November 1942

Eastern Front

Soviet forces around the Rzhev salient prepare to begin Operation Mars. The Stavka has assembled a considerable force around the periphery of the salient in an effort to isolate and destroy the German armies. The 20th, 41st, 22nd and 39th Armies are all to play a prominent role in the attack while the 3rd Shock Army of the Kalinin Front face Velikiye Luki. Zhukov's plan calls for the 22nd Army to attack south of Nelidovo along with the 41st Army to its right. These armies are to link up with the 31st and 20th Armies that will push west between Zubtsov and Sychevka. Once joined, they are to push south and link up with the 33rd, 3rd Tank and 5th Armies as they attack from the west of Vyazma.

The German 9th Army is placed on alert as it is expecting the attack. Model's force comprises the XXXIX Panzer Corps along the Vazuza and Osuga Rivers with three infantry and one panzer division with a further panzer division in reserve, XXVII Corps west of Rzhev with six infantry divisions and 14th Motorized Division, XXIII Corps between Olenino and Rzhev with three infantry divisions and the Grossdeutschland Motorized Division in reserve and the XLI Panzer Corps southwest of Belyi with the 2nd Luftwaffe Field and two infantry divisions. The 1st Panzer Division is held in army reserve and three more panzer divisions in Army Group reserve.

At Velikiye Luki Group von der Chevallerie comprise the LIX Corps, 2nd Luftwaffe Corps and VI Corps. The LIX holds Velikiye Luki itself while the 2nd Luftwaffe Corps, with two divisions, and VI Corps with two infantry divisions and a Luftwaffe division, hold the long line from the Rzhev salient fo Velikiye Luki.

Paulus struggles to erect a coherent perimeter around Stalingrad, redeploying to cover the exposed western approaches. The XI Corps deploys to the north, to the northwest is VIII Corps, to the southwest is XIV Panzer Corps, while on the southern face, stretching into the southern suburbs of Stalingrad is the IV Corps. Along the eastern face of the pocket, entrenched inside Stalingrad, is the LI Corps. There is fierce fighting around this perimeter for the next week as Vasilevsky attempts to reduce the pocket.

At Hitler's headquarters an equally fierce battle to free the the 6th Army continues. Göring steps into the fray by assuring Hitler that the Luftwaffe can keep 6th Army supplied. Göring maintains that the Luftwaffe, having supplied Demyansk in the winter of '41, will supply the 6th Army. With this assurance, Hitler orders Paulus to stand fast and await relief. Zeitzler protests vehemently, denouncing Göring's assurance as nothing more than a lie. Even Richtofen, commanding the 4th Air Fleet, believes it will be impossible to supply 6th Army fully. With a minimum daily requirement of 750 tons (380 tons of food, 250 tons of ammunition and 120 tons of fuel), the task presented to it is beyond the capability of the entire Luftwaffe transport fleet, let alone those aircraft available locally. A Luftwaffe estimate states that the 6th Army will survive on just 350 tons per day, but with just 298 aircraft 4th Air Fleet is unable to meet even this drastically reduced requirement. Despite all this, at 0830 Hitler sends an order to Paulus, ordering him to hold on to Stalingrad and await relief.