Did You Know I Used to Drive a Rollercoaster?: Apbarog(A) vs OPilot(J)

[apbarog]

2 Sep 42

Destroyer Bancroft hit I-4 with a depth charge southeast of Sydney. With damaged Yorktown inbound from the east, I want to do my best to clear the approaches.

Sub Seadragon fired 2 torpedoes at xAK Genzan Maru north of Rabaul. One torpedo hit but it was a dud. Genzan Maru was hit by a torpedo fired by Gudgeon near Port Moresby back in March. I had listed the ship as a probable sinking but that was incorrect.

Chungking was bombed by 25 Sallys with 25 Oscars, the first bombing of the Chinese capital. About 10 heavy industry were destroyed. P-40s are flown in from India to cover the capital.

The usual heavy bombing of Sian. Hengyang also hit today.

B-26s again hit the 1st Ind. Tank Co. heading north from Coen. 10 more vehicles destroyed. B-17s hit the part of the 4th Infantry Division there also, causing 72 casualties.

Allied troops continue to work to clear the enemy out of the jungle at Lunga. Just a matter of time.

Ground combat at Lunga (114,138)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 26445 troops, 493 guns, 266 vehicles, Assault Value = 708

Defending force 9010 troops, 55 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 39

Allied adjusted assault: 520

Japanese adjusted defense: 49

Allied assault odds: 10 to 1

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

Japanese ground losses:
1061 casualties reported
Squads: 47 destroyed, 4 disabled
Non Combat: 5 destroyed, 48 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Guns lost 12 (10 destroyed, 2 disabled)

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

Assaulting units:
41st Infantry Division
2nd Marine Division
1st Marine Defense Battalion
6th Port Maint Engineer Battalion
223rd Field Artillery Battalion
94th Coast AA Regiment
43rd Base Group
29th RNZA Lt AA Regiment
97th Field Artillery Battalion
2nd USMC Field Artillery Battalion
2nd RAA Med Arty Regiment
II US Fighter Cmnd

Defending units:
83rd Naval Guard Unit
87th Naval Guard Unit
43rd JNAF AF Unit
Kure 3rd SNLF
88th Naval Guard Unit
6th Indpt SNLF Coy
38th JNAF AF Unit
23rd Air Flotilla
17th Naval Construction Battalion
13th Naval Construction Battalion
46th JNAF AF Unit

APDs delivered needed supply to Kusaie Island, pushing the supply total to 1914. I'm starting to think that the CVEs near Ponape are just there to be seen. It's possible that the big damaged carriers were hurt bad enough that most if not all headed to Japan for repairs. The CVEs could be trying to show a presence and make me more cautious around Kusaie Island, which I have been.

For about a month I've been getting SigInt that the 16th Division has been planning to attack Darwin. Today I got the same, except that the unit was 11/16 Div, meaning that the division isn't whole anymore, and is probably loaded on ships. Another indication that an invasion could be soon.

Looking at upcoming events, the invasion timetable is being driven by ship upgrades, particularly carriers, and prep time for attacking ground units. Here's a listing of possible future targets and current preparations by primary units:

Milne Bay - an armor regiment and a tank battalion - 100
Tagula - NG Vol Rifles - 76
Horn Island - 3 USMC Division - 64
Kwajalein - 22 Marine Regiment and 1st USMC Tank - 100
Ponape - 27 Infantry Division - 80
Wake Island - 298 Infantry Regiment - 100
Torokina - 28 Aus Brig - 61
Shortlands - 2 Amph Trac - 32
Buin - 14 Aus Brig - 50
Woodlark - 151 Cmbt Eng - 27

I'm thinking that the 2 divisions on Lunga will prep for a direct assault on Port Moresby, once Lunga is cleared.

[Bif1961]

I believe the game has an average of 20% MK-14 non-duds in the first year of the war.

[apbarog]

3 Sep 42

Allied destroyers chased enemy subs near Rennell Island and Pearl Harbor, but no hits. B-26s continue to hit the retreating enemy infantry at Coen. They are showing movement north, anyhow. No actual movement yet. The small tank unit with it was not seen today. It may have evaporated under the heavy bombing. I don't like this kind of result being easily achievable in clear terrain, but I've taken my lumps in China in clear terrain, so I'm going to dish them out as well.

B-17s hit a base force on Jaluit. It appears to be the only ground unit there. The enemy hasn't positioned much defense in the Marshalls. I wouldn't be surprised to find that units are being extracted now. My taking of Kusaie Island flanked the Marshalls somewhat, and may have contributed to this weak defense.

I've split the infantry division on Tarawa into thirds, and parts are now prepping for Roi Namur, Jaluit and Eniwetok. I already have troops ready for Kwajalein. A big Marshalls operation would follow activity near Milne Bay.

A strong cruiser force is leaving Luganville and heading to Pearl Harbor. Some nice APs are moving from Noumea to Pearl also, enough for a quick landing on Wake Island.

There's now multiple enemy subs around Perth. Interesting.

Troops on Lunga continue to finish off the enemy in the jungle. The estimate is that there are 5,500 enemy troops there. My two tank units have already left Lunga and are heading to Australia to prepare for future operations, and keep under Lunga's stacking limit.

Ground combat at Lunga (114,138)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 26485 troops, 493 guns, 268 vehicles, Assault Value = 706

Defending force 8225 troops, 44 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 34

Allied adjusted assault: 372

Japanese adjusted defense: 29

Allied assault odds: 12 to 1

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

Japanese ground losses:
700 casualties reported
Squads: 25 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 29 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 5 disabled
Guns lost 9 (7 destroyed, 2 disabled)

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

Assaulting units:
41st Infantry Division
2nd Marine Division
6th Port Maint Engineer Battalion
29th RNZA Lt AA Regiment
94th Coast AA Regiment
223rd Field Artillery Battalion
43rd Base Group
97th Field Artillery Battalion
1st Marine Defense Battalion
2nd RAA Med Arty Regiment
2nd USMC Field Artillery Battalion
II US Fighter Cmnd

Defending units:
87th Naval Guard Unit
17th Naval Construction Battalion
83rd Naval Guard Unit
43rd JNAF AF Unit
38th JNAF AF Unit
13th Naval Construction Battalion
23rd Air Flotilla
6th Indpt SNLF Coy
88th Naval Guard Unit
Kure 3rd SNLF
46th JNAF AF Unit


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

Kure 3rd SNLF Wiped Out at Lunga by attrition!!!

83rd Naval Guard Unit Wiped Out at Lunga by attrition!!!

87th Naval Guard Unit Wiped Out at Lunga by attrition!!!

88th Naval Guard Unit Wiped Out at Lunga by attrition!!!

6th Indpt SNLF Coy Wiped Out at Lunga by attrition!!!

13th Naval Construction Battalion Wiped Out at Lunga by attrition!!!

17th Naval Construction Battalion Wiped Out at Lunga by attrition!!!

[apbarog]

4 Sep 42

23 Bettys flew from Roi Namur and hit Kusaie Island's port. AM Matai was recently disbanded into port after clearing all of the mines. Damaged sub Nautilus had just left port two days ago, fortunately. Matai was hit by three bombs and sank later in the day. Minor damage to the port and all was repaired by the end of the day.

6 B-17Ds hit the 51st Naval Guard at Makin. Just checking to see if enemy troops were still there. A dozen B-17Es hit the port at Portland Roads but did little damage in the heavy rain.

Another Allied attack at Lunga destroys more enemy troops. Four more enemy units were left; two were wiped out by attrition at the end of the day. Lunga is almost clear. Then the 41st Infantry and 2nd Marine divisions will start prepping for a new target. Probably Port Moresby.

Besides the enemy push around Sian, there's a new push in the far north, coming out of the desert and hoping to strike west between the mountains. I can hold the mountains, but holding the pass between them will be tough, and must be done. The pass goes straight to Lanchow, which would cut China in two.

Note the there are now enemy troops near Sian that are only 7 hexes from the Chinese capital.

[apbarog]

5 Sep 42

S-44 fired 2 torpedoes at I-34 near Kirakira but missed.

Finback fired 2 torpedoes at xAKL Toyotsu Maru near Eniwetok. One hit but was a dud. This looks very much like ships fleeing Kwajalein. These are headed to Truk. An accompanying DMS was smoking, probably from damage from my B-24 strike.

Sallys and Nells from Timor hit troops at Darwin. This is a change from hitting the airfield. The only defender at Darwin is the Darwin Fortress unit, a static unit, with some coastal defense guns but not an ounce of supply to fire them. I keep seeing indications that OPilot is coming to Darwin, but nothing so far. I've moved a few subs to the area.

Medium bombers from India hit Cox's Bazar's port, doing moderate damage. Troops are leaving Chittagong and heading south to the contested hex. I will max out the stacking limit there and try an attack. I have an Australian unit headed to the coast from the contested hex. It could move there and then southeast to flank the stack. Once OPilot sees that unit move, though, he'll either move more troops north to guard the stack's rear, or retreat the stack. I'm hoping for a retreat, which would allow me to attack troops not dug in, as compared to where they are now.

I'm using some restricted Indian divisions in the first attack. They can't go beyond Akyab. I have 2 British divisions and a US division nearby, ready to take over the attack when needed. A huge Chinese corp is reforming nearby, and it will fill out the contested hex.

I don't expect my first coastal offensive to go far, if anywhere, much as in real life. But it will at least draw some attention there. My long term plan is to land behind the lines at Pegu and maybe Rangoon directly, and cut off the north. But that is way down the road.

A final Allied attack at Lunga clears out the last of the enemy, causing 1726 casualties. The 41st Infantry Division and the US 2nd Marine Division begin to prep for Port Moresby. Artillery units there do the same.

[apbarog]

6 Sep 42

OPilot continues behind-the-lines cleanup, today at Batan Island north of Luzon.

Sian gets two big commitments of aircraft:

Morning Air attack on Sian , at 83,41

Weather in hex: Light rain

Raid spotted at 28 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 8 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-21-IIa Sally x 21
Ki-43-Ic Oscar x 36
Ki-43-IIa Oscar x 27
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 41

No Japanese losses

Airbase hits 10
Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 23

and

Afternoon Air attack on Sian , at 83,41

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid spotted at 40 NM, estimated altitude 10,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 13 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-43-Ic Oscar x 36
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 39
Ki-48-IIa Lily x 20
Ki-49-Ia Helen x 20
Ki-51 Sonia x 27

No Japanese losses

Airbase hits 22
Airbase supply hits 5
Runway hits 46

OPilot may have done LRCAP over Sian. If not, he has two Tojo units committed there now. I have 2 P-40 squadrons at Chungking, but it would be pointless to move them to an unsupplied and damaged Sian, and go up against 100 fighters. I'll leave them at the capital, visible every day with enemy recon, as a potential threat.

Darwin's few defenders get bombed today, and then a cruiser task force arrives during the afternoon and bombards, and stays. 380 casualties to the Darwin Fortress unit. No invasion today. OPilot may just being cautious.

An enemy stack does an artillery attack south of Sian, gauging the defenses. The Chinese will hold as things stand.

I decided to move all of my units preparing for Port Moresby to Townsville. This includes the infantry and marine divisions at Lunga. An Australian unit at Noumea will garrison Lunga.

Damaged carrier Yorktown arrived at Sydney safely. It had a time consuming trip. Hit by two torpedoes south of Tabiteuea, it went to Funafuti to repair a bit. Then it went to Vava'u and into drydock Dewey for awhile, bringing down the FLOT damage. With about 42 FLOT remaining, it started off for Sydney and is now there. It is also starting a 10 day refit, but total repairs will take quite awhile.

[apbarog]

7 Sep 42

Darwin was finally invaded. 6 cruisers and 5 destroyers, along with 4 patrol boats, were embedded in the amphibious task force. The 16th Infantry Division landed, as expected. I can't tell for sure that the whole division is landing, but it probably is. Coastal guns, which I thought had no supply, did manage to get a few hits: 2 on cruiser Takao, and 1 on xAP Kokuryu Maru. Damage isn't mentioned so nothing spectacular.

Oscars from the north swept Darwin. A handful of Rufes and Petes were there also. Sallys bombed the Australian static unit there, then Nells did also. Plenty of overkill here.

Kukong was bombed by Sallys and Sonias. 6 Chinese SB-IIIs bombed a cavalry brigade near Ningsia, in northern China.

B-26s did minor damage to the airfield at Shortlands. No planes there. B-26s hit the 4th Infantry Division/B again between Coen and Portland Roads. 80 casualties.

OPilot is now cleaning up the Philippine divisions I left in the jungle in northern Luzon. Bayombang was lost. He's using a division and 2 tank regiments here. My strategy is just to make him come north on the trails and delay the inevitable as long as possible. Subic Bay and its static unit was lost.

3 days ago I did recon of Rabaul from Lunga. 2 days ago I looked at Kavieng. Yesterday I went back to Rabaul. I noted that Kavieng had about 40 ships in port, including at least one AKE, and no fighters. Rabaul has over 90 fighters. So I moved 3 squadrons of B-24s to Lunga. These are the same guys that did good work hitting Kwajalein's port last week. They will hit Kavieng's port today, 29 B-24s. 10 B-17Ds were moved to Lunga also and will do the same. In addition, 12 LB-30s will join in from Cairns. All bombers can hit Kavieng at normal range from Lunga. B-17Es cannot. Most of them in the region are at Charter Towers. They will hit Port Moresby's airfield. There are about 45 fighters there, but I am sending a strong cruiser task force to bombard Port Moresby tonight. Maybe that will whittle down the enemy fighters. My cruisers were spotted near Cairns, but they could just as easily be headed towards Portland Roads. We'll see what OPilot does, if anything, with that spotting.

Good news. Carrier Soryu is reported sunk from the earlier battle. So we got at least one of them. Probably.

[apbarog]

8 Sep 42

An action packed day.

Grampus fired 2 torpedoes at xAKL Tenposan Maru. One hit but it was a dud. This task force was spotted leaving Kwajalein and attacked near Eniwetok unsuccessfully.

Enemy troops continued to land at Darwin, but the enemy did not attack despite almost no defense. Coastal guns got some hits with 9 inch shells.

xAP Kokuryu Maru, Shell hits 2, on fire
xAP Hoten Maru, Shell hits 1, on fire

A strong Allied cruiser force moved to Port Moresby.

Night Time Surface Combat, near Port Moresby at 98,130, Range 2,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
PB Busho Maru, Shell hits 17, and is sunk
PB Kamitsu Maru, Shell hits 23, and is sunk

Allied Ships
CA Australia, Shell hits 1
CA Canberra
CA Exeter
CL Leander
CL Achilles
CL Perth
CL Hobart
CL Enterprise
DD Stuart
DD Nestor
DD Napier
DD Nizam
DD Encounter
DD Express

Then bombarded the base:

Night Naval bombardment of Port Moresby at 98,130

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Japanese aircraft losses
G4M1 Betty: 34 damaged
G4M1 Betty: 3 destroyed on ground (actual loss was 6)
A6M2 Zero: 67 damaged
A6M2 Zero: 4 destroyed on ground (actual loss was 8)
C5M2 Babs: 3 damaged

Allied Ships
CA Exeter
CA Canberra
CA Australia
CL Enterprise
CL Hobart
CL Perth
CL Achilles
CL Leander
DD Express
DD Encounter
DD Nizam
DD Napier
DD Nestor
DD Stuart

Japanese ground losses:
456 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Non Combat: 9 destroyed, 75 disabled
Engineers: 2 destroyed, 8 disabled

Airbase hits 31
Airbase supply hits 7
Runway hits 77

This reduced the air defenses for later in the day. B-17s hit the airfield, finding only 7 Zeros on CAP to start with. Damage to the airfield was light, though, in severe storms.

But weather over Kavieng was clear.

Morning Air attack on Kavieng , at 106,122

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid detected at 62 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 17 minutes

Allied aircraft
B-17D Fortress x 10
B-24D Liberator x 18

No Allied losses

Japanese Ships
CL Yubari, Bomb hits 22, on fire
xAP Huzi Maru, Bomb hits 4, heavy fires
xAK Kenzan Maru, Bomb hits 4, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Nanko Maru, Bomb hits 5, heavy fires, heavy damage
DD Mutsuki, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage
AKE Havre Maru, Bomb hits 5, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Kyosei Maru, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires
DMS W-22, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
DD Yuzuki, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Kazuura Maru, Bomb hits 1
AV Sagara Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires
DD Mikazuki, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAP Tango Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires
xAK Totori Maru, Bomb hits 4, heavy fires
DD Yayoi, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Arimasan Maru, Bomb hits 2, on fire
AK Yamasimo Maru, Bomb hits 2, on fire
xAK Akiura Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires
xAKL Katsuragisan Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAP Manzyu Maru, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage
DMS W-21, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
DD Uzuki, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Johore Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire
AMC Kinryu Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire
xAK Erie Maru, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Saiho Maru, Bomb hits 2
PB Ichiyu Maru, Bomb hits 2, on fire
xAK Izan Maru, Bomb hits 2, on fire
xAP Hakone Maru, Bomb hits 1
xAKL Hidaka Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAP Kasado Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire
xAK Enzyu Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire

Port hits 27
Port supply hits 4

and

Morning Air attack on Kavieng , at 106,122

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid detected at 52 NM, estimated altitude 10,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 19 minutes

Allied aircraft
LB-30 Liberator x 12

No Allied losses

Japanese Ships
xAP Kasado Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage
CL Yubari, Bomb hits 3, on fire
AK Yamasimo Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires
xAP Huso Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Saiho Maru, Bomb hits 2, on fire, heavy damage
xAK Izan Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAP Huzi Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires
AD Toei Maru, Bomb hits 2, on fire
DD Mutsuki, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAKL Choan Maru #2, Bomb hits 1, on fire
DMS W-22, and is sunk

Port hits 2

and

Morning Air attack on Kavieng , at 106,122

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid detected at 33 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Allied aircraft
B-24D Liberator x 11

No Allied losses

Japanese Ships
xAP Kasado Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage
CL Yubari, Bomb hits 18, heavy fires
xAK Enzyu Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
DD Yayoi, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage
AD Toei Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires
DD Yuzuki, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage
AMC Kinryu Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires
xAK Kazuura Maru, Bomb hits 2, on fire
xAK Arimasan Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Brasil Maru, Bomb hits 2, on fire
xAK Saiho Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage

Port hits 8

Needless to say, surprise was achieved. 11 Petes were lost "on the ground" today. Light cruiser Yubari was hit by many bombs, as you can see, but I saw only one penetrate the armor. It hit either a gun or depth charges, I'm not sure. Kavieng is just a size 2 port, so ships are going to burn up. There were 3 ship sinking audios after the combat, and there will probably be more. It might be wise for OPilot to run burning ships to the bigger port at Rabaul and have some chance at saving them, depending on how bad the damage is.

It wasn't a Pearl Harbor attack, but it was quite nice. I didn't think I'd get such a target of opportunity after having just done the same thing at Kwajalein. Maybe OPilot was thinking I'd go for Rabaul, where he had about 90 fighters. Maybe he thought Kavieng was out of range. This will make him more cautious about keeping ships close to the front. And having to keep ships like AKEs further away can make a big difference.

As for AKEs, I spotted one at Port Moresby. B-17s will go back to hit Port Moresby again today, but some will hit the port this time.

[EDIT: Note on the map that the Allied cruiser force was not spotted today]

[jwolf]

That was an awesome air raid at Kavieng! YES!! [8D]

Can the Yorktown actually repair at Sydney? I thought it was too big (or Sydney's yard too small).

[apbarog]

Yes, Yorktown can repair at Sydney. It would be over 100 days in the shipyard though, for SYS 10 and FLOT 42. I do have a Dutch ARD there with a 20,000 ton capacity, so I'll use that to bring the FLOT level down. It is working on Hermes now. Once Yorktown's SYS is repaired, I'll move Hermes out and move Yorktown in. Or just use Sydney's shipyard. Depends what other ships are repairing in what mode.

[Anachro]

Yeah, I've never seen such a devastating raid and it seems doubly surprising giving the low number of 4Es used, at least to me. How many ships did he have in that port?!

[apbarog]

Mouseover of Kavieng two days prior showed over 40 ships in port. I flew at 6,000 feet and the weather was clear. So many bomb hits though. I haven't counted them up, but it was as if the ships were side by side. Kavieng is just a size 2 port. I don't know if port strikes take into account the small size of the port.

The pilots were not incredibly trained. 60 to 70 in ground attack but some had low experience.

[Bif1961]

Were they dropping 100 pounders to have that many hits, 120+ hits from only 28 bombers that would be at least 4 hits from each without a miss?

[apbarog]

All bombs were 500 pound bombs. The B-24s and B-17Ds flew from Lunga at normal range, so the B-24s dropped 10 each and the B-17Ds dropped 8. The LB-30s flew from Cairns and were at extended range and dropped 4 500 pound bombs.

[Bif1961]

For the first raid that works out to about 50% hits 124 out of a possible 260 dropped, which would make it the greatest 4 engine bombing accuracy in history. Given that the raids were at approximately 10,000 feet and the historic inaccuracy of heavy bombers at that altitude it was a miracle raid.

[apbarog]

The bombers were all at 6,000 feet but your conclusion is still valid.

[apbarog]

9 Sep 42

Sub Dolphin fired 2 torpedoes at PB Nagata Maru near Kavieng. One hit but was a dud.

Up in northern China, on the northernmost trail to Lanchow, the enemy did a recon bombardment.

Ground combat at Ningsia (84,33)

Japanese Bombardment attack

Attacking force 1281 troops, 20 guns, 50 vehicles, Assault Value = 81

Defending force 7343 troops, 43 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 267

Assaulting units:
17th Tank Regiment
3rd Cavalry Brigade
21st AA Regiment

Defending units:
81st Chinese Corps

I don't know if the Chinese will hold in the town or not, going up against armor.

Finally Darwin was attacked and lost. It was a bit of overkill.

Ground combat at Darwin (76,124)

Japanese Shock attack

Attacking force 14112 troops, 133 guns, 41 vehicles, Assault Value = 469

Defending force 19 troops, 4 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 1

Japanese engineers reduce fortifications to 2

Japanese adjusted assault: 797

Allied adjusted defense: 1

Japanese assault odds: 797 to 1 (fort level 2)

Japanese forces CAPTURE Darwin !!!

Combat modifiers
Defender: forts(+), disruption(-), fatigue(-), supply(-)
Attacker: shock(+)

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

Allied ground losses:
21 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 2 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 5 (5 destroyed, 0 disabled)
Units destroyed 1

Assaulting units:
16th Division
Yokosuka 3rd SNLF /1

Defending units:
Darwin Fortress

The enemy cruisers near Cairns moved a few hexes to the east. Allied cruisers made it to Townsville and refueled, but the big guns on the heavy cruisers did not rearm at the level 5 port. Townsville is about to become a level 6 port, though, and we'll see if that's big enough to do the job. (Yes, I should just dig out the manual and look up the gun types) The light cruisers and destroyers are all rearmed, and the task force will continue to guard the port.

B-17s didn't fly a followup mission to Port Moresby due to weather. They will try again today. Recon shows no fighters or bombers there and still heavy damage to the airfield.

[EDIT: I forgot to reset the mission for the LB-30s that hit Kavieng from Cairns. They flew again, and of course ran into a heavy CAP. 7 were lost.]

Troops are beginning to be pulled out of Lunga to be moved to Australia in preparation for an attack of Port Moresby.

[jwolf]

ORIGINAL: Bif1961

For the first raid that works out to about 50% hits 124 out of a possible 260 dropped, which would make it the greatest 4 engine bombing accuracy in history. Given that the raids were at approximately 10,000 feet and the historic inaccuracy of heavy bombers at that altitude it was a miracle raid.

In fairness, that was a "target rich" environment, near perfect conditions for the raid.

[apbarog]

10 Sep 42

Bettys from Rabaul make a night bombing run on Lunga. Just one runway hit in heavy rain. OPilot knows that I have plenty of fighters on Lunga, and I did have many heavy bombers (but they've since moved). He's used night bombing rarely but has done so several times in the war so far. I dislike some aspects of how night bombing works out, and generally don' use it. However, every time OPilot uses it, I use it, and to a proportional amount. The Allies, in the long run, can do much more damage with night bombing than the Japanese can. It's in my opponent's interest for me not to use it.

I don't want to appear unhappy with his use of it. It's fine with me. Like I said, the Allies will dish out much more punishment with it. There may come a time where I use it heavily to hit mainland Japan with strategic bombing. But until then, I can generally fly during the day and shoot down more fighters than the bombers I'd lose.

So I send a bomber squadron out on a night attack. I think it was to Rabaul, not sure.

APDs that had just dropped supply at Kusaie Island were attacked by I-15 on the way home. 4 torpedoes missed APD Pope. Supply is now over 2,500 at Kusaie and a P-40 squadron is sent there to defend.

Perch fired 4 torpedoes at PB Eifuku Maru near Gasmata. One hit and was a dud. This is Perch's second dud torpedo hit on a patrol boat so far in the war. No other hits.

25 Helens make a particularly nasty attack in the woods southwest of Sian. 492 Chinese casualties. Units hit were in movement mode. They, and others, need to keep moving quickly to allow troops to continue to move out of Sian. They are moving out in bunches, trying to stay close to adhering to the stacking limits of nearby hexes.

A B-24 squadron is moved to Cloncurry in central Australia and will hit the airfield at Darwin. It is already very heavily damaged, but I see that there are enemy fighters there already. They may or may not be able to use the airfield yet. We'll see.

[ushakov]

Late to the party, but good lord, I believe that's no less than fourty-three 500 pounders Yubari absorbed without sinking or even taking particularly severe damage. Not bad for a CL!