The 4th Airborne Corps was an airborne corps of the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. It fought in the

Vyazma airborne operation The Vyazma Airborne Operation was a Red Army airborne landing in the rear of German lines during the Battles of Rzhev. It took place from 18 January to 28 February 1942. The objective of the airborne landing was to help troops of the Kalinin ...

, an unsuccessful landing during the Rzhev-Vyazma Offensive.

History

The corps was formed in the spring of 1941 in the Western Special Military District from the personnel of the 214th Airborne Brigade. The corps was commanded by

Aleksey Semenovich Zhadov Aleksey Semenovich Zhadov (), born with the surname "Zhidov" (, 30 March 1901 – 30 November 1977), was a Soviet military officer in the Red Army, who during World War II commanded the 66th Army, later renamed the 5th Guards Army, from the Battl ...

. On 22 June 1941, the corps was stationed in the Western Front's second echelon in Pukhavichy in Minsk Region. On 26 June, the corps was ordered to conduct an air-assault and ground attack with the 20th Mechanized Corps to stop advancing German troops at

Slutsk Slutsk is a town in Minsk Region, in central Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Slutsk District, and is located on the Sluch (Belarus), Sluch River south of the capital Minsk. As of 2025, it has a population of 59,450. Geography ...

. The corps did not have transport aircraft and instead attacked on foot. The counterattack failed and both corps were broken through. In late June, the 214th Airborne Brigade was redeployed by truck to the area of the road at Glusk to operate in the rear of advancing German troops at

Babruysk Babruysk (, ) or Bobruysk (, ; , ) is a city in Mogilev Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Babruysk District, though it is administratively separated from the district. It is situated on the Berezina, Berezina River. Bab ...

. The main forces of the corps, the 7th and 8th Airborne Brigades, went into action at the beginning of July 1941 at the bend of the

Berezina The Berezina or Byarezina (, ; ) is a river in Belarus and a right tributary of the Dnieper. The river starts in the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve. The length of the Berezina is . The width of the river is 15–20 m, the maximum is 60 m. The ba ...

River in the area of the Berezina and the Svisloch River, and then retreated to the east in the area of

Mahilyow Mogilev (; , ), also transliterated as Mahilyow (, ), is a city in eastern Belarus. It is located on the Dnieper, Dnieper River, about from the Belarus–Russia border, border with Russia's Smolensk Oblast and from Bryansk Oblast. As of 2024, ...

. On and after 8 July, the transports of the 409th Rifle Regiment and the remainder of the 624th Rifle Regiment, part of the 137th Rifle Division, were separated from the forward elements of the division. They were still approaching Krichev and later joined the 7th Airborne Brigade. The brigades were taken out of line for refitting in the rear on 10 July. The renewed German offensive forced the 4th Airborne Corps (7th and 8th Airborne Brigades) to engage in combat at Krichev on 16 July 1941. On July 17 the enemy captured Krichev, and on the night of July 18 secured it completely, crossed the Sozh River and seized a bridgehead. On 19 July the 4th Airborne Corps tried to restore the situation at Krichev. Its operational detachment attacked the city on 29 July but was destroyed on the next day. This led to the German reoccupation of Krichev. In August 1941, as a result of a new attack of the enemy the corps was surrounded, and attempted to break out in the region of

Unecha Unecha (), a town and the administrative center of Unechsky District in Bryansk Oblast, Russia, stands on the Unecha River (within the Dnieper's drainage basin, basin) southwest of Bryansk, the administrative center of the oblast. Population: ...

, Pogar,

Starodub Starodub (, , ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town in Bryansk Oblast, Russia, on the Babinets (river), Babinets River in the Dnieper basin, southwest of Bryansk. Population: 16,000 (1975). History Starodub has been known ...

, and some personnel also made their way out of the encirclement in the area of Trubchevsk. In September 1941, the corps was sent to be reformed beyond the

Volga River The Volga (, ) is the longest river in Europe and the longest endorheic basin river in the world. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Caspian Sea. The Volga has a length of , and a catchment ...

in Povolzhye. In December 1941, after training, it was relocated to the

Kaluga Kaluga (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Kaluga Oblast, Russia. It stands on the Oka River southwest of Moscow. Its population was 337,058 at the 2021 census. Kaluga's most famous residen ...

area, now composed of the 8th, 9th and 214th airborne brigades. On 15 December 1941, to the west of

Klin KLIN (1400 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station broadcasting a talk radio format. It is licensed to Lincoln, Nebraska, and is owned by NRG Media. The studios are in Broadcast House at 44th Street and East O Street ( U.S. Route 34). KLIN i ...

one battalion of the 214th Airborne Brigade (415 personnel) was paradropped to cut the only road at Teryaevo Sloboda and prevent a German retreat to

Volokolamsk Volokolamsk () is a town and the administrative center of Volokolamsky District in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located on the Gorodenka River, not far from its confluence with the Lama River, northwest of Moscow. Population: 25,729 (2024 Estimate ...

. It was decided to airdrop the corps at Ozerechnya village 35 km southwest of

Vyazma Vyazma () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town and the administrative center of Vyazemsky District, Smolensk Oblast, Vyazemsky District in Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Vyazma River, about halfway between Smolensk, the ...

on 15 January 1942. The 8th Airborne Brigade was airlifted, however, due to the overall change in the situation, it was not considered necessary to drop the entire corps, and the remainder of the corps was withdrawn to its original position at

Lyubertsy Lyubertsy (, ) is a city and the administrative center of Lyuberetsky District in Moscow Oblast, Russia. Demographics Population: History It was first mentioned in 1621 and was granted town status in 1925. It is sometimes described as a wo ...

. During the Rzhev-Vyazma operation in 1942, from 18 to 23 February, the corps was dropped behind German lines in the Yukhnov direction 25 kilometers south of Vyazma in the

. 7,373 parachutists and 1,524 bales with ammunition and equipment were dropped. In March 1942, the corps occupied the area of Kluchy, Tynovka, Yurkino, Petrishchevo, Novaya, and Verterhovo station. On the 18 March 1942, in heavy defensive fighting the corps was practically split in two. On 11 April 1942 the corps was subordinated to the 1st Guards Cavalry Corps. The corps operated behind enemy lines in total isolation from the main forces until June 1942, when ordered to break out of the encirclement, which was achieved on 28 June 1942. In August 1942, the corps was re-formed as the 38th Guards Rifle Division. In the second half of 1942, the corps was formed again, but was not involved in the fighting, and in December 1942 was used to form the 1st Guards Airborne Division.

Subordination

* Western Front, front-line submission - on 01/07/1941 (except for the 214th Airborne Brigade) * Western Front, 13th Army - from the beginning of July 1941 *

Volga Military District The Volga Military District (PriVO) was a military district of the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation that existed from 1918 to 1989 and 1992 to 2001. The district headquarters was located at Kazan, Saratov and Kuibyshev (Samara) at differen ...

, the formation, on 01.10.1941 * Stavka reserve - on 01.01.1942 *

Moscow Military District The Order of Lenin Moscow Military District () is a Military districts of Russia, military district of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. Originally it was a district of the Imperial Russian Army until the Russian Empire's collapse in 191 ...

- on 01.04.1942

Composition

*214th Airborne Brigade - The brigade was formed in 1938 in the city of Marina Gorka on the basis of the 47th Special Purpose Airborne Brigade. It participated in the

Soviet invasion of Poland The Soviet invasion of Poland was a military conflict by the Soviet Union without a formal declaration of war. On 17 September 1939, the Soviet Union invaded Second Polish Republic, Poland from the east, 16 days after Nazi Germany invaded Polan ...

, The Winter War and the

Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina Between 28 June and 3 July 1940, the Soviet Union occupied Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina, following an ultimatum made to Romania on 26 June 1940 that threatened the use of force. Those regions, with a total area of and a population of 3,776 ...

. After

Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and several of its European Axis allies starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during World War II. More than 3.8 million Axis troops invaded the western Soviet Union along ...

, it mostly fought in isolation from the main forces. On 28 June 1941, it was attached to the 210th Motorized Division. The brigade was tasked to conduct a motorized raid in the German rear at Staryya Darohi and Glusk. The raid was successful but the brigade was surrounded because of the retreat of the 210th Motorized Division. It was surrounded for two months. In late August, the brigade broke out and joined the 21st Army. It concentrated on the southwestern outskirts of

Mena The Middle East and North Africa (MENA), also referred to as West Asia and North Africa (WANA) or South West Asia and North Africa (SWANA), is a geographic region which comprises the Middle East (also called West Asia) and North Africa together ...

on 28 August. It defended the south bank of the

Desna River The Desna ( Russian and ) is a river in Russia and Ukraine, a major left-tributary of the Dnieper. Its name in means "right hand". It has a length of , and its drainage basin covers .201st Rifle Division. On 1 July it was transferred to defend the crossings over the

Berezina River The Berezina or Byarezina (, ; ) is a river in Belarus and a right tributary of the Dnieper. The river starts in the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve. The length of the Berezina is . The width of the river is 15–20 m, the maximum is 60 m. The ba ...

at Berezino. It arrived on 3 July, but was pushed back from the shore and could not recapture the German brigade. As a result, it was forced to retreat in the direction of the corps. During the reformation it joined the 5th Airborne Corps. *8th Airborne Brigade - The brigade was formed in the spring of 1941 from the line units of 231st Rifle Division. It was moved to the line of the Svichloch River on 30 June and fought the Germans in small groups. It retreated in the direction of the corps. In the period from 27 January 1942 to 1 February 1942, 2,081 paratroopers out of 3,062 in the brigade, 120 light machine guns, 72 antitank guns, 20 82mm mortars and 30 other mortars were dropped behind German lines in the area of Ozerechnya. 76 paratroopers from the 214th Airborne Brigade were also airdropped. However, the drop was not accurate and paratroopers were dispersed on the ground. By 1 February, the rallying point at Androsov was reached by only 746 paratroopers. The rest were either killed, captured or had joined the partisans. For the next seven days, the brigade fought a series of battles and on 7 February linked up with the 41st Cavalry Division and was subordinated to that unit on 12 February. It returned to the control of the 4th Airborne Corps on 7 April. *9th Airborne Brigade - The brigade was formed in the spring of 1941 from the 203rd Rifle Division and was part of the 5th Airborne Corps but after reorganization became part of the 4th Airborne Corps instead of the 7th Airborne Brigade.

Commanders

Source:Zhukov, A.E., Forum at www.soldat.ru
/ref> *

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

Aleksandr Fyodorovich Kazankin (May - June 1941) * Major General Aleksei Semyonovich Zhadov (June - August 1941) * Colonel Aleksandr Fedorovich Kazankin (August - November 1941) * Major General Aleksei Fyodorovich Levashev (November 1941 - February 1942) (died while in a transport aircraft attacked by German fighters) * Major General Aleksandr Fedorovich Kazankin (February - August 1942)

References

Bibliography

*
Справочник на сайте клуба "Память" Воронежского госуниверситета

* ttp://www.ugra.alexandrovi.ru/kraev/vov/kraev1_2.htm Дорогами воздушного десанта
Белорусские хроники, 1941 год. На южном фланге Западного фронта
* Советские воздушно-десантные. Военно-исторический очерк. — Moscow :

Voenizdat Voenizdat () was a publishing house in Moscow, Russia that was one of the first and largest publishing houses in USSR. The name is a Russian abbreviation for Voennoe Izdatelstvo (), meaning "Military Publishing House". Voenizdat was establi ...

, 1986, 2-е изд.
Свердлов Ф. Д., 4-й воздушно-десантный корпус
, Moscow, Монолит, 2002 {{Soviet Union corps Corps of the Soviet Airborne Forces Military units and formations established in 1941 Military units and formations disestablished in 1942 Wikipedia articles needing cleanup after translation from Russian