Langanke, Panther Ace

SS-Ustuf. Fritz Langanke (in the middle) during his Knight Cross award ceremony. Next to him is Erich Mork (left) who was awarded with German Cross in Gold.

Operation Cobra: Panzer Commander Fritz Langanker’s Struggle Out of Roncey Pocket
http://www.historynet.com/operation...-langankers-struggle-out-of-roncey-pocket.htm

Langanke: Early on the night of July 28, 1944, I was attached with my platoon of four Panthers of the 2nd Company, SS Panzer Regiment Das Reich, to the reinforced 3rd Battalion of SS Regiment Deutschland, which was part of our division. The American encirclement of the bulk of those German units that had been north of the main American breakout thrust from St. Lô was nearly complete. The Roncey Pocket was closing. Our task force, led by the commander of the 3rd Battalion, Major Helmut Schreiber, was ordered to take the route via Cerisy-la-Salle and Notre Dame-de-Cenilly toward Percy, where a new defense line was to be established. Many of the infantry fragments of divisions that roamed around in that area, as well as stragglers, were to be taken along. This was an absolutely unrealistic order.