Overture
D+1 | 21 July 1989, 02:00hrs - 06:00hrs vs @ Forchheim
The HQ of the US 1st Armored Division was a hive of activity overnight. The division was the focal point around which several other formations critical for NATO's defense rotated. To the northwest, the US 3rd Infantry Division was one of the formations struggling to contain the major push towards Frankfurt by the combined Soviet and East-German forces. To the north, elements of the division and of the West-German 10th Panzer Brigade tried to contain the Soviet 39th Motor Rifle Division.
To the northeast, on the Hof Corridor, elements of the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment had a reasonably quiet first day, but deep reconnaissance revealed that the East German panzers were about to arrive. To the east, the remainder of the West-German 10th Panzer Brigade was fighting for its life against two Czechoslovakian divisions. In the center of all this, the 1st Armored Division had so far kept in check any attempts at exploitation in depth by the Soviet 39th Motor Rifle Division.
Overnight, the 39th Motor Rifle Division had been busy. Because they were attacking at the junction between several forces, the battlefield chaos of the first hours allowed them to create multiple 'bridgeheads' between the formations opposing them. Not only that, but a particularly aggressive approach of sending groups forward in an attempt to get a breakthrough had reaped dividends. One of those groups succeeded in opening up a route that led straight to the heart of the area's defenses, Forcheim. Despite all seeming optimistic, the Divisional Commander of the 39th was also having his fair share of headaches. The aggressive use of the division's BMP-based regiments left them engaged with US and West German forces and with no possibility of a quick disengagement. The fact that the division was committed in several axes meant that its resources were stretched, and the exploitation opportunity that now presented itself was turning into an all-or-nothing breakthrough effort. The Divisional Commander had resisted his subordinate pleas for commitment of the division's powerful armored regiment. He was well aware he would be squandering, in a piecemeal fashion, his most potent asset. The time had now come for its commitment.
Forcheim is a communication hub in the area, sitting on the main road between Bamberg and Nürnberg. Its strategic significance had not gone unnoticed by either side. It was defended by elements of the 2nd Bde of the 1st Armored Division, with support from divisional assets. The Soviets had no interest in taking the town for now. They were seeking to bypass and isolate it. If not for anything, the fact that the main north-south autobahn (73) was clogged with refugees trying to enter Forcheim and then being led away from Forcheim was enough to dissuade them from trying to use it. The local NATO commanders were well aware from intel reports of what was coming their way. Reacting to it immediately was an altogether different matter.
Scenario by Jo Lima | Map by William van der Sterren