Allied invasion of Italy two hours traveling from the transports to the landing beaches. On the German side, Albrecht von Kesselring lacked the strength to push the Salerno landing back, and was refused two panzer divisions from northern Italy to assist him. Operation Avalanche was planned under the name Top Hat and supported by a deception plan, Operation Boardman, a false threat of an Allied invasion of the Balkans. In mid-August, the Germans had activated Army Group B ("Heeresgruppe B") under Erwin Rommel with responsibility for German troops in Italy as far south as Pisa. Army Command South ("OB Süd") under Albert Kesselring continued
Operation Corkscrew Operation Corkscrew Operation Corkscrew was the code name for the Allied invasion of the Italian island of Pantelleria (between Sicily and Tunisia) on 11 June 1943, prior to the Allied invasion of Sicily during the Second World War. There had been an early plan to occupy the island in late 1940 (Operation Workshop), but this was aborted when the Luftwaffe strengthened the Axis air threat in the region. The Allied focus returned to Pantelleria in early 1943. The radar installations and airfield on the island were seen as a real threat to the planned invasion of Sicily (codenamed Operation Husky).