Historical AE. Cantona2 (A) vs Fletcher (J)

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Ship losses today

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Turn Synopsis 13

A very mixed turn, both Silent Services clock up wins!

Sadly the light cruiser Perth is sunk off Brisbane as she escorted a supply convoy to Townsville. RAN Command has ordered all shipping in the area to seek safe haven in the nearest port will ASW task forces scour the water ways. Meanwhile, the SS Pickerel sinks the IJN CL Kitakama at Davao. She had been shadowing the Japanese ships at Davao for two days and late in the afternoon of the 23rd December she achieved optimum attack position near the Kitakama. She launched a spread of 4 torpedoes. The sonar man recorded 4 hits buts only two explosions. It was becoming increasingly frequent that many duds were hitting enemy ships. Something would have to be done about it.

Operation Spruce was a total success. 13th Army Group occupied Kweisui and has immediately begun to dig in while one of its corps will advance eastwards along the railway. A massive morale booster for the Chinese.

PT sqaudrons have also earned thier stripes. The Manila Boats intercepted the Bataganas landing force and were able to hassle the Japanese ships as they sailed in. The Hong Kong boats, now operating out of Kwangchowan were able to attack enemy transports unloading at Pakhoi, scoring a hit with one torpedo. CAF air attacks were ineffective and a Dutch submarine received undue attention from the escorting destroyers.

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Manila Squadron PT Boats in action

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Hong Kong refugees bite hard!

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SS Pickerel, toast of the fleet

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Ships lost today

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Turn Synopsis 14

Invasion Miri well and truly on! CVL Zuiho in support!

A realtively quiet turn other than in the Hokkaido. Operation Backstage was spotted yesterday and both RCN AMCs were subnect to attack by G4M1s from Hokkaido. One bomb struck the Prince Robert inflicting minimal damage. No enemy ships were sighted either by surface or submerged raiders. A dash to the northern reaches of the Sea of Okhotsk at full steam has been ordered, with strict instructions given to the captians that they must not infringe on Soviet waters.

G4M1 Type bombers sunk an Asiatic Fleet minesweeper at Manila harbour in a low level torpedo attack. The port was once again bombed and General McArthur has started to move his main assets into the more defensible redoubts of Clark Field and Bataan.

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Status of Operation Backstage, Christmas Eve 1941

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Changteh, whose strategic importance has been magnified by the crossing of the Yangtze by the Japanese at Ichang, has been reinforced heavily.

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Turn Synopsis 15

Operation Backstage has so far revealed nothing about enemy dispositions or sunk any ships. A Japanese Auxiliary cruise engaged the Prince Robert yesterday and was sent packing gushing smoke after two very solid hits. The Prince Rupert has been ordered to leave Japanese waters via Paramushiro-Jima and then make port at Dutch Harbour. If we have been able to get Japan to deploy resorces to her northern flank then all the better.

The war finally reached the skies over Singapore with viscious dog fights between Ki-43s and Buffaloes. 5 RAF fighters were shot down while at least 2 enemy fighters went down over the port area. Anti-aircraft and sweep patrols are being increased at is it feared that Singapore will soon be subjected to the same aerial bombardment that Manila has been seeing for the past week. Indeed, Manila's port was hit again by massed bombers in different waves. The Japanese Army has reached the gates of Temuloh as it swept away the remnants off the 8th Indian Brigade in its march south.

PG Tulsa sank after hitting a mine off Bathurst Island, north west of Darwin. The enemy submarine spotted there two days ago must have left some eggs. A two ship squdron of minesweepers has left Darwin with orders to sweep the seas. It was fortunate that the oiler the Tulsa was escorting did not hit any mines, as she was full to the brim of fuel!

ASW efforts have also begun to see some fruit. Enemy submarines were engaged in the Bass Strait, off Soerbaja and in the immediate of Canton Island, that seems to be attracting submarines like bees to honey. Further to the east however, a mass of shipping is disgorging their cargo on Christams Island that now boasts air and naval support personnel, an infantry regiment for garrison and a HQ unit to organise the movement of fuel and supplies.

AMC vs AMC - 1-0 to the RCN

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ASW efforts begin to bite.

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Sub laid minefield off Bathurst Island, an immediate and concerning danger in the shipping lanes leading into Darwin that will be swept clean.

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Ships lost last turn. The aerial bombardment of Manila is making toast of any shipping that was left behind, not too much!

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Turn Synopsis 16

Two destroyers on the hunt for enemy submarines around Canton Island, found a Japanese Auxiliary Cruiser. After their initial surprise they quickly pumped a couple of shells into the enemy ship that was seen making smoke and heading due west, towards the Marshall Islands. Hopefully into the path of a patrolling USN cruiser!

The minefield off Bathurst Island was almost swept away but one AM hit a mine and was sunk with the loss of 16 lives. A mass of shipping at Darwin is awaiting confirmation of clear waterways in order to safely continue on their voyages. A-24 divebombers, recently arrived at Brisbane are aslo being deployed north as well as east.

8th Marine Regiment has started to board ships in Los Angeles and the 7th Bomber Group has been given orders to move into the Fiji-New Caledonia area as well. By nightfall all elements of the group had landed at Hickham Field, now patched up and running, before resting 24 hours until the next pit stop at Canton Island. The 8th Marines will start their long journey to Noumea as soon as their last supplies are on board.

In Northern China the remnants of the two brigades kicked out of Kweisui were ejected from the railway line leading north west out of the town. One corps is in pursuit so that the enemy troops do not entrench themselves in the mountains to the east. Similarly Japanese troops in Malaya routed the 28th Gurkha Brigade at Taiping. The retreating troops found their way south cut off my enemy armour and thus retreated into Georgetown were a pocket has been formed.

Two more ships succumbed at Manila harbour to the damage received from enemy air attacks. Iba was also attacked but P-40s accounted for at least 3 enemy bombers. To the west, Kuching was also attacked for the first time. This raid, well two waves of it, auger the invasion of Kuching. A logical move after the occupation of Sarawak and northern Borneo. Dutch fighters (B-3339D) were called into action for the first time and were able to shoot down two enemy bombers that came in unescorted. The bombers were identified as G4M1 Type (1st wave) and G3M2 Type (2nd wave). It is believed that the planes operated from the Indo China mainland thus accounting for the lack of escorts. Once Miri gets setup its is believed that fighters will soon sweep the skies over Borneo.

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Turn Synopsis 17

The game is getting very interesting as we approach the end of the first wave of Japanese operations. It seems that Ramon has now turned his eyes on Kuching if SIGINT and ships sightings are correct. A couple of Dutch minelayers based at Singapore have sown a minefield at Kuching and were spotted by an enemy submarine enroute back to base. As of yet no further raids have been carried out on Kuching but I assume this will reusme as the invasion task forces get nearer.

Georgetown, on the other hand has been subjected to terrific air raids. It seems all the Japanese aircraft in Malaya are pointing in the same directon. This has allowed for fruitless but unopposed raids on the Japanese vanguard traversing the jungle north of Temuloh and for strikes at shipping on Singora. A smatterring of Ki-27s on CAP were swept away by RAAF Buffaloes.

Changsha has also seen intensive air action. IJAAF light and dive bombers have been targetting the various CAF airfields around the city. CAF biplanes and the 2/AVG have provided sterling defence acounting for 20 enemy aircraft in two days of action. THe allies now boast an air-air 'ace', a FO Mao flying an obsolete I-15.

Lingayen on Luzon has fallen and the pieces for the final endgame are getting ready. US troops have been ordered to stand and fight to the last bullet. Tie the Japs down and allow the front to be rebulit elsewhere.

ASW patrols off Townsville report the sinking of an enemy submarine in the shallow reefs off the town. There has been an increase of sightings and attacks by enemy subs in Austrlaian waters. Sightings of large number of enemy ships leaving the Truk area have also raised the level of alarm and readiness all over the austrlaian east coast.

Japanese moves against Burma have also begun. For several days 1/AVG and RAF Blenheims have been harrassing enemy troop movements near the Siam-Burma border. Yesterday SIGINT picked up a valuable nugget of informtaion. A airfield support unit was reporting to Army HQ at Bangkok that it had arrived at its destination of Chiang Mai and was ready to support opeartions. Things were no doubt going to get hotter for LGEN McLeod and Burma Command.

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Defensive minefields laid at Kuching as north west Borneo is highly likely to become the next Japanese target.

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Japan starts to probe against Burma. III/143rd Infantry Battalion identified by intel.

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Japan moves against the Solomons and New Guinea?

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Turn Synopsis 18

Well Japanese forces are starting to move in force against certain areas. Landfall was made at Kavieng by one of the task forces sighted yesterday. Shadowing submarines lost contact with the ships heading to the Solomons and more search aircraft have been flown into Port Moersby to look for them. Possible targets maybe Shortlands or Tulgai. What is cleat is that I am very thinly spread on the ground here. I wonder if Ramon is going to repeat his attack on Horn Island and Port Moersby like in our last game.

The task forces heading for Kuching are one day out. SS Sturgeon got hit by depth charges as she tried to get an optimum attack position on a light carrier. Far East HQ at Singapore has authorised the release of a Vildebeeste squadron from ASW duties around Singapore for immediate redployment to Kuching. Coastal defence postitions were subject to an air raid by over 50 enemy bombers.

Singpaore itself was subject to three air raids today. 33 Buffaloes were in the air ready to meet an attack by Ki-21s escorted by Ki-43s. It was a good day for the RAF. Despite some 10 planes shot down, RAF pilots could confirm 23 enemy planes shot down pver Singpore, 16 of these being Ki-21 Type bombers. Later sweeps were also ineffectual. This provided a nice morale booster after the earlier news that the Georgetown garrison had surrendered to the enemy. The pocket, cut off and out of supply, had been subject to a murderous aerial assault. There is no doubt that these assests will now move south and target Singapore. In the harbour, SS 0-20 finished repairs and set off to sea to interdict any ships heading to Kuching. A further Dutch submarine in the dry dock would be ready in two days.

Japanese troops have entered Manila suburbs to the south. Thier advance was covered by a mass of bombers that targetted the main USAAEF HQ buildings. The Cavite naval yard was once again hit and its once proud resources are now reduced to smoking, twisted and crumbling metal. All planes have redployed to Bataan and the US Army is readying for an urban battle for Manila.

Japanese submarines were very active today, especially to the north of Pearl Harbour. They sunk two Austrlaian transport ships that had refuelled at Pearl enroute to San Francisco from Sydney. At least three enemy submarines have been sighted in the area in the apst few days. DD Farragut is leading a hunter killer force of 4 destroyers to try and flush these pirates out. This loss was added to another transport sunk in the Bass Strait by another enemy sub.

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Japanese advances in China have so far been slow. The 6th Infantry Division has still not moved from the Yangtze towards to Changteh. This has allowed Chagteh to build up a decent garrison and allowed other Chinese forces to deploy. In the North there has still been no move on Kweisui so we are mopping up and consolidating. In the centre 23rd and 32nd Group Armies have started a march to threaten the Japanese enclave at Nanchang. No hope of capturing the city is fostered, but as in the North the aim is to make the IJA react to us and not vica versa.

A second Chinese ace has now joined the ranks. FO Chu joins his comrade in arms in having shot down 5 enemy aircraft. The 17th has been withdrawn to Chugking after being reduced to three planes and FO Mao has been rotated to group reserve to lend his expertise to the training of new pilots.