 The Germans had been forced back into a pocket about long from west to east and about wide at its narrowest, just west of the old city centre, near the Tiergarten.In the north-west, Lieutenant-General F.I.Perkohorovitch's 47th Army was now approaching Spandau, and was also heavily involved in a battle to capture Gatow airfield, which was defended by "Volkssturm" and Luftwaffe cadets using the feared 88 mm anti-aircraft guns in their anti-tank role.