Captain Sergei Aleksandrovich Kalyubin joined the Red Army as an enlisted man in the summer of 1942, shortly after his 18th birthday. Becoming a driver-mechanic of a T-34 tank, he was sent to the 1st Tank Battalion of the 18th Tank Brigade, arriving on the Front in September 1942.
The 18th distinguished itself in battle during the Rzhev-Sychevka Operation through the fall of 1942, and was formed into the 42nd Guards Tank Brigade. The 1st Battalion consisted of 7 KV tanks, and 11 T-34's, of which one was Kalyubin's tank.
Gearing up for the Smolensk Operation in July and August 1943, the unit was formed into a 'Mobile Group', made for a deep thrust far into the German lines. With the start of the offensive on 7 August 1943, the 42nd attempted a deep penetration along the Moscow-Minsk highway.
In only three days of advance, the brigade lost 176 men and 70% of it's tanks! On 13 August, Sergeant Kalyubin was wounded himself.
Withdrawn from the action, it was reformed and became an independent support unit within the 2nd Belorussian Front, pushing through Belarus and the southern Baltics. On 24 November 1943, Senior Sergant Kalubin, now having been transferred to the 2nd Battalion as a driver of a T-60 tank, was awarded his first award, the medal "For Valor":
"During the military operations of the Battalion from 14 to 17 November 1943, working as a mechanic-driver on a T-60 tank, while under strong enemy artillery and mortar fire, he delivered uninterrupted fuel and ammunition to the tanks on the battlefield. At the same time, he maintained communication from the forward tanks to the command point. During that period, he evacuated 14 wounded from the battlefield on his tank..."
His next award, the Order of the Red Star, came in March 1944:
"Participating in the offensive battles of the Battalion during the breaking of the strong protecting lines of the enemy's defenses on 6 March 1944 in the region of Luban, he displayed heroism and courage.
"During the battles, by his fire and the tracks of his tank, he destroyed: one anti-tank gun, ___ wagons with ammunition, one anti-tank rifle and 15 enemy soldiers and officers.
"Being wounded, he continued to support our advancing infantry by the fire from his tank. Only after completing his mission did he go to the hospital.
"For boldness and valor displayed in battle, he deserves the Order of the Red Star."
His final award of the War, a second Order of the Red Star, came on 11 August 1944:
"Participating in the Battalion's defensive battles from 21 July 1944 in the region of the areas of Indura and Kyznetsa, Comrade Kalyubin proved himself to be brave, bold and decisive. He skillfully maneuvered his tank to burst into Kyznetsa and continued to pursue the withdrawing enemy, destroying them by the fire of his main gun, machine gun, and by the tracks of his tank.
"During these battles, Comrade Kalyubin, with his crew, destroyed one anti-tank gun, three machine-gun points, two cars with supplies, and up to 24 soldiers and officers of the enemy.
"For excellently carrying out the missions of the commander and for displaying boldness and valor, Comrade Kalyubin deserves the State Award, Order of the Red Star".
He finished the War as the driver of an IS-II
tank, near Prague with the 38th Army. Additional
photos of Kalubin's Group
