Over Germany… Battle of the Ruhr. In the first of a series of bombing raids against the German Ruhr industrial area, RAF Bomber Command sends 443 aircraft to attack Essen, losing 14 aircraft.

On the Eastern Front… Hoth's 4th Panzer Army inflicts heavy casualties on three Soviet corps west of Izyum but it cannot continue attacking because the Donets River is blocked with floating ice, preventing bridging operations.