Page "Blitzkrieg" Paragraph 44

Although effective in quick campaigns against Poland and France, mobile operations could not be sustained by Germany in later years.

Strategies based on maneuver have the inherent danger of the attacking force overextending its supply lines, and can be defeated by a determined foe who is willing and able to sacrifice territory for time in which to regroup and rearm, as the Soviets did on the Eastern Front ( as opposed to, for example, the Dutch who had no territory to sacrifice ).

Tank and vehicle production was a constant problem for Germany ; indeed, late in the war many panzer " divisions " had no more than a few dozen tanks.

As the end of the war approached, Germany also experienced critical shortages in fuel and ammunition stocks as a result of Anglo-American strategic bombing and blockade.

Although production of Luftwaffe fighter aircraft continued, they would be unable to fly for lack of fuel.

What fuel there was went to panzer divisions, and even then they were not able to operate normally.

Of those Tiger tanks lost against the United States Army, nearly half of them were abandoned for lack of fuel.