Panthers vs IS-2s: A Panzer Ace's Desperate Fight for Survival at Kurland Pocket

In the fall of 1944, Germany's Army Group North led by Colonel General Ferdinand Schörner found themselves stranded within Latvia's Courland Peninsula.
Beneath that fragile defense line, the Red-Army had surged through the Baltic states putting immense pressure on the Army group North. Sensing the urgency, Schörner mobilized a formidable force comprising three Panzer divisions.
His strategy: unleash this powerful unit against the advancing Russian forces, aiming to push through toward Memel to move south and establish a connection with Army Group Center and reinforce their position.
This move marked the beginning of a series of monumental battles setting the stage for an epic struggle for control over the region.
At the heart of the intense conflict stood Sergeant First Class Hermann Bix, a thirty year old Panzer ace.
#ww2tanks #tankbattle #panzer

[@joemiller1930]

Kurland, the forgotten Armygroup. In the "Reich" everybody had his own problems, western allied over the river Rhein, sowiets in eastern prussia, schlesien( dont know the englisch word for it). My father was soldier of the 12th Panzer Division in Kurland, driving a 18to Famo, towing damadged Vehicles from the frontline. He was captured bei the red army, prisoned as PW until 1948 Generalfeldmaschall was a son of a bitch, brutal with no feelings for his soldiers. Hanging or shoot them for smallest mistakes

[@thilomantey8220]

Interesting to hear from a son of a soldier, I hope your father is doing okay and got back safe and sound for the conditions (being PoW), I agree, from all sources I read Schörner managed to "stabilize" situations only by striking fear into his very own men, by threatening them with death if they gave up on an order

[@creightonleerose582]

Interesting! Part of the 12ths panzer WerkStattCo? Those men were absolutely indispensable for those armored units (DEF Check out the 2-3 book series: "Repairing The Panzers") Agreed on Schorner....PLENTY of accounts concerning his actions.... Im currently working on a 1/35th scale heavily mod'd Sd.Kfz 9/1 FAMO with a 6ton Bilstein crane (Built from 4-5 differing plastic donor & resin aftermarket kits) complete with the Sonder-Anhanger 116 trailer (Which will be moving an Sd.Kfz. 234 Puma/8 rad armored car that had been damaged, but repairable) Been working on a VERY large WerkStattCo(s) mega-diorama (4x12 ft poss?) for the last 12+ years now. >>Over time>> Prob 200$K+ invested into it? At last count: 650 1/35th mechanics/soldiers/nurses/docs/civillians/etc, 1/2 of that number commercial resin offerings @ 15$-20$ per figure! Adds up fast with just those alone, w/o adding up buildings/structures, model & aftermarket kits costs. Havent counted how many torn down tank/assault guns & assorted vehicle models Ive managed to finish. But ALL the tables present in my homes dining room are FULL!...Ha! The dios base will start within the next 2-3 years most likely? (Hoping!?) Where, when: Normandy, mid July, 1944. Somewheres Between Falaise & Argentan-15-18 km's from Caen Thank you for sharing your fam/fathers story....

[@rendzis]

germans from that time were hard mofos, what happened, all became so soft n shet.

[@cuttlefisch]

Schlesien: Silesia.

[@briankorbelik2873]

At the end in Bavaria "brave" Schorner ran away and hid. The Americans caught the SOB though. HA!@@thilomantey8220

[@adriantowe278]

I think the panther and the tiger one when working together was the best way

[@waynerobert7986]

Random film clips, still good to watch. Many of the Panthers shown were Ausf A belonging to 5 SS Pz Div Wiking during summer 44.

[@kenkloiber2989]

The visuals are perfect & arranged to fit the story👍❤

[@booster5329]

Yes they are!

[@chadhaire1711]

bullshit..where are the IS2???

[@blaze1148]

@@chadhaire1711 4:28 ....not too bright are you.

[@chadhaire1711]

@@blaze1148 for 15 seconds out of a 18 minute video? CLICK BAIT DUMMY

[@garrettkessler1895]

It's unreal how the destroyed tanks where burning so hot that even armor was turned into ashes. Unbelievable.

[@benbrown2470]

What a man. Sigle handedly turned the whole front?

[@Bigsky1991]

Ive walked these battlefields many times. ( Had a Latvian GF) interesting corner of the World. The Kurland and Narva " kesselschlächte" were intense and non forgiving. I have an authentic KURLAND cufftutle in my collection also.

[@aaronishii5874]

Incredible footage!

[@joedapro7236]

I think this is very well done on the video part, with many scenes I have never seen before! In most videos the narration tells the story of the battle, but the battle scenes often are shown several rimes during the video presentation. I believe you have done a great job not following into that trap with this video!

[@CairSilverwolf]

well between 11:25 and 12:00 most of the footage is from a polish TV series "4 tank-crew and a dog" about a WWII tank crew with a dog. made in the 1960's in the communist times -so it has a slightly better video quality ;)

[@negatorxx]

its AI garbage with a collage of old videos.

[@davekreitzer4358]

Great story and awesome footage , some I haven't seen before , very nice !!! ✔️👍

[@stirbjoernwesterhever6223]

My Grandfather was an Infantry soldier in Kurland, but he got lucky to catch one of the last ships leaving, which didn't got sunk by Russian submarines.

[@hededcdn]

Wow!

[@jahinsadman1505]

0:13 bro tried to show off his parkour skills and tripped💀

[@albertwolanski7688]

At 11:30 the author used a Polish movie "4 tankers and a dog". I recognized the tank number 102, it was T-34/85. And it was facing not a Panther but the Tiger.

[@mva6044]

Czlowieku, to wideo jest produkowane przez AI. Glos fejkowy, nie ma nawet mowic dwoch zdan.

[@kraanz]

Both the book and the movie are blatant Soviet propaganda.

[@mva6044]

@@kraanz Yup. But you don't always know that when you watch it as a little kid.

[@kraanz]

@@mva6044Lmao, touchee, good sir =D Meaning, I loved it, too. P.S. And my Dad ruined it for me. I finished reading the book and said something about the brave Red Army liberating Poland, and his face just suddenly turned all steel, and he looked at me with pure hatred and asked "Did they? Just like they liberated us? And the Estonians? And Lithuanians." Came out of absolutely nowhere. Couldn't figure out wtf. Maybe he's just weird or smth, I dunno ;D

[@marktwain2053]

​@@kraanz Ahh, and the Nazi's never used propaganda, right?😅

[@keesvanharen9791]

The German army was Epic but couldn’t simply deal with a two front war on this scale.

[@mrpaddy3318]

but i don t understand that the allies have no Respect for the german army they blame them whnwever they can. so i have no respect for the US coward army

[@nobbytang]

Allied air superiority in the west was absolute…whilst in the east the Red Hammer was dominant

[@stargazer1744]

More than just 2 fronts....don't forget Italy and the Balkans...!

[@imGeistevereint]

@@stargazer1744 and Afrika

[@peppertrout]

They also had to divert huge material to the Kriegsmarine for another front on the Atlantic and to the Luftwaffe for the air war over Germany.

[@lipsee100]

You have to ask ,who are our allies here ?

[@j.heberhernandez3037]

Patton answered that cuestion one time...

[@user-qi3qi5re8i]

Danke

[@FactBytes]

Thanks!

[@jacobjonm0511]

The late model Panthers were the optimal design of WWII tanks. They were fairly cheap to produce. Despite being heavy in weight they were agile. Also the gun could deal with enemy heavy tanks. And their frontal armore was very strong.

[@Gallagherfreak100]

Their 75 mm long barreled cannon, was nearly as powerful as the much feared 88 mm on the tigers and king tigers. You are correct. These panthers represented the finest medium tanks of WW2.

[@Eric-kn4yn]

​​​​@@Gallagherfreak100better than 88mm/L56 for anti armour HE maybe not

[@JuergenGDB]

@@Gallagherfreak100 Indeed, wide tracks, quick on the road, good off-road, KwK 42/L70 was Lethal to anything but maybe a JS III. Faster reload times than the T-34/85, JS Series or even the ISUs. Jentz's book on the Panther is an extremely must-have. However it did lack the punch of HE rounds, but it was an armor Killer and relied on the infantry and supporting vehicles to deal with softer vehicles.

[@AULIGAofBLEED]

Their transmission sucked and was terrible to remove and replace. Even the soviets recommended using captured. Pz4's over the panthers

[@jacobjonm0511]

@@AULIGAofBLEED You can't have everything at the same time for a low price!

[@Zach-bu6dv]

Great job aligning footage with the story!

[@FactBytes]

Thank you very much!

[@sirbachelorboredmen1314]

Step aside, Wittman. We got Bix.

[@josephgallacher3729]

The 'Super Heavy' Stalin 2 Tanks were same weight as Panthers despite having a 122mm Gun and far heavier front armour

[@ColinFreeman-kh9us]

Never knew that

[@jessepahl-gz5bp]

They also had two part ammunition to load due to the large size of the round they were firing. They could only manage around 2 shots fired per minute compared to 4 being put out by its German competitors. Also was firing rounds with much less velocity and inferior sights reducing accuracy more and more the further away the target was.

[@off6848]

Far heavier depends on the model 60mm angled effective armor 120mm IS2 Panther Gs and the late F had 120mm armor angled 240mm effective armor

[@KoKissaki]

Gaijin Entertainment: Panther vs. IS-2? Is bot possible comrade! Must bounce

[@patrickdegenaar9495]

Doesn't sound like tge IS2 were up to much... I suspect much of the success of the Germans came down to superior gunsights and radios.. quicker enemy identification and being able to hit the targets first time made all the difference.

[@g.m.3285]

Thanks

[@FactBytes]

❤️

[@rendzis]

Bro, i live in Kurland! Between Saldus and Liepaja! In Kazdanga!

[@jasonmussett2129]

Awesome video👍

[@FactBytes]

Thank you 👍

[@ng1teav588]

Nerdrotic is the Mark Twain of our time! Nerdrotic has reached the level of the great artists of all time!

[@Kevin_Kennelly]

15:08 "Despite their exhaustion, sleep eluded them." WELCOME TO METHAMPHETAMINES.

[@mebsrea]

For future reference, in German, “W” is pronounced as “V” in English. “Iwan” is thus “EE-vahn”. Otherwise, good job. My uncle fought in Kurland, and was lucky enough to survive the war.

[@woildee9998]

My uncle also fought in Kurland. Albrecht Lampkowski.

[@mebsrea]

For reasons I’ll probably never know, my uncle was posted entirely to largely foreign volunteer units - “Nord,” “Wiking,” “Nordland,” and “Langemarck,” despite being a teenaged farm boy with no foreign language knowledge.

[@1fires1]

So many ss panzer divisions faced imminent annihilation against overwhelming odds but because of their amazing skill they were victorious.

[@arturosuarez-silverio5983]

Very funny. And K Kamp guards more than held their own against their much larger revolving inmate population, beating the odds (among other things, including babies).

[@user-lx1hv9bq8j]

​@@arturosuarez-silverio5983they were all wiped out to a man.

[@TheTexasmick]

This video is really nice.

[@FactBytes]

Glad that you liked it!

[@i-a-g-r-e-e-----f-----jo--b]

Thanks for the video. BTW, the auto translate you are using made a mistake I think. @9:47, it's "Ivan" not "Ewan".

[@FactBytes]

It was autogenerated by KZbin. Uploaded subtitles now.

[@dougalachi]

Germans say "ee-vaughn"

[@jaroslavpalecek4513]

First! Thanks for video!

[@FactBytes]

Thanks for the visit!

[@jaroslavpalecek4513]

@@FactBytes Greetings from Czech republic! Have a nice day.

[@explorer1968]

Sargent Bix went to colossal efforts to stop the Soviet juggernaut. The problem was this particular juggernaut could take mighty punches and still win the war...

[@josefkopacz1144]

Never ending supply line, when as the Germans had 3 fronts not to mention the massive airial bombardment. The fact is too many enemies.

[@explorer1968]

@@josefkopacz1144 Yes, victory was not at han for Germany, maybe a draw. And the important fact that the Enigma machina was desciphered by the Allies early in the war so they knew in avance German war strategies and intentions...

[@sciencefliestothemoon2305]

​@@josefkopacz1144depends, in principle the Germans destroyed half of the Soviet armed forces in the beginning and then fought a retreating battle against the other half. The Soviets had the advantage by actually using mass production. Somehow the Germans did not adapt Ford's production methods. They also had many technological advances that continuously delayed, the stg44 being one of them.

[@Leon-bc8hm]

@@sciencefliestothemoon2305 How about the Soviets getting battle experience because they fought the longest and the toughest battles during WW2.

[@ColinFreeman-kh9us]

Unfortunately

[@janmale7767]

Those Germans were fantastic soldiers in the face of great adversity a juggernaut (the red Army) pushing down on them, they still managed to scrape some victories here and there out of the general chaos, show me another Army that could pull that off!! There equipment was good , there tactics were honed they were simply better at it,but overwhelmed by shear weight of numbers and tough and determined Russians, the Russian was a soldier that was use to brutal conditions!

[@user-sm9us7rb9c]

Only the Confederate army could compare

[@jonclark299]

Interesting dialogue

[@FactBytes]

Thanks😊

[@Eric-kn4yn]

​@@FactBytesis it after battlefield report or fabricated

[@stewartmillen7708]

First of all, the transcript for this video seems a blow-by-blow recollection of Ludwig H. Dyck's account. I tried to verify some of the claims of this video (which is based on Nazi propaganda footage, ick) based on the Soviet order of battle. What I see on maps of the area described is that Bix's opponents were the 6th Guards Army. Its order of battle was: 2nd Gd.Rifle Corps (9th,71nd Gd.,166th Rifle Division) 22nd Gd.Rifle Corps (46th,90th Gd.,51st Rifle Division) 23rd Gd.Rifle Corps (51st,67th Gd.,47th Rifle Division) 103rd Rifle Corps (29th,154th,270th Rifle Division) Artillery Unit (omission: Regiment etc.) 20th Artillery Penetration Division, 8th Gun Artillery Division, 94th Heavy Howitzer Artillery Brigade, 103rd High-powered Howitzer Artillery Brigade, 4th Gun Artillery Brigade, 17th Anti-Tank Artillery Brigade, 2nd Gd.Mortar Division, 39th Anti-Aircraft Division Mobil Unit 19th Tank Corps (79th,101st,202nd Tank Brigade,26th Mot.Rifle Brigade,8th Gd.Sep.Tank Regiment,867th,1048th,1452nd SP.Arty Regiment etc.), 34h Gd.Tank Brigade, 143rd Tank Brigade, 105th Sep.Tank Regiment, 1049th,1050th SP.Arty Regiment Engineer Unit 5th Assault Engineer-Sapper Brigade, 29th Engineer-Sapper Brigade The only possible source of the IS-2s in this would be the "8th Gd Sep. Tank Regiment" attached to 19th Tank Corps. That would fit. It would be interesting to match the claims in this video versus reported Soviet losses. Assuming that these are model 1943 IS-2s (likely due to the date of the battle), a Panther would have to be either quite close, or very lucky, to win in a head-to-head match. I suspect this was at quite close range from the descriptions.

[@kampfgruppepeiper501]

Icky yucky 🤢 lmao

[@ougentrost]

Funny you doubt the German reports, but refer otherwise to Soviet documentation. The latter being proved multiple times as inaccurate, to putting mildly. Frontal armor of IS 2 was more or less impenetrable for a 75 mm shell from a Panther. However, it explicitly says, it found its way in between turret and hull, which was a lucky but possible.

[@stewartmillen7708]

@@ougentrost Yes, I tend to doubt German reports as in many instances, a review of declassified information demonstrates that they are either greatly exaggerated, or outright wrong. Often they greatly exaggerate not only the kills, but they are highly doubtful because of the types of tanks claimed---there have been instances where German tank aces claimed to have destroyed dozens of T-34s, but the units actually opposing them were equipped with Lend-Lease Shermans or Valentines, etc., making the claims highly suspicious. As I noted, this meme is very typical of Nazi wartime propaganda. So the first thing I did was to check the Soviet order of battle, checking "Could IS-2s actually have been there?". And I discovered yes, the 8th Guards Separate Tank Regiment (should be named 8th Guards Heavy Breakthrough Regiment) was attached to the 19th Tank Corps, which spent the remainder of the war in Courland. So that part checked out. So that by itself made the claim believable, and I said little more. As for a Panther's ability to destroy an IS-2, I don't quibble with that part of the account. Heck, it's possible, though a low probability, for Panther to kill an IS-2 up to 1500 meters or a bit beyond (depends where and what angle the round lands). It's only likely at ranges < 500 meters, however, and of course while this is true for both 1943 and 1944 models, the vulnerable areas on the 1944 model are much smaller. Just from the date of this battle, these were almost certainly 1943 models. At such close ranges the Panther actually has the advantage due to its much-faster firing gun, which is why Soviet commanders were instructed to use IS-2s to provide long-range support fire, and admonished not to use them as they were used here, as close-range battering rams. Using them up-close where they were more vulnerable frontally and moreover could be flanked was the biggest reason for IS-2 losses. Here I suppose the reason why either the 19th Tank Corps commander, or the commander of 6th Guards Army violated those instructions is likely the wooded terrain, which limited LOS.

[@Peter-vf3dl]

Russian steel was of very low quality (same with Optics). Also their training for tankers was very poor in most cases. Do not take stats on paper as solid facts ;) wishful thinking until it clashes with reality.

[@stewartmillen7708]

@@Peter-vf3dl Russian tank steel was inferior? Where on earth did you read that? Russian tank steel (naval steel may be another matter; the US Navy had the reputation of fielding the best steel on the planet) might well have been the best of all the major combatants in WWII. The Germans admitted so even in 1942, and apparently gave the T-34's hull the highest possible quality multiplier in their October 1944 WaPruf evaluations. In July 1944, the Soviets started using very high-hardness steel in their IS tanks, which they calculated that 100 mm of this steel sloped at 15-18 degrees from vertical would resist the German Kwk43 88/71 on the King Tiger past 1500 meters. Moreover, this calculated result was confirmed by further testing and furthermore, the same steel was subjected to multiple 88 mm hits to see how well it withstood repeated stressing. This isn't just about testing. As I wrote above, the Soviets also examined IS-2 losses in a report in December 1944, and concluded that most irrecoverable losses to Tiger Is and Panthers occurred due to ambushes at very short ranges (300-400 meters) and at 1000 meters, the IS-2 could engage both tanks with a low probably of loss (and what losses did occur at that range were likely repairable). So here the theory matched the practice. The Americans shipped US steel to the Soviets as part of Lend-Lease aid, but the Soviets declined to use it in tanks (save light tanks); using it for other purposes as it did not meet their specifications. By contrast, everyone who tested German tank steel (British, US, and Soviets alike) concluded that at the very best it started out 'spotty' and inconsistent in quality, and that quality declined as the war went on. The Soviet testing of captured King Tigers at Kubinka where even the best-protected parts of the armor cracked, spalled, and suffered weld seam failure was replicated by later American tests done at Aberdeen on King Tiger hulls. Insofar as optics, that's another myth. Jonathan Dale wrote a detailed report on a Quora answer on comparing the Zweis optics on the Tiger versus that of British, US, and Soviet tanks using several metrics. He found that those on the T-34/85 (and presumably, on the IS-2) were only a bit less efficient than the Tiger's and were in fact better than those on earlier Soviet tanks, early Shermans, and British Sherman Fireflies. All these optics were capable of doing the job.

[@pj1953a]

How did the German lose with the determined and brave army.

[@johnmcgrath1929]

The numbers and resources of the enemy... sad. The good guys lost.

[@AssassinIsAfk]

They lost because Hitler messed about with army groups in Russia, sending them to take stalin grad, then left 200,000 troops to sit in the Netherlands doing jack shit, when the Russians took Poland Hitler could of sent a pocket of troops to relieve an army that was under attack but he did not he left them to also do jack shit until there where attacked by the Russians, Hitler also sent the last Panza unit that he had to defend Austria and the oil fields rather than defend the capital which was rather stupid but then again even if they where in Berlin they would of been destroyed so it was just speeding up the inevitable really

[@spill_the_beans365]

The T34 is said to be more than a match for a panzer.

[@Eric-kn4yn]

Hit on turret ring fatal armour doesnt count there

[@kostikmk8289]

Страны оси воевали против полу сони стран с на порядок большим производством оружия и хорошо держались. Забудьте бред о фашизме - это надо чтобы вас легче было дрессировать. По сути их вынудили к войне и убивали как конкурентов и не более того и в обоих мировых войнах и сегодня добивая Европу чужими руками. Японию добили после второй мировой. Добьют Европу возьмутся за Китай, это не зло и не добро, Мир не может быть многополярным, это бред, он должен быть централизован, а вот уж как это вам решать, будете ли вы паразитами или созидателями.

[@garrettkessler1895]

So you would be okay with someone who isn't Russian...telling you what to do in your daily lives? Not me. No thank you!!

[@kostikmk8289]

@@garrettkessler1895 А вам не говорят? ведь вопрос не в том кто говорит, а что говорит и как вы это воспринимаете

[@seeker2118]

The Courland pocket was reduced to being described only as an armed prisoner of war camp as WW2 drew to a close. The Germans within the pocket were trapped and could play no role in the defence of Germany. Every effort to relieve the pocket failed as when operation Bagration was launched in 1944 that destroyed army group center in Belarusia army group north's faith was sealed to doom.

[@jeffadams9807]

When Hitler Turned On Russia, That Spelled DOOM For Germany...

[@fredreinhard2091]

The German Armed Forces never exceeded 8 Million (all services) against the Ally combined Forces of over 39 Million! Tanks 10 TO 1; Air Power 10 to 1 and the German Army died from attrition; die 6 years of war.

[@piyushsharan406]

Basically the entire world took 6 years to defeat Germany.

[@barrywatson7]

Was the German force the remains of the once formidable Army Group Centre?

[@kjhnsn7296]

Army group North.

[@cwcsquared]

No

[@aragornii507]

It's funny how in world of tanks or war thunder the is2 is impenetrable

[@andrejlukac1783]

IS2 in world of tanks has no armor, it's like a paper for VII tier

[@aragornii507]

@@andrejlukac1783 i remember shooting it with jagdtiger and the rounds would bounce. I stopped playing it after that

[@threadworm437]

Not impenetrable in war thunder with the panther. Aim for the lower front plate or the turret cheeks, IS2s are my favorite tank to kill besides pershings

[@j.heberhernandez3037]

@@aragornii507 Those 2 games are russians, what did u expected?

[@aragornii507]

@@j.heberhernandez3037 that's why i stopped playing it because of Russian bias. Russian tanks are all made of Stalinium

[@hertzair1186]

Amazing how even after being severely wounded, the German soldiers couldn’t wait to get back into battle…addicted to the adrenaline of battle, I suppose.

[@rudenjasergei4478]

It called meth.

[@hertzair1186]

@@rudenjasergei4478 that was during the Blitzkrieg 1939-41

[@rudenjasergei4478]

@@hertzair1186 so, you are saying that later in the war they didn't have it, and had to resort to schnapps??

[@hertzair1186]

@@rudenjasergei4478 ja wohl….prost!

[@rudenjasergei4478]

@@hertzair1186 it's called combat drugs nowadays.

[@davidbatinich1528]

German forces in.43 and 44 were consistently around or over 10m

[@Digmen1]

Its Ivan (eyevan) not eevan

[@tablet6109]

It always surprises me that Germany lost the war, In every video the Germans have a kille ratio of 1 to 30.

[@MultzHelmut-tu6un]

When. a. German. General. whas. ask. Why. you. lost. the. war. he. response. Too. many. Russian. and. one. German. too. much

[@rdallas81]

They lost because God said Israel would become a nation again before the end of time.

[@piyushsharan406]

@rdallas81 no the Soviets and Western Allies sacrificed to ensure their victory. Israel was not a topic until 1948 which is 3 years after the war ended.

[@OroborusFMA]

Robo voice pronounces IVAN as ee-WHAN lol . . .

[@rdallas81]

Must be Asian 😂😊

[@slavap4963]

Super heavy IS tank. Ok.If the IS is super heavy then the Panther is too. They were almost the same weight.

[@Tonyx.yt.]

in late 1944 was a bit of a stretch calling a tank with 75mm gun as super heavy and also most importantly, compared to jagdtiger, Ferdinand and tiger 2, panther was a medium tank

[@slavap4963]

@@Tonyx.yt. no s it. I was being sarcastic. The video called the is-3 a super heavy which weighed almost identical to a panther.

[@rdallas81]

​@@slavap4963no shit??

[@user-hm8eh6be8c]

В 1945 году в Красной армии Курляндскую группировку называли :" Лагерь вооруженных военноаленных". Там сложный рельеф местности для наступления и большие силы у нацистов. Штурм мог привести к большим потерям. Поэтому было решено отказаться от серьезного наступопния. Немцы были " в кармане" и никуда не могли деться. Потом они в полном составе поехали в плен ;)

[@waldek2303]

This is one of the typical lies of Soviet propaganda. The Red Army tried to defeat the defenders by storm until the end of the war. Almost until the end of the war, it was not content with just blocking this area. In 1945 there were three offensives aimed at destroying German forces in Courland.

[@user-hm8eh6be8c]

@@waldek2303 This is one of the topical lies of Goebbels ;)). Когда нужно было штурмовать, красная армия пересекла высокогорную , сольную пустыню Гоби ( одно только это - подвиг) и разгромила японскую Квантунской армию (численность1 миллион ). При этом потери Красной Армии -12 000 , потери японцев - более 100 тысяч. +800 тысяч пленных. Теперь для тебя небольшой урок, невежа: руководство РККА хотелось взять Берлин и захватить Гитлера. Для этого РККА сковали боями мощную группировку немцев у Зееловских высот ( группировка прикрывавший Берлин. А потом резко обошла её с севера и юга , взяли в кольцо и захватили Берлин. Ни Зееловская группировка, ни армия Венка не успели войти в Берлин. И в самом городе было не так много профессиональных войск. Поэтому в бой бросали гитлерюгенд и фольксштурм. Немцы сопротивлялись отчаянно, но штурм длился неделю. И потом всё было кончено. Если бы ркка ввязались в бои с Зееловской группировкой, то эта операция превратилась бы в Сталинградскую мясорубку. Но на месте немцев теперь были бы мы. Так что, как видишь, РККА не связывались даже в бои под Берлином. И уж тем более им было не интересно это с Курляндской группировкой. На Курляндском перешейке РККА была оставлена группировка, которая была не способна наступать. Танков почти не было ( были, но как " пожарная команда" которая могла бы купировать прорыв), но было много артиллерии которая перемалывала немцев, которые пытались наступать. Результат был тот, который хотели в Красной Армии: Курляндская группировка была изолирована и не смогла прорваться и участвовать в боях в Германии. А потом была вынуждена сдаться в полном составе Красной Армии.

[@j.heberhernandez3037]

RED PIGS

[@rudenjasergei4478]

​@@waldek2303read other comments, in Germany it is called forgotten army. Russians called it the biggest camp of armed pow.

[@waldek2303]

@@rudenjasergei4478I have already referred to the nonsense coming from Soviet propaganda.

[@mrpaddy3318]

the Kurland Soldiers made it to Sweden. And the Sweden brought them back to the russians. Some of the soldiers had swallowed razor blades to avoid being handed over, but it didn't help.

[@arthurdirindinjr1792]

Here's the thing When a Panther destroyed a T34 or other Soviet tank two took its place When a Panther and Tiger were destroyed they weren't replaced The superiority of the Panther or Tigers and their crews much better training wasn't enough to offset the vastly superior numbers of Russian tanks

[@ChristopheA-dd5we]

at the end of the war it's not true at all ( start to september 1944). A lot of crew had bare none experiences at all and the training was shorter as normal because of the danger on the fronts. A very good example of that is in 1944 during the Lorraine battle in France, the 2 Panthers brigade weren't good because of too many young crews without any experiences.

[@wanderschlosser1857]

More like T-34/IS-2 replaced by 5-10 and Panthers/Tigers by 0.5. And only every 10th of them got a properly trained crew.

[@adriantowe278]

If they had as many tanks as each other who would you say would have won

[@rudenjasergei4478]

​@@wanderschlosser1857 Nah, actually Soviet crews were well trained after Stalingrad, they would go through a few training facilities, on various vehicles. After completing their training, they would go to the production plants, and facilitate assembly. They knew their tanks well! The majority of "new" Soviet tanks were the same old repaired in the field conditions.

[@wanderschlosser1857]

@@rudenjasergei4478 I meant German crews towards the end of the war. The training situation between German and Soviet crews pretty much reversed over the course of the war. However I really doubt that the better trained late war Soviet crews were anywhere near the skills of pre war/early war German crews.

[@naughtysmurf64]

If Germany had the same resources as Russia did, Russia would have never won. Or if Germany would have attacked Russia before France and gained resources first.

[@FAB1500]

This is just an old European tradition of going to war with Russia once every hundred years and traditionally getting punched in the teeth by it. This is reminiscent of the periodic migration of lemmings, which go to their death without being able to violate their age-old instinct.

[@ng1teav588]

In my opinion Great show! The only thing wrong with it, the only thing holding in back from perfection, is you gave good advice to disney! Never give good advice to disney, give them bad advice while saying it is good advice and then you can reach perfection!

[@Fongolitus]

"what?? it's a beautiful tank!" - "it's piece of Junk! the fuel system leaks all over the place it's a piece of junk!" - always with the negative waves.

[@michaelmedicworldoftanks33fps]

Kolobanov medal

[@rdallas81]

I have one on WOT

[@genekelly8467]

So what did all this heroism prove? Just prolonged a losing war-and caused more deaths. There is a point where reasonable me should say enough.

[@gwmba1989]

The Panther and the Tiger were superior to the T-34 and IS 2 respectively. The Germans, in almost every sphere of the War, had the better technology, but they were hopelessly outnumbered by the Soviet colussus. The Red Army has more: soldiers, tanks, artillery pieces, fighter planes and bombers, light weapons, support vehicles (trucks), ammunition and, of course, rocket artillery in the form of the Katashu. It was a hopeless situation but they fought the Soviets tooth and nail right until the very end. I am not a communist but it was the Soviets, not the British and Americans who broke the back of the German army forcing an end to the War in Europe. They lost 28 000 000 people in the process, but they got the job done in the end and defeated Hitler and Nazism!

[@geoffthecarpenter]

T34s were over rated, cramped and primitive, there were just so dam many of them.

[@rdallas81]

Sort of like Chinese people? A Force to be reckoned with. Quantity has a quality all by itself. Ask an ant 🐜 then ask an ant colony

[@Vov4ik141]

От попадания ИС-2 любую пантеру и тигра разрывало на куски,че не показали то???

[@rendzis]

cho ti tam pizgish, vatnik?

[@Naz_i206]

Inaccurate gun and slow reload

[@rdallas81]

Had replaceable autoloaders- ​@@Naz_i206

[@redjacc7581]

surely it should be spelt Courland Pocket?

[@ad-gp2jn]

bliat

[@jpmtlhead39]

This is only one example of dozens and dozens of other similirar engagements,were the "Overengineered" ( like many British and American Analists,Historians and Schoolars love to say abaut German Armor, specialy from 1943 until 1945) German Tanks showed their Outstanding capabilities and in the right hands their Devastating Superiority to the Allied counterparts. From the Tiger I to the KingTiger and also the Tank Destroyers like the StugIII, Jagdpanther,Elefant and Nashorn,only by the Overwhelming allied Numbers and Air Superiority were able to defeat those Awesome Machines. PS: After 80 years and many "Debates" i think that the conclusion is consensual, Overall The Panther was the Best Tank of WW2.

[@donnut999]

If you say swiftly or formidable once more 😂

[@bobbygianakis8934]

To many adds

[@therealtruth-sy3kv]

This video looks like just praising German tanks, but I doubt Pantera could win IS2.

[@rdallas81]

Pantera? I like that music. Look up Song called Cemetery gates.

[@Eric-kn4yn]

Is it an after battle report or fabricated by a war gammer

[@chpet1655]

Ugh robot narration ruins this

[@SovetUnion63]

Those names of Nazi soldiers must be forgotten.

[@rdallas81]

Don't be so ignorant. Most were doing what you would have done in the same exact circumstances. Never forget- Hitler and Stalin was working together for years before the war- The US supported both sides- Soviet technology was given and sold to them- the forgeries, oil refineries, chemicals all from the USA, German, UK etc etc.

[@rudenjasergei4478]

Aah, poor Nazis, they swallowed pieces of razor barb wires, the Panthers were threatened by the fire of machine guns maxims, the tanks were threatened by approaching soviet infantry, you can continue with this innuendo in and on.

[@rdallas81]

What about the Soviets who were trying to incite revolution in Germany in the 20s? Never forget- Stalin and Hitler worked together to destroy Poland. There are no innocents in the war. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Repent- because the third war will be catastrophic.

[@FAB1500]

Panther...Tiger... Yes, there was a time when the germans knew how to make tanks. Today in ukraine, the german Leopard is just a reason for ridicule among the russians, and the combat use of these tanks ends in a shameful beating.

[@waldek2303]

Bullshit.

[@franzliszt4257]

The problem of course was that Germany needed all its Air Force over Germany and the Western front needed mobil forces. More ammunition was used fighting British and American aircraft than expended on the Eastern front. With production and logistics pounded into dust by the Western allies there was no way to re-supply the forces in the East. The Russian Air Force with its far less sophisticated aircraft simply had the sky more or less to themselves. The few German aircraft could only shoot down so many aircraft, never enough to seriously diminish the Soviet Air Force. Just like in Ukraine where Biden has imposed an aircraft embargo on Ukraine on Putin’s behalf, in WWII the side that had air superiority would win. And this was the Western Allies. In fact the Western Allies flew 4 engine bombers (the Soviets had none) all the way to the Front in the East to help the Stalin!

[@ChristopheA-dd5we]

You should read some memories of German pilot. The Russian fighter plane was pretty good so basically the opposite of what you're saying now... The problem was they don't have enough pilot because of the evolution of the war and a lack of planning and also which is crucial not enough petrol for the plane. Same thing for you ammuntion story, that comes form you imagination as it's not true at all. About you comparaison with Ukraine today's war obvioiulsy you don't know ( again) what you're talking about. first to have a air superiority on Russia you should have a lot of plane and secondly how by pass the Russian anti aircraft ? If everybody want to buy S400 S there's a reason..

[@justjoking5841]

Delivery of aircraft and air defenses are always more important than tanks.

[@ChristopheA-dd5we]

but if you don't have tank you loose. Aircrafts and anti air defense can't conquer a country. The most important is still the soldiers and the ground army. @@justjoking5841

[@waldek2303]

@@ChristopheA-dd5we Soviet planes and Soviet aviation were shit.

[@christopheambrementalistes6981]

It's not what the German pilot said but maybe you're know better than the men who fight against them, nowadays eveybody know better than the people who were there@@waldek2303

[@MrIwan18]

BS ai comment…..

[@user-nv4wu7hc3f]

WORRIER GERMAN

[@SuperIv7]

Sounds like made up crap glorifying the nazis. And IS-2 was not "superheavy behemoth". IS-2 and Pz V Panther were both heavy tanks of roughly the same weight of ~46t.

[@opoxious1592]

The Panther tank in the German army was classified as a medium tank

[@SuperIv7]

​@@opoxious1592- nobody gives a flying f#ck how it was "classified". It was only "medium" in comparison to true superheavy behemoths like 60~70+t Tigers. In absolute weight, complexity, and cost it was NOT. Again, IS-2 had ~same weight, and was easier and cheaper to manufacture.

[@SuperIv7]

..IS-2 even had a smaller crew (4 vs. 5)

[@opoxious1592]

@@SuperIv7 The Panter is rated by all possible sources that can be found as a medium tank, period. It's not: "Nobody gives a flying fuck" It's more rather like : "You don't give a flying fuck. The only one in the entire worl claiming that the Panther is rated as a heavy tank is you. Nobody else

[@SuperIv7]

​@@opoxious1592 - did I say it was not? 😁 - what I said is that it does not matter how it was "classified" or "rated". We can go into lengthy discussions *why* Germans assigned "medium" classification to Pz.V - again, compared to 60++ t Tigers it was, obviously, lighter, so to *them*, naturally, it may have been medium, albeit almost twice heavier and complex than their actual medium tanks like Pz. IV. What I'm telling you, is that IS-2, despite called "heavy", was similar in size and weight to the Panther, not a "behemoth" by any stretch of imagination, and a lot easier and less expensive to manufacture with even smaller crew.

[@angloedu5499]

1941 Germany 2.5 million troops versus 6.5 million Soviet Troops plus another 2 million Asiatic Siberian Soviet troops from Far East Russia. I’m not a great mathematical person but something smells of a “smear the queer ruby game.“ I don’t think any weapons besides nukes would be made a difference for the Axis troops.

[@terraflow__bryanburdo4547]

Axis started 1941 with 4.million vs 2 to 3 million Soviets in western theater. By Moscow numbers evened up due to Axis losses of a million men against recently reinforced Soviets. 1942 was a stalemate until Case Blue destroyed the Sixrh Army and any hope of Axis victory.

[@Zeitgeschichte1]

@@terraflow__bryanburdo4547bullshit

[@blitzy3244]

0:15 LOONEY TOONES FALL PHYSICS HAHAHA. Why would they use that footage in a propaganda video?? Dumb soviets.

[@TheVistaview1]

Watching this video with all the German victories. You would think GERMANY WON THE WAR. However, they were soundly defeated.

[@negatorxx]

AI trash.

[@rdallas81]

Yeah. So what's your point

[@andrewkelly2258]

A little too much time spent glorifying what was, after all, the Nazi war machine...

[@rdallas81]

No less than the red army.

[@andrewborovskikh8106]

"Panthers vs IS-2s", not someone's stupid blah-blah-blah, that what was expected, not your hot air. DISLIKE.

[@Phalanx11]

Soviet tank philosophy was correct. Build disposable, powerful tanks by the thousands that won't last long on the battlefield. German philosophy was incorrect. Build intricate, expensive well machined tanks in small numbers.

[@coopgamingduo]

Not so. The soviets had huge amounts of manpower and war material. The germans had not. They both played to their strenghts.

[@Phalanx11]

@@coopgamingduo Incorrect, my statement stands...also you misspelled Strengths.

[@coopgamingduo]

@@Phalanx11 Thanks for the typo correction. With respect your statement is simply wrong. It's simplistic and misguided but indeed it will stand. Cheers.

[@Phalanx11]

@@coopgamingduo Wrong again Coop. With great respect and so on and so forth, My statement is factual and based on 50 years of research, whilst your statement is simplistic and generalized. If you want to attack someone else' statement, you'll have to do better than "simplistic and misguided"....unless your a psychiatrist which I doubt. Therefore to quote you, Your statement is simplistic and misguided. Cheers?

[@coopgamingduo]

@@Phalanx11 Cheers.

[@JohnDora9-95.]

Aside from Fact Checking the propaganda from the Germans, the Soviets AND the content creator- real human voice or A.I.? The Germans called the Soviet’s “Ivan” (eye-van) not IV-EN. More canned generic footage, non specific to Kurland Battle, poor pronunciation and grammatical errors, generic and tired. Put an effort into it.

[@leroyjenkins2757]

Germans dont spell it eye-van, cause that would be EIVAN in german and not IVAN. German "I" is mostly spelled like the english "E".

[@bergssprangare]

Goebbels propaganda is vety much alive and well

[@rdallas81]

Describe it for us.

[@billballbuster7186]

I have to say the language is up to the best German propaganda films. With the usual reference to "Tank Aces" though any confirmation of tank to tank kills is completely unverifiable. This glorification of the Germans is at odds with the fact that they lost the war they started - badly!

[@FSKARKEL]

Nobody cares what you think 👍

[@adi6293]

Did they now? The last time I check USSR lost WAY WAY more of men and equipment , on top of it they didn't fight war on 4 fronts like Germany and post war and even now Russia is a dump , 3rd war country with nukes so who really lost the war?

[@nick22091]

Also it’s ironic how although Germany may have lost WWII, they still rose to be the biggest GDP and economy in Europe. The cars we drive are German, the best engineering is done by the Germans. So to say they technically lost the war, they’re in a much better place than some of the allies in Europe who were on the winning side 🤷🏼‍♂️

[@JRyan-lu5im]

Admiration for military conduct doesn't condone the political standings of the countries party. Try rub your braincells together to get past your two dimensional opinions.

[@billballbuster7186]

@@adi6293 Well, if you go off Tiger 1 claims alone, they destroyed every tank in the Allied inventory, some claiming 30-1 kil ratio. Looking at casualty figures, the Russians lost heavily 1941-42 because they were unprepared. But 1943-45 casualties were on more of a par with the Germans. The Germans reached the limit of their advance into Russia in September 1942. After that it was one long retreat for Germany and her allies.

[@wphiperboreo]

ACHTUNG PANZER 🇩🇪

[@rdallas81]

Tanks will soon be obsolete. Like the battleships of history

[@tomaszwidawski2712]

I know that from Franz Kurowski's book "Panzer Aces". There is a description of another battle from March 1945, this time not far from Danzig, where Bix destroyed 16 Soviet tanks using a Jagdpanther. He received the Ritterkreuz for these acheivements.