Extra sheet of the Tōkyō Shinbun from Tuesday, March 22, 1938
>> Is there a threat of a new war? <<
>>What is the Navy currently building? <<
In recent months, reports from the Imperial Japanese Navy had revolved almost exclusively around the announcement of decommissioning and scrapping. Now it turns out that the naval leadership has concealed the most exciting news from the public.
It has just been announced that all ships of the Imperial Japanese Navy currently under construction have an engine system that allows the ships to carry out operations even at an extreme distance from their bases.
So far, the Imperial Japanese Navy has hardly been able to get out of the Yellow Sea or the South Pacific in war.
Now it's time for the new battleships, aircraft carriers and cruisers could reach the Atlantic!
Now the question is, what are these battleships, aircraft carriers and cruisers? Because according to official information, there are currently no aircraft carriers and cruisers under construction at all? Of course, well camouflaged by the scrapping activities, the inclined observer could see that new buildings had also been started. Now, however, there is talk of new cruisers, although the Navy has only recently commissioned new cruisers. The aircraft carriers have not played the role in past conflicts that everyone predicted, and yet the Navy seems to continue to increase their numbers. In addition, these carriers are getting bigger and bigger when you look at the space required in the dry docks.
Observers assume that this class of ship could probably have reached the 60,000 gross register tons mark.
A size that has so far been reserved exclusively for battleships and battlecruisers!
Gigantic aircraft carriers, absurdly large battleships and new cruisers that the fingers are not enough to count. A fleet capable of bombing London or Paris.
Are we threatened by a new war?
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Editorial office of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Wednesday, March 23, 1938
The messenger from the Ministry of the Navy left Osaki Satoshi's office. Satoshi looked after him and when the door was locked, he broke the seal in half with a clear effort and unfolded the document. To his surprise, the message was very short:
"You did well!"
The announcement did not include anything more.
Satoshi's son came in and looked at him. Satoshi nodded his head and Shiko replied with a short "shark", then left the office again.
Satoshi could only speculate as to why it was suddenly so important for the navy that the British and French knew what was being built in the Japanese dry docks. The reference to the enormous range had the greatest significance and should nevertheless be able to be interpreted as a kind of defensive characteristic.
Shiko would inconspicuously try to find out something at a meeting with Okada that was planned anyway. If the navy was planning a surprise attack on European territory, Okada had to know that.
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Morning edition of the Tōkyō Shinbun of Wednesday, April 06, 1938
>> The Marine nationale française reacts to Japan's thirst for action! <<
It has become known from well-informed circles that the Marine nationale française is not willing to cede sovereignty over the sea to Japan. The Marine nationale française is about to put into service state-of-the-art, very fast and well-armed battleships, which seem to be designed solely for attack.
It is becoming more and more clear that we have long been in a fleet armament of previously unknown proportions!
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Editors of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Friday, May 6, 1938
At the beginning of May, there were the first upheavals in China and the Imperial Japanese Navy participated rather passively in restoring order as part of a coordinated demonstration of power. Osaki Satoshi knew only too well that uprisings in China had been used as a reason for war, no matter by whom and for what purpose. However, the completion of the new warships was still years away.
Had the Navy lied? Were they already further along than announced?
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Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Monday, August 01, 1938
The rest of the spring and early summer passed without any major events. The world situation had stabilized and neither side seemed willing to take the first step towards escalating violence.
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Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Wednesday, September 14, 1938
In September, however, there was a fierce dispute with the United States of America. During the commissioning ceremonies of two new aircraft carriers, the Kempeitai caught several American spies who tried to sabotage the two new ships.
The Americans, who were otherwise so calm and detached from the world, were apparently no longer willing to stand idly by and watch the goings-on of the "old" powers!
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Editorial office of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Wednesday, October 12, 1938
Osaki Satoshi was abruptly torn from his work on the current fleet armaments. Actually, he wanted to explain in an extra sheet whether the current fleets were prepared for a war at all, when he received the news to come immediately to Tōkyō Isen. The Tōkyō Isen was a training hospital for young doctors.
It was immediately clear to him that it could only be something because of Saki's pregnancy. Although her pregnancy was all in all calm, considerable problems had already become apparent in the last few days. The fact that she had now been rushed to the training hospital could not mean anything good. The Tōkyō Isen was close to her apartment and it had to be done quickly?
As soon as he was on his way, Satoshi was caught up in a parade of political extremists who seemed to be on their way to the government district to overthrow the incumbent government!
"That too!" he roared out, but it didn't help, he couldn't get any further here.
Despair was written all over his face, because he wanted to see his daughter-in-law as soon as possible and this feeling of despair was new to him!
Editorial office of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Wednesday, November 02, 1938
Osaki Satoshi had left the editorial office to his son Shiko for the rest of October – once again – in the midst of the turmoil of the insurgents, his daughter-in-law Saki had to survive a difficult birth and she was still in hospital with the newborn Rokurō.
The political events flew past him, especially since the birth of Itashi had been celebrated just yesterday. Everyone in the family quickly agreed that Katsu and Riko's son should be named Itashi after Riko's great-great-grandfather and Satoshi's foster father.
May Osaki Itashi have as long and happy a life as his ancestor – that was Satoshi's only thought at the moment. World politics was to do without him.
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Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Thursday, December 8, 1938
The Osakis' family happiness was finally perfect for the moment. Saki and Rokurō had finally been discharged from the hospital, both were doing well and to complete it, Yuki and Miyu each gave birth to twins – the Osakis finally had to get used to that! From then on, the children bore the names Taeko, Nanako, Tadashi and Kayo. The Osakis' estate gradually became too small when the entire family was gathered.
Fortunately for him, there was also little news in the world or about the Imperial Japanese Navy, because this time Shiko had not been able to take on the role of deputy for understandable reasons.
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Editors of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Monday, January 16, 1939
As much as private happiness had taken hold, things were not going so well for the military. Numerous companies were now active in the aviation industry and the navy promoted aviation as such with power. Every company that supposedly had a great new aircraft to sell got its chance.
This led to a considerable fragmentation of resources and gradually everyone lost track of this development.
The consequences became apparent at the beginning of the new year nineteen hundred and thirty-nine, when there had been a series of accidents during test flights. The spot is already spreading among the population that the armed forces would lose more pilots through their own incompetence than through enemy action.
The crashes themselves had been hard to conceal, as there had been too many witnesses. However, the background had to be strictly concealed, as had been clearly made clear by a letter from the ministry that Osaki Satoshi had just received.
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Morning edition of the Tōkyō Shinbun of Friday, March 10, 1939
The Japanese government's decision last Monday, when the cabinet flatly rejected an alliance treaty with Russia, caused a worldwide sensation. The Washington Post, which has so far been distinguished by genteel restraint in relation to Japanese foreign policy, wrote on Wednesday:
"The match with which the treaty of alliance presented by Russia was lit and burned is the same that will light the fuse for the next war in Asia. As the whole world could see, this match is already burning and the question remains how long it will take for it to burn down? With the last flame, the explosion in the Pacific and possibly the entire world follows!"
Pictures 193: Illustration from the Washington Post of March 8, 1939
Sources: AI image generated by the author of this AAR
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Morning edition of the Tōkyō Shinbun of Tuesday, March 21, 1939
There was a lot of excitement in parliament yesterday afternoon when it became known that almost all Japanese battleships had been moved to various shipyards for modernization measures over the past weekend. The ultra-right hardliners in parliament called it completely negligent to leave the Japanese Empire so defenseless, while the American press is already reporting an imminent war.
Pictures 194: Uprising in the Japanese parliament because of the weakened fleet
Sources: AI image generated by the author of this AAR
Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Thursday, April 8, 1939
Osaki Satoshi's head was smoking, and so was his son Shiko. For hours, both had been debating how to deal with the situation? In addition to the battleships, four aircraft carriers had now been docked in the shipyards for overhaul. Rumours spread among the population that the navy had ordered all ships to be sent for overhaul as soon as possible.
The shipyards recruited personnel on an unprecedented scale, which had a direct impact on the entire economy in the country. Industry was booming, the economy was booming, the entire country was booming.
But they were strange conversions, because many of them did not take place as usual, but the Navy did not release any information about them.
Satoshi and Shiko knew exactly why the ships were sent to the shipyards with brutal force. They had the information on the table together with a letter that anyone who said a word about it would be executed without a pen.
The Navy's method was unorthodox but successful. Instead of keeping the most critical information secret and risking that the press snoopers would get wind of it, the press representatives were told quite openly what was going on. And it was made clear to everyone that if they couldn't keep their mouths shut, they would just disappear. Together with all relatives, if necessary.
"It's unbelievable what the navy is doing here with the ships. Especially since no one knows if it will work!"
"It works Shiko, I know it..."
"Dear father, how do you know that?"
"Everything stays in the family!"
So Shiko knew that one of his brothers had opened his mouth and he could count on his fingers which of them it must have been!
"The population is asking questions and it will very soon become apparent that the press does not report anything about it!"
"That is also my concern, Shiko, but the minister has made it very clear that all reports on this topic must be refrained from."
"But even our employees and colleagues are already wondering what happened? They noticed very well that you burned documents this morning as soon as they were delivered to you!"
"That's clear to me, but what are we supposed to do? Think about your wife and children. You're too young to know everything about the Kempeitai. These people have no sense of humor. There are some who would even enjoy torturing your four-month-old children before they murder them!"
"That can't be! The Tennō would never allow that!"
"The Tennō – when was the last time you heard anything about the Tennō that has anything to do with politics?"
"What do you mean?"
"The Tennō is just a puppet of the military. The admirals and generals have not been talked into it for a long time if they want to wage war again!"
"So you mean the Washington Post is right?"
"That's the question it's all about. The navy is modernizing its ships at such a speed that it looks like a panic reaction even to the most stupid observer."
"So you mean our military set a fuse and accidentally lit it, which they can't extinguish now?"
"At least that's what it seems!"
"So what do we do now?"
"Nothing! – We obey every word and do nothing!"
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Editors of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Monday, May 3, 1939
"All – all the major fleet carriers are in the shipyard without exception, and half of the four light aircraft carriers!"
"I know Shiko, but nothing has changed!"
"In the meantime, the foreign press is not even too fine to ask us directly what is going on?"
"I know they were lying in wait for me too. At least that means that everyone is keeping quiet. Would our European and American colleagues know what is going on, would they hardly try to find out anything from us?"
"But it also means that you get nervous abroad!"
"That's not our problem, the government has to solve it!"
"And if a foreign government decides that now is the best time to attack Japan? Just to be sure?"
"That's not our problem either... - besides, it was YOU who brought a new war into play in the first place with your verbal attack on France!"
"Are you still accusing me of that?"
"It just wasn't useful, even if what you wrote about the European imperialists is true, of course."
"Well, at least we agree on that!"
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Extra sheet of the Tōkyō Shinbun from Wednesday, July 14, 1939
>> Great excitement in Yokohama! <<
>> New weapon system raises questions! <<
This morning there was a real commotion in Yokohama when the aircraft carriers Soryu, Hosho and Kaga left the shipyard after barely four months. Previous conversions often took years, but these ships have already returned to the fleet with a strange appearance. A large crowd has formed in front of the harbour to take advantage of the unobstructed view of the departing ships to satisfy their thirst for knowledge. There were clashes with the military police and other local security forces.
After the mysterious covers on board the aircraft carriers were removed shortly before undocking, everyone could see that strange new weapon systems had been installed on the ships.
Apparently, the Navy is planning these conversions on all ships, because as soon as the aircraft carriers had left the shipyard, well over twenty destroyers arrived there to be docked.
An immediate question to the Ministry of the Navy about the new weapon system on the three aircraft carriers was not answered!
Once again, the government is keeping the people in the dark, but the speed with which these weapons are being installed does not bode well!
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Editors of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Tuesday, October 5, 1939
The summer and early autumn made many people in Japan forget that things were going on about which the government remained adamantly silent. The economic boom caused by the massive fleet modernization program benefited even those who would otherwise never benefit. There seemed to be an unspoken alliance between the government and the people, according to which the people did not ask questions as long as everyone was better off than ever before.
Osaki Satoshi viewed the development with mixed feelings. In the meantime, half the fleet was in the shipyard and that reminded him of the past.
He was sure now!
The secrecy surrounding the new weapon system was nothing but a big bluff!
In truth, the Imperial Japanese Navy has always brought all ships to the shipyard when a new war loomed on the horizon.
It had to be! The Navy, as always before the start of hostilities, modernizes its fleet. If you made people believe that it was only about an important new weapon system that was indispensable, the fact of general war preparation would be lost from focus!
"How could I be so stupid as not to realize that?"
"But then the entire press was just as stupid as we were. Then everyone fell for the Navy!"
"Yes, of course, Shiko, but what does that say about the Japanese press?"
"That we are patriots and therefore spread lies for our country when necessary!"
"I don't like that, that's not how Itashi raised me. He wouldn't like that!"
"When Itashi brought you to the newspaper, it was a different Japan. A weak Japan. A Japan with which the Europeans did what they wanted."
"And now?"
"Now we are a strong Japan that can no longer be pushed around and protects its interests!"
Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Monday, October 16, 1939
The extra paper of Le Temps hit like a bomb!
In all Japanese publishers, anger prevailed above all. While their own hands were tied because of the secret agreements with the military, the imperialist press had managed to show Japan off to the whole world.
Osaki Satoshi did not read the article alone. He was very precise in some places – too precise – to be exact! Was it all just a coincidence and the editors of Le Temps had only guessed well, or from which source did the information come?
It was completely clear that at least the British knew exactly what a radar antenna was made of. But how did the French press know that it was an advanced model here?
The fact that the Japanese Navy had put a functional radar system into service little more than a few weeks after the Empire had been treated in the strictest confidence for over two and a half years. All references to this had been suppressed by the press when they appeared anywhere. Whistleblowers to the press were consistently reported to the secret service and in return the press received other, less problematic exclusive information. A few weeks ago, there was an important breakthrough in electronic reconnaissance, and in fact the Navy had decided to immediately and emphatically equip all ships with the new radar. For most of the ships it was the first radar system ever, some had just received the forerunner and the new hives that had only recently been put into service were immediately converted.
Now the cat was out of the bag and even more there were indications that the Swiss publishers already had such information. There was a leak somewhere and Satoshi fervently hoped that this would be the case with the military. If it turns out that someone from the press should have passed on top-secret reports, it could be a death sentence for everyone.
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Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Wednesday, December 6, 1939
November 1939 was a novelty, because for the first time the Imperial Japanese Navy had aircraft carriers scrapped. Nevertheless, this news was not particularly interesting.
The light aircraft carrier Kehi Maru had been the world's first aircraft carrier, but it was now almost twenty years old and had been converted from an aircraft tender.
As a ship, the Suwo was even much older at thirty-five years. The Suwo was even a venerable ship, which had already been commissioned as a standard ship of the line in 1904.
But both ships had not played a major role recently. Both were much too small for modern aircraft types and even as training ships in pilot training they could no longer be used sensibly because of the old technology and low speed.
Due to its age, the Suwo was like a sieve and the maintenance devoured vast sums of money.
Without much excitement, both ships transferred for scrapping and made way for the brand-new light cruisers that arrived in December.
This was also a novelty, because with eight units of never again cruisers of one and the same class had been built.
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Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Thursday, February 8, 1940
At the beginning of the nineteen hundred and forties, the Japanese Empire pursued a policy of appeasement, which had become necessary after the French revelations.
For Osaki Satoshi, this was a sign that the Navy did not yet see the time for a new war coming. Similar actions have also been observed in recent decades. But it also meant that it was all about modernizing the fleet. There were also new ships and with the commissioning of the Yashima there was a new super battleship, but the majority of the ships in the shipyards were conversions.
With the current state of the fleet, it would take at least until late summer before hostilities were to be expected, and not even that was certain. Behind the scenes, it was heard that the new American naval attaché was unusually often to be found in Tokyo for consultations in all kinds of ministries. All this spoke for massive political pressure from the United States of America, which had so far stayed out of any conflict.
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Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Monday, April 15, 1940
In the spring, the Japanese government used an espionage incident and an arms deal to show the US that it was not willing to be intimidated. Otherwise, there were almost only reports about which ships had completed their conversion and there were really many.
Gradually, the fleet was ready for battle!
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Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Monday, June 10, 1940
In June, it came out that something had gone wrong with the conversion of the many warships. The shipyard manager of the 小野浜造船所 (Onohama Zōsenjo) (Kure Naval Shipyard) was not only dismissed, but even imprisoned. It was rumoured that all the installed radar systems were not functional and all ships had to go to the shipyard again.
However, the Imperial Japanese Navy did not want to admit this nakedness.
Osaki Satoshi would have his son Shiko write an extra sheet, because he himself had grown tired of all the lying. He knew better, the radar systems were functional, his son Okada had made that clear. Okada had indicated that something else had happened, which called into question the entire attack tactics of the 帝国海軍航空隊 (Teikoku Kaigun Kōkūtai - Imperial Japanese Naval Air Force).
Okada had been pulled out of pilot training and was supposed to take care of the new problems and develop a completely new approach to air strikes.
What exactly had happened, Okada was silent like a stone. This was remarkable, because until now he had always given his father some hint in which direction to think. This time that was not the case.
It could not be an imminent attack, because then the Navy would not want to re-equip its ships again.
Osaki Satoshi was at a loss!
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Editorial office of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Tuesday, October 01, 1940
As in previous years, the summer flew by completely relaxed. There were only everyday reports, so to speak, but the expected "incident" that would lead to a new war had failed to materialize.
Osaki Satoshi had started a new family tradition, according to which the entire family should get together once a month for a joint excursion. The young parents didn't really like that, but no one wanted to contradict Satoshi, that was out of the question. It would have been a shame of the first order and so everyone resigned themselves to their family fate.
Picture 195: Osaki family hiking together in the mountains
Sources: AI image generated by the author of this AAR
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Editors of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Wednesday, October 3, 1940
At the beginning of October, the whole world could see why Japan had spent a quiet summer and continued to bring every ship to the shipyard.
The Europeans were busy with themselves!
The British Empire consolidated its supremacy in the North Atlantic with an invasion of Iceland, even if this was disguised as an Icelandic-staged coup d'état.
The fleets of all the great European nations were in the Atlantic and drove over each other there. This had probably been apparent for a long time and the Japanese secret service was well informed that apart from a few destroyers, no larger ship of the British, French, Germans and Russians had currently been stationed overseas.
Osaki Satoshi, however, was surprised that the Imperial Japanese Navy had not seized such a good opportunity!
Editorial office of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Wednesday, December 4, 1940
Osaki Satoshi was still concerned with the geopolitical realities in Europe. It was a fragmented continent with strange strategic positions. The Empire's move to settle in Iceland was impressive in this respect. From then on, the Royal Navy was able to imprison the Kriegsmarine of the German Empire and the Tsar's fleet in the North Sea and the Arctic Ocean. In addition, the colony of Norway was cut off from the French heartland, if you wanted to. The Grande Nation would almost inevitably have to enter into an alliance with Berlin in order to be able to hold Norway in a conflict with the Empire.
The Tsar's fleet, which was still being rebuilt, had everyone in Europe as its opponent, but the Russian fleet was the youngest of all. After the total loss in the last war against the Imperial Japanese Navy, hardly any Russian ship was now older than five to ten years. If the Russian fleet still had usable commanders now, it could at least set pinpricks in the Baltic and North Seas.
Meanwhile, the Imperial Japanese Navy was content with the ongoing modernization of its own ships. There were no signs that hostilities were imminent. The last war was unusual anyway in terms of timing. It had been something of a New Year's surprise. All other conflicts had always started in spring or summer, which was obvious because of the weather.
However, technology had made great leaps. Modern warships were no longer small nutshells that were sunk by a wave rather than by shell hits. Seaworthiness had increased considerably and even a storm was no longer a reason to avoid a battle. Only the Air Force struggled with the weather, which the battleship faction of course always knew how to comment on with a broad grin!
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Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Tuesday, January 7, 1941
The turn of the year was very relaxed. Osaki Satoshi had taken advantage of many contacts to have almost the entire family together to spend a few days with everyone in the hot spring recreation area near Sapporo.
All the while, Okada raved about the great progress the Air Force had made in the last few weeks. An even better fighter replaced the already better one that had just been introduced. His son described the latest carrier-based bombers as deadlier than any battleship, and he considered it questionable whether torpedoes should be installed on ships at all in the future.
Okada was completely absorbed in the topic of the Air Force. He was eager to finally see the new heavy fleet carriers in action in a maneuver. His current task was far too theoretical, as he said, and he spends far too little time in the cockpit.
He didn't want to talk about what he was doing, but Satoshi had his knowledge that planes could not appear over the enemy out of the blue in the future, even without direct information.
Never before in the last forty years has technical progress been as enormous as in the last five years. Okada was also sure by now that the next war would belong to the carrier-based naval air force and that the heavy shells of the battleships might never be used against enemy ships again.
Yes, looking at the photos of the last week in Sapporo, Satoshi became fully aware that the next war would probably have a different face in every respect.
Picture 196: Memories of the hot springs in Sapporo
Source: AI image generated by the author of this AAR
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Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Monday, April 14, 1941
In the first three months of the year nineteen hundred and forty-one, the Navy significantly intensified its modernization program. Once again, all larger ships came to the shipyard to receive the latest radar and fire control technology. Twelve new submarines were started, and another 90,000 gross tonnage super-battleship was nearing completion. The world's first heavy fleet aircraft carriers with 60,000 gross registered tons would not arrive until the end of next year, and the two new light aircraft carriers, while nearing completion, were nothing special anymore. They served as a replacement for the venerable Suwo, which had been scrapped some time ago, and the carriers would probably be used for pilot training and act as escorts for trade convoys in the event of war.
The world situation was calm. There were indeed resentments with the major European powers, but when did they not exist? The Russians were sensitive to every single word that had to do with them, but the Tsar's fleet was far from its former greatness.
France asked in diplomatic talks to become the next Japanese victim because it missed no opportunity to remember who Cochinchina belonged to.
The United States of America had somewhat curbed its ambitions after the Japanese lesson, but made it clear that it would not give up a millimeter of ground in the Pacific.
Spring was now picking up speed and from what Satoshi could say, it promised to be a wonderful summer.
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Extra sheet of the Tōkyō Shinbun from Monday, June 09, 1941
>> Conference on Disarmament in The Hague ends in scandal! <<
>> Royal Navy increases level of mobilization <<
The European colonial powers have tried to torpedo the modernization of the Japanese fleet. During a hastily convened disarmament conference in The Hague, the representative of the British crown demanded a halving of the Imperial Japanese Navy. In particular, Japan should stop building new aircraft carriers for ten years.
The envoys of the Tennō left no doubt during the conference that any attempt to restrict the Imperial Japanese Navy would be met with a doubling of the military budget.
The possibilities of the new radar-based fire control system, which is now available to the Japanese fleet, were openly explained to all those present. And pointed out that the heavy armor of a 90,000-ton battleship is also suitable for simply driving over the European rowing boats if necessary.
Picture 197: Discussions during the Conference on Disarmament in The Hague
Source: AI image generated by the author of this AAR
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Extra sheet of the Tōkyō Shinbun from Friday 04 July 1941
>> Popular protests against the Navy's response to the Conference on Disarmament <<
>> Imperial Japanese Navy requests designs for ever more gigantic aircraft carriers <<
There was a large crowd in front of parliament this morning after it became known that the navy wants to continue rearmament in response to The Hague. The Imperial Japanese Navy openly announced the requirements imposed on the design offices of the shipyards.
The excitement increased when it became known during the demonstration that a Japanese cruiser had been caught spying in British-African waters.
The Royal Navy is now said to be on alert and the Japanese ambassador in Moscow has been summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry.
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Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Monday, September 01, 1941
Apparently, even the military had not been very comfortable with the escalation and as a result some concessions were made to Russia. On paper, they looked really good, but everyone involved knew that this was just a pretext. For the moment, however, it led to the fact that the guns continued to fall silent.
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Extra sheet of the Tōkyō Shinbun from Wednesday, October 08, 1941
>> Catastrophe during maneuvers – dozens dead and injured on board the Akagi <<
>> Pilot crashes into the flight deck of the Akagi with a new fighter plane <<
During a maneuver in Tōkyō Bay, the pilot of the newest fighter aircraft of the 帝国海軍航空隊 (Teikoku Kaigun Kōkūtai - Imperial Japanese Naval Air Force) lost control and crashed on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier Akagi during the landing approach. The pilot and numerous other crew members of the deck crew were killed. The exact Pictures have so far been kept secret by the Navy.
Voices were immediately raised that the extreme development program of the Air Force with at the same time brutal demands on the test pilots were the cause of the catastrophic accident. The navy must immediately slow down the pace of the development of new aircraft.
Picture 198: The prototype of the latest fighter aircraft explodes on landing on the aircraft carrier Akagi
Source: AI image generated by the author of this AAR
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Ministry of Navy of the Imperial Japanese Navy – Thursday, December 4, 1941
Navy Minister Shimada Shigetarō still had to get used to his new position. His predecessor Oikawa Koshirō had left office after the disaster on the Akagi. Now Shimada Shigetarō was to take care of the problems of the Naval Air Force, which had recently arisen due to the unbridled build-up of this branch of the armed forces. He was sitting at his desk when a visibly exhausted messenger was let into his office:
"Mr. Minister – I'm reporting!" the young officer began...
"I have to inform you that unfortunately there has been another accident during the testing of our new fighter flight. The pilot and some civilians were killed."
Minister of the Navy Shimada Shigetarō looked at the young man intently and nodded.
"Mr. Minister..."
"Is there any more terrible news?"
"Mr. Minister, Kaigun-chūjō Eikichi Katagiri tells you that the press will certainly not let us get away with it as easily this time as it did with the last accident."
"And why does the head of the 海軍航空本部 (Kaigun Kōkū Hombu - Imperial Japanese Naval Aviation Bureau) think that the press will react differently this time?"
"Mr. Minister, Kaigun-chūjō Eikichi Katagiri has asked me to hand over this document to you..."
Navy Minister Shimada Shigetarō turned chalky pale in the face. After what felt like an eternity, it came out of his mouth tight-lipped:
"This is a disaster, the Tōkyō Shinbun will tear us apart in the air, I'll take care of that personally."
The messenger had not yet left the office of the Minister of the Navy when the Minister already had his order on the phone and demanded that his car should be ready in ten minutes, he had to go to the Tōkyō Shinbun publishing house – now...
Picture 199: Crash of the prototype during another test flight
Source: AI image generated by the author of this AAR
Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Thursday, January 01, 1942
For four weeks, since that fateful day in early December when Minister of the Navy Shimada Shigetarō had visited the publishing house to deliver this terrible message before anyone else did, Osaki Shiko hadn't seen his father since that day.
The whole world seemed to hold its breath like a sinister white man. Apart from new protests in the capital because of the recent crash, there was not a single news to report.
But now Fukuzawa Toyokuni – the publishing director – had appeared at the Osakis' homestead with a demand.
This demand was very short:
If Osaki Satoshi does not appear in his office the following Monday, the publisher would entrust someone else with the editor-in-chief!
Osaki Shiko wondered if his father was even alive, but Natsuko insisted that when she came back from the shed to bring Satoshi something to eat.
Often, however, she came back with a full tablet and only the large number of emptied sake bottles could be taken as an indication that Satoshi was still alive.
The death of his brother Okada had also thrown Shiko off track for a moment, but his otherwise storm-tested father didn't seem to want to accept it! He wasn't even present for the funeral, but many of those present considered that reasonable, because the remains of Okada were recognizable as being of human origin.
It had to go on somehow, but no one seemed to be able to persuade his father to start working again.
+ + +
Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Sunday, February 1, 1942
The decision came quickly and brutally and no consideration was given to Sunday. From then on, the Tōkyō Shinbun belonged to the Kokumin Shinbun publishing house, but was to retain its name.
The Fukuzawa family had released Osaki Satoshi, they didn't want to kick him out completely – not yet!
Fukuzawa Toyokuni himself took over the editor-in-chief of the new construct of the newspapers and had enough confidence in the work of Osaki Shiko that he was now officially allowed to continue the work on the 戦争クロニクル帝国日本 – Sensō kuronikuru teikoku Nihon (The War Chronicles of Imperial Japan) as a simple editor.
All the remaining employees and also some new ones who came from the Kokumin besieged Osaki Shiko and peppered him with questions about his father. Is he really still alive? No one has seen him for eight weeks. Is he really willing to sacrifice his life's work?
When these questions were asked, Osaki Shiko left unanswered!
"We have work ahead of us..." he began his lecture in the presence of the new publishing house management.
"If there's one thing I've inherited from my father, it's his instinct for geopolitics."
This led to a loud murmur in the hall, because everyone immediately thought of the editorial on the naval visit to France, which almost triggered a war.
"There will be war!"
"I don't know against whom, but it will be in the summer!"
Now everyone was staring at Osaki Shiko with their mouths open!
"It's quite simple – Japan has always started its wars in spring or summer, except for the last one imposed from outside, and the modernization of the fleet will be largely completed by the end of spring. Maybe something will be staged so that it looks like an attack on Japan, but it will be Japan that will bring about this war!"
Now Fukuzawa Toyokuni spoke up:
"I think that's true! Gentlemen, let young Mr. Osaki do it, I think we have found the right one after his father is no longer able to work."
With this, the society in the editorial office dissolved and Osaki Shiko set to work evaluating the current situation.
+ + +
Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Tuesday, March 10, 1942
Osaki Shiko seemed to be right. Tensions with Russia could escalate at any time anyway, but in recent weeks the Japanese government has not missed any opportunity to irritate Germany.
Kaiser Wilhelm II had died almost a year ago, but no one in Japan had really taken notice of it. The German Empire had not been the same for a long time, because its aging, stubborn ruler had not been willing to keep up with the times for years.
The monarchy in Germany was continued by Friedrich Wilhelm Victor August Ernst of Prussia and appeared rather weak.
The fact that Japan had chosen Germany as its target had probably come about somewhat arbitrarily. Osaki Shiko felt that the US Philippines was the most worthwhile target in Asia and they could also be attacked directly. Apparently, however, the Japanese High Command thought it would be more expedient to cut off the Philippines from America first. Because then a war against Germany made sense. If Japan were to take the Mariana Islands, the Philippines would be bordered on three sides by Japanese territory and the US Navy would have to take an incredible detour to get to the Philippines.
"That's how it could be planned," Shiko whispered and turned his attention to the next documents.
+ + +
Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Thursday, May 7, 1942
For the past few weeks, the situation has remained stable and the world seemed to hold its breath. Naval news was few and far between, giving Osaki Shiko time to find his way around the new reality and gather some loyal colleagues around him to build his own network. This was not only right for him, but also necessary. Many of the informants, with whom his father had an almost familial trust, gave Shiko the cold shoulder. He would have to earn this trust first, so he used the time to knock on doors.
+ + +
Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Monday, June 15, 1942
Osaki Shiko made difficult progress, he hadn't known how difficult it was to keep informants happy and thus his father, whom he still hadn't heard from, increased his reputation considerably.
After all, the questions about his father had almost completely stopped. The world continued to turn with or without Osaki Satoshi, which probably didn't play a special role for the rest of the people. Shiko felt a bitterness at how quickly people forgot and turned to other things.
+ + +
Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Friday, July 31, 1942
It was early in the morning of the thirty-first of July. Osaki Shiko had just arrived at the editorial office himself and had not yet taken off his jacket. He had gotten into the habit of coming to the publishing house early in the morning to inspect the final print before it was released onto the street. The noise of the printing presses was still in his ears when he heard a noise behind him.
He turned around and saw a ghost in the dark doorway to the editorial office. A completely emaciated Picture. Pale in the face and thin as paper. It took him two minutes to understand that he saw his father standing in the doorway...
"I just heard it with my private naval radio receiver that a good friend gave me – the British sank several of our ships at Papeete – also a heavy cruiser – the Maya – is said to have been torpedoed – Shiko, the British attacked Japan – Shiko – we have WAR!"
The Japanese heavy cruiser Maya had already left the home islands weeks ago. The new untrained crew was in dire need of experience at sea. After a stay on Formosa, during which there had been extensive ammunition loading exercises, the cruiser visited Hong Kong before setting course for the South Seas. The training workload was hard and Kaigun-taisa Nabeshima Shunsaku wanted to give his crew a few quiet days on the Polynesian islands to relax. After that, the commander planned a storm trip across the Central Pacific back to Japan.
The Maya had just passed the Fiji Islands far north and would also pass Samoa north before finally setting course for Papeete. The Kaigun-taisa considered the distance to the Fijis to be sufficient and did not even think about getting into trouble.
Kaigun-taisa Nabeshima Shunsaku could not have known that the local garrison of the Royal Air Force, together with the Royal Navy, was holding a manoeuvre in this very sea area.
It was a dark moonless night and as inexperienced as his own crew had been, so were the British pilots.
The task of the Royal Air Force was to search for a submarine and mark the potential position with luminous markings.
When the alarm sirens wailed on the Maya, Kaigun-taisa Nabeshima Shunsaku was lying in his bunk. He had not yet reached for his trousers when he heard and felt one of the anti-aircraft guns near his cabin and through the window he saw an orange glow flashing in the sky, then there was silence and a hectic "stop fire" thundered through the on-board intercom!
An inexperienced British pilot mistook the shadow of the Maya on the surface of the sea for a surfaced submarine and covered this exercise target with lamps as planned. An inexperienced Japanese anti-aircraft crew mistook the torchlight for falling bombs and fired at the aircraft, which was recognizable in the light. It was the first live shot in the life of this anti-aircraft shooter and it was a good shot. The plane burst in what he thought was a wonderful explosion.
Less than five hundred meters away, the commander of the minelayer submarine E-63 had watched the incident through the periscope. He counted two and two together, knew the extremely tense world political situation and imagined himself in the war with Japan, of which he had just not yet been informed. Three torpedoes should be enough in his opinion and a few minutes later three violent explosions tore the Japanese cruiser apart. He appeared and radioed his success message to his commanding office.
About two thousand nautical miles further east, the commander of the 2nd British Light Cruiser Division also received the news of success and turned chalky pale in the face. He was on a reconnaissance mission near Japanese Polynesia and within direct range of the Japanese bombers at the base of Papeete. Unlike Fiji, the sun was high in the sky for a long time and his squadron on the presentation plate.
His mission had been to determine the exact strength and composition of the Imperial Japanese Navy in Polynesia.
Ministry of Navy of the Imperial Japanese Navy – Friday, July 31, 1942
Minister of the Navy Shimada Shigetarō was stinking that he had been taken out of bed in the middle of the night. Worse still, the messenger did not know why he should immediately bring the minister into the ministry.
Once there, everything was already brightly lit and the parking lot in front of the building was full of vehicles that had picked up officers, who were now rushing into the ministry.
When the Minister of the Navy entered the reception hall, he roared immediately:
„Can anyone present explain to me what this is all about?“
Osaki Giichi was standing about halfway through the stairs leading to the upper floors. He turned around and cleared his throat as loud as he could. Shimada Shigetarō immediately acknowledged his head of the communications department in the ministry and looked at him questioningly:
„Mr. Minister, I report– Little more than an hour ago, we were able to intercept a British radio message that had been encrypted with the British Cypher No. 3 code. The Germans cracked the British Naval Code years ago and we coaxed this secret out of the Germans. So far so good!“
„So what does this radio message mean?“
„The commander of the British minelayer submarine E-63 informs that he regrets not having received any information about the outbreak of hostilities with the Japanese Empire in the meantime. He still knew himself in his planned maneuver when he observed the air attack of the Royal Air Force on a Japanese cruiser of the Maya class. The heavy Japanese cruiser would have immediately taken the British bombers under fire and taken them out of the sky. Since he was in practically optimal firing position, the U-boat commander continued, he immediately attacked the enemy cruiser with three torpedoes and sank it!“
Silence pervaded the entrance area“
„He is very happy to have made the first big catch in this war and expects orders as to whether he should use his mines in Japanese Polynesia? His fuel supply is sufficient to reach Papeete in a few days."
„Mr. Minister – the Maya does not answer our radio calls and according to the plans that Kaigun-taisa Nabeshima Shunsaku has sent us, the Maya must actually be exactly north of the Fiji Islands or near Samoa right now.“
„Samoa – what time is it there?“
„Mr. Minister, there is about now sunrise – on the thirtieth Mr. Minister – Samoa is hours behind world time – it is now six thirty o'clock, Mr. Minister.“
„And were there any signs recently that the British Empire intended to declare war on us?“
"The Royal Navy has been fully mobilized in recent weeks, Mr. Minister, as well as the Navy, the Marine nationale française, and the Tsar's Navy. Only the US Navy and the Regia Marina are still anchored in their home ports.“
„Where does the Royal Navy stand now?“
„According to the latest findings, there is a larger squadron in the South Sea. Composition unknown. British aircraft carriers are moored in British Malaya and the Indian Ocean as well. Both times, however, only the usual colonial forces. The bulk of the Royal Navy is located in the North Sea. Only the squadron in the South Seas is unusually large. Since the last war, the Tsar's fleet has constantly had larger quantities of ships in Vladivostok and all the others are in their home waters."
„Papeete?“
„We only have light forces on site, Mr. Minister.“
„Is this a British attempt to push us out of the South Sea?“
„Why Mr. Minister?“
“I ask you!“
„It doesn’t matter Mr. Minister – the Royal Air Force apparently bombed our heavy cruiser Maya, after which the Maya certainly defended. The Maya and their commander thought they were in peace, Mr. Minister, and the subsequent torpedoing by the British submarine E-63 speak for a coordinated approach by the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy. The unsuspecting radio message can also only be an attempt at distraction!“
„I can’t order a war – that has to be approved by the Tennō. It's the middle of the night and the time difference to the South Seas and London doesn't make it any better!“
„Mr. Minister?“
„Understand all our commanders – all units should be ready to sail. Enhanced aerial surveillance for all sea areas and all bases. All British ships that are identified are to be asked to set course for their ports if this is not the case anyway. In case of violation, our reconnaissance aircrafts should put bombs in front of the bow!"
„And Papeete, Mr. Minister?“
"Radio to the Regional Command of the Army and Navy and tell them that all units should prepare for a possible attack by British warships. Should British warships approach the islands, they are to be classified as enemy and attacked!“
„Without a declaration of war, Mr. Minister?“
„De facto, the British have declared war on us with the sinking of the Maya!“
„I will not wait until more of our ships are sunk unprovoked.“
“If the British want war, then they should get war!“
„And now I want to have exact information about what we have and where it is currently and what the British have us where it is currently – GO!“
+ + +
The Imperial Japanese Navy in July 1942
At the beginning of the war, the Imperial Japanese Navy consisted of the following units:
In July 1942, the following units were under construction:
4 Izumo-class heavier cruisers (40,000 tons each)
Air Force in July 1942:
Carrier Squadron Zuiho – 34 aircraft
Carrier Squadron Ryujo – 34 aircraft
Carrier Squadron Kaga – 60 aircraft
Carrier Squadron Hosho – 60 aircraft
Carrier Squadron Akagi – 80 aircraft
Carrier Squadron Soryu – 80 aircraft
Carrier Squadron Shokaku – 100 aircraft
Carrier Squadron Hiryu – 100 aircraft
Carrier Squadron Taiho – 100 aircraft
Carrier Squadron Zuikaku – 100 aircraft
Carrier Squadron Hiyo – 100 aircraft
Carrier Squadron Unryu – 100 aircraft
Carrier Squadron Amagi – 97 (100) aircraft
Carrier Squadron Unyo – 34 aircraft
Carrier Squadron Shoho – 34 aircraft
Carrier Squadron Katsuragi – 60 (100) aircraft
Carrier Squadron Kurama – 67 (100) aircraft
Naval Air Force Base Sasebo (Japan) – 100 aircraft
Naval Air Force Base Yokosuka (Japan) – 100 aircraft
Naval Air Force Base Noshiro (Japan) – 95 (100) aircraft
Naval Air Force Base Maizuru (Japan) – 100 aircraft
Naval Air Force Base Niigata (Japan) – 99 (100) aircraft
Naval Air Force Base Kitakyushu (Japan) – 100 aircraft
Takao Air Force Base (Formosa) – 100 aircraft
Kilung Air Base (Formosa) – 98 (100) aircraft
Saint Jaques Air Force Base (Cochinchina) – 100 aircraft
Than Hoa Air Force Base (Tonkin) – 100 aircraft
Haiphong Air Base (Tonkin) – 100 aircraft
Air Force Base Fort Bayard (Kwang-Chou-Wan) – 100 aircraft
Hong Kong Air Force Base (Hong Kong) – 100 aircraft
Air Force Base Wēihǎiwèi (Wēihǎiwèi) – 100 aircraft
Tsingtau Air Base (Kiautschou Bay) – 100 aircraft
Port Arthur Air Force Base (Liaodong Peninsula) – 100 aircraft
Dalny Air Base (Liaodong Peninsula) – 100 aircraft
Chemulpo Air Force Base (South Korea) – 100 aircraft
Korsakov Air Base (Sakhalin) – 100 aircraft
Wakkanai Air Force Base (Hokkaido) – 100 aircraft
Hakodate Air Force Base (Hokkaido) – 100 aircraft
Kushiro Air Force Base (Hokkaido) – 100 aircraft
Papeete Air Force Base (Polynesia) – 100 aircraft
- - -
The Royal Navy in July 1942
At the beginning of the war, the Royal Navy fleet consisted of the following units:
Total number of naval aircraft: 1,877
Belfast Air Force Base (Ireland)
Dublin Air Force Base (Ireland)
Suva Air Force Base (Fiji)
Durban Air Base (South Africa)
Singapore Air Base (Malaysia)
Hamilton Air Force Base (Bermuda)
Air Force Base Gibraltar (Gibraltar)
Darwin Air Force Base (Australia)
Cork Air Force Base (Ireland)
Reykjavik Air Force Base (Iceland)
Perth Air Force Base (Australia)
Kota Bahru Air Force Base (Malaysia)
Naval Air Force Base Rosyth (Great Britain)
Naval Air Force Base Scapa Flow (Great Britain)
Naval Air Force Base Grimsby (Great Britain)
Portsmouth Naval Air Force Base (Great Britain)
+ + +
After the initial excitement, Minister of the Navy Shimada Shigetarō went to his office. Every minute, messengers, orderlies, officers and all those who had received or were to receive any orders came to his office.
What was most disturbing was that there was currently no radio connection to Papeete. The first commands could be transmitted and had also been confirmed, but since then there has been radio silence, which was not too good a sign.
Then Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku appeared in the office and the minister sent all the others present outside.
„Well, Mr. Minister– so now the time has come?“
„Yes Admiral, now the time has come!“
„The leadership imagined that differently or not?“
„Yes, you are right, it should have taken place differently. Nobody expected a pre-emptive strike by the Royal Navy – if it is a pre-emptive strike at all – nobody!“
„Well, my memorandum that we are gradually falling behind if we don't look for friends is known to you, Mr. Minister. Europe's industrial opportunities are incomparably greater than those of Japan. And we're not talking about the United States of America yet!"
„We are still superior when it comes to sponsors, but with the rest it’s not so clear, Mr. Minister“
„I know, Admiral, but at least we still have you!“
"But I can't be everywhere with the fleet. We have to keep our forces together and to do so we are not satisfied with what the Russians have gathered in Vladivostok. If only because of the latent danger that Russia could take advantage of this situation, we must constantly keep a not insignificant part of the fleet ready in Japanese waters. I miss these ships in the Pacific. If we really have to strike at the Americans, I need every single aircraft carrier to take out the US bases in the Central Pacific. And we have to do that in order to be able to attack the Philippines in peace."
„At the moment, another place is probably of interest!“
„You’re right, Minister. So we have to keep an eye on the Russians. Take into account the flank threat from the Philippines and then still have enough forces free to finally eliminate British Malaya! How is that supposed to work?“
„That’s your job, Admiral, but you can’t take too much time. Most of the Royal Navy still seems to be lingering in Europe, but that is about to change very quickly."
„Yes, I see it that way, Singapore has to fall. Then we have maybe 3 months until the entire Royal Navy is in the region. If Singapore falls before then, the British will lack the supply base for their fleet. But an invasion of Singapore is very different from a surprise attack on a fleet like the one at Vladivostok seven years ago!"
„Don’t you have a plan in your drawer?“
"Kaigun-taisa Genda Minoru has of course prepared a plan of attack on British Malaya. This and also the variants, however, provide that the core of the British fleet in Asia is really located near Malaya! Now most of the carriers are at sea and are probably on their way to Polynesia."
„Then there is the question: Do we have war at all? We have not received a declaration of war from the British themselves. We ourselves did not hand over a declaration of war to the British. All we know at the moment is that a presumably British submarine, whose commander obviously had no corresponding orders, sank our cruiser Maya!"
"Yes, we are working on this problem, but even if it turns out that this submarine commander acted on his own, further hostilities can no longer be avoided. In a few hours, word will get around about what happened. Too many already know about it to cover it up and then the Japanese people will demand retribution!"
“No, Admiral – You are the commander of the fleet – do your job – Sink the British fleet in the Pacific before the British make their own deliberations about what their fleet should do now!“
„Then I say goodbye now, Mr. Minister’ I have to get on board my flagship and give orders to put the fleet at sea!“
„Can’t you do this from headquarters?“
„I have to lead from the sea. Only if I have timely information can I use the fleet correctly. What good is a weather report with general data if I don't know what the conditions are like directly in the area of operation?“
„All right, Admiral – I expect your success message before everything gets even more out of control!“
About an hour and a half later, Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku walked up the gangway of the Yashima. Upon entering the battleship, he was already awaited by his chief of staff, Kaigun-shōshō Ugaki Matome.
„That just came out of Papeete!“
„What’s inside?“
„The base commander reports that the destroyers Makigumo and Kiyonami have begun to sink!“
„So the British really attacked?“
„It probably started around seven thirty local time. That was a little over an hour ago now."
„Give the command to run out. I want to get out of port, we are more flexible at sea. So it seems to be a British preventive strike after all. It would not be good if a British submarine tried to break the spear here and enter the harbor."
„At your command – the ship and its companions are ready to sail. The Eighth Carrier Division has already left the bay. Genda insisted on taking the carriers to sea immediately, even though Nagumo objected to this at first."
„The Kaigun-chūjō still hasn’t understood what aircraft carriers are capable of doing. Even the British!“
„Wouldn’t it be better to entrust Kaigun-chūjō Nagumo Chūichi with another command?“
„It’s too late for that now. If we change the commander of the Kidō Butai in this situation, we will only have more disorder."
„Well, I still need an overview of our fleet. We may have to regroup. We should combine the newer better units and send them to the south. It's the most powerful core we have. It doesn't make sense that we leave some of our best ships here in the north, because the Russian bear could stick his nose out of the cave. We have so many large well-developed airbases on the home islands that it must be enough to scare the Russian fleet!"
„Go ahead, I’ll get the documents from the archive right away.“
„Good – and I also need all the radio messages from the South Pacific to get an idea of what is going on there!“
Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake commanded the small Japanese squadron at Polynesia. His light cruiser Yahagi and four escort destroyers had left at sunrise to sail a distance towards the cruiser Maya. In the last few weeks, large British ships had been registered in this sea area again and again and it might have pleased the Maya not to have to sail completely without an escort.
When the radio message came in, he could not and did not want to believe this message:
„Cruiser Maya sunk by British submarine near Samoa. Further hostilities cannot be ruled out. Situation unclear.“
Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake shook his head, grabbed the intercom and thundered:
“Battle alarm, battle alarm, this is not an exercise, battle alarm, battle alarm“¦“
Then he turned to his first officer and instructed him to instruct the four destroyers and to request reinforced sea reconnaissance and hunting protection from Papeete.
Then it was time to sift through the assets:
Japanese 2nd Reconnaissance Division:
Light cruiser Yahagi
That was not much and the air forces were hardly worth mentioning. A week earlier, a Royal Navy aircraft carrier group had passed through this area. If these carriers were still present nearby, there was not much more to do than act as a target!
He had only just given the orders when the first contact was already reported!
There was no time to request orders!
What should he do?
Wait and see what happens?
Or open fire and possibly trigger a war that could still be prevented?
The unknown ship was just outside the artillery range of the Yahaghi. Barely a minute later, a second outline cleared out of the rising and dissipating morning haze. Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake cursed quietly to himself that the air reconnaissance had risen much too late, otherwise these ships would probably have been spotted hours earlier. Now he had to deal with the situation.
The Maya sunk by a submarine, several unknown ships heading for Polynesia in the immediate vicinity.
This could not be a coincidence!
It didn't matter anymore! In peacetime, cargo ships did not sail in convoys and further warships of their own had not been announced.
It had to be the enemy, and perhaps its only advantage was the fact that these enemy warships were between him and his light cruiser and the 3rd Japanese Destroyer Division. That was a tactical advantage, but only if he took advantage of this battle situation immediately.
„Fire free“ Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake thundered on the bridge, and with these words, the war in the Pacific had officially begun at seven thirty-nine on the thirtieth of July in the nineteen hundred and forty-two local time!
+ + +
The enemy was addressed only minutes later as a light cruiser of the Piqué class with escort destroyers, but this could only be the reconnaissance unit of the carrier squadron that had been sighted only days earlier.
When a modern Melampus-class light cruiser was identified, Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake began to worry. He was inferior to the firepower of this ship and would never be able to hold his own against two light cruisers. He radioed the Papeete base and demanded immediate air support. Until the bombers were ready for take-off, however, he had to deal with the situation on his own!
No sooner had Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake ordered this defensive stalling tactic than the opponent scored the first hits on the Yahagi!
+ + +
But then the Yahagi scored several hits on the Melampus class in quick succession and Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake drew new hope. In this way, it was possible to keep the enemy at a distance and let the bombers do their work.
The setback followed immediately. The second light cruiser of the Royal Navy fired a volley at the destroyer Kiyoshimo and blew apart the bow turret with a direct hit. The fact that it hadn't torn the destroyer apart immediately was sheer coincidence.
The Japanese destroyers responded with a torpedo salvo to at least bring the enemy into disarray.
+ + +
Even before the torpedoes reached their targets, the Makigumo reported heavy hits and water intrusion. The opponent's hit rate was unexpectedly high and the Japanese destroyers felt it. They responded with a second volley of torpedoes in the hope of blowing the enemy out of the water by chance. The old Japanese 900-ton destroyers, however, simply had too few torpedoes to be really successful with this decades-old tactic.
+ + +
After all, the enemy formation had become so disorganized that the light cruiser Melampus-class had been separated from the rest of the British squadron, if one wanted to speak of that given the short distance.
This did not change the concentration of enemy gunfire and the Royal Navy was clearly superior!
Half an hour after the war began, Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake realized that he could not win this battle. He could only improve the result if he withdrew and let the bombers try their luck.
+ + +
At eight o'clock and twenty-seven minutes local time, the commander of the Makigumo reported that the destroyer had begun to sink over the bow!
It didn't take a minute before the destroyer Kiyonami also reported that the destroyer was about to capsize.
Unlike the Imperial Japanese Navy had done in recent decades, the ships of the Royal Navy immediately changed their targets and now took the Yahagi under fire again!
+ + +
Finally, the news arrived from the Papeete air base that the first squadron of dive bombers was in the air. However, this would not change the result that the ships of the Imperial Japanese Navy were defeated and on the run. At eight o'clock and forty-five minutes, the two destroyers Kiyonami and Makigumo had already disappeared into the waves of the South Pacific!
+ + +
There was only one description of what was happening now - escape! And the destroyer Kiyoshimo would probably be the next victim, because this destroyer was visibly losing speed and might not get into the saving port, even if it was already directly ahead!
But then the Kiyoshimo made the last change of course and sailed through the narrow channel of the reef into the small natural bay of Papeete, where the Kiyoshimo could hide behind a ledge.
+ + +
Three out of four destroyers were out of action. Two of them sank, the third was anchored in the harbor and was also in danger of capsizing. The fourth was currently shot together and only the Yahagi was still halfway ready for battle but without a chance!
The destroyer Suzutsuki could no longer follow the Yahagi and turned around. Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake decided to draw fire on himself in order to give the commander of the Suzutsuki an opportunity to run the destroyer to the ground and save his crew. At that moment, the Japanese dive bombers finally appeared above the enemy ships.
To the chagrin of Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake, however, the pilots seemed to have problems with the target response and did not attack!
+ + +
The torpedo bombers didn't do any better and the Royal Navy gratefully accepted this gift and took aim at the Yahagi!
To make matters worse, the first Yahagi gunners reported that the ammunition had run out. Further resistance was hardly possible.
Then finally at least the pilots of the torpedo bombers had an idea of who was friend and who was foe and attacked!
To the amazement of Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake, the torpedo bombers had not been loaded with torpedoes, but with bombs. But then he realized that bombs were the much better weapons against these small, agile and fast light cruisers and destroyers with their shallow draught.
To his delight, he was able to hear through the radio that there were at least individual bomb hits. Whether this would be enough to save him and his last remaining destroyer, however, was anything but certain.
+ + +
His hopes were dashed abruptly, because after the air raid the enemy quickly caught up with the Yahagi again within combat distance.
But then the enemy suddenly turned away.
At first, Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake couldn't explain it, but then it was clear that a second wave of bombers had attacked from the far side and had scored their first hits.
+ + +
The second wave seemed to have been more successful, because now the opponent seemed to lose momentum.
A few minutes later, visual contact had been lost, but no one could feel safe. The day was still long and whether there were not more British units in the area was completely unclear.
+ + +
At about twelve o'clock local time, the last two Japanese ships were in the south of Polynesia, and Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake had regained the faint hope of having shaken off the enemy. The only plausible goal was to get into the port now and hope that no British aircraft carriers were nearby to bomb Papeete.
The message came over the radio that parts of the flying boat squadron had spotted the enemy north of his position and would now attack as well.
+ + +
Twenty minutes past one o'clock local time, Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake released the destroyer Suzutsuki into the harbor. He himself would remain at sea and was thinking about being able to intercept and sink one of the British ships damaged by the air raid on the way home. In addition, the two sinking sites of the destroyers had to be checked to see if there were any survivors there?
The news of the next air raid crept into these thoughts! The reported position of the air raid made people sit up and take notice. The well-known enemy unit could never have been in this position.
This had to be a second, previously undiscovered enemy formation! Was that the British aircraft carriers?!
According to the radio speakers, there were at least heavy cruisers in this second formation. So a bombing of Papeete could also be planned, then the harbor was the worst possible place to get to safety!
+ + +
Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake wanted to know if there was really a second enemy group approaching there, or if the pilots had simply made a mistake with their position? He set course for the supposed position of the new opponent!
Once in the target area, there was no trace of an enemy ship. Nor had there been any debris or oil that indicated a sinking.
+ + +
Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake now followed the direction of a group of flying boats in the hope that they would still find the trace of this spirit association. And indeed, this squadron reported the attack on enemy ships at around four o'clock in the afternoon. However, the Yahagi had only passed this area shortly before.
What was going on here? According to the calculations, this could be the retreating first unit by which he had been badly shot in the morning. Or was this a second convoy that had driven behind him in his rear?
Then the enemy came into sight!
+ + +
It quickly became clear that the opponent was at least numerically superior. However, the state of this enemy could only be found out by Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake approaching from combat range.
The enemy hit the first shots!
It looked like three light cruisers of the Royal Navy. Two other ships have not yet been classified. But then it quickly became clear that it had to be the association from early morning.
Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake could only do what he should have done long ago - flee - because this unit was fully capable of combat - there had been no sign of bomber hits. Although these ships did not make a full speed, that could also be intentional.
„What the hell do the bombers want to have hit?“ Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake shouted at his first officer, he could hardly do more!
+ + +
At least the opponent did not seem to be able to catch up, even if he did his best. Dusk was just around the corner and Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake had to keep the enemy at a distance!
After dusk, Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake thought he was safe, but then the enemy appeared directly in his flank and the battle was fiercer at close range than before.
+ + +
At nightfall, Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake turned the tide and hoped to escape the enemy by abruptly changing course.
A second change of course would hopefully make it impossible for the enemy to find him again, but then the enemy would appear right in front of him. Now there was also the greatest danger of torpedo and Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake felt pursued!
It only took seconds before the first bubble marks were reported and the Yahagi desperately tried to escape the torpedoes from the raceway.
+ + +
Only when no more torpedo lanes could be seen, the Yahagi was able to turn off reasonably safely, but now had to take serial artillery hits.
At about twenty minutes to nineteen o'clock local time, they finally managed to break away from the enemy.
The enemy had not only learned, he was superior!
Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake had to acknowledge that without envy!
>> Memorandum of Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku on the Fiji Incident July 30/31, 1942 <<
Honored officers and members of the 大本営 (Daihon'ei),
we are at war! The exact reasons for the sinking of our heavy cruiser Maya are still not clarified and the enemy refuses to provide any information! Since only hours after the sinking of the Maya our Polynesia squadron suffered considerable losses, we have to assume intentional. The British Empire started this war, even if the foreign press claims the opposite.
I have ordered the immediate regrouping of our naval forces in order to do justice to the new situation. We must not stare like a rabbit at the Russian snake in Vladivostok. The Royal Navy is massive! Before the majority of this fleet arrives in Asia, we have to destroy the units on site.
It was a perfidious behavior of the British Empire to leave its main force in the North Sea in order to lull us into a sense of security and still keep a powerful branch of the armed forces in British Malaya in readiness.
What a simple reconnaissance squadron of the Royal Navy is capable of doing, we have seen in Polynesia. Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake had no chance against the units of the Royal Navy. Without the air support from Papeete, the squadron of Kaigun-taisa Yoshimura Masatake would have been completely destroyed. But as it is, we have "only" lost two old destroyers and the enemy at least lost a light cruiser that fell victim to our aircraft, without us having found even a trace of this cruiser. However, the enemy has indirectly confirmed the loss. For this reason, foreign naval observers even consider the battle a success for Japan.
In fact, however, we lost this battle crystal clear without any blemish!
Never before in the modern history of the Imperial Japanese Navy have we suffered such a clear defeat.
Gentlemen, this is a turning point and a clear indication of what will happen if we meet this enemy at sea. Among the capital ships, the Royal Navy is superior to us three to one and we have just had to painfully acknowledge the quality and the level of training of the British ships.
Nominally, the aircraft carriers are about the same, but we have significantly more large fleet aircraft carriers, while the Royal Navy is superior in the smaller light aircraft carriers.
However, this naval force, which is difficult to defeat by the Imperial Japanese Navy, is still only on its way. So we have to change this ratio in our favour right now. The British Empire has only one large naval base in Asia, capable of supplying the Royal Navy and repairing the larger ships.
It is imperative for Japan to eliminate this base. The 軍令部 (Gunreibu) must therefore approve my plan "JB" immediately.
Only then do we have a chance of winning this war!
+ + +
Thus, the officers of the 軍令部 (Gunreibu) of the Imperial Japanese Navy, the 参謀本部 (Sambō hombu) of the Imperial Japanese Army, as well as the 海軍省 (Kaigun-shō) may take note of the prepared and illustrated course of the battle on the Fiji incident of July 30/31 of this year.
Long live the Rengō Kantai, long live the Imperial Japanese Navy, long live the Emperor!
Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku, July 31, 1942
+ + +
Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Friday, July 31, 1942
It was now early afternoon in Tokyo on July 31st. The extra paper, which contained hardly any information except that war had broken out between the British Empire and the Empire of Japan, had been sold out for several hours. Gradually, more details became known and there would be another extra sheet for the evening.
Osaki Shiko had gathered all his loyalists in the editorial office in no time at all. Editor-in-chief Fukuzawa Toyokuni was probably informed directly from the Ministry of the Navy, when he was informed, he was already on his way to the publishing house. He had only briefly coordinated with Osaki Shiko and congratulated him on being right, even if the exact circumstances of this conflict had not yet been clarified.
"The last day of July!" he had said to Shiko, indicating that summer had already passed for the most part. This was not entirely true, because where the hostilities had broken out, it was still the thirtieth of July, but this would remain a minor matter for historians. The fact that the hostilities hit London at the beginning of the night had to be seen as intentional, because no one had expected that. For the Royal Navy, a nightly surprise attack, as Japan used to do, was probably not an option. Honour forbade this, although honour and Royal Navy could hardly be reconciled. The only thing worse was the Royal Army, which was known for considerable atrocities in its colonies, even if this was repeatedly blamed on lower-ranking local commanders.
No, the hawks of the Empire had done a great job here, that had to be acknowledged without envy. Shiko already knew that in all history books, Japan would be named as the aggressor who had started the war. The British had played the keyboard of covert operations so brilliantly that it was tantamount to a masterpiece by Mozart or Bach.
No one had suspected that there would be war between Japan and the British Empire and the behaviour of the Royal Navy had been so peaceful in recent weeks that the whole world was of the opinion that the British fleet was mothballed in its home ports.
Japan had underestimated the British!
Osaki Shiko had to admit to himself that he himself also had the German Empire or the United States of America on his list, but not the British Empire.
Then he was abruptly interrupted in his thoughts when an informant came to him:
"We have lost two destroyers and the condition of one light cruiser – the Yahagi – is precarious. Royal Navy losses are not confirmed, but secretly the information is circulating that the British literally blew our ships out of the water without us having a chance to defend ourselves."
"Thank you, as long as we don't receive an official statement, we can't print this. That would cause panic if the Imperial Japanese Navy lost its nimbus of invincibility!"
"The ministry seems to have already panicked!"
"Is that so?"
"I heard that the commander of the fleet wanted to leave with his flagship that night, but now he is back in Tōkyō."
"And the flagship?"
"Is at sea, the Kaigun-taishō has reached the port aboard a destroyer."
"Well, that's unusual!"
"The hustle and bustle of the military is indescribable. But you should know better."
"Why should that be the case?"
"Your brother Osaki Katsu is still with the 特別陸戦隊 (Tokubetsu riku sentai - Special Landing Forces of the Navy)?"
"Yes, he is indeed!"
"Then just ask him if it's true that all troop transports should leave before the start of the new week!"
"The special landing forces are supposed to be at sea this weekend?"
"It's just a rumor, but the operations in the ports and the barracks allow this conclusion."
"Anything else?"
"No, that's all at the moment, but it's enough, isn't it?"
"Yes, of course, this is all so unexpected, so sudden, this time Japan was caught on the wrong foot!"
"Oh one more thing - somewhere the word 'Kriegsmarine' has also been mentioned. Of course, the Royal Navy is also a navy, but..."
"Yes – one would most likely associate the High Seas Fleet of the German Empire with the word Kriegsmarine!"
+ + +
Tōkyō Shinbun Editorial Board – Monday, August 17, 1942
Osaki Shiko had focused all his attention on this point after the keyword 'Kriegsmarine'. But nothing had been learned about it. Presumably, his informant had really only noticed a conversation in which the Royal Navy had been described as a navy. Technical inaccuracies were not only not unusual, but often enough also intentional. After all, he himself had filtered and falsified the news about the Imperial Japanese Navy for years.
He had hardly spent any time to reach his brother Katsu. He had failed on July 31 and after that he had already forgotten about it. He jumped up when he thought he heard this name in the radio show that was playing quietly in the background:
„… Parts of our Special Landing Forces of the Navy under the leadership of Kaigun-chūsa Osaki Katsu have successfully landed in British Malaya. According to the High Command, this invasion is aimed at the British bases in this region. More special landing forces are said to be waiting for their landing off Singapore and Japanese troop transports are on their way to the Indian Ocean. We repeat: Parts of our special Landu..."
Osaki Shiko couldn't believe what he was hearing. Of course, the 特別陸戦隊 (Tokubetsu riku sentai - Special Landing Forces of the Navy) were at the forefront of an invasion, but that these troops had been brought from Japan to Malaya in just two weeks and landed there successfully? This was a fabulous time for such an important goal, even for the Imperial Japanese Navy, which was spoiled by success.
It dawned on him why the Kaigun-taishō had come back to Tōkyō so hastily. This invasion clearly bore the signature of Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku and his head of planning for surprise attacks, Kaigun-taisa Genda Minoru!
In the meantime, Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku was back at sea and with him the best ships in Japan, which had already caused unrest because only the second set was still present at home. Now it was clear why this was the case. It is not for nothing that many thought that the Kaigun-taishō was a military genius.
An invasion of the main British bases throughout Asia in just two weeks – that was truly a stroke of genius!
The report that during this operation the Japanese aircraft carrier Soryu had been torpedoed by a submarine and almost sank degenerated into a minor matter. The extra paper would be headlined with 'Off to Singapore', no more words were needed!
+ + +
Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Wednesday, August 26, 1942
After the first shock waves about the outbreak of war, the events in the South Seas and the successful landing in British Malaya, Osaki Shiko began his hard work. He compiled all known information about British bases, meticulously determined where which Royal Navy ship was currently located and what its destination was, but also had to take note of recent setbacks by the Imperial Japanese Navy.
All in all, this could be a long war, a very long war!
+ + +
Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Tuesday, September 1, 1942
Osaki Shiko had just left the hospital where his father had been taken the night after a fainting fit. He would have liked to stay there, but the screaming in the streets brought him back to work. Something had happened, but what?
On the steps of the entrance, he grabbed a nurse by the arm and almost shouted at her:
Total number of naval aircraft: 993
Danzig Air Force Base (East Prussia)
Duala Air Force Base (Cameroon)
Pillau Air Force Base (East Prussia)
Simpson Harbor Air Force Base (Bismarck Archipelago)
Naval Air Force Base Wilhelmshaven (Germany)
Naval Air Force Base Emden (Germany)
Naval Air Force Base Kiel (Germany)
Naval Air Base Kolberg (Germany)
Naval Air Force Base Swinemünde (Germany)
+ + +
In one fell swoop, the strategic situation had changed fundamentally! The German bases were not large, but were much better located as a springboard to the Japanese homeland than the British bases. Whatever the Imperial Japanese Navy had really planned, all plans were worthless by now at the latest!
Osaki Shiko would have needed his father's advice right now, but according to the doctors, any further excitement could have terrible consequences.
+ + +
Editorial Board of the Tōkyō Shinbun – Monday, September 14, 1942
In the weeks following Germany's entry into the war, there had been no further significant fighting except fierce verbal battles between the warring parties. The offensive in British Malaya had stalled and the main force of the two enemy fleets was still on the march.
But now the signs were increasing that something was going on. The berths of the Imperial Japanese Navy in Northeast Asia were deserted. Almost all ships were at sea, but no one knew where the fleet was. Since the sea areas in Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia were comparatively cramped and no one in these areas reported relevant sightings, rumors spread. The combined Japanese force from Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia was far too large not to attract the attention of at least any fishermen in these waters. In Southeast Asia, there were about the same number of Japanese warships as there had been for weeks.
So where were about half of all Japanese warships?
Only the Central Pacific was so gigantic that even the largest fleet could disappear completely. The population was therefore certain that the Imperial Japanese Navy could be found in the Central Pacific.
Osaki Shiko didn't find that plausible. In the Central Pacific, there was only one place of interest - the Pearl Harbor in Hawaii:
Pearl Harbor!
But the Japanese military couldn't be that crazy? The entire Royal Navy and the German High Seas Fleet advanced across the Indian Ocean. In this situation, it would be downright insane to withdraw the fleet in the opposite direction to attack the United States' bases on the Hawaiian Islands and thus drag the largest economic power on the planet into this war.
However, a blow against the US Navy in Hawaii would be exactly what no one would expect now!
Whatever was going on, it had to be something big!
+ + +
From the War Chronicles of Imperial Japan:
>> Battle of the Strait of Malacca 26 September 1942 <<
Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku and his chief of staff Kaigun-shōshō Ugaki Matome stood at the railing on the starboard side of the Kawachi. Both men were extremely tense and there was a reason for that. Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku had made an incredibly wide arc with his fleet to get undetected to where the Japanese fleet was now.
Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku had always been skeptical about whether it made sense to equip almost all of Japan's newer warships with an extreme range. His predecessors had the dream of being able to advance into the Atlantic with such ships, but Yamamoto thought this was madness. Now, however, the truly gigantic range of the Japanese ships allowed him an unimagined flexibility and maneuverability, without which his current plan would never have been possible.
The journey had taken weeks to cover the almost sixteen thousand five hundred nautical miles and whether he had really remained undiscovered was anything but certain. He had pulled his ships together in the central Pacific and made a wide arc to the east. Numerous transports had previously arrived in Polynesia, ostensibly carrying reinforcements for this remote base after the British attack. In truth, however, they were tankers that were fully loaded with fuel to the last cubic meter. The wide arc to the east thus ended in Polynesia, where the fleet could bunker. From there, it circumnavigated Australia south – the last place where anyone would look for Japanese ships – and then reached the Indian Ocean.
In another arc, the fleet set course for Malaya and arrived there as calculated in the early morning hours of the twenty-sixth of September – coming from the west from the Andaman Sea!
Without exception, everyone expected a Japanese attack on Malaya, which would be carried out from the Gulf of Siam or the South China Sea. This was obvious because a Japanese fleet could never pass through the Strait of Malacca or the Strait of Sunda undetected. The Java Sea and adjacent sea zones were also far too well guarded by the British.
It was practically impossible that the Japanese fleet would use the access to the Strait of Malacca from the Andaman Sea!
That's exactly why Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku had moved large parts of the fleet from Northeast Asia to the south to be seen there and the actual Southeast Asia fleet, which included the best and newest ships in Japan, had already embarked on the long journey weeks ago.
The "JB" plan was a huge venture, but it also promised maximum benefits. In the simple case, they would only attack the Royal Navy near Singapore and support the invading troops in Malaya, in the complicated case, they would intercept the Royal Navy, which was approaching from Europe.
This fleet would have crossed the Indian Ocean and thought it was in safe waters, with numerous large ports along the Strait of Malacca.
If this fleet could be intercepted before it arrived in Asia, the Royal Navy would be defeated – at least that's the plan.
If the main British force arrived later, it would ideally no longer find any bases and would have to turn around.
Due to the strict radio silence, no one on board the expedition fleet knew what British units were currently on the ground or what position the British main force had reached in the meantime.
Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku also had no knowledge of the German Empire's declaration of war until a few hours ago.
So now he and his chief of staff went through all the details of the attack plan "JB" again to make sure that nothing had been overlooked, that nothing had been forgotten?
The Japanese Expeditionary Fleet was divided into three parts:
The 機動部隊 ("Kidō Butai") with its five large aircraft carriers under the command of Kaigun-chūjō Nagumo Chūichi was to carry out the actual attack. The fleet carriers Akagi, Hiyo, Unryu, Shinano and Amagi were available for this purpose. The sixth carrier was the light aircraft carrier Unyo, which acted as a replacement for the torpedoed Soryu.
The 聯合艦隊 (Rengō Kantai) was represented by the battleships Yashima, Kawachi and Shikishima. The Kawachi served as the flagship in this battle and, together with the Shikishima, formed the battle fleet. If everything went according to plan, the battle fleet would act as cover for the "Kidō Butai" and would otherwise not carry out any scheduled combat operations.
The 90,000-ton super battleship Yashima, on the other hand, was deployed as the core of the reconnaissance division and, in case of doubt, would have to reckon with direct enemy contact as an advanced reconnaissance unit. The newest, most modern and heaviest armored battleship was just right for this.
Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku would have loved to continue using the Yashima as his flagship, but he was forbidden to do so. It could not be that the commander of the fleet risked his life on board an advanced reconnaissance unit.
Dusk had set in and the day was approaching. It was time to start the battle!
+ + +
Japanese 23rd Battleship Division:
Battleship Kawachi (flagship)
Battleship Shikishima
- - -
Japanese 17th Battleship Division:
Battleship Yashima
Kaigun-chūjō Nagumo Chūichi had received his orders. The weeks of radio silence were terrible, because every question that had to be clarified had to be clarified either by signal lamp or flag signal and far too few meetings took place on board the Kawachi when the fleet held a marching break.
Now he couldn't answer any more questions, because the attack was imminent! The invading troops on land had at least obtained information about the current situation in Malaya. According to the report, most of the Royal Navy's East Asia Squadron was in the port of Malacca. Some units were stationed in Singapore and a small flotilla of corvettes was in Penang. The relevant information was the presence of no less than five fleet carriers and two light aircraft carriers of the Royal Navy.
The surprise, however, was the information about the entry of the German Empire into the war and the possible presence of capital ships of the High Seas Fleet in Malacca.
The port of Malacca had been within range of the carrier aircraft for some time, but it was decided to move closer to give the pilots more time over the target. This had been one of the most important findings of past air raids.
But now Kaigun-chūjō Nagumo Chūichi gave the order to attack on the bridge of his flagship - the fleet aircraft carrier Schinano!
The first to take off were the maritime reconnaissance aircraft of the capital ships, supplemented by a few bombers from the aircraft carriers. These reconnaissance aircraft would be over the target long enough before the bombers to be able to give the bomber pilots exact instructions on where to find what.
+ + +
Then the long wait began! This phase of modern naval warfare was something that neither the old nor the young officers could get used to. Forty years ago, the enemy was sighted, approached and began firing from all guns. But now you sent out your planes, hoped that they would find anything at all, let alone hit and if they succeeded, you wouldn't see anything of it.
The ship's officer's binoculars were replaced by the loudspeaker, and Kaigun-chūjō Nagumo Chūichi hated them! Only with the radar there was a replacement for the binoculars, but at the usual combat distances of a carrier attack, an unknown radar contact meant nothing more than attacking aircraft and then it was basically too late.
The minutes passed, but everyone had the impression that the hands of the clock had been glued down.
And then came what no one wanted to hear:
"Unknown radar contact at zero-nine-zero in eighteen thousand, second contact at zero-five-five in ten thousand approaching."
"Where did that come from?" Nagumo snarled to his officers!
"From the Yashima squadron. Mathematically, taking into account the position of the sun, these are maritime reconnaissance aircraft from Penang."
"Where the hell is our hunting protection?"
"On the way to the Yashima Group. It still needs a few minutes to get there."
"Commander – Enemy Maritime Reconnaissance radios our position to his base. The Yashima has been discovered, Mr. Commander!"
"So the fleet runs into battle – no fighter protection in the sky and the enemy already knows that we are coming!"
+ + +
Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku grabbed his binoculars and scanned the sky. There it was, this little dot. A damn British maritime reconnaissance aircraft flying over his battleship convoy at high altitude.
"Did he report our position?"
"Yes, Mr. Commander, the maritime reconnaissance has reported our position!"
"Well then — the secret is no longer a secret! Now we have to trust in our luck and our skill and that the British are so surprised that our planes attack before the enemy is ready to take off."
"Do you think that's realistic, Mr. Commandant?"
"As for the air bases, no, but the enemy carriers are at anchor. It will take some time until these ships make steam and are out of the harbor. We also have the wind on our side. If the wind direction does not change, the enemy will have to run southwest for some time before he can turn into the wind to launch his planes. So maybe it's enough!"
"Let's give ourselves a few more minutes. New course north-west, away from the enemy carriers!"
+ + +
Kaigun-chūjō Nagumo Chūichi could breathe a sigh of relief. His carriers had not yet been discovered, but that was only a matter of time.
"Mr. Commander – The Squadron Leader Kaigun-taisa Fuchida Mitsuo reports his attack squadrons ready!"
"Good - good - let's not waste any time - give Fuchida the signal to start. The destination is the port of Malacca!"
Pictures 205 and 206: Take-off of the carrier aircraft
Source: AI image generated by the author of this AAR
"Mr. Commander – I'll report," the orderly tore the admiral out of his thoughts:
"Reconnaissance #81 of the Yashima reports enemy battlecruisers in the immediate vicinity of our battleships."
Kaigun-chūjō Nagumo Chūichi's eyes widened:
"Is that confirmed?"
"No, Mr. Commander!"
"Reconnaissance #81 is to provide exact information. Enemy capital ships in this vicinity are an extreme danger!"
"Yes, Mr. Commander!"
+ + +
"Mr. Commander – I report – reconnaissance #82 of the Yashima also reports enemy battlecruisers."
"Where?"
"Southeast of the first report from reconnaissance #81 Mr. Commander!"
Now Kaigun-chūjō Nagumo Chūichi turned pale in the face. He turned to his chief of staff, Kaigun-shōshō Kusaka Ryūnosuke:
"What should we do? Apparently, there are really enemy warships there. So the opponent is less surprised than we thought!"
"We have orders to attack the port, Commandant."
"I ask you, Kusaka, what have the reconnaissance results of the ground forces brought us? If the enemy is close to us at sea, an attack on the port is not only superfluous, but deadly for us!"
"And if it's a mistake, Admiral? We've had that so often that the pilots can't tell friend from foe apart and even mistake the shadows of clouds for aircraft carriers!"
"We can't risk that, send at least some of the bombers to this reported position. The distance is not that great. If the pilots don't find anything there, they can always fly on to Malacca."
"There are more and more reports there, Mr. Admiral!"
"Let's wait and see what the pilots of the bombers find. Some reports should now be within sight of the battleships. Yamamoto will let us know if something gets too close to him!"
"Yes, Mr. Admiral."
+ + +
Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku saw through his binoculars that the Yashima was losing speed, which irritated him.
"Ugaki – ask Kondō why his battleship is losing speed?"
Yamamoto's chief of staff disappeared from the bridge and returned after a short time:
"Mr. Admiral - Kaigun-chūjō Kondō Nobutake reports that one of his scouts has problems and has to be picked up."
"Already now?"
"Yes, Mr. Admiral!"
Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku looked at the Yashima again and indeed he saw the scout approaching. What he saw then left him speechless. The reconnaissance aircraft touched down next to the Yashima, jumped back into the air, touched the surface of the water again shortly afterwards and finally collided with the ship's crane, which was supposed to lift him on board.
"What's going on? Is this Enlightenment #81? If this pilot's sighting report is as accurate as his flying performance, there is either nothing out there or the entire British Battle Fleet is closing in on us!"
A good thirty minutes had passed since the start order. Now, finally, all the planes of the first wave had left the decks and formed over the fleet. Some dive bombers had been segregated prematurely and were already in the target area of the alleged enemy fleet, but have not been able to make out anything so far. The rest of the first wave of attacks was now heading for Malacca and numerous sailors and officers craned their necks to watch the spectacle above their heads.
Then boomed out of the loudspeaker what no one could or wanted to believe:
"Bomber Shinano – to ba to ba to ba!"
"Heaven," Kaigun-chūjō Nagumo Chūichi exclaimed.
"Kusaka – there are really enemy ships there – immediately send more bombers to these coordinates that our pilots have passed on!"
Kaigun-shōshō Kusaka Ryūnosuke did not return the order. He immediately grabbed the microphone and thundered off...
Kaigun-chūjō Nagumo Chūichi looked at the flags fluttering in the wind of his carriers – he knew exactly that all the planes had to leave the deck immediately. For a long time he could not steer against the wind for the launch of the bombers, because this course brought his carriers exactly where the dive bombers of his flagship had just spotted the enemy!
>> Battle of the Strait of Malacca 26 September 1942 <<
Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku didn't waste a second thinking about the consequences, he ordered to turn around immediately and head for the enemy.
"Ugaki – Order Kondō to join us. If there really are British battleships there, then the Yashima is the best we have to blow the Royal Navy out of the water!"
"Yes, Mr. Admiral!"
From the "Kidō Butai" a bunch of planes also moved to the enemy ships. One thing was already almost impossible to avoid. The attack on Malacca would be delayed, if it could still take place at all!
+ + +
"Message from destroyer Nerima – smoke plume sighted!"
"They appear exactly where the maritime reconnaissance of the Yashima reported it!"
"Admiral – cruiser Asama reports enemy fire – grenades are covered!"
"This makes it clear that they must be battleships! Other ships don't have guns with such a range!"
"Shall we retire, Admiral?"
"Ugaki – this ship here was built to fight, not to escape!"
"But Admiral..."
+ + +
"Cruiser Asama reports shelling by undetected target!"
"Where are our bombers?"
"Coming up from the west and in a few minutes they will be above the enemy, Mr. Admiral"
"Very annoying, they take away our work!"
"But Admiral – that can't possibly be your opinion?"
„…“
"Kondō reports a light cruiser of the Royal Navy and we come within range of the battleship."
"FIRE FREE!"
Was the loud answer of Kaigun-taisa Yamamoto Isoroku and only a second later his flagship shook as the 18inch bow guns thundered off. A huge flash of flame shot out of the muzzles, followed by a cloud of black smoke, which for the moment robbed the view!
Again, the Kawachi shook as the second salvo set off, and then the fire control officer from the artillery control room roared through the speaking tube:
"Hit – hit – bullseye on enemy battleship!"
Kaigun-taisa Yamamoto Isoroku reacted very calmly and dryly:
"One thing is certain – the British fleet is not at anchor – we're going to blow it up out of the water now!"
+ + +
"Admiral – there are more and more enemy ships. Shouldn't we really turn around and let the bombers do their job?"
"All I can see is that our bombers are flying perfectly at the enemy. Not one of them takes us as a goal. So there's no reason why we shouldn't warm up our guns a bit!"
"That's a wasp's nest, admiral! It looks like three divisions of battleships and battlecruisers with their convoys."
"You know what Ugaki – that must be the battle fleet from England. They steered a southerly course and only turned around after the British reconnaissance discovered us. These ships don't come from Malacca, they have Malacca and Singapore as their destination!"
"That means?"
"This means that our expected targets are probably anchored at Malacca after all and will now do everything they can to get to sea. Nagumo definitely has to send bombers to Malacca and not everything to these battleships here!"
"Yes, Mr. Admiral, but that increases the danger for us quite considerably!"
"If the British carriers drop anchor off Malacca, then that increases the danger for us considerably. We can deal with these battleships! Look at how the torpedo bombers form up for the attack and fly low!"
+ + +
"Commander – report from destroyer Nerima – among the enemy ships is a heavy cruiser of the German Navy!"
"But that happened quickly, he can hardly belong to the German main power."
"Instructions?"
"Why? The German Empire has declared war on us, now they should watch as we sink their cruiser."
"Message from the Yashima, hit at the level of the engine room, no relevant damage!"
+ + +
"Destroyer Nerima reports that the 22nd Destroyer Flotilla is conducting a torpedo attack."
"The destroyers should keep their distance. With so many enemy capital ships, they will be shot to pieces."
"Yashima reports direct hit on enemy battlecruiser Incomparable-class."
"Good – do you ask why the torpedo bombers turned away and seem to be flying a loop?"
"Yes, Mr. Admiral!"
+ + +
"Admiral you see — there — there!"
"What happened there?"
"Radio message from destroyer Matsudo, Commander – flotilla leader destroyer Nerima was hit and exploded!"
"Didn't I just order the destroyers to be withdrawn — well, this commander has just received his court-martial trial and has been found guilty. Hopefully the other destroyer commanders have understood that!"
"Shall I repeat your orders, Admiral?"
"For what – everyone who sees this cloud of smoke knows what orders have been issued!"
"Torpedoes Hiyo – to ra to ra to ra!"
"Finally the torpedo bombers are attacking!"
"Don't rejoice too soon, Ugaki – the defensive fire is murderous!"
"Torpedoes Hiyo – attack on the destroyer at the front, if he dodges, he crashes directly into the battleships, but this way he blocks the approach to the big pots!"
"Watch out for these brutal flak – deeper down deeper down..."
"Torpedoes Unyo – there – that's an aircraft carrier – damn it, an aircraft carrier!"
"Torpedoes Unyo – to ra to ra to ra!"
"Hit, hit – you've got it – torpedo hit on enemy ship!"
"Damn, who was that?"
"No identifier, Mr. Admiral!"
"We need exact information – which season? What a goal? On which ship?"
"Destroyer Matsudo reports that the enemy battleships did not notice the torpedo attack of the 22nd Destroyer Flotilla and are now running directly into the torpedo paths!"
"Destroyer Matsudo reports two torpedo hits on battlecruiser Essex-class!"
"Torpedoes Unyo – Heavy cruiser directly ahead – attack!"
"Very good – my compliments to Kaigun-taisa Fuchida Mitsuo – he did well with the bow. His attack from Backboard has caused the enemy destroyers to switch to the port side of the battleships to serve as torpedo catchers. Now the enemy capital ships run directly into the destroyer torpedoes on their unprotected starboard side!"
"I'll tell you right away, Mr. Admiral!"
"Torpedoes Unyo – Torpedo hit port on heavy cruiser Hansa class at the height of the funnel."
Kaigun-taisa Nagumo Chūichi also listened to the radio messages. In contrast to the battleships, he had steered a northerly course after all bombers had taken off in order to gain distance from the ships of the Royal Navy. Now he was northwest of the Japanese battle fleet and was therefore safe. He believed that until the moment when the ship's sirens went off.
"Kusaka, what's that?"
"Air raid Admiral – enemy dive bombers have penetrated the fighter shelter and are above us!"
"Torpedoes Unryu – to ra to ra to ra!"
"Torpedoes Hiyo – take the battleship in the middle, its destroyer escort has lost touch!"
"Bomber Akagi – to ba to ba to ba!"
"Bomber Akagi – Bomb hit at the stern on enemy destroyer"
>> Battle of the Strait of Malacca 26 September 1942 <<
"Kusaka – where do the bombers claim to have hit this fleet carrier?"
"Mr. Admiral?"
"Our battle fleet has reconnaissance of the enemy at sea, there are no aircraft carriers there. But our wave of attacks on Malacca is far from reaching the port!"
"Yes, Mr. Admiral, I immediately request an exact situation report!"
"Torpedoes Unryu – Since this looks like a carrier, attack in formation."
"Message from the Yashima – enemy shoots in – hit on X-tower!"
"Bomber Shinano – Take the Leading Carrier – Bombs Out"
"Hit man hit – second hit – yay – hit – bullseye!"
"Bomber Shinano – Four Bomb Hits on Enemy Fleet Carrier"
"Bomber Amagi – Bomb hit on battleship with a landing side – Hit – Another hit!"
"Bomber Unryu – Take the battleship that the Amagi squadron just hit, it's already on its way – get the barge ready!"
"Bomber Hiyo – Bombs off!"
+ + +
"Admiral, enemy torpedo bombers are approaching!"
"Now Ugaki, then hopefully the anti-aircraft teams are well rested!"
"Admiral – these are carrier-based torpedo bombers!"
"No bombers from the British base in Penang?"
"No, they have to come from a carrier. Our squadrons have been reporting for some time that they have hit an enemy fleet carrier!"
"Ugaki, when the British carriers are already at sea?"
"Yes, Admiral, I'm afraid the port of Malacca is empty!"
Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku lacked exact reconnaissance results. The enemy battleships were so numerous that he would have to order all the bombers there purely out of reason. On the other hand, he had to send everything that was available to the enemy carriers when they were already at sea ready for action.
Only one thing could no longer be denied – yes, it was a surprise attack – but it was a surprise for both sides!
"Torpedoes – torpedoes – torpedoes in the water!"
"Rudder hard starboard – dodge – dodge!"
+ + +
"Kusaka – what are these reports of torpedo hits? Which season, which goal? Or are these the long-range torpedoes of the destroyers?"
"Contact Fuchida – I need better information!"
"Bomber Shinano – Attack on Battleship – Bombs Out!"
"Torpedoes Shinano – Light Carrier Target – Take Him Aft – There's No Destroyer – Torpedoes Loose – NOW NOW NOW!"
"Bomber Amagi – hit on escort ship – BULLSEYE – BULLSEYE – man he tore it apart!"
"Bomber Amagi – enemy corvette or destroyer exploded after direct hit!"
Picture 210: Enemy destroyer explodes after bomb hit
Source: AI image generated by the author of this AAR
"Bomber Amagi – hit hit – two bomb hits scored on battleship!"
"Torpedoes Amagi – torpedoes off – torpedoes off!"
+ + +
"Admiral - Kaigun-chūjō Kondō Nobutake reports continued hits on the Yashima. So far no one is critical and the armor withstands most hits, but slight water ingress in the bow section is under control, but the enemy hits more and more often!"
"Tell Kondō to stay the course and keep firing – if there's one ship that can stand up to this barrage of British dreadnoughts, it's the Yashima!"
"For far too long, my predecessors have always kept their battleships out of the fray, sacrificing torpedo boats and destroyers – I won't do that – I'm not sending my destroyer crews to a senseless death!"
"Yes, Mr. Admiral!"
"BOMBER – BOMBER!"
"Dodge quickly!"
"Yashima reports turret B down after being hit by enemy battlecruiser!"
+ + +
"Kusaka – the pilots are so excited that they forget their identification more and more often. Demand radio discipline again – we need to know what's going on there!"
"Yes, Mr. Admiral – but there are so many planes, plus the torpedoes of the destroyers and obstructed visibility by burning ships – I don't know how to tell it all apart?"
"Ugaki – that battlecruiser at the head – tell the artillery control center to concentrate the fire on this ship!
"Yes, Admiral!"
"And the Shikishima and Yashima should also fire with concentration! If we divide the shelling, the effect on the enemy is far too small. We have to take the enemy battleships and battlecruisers out of the battle in a targeted manner, otherwise the superior number of opponents will finish us off!"
"Yes, Admiral!"
+ + +
"Admiral – enemy dive bombers – they're attacking the Akagi!"
Kaigun-taisa Nagumo Chūichi ran to the window on the starboard side and looked over at the Akagi. There – six British Bisley dive bombers came from above. Lined up like a string of pearls, the group pounced on the Akagi.
The anti-aircraft fire became more intense. Not only did the Akagi itself fire from all anti-aircraft guns, but the light cruisers Natori, Chishima and Takachiho also abandoned all other targets and now jointly fire only these six dive bombers. Even the light carrier Unyo only took care of its division leader with its anti-aircraft gun.
"Boom boom boom – the staccato boomed over to the shinano. A veritable wall of exploding anti-aircraft shells colored the sky above the Akagi black – boom, boom, boom..."
Kaigun-taisa Nagumo Chūichi counted: The first dive bomber released its bomb and pulled up. The bomb crashed into the water on the port side of the Akagi and piled up a fountain that extended beyond Akagi Island.
Then came the second crash - BOOM - even before the release the bomber exploded over the Akagi, torn apart by an anti-aircraft hit.
The third bomber pilot lost control as he chased through the wreckage of his predecessor and turned away.
The fourth bomber was hit by the anti-aircraft gun just as it was about to release its bomb, but was pushed to the side and pulled back up with a pitch-black tail. His bomb missed the Akagi by dozens of meters.
The fifth pilot disengaged too early and the bomb crashed into the sea behind the stern of the Akagi.
One more, then the Akagi had survived it.
"Now he's disengaging," Kaigun-taisa Nagumo Chūichi whispered softly. He followed the bomb with his binoculars, then grimaced and whispered again:
"BULLSEYE!"
Picture 212: Aircraft carrier Akagi is hit by a bomb
Source: AI image generated by the author of this AAR
>> Battle of the Strait of Malacca 26 September 1942 <<
Kaigun-taisa Nagumo Chūichi put down his binoculars and looked at the group of his officers:
"Kusaka – ask Yamaguchi how badly the Akagi was hit?"
"Yes, Mr. Admiral – Mr. Admiral, the enemy bombers are primarily targeting our aircraft carriers and other groups of approaching enemy bombers can be seen on the radar screen. I recommend that you switch to a cruiser, you would be safer there!"
"No Kusaka, that's out of the question! We still have an advantage, we have to take advantage of that."
"Admiral, after the latest radio messages, even Yamamoto doubts that the enemy carriers are at anchor. We underestimated the British – again – we have to reckon with the fact that we are now facing five or six carrier squadrons plus the squadrons from Penang, Malacca and Singapore. And if the Royal Navy from Europe arrives in our rear now, this number could almost double again! In addition, our squadrons are already tired from attacking the enemy battleships, while the British squadrons are just coming in!"
"Our plan has failed, Admiral!"
"Kusaka – nothing has failed – if the radio messages from our pilots are correct, then we have already hit two enemy fleet carriers. The British battle fleet is badly battered and our fighters shoot most enemy planes out of the sky. To give up now would be a mistake. You yourself said that it is our mission to attack the port of Malacca and now we are supposed to go home? With little fuel in the tanks and the enemy breathing down your neck?"
"Admiral..."
"We have to beat the Royal Navy here. They know that we have to pass Singapore for the way home. The fuel only reaches our bases in Cochinchina. We can't take the way around Australia and the British can now calculate at the latest how we got here. No Kusaka, we are fighting now and are successful or we don't need to go back to Japan!"
"Yes, Mr. Admiral."
…
"Admiral - Kaigun-shōshō Yamaguchi Tamon reports that the damage on the Akagi is moderate overall. The Akagi has slight water ingress and low pitch. The repair crews are already sealing the leak, flight operations are not affected and can be maintained!"
"Admiral - Kaigun-taisa Nagumo Chūichi reports that the Akagi has been hit by a bomb, but can continue the mission. He also expresses his suspicion that the port of Malacca is empty and that the British have not been surprised. He expects a massive attack by no less than eight enemy squadrons from the British carriers and bases on Malaya."
"Yes Ugaki, we have to face this reality. Does Nagumo suggest calling off the battle?"
"No, Admiral, but he wants to know what alternatives we have if we can't get past Singapore?"
"Tell Nagumo that we are driving past Singapore – directly or indirectly!"
"Yes, Admiral!"
+ + +
BUMMMMM
"Admiral, are you hurt?"
"All right, Ugaki – please help me up."
"Yes, Admiral!"
"What was that?"
"This enemy battlecruiser hit us!"
"Get the damage reports from all stations!"
"Yes, Admiral!"
+ + +
"Air raid – dive bombers are attacking us!"
BUMMMMM
"What was that? That wasn't an aerial bomb!"
"Again the battlecruiser Admiral, apparently the enemy has moved the fire away from the Yashima to our Kawachi!"
"Get closer!"
"WHAT?"
"We have to increase our hit rate, Ugaki!"
"But then the opponent's will also be better!"
"But we're better armored – our battleships take the hits better than the enemy's..."
+ + +
"The enemy seems to be turning away, Admiral."
"But only this one battlecruiser, the second one is stubbornly heading for our aircraft carriers and will soon have them within range of his guns. Turn around to bring all the guns to the enemy!"
"Yes, Admiral!"
…
"Now the second battlecruiser is also turning away!"
"All right – keep on firing!"
+ + +
"Admiral – Nagumo reports fierce dogfights over the fleet. Our fighters shoot down the enemy, but he reports that our own bombers hardly score any hits."
"These attacks in small groups must stop. Tell Nagumo not to have the bombers refueled and armed immediately, but to wait until he can realize a reasonable squadron size. If necessary, the relays of the various carriers should complement each other!"
+ + +
"Admiral, the enemy is falling back, shall we turn around?"
"No Ugaki, let's get some distance to gather and regroup. Let's give the gun crews some rest. The rate of fire has visibly decreased and the enemy has taken the heavier hits. It looks like the two battlecruisers are starting to fog up. They must have been hit hard and we're not scoring any more hits at the fog wall at the moment. Let's the bombers do it."
"Yes, Admiral."
…
"Admiral – torpedo bombers are attacking us!"
"But not from this height?"
"Yes, Admiral!"
"Look closely, Ugaki – they carry bombs, not torpedoes!"
"Then the enemy ran out of torpedo supplies?"
"Or this torpedo bomber type doesn't have enough range to carry a heavy torpedo to us and get back to its aircraft carrier!"
"Can we rely on that?"
"Contact Genda, he should calculate how far away the British carriers must be so that these torpedo bombers can only be lightly loaded?"
+ + +
"The enemy is gradually getting out of sight, Admiral."
"Good – then these ships are so battered that they can no longer follow even our slow Kawachi!"
"That's not safe either, Admiral."
"But there is a lot to be said for it! How much time has passed since we started the battle?"
"Soon three hours Admiral!"
"So we are gathering as discussed and preparing a second major air strike!"
+ + +
"The torpedo bombers of the Unryu attack the battlecruiser that is driving directly behind us."
"Then we'll see if we can get rid of him with it."
"The Unryu Squadron reports torpedo hits Admiral!"
+ + +
"At least Kusaka, the hit rate is improving again, but it's not enough to beat the enemy!"
"The pilots are tired, Admiral!"
"Isn't that you?"
"To be honest, Admiral, yes – no one here is not sleepy and tired."
+ + +
"You were right, Admiral, it was right to instruct Nagumo to attack again with larger numbers. The yield of the last few minutes is really good."
"Yes Ugaki, but it's hard to sink battleships with bombs!"
"If we damage them for months, that's also worth a lot. The enemy cannot repair as many ships as we have hit today, either in Asia or in India. For that he has to go back to Europe and that is a long way for ailing ships."
"Yes, that's true, Ugaki, but look how many gun reefers the Kawachi and the Yashima have received, and both are fully operational!"
"But it was you, Mr. Admiral, who pointed out that our battleships are much better armored than the British!"
"That's right Ugaki again, so let's let the secret service do its job. He will find out how the enemy ships are doing!"
+ + +
"Enemy bombers above us!"
BUMMM - BUMMM
"Damage reports – what did they hit, damn it!"
"Bomb hit on turret A – stopped by the armor!"
"And further? It sounded like more meetings!"
"Somewhere in the stern, messages are pending, Admiral!"
>> Battle of the Strait of Malacca 26 September 1942 <<
"Hit – hit – torpedo hit on enemy ship!"
"Damn it, which squadron was that?"
"Admiral – it would have to be the torpedo bombers of the Hiyo."
"Should? – Kusaka – what do the pilots think? Where is Fuchida? He must finally ensure accurate reports!"
"Torpedoes Akagi – let's take the destroyer at the front, let's bring disorder to the formation!"
"Torpedoes Hiyo – attack the battlecruiser, it already has two hits, then it will be enough if it gets another torpedo or two, the side is already considerable!"
"Torpedoes Akagi – torpedoes off – torpedoes off!"
"Hit – hit – he sat down!"
"Torpedoes Hiyo – if you still have your torpedo, take the cruiser at three o'clock, the rest will follow me!"
"Torpedoes Unryu – take the battleship in the middle, it can't dodge or it will crash into the stranded battlecruiser."
"Torpedoes Unryu – torpedoes off – torpedoes off!"
"Torpedoes Unryu – Hit Hit!"
"Bomber Schinano – hit amidships on light cruiser!"
"Bomber Unryu – the battlecruiser across the right – start attacking!"
"Hit – hit – hit – hit!"
"Bomber Unryu – Battlecruiser hit by three bombs – ship has side to port!"
"Bomber Unryu – now the slow battleship trying to hide in the smoke screen."
"Hit – Hit!"
"Bomber Unryu – Three bomb hits on enemy battleship!"
"Bomber Unryu – Hit on Battlecruiser"
+ + +
Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku was still trying to make sense of the radio messages when a hellfire of the flak thundered around him. Everything that could shoot in any way fired into the sky, where several large groups of enemy planes appeared. Then the Japanese fighters pounced on their prey and because of the heavy anti-aircraft fire, friend and foe were now in danger. When the Japanese pilots understood that this was the wrong place for a dogfight, they desperately tried to avoid it themselves. This almost inevitably led to collisions and Kaigun-taishō Yamamoto Isoroku once again did not want to believe what he got to see from the Japanese pilots today.
After all, the Japanese fighter planes seemed to be clearly superior to the British planes. Some of the enemy aircraft were taken out of the sky like defenseless training targets!
"Admiral – that was a great success for us!"
"Explain that Ugaki."
"This was the largest and most concentrated air attack on our ships to date that has taken place today, and our fighter protection shot down almost all enemy aircraft or forced them to turn away."
"Is that so, Ugaki? I saw many pilots who dared to get much too close and flew into the area of our anti-aircraft guns. Our anti-aircraft gunners can't tell them apart, they shoot at everything they see in the sky. We will have a lot to work through after our return!"
+ + +
"And that's also a problem, Ugaki – again no identifier. Three torpedo hits, but who – where – on which ship? The evaluation of this battle will be a big problem!"
+ + +
"Admiral – the weapons master reports that the anti-aircraft ammunition is running low!"
"Then wish us luck, Ugaki!"
"Yes, Admiral!"
+ + +
"Admiral cruiser Chishima reports a British cargo ship across. The crew seems to be giving up the ship."
"Then the Chishima should ensure that this rudderless ship does not become a problem for shipping!"
"Yes, Admiral!"
"Bomber Amagi – Two bomb hits on enemy destroyer – Destroyer is burning and losing speed!"
"Bomber Amagi – Numerous hits on enemy cruiser!"
"Admiral – Destroyer Satsuki reports hull damage due to bomb close hits!"
"Hmmm – ask the commander how severe the damage of the Satsuki is? If necessary, he should leave the formation so as not to offer another goal!"
"Cruiser Chishima reports that the British cargo ship is beginning to sink."
"A small catch, but better than nothing!"
+ + +
"More bombers are attacking us, Admiral. Besides, the Shikishima has lost touch?"
"The Shikishima? Was the Shikishima hit? No, Admiral, but the constant maneuvers due to the continuous air raids have led to problems with the machines."
"Slow down our pace so that the Shikishima can catch up again!"
"Yes, Admiral!"
"Admiral – the Hiyo seems to have been hit!"
…
"Hiyo reports bomb proximity hits – no damage!"
"That's luck, Ugaki – but how long will we be lucky is the question? In the meantime we are getting dangerously close to the coast. This not only increases the danger of minefields, but we also have to turn around with the carriers and we take the carriers out of the wind!"
"Ugaki – I think we have achieved what we could achieve!"
"Admiral!"
"Give a signal to all ships – General Course North-North-West – we are retreating to the enemy while maintaining the air strikes. Nagumo should do his utmost and control his carrier divisions in such a way that he does not get too close to the shore."
"Admiral, if we break off now... - according to the reports, we have hit at most two British aircraft carriers. According to the reports, he has at least five in the formation!"
"Ugaki – what was the value of these intelligence reports? According to these reports, the British fleet should have been anchored in Malacca. Instead, it received us ready for battle and we can count ourselves lucky that no enemy torpedo bombers have hit us so far!"
"Admiral?"
"These forces are irreplaceable for Japan, we have to get them home safely and for that we have to pass Singapore. We drive south of Sumatra, sneak through the Sunda Strait at night and across the Java Sea towards the Strait of Makassar. Somewhere east of Borneo we order our tankers to bunker. We have to take this risk, but we can't make it to Cochinchina, that's out of the question. In the Strait of Makassar, we are out of range of our enemy's land-based bombers, and with his battered fleet, he will not pursue us. On the way to Cochinchina, on the other hand, we would have to reckon with continuous air strikes!"
+ + +
"Admiral – that comes from the flagship – order general course north-north-west – retreat while maintaining the air raids!"
"Good, Kusaka – that's good! This order was overdue. Our pilots are completely exhausted and hardly able to fly straight ahead. Let alone attack or even land! We collect all the planes, give the pilots a break, then we start all the remaining planes again in one or two large groups and when these waves are back, dusk should set in anyway."
"But our target, Admiral – the British aircraft carriers!"
"... are now more dangerous for us than we are for them Kusaka. No, it's enough – let's go home!"
"Alarm – air raid – enemy bombers!"
+ + +
"At least three groups of enemy bombers were intercepted by our Combat Air Patrol. There are more and more!"
"That's what we expected, Kusaka. Let's change course, we need distance to the coast for the last take-off of the planes!"
"Yes, Admiral"
+ + +
"It's been six hours since the battle began, Admiral."
"The day is not over yet. Nagumo will carry out another launch, even though its carriers have come quite close to the shore due to the onboard of the last wave and the carrier groups are drifting apart."
"Yes – even the Shikishima has not yet found a connection – on the contrary."
"Ask the commander, I don't want to hear excuses. What exactly happened to the machinery on board Shikishima?"
"Yes, Admiral!"
"Oh, wait, Ugaki – let's change course and order the fleet to gather and concentrate!"
"Yes, Admiral!"
+ + +
"Admiral, we don't have enough torpedoes left to equip all operational torpedo bombers with."
"Then have the remaining torpedo bombers loaded with heavy bombs Kusaka. Start the attack as soon as the conversion is complete."
"Yes, Admiral!"
+ + +
"The weather is getting worse, we have to start now before it is no longer possible..."
"Air raid – enemy bombers are attacking us!"
...
"That was close! The hunting defense did a good job!"
+ + +
"And now get our bombers in the air so we can empty the decks!"
"While the enemy is attacking?"
"If he hits us while refueled and loaded bombers are on the decks, it's going to ruin our day, Kusaka!"
+ + +
"Nagumo launches the final attack, Admiral, but his carrier division has lost touch. He will pass with the Shinano Pulau Langkawi to the east and not with us to the west."
"Then there will be Ugaki. The main thing is that the planes come from the deck. It has refreshed considerably. A little more swell and flight operations must be completely stopped."
"There are more enemy aircraft on the radar that are heading towards us, Admiral."
"Then we hope that we will continue to be as lucky as we were recently!"
"Yes, Admiral!"
+ + +
"The bombers are on their way, Admiral!"
"And the enemy planes?"
"They passed us east and are now south of our convoy!"
+ + +
"Our fighter protection has repelled the attacking enemy, Admiral."
"At some point we won't be able to do that anymore, Ugaki. It's time for this day to end!"
"Our bombers will reach the target area in a few minutes..."
+ + +
"Torpedoes Hiyo – to ba to ba to ba!"
"Torpedoes Unyo – to ra to ra to ra!"
"Bomber Akagi – Enemy cruiser hit by bomb amidships!"
"Torpedoes Akagi – to ba to ba to ba!"
"Torpedoes Unyo – to ba to ba to ba!"
+ + +
"Here we go, Admiral – maybe we'll be lucky and sink the British aircraft carriers after all!"
"Torpedoes Shinano – torpedoes off – torpedoes off!"
"Bomber Hiyo – Smash the battleship to pieces!"
"Torpedoes Hiyo – target battleship – into the water with the torpedoes – go – go!"
"Bomber Unryu – Bombs out!"
"Torpedoes Shinano – hit – hit – torpedo hit on enemy ship!"
"Bomber Hiyo – Destroyer hit by bomb and burning!"
"Bomber Unryu – hit – hit – bomb hit on enemy destroyer!"
"Bomber Unryu – Bomb hit on another enemy destroyer – Hit!"
+ + +
"That's going well, Admiral!"
"Yes Kusaka, the break was good for the pilots, but we were also lucky with our fighter defense. The enemy attacks have increased and are much larger than at the beginning."
"Bomber Unryu – Bomb hits on light cruiser."
"Bomb hit on heavy cruiser."
"Bomber Shinano – Wait quietly – the battleship at two o'clock is on the wrong side – attack!"
"Bomber Shinano – Now – Bombs out – Bombs out!"
"Hit – hit – hit – hit three – and number four – hit – hit!"
"Bomber Shinano – Enemy battleship hit by five bombs!"
"Bomber Shinano – Bombs out – Bombs out!"
"Bomber Shinano – Two more hits scored on battleship"
"Bomber Amagi – Attack in two groups on battlecruisers."
"Bomber Amagi – hit – hit – battlecruiser hit by six bombs!"
"Torpedoes Hiyo – hits – hits – five torpedo hits scored on three enemy ships!"
"Bomber Shinano – Three bomb hits on battleship!"
"Bomber Shinano – Destroyer hit by bomb!"
"Torpedoes Shinano – Take the light cruiser – torpedoes free!"
"Bomber Amagi – Since the battleship looks undamaged there in the smoke screen."
"We can change that!"
"He doesn't defend himself, no anti-aircraft fire – attack, attack!"
"Bomber Amagi – Bombs out – Bombs out!"
"Hit – hit – battleship hit by bomb!"
"Make way, it's my turn – bomb out – bomb out!"
"Hit – hit – BULLSEYE – BULLSEYE – BULLSEYE in front Tower!"
"Bomber Amagi – Admiral Nagumo – Bullseye in bow turret on Suffolk-class battleship – Battleship has exploded!"
Picture 214: Battleship HMS Implaceable explodes after a 500 pound bomb penetrates turret B and detonates in the magazine.
Source: AI image generated by the author of this AAR
+ + +
"We've definitely hit a big pot with that, Admiral!"
"True, Kusaka, but it would be good to know which enemy ships are so badly damaged that they will sink as well? For my taste, our pilots have spoken of quite a few enemy ships. Despite all the goals in the morning, we don't seem to have sunk much so far!"
"Bomber Shinano – More bomb hits on enemy destroyers!"
"Bomber Amagi – We also hit a destroyer!"
"Bomber Amagi – Second hit scored on destroyer!"
"Admiral – the damage on the Satsuki is greater than expected. The commander reports considerable water ingress and now asks to be allowed to leave the formation."
"All right, Ugaki. He should not try to play the hero. If necessary, another destroyer should tow the Satsuki."
"Yes, Admiral!"
+ + +
"Were these our last bombers Kusaka?"
"If there weren't still individual pilots who got lost? Yes, Admiral, but we have approaching enemy aircraft on our radar!"
"Then the opponent tries to do the same as we do – let's hope he is less lucky!"
+ + +
"Admiral - Kaigun-taisa Nagumo Chūichi reports that our squadrons are now approaching. He wants to know if the orders remain?"
"Ask Nagumo what the condition of the machines is. I want to know how many aircraft are still operational?"
"Yes, Admiral!"
…
"Nagumo thinks another launch is possible, but the pilots would have to land at dusk or even darkness!"
"Let the pilots decide. Anyone who wants to take the risk should start! The destination is the port of Penang. If the damaged enemy ships have retreated anywhere, then there!"
+ + +
"The fighter defense has shot down numerous enemy maritime reconnaissance planes."
"On the flight home?"
"The pilots of the fighter planes say no. The flight course indicates that these reconnaissance aircraft must have taken off first."
"Time until dawn?"
"Now about two hours left, Admiral!"
"Admiral – the fighter defense reports dogfights with enemy bombers!"
"Still now? The opponent also seems to demand everything from his pilots!"
"Destroyer Satsuki reports extreme pitch. The destroyer is no longer maneuverable!"
"We'll take care of that after the enemy air strike!"
+ + +
"Destroyer Satsuki reports water ingress almost stopped. Ten knots are possible, but the commander doesn't want to risk that speed."
"Tell the commander to run the Satsuki aground near our invasion troops if necessary and join the marines!"
"Yes, Admiral!"
"After we have passed Pulau Langkawi, let the fleet get ready to gather!"
+ + +
"Our squadrons are now reaching Penang Admiral!"
"Bomber Amagi – Hit on light cruiser!"
"Torpedoes Unryu – Bomb hit on a cargo ship."
"Torpedoes Unryu – Battleship hit by bomb."
"Bomber Hiyo – hit – hit – three bomb hits on battleship!"
"Bomber Hiyo – Bullseye on Battlecruiser – Battlecruiser EXPLODED!"
Picture 215: Battleship HMS Camperdown of the Royal Navy explodes after a direct hit of a 1000 pound bomb in Tower B while it is already in the harbour of Penang!
Source: AI image generated by the author of this AAR
"Bomber Hiyo – Bomb hit on battleship scored!"
"Bomber Hiyo – Hit on light cruiser."
"Bomber Schinano – Two bomb hits on light cruiser."
"Hit – hit on battleship!"
"Admiral – it was worth it if there was another battlecruiser exploding!"
"Yes, Kusaka, but you see, dusk has set in – now we have to get all the pilots back on board safely!"
+ + +
"Bomber Unryu – Damn it, do you see that? There in the south – carriers – carriers – damn aircraft carriers – at least five of them!"
"Yes, damn it – and there behind the ledge, that's still a light carrier!"
"Yes, I see him – I'm attacking!"
"Bombs out – bombs out!"
"Admiral – Destroyer Satsuki reports water ingress has stopped!"
+ + +
"Admiral – the last attacking bomber pilot reports that the harbor is now completely in darkness, but you can see the light of isolated burning ships everywhere!"
"That is no longer of any use to us Kusaka. Report to Yamamoto that we are now taking the planes on board and then waiting for his orders!"
"Yes, Admiral! But there are other bombers out there looking for a target."
"They should throw off and turn around. I can barely see our flight deck myself, and if we turn on the landing lights now, we will be a widely visible target for every British and German submarine in the area!"
"Yes, Admiral!"
+ + +
"Admiral – Nagumo reports numerous landing accidents of the pilots coming home!"
"Yes, that was to be expected Ugaki, we can't change it now. But in the future, we will have to be more careful with our pilots. It is of no use to us if the pilots now know how to sink a battleship, but they can no longer apply and share this knowledge."
+ + +
"Admiral - Kaigun-taisa Nagumo Chūichi reports all squadrons back aboard the aircraft carriers!"
"All right, Ugaki – order to all units – course for Borneo – this battle is over!"
