THE RAATE ROAD*
*
*
DATE: 13 December 1939*
*
BATTLE LOCATION: Near Raate, Finland*
*
BATTLE TYPE:*
Russia (Advance) vs. Finland (Delay)*
*
HISTORICAL SITUATION:*
*
With the invasion, two reinforced Soviet divisions crossed the border in the north with orders to cut Finland in half by seizing Oulu, 150 miles to the west. But the Russian 163rd Rifle Division was soon trapped at Suomussalmi. And so, a third Soviet division was committed, pushing westward into the snow-clad forests. To halt the slow-moving column of Vinogradov's 44th Rifle Division, General Siilasvuo dispatched the Finnish 27th Infantry Regiment to block the Oulu Highway, the only east-west lateral available to that Soviet division in their sector. The obvious spot was at the mile-wide isthmus between lakes Kuivas and Kuomas, some six miles west of the village of Raate. There Lt. Col. Makiniemi, in command of the 27th, placed two companies to prepare defensive positions. On 8 December, these Finns repulsed the Soviet recon troops. The next day, the rest of the Soviet 44th Division drew up behind the stalled point. On the 13th, after several days of desultory bombardment, the Russians launched their first coordinated assault. *
*
FORCES:*
Russia: Elements of the 197th Assault Regiment (Reinforced)*
*
Finland: Elements of the 3rd Company, 27th Infantry Regiment, 9th Division*
*
AFTERMATH:*
*
The Finnish positions were well planned, well situated to meet any Soviet thrust. Movement by the Russians on the frozen lakes would be detected immediately by the machine gunners and result in mass slaughter. Hampered by the deep snow and the thick forest, the Soviet artillery was unable to deploy off the road and could provide only limited support for a frontal attack. The only alternative to one, however, was for the Ukrainians to enter the dense timber, leaving behind their armor, and attempt to flank the Finnish line. This their commander proved unwilling to undertake. The result was bloody defeat as the entrenched Finns destroyed or immobilized the Russian armor and caught the accompanying infantry in a deadly crossfire. The first of many such failures, the initial attack cost the Russians two tanks and hundreds of casualties. An entire Soviet division was paralyzed in the snow by 350 Finns, in a bumper-to-bumper traffic jam, numbed by numerous raids by the Sissi, until Siilasvuo could spare more troops for the "final surgery". *
*
*
NOTES: This scenario was converted from an ASL scenario (see below) to SPWW2 format. Can be played PBEM as either side, or if playing against the AI, take the Russians. *
*
SOURCE: ASL Scenario A54*
*
SPWW2 Scenario Creation by Don Lazov*