An operation by the Soviets in 1943 scared Hitler to death. This operation was not a major battle launched by the Soviets but an unexpected move. Because he was almost captured by the Soviets.
On February 20, 1943, Soviet tanks suddenly appeared on the outskirts of the southeastern Ukrainian city of Zaporozhye, deep behind enemy lines. The unexpected breakthrough of the Soviets caused considerable panic in the German command, because at that moment, Adolf Hitler himself was visiting this weakly defended city.
At the end of January 1943, Soviet troops launched Operation Voronezh-Castona, also known as Operation Flying Spur, to liberate Donbass from the Germans. Moscow was counting on a quick outcome of the battle because it underestimated the strength and capabilities of the enemy, and this soon became clear.
The greatest progress made in that operation was made by General Peter Pavlov's 25th Tanzania Army, which consisted of three tank brigades and a motorized infantry brigade, as well as an anti-aircraft artillery regiment. In less than 10 days, they quickly traveled more than 300 kilometers, passing through the territory of three regions of Ukraine, liberating dozens of settlements along the way.
However, there was also a drawback to advancing so quickly: the tank troops moved too far from the supply base. On 17 February, Pavlov reported to the headquarters of the Sixth Army near the town of Lozovaya: "Our fuel tanks are half full. I couldn't move because of the lack of fuel. Nevertheless, soon the troops continued to advance towards the Dnieper, but the strength was reduced.
On the same day, Adolf Hitler left the "Werewolf" headquarters, located near the city of Vinnytsya in central Ukraine, and flew to Zaporozhye to the headquarters of Field Marshal Erich von Manstein, commander of the Southern Group of the Army, to discuss the strategic situation with him.
Hitler's pilot, Hans Bauer, recalled that on the third day of our stay there, when I went downstairs for breakfast, we learned that the Russians had broken through the defensive line near Dnipropetrovsk. The main road for their advance leads right towards Zaporozhye and passes by the airport where our planes are stationed. All the nearby troops of the airfield gathered to defend the airfield, but the defense did not look particularly strong, since we had neither artillery nor anti-tank rifles.
On February 20, dozens of tanks of the Soviet 25th Tank Army appeared near Zapori. General Rena Stahel, who was captured by the Soviets in 1944, said during interrogation that Soviet tanks were 5 kilometers from the airport when a German armored train equipped with an 88 mm anti-aircraft gun blocked their way. At the same time, cover aircraft also took off from the airport.
Bauer writes that soon Hitler arrived at the airport, where everything was prepared for his emergency evacuation. "Our three Condor planes, whose engines were preheated, were ready to fly into the air, and at the same time we saw two huge six-engine planes, carrying anti-tank weapons, ready to land. In his memoir, The Defeated Victory, Manstein wrote that there was not even a unit between us and the enemy. So I was very relieved that night when Hitler flew to his headquarters.
To the great surprise of the Germans, Soviet tank units never tried to break through the airfield. Things soon became clear, they just ran out of fuel. According to Bauer, they could have seized the airport, but seeing hundreds of planes, they certainly thought they would encounter fierce resistance there. The tanker came out of the tank and stood there leisurely. If they had known that Hitler was at the airport at the time, would they still have done so? Bauer thought to himself.
According to similar circumstances before, once the Soviets knew that Hitler was here, they would attack at all costs. In February 1943, a Soviet guerrilla force unexpectedly appeared near Hitler's Werewolf Command in Vinnytsia, and although they were soon surrounded by German troops, they managed to break through. When the news reached Moscow, Stalin personally ordered the commander of this guerrilla force to be promoted from captain to major general.
The next day, General Stahel met with Hitler at the werewolf headquarters, where he said Hitler was "scared to death" because he almost fell into the hands of Soviet tankers as a trophy. He ordered Manstein to destroy the enemy immediately.
A large number of troops were transferred to the breakout area, including the elite SS Panzer Division: the 1st SS Panzer Division Adolf Hitler And the SS 3rd Panzer Division "Skeleton Division" (also known as the "Death Division"), as well as the Panzergrenadier Division reinforced with Tiger tanks. On 21 February, Pavlov's forces had been cut off, and for nearly two weeks he had to fight fiercely under enemy encirclement.
Tank crews rejoined the Soviet army through enemy lines in scattered squads, blowing up their unfueled tanks. Pavlov himself was wounded and was soon captured. He remained imprisoned by the Germans until the end of the war.
Hitler was shocked by the whole affair and described the outcome of its success as "unbelievable". Nevertheless, he flew several times to occupied Soviet territory until the rapid advance of Soviet troops to the west made such visits no longer possible. (Power talks about the world / Zhang Mi)