The troops of the 3rd UKRAINIAN Front today, April 10, as a result of a skillful outflanking maneuver of infantry and cavalry-mechanized formations combined with a frontal attack, captured an important economic and political center of the country, a regional city of Ukraine and a first-class port on the Black Sea - ODESSA, a powerful stronghold German defense point covering the path to central regions Romania.

ODESSA OPERATION

Liberation of the Odessa region was carried out in three stages:

During the Uman-Botoshan offensive operation (5.03. - 22.03.44), troops of the 2nd Ukrainian Front liberated northern part Odessa region, to the line Kamenka - Kodyma - Lyubomirka - Peschanka. On March 29, Balta was liberated. Then the 53rd Army liberated Kotovsk and reached the Dniester. At the same time, the guards of the 7th Army liberated Ananyev and also reached the Dniester;

At the end of the Bereznegovato-Snigirev offensive operation (March 6-18, 1944), the troops of the 3rd Ukrainian Front reached the left bank of the river. South Bug and without an operational pause began the Odessa offensive operation (28.03. - 10.04.). In early April, troops reached the river. Tiligul. On April 4, a cavalry-mechanized group liberated Razdelnaya. On April 7, Belyaevka was liberated. On April 9, Soviet troops reached the approaches to Odessa, clearing the city of the enemy the next day. 10 April 23rd tank corps was surrounded in the area of the village. Flat, but was released the next day. There was an operational pause that lasted until the end of August;

During the Iasi-Kishinev operation (20.08 - 29.08.44), the Izmail region, now part of the Odessa region, was liberated.

Fights for the liberation of Odessa led by the troops of the 3rd Ukrainian Front (commander - Army General R. Ya. Malinovsky).

The enemy built a defense using water barriers, terrain, and also taking advantage of the allies' disgusting weather, which made it difficult to travel off roads.

According to intelligence data and testimony from prisoners, it was established that there are 4 lines of defense on the approaches to the city:

Along the western shore of the Tiligul estuary;

Along the western shore of the Adzhalyk estuary;

Along the western shore of the Bolshoi Adzhalyk Estuary;

City bypass.

Despite the presence of a number of difficulties and fierce enemy resistance, soldiers of the 86th and 109th Guards Divisions of the 10th Guards Corps of the 5th Army seized a bridgehead on west bank Tiligulsky estuary. Bloody battles for a small piece of land continued for four days. The guardsmen emerged from this battle with honor, defending the bridgehead, and soon launched an offensive. On the evening of April 4, the 10th Guards Corps launched an attack on the village. Sverdlovo; The 37th Rifle Corps advanced in the direction of Koblevo, Koshary, Tishkovka.

Having successfully crossed the Adzhalyk estuary, units of the Red Army rushed to the third line erected by the enemy. On April 6, fierce battles were fought between the 10th and 37th Corps for the heights north of Sverdlovo. During the day, the 5th Army reached the line Ropatievo - Meshchanka - east. shore of the Adzhalyk estuary. On this day, the cavalry-mechanized group of the 3rd Ukrainian Front captured the Razdelnaya railway station, but the enemy carried out swipe and a fierce fight ensued. The 6th Army reached the Parfentyevka, Cordon line. During the battles at Razdelnaya, the enemy lost up to 580 soldiers and officers killed and wounded, and 310 were taken prisoner.

By the evening of April 8, the 5th Shock Army entered the space between two estuaries - Kuyalnitsky and Bolshoy Adzhalyksky. By 10 o'clock the settlements of Gildendorf and Fontanka were liberated. On the night of April 8-9, the 108th and 416th divisions captured the Shevchenko farm. The 248th Infantry Division continued to advance along the railway to the south - from the side of the Sortirovochnaya station. The 86th Guards and 320th Rifle Divisions of the 10th Guards Corps captured Aleksandrovka, and by 23:00 Kryzhanovka was liberated.

During the day, the commander of the 5th Shock Army, Lieutenant General V.D. Tsvetaev, commander of the 17th Air Army, Colonel General S.A. Judge and head of the operational group of the Black Sea Shipping Company, Captain I.P. In writing, we agreed with the release of rifle troops to the northern outskirts of the city to simultaneously begin an assault on Odessa from land, air and sea.

The enemy was preparing for battles inside the city: dugouts were built in the Luzanovka area, and long-term firing points were built at street intersections and squares of the city. However, the command did not want unnecessary destruction in the city, so the use of artillery was very limited at the final stage of the Odessa operation.

In an effort to delay the advance of our troops, the enemy blew up a dam in the Luzanovka area and water flooded the area adjacent to the station. The enemy fiercely resisted in the area of \u200b\u200bZhevakhova Gora and Shkodova Gora. The commander of the 248th division, Colonel N.Z. Galai, called for aviation. At 14:00 the offensive was continued. To the right of the 248th division operated the 108th Guards Rifle Division and the 416th Rifle Division (towards the Sortirovochnaya station); To the left of the 248th division, the attack was led by the divisions of the 10th infantry regiment.

By 19:00, army formations had broken through the last defensive line on the isthmus between the Kuyalnitsky estuary and the Black Sea and approached the outskirts of Odessa. At 20 o'clock the assault on the city began. Aviation struck enemy ships in the port waters, thus disrupting the evacuation of a significant part of the enemy contingent by sea.

Units of the 416th, 320th, 248th, and 86th Guards Rifle Divisions were the first to break into the city. Fighting took place for every block, for every house; street fighting continued throughout the night of April 9 and the morning of April 10. The battles for Odessa showed the heroism of the rank and file and commanders of the Red Army, many of them paid too high a price; they did not see the collapse of the misanthropic machine of Nazism in 1945.

Meanwhile, fighting was going on in the center of Odessa, soldiers of the 905th regiment of the 248th division captured the Sabaneev Bridge, and soon the division commander, Colonel N.Z. Galai, with a group of machine gunners, hoisted a banner over the opera house.

Soon the last shots fell silent - Odessa was liberated.

THE CAPITAL OF OUR MOTHERLAND MOSCOW SALUTES

Today, April 10, at 20 o’clock, the capital of our Motherland, Moscow, will salute our valiant troops who liberated Odessa with twenty-four artillery salvoes from three hundred and twenty-four guns.

Ships Black Sea Fleet at the same time, fire a salute with twelve artillery salvoes from one hundred and twenty guns in honor of the troops who liberated German invaders the most important port on the Black Sea is Odessa.

For excellent fighting I express my gratitude to all the troops led by you who took part in the battles for the liberation of Odessa.

Eternal glory to the heroes who fell in battles for the freedom and independence of our Motherland!

Death to the German invaders!

Supreme Commander

Marshal Soviet Union I. STALIN

Liberation of Right Bank Ukraine Ilya Borisovich Moshchansky

Odessa offensive(March 26 - April 14, 1944)

Odessa offensive operation

In the difficult October days of 1941, Soviet soldiers with pain in their hearts left the beautiful Odessa - a hero city, the courage and courage of whose defenders were an example for everyone.

And now, in the spring of 1944, our soldiers and officers were given the task of liberating Odessa. But before completing it, our troops had to endure another difficult battle with the enemy.

On March 11, 1944, during the offensive from Ingulets to the Southern Bug, the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command ordered the 3rd Ukrainian Front to increase the pace of pursuit of the enemy, prevent him from retreating beyond the Southern Bug, and seize river crossings in the Konstantinovka, Voznesensk, Novaya Odessa section, sequentially capture Nikolaev, Tiraspol and Odessa and continue the offensive with the aim of reaching the Prut and Danube - to state border Soviet Union.

In the Headquarters directive this task was formulated as follows:

"1. The 3rd Ukrainian Front should pursue the retreating enemy and prevent his withdrawal beyond the river. Southern Bug and capture crossings across the river. Southern Bug in the area of Konstantinovka, Voznesensk, Novaya Odessa, in order to prevent the enemy from organizing on the river. Southern Bug defense.

The cities of Nikolaev and Kherson should be liberated immediately.

In the future, occupy Tiraspol, Odessa and continue the offensive with the goal of reaching the river. Prut and the northern bank of the river. Danube, that is, to our state border.”

On March 19, the Military Council of the 3rd Ukrainian Front and the representative of Headquarters, Marshal of the Soviet Union A. M. Vasilevsky, sent a report to Headquarters on the further conduct of the operation.

The plan for the upcoming operation provided for “delivery of the main attack by four right-flank armies (57, 37, 46 and 8 Guards armies. - Note auto) With total number thirty-eight divisions, two artillery divisions, I. A. Pliev’s group and the 23rd Tank Corps in the zone mainly Voznesensk, Nov. Odessa on Zhovten, st. Serbka, Tiraspol, Razdelnaya, covering from the northwest coast and mountains. Odessa.

An auxiliary strike by the 6th and 5th Shock Armies with a total of fourteen divisions without reinforcements in general direction Nikolaev, Necheyannoye, Odessa.”

The considerations also indicated the specific tasks of the armies. It was planned that the 28th Army with its five smallest divisions, after capturing Nikolaev, would be withdrawn to the reserve of Headquarters.

The headquarters of the Supreme High Command, having examined the presented plan, approved it and ordered the immediate start of preparations for the operation.

The task of defeating the enemy in the lower reaches of the Southern Bug was to be accomplished by the troops of the 3rd Ukrainian Front in close cooperation with the 2nd Ukrainian Front. By March 22, when the main forces of the 3rd Ukrainian Front reached the Southern Bug and, having captured several bridgeheads, fought stubborn battles on them, the troops of the right wing and center of the 2nd Ukrainian Front reached the Dniester in the Mogilev-Podolsky, Yampol, and troops of the left wing of the front crossed the Southern Bug south of Gaivoron. The threat of deep envelopment loomed over the 8th and 6th German and 3rd Romanian armies.

By March 28, the troops of the 3rd Ukrainian Front consisted of 57 rifle and 3 cavalry divisions, tank and mechanized corps - 470 thousand people, 12,678 guns and mortars (without 50 mm), 435 tanks and self-propelled artillery units, 436 combat aircraft.

By this time, the troops of the 6th German and 3rd Romanian armies opposing the front had 20 divisions (16 German, 4 Romanian), 2 tank battalions, 8 brigades of assault guns. They numbered 350 thousand people, about 3,200 guns and mortars, 160 tanks and assault guns. In this direction, the enemy could use up to 550 combat aircraft of the 1st Aviation Corps of the 4th air fleet Germans and Romanian Air Corps.

Although our troops had some superiority in strength, they faced a difficult task, since the enemy occupied advantageous positions. In the depths of its defense, lines were prepared along the Tiligul and Bol rivers. Kuyalnik, Mal. Kuyalnik, Dniester. The approaches to Odessa were especially strongly strengthened. The difficulties of the upcoming operation were aggravated by mud, which limited the maneuver of troops and the supply of material.

Taking into account the experience of previous operations, the command of the front and armies drew Special attention to increase the mobility of troops in every possible way in order to quickly bypass the enemy's resistance centers and strongholds, reach the enemy's rear and capture important road junctions, crossings and bridges on rivers. Therefore, along with the preparation for combat operations of the 23rd Tank Corps and the cavalry-mechanized group of General I. A. Pliev (4th Guards Mechanized and 4th Guards Cavalry Corps), each division was ordered to create a mobile forward detachment consisting of up to a company of machine gunners, a platoon of sappers in vehicles, with one or two 45-mm guns or self-propelled artillery units.

During March 27 and on the night of March 28, the troops of the right wing of the front fought stubborn battles to expand previously captured bridgeheads on the right bank of the Southern Bug. Overcoming enemy resistance, the 57th and 37th armies by the end of March 28 expanded the bridgehead to 45 km along the front and from 4 to 25 km in depth.

Seeing the success on the right wing, the front commander immediately made adjustments to the operation plan. The cavalry mechanized group and the 23rd Tank Corps, located in the area northeast of New. Odessa, in the zone of the 46th Army, it was decided to immediately regroup the 57th and 37th armies into the zone.

On March 28, the cavalry-mechanized group received an order: by morning next day concentrate in the area of Aleksandrovka, Voznesensk, cross the bridges of the 37th Army, decisively advance in the general direction of Moldavka, Mostovoe, Berezovka and by the morning of March 30 reach Berezovka, then act in the direction of Art. Separate.

The 23rd Tank Corps was ordered to concentrate in the Trikraty, Aleksandrovka, Voronovka area by the morning of March 28 and be ready to cross in the Aleksandrovka area on the night of March 29, in order to then strike in the direction of Tiraspol.

In accordance with the order of the front commander, the 23rd Tank Corps and the cavalry-mechanized group began to regroup in a new area in order to increase the impact of the two armies of the front’s right wing.

At this time, troops of the 6th, 5th shock and 28th armies fought heavy battles in the Nikolaev area. On the night of March 28, the 61st Guards Rifle Division of Major General L.N. Lozanovich and the 243rd Rifle Division of Colonel M.I. Togolev from the 6th Army crossed the river under heavy enemy fire using improvised means. Ingul and at 3 o'clock on March 28 they broke into Nikolaev from the north. The breakthrough of these divisions disrupted the stability of the enemy's defense. Without allowing the enemy to come to his senses, the Soviet units broke through into the city center by 4 o'clock.

At the same time, the 130th Infantry Division of the 5th Shock Army under the command of Colonel K.V. Sychev crossed the river. Ingul and, together with other army divisions advancing from the east, broke into the city.

Units of the 28th Army were advancing on the city from the south.

As a result of concerted efforts, our troops completely cleared Nikolaev, a major port and one of the important shipbuilding centers, by the morning of March 28. The Supreme Commander-in-Chief expressed gratitude to the troops who distinguished themselves during the liberation of the city. Many of them were awarded the honorary name “Nikolaevsky” and awarded orders of the Soviet Union.

In the battles during the liberation of the city, troops from the 384th separate marine battalion of the Black Sea Fleet and the 1st Guards fortified area of the 28th Army acted bravely. On the night of March 26, a detachment of 67 people under the command of Senior Lieutenant K.F. Olshansky and Deputy for Political Affairs Captain A.F. Golovlev left the village on seven fishing boats. Bogoyavlensk and, having walked 15 km along the river, at 5 o’clock in the morning landed in the Nikolaev port, east of the new elevator. For two days, the paratroopers pinned down large enemy forces and selflessly repelled their attacks. At a tense moment of the battle, they radioed: “We, the soldiers and officers, the sailors of Comrade Olshansky’s detachment, swear to our Motherland that we will carry out the task facing us until last straw blood, not sparing life." Up to 700 enemy soldiers and officers were destroyed by the paratroopers, but they themselves suffered heavy losses. 55 people, including 5 officers, died a brave death. The homeland highly appreciated their feat: all paratroopers were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

After the capture of Nikolaev, the 28th Army was withdrawn to the reserve of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command.

The enemy's 5th airfield, 302nd and 304th infantry divisions, which held Nikolaev, were thrown back to the western bank of the river with heavy losses. Southern Bug. During the retreat, the enemy managed to partially blow up the bridge across the river in the Varvarovka area. Immediately after the liberation of the city, units of the 37th Rifle Corps of the 5th Shock Army began crossing the Southern Bug in this area. By the morning of March 29, Soviet units crossed the river, capturing Varvarovka. At the same time, measures were taken to restore the bridge for the crossing of equipment and heavy weapons. Seven sapper and engineer battalions worked all night on March 29 under enemy fire. In 10 hours, the bridge, more than a kilometer long, was restored, with 200 m of it being built anew. During March 29, almost all of the regimental and divisional artillery of the 37th Rifle Corps was transported to the opposite bank of the river, and in the following days heavy artillery reinforcements were transferred.

The defeat of the enemy in the Nikolaev area, as well as the successful offensive of the 57th and 37th armies from the bridgeheads at Konstantinovka and Voznesensk, threatened both flanks of the 6th German Army. The army was forced to begin a hasty retreat along the entire front.

Aviation of the 17th Air Army launched massive attacks on the retreating enemy columns. The attack aircraft of the 5th Guards and 306th Assault Aviation Divisions were especially active. At this time, the 288th and 295th fighter aviation divisions covered the crossing of the 23rd Tank Corps and a cavalry mechanized group across the river. Southern Bug in the Aleksandrovka region. The crossing was carried out over one pontoon bridge with a lifting capacity of 30 tons and therefore took a long time. It was completed only on the morning of March 30th.

Having crossed to the western bank of the river, the 23rd Tank Corps under the command of Major General of Tank Forces A. O. Akhmatov and the cavalry mechanized group I. A. Pliev began to advance following the 57th and 37th armies, which reached R. Tiligul. The 23rd Tank Corps entered the battle in the Stryukovo area in the first half of the day on March 30, parts of the cavalry-mechanized group - on the night of March 31 in the Berezovka area.

At this time, troops of the 5th Shock Army were successfully advancing on the left wing of the front, along the Black Sea coast. On March 30, units of the 1st Guards fortified area, the forward detachment of the 295th Infantry Division of this army and units of the Black Sea Fleet liberated Ochakov with a combined attack from land and sea.

The German command, fearing the encirclement of the 6th Army and trying to quickly remove it from attack, took all measures to delay the advance of the troops of the 57th and 37th armies, the 23rd Tank Corps and the cavalry-mechanized group at the line R. Tiligul. The right bank of the river dominates the left in many places. Here the enemy prepared defensive structures in advance, which were occupied by withdrawn units. The swampy banks of the river and its muddy bottom were a strong obstacle for the advancing troops.

However, despite the stubborn resistance of the enemy, the troops of the 37th Army and the cavalry-mechanized group crossed the river on March 31 and drove the enemy from the heights of the right bank. In battles during the crossing of the river. Tiligul, during an enemy air raid on March 31, the commander of the 4th Guards Mechanized Corps, participant in the Battle of Stalingrad, Lieutenant General of Tank Forces T. I. Tanaschishin was killed. Major General of Tank Forces V.I. Zhdanov took command of the corps.

The advance of our troops after crossing the river. Tiligul became even more difficult as the recent rains completely ruined the roads. Enemy aircraft in groups of 30–40 aircraft systematically bombed the combat formations of the troops. Rifle and mechanized troops experienced acute difficulties with ammunition and fuel. Therefore, it was necessary to allocate an increasingly significant number of aircraft of the 17th Air Army to deliver urgent cargo to the troops.

On April 1–3 alone, army transport aviation carried out 60 sorties, delivering 85 tons of cargo.

But, despite the difficulties, the offensive continued. On April 4, formations of a cavalry-mechanized group captured the station. Separated, cutting railway, connecting Odessa with Tiraspol. Units of the enemy's 258th and 335th Infantry Divisions, which suffered losses in this battle, hastily fled from the station area. Soviet troops captured 37 locomotives, more than 900 carriages with various property and military equipment.

It is characteristic that the divisions of the 4th Guards Cavalry Corps, supported by tanks of the 4th Guards Mechanized Corps, attacked Razdelnaya in horse formation.

With the entry of Soviet troops into the Razdelnaya area, the enemy group was cut into two parts. 30th and 52nd Army Corps of the 6th German Army (15th, 76th, 257th, 320th, 384th Infantry Divisions, 97th Jaeger Division, Corps Group "A" consisting of battle groups of three divisions, 278th and the 286th brigade of assault guns) under the attacks of the 37th and 57th armies and the 23rd tank corps were thrown back to Tiraspol. 29th, 44th and 72nd Corps of the 6th Army (3rd Mountain Infantry Division, 9, 17, 258, 294, 302, 306, 335th Infantry Divisions, 93rd and 560th Tank Battalions, 243 1st and 259th assault gun brigades) and the 3rd Romanian army corps (5th airfield, 304th infantry divisions, 21st and 24th Romanian divisions) were covered by front forces from the north and northwest and pressed to Odessa. For this enemy group, the threat of encirclement was brewing. It became especially acute when the troops of the cavalry-mechanized group after Razdelnaya, for the first time during this operation, breaking away from the battle formations of the rifle troops, reached Strasbourg on April 5, where the 30th Cavalry Division of Major General V. S. Golovsky reached. Part of the forces of the German 29th Army Corps, consisting of a brigade of assault guns and two tank battalions operating in this area, was pushed back beyond the Dniester in the Belyaevka area.

The German command understood the danger created for the grouping of its troops in the Odessa region. In the afternoon of April 5 and on the night of April 6, the 3rd Mountain Infantry, 17th, 258th, 294th and 335th Infantry Divisions under the command of the commander of the 29th Army Corps began to rush into the area southeast of Razdelnaya. The 97th Jaeger and 257th Infantry Divisions of the 30th Army Corps were concentrated northwest of Razdelnaya. Both of these groups were supposed to strike towards each other in the direction of Razdelnaya and unite.

On the morning of April 6, the enemy, with the forces of the 29th Army Corps, launched an attack from the area southeast of Razdelnaya, which hit units of the 82nd Rifle Corps of the 37th Army. As a result of stubborn fighting, the enemy managed to push back parts of the corps and reach the river crossings. Kuchurugan and connect with their troops operating northwest of Razdelnaya.

Other troops of the 37th Army were brought to the Razdelnaya area. As a result of continuous fighting, our troops in the second half of April 7 managed to split the enemy group breaking through into two parts. The divisions of the 29th Army Corps managed to connect with their troops retreating to Tiraspol, and the troops of the 44th Army Corps were again thrown back to the south and southeast of Razdelnaya. At the same time, in the Razdelnaya area, our troops captured a large number of weapons and military equipment.

Meanwhile, the troops of the center and left wing of the front were getting closer and closer to Odessa, which was defended by the 72nd Special Purpose Corps and part of the forces of the 44th Army Corps of the 6th German Army. In total, more than six enemy divisions and a large number of individual units operated in the Odessa area. When organizing the defense of the city, the enemy used defensive structures left over from the fall of 1941. Numerous gullies, ravines filled with water, and estuaries greatly hampered the actions of our troops.

The cavalry-mechanized group, having captured Belyaevka and Mayaki on April 7, continued to conduct heavy fighting in this area, repelling attacks from enemy troops retreating from Odessa. The 10th Guards Cavalry Division under the command of Colonel S.A. Shevchuk captured the village of Skura and began fighting for Ovidiopol.

The 8th Guards Army of Colonel General V.I. Chuikov, bypassing Odessa from the north-west, reached the Freudenthal, Peterstal, Dalnik line with its main forces.

The 6th Army under the command of Lieutenant General I.T. Shlemin from the north-west reached the approaches to Odessa and fought on the line Dalnik, Usatovo, Kuyalnik.

The troops of the 5th Shock Army under Lieutenant General V.D. Tsvetaev captured the Sortirovochnaya, Kuyalnik, and Peresyp stations at 6 p.m. on April 9 and broke into the northern part of Odessa at 10 p.m. Among the first to start fighting in the city were the 86th Guards, 248th, 320th and 416th Rifle Divisions, commanded respectively by Colonels V.P. Sokolovsky, N.Z. Galai, Major Generals I.I. Shvygin and D. M. Syzranov.

In anticipation of combat operations at night in big city was carried out in advance in the troops preparatory work. Commanders and staffs up to and including the regiment received a city plan indicating its most important objects, with the designation of neighborhoods for better orientation. Assault groups were assigned to capture the most important junctions and highways. Guides were selected from local residents. In the evening, the artillery took up firing positions, taking all approaches to the city from the sea under fire. Front aviation was aiming for this as well.

Thus, by the evening of April 9, enemy troops in the Odessa region found themselves in conditions of almost complete encirclement. Only in the Ovidiopol area was there an escape route with a subsequent crossing across the Dniester estuary. This is where the bulk of the rear forces, and then the combat troops of the Odessa enemy group, rushed. Large groups of infantry tried to make their way to the crossings across the Dniester in the Belyaevka area.

On the evening of April 9 and especially on the night of April 10, the enemy’s flight from Odessa already assumed panic proportions. Soviet aircraft attacked the enemy's retreating rear columns. The 262nd night bomber division under the command of Colonel G.I. Belitsky and the 244th bomber division under Lieutenant Colonel P.V. Nedosekin bombed enemy ships in the port. In the lower reaches of the Dniester estuary, attacks were made on enemy transports and convoys of the 9th Mixed Air Corps under the command of Aviation Major General O.V. Tolstikov.

On the night of April 10, troops of the 8th Guards, 6th and 5th Shock Armies, after a short artillery preparation, attacked the enemy in Odessa. Troops of the 8th Guards Army broke into the western part of the city, and formations of the 6th and 5th Shock Armies pushed the enemy from the north and northwest. By 10 a.m. on April 10, Odessa was completely in the hands of Soviet troops.

The order of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief regarding the liberation of Odessa stated: “The troops of the 3rd Ukrainian Front today, April 10, as a result of a skillful outflanking maneuver of infantry and cavalry-mechanized formations, in combination with a front attack, captured an important economic and political center of the country, a regional city of Ukraine and a first-class port on the Black Sea - Odessa - a powerful stronghold of the German defense, covering the routes to the central regions of Romania."

The troops that distinguished themselves in the battles for the city received the honorary name “Odessa”.

During the liberation of Odessa, significant assistance to the Soviet troops was provided by partisan detachments under the command of S. I. Drozdov, E. P. Barkalov, K. A. Timofeev, L. F. Gorbel, N. A. Krylevsky.

As our units approached the outskirts of the city, a partisan detachment under the command of S.I. Drozdov began a battle with the enemy at 21:00 on April 9, which lasted until 4:00 in the morning on April 10. A group of Czech and Slovak partisans under the leadership of M. P. Canchetti also took part in this battle. It was formed from soldiers of the Slovak regiment stationed in Odessa, who defected to the partisans at the end of 1943.

The partisans of the Kuyalnitsky detachment under the command of L.F. Gorbel destroyed the German subversive team, which was supposed to blow up the dam of the Khadzhibeyevsky estuary and flood the Peresyp. By doing this, the partisans not only prevented the flooding of the suburb, but also opened the way for our troops through Peresyp to the city.

On April 8 and 9, the partisans of the Usatov detachment, led by N. A. Krylevsky, fought with the retreating columns of the enemy.

The efforts of the Odessa partisans prevented the explosion of the port, piers, buildings, and warehouses prepared by the Germans.

On April 23, 1944, a meeting of thousands of workers took place in liberated Odessa. The participants of the rally, on behalf of the entire population of the city, stated: “We consider it a duty of our civic honor to speedy recovery everything that was destroyed by the Romanian-German occupiers in Odessa, the revival of all forms of our full-blooded Soviet public life. We will not spare any effort or time for this. We firmly believe that our beloved Odessa will quickly again become one of the leading ranks of the flourishing Soviet cities of Ukraine.”

After the capture of Odessa, the 6th and 5th shock armies were withdrawn to the second echelon of the front, and the remaining armies continued to develop their offensive to the west.

The 57th Army with the 23rd Tank Corps attached to it advanced 20 km to the west on April 11 and reached the eastern bank of the Dniester in the Parcani area (6 km northwest of Tiraspol) on April 12.

At 12 noon, the 93rd Rifle Division of the 68th Rifle Corps (division commander, Major General A. Ya. Kruse) crossed the Dniester in the Butora and Sheryany area. At 18 o'clock, using the success of the 93rd division, the 113th rifle division of Colonel P.V. Dmitriev crossed the Dniester. Two other corps of the 57th Army (9th and 64th Rifle Corps) also crossed the Dniester in their zones and captured small bridgeheads on its western bank.

On the night of April 11, the 37th Army broke enemy resistance with the forces of the 57th Rifle Corps of Major General F. A. Ostashenko (92nd Guards and 228th Rifle Divisions), as well as the 188th Rifle Division of the 82nd Corps broke into the southeastern outskirts of Tiraspol. On the night of April 12, the city was cleared of the enemy.

Troops of the 6th Guards Rifle Corps under the command of Major General G.P. Kotov reached the river on April 11. Dniester south of Tiraspol. The 20th Guards Rifle Division of Major General N. M. Dreyer, with two regiments, crossed the Dniester on the evening of April 11 and in the area west of Slobodzeya Moldavanskaya (4 km southwest of Tiraspol) captured a bridgehead of up to 2 km along the front and up to 1.5 km deep. By the end of April 12, the bridgehead had been significantly expanded; Four rifle divisions had already crossed over to it.

By the end of April 11, the 46th Army reached the eastern bank of the Dniester in the area south of Chobruchi, and on April 12, with the help of reconnaissance units, it crossed the Dniester 3 km southeast of Raskaytsy.

The 8th Guards Army and the cavalry-mechanized group fought heavy battles with the enemy, who had retreated from the Odessa area and sought to hold the bridgehead fortifications in the Ovidiopol area in order to transport their troops to the western bank of the Dniester estuary.

On the night of April 11 and during the day, the 17th Air Army crushed enemy troops at crossings. The Akkerman railway junction and crossings in the Ovidiopol area were most heavily impacted by aviation.

On April 14, the 8th Guards Army completely cleared the coast of the Dniester estuary and on the night of April 15, with the forces of the 74th Guards Rifle Division, Colonel D.E. Bakanov, crossed the Dniester at Ilyichevka (2 km southeast of Belyaevka).

In the following days, front troops continued to build up their forces on the captured bridgeheads along the western bank of the Dniester. The German command, having put its troops in order and gathered its strength, took all measures to eliminate the captured bridgeheads. The enemy sent large air forces against the Soviet troops who had crossed to the western bank of the Dniester. Therefore, the struggle to expand and retain bridgeheads was long-term and extremely intense.

As a result of the Odessa operation, troops of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, in cooperation with the 2nd Ukrainian Front, defeated the enemy group operating between the Southern Bug and the Dniester. Seven divisions of the German 6th Army lost up to half of their strength. Having advanced 180 km, Soviet troops liberated a large number of large settlements, including important ports of the Black Sea region - Nikolaev, Odessa, Ochakov.

Having advanced to the lower reaches of the Dniester and seizing bridgeheads on its opposite bank, the troops of the 3rd Ukrainian Front occupied an advantageous position for subsequent actions with the aim of liberating Moldova and advancing into the interior of Romania and the Balkans. The entry of Soviet troops into the Odessa region put the group of enemy troops in the Crimea in an even more hopeless position, which contributed to its rapid defeat by the troops of the 4th Ukrainian Front, the Separate Primorsky Army and the Black Sea Fleet.

Due to exceptionally difficult weather conditions, our rifle troops played a decisive role in the operation. They, despite the mud and muddy roads, tirelessly and stubbornly moved forward, knocking down enemy units from intermediate lines of defense, crossing overflowing rivers, driving the Germans out of cities and towns. In many cases, rifle units and units were forced to pull up artillery and carry ammunition with them.

The mobile formations of the front - the 23rd Tank Corps and the cavalry-mechanized group - due to difficult weather conditions, operated mainly in the combat formations of the rifle troops.

Only at the final stage of the operation were they able to break away from the infantry, but they immediately found themselves in a difficult position. Thus, on April 10, the 23rd Tank Corps was surrounded in the Ploskoye area and fought there until April 11, until the rifle formations arrived. The 10th Guards and 30th Cavalry Divisions also found themselves in a difficult position, which on April 10 north of Ovidiopol were attacked by large enemy forces retreating from Odessa and were forced to retreat north. Our mobile troops experienced an acute shortage of ammunition and fuel, so they were sometimes unable to withstand attacks by large enemy forces. Nevertheless, mobile troops played an important role in completing the operation. This especially applies to the swift attack of the cavalry-mechanized group on Razdelnaya and its rapid exit to the Belyaevka, Mayaki area, which put the Odessa enemy group at risk of encirclement. The enemy was forced to flee, trying to quickly retreat beyond the Dniester.

Difficult weather conditions and remote bases made it difficult for the 17th Air Force to operate. Nevertheless, it provided significant assistance to the troops, striking at enemy strongholds, crossings, retreating columns, railway junctions, and naval vehicles. In total, from March 28 to April 14, the aviation of the 17th Air Army made 2026 sorties (of which 1622 during the day and 414 at night). Transport aviation carried out 215 sorties, delivering 330 tons of ammunition, fuel and other cargo to the troops.

Aviation and ships of the Black Sea Fleet took part in the operation. By striking the enemy's sea communications, they prevented the enemy's evacuation by sea and attacked the ports of Constanta and Sulina, making it difficult for them to supply troops.

Aviation of the Skadovsk air group of the Black Sea Fleet also took part in raids on enemy transports in the port of Odessa and when crossing them by sea. On April 9, three groups of naval aircraft sank an enemy transport with a displacement of 3 thousand tons, damaged a patrol boat, two barges and a transport of 1.5 thousand tons.

Torpedo boats operated against enemy floating assets and fired at the Odessa port. Submarines attacked enemy transports at sea. So, on April 14, our submarine sank an enemy barge west of Cape Chersonesos with two torpedoes.

During the operation, the fleet carried out two landings - one in Nikolaev, the other in Ochakov - from the Kirnburn Spit. Both landings played their role in the defeat of enemy troops in Nikolaev and Ochakov.

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