The Italian Job (2) - Comments from the Allies

[mc3744]

November 19th, 1942

IBC
I’m afraid pushing him out of Burma is not in my plans. [:'(] I really don’t think I can do that! At best I hope to retake a couple of bases to grant the bombers some more range.
However, following String ‘bath-related’ suggestion for the operation name, I decided to call it “Operation Toilet Paper”, [;)] because it’ll probably go down the drain like the previous one!! [:D]

PACIFIC
A squadron of (64) Dakota’s has arrived in SF! [X(]
I didn’t know there where such big TR groups.

[mc3744]

November 20th, 1942

IBC
Chungking is doomed. [:(] In the last attack, despite heavy losses, the Japs achieved a 1:1 and brought the forts down to (1).
I’ve converted almost all units to Southeast Asia HQ. I’m no longer flying supplies because they’ll end up in Japanese hands.
(24) additional P-40’s have just arrived in Ceylon from Australia. They’ll help in “Operation Toilet Paper”.

PACIFIC
Bases build up and training proceeds real well.
At least in the Pacific the situation looks good … so far. [:D]

[BLurking]

Remember - he's getting replacements from his Japanese pool, yours are from the China pool. As long as you're inflicting casualties, keep that base supplied. Maybe he'll take it, but 20,000+ supplies aren't going to make that much of a difference to him. The Japanese troops that he loses will. The Japanese you kill in China won't be facing you in the Pacific.
My advice, as long as he's taking more casualties than you, keep on defending as long as you can. He needs 2-1 to take the base, even after the forts are down...

[Kereguelen]

ORIGINAL: mc3744

Chungking is doomed. [:(] In the last attack, despite heavy losses, the Japs achieved a 1:1 and brought the forts down to (1).
I’ve converted almost all units to Southeast Asia HQ. I’m no longer flying supplies because they’ll end up in Japanese hands.

BLurking is right: Keep Chungking supplied, the reduction of your forts has nothing to say, as long as your troops are not out of supply, a 2:1 should be extremely difficult to achieve for him. Basically your previous fort level (2) did only mean that he needed 4:1 odds to capture Chungking while he now still needs a 3:1 and will need a 2:1 once your fort level drops to 0. Every result of (at least) 1:1 gives a fort reduction and the fact that your fort level only dropped by one tells us that he did not achieve a better ratio than 1:1 despite shock-attacking...

As long as you keep Chungking supplied, your assault value will not drop and your troops may even recover and get stronger if they draw troops from the pool when enough supplies are available.

There's still hope for Chungking[:)]

[hawker]

Chungking is doomed. In the last attack, despite heavy losses, the Japs achieved a 1:1 and brought the forts down to (1).
I’ve converted almost all units to Southeast Asia HQ. I’m no longer flying supplies because they’ll end up in Japanese hands.

K. has the point.He will have hard time to kick you out from there.Keep C. supplied[;)].

[mc3744]

November 21st, 1942

IBC
Operation “Fishing in the Pond II” is officially over. (24) F4F-4 are now safe at Ceylon and will soon initiate the training program. [8D]
I didn’t manage to ambush any baby KB, but at least I ferried through what I needed.

Chungking is in light orange and will stay so even without air supplies. I’m sure it won’t hold longer than a couple of weeks.
I appreciate your suggestion (I really do [&o]), but I’m recovering the (98) B-17s and they will join in the ground attacks of the Japanese Burma garrison. I believe they’ll inflict more casualties to the Japs by ground attacking than by flying supplies.

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One of the newly arrived Wildcats over the skies of Ceylon.

[String]

NONONONONO!!!

Keep flying supplies in!!! Holding Chungking is of the Utmost IMPORTANCE!

If it falls, china is gone, allowing him to move out the forces there to burma, and with enough PP's overseas. Even if you don't allow moving out by land he still gets a division or two per two months. It's a lot of ground unit power, which you'll be rooting out of 9 fort atolls in the future.

THe longer Chungking stands the better.

[String]

Oh, and it looks like chungking is range 9 from Ledo. You can do sweeps from Ledo with P-38's then which means he can't LRCAP Chungking effectively, which means you can send in Dakotas, which means a lot of supplies. 100 dakotas carry 500 supplies per turn, and with PDU you can surely get more than 100 into India. Hey, if you're lucky you can get that big 64 plane group into india within a month or so. Ferry to hawaii, fly to perth, ferry to ceilon. Takes about 30-40 days.

[BLurking]

If you think you can knock out 10-15K Japanese using your bombers, then go ahead. Otherwise, let the Chinese do the fighting and dying. String is right - face these Japanese now, or face them later. The only option is where they will be when you fight them...

[mc3744]

(98) B-17s can kill 3-500 men per turn with ground attacks.
It's 10-15k in a month. Chungking is mainly auto-supplied and the troop quantity has been steady declining despite the supplies flown. Mainly because of the bombings.
It's doomed and - yes - I'll have to face lots of Japs troops everywhere. [:(]
However those Chinere troops will be back in Karachi, hence,at least partially, I'll be able to counter-balance it.

[mc3744]

November 22nd, 1942

PACIFIC
Unfortunately Suva has been ‘conquered’ despite my will. Hence my air training field is now closed.
However new ones will soon open.
A brief overview of the South Pacific situation. I’m building up Vanikoro.

[mc3744]

November 24th, 1942

IBC
Bad weather is keeping most of my bombers on the ground. [:(] I hope it’ll improve because hardly more than 50 LB’s out of some 3-400 take off every turn.

AUSTRALIA
The first ENG unit is now in Coen, it’s now building up the base.
Soon I’ll be able to use Thursdays Is. as training field for any fighter with range of at least (5). Most of the Australian Wirraway’s have been upgraded to Kitty’s I.

PACIFIC
Central and South Pacific operations proceed smoothly.
The US pioneers are doing an outstanding job. [X(] Bases are developed at an amazing speed.
Pago Pago will be my next training field in Central Pacific.
The air force massed in Fiji, Noumea and Luganville makes me feel quite safe.
I believe that GH is now reverting to the Bunker Tactic himself. It looks like he has vacated all the nearby atolls, including the Samoa Islands. He knows he can’t defend them without risking a lot and apparently he has decided to preserve his VPs advantage rather than engaging in battle.
I’m not sure which atoll will be his first line of defense: Noumea or Tarawa.
With Andrew’s map it’ll be hard to defend Noumea because it is in range of two bases, Nukufetau e Funafuti. And even Tarawa has small beaches nearby. The Seabees can do wonders.
However Tarawa will be hard to take. But it’s the jump to Canton and Kweiling that will be real tough.
All these islands are not very important VP-wise, but at least I can start regaining some ground.
The big problem is that the important bases (those producing oil and resources) are totally out of reach. Without the possibility of retaking Northern Australia [:-], DEI will firmly be in Japan’s hands at least until ’44. The only chance of partially endangering Northern DEI lies with “Operation Toilet Paper”.

I started to wonder what should be the VPs progression to allow me to get a draw or – I know I’m dreaming [:'(] – even to win.
1942 will end 3:1, if ’43 ends 2:1 I can hope to get 1:1 by the end of 44’, can’t I?
Anybody has any thoughts on this?

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Next targets

[String]

Reconquer Malaya and bomb him to bits from Singapore [:D]

[Kereguelen]

Keep Chungking supplied [:)] and get ready for a Burma offensive with Chinese troops!

[mc3744]

ORIGINAL: String

Reconquer Malaya and bomb him to bits from Singapore [:D]

Easier said than done [;)]

[mc3744]

ORIGINAL: Kereguelen

Keep Chungking supplied [:)]

You don't give up, do you? [:)]
Let's do like this: as long as it stays above the minum requirement without airlited supplies I'll use the B-17s to ground attack.
If it goes below I'll go back to airlift.

Deal? [:D]

[Kereguelen]

ORIGINAL: mc3744

ORIGINAL: Kereguelen

Keep Chungking supplied [:)]

You don't give up, do you? [:)]
Let's do like this: as long as it stays above the minum requirement without airlited supplies I'll use the B-17s to ground attack.
If it goes below I'll go back to airlift.

Deal? [:D]

You're the boss here[;)]

Makes sense, the only remaining question: Do you see his land loss numbers rising due to your ground attacks in Burma? Or are you just disabling his units? Interesting question in many aspects...

[mc3744]

I do see the land losses slowly rising.
It's hard to tell however which one is the cause: China, malaria, bombings?

[String]

Btw, Why don't you bomb his troops in Chungking?

[mc3744]

Because there are - at least - 2-300 fighters in the nearby bases! [;)]