ASLComp Raus: Leningrad Everyman Edition

DOLGAYA, RUSSIA, 21 July 1941: The battles of 20 July had nearly depleted Kampfgruppe Raus’s ammunition supply. Only the tanks had almost enough remaining for normal operations. At 0930 on the 21st, a Luftwaffe fighter plane dropped a message canister to the bridgehead with the message that a Russian force of at least regimental strength had crossed the Luga to the east and was moving into a position to attack the Kampfgruppe from the rear. Raus had to make the tough decision to either send a strong armored force to the rear to attack this new enemy force, denuding the bridgehead in the face of three nearby enemy Proletariat formations that could launch fresh attacks at any moment. Worse, other than his tanks, Ruas’s soldiers were nearly out of ammunition. He also received word that the lead elements of the relief force, coming to his aid, had been stalled by a strong Russian force at the Dolgaya River.