After the encirclement of the sixth army the question in the high command wasto pull back or not. For now everyone agreed the 6th army needed help, von Mansteingathered his forces to set up a defense along the rivers don and tsjir and for a counterattack This operation was called "wintergewitter" and had to be followed by "Donnerschlag" the breakout of the 6th army. The operation had to start at dec. the 1st, the russian however did not wait and mounted their "little uranus". Mainly carried out by the 5th tankarmy, the germans held the line but manstein had to send some of his fresh divisions to strenghten his leftflank.Still by dec the 12th the operation was underway, the sector chosen was further away then others but less well defended by the russians, only the 51st army and the rivers aksia and mysjkova stood between the 6th army and "wintergewitter".By the 14th the 6th panzer div broke through the defenses at the river aksai and crossed swords with the 4th mechanized corps, while the 23rd panzer took on the 13th tankcorps. However the 17th the 6th panzer and the 17th panzer broke through and reached "verkjne koemsky", halfway the two rivers.On the 19th they managed to gain several bridgeheads across the mysjkova, but there they met the 2nd guards army which had rushed in a race against the clock.Manstein ordered "donnerschlag" to start immediately, but paulus refused to attack without orders from the furher.Hitler did not want to give to order on reports that the 6th army didn't have enough fuel left for the remaining 40 kilometers, the blind was leading the blind and the 6th army was doomed.Manstein held his position for several days but he had to give up when he needed his tanks to strengthen the leftflank, which was crumbling under the russian attacks there. At Christmas 42 the flickering of lights at the southern horizon in Stalingrad disappeared, manstein had gone, they were on their own..