Thinz2 vs Zuluhour

[zuluhour]

July 5th 1942
India,Middle East, Africa: Some tanker convoy assembly but mostly alot of refits as I just figured out how to properly manipulate repair yards and refit schedules. SNAFU.

Burma: 21st IJA Div confirmed again in theater. Two sweeps are scheduled for Magwe and Mandalay but weather is bad. Small groups of the Rangoon defense make their way down the Akyab.

China: 20th AG makes progress in the broken forested terrain SE of the railhead. It looks as though there is aviation fuel at the deserted northen Chinese ABs and the first CAF FG is getting closer to Chunking. Level bombers scheduled to hit IJA forces in front of 20th AG. Pakoi is holding, I have no units to spare for a breakout. Engineers making the slow trek to the Yellow river defense line to shore it up.

SoPac: IJN cruiser force is to big for a lone CA to tangle with so we order a hasty retirement SE. Maurauders to hit Tulagi's AF. B17s stage huge raid yesterday on Lae, little damage, but they shoot up some Zekes and down one or two. They fly for experience now. IV Bomber command waiting to stage a big raid on Rabaul when Port Morseby is ready, about thirty days if all the cards fall right.

Wasp on sea trials in CenPac after replacing TBs with wildcats. They need training to become carrier trained.

[DOCUP]

You got more aces than me.

[zuluhour]

July 6th 1942

Burma: both sweeps over Magwe and Mandalay are deemed successful as we kill more Oscars. Small Blenhiem raid scheduled for the 7th over Mandalay.

China: 20th AG has made 30mi, wonder if its going to be a surprise for the IJA. This is a powerful AG. The 33rd Army Group (2-corps) pulled from the line at Ichang for defense in depth. Signet reveals more Arty prepping.
66th Corp is days away from full strength in Chunking. This is a monster Corp with over 750av. As part of Central Reserve it will move to the Changsha area as the Yangze River reserve. If OpAtlas gains momentum it may be a used in exploitation. CAF squadrons are arriving in Chungking from up north and we will be able to ungrade one of them in three weeks, about the same time it reaches high forties experience. level bombers ordered to hit forward positions at 20th AG again. They have not flown due to weather for several days.

SoPac: Marauders down a Zeke or two and damage some more over Tulagi. A smallish raid will fly again on the 7th weather permitting.

West Coast: Many escorts have made port in the last 24 hours; we will check for refits and get the remaining Arty and Engineers into SoPac and CenPac along with a large fuel and supply run. TFs carrying Marine aviators to SoPac are over a third of the way there. There is a shortage of fighters at the Supply depots and forward bases.

[zuluhour]

July 7th 1942

China: 20th Army Group should make contact with IJA units SE of Kukong on the 8th. The bombers cancel again in their support. Further north on the Yangtze line we repluse a larger IJA deliberate attack with a very nice squad disruption ratio. IJA steps up pressure on Pakhoi.

Burma: stragglers enter India from Kohima, Burma command behind them. We lose some hurricanes over Mandalay and down some Oscars. No raids scheduled for tomorrow. The small Mitchel raid kills some nips at Lashio.

CenPac: Gato passes Midway enrout to its target in the home islands.

SoPac: Rufes make their first appearance ovr Tulagi with some Zekes which also seem to be much better pilots than we met previously. Marauders stand down (I hope I stood them down) as they take losses for little gain. As they are merely a harassment element we will withdraw them and possibly stage a B17 raid in. Marine ac are still about a week out of theater. Convoy with 93000 pts of fuel will leave depot area for Australia in eight or nine days. Another 30000 pts will hit eastern Australia within two or three days.

SigInt: Three more IJA divisions reported. An armored car Reg is reported to be planning for Hengyang. He may be planning something larger than I thought here.

[zuluhour]

July 8th 1942

Burma: large concentrations of IJA ac sighted in central Burma. Huricanes from Imphal ordered to sweep Mandalay to determine quality of pilots.

China: 20th Army Group ordered to assault IJA unit (1-shown) and force a breach. 18th Corp of 20th AG detrains at the railhead as a reserve. Bombers ordered to fly again in support, they have not flown for some time. CnC Zulu will take a look at the leadership there.

SoPac: General Quarters! see below.

[zuluhour]

July 9th 1942
An active turn for the Empire, China first.

[zuluhour]

SoPac:

[zuluhour]

July 10th
Short report.
Mixed Chinese forces east of Pingsiang repluse an assault, dishing out some 2000+ casualties. The huge Central Reserve 66th Corp forms from its Divs and begins marching south from Chungking.

Allied SCTFs assemble near Luganville. Possible raid around Tulagi AO.

Several squadrons ordered to sweep and bomb Lashio as the 15th Army has some aux ac on an airfield there. Bombers from forward bases in India ordered to hit IJA units in the open by Magwe. The IJA has over 100 fighters in Burma now. Liberators on the east coast with a squadron of P39s board ships for service in India. I have just over 1000 PPs in the bank.

[zuluhour]

Well I went out and bought a new car tonight. I may have rushed the wrong turn. 2-CVs, probably all of'em are about 240nm SW of Ndeni. Spotter aircraft give them an easterly heading. I have 2-BBTFs and 2-CL TFs attempting to close and intercept.

[zuluhour]

July 12th 1942

China: No more IJA assaults today. There is still movement to towards Ichang. 20th Army Group 4mi from Kukong and regrouping with the 18th corp.

Burma: Remnents of the Rabaul force struggling to reach the frontier with India. Heavy bombing is taking a toll. Fighter sweeps and low alt. bomb runs on the airfield ordered at Lashio.
SoPac: See below. Merchant shipping steamed SSE from all the forward bases and depot areas yesterday with the Kido Butai sighting.

[zuluhour]

Julty 13th 1942
The pace of Operations for Japan has increased accross the Pacific and Asia. Heavy bombing in China, Burma and Sumatra. I still have detachments there. The sweep over Lashio meets far more then recon reveals. I may have to remove the transports begining to fly the hump from Ledo. I-28 hits Colorado with two torps and deep sixes her. We lose Mississippi during the night. KB sighted moving due west. Surprising as it was moving SSE yesterday.

[DOCUP]

Congrats on the car.  Sorry for the loss of your BBs.

[zuluhour]

July 14th 1942

PI: IJA attack Bataan and are repulsed, I have no idea how they are hanging on.

China: IJA units moving around Ichang. Lancers arrive in one sqaudron in Chungking. Pekhoi subject to air raids and bombardments daily.

Burma: IJA 15th Army is using Lashio as an AB. Most action is centered around hammering retrating units. Several cadres have reached India and are on trains for Dehli for rest and refit. Feverish Huricane training. Liberators are 5-6 weeks away.

SoPac: KB heads NNW but CATF is 80nm from pounding Port Morseby again. I may challenge with another slow BBTF two days away.

[zuluhour]

July 15th

Little to report in Asia. IJN CATF bombards Port Morseby. We lose half a dozen fighters, another Sqn damaged but the facilities are only suffer minor damage. I have plenty of P40 and P39s to redistribute.

[Alfred]

ORIGINAL: zuluhour

July 14th 1942

PI: IJA attack Bataan and are repulsed, I have no idea how they are hanging on...

Put up the section of the combat report, it will probably have some useful clues.[:)]

Alfred

[zuluhour]

Ground combat at Bataan (78,77)

Japanese Deliberate attack

Attacking force 25841 troops, 251 guns, 229 vehicles, Assault Value = 930

Defending force 27886 troops, 228 guns, 656 vehicles, Assault Value = 391

Japanese engineers reduce fortifications to 1

Japanese adjusted assault: 279

Allied adjusted defense: 199

Japanese assault odds: 1 to 1 (fort level 1)

Japanese Assault reduces fortifications to 1

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), forts(+), leaders(+), fatigue(-), experience(-)
supply(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
616 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 81 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 5 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 18 (1 destroyed, 17 disabled)
Vehicles lost 30 (5 destroyed, 25 disabled)


Allied ground losses:
815 casualties reported
Squads: 13 destroyed, 68 disabled
Non Combat: 10 destroyed, 94 disabled
Engineers: 3 destroyed, 8 disabled
Vehicles lost 43 (6 destroyed, 37 disabled)


Assaulting units:
4th Tank Regiment
65th Brigade
10th Garrison Unit
Imperial Guards Division
9th Ind.Hvy.Art. Battalion
8th Medium Field Artillery Regiment
1st Medium Field Artillery Regiment
15th Ind.Art.Mortar Battalion
2nd Ind.Art.Mortar Battalion

Defending units:
1st PA Constabulary Regiment
192nd Tank Battalion
4th Marine Regiment
31st PA Infantry Division
26th PS Cavalry Regiment
4th PA Constabulary Regiment
31st Infantry Regiment
194th Tank Battalion
41st PA Infantry Division
57th PS Infantry Regimental Combat Team
2nd PA Constblry HW Regiment
Asiatic Fleet
Clark Field USAAF Base Force
Far East USAAF
2nd/45th PS Inf Battalion
202nd PA Construction Battalion
21st PA Infantry Division
USAFFE
3rd/45th PS Inf Battalion
1st PI Base Force
Manila USAAF Base Force
Manila Bay Defenses
PAF Aviation
Provisional GMC Grp
803rd Engineer Aviation Battalion
Bataan USN Base Force
88th PS Field Artillery Regiment
Cavite USN Base Force
1st/45th PS Inf Battalion
200th & 515th Coast AA Regiment
301st Construction Battalion
14th PS Engineer Regiment
I Philippine Corps
301st PA Field Artillery Regiment
These guys have been out of supply for three and a half months.

[zuluhour]

The Bataan situation is more of a question of how are they surviving without supply and why is IJA allowing this bastion in their rear.
I am not complaining.

[DOCUP]

It looks like he is just trying to hold you there and wear you down over time.  Koniu has a large force at Bataan.  keep up the good work there.

[Alfred]

Short answer is Bataan is surviving because your opponent is mismanaging the attack. A shock attack would see this over immediately. That he hasn't done so to date suggests that he did not intend to capture Bataan by assault, instead preferring to merely bottle it up and use the freed assets elsewhere.

Also I suspect your troops have not been totally out of supply. The base supply depot may well have been empty for some time but the units themselves have been living off their own organic carried stores. Those stores would have been rundown more quickly if the enemy had interpersed artillery with deliberate attacks.

Definitely a good outcome to date for you. Aided by having good leaders in place whereas your opponent hasn't troubled himself in this regard.

Alfred

[zuluhour]

Today:
Burma: IJA troops in numbers marching into Akyab. Reco spots over 20 thousand. Indian IV Corps waits. Raid planned for tomorrow on them.
China: Pakhoi and east of Pingsiang bombed by the IJA with favorable results for them.
SoPac: In what I believe is the largest air raid of the war, IJA and IJN airpower hammers PM along with another ship bombardment. The place is a wreck. After the shore bombardment, 72-Zeros escorted 33-Nells and 80-Bettys. We did gt8 Zekes in A2A and damaged a dozen bombers with Flak. The raid netted them, along with assorted aircraft on the ground 1-P40 and P39 in the air with 52 base hits, 7 supply hits and 110 runway hits. The afternoon was not much kinder. 22-Zeros escort 49 Kates and 72 Vals. We down a Zero in A2A and 2 bombers to Flak damaging 13 more. 36 Zeros sweep at the end of the day and are met with 1 P40 which they dispatch in seconds. We spot 4 fleet CVs in the TF and suspect more.