But in fact, even if the Soviet 86th Infantry Brigade arrived in time, it would not change anything, because the strength of this brigade could not break through the airfields where the 1st Infantry Division was stationed, and even many pillboxes were large enough to be intact...... Pillboxes did not do much for the 1st Corps, but for the Soviet troops without bazookas, it was a different matter.

So, when the Soviet army launched an attack on the perimeter towards the airport, the inside of the airport was counting prisoners and captured supplies.

There were more than 3,000 prisoners, of whom more than 1,000 were pilots and airport support personnel. Colonel Slane ordered them to be divided into two groups and placed in custody, and ordered the soldiers in charge of the captives to shoot the pilots and logisticians at any danger or sign of escape...... This part of the people will not be allowed to escape.

There were more captured supplies, because there were 289 fighters of various types, 86 cars, 30 Katyusha rocket launchers, and 89 tanks of various types of "Stuart", "Valentine" and T26 (Note: The Caucasus is an important land passage for Britain and the United States to provide equipment assistance to the Soviet Union, so nearly half of the tanks in the Caucasus are provided by Britain and the United States)

There are also mountains of ammunition, gasoline and diesel fuel in warehouses...... As Qin Chuan estimated, Soglione is an important transit point, and transport planes will also be used to transport supplies when supplies are tight on the front line, and even many supplies transported by the Black Sea Fleet from the Caucasus will be concentrated here.

The reason is very simple, Soglione is the intersection of the northern and southern peninsulas, and it is only more than 30 kilometers away from the front line of the two peninsulas, and no matter where supplies are needed, they can be sent to the front line in time.

Of course, the most important supplies are gasoline, tanks and cars.

"This gasoline and equipment is enough for our entire army group to rush to the Caucasus!" Colonel Slain said, "It's just ...... A lot of this is jet fuel! ”

Colonel Slane had a look of regret on his face.

Aviation fuel had a higher octane rating than regular fuel and was added with additives to make it less susceptible to explosion, which was severely lacking in the Luftwaffe.

"Oh!" Qin Chuan replied: "Then we may be able to reach the Caucasus faster!" ”

Colonel Slain couldn't help but laugh.

News of the victorious capture of Soglione soon reached Manstein, who was both agitated and worried.

The excitement was because he did not expect the battle to go so smoothly, not only the successful landing but also the capture of the strategic Soglione in one fell swoop, not only the capture of Soglione, but also the capture of the troops interspersed with much-needed cars, gasoline and tanks...... This meant that the 11th Army did not need to risk being attacked by the Black Sea Fleet to transport these supplies and equipment over.

The fear was that none of this had been agreed by Hitler, which was in fact a disobedience to the Führer's orders, to which he did not know how the Führer would react.

After some hesitation, Manstein decided that the time had come to report to Hitler. Otherwise, no matter how you do, you can't explain it.

So he drafted a telegram and sent it to Berlin:

"Your Excellency, Honorable Führer, because of the sudden timing, and at the same time I think it is necessary to seize this moment decisively...... As in this battle, we detected that the Soviets were very weak in the defense of the Tamannan Peninsula, so we crossed the Kerch Strait at about 2:10 a.m. this morning and landed on the South Peninsula, and at 5:70 a.m. fully occupied the Soglione airfield and captured a large amount of equipment and supplies. They were so fast and going so smoothly that I couldn't believe it. Now we are waiting for your order for the next step, Your Excellency! ”

The time difference between Berlin and the Caucasus is almost two hours, and in the Caucasus it is half past five, then in Berlin it is half past three.

At this time, of course, Hitler was sleeping in his bed, but the staff officer did not think about it when he saw this telegram, classified it as important, and immediately knocked on the door of Hitler's bedroom.

Hitler took the telegram and looked at it, and his eyes widened immediately, which was sleepy-eyed...... Then, Hitler, who had always paid attention to appearance, strode to the war room in his pajamas and found the location of the Taman Peninsula and Soglione on the map.

"How many people did they cross?" Hitler asked.

"The First Infantry Corps, the 1st Mountain Division, the 28th Chasseur Division, and the 22nd Armored Division!"

Hitler couldn't help but look up at his staff officer in astonishment: "The 22nd Panzer Division? Are you saying that they also crossed the strait with tanks? ”

The staff officer couldn't believe it either, so he picked up the telegram again to verify it, and only after confirming it did he answer: "Yes, Your Excellency! ”

"How did they do it?" Hitler asked: "Crossing the Kerch Strait?" ”

This is indeed hard to imagine, because in Hitler's mind there was actually a plan to cross the Kerch Strait and cross the Caucasus Mountains, but the problem was that the control of the sea was in the hands of the Soviets, and the Germans did not even have a decent ship in their hands, so this became a delusion.

What puzzled Hitler the most was that it would be forgivable if the troops could cross it by fishing boats or something, but tanks ......

"What did they have to cross the tank?" Hitler asked.

"They ......" the staff officer rummaged through the telegrams, found one of the details, handed it to Hitler, and replied: "They seem to have driven the tanks over, this is what General Manstein said...... Add a fence to the tank so that it can float on the water, and then add a ...... In fact, there were two propellers, so the tank could move in the sea. ”

Hitler looked at the telegram in his hand in a daze, and after a long time he suddenly raised the telegram in high spirits and said: "They are geniuses, they are geniuses!" Lo and behold, this is my general, this is the most important soldier of the Empire, and their fighting power is not only reflected in the courage of the battlefield, but also in this kind of creativity and imagination like an artist! God, this is simply a beautiful work of art, if I could, I would paint it on canvas forever! ”

"Your Excellency!" The staff officer reminded: "General Manstein is waiting for your order!" ”

"Oh yes!" Hitler nodded, and then said to the correspondent: "To General Manstein: This is a great victory, and your surprise attack has turned the whole tide of the war in our favor. Boldly march towards the Caucasus Mountains, which are waiting for you to conquer. In the meantime, General Manstein, congratulations, you have become the Marshal of the Reich, and the Reich will cheer for your bravery and victory! ”