Shame and Execration Part Deux!

[kaleun]

After the miserable and embarrassing defeat dealt to the allies by Waruspite-san, we decided to play again, using the CHS expanded map and again, Waruspite-san plays the Japanese, and moi, tyhe allies.
To avoid boredom, I have not started the AAR until June 5th 1942. After all: How many times can we bear to see Manila and Bataan fall?[8|]
This is a Warspite free zone.
Feel free to comment

[kaleun]

Pearl Harbor. 1942
Briefing room. CINCPAC
The room is stale with cigar and cigarette smoke. The big brass of the US Navy, US Army and the UK liaison officer sit around the oval table. Their faces are serious, as befits the war situation; Capt John Wayne has just set up a large map of the PACIO Theater of operations. The generals and admirals study it intently, and seem to relax, just a little. Adm. Nimitz is not yet in the room. There are still a few minutes to go before the briefing starts. This is going to be a long one. There are stacks of maps and papers on the folders in front of the officers.
BGen McEwen (Commander Australia HQ) puffs on his pipe and says lightly: “At least there has been no change in the red line over the past month” He exhales “Maybe the yellow bastards have finally reached the end of their tether”
Hums and nods of agreement fill the room.
Nimitz enters and takes his seat at the end of the table. Elsewhere, all the officers would have sprung to attention when the commander in chief entered the room but Nimitz had issued orders specifically forbidding such foolishness.
“Gentlemen” he starts “The enemy has not advanced his front in the past few weeks.” He points to the maps on the flip chart in front of him as he talks. ”He has conquered all of the DEIs, Malaya, Burma and has closed the Burma Road. He has taken the Philippines; closer to us, Wake and Tarawa are theirs. In Timor, a few isolated Dutch forces still resist, barely. In the SWPAC, they have occupied Kavieng and this little place in North New Guinea.”
He stops as the staff officers follow his progress in their own maps.
“We have not been idle. We now have five carriers in the Pacific. One at Midway, one at Canton Island, one at Luganville and one at Noumea. The fifth is here, in Pearl undergoing refit.” He stops, briefly.
“Yes, gentlemen. We have the luxury now to take one of our carriers out of the line for upgrading”

[kaleun]

After a moment, Nimitz continues: “We have strong garrisons in Midway, Canton island, Johnston Island, Espiritu Santo, and Noumea. There is also a well defended base in Lunga, and the garrisons at Port Moresby have been reinforced, although they are not yet ready to withstand a major Japanese assault. In Gili Gili, our troops have been joined by a Dutch base force rescued from East Timor and are in the process of establishing a small airfield.”
“It is time for us to go on the offensive”
“Hear, Hear” Is heard from around the room.

[kaleun]

Indeed; the allies have been withdrawing since the war started. The only successes were the evacuation of the 1st marine AA batallion and the Asiatic fleet HQ via submarine from Bataan. The HQ is now stationed at Sidney and the marines are now at Lunga after a few month’s rest at Darwin.
An attempt to hit the enemy ships supplying New Guinea with two carriers failed as the carriers arrived too late and the enemy had withdrawn already. Yes; all the allies are raging to have a go at the enemy instead of being in the receiving end.

[kaleun]

Mc Ewen speaks “We had a nifty little operation go well the other day. We got news that some Dutch blokes had recovered Benkoten, on the south coast of Sumatra. Turns out the yellow bastards had left the place ungarrisoned and these guys had been retreating from Padang and Sawahoento or some other unpronounceable place since the war started.” He takes another puff, exhales and continues:
“Well; to make a long story short, these chaps found a radio and called for help. Our guys at Christmas Is IO relayed the call to Tricomalee and one of the Australia convoys, that was returning to Colombo on ballast was detoured”
He takes another puff on his pipe “We called the operation ‘Small Comfort’ so this convoy went over there, picked the blokes up and neatly deposited them on Christmas Island IO. There were some objections on the part of the Dutch, they wanted to go to Colombo, or anywhere else but Christmas Is. The commander of the convoy a leftenant commander by the name of Kirkpatrick offered to redeposit the Dutch back in Sumatra, so they finally agreed to stay at Christmas Island IO”

[kaleun]

June 7th 1942
Somewhere in the Coral Sea Rear Admiral Struble looked out over the tranquil waters that his flagship, the light cruiser Helena was neatly parting with its steel bow. Behind the cruiser, keeping station neatly were the destroyers Bagley, Shaw, Farragut, Lichtfield and Schley. The base course was WNW, which was hard to figure out with the frequent zigzagging, which hopefully would confuse enemy submarines.
Far to port, the transport task force zigged and zagged in their own schedule. 21 cargo ships carrying the 641st US EAB, en-route from Lugan to Gili-Gili. Their mission, to help build a small airfield there. With binoculars he could see their escorts, 3APDs a DMS and a minesweeper darting this way and that, trying to find any lurking sub.
The tropical sun and the rocking of the ship were lulling the Admiral into a state resembling sleep.
It was hard to believe that today was the 6th month of the war. There had been, as yet, no sign of the enemy in the Coral Sea. They had occupied Kavieng, the Admiralty Islands and Hollandia without opposition. Aitape and Madang had also been taken, and now Wewak had just fallen to them. Fortunately with no allied loses. Still, it seemed unlikely that the enemy would have forces nearby to interfere with his mission.
Of course, if the brass did not believe there was a threat, they would not have detached his surface combat force to escort these slow transports would they?
The sobering thought came unbidden to his mind: Any force the Japanese detached to this area would be more than a match for his poorly armored cruiser and his tin cans.

[kaleun]

The local situation in New Guinea

[kaleun]

Meanwhile, back at the farm…

The harbor master was fit to be tied. In front of him, an old, wizened sea captain, from the merchant marine was at the point of strangling a young 2nd lieutenant from the navy.
“I was leading convoys through the North Atlantic in the last show, when you were no more than an itch in your father’s groin, lad” The old man growled.
“Now will you f*##ing tell me where my blasted destination is, so I can take those G@dd@mned ships there and be done with it!”
“Sir, we don’t know yet” The young officer mumbled.
“Do you mean to say you load up 21 cargo ships with a whole battalion of Tank Destroyers and you do not know where to send them to?” The harbor master could not believe it “They are fouling my harbor, all those men cooped up in those ships”
“We are waiting for escorts” The officer insisted, meekly.
“Shall I tell you where you can stuff your G@dd@mmed escorts?” The wizened old captain sputtered “In the past war I did not need no g@dd@mmed escorts to take my ships to England, did not!”
“The escorts will be here in two days” The ensign volunteered “West Virginia is coming up from Los Angeles with Randall and Ward and an AGP. The AGP, the destroyers and two of the new ARs will join the convoy and depart”
“Where to?”
“It has not been decided yet” The lieutenant concluded.

[kaleun]

June 8th 42
The sun sets on the tropical harbor of Colombo. It has been a hot day, as it usually is. Vice Admiral Sommersville, commander Eastern Fleet, wipes the sweat off his brow. In his hand, crushed, a paper report; the final clean copy of today’s events in the Bay of Bengal. It represents another sad day for the Royal Navy.
At least two enemy task forces have broken out of the Gulf of Siam and entered the Bay of Bengal. They were not seen until early this morning. The grievous loss of Port Blair and its advance warning capability cannot be expressed highly enough. The two task forces, one of them a battleship force, the other a carrier force were identified early in the morning. The RAF launched attacks; a small undefended Blenheim group found the further task force and was decimated by zero fighters. Only two of the light bombers were able to press forward with their attack on a destroyer. They did not report any other ships seen, but it is obvious they were attacking a carrier force.
The remainder of the Tricomalee based aircraft attacked a large battleship force. They and their escorts battled through the zero fighters that protected the capital ships. The Hurricanes and three American P40s opened a way for the bombers. Tricomalee threw, even the kitchen sink at the enemy ships. A motley force of Wellingtons, Beauforts, obsolete Swordfish biplanes, and Blenheim bombers attacked the enemy battle fleet. Three battleships, Kongo, Fuso and Mutsu, three heavy cruisers, Chokai, Suzuya and Atago, and three light cruisers, Oi, Yura and Kitakani were attacked.
At a great price, the bombers scored a hit on Kongo, a 5 inch gun was reported destroyed but the thick armor repelled any other damage. Fuso was also hit, but to no effect. One of the Beaufort wings was luckier. Coming in low, out of the sun, they managed to brave the flak guns and hit Mutsu with two torpedoes one of which was followed by large explosions.
The second wave, unescorted, found again an important CAP that disrupted their attack. The Blenheims dropped their bombs to no avail; soon after, while the enemy CAP fruitlessly chased the withdrawing Blenheims, three Beauforts, with Hurricane escorts came through, and scored once more with a torpedo on the Mutsu. Last seen the Mutsu was turning to the north west, and assumed to be heading for a friendly port.
The counterpoint to this relative success was the radio-message received at Tricomalee and promptly relayed to headquarters. The commander of the TF that was transporting the 223rd RAF BF to Diamond Harbor:
“AM UNDER SINGLE ENGINE DB AND TB ATTACK STOP HEAVILY DAMAGED SHIPS AND SINKING STOP HEAVY LOSSES STOP DIVERTING TO DAVIKATAM SEND HELP”

[kaleun]

It was well past midnight. Lieutenant colonel Farley stepped out of the radar shack to smoke a cigarette. The Vizagapatan base was silent and dark. The small airfield had seen no action so far in the war, and had no aircraft stationed there either. For the staff at the base, this could be a vacation, except for the lack of any facilities at all. The locals were friendly and, after 6 months of war, Farley had come to enjoy their curries. The mood was glum tonight however. Their wireless had captured the desperate SOS of the transport being attacked. “Send help” they requested. What help?
The colonel was not the only man standing outside the radar shack. Other men stood there, looking up at the pitch black sky. Listening.
The SCR 270 radar set was temperamental, to say the least. At times it would stop working and had to be coaxed back to work by kicking it vigorously. It would then resume working, or else it would put out an awful smell, and would basically kick the bucket right then and there.
Tonight, when they most needed the radar, it was refusing to work, and the boffins inside were tinkering with it, trying to convince the darned thing to resume its duties.
Somewhere, in the night, twelve men and machines were flying, hopefully still in the air, from Calcutta, trying to make it to this spot. It would help if the field was lit but with the enemy carriers so close the orders were for a strict blackout. Only the minimum of lights would be lit, once the aircraft were identified, to allow them to land.
The problem was that the Hurricane IIbs that were flying from Calcutta were not equipped to fly at night, had no navigation equipment and the pilots themselves had, at the most, only four hours of night flight experience. It would be a miracle if the poor devils made it.
One of the local troopers suddenly and silently pointed north east. Yes a faint hum, yes. There were aircraft engines out there.
“Light it up” Farley commanded. This was a violation of orders. For all he knew they could be enemy planes just waiting to locate a target.
“If the b@ggers can fly this far at night from a carrier they deserve to bomb us” He grumbled tossing away his cigarette.
Soon after, Squadron leader Johnston opened his cockpit and stepped out of his Hurricane fighter. He had made it!
“Can’t bloody believe it” he said to the Indian sergeant that helped him out of his cramped cockpiy. He then ran to the edge of the tarmac to take care of some urgent business, then returned to the plane and counted as the other planes of the 28th fighter squadron landed.
“All twelve of them made it. Bloody marvelous” He shook his head in surprise.
The mechanics refueled and armed the twelve fighters, and by hand moved them to dispersal positions. They would be ready to go at first light.
“Not that we are going anywhere” Johnston told Farley. “Unless I am very wrong, there is no way those poor b@stards are going to be in range of us by the morning.
“They are going to be sitting ducks” Farley agreed.
It would be a long night. Longer for the sailors and soldiers in the stricken convoy, but neither they nor the hurricane pilots would get much sleep tonight.

[kaleun]

June 10th 1942
Squadron leader Johnston’s Hurricanes finally are able to provide cover for the cargo ships that, ever so slowly approach Vizagapatan. The transports have split into two groups; the less heavily damaged have already docked and are unloading their troops, the two most damaged transports are only one day away from safe harbor.
In Colombo, Vice Admiral Sommerville at Eastern Fleet HQ looks at the map worried. Today Tricomalee has come under heavy carrier air attack. The Trico airplanes land two hits on a light cruiser, Kino. Recon however shows massive forces converging on Trico. This is no large raid. This is a fully fledged invasion force. The Japanese are committing massive forces to the effort. In Tricomalee, awaiting them, aside from AA forces and support troops is only one Australian brigade.
Things are dour indeed. With a heavy heart he orders the POW task force and The Illustrious carrier task force out to intercept the invaders. There is little hope, but the Royal Navy will not let the Japanese invade Ceylon unchallenged.

[kaleun]

June 11th 1942
LGen Pownall eagerly awaits the results of the day’s action. Things do not look good for the British forces. Aircraft out of Tricomalee carry out sortie after sortie against the enemy forces. Troop ships, battleships and escorts came under almost constant attack by the gallant British and Commonwealth pilots, but with no results. The only success was scored by a Beaufort that managed to hit CVL Shoho with a torpedo. Thank God for small favors.
There is yet no word from POW.
Meanwhile, back in Pearl, Capt Wayne delivers a telegram to Adm. Nimitz:
CVWASP ARRIVED PANAMA
“Wayne” Nimitz mumbles “If the enemy carriers are all at Ceylon, like Pownall says, they are not here”
“Maybe we can take advantage of that” Wayne finishes the Admiral’s thought for him.

[kaleun]

June 12th 1942
The battle of Tricomalee continues. A seemingly inexhaustible stream of transports, warships, carriers and oilers steam towards the Ceylon port. The RAF and RN pilots set out on sortie after sortie against the Japanese behemoth. Occassionally they get lucky. Mutsu has been confirmed sunk already; CL Kino has taken severe damage from two bombs and was last seen withdrawing. Yesterday it was the turn of a light carrier, Shoho, to receive a torpedo from a lucky and plucky Beaufort.
In Colombo Sommerville plans out his strategy. The Royal Navy cannot keep the IJN from landing at Trico. It can however bloody the enemy’s nose. More bombers come to the island from the Indian mainland.
Far, far way, in Pearl Harbor, Nimitz struggles with a different problem. With all the enemy carriers in the Indian Ocean, there is an opportunity for the US Navy to conduct offensive operations for a change.

[kaleun]

June 14th 1942
The Japanese threat on Tricomalee cannot be ignored. It is quite possible that the port may fall into Japanese hands. With the deepwater port and airfield in their hands, Colombo would be blockaded and would eventually fall, as there are now no further troops on the island available for its defense.
A Chindit brigade has been dispatched from Karachi, and will arrive within a few days, but what is a brigade against the massive Japanese forces arrayed against Tricomalee?
Reluctantly, the orders are issued: The 2nd British infantry division is ordered to Trivandrum, the 18th British and the 26th Indian divisions will move to Vizagapatan. These divisions are sorely needed in the Burma front, but perhaps, just perhaps, the 18th and the 26th might not all be needed and may be returned to the Burma front soon.
For the soldiers in the three divisions, the news of the transfer is a welcome respite. Anything is better than the malarial swamps they leave behind. They at least would rather fight the Japanese in Ceylon rather than in the vermin infested rainforest of Burma.

[VSWG]

A late invasion of India, interesting. Maybe you can run the Jap. carriers out of sorties?

What's the status of both carrier fleets, and where are your carriers deployed?

[kaleun]

The UK has only one carrier left at this time (In the actual game), it is undergoing repairs at Aden.
The US has one carrier at Wake, one at Canton Island, one at Luganville and one at Noumea.
In addition one is refitting and upgrading at Pearl, SD by now is only 3 so it can go at any time and a sixth is in transit from Panama to Noumea.
The US is also planning a little offensive operation of its own.
Don't touch that dial![;)]

[kaleun]

[font=calibri]June 15th 42[/font]
[font=calibri]Vice Admiral Sommervile reads his combat reports. His reputed British reserve is lacking as he collects the series of bad news. The Prince of Wales sunk to enemy carrier air yesterday. The Repuls, badly damaged is withdrawing to Bombay; hopefully she will make it there. The enemy forces start their landings. L. Gen. Pownall steps into the Admiral’s office. [/font]
[font=calibri]“I am sending the Ceylon brigade to Tricomalee” The army officer says “Maybe it will allow Tric to hold until help arrives”[/font]
[font=calibri]“Good idea” The Admiral concurs. “With all the losses the Japs are having in their shipping, their chaps cannot be in too good a shape.”[/font]
[font=calibri]Meanwhile, in Pearl Harbor, Nimitz sits in his sunlit office. [/font]
[font=calibri]“Wayne” he mumbles “Send this signal to Bellinger at Wake” [/font]
[font=calibri]The Captain reads the order:[/font]
[font=calibri]“Take Saratoga TF as close as needed to Marcus Island and bomb the airfield. Take no unnecessary chances”[/font]
[font=calibri]Wayne salutes but before he leaves Nimitz adds:[/font]
[font=calibri]“Next, get those two RCTs at Panama to Baker Island soonest. We need to take the offensive and I have just the place.”[/font]
[font=calibri]“Where sir?”[/font]
[font=calibri]“Tarawa”[/font]

[kaleun]

June 16th 42
The Japanese continue their landings at Tricomalee, and the RAF continues to exact a high toll on the enemy shipping. The Royal Navy aircraft also scores hits. The Albacores and Swordfish operating from the RN carriers maintain a constant rain of bombs and torpedo attacks on the enemy transports. Even so, they keep coming on.
It is a matter of time until the enemy carriers find the smaller British flattops. Sommerville has no illusions about the outcome of such a meeting. He also has no choice. Ceylon must be held.
Repulse, Danae Vendetta and Electra return, injured to the relative safety of Colombo. The workers in the harbor feverishly attempt the first emergency repairs on the wounded ships.

[kaleun]

June 22nd 1942
Sommerville and Pownall spend much of the day closeted in their office; outside the window, the constant roar of aircraft engines gives testimony of the intensity of the British effort. A flight of P40s from the AVG is also operating from Colombo. Many of its aircraft remain in Trincomalee where they are vulnerable to enemy bombardment, but as they are repaired, they are flown to Colombo, where they provide coverage for the bombers, a little better than the short legged Hurricanes.
A second wave of enemy forces land at the besieged city. The enemy suffers very heavy losses in shipping but they press on regardless. The Chindits in Karachi have boarded their transports and are en route. The situation is dire and the two officers look at each other.
“We must move the HQ” Pownall states.
“Surely Tricomalee will hold” Sommerville replies.
“If it doesn’t, once they station aircraft on the airfield, they can blockade the island, and we will lose the headquarters”
“If I have to move the Eastern Fleet HQ” Sommeville rubs his chin “It must be to Bombay they have the repair shipyards there”
“Bombay it is then” Pownall agrees “I might shift my HQ later to Trivandrum or Mangalore to be nearer the fighting though”
Far to the East, in the extreme tip of New Guinea, a small task force lands a small infantry battalion, the Lark force, originally from Rabaul, then withdrawn to Lunga and now, with heavier forces garrisoning the mosquito infested island, the plucky Australian fighters are redeployed again to Gili Gili. Maybe the mosquitoes will not be as bad in this place. They cannot be worse than in Lunga, some of the tired warriors think.

[cantona2]

A very good read