At dawn we slept...in the cab on the way back from Olongapo

[Cap Mandrake]

Let's see:

1) One of Hiryu class with 15 in hole in hull

2) KB in South China Sea

3) Raid on Rabaul yesterday contained only Kates

4) Heavy surface group coming down from Sorong, most likely

5) JJ will likely try to stand off at 8 hexes and get a free raid in from the Kates


Instead of staying predictably near Rabaul..perhaps move West and ambush the SCTF coming from Sorong?

[Cap Mandrake]

************December 26, 1941(e)**********

USN cruiser group assigned to bombard Rabaul at night and then retreat instead finds another IJN surface group inbound.
It's a draw.

Night Time Surface Combat, near Rabaul at 106,125, Range 11,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
CA Chokai, Shell hits 2
CL Sendai, Shell hits 1, on fire
CL Isuzu
DD Isonami
DD Uranami
DD Shikinami
DD Ayanami
DD Sagiri
DD Yugiri

Allied Ships
CA Chester, Shell hits 1
CA Chicago, Shell hits 1
DD McCall, Shell hits 1
DD Maury, Shell hits 4, on fire

[Cap Mandrake]

Same deal with Australia. Neither group is able to bombard...so you would have to say JJ achieved their tactical purpose.

Night Time Surface Combat, near Rabaul at 106,125, Range 10,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
CA Chokai, Shell hits 1
CL Sendai
CL Isuzu, Shell hits 1, on fire
DD Isonami
DD Uranami
DD Shikinami
DD Ayanami
DD Sagiri
DD Yugiri

Allied Ships
CA Australia
DD Stuart, Shell hits 1, on fire

[Cap Mandrake]

Daytime. We discover they are NOT bluffing. IJN carriers North of New and Improved Admiralty Islands react. What can you say but Hory crap![X(]
An awesomely beautiful, coordinated raid...with meatballs on their wings.

Morning Air attack on TF, near Saidor at 99,123

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid detected at 65 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 74
B5N1 Kate x 10
B5N2 Kate x 44
D3A1 Val x 57

Allied aircraft
F2A-3 Buffalo x 10
F4F-3A Wildcat x 25

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 1 destroyed
B5N1 Kate: 2 damaged
B5N2 Kate: 1 destroyed, 3 damaged
B5N2 Kate: 1 destroyed by flak
D3A1 Val: 1 destroyed, 7 damaged
D3A1 Val: 1 destroyed by flak

Allied aircraft losses
F4F-3A Wildcat: 1 destroyed

Allied Ships
CV Enterprise, Bomb hits 7, Torpedo hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage
CA Salt Lake City, Bomb hits 1
CV Lexington, Bomb hits 1, on fire
CA Northampton, Bomb hits 1
CA Indianapolis
DD Flusser
DD Craven
DD Ellet, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage
DD Gridley, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires
DD Balch
CA Portland
CA Astoria

The good news is Lexington is obscured by heavy smoke. The bad news is the smoke is coming from Enterprise with a fuel bunker explosion. [:(]

[Cap Mandrake]

USN counterstrike is evidently from Lexington alone because every plane on Enterprise is a charcoal briquette
Not enough fighter escort.

Morning Air attack on TF, near Manus at 100,118

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid detected at 34 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 15 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A5M4 Claude x 24
A6M2 Zero x 35

Allied aircraft
F2A-3 Buffalo x 6
SBD-2 Dauntless x 29
TBD-1 Devastator x 15

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
F2A-3 Buffalo: 2 destroyed
SBD-2 Dauntless: 7 destroyed, 5 damaged
SBD-2 Dauntless: 1 destroyed by flak
TBD-1 Devastator: 5 destroyed, 2 damaged

Japanese Ships
CVL Ryujo
BB Mutsu
CVE Taiyo
CVE Hosho

[sprior]

Claudes? This isn't KB this is the CVLs and CVEs.

[Cap Mandrake]

Afternoon attack. I don't know how badly Lexington is hurt yet.
She might be able to run SE and get out of range but I doubt it.
Probably the IJN carriers can stay North of New Britain and still hit her next turn.

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Saidor at 99,123

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 73 NM, estimated altitude 14,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 27 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 70
B5N1 Kate x 18
B5N2 Kate x 66
D3A1 Val x 64

Allied aircraft
F2A-3 Buffalo x 4
F4F-3A Wildcat x 7

Japanese aircraft losses
B5N1 Kate: 2 damaged
B5N1 Kate: 1 destroyed by flak
B5N2 Kate: 2 damaged
B5N2 Kate: 1 destroyed by flak
D3A1 Val: 7 damaged
D3A1 Val: 1 destroyed by flak

Allied aircraft losses
F4F-3A Wildcat: 1 destroyed

Allied Ships
CV Lexington, Bomb hits 4, on fire
DD Lamson
DD Gridley, Bomb hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
CA Northampton
CA Houston
DD Porter
CA Astoria, Bomb hits 5, heavy fires, heavy damage
CA Portland, Bomb hits 10, heavy fires, heavy damage
DD Mahan, Bomb hits 1, on fire
DD Dunlap
CV Enterprise, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage
DD Balch
CA Salt Lake City
DD Fanning, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires
CA Indianapolis
DD Ellet, on fire, heavy damage

[Cap Mandrake]

ORIGINAL: sprior

Claudes? This isn't KB this is the CVLs and CVEs.

It's both. 3 carrier TF's reacted. Morning attack had 101 bombers, with many B5N2's and Vals.

[zuluhour]

interesting, Vals score 21% and Kates 2%. Assuming all the Kates carry the tube of death.

[Cap Mandrake]

ORIGINAL: zuluhour

interesting, Vals score 21% and Kates 2%. Assuming all the Kates carry the tube of death.

It would have been worse but certainly someone is out of torps.

[Cap Mandrake]

The ground attack at Rabaul fails after planned B-17 raids are grounded and the Allied cruisers are driven off.

Ground combat at Rabaul (106,125)

Allied Shock attack

Attacking force 3958 troops, 14 guns, 174 vehicles, Assault Value = 97

Defending force 4232 troops, 38 guns, 4 vehicles, Assault Value = 137

Allied adjusted assault: 88

Japanese adjusted defense: 143

Allied assault odds: 1 to 2

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), preparation(-)
Attacker: shock(+)

Japanese ground losses:
108 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 16 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Allied ground losses:
419 casualties reported
Squads: 16 destroyed, 26 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 7 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

Assaulting units:
2/1st Ind Coy
39th Australian Battalion
Lark Force
53rd Australian Battalion
B Coy/NG Rifles

Defending units:
Maizuru 2nd SNLF
Maizuru 1st SNLF
2nd Indpt SNLF Coy


Complete and epic ass-kicking all around. [:-]

[Chijohnaok2]

Ouch.


Seems someone stepped into a big sh-t sandwhich.

[Mike McCreery]

Just think of how much longer the AAR is going to be compared to the last one :]

[Cap Mandrake]

ORIGINAL: Wargmr

Just think of how much longer the AAR is going to be compared to the last one :]

[:D]

[sprior]

ORIGINAL: Cap Mandrake

ORIGINAL: Wargmr

Just think of how much longer the AAR is going to be compared to the last one :]

[:D]

Unless they pay us to stop now.

[Cap Mandrake]

ORIGINAL: sprior

ORIGINAL: Cap Mandrake

ORIGINAL: Wargmr

Just think of how much longer the AAR is going to be compared to the last one :]

[:D]

Unless they pay us to stop now.

The few readers or the Shinto-boys?

[Cap Mandrake]

Already, the Shinto-boys are consumed with victory disease and are bombarding us with gloating emails. We have them right where we wanted them.

[Cap Mandrake]

ORIGINAL: chijohnaok

Ouch.


Seems someone stepped into a big sh-t sandwhich.

Fortunately, the sh-t dulls the punji sticks.

[sprior]

ORIGINAL: Cap Mandrake

Already, the Shinto-boys are consumed with victory disease and are bombarding us with gloating emails. We have them right where we wanted them.

Well they're at the strongest relative to us they will ever be and so far they've sunk 1 battlecruiser and maybe 1 carrier and damaged another.

[witpqs]

ORIGINAL: Cap Mandrake

Already, the Shinto-boys are consumed with victory disease and are bombarding us with gloating emails. We have them right where we wanted them.

Good show! Your plan is working perfectly!