May 17, 1942
Calculated Risks
1) This was a difficult turn to plan. I went back three times and adjusted courses and air orders, ending up about where I started. During planning, two IJN TFs showed. One inside the northern Strait, which read as a 2-ships TF. I presumed it was ASW, as it had tangled with one of my subs in the past few days. Not to say TFs can't swap, but that was my guess. The other was one hex NW of Sabang and read as one unknown ship. I have a small surviving Hudson unit at Sabang on Search, but I knew this was worng. The TF has read as carriers before. I was fine with that. The question was, were they there to support a landing at Sabang or to lead a turn around the tip and a run down the west side to land at Padang in order to march on PBang?
To oppose, I had an RN carrier TF with Hermes and two conventionals, Swordfish and Albacores, plus decent fighters left but not enough. And two BB-led surface groups, one Force Z, the other based on two old R-type, both with mostly DDs in escort. Both also very low on fuel. I had one replenishment group to the west, but only with about 7000 fuel. Cocos has more, plus an AKE. The carriers had more fuel, but not enough to share. So, what to do?
I sent the carriers due south on the x=axis you can see in the screenshot. CAP at 50%. TBs on heavy Search to the SE. The BB TFs I also ordered south, in mutually-suporting react postures, and one to take the fuel from the replenishment group tomorrow. The other was going to have to rely on Cocos and crossed-fingers. I saw three possibilities for the Japanese carriers: 1) Support for Sabang, they stay put, I'm good. 2) Support for a run on Padang, they come around the corner, hug the coast for LBA help and to avoid subs in deep water, and I'm good. 3) They know what I have and where, and they hunt.
Mike took Door #3.
The surface TFs did not play a part. And, two more red TFs appeared on the replay. The northern one is, I think, the little lost lamb of a CA/DD, but I don't know that. The one SE of Great Nocobar I don't know what that is. I suppose it could be a landing force to take an AF to oppose Pt. Blair, but Japan has a lot of undone work still before they ought to be worrying about moves like that. So, if that's what it is, I'm OK with it.
But the IJN carriers, Junyo and Hiyo at least, attacked the RN. The CAP did very well, but there just weren't enough to burn through. Most of the Kates had bombs, but not all. The armored flight decks did well as some bombs got a "belt armor struck" message, not a damage report. I think Hermes might be a goner, but the others I have hopes for. Some of the air bingoed to Sabang, some to alternate decks, so at least one deck is working, but might be over-loaded.
Tomorow I have to figure out how to drive the BBs. Chase the contact to the north and then to Colombo for fulll fuel? Continue south? Hang around and oppose a landing at Sabang, knowing there are carriers? There's no reason to land on Sabang; a march from Medan is low-cost, although slower. Sabang is a thorn to Japan, and the preferred port for Medan oil, and he might be in a hurry now, but it's not mandatory for Japan to have soon. I need time to get more into PBang, especially the US Army division in the wormhole. My USN ships are also a week out of CT. Mostly DDs, but they will give me raiding I don't have with Force Z. POW needs her January upgrade still as well.
Anyway, the battle:
Morning Air attack on TF, near Great Nicobar at 37,67
Weather in hex: Partial cloud
Raid detected at 98 NM, estimated altitude 14,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 42 minutes
Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 30
B5N1 Kate x 11
B5N2 Kate x 10
D3A1 Val x 27
Allied aircraft
Sea Hurricane Ib x 11
Martlet II x 9
Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 2 destroyed
B5N1 Kate: 1 damaged
B5N1 Kate: 1 destroyed by flak
B5N2 Kate: 1 destroyed by flak
D3A1 Val: 5 damaged
Allied aircraft losses
Sea Hurricane Ib: 1 destroyed
Martlet II: 1 destroyed
Allied Ships
CV Illustrious, Bomb hits 4
CV Indomitable, Bomb hits 5
CVL Hermes, Bomb hits 2, Torpedo hits 1, heavy fires
CLAA Van Heemskerck
CA Devonshire, Bomb hits 1
Aircraft Attacking:
11 x B5N1 Kate bombing from 10000 feet
Naval Attack: 2 x 250 kg SAP Bomb
3 x D3A1 Val bombing from 3000 feet
Naval Attack: 1 x 250 kg SAP Bomb
13 x D3A1 Val bombing from 3000 feet
Naval Attack: 1 x 250 kg SAP Bomb
5 x B5N2 Kate launching torpedoes at 200 feet
Naval Attack: 1 x 18in Type 91 Torpedo
11 x D3A1 Val bombing from 3000 feet
Naval Attack: 1 x 250 kg SAP Bomb
4 x B5N2 Kate launching torpedoes at 200 feet
Naval Attack: 1 x 18in Type 91 Torpedo
Heavy smoke from fires obscuring CVL Hermes
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Morning Air attack on TF, near Great Nicobar at 40,67
Weather in hex: Light cloud
Raid detected at 23 NM, estimated altitude 5,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 15 minutes
Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 17
Allied aircraft
Sea Hurricane Ib x 4
Swordfish I x 15
Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 1 destroyed
Allied aircraft losses
Sea Hurricane Ib: 1 destroyed
Swordfish I: 8 destroyed
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Morning Air attack on TF, near Great Nicobar at 40,67
Weather in hex: Light cloud
Raid detected at 37 NM, estimated altitude 10,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 21 minutes
Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 10
Allied aircraft
Albacore I x 12
No Japanese losses
Allied aircraft losses
Albacore I: 3 destroyed
2) Big air battles over Djambi as well. Japan has embellished the CAP there with many Oscars, suggesting that now oil ports are open up north he doesn't want to lose the supply now, any more than already. The Allies have a few P-38s in the fight, and they hold the line for the most part, losing one, but letting some of the bombers get through for 2 Oil hits.
Morning Air attack on Djambi , at 48,88
Weather in hex: Moderate rain
Raid spotted at 18 NM, estimated altitude 4,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 5 minutes
Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 5
Ki-43-Ic Oscar x 9
Allied aircraft
B-25C Mitchell x 2
Hudson I x 5
P-38E Lightning x 3
P-39D Airacobra x 3
P-40E Warhawk x 1
Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 1 destroyed
Allied aircraft losses
B-25C Mitchell: 2 damaged
Hudson I: 2 destroyed, 1 damaged
Oil hits 2
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Morning Air attack on Djambi , at 48,88
Weather in hex: Moderate rain
Raid spotted at 6 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 2 minutes
Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 2
Ki-43-Ic Oscar x 3
Allied aircraft
A-24 Banshee x 11
P-38E Lightning x 3
P-39D Airacobra x 2
Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-43-Ic Oscar: 1 destroyed
Allied aircraft losses
A-24 Banshee: 1 destroyed, 5 damaged
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Morning Air attack on Djambi , at 48,88
Weather in hex: Moderate rain
Raid spotted at 17 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 4 minutes
Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 1
Ki-43-Ic Oscar x 1
Allied aircraft
B-25C Mitchell x 2
P-38E Lightning x 3
P-39D Airacobra x 3
No Japanese losses
Allied aircraft losses
P-38E Lightning: 1 destroyed
3) Allied strat bombing continues with a failed night attack on Sian Oil, an attack on Singers' shipyard (1 B-26 lost, no damage), 3 Liberators on Brunei Oil for 2 hits, and an HI attack on Kunming for 5 hits with 2706 Fires remaining from previous days' strikes.
4) Prome CAP battles end with the Allies ahead a bit. There is no bombing here, so I wonder. More and more LCUs are approacing Prome, where about 1200 AV are altready digging in.
5) An I-boat SE of Ceylon takes an AG in a supply TF for Port Blair. USS Trigger, patrolling on the deep/shallow line SE of the southern tip of Korea, sinks xAKL Nichiro Maru, under escort. Probably a Resource hauler.
6) In China, a lot of action. A tank LCU (12th Reg. from probe bombing) appears on the yelow road in the high mountains to the east of the Big Stack. It's posisble some supply from Chungking might be getting past it, but not much, which means Chungking's supply deterioration is worse than I thought, and mostly due to bombing. A strong response force commences a march out of Chungking to the west to fight the one LCU camped there, an ID I beleive. Arty comes with.
A probe bombardment is done at Neikiang, to the west of Chungking and a Resource feeder. It is not strongly held, and only has Forts 2+. The stack readying an attack is very tank heavy.
Ground combat at Neikiang (75,44)
Allied Bombardment attack
Attacking force 11807 troops, 108 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 480
Defending force 39013 troops, 224 guns, 553 vehicles, Assault Value = 1366
Allied ground losses:
39 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Assaulting units:
51st Chinese Corps
2nd Chinese Cavalry Corps
3rd Chinese Cavalry Corps
7th Construction Regiment
3rd Group Army
39th Group Army
Defending units:
24th Division
2nd Ind.Mixed Regiment
11th Tank Regiment
3rd Ind.Mixed Brigade
3rd Tank Regiment
10th Tank Regiment
20th Recon Regiment
9th Ind.Mixed Brigade
28th Engineer Regiment
26th Engineer Regiment
1st Army
5th Army
The Big Stack went to 4 miles on its march toward history.
7) Finally, in the PI, the Allies kept up the harrassment bombardments at Bataan. A 3-plane Cat unit due to withdraw in two weeks is snuck into Cebu, which has a small LI installation, and ordered to fly in whatever it can to Bataan as long as it lasts. Bataan is becoming a pride target as June approaches.
