World in Flames is the computer version of Australian Design Group classic board game. World In Flames is a highly detailed game covering the both Europe and Pacific Theaters of Operations during World War II. If you want grand strategy this game is for you.
Can someone please check some unit id's for me?
USSR [3026] is this the Bucharest Militia?
[3027] Sofia Militia of Para Banner?
[3028] Para Banner or MTN Banner?
[3029] MTN Banner or Sofia Militia?
Thanks!
Para Banner 3027
MTN Banner 3028
Sofia Militia 3029
Michael is correct but there is more to the story.
3029 is a city based volunteer, which fights for the USSR instead of for the Axis. There is another Sofia Militia that fights for Bulgaria (2833).
3026 is a regular infantry unit labeled Bucharest that is also a city based volunteer which fights for the USSR. There is a militia unit from Bucharest too that fights for Rumania (2826).
I began looking at the Japanese escort carrier Ibuki, and saw that she was laid down as a modified Mogami - or possibly Tone type cruiser.
Has anyone got any more info on this? Was she a one off? - were others planned? What class was she?
Please help - the Japanese are so difficult to get quality info on [&:]
I'm always a bit reluctant to recommend Wikipedia, as you can't be sure of the source, but I have to admit their info on Ibuki looks good. According to the article, there were supposed to be two Ibuki-class cruisers, but the second was never built (started, but stopped construction after only one month).
I began looking at the Japanese escort carrier Ibuki, and saw that she was laid down as a modified Mogami - or possibly Tone type cruiser.
Has anyone got any more info on this? Was she a one off? - were others planned? What class was she?
Please help - the Japanese are so difficult to get quality info on [&:]
I'm always a bit reluctant to recommend Wikipedia, as you can't be sure of the source, but I have to admit their info on Ibuki looks good. According to the article, there were supposed to be two Ibuki-class cruisers, but the second was never built (started, but stopped construction after only one month).
Thanks Sirwhiskers - The IJN cruisers book looks fantastic, but at £90 (and that`s the cheapest) I think that is too much for one book considering what I have spent on this "project" so far [X(]. Oh well I`ll just have to keep digging.......
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
Okay - I will post Ibuki later, but in the meantime please see attached Kurama. If anyone knows the extent to which the two ships were to be modified please let me know - thanks.
[4388 Kurama - by Robert Jenkins]
.B Engine(s) output: 152,000 hp
.B Top Speed: 35 knots
.B Main armament: 10 x 8-inch (203mm), 8 x 5-inch (127mm) guns
.B Displacement (full load): 13,668 tons
.B Thickest armour: 4-inch (belt)
.P The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ordered two heavy cruisers under their
1941 program. Only one of these ships was laid down as the IJN had need of other,
more urgently required ship types; and only limited shipbuilding capacity.
.P This first ship was therefore earmarked for conversion to a light fleet carrier
(see Ibuki), although she was not completed by the time of the Japanese surrender.
The second planned vessel was cancelled just a month after being laid down. She
was not officially named; being known only as hull no.301.
.P World In Flames allows the Japanese player to build both Ibuki (as a carrier)
and the second ship (as a cruiser). The name given to this second ship by ADG is
Kurama, possibly as this was the name of the sister ship to an earlier Ibuki; a
battlecruiser built before the First World War.
.P The two ships were originally envisaged to be improved Tone-class heavy
cruisers, but Ibuki`s design was amended to an improved Mogami-class prior to
construction. The extent of the modified design is unknown, although was unlikely
to feature major changes. Note that the technical specification above is that of the
Mogami-class as they appeared at the time of Pearl Harbor and further details are
given below for this class.
.P The four ships of the Mogami-class were originally constructed under the terms
of the 1930 London Naval Treaty. They were designated light cruisers, and were
constructed between 1931 and 1937.
.P The ships had major problems, caused by trying to construct too much ship on
too little hull, and they went through two major reconstructions in order to iron
out the defects and, ultimately, turn them into heavy cruisers; exchanging their
fifteen 6.1-inch guns for ten 8-inch.
.P The main armament was fitted in five twin turrets, three forward and two aft.
The secondary armament was eight, 5-inch dual-purpose guns, again fitted in twin
turrets. Close-range weaponry was eight 25mm and four 13.2mm guns, but this was
increased appreciably on the three surviving cruisers as the war progressed (Mikuma
was sunk at Midway in June 1942).
.P The IJN favoured the deployment of torpedoes on their cruisers and the Mogamis
were no exception, having twelve 24-inch torpedo tubes mounted in four triple
mounts. Two catapults were fitted and there was room for up to three aircraft.
.P Armour protection was similar to the preceding Takao-class, although the
horizontal protection was increased to 2.4-inches. Belt armour was 4-inches with
an extra inch added around the magazines.
.P The result of all the reconstruction work and modifications was that the ships
were massively overweight, although as the Japanese had renounced the 1936 London
Naval Treaty, this was of no consequence. They were ultimately to prove powerful
ships with a sensible top speed of 35 knots.
.P Hull no.301 (Kurama) was scrapped in 1943.
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
[4350 Ibuki - by Robert Jenkins]
.B Engine(s) output: 72,000 hp
.B Top Speed: 29 knots
.B Main armament: 4 x 3-inch (76mm), 48 x 25mm guns
.B Aircraft: 27
.B Displacement (full load): 14,570 tons
.B Thickest armour: None
.P Ibuki was a one-ship class of escort carrier that was destined never to be
completed. She began life as a modified Mogami-class cruiser, but before
completion in that guise, orders went out to convert her to a light fleet
carrier. The conversion work began in November 1943 but this was not completed
and all work on her was stopped in March 1945 when she was about 70% complete.
.P Ibuki would have had a complement of twenty-seven aircraft, housed in a single
hangar, which would have been served by two lifts. No catapult would have been
fitted to assist take-off.
.P Defensive armament was limited to just four single 3-inch guns supported by
forty-eight 25mm guns and six rocket launchers; a very lightweight defence.
Unusually, she would have carried up to thirty depth-charges.
.P As a carrier, she would have had a reasonable 29 knot speed, but suffered from
the usual problems associated with Japanese carrier design; not least of which
was the lack of defensive armour. Even more importantly, by the end of the war,
the Japanese could not train sufficient pilots or provide the necessary aircraft
to man the few carriers available.
.P Ibuki`s was broken up in 1947.
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
Proofread both, no spelling mistakes found IMHO. [&o]
Glad it was short and sweet this time [:)] because usually when you post a looong description my eyes hurt by the time I'm almost finished reading it. LOL.
Keep up the good work.
Hang on... " Ibuki`s was broken up in 1947." shouldn't that be Ibuki ?
I could be wrong ofcourse, english being not my native language.
Proofread both, no spelling mistakes found IMHO. [&o]
Glad it was short and sweet this time [:)] because usually when you post a looong description my eyes hurt by the time I'm almost finished reading it. LOL.
Keep up the good work.
Hang on... " Ibuki`s was broken up in 1947." shouldn't that be Ibuki ?
I could be wrong ofcourse, english being not my native language.
Warspite1
DOH!!! [&:]
Yes - caused by me removing "incomplete hull" at the last minute - thanks for the good spot as ever [:)]
If you like em short and sweet, sorry - I will be posting the four carriers lost at Midway shortly - only Soryu is (fairly) short, but Akagi will have Pearl Harbor, Hiryu the Indian Ocean raid and Kaga Midway. Hope you still read them though - I appreciate your assistance.
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
Thanks Steve, I know. I was just kidding... sort of. Reading all those tiny letters [;)] Just copy/paste into Word/Notepad or something like that and magnify. Unfortunately that makes the text even longer [&:] well it *seems* longer anyway.
But I'll read the next descriptions anyway. I think Warspite is doing a great job, it's no small feat getting all that info together and make it ... readable.
Here is the write-up for the first of the Japanese "Midway" carriers.
[4322 Akagi - by Robert Jenkins]
.B Engine(s) output: 133,000 hp
.B Top Speed: 31 knots
.B Main armament: 6 x 8-inch (203mm), 12 x 4.7-inch (120mm) guns
.B Aircraft: 91 (Operational maximum 72)
.B Displacement (full load): 42,750 tons
.B Thickest armour: 10-inch (belt)
.P The carrier Akagi began life as a battlecruiser, having been designed as
such for the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during the First World War. She was one
of four planned ships of the Amagi-class.
.P Construction work on the first of the class was not begun until 1920, and
thanks to the 1922 Washington Naval Treaty, none of the class were destined to be
completed as intended. The latter two ships were cancelled, but the first two
vessels, Amagi and Akagi, were earmarked for conversion to aircraft carriers. In
the end only Akagi was completed; Amagi being destroyed in an earthquake while
under construction.
.P Akagi was only finally completed in 1927. She was then reconstructed in the
late thirties and the technical details above are as at the time of the attack on
Pearl Harbor.
.P Her modernisation saw the addition of a small island, unusually located on her
port side. Along with Hiryu, these were the only carriers ever completed with an
island situated on the left.
.P Akagi`s practical aircraft operating capacity rose to seventy-two thanks to an
enlargement of both her hangars. These hangars were serviced by three lifts. As
was standard with Japanese carriers throughout the war, there was no catapult
fitted to assist launching of aircraft, although a total of nine arrester wires
provided the necessary stopping power when landing.
.P Protection was minimal. Akagi benefited from a ten-inch belt, courtesy of her
original battlecruiser design, but her horizontal armour was limited to just a
thin armoured deck, which provided little protection for her hangars, magazines
or her aviation fuel stores.
.P Defensive weaponry was also sub-optimal, with six eight-inch guns positioned
aft within casemates. Her anti-aircraft (AA) armament consisted of six twin 4-
inch and fourteen twin 25mm close-range guns.
.P Akagi possessed good top speed following an increase in output to 133,000 hp,
and a switch to an oil-burning propulsion system. However, whilst a useful
aircraft carrier, capable of operating a sensible number of aircraft, she was all
too vulnerable to attack from either enemy aircraft or plunging shell fire.
.P Akagi means Red Castle in English and she was named after an extinct Volcano.
.P In late November 1941, Akagi was Vice-Admiral Nagumo`s flagship. From the
bridge of this carrier, Nagumo would lead the attack on Pearl Harbor; the attack
that brought the United States (US) into the war.
.P The US was the enemy that Japan considered the greatest threat to their
territorial expansion plans in Asia. In July 1942, the US President had cranked
up economic pressure on Japan in a bid to persuade her Government to withdraw
their forces from China. The result was that Japan, a country heavily reliant
upon imports, would soon face a choice; cease the war in China or seize by force
the raw materials (especially oil) that she was now being denied. Japan chose
war...
.P The Hawaiian Operation was designed to deliver a knock-out blow to the US
Pacific Fleet at its Pearl Harbor base, with the principal targets being the
Pacific Fleet carriers. The architect of the Pearl Harbor attack, Admiral
Yamamoto, was fully aware of the industrial potential of the US and knew that
Japan would find defeating her in a protracted war a very difficult task. In
presenting his plan therefore he made it clear that all he could hope to achieve
was to effectively neutralise the threat from the US for up to eighteen months.
During that time Japan would need to conquer the various territories in Asia and
the Pacific that would give her a) the resources she so coveted, and b) provide
her with a defensive ring that would protect her from US counter-attack in the
future.
.P The fleet tasked with carrying out the attack was the 1st Air Fleet (the Kido
Butai) containing: the 1st Carrier Division (CarDiv), Akagi and Kaga; the 2nd
CarDiv, Hiryu and Soryu; and the 5th CarDiv, Shokaku and Zuikaku. Escort was
provided by the 1st Destroyer Flotilla, which contained the light cruiser Abukama
and nine destroyers. In Support, were the battleships Hiei and Kirishima of the
3rd Battleship Squadron, and the 8th Cruiser Squadron containing the heavy
cruisers Chikuma and Tone. Completing the naval force were eight tankers and two
further destroyers that were earmarked for the shelling of Midway Island. For
this operation the IJN also deployed submarines, although their role in the
operation was negligible (see Submarine Counter 4452).
.P The six carriers carried over four hundred aircraft between them; a mixture of
Mitsubishi A6M2 "Zero" fighters, Aichi D3A "Val" dive bombers and Nakajima B5N
"Kate" torpedo bombers. These highly effective aircraft were flown by the elite
aircrews of the IJN which had been training for war for many months while the
rulers of Japan debated their options.
.P Nagumo`s fleet sailed from Hitokappu Bay on the 26th November and began the
long voyage eastward toward the Hawaiian Islands. They sailed under conditions of
complete radio silence, via a northern route, in order to avoid detection. On the
2nd December Nagumo received a signal that he was to open a secret envelope. This
envelope confirmed that the attack on Pearl Harbor would take place on the 7th
December.
.P In the early morning of the 7th, when Nagumo`s fleet were about two hundred
and twenty miles from Hawaii, the order was given for the carriers to turn into
the wind and for the first wave to begin take-off. This first wave consisted of
one hundred and eighty-three aircraft and the first of these took off at around
0600hrs. This wave was made up of: eighty-nine Kates; forty armed with torpedoes
and forty-nine with bombs; fifty-one Val dive-bombers, and forty-three Zero
fighters. While still off Hawaii, the aircraft were actually detected by US radar
operators, but they were mistaken for a flight of B-17 bomber aircraft that were
due to arrive in Hawaii from the US that morning.
.P Meanwhile, Japanese embassy officials in Washington were having trouble in
translating a fourteen page document sent from Tokyo. This document, which
announced their declaration of war on the US should have been presented to the US
Secretary of State, Cordell Hull, prior to the attack. Because of the translation
problems, the attack on Pearl Harbor took place without a formal declaration of
war.
.P Back in Hawaii, the Japanese strike aircraft headed for the naval base, where
their targets were to be, in order of importance: carriers, battleships, cruisers
and other vessels. The 1st Attack Group, led by Lt-Cdr Fuchida, began the first
of their attacks at 0755hrs. The torpedo armed Kates from the 1st and 2nd Torpedo
Attack Units were the first on the scene. Twenty-four aircraft flew down on the
ships on battleship row, closely followed by the similarly armed Kates of the 3rd
and 4th Torpedo Attack Units which descended onto ships based to the north of
Ford Island. Almost at once the bomb-armed Kates of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th
Attack units swooped down on battleship row too.
.P The Val dive-bombers of the 2nd Attack Group and Zeros of the 3rd Attack Group
were tasked with, respectively, bombing and strafing the aircraft, hangars and
airfield at the Hickham air base and also the Naval Air Station at Wheelers Field
on Ford Island. In some cases the US aircraft had been tightly parked together in
order to keep them safe from potential sabotage and this made them more
vulnerable to the Japanese attacks. The Zeros were also tasked with attacking the
seaplane base at Kaneohe Bay and the airfields at Bellows Field and Ewa.
.P Almost as soon as the first wave had left the scene, the second wave appeared
at 0840hrs. This wave consisted of one hundred and sixty-eight aircraft, again
split into three attacking groups, and made-up as follows: 1st Attack Group,
fifty-four bomb-armed Kates; 2nd Attack Group, seventy-eight bomb-armed Vals; and
3rd Attack Group, thirty-six Zero fighters. The Vals flew to Battleship Row to
attack any ships missed by the first wave and the Kates were given the job of
attacking the airfields. As before, the Zeros job was to strafe the air bases.
.P When the aircraft of the first wave returned to the carriers, Nagumo was urged
to launch a third strike. However, the Japanese admiral was aware by now that the
US carriers were not at Pearl and for all he knew they were searching for his
fleet. Nagumo also believed that his flyers had done all that could be done and
given these two facts, there was no point courting danger for no reason.
.P After recovering the second wave, the Kido Butai departed the scene, leaving
behind them a scene of devastation. The once proud battlefleet was mostly resting
on the shallow harbour floor: neither Arizona nor Oklahoma would ever return to
action, while California, Maryland, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and West
Virginia would need major repair and reconstruction work. Of the other combat
vessels at anchor that morning, the cruisers Helena, Honolulu and Raleigh also
required major reconstruction, as did the destroyers Shaw, Cassin, Downes and
Helm.
.P The cost to the Japanese was a mere twenty-nine aircraft and six minisubs (see
Submarine Counter 4452) and a total of 185 servicemen killed. But for the US, the
cost was far higher. 3,581 civilians and navy and air force personnel were
casualties, of which 2,403 were killed. One hundred and sixty-nine aircraft were
shot out of the sky or were destroyed on the ground.
.P However, despite this, the attack was far from the success that Yamamoto was
hoping for, and which Japan needed, in order to justify the decision to go to
war. The attack failed to achieve its primary aim of sinking the three US Pacific
Fleet carriers which, by chance, were away from Pearl Harbor at the time. In
addition, many of the vital installations dotted around the harbour, such as the
fuel storage tanks and workshops, emerged completely unscathed from the attack.
US Vengeance against four of the six carriers of the Kido Butai would not be long
in coming....
.P After the Hawaiian Operation, Akagi returned to Japan, where she remained
until early January. She was then sent to the Central Pacific stronghold of Truk
in the Caroline Islands, and from there, on the 17th of that month, she and the
other ships of the 1st Air Fleet (less the 2nd CarDiv) were sent to support the
invasion of the islands of New Britain and New Ireland in the Bismarck
Archipelego (see Transport Counter 4446). This operation went without problem and
Akagi the returned to Truk at the end of the month.
.P The 1st Air Fleet were next ordered to sea in response to American carrier
raids against the Marshalls and the Gilbert Islands (see Katori). The Japanese
failed to find the US Navy ships and so no engagement resulted from this sortie.
.P In mid-February the 1st Air Fleet were tasked with launching an air raid on
the northern Australian port of Darwin (see Soryu) which took place between the
15th and 19th February. Then, with barely time for replenishment, Akagi was sent
south of Java at the end of the month to assist operations to conquer that
island. The 1st Air Fleet were tasked with stopping Allied shipping from fleeing
Java and to stop any reinforcement of the island (see Chikuma).
.P After this successful operation, Akagi returned to Celebes. She was not there
long before the ships of the 1st Air Fleet were ordered to the Indian Ocean and
their next operation, beginning at the end of March; the attack on the Royal Navy
at their base in Ceylon. The attack was only partially successful as the British
fleet had been sent to Addu Atoll in the Maldives, but one old aircraft carrier,
two cruisers, two destroyers and two other warships were sunk (see Hiryu).
.P On the way back from the Indian Ocean, when east of the island of Formosa, the
1st Air Fleet received a report about the presence of US carriers about 700 miles
from Japan. One of the carriers was Hornet that had just launched the B-25
bombers that bombed Tokyo (the Doolittle Raid). Nagumo`s ships joined in the
search for the US ships but without success.
.P After almost six months of near uninterrupted action, Akagi then went into a
period of rest and refit ahead of her next - and last - operation; MI. For this
operation Akagi was once again the flagship of Vice-Admiral Nagumo. MI was
designed to bring the American aircraft carriers to a battle in which they would
be destroyed. The bait to lure them was an invasion of the island of Midway,
1,150 miles northwest of Honolulu. As it turned out, the battle was a disaster
for the IJN, in which they lost all four fleet carriers, including Akagi (see
Kaga).
.P Akagi`s end came at the hand of Dauntless dive-bombers, flown from the carrier
USS Enterprise. Akagi could not have been more vulnerable; she had aircraft on
her deck fully armed and fuelled and awaiting take-off. A bomb hit her aft and
fell amongst these aircraft. A second bomb hit one of her lifts, smashing it into
the hangar deck below. Fires immediately broke out and were soon uncontrollable.
Nagumo transferred his flag to the cruiser Nagara and Akagi`s Captain Aoki, was
also saved. Three hundred officers and men were lost. Akagi burned through the
night before being scuttled at 0520hrs the following morning.
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
Second in the Series is the Hiryu. Soryu and Kaga will follow in the next day or so; work permitting. Soryu just needs tidying up, but Kaga needs more work on her Midway battle write-up.
[4326 Hiryu - by Robert Jenkins]
.B Engine(s) output: 153,000 hp
.B Top Speed: 34 knots
.B Main armament: 12 x 5-inch (127mm), 31 x 25mm guns
.B Aircraft: 73 (Operational maximum 64)
.B Displacement (full load): 21,900 tons
.B Thickest armour: 3.5-inch (belt)
.P The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ordered two carriers in their 1931/32
programme. The construction of the second of these ships, Hiryu, would cause the
IJN to breach the limitations of the 1922 Washington Naval Treaty as they had run
out of allowable tonnage. However, work began on Hiryu in July 1936 and Japan
formally renounced the terms of the treaty in December that year.
.P The two carriers - Soryu and Hiryu - were nominally sister ships, although
there were significant differences between the two vessels and they are seen as
separate classes in some quarters.
.P Hiryu was slightly larger than her sister and this additional space was used
to rectify some of the problems with the earlier ship, including additional
aviation fuel storage and better stability.
.P However, Soryu`s main problem was a lack of protection, and this deficiency
was only partially addressed in her sister. Hiryu was given the same poor level
of horizontal protection; 1-inch over the machinery spaces and 2.2-inch over the
magazines and aviation fuel, but did at least have additional vertical protection
of between 3.5-inch and 5.9-inch.
.P Hiryu, like Akagi before her, was built with an island structure located on
her port side - the only two carriers constructed in this way. She gave similar
performance to her sister, although needed a slightly increased power output to
produce similar speed given her heavier displacement.
.P Hiryu had two hangars that were served by three lifts. Like all Japanese
carriers, there were no catapults to assist take-off, but nine arrester wires
were fitted to assist aircraft landing.
.P Defensive armament was provided by six twin 5-inch dual-purpose guns and close
-range anti-aircraft (AA) defence came in the form of thirty-one 25mm close-range
guns.
.P The sisters provided the IJN with two large fleet carriers, capable of taking
a sensible number of aircraft to targets over the vast expanse of the Pacific. It
was only when on the defensive that their frailties were shown up.
.P Hiryu means Heaven-bound Dragon in English.
.P Hiryu was part of the 2nd Carrier Division (CarDiv) within Admiral Nagumo`s
1st Air Fleet that carried out the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 (See
Akagi). On the return from this operation, Hiryu, Soryu two cruisers and two
destroyers were diverted to provide support for the second assault on Wake
Island, the first attack having been repulsed by the American defenders with much
loss meted out to the assault force (see Amphibious Counter 4437). The presence
of the carriers proved key in ensuring the second attack was a success and the
island fell to the Japanese on the 23rd December.
.P In Mid-January 1942, the IJN moved a number of ships to Palau, from where they
would be in a position to assist the conquest of the Dutch East Indies. Both
carriers of the 2nd CarDiv, were part of the fleet build up. The first operation
they undertook was to launch air strikes against the island of Ambon, which was
situated roughly half way between Darwin, Australia and the Philippines. The
Dutch forces on the island had been reinforced by just over 1,000 Australian
infantry due to the strategic importance of the island and its airfield. For the
air strikes, carried out on the 24th/25th January, the carriers Hiryu and Soryu
were used, part of a fleet under Rear-Admiral Yamaguchi that also consisted of
the cruiser Tone and two destroyers. They were covered by two groups; the first
consisting of the battleship Haruna, the cruiser Maya and two destroyers, and the
second, with the battleship Kongo, the cruisers Atago and Takao and four
destroyers. The air strikes were designed to soften up the defenders for the
invasion of the island that followed.
.P The 1st Air Fleet were then tasked with launching an air raid on the northern
Australian port of Darwin (see Soryu) and this took place between the 15th and
19th February. Then, with barely time for replenishment, Hiryu was sent south of
Java at the end of February. There, the 1st Air Fleet were tasked with stopping
Allied shipping from fleeing the island, and to stop any reinforcement of Java
(see Chikuma).
.P After returning to Celebes, the 1st Air Fleet prepared for their next mission;
a raid in the Indian Ocean against the British. For this operation, the carriers
Shokaku and Zuikaku were reunited with Nagumo`s four carriers, although Kaga did
not make the trip as she was sent to Japan for repair work to damage received
previously. Supporting the carriers were four battleships: Kongo, Haruna, Hiei
and Kirishima; the two heavy cruisers Chikuma and Tone; the light cruiser Akubama
and nine destroyers.
.P Nagumo`s fleet left their anchorage at Staring Bay on the 26th March and
headed west. Five days later the Malay Force sailed for the east coast of India
in order to carry out a raid in the Bay of Bengal (see Ryujo). The British were
aware, through intelligence reports, that the Japanese were planning an offensive
operation in the Indian Ocean, but they did not know when or where they would
strike. The British commander of the Eastern Fleet, Admiral Somerville, decided
that he would split his fleet into two; a fast force containing his most modern
ships that would seek out the Japanese with the hope of mounting a night attack,
and a slow force that would provide support. As it turned out, Somerville
expected an attack earlier than the Japanese were intending and the British had
to return to port at Addu Atoll, in the Maldives, before Nagumo arrived.
Somerville then made what would be a couple of fateful decisions. He ordered the
heavy cruisers Cornwall and Dorsetshire and the destroyer HMAS Vampire to escort
the old carrier Hermes to Trincomalee for urgent repair work.
.P By the evening of the 4th April, Nagumo`s fleet had been detected when south-
east of Ceylon. A fighter from Hiryu shot down the Catalina that located them,
but the message had already been passed back to fleet headquarters. At Addu Atoll
Somerville ordered his two fleets to sail and at the same time made plans for the
two cruisers to sail from Ceylon to meet him.
.P Nagumo believed that the British fleet would still be in Ceylon and the
following day he ordered the launch of an air strike against Colombo. When about
three hundred miles from Ceylon, the Japanese commander ordered one hundred and
twenty-seven aircraft, including thirty-six fighters, to fly to the harbour.
However, Nagumo was to be bitterly disappointed at the meagre targets on offer
there. The destroyer Tenedos, survivor of the Force Z debacle, was sunk along
with an auxiliary cruiser, and two dozen aircraft were also shot down; all for
the loss of just seven Japanese aircraft.
.P Compensation of sorts was gained when the two cruisers, that were sailing to
meet up with the main fleet, were located by reconnaissance aircraft when about
two hundred miles south west of Ceylon. Dorsetshire and Cornwall were attacked by
waves of Japanese aircraft and promptly sunk. Following this, Nagumo, unaware of the weak
British fleet to the west, decided to withdraw to the southeast.
.P On the 9th, Nagumo sailed north once more in order to launch a strike against
Trincomalee harbour. Meanwhile, Somerville had ordered Hermes to sail for Addu
Atoll and the old carrier hurriedly left Ceylon minus her aircraft and with just
a destroyer and a corvette for escort. She was then ordered to return to harbour
when Nagumo`s fleet was spotted once more. Off Batticaloa, the three ship
flotilla was found by Japanese aircraft and quickly overwhelmed. Once again
however, Nagumo was to be disappointed at the lack of sizeable targets in the
harbour itself, and after the attack on Trincomalee, the 1st Air Fleet withdrew
from the Indian Ocean. Actual results were considerably less than Nagumo had
hoped and expected.
.P However, what the raid had done was to force the withdrawal of the British
Eastern Fleet away from India for its own safety. Indeed the fleet had actually
been re-based as far away as Kilindini, East Africa.
.P On the way back from the Indian Ocean, while east of the island of Formosa,
the 1st Air Fleet received a report about the presence of US carriers about 700
miles from Japan. The carriers were on a mission to launch B-25 bombers that
would carry out a raid on Tokyo (the Doolittle Raid) and Nagumo`s ships joined
in the search for the US ships, but without success.
.P After almost six months of near uninterrupted action, Hiryu then went into a
period of rest and refit ahead of her next - and last - operation; MI. MI was
designed to bring the American aircraft carriers to a battle in which they would
be destroyed. The bait to lure them was an invasion of the island of Midway,
1,150 miles northwest of Honolulu. As it turned out, the battle was a disaster
for the IJN, in which they lost all four fleet carriers, including Hiryu (see
Kaga).
.P Hiryu survived the attack that had caused the destruction of the other three
carriers of the 1st Air Fleet, and it was from her flight deck that aircraft were
then launched to attack, and damage, the carrier USS Yorktown (Yorktown was later
sunk by a Japanese submarine). However, Hiryu`s respite was brief. Before she had
a chance to launch a second wave against the US carriers, a force of thirteen
Dauntless dive-bombers descended on the carrier. There were only a few Zero
fighters left to provide combat air patrol over their carrier, and these failed
to detect the incoming American aircraft. Hiryu was hit by four bombs in quick
succession. Raging fires soon spread through the ship and the fight to save Hiryu
was lost not long after the attack. However, she did not sink until early the
following morning. 383 officers and men were lost with her.
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
The US was the enemy that Japan considered the greatest threat to their
territorial expansion plans in Asia. In July 1942, the US President had cranked
up economic pressure on Japan in a bid to persuade her Government to withdraw
their forces from China.
[Emphasis mine]
I assume you mean July 1941? [;)] Seeing as the US and Japan were at war by July 1942 and all.
The US was the enemy that Japan considered the greatest threat to their
territorial expansion plans in Asia. In July 1942, the US President had cranked
up economic pressure on Japan in a bid to persuade her Government to withdraw
their forces from China.
[Emphasis mine]
I assume you mean July 1941? [;)] Seeing as the US and Japan were at war by July 1942 and all.
Warspite1
Mmmmm...no excuses for that one [X(][X(] - thanks Composer99, amendment made [:)]
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
Just took a quick glance at it, feeling worn out at the end of the day:
The fleet tasked with carrying out the attack was the 1st Air Fleet (the Kido
Butai) containing: the 1st Carrier Division (CarDiv), Akagi and Kaga; the 2nd
CarDiv, Hiryu and Soryu; and the 5th CarDiv, Shokaku and Zuikaku. Escort was
provided by the 1st Destroyer Flotilla, which contained the light cruiser Abukama
and nine destroyers. In Support, were the battleships Hiei and Kirishima of the
3rd Battleship Squadron, and the 8th Cruiser Squadron containing the heavy
cruisers Chikuma and Tone.
Just took a quick glance at it, feeling worn out at the end of the day:
The fleet tasked with carrying out the attack was the 1st Air Fleet (the Kido
Butai) containing: the 1st Carrier Division (CarDiv), Akagi and Kaga; the 2nd
CarDiv, Hiryu and Soryu; and the 5th CarDiv, Shokaku and Zuikaku. Escort was
provided by the 1st Destroyer Flotilla, which contained the light cruiser Abukama
and nine destroyers. In Support, were the battleships Hiei and Kirishima of the
3rd Battleship Squadron, and the 8th Cruiser Squadron containing the heavy
cruisers Chikuma and Tone.
Is "Support" with a capital "S"?
Warspite1
Amendment made - thanks [:)]
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
Please give me your thoughts. This is the first City Based Volunteer unit that I have done and frankly I was unfamiliar with these units period. Sooo...
[3029] [Sofia MIL]
.T This City Based Volunteer unit represents the Bulgarian Army that fought along side the Red Army beginning in September 1944. Initially consisting of 30,000 men in three divisions the Bulgarian First Army soon grew to a force near 100,000 men in six divisions.
.P The Wehrmacht attempted to disrupt the Soviet advance near Lake Balaton in March 1945, Operation Fühlingserwachen (Spring Awakening), by targeting the First Bulgarian Army and Soviet 57th Army. The Bulgarians halted the German advance after they had managed to cross the Drava River. This victory by the Bulgarian forces did much to reestablishing a high moral throughout the First Bulgarian Army.
.P Building on success, the First Bulgarian Army led the opening of the Soviet Vienna Offensive’s operations west of Lake Balaton. The Bulgarians crossed the Drava River to breach the first of three defensive lines the German 2nd Panzer Army had established to defend the remaining oil fields available to them. By May the advance became more of a pursuit as the Bulgarian Army followed the retreating Germans. On may 13, 1945 the First Bulgarian Army made contact with the British Eighth Army in the Austrian Alps.
--Adam
Please give me your thoughts. This is the first City Based Volunteer unit that I have done and frankly I was unfamiliar with these units period. Sooo...
[3029] [Sofia MIL]
.T This City Based Volunteer unit represents the Bulgarian Army that fought along side the Red Army beginning in September 1944. Initially consisting of 30,000 men in three divisions the Bulgarian First Army soon grew to a force near 100,000 men in six divisions.
.P The Wehrmacht attempted to disrupt the Soviet advance near Lake Balaton in March 1945, Operation Fühlingserwachen (Spring Awakening), by targeting the First Bulgarian Army and Soviet 57th Army. The Bulgarians halted the German advance after they had managed to cross the Drava River. This victory by the Bulgarian forces did much to reestablishing a high moral throughout the First Bulgarian Army.
.P Building on success, the First Bulgarian Army led the opening of the Soviet Vienna Offensive’s operations west of Lake Balaton. The Bulgarians crossed the Drava River to breach the first of three defensive lines the German 2nd Panzer Army had established to defend the remaining oil fields available to them. By May the advance became more of a pursuit as the Bulgarian Army followed the retreating Germans. On may 13, 1945 the First Bulgarian Army made contact with the British Eighth Army in the Austrian Alps.
--Adam
Very nice.[&o]
Did you discover anything about the relationship between the Bulgarian forces that fought with the Germans versus this group, which fought against the Germans? My completely ignorant guess would be that some the soldiers fought with and then against the Germans. It would be interesting to know if there is any truth to that supposition.
How's this?
[3029] [Sofia MIL]
.T This City Based Volunteer unit represents the Bulgarian Army that fought along side the Red Army beginning in September 1944. Initially consisting of 30,000 men in three divisions the Bulgarian First Army soon grew to a force near 100,000 men in six divisions.
.P The Wehrmacht attempted to disrupt the Soviet advance near Lake Balaton in March 1945, Operation Frühlingserwachen (Spring Awakening), by targeting the First Bulgarian Army and Soviet 57th Army. The Bulgarians halted the German advance after they had managed to cross the Drava River. This victory by the Bulgarian forces did much to reestablishing a high moral throughout the First Bulgarian Army.
.P Building on success, the First Bulgarian Army led the opening of the Soviet Vienna Offensive’s operations west of Lake Balaton. The Bulgarians crossed the Drava River to breach the first of three defensive lines the German 2nd Panzer Army had established to defend the remaining oil fields available to them. By May the advance became more of a pursuit as the Bulgarian Army followed the retreating Germans. On may 13, 1945 the First Bulgarian Army made contact with the British Eighth Army in the Austrian Alps. [font="times new roman"].H[/font].P Throughout the entire war public opinion in Bulgaria in favor of the Soviet Union was very high, which explains why no Bulgarian armed forces fought on the eastern front Very few, if any, Bulgarians continued to fight alongside the Germans. For instance, the 16th Division, which had been occupying Thrace, in Greece, since 1941, slowly withdrew to Bulgaria at the end of September before joining the First Bulgarian Army.
