How 3 Soviet cavalrymen captured a German convoy of 30 vehicles
"He knocked one German down with a blow to the head from his broken machine gun, knocked another to the ground and tore out his throat with his teeth…"
It happened on October 12, 1944, in Hungary. A three-man cavalry patrol under the command of Senior Sergeant Vasily Ogurtsov stumbled upon a German convoy guarded by a small escort.
There was no time to call for reinforcements. From the ambush, the Soviet soldiers opened fire on the enemy with automatic weapons and pelted them with grenades.
Vasily Ogurtsov.
The surprise effect was complete – part of the convoy was killed immediately, while the rest, along with the drivers, fled into a nearby forest. Then, a battle ensued with the remaining Germans.
Two cavalrymen were wounded and Ogurtsov's horse was killed. When his ammunition ran out, the sergeant rushed into hand-to-hand combat and smashed an officer's head with the butt of his rifle.
"He knocked one German down with a blow to the head from his broken machine gun, knocked another to the ground and tore out his throat with his teeth," according to Ogurtsov's commendation document.
As a result of the battle, Soviet soldiers captured 30 cargo trucks, eight motorcycles and two self-propelled guns.
Cavalryman Kudai Nurbayev was awarded the ‘Order of the Red Star’ for his heroic deed. Grigory Zadonsky, however, died of his wounds in the hospital two days later. He was posthumously awarded the ‘Order of the Patriotic War’, 1st Class.
The commander himself was awarded the title ‘Hero of the Soviet Union’. He was killed in action on December 25, 1944.
