Wild Sheep Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A)

GreyJoy · Post by **GreyJoy** » Wed Oct 31, 2012 2:36 pm

Erik, to be honest i don't like your troops disposition in Burma. Why don't you defend on the borders? Why are you waiting at bases? In clear terrain your are toasted. You need to defend in jungle hexes and possibly away from the road structure (so that it remains free to move supplies all around). In your case, once his tanks breaks into the plains, you are ***cked!
 
Imho the most dangerous places are south of Kalemyo towards Shweebo and near Akyab. In the latter, you IMHO needs to defend the rivercrossing in the jungle hex. Place there 2 divisions and some AT guns and get some forts up...

SqzMyLemon · Post by **SqzMyLemon** » Wed Oct 31, 2012 2:51 pm

I agree somewhat with GreyJoy. If Jocke's main push will come via Akyab your troops at Katha and Myitkyina will be out of position. The key bases to hold in my opinion at Meiktila and Taung Gyi. Lose those and your entire Northern Burma position will be unhinged, even if your planned route of withdrawal is China, you'll be out of position with a large number of AV for the main Allied thrust via Akyab. Lose the two bases mentioned above cuts the railway and then Mandalay, Shwebo, Katha, Myitkyina and Lashio become meaningless. Not to mention you'll lose your ability to rail out damaged aircraft.

I hate Burma.

obvert · Post by **obvert** » Wed Oct 31, 2012 4:19 pm

ORIGINAL: SqzMyLemon

ORIGINAL: obvert

These garrison forces that withdraw are causing issues in other places as well. I have one in Merauke which led to the fiasco trying to get a regiment there with fast transport a few days ago. Now it's all going in by air. I have another I have to replace in Trinkat.

I'll keep making some posts about these things as I try to sort them out. My questions will revolve around whether I'm doing enough, what forces I should have in reserve, and generally how to make it fluid to respond to multiple threats.

Hi Erik,

My solution was to use the garrison units that eventually withdraw for bases like Manila and Singapore rather than forward bases. My reasoning was these bases would be under attack at some point, but by the time they were I'd be receiving new units from Japan to replace them with. I could then use better suited LCU's for defending forward bases knowing they'd be there as long as required.

I was a victim of my own CV victory to some extent on this one. Maybe I still would be in this position, but I thought I'd be under threat from all positions by now and that some of these forward bases with those retiring garrison forces would be in battle. They still have a few months left, so I don't have to panic. I just looked ahead and a ton of free brigades arrive in December. These will move to the SRA mostly, but also some to Western and Northern New Guinea.

I plan on buying out most garrison units in China that don't withdraw for use in the Pacific, and replace them with Naval Guard units. The Naval Guard units are ok for taking lightly defended bases in the early months of the war, but in terms of defending these same bases they are completely inadequate. They just lack the firepower and defensive capabilities to hold anything of value. In my last AAR, I learned first hand how easily the Naval Guard units were crushed from a single attack behind level 4 forts and rough terrain, that I knew I'd never use them as a forward defence again. I think I'll be better served using an actual garrison unit supported by artillery and AT guns.

I agree. Most key locations have IJA troops. I'm buying out as fast as I can, and I still have 2k AV above the garrison limit in Manchuria! I haven't even been able to touch Arty yet.

I'm leaning towards a strong SRA and relatively weak CentPac and SoPac this time around. My number one defensive priority is prevent 4E's from reaching the fuel/oil bases. That means Burma, Malaysia, Sumatra, Java and Timor will be getting the bulk of the forces. Admiral Spruance in his AAR made a comment after trying the historic Pacific route and using strat bombing against Japan. He felt the Pacific bases didn't allow the pace or numbers of aircraft for a successful strategic bombing campaign against Japan. Formosa was the key. I'm going to reread that AAR, as I believe he is one of the more proficient Allied players and it may offer some insight on how best to allocate defensive forces for Japan.

Just ramblings on my end, but hopefully contributes something in your search for the perfect defence of the Empire!

I sense that the recent battles in the South Pacific will turn into a sideshow very quickly. Now it's going to be in Burma and the SRA. As I've mentioned, if he does keep it up down there, I'm all for it.

I just am looking at B-29 ranges as well. Interesting that the island near Attu that can support those (Shemya Is?) is in range of Hokkaido. A good reason to more heavily garrison it before that area falls as well.

obvert · Post by **obvert** » Wed Oct 31, 2012 4:38 pm

ORIGINAL: GreyJoy

Erik, to be honest i don't like your troops disposition in Burma. Why don't you defend on the borders? Why are you waiting at bases? In clear terrain your are toasted. You need to defend in jungle hexes and possibly away from the road structure (so that it remains free to move supplies all around). In your case, once his tanks breaks into the plains, you are ***cked!

Imho the most dangerous places are south of Kalemyo towards Shweebo and near Akyab. In the latter, you IMHO needs to defend the rivercrossing in the jungle hex. Place there 2 divisions and some AT guns and get some forts up...

Yes, I agree to some extent. Having never defended this area I can't say other than from what others have done what will work. A lot depends on what he does with that stack. If he keeps it together and moves to Prome, there is little I could put in the way to stop it. If he spreads it out I still have to worry about several attack vectors squeezing the center and cutting the rail. But it's not like this is death as in most Burma campaigns. I have supply and troops movement possible from China as well.

My troops are mostly still where they finished during the previous try at a ground campaign he launched 6 months or so ago. I just left them in Katha and the center until I knew what else would happen. I am not defending in the woods because I have better forts and better supply in the bases. I want to try it this way. I also feel that his tanks will be more vulnerable in the open and my troops will remain fresh until he actually launches the first attack. His will hopefully be subject to my bombings without forts. If my main bases are all at level 6, his bombing will not be quite as severe, the troops will heal more quickly and the supply flow will be better. I believe even i the clear level 6 forts should be as good as being in the woods, right? All a theory of course, but I'm going to try it out.

There are two things I can't do; match the quality of his troops or match the quantity of his troops. But over my bases I can fight better from the air than if I were in the forests. His attacks cannot be daily milkruns. I have too many fighter pools built up now and the pilots will also survive better at my bases, whereas his will die more often. I'd like to think this will all work and I'll hold him off, but I know better than to think that's really possible. I could potentially make him take time and bleed his air force and pilots.

obvert · Post by **obvert** » Wed Oct 31, 2012 4:49 pm

ORIGINAL: SqzMyLemon

I agree somewhat with GreyJoy. If Jocke's main push will come via Akyab your troops at Katha and Myitkyina will be out of position. The key bases to hold in my opinion at Meiktila and Taung Gyi. Lose those and your entire Northern Burma position will be unhinged, even if your planned route of withdrawal is China, you'll be out of position with a large number of AV for the main Allied thrust via Akyab. Lose the two bases mentioned above cuts the railway and then Mandalay, Shwebo, Katha, Myitkyina and Lashio become meaningless. Not to mention you'll lose your ability to rail out damaged aircraft.

I hate Burma.

Meiktila is my weak point right now, as I am still getting it up to good fort levels. It's at 4 and building toward 5 now. I'm moving more engineers there that are done building at Scwebo and other bases. Mandalay is building and still could get to level 7, whether that will be useful or not.

It'll be interesting to see how this works with China in my possession, assuming of course he doesn't now have enough supply there now from massive airlifts to do something with his million man army. I still worry about that.

I'm not convinced that even by splitting my forces he'll automatically make the north of Burma irrelevant. It would still have supply and the bases are built up. I've been storing a surplus in the mountains as well, and I can keep pouring more into China yo get over there. I could also even launch another counter campaign from China with new troops arriving hitting behind his main thrust. Maybe only 3k AV, but he can't just ignore that area and push toward Thailand.

I am worried I won't have enough to stop the masssive stack and he'll just roll everything back to Moulmein before I can halt the advance for a bit. I need at least two more divisions in Burma, but I don't think I have the time to get them there.

SqzMyLemon · Post by **SqzMyLemon** » Wed Oct 31, 2012 5:12 pm

ORIGINAL: obvert

I'm not convinced that even by splitting my forces he'll automatically make the north of Burma irrelevant. It would still have supply and the bases are built up. I've been storing a surplus in the mountains as well, and I can keep pouring more into China yo get over there. I could also even launch another counter campaign from China with new troops arriving hitting behind his main thrust. Maybe only 3k AV, but he can't just ignore that area and push toward Thailand.

I am worried I won't have enough to stop the masssive stack and he'll just roll everything back to Moulmein before I can halt the advance for a bit. I need at least two more divisions in Burma, but I don't think I have the time to get them there.

I think a single Allied thrust will help you. Not putting pressure on any of your other bases will allow you to shift your troops appropriately as the situation becomes clearer. You've still got two months of Monsoon which should make supplying an advance from Akyab difficult for the Allies. I'd definitely be putting some pressure on your forces at Katha and around Myitkyina, if for nothing else a chance to tie down some of your forces.

I think you have it right though, make him fight you in every base possible. You'll not hold by fancy maneuvers, but grinding it out and possibly testing Jocke's pain threshold to the breaking point. He's shown that after a certain point he's no longer willing to take the casualties.

Just to clarify my comment about Northern Burma becoming irrelevent. I meant more for the Allies than you. If I was the Allies, once I breach the line and get Meiktila and Taung Gyi I wouldn't care a fig about Mandalay, Shwebo, Katha, Myitkyina, Bhamo and Lashio unless I wanted to try and relieve pressure on China. Since there's no need to get to China, I'd concentrate on the direct route to Rangoon. All I'd need to do would be secure my flank, capture Toungoo and drive on Rangoon.

Ramree might become important for the Allied thrust to provide a logistics base. Akyab is a long way away if Jocke decides to just move his entire army along that secondary road.

You'll figure things out. [8D]

obvert · Post by **obvert** » Wed Oct 31, 2012 5:33 pm

Thanks for the thoughts again. I realize attempting to hang out i my bases and wait is unorthodox, but it just seems right at this point.

I agree the smart thing for th Allies is to go toward Thailand after any victory in the center cutting the rail. Securing the flank might be tougher than he will realize. At least I'm hoping if that happens he takes it lightly. Alied engineers are so good it's hard to think of really threatening something there, but if his whole army is in Burma and moving to Thailand, supply could become an issue even after the monsoon.

Akyab has one garrison force and an engineer unit.

obvert · Post by **obvert** » Fri Nov 02, 2012 1:21 am

[font="Times New Roman"]AIR DEFENSE: JAVA, SUMATRA and MALAYA[/font]
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Here is a map showing the placement of HQa and the surrounding bases. At points where he would be likely to land I'd like at least two HQa to be able to influence the air battles. There are 12 base forces arriving before the end of 43, and some of these will fill the few holes in coverage on Java.

The blue lines are possible targets for B-29 raids on industry and oil. Since it's not likely he will be in range of the Home Islands, I have to start thinking of how to protect the SRA as much as I can, and what the likely targets will be.

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obvert · Post by **obvert** » Fri Nov 02, 2012 1:29 am

[font="Times New Roman"]AIR DEFENSE: TIMOR to NEW GUINEA[/font]
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In this area I'm a bit behind. I need more base forces on Western New Guinea and and the area radiating from the Ambon HQa. The forward bases will contain mosty fighters and DBs as they will be in rage of even MBs once he liberates Darwin.

The B-29 lines show that most of of the Borneo oil is at risk once this area changes hands and those monsters come online. I'll probably put an HQa flotilla at Balikpapan to support a large CAP there, and at least make it painful if I can.

PS - I just noticed that all of the dot bases look to be in Allied hands around the Celebes, which is not the case! [:D] I was copying and pasting from several maps. There is one base near Macassar that I can't land on, which is in Allied possession still. I'm actually bringing a para-unit to capture it just in case. I don't want it to come back to haunt me later.

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obvert · Post by **obvert** » Fri Nov 02, 2012 11:01 am

[font="Times New Roman"]20 - 23 August 1943[/font]
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Things have been eerily quiet across the board. I have an ominous feeling that something I won't like is about to happen.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]SUBS: [/font] The Bowfin takes out SC CH-26 on the 20th, but the transport ships were not hit.

The Wahoo nails a big AK with one TT on the 23rd, but the ship has float 62 engine 57 and could make it back to Babeldaob since there are no fires. This TF was empty heading home.

Also as BBs got in position to bombard they ran ver a sub, the O-19, near Carnarvon. Escorts dropped seven hits on it, including several lethal direct shots with explosions, engine damage, the works. The sub is listed as sunk. No sinking sounds heard though.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]NORTH PACIFIC: [/font] Nothing moving. The DBs up here have been changing out to Judys and the Zeros in Adak are just about to swap out for Georges. [8D]

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]WEST OZ: [/font] On the 20th a big raid came in low on troops walking through the desert. I had just re-based Oscars and Georges to Exmouth and they reacted to hit the raid hard. Over 10 4Es taken out on the day. A number of Oscars and 2 Georges shot down, but well worth it seemingly. No further missions have been flown out here.

The BBs that were supposed to bombard Carnarvon turned around after the O-19 DCing. I'll send them back tomorrow.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]BURMA: [/font] No movements. I did recon Kalemyo, which has another 166k troops plus 1200 AFVs and 700 guns reported. So a two pronged attack could be in the works in Burma. I'll keep the recon flying.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]SOUTHEAST:[/font] Jakes go for PTs at Horn Island on the 22nd again. Havocs can't get low enough to hit them, but they can't hit the PTs either. No other activity to report.

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AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR August 20, 43
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Morning Air attack on 56th Division, at 49,132 , near Carnarvon

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 55 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 18 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 5
Ki-43-IIb Oscar x 9

Allied aircraft
Hudson I x 9
B-17E Fortress x 33
B-24D Liberator x 43
B-24D1 Liberator x 53

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-43-IIb Oscar: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
B-17E Fortress: 2 damaged
B-17E Fortress: 1 destroyed by flak
B-24D Liberator: 2 damaged
B-24D1 Liberator: 1 destroyed, 4 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
552 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 33 disabled
Non Combat: 2 destroyed, 47 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 5 disabled
Guns lost 4 (1 destroyed, 3 disabled)

Aircraft Attacking:
9 x Hudson I bombing from 6000 feet *
Ground Attack: 2 x 250 lb GP Bomb

CAP engaged:
26th Sentai with Ki-43-IIb Oscar (1 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(9 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
1 plane(s) intercepting now.
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 8 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 15000
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 24 minutes
253 Ku S-1 with N1K1-J George (1 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(5 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
1 plane(s) intercepting now.
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 4 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 17000
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 24 minutes

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Morning Air attack on 56th Division, at 49,132 , near Carnarvon

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid spotted at 48 NM, estimated altitude 8,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 16 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 4
Ki-43-IIb Oscar x 4

Allied aircraft
B-24D1 Liberator x 6

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-43-IIb Oscar: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
B-24D1 Liberator: 1 destroyed, 3 damaged
B-24D1 Liberator: 1 destroyed by flak

Japanese ground losses:
15 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Aircraft Attacking:
4 x B-24D1 Liberator bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 10 x 500 lb GP Bomb

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Morning Air attack on 17th Army, at 49,132 , near Carnarvon

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 28 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 8 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 2
Ki-43-IIb Oscar x 7

Allied aircraft
B-17E Fortress x 7

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
B-17E Fortress: 1 destroyed, 4 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
11 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Aircraft Attacking:
6 x B-17E Fortress bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 8 x 500 lb GP Bomb

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Morning Air attack on 56th Division, at 49,132 , near Carnarvon

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid spotted at 12 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 3 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-43-IIb Oscar x 6

Allied aircraft
B-24D1 Liberator x 6

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-43-IIb Oscar: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
B-24D1 Liberator: 3 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
4 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

Aircraft Attacking:
6 x B-24D1 Liberator bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 10 x 500 lb GP Bomb

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Morning Air attack on 9th Division, at 49,132 , near Carnarvon

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid spotted at 34 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 2
Ki-43-IIb Oscar x 2

Allied aircraft
B-24D1 Liberator x 4

Japanese aircraft losses
N1K1-J George: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
B-24D1 Liberator: 2 damaged

Aircraft Attacking:
4 x B-24D1 Liberator bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 10 x 500 lb GP Bomb

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Sub attack near Babeldaob at 90,96

Japanese Ships
SC Ch 26, Torpedo hits 1, heavy damage
PB Wa 3
TK Manju Maru
TK Matsumoto Maru
TK Kanze Maru
TK Akatuki Maru
xAK Neikai Maru
xAK Kashiwara Maru
PB Choun Maru #21
PB Wa 19

Allied Ships
SS Bowfin

SS Bowfin launches 2 torpedoes at SC Ch 26
Bowfin diving deep ....
PB Choun Maru #21 fails to find sub, continues to search...
PB Wa 19 fails to find sub and abandons search
PB Choun Maru #21 fails to find sub, continues to search...
Escort abandons search for sub

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AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR August 22, 43
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Night Air attack on TF, near Horn Island at 91,128

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid spotted at 43 NM, estimated altitude 5,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 21 minutes

Japanese aircraft
E13A1 Jake x 8

Allied aircraft
P-70 Havoc x 6

No Japanese losses

No Allied losses

Allied Ships
PT-151
PT-112

Aircraft Attacking:
8 x E13A1 Jake bombing from 2000 feet
Naval Attack: 4 x 60 kg GP Bomb

CAP engaged:
15th FG/6th NFS with P-70 Havoc (6 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
6 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 12000
Raid is overhead

Some CAP have air radar
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AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR August 23, 43
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Sub attack near Peleliu at 87,101

Japanese Ships
AK Nissyu Maru, Torpedo hits 1, heavy damage
E Kyosai

Allied Ships
SS Wahoo

SS Wahoo launches 2 torpedoes at AK Nissyu Maru
E Kyosai fails to find sub, continues to search...
E Kyosai attacking submerged sub ....
Escort abandons search for sub

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ASW attack near Carnarvon at 49,131

Japanese Ships
BB Ise
BB Mutsu
BB Haruna
BB Kongo
DD Sazanami
DD Fubuki
DD Hatakaze
DD Nagatsuki
DD Kikuzuki
DD Fumizuki

Allied Ships
SS O19, hits 7

SS O19 is sighted by escort
DD Hatakaze fails to find sub, continues to search...
DD Fumizuki attacking submerged sub ....
DD Hatakaze fails to find sub, continues to search...
DD Fumizuki fails to find sub, continues to search...
DD Hatakaze fails to find sub and abandons search
DD Fumizuki fails to find sub, continues to search...
Escort abandons search for sub

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Reinforcements: A bunch of transports I had turned off for a while have now arrived. I need some small expendable ships in the South Pacific for supply shipments, so many will head down there.

The 8 hex range Judy D4Y3 is now up to 3/44. It should be available in December or January. [8D]

[font="Trebuchet MS"]xAKL Kenzo Maru arrives at Yokohama/Yokosuka
SS I-39 arrives at Nagasaki/Sasebo
xAKL Tokoro Maru arrives at Osaka/Kyoto
xAKL Akitsui Maru arrives at Nagasaki/Sasebo
xAKL Daibi Maru arrives at Maizuru
xAKL Shosen Maru arrives at Yokohama/Yokosuka
xAKL Fuchu Maru arrives at Tokyo
xAKL Fuzu Maru arrives at Nagasaki/Sasebo
xAKL Koko Maru arrives at Hiroshima/Kure
xAKL Nankou Maru arrives at Fukuoka
xAK Toyohi Maru arrives at Fukuoka
xAK Araogawa Maru arrives at Kwajalein Island
xAK Peking Maru arrives at Tokyo

Aircraft D4Y3 Judy advances R&D[/font]

Losses: Not nearly as any ships lost this past week.

[font="Trebuchet MS"]Loss of SC Ch 26 on Aug 20, 1943 is admitted[/font]

Ships Sunk: Good to see soe older things I'd thought sunk appearing here.

[font="Trebuchet MS"]xAK Steaua Romania is reported to have been sunk near Colombo on Apr 19, 1943
O-19??
DD Peary is reported to have been sunk near Yakutat on Jun 21, 1943[/font]
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[font="Trebuchet MS"]An image of DD Peary and the British Motorist sinking after the Darwin raid by the KB in 42. [/font]
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obvert · Post by **obvert** » Sat Nov 03, 2012 1:42 pm

[font="Times New Roman"]24 - 27 August 1943[/font]
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My 'feeling' was right on. In a small way at least.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]SUBS: [/font] The amphib TF tailing three new Etorofu E escorts running ASW was well protected on the 27th as escorts were attacked by the Bowfin near Balikpapn. The Matsure dropped 9 hits on Bowfin, including three direct, and the sub might be done for. especially since it is quite a way from home and must negotiate enemy waters, mine fields and air ASW on it's path back.

As I get more of these deep water capable escorts I will be able to vary my routes even more, sending out these large TFs trailing the escorts with built in ASW air on an AV to get the subs sighted.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]SOUTH PACIFIC:[/font] On the 26th a unit appeared on Gove, an island to the NE of Darwin by 8 hexes. This is one of the islands I was afraid of being invested and built up as a South New Guinea and North OZ offensive. My reaction was swift but ultimately unsuccessful. Unfortunately my Nells, which were in range, had been sent to Mornington Island to bomb there, more for recon purposes than anything. They would have potentially had a field day with the small fleet sent to land this force. It was a CL based SAG and small LCT/LCI ships. I sent in newly arrived CVs to see if the landing was a two day affair, as well as transferring some LBA to Kathereine, Merauke and Darwin to combat the threat. I have 3 MB groups in the area and they all targeted troops on Gove.

On the 27th zeros swept Gove but no LR CAP was over the base. It is way too far for even P-38s from OZ. Only one attack was made on the fleeing surface vessels, skirting land near Groote Eylandt, by a group of Jills escorted by 30 A6M5. Lightnings were flying CAP over the TFs, and the zeros shot two down for no losses. The Jills attacked the CLs instead of the transports and suffered from the flak, getting no hits. That was the end of stage one here.

For the next few days I hope to bomb Gove, recon the place, and make sure nothing else gets in. I feel I can starve it if I can keep control over the waters and airspace here. A good CA led SAG plus a mini-KB are stationed off of Darwin, as yet seemingly unsighted, and will pounce on anything moving near.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]NORTH PACIFIC: [/font] More subs are in place here and will form the backbone of the naval presence for the time being and into the winter should no major offensives sprout before October.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]WEST OZ: [/font] On the 24th the five BBs hit Carnarvon. They did some damage in spite of the hold-over forts I left there. About 7 planes were destroyed on the ground, a bunch damaged. Troops nailed.

It looks like now something is moving out of Carnarvon toward Exmouth. I like that. If he's going to head out overland we will surely have better supply in Exmouth, and since the 4Es are gone, that will be a tough base to crack. I'll have forts to 5 in a week barring stoppages, and once my main army arrives it shouldn't be long before they get to 6. I would bet some MBs will head over at least to try to hit the fields there though.

I'm sending over a para unit to take back Daly Waters just so he can't have it easily by air dropping troops there. It's been vacant for some time. If I have spare air support units, (which I may not) I could even keep it and use it as a forward search/fighter base again. It is close to the supply path to Gove.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]DEI: [/font] Koepang is becoming a naval base for the support of West OZ and West New Guinea. It is a level 3 port and now has 2 AKE plus fuel. I'll move a naval HQ down here as well and keep this as a rear holding support base out of 4E range.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]BURMA: [/font] Nothing moving. I am shifting some troops to get more building going on in Meiktila, Taung Gui, Bassein and Prome.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]4th FLEET:[/font] Canton Island just got a supply top-up, and the TF was fully sighted, lingered for 5 days there, but was not attacked. This says something about the Allied attitude to the Pacific right now.

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AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR August 24, 43
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Night Naval bombardment of Carnarvon at 49,133

Allied aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft losses
Kittyhawk III: 16 damaged
Kittyhawk III: 1 destroyed on ground
P-39N1 Airacobra: 15 damaged
P-39N1 Airacobra: 4 destroyed on ground

Japanese Ships
BB Ise
BB Fuso
BB Mutsu
BB Haruna
BB Kongo

Allied ground losses:
282 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled
Non Combat: 15 destroyed, 20 disabled
Engineers: 3 destroyed, 8 disabled
Guns lost 20 (7 destroyed, 13 disabled)
Vehicles lost 9 (5 destroyed, 4 disabled)

Airbase hits 14
Airbase supply hits 5
Runway hits 34
Port hits 6
Port fuel hits 2
Port supply hits 1

BB Ise firing at Carnarvon
BB Fuso firing at Americal Infantry Division
E13A1 Jake acting as spotter for BB Mutsu
BB Mutsu firing at Carnarvon
BB Haruna firing at Carnarvon
BB Kongo firing at 3rd Australian Division

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Amphibious Assault at Nabire (86,114)

TF 235 troops unloading over beach at Nabire, 86,114

Japanese ground losses:
10 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 48 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 10 (0 destroyed, 10 disabled)

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AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR August 25, 43
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Morning Air attack on 810th Engineer Aviation Battalion, at 84,135 (Mornington Island)

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid spotted at 14 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 5 minutes

Japanese aircraft
G3M3 Nell x 24

No Japanese losses

Allied ground losses:
9 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled

Aircraft Attacking:
24 x G3M3 Nell bombing from 7000 feet
Ground Attack: 2 x 250 kg GP Bomb, 4 x 60 kg GP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR August 26, 43
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Morning Air attack on 1st Motor Brigade, at 82,127 (Gove)

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid detected at 72 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 26 minutes

Japanese aircraft
G3M3 Nell x 24

Allied aircraft
P-38G Lightning x 6

Japanese aircraft losses
G3M3 Nell: 3 destroyed, 2 damaged

No Allied losses

Aircraft Attacking:
19 x G3M3 Nell bombing from 7000 feet
Ground Attack: 2 x 250 kg GP Bomb, 4 x 60 kg GP Bomb

CAP engaged:
35th FG/40th FS with P-38G Lightning (3 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
3 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 10000
Raid is overhead
18th FG/78th FS with P-38G Lightning (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 3 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 10000
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 3 minutes

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on TF, near Vanikoro at 121,145

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid spotted at 19 NM, estimated altitude 20,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 8 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-45 KAIa Nick x 8

Allied aircraft
TBF-1 Avenger x 17

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
TBF-1 Avenger: 5 destroyed, 3 damaged

Japanese Ships
MGB G-4
MGB G-5

Aircraft Attacking:
8 x TBF-1 Avenger launching torpedoes at 200 feet
Naval Attack: 1 x 22in Mk 13 Torpedo

CAP engaged:
21st Sentai with Ki-45 KAIa Nick (8 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(8 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
8 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 15000
Raid is overhead

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Vanikoro at 121,145

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid spotted at 7 NM, estimated altitude 14,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 3 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-45 KAIa Nick x 8

Allied aircraft
TBF-1 Avenger x 5

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
TBF-1 Avenger: 3 destroyed

CAP engaged:
21st Sentai with Ki-45 KAIa Nick (8 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(8 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
8 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 15000
Raid is overhead

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR August 27, 43
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub attack near Donggala at 68,97

Japanese Ships
E Tsushima
E Mutsure

Allied Ships
SS Bowfin, hits 9

SS Bowfin launches 2 torpedoes at E Tsushima
Bowfin diving deep ....
E Mutsure attacking submerged sub ....
E Mutsure fails to find sub, continues to search...
E Mutsure fails to find sub, continues to search...
E Mutsure attacking submerged sub ....
E Mutsure fails to find sub, continues to search...
Escort abandons search for sub

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on Gove , at 82,127

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid spotted at 28 NM, estimated altitude 31,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 8 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 18

No Japanese losses

Aircraft Attacking:
18 x A6M5 Zero sweeping at 31000 feet

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Groote Eylandt at 82,131

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 77 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 25 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 30
B6N2 Jill x 8

Allied aircraft
P-38G Lightning x 8

Japanese aircraft losses
B6N2 Jill: 3 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
P-38G Lightning: 1 destroyed

Allied Ships
CL Phoenix
CL St. Louis

Aircraft Attacking:
8 x B6N2 Jill bombing from 5000 feet
Naval Attack: 2 x 250 kg SAP Bomb
30 x A6M5 Zero sweeping at 5000 feet

CAP engaged:
35th FG/40th FS with P-38G Lightning (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 4 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 10000
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 4 minutes
18th FG/78th FS with P-38G Lightning (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 4 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 10000
Raid is overhead

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------[/font]

Reinforcements: Yes! The Tojo IIc made it's deadline for beginning building in September. So a few more days and I'll be starting to upgrade all Tojo units in forward areas as these become available. Armor and better guns will be key in Burma. The Tony Ic will also be available, with its better armament, and will be made in small quantities.

[font="Trebuchet MS"]xAK Takasan Maru arrives at Osaka/Kyoto
xAK Akigawa Maru arrives at Maizuru

Aircraft Ki-44-IIc Tojo advances R&D (9/43)
Aircraft N1K2-J George advances R&D (7/44)
Aircraft Ki-43-IIIa Oscar advances R&D (3/44)[/font]

Losses: None.

Ships Sunk: None.

[font="Trebuchet MS"]Previous report of sinking of CL Danae incorrect. Intelligence reports ship is still in service[/font]
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[font="Trebuchet MS"]A baseforce landed at Nabire on the 24th, suffering high disablements. This was the second to last Allied dot base left in Japanese territory. I had not seen it until I recently began building up the area. The empty base turned over without a fight, but the troops are half disabled now. Building will commence forthwith nonetheless.[/font]
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

obvert · Post by **obvert** » Sat Nov 03, 2012 7:07 pm

[font="Times New Roman"]28 - 31 August 1943[/font]
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Port Moresby is invaded!!!

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]SOUTH PACIFIC:[/font] Tokyo Rose announced the big news. Allied dogs at Port Moresby. After several days of jockeying and extra recon all over North OZ, we didn't see this coming. The Allied landing went unapposed. Two SAGs bombarded, but the forts held the fields together and we got CAP up, only had a few Georges lost on the ground. In spite of this the Allied LR CAP ate up the one group of Kates that flew to oppose. He 'only' landed two divisions with some armor and supporting units. Looks to be enough to take the base if we don't reinforce, but we will!

The plan here has always been to have a strong garrison but also multiple mobile forces with transport available in the area. A garrison force and a regiment will begin flying in tomorrow.

The air battles over the TF's at PortMoresby were fairly even except for the Kates lost. At Milne Bay the 4Es took out the fields there. Not sure why he didn't bomb Port Moresby itself. Oscars with good pilots managed quite well, and against almost 230 (!!) 4Es perfectly coordinated. About 6-8 4Es taken down on the day. These guys will not be effective tomorrow though, so they'll head to a rear area and upgrade to Tojo IIa.

Altogether I'm pleased this is happening here and now. Even though the first day's landing went well for him, I think we could potentially hold for a while here and hopefully take out a few re-supply or reinforcement TFs later. The main thing though is that Allied forces are being committed in the South Pacific, about as far from vital industry and oil as possible.

Many air units have been set around the area, and if there are any ships still here tomorrow, this could be bloody. I'm not however moving in the KB. The five fleet CVs at Truk will remain there, and the several off of Darwin will continue to patrol for any movement that direction. Almost 20 subs have been set to patrol the area around Port Moresby within a three hex zone.

The day before all of this I lost 2 DDs when he sent a strong SAG led by two CLs toward Ndeni. I'll move these back to Tulagi now.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]SUBS: [/font] THe Haddo takes out an AP near Truk on the 28th. This is in a TF of damaged ships heading back to the HI for repairs.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]NORTH PACIFIC: [/font] Nothing.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]WEST OZ: [/font] Helens hit Gove and it seems the unit there is the 1st Motorized Brigade.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]BURMA: [/font] Nothing.

The former Tainan, now 251 Ku S-1 downgraded to 18 planes today from 45. A sad moment. They will continue to be an elite unit, now flying the Geoge, but will not be sweeping anymore.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]4th FLEET:[/font] Nothing.

[font="Trebuchet MS"]--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR August 28, 43
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sub attack near Lihir at 110,119

Japanese Ships
xAP Palau Maru, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
AK Nitisan Maru
DD Akigumo
PB Kogane Maru

Allied Ships
SS Haddo, hits 1

SS Haddo launches 4 torpedoes at xAP Palau Maru
DD Akigumo fails to find sub and abandons search
PB Kogane Maru attacking submerged sub ....
PB Kogane Maru fails to find sub, continues to search...
Escort abandons search for sub

Morning Air attack on 1st Motor Brigade, at 82,127 (Gove)

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid spotted at 15 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 4 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 24

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 1 damaged

Allied ground losses:
13 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Aircraft Attacking:
24 x Ki-49-IIa Helen bombing from 7000 feet
Ground Attack: 4 x 250 kg GP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR August 29, 43
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Morning Air attack on Exmouth , at 50,129

Weather in hex: Light rain

Raid spotted at 27 NM, estimated altitude 21,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 9 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 20
Ki-43-IIb Oscar x 18

Allied aircraft
P-39N1 Airacobra x 21

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-43-IIb Oscar: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
P-39N1 Airacobra: 4 destroyed

CAP engaged:
253 Ku S-1 with N1K1-J George (0 airborne, 5 on standby, 13 scrambling)
5 plane(s) intercepting now.
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 2 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 17000 , scrambling fighters to 17000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 6 minutes
26th Sentai with Ki-43-IIb Oscar (0 airborne, 12 on standby, 0 scrambling)
12 plane(s) intercepting now.
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 6 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 15000 , scrambling fighters to 15000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 3 minutes

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Exmouth , at 50,129

Weather in hex: Light rain

Raid spotted at 45 NM, estimated altitude 19,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 15 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 19
Ki-43-IIb Oscar x 12

Allied aircraft
P-40N1 Warhawk x 22

Japanese aircraft losses
N1K1-J George: 2 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
P-40N1 Warhawk: 3 destroyed

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on 1st Motor Brigade, at 82,127 (Gove)

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid spotted at 19 NM, estimated altitude 7,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 5 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 24

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 1 damaged

Allied ground losses:
24 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Aircraft Attacking:
24 x Ki-49-IIa Helen bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 4 x 250 kg GP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on 1st Motor Brigade, at 82,127 (Gove)

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 7 minutes

Japanese aircraft
G3M3 Nell x 20

Japanese aircraft losses
G3M3 Nell: 1 damaged

Aircraft Attacking:
20 x G3M3 Nell bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 2 x 250 kg GP Bomb, 4 x 60 kg GP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on 1st Motor Brigade, at 82,127 (Gove)

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid spotted at 19 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 5 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 13

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 1 damaged

Allied ground losses:
5 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Aircraft Attacking:
13 x Ki-49-IIa Helen bombing from 7000 feet *
Ground Attack: 2 x 250 kg GP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Exmouth , at 50,129

Weather in hex: Light rain

Raid spotted at 14 NM, estimated altitude 17,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 4 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 13
Ki-43-IIb Oscar x 8

Allied aircraft
P-39N1 Airacobra x 3
P-40N1 Warhawk x 3

No Japanese losses

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR August 30, 43
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Day Time Surface Combat, near Ndeni at 119,145, Range 23,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
DD Hayashio, Shell hits 6, heavy fires, heavy damage
DD Ariake
DD Akebono
DD Ushio, Shell hits 6, heavy fires, heavy damage
DD Hayate, Shell hits 1
DD Sawakaze, Shell hits 1, on fire

Allied Ships
CL Montpelier, Shell hits 1
CL Santa Fe, Shell hits 2
DD Conway
DD Strong
DD Perkins, Shell hits 1
DD Smith
DD Preston, Shell hits 1, on fire
DD Reid

Maximum visibility in Partly Cloudy Conditions: 28,000 yards
Range closes to 23,000 yards...
CONTACT: Japanese lookouts spot Allied task force at 23,000 yards
CONTACT: Allied lookouts spot Japanese task force at 23,000 yards
CL Montpelier engages DD Sawakaze at 23,000 yards
CL Montpelier engages DD Hayashio at 23,000 yards
Range closes to 16,000 yards
CL Santa Fe engages DD Ushio at 16,000 yards
Range increases to 12,000 yards
DD Hayate engages DD Perkins at 12,000 yards
DD Ushio engages DD Conway at 12,000 yards
DD Preston engages DD Ariake at 12,000 yards
DD Perkins engages DD Ushio at 12,000 yards
DD Sawakaze engages DD Strong at 12,000 yards
DD Ushio engages DD Conway at 12,000 yards
Range increases to 17,000 yards
CL Montpelier engages DD Hayashio at 23,000 yards
Range increases to 29,000 yards
Task forces break off...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR August 31, 43
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Night Air attack on TF, near Port Moresby at 98,130

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid spotted at 78 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 38 minutes

Japanese aircraft
E13A1 Jake x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
E13A1 Jake: 2 damaged

Allied Ships
DD Barton
BB Colorado

Aircraft Attacking:
5 x E13A1 Jake bombing from 100 feet
Naval Attack: 4 x 60 kg GP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on TF, near Port Moresby at 98,130

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid detected at 26 NM, estimated altitude 3,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 12 minutes

Japanese aircraft
E13A1 Jake x 3

Japanese aircraft losses
E13A1 Jake: 3 damaged

Allied Ships
CA Wichita

Aircraft Attacking:
3 x E13A1 Jake bombing from 1000 feet
Naval Attack: 4 x 60 kg GP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on TF, near Port Moresby at 98,130

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid detected at 24 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Japanese aircraft
E13A1 Jake x 10

Japanese aircraft losses
E13A1 Jake: 5 damaged
E13A1 Jake: 2 destroyed by flak

Allied Ships
BB Arizona
DD Dale

Aircraft Attacking:
8 x E13A1 Jake bombing from 100 feet
Naval Attack: 4 x 60 kg GP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Naval bombardment of Port Moresby at 98,130

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Japanese aircraft losses
N1K1-J George: 4 damaged
N1K1-J George: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied Ships
BB Idaho
BB Arizona
CA Hawkins
CA Canberra

Japanese ground losses:
70 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Non Combat: 4 destroyed, 7 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 10 (8 destroyed, 2 disabled)
Vehicles lost 3 (1 destroyed, 2 disabled)

Airbase hits 8
Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 13
Port hits 3

BB Idaho firing at Port Moresby
BB Arizona firing at 22nd Division
CA Hawkins firing at 22nd Division
Seagull V acting as spotter for CA Canberra
CA Canberra firing at 22nd Division

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pre-Invasion action off Port Moresby (98,130)

216 Coastal gun shots fired in defense.

Allied Ships
CA Wichita
CA Astoria
CA Salt Lake City
CA Northampton
DD Mustin
DD Doyle
DD Meade
DD Monssen
DD Gwin
APA Cambria
DD O'Brien

Japanese ground losses:
5 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Allied ground losses:
85 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 9 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Amphibious Assault at Port Moresby (98,130)

TF 120 troops unloading over beach at Port Moresby, 98,130

Allied ground losses:
56 casualties reported
Squads: 2 destroyed, 3 disabled
Non Combat: 2 destroyed, 4 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 2 (0 destroyed, 2 disabled)
Vehicles lost 5 (1 destroyed, 4 disabled)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Invasion Support action off Port Moresby (98,130)

111 Coastal gun shots fired in defense.

Allied Ships
CA Wichita
CA Astoria
CA Salt Lake City
CA Northampton
DD Frankford
DD Carmick
DD Monssen
APA Cambria
DD O'Brien

Allied ground losses:
116 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 11 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

CA Wichita firing at 22nd Division
CA Northampton firing at 22nd Division
DD Frankford firing at 22nd Division
DD Carmick firing at 14th Garrison Unit
Defensive Guns fire at approaching troops in landing craft at 1,000 yards

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on TF, near Port Moresby at 98,130

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid detected at 39 NM, estimated altitude 2,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 16 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 4
B5N2 Kate x 8
N1K1-J George x 6
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 10

Allied aircraft
P-38G Lightning x 20
P-38H Lightning x 14
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 3
F4F-4 Wildcat x 2
F6F-3 Hellcat x 13

Japanese aircraft losses
B5N2 Kate: 3 destroyed, 1 damaged
B5N2 Kate: 1 destroyed by flak

Allied aircraft losses
F6F-3 Hellcat: 2 destroyed

Allied Ships
CA Wichita

Aircraft Attacking:
3 x B5N2 Kate bombing from 2000 feet
Naval Attack: 2 x 250 kg SAP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Milne Bay , at 101,133

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 16,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 27 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-43-IIb Oscar x 27

Allied aircraft
B-17E Fortress x 48
LB-30 Liberator x 15
B-24D Liberator x 60
B-24D1 Liberator x 108

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-43-IIb Oscar: 2 destroyed
Ki-43-IIb Oscar: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
LB-30 Liberator: 8 damaged
B-24D Liberator: 3 damaged
B-24D1 Liberator: 1 destroyed, 14 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
6 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Airbase hits 24
Airbase supply hits 6
Runway hits 78

Aircraft Attacking:
12 x B-24D1 Liberator bombing from 12000 feet
Airfield Attack: 10 x 500 lb GP Bomb

CAP engaged:
203rd Sentai with Ki-43-IIb Oscar (0 airborne, 5 on standby, 20 scrambling)
2 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 12000 , scrambling fighters between 12000 and 18000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 35 minutes

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Port Moresby at 98,130

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 40 NM, estimated altitude 4,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 17 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 3
B5N2 Kate x 3
N1K1-J George x 6

Allied aircraft
P-38G Lightning x 20
P-38H Lightning x 14
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 3
F4F-4 Wildcat x 2
F6F-3 Hellcat x 13

Japanese aircraft losses
B5N2 Kate: 2 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
P-38G Lightning: 1 destroyed

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Invasion Support action off Port Moresby (98,130)

117 Coastal gun shots fired in defense.

Allied Ships
APA Cambria
DD O'Brien

Allied ground losses:
40 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 4 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Defensive Guns fire at approaching troops in landing craft at 2,000 yards

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ground combat at Port Moresby (98,130)

Japanese Bombardment attack

Attacking force 16570 troops, 124 guns, 42 vehicles, Assault Value = 631

Defending force 25469 troops, 445 guns, 502 vehicles, Assault Value = 1031

Japanese ground losses:
Guns lost 1 (1 destroyed, 0 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
6 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled

Assaulting units:
22nd Division
14th Garrison Unit
31st Fld AA Gun Co
30th Fld AA Gun Co
16th AA Regiment
22nd JNAF AF Unit
6th Shipping Engr Rgt /1

Defending units:
102nd Combat Engineer Regiment
1st Marine Division
1st USMC Tank Bn /5
754th Tank Battalion
25th Infantry Div /8
I US Amphib Corps /1

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------[/font]

Reinforcements: Got a new IJN fighter unit that will be moving to So Pac and will be upgraded to Georges.

[font="Trebuchet MS"]xAKL Haruno Maru arrives at Fukuoka
E Hirado arrives at Tokyo
SC CHa-65 arrives at Kagoshima
253 Ku S-2 arrives at Saipan

Aircraft J2M3 Jack advances R&D (2/44)[/font]

Losses: I hate losing good DDs. [:@]

[font="Trebuchet MS"]DD Ushio
DD Hayashio[/font]

Ships Sunk: None.

[font="Trebuchet MS"]xAK Hoegh Merchant is reported to have been sunk near Anchorage on Jun 20, 1943
TK Gulfland is reported to have been sunk near Suva on Oct 06, 1942[/font]
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[font="Trebuchet MS"]The Colorado bombarding. Not a sight the Japanese like to see often, but it will be happening more and more I have a feeling.[;)][/font]
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

obvert · Post by **obvert** » Sat Nov 03, 2012 8:46 pm

[font="Times New Roman"]NEW GUINEA[/font]
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The New Guinea area looks to be the battleground in the South Pacific for the last of 43 and into 44. Jocke has landed just enough to worry me that Port Moresby will not be able to hold for long. These are such better quality troops that he could have his way here even though we are fully prepped sitting in level 5 forts and with 12k supply. The last unchallenged supply drop here could be crucial to the upcoming battles, as I was able to drop 10k supply in very recently.

The reserve for the area is all of a regiment! Not quite ready still obviously. A garrison force and the regiment will be on transport flying as of tomorrow and should be installed completely within 4-5 days. If there is no attack by then our AV will be around 800 to the reported Allied AV around 1100-1200.

Another regiment is loading in Fusan to be shipped down here, but is several weeks out obviously, so these first weeks will be crucial to whether this is a very long or a very short siege.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

PaxMondo · Post by **PaxMondo** » Sat Nov 03, 2012 10:44 pm

The fact that he was able to get this in undetected is worrisome.  Obviously, he knew your patrol zones very well and was able to filter in between them.  I would take a hard look at the ones you were using and figure how he did it.  Then make sure you don't have similar holes anywhere else.  You've got to have warning to be able to react ....

obvert · Post by **obvert** » Sat Nov 03, 2012 11:12 pm

ORIGINAL: PaxMondo

The fact that he was able to get this in undetected is worrisome. Obviously, he knew your patrol zones very well and was able to filter in between them. I would take a hard look at the ones you were using and figure how he did it. Then make sure you don't have similar holes anywhere else. You've got to have warning to be able to react ....

I agree it's worrisome he got in with no real losses, but the surprising part to me is that he didn't do this 6 months ago. The build-up at Portland Roads has been happening for a good long time. He's had 350-400 fighters there for a few weeks. I knew something was up recently but I didn't have many of the available 1E air assets in place because he had moved 300 4E to Townsville and I was using most base air support for fighters. I did have one group of Netties in range and on from Rabaul but they didn't fly for whatever reason.

I didn't spot the TFs near Portland Roads or Cooktown, but that was probably human oversight, not a function of a lack of search or recon. If they were there, they were only there for a day. I have been looking and checking reports pretty diligently. There is so much in NE OZ it's hard to tell what is going to go where.

I'm not so worried he could land here without my knowing ahead of time. There are no real holes to sneak through. Jakes are everywhere and at least one group of Netties is always flying search and naval attack. This is the spot that has been ready for the taking for a long time because of the proximity to OZ and the quickness of Allied unloading capabilities. To get all of that off in one day, and then vanish, is impressive. I could really have used some MTBs there, but they aren't available yet. I can't even really stop him from bringing reinforcements on small craft, but the likelihood is that now they will take some losses in the process.

The battles from now one will be a long downhill slide, I'm sure. I just hope I can make him pay a bit for any ground taken.

obvert · Post by **obvert** » Sun Nov 04, 2012 7:19 pm

[font="Times New Roman"]1 - 4 September 1943[/font]
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]SUBS: [/font] On the 4th an Allied bombardment TF ran over several IJN subs, sinking one and severely damaging another. A fleet of 17 subs was here, but none were able to get a shot at anything good. The I-22 is no more, and the mines it had just laid had no effect. Two midget subs were also DCed and sunk near Torres Island.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]SOUTH PACIFIC:[/font] No ships were left for a day two strike. Other than APA Heywood that is. Only Kates flew to attack this ship and likely sunk it with two bomb hits.

The big development is Jocke started right in and attacked with a DA on the 1st. His troops must have been in good shape after the landing. This didn't help him get the base though, as our forts held up and the Allies got a 1:3 attack. What worries e is the disabled troops. Even though the attack went against them, the Allies took fewer critical losses and can better sustain the ones they did take. This base will likely fall at some point from these troops. I would bet he'll try to add more though. I can't really complain with this attack though. It at least makes him take time.

A variety of bombing raids hit all over the area during these few days. Jocke was very nervous about sending 200 4Es to Rabaul, but I had no fighters there and the bombers based at Rabaul were off bombing his troops. So only a few destroyed on the ground, thankfully. I'll keep trying to pop these around and keep fighters appearing and disappearing.

The LR CAP Nicks got a good number of B-25s on the 1st. At least 7 downed judging by the replay and reports. The issue I'm having everywhere now though is that after a few days using LR CAP and fighting, all of these service 2-3 fighters are sitting in base. Very realistic, but a pain. I'm having to get them out and disband the leftovers to get them off the ground, and get new groups in. I just don't have enough high quality fighters yet. Half of my groups in the area are still flying the zero. Again, though, very realistic. So I'll live with it. We're still hitting a good number of Lightnings especially. The Corsairs are almost untouchable though.[:(]

Near ndeni it looks like things will resume as well. Bombers hit troops at Vanikoro. On the 4th Spitfires swept Ndeni, but the Tojos there made mincemeat of them! A 2:1 ratio on the day.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]NORTH PACIFIC: [/font] Nothing moving.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]WEST OZ: [/font] I continue to harass troops at Gove with a Helen group. Not much effect though.

[font="Microsoft Sans Serif"]BURMA: [/font] Nothing yet.

[font="Trebuchet MS"]--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR September 1, 43
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Port Moresby at 98,130

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 3,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 8 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 22
B5N2 Kate x 3
N1K1-J George x 9
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 9

No Japanese losses

Allied Ships
APA Heywood, Bomb hits 2, on fire, heavy damage

Aircraft Attacking:
3 x B5N2 Kate bombing from 2000 feet
Naval Attack: 2 x 250 kg SAP Bomb

Heavy smoke from fires obscuring APA Heywood

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ground combat at Port Moresby (98,130)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 23736 troops, 445 guns, 502 vehicles, Assault Value = 1037

Defending force 19434 troops, 197 guns, 74 vehicles, Assault Value = 702

Allied adjusted assault: 838

Japanese adjusted defense: 2623

Allied assault odds: 1 to 3 (fort level 5)

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), forts(+), disruption(-), experience(-) ?? Very experienced troops here.
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
740 casualties reported
Squads: 10 destroyed, 55 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 24 disabled
Engineers: 2 destroyed, 9 disabled
Guns lost 53 (13 destroyed, 40 disabled)
Vehicles lost 6 (1 destroyed, 5 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
1233 casualties reported
Squads: 5 destroyed, 102 disabled
Non Combat: 2 destroyed, 13 disabled
Engineers: 5 destroyed, 29 disabled
Vehicles lost 25 (2 destroyed, 23 disabled)

Assaulting units:
102nd Combat Engineer Regiment
25th Infantry Division
1st Marine Division
754th Tank Battalion
1st USMC Tank Battalion
I US Amphib Corps /1

Defending units:
22nd Division
6th Garrison Unit /1
14th Garrison Unit
91st Infantry Rgt /1
30th Fld AA Gun Co
16th AA Regiment
31st Fld AA Gun Co
22nd JNAF AF Unit
6th Shipping Engr Rgt /1

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR September 2, 43
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Morning Air attack on 1st Marine Division, at 98,130 (Port Moresby)

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid spotted at 19 NM, estimated altitude 7,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 5 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 39
J2M2 Jack x 8
N1K1-J George x 8
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 26

Allied aircraft
P-38G Lightning x 15
P-38H Lightning x 15
F6F-3 Hellcat x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M5 Zero: 1 destroyed
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 2 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
P-38G Lightning: 1 destroyed
P-38H Lightning: 1 destroyed
F6F-3 Hellcat: 2 destroyed

Allied ground losses:
16 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Aircraft Attacking:
26 x Ki-49-IIa Helen bombing from 7000 feet
Ground Attack: 4 x 250 kg GP Bomb

Also attacking 25th Infantry Division ...
Also attacking 1st Marine Division ...
Also attacking 25th Infantry Division ...
Also attacking 1st Marine Division ...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on 1st Marine Division, at 98,130 (Port Moresby)

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid spotted at 22 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 7 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 38
G4M1 Betty x 24
J2M2 Jack x 8
N1K1-J George x 5
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 10

Allied aircraft
P-38G Lightning x 13
P-38H Lightning x 11
F6F-3 Hellcat x 2

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M5 Zero: 1 destroyed
G4M1 Betty: 2 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
P-38G Lightning: 1 destroyed

Allied ground losses:
4 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

Aircraft Attacking:
24 x G4M1 Betty bombing from 7000 feet
Ground Attack: 2 x 250 kg GP Bomb, 4 x 60 kg GP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Milne Bay , at 101,133

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid detected at 73 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 21 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-45 KAIa Nick x 7

Allied aircraft
Mitchell II x 25
B-25C Mitchell x 60
B-25D1 Mitchell x 75

Japanese aircraft losses
E13A1 Jake: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
Mitchell II: 5 damaged
B-25D1 Mitchell: 1 destroyed, 5 damaged

Airbase hits 12
Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 20

Aircraft Attacking:
9 x Mitchell II bombing from 10000 feet
Airfield Attack: 6 x 500 lb GP Bomb

CAP engaged:
21st Sentai with Ki-45 KAIa Nick (4 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(9 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
4 plane(s) intercepting now.
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 3 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 15000
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 26 minutes

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Rabaul , at 106,125

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid detected at 79 NM, estimated altitude 17,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 27 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
LB-30 Liberator x 12
B-24D Liberator x 55
B-24D1 Liberator x 98

Japanese aircraft losses
G4M1 Betty: 2 destroyed on ground
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 3 destroyed on ground

No Allied losses

Airbase hits 50
Airbase supply hits 9
Runway hits 117

Aircraft Attacking:
12 x B-24D1 Liberator bombing from 12000 feet *
Airfield Attack: 5 x 500 lb GP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Port Moresby , at 98,130

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid detected at 29 NM, estimated altitude 33,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 5 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 39
J2M2 Jack x 4
N1K1-J George x 18
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 7

Allied aircraft
P-38G Lightning x 21
P-38H Lightning x 11
F6F-3 Hellcat x 2

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M5 Zero: 3 destroyed
J2M2 Jack: 2 destroyed
N1K1-J George: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
P-38G Lightning: 4 destroyed
P-38H Lightning: 1 destroyed

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on 1st Motor Brigade, at 82,127 (Gove)

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid spotted at 11 NM, estimated altitude 10,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 3 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 15

No Japanese losses

Allied ground losses:
13 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Aircraft Attacking:
15 x Ki-49-IIa Helen bombing from 7000 feet
Ground Attack: 4 x 250 kg GP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on 754th Tank Battalion, at 98,130 (Port Moresby)

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid spotted at 35 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 42
N1K1-J George x 4
Ki-49-Ia Helen x 12

Allied aircraft
P-38G Lightning x 13
P-38H Lightning x 13
F6F-3 Hellcat x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M5 Zero: 1 destroyed
Ki-49-Ia Helen: 4 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
P-38H Lightning: 2 destroyed

Aircraft Attacking:
12 x Ki-49-Ia Helen bombing from 6000 feet
Ground Attack: 4 x 250 kg GP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR September 3, 43
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Morning Air attack on Port Moresby , at 98,130

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 11 NM, estimated altitude 32,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 3 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 31
J2M2 Jack x 3
N1K1-J George x 7
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 9

Allied aircraft
F4U-1 Corsair x 25

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M5 Zero: 9 destroyed
J2M2 Jack: 1 destroyed
N1K1-J George: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
F4U-1 Corsair: 3 destroyed

Aircraft Attacking:
2 x F4U-1 Corsair sweeping at 31000 feet *

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Port Moresby , at 98,130

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 21 NM, estimated altitude 34,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 7 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 11
J2M2 Jack x 2
N1K1-J George x 2
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 6

Allied aircraft
F4U-1 Corsair x 21

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M5 Zero: 1 destroyed
N1K1-J George: 1 destroyed
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 1 destroyed

No Allied losses

Aircraft Attacking:
8 x F4U-1 Corsair sweeping at 31000 feet *

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Port Moresby , at 98,130

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 38 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 6
J2M2 Jack x 2
N1K1-J George x 1
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 2

Allied aircraft
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 15

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M5 Zero: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
P-47D2 Thunderbolt: 1 destroyed

Aircraft Attacking:
4 x P-47D2 Thunderbolt sweeping at 35000 feet

Morning Air attack on Port Moresby , at 98,130

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 71 NM, estimated altitude 35,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 26 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 1
N1K1-J George x 1
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 2

Allied aircraft
F4U-1 Corsair x 6

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M5 Zero: 1 destroyed
N1K1-J George: 1 destroyed
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 1 destroyed

No Allied losses

Aircraft Attacking:
3 x F4U-1 Corsair sweeping at 31000 feet *
2 x F4U-1 Corsair sweeping at 31000 feet *

Morning Air attack on Port Moresby , at 98,130

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 27 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
Beaufort VIII x 9
Hudson III (LR) x 9
LB-30 Liberator x 10
B-24D Liberator x 51
B-24D1 Liberator x 94
B-25C Mitchell x 35
B-25D1 Mitchell x 46
F6F-3 Hellcat x 37
PB4Y-1 Liberator x 12

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M5 Zero: 1 destroyed on ground
N1K1-J George: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
Hudson III (LR): 1 damaged
B-25D1 Mitchell: 1 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
80 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

Airbase hits 14
Airbase supply hits 4
Runway hits 39

Aircraft Attacking:
12 x PB4Y-1 Liberator bombing from 8000 feet
Airfield Attack: 10 x 500 lb GP Bomb

Morning Air attack on Milne Bay , at 101,133

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid detected at 66 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 19 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 1
Ki-45 KAIa Nick x 11

Allied aircraft
Mitchell II x 25

Japanese aircraft losses
E13A1 Jake: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
Mitchell II: 3 destroyed, 5 damaged

Airbase hits 4
Runway hits 7

Aircraft Attacking:
6 x Mitchell II bombing from 10000 feet
Airfield Attack: 6 x 500 lb GP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR September 4, 43
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Submarine attack near Port Moresby at 98,130

Japanese Ships
SS I-22, hits 22, and is sunk

Allied Ships
BB Idaho
BB Arizona
BB Colorado
CA Hawkins
DD Flusser
DD Walke
DD Dale
DD MacDonough
DD Hull
DD Selfridge

SS I-22 is sighted by escort
DD Dale attacking submerged sub ....
DD MacDonough fails to find sub and abandons search
DD Hull fails to find sub and abandons search
DD Selfridge attacking submerged sub ....
DD Dale attacking submerged sub ....
SS I-22 forced to surface! bad!
DD Dale firing on surfaced sub ....
DD MacDonough firing on surfaced sub ....
DD Hull firing on surfaced sub ....
Sub slips beneath the waves

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASW attack near Santa Maria at 120,149

Japanese Ships
SSX Ha-44, hits 7, heavy damage

Allied Ships
LCT-327
LCT-160
LCT-155
LCT-150
LCT-65
AM Kapunda

SSX Ha-44 is sighted by escort
Ha-44 bottoming out ....
AM Kapunda attacking submerged sub ....
Large oil slick appears over area of attack!
Escort abandons search for sub

Night Naval bombardment of Port Moresby at 98,130

Allied Ships
BB Idaho
BB Arizona
BB Colorado
CA Hawkins
CA Canberra

Japanese ground losses:
169 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 5 disabled
Non Combat: 10 destroyed, 14 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled
Guns lost 7 (5 destroyed, 2 disabled)
Vehicles lost 5 (3 destroyed, 2 disabled)

Airbase hits 11
Airbase supply hits 4
Runway hits 10
Port hits 5
Port supply hits 3

Submarine attack near Torres Islands at 120,147

Japanese Ships
SSX Ha-39, hits 8, on fire, heavy damage

Allied Ships
LCT-327
LCT-325
LCT-158
LCT-153
LCT-128
LCT-63
AM Kapunda
AM Freemantle

SSX Ha-39 is sighted by escort
Ha-39 bottoming out ....
AM Kapunda fails to find sub, continues to search...
AM Kapunda attacking submerged sub ....
AM Kapunda fails to find sub, continues to search...
AM Kapunda fails to find sub, continues to search...
AM Kapunda attacking submerged sub ....
Massive explosion on SSX Ha-39
AM Kapunda cannot establish contact with SSX Ha-39
SSX Ha-39 forced to surface!
AM Freemantle firing on surfaced sub ....

Morning Air attack on Ndeni , at 120,143

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid spotted at 14 NM, estimated altitude 18,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 2 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 42

Allied aircraft
Spitfire Vc Trop x 16

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 2 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
Spitfire Vc Trop: 3 destroyed

CAP engaged:
70th Sentai with Ki-44-IIa Tojo (0 airborne, 14 on standby, 21 scrambling)
7 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 15000 , scrambling fighters to 15000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 32 minutes

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Ndeni , at 120,143

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid spotted at 46 NM, estimated altitude 17,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 9 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 27

Allied aircraft
Spitfire Vc Trop x 16

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
Spitfire Vc Trop: 3 destroyed

CAP engaged:
70th Sentai with Ki-44-IIa Tojo (7 airborne, 0 on standby, 4 scrambling)
7 plane(s) intercepting now.
14 plane(s) not yet engaged, 2 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 15000 , scrambling fighters between 14000 and 22000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 64 minutes

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------[/font]

Reinforcements: This new CVE will take up ASW duty with a convoy bringing a regiment to the South Pacific, then head to the SRA for the same task.

[font="Trebuchet MS"]CVE Shinyo arrives at Nagasaki/Sasebo
DD Asashimo arrives at Nagoya
I.33-1 arrives at Tokyo
xAK Daishin Maru arrives at Truk
xAK Eiji Maru arrives at Yokohama/Yokosuka
SST Yu-7 arrives at Kobe[/font]

Losses: Well, it was a good effort.

[font="Trebuchet MS"]Loss of SS I-22 on Sep 04, 1943 is admitted
Loss of SSX Ha-39 on Sep 04, 1943 is admitted
Loss of SSX Ha-44 on Sep 04, 1943 is admitted[/font]

Ships Sunk: Nothing.

[font="Trebuchet MS"]Previous report of sinking of CL Columbia incorrect. Intelligence reports ship is still in service[/font]
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[font="Trebuchet MS"]Allied bases are too well defended to hit right now. I just see waves of planes every turn. There are 400 + fighters at Portland Roads![/font]
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Empire101 · Post by **Empire101** » Sun Nov 04, 2012 10:28 pm

ORIGINAL: obvert

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ground combat at Port Moresby (98,130)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 23736 troops, 445 guns, 502 vehicles, Assault Value = 1037

Defending force 19434 troops, 197 guns, 74 vehicles, Assault Value = 702

Allied adjusted assault: 838

Japanese adjusted defense: 2623

Allied assault odds: 1 to 3 (fort level 5)

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), forts(+), disruption(-), experience(-) ?? Very experienced troops here.
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
740 casualties reported
Squads: 10 destroyed, 55 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 24 disabled
Engineers: 2 destroyed, 9 disabled
Guns lost 53 (13 destroyed, 40 disabled)
Vehicles lost 6 (1 destroyed, 5 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
1233 casualties reported
Squads: 5 destroyed, 102 disabled
Non Combat: 2 destroyed, 13 disabled
Engineers: 5 destroyed, 29 disabled
Vehicles lost 25 (2 destroyed, 23 disabled)

Assaulting units:
102nd Combat Engineer Regiment
25th Infantry Division
1st Marine Division
754th Tank Battalion
1st USMC Tank Battalion
I US Amphib Corps /1

Defending units:
22nd Division
6th Garrison Unit /1
14th Garrison Unit
91st Infantry Rgt /1
30th Fld AA Gun Co
16th AA Regiment
31st Fld AA Gun Co
22nd JNAF AF Unit
6th Shipping Engr Rgt /1

The die roll modifier for experience is extremely puzzling.[&:]

On the up side though, they did not even dent your fortifications.
Let us hope with your added reinforcements flying in over the next few days it will be enough to hold.[:)]
Looking at what he has committed, and the stealth he employed in hiding them, all points to him not stopping for anything now.
I'd be surprised if more Allied landings at PM don't start soon.

PaxMondo · Post by **PaxMondo** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 12:05 am

My understanding is that the modifiers shown apply to individual units, not necessarily all units.  So, your 31st Fld Gun AA might only be 40 EXP ... and then the modifier will show ... but it only applies to that unit, not all of them.  As I understand these ...

obvert · Post by **obvert** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 8:36 am

ORIGINAL: PaxMondo

My understanding is that the modifiers shown apply to individual units, not necessarily all units. So, your 31st Fld Gun AA might only be 40 EXP ... and then the modifier will show ... but it only applies to that unit, not all of them. As I understand these ...

Thanks Pax. That's most likely the case. The base force is at 50 exp. You can see all of the exp levels in the above map several posts ago. The division is now at 62 exp, and interestingly, the AA units are all around 60 exp. They're taking a pounding in the series of battles, both from their work during air raids and on the ground. Their moral is not high.

The other units are surprisingly doing very well. Disruption was high right after the attack, then got down into the 20s and didn't go up to much even after the big ground raids. Now I'm wishing I could have got the forts to 6.

obvert · Post by **obvert** » Mon Nov 05, 2012 8:44 am

original Empire101

The die roll modifier for experience is extremely puzzling.

On the up side though, they did not even dent your fortifications.
Let us hope with your added reinforcements flying in over the next few days it will be enough to hold.
Looking at what he has committed, and the stealth he employed in hiding them, all points to him not stopping for anything now.
I'd be surprised if more Allied landings at PM don't start soon.

Yes, me too. He's got all kinds of ships still sitting at Portland Roads. I am betting within the week there will be another invasion coming. Probably lots of smaller ships this time with many major SAGs to support. I have some ideas of how to get the IJN involved, but it'll take some time to get things in place.

I've got 3 Netty units, one Frances that just arrived and is fleshing out still, and 2 Jill groups. He has at least 12-15 groups that can LR CAP Prot Moresby though, producing a CAP of almost 50 very good planes that looked like this last time around;

[font="Trebuchet MS"]P-38G Lightning x 20
P-38H Lightning x 14
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 3
F4F-4 Wildcat x 2
F6F-3 Hellcat x 13 [/font]

That in addition to the fact that I can't use the fields there, so have to LR CAP my own forces, makes strikes less supported by escort. The fields I have to launch Netties from are very vulnerable. All in range of the 4Es. Luckily I have a lot of them. I'm trying to top up supplies in each now so I can move things around at will. Most of the fighter groups are hard pressed to keep 60% of fighter ready on any given day. I'm also getting low in IJN fighter pilots pools. All as should be expected for Japan, but I have to keep contesting if I want this to potentially drag out for a while. Luckily the IJAAF pools are deep and getting deeper as Burma stays quiet.

Wild Sheep Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A)

RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A)

RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A)

RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A)

RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A)

RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A)

RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A)

RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A)

RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A)

RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A)

RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A)

RE: Wild Sheep's Chase - obvert (J) vs JocMeister (A)

Allied Invasion!

RE: Allied Invasion!

RE: Allied Invasion!

RE: Allied Invasion!

RE: Allied Invasion!

RE: Allied Invasion!

RE: Allied Invasion!

RE: Allied Invasion!

RE: Allied Invasion!