68. The "Iassy-Kishinev" Operation

by Colonel (r.) dr. Nicolae Ciobanu

The military situation on the Moldavian and Bessarabian front had considerably increased in gravity after the II and the III Ukrainean Fronts have launched, on August 20, 1944, the offensive operation "Iassy-Kishinev", in a line of front of 654 km, between the Dniester river's bank, Targu Neamt, the Oriental Carpathian Mountains, Kuty.

By assuring a considerable superiority as concerned the ratio of forces, especially in the main sectors selected for the attacks, the Soviet Command decided, through its Directive from August 2, 1944, to break the Romanian-German defence in two sectors (using forces of the II Ukrainean Front in the north-western region of Jassy and of the III Ukrainean Front in the south of Tighina), and, through a double out-flank manoeuvre, to encircle and to annihilate the enemy's group of forces in the Iassy-Kishinev area, reaching, as first mission's alignment, the line between: Bacau, Falciu, Leova, Tarutino; after that, the offensive must have been carried on to the fortified alignment Focsani-Namoloasa-Braila. The strategic disposition — on one echelon. At the right flank, the II Ukrainean Front (commander, Army General R. I. Malinovski), disposed on a strip of 330 km width, received the order to break the organized defence of the Romanian and German units in a sector of 16 km width; to continue the advance to the direction Iassy-Vaslui-Falciu; to encircle, cooperating with the III Ukrainean Front's units, the group of forces from Iassy-Kishinev area: after that, to carry on further the offensive towards Focsani. At the left flank, the III Ukrainean Front (commander, Army General F. I. Tolbuhin), disposed on a strip of 210 km width, had to attack forcing the crossing over the Dniester river; to break enemy's defence in a sector of 11 km width: to participate to the encirclement of the group of forces in the lassy-Kishinev area and to reach, initially, the alignment between Leova-Tarutino, then to continue the advance towards Reni and Ismail. An analysis of the Soviet Directive shows us that the main task of the offensive operation was to make a breach of 150-200 km into the enemy's defence, without having in prospect Romania's complete taking out of the war.

The offensive was launched on August 20, 1944, at dawn, after a strong fire preparation of 90 minutes (on the II Ukrainean Front's line), respectively 50 minutes (on the III Ukrainean Front's line). Till the end of the day, the II Ukrainean Front's troops broke through, after extremely heavy fights, up to the alignment Podu Iloaiei-Voinesti, and the III Ukrainean Front's troops, after repeat-ing the fire-preparation, up to an align-ment situated south of Chiscani. On August 21, 1944, the "Wohler Group", which fought in Moldavia, was cut up, a part of its forces being pushed back towards the Prut river, and the other part towards the Siret river. After Jassy was occuppied, the Hippo mechanized Group of the Front and a part of the 7th Guard Army broke towards Targu Frumos, directing southwards. Concomitantly, the III Ukrainean Front enlarged the bridgehead in the western area of the Dniester river and entered with its mobile groups of units towards south-west of Kishinev and towards Bolgrad. On August 22, the breach accomplished by the Soviet units was of about 70 km depth; the 4th Army Group of this Front, after occupying Comrat, directed itself through Leova. The advance continued in the evening of the 23th of August, and the Russian troops reached the alignment between north of Targu Neamt — north-east of Kishinev - immediately east of Leova — north of Tatar-Bunar, at a distance of about 50-60 km from the fortified line "Focsani Gate". Since August 20, 1944, the II Ukrainean Front had entered into the Romanian-German defence disposition 80 km depth, on a front wide of 240 km.

In the present stage of our historical research, it's extremely difficult to appreciate if the Romanian and the German troops could have organized the defence on the fortified line Focsani-Namoloasa-Braila — due to the heavy losses they suffered at that time — and if Soviet forces were disposing of the needful offensive strenght to break through this powerful alignment without stopping, General Ilie Steflea, the former chief of the General Headquarters, said on August 29,1944 that "the situation on August 23, 1944 permitted not an action purposing the retrieving of the situation and the defence on the fortified alignment Focsani-Namoloasa-Braila, even in case that our troops would have continued their fight".

Yet, we must underline the fact that, even in this variant, the German High Command, in agreement with Marshal Antonescu, had taken into account the resistance on other successive alignments, the strongest of which was the Carpathian Mountains chain; this way, even risking to change the country's territory into a theatre of military actions, the fortified alignment's penetration by the Soviet troops would not have meant Romania's complete taking out of the war.

Hi!
Some interesting information about august 1944 you can find here:
http://moldovamap.ru/forum/showthread.php?...%BE%D0%B4%D0%B0.
All posts in russian, but i think it's no problem for you.

Information about spring 1944 on Dnestr front -
http://narod.ru/disk/17378469001/2%20times...g%2044.zip.html

Regards and wellcome to our forum for cooperation!

Yes, welcome to our forum, Dragos!

Hi to All!

Here it is some new video about Iassy-Kishinev operation in 1944.

Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKwIoqH79sQ&feature=youtu.be

Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgMtsptWqVg&feature=youtu.be

Part 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnGwd27_AZk&feature=youtu.be

In film you can look gathered the staff of the videochronicle from 1940 till 1944, including the little-known staff of the Iassy-Kishinev operation.

Regards,

Synergy
(www.moldovamap.ru)

I think it is a problem. I guess I am not speaking only for me.

May be - it's local forum.

You can use google translate for website.

If you write posts in romanian or english - no problem - we answer in you language.
As about video - we translate it in english soon as possible.

In part 3, at min. 0:30-0:31, do I see a star in a white circle on the tractor and wagon, (also) used by Rumanian troops in Hungary/Slovakia in 1944/1945?

Gen. Dénes

Part 3 - all about Iassy-Kishinev operation.
It's russian army - not romanian.

We receive video documents from archives, and as for me - I not see it before.
We work for search video about Bessarabia from 1940 till 1947. When we found it - you can see it here and in our forum.

Full film in good quality for download:
http://narod.ru/disk/48556378001.a45b1a796...0-1944.wmv.html

On YouTube only 3 parts - there not 4 part of film.
We put it on YouTube later.

This post has been edited by synergy on May 13, 2012 06:38 am

Bessarabia 1940-1944 Part 4:
Part 4

This post has been edited by synergy on May 16, 2012 06:07 pm

German war docs translated in russian about Iassy-Kishinev operation
From Russian archives look on page:

www.moldovamap.ru

This post has been edited by synergy on May 15, 2012 07:33 pm

Do you also have any primary info on air operations over Bessarabia (1941 and 1944)?

Gen. Dénes

A have some rolls from NARA - 1469, 1495, 1499, 1501, maps 1920-1944, some documents from Russian war archives, special documents concerning battles on Stalin line in Bessarabia.
On some docs from archives I can see some maps where was marked airfields.
May be there is matherials about air activity. There is more than 6000 docs in pages and maps. Me interesting especially field battles, and only in Bessarabia.
As for air activity - if i found any matherials about it - I'l send it on your forum.

This post has been edited by synergy on May 16, 2012 06:18 pm

Please do that, synergy! Who knows what interesting things we may find there...

This post has been edited by MMM on November 30, 2012 07:33 pm

Here's some docs from roll NARA - 1944
www.moldovamap.ru
www.moldovamap.ru

This post has been edited by synergy on December 03, 2012 08:20 pm