[4] The division was withdrawn for rebuilding in December, then sent to the Southwestern Front where it fought in the Voroshilovgrad Offensive with the 1st Guards Army.
From late February to 29 August, as part of the 3rd Guards Army, it defended positions on the left bank of the Seversky Donets in the area of Privolnoye.
The division approached the main defensive line at Zaporozhye on 20 September and in October, as part of the 33rd Rifle Corps of the 8th Guards Army, fought in the Zaporizhia Offensive.
For its "courage and valor" displayed during the capture of Ploiești during the Second Jassy–Kishinev Offensive, the division was awarded the Order of Suvorov, 2nd class, on 15 September.
[6] From 21 February, the 78th, with the 35th Guards Rifle Corps of the 27th Army of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, fought in the Balaton Defensive Operation and the Vienna Offensive.
After capturing Fürstenberg, south of Vienna, on 16 April, Mikhailov came under German machine gun fire while conducting a reconnaissance and was severely wounded.
[4] Mikhailov was replaced on 17 April by Tatar Colonel Garif Volodkin, who commanded the division for the rest of the war.