By December 1942, the Soviets had surrounded the German 6th Army in
Stalingrad, cutting off all lines of supply except through the air.
Seeking to sever this last German lifeline, Soviet Command decided to
launch a raid with the entire 24th Tank Corps to seize the airfield at
Tatsinskaya, the primary operating base for the German airlift
efforts. On 17 December, the 24th Tank Corps advanced toward
Tatsinskaya, seizing the airfield on Christmas Eve. The Soviet tankers
succeeded in destroying many Luftwaffe aircraft on the ground, but
afterwards found themselves isolated and out of fuel behind the German
lines. Generalfeldmarschall Erich von Manstein rapidly organized a
counterattack with elements of two panzer divisions, crushing most of
the raiding force between 26 and 28 December. Just before the raiding
force was annihilated, it received permission to abandon its heavy
equipment and escape back to Soviet lines on foot. Thus, the raiders
accomplished their mission of severely disrupting the airlift to
Stalingrad, but at the cost of an entire tank corps.
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Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9781849085878
Publisert
2020
Utgave
1. utgave
Utgiver
Vendor
Osprey Publishing
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Digital bok
Forfatter