>> We both know that the lulls in Stalingrad were few and far between ..and knowing that you also read " Stopped at Stalingrad " like I did... we both know how insufficient the Luftwaffe's support was in the south << Nevertheless Richtofen did manage to create his "schwerpunkte" in the south occasionally, and on relatively open ground the Luftwaffe's help was invaluable. Rough terrain, where the Germans were forced to attack frontally, was another matter. As another example, recall that in August the 4th Panzer Army was stuck in the hilly terrain south of Stalingrad, despite Luftwaffe support. Only when they bypassed the area could the panzers advance on the city. Another example is Stalingrad itself, where lavish Lufwaffe support was insufficient for victory; again, the German frontal attack into unfavorable terrain was indecisive. The counter-example, of course, is Sevastopol, where the Luftwaffe made a valuable contribution to victory. The fortress, however, couldn't be reinforced on the scale of Stalingrad -- or the Caucasus, for that matter.
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