Bereznegovatoye–Snigirevka offensive
The Bereznegovatoye–Snigirevka offensive (Russian: Березнеговато-Снигирёвская Наступательная Операция, Bereznegovato-Snigirovskaya Nastupatel'naya Operatsiya) was an offensive operation conducted in southern Ukraine by the Soviet 3rd Ukrainian Front against the German 6th Army and Romanian 3rd Army of Army Group A, in March 1944. It was part of the second stage of the strategic Dnieper-Carpathian Offensive.
| Bereznegovatoye–Snigirevka offensive | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Dnieper–Carpathian offensive | |||||||
Soviet artillerymen on the march in rasputitsa, March 1944 | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Soviet Union |
Germany Romania | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Rodion Malinovsky |
Ewald von Kleist (Army Group A) Karl-Adolf Hollidt (6th Army) Petre Dumitrescu (3rd Army) | ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
| 3rd Ukrainian Front |
Army Group A: - 6th Army - 3rd Army | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
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3rd Ukrainian Front on 1 March 1944: - 559,650 personnel in total - 8,443 guns and mortars - 573 operational tanks and self-propelled guns - 593 combat aircraft |
6th Army on 1 March 1944: Personnel: - 286,297 personnel in total Anti-tank guns: - 314 operational anti-tank guns (all calibers) in total - 49 anti-tanks guns in repairs Armoured vehicles: - 70 operational tanks and assault guns - 33 operational self-propelled tank destroyers (all types) - 103 operational armoured vehicles in total - 20 self-propelled tank destroyers (all types) in repairs - unknown number of tanks and assault guns in repairs | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown |
6th Army losses in March 1944 Troops: - 3,544 killed - 9,174 missing - 24,000 wounded - 36,718 in total Total irrecoverable equipment losses: - 104 tanks and assault guns - 352 artillery pieces (all calibers) - 358 mortars - 7,436 motor vehicles (all types) - 342 prime movers (all types) - 2,275 machine-guns - 2,500 sub-machine guns - 7500 tones of ammunition | ||||||
After the collapse of the German Nikopol bridgehead in February 1944, 6th Army was forced to conduct a costly and difficult withdrawal, retreating behind the Ingulets river at the end of the month in conditions of early spring thaw. As a result of the heavy battles of the previous month, all divisions of the 6th Army were heavily depleted by the start of March 1944. The 3rd Ukrainian Front, in pursuit of the retreating 6th Army, crossed the flooded Ingulets river and established numerous bridgeheads on its western bank at the end of February 1944. This would become a staging ground for a new offensive.