Rolf Wichmann’s vehicle passes a Stuka that made an emergency landing near Stalingrad, October 1942. Wichmann, gunner in the vehicle of the commander of the Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 244 (244th Assault Gun Battalion), recollects: “Our strong-point and our repair workshops were located in the ravine at Gumrak. Our operations partially took place in the open terrain to the north (beating off of Soviet attacks, defending against tanks), and partially in the core area of Stalingrad. During operations toward the tractor factory, the commander’s gun was knocked out by dug-in Soviet tanks near a railway. The shell went into the running gear, exploded there, ripped open the right side, and tore off the covering plate. Driver and loader were dead. Oberleutnant Dr. Wilhelm Schrader-Rottmers (commander of the 1st Battery) was severely wounded in the head and the upper body (he was discharged from the army after recovery). Schrader-Rottmers is the holder of Ehrenblattspange, which he received in 5 October 1942. I myself suffered lung wounds, broken ear drums, and flesh wounds; I lay at the main dressing station at Kalach until the end of October since I was not transportable, and then I was flown out in a Junkers Ju 52.”
Source :
Book "Winter Storm: The Battle for Stalingrad and the Operation to Rescue 6th Army" by Hans Wijers
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