Strained German Logistics
Posted: Sun May 20, 2007 11:42 pm
Sources:
The Russian Front — Barbarossa: Hitler Turns East (DVD)
Combat on the Russian Front (DVD)
War of the Century — When Hitler Fought Stalin (DVD)
Analysis:
German logistics were severely strained by Operation Barbarossa. First, the distances involved were extreme. Second, Russian roads were almost always unsurfaced. Thus, despite the common belief that Russian roads only became impassible when the fall rains (Rasputitsa) turned them to mud, in actual fact the mere passage of German armored columns would tear them up. Then, even a slight summer rain would render them impassible. Third, Luftwaffe bombings and Soviet scorched-earth policy heavily damaged the Russian rail network. Moreover, the Russian rail network was a different gauge than those in Germany. Thus, only Soviet locomotives could operate on the Russian rails, and the Germans had access to few of these engines. This meant that the Germans had to either modify their locomotives, or modify the Russian rail network — both extremely time consuming tasks. Lastly, although the Wehrmacht was supported by a fleet of over 70,000 vehicles, the vast majority of these were destroyed in the first 9 months of Barbarossa (by Mar. '42). And despite common perceptions, only 20% of the German army was mechanized. The rest marched into battle on foot, as their fathers had in WWI, and were supplied with 625,000 horses.
The net result of these logistical challenges was that: (1) the Germans could not supply both sufficient fuel to their armored spearheads and sufficient food for their infantry; and (2) the Germans could not supply their infantry with both sufficient ammunition and cold-weather clothing.
This is why German soldiers on the march had to "live off the land", which involved "appropriating" food stocks from local civilians.
This is also why German soldiers were at first not equipped with winter uniforms — although large stocks of winter wear were stockpiled in Germany, the High Command had to prioritize ammunition over clothing as the Russians counter-attacked.
The Russian Front — Barbarossa: Hitler Turns East (DVD)
Combat on the Russian Front (DVD)
War of the Century — When Hitler Fought Stalin (DVD)
Analysis:
German logistics were severely strained by Operation Barbarossa. First, the distances involved were extreme. Second, Russian roads were almost always unsurfaced. Thus, despite the common belief that Russian roads only became impassible when the fall rains (Rasputitsa) turned them to mud, in actual fact the mere passage of German armored columns would tear them up. Then, even a slight summer rain would render them impassible. Third, Luftwaffe bombings and Soviet scorched-earth policy heavily damaged the Russian rail network. Moreover, the Russian rail network was a different gauge than those in Germany. Thus, only Soviet locomotives could operate on the Russian rails, and the Germans had access to few of these engines. This meant that the Germans had to either modify their locomotives, or modify the Russian rail network — both extremely time consuming tasks. Lastly, although the Wehrmacht was supported by a fleet of over 70,000 vehicles, the vast majority of these were destroyed in the first 9 months of Barbarossa (by Mar. '42). And despite common perceptions, only 20% of the German army was mechanized. The rest marched into battle on foot, as their fathers had in WWI, and were supplied with 625,000 horses.
The net result of these logistical challenges was that: (1) the Germans could not supply both sufficient fuel to their armored spearheads and sufficient food for their infantry; and (2) the Germans could not supply their infantry with both sufficient ammunition and cold-weather clothing.
This is why German soldiers on the march had to "live off the land", which involved "appropriating" food stocks from local civilians.
This is also why German soldiers were at first not equipped with winter uniforms — although large stocks of winter wear were stockpiled in Germany, the High Command had to prioritize ammunition over clothing as the Russians counter-attacked.