Capitaine Vengeur Posted June 22, 2011 Posted June 22, 2011 On June 22, 1941, Hitler launched Operation Barbarossa, unleashing 3 million men, 200 divisions, on the most extensive front from the Baltic to the Black Sea. Surprised, unprepared, scattered, suffering from silly rules of engagement to prevent any provocation from their neighbour, the Soviet forces could at first only resist and die where they stood. This day, the Luftwaffe attacked more than 60 airfields and claimed about 1100 Soviet planes destroyed on the ground, as well as 600 in the air (the Soviets admitted later about 1300), losing less than 50 aircraft. All of this last week of June was in keeping, with Minsk falling before July. Three years later exactly, the Soviets returned the favour by lauching one of the biggest and most decisive offensives in History, Operation Bagration, on 22 June 1944. This time the scattered Nazi forces were the ones surprised with trousers down.
+daddyairplanes Posted June 22, 2011 Posted June 22, 2011 both the largest and BLOODIEST campaigns ever. the ancients had the numbers but not the technology and while those in WWI had the beginnings of the tech, it was not as refined in form or use as by these two juggernauts. Thank God the world will not see the likes of this again.
+Gepard Posted June 22, 2011 Posted June 22, 2011 It was a tragedy. The soviets lost 20 million people (some folks say it were 26 millions), the germans lost 6 millions in a senseless war. Never again.
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