Gerhard Fischer – SS-Panzerjäger-Abteilung 5 “Wiking”
€35,00
Postwar Signature of Gerhard Fischer, who earned the Knight’s Cross with 3./ SS-Panzerjäger-Abteilung 5 of the 5. SS-Panzer-Division “Wiking”.
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- Postwar Signature of Gerhard Fischer, who earned the Knight’s Cross with 3./ SS-Panzerjäger-Abteilung 5 of the 5. SS-Panzer-Division “Wiking”.
Ritterkreuz awarded for: “At around 04:30 on the 02.02.1944 a Russian infantry battalion (reinforced by infantry guns and AT guns) attacked our strongpoint-like security line west of Burty, and broke through it about 1200 metres west of the village. At the same time, at 05:00, they succeeded in penetrating the line with a group attacking from the south. The enemy firmly established themselves in a block of houses just to the west of Burty.
At the time SS-Unterscharführer Fischer, acting Zugführer in the 3./SS-Panzer-Jäger-Abteilung 5, was on standby in the northwestern part of Burty with 2 self-propelled Pak. At 04:45 he received orders from the Abteilung to secure the western edge of the village. While marching to the ordered position he saw that the enemy had already occupied the housing block next to the railway embankment, and furthermore that an enemy group in about company-strength was advancing northwest of the village so as to block the road to Wjasowog.
On his own initiative he attacked this latter group with his two self-propelled Pak, and destroyed the bulk of it in a bold attack despite hostile flanking fire from the west. In a steady, shoot and scoot firefight on the western edge of Burty, Fischer was able to prevent the advance of strong enemy forces from the forest northwest of Burty long enemy for friendly infantry to commence a counterthrust at 07:00.
As no time could be wasted, Fischer now drove into an attack on his own initiative so as to eject the enemy forces from the housing block beside the railway embankment. Despite the enemy anti-tank rifle/anti-tank gun fire he galvanized the friendly infantry forwards through his own bold behaviour, and himself was able to prevent the arrival of enemy reinforcements along the railway line following a great expenditure of effort. A broken-off enemy group that tried to pull back towards Point 205.0 (1.5 km southwest of Burty) was destroyed by the well-aimed fire of Fischer’s self-propelled Pak.
The holding of Burty was decisive for ensuring the smooth evacuation of the city of Gorodischtsche.
