Operation Barbarossa order of battle


This is the order of battle for Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II. It was fought between the German-led Axis Forces and the Soviet Forces. The operation started on June 22, 1941, and ended on December 5, 1941, after Operation Typhoon.

Axis">Axis powers">Axis

German Army Group North">Army Group North">German Army Group North

Source:
Commanded by Field Marshal '''Wilhelm von Leeb'''

German Sixteenth Army">16th Army (Wehrmacht)">German Sixteenth Army

Colonel General '''Ernst Busch'''

German Eighteenth Army">18th Army (Wehrmacht)">German Eighteenth Army

Colonel General '''Georg von Küchler'''

Panzergruppe 4">4th Panzer Group">Panzergruppe 4

Colonel General '''Erich Hoepner'''

Army Group assets and reserves

Source:

German Army Group Center">Army Group Centre">German Army Group Center

Source:
Commanded by Field Marshal '''Fedor von Bock'''

German Fourth Army">4th Army (Wehrmacht)">German Fourth Army

Field Marshal '''Günther von Kluge'''

German Ninth Army">9th Army (Wehrmacht)">German Ninth Army

Colonel General '''Adolf Strauß'''

Panzergruppe 2">2nd Panzer Group">Panzergruppe 2

Colonel General '''Heinz Guderian'''

Panzergruppe 3">3rd Panzer Group">Panzergruppe 3

Colonel General '''Hermann Hoth'''

German Army Group South">Army Group South">German Army Group South

Source:
Commanded by Field Marshal '''Gerd von Rundstedt'''

German Sixth Army">6th Army (Wehrmacht)">German Sixth Army

Field Marshal '''Walther von Reichenau'''

Panzergruppe 1">1st Panzer Group">Panzergruppe 1

Colonel General '''Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist'''

German Seventeenth Army">17th Army (Wehrmacht)">German Seventeenth Army

General of Infantry '''Carl-Heinrich von Stülpnagel'''

Romanian Army Group Antonescu">Army Group Antonescu (Romania)">Romanian Army Group Antonescu

General '''Ion Antonescu'''

German Eleventh Army">11th Army (Wehrmacht)">German Eleventh Army

Colonel General '''Eugen Ritter von Schobert'''

Soviet">Red Army">Soviet

[Stavka]

The "Main Command of the Armed Forces of the USSR" was formed on 23 June, largely from the existing People's Commissariat for Defence.
Commander in Chief: Marshal Semyon Timoshenko, then Josef Stalin
Deputy Commander-in-Chief: Army General Georgy Zhukov
Chief of the General Staff: Army General Georgy Zhukov, then Marshal Boris Shaposhnikov

16th Army">16th Army (Soviet Union)">16th Army

Lieutenant General

19th Army">19th Army (Soviet Union)">19th Army

Lieutenant General Ivan Konev

20th Army">20th Army (Soviet Union)">20th Army

Lieutenant General Fyodor Remezov

21st Army">21st Army (Soviet Union)">21st Army

Lieutenant General Vasily Gerasimenko

22nd Army">22nd Army (Soviet Union)">22nd Army

Lieutenant General Filipp Yershakov

Northern Front">Northern Front (Soviet Union)">Northern Front

Source:
General Colonel Markian Popov
The front was the Leningrad Military District until 24 June.

7th Army">7th Army (Soviet Union)">7th Army (Separate)

Lieutenant General '''Filip Danilovich Gorelenko'''

14th Army">14th Army (Soviet Union)">14th Army

Lieutenant General '''Valerian A. Frolov'''

23rd Army">23rd Army (Soviet Union)">23rd Army

Lieutenant General '''P.S. Pshennikov'''

Front Assets

Frontal aviation

[Northwestern Front]

General Colonel Fyodor Isodorovich Kuznetsov
Source:
Baltic Special Military District until 22 June.

8th Army">8th Army (Soviet Union)">8th Army

Lieutenant General '''Pyotr Sobennikov'''

11th Army">11th Army (Soviet Union)">11th Army

Lieutenant General '''V. I. Morosov'''

27th Army">27th Army (Soviet Union)">27th Army

Lieutenant General '''Nikolai Berzarin'''

Front Assets

Frontal aviation

Western Front">Western Front (Soviet Union)">Western Front

Source:
General Colonel Dmitry Grigorevich Pavlov
Western Special Military District until 22 June.

3rd Army">3rd Army (Soviet Union)">3rd Army

Lieutenant General '''Vasily Kuznetsov'''

4th Army">4th Army (Soviet Union)">4th Army

Lieutenant General ''' Aleksandr Korobkov '''

10th Army">10th Army (Soviet Union)">10th Army

Lieutenant General '''Konstantin Golubev'''

Front Assets

Frontal aviation

Southwestern Front">Southwestern Front (Soviet Union)">Southwestern Front

Source:
General Colonel Mikhail Kirponos
Kiev Special Military District until 22 June.

5th Army">5th Army (Soviet Union)">5th Army

Lieutenant General '''M.I. Potapov'''

6th Army">6th Army (Soviet Union)">6th Army

Lieutenant General '''Ivan Muzychenko'''

12th Army">12th Army (Soviet Union)">12th Army

Lieutenant General '''Pavel Ponedelin'''

26th Army">26th Army (Soviet Union)">26th Army

Lieutenant General '''F. Ya. Kostenko'''

Front Assets

Frontal aviation

Southern Front">Southern Front (Soviet Union)">Southern Front

Source:
General Colonel '''Ivan Tyulenev'''

9th Army">9th Army (Soviet Union)">9th Army (Separate)

Lieutenant General '''Yakov Cherevichenko'''

Air Forces

Axis

Luftwaffe

The directive issued to the Luftwaffe for Barbarossa ordered that Luftflotte 2, under the command of Albert Kesselring was to be the strongest Air Fleet. Kesselring was assigned to supporting Army Group Centre, which was to capture Minsk, Smolensk and Moscow. Kesselring was given Fliegerkorps VIII, Fliegerkorps II and the 1st Anti-Aircraft Corps. Army Group South was supported by Luftflotte 4, containing Fliegerkorps V and Fliegerkorps IV. The Air Fleet and Army Group were responsible for capturing Kiev, the Crimea and the Caucasus oilfields. Army Group North was supported by Luftflotte 1, and Luftflotte 5. Luftflotte 5 conducted operations in the Arctic near Murmansk. Luftflotte 1 supported operations in the Baltic Sea, Baltic States and near, in and over Leningrad. Luftflotte 1 contained Fliegerkorps I under the command of Helmuth Förster.

Other Axis air forces

The Royal Romanian Air Force was considered weak by the OKL, and therefore unlikely to play a great role in the ground fighting. Far more attention was given by the OKW to training and preparing the Romanian Army. Hitler, on 18 June 1941, declared that the primary mission of the Romanian air arm was to defend Romania and the Romanian oilfields. Only when those forces were sufficient, could they divert the remaining forces to ground support operations for Barbarossa. On 21 June 1941, it possessed a balanced fleet of 53 Squadrons; 11 bomber, 17 fighter, 15 reconnaissance, six liaison, two flying boat, one transport and one air ambulance unit. On the 22 June, there was 160 fighters and 82 bombers in service. Total strength amounted to 380 aircraft. Only 30 of the Romanian fighters were Bf 109s, of the E model. However, this small force did not remain inferior in numbers for along. Despite a weak inter-war economy, the aircraft industry was run very efficiently, and they were able to produce some very capable aircraft; such as the IAR 37, IAR 39 and IAR 80. Unlike the army that stagnated, it was able to garner the cream of the Romanian officer corps. With the right support, organisation and modern equipment, it was able to grow in number and match its enemies in quality. In air defence and ground support operations it performed well, but failed in strategic bomber and naval operations owing to a lack of doctrine. Within a few weeks of Barbarossa beginning, it was able to put up 1,061 aircraft, including 400 trainers. The modern combat aircraft were focused into one unified Air Combat Group, or GAL, while the obsolete types were given the Romanian Fourth Army, operating under the German Army Group South.

Soviet

Organisation

Since 1935, Soviet military aviation had been divided between the army and the navy. The VVS KA had been split into four different organisations owing to faulty conclusions drawn from the Winter War. Owing to a lack of coordination in close support operations with the Red Army, the entire VVS KA was subordinated to the field armies. The existence of too many different branches under separate commands in Soviet air power caused coordination problems. Most Soviet bomber units could not coordinate with fighter aviation, consequently they did not have fighter escort for long periods.
The total strength of the VVS amounted to 61 divisions; 18 fighter, nine bomber and 34 mixed. Five brigades were also included.
The Front Air Forces were divided into Districts and the home defence, the PVO. This element had 40.5 per cent of the Soviet air strength. The Army Air Forces comprised 43.7 per cent of the VVS' strength. The liaison squadrons were a collection of individual squadrons assigned to different army corps of the ground army. They comprised only 2.3 per cent.
The Soviet order of battle:

Leningrad and Baltic Fronts

The total strength of the front was 1,270 aircraft.
  • VVS Baltic Special Military District, later the VVS North-Western Front
  • * 8 SAD
  • ** 15 IAP
  • ** 31 IAP
  • ** 61 ShAP.
  • * 57 IAD
  • ** 42 IAP
  • ** 49 IAP
  • ** 54 SBAP
  • * 7 SAD
  • **10 IAP
  • ** 9 SBAP
  • ** 46 BAP
  • ** 241 SBAP
  • * 6 SAD
  • ** 21 IAP
  • ** 31 SBAP
  • ** 40 BAP
  • ** 148 IAP
  • * 4 SAD
  • ** 38 IAP
  • ** 35 SBAP
  • ** 50 SBAP
  • ** 53 SBAP
The total strength of the front was 1,211 aircraft.

Western and South Western Fronts

  • VVS Western Military District, later the VVS Western Front
  • * 313 RAP
  • *314 RAP
  • * 9 Mixed Air Division
  • ** 13 SBAP
  • ** 41 Fighter Aviation Regiment
  • ** 124 IAP
  • **126 IAP
  • **129 IAP
  • * 10 SAD
  • ** 33 IAP
  • ** 74 ShAP
  • ** 123 IAP
  • ** 39 SBAP
  • * 11 SAD
  • **16 SBAP
  • ** 122 IAP
  • ** 127 IAP
  • * 12 BAD
  • ** 6 SBAP
  • ** 43 SBAP
  • ** 128 SBAP
  • ** 209 SBAP
  • ** 215 SBAP
  • * 43 IAD
  • ** 160 IAP
  • ** 161 IAP
  • ** 162 IAP
  • ** 163 IAP
  • * 13 BAD
  • ** 24 SBAP
  • ** 97 SBAP
  • ** 121 SBAP
  • ** 125 SBAP
  • ** 130 SBAP
The total strength of the front was 1,789 aircraft.
  • VVS Kiev Special Military District, later the VVS South-Western Front
  • * 315 RAP and 316 RAP
  • * 14 SAD
  • ** 17 IAP
  • ** 46 IAP
  • ** 89 IAP
  • * 62 BAD
  • ** 52 SBAP
  • ** 94 SBAP
  • ** 243 SBAP
  • ** 245 SBAP
  • * 15 SAD
  • ** 23 IAP
  • ** 28 IAP
  • ** 66 ShAP
  • ** 164 IAP
  • * 16 SAD
  • ** 86 SBAP
  • ** 87 IAP
  • ** 92 IAP
  • ** 226 SBAP
  • ** 227 SBAP
  • * 63 SAD
  • ** 20 IAP
  • ** 62 IAP
  • ** 91 IAP
  • ** 165 IAP
  • *64 SAD, Stanislav
  • **12 IAP
  • ** 149 IAP
  • ** 166 IAP
  • ** 246 IAP
  • ** 247 IAP
  • *17 BAD
  • **48 SBAP
  • **224 SBAP
  • **225 SBAP
  • **242SBAP
  • **244 SBAP
  • *36 IAD
  • ** 2 IAP
  • ** 43 IAP
  • ** 254 IAP
  • ** 255 IAP
  • * 19 BAD
  • ** 33 SBAP
  • **136 BAP
  • ** 38 SBAP
  • * 44 IAD
  • ** 88 IAP
  • ** 248 IAP
  • ** 249 IAP
  • ** 252 IAP
The total strength of the front was 1,913 aircraft.

Odessa Front and Long Range Aviation">Soviet Long Range Aviation">Long Range Aviation

  • VVS Odessa Military District, later the VVS Southern Front
  • * 146 RAP
  • * 317 RAP
  • * 20 SAD
  • ** 4 IAP
  • ** 45 SBAP
  • ** 55 IAP
  • ** 211 SBAP
  • * 21 SAD
  • ** 5 BAP
  • ** 69 IAP
  • ** 67 IAP
  • ** 168 IAP
  • ** 299 ShAP
The total strength of the front was 950 aircraft.
  • DBA
  • * 1 BAK
  • ** 40 DBAD
  • ** 53 DBAD
  • ** 200 DBAD
  • ** 7 TDBAP
  • * 2 BAK
  • ** 35 DBAD
  • ** 100 DBAD
  • ** 219 DBAD
  • ** 223 DBAD
  • ** 48 DBAD
  • ** 51 DBAD
  • ** 220 DBAD
  • ** 221 DBAD
  • ** 222 DBAD
  • * 3 BAK
  • ** 52 DBAD
  • ** 3 TBDAP
  • ** 98 DBAD
  • ** 212 DBAD
  • ** 42 DBAD
  • ** 1 TBDAP
  • ** 96 DBAD
  • ** 207 DBAD
  • * 4 BAK
  • ** 22 DBAD
  • ** 8 DBAD
  • ** 11 DBAD
  • ** 21 DBAD
  • ** 50 DBAD
  • ** 81 DBA
  • ** 299 DBAP
  • ** 231 DBAP
  • ** 228 DBAP
  • * 18 DBAD
  • ** 14 TDBAP
  • ** 90 DBAP
  • ** 93 DBAP
The total strength of the front was 1,332 aircraft; 1,122 DB-3s, 20 TB-3s, and nine TB-7s.