Tank losses seem to have been more extensive. On 24 February it was reported that the division had lost 27 Panthers and 9 Pz IV. Of these, 9 Panthers and four Pz IV’s had been knocked out by enemy fire. Also one Pz IV hit a mine and caught fire, causing a complete loss, while three further Panthers were also damaged by mines and subsequently blown up since they could not be towed away. Twelve Panthers and four Pz IV’s suffered mechanical breakdowns and were subsequently blown up due to recovery difficulties in the mud. Finally two Panthers and one Pz III got bogged down in the Lisyanka ford and could not be towed away. They were also blown up.24
However, as the III Panzer Corps retreated from the positions it had taken during its offensive, more damaged tanks had to be blown up as they could not be towed away in time. Eventually 51 tanks were irrevocably lost, as they were blown up before the advancing Soviet forces.25
LSSAH (“Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler”) was formed as division in the summer of 1942. After Operation Zitadelle in the summer 1943 the division went to Italy for a short period before it returned the Eastern Front and Army Group South in October 1943. The division had been almost continuously engaged in action since its return. The 1. SS-Pz.Div. did not arrive in time to participate in the initial assault launched by III. Pz.Korps on 4 February, but elements of the division were employed, as soon as they arrived, to cover the left flank of the attacking 16. and 17. Pz.Div. The armor of the division included a Panther battalion, a Pz IV battalion, an assault gun battalion and a company with Tiger tanks.
Operational Tanks During the Operation:
2 February:26 16 Pz IV, 29 Panther, 3 Tiger, 22 StuG
3 February:27 In assembly area: 13 Pz IV, 11 Panther, 3 Tiger, 18 StuG III, 1 StuH III; En route: 9 Pz IV, 18 Panther, 3 Tiger
6 February (early):28 22 Pz IV, 29 Panther, 6 Tiger, 27 StuG III, 3 StuH III
6 February (late):29 7 Pz IV, 8 Panther, 4 Tiger, 12 StuG III, 1 StuH III
7 February:30 ? Pz IV, 8 Panther, 4 Tiger, 10 StuG III, 1 StuH III
9 February:31 3 Pz IV, 3 Panther, 1 Tiger, 6 assault guns
10 February:32 3 Pz IV, 3 Panther, 1 Tiger, 6 assault guns
13 February (early):33 4 Pz IV, 3 Panther, 1 Tiger, 5 StuG III
15 February (early):34 4 Pz IV, 4 Panther, 1 Tiger, 5 StuG III
The division suffered only moderately during the relief attempt of Gruppe Stemmerman. Its casualties 1–20 February 1944 amounted to 82 killed in action, 219 wounded and 17 missing.35
Like many other units, mud took a heavy toll on the Leibstandarte’s vehicles. On 7 February it reported that SS-Pz.Aufkl.Abt. 1 and III./(gep.) SS-Pz.Gren.Rgt. 1 had to be employed as infantry as all the vehicles of these two battalions were inoperable.36 The situation hardly improved. On 25 February the division reported that it had 1,392 trucks, 457 cars, 376 motorcycles and 115 prime movers in workshops, requiring major repairs.37
During the operation the division lost six Panthers, one Pz IV, ten StuG III and two Marder. It also lost one Wespe, one medium AT gun and one armored car.38 Of the Panthers, none had been destroyed by enemy gun fire. Two had been damaged by enemy gun fire (at Tinovka and Lisyanka) and one had run on a mine at Oktyabr, but had to be blown up when the Germans retreated, as they could not be towed away.39 Two had developed fires in the engine room, at Lisyanka and Rubannyi Most, respectively, and subsequently blown up.40 Finally one had suffered from clutch problems at Lisyanka and had to be blown up.41 On 22 January the Leibstandarte had three Panthers, four assault guns and one Pz IV operational,42 but it also had 8 Tigers, 42 Panthers, 32 Pz IV and 13 StuG III in workshops.43
The division was formed in 1935. When Operation Barbarossa was launched on 22 June 1941 the 3rd Panzer Division participated and it had remained on the Eastern Front since that time.
Due to shortages of riflemen, the 3. Pz.Div. only had three combat ready infantry battalions on 22 January, two of them rated as durchschnittlich and one as schwach.44 But the manpower problems were not new to the division. Its casualties were relatively modest during January, with 183 killed in action 539 wounded and 31 missing.45 Hence shortages must have been a problem in late 1943 as well. The division only received 360 replacements and 173 returning convalescents during January.46
The division could only be described as partially motorized. The Germans rated the mobility in percent of the establishment transport capacity. On 22 January, the division was rated at only 36%, but the combat elements were somewhat better off.47 There were two reasons for this: first there was a shortage of vehicles, but also shortages of spare parts caused many of the vehicles on hand to be inoperable.48
The division was also weak in tanks and only had one panzer battalion. It had 4 Pz IV and 4 Pz III operational on 1 January,49 but otherwise its strength before 25 January is not known. By 1 February it had 18 Pz IV and 2 Pz III operational, plus 10 Pz IV and 3 Pz III in workshops expected to be repaired within three weeks.50 This can be compared to the fact that it had 10 Pz IV and 2 Pz III operational on 1 January, with another 22 Pz IV and 4 Pz III in workshops expected to be repaired within three weeks.51 Twenty new Pz IV were sent to the division on 21 December 1943,52 but probably these arrived before 1 January 1944.
On 22 January: 6 Wespe, 3 Hummel, 10 10.5 cm howitzers, 3 15 cm howitzers, 5 8.8 cm Flak guns, 5 Marders, 4 7.5 cm AT guns and 1 5 cm AT gun.53
On 4 February: 12 Pz IV and 2 BW operational.54
On 13 February: 1 Pz III (7, 5), 14 Pz IV, 1 BW were operational.55
Its equipment losses during the battle included 26 tanks, 8 tank destroyers, 4 8.8 cm Flak, 4 Wespe, 3 Hummel, 12 10.5 cm howitzers, 8 15 cm howitzers. To a significant degree, this was due to the lack of towing vehicles, which meant that equipment with slight damage or that had just bogged down in mud had to be abandoned.56
This division had been formed late 1940 as a motorized infantry division. Wiking had been fighting on the Eastern Front since 22 June 1941 during which time the division lost one of it’s infantry regiments (Nordland) and had acquired a panzer battalion. By October 1943 its official designation was 5.SS-Panzer Division.
The division had been in action for much of summer 1943 and most of the fall, and was seriously depleted by the beginning of 1944. On 1 January it reported that it had 15 Pz III, 11 Pz IV and 4 StuG III operational. Also, it had 4 Pz III and 2 Pz IV in workshops.57 Since it did not recieve any new tanks during January 1944,58 this sets the upper limit on the number of tanks it possessed on 25 January 1944.
By 16 February the division was still comparitively strong. It had five Pz III, two Pz IV and three StuG operational. Its artillery remained strong, with 25 le.FH 18, 6 s.FH 18, 4 10 cm K 18, 9 Wespe, 3 Hummel, all in all 47 artillery tubes.59
Hardly anything of their heavy equipment made it out of the pocket, but 8,253 officers and men, plus 25 HiWi, managed to break out.60 Also about 1,500 soldiers were with the SS-Totenkopf Division further east.61 Probably there were further men who had been outside the pocket when the Soviet pincers closed.