Flemish Sergeant Remy Sritzen served in the Flemish SS Legion. He was a team leader in the 5th Anti-Tank Company. On New Year's Eve 1944 his unit, under the SS Panzer Grenadier Division "Das Reich", was deployed in the Zhytomyr area, facing the forces of Field Marshal Vatunin's 1st Ukrainian Front. The Flemish legion was now renamed the "Langemarck" Assault Brigade.
"I hear Remy tanks," a cell leader told Sridzen. "It's a T-34, Jan," he replied, peering through the A/T gunner's scope, trying to make out something. He saw the first enemy tank moving. “Here they come, sir,” he shouted to his company commander, Captain Knorr. He raised his binoculars and immediately shouted:"Alarm! All ready".
Srijen began counting the enemy tanks. But after the 25th, he got tired of counting. There were so many! The T-34 covered at a speed of 1,800 m. roughly separating them from the Flemish positions. The company had just been equipped with the 75mm RAK 40 A/T guns and everyone was waiting to see them in action. “Well Remy, I guess we'll soon find out how good weapons they are,” Yann told him.
Shrigen let the advancing enemy tank close to 200m. watching it from the gunner's scope. The Soviet tank passed a ledge, stopped and fired its cannon.
The Soviet tank's round narrowly missed Shrezen's gun, which soon returned fire. The RAK 40's armor-piercing round hit the T-34 between the turret and the hull, causing the turret to lurch into the air, before fall back to the ground, with a wave.
Sridzen and his men had no time to revel in their success, however, as the remaining T-34s opened fire on them en masse. A second missile missed them, as the enemy tank moved at the last moment and firing back with its cannon, nearly knocking out Shrigen's cannon.
Shrapnel from the Russian missile hit his helmet as Srijen became one with the ground to escape death. Another Russian shell exploded next to them. Shrigen felt a pain in his right shoulder, but he could move his arm. So he stuck his right eye in the cannon sight and fired again, while one of his cannon servants was mortally wounded. The Soviet tanks continued to approach, firing continuously with their cannons and machine guns.
Srijen took aim with precision. His missile hit a T-34 attempting to climb a ground bulge in the "belly" and blew it up. Burning, those of the crew who were still alive try to escape from the burning chariot.
Immediately four T-34s turned on Sridzen's gun. Soviet tank shells were exploding around them, seriously wounding another of the gunner's servants, as well as Shreezen, a second time. Suddenly he saw Soviet infantry approaching. Srijen grabbed his submachine gun and fired a full magazine at the attackers, knocking out most of them.
A Soviet, however, before he fell, managed to stick his bayonet in Sridzen's larynx, a few centimeters from the trachea. But after a cursory dressing, the sergeant resumed his duties by destroying a third T-34.
When the Soviet attack was repulsed, in the end, there were 19 burning T-34 tank carcasses in front of the Flemish position. It was a small, only conflict, a local episode in the battle of the chariot and its wars.