During World War II, the Russian Armed Forces consisted of five main
elements; the Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force, National Air Defense and
Armed Forces Support. The Ground Forces represented about 80 percent of
the total manpower, being the largest in strength. It had approximately
5,300,000 military effectives at the outbreak of the Russo-German War
in June 1941. However, devastating damage brought by the German
Mechanized Forces resulted in more than 70 percent losses of its entire
troop strength within five months. This led to rapid reorganization of
the Ground Forces, and with a help of the harsh winter climate of
Russia, they managed to repel German's advance just in front of Moscow.
Due to the heavy losses, reorganized units became much smaller than
before. Rifle Forces (infantry) reduced their divisional strength from
14,483 to 10,859. Tank Divisions, which possessed some 20,000 armoured
vehicles, lost about 70% of them at the initial stage of war. Most
surviving Tank Divisions were disbanded, and the available tanks and
crews were re-assigned to much smaller units like independent tank
battalions or tank brigades. It was in 1945, just prior to the end of
the conflict, that the Russian Armed Forces recuperated the pre-war
level of their strength.
The main strength of the Russian counter-offensive was their tank
troops. Following concentrated fire by their artillery units, the tank
troops advanced in three groups, and many infantrymen rode on the tanks
of the 2nd and 3rd groups. This infantry practice was unique to Russian
tactics and was called "Tankoviy Desant" by the Russians. Since the
Russian Ground Forces did not possess armored troop carriers like the
German halftracks, an infantry battalion called the 'Motor Rifle Unit"
was attached to every tank brigade and assigned to close support the
tanks. A Motor Rifle Unit consisted of about 500 infantrymen. PPSh-41
or PPS-43 machine guns as support arms. Soldiers carried as many
magazines as possible, and advanced while riding on tanks. Once
encountering an enemy's defensive position, infantrymen would disembark
from the tank, attack the position, and then return to the tank. These
infantrymen were spearheads of the attack, and due to enemy's defensive
fire, liable to sustain heavy casualties.
The standard uniform of the Russian infantrymen during WW2 was a simple
blouse called "Gymnastiorka". Early in the conflict, greatcoats and
rain capes were often used as wintertime attire. In 1940, a quilted
jacket called "Telogreika" was introduced, but not enough quantities
were supplied in the beginning.
General
Physical Specification
| Package Contents: |
1x Tamiya Russian Army Assault Infantry (1/35)
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