Liveblogging World War II: October 27, 1942
WWII+55:
6th Army also sends back its 150,000 draft horses, as well as oxen and camels, back to the rear, to save on fodder. Motor transport and repair units are also sent back behind the Don.
Operation Uranus in Detail:
XXXXVIII Panzer Corps [commanded by] General Heim [in reserve behind the junction of 6th Army and 3rd Romanian Army]… the German 22. Panzerdivision, the Romanian 1st Armoured Division and the armoured combat group of 14. Panzerdivision…. The 22. Panzerdivision [was to find] the majority of their tanks… immobilized…. [M]ice, which had nested in the covering straw on the engine decks, had chewed through the rubber parts of the electrical systems. This problem was not discovered beforehand because the 22. Panzerdivision hadn’t received enough gas to perform even basic maintenance checks. Inquiries and complaints about the supply situation sent by the panzer crews and commanders were totally ignored…
The Nazi 6th Army throws away all of its operational and strategic maneuverability. Its soldiers are now trapped and dead, although they do not know it yet.
