1. RAILWAY NETWORK CENTERING ON VITEBSK; 2. TROOPS AND MILITARY INSTALLATIONS IN THE VITEBSK

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00457R002300310010-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: November 9, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 30, 1998
• Sequence Number: 10
• Publication Date: February 9, 1949
• Content Type: REPORT

;ATION s ' /GolmOL-Ties pUn"IcIA,I OITLT
Approved For `Rele N ~W[g86 ~C~AAGEi~tCq2-00457 NN qW
I FOR POR ? CD NO.
COUNTRY
SUBJECT
PLACE
ACQUIRED
DATE OF IN
25X1X6
1 Railway Network Centering on Vitebsk
2a Troops and }lilitary Installations in the
Vitebsk Area 25X1A6a
marshalling yard serves all other routes. The passenger station has
10 sidings"
shelling yard serves the route to Orsha and has 18 sidings, The Polot
4, The Orlovak marshalling yard serves the route to Smolensk and has 18
sidings, each 800 meters long. The Si.obin marshalling yard serves
the route to Leningrad and also has 18 sidings. The Leningrad mar-
During the war the marshalling yard suffered revere damage. The
Folotsk marshalling yard,for ezample,could not be restored-to works
order until 1947. There are marshalling yards on the lines leading to
Orlovsk, Slobin (sic), Leningrad, and Polotsk. There are also at the
Vitebsk Junction a passenger station, a warehouse for the handling of
local freight, and a number of loading platforms and sidings.
t2t, bel-Orshae Vitebsk _ Polotske Vitebsk - - en ngr .
of these lines the stations nearest to Vieebsk are as follows:
a. towards Smolensk: Zabolotinka. 11'kiss from Vitobek
b. towards Orsha. Y vedka, 8 kiss from Vitebsk
a. towards Polotskp XiWazhitsa, 10 kune from Vitebsk
d. towards Leningrad: Ohekino (sic ? ), 6 kiss from Vitebsk
25X1A2g
DATE DISTR. 9 Feb 1949
NO. OF PAGES 3
NO. OF ENCLS.
(LISTED BELOW)
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
25X1A2g
y
(UATE:
f
2. Your principal rail lines cross at this Junction: Vitebsk
On p p 5X1A2g
e~
Boulevard in Moscow.
1. The rail network centering on Vitebsk is important not only from an
economic but also from a strategic point of view. Through Vitebsk
pass all communication lines connecting western Russia, White Russia,
and Lithuania. Vitebsk is on the Western Dvina, a natural line of
defense. `there are in the city itself a number of military objectives.
The railway junction of Vitebsk is north-of the city. It is under the
direction of the Office of Western Railways located on Strastnoi
25X1A2g
25X1A2g
The rails used are type 2 a. There are 1,19,0 ties per kilometer. The
Joints between the rails are made of a hard metal. In all there are
360 switches in the Vitebsk station, of which about 300 are electrically
operated. All switches are made by Sitamenw-Ileke.
W C isa Cla
Olaf C~ ;,.,, y ~~7
kpprov d+or R ends 1SN/fl9/09 : CINRDP82-00457R002300310010-5
 Approved For Relea 199.9/09/09 : CIA-RDP82-00457R0023003(I,
6. a. The distinguishing marking of freight locomotives leaving Vitebsk
in any direction Is YD/se which stands for Felix Dserzhinski. Their
limit load per axle is 20 tone (etc).
b. Passenger locomotives are marked J.
Co Locomotives for military transports are marked Shah.
d. Freight trains headed for Polotek are marked U.
e. Shuttle trains are marked OT.
The following types of locomotives are stationed at Vitebekt
40 freight locomotives
30 passenger locomotives
15 shuttle locomotives
40 locomotives for military transports of the series sshaha
$. Locomotives detailed to the Vitebsk yards have two depots and two repair
shops. One of these depots, the White Russian Depot, is located between
the Orlovsk marshalling yard and the Slobinek yards. The Northwest
Depot is north of the Leningrad yards. The White Russian Depot has two
turn tables. The large one, which is electrically operated, services
locomotives which are marked U. Other locomotives are serviced IV the
small turn table.
9.
The following shops are to be found at the Vitebsk yardst
a. steam cleaning shop
b. steam cleaning shop for locomotives
c. shop for small repairs
d. forge
G. mechanical shop
f. tool shop
g,, carpenter's shop
h. boiler shop
1. leather shop
j. automatic brake shop
25X1A2g
25X1A2g
25X1A2g
M Only a small proportion of the machines and equipment in these shops
is of Soviet origin. Most of the machinery here was brought 'tack from
(ermaxy after the war. For example. those machines which are u.ned in
repairing the wheels of the cars are from the Schwarzkopff plant.
Other m inery comes from Orenstein and Koppel. The Diesel motors of
electric station are of the-Sulzer system and come from the #SG works
in Berlin. One shop of the depot has air compressors for testing auto-
matic brakes.
11. The Northwest Depot can accommodate 12 locomotives. This depot has a
small repair shop. Many locomotives for suburban lines are located
here. All of those were made in Germany 1g MR.
12. There are 2,500 employees at the Vitebsk yard. The daily traffic is
eatiwated at 3,000 care a day. Three hundred cars are loaded or um-
loaded daily. Between 36 and 38 freight trains and about 16 passenger
trains pass throw the marshalling yard each day. The average load
of a freight train is 2,000 tons.
13. The water supply for the Vitebsk yard comes from the Western Dvina.
The various installations which provide this water are protected atgaine
air attack. Among these installations are,*
a. a now water works on the edge of the city
b. the "Winni Tupik" water works
a. the 5Slobinsk Bridge" water works
Approved For Release 1 999/0 fl -00457R002300310010-5
 Approved- For Release
GA ' 0 i RO02300310 25X1 A2g
"GSM AGENCY
14. The new water works is two laiomehter the Vitebsk rail yards. It
to underground in
a reinforced concrete bunker. It has three Diesel
motors and three ultra modern pumps.
15. The two other water works have old pumps and are served by 5Leschanell
steam engines
There
th
.
are
ree water reservoirs, one of which, locate
at the "Jurewa Gorka" platform, is 10 meters deep.
16. The locomotives are supplied with water by means of hydraulic presses
of six to eight horsepower (t).
17. There are two steel bridges, the Smolensk and the Slobinsk, the former
with six and the latter with five arches. The two viaducts are called
Polotsk and. Yelagsk (sic)? The latter has great strategic importance.
If it were blown up, all the major (rail) lines would be out.
18. Military transports are all made up at the Polotsk marahallin
yard-
Here are located the 40 locomotives of the a$heh" series. There are six
hospital trains on the br
h li
anc
nes. Along the main line there is a
loading platform which uses the "Gineyev" ayetem. For the loading of
artillery and armored vehicles there is a special stone platform, Hilit
Platform No, 15, which is 410 meters long.
19. A reinforced concrete bunker, 10 meters underground, houses a command
center which is intended to direct 'rail traffic in the event of air
attack. This bunker has telephonic and telegraphic communications.
Each central post Oommen?s Probably fire direction center)
has a splinter-proo shelter. .?
20. The direction of the Vitebsk marshalling yard is in the hands of
the followin
s
g
Traffic Control Chief
Chief of Freight Transport
Chief of the Track Maintenance Section
Chief of the Switching Section
Chief of the Railway Car Services Section
Chief of the Equipment Section
Station Master
25X1A2g
Chief of the Locomotive Depot 25X1A2g
21. Representatives of the MGB are attached to this station.
the headquarters of the sixth military sport' $erQ also Is
also directs traffic on the WesternDviKomendaturaA which
22. This railroad station serves the following military objectives in or
near Vitebsks
a, An airfield for torpedo bombers at Milometer 519 on the line
Vitebsk ? Smolensk.
b. The Fifth Railway Regiment at Milometer 313 on the line
Vitebsk Polotak.
25X1A6a c. The 81st Regiment of Mountain Troops at Vitebsk.
d. The 6th Regiment of the 2nd White Ruthenian Division.
e? Xun?areshno drill ground, near Vitebsk, capas,?ity estimated
to be one division.
N'~CIALS ONLY
Approved For Release 1999/09/09 : CIA-RDP82-00457R002300310010-5