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I thought that the lack of escorts was strange too. Maybe just FOW.

August 16, 1945 Saipan

Intel

Tsushima Fortress is located at Masan.
Imperial Guards Division is located at Maizuru.
Elements of the 2nd Ind. Brigade are located at Kaigan.
61st Air Flotilla is located at Tokyo.
50th Division is located at Krung Thep.
153rd IJA Base Force is located at Marcus Island.
23rd Army is planning for an attack on Kweiyang.
270516 men are based at Sasebo.
280117 men are based at Ominato.
13 men are based at Haiphong.
29th Division is located at Harbin.
Shobu Force is located at Singapore.

Recon

Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Changsha 4 LCUs 5120/45/0
F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Pisanuloke 2 LCUs 2520/0/0
PBM Mariner takes recon photos of Lamon Bay 35 LCUs

Combat

5 USN MSWs found and began sweeping a minefield in Manila Bay.

30 miles S of Victoria Point 2 IJN DDs attacked the SS Spiteful. The sub was rattled, but unharmed and she managed to break contact and continue on her way back to Rangoon.

Tokyo was swept by 126 X P-51D who swooped into the gaggle of 6 X Zeke, 19 X Shinden, 30 X Frank and 45 X Tony. The Japanese lost all of their fighters except for 20 Tonys who fled. 8 Mustangs were shot down and 4 more took damage.

Tavoy was hit for moderate airfield damage and a secondary explosion was seen. A Liberator VI was damaged.

Rahaeng was attacked by 3 X Betty and 2 X Frances (2 damaged) and they were turned away by 12 X Spitfire VIII (2 damaged). The bombs fell harmlessly into the jungle.

Padang was raided by 6 X Helen, 8 X Zero, 7 X Oscar and 26 X Frank. The CAP of 14 X Hellcat II, 26 X Corsair IV and 8 Thunderbolt II engaged them and the Japanese managed negligible damage to the airstrip at the cost of 1 Helen (3 damaged), 8 Zeros, 6 Oscars and 18 Franks downed. The unloading Allied ships were attacked by 8 X Peggy, 3 X Zero, 6 X Oscar and 6 X Frank and the Allied fighters on CAP attacked them. 8 Peggys, 3 Zeros, 4 Oscars and 3 Franks were blasted from the sky while the Allies sustained the loss of a Hellcat and had 2 damaged Corsairs and a damaged Thunderbolt. Despite their best efforts a Peggy managed to dive into the AK Empire Connah setting it on fire.

Gili Gili was raided by Allied planes and the airfield had very light damage done to it. The IJA 21st Division took moderately heavy casualties from Allied aircraft.

Near Toyohara the Karafuto Mixed Brigade suffered through 2 air raids and sustained very heavy casualties. The Japanese had moderate personnel losses from the Allied artillery hammering away at them.

About 17 miles SE of the crossroads the 2nd Construction Battalion was jumped by 15 X B-25J who dished out moderate losses to the unit. Nearby the IJA 13th Ind. Brigade was visited by 35 X B-25J and 20 X P-40N which cost the Japanese unit moderate casualties. No far away 18 X B-25J attacked the IJA 110th Division resulting in moderate losses for the LCU. A Japanese attack absorbed very heavy losses and the Chinese took moderate casualties, but they retreated towards Chungking.

At Lamon Bay the IJA 32nd Ind. Mixed Brigade was struck 3 times for very heavy casualties and no planes were damaged. The IJA 58th Ind. Mixed Brigade had moderate losses from an air raid.

14 miles N of the crossroads the 20th Chinese Corps had heavy casualties from being bombed by 26 X Frances. At 45,29 Japanese artillery accounted for moderate Chinese losses.

Above the crossroads 17 X Frank and 15 X P-40N engaged in a duel that saw the Chinese lose 6 Warhawks.

Naha was raided by 42 X B-25J and the flak claimed 2 of them and damaged 10 more as the airfield was lightly damaged. There were a couple of secondary explosions observed, a George was burning and casualties were negligible.

74 miles SW of Benkolen 8 X Frances, 5 X Sally, 8 X Lily, 8 X Helen, 4 X Peggy, 13 X Zeke, 8 X George, 8 X Jack, 7 X Tojo and 9 X Tony made an attack on the Allied fleet. The CAP of 113 X Corsair IV, 99 X Hellcat II and 27 X Firefly intercepted the Japanese planes and they destroyed all of them at the cost of the loss of 2 Corsairs and 4 Hellcats. 17 Corsairs and a Firefly were damaged in the battle. Shortly afterwards 3 X Frances, 6 X Sally, 3 X Lily, 4 X Helen and 4 X Peggy arrived without any escorts and were all shot down. 5 Hellcats, 7 Corsairs and 2 Fireflys were damaged in the lopsided fight. Then 4 X Helen arrived and died, though they did manage to damage a Hellcat. In the afternoon 3 X Lily were destroyed. Not much time elapsed before 8 X Judy appeared and they too were sent to their ancestors. 3 X Frances arrived later on and they were all splashed while a Firefly was damaged.

Near Pagai Island 11 X Lily, 8 X Zeke and 3 X Oscar were engaged by 6 X Hellcat II, 3 X Corsair IV and 5 X Thunderbolt II. 2 Lilys, 6 Zekes and 1 Oscar went down and a Hellcat took some damage. The AK Samfoyle ate 5 bombs leaving her on fire and heavily damaged with no hope of survival so she was scuttled and a sub picked up the survivors. In the afternoon 11 X Sally and 5 X Helen arrived a little later and 6 Hellcat IIs, 3 Corsair IVs and 5 Thunderbolt IIs managed to down 3 Sallys. The TK Empire Tagealand was hit by 3 bomb hits that did heavy damage and caused uncontrollable fires. The ship was ordered scuttled and her crew was seen rowing towards the safety of the island.

26 miles W of Padang 3 X Betty died trying for the Allied ships and 2 Hellcat IIs were damaged.

Chinese troops are refusing to move from their positions surrounding Chungking. Officers are also refusing their orders and as a result the Chinese forces in the field are on their own.

Admiral Vian is greatly relieved that his pilots staved off a potential disaster. Operation Swift Sword had had it's setbacks and many thought that it was to ambitious and doomed to failure. He has reason to have an optimistic outlook and as soon as more of his CVEs arrive bringing more fighters to bolster his dwindling numbers the easier he'll be able to sleep. The Japanese are flying a very large number of snoopers and he feels that there isn't a single moment that the fleet isn't under watchful, prying eyes.

The truck rumbles along at a speed barely above that of a trot and Jay sways to it's movements catching what sleep he can being lulled to it by the motion and jarred out of it with the jolts from the ruts in the road. The stream of men and vehicles seems endless and silently he prays that they arrive after the fighting is over.

The guys just look at one another and the silence says it all. Tomorrow they are supposed to bomb Tokyo. Of course the weather is iffy and that could prevent their flying. Today the fighters from Tori Shima swept Tokyo and downed a large number of Japanese fighters and the Mustangs are scheduled to sweep the skies again before the bombers arrive. “Where have I ever heard that before?” asks Gil.

The rationing of gasoline and fuel oil has ended in the United States.

Victory Points Allied 96360 (16080 Strategic) Japanese 45045

August 17, 1945 Saipan

Intel

65th Construction Battalion is located at Kagoshima.
68th Construction Battalion is located at Hamamatsu.
5th Division is located at Djokjakarta.
141st IJA Base Force is located at Marcus Island.
144th Division is located at Osaka/Kobe.
North Chishima Fortress is located at Paramushiro Jima.
Kwantung Defense Brigade is located at Changchun.
8th Division is located at Harbin.
2nd Aviation Rgt is located at Mutanchiang.
84th Division is located at Osaka/Kobe.
37th Ind. Mixed Brigade is located at Krung Thep.
11412 men are based at Nagaoka.
69th Ind. Mixed Brigade is located at Osaka/Kobe.

Recon

Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Kweilin 5 LCUs 23440/278/0
F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Bangkok 26 LCUs
PBM Mariner takes recon photos of Lamon Bay 35 LCUs

Combat

In Manila Bay USN MSWs continue to sweep the minefields.

Near Haichow the SS Skate tried and failed to attack a lone AP. The sub's skipper was determined and he guessed correctly and in the afternoon managed to put 2 torpedoes into the target leaving it burning and heavily damaged.

Nagasaki had a CAP of 25 X Frank on patrol when 113 X B-29 and 138 X P-38J arrived. A Lightning was lost and another damaged as they downed 16 Franks while keeping them off of the bombers. The AA fire damaged 3 B-29s and they dished out moderate damage to the heavy industry.

Above Tokyo 1 X Zeke, 8 X Shinden, 22 X Frank and 22 X Tony greeted 142 X B-29, 4 Franks (10 damaged) and 1 Tony (7 damaged) went down and 1 Zeke and 5 Shindens were damaged as the Japanese fighters combined with the flak to destroy 16 bombers and damage 63 more. The heavy industry took damage. The CAP was now reduced to 4 X Shinden and 4 X Frank and a second wave of 137 X B-29 came on. 5 of them were downed and 45 more were damaged from all causes. 3 Shindens and 2 Franks were shot down and the heavy industry took more damage. A Shinden and 3 Franks greeted the third wave of 133 X B-29 and the Shinden was shot up and 2 Franks went down. 8 Superforts were lost and 45 damaged as once more the heavy industry was targeted and damaged. All told it was thought that the heavy industry at Tokyo took very heavy damage. The Japanese had reformed a CAP of 11 X Frank and 9 X Tony when the belated fighter sweep that was supposed to kick off the day finally arrived. 63 X P-51D downed all of the Franks and 6 of the Tonys while having a Mustang damaged.

Sapporo was flying a lone Zeke, who ran, when 188 X B-29 (3 damaged), 61 X B-24D (4 damaged), 13 X P-51D and 3 X P-38J rolled in on the oil production facilities doing light damage.

Shanghai had 2 Georges aloft and they ran as 34 X B-25J roared in. The ground fire downed 3 and damaged 3 of the Mitchells who hit for light airfield damage, and a secondary explosion.

Tavoy managed to damage 7 Liberator VIs as they dropped bombs on the airfield for moderate damage and a secondary explosion.

Rahaeng was raided by 3 X Betty (1 downed, 1 damaged) and 2 X Frances (2 damaged) who were dealt with by 11 X Spitfire VIII (1 damaged). The base was untouched.

Padang was attacked by 7 X Helen (4 downed) and 6 X Frank (1 downed, 1 damaged) and 28 X Hellcat II (5 damaged), 14 X Corsair IV (2 damaged) and 8 X Thunderbolt II (1 downed) attacked the Japanese planes who did negligible damage to the airstrip. Then 6 X Peggy and 2 X Frank made a try for the unloading ships. A Frank and all of the Peggys were downed as 3 Hellcats were damaged. Later 3 X Peggy and 9 X Frank tried for the unloading ships and 4 Franks departed. A Thunderbolt II was damaged.

Gili Gili had very light airfield damage from an air raid.

Near Toyohara the Karafuto Mixed Brigade was tagged twice by aircraft for moderate casualties. Allied artillery struck for negligible Japanese casualties.

At Gili Gili the IJA 21st Division had moderate losses from Allied planes.

14 miles SE of the crossroads the IJA 3rd Construction Battalion sustained moderate losses from an air attack. Nearby the IJA 110th Division was also hit for moderate casualties.

At Lamon Bay the IJA 32nd Ind. Mixed Brigade was struck twice for very heavy losses. The IJA 105th Division had moderate casualties from aircraft. The IJA 61st Ind. Mixed Brigade had moderate losses from an air strike.

24 miles S of Padang the Allied ships were attacked by 6 X Frances, but 13 X Hellcat II and 49 X Corsair IV downed 5 of them. A Corsair was lost and 6 took damage.

Near Pagai Island 4 X Lily, 4 X Zeke, 3 X Oscar and 6 X Frank attacked the AK Samtrusty, missing her.

119 miles W of Teloekbetoeng 2 X Frances, 3 X Sally, 3 X Helen, 9 X Peggy, 2 X Zeke and 2 X George tried to attack the Allied fleet only to all be shot down. 2 Hellcat IIs 4 Corsair IVs (1 downed) and 2 Fireflys were damaged in the melee. Then 3 X Sally gave it a go with all of them being splashed and 2 Corsair IVs taking damage. The Japanese then threw 3 X Helen into the meat grinder and they too were destroyed. Next up were 3 X Lily who also met their doom and a Corsair IV was damaged. 3 X Frances then tried and died, damaging 3 Hellcat IIs.

Naha's defenses downed 2 Invaders and damaged 6 more as they hit the airfield for negligible damage.

219 miles W of Medang 3 Peggys were blasted out of the air and 3 Hellcats and 2 Corsairs were damaged (1 downed).

16 miles N of the crossroads the Chinese had extremely light losses from a Japanese artillery bombardment.

At the debriefing Gil hears, but can't believe his ears. The guys from all of the aircrews are on the verge of refusing to fly. The promised fighter sweep never showed up. The guy debriefing Gil told him that it just arrived late and Gil angrily told the man that a lot of good men were lost over Tokyo because of the fighters who didn't show up. A major calls everyone to attention and demands that the men show proper military courtesy. There is some grumbling and then some of the men start shouting him down screaming about being sent to the slaughter without fighters to protect them. The major threatens everybody with the stockade and most of the men stand up and say, “Send us there, it's better than being killed.” Morale is extremely low and Gil figures that it's the same on Tinian and Guam too. “It'll be a while before they get us to hit Japan or anywhere else for that matter,” says Hoppy.

Jay's ass is numb and his body is sore from the bouncing around in the truck. He wonders how anybody can drive these things around all day, every day. With that thought he nods off again. Al looks at him and wonders how he manages to fall asleep so quickly. One of the other guys says that it's a gift. “Either you can or can't and he can, the lucky slob.” Al hasn't had more than a couple of hours sleep since this journey began and it's starting to get to him.

Harry is told about the Australian plans and he gives his OK to send them more lift capacity. “No APs other than to ferry stuff to Darwin because we need all of them for Thunder and Lightning.”

Victory Points Allied 97778 (17368 Strategic) Japanese 45138

Installments will be erratic until Monday as a house full of company is on the way and a huge BBQ is on order for tomorrow. I'll try, but...

August 18, 1945 Tori Shima

Intel

74255 men are based at Mishan.
Soya Fortress is located at Wakkanai.
14th Field Artillery Regiment is planning for an attack on Chungking.
Elements of the18th Mixed Brigade are located at Haichow.
15th AA Regiment is located at Sapporo.
14th Ind. Brigade is located at Wuhan.
46th Construction Battalion is located at Harbin.
1861 men are based at Okayama.
13th Tank Regiment is planning for an attack on Chungking.
51st Construction Battalion is located at Changchun.
54th Heavy AA Battalion is located at Mutanchiang.
18th Mixed/A Brigade is located at Haichow.
4th Air Division is located at Madioen.

Recon

PBM Mariner takes recon photos of Lamon Bay 34 LCUs

Combat

Nagasaki was struck by 35 X B-29 and 24 X P-51D who ran afoul of 12 X Frank. 3 Franks were splashed and the others turned tail and ran. A B-29 was downed and 3 were damaged by the AA fire. They did moderate damage to the heavy industry.

Tavoy had light airstrip damage, a secondary explosion and very light casualties from an air raid.

Bangkok's port was ravaged by 133 X Liberator VI (18 damaged). There were a large number of secondary explosions and personnel losses were very heavy.

Padang was attacked by 26 X Sally (7 downed, 2 damaged), 11 X Helen (7 downed), 4 X Oscar (3 downed) and 5 X Frank (4 downed) and the CAP did it's job though 3 Hellcats, 3 Corsairs and 2 Jugs were damaged. The airfield was negligibly damaged.

Gili Gili had light airfield damage and the IJA 21st Division had moderate losses from air raids.

15 miles SE of the crossroads the IJA 11th Ind. Brigade was jumped by 29 X B-25J and 19 X P-40N. 12 X Frank gave battle and the Japanese lost a fighter and had 2 more damaged. A Mitchell and 2 Warhawks went down, but the unit took heavy casualties.

Near Mentawi Island the AK Samtrusty was attacked by 8 X Lily, 6 X Oscar and 6 X Frank. A Lily was shot down and the ship ate a bomb that did heavy damage.

121 miles W of Teloekbetoeng 3 X Frances tried for the Allied ships and 2 were splashed while the other ran from the CAP of 69 Hellcat IIs, 52 X Corsair IVs and 22 X Fireflys. A Corsair was damaged. Later 3 X Judy, 3 X Frances, 3 X Lily and 6 X Peggy were all shot down and 5 Hellcats, 2 Corsairs and 2 Fireflys were damaged. 2 X Betty tried to sneak in and 1 was splashed while the other ran. A Corsair was damaged.

31 miles W of Padang 6 X Sally and 6 X Helen were all destroyed as they went for the ships. The CAP of 17 Hellcat IIs and 32 X Corsair IVs did their job but 6 Hellcats and 2 Corsairs were damaged. Later 3 X Betty were shot down.

Near Ominato 2 X Rufe and 49 X Frank mixed it up with 7 X PB4Y and 18 X P-38J. A Liberator was damaged, 7 Lightnings were downed and 2 damaged. The Japanese had 4 Franks destroyed (4 damaged). One of the two MSWs was hit by 2 bombs that did heavy damage and caused fires.

Near Pagai Island 7 X Lily and 3 X Zeke were met by 8 X Corsair IV protecting the AK Empire Connah. A Lily was damaged and a Zeke destroyed and a Corsair was also damaged. 5 bombs struck the hapless ship that was left burning and heavily damaged. The Allied fighters arrived after the bombs were dropped and the word was passed to abandon ship and scuttle her.

16 miles N of the crossroads Japanese artillery doled out moderate Chinese losses.

Near Toyohara the Japanese forces took heavy casualties from the Allied artillery.

None of the officers in command positions have approached any of the air crews as they are afraid of triggering a full fledged mutiny. The Group COs met and they agreed that they can hardly blame their men for the way they feel. Sending unescorted bombers to Tokyo produced unsustainable losses and it shattered morale. Gil wants to write home, but he's still so upset that he can't knowing that by the time the letter got there it would only all be blacked out.

Sam still can't pry a word out of anybody about them getting off of this rock. He got so excited when he heard the scuttlebutt about them going that now it's like torture to stay.

Victory Points Allied 98112 (17392) Japanese 45165

August 19, 1945 Lamon Bay

Intel

14395 men are based at Matsuyama.
24510 men are based at Kitakyushu.
28600 men are based at Wakkanai.
47th Road Construction Battalion is located at Changkufeng.
11th AA Regiment is located at Osaka/Kobe.
7th Coastal Gun Regiment is located at Ominato.
12th Ind. Mixed Regiment is planning for an attack on Wake Island.
41st Heavy AA Battalion is located at Harbin.
46th Division is located at Rabaul.
68th Ind. Mixed Brigade is located at Naha.

Recon

Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Kweilin 5 LCUs 29320/296/0
PBM Mariner takes recon photos of Lamon Bay 29 LCUs
SOC-3 Seagull takes recon photos of Wakkanai 2 LCUs 3100/39/0
F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Bangkok 26 LCUs

Combat

Allied troops unloading over beach at Teloekbetoeng took extremely heavy casualties.

Nagasaki was attacked by 120 X B-29 and there were 7 Franks aloft who made a slashing attack through a box of bombers, having a plane damaged, and then they were gone. 2 Superforts were lost and 11 damaged by the ground fire. The heavy industry was subjected to light damage.

Tavoy was hit by Allied planes for light airfield damage, light port damage, a few secondary explosions were observed and personnel losses were negligible. 2 Liberator VIs and a Mosquito FB.VI were damaged by the AA fire.

Rahaeng was raided by 2 Bettys who missed their target, but did manage to escape from the 12 Spitfire VIIIs who tried in vain to catch them.

Padang had a CAP of 8 X Hellcat II and 22 X Thunderbolt II up when 15 X Sally, 6 X Helen, 9 X Zero, 9 X Oscar and 23 X Frank arrived. A furball ensued that witnessed a Thunderbolt downed and another damaged and the Japanese lost 2 Sallys, 1 Helen, 8 Zeros, 6 Oscars and 14 Franks. The bombs tumbled down harmlessly into the jungle.

Kendari had it's port lightly damaged, moderate damage done to the airstrip, a couple of secondary explosions were seen and casualties were negligible from 2 air strikes. The flak damaged 2 PB4Ys.

Gili Gili had negligible damage done to it's airstrip.

Near Toyohara the IJA Karafuto Mixed Brigade had extremely light losses from an air strike. Allied artillery inflicted moderate casualties on the Japanese.

14 miles SE of the crossroads the IJA 11th Ind. Brigade was struck by 36 X B-25J and 14 X P-40N who tangled with 5 X Tony. A Tony was shot down and the unit had moderate casualties. Nearby the IJA 12th Ind. Brigade was pounced on by 19 X B-25J and 2 X P-40N. 4 Tonys were in the vicinity, but declined to fight and the unit had very light losses.

At Lamon Bay the IJA 16th Division had very light casualties from an air attack. The IJA 32nd Ind. Mixed Brigade was attacked 5 times and absorbed extremely heavy casualties. The IJA 105th Division was hit twice for heavy losses. An Allied attack was made on the Japanese defensive positions and the attackers sliced through the line to take the base. Both sides had extremely heavy casualties and the Japanese forces are in grave danger of being eliminated as an organized defense looks shattered.


24 miles W of the crossroads 22 X Judy attacked the 56th Chinese Corps, administering very light casualties to the unit.

14 miles N of the crossroads 22 X Frances ran into 13 X P-40N and 7 X Frances were shot down and another 5 were damaged. A Warhawk was damaged and the 20th Chinese Corps escaped unharmed as the Japanese dropped their bombs prematurely.

29 miles W of Teloekbetoeng 9 X Peggy went for the Allied ships, but were met by 42 X Hellcat II. The fighters downed 7 of the Peggys and had 3 planes of their own damaged.

119 miles W of Teloekbetoeng 3 X Judy, 22 X Grace, 3 X Sally, 3 X Lily, 3 X Helen and 3 X Peggy vainly tried for the Allied ships, but the CAP of 28 X Hellcat II, 57 X Corsair IV and 22 X Firefly bounced them and splashed all of the Japanese planes except for 2 Lilys who made it to the clouds and escaped. A Hellcat and 2 Corsairs were damaged in the action. Then 2 Graces appeared on the radar screens and fighters were vectored to intercept them. The Japanese planes tried to run, but 1 of them was splashed.

At Wenchow 54 X B-25J (7 damaged), 24 X P-38J and 21 X P-47D did no damage to the port facilities, caused a couple of secondary explosions and attacked an AP in the harbor, hitting it with 2 bombs that started fires and did heavy damage. Some troops were observed diving off of the burning vessel.

32 miles W of Padang 3 Peggys made an attempt on the Allied ships only to have 2 planes shot down by the roving 6 Hellcat IIs and 21 Corsair IVs on CAP duty.

Chinese troops at Chungking continue to refuse all orders of movement.

In the assault on the Japanese at Lamon Bay Jay's unit advanced through heavy fire, taking many casualties. Jay has survived another fight by some miracle. There's something different in this fight though. At Naga the Japanese were tough, well supplied and deadly. At Manila they weren't nearly as tough, they looked hungry and now the Japanese soldiers, though still tough are looking starved and ragged. Al tells Jay to relax, “Look we're alive and nothing else matters. Tomorrow if they tell us to attack again we will and with luck we can argue about this.” Jay looks at Al and just laughs.

One by one the crews have been meeting with their squadron COs. When the Lucky 11 sit down they are told that in the future all will be done to try and insure that there is better co ordination in supplying fighter protection, when needed. In the meantime Mustangs will try and erode Japanese fighter strength. Missions will also be planned for targets that will offer the least resistance. In closing they were also told that discipline must and will be maintained.

Victory Points Allied 98375 (17440 Strategic) Japanese 45218

August 20, 1945 Teloekbetoeng

Intel

17th Reserve Coastal Artillery Regiment is located at Niigata.
5th AF Construction Battalion is located at Singapore.
108th Division is located at Harbin.
2nd Area Army is located at Bandoeng.
4th Mortar Battalion is located at Canton.
15th Mixed Brigade is located at Hong Kong.
10th Mortar Battalion is located at Mutanchiang.
23rd Army is planning for an attack on Kweiyang.
Maizuru Fortress is located at Maizuru.
6th Mongolian Cavalry Division is located at Linhsi.
25th Division is located at Harbin.
10th Construction Battalion is planning for an attack on Tsitsihar.
24749 men are based at Kanazawa.
46659 men are based at Arshaan.

Recon

F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Saigon 3 X AP, 1 LCU 5480/26/0

Combat

A Coronado spotted the BB Hyuga about 289 miles SE of Etorofo Jima.

A Coronado attacked a sub at Ominato and claimed a hit.

Allied troops continued unloading over beach at Teloekbetoeng taking extremely heavy casualties. The unloading Allied ships were attacked by 29 X Judy, 2 X Grace, 21 X Frances, 2 X Sally, 3 X Lily, 2 X Helen, 2 X Peggy, 8 X George and 8 X Tony. 8 X Hellcat II and 8 X Corsair IV managed to catch up to the Japanese planes and 29 X Judy, 6 X Frances (3 damaged), 2 X Sally, 1 X Lily, 2 X Helen, 2 X Peggy, 5 X George and 7 X Tony were shot down by the fighters and the AA fire. A Frances was also damaged in the mayhem. 2 Hellcats were damaged and the Allied ships paid a price today.
AK Empire Activity 1 Kamikaze hit, on fire, heavy damage
AK Mabella 1 Kamikaze hit, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Conrad 1 Kamikaze hit, on fire
AK Empire Concave 1 Kamikaze hit, on fire
AP Empire Wansbeck 4 Kamikaze hits, on fire, heavy damage
Before the AA guns had a chance to cool 3 Lilys arrived and 8 X Hellcat II, 19 X Corsair IV and 4 X Firefly downed 2 of them and the survivor made it into the clouds and ran for home. The Allied troops assaulted the base and took it against virtually no opposition.

Above the crossroads the Japanese came looking for trouble with 16 X Zeke, 18 X Nick and 8 X Tony. They found it in the shape of 13 X P-40N and the furball was on. A Zeke, 3 Nicks and 7 Tonys were shot down and the Chinese lost 6 Warhawks and had another damaged.

Nagasaki was attacked by 45 X B-29 (4 damaged), 91 X B-24J (8 damaged) and 24 X P-51D. The Mustangs splashed 3 of the 5 Franks that were on patrol in the area and the bombers hit their targets for light damage to the heavy industry, heavy port damage, a large number of secondary explosions were reported, many of which were fuel, casualties were placed at moderate and ships in the port were hit.
AK Dowa Maru 3 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
AP Otori Maru 3 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
AP Hsing Yun Maru 6 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
AK Ryuyu Maru 6 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
AP Minto Maru 5 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
AK Namba Maru 5 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
AP Kyuma Maru 5 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
AK Daia Maru 4 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
AK Horaizan Maru 2 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
TK Sarawak Maru 2 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
AK Tatsubato Maru 2 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
AK Rizan Maru 3 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
AP Ayatosan Maru 4 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
AK Maruko Maru 2 bomb hits, on fire
AK Daikyu Maru 3 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
AK Hatsukari Maru 4 bomb hits, on fire, heavy damage
AK Joosan Maru 1 bomb hit, on fire, heavy damage
AK Teiyu Maru 2 bomb hits, heavy damage

Rahaeng was raided by 2 Bettys, 1 of which was shot down by the 10 X Spitfire VIIIs present. A Spit was damaged and no bombs found their target.

Gili Gili had it's airfield lightly damaged and there were negligible personnel losses. The South Seas Det. was hit for heavy casualties by Allied aircraft. The IJA 21st Division was jumped by planes who missed the mark.

Near Toyohara the IJA Karafuto Mixed Brigade was attacked by Allied planes twice and the unit absorbed moderate casualties. Allied artillery caused moderate Japanese troop losses.

Near Lamon Bay the IJA 32nd Ind. Mixed Brigade was bombed 3 times and had very heavy losses. The IJA 105th Division had heavy casualties from 3 air attacks. The IJA 61st Ind. Mixed Brigade was jumped twice and took heavy losses from the marauding Allied planes. The Allied forces attacked the Japanese and squeezed them into a smaller area. Both sides took extremely heavy casualties.

23 miles W of the crossroads the 16th Chinese Corps was hit by 24 X Judy and 3 X Tony for moderate losses.

Shanghai was hit by 103 X B-25J and 107 X P-38J and the 2 Georges aloft tried to run, but the Lightnings nailed 1 of them. The AA fire damaged 10 of the Mitchells and the Allied bombers dished out heavy port damage, some secondary explosions were observed and the MLE Shinfuku Maru ate 6 bomb hits and was burning and heavily damaged.

Wenchow had it's port struck by 44 X B-25J and 24 X P-38J. The flak damaged 3 Mitchells who failed to damage the facilities, but did cause some secondary explosions and the AP Zyuyo Maru was hit by 3 bombs for heavy damage and fires.

The SS Clamagore, 92 miles NW of Kuching, hit an AE with 2 torpedoes that caused heavy damage and fires to erupt.

With the spotting of the IJN BB lurking in the Kurile area the USN is scrambling to put together a fleet to try and catch it. The biggest problem is recalling the ships already at sea so that they can refuel. Subs have been dispatched to try and intercept the IJN ships if they attempt to return to port.

Jay noticed a reflection of himself and he was shocked to see what he looked like. All of the guys look like they are off somewhere a million miles away and are so tired. He never considered that he would look like that too. Today his company pushed forward once again and again they ran into heavy small arms fire. They took some casualties and they actually captured a wounded Japanese soldier. The Jap was in pretty bad shape or he would've managed to kill himself rather than be taken. Jay thinks that it's funny that in order to survive you have to get wounded. He's convinced that everybody will be dead or sent home with wounds.

Stick is bored to death and the only thing keeping him going is his love of flying and the CAPs that he gets to fly.

The Lucky 11 have discussed the situation and they all agree that despite the Army Air Corps being run by a pack of incompetent fools they have a job to do in this war and they'll do it. They're not happy with the way things are, but they have a grim determination to carry on despite lousy circumstances so that they can go home.

Sam still can't get anything out of anybody and his outfit remains on Tori Shima.

Victory Points Allied 98538 (17478 Strategic) Japanese 45250

August 21, 1945 Near Lamon Bay

Intel

27th Engineer Regiment is located at Mutanchiang.
25th Division is located at Harbin.
49th Ind. Mixed Brigade is located at Kadina.
221st Division is located at Tokyo.
Elements of the Mongol Cavalry Division are located at Shanghai.
51st Division is located at Swatow.
104th Division is located at Hong Kong.
4th Construction Battalion is located at Mukden.
54th Heavy AA Battalion is located at Mutanchiang.
16th AA Regiment is located at Krung Thep.
36th Division is located at Wuchow.

Recon

Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Haiphong 3 X AG, 1 X AP
F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Camranh Bay 14 bombers, 20 aux, 3 LCUs 8940/77/0

Combat

PBM Mariner spotted an AK near Haichow, claiming a hit that sent the ship to the bottom.

Above the crossroads 6 Franks circled lazily over the Chinese 16th Group Army. Later on 15 Zekes, 15 Nicks and 2 Tonys arrived and the Franks departed. They just picked up patrolling the area, looking for a fight.

Nagasaki was attacked by 78 X B-24J and 24 X P-51D and there were 9 Franks on duty, but they tried declining battle, loosing a plane to the Mustangs while downing 1 P-51D. The AA fire downed a Liberator and damaged 22 others as they caused light damage to the heavy industry.

Kitakyushu was raided by 25 X B-29 who hit the Nakajima Engine works for very light damage. A second wave of 142 X B-29 and 68 X P-38J arrived a little later and they dished out very heavy damage to the heavy industry. A third wave consisting of 126 X B-29 then struck the Nakajima engine factory for heavy damage.

Hakodate was under the cover of 27 X Tony when 136 X B-29, 48 X B-24D, 20 X P-51D and 44 X P-38J arrived. The fighters went at one another and 13 Tonys were destroyed while the flak downed a B-29 and damaged 3 others and a Liberator was also damaged. The heavy industry sustained moderate damage.

Tokyo was swept by 135 X P-51D who dove into 4 X Zeke, 7 X Reppu, 32 X Shinden, 29 X Frank and 31 X Tony. The melee cost 20 Mustangs downed and 7 damaged as they splashed 3 Zekes, 6 Reppus, 15 Shindens, 21 Franks and 5 Tonys.

Ichang was attacked by 76 X B-25J and 43 X P-40N. 9 X George and 3 X Tony challenged them and 3 Georges and 2 Tonys went down trying to get at the bombers. 6 Warhawks were lost and another was damaged in the dogfight and the ground fire downed a Mitchell and damaged 4 more. The airfield took light damage, there were some secondary explosions, 9 X Frances, 4 X Zero, 1 X Judy, 1 X Dinah and 1 X Jack were destroyed on the ground and casualties were very light.

Tavoy's defenses managed to damage a Mosquito FB.VI as the Allied planes hit the port for moderate damage and there were many secondary explosions seen. Another attack lost a Liberator and 2 more of the bombers were damaged by the AA fire. The airfield was ravaged, there were many secondary explosions and personnel losses were heavy.

Georgetown was flying 4 X Rufe, 9 X George, 4 X Tojo and 10 X Tony when 64 X Mosquito FB.VI, 26 X Thunderbolt II and 24 X P-47D showed up. A Tojo and a Tony survived the battle and the ground fire claimed a Mosquito FB.VI downed and another damaged. The airstrip was lightly damaged, there was a secondary explosion and casualties were very light.

Padang was hit by 6 X Helen, 2 X Zero, 6 X Oscar and 8 X Frank who ran into 14 X Hellcat II, 13 X Corsair IV and 25 X Thunderbolt II. A Helen (1 damaged), 2 Zeros, 5 Oscars and 6 Franks were killed at the cost of a Hellcat and a Thunderbolt being damaged. The bombs fell harmlessly into the jungle.

Kendari had very light airfield damage, a couple of secondary explosions and moderate troop losses in an attack that had 4 Liberators damaged.

Near Lamon Bay the IJA 16th Division was hit by aircraft for heavy casualties. The IJA 32nd Ind. Mixed Brigade was hammered 3 times for extremely heavy losses. The IJA 105th Division took heavy casualties from an air raid. The IJA 61st Ind. Mixed Brigade absorbed moderately heavy losses from a visit made by Allied planes. The Allied attack further compressed the Japanese pocket with both sides having extremely heavy casualties, though it was thought the Japanese lost 3 times as many men in the fighting.

77 miles NW of Changsha the 16th Chinese Corps was attacked by 24 X Judy and 3 X Tony for moderate casualties. The Chinese had light losses from the Japanese artillery barrages.

33 miles W of Padang 3 X Frances were destroyed trying for the Allied ships. The CAP of 50 X Hellcat II and 26 X Corsair IV had 1 of each type get damaged.

Near Padang 18 X Sally, 9 X Peggy, 5 X Oscar and 3 X Frank went after the Allied ships unloading there. 14 X Hellcat II, 13 X Corsair IV and 25 X Thunderbolt II were on the scene as 2 Oscars and a Frank managed to escape. A Hellcat was downed (1 damaged), 6 Corsairs and a Thunderbolt were also damaged as the AK Empire Conningbeg took 3 Kamikaze hits and was heavily damaged and on fire. In the afternoon 2 X Sally, 14 X Peggy, 2 X Oscar and 4 X Frank went after the unloading ships and the CAP caught them. An Oscar and a Frank lived to tell the story as the Allies had a Hellcat, 5 Corsairs and 3 Jugs damaged. No ship was hit. An hour before sunset the order to scuttle the AK Empire Conningberg was given.

Near Teloekbetoeng 3 X Lily, 6 X Peggy, 4 X George, 25 X Irving and 4 X Tony attacked the Allied shipping there. The CAP of 17 X Corsair IV, 17 X Firefly and 21 X Thunderbolt II tried to fight them off having a Firefly and 4 Jugs damaged. All of the Japanese planes will never take to the air again and no Allied ship was harmed. Then 2 Sallys tried to sneak in and were splashed. 3 Helens were destroyed as they too tried to pierce the CAP. Later 3 X Lily were destroyed in their vain attempt to get at the ships.

Naha was hit by 45 X A-26B and 56 X P-38J for light airfield damage, some secondary explosions were claimed, a George was trashed and there were negligible casualties.

Near Ominato 2 Rufes engaged 6 PB4Ys and 11 Lightnings. A Rufe went down and the bombers missed the MSW.

Near Toyohara the Allied troops attacked the Japanese and both sides had heavy casualties.

The Flying Deuces have orders to fly a LRCAP for an inbound convoy tomorrow along with some Mustangs. Stick wonders what could possibly afoot as usually only a squadron gets this kind of assignment, not 2. “The Army is going to need our help,” claims one of the pilots and that draws lots of laughs and comments.

Somebody made sure that the B-29 crews on Saipan heard about the fighter seep over Tokyo. “I guess if they can keep it up then things might get a little bit better for us,” says Gil, wishing that he could really believe it.

Stalin holds a meeting of his staff and tells the generals that they should push harder to complete a plan for the proposed Winter Offensive. “Our armor should knife through them with ease. Remember these aren't the Nazis and their troops aren't prepared to fight armored formations like we can and will throw at them.” There isn't a peep out of anybody, even if they feel that waiting for Spring would be wiser. Dissent can be a hazard to one's career and life.

Jay and Al are busy digging a hole to spend the night in. Jay teases Al about how good a digger he is and Al just shrugs and says something about wanting to be alive for another day. Nobody believes that the Japanese have an attack left in them, but they all dig deep just in case. Today's assault showed that though the Japanese are cornered, starving and outgunned they continue the fight.

Victory Points Allied 99142 (17780 Strategic) Japanese 45329

August 22, 1945 Near Teloekbetoeng

Intel

6th Reserve Tank Regiment is located at Osaka/Kobe.
Ryojun Base Force is located at Port Arthur.
143rd IJA Base Force is located at Alor Star.
6th Army is planning for an attack on Hailar.
1st Reserve AA Regiment is located at Kyoto.
15th Aviation Rgt is located at Batavia.
56th Ind. Mixed Brigade is located at Tarakan.
12th Army is planning for an attack on Chungking.
13 men are based at Haiphong.
Shobu Force is located at Singapore.
22199 men are based at Asahigawa.

Recon

Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Wuchow 3 LCUs 16840/156/0
F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Krung Thep 9 LCUs 16660/135/0

Combat

3 hours before sunup a raid on Padang was made by 8 X Helen who left after dropping their bombs harmlessly.

Near Teloekbetoeng an IJN SAG appeared and the RN swung into action in a bid to protect the landing area that was full of ships containing men, supplies and fuel.
Japanese Ships
BB Kongo 1 shell hit
CA Haguro 24 shell hits
CL Jintsu 12 shell hits
CL Nagara
CL Kitakami 15 shell hits
CL Oi 17 shell hits, on fire
DD Akatsuki
DD Shirakumo 2 shell hits
DD Kaede 13 shell hits, 1 torpedo hits, sunk
DD Yuzuki 2 shell hits, on fire
Allied Ships
BB Prince of Wales 3 shell hits, on fire
BB Howe 3 shell hits
BB King George V 2 shell hits
BB Anson 3 shell hits, 1 torpedo hit, on fire
CA Norfolk 7 shell hits, 1 torpedo hit, on fire, heavy damage
CA Dorsetshire
CL Bermuda 8 shell hits, 1 torpedo hit
DD Verulam 1 shell hit, 3 torpedo hits, sunk
DD Kempenfelt 2 shell hits, on fire
DD Whirlwind 13 shell hits, 1 torpedo hit, on fire, heavy damage
DD Wrangler 1 shell hit
DD Myngs
Both sides were intent on accomplishing their goals and after a brief respite the fight was rejoined.
Japanese Ships
BB Kongo 2 shell hits, on fire, heavy damage
CA Haguro 2 shell hits, on fire
CL Jintsu
CL Nagara 1 shell hit
CL Kitakami 1 shell hit, on fire
CL Oi 2 shell hits, on fire, heavy damage
DD Akatsuki 2 shell hits, on fire
DD Shirakumo 3 shell hits, on fire
DD Yuzuki, on fire
Allied Ships
BB Prince of Wales 4 shell hits, on fire
BB Howe 1 shell hit
BB King George V
BB Anson 1 shell hit, on fire
CA Norfolk 1 shell hit, on fire, heavy damage
CA Dorsetshire
CL Bermuda 1 shell hit
DD Kempenfelt, on fire
DD Whirlwind 2 shell hits, sinks
DD Wrangler, on fire
DD Myngs 1 shell hit
An hour after sunup 6 X Lily, 5 X Peggy, 6 X Judy, 2 X Irving and 3 X Tony were engaged by the CAP which had 5 Jugs damaged as they downed all of the Japanese planes. Next up were 4 Sallys and they were splashed as 5 Thunderbolts were damaged. Then it was 2 Helens splashed by the CAP. 5 Judys were destroyed and a Jug was damaged in another attempt on the ships.

Above the crossroads the Chinese 16th Group Army watched 6 Franks cruising around looking for a fight. They departed and were replaced by 14 Zekes, 15 Nicks and 2 Tonys. No Chinese aircraft ever appeared.

Tavoy had it's port lightly damaged and there were many secondary explosions seen. AA fire damaged 4 Liberator VIs and 3 Mosquito FB.VIs.

Rahaeng was raided by 3 Bettys who missed with their bombs and then 9 Spitfire VIIIs (1 damaged) chased them away damaging 2 of the Bettys.

Kendari's airstrip had light damage and a couple secondary explosions and the flak damaged 4 PB4Ys and a B-24J in the 2 air attacks.

Gili Gili was struck for very light airfield damage and a secondary explosion was seen. Then the IJA 21st Division was hit for heavy losses.

Near Toyohara the IJA Karafuto Mixed Brigade went through 2 air strikes that inflicted very heavy losses on the unit. An Allied assault pushed the Japanese back with extremely heavy casualties and the Allies had heavy losses.

Near Lamon Bay the IJA 16th Division absorbed very heavy casualties from 2 air raids. The IJA 32nd Ind. Mixed Brigade was hammered 5 times by Allied planes for extremely heavy losses. The IJA 105th Division had heavy casualties after being hit twice. The Allied forces attacked again today and both sides had extremely heavy losses. It was suspected that the Japanese had 3 to 4 times as many casualties in the fight.

14 miles W of the crossroads the 16th Chinese Corps had moderate losses from an attack made by 22 X Judy and 3 X Zero. A Japanese attack on the Chinese positions resulted in both sides having very heavy casualties. The Chinese troops retreated towards Kweiyang.

Near Ominato a Rufe was up when 5 X PB4Y arrived. The Rufe gave the bombers a wide berth and they went after 2 MSWs, 1 of which was hit by a bomb for heavy damage and fires.

Near Hakodate 17 X Tony met 6 X PB4Y and they damaged 2 of the bombers while saving the DD from being hit by the prematurely dropped bombs.

18 miles W of Pagai Island 3 Bettys (2 downed) tried for the Allied ships and a Corsair was damaged. Later 3 Sallys tried and died as 2 Corsairs were damaged.

Near Padang 2 Sallys and 6 Peggys were shot down by the CAP and a Corsair was shot down and 3 Spitfire VIII and a Thunderbolt II were damaged. Later 2 Sallys, 6 Peggy, 2 Oscars and 2 Franks were met by the CAP and a Hellcat II, 4 Corsair IVs and 1 Thunderbolt II took damage as all of the Japanese planes will never go home, but the AK Empire Lizard took a Kamikaze hit and was burning with heavy damage.

27 miles NW of Pagai Island 13 X Betty, 7 X Frances, 8 X Lily, 3 X Peggy, 3 X Zeke, 6 X Frank and 6 X Randy attacked and 2 Bettys and a Frank survived the fight. A Hellcat II and 11 Corsair IVs were damaged, but the dropped fish missed. 3 Oscars and 3 Lilys attacked and an Oscar survived and 3 Corsairs were damaged.

Georgetown's CAP of 1 Rufe, 1 Tojo and 2 Tonys was downed by 21 X P-47D on a sweep.

In London serious questions are beginning to be asked as the RN's showing against an inferior and outgunned IJN fleet was not up to expectations, to say the least. Also why undamaged ships retired when their orders were clear as to the need to protect the unloading ships.

In Washington some smug USN officers are feeling justified for denying support to the RN for it's current operation.

Tokyo Rose is praising Japan's glorious aviators and sailors for their victories against the British. The war weary UK finds itself unable to kick the Japanese out of their positions once a foothold is gained things bog down. Today's action by the RN against the IJN fared no better and discontent with the war grows on the home front.

Stick got out of his cockpit and dropped off of the wing. “As usual nothing but us lonely hunters up there,” he said to the crew chief.

Al looks and Jay and asks, “Are you OK? Are you hit?” Jay answered that he's OK, just sore as hell, tired and that he wants to go home. Al points to all of the blood on Jay's uniform and Jay tells him it was from that wounded guy he dragged to cover. “He died anyway.”

The US War Office estimates that there are 250,000 POWs and civilian internees being held by the Japanese.

Victory Points Allied 99332 (17780 Strategic) Japanese 45402

Seeing this AAR pass the 70K barrier in it's number of hits I'm amazed and humbled. I never considered how tough it would be to maintain this throughout the years and I thank you, the readers for coming to this dead forum to read my efforts. [&o] If you have questions concerning game play, strategies or anything else please feel free to jump in and ask or post comments.

August 23, 1945 Near Lamon Bay

Intel

8th Area Army is located at Dobodura.
31st Heavy AA Battalion is located at Aomori.
65th Division is located at Nanning.
117th IJN Base Force is located at Inch'on.
127 aircraft are based at Gumma.
5th AA Regiment is located at Gumma.
4th Engineer Regiment is located at Hong Kong.
117th Division is located at Tientsin.
123rd IJNAF Base Force is located at Swatow.
2505 men are based at Ikitsuki.
50546 men are based at Hungnam.
8th Ind. Brigade is planning for an attack on Chungking.
25th Special Base Force is located at Rabaul.
11th Ind. Mixed Regiment is located at Paramushiro Jima.

Recon

Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Nanning 10 LCUs 37600/367/0
F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Victoria Point 7 LCUs 9500/42/0

Combat

14 Helens made a night raid on Padang, dropping their bombs well away from where they intended to.

The SS O19, 31 miles N of Soerabaja, spotted and attacked a CA thought to have been the Haguro, hitting it with a torpedo that caused heavy damage and fires.

At the crossroads the Chinese 16th Group Army watched 11 Franks mill about and then get replaced by 14 Zekes and 15 Nicks. No Chinese planes were around so finally all of the Japanese fighters returned home.

Ichang was attacked by 76 X B-25J and 53 X P-40N who were opposed by 3 X George, 2 X Zero and 4 X Tony. 2 Georges, a Zero and 3 Tonys were shot down at the cost of 2 Warhawks (1 damaged) lost. The AA fire downed a Mitchell and damaged 7 others. The airfield was moderately damaged, there were a couple of secondary explosions claimed, 3 X Frances were destroyed and casualties were very light.

Kendari was raided by Allied planes who couldn't pierce the low lying clouds that blanketed the area so they departed.

Gili Gili's airstrip was lightly damaged in an air raid and the IJA 21st Division had moderately heavy losses from another air attack.

Near Toyohara the IJA Karafuto Mixed Brigade was hit twice by aircraft for heavy casualties. The Japanese were attacked and had extremely heavy losses from the Allied troops who absorbed moderately heavy casualties of their own. The Japanese are now surrounded and in a small, shrinking pocket.

14 miles W of the crossroads the 16th Chinese Corps was struck by 22 X Judy and 3 X Jack for light losses.

Near Pagai Island 11 X Lily, 2 X Zeke and 2 X Oscar attacked the AK Empire Lizard. 4 Kamikaze hits caused heavy damage and raging fires. 5 X Corsair IV, 4 X Spitfire VIII and 5 X Thunderbolt II downed and Oscar. A short time later the crew was swimming for the nearby island harboring hopes of being picked up.

Naha was attacked by 36 X A-26B (2 downed, 8 damaged) and 54 X P-38J. There was negligible damage done to the airstrip and a secondary explosion was seen.

Near Ominato 4 X PB4Y and 3 X P-38J attacked a PC, hitting the craft with a bomb that set it on fire. A Rufe was chased away by the Lightnings. Later 4 X PB4Y and 15 X P-38J arrived and 3 of the bombers were damaged as they tried in vain to hit a DD. Once again the Allied fighters chased away a Rufe.

Near Lamon Bay the Japanese positions were assaulted and they suffered horrific losses. The Allies sustained extremely heavy casualties.

“Can you believe these guys just won't quit?” Jay looks at Al and tells him it's always been this way. Al is slowly becoming more and more withdrawn towards all of the guys and constantly is glancing all around. Jay thinks that Al's nerves are just about shot as it's clear that he has a bad case of the jitters. Their platoon was subjected to more casualties today as they shredded the Japanese. Jay couldn't believe how many people died today for some corner of the earth that absolutely nobody cares for or will even remember. He swears to himself that if he ever survives the war he'll never again get involved in any kind of violence.

Red and Cookie have taken to teaching Lucky new things as there's not much else for them to do in their spare time. Red has almost nothing but spare time and he has even volunteered to help in the galley. “That bad?” asked Cookie.

Gene wearily heads for something to eat on his way home. The job pays really well, but having to deal with people can be a real pain in the neck. They listen to him and do their jobs without the bickering, but sometimes he finds that he misses being a welder in the yard as it was simple to take orders instead of giving them. So far their search for a better way has turned up nothing, but he's convinced that given enough time they will and through stronger welds sub will be able to dive deeper.

Victory Points Allied 99645 (17780 Strategic) Japanese 45437

August 24, 1945 Pittsburgh

Intel

2nd Mixed Regiment is located at Hangchow.
51st Division is located at Swatow.
41st Division is located at Hong Kong.
2nd Aviation Rgt is located at Mutanchiang.
1st Air Division is planning for an attack on Chungking.
91082 men are based at Camranh Bay.
124th Division is planning for an attack on Mishan.
152nd Division is located at Tokyo.
Elements of the 3rd Mongolian Cavalry Division are located at Tsingtao.
94th Division is located at Singapore.
120th Division is located at Tokyo.
160th IJNAF Base Force is located at Osaka/Kobe.
Kitachishima Fortress is located at Paramushiro Jima.
1st Guards Mixed Brigade is located at Tokyo.
52nd Naval Guard Unit is located at Truk.

Recon

Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Nanning 7 fighters, 9 aux, 3 LCUs 16200/106/0
F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Victoria Point 7 LCUs 19460/103/0

Combat

The SS Dace was attacked by 3 PCs 25 miles E of Kragen. Even though there is no flooding the sub is curtailing her patrol with light systems damage which will require some yard time.

Once more the Chinese 16th Group Army, at the crossroads watched some Franks mill about above them.

Georgetown had it's airstrip moderately damaged in an air raid. There were a few secondary explosions, casualties were negligible and of the CAP of a Tojo and 2 Tonys only the Tojo survived.

Near Toyohara the IJA Karafuto Mixed Brigade had moderately heavy losses from 2 air attacks. The Allied assault inflicted very heavy casualties on the Japanese and the Allied absorbed very light losses themselves.

Near Ominato the usual Rufe was present and ran at the first sign of trouble. 3 PB4Ys (1 damaged) hit a PC with a bomb the set the craft on fire. Then 3 PB4Ys and 2 P-38Js came on and a DD was left burning from a bomb hit. Later in the day 3 X PB4Y (1 damaged) and 4 X P-38J hit a PC with 2 bombs for heavy damage and fires.

Near Teloekbetoeng 4 X Judy tried to get at the unloading ships only to be shot down by the CAP. Then 3 X Sally, 3 X Lily, 13 X Peggy, 9 X Judy, 3 X Irving and 5 X Tony arrived and all of them were splashed before they could cause any damage. 2 Corsairs, a Firefly and 6 Jugs were damaged in the running battle. Next up were 7 X Sally who were all downed. Later on 5 X Helen arrived and they too were killed before they reached the ships. Another strike of 6 X Lily, 2 X Irving and 3 X Tony was shot down and 2 Jugs took damage.

The SS Blackfin tried and failed to get at a DD 19 miles NW of Pontianak.

Near Lamon Bay the Allied attack suffered extremely heavy losses as did the Japanese. The loss ratio was thought to have been 10:1 with the Japanese on the short end of the stick.

“See, you made it through another day. You must be a lucky guy,” Jay tells Al. Al is doubtful about his being lucky and says so. He reminds Jay that it was he who said the only ones that'll survive this war are the wounded who get shipped home. “I said something stupid like that? Nah, I'm going to make it because I don't volunteer and I have no desire to win medals. You and I are going to make it and that's that.” Jay is trying to convince himself as much as AL, maybe even more, because this meat grinder must be hell on earth.

Elaine got a letter from Gil today. It was delivered by somebody from the next street with the same house number. “The regular guy must've been off today,” the person said as they handed her the letter. It said the usual stuff and made no mention of anything other than he's amazed that the Japanese haven't given up yet. Some men have returned from Europe, but they complain about not being mustered out yet as “their” war is over. Elaine wants Gil to come home.

Jim idly sits watching a poker game that's been going on continuously for 3 days now. Players drift in and out and almost all of the money resides with the guys playing now. There's nothing to do except for maintenance of the equipment. They're told that they'll have plenty to keep them busy as soon as the new planned operation kicks off. The CO said that “After the Japs have been pushed out they'll be working on the port and airfield nonstop until the job is done.”

Victory Points Allied 99931 (17780 Strategic) Japanese 45456

August 25, 1945 Washington DC

Intel

4th Air Army is located at Tokyo.
4th Air Division is located at Bandoeng.
2nd Mixed Regiment is located at Hangchow.
49th Construction Battalion is planning for an attack on Hailar.
8th Heavy Artillery Brigade is located at Mutanchiang.
36th Construction Battalion is located at Georgetown.
139th IJA Base Force is located at Truk.
81st Naval Guard Unit is located at Kuala.
7th Construction Battalion is located at Sining.
8 men are based at Haiphong.
13th Tank Regiment is located at Canton.
57th Construction Battalion is located at Maizuru.

Recon

F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Pisanuloke 2 LCUs 7060/10/0
Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Bandou vacant

Combat

23 miles E of Kragen the SS Dace tracked and attacked a lone TK, hitting it with 2 torpedoes that set it on fire and caused heavy damage.

9 X Helen conducted a night raid on Padang, doing no damage.

The SS Haddo, 161 miles NW of Kuching, attacked a DD and hit it with a torpedo that did heavy damage and triggered a blaze to break out.

The SS Torbay was on patrol 374 miles NW of Padang when they spotted and attacked what was thought to have been the CVE Kaiyo. A torpedo hit the target and the ship was burning and heavily damaged. The sub's crew had been dejected when they were assigned this patrol sector as it had always been a fruitless area, but they now are angered that they couldn't finish the ship.

Georgetown was raided by 50 X Mosquito FB.VI (1 downed, 1 damaged) and the lone Tojo in the air offered no opposition. The airstrip was moderately damaged and 2 Rufes were destroyed at their revetments.

Gili Gili had very light airfield damage from an air strike and then the IJA 21st Division was pounced on for moderate losses.

Near Lamon Bay the IJA 32nd Ind. Mixed Brigade was hammered 6 times by Allied aircraft for extremely heavy casualties.
The IJA 105th Division was hit twice for heavy losses. The IJA 58th Ind. Mixed Brigade had heavy casualties from an air strike. An Allied attack on the beleaguered Japanese took vast swaths of ground, inflicted staggeringly heavy Japanese casualties and the Allied forces had heavy losses of their own. The remaining Japanese are now encircled, starving and are fighting with whatever they can scrape together in an unorganized resistance.

Near Teloekbetoeng 3 Lily were splashed as they tried for the ships and a Jug was damaged. Then 2 Helens had a go and met the same fate. 3 more Lilys appeared and they too were splashed. 2 Irvings came in off of another vector, but they met their doom long before gaining sight of the Allied ships. A short time later 2 X Peggy, 5 X Judy and 4 X Tony made a run at the ships and they too were shot down and a Jug was damaged. It appears that since the airfield has been expanded and the CAP flying from there is now larger, lessening the reliance on the LRCAP supplied by the RN that it's become a killing ground for the Japanese planes to enter.

Above the crossroads the Chinese 16th Group Army was entertained by 9 Franks on a sweep.

Kendari had it's airfield attacked twice for light damage by Allied planes and a PB4Y was damaged.

Near Padang 2 Peggys died trying to get at the Allied ships.

38 miles NW of Padang 10 X Betty, 6 X Frances, 3 X Sally, 3 X Peggy, 2 X Zero, 3 X Oscar and 2 X Frank came hunting for the Allied ships and were intercepted by 57 X Corsair IV. A Betty and an Oscar survived the lopsided running battle. No ships were ever in danger.

Near Toyohara the Allied assault swept aside the Japanese defenders, inflicting horrific losses on them. There were no reports of Allied casualties by some miracle.

General Marshall has taken great pleasure in informing the President that all organized Japanese resistance in the Toyohara area has been eliminated. He went on to say that the same is expected to occur near Lamon Bay within the next day or so. “Once this has been accomplished we have to relocate our ground forces, refit them and then the next operation can begin.” Truman thanks the general and the meeting ends.

PM Attlee is at the Admiralty and the concern there is about the CVE that was reportedly hit by the SS Torbay. What everyone is trying to find out is what else the IJN has in the area. Ships are being ordered to reorganize and concerns about Teloekbetoeng being able to defend itself from air and naval attacks are being addressed. “The number of fighters present should be enough to protect the unloading ships. We have cobbled together a TF that will hopefully be up to the task of dealing with that aspect of the defense. Meanwhile ground troops heave been ordered to advance on Palembang.” With that the briefing ends and Attlee thanks them and then departs.

7 U-boat men were executed at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas for the murder of a fellow U-boat man, Warner Drechsler, who they judged a traitor.

Victory Points Allied 100609 (17780 Strategic) Japanese 45481

August 26, 1945 Lamon Bay

Intel

Kwantung Area Army is located at Changchun.
24566 men are based at Seoul.
52nd Construction Battalion is located at Changchun.
45th Construction Battalion is located at Harbin.
25th Engineer Regiment is located at Sendai.
4th Construction Battalion is located at Mukden.
231st Division is located at Matsue.
322nd Division is located at Aomori.
351st Division is located at Sasebo.
14570 men are based at Nagasaki.
133rd Division is located at Hangchow.
139th Division is planning for an attack on Chiamussu.
11th Army is located at Canton.
7th Division is located at Wakkanai.
44th Division is located at Osaka/Kobe.

Recon

F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Krung Thep 9 LCUs 37540/329/0
Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Songkhia 1 LCU 0/0/66

Combat

12 Helens conducted a night raid on Padang and both sides had no harm done to them.

5 Franks flew a racetrack pattern over the Chinese 16th Group Army located at the crossroads looking for Chinese planes that never showed up.

Tavoy's AA fire damaged a Liberator VI and 3 Mosquito FB.VIs in an attack that caused moderate port damage, many secondary explosions and light casualties.

Bangkok was bombed by 159 X Liberator VI and the flak downed 1 and damaged 12 of the bombers. The airfield took extremely heavy damage, there were very many secondary explosions observed and personnel losses were very heavy.

Georgetown was raided by 60 X Mosquito FB.VI and a lone Tojo fled. The airstrip was lightly damaged, a couple of secondary explosions were seen and casualties were light.

Kendari was raided 3 times by Allied planes and suffered light airfield damage, a couple of secondary explosions were claimed and troop losses were light. A B-24J went down and another was damaged by the ground fire as was a pair of PB4Ys that limped away trailing smoke.

Near Lamon Bay the IJA 32nd Ind. Mixed Brigade was pelted by Allied air power 3 times resulting in the unit sustaining extremely heavy casualties. The Allied attack on the Japanese sustained very light losses and inflicted extremely heavy casualties on the Japanese, crushing organized resistance.

Near Ominato 6 PB4Ys and 23 Lightnings attacked a PC, but failed to harm it. The Rufe flying in the area flitted from cloud to cloud avoiding certain doom.

Near Teloekbetoeng 4 Judys failed to reach the ships as the CAP of 3 X Corsair IV, 8 X Firefly, 6 X Spitfire VIII, 19 X Thunderbolt II and 3 X P-47D blasted them from the sky. A short time later 3 Judys also were splashed as they went for the unloading ships. Next up were 2 Lilys, 3 Peggys and 4 Tonys and they met with a similar fate. 3 Sallys appeared at almost the same time from a different direction, but that didn't save them from being shot down. 3 Helens then came on and the only difference was that this time a Thunderbolt II was damaged as the Japanese planes were destroyed. In the early afternoon 3 Irvings gamely sacrificed themselves to no avail. Then it was 3 Lilys who died in the attempt, though a Spit and a Thunderbolt II were damaged. Before sunset 5 X Zero appeared and were splashed by the CAP. Then another 3 X Zero tried and died.

Naha's airfield was the target for an air raid by Allied aircraft and 10 Mitchells and 2 Invaders were damaged in the raids that caused moderately heavy damage to it, many secondary explosions were claimed and casualties were placed at moderate.

Near Padang 3 X Betty, 2 X Sally, 7 X Peggy and 30 X Frank went after the unloading ships. The CAP of 32 X Hellcat II, 9 X Corsair IV and 6 X Thunderbolt II engaged them in a wild furball in which 2 Hellcats were damaged. The ships were protected and the Japanese had 2 Bettys and 8 Franks survive the battle.

Stalin declares that everything needs to move faster. He wants to surprise the Japanese, but even if the element of surprise is lost he's going to hit them and hit them hard in 2 different spots at the same time. The flanking move will force Harbin's defenders to fall back or risk being cut off.

Jay drains his canteen and takes his spare, pouring the tepid water over his head. Today was a cakewalk and now his unit is expected to board trucks that will return them to Manila. Scuttlebutt has it that ships are waiting in Manila Bay to take them to the next place the Japanese need to be evicted from. Jay doesn't care, he's just enjoying the moment knowing that tomorrow he won't be in combat. Al looks at him and says, “We're still alive and in 1 piece.”

Stick was scratched from today's CAP mission as he's running a fever. He tells the guys to be on their toes as he won't be there to protect them as they're heading off to the squadron's ready hut. He feels rotten that he's missing a chance to fly, but he's burning up and one of the guys who isn't flying this morning offers to bring some chow back to the hut for him. Stick says thanks, but he really doesn't care as he just wants to lay in his cot and fall asleep.

Victory Points Allied 100839 (17780 Strategic) Japanese 45508

August 27, 1945 On The Road To Manila

Intel

1723 men are based at Fushan.
6654 men are based at Saigon.
22nd AA Regiment is located at Osaka/Kobe.
Nanking Naval Guard Unit is located at Nanking.
11795 men are based at Nagaoka.
Osaka Base Force is located at Osaka/Kobe.
15th Mixed Brigade is located at Hong Kong.
17543 men are based at Paramushiro Jima.
52nd Road Construction Battalion is located at Sining.
55th Construction Battalion is located at Wuchow.
3rd Guards Division is located at Shimuzu.
111th IJA Base Force is located at Hong Kong.
144th IJA Base Force is located at Pisanuloke.
137 aircraft are based at Mukden.
31st Heavy AA Battalion is located at Aomori.

Recon

F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Tavoy 13 LCUs 97700/923/14
Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Alor Star 5 LCUs 16380/131/0
Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Soerabaja 22 X AP, 8 X DE, 1 X CL, 2 X CA, 3 X APD, 1 X TK, 1 X AK, 11 LCUs 23000/87/0

Combat

Dobodura is occupied by the Allies

A night attack on Padang was made by 9 Helens and no bombs hit anything of value.

The SS Torbay reacquired the CVE Kaiyo about 621 miles W of Padang and promptly hit it with a torpedo that did in the ship. The crew was jubilant at having sunk a carrier, even if it only was a CVE. When they return to their base it'll be with a swagger.

Kendari was raided by Allied planes three times and had very light airfield damage and a couple secondary explosions. A B-24J was damaged.

Gili Gili had very light damage to it's airfield from an air attack. The South Seas Det. was hit by another strike and had heavy casualties.

Near Ominato the ever present Rufe ran when 3 PB4Ys and 5 Lightnings arrived and they attacked a DD, but missed. Another strike of 2 PB4Ys and 2 Lightnings arrived a little later and they hit an MSW with 2 bombs, causing it to sink. In the afternoon 2 PB4Ys and 7 Lightnings went after a PC in the same area, but missed.

Near Padang 3 Peggys and 5 Franks went after the ships. 2 Franks survived the fight with the CAP and a Hellcat and a Spitfire were damaged.

159 miles NW of Padang 4 X Betty and 8 X Frances ran afoul of 27 X Hellcat II and 52 X Corsair IV on CAP duty. 5 Hellcats and a Corsair were damaged as they downed all of the Japanese planes. Later 3 Bettys and 5 Franks arrived and they were turned away having 2 Bettys and a Frank shot down, a Hellcat II was damaged. Later in the day 9 X Betty, 7 X Frances, 3 X Peggy and 2 X Frank went for the ships and a lone Frank survived. 2 Hellcats and 3 Corsairs were damaged in the fight.

While the units are transported to Formosa for refitting and then shipping out to their next target the Navy goes ahead with plans to rest the fleet before making a carrier raid on Japan itself. In the meantime supplies and fuel will be amassed on Formosa pending Operation Thunder.

“Ya know it was just the other day that we were heading in the opposite direction,” one of the guys says as they bounce down the road in a deuce and a half. Jay is dozing and AL is having a smoke. Overall the guys in the squad look forward to some decent food and sleep.

Red and Cookie look at the message from their lawyer and once again agree that the worst that can happen is that they go broke. With the permission of Captain Demesa they send a message to the headquarters in Honolulu of the shipping company that owns the Palawan. The message will then be forwarded to their lawyer and if all goes well addition land will be a part of their growing empire. Red and Cookie joke about how after the first purchase it was so easy to get bank loans and now they are in so deep that they try not to think about it. Lucky shows up carrying a towel that Red gave him to use as a bed. The dog is looking for a tug of war with anybody willing to give it a go. Red comments about how strong the dog is and that he'd hate to ever have Lucky turn on him.

Victory Points Allied 101025 (17780 Strategic) Japanese 45522

August 28, 1945 Darwin

Intel

72nd Air Flotilla is located at Tokyo.
7399 men are based at Pisanuloke.
225th Division is located at Maizuru.
54th Heavy AA Battalion is located at Mutanchiang.
Elements of the 8th Mongolian Cavalry Division are located at Kungchang.
14th Army is located at Victoria Point.
42nd AA Regiment is located at Harbin.
7th AF Construction Battalion is located at Soerabaja.
73rd Division is located at Nagoya.
134th Ind. Mixed Brigade is located at Mutanchiang.
1st Tank Div is located at Changchun.
2928 men are based at Nagato.
84361 men are based at Naha.

Recon

F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Tavoy 13 LCUs 97880/901/13
Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Alor Star 5 LCUs 18740/157/0

Combat

Padang was attacked at night by 9 Helens. No damage was done.

Tavoy's AA fire damaged 6 Liberator VIs and 1 Mosquito FB.VI as the Allied planes hit the port for moderate damage, there were many secondary explosions seen and casualties were very light.

Gili Gili's airstrip had very light damage and the IJA 21st Division took heavy losses in a pair of air attacks.

Near Ominato a PB4Y was damaged as Allied aircraft went after a DD that avoided harm. The ever lurking Rufe was splashed as another strike arrived and an MSW was hit by 2 bombs for heavy damage and was burning.

Kendari had a secondary explosion in an air raid.

Upon returning home from Forbes Field with her father Elaine checked the mailbox, but there was nothing there for her. Now she's as dejected as her father. His beloved Pirates lost 6-3 to the Cubs in the series opener.

Sandy thanks her father's pal for the delivery of the letters and she immediately places them in chronological order. She got 8 letters today and her chores around the house will suffer for it.

When Pete sees John Doe he asks where he's been and the answer was, “North.” Pete laughs at the answer knowing that John couldn't tell him anyway. As some people drift in for lunch he takes off and joins Sylvia and Pearl for some lunch of his own. Sometimes being the boss has it's advantages, but sometimes not. Just as he sits down with a full plate in front of him there's a knock on the door. The bartender has taken sick and Pete must get back to work immediately. He grabs his plate and tells the girls that he'll see them later.

Victory Points Allied 101043 (17780 Strategic) Japanese 45464

August 29, 1945 Manila

Intel

Home Defense Force is located at Tokyo.
10th Division is planning for an attack on Heiho.
Hunchun Garrison Regiment is located at Changkufeng.
50th Construction Battalion is located at Kyoto.
41st Heavy AA Battalion is located at Harbin.
9th Ind. Brigade is located at Changsha.
11th Division is located at Mutanchiang.
63rd Division is located at Chengting.
101st IJA Base Force is located at Naha.
354th Division is located at Tokyo.

Recon

F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Tavoy 13 LCUs 96720/909/14
Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Alor Star 2 aux, 5 LCUs 28360/256/0

Combat

A night air attack on Padang by 9 Helens accomplished nothing.

The SS Darter, 24 miles E of Kragen, was stalking 3 PCs when she was detected, attacked and sunk.

Above the crossroads 20 Franks loitered and the men of the Chinese 16th Group Army watched them. Japanese artillery roared throughout the day off and on resulting in moderate Chinese losses.

At Gili Gili the IJA 21st Division was struck for moderately heavy casualties by Allied planes.

Kendari was raided by Allied aircraft for light port damage, a couple of secondary explosions and negligible personnel losses.

Marcus Island was hit by 22 X PB4Y for negligible airstrip damage.

Gil leaves the briefing knowing that if the weather clears he'll be going to Shimuzu tomorrow. He wonders if there will be fighters in the sky and whose they will be. Before turning in for the night he writes another letter to Elaine and then one to his family.

Jay jumps off the truck and sprains his ankle. Al helps him to their area, the whole time teasing Jay about not getting hurt in combat and then hurting himself because he's clumsy. The other guys share in the laugh and the one lugging Jays gear calls him a klutz. Jay doesn't know it, but he just got a new name that will follow him for as long as he's in the unit.

Sam stay behind as the other noncoms leave the meeting. He corners his company CO and says, “Skipper, is there any word on our getting out of this place?” He is told that he'll be one of the first in the company to know when they have transport orders. Sam thanks him and head back to his squad non the wiser.

Lists of the first war criminals to be tried at Nuremberg have been drawn up by a “4 Power” Commission in London. Goring, Hess, von Ribbentrop, D. Ley, Rosenberg, D. Frank, Streicher, Keitel, D. Funk, von Shirach, D. Schacht, Sauckel, Prof. Speer, Borman, von Papen, Jodl, Krupp, Donitz, Baron von Neurath, Seyss-Inquart and Frische were named.

Victory Points Allied 101052 (17780 Strategic) Japanese 45498

August 30, 1945 Saipan

Intel

7th Engineer Regiment is located at Mutanchiang.
8th Hvy Field Artillery Regiment is planning for an attack on Broome.
37th Ind. Mixed Brigade is located at Krung Thep.
322nd Division is located at Aomori.
Home Defense Force is located at Tokyo.
3231 men are based at Anshan.
293098 men are based at Maizuru.
7th Division is located at Wakkanai.
68th Construction Battalion is located at Hamamatsu.
1856 men are based at Okayama.
211857 men are based at Masan.
50723 men are based at Kadina.
29th Division is located at Harbin.
107th Division is planning for an attack on Hailar.
137th Division is located at Tokyo.
20th Army is located at Mutanchiang.

Recon

No reports

Combat

In the middle of the night Padang was attacked by 9 Bettys. Both sides were unharmed.

Matsuyama was hit by 31 X B-29 for very light damage to the Mitsubishi engine plant.

Hamamatsu was raided by 92 X B-29, who ran into 8 X Zeke, 26 X Frank and 24 X Tony. The Japanese fighters tore into the bomber formations and then departed having lost 2 Zeke (4 damaged), 3 Franks (20 damaged) and 5 Tonys (14 damaged). Then the AA defenses went to work and the Americans lost 11 B-29s and 52 more were damaged from all causes. The Nakajima engine factory was lightly damaged.

Shimuzu was being protected by 5 X Zeke and 15 X Tony when 37 X B-29 arrived. 5 Tonys were damaged in their attack on the bombers and combined with the flak 3 Superforts were damaged. The Mitsubishi engine works took very light damage.

Nagasaki was raided by 164 X B-29, 24 X P-51D and 17 X P-38J and the Japanese intercepted them with 4 X Tony and 14 X Frank. The Allied fighters held the Japanese planes at bay, splashing 2 Tonys and 3 Franks (3 damaged) at a cost of a loosing a Mustang and 2 Lightnings (1 damaged). The ground fire damaged 20 of the bombers who hit the heavy industry for moderate damage.

Kitakyushu was visited by 138 X B-29 and 105 X P-38J and the Allied planes met with no resistance and the Japanese suffered moderately heavy damage to the heavy industry.

Hiroshima/Kure was flying 18 X Zeke who tried to stop 132 X B-29 and 24 X P-51D. The Mustangs did their job well downing 11 Zekes, but the ground fire shot down a bomber and damaged 12 more. The heavy industry was moderately damaged.

Sian was raided by 76 X B-25J and 61 X P-40N resulting in moderate airfield damage, some secondary explosions were seen, 7 Franks and 2 Peggys were left burning wrecks and casualties were negligible.

Kendari underwent a raid that did no harm and 2 B-24Js were damaged. Another attack saw a PB4Y damaged and a secondary explosion was observed.

At Gili Gili the IJA 21st Division suffered heavy losses from an air attack.

Wenchow's port was hit by 62 X B-25J (1 downed, 3 damaged), 16 X A-26B (2 damaged) and 56 X P-47D for moderately heavy damage, many secondary explosions were reported, an AP at anchor ate 4 bombs that resulted in it sinking and casualties were light.

At the crossroads the Chinese had heavy casualties from the Japanese artillery and the Chinese guns answered inflicting moderate losses on the Japanese troops.

Stalin eyes the map and sees that 2 rifle corps are almost in position and then a mechanized corps will join them before they move into their final positions to add their might to the existing forces poised for Uncle Joe's whims. Some support units are also moving to Mishan so that additional aircraft may operate from a forward base.

Surprisingly only 1 of the B-29 groups based on Saipan flew and the Lucky 11 don't mind that they stayed on the ground. Later they were called to operations and told that tomorrow they were off to the original target, just a bit late. Gil and the rest of the guys learned that the only fighters over the target area were Japanese. “The bastards lie through their teeth and then expect to pat us on the butt and say go get 'em,” one of the crew mutters. The mood is grim, but there's nothing to do except fly the missions and pray.

Harry sits in his office with Admiral King and General Marshall and says, “Maybe Operation Thunder will be bloodier that predicted. I have little desire to see Operation Lightning come to pass and my only other option is those new bombs that they keep building.” The meeting breaks up and Harry heads upstairs to the residence part of the White House to unwind. He can't imagine the pressures dealt with by Franklin in the early years of the war if winning is this bad.

Victory Points Allied 101613 (18274 Strategic) Japanese 45619

August 31, 1945 Manila

Intel

65th Construction Battalion is located at Kagoshima.
24712 men are based at Kanazawa.
1st Aviation Rgt is located at Georgetown.
25th Ind. Mixed Brigade is located at Palembang.
1st Air Fleet is located at Tokyo.
1441 men are based at Kratie.
2nd AA Regiment is located at Tokyo.
6th Reserve AA Regiment is located at Wonsan.
Arshan Garrison Regiment is planning for an attack on Arshaan.
51st Ind. Mixed Brigade is located at Naha.
132nd Ind. Mixed Brigade is located at Mutanchiang.
60th Ind. Mixed Brigade is located at Kadina.
Elements of the 4th Mongolian Cavalry Division are located at Linhsi.
Elements of the 1st Ind. Brigade are located at Kaifeng.
60262 men are based at Sendai.
51st Road Construction Battalion is planning for an attack on Chungking.

Recon

Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Bangkok 26 LCUs
F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Krung Thep 9 LCUs 46820/438/0

Combat

About 493 miles N of Marcus Island the SS Angler unsuccessfully attacked 4 destroyers who didn't even suspect a sub was nearby. The SS Angler found 3 DDs as the sun set, but she couldn't get off an attack on them. Then came the inevitable attack on the sub by 6 destroyers. She managed to evade her attackers, but the men's nerves are shot.

At Padang the RAF had a little surprise for the 7 Helens who arrived in the middle of the night. 6 Beaufighter VIFs were flying CAP and they went after the Japanese planes. The surprise backfired as the bombers dropped their loads, off target as usual, and were exiting the area when they were attacked and a British plane was damaged in the running skirmish.


The SS Surf, 802 miles E of Andaman Island, located and attacked 4 IJN DDs, hitting 1 with a torpedo that caused heavy damage and fires to erupt. The other 3 tin cans then attacked the sub, but were way off the mark. They were dogged in their efforts though and an hour later they once again found and attacked the Surf, doing no harm. The sub was determined not to be driven away as they are tasked with picket duty. The Surf spotted a convoy of 3 X AK and 5 X MSW, which they reported to HQs and then hit an AK with a torpedo that did heavy damage and triggered a fire. In the late afternoon 4 DDs attacked the Surf, but she easily evaded them.

Akita was attacked by 55 X B-24D and 30 X P-38J. AA fire damaged 6 of the bombers who caused light damage to the oil facilities.

Asahigawa was struck by 59 X B-24D and 21 X P-51D for light damage to the Mitsubishi engine plant.

Sapporo was jumped by 191 X B-29, 3 X P-51D and 72 X P-38J. The fighters spotted and downed a lone Zeke and the flak damaged 6 of the bombers. The heavy industry took moderate damage.

Tokyo was under a gaggle of 1 X Zeke, 17 X Reppu, 21 X Shinden, 77 X Frank and 38 X Tony when out of the sun dove 96 X P-51D. The furball was on and almost as suddenly as the battle began it ended with the Japanese having 1 Zeke, 3 Reppu (1 damaged), 12 Shindens, 69 Franks and 28 Tonys shot down. The Americans lost 14 Mustangs and had 2 others damaged.

Wenchow's airfield was attacked by 52 X B-25J (9 damaged), 13 X A-26B (1 damaged), 15 X P-38J and 44 X P-47D who inflicted moderate damage on the base, there were some secondary explosions caused, 4 Bettys were destroyed and casualties were light.

At the crossroads the Chinese had moderate losses from the Japanese artillery.

39 miles SE of Kweiyang artillery exchanges saw the Chinese escape harm and the Japanese had negligible casualties.

The alarm at the Admiralty is extreme as suddenly it appears that there could be a Japanese amphibious move against India in the offing. Orders are hurriedly issued and the RN will scramble to comply, but to many of it's ships are to far away to hope to arrive in time. At the Pentagon there is consternation at the appearance of the IJN ships so far from home. Are they trying to sever the supply line? There are some USN officers the quietly harbor ill will towards the RN and are taking a degree of enjoyment at the possible crisis that the British could find themselves in.

Bill reads the reports and informs his immediate superiors that the Mighty Mo stands ready on short notice to sail if need be. Some of his department heads aren't pleased, but overall the crew has had enough loafing and want something to do to break the monotony.

Jay hobbles from the chow line and sits down at a real table on a real bench and eats with real utensils. He's in a new uniform and he even got a haircut and shave today. They guys are joking that it's almost like being a civilian. That's when a quiet comes over the table as the guys start to think of home.

Victory Points Allied 10189 (18394 Strategic) Japanese 45650

September 1, 1945 Manila

Intel

Arshan Garrison Regiment is located at Changchun.
70th Ind. Mixed Brigade is located at Bangkok.
120th IJA Base Force is located at Hanoi.
17th Mixed/A Brigade is located at Shanghai.
Maizuru Fortress is located at Maizuru.
5th Reserve AA Regiment is located at Harbin.
201st Division is located at Gumma.
21st Mortar Battalion is located at Wuchow.
Elements of the Mongol Cavalry Division are located at Linhsi.
76487 men are based at Mishan.

Recon

Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Bangkok 26 LCUs
F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Krung Thep 9 LCUs 49940/483/0

Combat

At about 2 AM 6 Helens arrived over Padang and 6 Beaufighter VIFs gave chase after a bomb actually struck the runway. No contact resulted in combat.

The SS Lapon tried to get an attack in on 9 X DD 463 miles SE of Tokyo, but couldn't get into a favorable position from which to launch her fish.

At Sansapor US Marines took moderate casualties as they came ashore.

Shimuzu was bombed by 143 X B-29 who hit the Mitsubishi engine complex for moderate damage.

Asahigawa was struck by 32 X B-24D, 21 X P-51D and 3 X P-38J for very light damage to the Mitsubishi engine factory.

Sapporo was raided by 165 X B-29 (7 damaged), 66 X P-38J and 2 X P-51D for moderate damage to the heavy industry.

Bangkok was blasted by 64 X Liberator VI (12 damaged) who did heavy damage to the port, there were some secondary explosions observed and personnel losses were placed at heavy.

At Gili Gili the IJA 21st Division took moderate losses from an air attack.

Near Brunei 10 X PB4Y attacked the Japanese ships, hitting an AP with 2 bombs that set it on fire and it had heavy damage. Another strike of 7 X PB4Y attacked, but came up empty.

Tokyo was swept by 116 X P-51D who fought with 20 X Reppu, 18 X Shinden, 17 X Frank and 26 X Tony. 10 Mustangs were lost and 4 were damaged as they splashed all of the Japanese planes save a Shinden and 3 Franks.

Wenchow was attacked by 115 X B-25J (5 damaged) and 57 X P-47D for moderately heavy airstrip damage, some secondary explosions, 4 trashed Bettys and very light troop losses.

At the crossroads the Chinese had moderate casualties from the Japanese artillery.

39 miles SE of Kweiyang the Japanese artillery failed to harm anybody.

Stalin is very concerned with the latest Japanese actions in China and he has assured Mao that the CCP's communist brothers have not been forgotten. In the meantime a message to Tokyo is being prepared. Stalin has informed his generals that the time for action is at hand and the troop movements must be accelerated.

Jay was told that their job for now was to cool their heels. This is fine with him and he and Al go off in search of something stronger than a warm Coca Cola with the rest of the squad. The run into a few farmers along the way and though nobody speaks Tagalog, aka Filipino, and the farmers only seem to have a few words of English they hit it off well. The farmers are overjoyed to be rid of the Japanese and give the guys some food. After a while they say their goodbyes and are once again on their way. Jay makes a remark about the conquering heroes. Al reminds him not to get to comfortable as they were warned about stray Japanese troops in the area. Jay has gotten so used to his rifle that when it isn't in his hands he feels like something is missing.

The Lucky 11 have another mission under their belts and it all feels routine now. Routine doesn't mean that they are immune to the stress or not scared, just that it's a nasty fact of life and they deal with it by pushing it aside as much as possible. 3 planes were write offs today due to nothing more than wear and tear and one rough landing to many. Gil finds himself a quiet spot and just lies there staring up at the stars wondering if Elaine is looking at the same stars as him.

Victory Points Allied 102113 (18446 Strategic) Japanese 45674

September 2, 1945 Sansapor

Intel

90706 men are based at Rahaeng.
50743 men are based at Kadina.
3rd FF Construction Battalion is located at Anshan.
6th Aviation Rgt is located at Changkufeng.
14th Field Artillery Regiment is planning for an attack on Chungking.
31st Heavy AA Battalion is located at Aomori.
Yokosuka Base Force is located at Tokyo.
Chinhae Bay Fortress is located at Pusan.
Elements of the 70th Division are located at Ichang.
14580 men are based at Nagasaki.
Elements of the 58th Division are planning for an attack on Chungking.
Elements of the 5th Ind. Brigade are located at Tatung.
14th Area Army is planning for an attack on Eniwetok.
62nd Air Flotilla is located at Tokyo.

Recon

Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Kweilin 1 LCU
F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Luang Prabang 1 LCU 1580/0/0

Combat

The SS Surf was attacked by 3 DDs 1177 miles W of Andaman Island.

About 449 miles E of Tokyo the SS Lapon tangled with 7 DDs, who gave her a rough time. A few hours later the sub tried to attack an AO being escorted by 3 PCs, but couldn't get into position as she was driven off by the relentless escorts.

Padang was visited by 7 Helens at 3 AM and 3 Beaufighter VIFs gave a futile chase after the Japanese bombed the jungle.

At Tomini US Marine Raiders came ashore, taking heavy casualties.

Sapporo was bombed by 131 X B-29 (4 damaged), 19 X P-51D and 72 X P-38J who dished out moderate damage on the heavy industry.

Above the crossroads 2 Zekes and a Frank were on patrol when 30 X B-25J and 20 X P-40N appeared. The Japanese gave battle and a Zeke and a Frank were lost as the IJA 15th Division was struck for heavy losses. The ground fire shot down a Mitchell and damaged 8 others. The surviving Zeke was then confronted with the dilemma of 29 X B-25J and 21 X P-40N arriving so it departed by ducking into the clouds after damaging a Warhawk. The IJA 3rd Ind. Brigade took heavy casualties. AA fire damaged 15 Mitchells in the attack. Japanese artillery barrages caused moderate Chinese losses.

At Gili Gili the IJA 21st Division had moderate losses in an air raid.

38 miles SE of Kweiyang the IJA 59th Division was bombed and strafed by 20 P-40N. The ground fire damaged a Warhawk and the unit absorbed light casualties. About an hour later 22 Warhawks pounced on the unit and they too bombed and strafed it, inflicting ho harm in return for getting 2 planes damaged. Both sides had extremely light losses today as the Japanese artillery roared and the Chinese ambushed a Japanese patrol.

Near Teloekbetoeng 3 Helens tried to pierce the CAP of 15 X Firefly, 10 X Spitfire VIII, 47 X Thunderbolt II and 16 X P-47D with the expected result of all 3 Japanese planes being splashed and a Thunderbolt II was damaged. Then a big gaggle of incoming planes was detected by radar and the CAP was vectored out to meet the 28 X Judy, 22 X Grace, 11 X Frances, 9 X Sally, 15 X Lily, 7 X Helen, 5 X Peggy and 18 X Tony. 4 X Grace and 5 X Frances survived to fight another day and the Allies had a Firefly, a Spit and 15 Jugs damaged in the battle. No ships were hit though the Japanese did manage to drop fish into the water. Later 4 Sallys tried and died as a Hellcat II was damaged. Late in the afternoon 2 X Sally and 6 X Tony were all shot down in their attempt to get at the shipping that's unloading.

Wakkanai was under a CAP of 17 X Frank when 14 X B-25J and 31 X P-38J arrived. 4 Franks went down and another was damaged trying to repel the attack. 2 Mitchells (2 damaged) and 2 Lightnings (1 damaged) were lost. The airfield was subjected to extremely light damage.

At Wenchow 111 X B-25J, 54 X P-38J and 56 X P-47D struck the airfield for moderate damage, some secondary explosions were claimed, 3 Bettys were left burning and casualties were placed at moderate. This came at the cost of a lost Mitchell and 8 others being damaged. About 45 minutes later 36 X B-25J, 13 X A-26B and 17 X P-38J arrived and they added light damage to the airstrip.

Naha's airfield was targeted by 40 X A-26B and 48 X P-51D. The AA fire downed 2 Invaders and damaged 9. The target was very lightly damaged, there were some secondary explosions seen and personnel losses were light.

Near Brunei 7 X PB4Y attacked the Japanese ships, hitting an AK with a bomb that caused heavy damage and a fire.

At Sansapor the Marines swept aside the virtually nonexistent resistance and seized the base.

The massive undertaking of the transport of personnel and material from Lamon Bay to the next assigned areas is now in full swing.

Stalin has had the following sent to Tokyo. His intentions are to provoke the Japanese. In the meantime his formations move into more forward positions. Tokyo doesn't suspect that what were divisions have now become corps with the redeployment of the Red Army's muscle.

We peace loving people of the CCP are growing increasingly alarmed at the size of the force at Harbin. We consider this to be an offensive threat and would like to see the situation diffused before it turns into a powder keg that touches off a war between our two great countries. The CCP has always honored our agreements and have not triggered any incidents with our forces. We are open to suggestions from you as to how our concerns can be put to rest. In the meantime we will be forced to maintain our forces in a heightened state of readiness and will consider moving more of our troops forward to protect what is ours.

The PM is increasingly frustrated that the RN hasn't caught up to the IJN yet and he worries that India could be the target of an invasion. At the Admiralty they try repeatedly to reassure him, while silently praying that this is nothing to worry about.

Jay is amazed at the number of ships arriving, loading troops and then leaving Manila Bay. The 33rd Division will probably get loaded onto ships starting tomorrow and then he'll be transported to who knows where. Most of the formations are being transported out of Lamon Bay and it's going to be a time consuming affair as there are no facilities to speak of there.

Hoppy handed Gil 3 letters from Elaine after returning from mail call. Each day a different member of the Lucky 11 has the responsibility to collect any mail or parcels. Of course you can go to mail call if you want to, but sometimes, like today, Gil just wants to have some quiet time to himself. Later he's going to Jake's Jalopy and check out all of the radio gear. It's his duty and better yet it helps to kill time. Donny offers to tag along and when they get there Jake is checking the landing gear.

Victory Points Allied 102270 (18454 Strategic) Japanese 45692

September 3, 1945 Tomini

Intel

41st Heavy AA Battalion is located at Harbin.
3rd FF Construction Battalion is located at Anshan.
9th Engineer Regiment is located at Changkufeng.
35th Construction Battalion is located at Harbin.
24705 men are based at Kanazawa.
281152 men are based at Ominato.
36th Division is planning for an attack on Kweiyang.
37th Division is located at Tavoy.
46th Road Construction Battalion is located at Changkufeng.
Tsugaru Fortress is located at Aomori.
17th Reserve Coastal Artillery Regiment is located at Niigata.
13th Division is located at Hong Kong.
3rd Army is located at Hungnam.
5th AA Regiment is located at Gumma.

Recon

Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Hengchow 2 LCUs 6340/68/0
F-5C Lightning takes recon photos of Pisanuloke 2 LCUs 7500/11/0
Mosquito PR.IX takes recon photos of Soerabaja 28 X AP, 9 X CA, 1 X PC, 1 X CL, 4 X APD, 2 X DE, 11 LCUs 19660/94/0

Combat

The SS Harder was attacked by a DD and 2 PCs 97 miles E of Sendai. In the late afternoon 6 X PB4Y (2 damaged) hit a PC with a bomb. The sub will now return to port with light systems damage and negligible flooding.

Padang was raided by 12 Helens at 2 AM and 7 Beaufighter VIFs intercepted them after the bombs fell off target. A Helen was shot down and 4 Beaufighter VIFs were damaged.

The SS Bream was hunted by 5 X PC 142 miles E of Sendai, but the sub eluded them. Then the sub managed to make an attack later and hit a PC with a torpedo that caused heavy damage and set the craft on fire. Later 4 PB4Ys appeared, but they didn't hit anything.

About 303 miles E of Sendai 8 DDs attacked the SS Grenadier. She has moderate systems damage and heavy flooding so she'll make for port.

US Marine Raiders landed over the beach at Pomala, taking moderate casualties.

The SS Kingfish was stalking a PC 139 miles E of Tokyo when the intended target acquired the sub and attacked her and killed the sub.

Above the crossroads the Chinese 16th Group Army watched a Dinah watching them and 15 Nicks were loitering in the hopes of finding some Chinese planes. 2 Zekes and 2 Franks were covering the nearby IJA 110th Division when 9 X B-25J and 2 X P-40N appeared. 3 Mitchells suffered damage and the Japanese unit had moderate losses. The IJA 115th Division was attacked by 37 X B-25J and 16 X P-40N despite the Japanese fighters trying to stop them. Ground fire damaged 12 Mitchells and the unit sustained moderate casualties. Japanese artillery dished out moderate losses today.

Victoria Point was bombed by 154 X Liberator VI (2 damaged) and the airfield took very heavy damage, there were a large number of secondary explosions seen and personnel losses were moderate.

Kendari was hit by Allied planes for moderate airstrip damage, a secondary explosion was claimed, casualties were extremely light and 2 Liberators took damage. Another attack was made in the afternoon and the airfield was moderately damaged, some secondary explosions were seen and there were negligible casualties.

Naha was struck by 81 X B-24J and the AA fire damaged 16 of them as they caused heavy airfield damage, many secondary explosions and moderate troop losses. Another raid appeared an hour later and the 71 X B-24D (1 downed, 8 damaged) and 126 X B-24J (11 damaged) pounded the base for heavy airfield damage, very heavy port damage, many secondary explosions were reported and casualties were light. In the afternoon 30 X A-26B (6 damaged) and 49 X P-38J appeared and did light damage and triggered a secondary explosion.

At Gili Gili the IJA 21st Division absorbed moderate losses from an air raid.

38 miles SE of Kweiyang the IJA 59th Division was bombed and strafed by 20 Warhawks (2 damaged), but the unit had no casualties. The Japanese artillery was ineffective.

Wakkanai was hit by 13 X B-25J and 29 X P-38J who ran into 24 X Frank. The fighters did their job keeping the Japanese planes away from the bombers, losing 2 Lightnings and downing 3 Franks (1 damaged). A Mitchell was brought down by the flak and 2 others were damaged. The airstrip was very lightly damaged. Another strike of 53 X B-25J (3 damaged), 15 X A-26B (4 damaged), 72 X P-38J (1 downed, 1 damaged) and 19 X P-51D fought their way through 21 Franks (9 downed) and did moderate damage to the airfield, triggered some secondary explosions and inflicted negligible personnel losses.

Wenchow was visited by 104 X B-25J (3 damaged), 54 X P-47D and 54 X P-38J who caused moderate airfield damage, some secondary explosions and 2 destroyed Bettys.

About 674 miles S of Trimcomalee the SS Sabalo spotted and attacked a convoy of 3 X AK and 5 X MSW, hitting an AK with 2 torpedoes, sinking it.

At Tomini the Marines took the base against virtually no resistance.

The following message was Tokyo's response to yesterday's communication.
3 Divisions based at Harbin have been ordered to fall back. This constitutes a dramatic reduction in the combat strength of units based at Harbin. The Emperor trusts that this will be seen as a good will gesture and that no further Soviet forces will be based outside of Harbin. Any further addition to Soviet forces outside of Harbin will see the recall of those 3 divisions.
Stalin orders the response to read that.
Moscow is pleased that cooler heads have prevailed. Please accept our thanks for defusing the situation in the Harbin area. Soviet troops will be pulled back from their positions and they will be replaced with a like number of combat units who are fresh.
Stalin then orders his generals to issue orders for the rotation of units. “Where a division has been pulled out I want a corps to replace it. If the Japanese spot this and make an issue out of it we will claim that it is a temporary shuffling. If we are ready then we will just attack them. Our tankers should enjoy facing Japanese 37mm AT guns instead of the German 88s.” With that Stalin leaves the room.

Jay looks over his shoulder as he trudges along in the endless line of men to board a transport. He knew there were lots of troops here, but seeing so many really amazes him. Al says, “Ya see all of these guys? They survived the fighting too.” Jay muttered something about the war and the fighting isn't over yet and that there is plenty of time to die.

Victory Points Allied 102299 (18454 Strategic) Japanese 45718