Crimean Front
Kozlov blamed the weather for his failure, while Mekhlis decided the fault lay with Tolbukhin's inept planning and had him fired. Stalin ordered the second offensive to proceed in ten days. The Soviet planning staffs saw Koi-Asan as the priority target and decided to mass 51st Army's striking power against it. The 44th Army would launch a significant feint attack on the 132nd Infantry Division along the coast. Kozlov had 224 tanks, but on Mekhlis' recommendation he decided to share them between the rifle divisions instead of massing them in a strike force. Stalin reinforced the Air Force of the Crimean Front to 581 aircraft by early March, though they were largely obsolete models. The Germans laid down 2,000 Teller mines near the Koi-Asan position and Manstein concentrated assault guns for its defense.