ARTILLERY STRIKE, PART I

(History of the Hanko Group, T-22005, Military Archives of Finland)

August 1941 to September 1941

- The section artillery had been already earlier used simultaneously again enemy targets when it was operating under one single fire control. Then in August/September while undersigned was deputy artillery commander, the artillery commander of Hanko Group gave an order to plan a artillery strike with all of the guns. The use of all of the guns was tied to a tactical mission, which would be carried out in an attack. Because the equipment was slow, two minutes was reserved to each of the artillery strikes.

Captain T. Louhivuori

- Few of the larger dugout remains are now full of water and easy to recognize from the area.

- Not much is completed from the structure 233, mainly trenches and dugouts.

- Trench lines still remain, after all these years.

- Trench line leading to a fire position.

- Position for a single man.

- Another large dugout remains, which has been build right next to a rock. This dugout is connected to the trench line, which are all facing either towards the isthmus or towards the main road in the area.

- Behind the most heavily fortified area, there is few smaller dugout remains.

- The same remains as in the previous picture.

- Intersection in the trench line.

- A possible machine gun position. The pit is opening towards the direction from where the possible attack would have come.

- This most likely is the place, which the description from 1955 mentions as partly mined. This is the only place in the area, which clearly has been mined, as large stones still remain at the bottom of the quarry. This would have later become the structure 233 if the Russians had stayed any longer in Hanko. Machine gun and gun bunker with observation cupola was planned to this location.

- The stones from the mining job still lie at the bottom of the construction.

- Trenches in the western part of the area, offering a good view to the main road in the area.

- Dugout remains in the western part of the area.