On October 2 offensive began, 7 in an environment there were 67 of 95 divisions of 3 Soviet fronts. Germans needed about 10 days for replacement of the tank and motorized divisions infantry and is bright released motorized connections to Moscow. After falling of Moscow to Volga practically didn't remain the Soviet parts. Germans freely could reach Volga.Guderian wrote that offensive to Moscow could begin on August 20. On September 10 Germans would take Moscow. By September 20 the German motorized forces would come to Volga.
Hitler broke the plan "Barbarossa". On July 19 in the directive 33 ordered to withdraw from army group "Centre" 2 tank groups for operations near Leningrad and in Ukraine.
In 1941 the Wehrmacht was army only. The Red Army was anything.
http://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D1%EC%EE% ... %E5_(1941)
By the end of July of 1941 armies of AG Centre occupied Yartsevo, Smolensk and Yelnya. Since July 10 in fights for Polotsk, Vitebsk, Smolensk and Mogilyov about 300 thousand people were taken prisoner, over 3 thousand tanks and approximately as much tools are taken.
Approach of AG North and South took place not so quickly. Therefore on July 19 Hitler published the directive No. 33 in which it was recommended to transfer tank connections of AG "Center" to the order AG "North" (tank group Gotha) and AG "South" (Guderian's tank group). Approach to Moscow was recommended to be continued forces of infantry connections. According to the German military leaders, this decision led to a delay of approach to Moscow and, finally, to a plan failure "Barbarossa". The commander of the 3rd tank group Hermann Hoth wrote later [20]:
It was full renunciation of the initial plan — the powerful forces concentrated in the center, to break through through Smolensk to Moscow. "Powerful forces" the center, consisting of two tank groups and three field armies, were reduced to one field army. Both tank groups — the main striking power — were thrown one to the right, another on the left. It is obvious that the similar circumstance contradicted the principle — to come where the opponent is most of all weakened, that is , between Smolensk and Velikie Luki in the direction to Rzhev.
http://mosoborona.ru/?page_id=318
During the operation "Typhoon" Germans managed to bring down the Soviet front of defense on the Western strategic direction, to surround and crush the main forces of three fronts. They suffered a huge loss in staff, arms and military equipment. In the largest copper near Vyazma field managements of the 19th and 20th armies of the Western front, the 24th and 32nd armies of Reserve, 37 divisions got to an environment (including one division near Kaluga), 9 armored brigades and 31 art regiments of RGK (see the scheme 23). The armies surrounded there were a part of ten armies — five Western fronts (the 16, 19, 20, 30 and task force of the general Boldin) and five Reserve (24, 31, 32, 43 and 49). In an environment near Bryansk there were field managements of three armies (3, 13 and 50), 22 divisions, 2 armored brigades and 15 art regiments of RGK. Besides, in certain areas 5 more divisions and 4 art regiments of RGK were surrounded.
And all in an environment near Vyazma and Bryansk there were 7 of 15 field managements of armies, 64 divisions from 95 (67% of available by the fight beginning), 11 armored brigades from 13 (85%), 50 art regiments of RGK from 62 (80%). Considering that from an environment the remains of 32 divisions (including and three divisions from five, surrounded out of the general coppers) could escape and 13 art regiments of RGK, all were 32 divisions, 11 armored brigades and 37 art regiments of RGK are lost. It is necessary to recognize that our armies at the initial stage of defensive operation suffered a crushing defeat, equivalent to accident.
On October 18 in the message of OKV it was declared defeat of group of the marshal of Tymoshenko "as a part of 8 armies, 67 shooting, 6 cavalry and 7 tank divisions and 6 armored brigades. During fights it was taken prisoner of 648 196 people, 1197 tanks, 5229 tools of various type, and also a huge number of military property" are taken and destroyed. Later Germans called also such figures taken near Vyazma and Bryansk captured — 657 948 servicemen. According to the specified data, 673 098 people were taken prisoner, trophies made: 1277 tanks, 4378 artillery pieces, 1009 antiaircraft and anti-tank guns, 87 planes and huge number of other military equipment.
Defeat of our armies in the first half of October far surpassed June defeat of the main forces of the Western front in the scales and consequences in Belorussian and death of the Southwest front in September, 1941. For the third time since the beginning of war strategic defense of the Soviet armies was broken through. As a result of defeat armies of the Western and Reserve fronts had to recede on 250-300 km, and armies of the Bryansk front were rejected on 360-390 km. In an environment there was the largest (for all next years wars) group of armies. The front line appeared in only 100-110 km from the capital.
At this time the new factor — climatic which soon affected rates of approach of Germans started working. Calculations of Hitlerite command to win fight for Moscow before an autumn mudslide didn't justify. Still on October 7 near Vyazma the first snow dropped out, rains which turned roads, especially soil, into the dirt rivers in which the mixed equipment collected by Hitlerites as trophies in the occupied countries of Europe slipped began. But at full capacity consequences of mudslide were shown later — in the second half of October. From the beginning of heavy fighting on the Mozhaisk line of defense the expense of ammunition and fuel immeasurably increased, and opportunities for their delivery to coming parts sharply decreased. In the magazine of operations of group of center armies still on October 10 noted that movement of tank parts because of a bad condition of roads and bad weather is impossible now and that for the same reasons there are difficulties in providing tanks with fuel. The main way for AG Center was the highway Vyazma — Moscow; which as a result of operations any more didn't correspond long ago to the name. Owing to different damages from bombardments and explosions of the mines slowed-down action it constantly and for a long time failed. According to the German data, as a result of explosion of such mine in a roadbed there was a funnel of 10 m in depth and with a diameter of 30 m. Detonators were established with such accuracy that daily occurred on some explosions and therefore it was necessary to build every day anew detours.
For supply by fuel and ammunition of the tank and motorized divisions during this period Germans even more often were compelled to use aircraft. According to available data Germans used aircraft for giving to armies of fuel and ammunition, except regular transport planes, applied gliders like Messershmitt-321 (Me.321 "Giant"). The cargo compartment of a glider by the sizes almost didn't concede to the railway car, and its floor could sustain 20 tons of loading twice more empty weight of the glider.
"The crossing through Dnepr functions only in one track, entrances completely failed, as well as detours. At Dnepr 10 thousand cars in five rows accumulated, the discipline completely is absent. Thus, business approached to that bad weather became even more dangerous opponent, than Red Army".
Due to the amplified mudslide action of connections of the opponent became even more attached to rather good roads which and needed to be blocked first of all. And our command, organizing defense, considered passability of roads and the district adjoining to them. Performance of a task of delay of rates of approach of enemy armies and failure of their supply were promoted by that connections and the parts which have been cut off from the armies, continued to work in the back of the opponent, detaining approach of its reserves.
http://militera.lib.ru/h/isaev_av5/03.html
On October 7, 1941 the 800-kilometer front failed. The armies getting in the way of AG Center, got to an environment. Systematic withdrawal on Vyazma, and then Mozhaisk the line of defense didn't turn out. The Vyazma boundary together with the armies which were on it appeared in extensive "copper". Only remained on a way to Moscow the system of defensive works — the Mozhaisk line of defense — simply couldn't be borrowed. At the disposal of the Soviet command there were only about one and a half weeks which were required to Germans on change built on perimeter of a ring of an environment of the tank and motorized divisions on infantry and a throw of the released motorized corps to Moscow.
