The little ship that could.
Moderators: wdolson, MOD_War-in-the-Pacific-Admirals-Edition
decisive battle
11/9/42
0400 hours
Zuiho has 33 kills, of aircraft
She has certainly taken down more tonnage of shipping than she displaces.
System damage sits at a mere two.
Hasegawa remains on the bridge. If today is THE day……..the decisive day, he will act in only one way. His entire life has been bent to this moment. He will take it before death snatches him.
He greets the dawn. Strangely he feels no pain. In fact, right now, he feels like he did when he turned 16, and first strode upon the decks of his first ship, that piddling 250 ton excuse of a destroyer……….full of excitement, anticipation.. fear of what might lie ahead, is incomprehensible
Hidaka prowls the flight deck. He too, is filled with exhilaration. He has seen the enemy……..and his guts tells him, he will see them again, very soon.. He has pulled rank, and will fly again today. There can be no other honour he can think of.
Minobe …ah Minobe.
He sits quietly in the corner of the Damage Control central compartment., staring almost endlessly at the damage control marking panels. Nobody speaks to him, and he offers nothing.
There is nothing to offer. Unseen by those around him………..his mind is gone.
He has seen, that night, that torrent of fire from Hiyo. He has seen Junyo burning from end to end, her sides glowing red in the night.
Fire.
Fire on a carrier. Exhaustion, terror,..and that flaw that he has failed to hold back, quietly have combined.
Minobe sits……..but his mind is not here
Hirate sleeps in the forward damage control base. He sleeps easy. He is not afraid, but he is not brave. He simply cannot imagine what might come. He has been ordered to rest…..and that is an easy order right now to obey.
Okano rests too, leaning against his best friend Hirate. He too, thinks little of what is ahead. His mind flits from thoughts of home, to the forthcoming watch. But mostly he thinks about breakfast…………
Lurch dozes in DCC.
He is bored……….but also quietly fighting his fear. Not the fear of battle, of death, of those things. A simple fear. He faces a bank of phones. In battle, if damaged, so many will depend on him.
He fears above all, letting them down.
Ogawa dresses. Methodically he draws on each item, ensuring each detail is in place.
He once thought himself a coward, inadequate for what was entrusted in him. That he would never match the expectations placed upon him.
This morning, as he prepares, 4 kills under his belt, he feels at peace.
Ogawa, the boy, is gone
Ogawa the man, dresses in his place.
Diogawa dresses to……….in a panic worse than normal. He has misplaced his lucky charm (the nature of which we cannot reveal in a family friendly tale).and he tears the ready room apart looking for it.
His greatest battle of his life lays ahead, and it is the furtherest thing from his mind.
Okura does his duty. He briefs his crew, inspects his bomber in the cool pre dawn, tastes the salt breeze on his tongue. He feels little. What comes, will come
Kurihama seethes………what else would you expect?. Zuiho kates will all fly this day……on naval search. Zuiho is the main eyes for combined fleet.
Search……….means no fish.
Again.
Alright then……..if he has a bomb, then he has a bomb.
He intends to use it.
Cmdr Korii examines the sickbay. And prays he is ready enough.
0410
‘hands to flying stations. Prepare to launch search aircraft. “
how many days of battle now?
It does not matter.
Unknown, yet, to them………today it truly begins
0400 hours
Zuiho has 33 kills, of aircraft
She has certainly taken down more tonnage of shipping than she displaces.
System damage sits at a mere two.
Hasegawa remains on the bridge. If today is THE day……..the decisive day, he will act in only one way. His entire life has been bent to this moment. He will take it before death snatches him.
He greets the dawn. Strangely he feels no pain. In fact, right now, he feels like he did when he turned 16, and first strode upon the decks of his first ship, that piddling 250 ton excuse of a destroyer……….full of excitement, anticipation.. fear of what might lie ahead, is incomprehensible
Hidaka prowls the flight deck. He too, is filled with exhilaration. He has seen the enemy……..and his guts tells him, he will see them again, very soon.. He has pulled rank, and will fly again today. There can be no other honour he can think of.
Minobe …ah Minobe.
He sits quietly in the corner of the Damage Control central compartment., staring almost endlessly at the damage control marking panels. Nobody speaks to him, and he offers nothing.
There is nothing to offer. Unseen by those around him………..his mind is gone.
He has seen, that night, that torrent of fire from Hiyo. He has seen Junyo burning from end to end, her sides glowing red in the night.
Fire.
Fire on a carrier. Exhaustion, terror,..and that flaw that he has failed to hold back, quietly have combined.
Minobe sits……..but his mind is not here
Hirate sleeps in the forward damage control base. He sleeps easy. He is not afraid, but he is not brave. He simply cannot imagine what might come. He has been ordered to rest…..and that is an easy order right now to obey.
Okano rests too, leaning against his best friend Hirate. He too, thinks little of what is ahead. His mind flits from thoughts of home, to the forthcoming watch. But mostly he thinks about breakfast…………
Lurch dozes in DCC.
He is bored……….but also quietly fighting his fear. Not the fear of battle, of death, of those things. A simple fear. He faces a bank of phones. In battle, if damaged, so many will depend on him.
He fears above all, letting them down.
Ogawa dresses. Methodically he draws on each item, ensuring each detail is in place.
He once thought himself a coward, inadequate for what was entrusted in him. That he would never match the expectations placed upon him.
This morning, as he prepares, 4 kills under his belt, he feels at peace.
Ogawa, the boy, is gone
Ogawa the man, dresses in his place.
Diogawa dresses to……….in a panic worse than normal. He has misplaced his lucky charm (the nature of which we cannot reveal in a family friendly tale).and he tears the ready room apart looking for it.
His greatest battle of his life lays ahead, and it is the furtherest thing from his mind.
Okura does his duty. He briefs his crew, inspects his bomber in the cool pre dawn, tastes the salt breeze on his tongue. He feels little. What comes, will come
Kurihama seethes………what else would you expect?. Zuiho kates will all fly this day……on naval search. Zuiho is the main eyes for combined fleet.
Search……….means no fish.
Again.
Alright then……..if he has a bomb, then he has a bomb.
He intends to use it.
Cmdr Korii examines the sickbay. And prays he is ready enough.
0410
‘hands to flying stations. Prepare to launch search aircraft. “
how many days of battle now?
It does not matter.
Unknown, yet, to them………today it truly begins
big seas, fast ships, life tastes better with salt
RE: decisive battle
Ok, then please let it begin[;)]
Thanks again for this really nice " Hibiki-style" AAR. It was already good at the beginning, but since then it became smoother and more polished with every entry. It is definitly one of my favorite 3 AARs.
Sincerely
Rainer
Thanks again for this really nice " Hibiki-style" AAR. It was already good at the beginning, but since then it became smoother and more polished with every entry. It is definitly one of my favorite 3 AARs.
Sincerely
Rainer
carrier Battle!
Thankyou for the comments
I don't think much of my writing myself -its pretty overblown -but its fun. Rushed, never really edited, but fun to do.
Plus, what better way to share such a fab game!
OK, after all that creeping up to the battle......(and remember, waiting for Cantona to return, which, thankfully, he now has)
carrier battle........Tarawa
0516 hrs
Dawn truly has not yet risen, although a plane flying at 5000 feet would be glittering, the waters here remain grey…………and the great bulks of the warships still appear ill defined, vague….almost ethereal
Kurihama races across these dark seas, barely 20 feet above them………a dark swift eagle darting in at the stern of the great carrier in front of him
Saratoga……….how can you mistake her for anything else, that huge towering funnel.
The kate is a surprisingly fast bomber, and Kurihama has wrested every ounce of energy from the dive he commenced the moment this monster hoved into view.
Energy and speed perfectly timed
Surprise is complete………a few guns might have fired at him, he never notices, or cares. The great stern rushes closer, looming, and he eases, no zooms over it, climbing hard, engine howling over the beating roar of her packed flight deck, and his bomb smacks square into her aft quarter, shattering AA guns, flinging men and metal in a horrible mushroom.
He savagely howls a scream of triumph and dives for the deck again, weaving hard right, right again as the mad wildcats seek revenge.
The chase does not last long, for the fighters have other problems now.
Kurihama heads for home, it wont take long.
Both fleets are a mere 160 miles apart.
Yamaguchi watches the last plane of the first strike climb to join the mighty fist circling.
Excitement as he has never felt grips him
Contact, contacts……..so many, so close.
The reports have flowed in……..the search planes barrowing in at dawn, or even before dawn
A val from Soryu has hit a BB
The North Carolina crawls away a mere 80 miles hence
A val has reported a hit on the Yorktown
And a kate has hit the great Saratoga
A bad start for the Americans……..
The strike passes directly overhead, heading straight at the enemy.
His second, already warms on the decks
Hidaka watches them too.
Hasegawa has prohibited him from going………the correct decision yes. But…
..
Zuiho is empty of planes
They are gone…..escorting the strike, or circling as CAP.
He has nothing to do now, except wait.
0525 hrs
Diogawa looks down at the strike, his bird on the upper left flank of the formation.
The sun is up, and although it is still cold up here, it is going to be a beautiful day
Diogawa settles, and wings his way with history
He is still, to his annoyance, hungry
The flight does not take long.
Extract from “shattering the sword” a Cantona production.
60 zeros, 50 vals, 57 kates
they come straight in, the kates diving down to 300 feet, the vals arrowing ahead.
21 wildcats rise to defend……..
too few
The defense is short, not particularly bloody for either side…… a mere 4 fighters fall for each side, it simply does not have time or strength to slow this strike.
It happens frightfully fast.
12 vals arrive over the Yorktown, with out hesitation, one after another they dive,.
Their prey heels, twists, fights back
12 dive, 9 miss
The first bomb penetrates the flight deck, forward, explodes deep in a mess deck.
The second strikes the funnel, burrows deep, explodes out the side of the ship just above the water line, the explosion dishing plates, but little else
The third strikes the flight deck directly ahead of the bridge, exploding there.
Materially it does little damage, but the effect on the command team is catastrophic.
Leaderless, she straightens , and the Kates, hammer over her flight deck, scattering men.
Some pass so close that the fists waved in anger are personal.
Their torpedoes arrive moments later, 4 of them, she bucks, twists, and kicks under the hammer blows.
There is not a man on her who does not instantly feel or know that she is finished……3 minutes into the attack and Yorktown is already starting her plunge to the bottom…………………….
Wasp does better
20 plus torpedoes swarm her way, she dodges all but one.
Other than slowing slightly, she remains in the fight.
Other ships in this action are attacked, many other ships.
CL Nashville -a torpedo
CLAA San Diego, - a torpedo
CA Indianapolis -two fish
CL Phoenix- two fish into her……….and her two halves will separate by nearly 100 yards before they go down together.
The second strike arrives in the middle of this carnage, it is hard to tell when the first attack finishes, the second begins
This time it is Saratoga’s turn.
Kurihama’s bomb damage still smokes as the attack “develops’
Develops. What a terrifying word for her crew, as the bombers swarm overhead, the kates split, circle, and shark in.
Two bombs, three torpedoes.
She is finished
DD Duncan will come alongside to assist, and the sharks, waiting for this, come again.
Her few survivors scramble onto Saratoga, and face the fact that they have exchanged one sinking ship for another
CA Northampton dies: .almost unnoticed in this carnage
CL Raleigh too will take a torpedoe, her mortal struggle now begun, will be a long one.
Yamaguchi’s strike turns for home.
20 minutes.
This is all it has taken
Brutal is hardly a sufficient word.
Diogawa escorts them home
He has two kills, total four now. It’s a good thing, he thinks, that he did find his lucky charm.
0610 hrs
The counter strike approaches
Hasegawa can see them, they all can see them, the growing dots ahead, growing in size and number with every second.
Carefully, for there is little strength in him now, he stands. He takes his uniform jacket, carefully dons it.
Takes his captains Cap, so yellow, so battered, the inside so worn.
Dons it.
Makes his way slowly, deliberately to his Binnacle, the men quietly, reverently making room for him
Silence
They wait
“Are we ready men?’
HIE!”
‘Very good. Full ahead all.. Stand by for air action”
bring it on, you barsteds, bring it on.
26 dive bombers, 10 avengers, 21 wildcats.
77 fighters to defend.
Hasegawa does not have to maneuver at all with this attack, Zuiho steams on, and the streams of death , black streamers, flaming streamers, fluttering, glimmering streamers, fall steadily on the horizon.
Hidaka watches with him.
His men are racking up the kills………..and here he sits
In its horrible military parlance, the attack is broken up by 0730.
Only one dive bomber escapes.
They were brave, these Americans.
But the mathematics, the physics care naught for courage.
0745
‘Another attack sir”
‘very good”
They raise their glasses again, follow the action
Again, many planes fall, the fighters weaving in, about, through the ever dwindling formation.
It is not until their glasses are almost vertical, the dive bombers directly overhead, does it occur to them.
This attack has gotten through
Above them, at ten thousand feet, the defending fighters defeated or avoided, twenty two determined, suicidally determined men, push over, and dive into the attack.
I don't think much of my writing myself -its pretty overblown -but its fun. Rushed, never really edited, but fun to do.
Plus, what better way to share such a fab game!
OK, after all that creeping up to the battle......(and remember, waiting for Cantona to return, which, thankfully, he now has)
carrier battle........Tarawa
0516 hrs
Dawn truly has not yet risen, although a plane flying at 5000 feet would be glittering, the waters here remain grey…………and the great bulks of the warships still appear ill defined, vague….almost ethereal
Kurihama races across these dark seas, barely 20 feet above them………a dark swift eagle darting in at the stern of the great carrier in front of him
Saratoga……….how can you mistake her for anything else, that huge towering funnel.
The kate is a surprisingly fast bomber, and Kurihama has wrested every ounce of energy from the dive he commenced the moment this monster hoved into view.
Energy and speed perfectly timed
Surprise is complete………a few guns might have fired at him, he never notices, or cares. The great stern rushes closer, looming, and he eases, no zooms over it, climbing hard, engine howling over the beating roar of her packed flight deck, and his bomb smacks square into her aft quarter, shattering AA guns, flinging men and metal in a horrible mushroom.
He savagely howls a scream of triumph and dives for the deck again, weaving hard right, right again as the mad wildcats seek revenge.
The chase does not last long, for the fighters have other problems now.
Kurihama heads for home, it wont take long.
Both fleets are a mere 160 miles apart.
Yamaguchi watches the last plane of the first strike climb to join the mighty fist circling.
Excitement as he has never felt grips him
Contact, contacts……..so many, so close.
The reports have flowed in……..the search planes barrowing in at dawn, or even before dawn
A val from Soryu has hit a BB
The North Carolina crawls away a mere 80 miles hence
A val has reported a hit on the Yorktown
And a kate has hit the great Saratoga
A bad start for the Americans……..
The strike passes directly overhead, heading straight at the enemy.
His second, already warms on the decks
Hidaka watches them too.
Hasegawa has prohibited him from going………the correct decision yes. But…
..
Zuiho is empty of planes
They are gone…..escorting the strike, or circling as CAP.
He has nothing to do now, except wait.
0525 hrs
Diogawa looks down at the strike, his bird on the upper left flank of the formation.
The sun is up, and although it is still cold up here, it is going to be a beautiful day
Diogawa settles, and wings his way with history
He is still, to his annoyance, hungry
The flight does not take long.
Extract from “shattering the sword” a Cantona production.
60 zeros, 50 vals, 57 kates
they come straight in, the kates diving down to 300 feet, the vals arrowing ahead.
21 wildcats rise to defend……..
too few
The defense is short, not particularly bloody for either side…… a mere 4 fighters fall for each side, it simply does not have time or strength to slow this strike.
It happens frightfully fast.
12 vals arrive over the Yorktown, with out hesitation, one after another they dive,.
Their prey heels, twists, fights back
12 dive, 9 miss
The first bomb penetrates the flight deck, forward, explodes deep in a mess deck.
The second strikes the funnel, burrows deep, explodes out the side of the ship just above the water line, the explosion dishing plates, but little else
The third strikes the flight deck directly ahead of the bridge, exploding there.
Materially it does little damage, but the effect on the command team is catastrophic.
Leaderless, she straightens , and the Kates, hammer over her flight deck, scattering men.
Some pass so close that the fists waved in anger are personal.
Their torpedoes arrive moments later, 4 of them, she bucks, twists, and kicks under the hammer blows.
There is not a man on her who does not instantly feel or know that she is finished……3 minutes into the attack and Yorktown is already starting her plunge to the bottom…………………….
Wasp does better
20 plus torpedoes swarm her way, she dodges all but one.
Other than slowing slightly, she remains in the fight.
Other ships in this action are attacked, many other ships.
CL Nashville -a torpedo
CLAA San Diego, - a torpedo
CA Indianapolis -two fish
CL Phoenix- two fish into her……….and her two halves will separate by nearly 100 yards before they go down together.
The second strike arrives in the middle of this carnage, it is hard to tell when the first attack finishes, the second begins
This time it is Saratoga’s turn.
Kurihama’s bomb damage still smokes as the attack “develops’
Develops. What a terrifying word for her crew, as the bombers swarm overhead, the kates split, circle, and shark in.
Two bombs, three torpedoes.
She is finished
DD Duncan will come alongside to assist, and the sharks, waiting for this, come again.
Her few survivors scramble onto Saratoga, and face the fact that they have exchanged one sinking ship for another
CA Northampton dies: .almost unnoticed in this carnage
CL Raleigh too will take a torpedoe, her mortal struggle now begun, will be a long one.
Yamaguchi’s strike turns for home.
20 minutes.
This is all it has taken
Brutal is hardly a sufficient word.
Diogawa escorts them home
He has two kills, total four now. It’s a good thing, he thinks, that he did find his lucky charm.
0610 hrs
The counter strike approaches
Hasegawa can see them, they all can see them, the growing dots ahead, growing in size and number with every second.
Carefully, for there is little strength in him now, he stands. He takes his uniform jacket, carefully dons it.
Takes his captains Cap, so yellow, so battered, the inside so worn.
Dons it.
Makes his way slowly, deliberately to his Binnacle, the men quietly, reverently making room for him
Silence
They wait
“Are we ready men?’
HIE!”
‘Very good. Full ahead all.. Stand by for air action”
bring it on, you barsteds, bring it on.
26 dive bombers, 10 avengers, 21 wildcats.
77 fighters to defend.
Hasegawa does not have to maneuver at all with this attack, Zuiho steams on, and the streams of death , black streamers, flaming streamers, fluttering, glimmering streamers, fall steadily on the horizon.
Hidaka watches with him.
His men are racking up the kills………..and here he sits
In its horrible military parlance, the attack is broken up by 0730.
Only one dive bomber escapes.
They were brave, these Americans.
But the mathematics, the physics care naught for courage.
0745
‘Another attack sir”
‘very good”
They raise their glasses again, follow the action
Again, many planes fall, the fighters weaving in, about, through the ever dwindling formation.
It is not until their glasses are almost vertical, the dive bombers directly overhead, does it occur to them.
This attack has gotten through
Above them, at ten thousand feet, the defending fighters defeated or avoided, twenty two determined, suicidally determined men, push over, and dive into the attack.
big seas, fast ships, life tastes better with salt
RE: carrier Battle!
I would call this a "pregnant pause" but I don't think that there is going to be a birth here, more of a death....
-
House Stark
- Posts: 184
- Joined: Sat Apr 30, 2011 6:30 pm
RE: carrier Battle!
Cliffhangers so painful here...
RE: carrier Battle!
The JFB in me is not liking this ...
RE: carrier Battle!
BRING IT ON!
BANZAI: Zuiho!
BANZAI: Zuiho!
Member: Treaty, Reluctant Admiral and Between the Storms Mod Team.
RE: carrier Battle!
So only three American fleet CV's? Where are the rest! (the world wonders)
RE: carrier Battle!
Hi saros.you must be a late comer..........they be already in davee jones locker..............[:D]
(ok, I better go off and write what happens next.thanks for following![:)][:)][:)])
(ok, I better go off and write what happens next.thanks for following![:)][:)][:)])
big seas, fast ships, life tastes better with salt
RE: carrier Battle!
you better do that!
my hands are shaking already [;)]
my hands are shaking already [;)]
the first ones are remembered
RE: carrier Battle!
In later, better years, at air shows, they will do something similar, an air burst I think they will call it.
The bombers dive, scattering to individual targets
There is no time to consider the rest of the fleet, there are only moments to concentrate on the three that aim for them.
Zuiho’s guns fire……….a pathetic thud, thud, thud, of the 4.7’s, rapidly joined by the cracking of the 25’s………. and miracles happen
One bomber is hit square on, obliterated in a stunning ball of flame. The second loses a wing, and spins madly down, slamming into Zuiho’s wake.
The third bombs, pulls away, the black blob growing, growing, screaming in, plunging into the ocean mere feet on the starboard bow, the hammer blow of water against her flanks, towering, collapsing down, flooding a gun pit, her little hull whipping under the shock.
Happy phoenix’s luck holds.
(no ships, in fact, are hit)
For the men below, it is the heaviest bang of the war……….clouds of insulation fall in the spaces, and every pipe dances madly, swaying rattling.
In a dozen places, more, steam erupts from loosened joints, and in two places water sprays as well, fire main pipes shattered by the hammer blow.
Zuiho has been bitch slapped…but races on still at 30 knots.
In DCC, Lurch picks himself up, and automatically as he has been trained, speaks into the comms……..”all spaces, damage reports!’”
Soon they will flood in………there are casualties too, broken bones mainly, men flung violently about.
Lurch will be busy for the next two or three minutes.
So busy, he will not notice Minobe, ashen faced, stand, and leave the compartment.
Hasegawa shakes his head………..still alive. We are still alive. The wonder of it.
But there is no time to wonder, the war keeps calling.
Akagi is signaling ‘ “recover aircraft. Prepare for second strike.”
Extract, from “falling Cherry blossoms, a tale of an Imperial pilot”
None of us really knew the history we were making then. You never do.
We knew exhaustion, we knew fear. But we also knew our duty.
As this battle moved into the afternoon, I think, to a man, we were aware of the weight that was upon us.
The enemy fleet was less than 80 miles away now, and every second report spoke of battleships, and for us, a repeat of THAT night, was intolerable.
So we attacked, and attacked.
They say I torpedoed the Tennesse, or the California this day. I am too humble to claim that. I do say I led the attack, and those battleships were heavily struck, but we all pressed the attack, all braved that Flak.
I watched three of my friends clawed from the sky this day, two gone in a flash, another gliding down, his cockpit a burning hell.
I can never forget that sight, even though I try to every day.
One thing though, again I had the pleasure of an attack free of fighter interference.
Too see the sea rushing into Yorktowns hanger via the elevator hole, to see in that moment, planes, men, machinery whirling around in that cavern…..
Another sight I wish I could forget.
You have probably seen the photos of Saratoga’s demise, her great fat red belly pointing at the sun, the waters covered in so many little black dots, each a man we know now doomed to die
It was a hard day this day. But a necessary day, if we were to win the war, we had to bite deep, feast on American blood, while the great beast lay prostate at our feet…..
Kurihama enters circuit.
His plane, he, is in trouble
Blood freely , too freely flows down his thigh, and wind whistles through too many holes that should not be in his plane.
But he is not the only one
Okura has landed, if that is the word, before him, under cart less.
He is lucky, injury free, but his gunner is not. It will take five minutes yet to clear the deck
Several zeros too have arrived in horrible fashion .Zuiho lives, her pilots have paid a horrible cost.
The green light flashes, and he can see the kate being tipped up, and over, crashing into the sea, clearing the deck for him.
He feels the pain.
His whole life , has been about pain.
About receiving it, about giving it.
Pain, pain to obliterate his inadequacies as a man.
He flares the bomber, hand, feet, stick, throttle almost automatically following a procedure repeated so many times..., but the big injured bird fails to respond, and there is no time to realize this , to be afraid, to do anything as it slams into Zuiho’s fantail, somersaults, breaks apart, rolls, and plunges over the side in a rolling ball of flame.
Good bye Kurihama.
A brilliant pilot. But I don’t think I will miss you.
Dusk
Yamaguchi considers the score
CV Yorktown………sunk
CV Wasp…………two torpedos??.she must still be out there. He must kill her.
CV Saratoga………sunk
CL Nashville……..sunk
CLAA san Diego…….Sunk
CA Indianapolis……….sunk
CL Phoenix……..sunk
CA Northampton………sunk
CL Raleigh…………sunk
2 DDs…….sunk
battleship North Carolina lies crippled 60 miles way.
Further south, BB Tennessee, California.crippled.
To the north of Tarawa, reports of more ships, battleships, including the Arizona.
Undoubtedly some of these claimed ships live still, pilots are notorious……..
But there is only one action he can follow.
“signal BB Yamato, the 4 fast battle ships, and cruisers Nachi, Maogami, Suzuya.
Form surface action group. Detach. Seek the wasp, believed to be 100 miles due south east of present position. Sink whatever you find”
The carriers are exhausted of fuel, of fish. But the battle must go on……………
(1275psi note--------I took extreme care combing all the reports on today……it was actually pretty easy to work out who did what thanks to the games brilliant design. Thanks Matrix!)
The bombers dive, scattering to individual targets
There is no time to consider the rest of the fleet, there are only moments to concentrate on the three that aim for them.
Zuiho’s guns fire……….a pathetic thud, thud, thud, of the 4.7’s, rapidly joined by the cracking of the 25’s………. and miracles happen
One bomber is hit square on, obliterated in a stunning ball of flame. The second loses a wing, and spins madly down, slamming into Zuiho’s wake.
The third bombs, pulls away, the black blob growing, growing, screaming in, plunging into the ocean mere feet on the starboard bow, the hammer blow of water against her flanks, towering, collapsing down, flooding a gun pit, her little hull whipping under the shock.
Happy phoenix’s luck holds.
(no ships, in fact, are hit)
For the men below, it is the heaviest bang of the war……….clouds of insulation fall in the spaces, and every pipe dances madly, swaying rattling.
In a dozen places, more, steam erupts from loosened joints, and in two places water sprays as well, fire main pipes shattered by the hammer blow.
Zuiho has been bitch slapped…but races on still at 30 knots.
In DCC, Lurch picks himself up, and automatically as he has been trained, speaks into the comms……..”all spaces, damage reports!’”
Soon they will flood in………there are casualties too, broken bones mainly, men flung violently about.
Lurch will be busy for the next two or three minutes.
So busy, he will not notice Minobe, ashen faced, stand, and leave the compartment.
Hasegawa shakes his head………..still alive. We are still alive. The wonder of it.
But there is no time to wonder, the war keeps calling.
Akagi is signaling ‘ “recover aircraft. Prepare for second strike.”
Extract, from “falling Cherry blossoms, a tale of an Imperial pilot”
None of us really knew the history we were making then. You never do.
We knew exhaustion, we knew fear. But we also knew our duty.
As this battle moved into the afternoon, I think, to a man, we were aware of the weight that was upon us.
The enemy fleet was less than 80 miles away now, and every second report spoke of battleships, and for us, a repeat of THAT night, was intolerable.
So we attacked, and attacked.
They say I torpedoed the Tennesse, or the California this day. I am too humble to claim that. I do say I led the attack, and those battleships were heavily struck, but we all pressed the attack, all braved that Flak.
I watched three of my friends clawed from the sky this day, two gone in a flash, another gliding down, his cockpit a burning hell.
I can never forget that sight, even though I try to every day.
One thing though, again I had the pleasure of an attack free of fighter interference.
Too see the sea rushing into Yorktowns hanger via the elevator hole, to see in that moment, planes, men, machinery whirling around in that cavern…..
Another sight I wish I could forget.
You have probably seen the photos of Saratoga’s demise, her great fat red belly pointing at the sun, the waters covered in so many little black dots, each a man we know now doomed to die
It was a hard day this day. But a necessary day, if we were to win the war, we had to bite deep, feast on American blood, while the great beast lay prostate at our feet…..
Kurihama enters circuit.
His plane, he, is in trouble
Blood freely , too freely flows down his thigh, and wind whistles through too many holes that should not be in his plane.
But he is not the only one
Okura has landed, if that is the word, before him, under cart less.
He is lucky, injury free, but his gunner is not. It will take five minutes yet to clear the deck
Several zeros too have arrived in horrible fashion .Zuiho lives, her pilots have paid a horrible cost.
The green light flashes, and he can see the kate being tipped up, and over, crashing into the sea, clearing the deck for him.
He feels the pain.
His whole life , has been about pain.
About receiving it, about giving it.
Pain, pain to obliterate his inadequacies as a man.
He flares the bomber, hand, feet, stick, throttle almost automatically following a procedure repeated so many times..., but the big injured bird fails to respond, and there is no time to realize this , to be afraid, to do anything as it slams into Zuiho’s fantail, somersaults, breaks apart, rolls, and plunges over the side in a rolling ball of flame.
Good bye Kurihama.
A brilliant pilot. But I don’t think I will miss you.
Dusk
Yamaguchi considers the score
CV Yorktown………sunk
CV Wasp…………two torpedos??.she must still be out there. He must kill her.
CV Saratoga………sunk
CL Nashville……..sunk
CLAA san Diego…….Sunk
CA Indianapolis……….sunk
CL Phoenix……..sunk
CA Northampton………sunk
CL Raleigh…………sunk
2 DDs…….sunk
battleship North Carolina lies crippled 60 miles way.
Further south, BB Tennessee, California.crippled.
To the north of Tarawa, reports of more ships, battleships, including the Arizona.
Undoubtedly some of these claimed ships live still, pilots are notorious……..
But there is only one action he can follow.
“signal BB Yamato, the 4 fast battle ships, and cruisers Nachi, Maogami, Suzuya.
Form surface action group. Detach. Seek the wasp, believed to be 100 miles due south east of present position. Sink whatever you find”
The carriers are exhausted of fuel, of fish. But the battle must go on……………
(1275psi note--------I took extreme care combing all the reports on today……it was actually pretty easy to work out who did what thanks to the games brilliant design. Thanks Matrix!)
big seas, fast ships, life tastes better with salt
RE: carrier Battle!
well done you old dictator! ( and well written too! [:)])
the first ones are remembered
RE: carrier Battle!
Get the Wasp and a few more BB and life is GREAT!
Member: Treaty, Reluctant Admiral and Between the Storms Mod Team.
RE: carrier Battle!
Could we be seeing a sore throat?
Fangs out neck extended across the chopping block?
Fangs out neck extended across the chopping block?
The Wake
RE: carrier Battle!
Twenty hundred hours
Zuiho’s men work
Of her entire crew, only the pilots sleep, or try to. Only on orders of Hidaka do they sleep.
Elsewhere men work.
In the hanger, ander the bright, bright lights, men sweat. 8 kates are serviceable for tomorrow, three are damaged. Two, might, just might be made ready for the dawn. Men swarm over these planes………..a thousand regulations and rules are being broken as a hundred short cuts are taken to get them ready.
About them, other men strain to load the fish.
Zuiho still has her fish
Tomorrow, what ever is out there, is still close enough for the float planes to find.
If Zuiho can launch it tomorrow, it will be on strike.
Only 8 zeros remain
15 pilots.
They now have 41 kills to their names.
In the sickbay CMDR Korii works, he has bones to set, and three men have shrapnel wounds. These he can treat. The man in the corner, behind the screen: he does not know.
Minobe sits there, but not his mind.
In the context of Japanese, in the context of Japanese military men, he simply has no experience of what he sees.
But there is no time for that now, other men still come in, stokers, three of them, all scalded in various amounts. They wait stoically for his team.
Cmdr Korii works , and thanks the stars that this is all he has to contend with.
The cooks work. They have done well, incredibly well. Hot food has been distributed through out the ship, swet rolls, sticky rice, dried meat, even for some, hot soup.
Men fight on their belly.
Of all the actions taken tonight, this must be almost the most important.
The stokers work too. Tonight, they will achieve fuelling, receiving nearly 500 tons from Akagi.
They were down to 16% at dusk. Running on fumes is not the word for it.
Even as they refuel, they will labour on the leaks. There will be no hot water from now on until port, a small price to pay indeed.
They work
All of them.
Combined fleet too works all night, refueling mainly, transferring dunked pilots to home ships, and preparing for tomorrow. She barely covers 80 miles in 8 hours, a distance Yamaguchi has little to fret over
By 0300 he has the enemy formations plotted to the inch.
Tomorrow will be a bloody day.
Yamato, Kongo, Kirishima, Hiei, Haranua, cruisers Nachi, Mogami, Suzuya, escorting destroyers, steam south now, the main body fading into the horizon
The Yamato leads, arrogance personified.
Just after midnight, it is an arrogance justified.
Battle ship North Carolina, a single escorting destroyer are sighted at 12000 yards just before midnight, and Tanaka takes his force in line ahead, parallel to the glowing shape in the dark.
For many months Yamato’s gunnery has been greatly maligned., twice they have failed initial gunnery trials.
Twice they have searched for the reasons for their shame.
Last month, they found them.
Our story has no man on this ship, but what thrill they must have felt, what anticipation…………’surface target Port!, battleship!. SHOOT!
Tonight, dinosaurs still rule the earth
That first salve we know struck true, struck deep.
As did the second
There is no need for a third
‘Shift target right!………secondary armament, shoot!
A beautiful baptism, a Battleship and destroyer in the bag.
Tanaka, strictly following his orders, turns North again to rejoin the fleet
The Wasp has been sighted, too far away for him and his fuel situation.
But plenty close enough for the carriers
Okura climbs into his Kate. No, not his kate. He busted that yesterday. Was it only yesterday?
The climb into the cockpit is exhausting.
In training school, they used to run in the dawn on the beach, run, and run, and run, because to stop running meant a beating.
He never then, felt as exhausted as this.
Rest. They must rest.
They cannot.
Hidaka climbs into the bird ahead of him, head bowing in acknowledgement his way.
So, he has escaped Hasegawa’s clutches after all.
And why not.? The beast is down, the jackals circle ever closer.
He lifts of into the dawn, again, wheeling hard south as soon as he can, Hidaka on his wing, unknowns from other carriers all about them
The skies are filling with planes, but not all go south
Many go North, some west, some east.
It is…………..a target rich environment………
He flies automatically……you, I have done it. Drove across endless plains, and been unable to remember any of it
This is that flight
And then the green flare, and Hidaka wobbling the wings, the slow., curving descent to 500 feet, 300 feet.
Numbness. This is how Okura flies today, in numbness. The flak does not affect him. The ships he gently dodges around he barely notices
The release of the fish, he never can recall.
WASP, already listing hard, leaping at the hit……barely stirs him
Tired beyond belief, he will fly home, climb out of his bird, and seek the only thing he needs, sleep.
Extract, from shattering the sword, a cantona production
12/9/42. A black day in America’s history
A black day indeed
Even, as members of Congress stand, and call for the President “to end this war now”, even as he sits , alone in the oval office (my darkest day, bar none. Our great sword, the Navy, shattered in my hand. But I would see the sun again, if I retained the faith), the disaster continues.
Battle ship Tennessee is struck by three bombs, not those piddling 250 KG bombs, but Kate delivered bombs.
She burns, and is in big trouble
Cruiser Indianapolis, a destroyer are sunk. There is no false counting of these today.
Battleship California takes a bomb near dusk.
She will be still burning as night falls, a fatal danger in these shark filled waters.
To the North of Tarawa, fruitlessly hunting for an invasion fleet already fleeing North, kates….Zuiho kates, sink CLAA Atlanta, CL Durbham
Other ships, 2 more heavy cruisers, are reported bombed as well. Double claims?
Does it matter
The defeat is becoming a rout.
Unfortunately for the Americans, there is a long,, long way to run.
Zuiho’s men work
Of her entire crew, only the pilots sleep, or try to. Only on orders of Hidaka do they sleep.
Elsewhere men work.
In the hanger, ander the bright, bright lights, men sweat. 8 kates are serviceable for tomorrow, three are damaged. Two, might, just might be made ready for the dawn. Men swarm over these planes………..a thousand regulations and rules are being broken as a hundred short cuts are taken to get them ready.
About them, other men strain to load the fish.
Zuiho still has her fish
Tomorrow, what ever is out there, is still close enough for the float planes to find.
If Zuiho can launch it tomorrow, it will be on strike.
Only 8 zeros remain
15 pilots.
They now have 41 kills to their names.
In the sickbay CMDR Korii works, he has bones to set, and three men have shrapnel wounds. These he can treat. The man in the corner, behind the screen: he does not know.
Minobe sits there, but not his mind.
In the context of Japanese, in the context of Japanese military men, he simply has no experience of what he sees.
But there is no time for that now, other men still come in, stokers, three of them, all scalded in various amounts. They wait stoically for his team.
Cmdr Korii works , and thanks the stars that this is all he has to contend with.
The cooks work. They have done well, incredibly well. Hot food has been distributed through out the ship, swet rolls, sticky rice, dried meat, even for some, hot soup.
Men fight on their belly.
Of all the actions taken tonight, this must be almost the most important.
The stokers work too. Tonight, they will achieve fuelling, receiving nearly 500 tons from Akagi.
They were down to 16% at dusk. Running on fumes is not the word for it.
Even as they refuel, they will labour on the leaks. There will be no hot water from now on until port, a small price to pay indeed.
They work
All of them.
Combined fleet too works all night, refueling mainly, transferring dunked pilots to home ships, and preparing for tomorrow. She barely covers 80 miles in 8 hours, a distance Yamaguchi has little to fret over
By 0300 he has the enemy formations plotted to the inch.
Tomorrow will be a bloody day.
Yamato, Kongo, Kirishima, Hiei, Haranua, cruisers Nachi, Mogami, Suzuya, escorting destroyers, steam south now, the main body fading into the horizon
The Yamato leads, arrogance personified.
Just after midnight, it is an arrogance justified.
Battle ship North Carolina, a single escorting destroyer are sighted at 12000 yards just before midnight, and Tanaka takes his force in line ahead, parallel to the glowing shape in the dark.
For many months Yamato’s gunnery has been greatly maligned., twice they have failed initial gunnery trials.
Twice they have searched for the reasons for their shame.
Last month, they found them.
Our story has no man on this ship, but what thrill they must have felt, what anticipation…………’surface target Port!, battleship!. SHOOT!
Tonight, dinosaurs still rule the earth
That first salve we know struck true, struck deep.
As did the second
There is no need for a third
‘Shift target right!………secondary armament, shoot!
A beautiful baptism, a Battleship and destroyer in the bag.
Tanaka, strictly following his orders, turns North again to rejoin the fleet
The Wasp has been sighted, too far away for him and his fuel situation.
But plenty close enough for the carriers
Okura climbs into his Kate. No, not his kate. He busted that yesterday. Was it only yesterday?
The climb into the cockpit is exhausting.
In training school, they used to run in the dawn on the beach, run, and run, and run, because to stop running meant a beating.
He never then, felt as exhausted as this.
Rest. They must rest.
They cannot.
Hidaka climbs into the bird ahead of him, head bowing in acknowledgement his way.
So, he has escaped Hasegawa’s clutches after all.
And why not.? The beast is down, the jackals circle ever closer.
He lifts of into the dawn, again, wheeling hard south as soon as he can, Hidaka on his wing, unknowns from other carriers all about them
The skies are filling with planes, but not all go south
Many go North, some west, some east.
It is…………..a target rich environment………
He flies automatically……you, I have done it. Drove across endless plains, and been unable to remember any of it
This is that flight
And then the green flare, and Hidaka wobbling the wings, the slow., curving descent to 500 feet, 300 feet.
Numbness. This is how Okura flies today, in numbness. The flak does not affect him. The ships he gently dodges around he barely notices
The release of the fish, he never can recall.
WASP, already listing hard, leaping at the hit……barely stirs him
Tired beyond belief, he will fly home, climb out of his bird, and seek the only thing he needs, sleep.
Extract, from shattering the sword, a cantona production
12/9/42. A black day in America’s history
A black day indeed
Even, as members of Congress stand, and call for the President “to end this war now”, even as he sits , alone in the oval office (my darkest day, bar none. Our great sword, the Navy, shattered in my hand. But I would see the sun again, if I retained the faith), the disaster continues.
Battle ship Tennessee is struck by three bombs, not those piddling 250 KG bombs, but Kate delivered bombs.
She burns, and is in big trouble
Cruiser Indianapolis, a destroyer are sunk. There is no false counting of these today.
Battleship California takes a bomb near dusk.
She will be still burning as night falls, a fatal danger in these shark filled waters.
To the North of Tarawa, fruitlessly hunting for an invasion fleet already fleeing North, kates….Zuiho kates, sink CLAA Atlanta, CL Durbham
Other ships, 2 more heavy cruisers, are reported bombed as well. Double claims?
Does it matter
The defeat is becoming a rout.
Unfortunately for the Americans, there is a long,, long way to run.
big seas, fast ships, life tastes better with salt
RE: carrier Battle!
Ouch. I confess to being a bit disappointed that the result wasn't a bit more balanced ... seems to me the Americans got a raw deal on their airstrikes - surely there should have been a few hits in the lot? Even against strong CAP, historically carrier strikes almost always drew blood - this result seems very lopsided.
But don't mean to detract from your victory at all - well played! Will be tough for the US to come back from this.
But don't mean to detract from your victory at all - well played! Will be tough for the US to come back from this.