* *By the beginning of the battle for Moscow, Oberleutnant Heinz Baer had already taken part in the Battle of Britain, where he almost died when his damaged Messerschmitt was shot down by a Spitfire that jumped out of the clouds and fell into the waters of the English Channel. To the pilot's misfortune this scene, not the most epic of his career, was observed from the shore by Reichsmarshal Göring himself, who did not fail to personally express to Bair, who was then still a non-commissioned officer, his highest displeasure. However, after his transfer to the Eastern Front he quickly began to increase his air victories, and in July 1941 he was promoted to lieutenant and awarded the Knight's Cross, and in August, when his total number of aircraft shot down exceeded 60, he received the Oak Leaves to his Cross.
The task of escorting slow transport planes did not please the aggressive fighter pilot. The Junkers, crawling in a tight group, limited his options, tying him down, and preventing him from doing the free hunting that the Oberleutnant loved so much.
Nevertheless, his position as team leader allowed him to take some liberties. In recent days Russian fighter attacks have been infrequent and rather harassing, so Baer ordered his wingman to follow him and, breaking away from the rest of the fighters, flew a couple of kilometers above the transport planes. As a result, the Oberleutnant was at a point very convenient for observing the covered Junkers and the surrounding sky. And there really was something to watch.
First, ahead, a little way off their course, many flashes flickered on the ground. Baer knew that the Russians had good anti-aircraft guns, theoretically capable of reaching enemy aircraft at altitudes of up to ten kilometers. Of course, they were no match for the German 88 mm FlaK, but sometimes they gave the Luftwaffe pilots a hard time.
The 40 Junkers, still in formation, continued to fly forward unperturbed. The first salvo from the Russians usually missed their targets, but it didn't seem to be this time. Most of the bursts occurred to the right and below the transport planes, but about a third of the shells exploded inside their order and scattered lots of shrapnel.
Three Ju-52s began to smoke and started to leave the formation with a descent. One of them began to turn around, while the other two apparently suffered more serious damage and did not take any maneuvers. Soon the domes of parachutes flashed in the sky behind these planes as the crews abandoned the doomed machines. However, the Oberleutnant noted it all only in passing. His attention was fixed on the surviving transport planes.
The Russian anti-aircraft guns kept their maximum rate of fire. For their caliber, one shot in three seconds was very good. The anti-aircraft gunners fired volleys, and to Baer's horror, each successive batch of shells was more and more accurate. Unable to withstand this beating, the Junkers broke formation in an attempt to disperse, but they were clearly too late – at least half the transport planes were already hurtling toward the ground, smoking thickly with burning engines or falling to pieces right in the air.
Now the Oberleutnant understood what the glossy Oberst from the Abwehr was talking about, who a couple of days ago was instructing all fighter group commanders, assigned to protect the air bridge. Baer turned on his radio transmitter, but all he heard in his headphones was a howl of interference. With a flap of his wings, he ordered his wingman to follow him and sent his Messerschmitt into a sharp turn with a descent. In the event of an interruption of radio communication, the order explicitly required Baer to return immediately to the airfield and report the coordinates of the position of the Russian anti-aircraft gunners, who demonstrated an accuracy of firing never seen before.
Oberleutnant Baer's report on the defeat of the group of Junkers guarded by his fighters caught Richtengden at the Luftwaffe Second Air Fleet's reserve command post. After listening to the cover group commander, the Colonel turned sharply to the officer on duty. He no longer had any doubts – the marksman was on the move.
“Hauptmann, get the special group in the air! The task is to attack Russian anti-aircraft positions south of Vyazma,” Richtengden himself took the sheet with the exact coordinates of the target from the communicator and handed it to the Luftwaffe officer.
Ten minutes later, 12 Messerschmitts and 32 Ju-87 dive bombers were in the air. For the first time on the Eastern Front, they carried not only high-explosive bombs but also chemical ones in their bomb chambers. The Colonel was well aware that right now he was committing the irreversible act that could change the entire balance of power in this war. Of course, his plan was coordinated at the very top, but it was he who came up with the idea and the decisive order also came out of his mouth, which means that he, too, will be responsible for the consequences.
Seven minutes passed in tense anticipation, which was suddenly interrupted by the sharp buzzer of the telephone.
“Herr Oberst, the Headquarters of the Eighth Air Corps is on the line.”
“I'm listening,” said the Colonel into the receiver.
“Herr Oberst, Hauptmann Meyer reports. The group of Heinkels, escorted by my squadron, was hit by Russian 85 mm anti-aircraft guns, lost more than half of its planes and was scattered. According to the order, I have to report such cases immediately…”
“I'm already aware of that, Hauptmann. Those anti-aircraft guns near Vyazma will soon be finished.”
“Excuse me, Herr Oberst, did you say near Vyazma? My air group came under Russian fire northeast of Rzhev.”
“Of Rzhev? Are you sure, Hauptmann?”
“We managed to spot the positions of the anti-aircraft guns. They are about 30 kilometers from the outer front of the encirclement. I'm ready to give you the exact coordinates.”
“Thank you, Hauptmann,” said Richtengden in a colorless voice, “the liaison officer on duty will take your coordinates.”
The Colonel pondered the information for about 15 seconds and then turned his gaze to the Luftwaffe officer.
“I need a connection with the special group. It's urgent! They must return to the airfield immediately!”
“There is no communication, Herr Oberst,” the officer on duty reported after a minute, “the airwaves are again clogged with these anomalous interference…”
The Hauptmann had no time to finish – he was interrupted by another call signal. Richtengden slowly turned to the communicator.
“Herr Oberst, this is Oberleutnant Eichenwald, Third Fighter Squadron, Eighth Air Corps.”
The Colonel silently took the receiver, already realizing what he was about to hear.
The "Redoubt" teams were unable to detect nearly five dozen German planes taking off from two nearby airfields, but the computer immediately drew my attention to something out of the usual pattern of enemy activity.
This new air group consisted exclusively of fighters and dive bombers. It did not have a single transport aircraft, hence, it had to perform tasks far removed from those of supplying the encircled German armies.
After a couple of minutes, when the enemy planes finally came together and lay on a course for Vyazma, their intentions became crystal clear to me. Unlike the transports, the dive bombers kept low, trying to stay close to the ground to reduce the chance of detection by radars and air traffic control stations.
“"Viper 2", this is "Mole". A group of dive-bombers covered by Messerschmitts is approaching you from the southwest. 30 to 40 Ju-87s. Flying time 12 minutes.”
“"Mole",
