These are Soviet rifle and SMG platoon organisations that I have made with the help of the now dead website Bayonet Strength, which I have accessed via the Wayback Machine. Just like TFL seems to do I have ignored runners and/or orderlies in the platoon HQs. If the platoon HQ has two officers (one commisioned and one non commisioned like a platoon sergeant) the junior one is treated as a Inferior Senior Leader like in the Barbarossa list from TFL. Rifle platoons of the Rifle BattalionApril 1941This is the Rifle platoon at the outbreak of the Great Patriotic War. It should be similiar to the official one from TFL. Force rating +4 Senior Leader with Pistol Inferior Senior Leader with SMG 50mm Mortar Team 4 crew Sections 1-4 Junior Leader with SMG DP-28, 2 crew 5 Riflemen 1 Rifle grenadier 2 Men with SMGs July 1941Force rating +1 Manpower shortages caused by Operation Barbarossa causes a reorganisation of Soviet rifle battalions, the rifle platoon loses it's integral mortar and half of it's machine guns together with the rifleman issued SMGs. Senior Leader with Pistol Inferior Senior Leader with SMG Sections 1-2 Junior Leader with SMG DP-28, 2 crew 8 Riflemen Section 3-4 Junior Leader with SMG 10 Riflemen December 1941Force rating +0 The reductions in 1941 were only a temporary measure and in late 1941 or early 1942 the rifle battalions are reinforced and restructured once again. The rifle platoon loses it's 4th squad, but enough DP-28 LMGs are found for the three remaining squads. It also gains an integral AT-rifle. Senior Leader with Pistol Inferior Senior Leader with SMG AT-Rifle Team, 2 crew Sections 1-3 Junior Leader with SMG DP-28, 2 crew 8 Riflemen July 1942Force rating +2 The new structure doesn't last long and the rifle platoon regains it's 4th squad, but it isn't issued a LMG. The platoon also gains two sniper rifles. I'm unsure here exactly how these sniper rifles should be translated into Chain of Command. Reading on iremember.ru I get the impression that Soviet snipers operate in pairs of two but that both members get a rifle and that they operate independently of each other. Each taking a shot each and then relocating. I think it could be argued that this could be represented as either one or two Sniper Teams, . Senior Leader with Pistol Inferior Senior Leader with SMG Sniper Team (Force rating +1) Sniper Team (Force rating +2) Sections 1-3 Junior Leader with SMG DP-28, 2 crew 6 Riflemen Section 4 Junior Leader with SMG 8 Riflemen December 1942 - 1945Force rating +4 In late 1942 LMG are available in larger quantities. To compensate for only having them in few numbers previously now two squads in each platoon are issued with two DP-28s. This remains a structure used for rifle platoons until the end of the war, but manpower shortages cause many rifle battalions to be reorganized at reduced strength with another TO&O. Senior Leader with Pistol Inferior Senior Leader with SMG Sniper Team (Force rating +3) Sniper Team (Force rating +4) Sections 1-2 Junior Leader with SMG DP-28, 2 crew DP-28, 2 crew 4 Riflemen Section 3-4 Junior Leader with SMG DP-28, 2 crew 6 Riflemen Platoons of the Reduced Rifle BattalionRifle platoon of middle 1943Force rating -3 In the later half of 1943 the manpower shortages lead to a new organizational table being issued to rifle battalions unable to maintain the organization of late 1942. In the reduced strength battalion the rifle platoons lose their 4th squad and the platoon HQ is reduced to a single officer. Senior Leader with Pistol Sections 1-3 Junior Leader with SMG DP-28, 2 crew 8 Riflemen SMG platoon of middle 1943In 1943 one platoon of the three in each Rifle Company was equipped with SMG instead of rifles. It's unclear if they retained their DP-28 LMGs, and it seems in some cases only one section per platoon was issued SMGs. So here are lists for all three options. Force rating +0 Senior Leader with SMG Sections 1-3 Junior Leader with SMG 9 Men with SMGs Force rating +0 Senior Leader with SMG Sections 1-3 Junior Leader with SMG DP-28, 2 crew 6 Men armed with SMGs Force rating -2 Senior Leader with Pistol Section 1-2 Junior Leader with SMG DP-28, 2 crew 7 Riflemen Section 3 Junior Leader with SMG 9 Men with SMGs Rifle platoon of the Motor Rifle Battalion1941-1942Force rating -2 This platoon was later reinforced with a sniper, but this platoon structure was short lived. In 1943 all Rifle Companies in the Motor Battalions become SMG Companies instead. Senior Leader with Pistol Inferior Senior Leader with SMG AT-Rifle Team, 2 crew Sniper Team (Force rating -1) Sections 1-3 Junior Leader with SMG DP-28, 2 crew 5 Riflemen SMG platoons of the Motor Rifle BattalionTank riders, tankodesantniki a word made up of three languages what's not to love? 1941-1943Force rating -3 Senior Leader with SMG Sections 1-3 Junior Leader with SMG 7 Men with SMGs 1942-1945Force rating +0 Senior Leader with SMG Sections 1-3 Junior Leader with SMG 9 Men with SMGs Or each section can have a LMG, but this doesn't change the force rating. Senior Leader with SMG Sections 1-3 Junior Leader with SMG DP-28, 2 crew 6 Men armed with SMGs Referenceshttp://www.bayonetstrength.150m.com accessed through the Wayback Machine
Some forum post I have since misplaced, some dates came from those. But mostly they were used to verify the numbers from Bayonet Strength.
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