Zhukov inquired about the situation with Vatutin, determined the safety of the air, and flew quickly to Ternopil with Manturov in two Pe-2 high-speed dive bombers, protected by a La-7 and Yak-3 flying regiments. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

This bomber, equipped with the latest VK-107 engine, reached a top speed of 650 kilometers per hour, completing the 370-kilometer flight from Kyiv to Ternopil in one hour.

As for Khrushchev, for the sake of safety (in the final analysis, he was still afraid of death), he was afraid of encountering enemy planes during the flight, so he chose to rush to Ternopil by car.

By the time Manturov and Zhukov arrived at the headquarters of the Southwestern Front, it was already seven o'clock in the evening. The commander of the South-Western Front, Colonel-General Mikhail Petrovich Kirponos, the chief of staff of the Front, Lieutenant-General Maxim Alexeyevich Pulkaev, and the chief of operations, Colonel-General Ivan Hovhannes Bagramyan, personally greeted the representatives of the Supreme High Command and the military commissar at the entrance of the command.

Seeing Kirponos's tall figure and handsome face, Manturov felt a little wonderful. This man in a general's uniform was one of the best generals in the early years of the Soviet-German war, and the other best general was his comrade-in-arms, Mikhail Ivanovich Potapov, commander of the 5th Army.

Under the command of Kirponos, the Southwestern Front effectively launched several blockades, delayed the offensive of the German Army Group South, and caused the enemy to suffer a lot. His subordinate Potapov inflicted heavy losses on the two German aces in the Pripyat area, Kleist's 1st Tank Group and Reichenau's 6th Army.

But unfortunately, Kirponos and Potapov's troops were later surrounded by the Germans in the Battle of Kiev, and finally the two died on the battlefield and sacrificed their lives for the country.

And now, this general who "will" die on the battlefield is standing alive in front of Manturov, a time-traveler who is familiar with historical developments, and this kind of experience is not available to everyone.

"Comrade Manturov," Kirponos stretched out a white right hand, "congratulations on becoming the military commissar of the Southwestern Front, and I hope that we will cooperate happily in the future and work together to eliminate the fascists who invaded our country!" ”

Manturov kindly shook the hand of the commander of the front and said: "Comrade Kirponos, I am also very happy to be able to work with you. I am not worried about your abilities, I am confident that the Southwestern Front, under your command, will be able to defeat all the enemy. ”

"General Kirponos, how is the battlefield going now?" Zhukov did not say half a polite word, and what he was most concerned about now was the development of the war.

Kirponos took the two in, pointed to the large map hanging on the wall, and reported to Zhukov on the state of the battle: "Report to Comrade Chief of the General Staff that at 4 o'clock in the morning, the enemy concentrated superior forces and quickly broke through the lines of defense of our troops. The German Sixth Army had already captured Vladimir Volynsky and advanced to the area of Kowell to engage our Fifth Army.

The Fifth Army, under the command of Lieutenant General Potapov, launched an effective blockade, inflicted many casualties on the enemy, holding the line between Kowell and Pavlivka.

The German 17th Army advanced towards Lviv this morning with the superior strength of five divisions. Lviv was defended only by the 6th Division of the 112th Army of our army, with a strength of 14,000 men. We sent the 4th Mechanized Corps and the 41st Infantry Division to reinforce it.

Although the enemy offensive was fierce, and according to information provided by a German prisoner, the enemy 9th Panzer Division and the 295th Infantry Division were to outflank the defenders of Lviv.

In order to avoid being encircled, we ordered the 3rd Mechanized Corps, which retreated to the northeast of Lviv, to launch a counter-assault on the enemy's 9th Panzer Division, and the 4th Mechanized Corps and the 41st Infantry Division also successfully blocked the 125th and 95th Divisions, crushing the enemy's intention to encircle Lviv. ”

"What you just said is the movement of the German 6th Army and the 17th Army. So, what did the 1st tank group under the command of Kleist move? Manturov asked.

Speaking of Tanji, Kirponos's head began to hurt. "The 1st Tank Group concentrated superior forces at 6 a.m. and broke through the first line of defense, but they also paid the price, losing at least 30 tanks.

At eight o'clock in the morning, when the Soviet Air Force regained air supremacy over Ukraine, the 11th, 13th, and 14th tank divisions of the 1st Tank Group were all subjected to air strikes, losing a large number of tanks and slowing down their advance. In addition, our aircraft also crossed the border and attacked their supply convoys, barracks and warehouses, causing some damage to the enemy's logistical supplies.

Due to the danger of encirclement, the 87th and 124th Divisions at the forefront retreated in time after the enemy broke through the defensive line and have now withdrawn to the zone between Kowell and Lviv. ”

"How many casualties have our troops suffered so far?" Zhukov continued to ask.

"I don't know the exact numbers, I just know that we lost some T-28 and BT tanks. Our field hospitals were packed, and we didn't count the exact number, but it was certainly more than five thousand.

From 4 a.m. to 4 p.m., we lost a total of 287 planes, half of which were blown up on the ground, while the other half were shot down in air battles, and the vast majority of them were relatively backward I-15 and I-16 fighters, as well as some SB bombers.

As for the new Yak-3, La-7 fighters, PE-2, Tu-2 bombers, the losses were relatively small. ”

Hearing Kirponos' report, Manturov's heart also settled down a lot. Although the German army had penetrated 20 kilometers deep into the territory of the Soviet Union, the Southwestern Front did not have the same chaotic command and heavy losses as it did in history; The 87th and 124th divisions also retreated from the front line in time, and there was no such thing as the rapid encirclement and annihilation of the entire division in history.

Contrary to history, the various units of the Southwestern Front completed the strategic retreat in an organized manner, and also launched a number of effective blockades, inflicting considerable casualties on the enemy troops, and the air force even gained air supremacy. All kinds of signs gave Manturov hope of victory.

It's just that these favorable circumstances occurred only here in the Southwestern Front. This front army was very well prepared for war, equipped with sufficient weapons, and had a relatively complete radio communication system.

Moreover, the commander of the Front, Kirponos, was extremely vigilant about the war, and two days before the start of the battle, when he detected that the Germans were beginning to withdraw obstacles from the border, he ordered the troops in the fortified area to move into the forward positions, but the chief of the General Staff, Zhukov, believed that this would provoke the Germans to provoke an armed conflict and withdrew his order.

Despite the cancellation of the order, the Southwestern Front was put into a state of readiness, strengthened the fortified area between Lutsk and Lviv, surveyed the routes of the various troops, selected areas of concentration, and intensified training.

More importantly, the Southwestern Front had a relatively sufficient number of troops, with 32 infantry divisions, 3 cavalry divisions, 16 tank divisions, and 8 motorized divisions, and most of the armored mechanized forces were concentrated in the 5th and 6th armies.

When the war broke out, the 87th and 124th Divisions, after a little resistance, successfully retreated to the fortified area as planned, and were not quickly surrounded and annihilated by the Germans as in history. The 5th Army under the command of Major General Potapov also successfully launched a number of counter-assaults, inflicting many losses on the German army's trump card, the Sixth Army, and giving them their first taste of bitter fighting.

The other units, also organized, marched according to the plan, and organizedly, according to the plan, launched an effective resistance to the German army.

? (To be continued.) )