Operation Donnerschlag
|
|
During World War II, the German military had two operations called Donnerschlag ("Thunderclap" in German). The first was a naval operation and the second an army operation.
Operation Donnerschlag (naval)
The first was the German naval operation, the breakout from Brest, France of German ships led by the Scharnhorst, Gneisenau and Prinz Eugen on 12 February, 1942. The British operation which was to prevent the ships traveling up the English Channel was Operation Cerberus, but due to surprise and poor organisation the British failed to sink any of the German ships involved in the "Channel Dash".
Operation Donnerschlag (army)
The second was the 1943 German army plan for a breakout from the besieged city of Stalingrad (now Volgograd) by the ill-fated German Sixth Army and their meet up with the relief operation Wintergewitter. This operation was cancelled by Hitler, who insisted that the German Air Force resupply the garrison. This effort failed totally, leaving the Sixth Army to starve under the Soviet attacks.