In an unusual act, they were ordered to fill several bottles of sea water, have them signed, and flown to The Kremlin as proof that Army Group North had been cut off from the Reich.

Simultaneously the German Valga–Võrtsjärv line, supported by the local Estonian Omakaitse militia battalions, repelled the heavy pressure of the Soviet 3rd Baltic Front's Tartu offensive.

[1] The German Army Group North's commander, Ferdinand Schörner designed Operation Aster to pull his troops out of mainland Estonia.

[2] In the northern segment placed along Lake Võrtsjärv, and the Väike Emajõgi and Gauja rivers, the Soviet 3rd Baltic Front attacked the German XXVIII Army Corps backed by Omakaitse battalions.

Over the next few days Soviet units were reported in action to the west of Riga, stating that German forces had been cleared from the eastern bank of the Lielupe River by October 17.