I had absolutely no idea!

Any old Russian woman (I mostly know Russians, not many from other Soviet states) will tell of the shortage of men. I never heard of the women on the front lines, I'll ask about that. I'm afraid we don't have much time to learn these things any more.

This is not something that I have studied (thus the “I think”), but Stalin did “meat wave” attacks, long before Putin. It worked, but at terrible cost. I think he grabbed everyone he could, but mostly men, I would imagine. Maybe women volunteered, but weren't drafted. I do know they had them in the frontlines. You actually see them, in old footage.

I do know that he had women combat pilots. I think there was a movie, made about that.