13. Mai 1942
Tonight they have come closer again. They are obviously gathering in front of the forester’s lodge, because they are rolling around right in front of our section. It sounds like the angry growl of irritated monsters when the whomping engines roar loudly - probably at swings or obstacles. They are only a hundred metres away at most, but the dense undergrowth, which blocks our view after only thirty metres, still hides them from our gaze. And at night we can’t see anything at all, no matter how hard our eyes try to penetrate the night-black bushes. It is nerve-wracking. Today they will certainly attack. I don’t know if it’s 17 or 18 May.[1]
No sooner is there shooting light than the tank that had appeared on the swathe yesterday sets off again and begins to fire. Its shell crashes into the treetops. Now the other tanks start to move as well, humming and roaring their way through the pole wood in front of our bunker positions. It splinters and cracks as the young trunks and small trees are crushed by the chains. But the tanks are still invisible, although they can be no more than fifty metres away. It is a sickening, gruelling situation. You can hear the colossi humming towards you, backing up and roaring with a new start as they crush the undergrowth. Closer, slowly closer, and there is nothing you can do about it. You only know that it will get worse when they actually appear. For hours this nerve-racking wait seems to go on. I use our mortars and scatter the forest in front of us. Maybe it will hit the Russian escort infantry who are safe with the tanks. Besides, it relieves some of the men’s tension.
Noon is over. The men are hungry and eat something from their haversacks. That is a good sign. On the other hand, it’s better not to eat before a battle, because then there can be complications with stomach shots. The intestines should be empty. But you can’t always do that, because then sometimes we wouldn’t be allowed to eat for days. It’s getting to be afternoon. Still the same situation. We are dulling. The hope that it will soon be dark reassures us somewhat, because the tanks don’t attack at night, although even in this respect one is not safe from surprises with the Russians. Night is salvation. The daylight begins to fade. This day is over.
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- ↑ It is neither the 17th nor the 18th, but the 13th, the day before the close combat began, which took place on 14th and 15th (KTB 257. I.D., NARA T-315 Roll 1805 Frame 000962/63/93); later the 15th and 16th were erraneously entered into the pay book wurden später irrtümlich der 15. und 16. eingetragen.