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Fallschirmjagers on the Eastern Front


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Of the approximately half-dozen books I have read on the Eastern Front, I cannot recall Fallschirmjagers ever being mentioned. Were they ever used on the Eastern Front?

If so, where, when and in what capacity?

Are they present in CMBB?

Looks like I have found a new subject for me to research smile.gif

B

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Obviously, you've never heard of the Hermann Goering Panzer Paracute Division.

You might look for the book Infantry Aces. It details several german infantry soldiers who won the Knights Cross. One of them was a Fallschirmjager and served extensively on the Eastern Front.

[ September 23, 2002, 04:34 PM: Message edited by: Big Dog ]

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Originally posted by Chad Harrison:

Good to see the Falls back into CM. Now with the improved MG's, those two MG34's are going to be something else. One platoon, that 6 light machine guns in one position. Try attacking a veteran platoon of those boys! Yeehaa.

Chad

Yeah, and US Airborne units with all those .30 cals. Oh well, someday. :cool:
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Originally posted by Big Dog:

Obviously, you've never heard of the Hermann Goering Panzer Paracute Division.

You might look for the book Infantry Aces. It details several german infantry soldiers who one the Knights Cross. One of them was a Fallschirmjager and served extensively on the Eastern Front.

What the F---? evil twin?!?! :eek:
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Forget about mamby-pamby acrophobic German Fallschirmjaeger. There were a couple of actual large-scale Soviet air drops on the eastern front (in '42 and '43, I think). *That's* what I'm looking forward to - fights with paratroops who've actually used that parachute.

It would be just as realistic to call German Fallschirmjaeger on the Eastern Front "teleportation troops" - true, they didn't teleport anywhere, but then, they didn't parachute anywhere, either.

What would that be "Teleportationsjaeger?"

:D

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FJ were commonly used on the Eastern Front. They fought numerous battles on the Volkov front ( Leningrad area - commonly known to the Germans as the *sshole of the world - swamps, mosquitos, malaria, etc. They were used primarily as regular ground troops as Hitler had lost interest in airborne operations after the losses suffered by the FJ on Crete.

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Bigdog & Big Dog,

I'm PiggDogg. :D You all should get your names straight. tongue.gif

Actually, I personally know Big Dog. He is from the New Orleans area and is real, real old. :D Wait, he is a few years younger than me, thus, I'm real, real, real old. :D

Now for my scenario with the Herman Goering Panzer Parachute Corps, how do I get those Tiger tanks to be parachuted out of the side of those Ju-52s? :eek:

Cheers, Richard :D

[ September 14, 2002, 06:57 PM: Message edited by: PiggDogg ]

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In the 1930's, the Soviets were one of the pioneers of airborne forces. Sov airborne brigades fought at Khalkin-Gol in '39 against the Japanese, and against the Finns in '40 --- both as foot infantry though. The first actual air-drop was against the Rumanians in '40, when the Sovs seized Bessarabia. This so impressed Stalin, that by June '41, the Sovs had five Airborne Corps (each equivalent to a division) --- most of which would be decimated by Sept '41, fighting as regular infantry.

It wasn't until December '41 that the airborne forces had been rehabilitated (and increased to ten corps) enough to conduct operations: Several battalion-sized air-drops where conducted in December '41 - January '42 in the Moscow sector, culminating with the 4th Airborne Corps being dropped behind enemy lines 13-23 Feb. Although the 4th survived in the German rear for six months --- the longest airborne operation in history --- it did not accomplish it's original objectives.

Then, with the desperate situation around Stalingrad in June '42, the ten then existing airborne corps where converted to Guards Rifle divisions and thrown into the meatgrinder.

This would happen again in December '42, when eight newly raised airborne corps were again converted to Guards Rifle divisions.

And, yet again, in May '43 when six more divisions were raised, and then converted.

It wouldn't be until Sept '43 that Sov airborne forces would be used as such: On 24 Sept 43, the 3rd and 5th airborne brigades were dropped on the west bank of the Dniepr to secure a bridghead for advancing Sov ground forces. Think of it as a Russian "bridge too far". It was a disaster.

As a result, however, the Sov airborne TO&E was totally revamped in late '43 --- adding many more heavy weapons to the AT and AA batteries, the troopers rearming almost completely with PPSh SMG's, and adding an artilley battalion to each brigade. All this resulted in the formation of the 1st Airborne Army (three corps of three divisions ea.) in Aug '44.

Unfortunately, this all came too late, as the Dniepr operation was the last significant airborne mission of the Sov army.

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Originally posted by PiggDogg:

...how do I get those Tiger tanks to be parachuted out of the side of those Ju-52s?

You just have to cut a bigger door. That part's easy. The hard part is making sure the crew pulls the ripcords on all the parachutes before the damn thing hits the ground.

Michael

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Originally posted by Michael emrys:

[QBThe hard part is making sure the crew pulls the ripcords on all the parachutes before the damn thing hits the ground.

Michael[/QB]

You also have to be careful of the Russian KT-7 glide tanks - they like to attack out of the sun, and they can penetrate a Tiger's deck armor.
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Michael & Andrew,

Thanks for the advice. smile.gif I shall be sure to set up the scenarios correctly in order to insure that those Tigers land softly on the ground. :D

Also, I shall be sure to have the KT-7 glider tanks properly employed in their tenacous , brave para drops. :eek:

Further, I hereby ask BTS to correctly adjust the CMBB code to allow proper para drops of Tigers and to allow proper glider flights of the KT-7 gliders tanks. :eek:

I just can't wait to see these fine weapons implimented. tongue.giftongue.gif

Cheers, Richard :rolleyes:;)

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Lindan,

By Lindan:

Not to forget the soviet paradrop where they dropped the men WITHOUT parachutes. (no joke)
:eek:

Ouch !! Those Soviet paratroopers must have been some tough and some skillful. Just think, being able to break one's fall without the break of one's bones. redface.gif

Those guys just have been big boned Soviet peasants. One would not want to be on the wrong side of them in a barroom fight. :D

By the way, gives us a few details of a. when and b. where this occurred, c. which units participated, d. how it came about, e. what happened during and after, and especially f. "WHY" someone would stupidly order such valiant soldierly accomplishment of duty. :eek: :eek:

Cheers, Richard tongue.gif;)

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I tried looking info up on google, but none of it said what happened, just that they took a 52% loss, something like 4000 men in the raid or something. Any info to what happened would be cool :D

Who they were attacking and such.

I also read about some Attack on Belgian forts, that gained them fame, what happened here?

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