Page 182 - The Chief Culprit

e Winter War: Finland y 143

Let us imagine preparations for the shelling of this pillbox. First of all, it must be
located—this costs many human lives. en one has to approach the pillbox through mine-
fields and other obstacles. is also costs many human lives. en, under constant fire from
the pillbox, one must calculate and prepare positions for one’s arms, and then secure them
in these positions. e 203-mm howitzer weighs 17.7 tons in battle-ready position, and
19 tons in travel-ready position. e 280-mm mortar gun weighs 18.4 tons and 19.7 tons,
respectively. ey must be taken apart and towed by tractors on the small country roads and
roadless terrain, since the pillbox is never located on a major road. During the transportation,
the assembly process, and the positioning, these giants are extremely vulnerable. en it is
necessary to bring in the shells. e net weight of the ammunition used to shell one pillbox
#0031 was 132,836 kilograms. But the shells are stored in secure wooden crates, which create
additional weight. Boxes weighing 200 to 300 kg must be loaded onto trucks and brought
to the firing positions on narrow dirt roads. Here, they must be unloaded. And this is only
the shells. ere are also the charges. Several tens of kilograms of gunpowder are needed in
order to push a shell of such mass from the barrel. In a weapon of such caliber the charges are
separate, and instead of cartridges one must use powder bags—silk sacks full of gunpowder
that catch flame when used. Several tens of tons of gunpowder in silk bags constitute a very
capricious and extremely dangerous cargo. Transportation and storage of this cargo is a very
delicate, labor-intensive, and risky occupation.
If during the shelling of the pillbox #0031 the 203-mm howitzer fired one shot every
two minutes, then for 1,043 shots they needed 2,086 minutes, or almost thirty-five hours.
10
But firing constantly without breaks is impossible. One can only shoot during daylight, or it
is impossible to correctly direct the fire. But perhaps the pillbox #0031 was under fire from
an entire battery, not just a lonely howitzer? ese weapons are so huge and cumbersome that
one battery only has two of them. One battalion has three batteries—six howitzers. If the
shelling comes indeed from a battery or from an entire artillery battalion the time needed to
take down the pillbox diminishes. But then other difficulties appear: it is one thing to set up
one howitzer in a good firing position, a whole different story if one needs to set up two, or
six. Plus, the 280-mm mortar guns are nearby and firing away. It becomes very simple for the
enemy to detect the firing positions of these giant weapons. ese monsters, when in firing
position, are extremely vulnerable to all fire.
Furthermore, the barrel of the 203-mm howitzer weighs five tons. At the moment it
fires, a giant shell instantly accelerates to a speed of 607 meters per second. e barrel un-
dergoes tremendous heat and dynamic stress. It can quickly overheat, to the point that all
firing needs to be stopped. Additionally, the barrel wears out quickly and often needs to be
replaced. All this is involved in shelling just one pill-box #0031.
e shelling of Finnish pillboxes was not always as successful as the case described here.
Against the pillbox #0011, the Soviets unleashed 1,322 shells from 203-mm howitzers and
280-mm mortars—almost two hundred tons. e pillbox was partially damaged, but even
after this it continued to resist. Sometimes, at the cost of much blood, Soviet combat engi-
neers crawling under crossfire made their way to the Finnish pillboxes and attempted to blow
them up. ey discovered that a charge carrying 5,500 kg of explosives was not sufficient for
blowing up a pillbox. 11
From April 14 to April 17, 1940, in Stalin’s presence, the Kremlin assembled a council
of the supreme command staff to discuss the events of the Winter War and share opinions. It