The 8th Guards Airborne Division was an

airborne Airborne or Airborn may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Airborne'' (1962 film), a 1962 American film directed by James Landis * ''Airborne'' (1993 film), a comedy–drama film * ''Airborne'' (1998 film), an action film sta ...

division of the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. On 27 December 1944, it was renamed the 107th Guards Rifle Division. It became the 107th Guards Airborne Division on 7 June 1946, before being disbanded in 1959.

History

The 8th Guards Airborne Division was formed on 8 December 1942 from the 10th Airborne Corps in the

Moscow Military District The Order of Lenin Moscow Military District was a military district of the Soviet Armed Forces and the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. The district was awarded the Order of Lenin in 1968. In 2010 it was merged with the Leningrad Military Di ...

. The personnel of the airborne division received training in airborne tactics.

Major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

Alexander Kapitokhin, commander of the 10th Airborne Corps, became the division's first commander. In February 1943, the division was transferred to the

Northwestern Front The Northwestern Front (Russian: ''Северо-Западный фронт'') was a military formation of the Red Army during the Winter War and World War II. It was operational with the 7th and 13th Armies during the Winter War. It was re-cre ...

, where it became part of the 68th Army, fighting in the

Demyansk Offensive The Battle of Demyansk was part of the Soviet offensive Operation Polar Star against Axis forces which took place in Demyansk from 15 to 28 February 1943. The Northwestern Front and Mikhail Khozin Special Group engaged the 16th Army of Army Gr ...

. On 24 April 1943, the division was withdrawn from the front and moved to

Voronezh Voronezh ( rus, links=no, Воро́неж, p=vɐˈronʲɪʂ}) is a city and the administrative centre of Voronezh Oblast in southwestern Russia straddling the Voronezh River, located from where it flows into the Don River. The city sits on the ...

as part of the

Central Front The Central Front was a major formation of the Red Army during the Second World War formed on July 24, 1941. The Central Front describes either of two distinct organizations during the war. The first entity existed for just a month during th ...

. At the beginning of May, the division became part of the 20th Guards Rifle Corps and from 3 October became part of the 21st Guards Rifle Corps. The division fought in the last part of the

Battle of Kursk The Battle of Kursk was a major World War II Eastern Front engagement between the forces of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union near Kursk in the southwestern USSR during late summer 1943; it ultimately became the largest tank battle in history. ...

and the Chernigov-Poltava Offensive. From the area of

Kotelva Kotelva ( uk, Котельва) is an urban-type settlement in Poltava Raion in Poltava Oblast in northeastern Ukraine, and formerly the administrative centre of Kotelva Raion prior to its abolition in 2020. Population: Location Kotelva is in ...

it advanced to the northwestern part of

Poltava Poltava (, ; uk, Полтава ) is a city located on the Vorskla River in central Ukraine. It is the capital city of the Poltava Oblast (province) and of the surrounding Poltava Raion (district) of the oblast. Poltava is administratively ...

, establishing contact with the

5th Guards Army The 5th Guards Army was a Soviet Guards formation which fought in many critical actions during World War II under the command of General Aleksey Semenovich Zhadov. The 5th Guards Army was formed in spring 1943 from the 66th Army in recognition o ...

. On the night of 5 October, it crossed the Old Dnieper and crossed the

Dnieper } The Dnieper () or Dnipro (); , ; . is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. It is the longest river of Ukraine and B ...

on the next night, capturing a bridgehead on the right bank near the village of Voronovka. On 19 October, the division was transferred to the

7th Guards Army The 7th Guards Army was a field army of the Red Army during World War II and of the Soviet Army during the Cold War. History The 7th Guards Army was formed from the 64th Army on April 16, 1943. 64th Army had originally been formed from 1s ...

on the Steppe Front. It fought in defensive battles on the

Inhulets River The Inhulets () is a river, a right tributary of the Dnieper, that flows through Ukraine. It has a length of 557 km and a drainage basin of 14,460 km². The Inhulets has its source in the Dnieper Upland in a ravine (balka) to the wes ...

during early December. The 8th Guards Airborne took part in battles west of

Kirovohrad Kropyvnytskyi ( uk, Кропивницький, Kropyvnytskyi ) is a city in central Ukraine on the Inhul river with a population of . It is an administrative center of the Kirovohrad Oblast. Over its history, Kropyvnytskyi has changed its name ...

until March 1944. In March 1944, the division was on the left wing of the

2nd Ukrainian Front The 2nd Ukrainian Front (2-й Украинский фронт), was a front of the Red Army during the Second World War. History On October 20, 1943 the Steppe Front was renamed the 2nd Ukrainian Front. During the Second Jassy–Kishinev O ...

during the Uman–Botoșani Offensive. It advanced towards

Kompaniivka Kompaniivka ( uk, Компаніївка) is an urban-type settlement in Kropyvnytskyi Raion, Kirovohrad Oblast (region) of central Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Kompaniivka settlement hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Populatio ...

. At Semyonovka village, the division reached the left bank of the

Southern Bug , ''Pivdennyi Buh'' , name_etymology = , image = Sunset S Bug Vinnitsa 2007 G1.jpg , image_size = 270 , image_caption = Southern Bug River in the vicinity of Vinnytsia, Ukraine , map = PietinisBug ...

. On 22 March, the 22nd and 27th Guards Airborne Regiments, in conjunction with the 36th Guards Rifle Division's 108th Guards Rifle Regiment, crossed the

near the village of Myhiya, seizing a bridgehead at Grushevka village in

Pervomaisk Raion Pervomaisk Raion ( uk, Первомайський район) is located in Mykolaiv Oblast of Ukraine. Its administrative center is the town of Pervomaisk. Population: History In the beginning of the 19th century, the current area of the dist ...

. Fighting the German 106th Infantry Division and 282nd Infantry Division, it reached the outskirts of Pervomaisk. At this time, the 25th Guards Airborne Regiment crossed the Southern Bug in the area north of Semyonovka together with the

81st Guards Rifle Division The 81st Guards Rifle Division is an infantry division of the Russian Ground Forces, previously serving in the Red Army and the Soviet Army. It was formed after the Battle of Stalingrad from the 422nd Rifle Division in recognition of that division ...

capturing the villages of Romanova Balka, Ivanovka and Sokolovka. These units created a threat to the Germans holding Pervomaisk, which caused them to retreat. For its part in taking the city, the division was awarded the honorary title "Pervomaisk". On 24 August, the division transferred to

Kirzhach Kirzhach (russian: Киржа́ч) is a town and the administrative center of Kirzhachsky District in Vladimir Oblast, Russia, located on the Kirzhach River in the west of the oblast, west of Vladimir and south of Alexandrov. Population: Et ...

for resupply. On 27 December 1944, it was reorganized as the 107th Guards Rifle Division. On 8 July 1946, it became airborne again, joining the

Soviet Airborne Troops The Soviet Airborne Forces or VDV (from ''Vozdushno- desantnye voyska SSSR'', Russian: Воздушно-десантные войска СССР, ВДВ; Air-landing Forces) was a separate troops branch of the Soviet Armed Forces. First formed be ...

, and was disbanded in 1959.

Composition

* 22nd Guards Airborne Regiment * 25th Guards Airborne Regiment * 27th Guards Airborne Regiment * 9th Guards Airborne Artillery Regiment

Commanders

* Major General Alexander Kapitokhin (14 December 1942 – 14 June 1943) * Major General Vladimir Stepin (14 June 1943 – 23 August 1943) * Major General Mikhail Andreyevich Bogdanov (25 August 1943 – 26 June 1945)

References

{{Soviet Union divisions Airborne divisions of the Soviet Union Military units and formations established in 1942 Military units and formations disestablished in 1959 Military units and formations awarded the Order of the Red Banner