When the idea of capturing Donetsk came to Sokov's mind, he had been thinking about how to get all the troops into attacking positions in the shortest possible time.
Now that his combat plan has been approved by Rokossovsky, how to mobilize the troops as soon as possible has become a top priority. He knew very well that the war in the direction of Kharkov had developed in a direction that was not conducive to the Soviet army. If he acted slowly here, I am afraid that many troops would be in danger of being annihilated.
"Comrade Commander," Witkov saw Sokov staring at the map for more than half an hour without saying a word. He quickly asked: "Do you think we can launch an attack on the city in a few days?"
"How many days later?" Sokov raised his head, looked at Vitkov and said with a wry smile: "Comrade Chief of Staff, do you think many of our troops can support it for a few more days?"
Vitkov knew that Rybalko's two tank corps and three infantry divisions were defeated by the Germans in less than two days, so when he heard Sokov's question, he could only shake his head and smile bitterly. Said: "Comrade Commander, you are right. Many friendly forces cannot last that long, but we are nearly a hundred kilometers away from Donetsk. Even if the soldiers set off immediately, relying on their walking speed, It will take at least two days to reach the starting point of the attack."
"I'm thinking that as long as we have enough transport vehicles, we can get the troops into attack positions earlier."
"Comrade Commander, where should we get vehicles to transport troops?"
"Yes, we do not have any convoys. The 21st Army Group deployed to the south of us at that time did." Sokov said to Vitkov: "I can ask General Krylov for help and ask him to provide us with a convoy. Transport troops.”
"Comrade Commander, not to mention whether General Krylov will provide us with a convoy. Even if he is willing, our large-scale mobilization may not be hidden from the Germans. Once they prepare in advance, I am afraid it will also make our offensive difficult. It’s difficult.”
"Chief of Staff, look here." Sokov pointed to the map on the table and said to Vitkov: "I plan to use a convoy to transport the troops to the town of Khartisk, east of Donetsk. The city is only ten kilometers away, and even on foot, it only takes three hours to reach the outside of the city. After the troops enter the attack position, if it is still early, we can even conduct a sneak attack on the city at night to reduce the casualties of the troops."
Vitkov stared at the map for a long time, then nodded and said: "Comrade Commander, your plan is very interesting. The line from Lugansk to Halzisk is currently under the control of our army. During the mobilization of troops, the possibility of being discovered by the Germans is very small."
"Do you think differently?"
"In any case, this place is too close to the city. Once the German scouts discover that a large number of troops have gathered, our whereabouts will be exposed, and the sneak attack will turn into a strong attack, and the casualties will definitely be huge."
"In order to avoid being discovered by the Germans, our plan may need to be adjusted." Sokov said: "I am ready to let the 41st Guards Division complete this attack mission independently. After the city is captured, the remaining infantry divisions and tank brigades will , and it won’t be too late for the artillery to rush over.”
Vitkov heard a key question from Sokov's words: "Did the 41st Guards Division not even have artillery and tanks when they attacked the city? How should they deal with the enemy's strong fortifications if they encountered them?"
"Chief of Staff, you don't have to worry about this." Sokov said with a smile: "The 41st Guards Division is equipped with a large number of new rockets and rockets. Whether it is attacking or defending, it has enough chance of winning."
Seeing that Sokov was so confident, Vitkov promptly changed the subject: "Then, next, we should get in touch with General Krylov and ask him to send us a convoy to transport troops to Halzisk. "
Sokov thought that if he asked Krylov to borrow the fleet, the other party would definitely agree. But after listening to Sokov's request, Krylov said awkwardly: "Colonel Sokov, it's not that I won't help you, but I don't have the right to mobilize transport vehicles without receiving orders from my superiors."
"Then what should I do?" If the transport vehicle is not available, the troops will not be able to rush to the designated attack location as soon as possible, and Sokov is extremely anxious.
Fortunately, Krylov came to his rescue in time: "Colonel Sokov, you can report this matter to General Rokossovsky. As long as he gives me an order, I can justifiably give it to him." You dispatched the vehicles.”
Since Krylov needed Rokossovsky's order to dispatch vehicles for him, Sokov immediately contacted Rokossovsky after ending the call with him: "Comrade Commander of the Front Army, I need a lot of trucks to transport the troops."
"Transporting troops?" Rokossovsky said with some confusion after hearing Sokov's request: "If my judgment is correct, the road from Lugansk to Donetsk is full of German troops. If you travel to landmines by car, the speed will indeed increase, but the danger will be equally high."
"I plan to have the convoy of transport troops pass through the defense area of the 21st Group Army and go out to the town of Halzisk. This route is under the control of our army. Not only is the chance of encountering landmines along the way low, but it is also not easy. Being noticed by the enemy." Sokov explained to Rokossovsky: "As soon as the troops arrived in the town, they immediately changed to walking and quietly approached Donetsk."
"If I give you enough vehicles, when can you launch an attack on the city?"
"If everything goes well, I think we can launch an attack on the city early tomorrow morning."
"Early tomorrow morning?!" Rokossovsky thought about the fact that when he was on the phone with Stalin, the deadline given by the other party was to launch an attack before dark tomorrow. Rokossovsky found it difficult to meet the attack time proposed by Stalin, but Sokov advanced it to the early morning. He couldn't help asking worriedly: "General Sokov, can you really launch the attack on time?" "
"Yes, Comrade Commander of the Front Army." Before answering this question, Sokov first put forward the prerequisite: "But the premise is that we must obtain enough transport vehicles."
"Don't worry, you can get the transport vehicles you need in two hours at most." Rokossovsky asked: "Approximately how many trucks do you need?"
"No less than two hundred vehicles." After Sokov said this number, he was afraid that Rokossovsky would not agree, so he quickly added: "With so many vehicles, not even one regiment can be transported at a time."
"I'll call General Krylov right now. Just wait for my news."
"Chief of Staff," Sokov said to Vitkov as soon as he put down the phone: "Immediately call the division commanders and tank brigade commanders, and ask all regiment-level commanders to come to my place for a meeting. I want to give them Arrange combat missions."
While Vitkov was on the phone, Sokov said to Sidorin: "Colonel Sidorin, immediately called the three regiment commanders and ordered them to start gathering troops and be ready to transfer by car at any time."
"Comrade division commander," Sidorin reminded Sokov carefully: "Our division has a larger establishment than other units. There are more than 5,000 people in one regiment. I'm afraid 200 trucks can't fit in it."
"You are right, so there may be only one regiment that takes the lead in attacking the enemy. Tell me, which regiment should be the vanguard?"
As the chief of staff of the 41st Guards Division, Sidorin is very familiar with the combat effectiveness of each regiment. Regarding Sokov's question, he only thought about it for a moment and answered decisively: "I think it is most suitable for Colonel Starcha's 124th Regiment to serve as the main attack."
"Why, Comrade Colonel?" Vitkov, who had just finished making a phone call, happened to hear what Sidorin said and couldn't help but ask.
"The reason is very simple. The political commissar of the regiment is Colonel Belkin, the division commander's old partner, and there are many veteran infantry brigades in the regiment. Their combat effectiveness is stronger than other troops." Sidorin said confidently: "Don't look at it They only have one regiment, but their role on the battlefield will never be lower than that of a division."
"Well, since you see it this way." Sokov naturally had no objection to Sidorin's statement, so he nodded in agreement: "Then let them complete this most difficult task. "
