1st Airborne Corps (Soviet Union)

Airborne corps of the Red Army during World War II 1st Airborne Corps 1941–1942 Soviet Union Soviet airborne Airborne Corps World War II Battle of Kiev Battle of Moscow Viktor Zholudev The 1st Airborne Corps was an airborne corps of the Red Army during World War II. It fought in the Battle of Kiev, the Battle of Moscow and in the Battle of Demyansk. History The 1st Airborne Corps was formed in April 1941 from the 1st, 204th and 211th Airborne Brigades in the Kiev Special Military District, The History of Soviet Airborne Forces https://books.google.com/books?id=0erZZt-EGDQC&q=1st%2520airborne%2520corps&pg=PA63 Taylor & Francis 1994-01-01 9780714641201 en David M. Glantz 45 commanded by Major General Matvei Usenko. 1-й воздушно-десантный корпус http://samsv.narod.ru/Korp/Vdk/vdk01/default.html samsv.narod.ru 2015-12-09 ru 1st Airborne Corps It was temporarily moved to Odessa Military District in preparation for a possible invasion of Romania but moved back to Kiev within a short period. Войска спецназначения во второй мировой войне Nenakhov Yuri AST 2000 Moscow 342 http://militera.lib.ru/h/nenahov1/03.html ru Special Forces in World War II After Operation Barbarossa, the corps fought to defend Kiev from the advancing Army Group South, along with the 5th Army and the 6th Army. After being reinforced by the 2nd and 3rd Airborne Corps, the corps fought in the Battle of Kiev. Воздушно-десантные http://myfront.in.ua/krasnaya-armiya/korpusa/vozdushno-desantnye.html myfront.in.ua 2015-12-09 ru Airborne https://web.archive.org/web/20151210212144/http://myfront.in.ua/krasnaya-armiya/korpusa/vozdushno-desantnye.html 2015-12-10 dead It was almost surrounded during the German encirclement of Kiev and was disbanded afterwards on 6 August. The corps was reformed in early September and conducted training around Saratov.Glantz 1994, p. 58 On 24 November, it was subordinated to Western Front High Command. On the next day, the corps left Saratov for new bases near Moscow in the vicinity of the Lyubertsy airfield.Glantz 1994, p. 59 In December, it participated in airborne operations to disrupt German troops around Moscow.Glantz 1994, p. 76 Between 16 and 17 February 1942, the 204th Airborne Brigade's 4th Battalion was airdropped in the Rzhev operation. During late February and early March, the corps fought around Demyansk.Glantz 1994, p. 63 Inside the Blue Berets: A Combat History of Soviet and Russian Airborne Forces, 1930-1995 https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780891413998 registration Presidio 1995-01-01 9780891413998 en Steve Zaloga During the Demyansk fighting, the corps was sent behind German lines in an unsuccessful operation to capture airfields supplying the Demyansk Pocket, but suffered heavy losses with only 900 out of 8,500 men in the corps returning to Soviet lines. Demyansk 1942-43: The Frozen Fortress https://books.google.com/books?id=gzSkAwAAQBAJ Osprey Publishing 2012-01-01 9781849085526 en Robert Forczyk In August, the corps was converted into the 37th Guards Rifle Division and fought at Stalingrad.Glantz 1994, p. 64 The corps was reformed in fall 1942. On 8 December, its units were used to form two new guards airborne divisions.Glantz 1994, p. 65 Its 1st, 204th, and 211th Airborne Brigades were used to form the 9th Guards Airborne Division.Ivanov 2002 496 Its headquarters became a part of the 4th Guards Airborne Division. Гвардейские воздушно-десантные http://myfront.in.ua/krasnaya-armiya/divizii/gvardejskie-vozdushno-desantnye.html myfront.in.ua 2015-12-09 ru Guards Airborne https://web.archive.org/web/20151022010422/http://myfront.in.ua/krasnaya-armiya/divizii/gvardejskie-vozdushno-desantnye.html 2015-10-22 dead References Citations Bibliography Полтавская Воздушно-Десантная Дивизия Военная энциклопедия в 8 томах [Military Encyclopedia in 8 volumes] Voenizdat Moscow 2002 Ivanov Sergei 6 496–497 ru 5-203-01873-1 Poltava Airborne Division Category:Corps of the Soviet Airborne Forces Category:Military units and formations established in 1941 Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1942