Against the Wind: Cuttlefish (Japan) vs. Q-Ball (Allies)

[Cuttlefish]

ORIGINAL: d0mbo

Cuttlefish,

At 3 bomb hits that CVL has relatively little damage, considering that CV's could (and would) sink after as little as one hit.

Where these 500lb or 1000lb hits?

3x1000lb of explosives should sink a CVL, i guess.

Bottom line: i think you shouldn't be too downhearted about this result and keep up the good work!

The hits were all by 500 lb bombs. It's likely that bigger bombs would have turned poor Junyo into a reef.

[Cuttlefish]

Good to know about the SBDs. He had lost between 20 and 30 of them a couple of weeks earlier so with maybe 75 shot down in two weeks that might hurt some.

A note about the air battle: all Zero units, carrier and land-based, were at 40% CAP, no other orders. The carrier planes were at an average of 16,000 feet and the land-based planes were at 22,000. All Q-Ball's raids were detected by radar and the initial CAP of a couple dozen planes was augmented to 120 to 180 planes (the number declined as the day went on) by the end of combat.

The combat report from the first attack is a pretty good example of all of them. Note that out of 25 Dauntlesses 14 of them made their attack runs. At least half his dive-bomber losses this round came in the post-attack combat phase.

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Morning Air attack on TF, near Makassar at 64,106

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid detected at 40 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 15 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 179



Allied aircraft
F4F-3 Wildcat x 17
F4F-4 Wildcat x 20
SBD-2 Dauntless x 11
SBD-3 Dauntless x 14


No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
F4F-3 Wildcat: 4 destroyed
F4F-4 Wildcat: 2 destroyed
SBD-2 Dauntless: 3 destroyed, 5 damaged
SBD-3 Dauntless: 4 destroyed, 5 damaged

Japanese Ships
CV Kaga, Bomb hits 1, on fire
CA Mikuma
CV Hiyo

Aircraft Attacking:
2 x SBD-3 Dauntless diving from 2000'
Naval Attack: 1 x 1000 lb SAP Bomb
4 x SBD-2 Dauntless diving from 5000' *
Naval Attack: 1 x 500 lb SAP Bomb
4 x SBD-3 Dauntless diving from 3000'
Naval Attack: 1 x 1000 lb SAP Bomb
4 x SBD-2 Dauntless diving from 4000' *
Naval Attack: 1 x 500 lb SAP Bomb

CAP engaged:
253 Ku S-1 with A6M2 Zero (7 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(7 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
7 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 22000
Raid is overhead
5 planes vectored on to bombers
Akagi-1 with A6M2 Zero (2 airborne, 5 on standby, 10 scrambling)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 16000 , scrambling fighters between 5000 and 16000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 49 minutes
14 planes vectored on to bombers
Kaga-1 with A6M2 Zero (2 airborne, 5 on standby, 10 scrambling)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 17000 , scrambling fighters between 3000 and 17000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 34 minutes
11 planes vectored on to bombers
Soryu-1 with A6M2 Zero (2 airborne, 5 on standby, 11 scrambling)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 17000 , scrambling fighters between 6000 and 17000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 34 minutes
16 planes vectored on to bombers
Hiryu-1 with A6M2 Zero (2 airborne, 5 on standby, 10 scrambling)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 15000 , scrambling fighters between 7000 and 15000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 48 minutes
15 planes vectored on to bombers
Shokaku-1 with A6M2 Zero (2 airborne, 5 on standby, 10 scrambling)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 18000 , scrambling fighters between 11000 and 16000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 43 minutes
11 planes vectored on to bombers
Zuikaku-1 with A6M2 Zero (2 airborne, 5 on standby, 11 scrambling)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 14000 , scrambling fighters between 8000 and 14000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 39 minutes
13 planes vectored on to bombers
Ryujo-1 with A6M2 Zero (1 airborne, 4 on standby, 7 scrambling)
1 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 17000 , scrambling fighters between 8000 and 13000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 38 minutes
8 planes vectored on to bombers
Junyo-1 with A6M2 Zero (2 airborne, 4 on standby, 9 scrambling)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 21000 , scrambling fighters between 7000 and 21000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 30 minutes
9 planes vectored on to bombers
Hiyo-1 with A6M2 Zero (2 airborne, 5 on standby, 10 scrambling)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 16000 , scrambling fighters between 7000 and 16000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 30 minutes
9 planes vectored on to bombers
Shoho-1 with A6M2 Zero (0 airborne, 4 on standby, 7 scrambling)
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 1 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 16000 , scrambling fighters between 6000 and 16000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 48 minutes
10 planes vectored on to bombers
Zuiho-1 with A6M2 Zero (1 airborne, 4 on standby, 7 scrambling)
1 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 16000 , scrambling fighters between 8000 and 14000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 32 minutes
9 planes vectored on to bombers

[Laxplayer]

I notice during that attack run that at least one of his squadrons was made up of SBD-2s which are an earlier, unarmored version of the SBD-3. SBD-2s also have longer range, thus his ability to carry 1000lb bombs for this strike. My guess is that if he's still flying SBD-2s off his CVs, that his pools for SBD-3s is probably fairly deep. But shooting down 50 or more will still put a fairly big dent in it. Even moreso with his DB pilots, unless he's been training them up in the big replacement squadrons that came on a few of his CVEs.

IMO, the Wildcat losses will sting him much more since F4F-3s are no longer being built, and the F4F-4's only replace like 45 a month. That said, once 1/1943 hits, he can start upgrading his F4F-4 USMC fighter squadrons into Corsairs. He can upgrade an entire squadron of 24+ Wildcats even with just 1 Corsair in the pool, if I remember correctly. That will spill a bunch of F4F-4s back into his fighter pool for use on his CVs.

So basically, you have a 2 month window to try and retake those bases!

[crsutton]

The SBDs are a bit thin at this stage of the war but his fighter production should be fine by now. You have to look at it as a whole. Not only does he get 45 wildcats but he is geting P38s as well as a large number of P40ks. More important, Allied aircrat replacement in AE is much more spread around amongs other nations now. When you consider the British planes. Hurricane IIc (35 per mo) Ozzie spits, kittyhawks, NZ kittyhawks, Canadian kittyhawks all together the allied side is getting a nice flow of fighters by Novermber 1942. Corsairs are just going to make it worse. The challenge for the Allies players is to use and rotate all of these national groups so that they can take advantage of this.

Remember now, marine wildcat and corsair squadrons (Japanese carrier capable as well) can be put on a carrier and trained up to fully carrier trained. More so than you, he will have the surplus CVEs to do just this. So he has options.

You really got a lucky air roll that last fight and did a bang up job on him. It happens. He will get some too. The problem is that you have now reached the stage of the game where he can begin to fight attritional battles and grind you down. At least with figthers. The allied bomber force takes a little longer to build up but you know it is coming.....

You both have played a great game so far.

[princep01]

Cuttlefish says, "All Q-Ball's raids were detected by radar....."???? Really, do you have radar at this stage of the war? I've never played the Japanese, so I just don't know, but I did not think the IJN had radar on their ships at this point.

[Laxplayer]

ORIGINAL: crsutton

The SBDs are a bit thin at this stage of the war but his fighter production should be fine by now. You have to look at it as a whole. Not only does he get 45 wildcats but he is geting P38s as well as a large number of P40ks. More important, Allied aircrat replacement in AE is much more spread around amongs other nations now. When you consider the British planes. Hurricane IIc (35 per mo) Ozzie spits, kittyhawks, NZ kittyhawks, Canadian kittyhawks all together the allied side is getting a nice flow of fighters by Novermber 1942. Corsairs are just going to make it worse. The challenge for the Allies players is to use and rotate all of these national groups so that they can take advantage of this.

I was speaking specifically of the CV aircraft. Wildcats will be quite thin after a battle like that, unless he's passed on upgrading many of the USMC fighter sqdns.

Army fighters are far more numerous, with many variations to choose from, particularly the P38s and P40s. I doubt that this recent attrition would be more than just a minor annoyance with regard to land-based fighters.

[Astarix]

ORIGINAL: Cuttlefish

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11/1/1942 – 11/2/1942

I think that two moderately damaged carriers is a cheap price for that many Allied aircraft. The battle, however, leaves me pondering several things. First, how did all my search planes, both carrier and land-based, miss him? That worries me. Second, it is clear that things are much changed in AE from what they were. I think that in WITP I would have downed even more of his planes, suffered more losses myself, and probably wouldn’t have taken the hits. What I had in this battle was as much of an Uber-CAP as Japan can ever expect to get and still about half of the attacking bombers got through (those SBDs are pretty good at defending themselves from Zeros!).

The last question I have is how many losses does it take before an Allied player feels the pain? Or is there perhaps no level of losses that hurts? I really don’t know what Allied aircraft production looks like in AE in late ‘42. I suspect the pain level probably varies from aircraft model to aircraft model. Pilot quality is another issue as well. All of my front-line Zero and Oscar pilots are highly skilled and based on the results his pilots are considerably less so. If losses like these help drive down the average experience level of his pilots the loss ratio might continue to run in my favor.

One can hope, anyway.

This depends on whether you have inflicted significant losses to his Wildcat and SBD pools prior to this. In January he will begin receiving 30 Corsairs/month, then in April he starts getting 130 Hellcats/month, as well as 45 SBD-5 and 30 SB2-C Helldivers. If this is the first time that he has taken significant USN/USMC losses then he has enough spare plane to get him through to April, at which point, there is going to be an avalanche of high quality Allied aircraft.

Basically you appear, from this series of combats, to have inflicted about 4-6 weeks production worth of losses on his 1942 wildcat pools. But if he hasn't taken any dramatic losses or is willing to withdraw some of his USMC squadrons for 60 day's he has plenty of aircraft laying around. From the looks of things he has been conserving his SBD-3's F4F-4's because you were reporting F4F-3's and SBD-2's in the losses. This means that he has sufficiently deep pools of replacement aircraft for these earlier models to keep at least a couple of these squadrons operationally effective.

Worst case he could have a couple hundred aircraft of both types in reserve, and by canibalizing some USMC squadrons he could add a couple hundred more to the kitty. The real question you need to be asking is how effective has his training program been? Is he religiously training Naval and Marine pilots in rear ares? By now he potentially could have several Dozen squadrons he could use for these purposes. Personally, I like to use the float plane squadrons that arrive on the West Coast to train replacement naval Pilots. Some of these can be converted into Dive Bomber squadrons, and the PBY squadrons can be used to replace torpedo pilots. The Seagull and Kingfisher squadrons can be used to train fighter pilots. He will also start getting some squadrons of type based land based Naval aircraft.

In my opinion you probably need 3 or 4 more results like this, before January, to put a serious crimp in his Naval and Marine air units. Had these results been the case 3 or 4 months ago.... then yeah, he would be seriously hurting.

[Cuttlefish]

[font="Arial"]Fight on and fly on to the last drop of blood and the last drop of fuel, to the last beat of the heart.[/font]
- Baron Manfred von Richthofen

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11/3/1942 – 11/10/1942

Slowly things around Timor are swinging against me. It has been a long and bloody process but Q-Ball’s tactics have been sound and slowly but surely he is using the weight of Allied material to consolidate his position.

Following the heavy losses following our carrier duel I sent some fighters sweeping over Waingapu. They downed about 10 Kittyhawks at a cost of one plane. At that point I was feeling pretty good about things. Q-Ball’s carriers withdrew to Port Hedland and he sent several convoys of xAKLs into Waingapu and Flores on (my best guess) resupply runs.

I went after them and ran into a buzzsaw. Over two days I sank or heavily damaged about ten freighters and escorts but I was met by hordes of Allied fighters. This time is was my air force that took it in the shorts. He lost 20 more planes but I lost about 35 fighters and 60 bombers; 15 of these were Nells and the rest carrier planes. So much for my hopes that Q-Ball was being hurt by his heavy air losses!

It was interesting to see in action something that a couple of people have pointed out, namely that the Allies have a diverse selection of aircraft pools, making it hard to really deplete them. In the same action, for instance, I saw the RZNAF Kittyhawk 1A, the RAF Kittyhawk 1A, and I’m pretty sure there were some RAAF Kittyhawks around too.

As a bright spot, I-157 torpedoed and sank CL Marblehead off Exmouth. The coast off Exmouth is going to be a great dive spot after the war. Japanese submarines have claimed a lot of kills there.

I pulled KB back to Singapore to refuel and take on some new planes. Kaga is being repaired locally but I have sent Junyo back to Kobe.

Meanwhile Allied forces have completed the conquest of Timor, taking Dili on 9 November. I was able to fly out many of the troops, fortunately, before the base fell.

Allied heavy bombers have conducted several raids against Ambon. They are mostly unescorted because Q-Ball has discovered that the heavies do a better job protecting themselves than fighters do. I have shot down 10 or 12 of them but it has cost me 3 Zeros in the air and a dozen planes, mostly Bettys, on the ground. The airfield is becoming heavily damaged. We are not talking about the 200 or 300-planes raids we saw in WITP, of course. These fights involve about 40 B-17s and B-24s and it is obvious that battle damage and maintenance issues keep them from flying every day. They can still close an airfield but it is a relatively long process. I expect we will see more of this in the future when Q-Ball attempts further gains.

Burma: the northern frontier has remained static, as far as I can see anyway, but Q-Ball brought a strong force to Lashio. I was able to rush units there, though, and despite heavy bombing and shelling his two attacks there have been at 1 to 2 odds and then 1 to 4 odds. He has the forts down to 0, however. I suspect that supply problems are keeping him from attacking successfully. I hope so, anyway. Heck, I’m having trouble getting supplies there and I have a rail line.

China: Japanese forces are continuing to apply pressure but no breakthroughs yet. Bombarding really does eat up supplies now and doing a bombardment with low supplies seems to produce poor results. The result is I am able to bombard about every other day, with an occasional attack thrown in. I have hopes that in the end a combination of poor Chinese troop quality and superior supplies will enable me to break through.

Pacific: the Pacific ocean has been utterly serene. Occasional Japanese supply convoys ply the waters but that is all the action and movement I have observed here for weeks.

[Cuttlefish]

ORIGINAL: princep01

Cuttlefish says, "All Q-Ball's raids were detected by radar....."???? Really, do you have radar at this stage of the war? I've never played the Japanese, so I just don't know, but I did not think the IJN had radar on their ships at this point.

Hm...you're right, none of my ships present had radar and I can't find radar mentioned in the combat reports. I may have been mistaken about seeing radar mentioned during the replay.

[String]

ORIGINAL: Cuttlefish

ORIGINAL: princep01

Cuttlefish says, "All Q-Ball's raids were detected by radar....."???? Really, do you have radar at this stage of the war? I've never played the Japanese, so I just don't know, but I did not think the IJN had radar on their ships at this point.

Hm...you're right, none of my ships present had radar and I can't find radar mentioned in the combat reports. I may have been mistaken about seeing radar mentioned during the replay.

Actually "detected by radar" message is also given when your TF detects the enemy by other means earlier than usual.

[Capt. Harlock]

As a bright spot, I-157 torpedoed and sank CL Marblehead off Exmouth.

Not one of the Allies' better cruisers, but the VP's help. So far the list of sinkings seems greatly in the IJN's favor -- but that will change if a serious attempt to take back Timor is made.

[fflaguna]

Quit slacking off, Cuttlefish. Let's get some more of this wonderful AAR going!

[Cuttlefish]

[font="Arial"]All delays are dangerous in war.[/font]
- [font="Arial"]John Dryden: Tyrannic Love, 1669[/font]

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11/11/1942 – 11/30/1942

My apologies for the length of time between updates. I have been a busy Cuttlefish lately but it is past time to get caught up on my AARs.

Rather than try to do a blow-by-blow description of the past three weeks in game I will stick to summarizing important developments. The most important of these has undoubtedly been in…

Burma: when last I updated I noted that I was under pressure from three sides in Burma and that my position was in danger of collapse. It was at this point that Q-Ball observed that there was no way, historically, that British and Indian forces could have done this well in late 1942, not against more than five Japanese divisions. He therefore suggested a house rule that restricted British and Indian units not be moved out of India unless PPs are paid.

I was not complaining about what was happening in game but nonetheless I jumped at this like a trout going after a fly. It was a classy move on Q-Ball’s part, I think, to voluntarily abandon a successful offensive in favor of a more balanced game. We agreed to a cease-fire in the region while most of his units pulled back over the frontier. We also agreed that he would keep Myitkyina, since I had defended it only lightly and he could have taken it with available forces.

This accord transforms the game to some extent. I was so worried about Burma I was actually stripping the DEI of reserves and sending them to Rangoon. Those transports have turned back and the DEI will remain stocked with troops. Most of the reserve, by the way, which at the moment consists of the 54th Division and a couple of regiments drawn from Manchukuo, is being held at Davao.

DEI: speaking of this area, November ended on a fairly quiet note. There has been some sniping back and forth but no major battles. The biggest engagement occurred following a successful raid Q-Ball pulled at Ambon, where one of his SCTFs consisting of light cruisers and destroyers caught and sank two xAKs and two gunboats unloading supplies there.

I also had ships unloading supplies at a base above Makassar. I figured Q-Ball would try the same thing there, and he did, but this time I did a counter-interception with Fuso, Nagato, and escorts. The following night battle was a little frustrating, as my battleships failed to score any hits and his force escaped with only one destroyer damaged. I had a destroyer and a light cruiser damaged, so it is safe to say that my planning was good and my execution was bad. So it goes sometimes.

My submarines have been active in the area, sinking several xAKLs. The biggest event, however, was submarine I-155 putting a torpedo into Wasp southeast of Flores. I-155, it may be recalled, is the same sub that sank O16 at the start of the war, crippled Enterprise in the Java Sea, and sank a large AP and several smaller ships. Q-Ball does not seem to appreciate the brave little submarine’s accomplishments and is on record as saying it will be a glorious day when I-155 is finally sunk.

My carriers spent much of this period at Singapore where they rebuilt their air groups following the loss of some 60 carrier planes early in the month. Kaga has rejoined them but Junyo is in dry dock at Kobe, where she will be out of action for about a month and a half. Right now my carriers have moved forward and are again in the Java Sea, though too late to prevent Q-Ball from creeping forward and establishing a base at Raba, just 5 hexes south of Makassar.

Limited fighter sweeps over Raba have met with some success. They have also confirmed something interesting, namely that though Allied fighter groups in the area remain active their morale is bad. Frequently a single lost or damaged plane is enough to cause the remainder of a unit to abort the mission. While it may be difficult or impossible to run the Allies low on planes or pilots without suffering crippling losses of my own it may be possible, by maintaining pressure in the region, to keep his fighter groups from being fully effective just by keeping their morale low.

It has now been two months since the Timor/Flores invasions. Raba has been his only conquest since then but I would have to say that his campaign has been successful so far. He has lost some merchant shipping and a whole lot of airplanes but he has these in abundance. I foresee a long and bloody future for this area.

Pacific: this area has continued to be very quiet except for the Allied recapture of my small outpost at Nukufetau. This was done without loss despite the fact that I had 45 Nells watching from Tabiteuea 12 hexes to the north. They watched and launched no attacks despite having a bunch of Zeros for escort. My land-based bombers seem to do this a lot. Maybe I need to invest in more aggressive commanders.

China: after an attack at Liuchow came off at something like 1 to 15 odds following a month of bruising preliminary artillery barrages I have reluctantly decided to call off the offensive there. Chinese forts now stand at around level 5 across the board and prospects for further offensive operations in China seem dim. I may take up defensive positions and siphon off some units from this theater for use elsewhere.

Under the Sea: Q-Ball and I recently exchanged notes on submarine losses. At this point, almost a year into the war, Japan has lost four submarines: three to ASW attack and one to a submarine. The Allies have lost seven boats: three to mines, two to ASW, one bombed in port, and one to a submarine.

---

The victory point screen for the end of November:

[SqzMyLemon]

Hi Cuttlefish,

Really enjoying your AAR.

Do you mind if I ask you what your carrier aircraft production levels are set to at this stage of the war? With your heavy losses of late how many Zero's, Kate's and Val's do you have in your pools?

[Capt. Harlock]

The biggest event, however, was submarine I-155 putting a torpedo into Wasp southeast of Flores. I-155, it may be recalled, is the same sub that sank O16 at the start of the war, crippled Enterprise in the Java Sea, and sank a large AP and several smaller ships. Q-Ball does not seem to appreciate the brave little submarine’s accomplishments and is on record as saying it will be a glorious day when I-155 is finally sunk.

Hmm. Is it possible I-155 has a Burmese Python on board?

[Cuttlefish]

ORIGINAL: SqzMyLemon

Hi Cuttlefish,

Really enjoying your AAR.

Do you mind if I ask you what your carrier aircraft production levels are set to at this stage of the war? With your heavy losses of late how many Zero's, Kate's and Val's do you have in your pools?

Here are what my carrier aircraft pools look like at the moment, with production numbers:

415 Zero (production halted for the moment)
28 D3A1 Val (production 0)
34 D3A2 Val (production 12, need to expand it)
96 B5N2 Kate (production 32)

[rader]

It looks to me like the D3A1 is actually better than the D3A2... the D3A2 losses a point of range. Maybe it auto-upgraded, but was that a conscious choice? If so, what makes you like the D3A2 better?

Actually, come to think of it, the B5N1 seems better to me than the B5N2.

[Iridium]

ORIGINAL: rader

It looks to me like the D3A1 is actually better than the D3A2... the D3A2 losses a point of range. Maybe it auto-upgraded, but was that a conscious choice? If so, what makes you like the D3A2 better?

Actually, come to think of it, the B5N1 seems better to me than the B5N2.

The B5N1 has less reliability (service rating of 2), is slower, less durable and has less max ceiling than the B5N2.

The D3A2 gains better overall performance for a loss of 1 hex in range, when compared to the D3A1.

[Miller]

The slight extra performance of the D3A2 is not worth the hex of range it loses. The Judy comes online in early 43, and it can carry a 500kg bomb....

[Cuttlefish]

[font="Arial"]The true speed of war is not headlong precipitancy, but the unremitting energy which wastes no time.[/font]
- Mahan: Lessons of the War with Spain, 1899

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12/01/1942 – 12/08/1942

This game has really moved along. We have completed the first year of the war in just four months. I can’t say enough good things about my opponent, who has been unfailing in his energy, enthusiasm, and good sportsmanship.

Of course, he is also a very good player. I am playing two games right now, one against Q-Ball and one against Erstad. There are times when I find myself thinking, after facing yet another inspired move by one opponent or the other, that I really need to start a game against someone less skilled. Someone more like me!

Quail Hunting with Cannon: I sent KB through the Sunda Strait and down into the Indian Ocean. Q-Ball had pickets out, a pair of xAKs that were quickly sunk, but they did not provide enough warning to allow one convoy to get completely clear. It was caught about four hexes out of Port Hedland. Land-based Wildcats flew out to cover it and these took a toll, mostly on the smaller, uncoordinated raids that followed the main attack. I shot down around 17 Wildcats but lost 15 Zeros and 30 Kates and Vals. Three xAPs and a DD were sunk, though two of the APs were small ones. I fear the planes lost were not worth the six ships I sank.

There hasn’t been any sign of the Allied carriers since Wasp took a torpedo in the same area about ten days ago (except for Wasp agian, see below). They may be up to mischief. One thing about his attack in the DEI is that it pretty much tethers my carriers to the area. I worry that he will take advantage of this by moving his own CVs back to the Pacific. It would mean stalling his drive in the DEI but could have advantages for him. KB cannot be everywhere at once, alas, and in my judgment there is nowhere he could attack in the Pacific (except maybe the Kuriles, which are by now strongly defended) that would be worse for me than further gains in the DEI.

Allied heavy bombers staged a big port raid on Soerabaja a few turns back. They were met by a lot of CAP, including the only unit of Tojos I have converted so far – sort of a test unit. Unfortunately Japan does not yet possess a fighter capable of dealing with Allied heavies. Three bombers were shot down and three Japanese fighters lost, though a good many of his bombers made it home riddled with holes. This isn’t completely trivial because those big bombers don’t repair overnight in AE. At least shooting them up limits their attacks, though I long for something with enough firepower to actually kill them.

The Tojos did much better against them than the Oscars did, which makes sense. Tojos have more speed and firepower, which is what you want against bombers. I have yet to see how they do against enemy fighters. One concern, their high maintenance rating, hasn’t been a factor so far. Kept at 40% CAP and 10% rest the unit is managing to keep all of its planes ready for action.

I have grown used to Q-Ball's love of staging port attacks, fortunately, and he didn’t find much there to sink. A pair of xAKs went down and a couple more were damaged but all high-value targets had been moved to Singapore some time before.

Under the Sea: Japanese submarines have had a good week. A few turns ago an I-boat found the limping Wasp on the other side of Australia, near Albany, and put a second torpedo into her. In addition IJN subs sank a good-sized tanker near Carnaveron, an APD near Pago Pago, and a pair of xAKLs near Timor.

Allied subs have been busy but there have not been many sinkings lately. I lost an xAK up around Hokkaido and a pair of small ASW ships in the Luzon Strait, though. On the plus side I got confirmation of another Allied sub lost, bringing the total sunk on the first year to eight.