Friday 9 October 2020

PIAT Gunner

 "Award Order

  1. Name: Novikov, Gennadiy Vasilyevich
  2. Rank: yefreitor
  3. Position, unit: rocket gunner of the 252nd Independent Special Purpose Motorized Battalion
    is nominated for the Order of the Red Star.
  4. Year of birth: 1926
  5. Nationality: Russian
  6. Party affiliation: VLKSM
  7. Participation in the Civil War, subsequent fighting in defense of the USSR, Patriotic War: none
  8. Wounds or contusions in the Patriotic War: none
  9. In the Red Army since: August 1943
  10. Recruited by: Komsomolsk recruitment office, Ivanovo oblast
Brief and specific description of personal heroism or achievements: in the fighting from the city of Akkerman to the city of Bucharest comrade Novikov demonstrated his bravery and courage. Specifically, he destroyed 2 German tanks, 1 APC, three trucks of ammunition, and killed 12 Germans.

Commander of the 252nd OMB [signature]"

2 comments:

  1. Seems like the Soviets weren’t interested in an anti-tank rocket like PIAT, bazooka, panzerfaust, panzerschreck. Why not?

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    Replies
    1. This was discussed in (the comments of) an earlier article way back whenever, IIRC. If memory serves the basic gist was that they wanted accuracy in the same ballpark as AT rifles achieved which is obviously impossible with rocket launchers and spigot mortars. And I guess having a series of potent shaped-charge hand grenades for short-range work didn't hurt either.

      To their credit it didn't take them long postwar to accept kinetic energy was an evolutionary dead end for portable antitank weapons and start on the prolific and effective RPG lineage.

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