Sturmgeschutz III ausf B (SdKfz 142) Fords a River

Image size: 1600 x 1014 pixel. 574 KB
Date: Tuesday, 1 July 1941
Place: Soviet Union
Photographer: Unknown

Sturmgeschutz III ausf B (SdKfz 142) fords a river. The thirty StuG III ausf A operational during the Battle of France were successful enough to make changes to the design. The ausf B had 400mm (15.7 inch) tracks and improved the suspension and transmission. The low velocity 75mm (3 inch) KwK 37 L/24 main gun was designed to attack fortifications. 320 StuG III ausf B were built between June 1940 and May 1941. They armed seven Sturmartillerie batteries and four Sturmartillerie Abteilung (Assault Artillery Battalions). The 2nd Sturmartillerie Abteilung fought with StuG III ausf B in Yugoslavia and Greece, and the 6th Sturmartillerie Abteilung fought in Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941.

Source:

http://www.worldwar2database.com/gallery/wwii0166

SS Soldiers Playing with Squirrel

Image size: 1600 x 1165 pixel. 131 KB
Date: January-August 1941
Place: Soviet Union
Photographer: Unknown

Two members of the SS-Division Totenkopf playing around and feeding a squirrel in their spare time. The book "Soldaten - Kämpfer - Kameraden. Marsch und Kämpfe der SS-Totenkopf-Division" volume 1 page 288 by Wolfgang Vopersal mentioned that the officer is SS-Obersturmführer Reinhold Wilhelm August Löw, while the non-commissioned officers who accompanied him is SS-Hauptscharführer Hamke. It also added that the squirrel was a pet of the company which they are assigned (3.Kompanie / SS-Totenkopf-Infanterie-Regiment 2). From the data on Löw we can note that this photo was taken in the period between January 1941 (promotion to SS-Obersturmführer) up to August 1941 (promotion to SS-Hauptsturmführer and Chef 3.Kompanie / SS-Totenkopf-Infanterie-Regiment 3). The Officer that was born on May 30, 1913 in Kubach would fall a few months later (November 28th 1941) at Kirillowschtschina (Russia), just days after being appointed as a Chef of 3.Kompanie / SS-Kradschützen-Bataillon 3


Source:
http://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?f=38&t=193566&p=1894247#p1894247