The Year 1916
On the Southwest Front, German aircraft were especially active bombing Russian troop cantonments at many points, including Liakhovichi, Rovno and Sarny.
In the Black Sea, German submarine U.33 destroyed the Russian minesweeper T.233 by gunfire in the Surmene Bay area. The German cruiser Breslau brought 107 specialists and stores of munitions to reinforce the Turkish front west of Trabizond.
On 4 April, on the Western Front, groups of German aircraft bombed Russian positions south of Dvinsk. German airships were observing areas east of Baranovichi.
At Stavka, Chief of Staff General Alekseev approved plans for operations on the Northern and Western Fronts to begin in mid-May.
In the Baltic Sea, the Germans began mine laying operations between Dago Island and the Stockholm skerries in an effort to prevent the Russian warships from entering the middle and southern Baltic.
On 5 April, on the Western Front, flights of German aircraft bombed the Russians along the Dvina River, and further south hitting General Evert's 4th Army positions in the Baranovichi sector. German air activity was showing an increase in all sectors.
On 6 April, General Brusilov, commander of the Russian Southwest Front, arrived at his HQ at Berdichev. Russian 9th Army commander, General Lechitskiy became ill and was temporarily replaced by General A.M. Krymov.
On 7 April, on the Western Front, there was renewed fighting between Russians and Germans at Lake Naroch, south of Dvinsk. The Russian offensive has been a complete failure. The 2nd Army lost over 70,000 men, the 1st Army over 10,000. Counter-attacks by the German 10th Army had now re-established the front on the original line.
On the Southwest Front, the Tsar visited Kamenets-Podolski to review troops of the 9th Army. On the 8th, enemy aircraft briefly appeared over the town, perhaps to bomb the Tsar, but were beaten off by ground fire with no losses.
On the Caucasian Front, Russian warships, including three seaplane carriers, convoyed 22 transports, which carried flat-bottomed landing craft, which landed 5,000 Cossack infantry on the shore near Rize to reinforce the Russians advancing on Trabizond. The transports could carry 520 men in the hold, another 240 on deck. The troops onboard the Russud type landing craft were embarked on the beach by bow ramps lowered with the help of a pair of bow booms. Some later served with the Danube Flotilla as river gunboats.
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