Stalingrad - Operation Koltso 10 January to 2 February 1943

1943-01-10/1943-02-02

Operation Koltso (Operation Ring) was the last part of the Battle of Stalingrad. It resulted in the capitulation of the remaining Axis forces encircled in the city. The operation was launched on 10 January 1943 with a mass artillery bombardment of the German positions outside the city[6][7] by the seven encircling Soviet armies. On the 10th, it became clear the main goal was the Pitomnik airfield. "The 44th, 76th and 28th (Motorised) Infantry Divisions were badly hit." The 3rd (Motorised) Infantry Division, deployed on the southwestern corner of the cauldron since the end of Nov. 1942, was ordered to retreat to new defensive positions to avoid encirclement. In the first three days, the Soviets lost 26,000 men and over half their tanks. The western half of the Stalingrad pocket had been lost by 17 January. The fighting then paused for four days while the Soviet forces regrouped and redeployed for the next phase of the operation.

Wikipedia: Operation Koltso