1987.

7. Kotelnikov V. "Heavenly cabbies of the war." "Wings of the Motherland". No. 3, 1997.

8. D. Miller "Commando - formation, preparation,

outstanding operations ”, Harvest, Minsk, 1997.

9. Yu. Nenakhov "Airborne Forces in World War II",

Harvest, Minsk, 1998.

10. Plotnikov S. "Handbrake". Technology of youth ". No. 1-2, 1992.

The first massive use of airborne assault forces in world history was carried out by the Germans at the very beginning of World War II. The experience of these amphibious operations is still controversial. Were they actually effective, and how influenced their subsequent assessment was the propaganda of both belligerents?

German airborne troops at the start of the war

Due to the limited number of transport aircraft, the main operational unit of the Wehrmacht airborne forces was the parachute battalion, which had the following organization:

• headquarters with a communications platoon;
• three rifle companies - three platoons of three squads each (18 light machine guns, 3 light 50-mm mortars and 3 anti-tank rifles);
• a company of heavy infantry weapons (12 heavy machine guns and 6 medium 81-mm mortars).

The main transport vehicle of the German airborne troops was the three-engine Junkers Ju.52, which had been in production since the early 1930s. The carrying capacity of this aircraft was 1.5–2 tons (with a payload of up to 4.5 tons per overload), it could take on board one squad of paratroopers - 13 soldiers and a commander. Thus, for the transfer of one battalion, 40 aircraft were required, and the minimum supply of equipment and supplies required a dozen more vehicles.

German parachutist with RZ.1 parachute
Source - Fallschirmjager: German Paratroopers from Glory to Defeat 1939-1945. Concord Publications, 2001 (Concord 6505)

A parachute drop required special training for the fighters, including the ability to navigate unfamiliar terrain and quickly make independent decisions in an ever-changing environment. Finally, there were problems with personal weapons - jumping with a heavy carbine was inconvenient, so by the beginning of World War II, the tactics of German paratroopers involved dropping weapons in a separate container, and the paratroopers had only pistols with them (as a rule, automatic Sauer 38 (H) ).

Transport aircraft "Junkers" Ju.52
Source - waralbum.ru

Therefore, the actual paratroopers in the German Airborne Forces before the war were few - they made up the 1st and 2nd battalions of the 2nd Airborne Regiment. Paratroopers were supposed to be used, first of all, to capture airfields or places convenient for aircraft landing (for example, flat and straight sections of the highway). The main part of the landing troops landed by landing method (from landing aircraft), which made it possible to improve the control of the landing force, but fraught with the risk of the death of valuable transport vehicles from accidents or enemy fire.

Landing gliders, which were not a pity to lose, became a partial solution to the problem; in addition, a large glider could theoretically lift much more than a transport aircraft - for example, the Me.321 "Giant", produced from the beginning of 1941, could hold up to 200 paratroopers or one medium tank. The main German landing glider DFS.230, which was in service by 1940, had much more modest characteristics: 1200 kg of cargo or 10 paratroopers and 270 kg of equipment for them. However, such a glider cost only DEM 7,500 - the equivalent of ten regular RZI6 parachutes. By the spring of 1940, the 1st Regiment of the 1st Airborne Squadron was formed from DFS.230 vehicles.

Landing glider DFS.230
Source - aviastar.org

Thus, the effectiveness of the landing depended on the number of aircraft involved and the ability to use each of them several times. It was obvious that in large-scale hostilities, it was advisable to use the landing force not to seize territory as such, but to occupy individual points, control over which would help advance its troops and complicate enemy operations.

Preparation of Operation Weserubung

The first airborne assault of World War II was the landing of German paratroopers in Denmark and Norway. The basis of Operation Weserubung was a chain of amphibious assault forces in the main ports of Norway, but to support the landing from the sea and, above all, the capture of enemy airfields, it was decided to use paratroopers. For the first strike, the German command allocated a relatively small force - the 1st Battalion of the 1st Airborne Regiment (I / FJR1) under the command of Major Erich Walter (a total of five companies).

In Denmark, the paratroopers of the 4th company of Captain Walter Guericke were supposed to capture the Aalborg airfield, preventing its use by the enemy. Further, the company was ordered to occupy the bridges across the Storstremmen Strait between the Falster and Zeeland islands, along which the road from Gesser to Copenhagen passes, as well as the Masnedø island lying in this strait, where the coastal batteries were located.

Operation "Weserubung" - the capture of Denmark and Norway by the Germans

In Norway, the 3rd company of Chief Lieutenant von Brandis was to capture the Sol airfield near Stavanger - the only airbase on the entire western coast of Norway. At the same time, the headquarters and 2nd companies under the command of Major Walter were parachuted at the Forneby airfield near Oslo and prepared for the landing. Lieutenant Herbert Schmidt's 1st company remained in reserve.

In total, by the beginning of the operation, the Luftwaffe had 571 Ju.52 vehicles. In the first wave of the landing on April 9, 1940, ten air transport groups and four squadrons were involved, which airlifted one battalion and two companies of paratroopers. Another airborne battalion and three battalions of conventional infantry were supposed to land by landing method together with six airfield service companies, the headquarters of the aviation forces and the headquarters of the infantry regiment. It was planned to immediately transfer fighters to the captured airfields, so 168 tons of fuel were unloaded for them in advance.

April 9, 1940: Sol airfield

The landing in Denmark took place without complications and rather resembled maneuvers - the Danish troops preferred not to resist even before receiving the order to surrender. The bridges across Storstremmen were quickly captured by paratroopers, and a landing force immediately landed on the Aalborg airfield.

But in Norway, the Germans immediately ran into stiff resistance. The detachment that attacked the Sol airfield had troubles on the way. The landing force (a company of paratroopers, the 1st battalion of the 193rd Infantry Regiment and an anti-aircraft artillery unit, about 800 people in total) were to land two groups of transport vehicles from the 7th Squadron of the 1st Special-Purpose Air Squadron under the cover of twin-engine Messerschmitt vehicles »Bf.110 from 3rd Squadron of 76th Heavy Fighter Squadron. But due to dense low clouds, one of the groups with the landing party turned back, soon the fighters did this too (after two of them collided with each other in the fog and crashed into the water).

As a result, at 9:50 am (according to other sources - at 9:20 am), only twelve Ju.52s reached the target under the cover of a pair of fighters who did not notice their commander's signal to return. In total, about 150 paratroopers were dropped under the command of Chief Lieutenant von Brandis, but the wind carried some of the paratroopers away from the runway. The defenders of the airfield under the command of Lieutenant Thur Tangval fiercely resisted, their firing points were suppressed only by the attack of both heavy fighters. As a result, the losses of the landing force turned out to be relatively small - three killed and about a dozen wounded. Soon the airfield was captured, although some of the strongholds continued to resist.

The airfield team that landed together with the landing party prepared the airfield to receive aircraft in 4 hours, after which the transfer of reinforcements and anti-aircraft artillery began here. In total, during the first day of the operation, 180 transport vehicles landed in Sola, two battalions of the 193rd Infantry Regiment, a supply of fuel, ground personnel of the 1st Squadron of the 1st Dive Bombers Group, and the personnel of the 4th Battery of the 33rd anti-aircraft regiment with 20-mm anti-aircraft guns.

Having occupied the airfield, the paratroopers moved to Stavanger and seized the city and port without any problems. Soon, three German transports entered here, delivering reinforcements and ammunition (including the material part of three anti-aircraft batteries); the anti-aircraft gunners themselves were deployed a little earlier with the help of seaplanes. Another transport ("Roda") in the morning was intercepted and sunk by the Norwegian destroyer "Egir", after which the destroyer itself was destroyed in Stavanger by an attack by German bombers. A more serious loss for the Germans was the death of the tanker Posidonia, which was marching here, torpedoed by the British submarine Triton the night before.

By the evening of April 9, 22 Ju.87 dive bombers arrived in Sola, as well as 4 long-range Bf.110 fighters; in the harbor of Stavanger, 15 float bombers He.115 from the 106th coastal air group splashed down. In the shortest possible time, a powerful air force was created here, capable of supporting the amphibious assault forces landed to the north.

April 9: Forneby airfield - a series of surprises

The Norwegian capital Oslo and naval base Horten, located closer to the mouth of the Oslofjord, was to be captured by a combined attack from the sea and from the air. Simultaneously with the landing of the amphibious assault, two parachute companies were thrown out to the Forneby airfield near Oslo, after which two battalions from the 169th Infantry Division landed here.

In this area were located large forces of the Norwegian army - the 1st and 2nd Infantry Divisions, in full strength, numbering about 17,000 soldiers and officers. However, by the beginning of the German invasion, the troops had not yet been mobilized, so their combat power turned out to be much less. But the coastal defense of the Oslofjord proved to be very effective - at Drobak, in the narrowest part of the fjord, it sunk the heavy cruiser Blucher, which was marching with a part of the amphibious assault. Due to the loss of the ship, the sea landing in Oslo was temporarily delayed, and the airborne assault suddenly became the main one.

Actions of the German fleet in the Oslofjord on April 9, 1940
Source - A.M. Noskov. Scandinavian foothold in World War II. Moscow: Nauka, 1977

Due to cloudiness and fog over northern Germany, 29 Ju.52 transports took off from the Schleswig airfield with a very long delay. On the way to Oslofjord, one of the vehicles lagged behind the group and was shot down by Norwegian fighters - the entire crew and 12 paratroopers were killed. At the moment when, according to the plan, the paratroopers were to be thrown out, the commander of the 2nd group of the 1st special purpose air squadron (the first wave of the landing), Lieutenant Colonel Dreves, gave his machines the order to turn on the opposite course. The clock was 8:20. Dreves decided not to risk throwing paratroopers in the fog, but to land them in Danish Aalborg, already captured by the Germans, and reported this to the command of the 10th Air Corps in Hamburg.

A furious dispute broke out at corps headquarters. The commander of the air corps, Lieutenant General Hans Geisler, demanded an order to return the second, landing wave of the landing (it started 20 minutes after the first). At the same time, the commander of the army transport aviation, Colonel Karl-August von Gablenz, believed that the operation should be continued: in case of a sudden landing, even on an unoccupied airfield, the landing force had a chance of success. In addition, the Aalborg airfield was already packed to capacity, and the landing of new aircraft here could lead to trouble.

After a message was received from the reconnaissance vessel "Widder" from the reconnaissance vessel "Widder" that there was also fog over the Norwegian capital, Goering intervened in the dispute, who personally ordered the return of all the planes. But then the "human factor" came into play. The commander of the 103rd Special Forces Air Group, Captain Richard Wagner, who was in charge of the transport aircraft of the second wave, decided ... to ignore the order. Later, he said that since he was subordinate to the head of the army transport aviation, he took the order on behalf of the 10th air corps for enemy disinformation. The planes were on course, experienced pilots did not lose their bearings, and Wagner decided that his group would cope with the task. The decision turned out to be unexpectedly correct: soon the fog began to dissipate, and then disappeared altogether.

Heavy fighter "Messerschmitt" Bf.110
Source - John Vasco, Fernando Estanislau. The Messerschmitt Bf. 110 in color profile. 1939-1945. Schiffer Military History, 2005

Another coincidence was that the eight Bf 110 heavy fighters from the 1st Squadron of the 76th Fighter Squadron under the command of Chief Lieutenant Werner Hansen, accompanying the second wave, also did not turn off the route and reached Forneby. The airfield was outside the range of their flight, so the machines had only to wait for its capture and land here - the Messerschmitts could no longer return home.

At the Forneby airfield, a fighter squadron of the Norwegian Army Aviation was based - seven combat-ready Gladiator biplanes. Having received information about the approach of a large group of enemy aircraft to the capital, five of them took to the air and at 8:37 entered the battle with the Messerschmitts of Chief Lieutenant Hansen. The Norwegians managed to shoot down two Messerschmitts and one transport Junkers, losing only one aircraft in the battle. The fact that the German pilots could not conduct a maneuvering battle due to lack of fuel also played a role. Having reached the Forneby airfield, they managed to storm it once, destroying two fighters standing there (one of them had just landed after an air battle), after which they went to land.

Almost simultaneously with the fighters, at 9:05 am (instead of 8:45 am according to the plan), transport vehicles began to land on the airfield. The air defense of the airfield was partially suppressed, but anti-aircraft machine guns still opened fire. His only victim was Captain Wagner, who was flying in the lead plane. The Norwegians hastily tried to barricade the runway with vehicles, but all German transport planes were able to land, although three of them were damaged.

Killed German paratrooper at the Forneby airfield

On the ground, resistance turned out to be weak, the paratroopers quickly occupied the airfield, anti-aircraft gun positions and the flight control center. Soon from Oslo, the German air attaché Captain Eberhard Spiller arrived here. On the radio, he sent a signal about the occupation of the airfield and readiness to receive the remaining echelons of the landing. By noon, about five infantry companies had already landed here - though without heavy weapons, except for captured anti-aircraft guns and machine guns. If the Norwegians had organized a counterattack, they could have caused the Germans a lot of trouble. But the garrison of the airfield under the command of Captain Munte-Dahl retreated to the Akershus fortress and did not show any more initiative.

The command of the Norwegian army and the country's leadership were demoralized by the news of the landing of the Germans at several points at once. At 9:30 am, the government and the royal family left the capital, driving to the center of the country; the gold of the National Bank was also exported here. At about noon on April 9, the first German soldiers appeared on the streets of Oslo, and at 15:30, invading troops up to a battalion entered with an orchestra. The Norwegian troops, demoralized by the flight of the command and the lack of orders, did not offer resistance: in Oslo, the Germans took about 1,300 prisoners, most of whom did not even have weapons (only 300 rifles were captured).

Meanwhile, the Kriegsmarines were still trying to occupy the Norwegian fortifications on the islands and along the shores of the Oslofjord. This succeeded only in the evening, after the commander of the fortified area of ​​Oslofjord gave the order to surrender. German ships entered the Oslo harbor only at 11:45 am the next day - more than a day later than it was anticipated by the operation plan ...

German soldiers on Oslo street, April 1940
Source - History of the Second World War. In 12 volumes. Volume 3.M .: Military Publishing, 1974

The landings at the Sol and Forneby airfields were successful and had a serious impact on the general situation in Norway, although relatively small forces were landed from the air - about 2,000 soldiers. However, it is easy to see that their success was largely the result of chance, as well as the decisiveness of the German commanders and the apathy of the Norwegian commanders. The total losses of German aircraft on the first day of the Norwegian campaign amounted to 20 vehicles of all types - mainly from accidents and fire from the ground.

April 14: landing in Dombos

However, the Norwegian operation did not end with the capture of the capital. The government fleeing from Oslo offered unexpected and effective resistance to the Germans. On April 11, King Haakon VII removed the commander of the ground forces, Major General Christian Locke, and appointed in his place the inspector general of the infantry, Colonel Otto Ryuge, promoted to major general on this occasion. Ryuge had already distinguished himself on the night of April 9-10 by organizing a cover for the road leading from Oslo to Hamar (this is where the Norwegian government left). It was he who, having gathered scattered groups of soldiers near Midtskog, gave the Germans the first successful battle, during which the German air force attaché Spiller, who led the vanguard of the paratroopers, was killed. And on April 14, the landing of Anglo-French troops (up to 40,000 people) began in Namsus and Harstad, after which the Allies got the impression that Norway could be held. On April 17-19, two British divisions were landed in the Ondalsnes area, on August 29 the Allies landed in Bodø, on May 4 in Mu.

To separate the Norwegian troops and cut off their grouping, located north of Oslo, from the rest of the forces, the German command decided to land an airborne assault in Dombos. This town lay 250 km from the German positions, halfway from Hamar to Trondheim, where highways and railways from Trondheim, Oslo and Ondalsnes connected. Capturing such an important communications hub would disrupt the cohesion of the entire newly created Norwegian defense.

On April 14, at 17:15, fifteen transport Junkers from the 2nd group of the 1st special air squadron of Lieutenant Colonel Dreves took off from the Forneby airfield, having on board 168 paratroopers from the 1st company of the 1st parachute regiment under the command of the chief lieutenant Herbert Schmidt. But due to bad weather, some of the cars could not find landmarks for dropping, in addition, another part of them came under anti-aircraft fire. As a result, one plane was shot down, two crashed during an emergency landing, seven returned to Forneby, three more landed in Trondheim, and one landed in Sweden due to damage. Only six cars were able to throw the paratroopers, but in the wrong place eight kilometers south of the city.

Haakon VII, King of Norway from 1905 to 1957. Photo of 1915
Source - flickr.com

In the dark forest, covered with snow, the paratroopers found it very difficult to find each other. By the morning of April 15, only 63 people had gathered, including two officers (one of them was Chief Lieutenant Schmidt). The rest of the paratroopers got lost, some of them were captured. Schmidt's squad saddled the highway five kilometers from Dombos and blew up the canvas railroad leading to Lillehammer and further to Oslo. He could no longer do something more, although it was here that incredible luck could smile at the paratroopers. The fact is that it was on April 14 that King Haakon VII and the commander-in-chief, Major General Ryuge, for security reasons, decided to relocate from Hamar to Ondalsnes, where the allies were preparing for the landing. The royal convoy miraculously did not fall into the hands of the enemy: just a few kilometers from the landing site of the Germans, the king was warned by local children, who reported that they saw parachutes in the sky, and people in unfamiliar form on the highway.

The Norwegians threw the 2nd Battalion of the 11th Infantry Regiment against the paratroopers. Despite the multiple superiority in forces and the presence of mortars, he acted extremely hesitantly. The Germans retreated to the south step by step, escaping the attacks, and on April 18 they were even able to receive ammunition and supplies dropped from the air. Only on April 19, the Norwegians finally managed to surround them in a mountain hollow, after which the remaining 34 paratroopers, led by the seriously wounded Schmidt, laid down their arms.

May: paratroopers fighting for Narvik

More in this campaign, the Germans did not land airborne assault forces, although such plans existed. On May 30, Hitler ordered the sending of units of the 7th Airborne Division, released after the end of hostilities in Holland, to Northern Norway. Now it was supposed to be used in a new operation to capture Narvik, abandoned on May 28 under the onslaught of British troops. The operation was codenamed "Naumburg". For its implementation, two parachute battalions and about a thousand mountain riflemen who underwent airborne training were allocated. However, soon the need for the operation disappeared due to the withdrawal of the Allies from Narvik (June 8).

Transport "Junkers" drops paratroopers near Narvik, May 30, 1940
Source - Chris McNab. Fallschirmjager. Nemecti vysadkari

Nevertheless, the airborne troops nevertheless took part in the battles for Narvik - as reinforcements for the mountain rangers of Lieutenant General Dietl who fought here. German troops, which had landed in Narvik from destroyers on April 9, were blocked by an allied landing party and found themselves in a desperate situation. Five thousand soldiers, loudly referred to as the "Narvik" group of forces, were actually surrounded, communication with them was maintained only by air. To strengthen Dietl's group, it was decided to use paratroopers sent on transport Junkers and seaplanes. On April 13, one seaplane delivered ammunition to Dietl's men, and three Ju.52s, which landed on the ice of Lake Hartwig, delivered a battery of mountain artillery.

German paratroopers in the mountains near Narvik
Source - Chris McNab. Fallschirmjager. Nemecti vysadkari

On May 8, two flying boats that landed in the Rumbaksfjord delivered 36 reinforcements. On May 14, 60 paratroopers were thrown out near Narvik, on May 15 - another 22, on May 17 - another 60. On May 20, 12 soldiers and 2 officers were delivered to Rumbaksfjord by seaplanes. On May 22, a whole airborne company jumped out with parachutes near Narvik, the next day - a company of mountain rangers, specially trained in parachute training. From 24 to 30 May, a parachute battalion of Captain Walter was landed here, and another mountain gun was delivered (on a flying boat).

Results of the operation

During the entire Norwegian campaign, transport Ju.52s made 3,018 flights, transported 29,280 people, 1177 tons of fuel and 2376 tons of other cargo to Norway. At the same time, only a small part of people and cargo was intended for parachute drops. In general, the airborne troops have shown themselves to be a kind of "surgical instrument" - an effective, dangerous, but very fragile and unreliable tool. The niche of their application in practice turned out to be rather narrow, and each time success depended on a huge number of accidents and decisiveness. individuals- from general to soldier.

Sources and Literature:

1. S. V. Patyanin. Blitzkrieg in Western Europe: Norway, Denmark. M .: AST, 2004
2. A. Gove. Attention - parachutists! M .: Publishing house foreign literature, 1957
3. B. Querry, M. Chappell. German paratroopers, 1939-1945. M .: AST, Astrel, 2003
4. Marine Atlas. Volume III. Part two. Descriptions to the cards. General Staff of the Navy, 1966
5. The wings of the Luftwaffe. Combat aircraft of the Third Reich. Part one: Arado - Dornier (Series: History of aviation technology. Supplement to the bulletin "Technical information", issue No. 4). Moscow: TsAGI, 1994
6. Chris McNab. Fallschirmjager. Nemecti vysadkari. Praha: Svojtla & Co, 2003
7. I. M. Baxter, R. Volstad. Fallschirmjuger. German Paratroopers from Glory to Defeat 1939-1945. Concord Publishing, 2001 (Concord 6505)
8. Chris Ailsby. Hitler's Sky Warriors. German Paratroopers in Action 1939-1945. London: Brown Partworks Ltd, 2000

Soviet units manage to hold one bridgehead on the right bank of the Neva, where they caught on to the terrain. - We must definitely take this bridgehead, - they say to Major Stenzler, as soon as the 2nd battalion of the assault regiment arrives at the front.
And the paratroopers immediately join the battle. The main enemy bridgehead is the village of Petroshino. The Russian defense can be broken very quickly. But the enemy immediately vigorously counterattacks, and the paratroopers are forced to retreat and return to their original positions. “Let's attack again,” Stenzler decides.
His paratroopers again seize the once recaptured and then surrendered area. They are surrounded by hostile nature, there are only swamps and forests, and it is very difficult to advance.
The 2nd Battalion will fight for six days and nights without respite. The bottom line is terrible. Of the 24 officers of the battalion, 21 are incapacitated - killed or wounded. Major Stenzler himself will receive a bullet wound in the head and on October 19 he will die in a hospital in Tilsit, where he will be taken in a hopeless state.
The almost completely defeated 2nd battalion nevertheless fulfilled its task. But only a small number of surviving paratroopers from the assault regiment had a chance to celebrate the victory.

Now a battalion doctor is in command of the unit, and only a few dozen soldiers remain in each company under the command of non-commissioned officers, mainly sergeant-major. But the surviving soldiers from the Stenzler battalion learn that now they will not be alone in the Neva sector.
“Your comrades,” they are informed, “paratroopers of the 7th Air Division of General Petersen, will join you on the Leningrad front.
“The cold will start soon, but our paratroopers have endured the Cretan sun and will not be afraid of the Russian winter,” General Breuer said.

Captain Knohe takes advantage of the respite to gather his dead between the lines and bury them. Special forces are engaged in this sinister business, but they are often fired upon.
Knoche himself takes part in such expeditions. He wants to find the body of his officer - Lieutenant Alex Dick by all means. He was from a German family living in Russia, born in St. Petersburg, where he was interned as a child during the First World War. Now his body will rest on the banks of the Neva, a few tens of kilometers from his hometown, which became Leningrad.

But soon an invaluable ally — winter — came to the aid of Soviet soldiers. The Neva and Ladoga Lake are covered with ice, and the Russians can now bring up reinforcements and food across this vast ice expanse.
“The Russians have improved their fighting spirit, Captain,” says Sergeant Major Stolz Knohe. “The Chancellor NCO and I may continue to seduce them, but they no longer show up. In vain we promise them bread, potatoes, and even vodka, it doesn't work anymore.
Now in front of the German parachutists Soviet soldiers in white winter camouflage, well armed and equipped. They are not from Central Asia, but from Siberia, and their fighting spirit did not suffer from the defeats that the Red Army suffered in the first months of the war.
The equipment of their opponents is slightly improved. German skydivers receive headphones, warm underwear, and fur boots. They never had a shortage of food and shells.
However, winter begins to pester them cruelly. The weather is bad. The days are getting shorter and the nights are getting longer. Their positions are fired at night and day. The Russians have installed rocket launchers that create a deafening noise, the Germans call them "Stalinist organs."

While many German paratroopers fought on the Neva sector between Leningrad and Lake Ladoga with Army Group North, other paratroopers were in Army Group Center on their way to Moscow.
So, for example, the support units of the 7th Aviation Division - the machine-gun battalion of paratroopers of Captain Werner Schmidt, called MG-Schmidt, and several companies of the anti-aircraft battalion of Major Bayer. However, these two battalions go to the Eastern Front in a scattered order, and their companies are divided into different sectors, sometimes very far from each other.

Jacques Mabier: "War in the White Hell. German Paratroopers on the Eastern Front 1941-1945"