Nikolai. Zherelov was a famous member of the T-888 No. 54 in World War II, and during his three-year combat career, he destroyed no less than 150 German tanks and armored vehicles, including more than 30 tigers and more than 10 tiger kings, and was a famous hero of tiger slaughter.

In May and June 1942, Zherelov, who had taken to the battlefield for the first time, took part in the battles around Konotop with the 9th Mechanized Army. Let's take a look at his memories.

"When the war began, I was only 17 years old, fresh out of secondary school. At first, according to Soviet propaganda, we all thought that it would only take a few months to defeat the German devils, so at that time, my first consideration was not to defend my homeland, but to consider whether to go to university or go directly to work. ”

"At that time, my father told me that as a descendant of the working class, the ideal and most practical thing to do was to work in a factory. I took his advice and worked as a metalworking apprentice at a factory that produced anti-aircraft weapons. Three months later, I passed the exam and became a Grade 4 Metalsmith (up to Grade 6). It was at this time that our family received a notice of my brother's death, who had died a heroic death in East Poland. His death hit my family hard, and that's when I had the idea of joining the army to avenge my brother. ”

"In October 1941, the idea of joining the army became stronger and stronger, especially when my fellow classmate Prokov received a conscription notice, and how I wanted to go with him! I will never forget the scene of seeing off Prokov. In order to celebrate Prokov as a glorious soldier of the Red Army, we tried everything to get alcohol, and in the end it was Zoya's father who had a way - with varnish! Varnish is a colorless one. Furniture paints with alcohol as the main ingredient. The store sells half-liter bottles. Place two tablespoons of table salt in the bottle. Put some more cotton yarn and shake well. When the salt is slowly dissolved, the varnish solidifies and adheres to the cotton yarn, and what remains after the cotton yarn is removed is alcohol. However, this experience was not particularly good for me, I had an allergic reaction, I was covered in rashes, and my whole body was like a cooked prawn......"

"After sending off Prokov, I couldn't stand the same work in the factory, and I desperately wanted to go to the front. Finally, one day, I didn't go to work after waking up early. Instead, he went straight to the military council. Commissar Colonel Smonov listened to my thoughts and said: 'You are a worker in the arsenal and are not on the call-up. But if the leaders of your factories agree, then you can come! ’。 I tried everything to convince the director of the plant, and soon I also became an honorable Red Army soldier, and after a month and a half of training, I was awarded the rank of sergeant. ”

"I thought I would soon be able to go to the front line to fight devils, and I thought that I would soon be able to avenge my eldest brother. But what I didn't expect was that on the day of the end of the recruit training, after the parade, the head of the training camp shouted to us: 'Listen to my orders. Those who have higher education or have not finished college, take ten steps forward. Technician-educated. Five steps forward! Grade 10 graduates take three steps forward! March! Everybody moved, some took three steps, some took five steps, but very few took ten steps, because the general perception at the time was that ten years were enough, and most of us only went to school for four or seven years, after which we either went to technical school or went straight to work in factories and shops. ”

"I took five steps forward, and then, together with other comrades who had walked five steps, went again to the military council, where a colonel of armored corps, an air colonel and a captain who graduated from the military-political academy were waiting for us. I wasn't very interested in flying in the air, I was a little afraid of heights, so I walked straight to the colonel of the armored corps, and on the way I was stopped by the captain of the military-political academy, who persuaded me to study at the military-political academy, and told me that the armored corps was quite hard. At that time, my mind was full of the idea of going to the front line to fight devils to avenge my brother, and naturally I didn't want to be a political commissar, so I rejected him! ”

"In January 1942, I was accepted into the Saratov Tank Academy and became an honorable tankman. Our training lasted a month with T-26 and BT-5. The BT-5 was very refreshing to drive, and the T-26 was okay, but this was the most basic training, just to give us an idea of the tank. In March, the academy received the T-34 and T-35, and we immediately switched to learning how to fly them. ”

"The T-34 is a good tank, with thick armor and a lot of power, the only bad thing is the drivetrain, the gearbox is too short-lived, and the driver's joystick is quite strenuous. In comparison, the T-35 is just as sturdy and has the same power, while its gearbox is imported and of much better quality. The most important thing is that the joystick has hydraulic assistance, which is much easier to use than the T-34, which can only change gears with a hammer. We generally agree that the T-34 is a good tank and reliable enough, while the T-35 is a good tank, and we generally prefer to fly the T-35. ”

"After intense and intensive study, in May we graduated and went to the Krasno plant in Gorky to receive new tanks. Then after a confrontation drill and live firing, we are ready to go to the battlefield. Here I have to sigh that the industry of our country was still too rough at that time, for example, the T-34 that was newly issued to us was the same from the outside, but after you use it once, you will immediately find a lot of problems: the commander does not know the range of the gun, the mechanic does not know the characteristics of the diesel engine. Although, the guns were marked at the factory, and they were tested on a fifty-kilometer march, but this was simply not enough! Because of the different tolerances of each factory at the time of manufacture, there are differences in every vehicle, every tank, every engine and every artillery. You can only figure out these differences in day-to-day use before you can really use your tank well. Obviously, though, this time didn't leave us much time to familiarize ourselves with the gear. ”

"At the end of May 1942, we arrived near Kharkov by train, incorporated into the 9th Mechanized Corps of the Fifth Army, and immediately went to Konotop, where my first battle was held. That's when someone asks you, 'Are you scared?' I admit I'm scared. Before the attack. When you turn on the radio and wait for the attack command. It does feel scary. God knows what awaits you in a few minutes. Of course, I was not controlled by fear, and when the explosions and smoke rose, the only thing I could feel was the blood boiling! ”

"On that day, on the orders of the division commander, our regiment marched rapidly on tracks until it was stopped by the Germans by a small river. The situation was complicated at the time, as most of them were recruits and it was inevitable that it would be a bit confusing. The information provided by the reconnaissance battalion was vague. We don't know how many enemies there are on the other side of the river, and we don't know exactly what the situation is like at the bottom of the river. But we were not afraid of death, and in order to fulfill the order given by the command of the group army, we began to forcibly cross the river without hesitation! ”

"Soon, we learned that fighting a war, it is not enough to have courage and not be afraid of death, it is a very meticulous job, you need to take care of every detail before you can win. And this time it clearly does not correspond to this. Soon after the crossing began, we were in trouble. The bottom of the river was full of silt, soft and slippery, the tracks were not hard at all, and the opposite bank was much steeper than expected, and the T-34 could not climb up at all. We could only stop crossing the river and retreat in a hurry under the cover of artillery fire......"

"The next day, after the reconnaissance battalion carefully reconnoitred and reselected the place to cross the river, we finally drove over. All the way north, at first there was little resistance, until we reached a small village, and then the battalion commander's order came down: 'Stop, prepare for battle!' ’。 According to the reports of the villagers who escaped from the village, the German devils had been heavily fortified around the village, not only with anti-tank guns but also with tank bunkers. The battalion commander ordered us to outflank us with infantry first, and the tanks slowly approached the village along the path guided by the fellows, and then suddenly attacked! ”

"My tank was at the front, and a No. 3 tank hid in the bunker and fired at me, but the driver was clever enough to dodge, and I immediately took aim and fired two shots to silence it completely. Then I fought more and more bravely, destroying two 37-mm anti-tank guns in succession. Of course, it looks easy on paper, but in reality it is not so simple, there is nothing when destroying the first anti-tank gun, a grenade blows it up into scrap metal. And at that moment, I heard the commander shouting in my headphones: 'Kolya (Nikolai's nickname), there is a cannon on the left!' When I turned the turret 90 degrees, I realized that another anti-tank gun was only ten meters away from us, and I was immediately shocked into a cold sweat, and when the loader stuffed a 76mm grenade into the chamber, the commander shouted again: 'Destroy it, Korya, and don't let the Germans blow up our chrysanthemum!' ’。 I hurriedly opened fire and blasted the anti-tank gun straight into the sky. ”

"After the heavy fire of the Germans was destroyed, the infantry was meat on the chopping block. As we crossed the village, we found about a company of Germans on the run, and the commander ordered me and the driver to open fire at once, with the course machine guns, side-by-side machine guns, and anti-aircraft machine guns firing together, which was like an autumn wind sweeping away leaves for the enemy who was fleeing for their lives in panic. I killed about ten German devils, and then my comrades followed up and bombarded me! And then the Germans were dead. ”

"The first time I went to the battlefield, I was lucky, and after the battle, our team was praised by the battalion commander for a big bottle of good Finnish vodka, which was a good thing. But we don't have much time to enjoy it, because the battle continues, we have to work hard, and Konotop is still waiting for us. ”

"The next battle became more and more fighting, and by the time we reached the outskirts of Konotop, we were again engaged with the Germans. We were on the march when suddenly an order came from the headset: 'Stop, stay hidden!' Then we were told that in the village just ahead, three T-34s had just been destroyed by a well-concealed F2 tank No. 4. The atmosphere suddenly became tense, because the forty-three times diameter 75 mm tank gun of the No. 4 F2 tank could destroy the T-34-76 at a distance of 1200 meters, and now the perimeter was open field, and the direct viewing distance was usually about 1500 meters. If we want to attack, we have to circle around F2 No. 4 like a rabbit and look for opportunities to close the distance so that we can destroy our opponents! ”

"In any case, we can't stand still and we can't attack recklessly. At this point, I made a suggestion to use a stretch of trees on the side of the road to advance covertly, and then approach the enemy before launching a surprise attack. My suggestion was accepted, and the battalion commander gave the task to my crew. ”

"The driver, Konstantin, drove very slowly, so to speak, little by little. The Germans, on the other hand, seemed a little careless. Their attention seemed to be all on the road. From the scope I saw the Germans. They are well camouflaged. They are not visible from the road at all, but they can be spotted from the side. Konstantin kicked the accelerator sharply, and the T-34 rushed out like an arrow from the string, quickly closing the distance, until it was about 700 meters, and the commander ordered him to stop, and then it was up to me to perform! ”

"I was always locking on to the enemy, so it only took about two seconds to fire the first shot after I stopped. The shells drilled through the side of the enemy turret, and there was no doubt that the enemy in the turret must have died. At the same time, our comrades who were charging with us also opened fire, and after two shots, another tank No. 4 was also blown up. The poor Germans finally reacted, and the last tank No. 4 desperately turned its turret to try to resist, but before it could turn around, my second shell turned it into a big fireball! ”

"It seems that there is nothing to stop us anymore, and without waiting for the battalion commander to agree, the comrades-in-arms have increased the throttle. Rush in the direction of the village. But the accident happened again, when we were only one or two hundred meters away from the village. German anti-tank guns hidden in the bushes opened fire. The turret of our car hit a guy and the loud crash made my eardrums tingle, but luckily the T-34's armor was thick enough to block the shell. ”

"But that didn't mean the danger was over, and we soon found out that the previous information was too inaccurate, and the Germans had a very strong defense in this village, not only tanks but also a large number of anti-tank guns. The Germans fired incessantly, and armor-piercing bullets whizzed over our heads or side. The captain's curse kept coming from the headphones: 'Damn, don't stop, keep rushing!' Keep rushing! ’。 ”

"The scope is shaking violently, the T-34 without a gun stabilizer is basically unable to shoot on the move, and the only thing that does staring at the scope is to make you dizzy. For the next few minutes, I seemed idle, because the commander had no intention of firing at all, and he ordered the driver to maneuver forward in a serpentine manner, until he reached the enemy's anti-tank gun position and ran it over. Thankfully, the Germans had only the old 37-mm anti-tank gun, which had little effect on the T-34. Relying on the superiority in armor, we won this battle in a thrilling way! ”

"But we didn't have much joy about the victory, because after the battle, the battalion commander criticized us by name. And this experience also reminded me once again that there is no room for carelessness and recklessness on the battlefield, and the next time I may not be so lucky! ”

"Then we rushed to the outskirts of Konoop and eliminated some of the recalcitrant Germans, and we were really lucky. There were columns of military columns parked on the railway line, and the German soldiers guarding the military columns saw the tanks coming, and quickly fled in a panic, leaving us a big gift package. ”

"The columns were full of bullets and shells and gasoline, which did not interest me. But soon when Konstantin opened a door, the contents of the carriage made our mouths water—countless German sausages, hams, canned cans, chocolate and cheese. The most important are liquor, whiskey from England, brandy from France, and Italian liquor. What impressed me the most was vermouth, a green liquid that seems to have a magical power that can make you extremely happy. ”

"Of course, we captured a couple of German tank No. 3, but we didn't dare to use it, because the Soviet tankers had a considerable number of their comrades in the East - Kazakhs, Tajiks, Uzbeks and Tatars. These comrades were extremely patriotic and extremely hateful to the German army, and they would open fire indiscriminately at the sight of any German tank, and if you were unfortunate enough to sit in it, there would be only one result - to be burned to ashes! ”

"And, in our opinion, there is no need to use the inferior tanks of the Germans, tanks No. 2 and No. 3 are out-and-out garbage, and it is not much safer to sit in them than in a tin can. Moreover, its tank guns are of very limited use to the T-34 and T-35 of our army. Tank IV was slightly better, but that was limited to the long-barreled 75mm gun. At the time, these were the only ones who could cause us trouble. So when facing tank four, we will be doubly careful and will give priority to them! ”

"Of course, we would prefer to get more advanced tanks, such as the T-35A, which is already basically immune to the threat of the long-barreled No. 4 tank, but Kharkov has just begun to produce this tank, and the number is limited, and it can only be equipped with the Guards tank unit for the time being. It is said that the more advanced T-34-85 has also been put into production and will be widely equipped with us in the future. However, for all tank crews, the most coveted thing is to get the T-54. These tanks are too powerful and perfect, but for the time being, only the elite of the Guards will have a chance to use them. How I wish I had this honor! ”

Actually, Nikolai. Zherelov did not need to be too disappointed, because he soon had access to the T-54, and in future battles he would always accompany the T-54 and run most of Europe with its tracks...... (To be continued......)

PS: Bow and thank you to Chuan Liu Huagui, the long journey into the night, hzwangdd and Comrade Juventus!