Tank commanders

My mistake. It has been corrected.

Cpt. Arcadie Duceac was born on 30 August 1909 in Dragoiesti.

In December 1942 campaign he commanded a tank company made up of the remains of the 1st Tank Regiment from the fighting in November 1942. His unit was assigned to support the 3rd Motorized Vanatori Regiment on the Chir front. On 19, 21 and 22 December he intervened while the regiment was defending the heights south of Chernichevskaya and caused many casualties to the enemy. During the retreat southwards on 24 December 1942, his company formed the rearguard and managed to hold the enemy for 8 hours, also allowing the 22nd Panzer Division to retreat.

During the fighting near Solotovsky on 25 and 26 December, cpt. Arcadie Duceac counterattacked together with the 1st Battalion/3rd Motorized Vanatori Regiment the Soviet troops that had managed to enter the northwestern corner of the village. He drove his tank in the enemy lines and destroyed 4 mortars that were firing upon the village. The tank was set on fire by enemy AT weapons, but he brought it back to Romanian lines and then evacuated it to be repaired.

He was awarded the Steaua Romaniei Order Knight class with Virtute Militara ribbon, for his actions during the 1942 campaign.

In August 1944 he was on leave when the Jassy-Kishinev started and did not see any fighting. According to the memoirs of lt. Ion S. Dumitru (read the first story in the thread) he encountered him on the front, where he attempted to take over several stray formations retreating south, including that of Dumitru. The situation ended in direct conflict between the two. It is obvious his memoirs, that Ion Dumitru did not like him at all and considered him a poor officer. But that may have been his subjective opinion.

In the March-May 1945 campaign of the 2nd Tank Regiment as part of the Soviet 27th Tank Brigade in Czechoslovakia and Austria, cpt. Duceac commanded the 1st Company/2nd Tank Battalion, equipped with the ancient Renault R-35 tanks. During the first action of his unit he supported the attack on Dol. Pial carried out by the 43rd Rifle Regiment/93rd Rifle Division on 26 March. The attack succeeded. It also stopped a German counterattack by infiltrating and destroying the artillery group that supported it. But the company lost several tanks and two of its officers. His company suffered more casualties the following days.

On 17 April he took over a mixed tank company made up of the remains of the regiment: one T-4 (Pz IVH) platoon, one TAs (Stug IIIG) platoon and one R-35 platoon. At the time, the 2nd Tank Regiment was supporting the 4th Rifle Division. On 18 April it captured Wilfersdorf and on 19 Aspern. At 1800 hours german tanks and infantry attacked the Romanian company, but they were repulsed, loosing two tanks, one SPW, two AT guns and 12 machine-guns, most of the kills probably being achieved by the T-4 platoon of slt. Iosif Forgaci. The Germans retreated towards Eibenstahl. The following the fighting continued around that location. The company repulsed another counterattack, damaging two German tanks and two SPWs, while loosing a R-2 tank. Later that day, the Romanian company received the task to flank the German positions. The mission succeeded withoput problems, because apparently the Germans thought the tanks where reinforcements (Pz IVH and Stugs).

The 27th Tank Brigade returned to Czechoislovakia and between 25-30 April, cpt. Duceac's company was engaged near Musov-Nova Ves, supporting the 409th Guards Division, in some bitter fights with German infantry and Panthers (tanks that have little to fear from Duceac's unit). On 7 May 1945, the mixed tank company, reduced to several T-4s and R-35s took part in the initial fights of Operation Prague near Pasohlavki. After that the fighting practically ended as the advance wasn't challanged any more, as the war in Europe was close to its end.

Cpt. Duceac was awarded the Mihai Viteazul Order with swords 3rd class after the war. Although he lost many tanks while commanding the 1st Company/2nd Battalion, I must also take into account that the R-35s were obsolete in 1945 and easy prey for German AT weapons. At the command of the mixed company, which included modern medium tanks and support guns, cpt. Duceac obtained better results, even though he apparently did not "lead from the tank".

I have added further details to the short story on lt. Alexandru Velican.

On 20 November 1942, during the attempt of the 1st Armored Division to link up with the 22nd Panzer Division, of which it had been isolated the previous day, the Romanian tankers were engaged in several heavy fights with Soviet mechanized forces. Slt. Alexandru Velican was a T.3 platoon leader in the 1st Tank Regiment. That day, the Romanian Pz IIIs were fighting around Winterlager farm. He led his platoon in the Soviet artillery position, destroying a battery, several AT guns, mortars and AT rifles. The regiment was counterattacked by Soviet armor after noon. By 1500 hours he had already destroyed 2 T-34s, when his tank was hit by an AP shell and the driver was killed. However, he remained in his tank with the rest of the crew and continued to fight until they ran out of ammo. He destroyed another T-34, raising the total to three that day.

The following day, slt. Velican distinguished himself once again, by destroying an AT gun and several AT rifles and repulsing a Soviet attack on the regiment's flank, during the retreat towards Bol. Donchinskaya. He was later awarded the Mihai Viteazul Order 3rd class.

Another two officers who who received the Mihai Viteazul Order 3rd class for the fighting around Winterlager on 20 November 1942 were cpt. Victor Stroescu, the CO of the tank company (posthumously) and slt. Gheorghe Budu, whose exploits are unknown to me however.

By the summer of 1944, Alexandru Velican had been promoted to the rank of locotenent (1st lt.) and was CO of the 1st Company/1st Battalion of the 1st Tank Regiment from the 1st Armored Division of brig. gen. Radu Korne. On 20 August 1944, when the Red Army launched the Jassy-Kishinev Operation, the 1st armored Division executed a counterattack in the flank of the Soviet forces that had penetrated the front line. The 1st Tank Regiment, isolated from the rest of the division, engaged a Soviet armored spearhead at 1 km south of Scobalteni on the road from Dobroscani to Podu Iloaiei. In fact just the 1st Tank Battalion and the regimental command platoon – all the T-4 tanks available. The 2nd Battalion equipped with Stug IIIGs did not take part in the action. Lt. Velican’s company held the right flank of the regiment and was the first to enter the battle, because of the dominant position of the hill he was positioned on. The Soviet AT guns and tanks hidden in the outskirts of Scobalteni damaged and immobilized 3 tanks from his company. He stopped the advance and adopted a defensive formation. Soon JS-1 heavy tanks appeared in the Soviet lines and four of them advanced toward the Romanian lines in open field, but were knocked out by the concentrated fire of the 1st and 2nd Tank Companies. The fighting continued until nightfall and the regiment was eventually encircled. During it broke the encirclement and retreated southwards. However, in the process, the columns got separated. Lt. Velican ended up with only 7 tanks under his command and in the following days fought delay actions. He later met up with 3 stray Stug IIIGs and in the evening of 23 August, at Pildesti, with elements of the 2nd and 3rd Tank Companies (14 tanks), under the command of slt. Ion Dumitru. Together they continued the retreat south after 24 August, until they encountered other tanks of the regiment and lt. Col. Gheorghe Matei, the deputy commander. On 25 August they reached Tazlau, where the armored group linked uo with the 7th Heavy Artillery Regiment. The following day they were interned in a POW camp.

Cpt. Constantin Neagu was born on 2 June 1910 in Luncani, Bacau county. In November 1942 he was the CO of the 3rd Tank Company/1st Tank Battalion, equipped with R-2 tanks (Skoda LT VZ 35).

Early in the morning of 20 November, his company replaced the 1st Tank Company as the 1st Tank Regiment's forward detachment. It took part in the attack on Winterlager farm and cleared all enemy resistance encountered, allowing the motorized vanatori to continue their advance.

On 24 November, his company was sent from Osinovska to Oserkiy to help the 3rd Motorized Vanatori Regiment disengage the Soviet cavalry and retreat. He destroyed the Oserkiy farm and the troops defending it, as well as several cavalry squadrons trying to cut off the retreat path of the Romanian motorized infantry.

And from the ranks of the "forgotten heroes" (the NCOs that unfortunately don't get as much publicity as the officers): serg. maj. Stefan Raducu, born on 26 December 1912 in Grecesti, Dolj county. He was a tank commander, most likely a T-4 (Pz IV), given his achievements.

During the fights at Donchinsky (probably on 22 November 1942) he destroyed two T-34s and two AT guns. During the attack on reference point 302, while attacking another AT gun, his tank was destroyed and he was gravely wounded. He won the Virtutea Militara Medal 1st class (war version), the highest Romanian military award for NCOs.

The source is the same: Tanchistii by Constantin Ucrain and Dumitru Dobre.

Cpt. Octavian Miclescu was born on 26 October 1909 in Roman. He was the CO of a R-2 tank company in the 1st Tank Regiment, during the 1941 campaign.

On 8 August 1941, during the fights north of Odessa, he engaged with his company a Soviet motorized company retreating towards Zhiminova. He was wounded at the right shoulder during the fights, but his unit managed to capture 10 cars and 170 POWs. For this action he received the Steaua Romaniei Order Knight class with Virtute Militara Ribbon.

Same source.

Did anyone try to contact the tank veterans still alive? It would be fascinating to hear their war stories first hand...

Gen. Dénes

Well I managed to find out more details on one of the tank commanders mentioned earlier to have distinguished themselves in November 1942 and won the Mihai Viteazul Order 3rd class.

Slt. (2nd lt.) Gheorghe Budu was born on 24 november 1916 in Focsani. During 1942, he was the commander of a medium tank platoon. On 20 november, during the fights at Winterlager farm, he destroyed two T-34s and four AT guns. Several days later, at Donchinsky he destroyed the enemy forces that were preventing the 1st Battalion to advance further. He took part in the attack at resistance point 302 (south of Chernichevskaya), taking out several mortars and two AT guns. At Valamov, with two tanks, he helped a German Panzergrenadier unit break out of the encirclement.

Let me repeat the question I posted a while ago:
Did anyone try to contact the tank veterans still alive? It would be fascinating to hear their war stories first hand...

Gen. Dénes

Hungary tried to buy Panthers and/or a license to build them, and in the end did get two Tiger I's and thee Panthers (unless I have my numbers reversed). The Germans refused to sell the Hungarians any Panthers or Tigers in any reasonable numbers and asked for a fortune just for licensing rights. It does say something about the short-sightedness of German policy towards its allies that the Hungarians were still using Turans in 1944 and 1945, and that the Romanians didn't have much better.

Actually, the Hungarian Army received more Panthers and Tigers (including a dozen originally intended for the Rumanians, but eventually delivered to the Hungarians in early September 1944, who subsequently used them in battles in Transylvania).
Nevertheless, this doesn't detract anything to what you've stated above.

Gen. Dénes

I'm curious what your source is, Denes. Unless I'm mistaken, the Squadron (?) book on Eastern Front armor only gives the Hungarians a very small number of Pz V and VI, less then a half dozen of both types.

Robert, there is a new book under work related to this topic. That will shed light to many unknown areas related to the Honvédség in W.W. 2 and will clarify errors currently circulated in various publications, including the mentioned Squadron/Signal title.

Gen. Dénes

Denes,

Have you more information on this ? (author, title, expected publication date....) ?

I'm surprised the Germans gave away Panthers and Tigers to their allies.

Not yet. When I'll know more, I'll post it on this site.

Dénes