17 February 1940 - DAY 80 of Winter War
Heavy fighting continues on the Karelian Isthmus.
The enemy manages to break the defensive line in
Postilampi near Kämärä station.
The outnumbered Finnish troops are fighting enemy tanks on the open snow without anti-tank guns.
The Finns are forced to retreat.
The Soviet attack grinds to a halt at the
intermediary defensive positions.
The Russians make strenuous efforts to take
Suursaari island in Lake Muolaanjärvi.
The attempt fails.
Ladoga Karelia: in recognition of his prowess in the fighting on the
River Kollaanjoki, Corporal Simo Häyhä is awarded a Sako target rifle donated by a Swedish sympathiser, Eugen Johansson.
Häyhä has shot dead 219 enemy soldiers with his open-sight 'pystykorva' rifle, and approximately the same number again with a submachine gun and a rapid-fire rifle. His most successful tally for a single day has been 25 dead.
Häyhä has previously been awarded the Medal of Liberty, a pocket watch and woollen gloves.
Commander-in-Chief Mannerheim addresses an appeal to his officers: "The whole future of our people hangs in the balance. Only our loyalty and endurance can save the day. I am sure every officer will do his duty."
Northern Finland: Soviet troops in
Kuhmo launch a new assault on the Kuusijoki line in an effort to free the trapped 54th Division.
Gulf of Bothnia: a road is opened across the frozen sea between Vaasa and Umeå in Sweden.
Iisalmi suffers heavy enemy bombing. 41 people are killed in a direct hit on a bomb shelter.
130 enemy aircraft bomb Viipuri.
158 American Finnish volunteers arrive in Oulu.
An exhibition of captured war materiel opens in Helsinki Exhibition Hall. Proceeds from the exhibition are to be used to help the needy relatives of soldiers fallen in the war.
Visitors to the exhibition can keep abreast of the latest figures from the front. There are, for example, two boards presenting the numbers of enemy aircraft shot down and tanks destroyed since the start of the war.
Today's figures are 387 aircraft and 1,050 tanks.
Abroad: the Swedish press strongly criticizes Prime Minister Hansson and the Swedish Government's decision not to help Finland.
The Swedish Prime Minister's negative reply to Finland is received with satisfaction in Moscow. The Soviet leadership believes Finland's fate has now been finally sealed.
The British and French press believe Sweden will come to regret the decision.
In Geneva, Miss Sophie Mannerheim delivers a hugely popular lecture on her father and the war.
(Click for larger photo)
Simo Häyhä receiving a SAKO rifle from Colonel Svensson.
Daily Finnish Losses: 257