the german 11th army, commanded by erich von manstein, besieged sevastopol. at the time of the final assault in june 1942, 11th army consisted of nine german infantry divisions in two corps, and one romanian corps. significant support was given by the luftwaffe. the "oberkommando der luftwaffe" dispatched "luftflotte 4" (air fleet 4) 8th air corps for support. it consisted of nine "geschwader" (wings) containing 600 aircraft, all coming under the command of "generaloberst" (general colonel) wolfram freiherr von richthofen. among this contingent was a powerful concentration of medium bomber, dive bomber, and torpedo bomber "geschwader". naval support came from the italian 101st squadron under francesco mimbelli. it consisted of four motor torpedo boats, five explosive motorboats, six cb class midget submarines, and a number of 35-ton coastal submarines and mas boats. this force was the only axis naval force deployed during the siege. although bulgaria was not technically at war with the soviet union, its naval staff worked closely with the wehrmacht, and despite not being committed to combat, they provided bases for the axis naval command ("admiral schwarzes meer", admiral of the black sea) to operate in the waters of the black sea.