Tank troops

Branch of troops: Armored and mechanized troops _x000D_ _x000D_ Nikolai Fedorovich Pronkin was a soldier of 273rd Separate Battalion of 8th Tank Army of 1st Belorussian Front. He was born in the village of Vezovka, Penza region on December 22, 1925. When the war began, he volunteered for the front. In the unit where the sixteen-year-old boy got to, they took pity on him, left him as a front-line cook. _x000D_ In 1943, when he turned 18, they took Nikolai into a reconnaissance group, and then into an anti-tank platoon, issued an anti-tank rifle, and he was number one there. In the veteran's questionnaire, which is kept in the "Book of Memory" in the Savinsky Museum of Local Lore (Arkhangelsk Region), his hand recorded the facts of his military biography: the crossing of the western bank of the Vila, participation in the combats for Poznan and Lublin and terrible lines about the liberation of the Majdanek concentration camp on July 22, 1944, that is near Lublin (Poland). _x000D_ It was difficult with heavy fighting that the war rolled to the west, while crossing the Oder in 1945 in a terriblecombat, Private Pronkin was wounded in the leg and was sent as a medical train to Moscow. The injury turned out to be serious and the soldier lay in the hospital until the very Victory. _x000D_ There Nikolay met the guys from Kazakhstan and went with them to the geological party "Isaporovskoye". In the Kazakh steppes, the young hero met his betrothed, charming milling worker Nina, whom he later married. Nikolai Fedorovich worked as a driller in the Plesetsk exploration expedition, in the drilling crew until his retirement, until he was promoted to the title of "Veteran of Labor". _x000D_ Nikolai Fedorovich passed away on July 25, 1991.

Rank: Corporal_x000D_ Branch of troops: Armored and Mechanized troops. _x000D_ My great-grandfather, Innokenty Khrisanfovich Pisarev, from 1941 to 1946 had served in the tank forces in the Far East and was a participant in the Manchurian operation. It is hard to say what time was more hard for the Far Eastern outskirts of Russia either a pre-war protracted conflict, four years of a formal truce or the final month of hostilities in World War II. _x000D_ He had never talked about what happened there on the Japanese front, at that time everyone was proud of the heroes who defeated Germany. The soldiers who defended the Soviet frontiers from saboteurs built defensive structures, lived in trenches for years without uniforms, weapons, food, medicine ... People rotted alive in humid climate and mud. After all, "everything for the front, everything For Victory" was sent to the Western Front ... _x000D_ My grandfather finished the war with the rank of corporal, a Studebaker truck driver. He was awarded the medal "For Victory over Japan". Since the war, his wife and two children ("pre-war", as the great-grandmother said) were waiting for him in the village of Tsagakshino, Chita Region. Grandmother, Buzina Evdokia Petrovna, during the war worked at a school, taught local and evacuated children, for which she was awarded the title of "Veteran of the Home Front". _x000D_ And the great-grandfather fell in love with the East for the rest of his life, and two "post-war" children (Tatyana and Anatoly) were born to them in the Amur Region (the settlements Mazanovo and Beloyarovo). _x000D_ In 1957, the family moved to the villageVerkh-Usugli, they built a house. My grandfather worked as a driver at the Studebaker, drove miners, my grandmother was a Head of a kindergarten. Our Innokenty Khrisanfovich passed away after a second heart attack at the age of 49. Great-grandmother outlived her husband by 34 years, (she passed away in 2001). She fulfilled her husband's desire, she went to live in the Amur Region (Svobodny town).

Title: Senior Lieutenant_x000D_ Branch of troops: Armored and Mechanized troops_x000D_ Alexander Popov was a part of the heroic and terrible combat at the Kursk Bulge. He graduated from the Ulyanovsk Ordzhonikidze Military School. In 1942 he was sent as a Junior Lieutenant to the Kostenevsky tank camp near Moscow and was appointed Commander of a command platoon. Their 64th Tank Regiment was sent to the Leningrad Front, to the Staraya Russa Region, where the Regiment joined the 3rd Mechanized Corps, commanded by General Katukov at the time when the Nazis besieged Leningrad. _x000D_ According to my grandfather, the enemy covered them with artillery fire, bombed them from the air. It was hard for the tankers. Swamps and forests are everywhere. In January 1943 they broke through the siege of Leningrad. _x000D_ After the combat of Stalingrad, Popov A.A. was transferred to the 3rd Guards Stalingrad Mechanized Corps as Platoon Commander. They were stationed in the town of Oboyan, which is near Belgorod. Here the enemy inflicted a powerful tank strike with seven hundred tanks of selected tank divisions. On 5 June, a fierce tank combat broke out. The Nazis launched an offensive at dawn. Hundreds, hundreds of new heavy "tigers", "panthers", self-propelled guns "Ferdinand" were thrown against the Soviet troops. Our medium tanks against these colossus, dying in flames without hesitation, without a doubt in their hearts, rammed these colossus. In that combat, our artillery ground the enemy with “Katyusha”. But the Nazis concentrated huge forces there, the battlefield was covered with smoke of conflagrations. _x000D_ My grandfather was part of the most fierce combat near Prokhorovka of the same the 3rd Stalingrad Mechanized Corps. 1200 tanks fought on both sides. They knocked out and rammed each other, converged "armor on armor". Many kilometers were burning with the stench of burnt human flesh. The enemy did not pass, German wermacht had lost the combat on the Kursk Bulge. _x000D_ In that combat on the Kursk Bulge, the corps was left practically without tanks. In this combat, Alexander Afanasyevich earned the Order of the Patriotic War of 1st degree. The second Order was for capture of the city Belgorod, when his corps captured 22 German "tigers" and turned them against the Nazis. Having received reinforcements from the rear: the columns "Stalingrad kolkhoznik" and "Azerbaijani kolkhoznik", set off further, clearing Gadyach, Akhtyrka, Zolotonosha. Having reached the river Dnieper, Alexander Aanasyevich, in the first boat crossed the river and laid a connection to coordinate the fire. A mention of this military action is described in the book "From the Volga to the Baltic" by A.M. Samsonov. _x000D_ The boat was covered by the enemy’s fire at the very shore. Division Commander, watching the forcing through binoculars, saw human body parts flying after the explosion. Нe nominated Alexander Popov for the title of Hero of the Soviet Union posthumously. But suddenly the connection was restored, and, after all, the grandfather remained alive. Somehow in the fire of war his military action was forgotten, but my grandfather did not fight for the title after all. In the ranks of this Guards Mechanized Corps, Alexander Afanasyevich walked along many military roads and ended the war in China with three orders of the Patriotic War, the Order of the Red Star, numerous medals and posthumously not awarded title of the Hero of the Soviet Union.

CITY: Kirov Region Kotelnichsky District, village Petukhovy _x000D_ DATE OF BIRTH: 08/20/1919 _x000D_ DATE OF DEATH: 09/26/1987 _x000D_ Rank: Lieutenant _x000D_ Branch of troops: Armored and Mechanized troops_x000D_ Petukhov Pyotr Grigorievich was born in the Kirov Region (then Vyatka province) into a simple peasant family. He began to work early, helping his parents with the housework, graduated from a seven-year school and a worker’s school. He was drafted into the Red Army in the fall of 1939 by the Kotelnichsky District military enlistment office of the Kirov Region. In 1940-1941 he worked his way up from an ordinary Red Army soldier to the Commander of a Chemical department. Graduated from the Kuibyshev Military Infantry School in 1942. _x000D_ He had been a participant of the Great Patriotic War since August 1943. He fought in the 1st Mechanized Krasnograd Red Banner Corps, which was part of the 53rd and 37th Armies of the Steppe, since October 1943 of 2nd Ukrainian Front. He took an active part in the liberation of the Belgorod Region, the cities of Kharkov and Poltava, Kremenchug, the crossing of the Dnieper. _x000D_ In the late autumn of 1943, he was seriously wounded. He underwent treatment in the hospital, however, many years later we learned that from the hospital, my grandfather and his friend escaped without finishing treatment not to stay behind their military unit. Since June 1944, Lieutenant Petukhov, had been a Head of the Chemical service of a Company, then of the 3rd Motorized Rifle Battalion of 37th Mechanized Brigade of 1st Mechanized Corps. _x000D_ He took an active part in the operation "Bagration" for Liberation of Belarus. The cities of Slutsk, Slonim, Brest, hundreds of villages and villages, these are the milestones of the combat path of Peter Grigorievich across the Belarusian land. The corps, in which my grandfather fought, was part of the Mechanized Cavalry Group of General I.A. Pliev, then 28th Army of General A.A.Luchinsky, and since the fall of 1944, he had been part of 2nd Guards Tank Army of S.I. Bogdanov. _x000D_ For the distinction in the liberation of the city of Slutsk, 37th Mechanized Brigade was awarded the honorary title "Slutsk". Further, the corps went for Poland, the battles to cross the Vistula and the assault on the Warsaw suburb of Prague. In January 1945, Pyotr Grigorievich's combat path ran through the Polish capital Warsaw, the cities of Sochaczew, Skierniewice, Lowicz and Bydgoszcz. He took part in the liberation of these cities, for which he was distinguished with the Commendation of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief. In February 1945, Pyotr Grigorievich was awarded the Order of the Red Star for his successful reconnaissance behind enemy lines.

Rank: Seargeant_x000D_ Branch of troops: Armored and Mechanized troops_x000D_ Subdivision: 34th Infantry Middle Volga Order of the Red Star Division named after V.M. Kuibyshev. _x000D_ Popovich Grigory Vasilievich (02/14/1922 – 02/08/1981) was born in the east of Ukraine in the Donetsk Region, Zhdanov (now Mariupol). He began his military service in August 1941 as a cadet of the Frunze Military School, after graduating in April 1942 he was sent to the 83rd Infantry Regiment of 34th Infantry Division as the Commander of a mortar squad. _x000D_ On September 5, 1942, near Kursk, he was seriously wounded and only in October 1943 he was able to return to the ranks of the same 83rd Regiment as the Commander of a rifle squad. Then he continued to serve in the 35th Tank Regiment as the Commander of the Chemical protection department (January 1944 - January 1945). On January 2, 1945, on the outskirts of Berlin, he was slightly wounded, aтв had to stay in the hospital for a month. _x000D_ He continued to serve in the 100th Tank Regiment (February 1945), and after defeating Nazi Germany, he was mobilized to the Far Eastern Front to participate in the Soviet-Japanese War. _x000D_ He was ddemobilized on December 22, 1945 with the rank of Guard Senior Seargeant. He was awarded the medal "For Courage". In the award list, his feat is described as follows: “In the breakthrough of the enemy's defenses in the area south of Pilkallen, comrade Popovich, together with his squad, made two passes through the minefields and led the tanks through, ensuring their further successful advance”. _x000D_ He was also awarded the medal "For Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941-1945" and the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st Class.

DATE OF BIRTH: 03/15/1919 _x000D_ DATE OF DEATH: 11/17/2007 _x000D_ Title: Major _x000D_ Branch of troops: Armored and Mechanized troops_x000D_ Division: 101st Tank Division_x000D_ Pronkin Semyon Petrovich had been in the Red Army since September 1939. He began his military service in peacetime by studying at the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR Infantry School and continued his studies at the Borisov Tank School. After graduating from a military school, he fought in command positions in tank units. _x000D_ Pronkin S.P. took an active part in hostilities as part of the Western Front from October 1942 to February 1943, as part of the Central Front from April 1943 to July 1943, as part of the Southern Front and the Ukrainian Front from October 1943. As part of the 432 Tank Battalion, he fought to liberate the settlements of Zaporozhye and the Luhansk Region from the enemy. The settlements of Chekhograd, Novo-Aleksandrovka, Darmstadt, Gutertal, Nizhnie Serogozy were liberated. _x000D_ During October 28, 1943, in the area of the lower reaches of the Dnieper, the troops had advanced in some areas from 5 to 20 km and captured the regional center Nizhnie Serogozy, and also occupied more than 30 other settlements, including Zlatopol, Krasovich, Gogolevka, Novo-Aleksandrovka, Verkhniye Serogozy, etc. Captain Pronkin took part in active hostilities of his tank brigade in the liberation of Crimea in 1944. _x000D_ For the feats accomplished on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War, Captain Pronkin Semyon Petrovich received state awards: the Order of the Red Star (07.29.1943), the Order of the Patriotic War 2 degree. (06.11.1943), the Order of the Patriotic War 1 degree (30.04.1944).

Branch of troops: Armored and Mechanized troops_x000D_ Our uncle Fedor was supposed to return from the army in 1941. The family was already waiting for him at home, but the war broke out, and Fedor continued his service in the tank forces. He was the Tank Commander. His mother had a strange death notification: "Killed. Missing." The last words left some hope, and Agrafena Gerasimovna was waiting for her son or news about him all this time. And, as it turned out, not in vain. _x000D_ Several years after the war, his younger brother Peter, a military man, made a speech at the congress. After his speech, two strangers approached him: “Did you happen to have an older brother ?” They turned out to be his fellow soldiers. So he found out about the fate of his brother Fedya. _x000D_ When their tank was knocked out, they were captured. Fyodor was wounded, but he could not come to terms with his position, and they tried to escape. The Nazis set dogs on them. The wounded Fedor was left to the dogs to give time for others to flee. Fyodor was torn to pieces. This is the last thing they heard through the shots ... _x000D_ We had never found where he could have been buried, we remember him every time at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Moscow.

Rank: Senior Lieutenant Alexey Kirillovich was born on March 17, 1922 in the village of Podzharovka, Iznoskovsky District. The family had seven children: four girls and three boys. The youngest in the family was Vasily Kirillovich, born in 1941. Unfortunately, one of the girls died in her youth due to illness. Alexey Kirillovich finished 10 classes in 1940. In the same year he was drafted into the ranks of the Red Army. He became a cadet in a Regimental School at the 8th Armored Regiment. In 1941 he became the Senior turret gunner of the 327th Armored Regiment. In November 1942, he was appointed squad Commander of the 251st Army Engineering Battalion. _x000D_ Since December 1942 he went to the war and in the same year became a member of the Komsomol. In December of the same year, he was wounded. In January 1943, he was appointed squad leader of the 5th Separate Engineering. As a cadet in 1944 he was sent to the Zhdanov Military School to Kostroma. In October, he was appointed Commander of a department of the Leningrad Military Engineering School. In December, in the rank of Junior Lieutenant, he was appointed Commander of an Engineering Platoon of the 6th Guards Motorized Engineering Battalion, 5th Guards Separate Engineering. In the battles to destroy the Zemland Group of Forces, he skillfully led a platoon while escorting the tanks of the 2nd tank Battalion of the 213th Tank Brigade in combat, preventing the destruction of equipment in the enemy's minefields. The platoon took a direct part in the combat, capturing 52 German soldiers. Alexey Kirillovich personally destroyed three German soldiers and captured five. The Commander of the Battalion of the Guards, Major Viktor Vasilyevich Yesin, was presented on April 19, 1945 to the Order of the Patriotic War of the 2nd degree, was awarded the Order of the Red Star. This is what Petukhov wrote about Alexei Kirillovich Petukhov in the award on the sheet, the Commander of the Battalion of the Guards, Major Viktor Vasilyevich Yesin: _x000D_ “The platoon of Junior Lieutenant Petukhov was in combat with the tanks of the 2nd Battalion of the 213th Tank Brigade. Thanks to skillful actions, personal example and the correct alignment of forces in combat on the part of Junior Lieutenant Petukhov, his platoon coped well with the engineering support of the advancing tanks. Not a single tank was blown up on the aisles made by the platoon of Junior Lieutenant Petukhov in the enemy's minefields. On the route of movement of tanks in different areas, a platoon of Junior Lieutenant Petukhov removed 120 Anti-tank mines. Moving ahead of the tanks, the platoon of Junior Lieutenant Petukhov took a direct part in the combat for the settlements of Plautvenen, Lengniten. In Lengniten alone 52 people were taken prisoner by a platoon. Personally, Comrade Petukhov took five German soldiers prisoner and shot three on the spot. Skillfully controlling the platoon, Comrade Petukhov did not stop the advance of the tanks for a minute, which contributed to the success of offensive operations to defeat the Zemland group of enemy forces. Worthy of submission to the Order of the Patriotic War, II degree. After the end of the war, Alexei Kirillovich was promoted to Lieutenant on May 31, 1945. In January 1946 he was appointed platoon Commander of the 2nd Battalion of the military Construction Brigade of the UOS SV. On July 5, 1946, he was dismissed according to Art. 43, A . From February 28, 1948, he worked in the security department at Sergeant police positions for the protection of public order of the executive committee of the Moscow City Council. _x000D_ On July 13, 1964, he was transferred to the reserve for health reasons. November 15, 1971 A. K. Petukhov was awarded the rank of Senior Lieutenant. Alexei Kirillovich and Alexandra Ivanovna Petukhovs had three children: Tamara Alekseevna (1949), Lyubov Alekseevna (1953) and Yuri Alekseevich (1956). Now each of them has their own children and grandchildren. One of the grandchildren was named after their brave grandfather, Alexey. In November 1987, Alexey Kirillovich died, and in April 2009, his wife, Alexandra Ivanovna, died. Now the descendants of A.K. Petukhov live in the Moscow Region.

Situation in Mariupol. Soldier inside tank in Levorozhny district.

Situation in Mariupol. Tank in Levorozhny district.

Situation in Mariupol. Tank in Levorozhny district.

LPR People's Militia in Lugansk Oblast. Servicemen of the "August" tank battalion of the LPR People's Militia at combat positions

Training of mobilized citizens in the SMO zone. Training of servicemen called up as part of partial mobilization in the rear areas of the special military operation zone. During the training, servicemen practice night firing standards with AK-74 and AK-12 assault rifles, T-80 tank crews practice engaging enemy targets at night, and BRM-2AM combat reconnaissance vehicle crews fire cannons and machine guns at targets at a range of 500 to 900 meters

Training of mobilized citizens in the SMO zone. Training of tank crews from among mobilized servicemen in the rear zone of the special military operation. During the training of tank crews, servicemen practice the use of standard T-80 and T-72 tank weaponry, as well as the coordinated actions of combat vehicle crews. Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on September 21 on conducting partial mobilization in the country; mobilization activities concluded in early November

Operations of T-72B3 and T-72B3M tank crews in the SMO zone. A T-72B3M tank in the special military operation zone in the Kherson sector. The unit is tasked with destroying particularly important strategic enemy targets