Kerch-Eltigen Operation

Kerch–Eltigen Operation
Part of the Eastern Front of World War II
Soviet landings in Crimea, 1943
Date November 1943 Location Kerch Peninsula, Soviet Union Result Axis Defensive Victory Strategic Soviet Victory
Belligerents
Soviet Union	Germany  Romania  Bulgaria
Commanders and leaders
Ivan Petrov	Erwin Jaenecke Corneliu Teodorini
Strength
27,700+ men	V Army Corps XLIX Mountain Corps Romanian Mountain Corps

The Kerch–Eltigen Operation was a World War II amphibious offensive made in November 1943 by the Red Army as a precursor to the Crimean Offensive (8 April-12 May 1944), with the object of defeating and forcing the withdrawal of the German forces from the Crimea. Landing at two locations on the Crimea's eastern coast, the Red Army successfully reinforced the northern beachhead of Yenikale but was unable to prevent an Axis counterattack that collapsed the southern beachhead at Eltigen. Subsequently, the Red Army used the beachhead at Yenikale to launch further offensive operations into the Crimea in May 1944.

Following the defeat and withdrawal of German and Romanian troops from the Taman Peninsula in the fall of 1943, the Soviets decided to follow this success with two amphibious landings on the eastern coast of the Crimea as a prelude to the retaking of the entire Crimean Peninsula. The southern, diversionary assault was planned for the small town of Eltigen and the northern, main assault landed at Yenikale, near Kerch.

Soviet successes north of the Crimea had cut off the German 17th Army in Crimea, although the Axis forces were still supplied by sea. The 17th Army controlled the V Army Corps in the north, the XLIX Mountain Corps defended the Perekop Isthmus and the Romanian Mountain Corps defended the south and southeastern areas of the Crimea. The Germans also had anti-aircraft artillery batteries/operators and 45 assault guns to bolster their defense. Commanding the Axis forces were German Generaloberst Erwin Jaenecke and Romanian Major General Corneliu Teodorini.

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