Tanks in Operation Bagration

Tanks in Operation Bagration With Steven Zaloga Operation Bagration Week Operation Bagration Part of our ongoing Eastern Front series on WW2TV Eastern Front Week Also part of our 80th Anniversary Series 80th Anniversary Special Operation Bagration, the 1944 summer campaign on the Russian Front, has been called “Hitler's Greatest Defeat.” The operation involved substantial tank and armored vehicles on both sides but the German forces were severely hampered by the transfer of dozens of Panzer divisions to France to repel an expected Allied invasion. Forced to make hard decisions, German tank forces in the central Belarus sector were weak compared to the heavy concentration of Panzers in northern Ukraine. The Red Army exploited this vulnerability, crushing Army Group Center, and pushing beyond the Soviet frontier into Poland and East Prussia. With this crucial victory secured, the Red Army conducted successive offensives beyond the Carpathian Mountains, arriving at the Vistula river in Poland, and forcing Romania to switch sides. The Red Army had embarked on a major tank modernization after the Kursk battles of 1943 and as a result, Operation Bagration saw the first widespread use of T-34-85 and IS-2 tanks as well as self-propelled guns. Germany’s Panther tank finally reached technical maturity in the summer of 1944 but small numbers weakened its battlefield impact, while other innovations such as the Tiger II heavy tank failed to leave their mark. Steven J. Zaloga received his BA in History from Union College and his MA from Columbia University. He has worked as an analyst in the aerospace industry for four decades, covering missile systems and the international arms trade, and has served with the Institute for Defense Analyses, a federal think tank. He is the author of numerous books on military technology and history, including NVG 294 Allied Tanks in Normandy 1944 and NVG 283 American Guided Missiles of World War II. He currently lives in Maryland, USA. Tanks in Operation Bagration 1944: The Demolition of Army Group Center by Steven J. Zaloga UK https://uk.bookshop.org/a/5843/978147... USA https://bookshop.org/a/21029/97814728... Steven's appearances on WW2TV The Disaster of the DD Tanks on DDay - Omaha Beach (Amphibious Sherman Tanks) https://youtube.com/live/2nabCopaVrY Smashing Hitler's Guns - Part 1. The German guns and defences at Pointe du Hoc Smashing Hitler's Guns - Part 1. The Germa... Smashing Hitler's Guns - Part 2. New Perspectives - The Rangers at Pointe du Hoc Smashing Hitler's Guns - Part 2. New Persp... Smashing Hitler's Panzers - The Battle of the Bulge Smashing Hitler's Panzers - The Battle of ... You can become a YouTube Member and support us here @ww2tv You can become a Patron here Patreon: WW2TV Please click subscribe for updates also "like" the video - it really helps! Social Media links - Twitter: WW2TV Facebook: WW2TV Instagram: ww2tv WW2TV Merchandise https://ww2tv.creator-spring.com/ WW2TV Bookshop - where you can purchase copies of books featured in my YouTube shows. Any book listed here comes with the personal recommendation of Paul Woodadge, the host of WW2TV. For full disclosure, if you do buy a book through a link from this page WW2TV will earn a commission. UK - https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/WW2TV USA - https://bookshop.org/shop/WW2TV Patreon Brigadiers: Susan Yu, David Keahey and Tom Mullen Become a WW2TV Brigadier and become part of this Hall of Fame Patreon: WW2TV