here a quick overview over my main supply and convoy routes: I guess it's pretty much obvious anyway, and most of you won't be too interested in it - but for me it's a first so I decided to post my thoughts on it:
MAJOR CONVOY ROUTES:
YELLOW:
BASES:
FROM: Los Angeles (Supplies, Fuel), San Francisco (Troops), San Diego (Planes)
TO: Wellington, Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin
WAYPOINTS: 1 - just off the Marquesas - the convoys will be routed south of the Society Islands
of course that's the main supply, fuel and troop route between the West Coast and New Zealand - I have decided to make it my major base for further operations - it can be easily defended and has enough good ports to facilitate the fast unloading of my large convoys from the West Coast. - from there on short range ships will move the goodies to Australia... - I plan to defend Australia as much and as early as possible, as it's vital for the planned counterattack!
DARK RED:
BASES:
FROM: Wellington (supplies, fuel, troops), Cape Town (S, F, T), Aden (T), Abadan (F), Perth (F, S - if ships are available)
TO: Karachi (from Aden and Abadan), Perth (from Capetown), Melbourne (from NZ), Sydney (from NZ), Adelaide (from Perth)
if possible and practical I will also establish a base at Socotra to facilitate fuel transport from Abadan to Capetown
short range ships will distribute supplies and fuel from NZ to Australia - as soon as sufficient quantities have been distributed in NZ itself to support the huge amounts of troops that will be arriving there - for this task the saved Dutch ships from the DEI will come in handy.
Fuel from Capetown is vital for the operations in Australia - especially for later in the war - to make movement of this fuel easier and faster from Perth to Melbourne and Sydney than via land, I will use tankers with 8000 endurance and less to move it via sea
SECONDARY ROUTES:
ORANGE:
BASES:
FROM: San Fransisco (to Pearl Harbor), Pearl Harbor (S, F, T), Seattle (S, F, T)
TO: Dutch Harbor (as long as we are in posession of it), Anchorage, Christmas Island, Pago Pago, Tahiti
this is a secondary route - in the first few months only engineers and supplies with few ships and planes will be moved - apart from Dutch Harbor, where I plan to station an AS (one of the saved ones from the PI) and a few ships at Anchorage (2 CA, 2 old Cls, 6 DDs) - optional these ships will move to Port Rupert (Prince?)
I plan to make Christmas Island a major base - enough engineers are already enroute and close to disembarking - it'll be the missing link between PH and Tahiti
OPTIONAL ROUTES:
LIGHT BLUE
BASES:
FROM: Pago Pago (S), Tahiti (S, F), Sydney (S, F, T)
TO: Suva, Noumea
only later in the war - maybe starting from March or April '42, if they haven't been captured by the Japanese already
RED
BASES:
FROM: Cape Town (S, T), Ledo (S for China)
TO: Diego Garcia, Addu Island, Kunming (airlifted from China)
I plan to build them up as bases, and defend them to a point, as to where they can't be taken easily any more - I will NOT reinforce Ceylon, as the Japanese can easily take it in the early stages of the war, if they have any intentions there - if that time is passed I will add Colombo as a base in that Convoy route.
