Air Operations, Europe

• 15 Wellingtons lay mines off Brest, Lorient and St Nazaire without a loss.

Air Operations, New Guinea

• 43rd Heavy Bomb Group B-17s and 90th Heavy Bomb Group B-24s attack Japanese warships and transports off Madang and in Huon Gulf
• V Bomber Command B-25s attack the airfield at Lae.
• B-25s and A-20s support an Australian Army ground attack against Buna Mission.

Air Operations, Solomons

• AirSoPac B-17s and 339th Fighter Squadron P-38s attack two cargo ships at Kahili, Bougainville.
• 339th Fighter Squadron P-38s down 2 F1M 'Pete' reconnaissance planes over Tonolei Harbor during the afternoon.

Air Operations, Tunisia

12th Air Force A-20s, escorted by 33rd Fighter Group P-40s, attack the marshalling yard at Sfax, and a P-40 pilot downs a Ju-88 near Sfax.

Eastern Front

The Soviets coming from the middle course of the Don take Kontemirovka, cutting the Voronezh-Rostov railway line north of Millerovo. The retreat of the remnants of the Italian 8th Army, hopelessly ill-equipped to withstand the rigors of a Russian winter, becomes a rout. Owing to the success of this attack, von Paulus is ordered by von Manstein to attempt a breakout immediately, but he refuses. The chief of staff of 6th Army, Gen Schmidt, an ardent Nazi, is instrumental in bringing about this decision. Gen Hoth's attacks to relieve the city are gradually making less and less ground. They are now being held near the Myshkova River.

LITTLE SATURN continues to make progress, with the Italian 8th Army on the verge of collapse. 15,000 Italians are surrounded at Vertyakhovski. The Romanian I Corps on Hollidt's left flank has collapsed, endangering the rear of the Chir line and Army Group Don. The 11th Panzer Div continues to fend off Soviet attacks, knocking out large numbers of Red Army tanks at Nizhne Kalinovski. Hoth's 6th Panzer Div reaches the Myshkova River, 30 miles from the 6th Army. Manstein signals the codeword THUNDERCLAP, ordering Paulus to break out and ling up with his force. Hitler, however, orders Paulus to stand firm.

The 15th Panzer Regt, 11th Panzer Div, attacks a force of Soviet tanks of the 5th Tank Army in the rear 5 miles south of Oblivskaya, south of the Chir. In the engagement the Germans destroy 65 Red Army tanks.

Soviet tank tactics are still poor, the formation going into battle without coordination, and without the cooperatoin of numerous infantry divisions.[MORE]

Guadalcanal

After air and artillery preparations, the 3rd Battalion, 132nd Infantry, attemps unsuccessfully to advance from Hill 35. The CO of the 3rd Battalion is killed by enemy fire. The reserve battalion, the 1st, 132nd Infantry, less one company, advances to positions east of the 3rd Battalion.

Mediterranean

The British corvette Snapdragon is sunk by German bombing in the Central Mediterranean with the loss of 23 of her crew.

New Guinea

The Australians attack again in the Sanananda sector. Some enemy positions are captured, while the units on the left flank of the action approach the road-block on the Soputa track. They meet enemy units about 300 yards from the block itself, cause them to retreat and establish a new entrenched perimeter in the area called Kano. Other troops attack the 'Triangle', but suffer heavy losses.

North Africa

Maj-Gen Dan Pienaar, GOC South African Div in Libya and leader of the victorious South African troops during the East African campaign, is killed while flying home. His aircraft crashed in Lake Victoria, East Africa. He was 49.