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

[Cap Mandrake]

Bait in some carrier planes to the CAP at Port Moresby with a 1 pt AKL? Sure, why not.

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

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid spotted at 1 NM, estimated altitude 6,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 0 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 20
B5N1 Kate x 2

Allied aircraft
P-40E Warhawk x 21

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 3 destroyed

No Allied losses

Allied Ships
xAKL Montanes

Aircraft Attacking:
2 x B5N1 Kate bombing from 2000 feet
Naval Attack: 2 x 250 kg SAP Bomb

[Cap Mandrake]

Wow. The carriers must have sprinted well down into the Coral Sea. These are some ships headed North from Sydney to help cover Lexington tomorrow. In retrospect, it would have been better to scuttle Lexington two days ago and get the lightly damaged combatants out. Hard thing to do.

Morning Air attack on TF, near Townsville at 97,144

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid detected at 47 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 17 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 12
D3A1 Val x 13

Japanese aircraft losses
D3A1 Val: 10 damaged

Allied Ships
CL Perth
CL Achilles
CA Louisville, Bomb hits 1

[Cap Mandrake]

A helpless AK with supplies for somewhere.

Morning Air attack on TF, near Cairns at 93,139

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 4,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 8 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 10
B5N2 Kate x 9

No Japanese losses

Allied Ships
xAK Centaur, Bomb hits 14, and is sunk

The remainder of the Lexington task force makes for Cairns and now picks up LRCAP. Not enough.

Morning Air attack on TF, near Cairns at 95,139

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 5,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 8 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 10
B5N2 Kate x 33
D3A1 Val x 13

Allied aircraft
F4F-3A Wildcat x 2

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
F4F-3A Wildcat: 1 destroyed

Allied Ships
CA Northampton, Bomb hits 6, heavy fires, heavy damage
DD Porter, Bomb hits 2, and is sunk
DD Lamson, Bomb hits 1, on fire
DD Drayton, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires
DD Dunlap, Bomb hits 3, and is sunk


2 more DD's sunk an Northampton looking pretty bad.

[Cap Mandrake]

Make it stop,,,,please.

Morning Air attack on TF, near Townsville at 97,144

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

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

Japanese aircraft
B5N2 Kate x 13

Japanese aircraft losses
B5N2 Kate: 8 damaged
B5N2 Kate: 1 destroyed by flak

Allied Ships
CA Pensacola
CL Perth

[Cap Mandrake]

Afternoon...a raid on ships coming up from Sydney. Not catastrophic but Achilles seems hurt badly.

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Townsville at 97,144

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid detected at 71 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 26 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 32
B5N2 Kate x 36
D3A1 Val x 35

Japanese aircraft losses
B5N2 Kate: 5 damaged
D3A1 Val: 17 damaged

Allied Ships
CA Louisville, Bomb hits 2
CA Pensacola, Bomb hits 4, on fire
CL Perth, Bomb hits 2, on fire
CL Achilles, Bomb hits 3, on fire, heavy damage
DD Le Triomphant

Northampton is also likely finished off in another strike.

Uggh. I blame the staff.

[Cap Mandrake]

New visitors at Rabaul. We have evacuated about half of the two Aus Bn by air to Port Moresby.

Ground combat at Rabaul (106,125)

Allied Bombardment attack

Attacking force 2847 troops, 14 guns, 174 vehicles, Assault Value = 43

Defending force 23447 troops, 192 guns, 18 vehicles, Assault Value = 691

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

Allied ground losses:
39 casualties reported
Squads: 4 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 2 destroyed, 0 disabled

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

Defending units:
Maizuru 2nd SNLF
4th Division
144th Infantry Regiment
Maizuru 1st SNLF
2nd Indpt SNLF Coy
15th Base Force

[Cap Mandrake]

**********FOB RH, Honolulu, Dec, 29**********

FAM: <looking at operations reports> OK, who screwed up? Where is the appendix with all the ships sunk yesterday?

Tiny, the bodyguard, a 350 lb Hawaiian: That's it boss.

FAM: Well, I'll be damned.

[Cap Mandrake]

Hehe

TF 53 encounters mine field at Merak (48,97)

Japanese Ships
SS I-157, Mine hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
SS I-156, Mine hits 1, on fire, heavy damage


F 58 encounters mine field at Merak (48,97)

Japanese Ships
SS I-162, Mine hits 1, on fire, heavy damage

[Cap Mandrake]

So long..and thanks for all the fish

Ground combat at Rabaul (106,125)

Japanese Shock attack

Attacking force 23437 troops, 192 guns, 18 vehicles, Assault Value = 689

Defending force 2678 troops, 14 guns, 174 vehicles, Assault Value = 25

Japanese adjusted assault: 412

Allied adjusted defense: 21

Japanese assault odds: 19 to 1 (fort level 0)

Japanese forces CAPTURE Rabaul !!!

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+)
Attacker: shock(+)

Japanese ground losses:
414 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 48 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 7 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

Allied ground losses:
920 casualties reported
Squads: 70 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 122 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 5 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 3 (2 destroyed, 1 disabled)
Vehicles lost 108 (108 destroyed, 0 disabled)
Units retreated 1
Units destroyed 4

Defeated Allied Units Retreating!

Assaulting units:
4th Division
144th Infantry Regiment
Maizuru 2nd SNLF
Maizuru 1st SNLF
2nd Indpt SNLF Coy
15th Base Force

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

[Cap Mandrake]

3 days, 900+ mile retreat

Sunk:

2 CV
5 CA
10 DD

[:(]

Quite an epic screw up

[Cap Mandrake]

IJN Losses:

5 DD [:@]

and few dinged up BB's and CA's and DD's

[Cap Mandrake]

*********FOB RH*************

FAM: <speaking to a couple of foreign looking fellows from LA> Look, I'm trusting you two to keep this last 3 days quiet.

Foreign looking man in Hawaiian shirt: HAI!

[Cap Mandrake]

Hokkaido raid:

We appear to be unspotted so far as we have no recon hits. Still, I think it is better to hit Bihoro tonight to take out the airfield and aviation support there.

[jwolf]

That's a pretty gutsy move, all the more so after the disaster in the Solomons. Good luck!

BTW how are you going to get out of there?

[Cap Mandrake]

The greatest risks to the BB's are aerial torpedoes from Kates or Bettys, both of which need a level 3 field plus an air unit....and from Vals with the ship-killers at short range.

Bihoro is level 4 and has aviation support at the start of the scenario but has no Air HQ unless one has already been shipped in. Bihoro is unmined at the start and has no aircraft at the start...but...of course..we have been at war for 3 weeks.

Sapporo is unmined at the start adn has no CD guns.

Tragically, we know where the great bulk of the Jap carriers are. I know I said that once ..but this time I am probably right.

[witpqs]

So what is their target?

[Cap Mandrake]

ORIGINAL: jwolf

BTW how are you going to get out of there?

Crap! I knew I forgot something. [;)]

East to the Aleutians where we have replenishment ships. Saratoga will cover the withdrawal in case JJ has a carrier on Honshu.

It is possible to circumnavigate Sakhalin but that adds several days and burns fuel. It may be possible to offer some LRCAP from Saratoga on the day 1 and 2 after the bombardment.

[Cap Mandrake]

ORIGINAL: witpqs

So what is their target?

These guys. We aim to sap Japanese morale. JJ love these things. This time of year they will all be in the spa too.

[witpqs]

Jolly good! Production will falter all over the Empire!

[Chickenboy]

ORIGINAL: Cap Mandrake

*********FOB RH*************

FAM: <speaking to a couple of foreign looking fellows from LA> Look, I'm trusting you two to keep this last 3 days quiet.

Foreign looking man in Hawaiian shirt: HAI!

I'm at least hoping that Foreign looking man in Hawaiian shirt has a good spit take coming soon when he hears about American boots on Hokkaido. [:D][X(]