Bombing of Stalingrad

The bombing of Stalingrad occurred during the Battle of Stalingrad in World War II, when the Soviet city and industrial centre on the river Volga was bombed heavily by the German Luftwaffe. German land forces comprising the 6th Army had advanced to the suburbs of Stalingrad by August 1942. The city was firebombed with 1,000 tons of high explosives and incendiaries in 1,600 sorties on 23 August. The aerial assault on Stalingrad was the most concentrated on the Ostfront, according to Beevor, and was the single most intense aerial bombardment on the Eastern Front at that point. At least 90% of the housing stock was obliterated during the first week of the bombing, with estimations of some 40,000 killed, possibly as many as 70,000 killed, though these may be exaggerations. It is also estimated that 150,000 people were wounded. Further fire-attacks were mounted against the ruined city for the following two days, enveloping it in dense black smoke.

Soviet forces hiding in the rubble were subjected to repeated German airstrikes until the Soviet counteroffensive in late November 1942. Luftflotte 4 flew nearly 1,000 sorties per day on average from 23 August to 22 November, the bulk of which were directed at Stalingrad.

Luftwaffe General Martin Fiebig's Fliegerkorps VIII was tasked in July 1942 with providing air support for the German 6th Army and 4th Panzer Army as they captured Stalingrad and secured the northern flank of the German advance to the Caucasus oilfields.

Luftflotte 4, commanded by Fiebig's superior, Generaloberst Wolfram von Richthofen, held a 1,600-kilometer eastern frontage in July and concentrated its efforts on Stalingrad, with low priority given to air support missions in the Caucasus under Kurt Pflugbeil's Fliegerkorps IV and in the Battle of Voronezh. Logistics for Fliegerkorps VIII received the highest preference, as Richthofen saw the capture of Stalingrad as the key to German success on the entire Eastern Front. Richthofen requested additional Junkers Ju 52 transport groups from Oberkommando der Luftwaffe and transferred Pflugbeil's groups, as well as his road transport companies, to the administrative authority of a new, specially created "Stalingrad transport region". He also ordered better procedures and greater efforts to maximize efficiency. His activities bore fruit as the Luftwaffe constantly lifted ammunition, provisions, and fuel to the front. The army (Heer) implemented its own initiatives to increase supply effectiveness, the insufficient perfection of which had undermined the speed of the German advance since the beginning of Case Blue in June. By the third week of August, the 6th Army and Fliegerkorps VIII were receiving sufficient supplies to undertake without undue difficulties their primary mission of capturing Stalingrad.

During the Battle of Kalach, Fliegerkorps VIII provided the German XIV and XXIV Panzer Corps with decisive air support as the Soviet 62nd Army was encircled and destroyed west of Kalach from 8–11 August through the application of superior German firepower from all sides and especially from above. Fifty thousand prisoners were taken by the Germans, 1,100 Soviet tanks were destroyed or captured, and the road to Stalingrad was clear.

LI Army Corps penetrated across the Don north of Kalach on 21 August, forcing the outmanouvred Red Army formations to the south to fall back on Stalingrad. XIV Panzer Corps crossed the Don the next morning across two large pontoon bridges created by German engineers. Fiebig's air corps shot down 139 Red aircraft in three days and inflicted significant damage on Soviet ground forces. On 21 August, Kampfgeschwader 76's Junkers Ju 88 medium bombers decimated two Soviet reserve divisions on open fields 150 kilometers east of Stalingrad.

Within two days of crossing the Don, Gustav Anton von Wietersheim's XIV Panzer Corps rolled forth to reach the Volga river at Spartanovka in the northern suburbs of Stalingrad at 16:00 on 23 August. Stavka was surprised by the speed of Wietersheim's advance. It was accomplished largely thanks to German airpower. Fliegerkorps VIII flew 1,600 unbroken sorties, blasting a path for the Panzer spearheads by dropping 1,000 tons of bombs on 23 August. Junkers Ju 87 Stuka dive bombers, Focke-Wulf Fw 190 ground attack aircraft, and Heinkel He 111 and Junkers Ju 88 medium bombers bombed and strafed the paralyzed Soviets, landed, refueled, restocked their ordnance, and flew more missions. Fliegerkorps VIII lost three aircraft that day, while destroying 91 Soviet aircraft and inflicting major damage on the Soviets on the ground.

This was the first half of the attacks by Fliegerkorps VIII of 23 August; the second air offensive that day was carried out against the city of Stalingrad itself. From 3:18 pm on 23 August 1942 and through the night into 24 August, units of Richthofen's Luftflotte 4 constantly attacked the city. Medium bomber strength was employed, and included elements of KG 27, KG 51, KG 55, KG 76, and I/KG 100.