"In some sectors German forces broke through the sírong frontier fortifications on the very first day. Violent Russfan counter-attacks col lapsed and the enemy suffered very heavy losses, The Luftwaffe took a meritorious part, Formations hurled themselves upon the enemy, und despite the enemy's numerical superiority attained supremacy in the air in the east on the first day. In aerial combat 322 Red planes were shot down by fighters and anti-aircraft fire. Together with machines destroyed on the ground, the Russian air force lost a total of 1,811 planes on June 22. German losses on this day were 35," it adds.
The next section of the communique, dealing with events on June 28, states:—"The enemy carried out frenzied counter-attacks against the head of our attacking column, In this trial of strength the German soldier remained the victor, All Russian thrusts were repulsed, some being broken in bloody hand-to-hand fighting, The fortress of Grodno was taken after a hard aight, "By the evening of June 23, the number of Soviet planes destroyed had increased to 2,582,"
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.