Feierabend AAR

A Fighting Retreat

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It is January 26, 1945. The 7^th Panzer division is retreating in the face of a powerful push by the Soviets towards the river Vistula. The division – or more accurately, what is left of it – is pulling back across the river at Graudnez, where a bridge survives. The intention is to destroy the bridge as the lighter elements of the division retreat. This will force the Soviets to reinforce the ice or blow it and put in a pontoon bridge – buying precious time. Actually, that is the entire point of our mission: buying time to get our units across safely in the face of probing Soviet forward elements.

That is where we join in, leading a small rearguard intended to blunt these arriving spearheads of the onrushing Soviets and buy time. Now, I played this scenario H2H recently and didn’t really give it much time or attention – with predictable results. My opponent and myself concluded rapidly that this isn’t a beer and pretzel scenario meant to be played fast and loose. I have a habit of revisiting a scenario in single player if I lose it H2H or win a particularly sloppy victory. So let’s revisit Freierabend, but first, let’s talk about Battle Positions.

Battle Positions

You’ve likely heard the phrase “battle position” if you play Combat Mission, Steel Beasts, Graviteam or any other similar game. It’s used (correctly, most of the time) a lot by players who are making AARs or telling us a yarn about yet another virtual battle fought. For the most part, this buzz phrase does precisely what it says on the tin.

The Battle Position (BP) is, ultimately, a defensive operation, but it is often used in the attack – i.e: tanks move forward to a “battle position” from which they can effectively engage and focus their fires – turning a position, alternatively, into a ‘support by fire’ or ‘attack by fire’ position. A BP is usually spoken about in the context of a platoon, but really can be used by smaller units, such as a section of armour or infantry. Likewise, BPs can be hasty, deliberate, pre-planned, etc. When you get past the jargon and alphabet soup the military-types love, its ultimately a simple concept. Devils are often in the details, however.

How do you make different BPs effectively interact? Is an effective BP simply one in a good immediate defensive position? BPs do not exist in a vacuum. Many of the best defensive positions are, in reality, death traps with no escape routes – not good when viewed at a macro scale. Some of the best defensive positions simply don’t cover a probable enemy axis of advance. Others may be effective but cannot aid others. There’s a lot of things to consider when selecting a BP. That’s the theme of this scenario, in my mind.

Let’s explore an Army presentation on BPs from the late 90s, titled “Battle positions and how to select them” (or something like that). First, any effective BP engagement requires…

        PLANNING

        - It is critical that the platoon leader understands where the commander wants to kill the enemy.

        - It is also essential that he identify platoon sectors o fire and tentative platoon BP's...that define             the company engagement area.

And, of course,

        RECONNAISSANCE

        -[Platoon Leaders], [Platoon Sergeants], [Tank Commanders], and security element mark the BP         covering the following elements

                - Engagement area

                - General layout of the BP and surrounding terrain

                - Key Terrain corresponding to the Platoon's graphic control measures

                - OP locations to cover possible enemy avenues of approach

                - Existing obstacles and possible locations for reinforcing obstacles

                - Key locations in the BP and Engagement area marked using limited visibility materials

Then, we must select:

        SUBSEQUENT AND SUPPLEMENTARY BP

        - Subsequent BPs are those that orient on sectors of fire along the same avenue of approach as the         primary/alternate positions.

        - Supplementary BPs are oriented on sectors of fire along different avenues of approach.

Okay. What the hell does this all mean, you ask? Let's parse the jargon-filled gobbledygook and get to the heart of it. An effective use of battle positions will: 

1. Involve a coordinated effort towards a single purpose - the commander's intent; and

2. Be as well planned as time will allow, selecting not only good initial terrain, but effective follow-up positions.

As the scenario played out, we made use of subsequent BPs (i.e: secondary positions covering the same route) and no supplementary BPs (i.e.: alternate positions covering different enemy approaches). 

Now, to make effective use of several BPs at once, we need to make sure that defensive fires overlap to a degree, but also efficiently divide the battlefield into clear areas of responsibility. You'll often hear and read about 'engagement areas' and 'fire sectors' or some similar phrase - this is what they are talking about. BP engagements need to be efficient: an enemy advance should be faced with the appropriate amount of hatred from appropriate position(s). 

On that note, the 'appropriate position' for an armoured vehicle is always a hull-down - one of the few hard and fast rules. When a hull-down position isn't available, get as close as you possibly can to one: partial hull-downs, or any form of cover and concealment that hides part of the vehicle hull (i.e: bushes or low hedge) and can break up its silhouette will do in a pinch. 

Now, much of what is discussed above is, to put it mildly, a happy ideal. A commander on-the-spot will rarely have all the elements recommended for a proper engagement - indeed, they will often be lacking in most. 

The scenario Feierabend effectively demonstrates a worst case scenario in a fluid situation. In it, a German company team is bereft of appropriate indirect fire support, time to improve their battle positions, conduct an actual terrain reconnaissance, or even in reality see their positions before having to deploy in them. 

Introduction

"Proceed to Gnojau and defend the area between Kuznedorf and Ernsthof until the signal - 'Freierabend' - is given. Meet at the previously decided rendezvous point with your surviving forces. Good luck."

Another pithy briefing. With the situation being what it is in East Prussia, such orders had become the norm as of late. A hasty meeting of tank commanders, perhaps a cup of ersatz coffee (no such luck!) and a hurried set of verbal orders from an increasingly strained battalion or regimental officer. That had been January for the regiment.

The column had pressed on to Gnojau via a cobbled road, the small force gingerly navigating its way past an abandoned refugee column – smashed carts, dead horses, the smell of cordite. A second convoy was just up the road, this one consisting primarily of military vehicles. Said vehicles were largely intact but were all abandoned, likely out of fuel. The road they shared with these forlorn signs of defeat and ruin was slightly raised, allowing every commander and squad leader a good, hard look at the relatively flat terrain on either side of the intended battleground. Starke, the leader of the 1^st “tank” platoon (their Panzer IVs had recently been replaced by casemate tank hunters) could see from his cupola the Leutnant glancing down at his rudimentary map on his own cupola. The man had an eye for terrain, even now and in spite of the incredible strain he had been under in the previous weeks. He was surely, Starke had little doubt, already sketching out a rudimentary plan and analysing terrain. 

Indeed, that was the case. The Leutnant had already segmented the ground into three “lanes”, in which he intended to create clear areas of responsibility. Green, Red and Blue he had already decided to codeword them. Careful allocation of his meagre force between these areas would be absolutely vital for the fight to come. 

Starke saw the Leutnant twist himself in his cupola and signal for the force to halt and coil up. He quickly repeated the order on his own intercom to his driver and mirrored the signal, passing the word down to the rest of the column. His number 2 tank repeated the procedure. Shortly, the entire force was halted in a staggered column alongside the main road through Gnojau. Starke took off his throat microphone and removed his headphones from on top of his crusher cap, dismounting. All his fellow leaders did the same and joined the two leading Leutnants by the lead Jagdpanzer.

This little assembly didn’t take long – there were so few of them. Their “company” was a mere 5 Jagdpanzers, the remaining ‘runners’ out of an original 16. Some had been destroyed by the enemy, most had been abandoned due to lack of fuel. All in all, the remnants amounted to hardly more than a platoon.  The company of Panzergrenadiers assigned to their force had clearly fared little better;  its motley collection of SPWs, some with 20mm cannons, others with triple 15mm mounts, matched the hodgepodge nature of their occupants. The patchwork platoons of grenadiers were, in reality, over strength squads at best. Even as Starke was making this grim assessment of the force they had, the Leutnant called his attention back to the matter at hand; he began to explain to the assembled group how they would squeeze everything they could out of these meagre resources. The Leutnant outlined his unit taskings…

Then he moved onto the battle plan proper. The briefing soon assumed a rhythm: the Leutnant would point in the direction, relative to their current position, of the planned battle positions and would then tap on the corresponding reference point on the map. Then, he would pause and allow his sub-commanders to sketch it out on their own maps. The plan was, simply put, to trade space for time from a selection of ‘resistance positions’ until word to fall back is received. Gnojau would, for now, act as the centre of gravity. As for these resistance positions, the chief had kept them very general; large “goose eggs” on the map. It was up to the combat team leaders – like Starke – to use what little time they had to select hides, observation posts and firing and alternate firing positions in the vicinity. Starke leaned in as the Leutnant moved on to his combat team’s assigned positions. He took out his fat pencil and prepared to sketch a facsimile of the plan on his own map, being careful to mark down the other sections' areas as well.

 

That only remaining question mark was what to do with Black section. The Leutnant looked expectantly at his counterpart, an East Prussian named von Arnim. The Leutnant had not presumed to micromanage his brother officer, a deferment which seemed strange to Starke, given the urgency of the situation. 

They were all Leutnants, the three of them, but Starke was the junior by a thin margin. He was relieved to see von Arnim nod and say simply "I will take myself and the mortar to that estate. " he turned and pointed with a gloved finger towards a roof, barely visible in the distance, then tapped "Harieshof" on the Leutnant's map. He continued, "We can set up an effective observation and firing position from there, help build up situational awareness and the retreats." It seemed like a sound enough assessment, and this brief display had done much to inspire confidence in von Arnim's competence and ability to co-operate. Starke duly updated his own overlay.

With that, the briefing was over. Watches were synchronized and everyone double-checked the accuracy of their map graphics. They had, maybe, a few moments to brief their own subordinates; the Soviets were likely less than 20 minutes away, and the background noise of fighting was noticeably increasing in volume. The combat teams rumbled off to their first positions, for Starke – callsign Green-1 – that meant point 174.6. A brief look at the ground around the area led to him selecting the best positions he could for his two JPIVs and SPWs. The dismounts were put forward into a treeline serving as a windbreak, near enough to signal the JPIVs by hand, or run someone over, to alert them about contacts. Things were as prepared as they were going to get. He lowered himself in his cupola and clapped his hands together for warmth. He ran over the chief’s scheme again in his mind, probing it for issues big and small, if only to distract from the bitter cold. He asks, and answers, three questions…

1. If the SPWs are hit, the Grenadiers will be stranded, surely? They can hitch a ride on the Jagdpanzers if the need arises. It will necessitate him slowing his vehicles' travel speed, however. 
2. Do the Jagdpanzer IVs have smoke dischargers? A quick glance - the vehicle was still so unfamiliar in so many ways - reaffirmed that they indeed do. This will make falling back somewhat safer. I just hope the other commanders remember the dischargers in the heat of the moment.
3. Can we afford any casualties? No, not really. It was as simple as that: the Company group could maybe survive the loss of one JP and one SPW before the plan fell apart completely. A slim margin for error, concluded Starke. 

The plan was clever, if complicated. Too complicated, perhaps. The Leutnant, ensconced in Gnojau still, was also mulling over the mission and his plan. He knew that for any chance of success this morning, he needed to do two things:

1. Preserve his command - every Jagdpanzer was worth more than its weight in gold in this operational environment.  They were, in reality, the sole offensive power remaining in the division. He hoped to survive with at least 80% of his force intact; and
2. He had to maul the enemy's command. He figured if he could cause at least one third of the pursuers to be made casualties, it would force the Soviets to shift from an exploitation role to that of a deliberate attack. To make that evolution would cost the Soviets time - precisely the resource his force was trying to purchase. 

In their respective positions, both Starke and his superior glanced at their watches. It was now 1000 hours. 

Initial Battle Positions

Starke had only just glanced up after looking at his watch, when his attention was drawn away to movement in the small hedge to his right. The dismounted Grenadiers, were urgently speaking to one another. One ultimately shuffled over to him.

“Soviet armoured cars, along the road to our front. Heading southwest.”

Towards Hill 179.5, thought Starke.

“Do we report it? Is it worth lifting radio silence?” asked the Grenadier NCO, giving thought to Starke’s internal debate. After a moment, he responded:

“Wait. Let’s hold our fire for a moment too – Red group has something covering that flank, if I understood the Chief correctly. Let’s wait to see what is following them before we lift silence.”

Even as this debate was occurring over in Green’s BP the Leutnant himself notices, out of the corner of his eye, the leader of the Panzergenadier’s 2^nd platoon trying to get his attention. The Leutnant turned in his cupola to show the man had caught his attention and saw that he was signalling “tanks” with his hands. Then, the Grenadier pointed to the Southeast. Sure enough, he could soon see for himself through his binoculars a pair of T-34s moving cross-country.

“Gunner, AP – tanks; range 800m. Aim for the nearest one.”

A hit! The gunner put a round through the lower side of the T-34, a bit low. Nevertheless, it rumbles to a stop. Two more shots, ‘walked up’ by the Leutnant definitively knock the T-34 out, setting it ablaze. The second T-34 rumbles out of sight and shot, while firing at something – what? – the entire time. The Leutnant orders the driver to reverse back behind the barn they were using as a hide, switches to the external net, and reports: 

“All stations, all stations: this is Red. Contact, multiple tanks, southeast of my position. One destroyed. Out.”

The lifting of radio silence prompts Starke to immediately key his own microphone.

“Green to Red. Green reports platoon sized element of armoured cars moving southwest. End.”

A flurry of activity now occurs. Having monitored this conversation, Blue orients their weapons to their front-left, in anticipation of picking up the contacts that have motored past Gnojau. For his part, the Leutnant, in response to Starke’s warning, swiftly informs the 20mm SPW with him to shift to the left flank of the town, to head these contacts off. If the Soviets find and report a seam in their positions, they could be in deep trouble. He swiftly orders his driver to reverse to the far side of town, spinning in his cupola in order to guide him. Noticing the Leutnant’s vehicle falling back, the dependable infantry leader across the road tosses a smoke to screen the withdrawal.

Sure enough, just as the 20mm SPW nestles into position next to a barn, it spots an armoured car nimbly moving past the village. A Panzerschreck team positioned in front of the SPW frantically point out, unnecessarily, this contact. The Soviet recce units are moving just out of ‘stovepipe’ range, skillfully attempting to bypass the town and sticking to whatever cover it can. Nevertheless, it is swiftly knocked out by a burst of fire. A second armoured car is soon identified, and it too is knocked out. Even as the gunner is attempting to reload the magazine and report, his driver urgently reports a third car motoring past.

A few minutes after the Leutnant's reported contact, 2^nd Company’s 2IC, acting as the observation post for Blue's battleposition, spots in the two T-34s moving into a slight ravine through the morning mist. The T-34 machineguns are chattering away, at what looks like a copse of trees near Gnojau. He slides over to one of the Jagdpanzers and hollers out the contact. The commander settles into his cupola, trying to peer underneath the canopy of the small trees they are hiding in. It takes a minute, but he eventually sees the contacts and tells the 2IC to step back. The Jagdpanzer inches forward.

"Gunner AP, tank. Range 1200m estimated. Fire when ready." 

The casemate's cannon barks. A large fireball erupts in the distance, to their front.

“Blue 1 to Blue 2. Have engaged and destroyed a T-34. There is another with it. I am falling back to the alternate fire position. Pick up my contact. End.”

"This is Blue 2. We got it. Out."

Back in Gnojau, the fight continues to escalate. Following behind the Soviet armoured cars are dismounts. The Grenadiers move forward to better positions so they can engage with their personal weapons, and wave forward the MG SPW out of its hide to bring its machinegun into the fight. The 20mm continues to chatter away as well. The Soviets flit in and out of a treeline doing their best to avoid the heavy fire. The Leutnant has, by this time, taken position near the main road at the exit of the village, and has oriented towards this fight.

Starke, finds that his battle position frustratingly out of the fight, able to see but never able to shoot at enemy units arriving into the area. All Green can do, for now, is report these additional contacts (T34s and their riders). They are again heading SW, generally towards point 175.8. 

In the attic of the Harieshof estate, von Arnim too can see these contacts, and more still. T-34 platoons are manoeuvring on either flank of Gnojau, forming two pincers which threaten to close around Red's battle position. Running down the stairs two at a time, his headquarters team heads towards the mortar halftrack, in its hide just behind the home, and gives breathless orders to move forward into a position where it can lay smoke rounds directly on Red's position. The infantry leader is anticipating a hurried retreat by his counterpart and wants to maximise the chance of survival for him. His radio operator warns Red of the evolving danger. 

Yet, despite the warning from von Arnim, the Leutnant's awareness of the danger is diminishing. He is getting caught up in the immediate fight, helping his grenadiers by providing direct fire. The Leutnant shoots up another reconnaissance vehicle (some type of British-type carrier). More Soviet infantry are pressing forwards, trying to slip past them. Cries of "Feind! Infanterie!" rising up from the German grenadiers become audible even through the sound of his engine, small arms fire and muffling headset. The pressure is increasing, and fast. 

The 2IC is, in the meantime, preparing to remount and fall back alongside Blue-2,  when he sees yet more T-34s. Two careen down the cobbled road leading into Gnojau before recklessly turning and smashing into the gardens and backyards to the Germans' right-side of the road. He once again sprints to Blue-2 and reports the contact, urging the JP to remain in position for a little while longer. Sure enough, its commander catches fleeting glimpses of this platoon exiting through a garden hedge and plunging in the low fields on Red's right flank. He radios urgently these contacts and then jockeys to a better firing position. 

Red needs to hurry - the Soviets are pouring past them. Yet the fight rages on. Enemy armour adds their voice to the exchange, and the 20mm SPW is compelled to fall back after a shot sails just a hair too high over it. The offender is a T-34, which has taken a hull down position near Hill 179.5. It is now, belatedly, that the Leutnant concludes their stay in Gnojau should be over. They need to run for it! The smoke rounds judiciously ordered by von Arnim have already begun to impact to his left, and the Leutnant only now becomes cognizant of it. Excellent. Straining his voice, he orders:

“All RED call signs all RED call signs, fall back to battle position two, orient on me.”

Without bothering to wait for acknowledgement from his subordinate callsigns, he starts to generate smoke using the onboard mortar, while simultaneously ordering his driver to reverse direction and gun it down the main road. With that, Red begins its pell-mell bid for escape. The Grenadiers, for their part, have remounted and follow swiftly behind.

Blue-2 is now attempting to engage the T-34s reported by the 2IC but is struggling to find a position where the gunner's sight is not blocked by foliage. It takes minutes to jockey into a proper position. The No.2 tanker is frustrated, but bubbling beneath that frustration is a slowly creeping panic, a realisation that if they don't intervene quickly, the Soviets will be in a position to hit Red as they fall back. 

“Blue-2 to Blue lead. I think there's a platoon of T-34s between us, on the high ground watching the rollbahn, be advised. Over.”

"Blue lead to Blue-2. Understood! On my next signal, move forward past the treeline entirely to attack. Stand by. End."

The T-34s had moved through dead ground, created by a small stream, in front of Blue-2's position and skilfully closed the distance. They had now, finally, emerged and exposed themselves, taking positions which covered the road in doing so. The very same road Red section was falling back on, unaware to their mortal peril. Blue-1 realised that they had to move fast if they were going to save any portion of Red but they still had to move as a pair - as a section - or it would likely just result in their Jagdpanzers being brewed up one at a time. Blue-1 tersely orderes his driver to lock a track and wheel right, having spotted a decent gap in the trees from which they could engage. He could hear the 15mm SPWs attached to his section opening fire from their hide positions, just to the rear. He prayed they had the good sense to fall back after grabbing the T-34s' attention like that. 

He could hear the crash of the T-34s' cannons, now, too. They were close. Blue-1 looked over his left shoulder. The AAA vehicles were fine; what were the T-34s firing at? They must surely be firing at Red! The commander spoke into his microphone, only to hear the voice of his gunner tell him he was still on internal. Flustered, he switched to the appropriate external channel and, his voice an octave higher from strain, spoke:

“Blue to Red – get off the road, Ivan can put it under fire! From your left, your left!”

Then, willing himself to calm down and not pausing to wait for his chief’s acknowledgement, he continued:

“Blue 1 to Blue 2. I am in position, advance and engage now.”

The Jagdpanzers rumbled forward, one to the front of the T-34s, the other slightly to their side, and began a brisk engagement at less than 300m. Blue-2 managed to brew a T-34 immediately, while Blue-1 has a tense exchange of fire with another, ultimately getting two shots on target. This second T-34’s crew calls it quits and bails out even as the Jagdpanzers fall back, jockeying to a new position.  Blue could only hope they had intervened in time.

***

Starke's frustration and sense of impotency increased as he could do little more than monitor the radio and hope; the sounds of the battle raged on his right, out of sight. The Leutnant had been in command of the company since the start of 1944 and was well regarded by everyone; he hoped Blue could pull them out of the fire. 

He soon had his own problems, however. His dismounted grenadiers were once again falling back from their observation post and heading towards his vehicle. It wasn't long before Starke was informed about yet more T-34s moving across his positions' front. He was determined to put these under fire. He alerts his number 2, “Green lead to Green 2. Enemy armour to our front, range approximately 1000m. Move forward and engage. Good hunting. End.”

The experience was harrowing. His JP was just nestling into its firing position when he took fire - how did the T-34s spot him!? Green-2 had a similar close call, and they battled gamely with the T-34s over the next several minutes. Despite the uncanny awareness of the enemy, Green held all the cards in this game. The windbreak they were using as cover was also at the top of a slight rise, allowing them to jockey into the reverse slope and out of sight between shots. Soviet fire was fatally frustrated as a result. By contrast, Green-2 had done some fine shooting. As the dust settled, its commander reported, unnecessarily, “Green-2 reporting. Have engaged and destroyed two T-34s and infantry – at least one has slipped past. End.”

***

Blue section continues to angle, in vain, for a shot on the remaining T-34. The surviving Soviet tank has positioned itself between its two knocked out compatriots. 

The Leutnant, having heeded the earlier warning, attempted to spin his JP on a track to face the threat. This having been done, he attempted to reverse into a partial hull-down behind the raised road, popping smoke whilst doing so. Despite this effort, the Jagdpanzer is struck thrice in quick succession on the front hull. The second of these three strikes penetrates low down on the hull, killing the driver instantly and mortally wounding the gunner and loader. The Leutnant, his thighs sprayed with shrapnel created by spalling and gore from the crew, is blown unconscious out of his cupola. Red-1 is no more.

A minute later, Blue-2 finally, tragically, is able to position himself to effectively engage this third T-34. Red's woes are far from over. The SPWs now take fire from a completely separate direction: Point 176.4, where another group of T-34s have arrived and halted in a partial hull down. The SPWs begin to zig-zag as rounds impact perilously close. 

Despite the peril, the trailing SPW gallantly slows down just long enough for a NCO and two volunteers to recover the wounded and unconscious Leutnant. They unceremoniously drag the Panzer leader back into the track, desperate to continue their escape. 

Starke sees the potential disaster unfolding from his hide, and briskly moves his section forward to engage once more. The intervention begins yet another firefight and certainly succeeds in drawing away most of the hostile attention but in the short time between moving forward and engaging, the 20mm SPW is struck. All of its occupants are made fatalities. 

From Harieshof, too, von Arnim holds silent witness to events. As far as he knows, his counterpart is dead - killed along with his crew - and he is theoretically in command. From his observation post, he has excellent situational awareness. Yet, he hesitates, this has primarily been an armoured fight. As he is mulling over what to do, the radio on his adjutant's back crackles with the voice of Green-1. "All call signs this is Green-1, I am taking over the immediate battle. End.” Good, thinks von Arnim. This will give him time to organise further actions. Grabbing the radio phone from the rear of the radio, he responds, “This is Black. Understood. Enemy has been halted in Blue zone, all enemy forces appear to be proceeding through Green zone into Red. Will keep you appraised. End.”

The bulk of the enemy forces are attempting to drive past Starke's position, into the yawning gap created by the mauling of Red section. In their respective positions, the two surviving commanders attempt to visualise the current situation...

Okay, thinks Starke, Red is down and out; but its surviving SPW and grenadiers have managed to escape, covered by Green. There is little a machinegun and some assault rifles could do from their original planned position. Starke also doubted the surviving grenadiers had an accurate overlay - if they had one at all. Wherever he sent them, it had to be obvious. An idea comes to Starke, and he finds himself raising von Arnim on the radio.

“Green to Black. Green to Black.”

“This is Black. Go ahead.”

“Do you have a flare, over?”

“Yes. Standard colours.”

“Fire a standard rally pattern on my mark. Wait.”

Then, hailing Red-3, who acknowledges quickly (good, they have their nerves together), he instructs them.

“Red-3, move towards the estate to the front-left of your current direction of travel. You will see a flare. Acknowledge.”

“Red-3 understands. Move towards flare on left flank. End.”

Starke has no need to get back on the air and ask for the recognition pattern to be fired. He can see for himself that von Arnim, who had been listening intently, has fired off the pattern as soon as Red-3 finished speaking. A red flare, followed by two green flares rise up in rapid succession. Okay. One problem taken care of - he trusted von Arnim to take the men in hand and put them to good purpose. Keying the microphone again, he says tersely (forgetting to identify himself), "All call signs, complete move to second positions immediately. End."

Subsequent Battle Positions

It only takes a few minutes for the surviving SPW to arrive at Harieshof; von Arnim is waiting, and briefly questions the grenadiers. It’s not really a fact-finding mission, as he’s already aware of the situation, but more to appraise their nerves. The NCO leading them is collected and thinking straight, despite the harrowing experience, and his enlisted men appeared to be steadied by his example. Use can still be made of them. 

Starke is organising the displacement of his own command. He has no sooner finished instructing his wingman to fall back after the SPWs have completed their move when the Grenadiers deployed forward of him once more report enemy contact. This time it's T-34s and assault guns; they are carefully creeping up to positions on Hill 179.5.

Starke orders his Jagdpanzers forward once more. He guides his gunner onto an Su-122. The low profile of the vehicle makes it hard to estimate a range and produce a good target solution. As a result, it takes three attempts to score a hit, though the Su-122 burns when it is finally struck. Now alerted, the remaining Soviet tanks begin to slew their turrets in the direction of his firing position. Green-1 is away and clean before the Soviets can identify and engage him. 

Black section, ably led by von Arnim, has meanwhile begun its own displacement. The young aristocrat had moved between all his SPWs, now a total of three, and gave brisk verbal orders. "Follow me. Destination: Point 181.9." Then, having mounted the lead track, he pumped his fist several times and taps the top of his helmet - and like that, they're off. 

By this time, things have heated up considerably for Starke. His Jagdpanzer jockeys into a new position and as it creeps forward, he sees to his astonishment, that many more Soviet tanks are now visible on and around the hill. This time, the Soviets fire first, and fast - inaccurately, as a result. Staying calm, Starke relays instructions to his gunner. They have the range now, 1000m. First, a T-34 is hit, and the enemy crew bail out of the vehicle. 

"Cease fire. New target, to the right. Same range. AP when ready."

A second hit. This T-34 retreats, its commander falling into the turret as it does so. It doesn't reappear - disabled, perhaps? Two hits and two penetrations, but no definitive knock outs. No time to focus on that, however. Other T-34s surge through the firefight, infantry riding on the engine decks. Starke is in real danger, not for the first time this morning, of being bypassed or overran. As if to iterate this danger, an enemy anti-tank round scythes through the windbreak and over his head, making a sucking "whoom" followed by a sharp crack. The Jagdpanzer is away and clear shortly after. Starke lowers himself into the cupola and fires off the smoke discharger, already on the look-out for yet another firing position. 

Why haven't the SPWs reported in? Is it really taking them that long to move!?

***

Blue, in contrast to Green, had completed its movement to the subsequent position without issue. It had scarcely finished taking up these positions when von Arnim's 2IC, once more positioned forward in some trees, reports contacts. 

It isn't long before Blue-1 and -2 are guided onto these contacts. Blue-2 kicks things off, engaging several T-34s moving west from point 176.9 (around Green's right flank). These first shots are off target; the Soviet tanks are at considerable range and on the move. Exacerbating the target picture is the enemy's skilful use of terrain. The Soviets are flowing like water, into the lowest folds of terrain. At such ranges, even a partial hulldown can safeguard a tank's life. 

The situation becomes tenuous. Blue-2 begins to take accurate fire, and the small mound of earth giving them some facsimile of a hulldown position saves their skins. They jockey slightly and re-engage, this time with much more effect. One T-34 is hit and knocked out. 

Blue-1 finally is able to join the fight, having creeped into a good fire position. He swiftly knocks out a second T-34, relieving his hard-pressed subordinate. The range is 1200m. 

By any standard, this engagement is one to be proud of, but Blue's gunnery and tenacity are of especially vital importance. They have relieved considerable pressure on Starke's flank. Blue-1 duly reports, "Blue-1 to Green-1. Have engaged three T-34s on your right flank. One remaining, heading towards Kuznedorf. End."

Then the reply, and a brief exercise of authority. "Green-1 to Blue-1. Good shooting. Move to position three. End."

Despite having not received firm confirmation from his SPWs that they have arrived fully in position, Starke realises that he has to start coiling back with his armour. He doesn't want to end up like Red, and there's still a T-34 out there in the gap between himself and Blue section. He instructs his wingman to fall back, immediately, and moves his own vehicle as swiftly as possible to try and engage the missing T-34. 

He is able to successfully find and engage this enemy tank, but is once again chased away shortly after by fire from Hill 179.5. Good lord, he thinks, how many more are out there?

Then he reports. 

"Green-1 to all call signs. Have destroyed one times assault gun, two times T-34. Two enemy moving west. I am falling back to second position."

Standing in his cupola, Starke frantically waves to the four Grenadiers who stayed behind, urging them to fall back and join him. The infantry need little encouragement and in short order are scrambling onto the engine deck of the vehicle. It's time to quit this position. 

 As he pulls away, he gets belated confirmation from his SPWs that they have reached their positions without incident. Starke has just fought a very hectic personal action, and now wills himself to take his mind beyond that immediate fight and visualise the field once more. 

All the recent enemy contacts have continued to drive for the hole left by Red's destruction. Damn them, they had identified a weakness, deliberately or inadvertently, it mattered little, and were putting the whole force under extreme pressure as a result. 

Still, though, they had been able to dominate that central avenue with fire. The situation should become less tenuous as they fell back, too. The distance between Green and Blue would narrow considerably, making it easier to combine their fires. Starke could also be satisfied with the tank-infantry co-operation. For the most part, the remaining Jagdpanzers had been able to remain in cover until the infantry indicated enemy contact. It had likely preserved their lives thus far. 

He estimated that the enemy had lost close to a company of tanks. They couldn't take much more punishment this morning, right?

By the time he has put himself mentally back into the immediate fight, Starke's wingman has arrived in a firing position and re-established contact with the SPWs. Starke's own retreat is, mercifully, without incident. He places himself slightly to the rear of his No. 2, partially hull-down behind the slight rise that constitutes Point 177.3. His infantry companions swiftly dismount and take up position in some nearby trees. 

Blue-2 reports it has taken up an intermediary position near a barn whilst the SPWs and AAA move past it. 

Starke has barely finished acknowledging that last missive when his wingman reports a single T-34 advancing along the main road. It is carefully navigating the abandoned military convoy, fully buttoned up. Green-2 inches forward and waits for a clear shot...

The radio net suddenly explodes with noise, a cacophony of Green-1,  Blue-2 and several SPWs all reporting contact at once, all vying to be heard. Green-2's discomfited gunner, uncharacteristically distracted by this chorus, misses his first shot as a result. By the time Green-2's loader has slammed another AP round into the cannon's breech, von Arnim has, with a steady voice, brought order out of chaos. With the net calmed, the situation becomes clear: The T-34 has brought many friends.  The infantry leader calmly organises the engagement, ensuring clear sectors of fire. Following his lead, Starke and the other two vehicle commanders begin to hand off targets and engage. A furious running fight erupts as the T-34s continue to manoeuvre and fire back. 

Starke's gunner gets the first definitive hit of the engagement, destroying the second of the bunch of T-34s. Green-2's second shot is much more accurate than its first; scratch another T-34. 

"Blue-2 to Green section. I am engaging the third T-34 in the enemy column. End."

Sure enough, the third T-34 erupts in a fireball even as Starke guides his gunner onto it. They continue to traverse the cannon left, moving to the next target.

Over the next three minutes the three Jagdpanzers devastate two platoons of T-34s, calmly continuing to hand off targets to one another over the radio net. What had once been a dangerous thrust through a hole had, through timely displacements to subsequent positions, become a narrowing corridor, a kill sack. The T-34s put out a shocking amount of return fire, given the situation they found themselves in, but ultimately they all falter and are knocked out. By the final minute of the fight, the fire has reached a crescendo, with even the SPWs adding MG and 20mm fire to the chaos.

As a poetic irony, this latest thrust by the Soviets is defeated just short of the Leutnant's destroyed, silent JPIV. 

As the dust settles from this latest fight, Green-2 and Blue-2 both announce that they are seeking new positions. For Green-2, it's a short move towards a hedge just in front of Kuznedorf, near marshy ground. Blue-2 has a longer way to go, joining his comrades in position 3 proper. Von Arnim, for his part, falls back to a forested lot behind Kuznedorf. He also issues a warning order in anticipation for the final retreat out of the sector.

Starke, once again standing tall in his cupola, acknowledges all. Raising his binoculars to his eyes, he slowly sweeps to the right. He swiftly spots movement along a boggy stream across the road. More enemy armour!

"Green-1 to Blue. Enemy armour; one times assault gun, one times T-34 - moving through Point 181.9. Out."

"Understood. We'll handle them. Blue-1 end."

Blue-1, spotting his wingman just pulling into position, thinks quickly and orders the wingman to move left, along the windbreak to his front. There's a field to his front that the enemy armour will have to move through, if Starke's call was accurate. However, it is gently rolling and he cannot see clearly into the folds of earth to his left. His intent is for his wingman to pick up that slack.

It's a judicious call. Blue-2 is looking for a good fire position, moving slowly and parallel to the trees, when von Arnim's 2IC reports via his SPW's radio that he has spotted the enemy armour. Sure enough, they are emerging out of a fold in the earth to the front-left of Blue-1. A nearby AA SPW gallantly takes the armour under fire, and its entire crew is swiftly killed by return fire.

Yet, their sacrifice has purchased time for Blue-2 to finally take a hasty firing position. Vengeance is swift, with the T-34 and assault gun being knocked out, both with catastrophic effect.

The End

This turns out to be the final significant action of the engagement. A quasi-silence descends across the fields, broken only on a few occasions by the occasional pop of assault rifles, or a burst of MG fire from a SPW. Soviet infantry, despite the loss of their armour support. are doggedly continuing to infiltrate via boggy streams on either side of the cobbled road. 

Then word, finally, mercifully, comes. The radio sets in all the jagdpanzers and SPWs crackle to life, a heavily distorted message gets through:"Feierabend! Feierabend! Feierabend! Feierabend!" repeats the voice several times, enough to be understood in spite of the interference. Immediately, von Arnim follows this message with his own, reiterating the previous warning order.

"All call signs prepare to fall back. SPWs lead, JPs to follow two minutes later. Smoke will be provided to Green section. Leaders acknowledge. Maintain radio silence thereafter."

A chorus of acknowledgement ripples across the net. The final retreat occurs without incident, the Soviet infantry lacking the means to interfere in any significant way. As smoke rounds from the mortar SPW begin to impact to his front-right, Starke sees the SPWs motor past him. His wingman reverses, locks a track, and follows.

Then, it's his turn.

The retreat takes ten minutes. Starke briefly sees von Arnim's SPW, waiting by the cobbled road, as he rumbles out of Kuznedorf. Counting heads, no doubt. He wonders if the Leutnant was still alive, bundled away in the command track with dressed wounds. He hoped so. The plan had practically gotten the man killed, but it had ultimately worked. 

Starke settles into his cupola. Fatigue overcomes him, arriving like strong waves on a stormy sea. They had accomplished their mission, to call it a success seemed obscene, given the course of the war, but they had done what they set out to do.

Starke asks himself one final question: How much longer can they keep this up? He has no answer. Willing himself to stay awake and alert, he stands taller in the cupola. Idly, he pulls back his sleeve and glances at his watch. It is 1045 hours.