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.
[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.
Warspite1
Midtchdog - as this is the only Russian/Bulgarian counter, how about a bit of history to set the scene before your piece? Entirely up to you, but something along the lines of:
.P Bulgaria joined the Axis on the 1st March 1941. They were late comers to that
particular party as there was a deep seated and long standing fear within the
country of upsetting Russia / Soviet Union.
.P However, Bulgaria was given assurances by Hitler that they would not be
required to declare war on the Soviet Union, and as a result, King Boris followed
the route taken previously by both Hungary and Romania and threw their towel in
with Hitler.
.P While their more eager neighbours sent troops to fight the Soviet Union alongside
the German Army, Bulgaria never did; nor did they declare war on Stalin`s regime.
Note, Boris did find the time to declare war on Britain and America in December
1941.
.P After the disasters that befell the German Army at Stalingrad and then Kursk,
the Bulgarians sought to leave the Axis, and soon after, King Boris was found dead
in mysterious circumstances.
.P The King`s successor, Prince Simon, was too young to take the throne and so a
Regency Council was set up. Meanwhile the Bulgarians reluctantly remained part of
the Axis. When the Russians began moving into the Balkans in 1944, the Council
sought to make peace with Stalin that August. The Soviet leader would have none
of it; it did not matter that Bulgaria had never declared war on the Soviets, they
would be made to suffer the consequences of getting into bed with the Fascists.....
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
[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 Bulgaria joined the Axis on March 1st, 1941. They were late comers to that particular party as there was a deep seated and long standing fear within the country of upsetting Russia / Soviet Union as the populace of Bulgaria was generaly in favor of the Soviet Union.
.P However, Bulgaria was given assurances by Hitler that they would not be required to declare war on the Soviet Union, and as a result, King Boris followed the route taken previously by both Hungary and Romania and threw their towel in with Hitler who offered the the territory of Greece that Bulgaria had lost after World War I.
.P While their more eager neighbours sent troops to fight the Soviet Union alongside the German Army, Bulgaria never did; nor did they declare war on Stalin`s regime. Note, Boris did find the time to declare war on Britain and America in December 1941. Bulgaria served the Axis cause by conducting anti-partisan actions in the Balkans.
.P After the disasters that befell the German Army at Stalingrad and then Kursk, the Bulgarians sought to leave the Axis, and soon after, King Boris was found dead in mysterious circumstances.
.P The King`s successor, Prince Simon, was too young to take the throne and so a Regency Council was set up. Meanwhile the Bulgarians reluctantly remained part of the Axis. When the Russians began moving into the Balkans in 1944, the Council sought to make peace with Stalin that August. Even so, the Soviet Union declared war on Bulgaria on September 5. After three days of bloodless conflict Bulgaria surrendered to the Soviet Union and agreed to declare war on Germany.
.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 had become 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].H[/font]
[/color].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.
Warspite, I changed your last paragraph slightly but I like your idea.
[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 Bulgaria joined the Axis on March 1st, 1941. They were late comers to that particular party as there was a deep seated and long standing fear within the country of upsetting Russia / Soviet Union as the populace of Bulgaria was generaly in favor of the Soviet Union.
.P However, Bulgaria was given assurances by Hitler that they would not be required to declare war on the Soviet Union, and as a result, King Boris followed the route taken previously by both Hungary and Romania and threw their towel in with Hitler who offered the the territory of Greece that Bulgaria had lost after World War I.
.P While their more eager neighbours sent troops to fight the Soviet Union alongside the German Army, Bulgaria never did; nor did they declare war on Stalin`s regime. Note, Boris did find the time to declare war on Britain and America in December 1941. Bulgaria served the Axis cause by conducting anti-partisan actions in the Balkans.
.P After the disasters that befell the German Army at Stalingrad and then Kursk, the Bulgarians sought to leave the Axis, and soon after, King Boris was found dead in mysterious circumstances.
.P The King`s successor, Prince Simon, was too young to take the throne and so a Regency Council was set up. Meanwhile the Bulgarians reluctantly remained part of the Axis. When the Russians began moving into the Balkans in 1944, the Council sought to make peace with Stalin that August. Even so, the Soviet Union declared war on Bulgaria on September 5. After three days of bloodless conflict Bulgaria surrendered to the Soviet Union and agreed to declare war on Germany.
.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 had become 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].H[/font]
[/color].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.
Warspite, I changed your last paragraph slightly but I like your idea.
adam
Warspite1
Midtchdog, I was interested by your comment re Thrace and did some more digging. I have amended the intro further as it was still unclear to me - given the fear of the Soviets - why the Bulgarians were German friendly. It seems taking land off Romania helped!
.P This City Based Volunteer unit represents the Bulgarian Army that fought
alongside the Red Army after the Soviet Union had conquered Bulgaria in the
autumn of 1944.
.P During the early years of World War II, the Bulgarian government had been
sympathetic to the German cause, despite the feeling within the country that
was more disposed toward Russia; fellow Slavic peoples. Relations with the Germans
improved further when an area of Romania - Southern Dobruja - was ceded to
Bulgaria by the German sponsored Treaty of Craiova in September 1940.
.P Unlike Hungary and Romania, Bulgaria were late comers in signing up to the
tripartite pact as there was a deep seated and long standing fear within the
country of upsetting Russia / Soviet Union, but Bulgaria formally joined the Axis
on March 1st, 1941. They were no doubt comforted by the assurances from Hitler
that they would not be required to declare war on the Soviet Union, and that
other prizes would be available as reward for helping the Axis cause.
.P The first of these opportunities was not long in coming. On the 2nd March 1941
German troops began heading over the border from Romania in preparation for the
invasions of Yugoslavia and Greece. The operations against both were completed
swiftly and when the Greeks were ready to surrender, Bulgarian forces marched
into Eastern Macedonia and Western Thrace; no doubt the invaders viewed both of
these territories as part of a future "Greater Bulgaria". These areas became part of
the Bulgarian occupation zone.
.P On the 22nd June 1941 the Germans launched Operation Barbarossa, the invasion
of the Soviet Union. As agreed, the Bulgarians did not provide troops for this
operation, nor did they declare war on Stalin`s regime, though they did find the
time to declare war on Britain and America in December 1941.
.P After the disasters that befell the German Army at Stalingrad and then Kursk,
the Bulgarian King, Boris, sought to leave the Axis, and soon after, Boris was
found dead in mysterious circumstances. The King`s successor, Prince Simon, was
too young to take the throne and so a Regency Council was set up. Meanwhile the
Bulgarians reluctantly remained part of the Axis.
.P When the Russians began moving into the Balkans in 1944, the Council sought to
make peace with Stalin that August; Stalin was not prepared to listen and would
ensure that Bulgaria paid for their decision to align with the Fascists. The
Soviet Union declared war on Bulgaria on the 5th September. After three days of
bloodless conflict Bulgaria surrendered to the Soviet Union and agreed to declare
war on Germany.
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
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.
I think you may have forgotten a capital "U".
And I just noticed that you wrote somewhere else battleship row as Battleship Row...
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.
Not sure about this one...
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.
I'm not sure if Zero's is written as Zeros or as Zero's. I googled it and in Wiki it's written as Zero's, I googled Spitfire too and that's written too as Spitfire's. So, hm, not sure.
US Vengeance against four of the six carriers of the Kido Butai would not be long
in coming....
Is that Vengeance or vengeance?
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).
...lego? [:D] Archipelago! [;)]
... This operation went without problem and
Akagi the returned to Truk at the end of the month.
problem or problems..? ... Akagi then... returned.
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.
I think you may have forgotten a capital "U".
And I just noticed that you wrote somewhere else battleship row as Battleship Row...
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.
Not sure about this one...
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.
I'm not sure if Zero's is written as Zeros or as Zero's. I googled it and in Wiki it's written as Zero's, I googled Spitfire too and that's written too as Spitfire's. So, hm, not sure.
US Vengeance against four of the six carriers of the Kido Butai would not be long
in coming....
Is that Vengeance or vengeance?
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).
...lego? [:D] Archipelago! [;)]
... This operation went without problem and
Akagi the returned to Truk at the end of the month.
problem or problems..? ... Akagi then... returned.
Warspite1
Josh - you are fast becoming invaluable [&o]. Many thanks - amendments made [:)]
The Zeros are plural - so no apostrophe needed, but the others are all good spots [8D].
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
I didn't find any spelling mistakes in the second write-up, well done. [&o]
And no spelling mistakes either in the Bulgaria post.
I'm still not very sure about this Zeros-Zero's thing, not that I think it's important mind you... I found examples of both on the web. If one can find examples of both ways of spelling then you might as well stick with "Zeros".
Further to earlier posts I have put Kaga`s write-up on Midway on hold pending delivery of Shattered Sword. I understand that the "traditional" view of Midway may not be correct....
Anyway, in the meantime here is Kako featuring the Battle of Savo Island.
[4385 Kako - by Robert Jenkins]
.B Engine(s) output: 102,000 hp
.B Top Speed: 33 knots
.B Main armament: 6 x 8-inch (203mm), 4 x 4.7-inch (114mm) guns
.B Displacement (full load): 10,340 tons
.B Thickest armour: 3-inch (belt)
.P The Furutakas were a class of two cruisers built for the Imperial Japanese
Navy (IJN) between 1922 and 1926. They were the first cruisers built for the IJN
under the terms of the 1922 Washington Naval Treaty.
.P As would become a recurring theme for IJN cruisers, these ships emphasised
speed and firepower over protection. The design for these ships was begun prior
to the treaty and they weighed in well below the maximum 10,000 tons allowed. The
ships were re-armed in the thirties and the figures above reflect how the two
ships - Furutaka and Kako - appeared in December 1941.
.P The main armament was altered from six single, eight-inch guns to three twin
8-inch, while the secondary armament, originally four single 3-inch guns, was
replaced with four single 4.7-inch guns. Close range anti-aircraft (AA) weaponry
was provided with the addition of eight 25mm and four 13.2mm guns.
.P Another feature of pre-war Japanese cruisers was the fitting of torpedo tubes,
and two quadruple torpedo tubes were given to the Furutakas. A catapult with
space for two aircraft was also added.
.P Armour protection was thinner overall than the contemporary US Pensacola-class
with a 3-inch belt and horizontal protection provided by 1.4-inch armoured deck.
.P Their 102,000 hp and lack of armour allowed a top speed of 34.5 knots, and
even after their upgrading in the late thirties, they still achieved 33 knots.
.P Kako was named after a river while her sister was named after a mountain near
Hiroshima.
.P At the outbreak of war with the United States in December 1941, Kako was part
of the 6th Cruiser Squadron (CS) under Rear-Admiral Goto. The Japanese followed
up their attack on Pearl Harbor with the swiftly executed invasion of the island
of Guam, an American possession, and largest island in the Marianas. The 6th CS
provided support for this straightforward invasion (see Transport Counter 4441).
.P Following this quick victory, the four ships of the 6th CS - Kako, Aoba,
Furutaka and Kinugasa - were ordered to Wake Island, where the initial Japanese
attack had been repulsed. These cruisers, together with reinforcements drawn from
the returning Pearl Harbor strike force, ensured the success of the second attack
(see Amphibious Counter 4437).
.P Following this operation, the 6th CS was sent to support the invasion of the
islands of New Britain and New Ireland in the Bismarck Archipelago (see Transport
Counter 4446). This operation went without problem and the squadron then sailed
for Truk, where they arrived on the 25th January.
.P At the beginning of February, the US Navy launched carrier borne air strikes
against the Marshall Islands. The 6th CS was ordered to sail to the islands in
response, although no engagement took place and they returned to Truk just a
few days later. Just over a week later they were called out again, this time in
response to a planned US raid on Rabaul, but again no action ensued and the
frustrated squadron returned to Truk once more.
.P At the beginning of March with Java, the final piece of the Dutch East Indies
jigsaw, about to fall to the Japanese, the next target on the horizon was the
large island of New Guinea. Japanese troops landed at Salamaua on the 5th and at
Lae three days later (see Transport Counter 4448). Kako was part of the covering
force for these operations, as well as for the landing operations at the end of
the month on other small islands in that region. Kako then spent April under
refit at Truk.
.P At the start of May, the 6th CS were allocated to Vice-Admiral Inoue`s 4th
Fleet for Operation Mo. This was this planned invasion of southern New Guinea and
the island of Tulagi in the Solomons; part of the Japanese expansion into the
south-west Pacific in order to cut off Australia from the US. The four cruisers
were part of Rear-Admiral Goto`s Main Force that were responsible for covering
the two invasion forces. Also with the 6th CS was the light fleet carrier Shoho.
The operation led to the Battle of the Coral Sea; the first naval battle in
history where the naval vessels of the two protagonists never saw each other (see
Shoho) and none of the cruisers played any great part in the battle; a battle in
which Japanese expansion was checked for the first time in the war.
.P After the battle, Kako escorted the damaged carrier Shokaku to Truk and at the
start of the following month Kako was herself damaged, although this was self-
inflicted when she ran aground on a reef. She sailed for Japan for repair work
and as a result, Kako did not take part in the debacle of Midway at the beginning
of June.
.P Upon completion of the repairs, Kako was sent back to the southwest Pacific as
part of the 8th Fleet. There, she and a cruiser force, commanded by Vice-Admiral
Mikawa in his flagship Chokai, had the opportunity of inflicting a major reverse
on the US Navy almost exactly two months after Midway. As it turned out, although
Mikawa won a stunning victory, the real prize - the still loaded transport ships
supplying the US Marines that had just landed on two islands in the Solomons -
were left untouched.
.P These two islands, invaded on the 7th August 1942, were Guadalcanal and its
small northern neighbour, Tulagi. Mikawa, back in Rabaul, heard the news almost
immediately and resolved to attack the invaders that night, using the forces he
had to hand. The plan was to sail to the Solomons that afternoon in order to
attack at night. Mikawa`s forces consisted of the heavy cruisers of the 6th CS,
the light cruisers of the 18th CS: Tenryu and Yubari, the destroyer Yunagi, and
last but not least, Mikawa`s own heavy cruiser Chokai.
.P The IJN force sailed in the early afternoon from Rabaul, unaware of exactly
what was waiting for them off Guadalcanal, but confident in their night fighting
capability. The battle that followed was to become known as the Battle of Savo
Island, after the island that lies about ten miles north-east of Cape Esperance;
the most northerly point on Guadalcanal. The bulk of the US transports were
located on the northern shore of Guadalcanal and, to the north of these, were a
second group of transports anchored off Tulagi Island.
.P Guarding these two separate groups were a US/Australian cruiser and destroyer
force under the command of Rear-Admiral Crutchley. Either side of the island,
Crutchley deployed a US destroyer to guard the entrance to the channel that runs
between Guadalcanal and Florida Island to its north. The northern force consisted
of the American heavy cruisers Astoria, Quincy and Vincennes and the destroyers
Helm and Wilson. The picket ship operating north of Savo Island was the destroyer
USS Ralph Talbot. The Southern Group contained the Australian heavy cruisers
Australia and Canberra, their US equivalent, Chicago and the US destroyers Bagley
and Patterson. The picket ship deployed to the south of Savo was the destroyer
USS Blue. These were the only two groups that came into contact with the Japanese
force. A third group was deployed to the east, guarding the opposite end of the
channel and containing two light cruisers and two destroyers. The three Allied
forces were too far away from each other to provide mutual support in the event
of attack and Mikawa was to capitalise on this mistake.
.P As Mikawa`s force sailed south, it was spotted on more than one occasion by US
aircraft and a submarine, but the Americans failed to act on the information and
as a result, in the early hours of the 9th August, Mikawa led his ships in line
ahead formation, having gained complete surprise.
.P The plan was simple; to attack the force off Guadalcanal and then sail north
to defeat the naval forces at Tulagi, and the plan got off to the best of starts
when the picket-ship Blue failed to locate Mikawa`s fleet on its radar. The odds
had been further moved in the IJN favour earlier that evening when Australia was
removed from the Southern Group`s order of battle. Crutchley had been called away
to attend a conference with other senior officers and left in his flagship. When
the conference was finished, Crutchley did not return to the Southern Group, but
patrolled west of the Guadalcanal transports alone.
.P Mikawa sent floatplanes aloft to illuminate the enemy targets and the one
sided battle began at around 0130hrs at a range of just 4,500 yards. The first
victim was Canberra, which was wrecked by gunfire from Chokai initially and then
the other cruisers as they came into the battle. The Australian ship was also hit
by torpedoes, although there is controversy as to whether these were Japanese or
came inadvertently from one of the US destroyers. Either way, Canberra was out of
the battle; she was scuttled the following morning. Next came Chicago, which was
quickly hit by two torpedoes, although she was able to continue sailing under her
own steam; and out of the battle. Remarkably, none of the Allied ships had passed
on a message informing the other groups of the attack, and so, when Mikawa turned
north, the Northern Group were also taken by surprise.
.P At just before 0200hrs, with the Japanese ships now organised into two
columns, they fell upon Astoria, Quincy and Vincennes. Although Astoria was able
to damage Chokai, she was overwhelmed by the accuracy of the Japanese fire which
began at a range of 7,700 yards, and she soon stopped being an effective fighting
force; her damage was so great that she could not be saved and was to sink the
next day. Quincy was hit by Aoba and fires began which acted as a magnet to
Furutaka and Tenryu, both assisting Aoba in battering the poor cruiser into
submission. Torpedoes were also launched to hasten Quincy`s demise and the ship
sank at 0235hrs. Vincennes was attacked by Kako and Kinugasa, but despite lightly
damaging the latter, Vincennes too was soon overwhelmed and sank fifteen minutes
after Quincy.
.P Mikawa now had a decision to make. With their cruiser escorts sunk, or badly
damaged, the US transports were now sitting ducks; should he attack the
transports? Time was getting on and Mikawa was conscious that when light came, if
he was caught in the open by US aircraft, his ships would be extremely
vulnerable. He decided to depart the scene. It was a disastrous decision. Mikawa
could have potentially caused the US land forces to withdraw from Guadalcanal and
sunk the ships from the Eastern Group into the bargain; we will never know -
Mikawa`s ships headed home.
.P For those on board Kako, unaware of the bigger picture, the sense of pride and
joy of that morning`s great victory was shortlived. While returning to Kavieng,
New Ireland, Kako was spotted by the US submarine S-44. At just after 0700hrs the
submarine fired a spread of torpedoes at the unsuspecting cruiser. Three
torpedoes hit the target and Kako sank within just a few minutes. Despite the
speed of her sinking, only 34 officers and men were lost, but her loss, out of
the blue, was a considerable shock to the men of the 6th CS.
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
.P At the start of May, the 6th CS were allocated to Vice-Admiral Inoue`s 4th
Fleet for Operation Mo. This was this planned invasion of southern New Guinea and
the island of Tulagi in the Solomons; part of the Japanese expansion into the
south-west Pacific in order to cut off Australia from the US.
.P At the start of May, the 6th CS were allocated to Vice-Admiral Inoue`s 4th
Fleet for Operation Mo. This was this planned invasion of southern New Guinea and
the island of Tulagi in the Solomons; part of the Japanese expansion into the
south-west Pacific in order to cut off Australia from the US.
"This was this"?
Warspite1
Thanks Josh - "This was the". Amendment duly made [:)]
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
Wonderful work! Thanks for all your efforts. But may I add a little word about this one (Akagi description):
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.
Shattered Sword gave us a different account of the attack (especially on the conditions and the hits), and I think we may take this into account.
I think we could write a couple sentences more too, about how lucky the shot was (Dick Best attacked with only 3 planes from a single element...)
EDIT: completely sorry, I had missed the "Further to earlier posts I have put Kaga`s write-up on Midway on hold pending delivery of Shattered Sword. I understand that the "traditional" view of Midway may not be correct...." thing... Sorry sorry sorry
Wonderful work! Thanks for all your efforts. But may I add a little word about this one (Akagi description):
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.
Shattered Sword gave us a different account of the attack (especially on the conditions and the hits), and I think we may take this into account.
I think we could write a couple sentences more too, about how lucky the shot was (Dick Best attacked with only 3 planes from a single element...)
EDIT: completely sorry, I had missed the "Further to earlier posts I have put Kaga`s write-up on Midway on hold pending delivery of Shattered Sword. I understand that the "traditional" view of Midway may not be correct...." thing... Sorry sorry sorry
Warspite1
Thank you - yes I am holding fire on Kaga - and may need to amend Akagi, Soryu and Hiryu as a result. The good news is Shattered Sword came today - Hurrah!! [:)]
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
have a good read, I just needed something like a few hours to go through it. Didn't happen that way since when I was 14 and read Redstorm Rising [:D]
have a good read, I just needed something like a few hours to go through it. Didn't happen that way since when I was 14 and read Redstorm Rising [:D]
Warspite1
Wow! One chapter down only and I can`t believe how good this book is. Shattered Sword is going to be one good read - absolutely unputdownable - well it would be if I did not have to go to work......[:(].
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
who is taking care of the land unit descriptions ....
just read one of my own ..... it was not my own any more ...
all the work I have done have been changed...
but. the NZ motorized need some work .... it is confusing
< The 3rd New Zealand Division was the core of the 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force, in this case created
for service in the Pacific. Its commander was Major General H. E. Barrowclough in the Pacific and began
forming from 8th and 14th New Zealand Brigade group in Fiji in May 1942 and moved to New Zealand in the
middle of the year. After completing its initial training in New Zealand the 3rd NZ Division moved to New
Caledonia for garrison duty and further training in December and January 1943. An armoured regiment was
added to the division in December 1942. However as a manpower shortage resulted from the losses in the 2nd
Division, it took over a year before it received its third infantry brigade.>
it is fine that my work is changed. but [:-]
if you think that my work is not good enough then tell me and I will look at them again ...
my south African write-ups have also been changed. and alot of the information I have spend time finding... have been removed ...
on another note.... why are you spending time changing the write-ups already done...when you are not finished ..
who is taking care of the land unit descriptions ....
just read one of my own ..... it was not my own any more ...
all the work I have done have been changed...
but. the NZ motorized need some work .... it is confusing
< The 3rd New Zealand Division was the core of the 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force, in this case created
for service in the Pacific. Its commander was Major General H. E. Barrowclough in the Pacific and began
forming from 8th and 14th New Zealand Brigade group in Fiji in May 1942 and moved to New Zealand in the
middle of the year. After completing its initial training in New Zealand the 3rd NZ Division moved to New
Caledonia for garrison duty and further training in December and January 1943. An armoured regiment was
added to the division in December 1942. However as a manpower shortage resulted from the losses in the 2nd
Division, it took over a year before it received its third infantry brigade.
Warspite1
Michael - I do not think anyone has taken over from Alan so this rests with Steve at the moment.
I think Mariandavid is doing some revision work on the CW units - I don`t know if he has amended any Kiwi counters though.
BTW, wasn`t the 3rd NZ disbanded in 1944 because men were more urgently needed to work in agriculture in NZ?
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
who is taking care of the land unit descriptions ....
just read one of my own ..... it was not my own any more ...
all the work I have done have been changed...
but. the NZ motorized need some work .... it is confusing
< The 3rd New Zealand Division was the core of the 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force, in this case created
for service in the Pacific. Its commander was Major General H. E. Barrowclough in the Pacific and began
forming from 8th and 14th New Zealand Brigade group in Fiji in May 1942 and moved to New Zealand in the
middle of the year. After completing its initial training in New Zealand the 3rd NZ Division moved to New
Caledonia for garrison duty and further training in December and January 1943. An armoured regiment was
added to the division in December 1942. However as a manpower shortage resulted from the losses in the 2nd
Division, it took over a year before it received its third infantry brigade.
Warspite1
Michael - I do not think anyone has taken over from Alan so this rests with Steve at the moment.
I think Mariandavid is doing some revision work on the CW units - I don`t know if he has amended any Kiwi counters though.
BTW, wasn`t the 3rd NZ disbanded in 1944 because men were more urgently needed to work in agriculture in NZ?
yes later disbanded ...... for farm work ...and reinforcements to the division in Italy ..
Whilst writing up about Midway, I thought it an ideal opportunity to get the Japanese submarine fleet off to a start. Please see attached write-up that looks at the KD6-class subs.
[4453 Submarine - by Robert Jenkins]
.P These World In Flames counters represent a number of submarines rather than
any specific individual submarine. The dates printed on the back of the counters
do not tie up in any meaningful way with build dates for the various classes of
Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) submarine class and therefore the counter date
should be ignored in most cases. These Japanese submarine write-ups contain the
usual technical data, followed by a brief history of one or more submarines from
each of the main classes that saw action during the Second World War.
.P The Japanese submarine service began life in similar fashion to the surface
fleet, i.e. the IJN initially used vessels designed and built overseas, but once
the Japanese learnt the skills necessary to both design and construct their own
types, construction was undertaken at home.
.P Generally speaking, the Japanese favoured large submarines that could operate
as part of the fleet. These large boats were collectively known as Kaigun-dai or
more commonly Kaidai. Drawing heavily upon their experience of Tsushima - the
IJN`s great naval victory over the Russian Fleet in 1905 - the Japanese believed
completely in the concept of the decisive battle. During the inter-war years,
much of their thinking at all levels, was driven by the idea that should war with
the United States come, the conflict would be settled by such a decisive battle.
As the US Navy sailed across the Pacific to meet the enemy, so elements of the
IJN would weaken it ahead of the final battle; large ocean-going submarines would
be part of that wearing down process.
.P In choosing to use their submarines as an adjunct to the battle fleet, the IJN
hamstrung their submarine commanders. They did not use their boats in the role of
merchant ship killers; a role they were most eminently suited for, and which
could have given the Allies major problems in trying to build up forces in
Australia and other islands.
.P The size of World War II Japanese submarines gave rise to further problems
too. They were very slow to submerge and so were much easier to attack and kill
once found. Generally, the maximum depth they could operate at was significantly
shallower than their contempories. Japanese submarines tended to be noisy
underwater and so were more easily detected than should have been the case.
.P The one positive the IJN submarines could point to was the excellence of their
torpedoes. Unlike both the Germans and the Americans, the Japanese came to World
War II with a tried, trusted and lethal weapon. Different types were employed but
the Type 95 was the most used variant.
.P Japanese submarines were given one of three pre-fixes: I, RO or HA. I-boats
were the fleet submarines and the backbone of the fleet. Within this type were
four further divisions: Type A were command submarines, Type B were used for
scouting, Type C were given additional torpedo tubes for increased offensive
capability, and Type D were used as transports. RO-boats were generally smaller
versions of the I-boats, and the HA designation was given to coastal and
midget submarines.
.P The IJN began World War II (December 1941) with sixty-four submarines of all
types and about two thirds of these were of modern design. Well over one hundred
vessels were built during the conflict, but with a few notable exceptions, their
war record showed a poor return.
.P
.P This counter looks at the KD6A/B type.
.P The boats were originally numbered I-68 to I-75, although during May 1942 the
surviving boats were re-numbered with an extra 1 preceding their original number.
.P The eight boats were essentially an improved version of the KD5-class. As such
they were faster and could dive further, although their basic armament was the
same. They carried fourteen torpedoes and had six, bow mounted tubes for their
21-inch torpedoes. The first three vessels were given a 3-inch gun but this was
replaced with the heavier 4.7-inch gun on the remaining boats.
.P Continuing the IJN`s quest for fast, ocean-going boats that could act with the
fleet, when the first of the KD6-class was completed in 1934, she was the fastest
submarine in the world; on the surface at least, and the range for this class was
increased from ten thousand miles to fourteen thousand.
.P Six of the A type were built and two of a modified B type; the latter being of
a slightly longer, heavier design that allowed for an increase in diving depth to
278ft.
.P All eight boats were sunk between December 1941 and April 1944, but two of the
KD6-class were able to claim notable successes during the Second World War.
.P
.B Name: I-68 / I-168
.B Engine(s) output: 9,000 hp (Surfaced) 1,080 hp (Submerged)
.B Top Speed: 23 knots (Surfaced) 8.25 knots (Submerged)
.B Main armament: 6 x 21-inch torpedo tubes, 1 x 3-inch (76.2mm) gun
.B Displacement (Fully Submerged): 2,440 tons
.B Diving Depth: 245ft
.P At the time of Japan`s entry into the war, I-68 was was part of the 3rd
Submarine Squadron (SS) and took part in the Pearl Harbor operation. However, the
submarine service were conspicuous by their lack of performance during this
operation, and this would become a recurring theme over the course of the war.
.P After recovering from damage received while patrolling off Hawaii, I-68, now
re-numbered I-168, next took part in the Midway operation in June 1942. The role
of the IJN submarines was to form a cordon between Pearl Harbor and Midway to
ensure that if the US Navy sortied, they would be spotted - and hopefully
attacked - by the waiting submarines. In reality, the operation was a fiasco; the
submarines not taking up station until long after the American carriers had left
for Midway (see Kaga and Mikuma).
.P However, for I-168, commanded by Lt-Cdr Tanabe, better fortunes were to come.
After completing a desultory attack against Midway in the early morning of the
5th June - she fired off a few rounds before being spotted by a searchlight -
I-168 was ordered to sink a damaged US carrier.
.P The carrier was Yorktown, which was fighting a heroic battle against sinking,
having been previously bombed and torpedoed by naval aircraft from the carrier
Hiryu. When she was found by I-168, the destroyer Hammann was alongside her.
Tanabe skilfully sailed his boat through the American destroyer screen and at a
range of fifteen hundred metres, let loose a spread of four torpedoes. One hit
the hapless Hammann, breaking her in two following which she quickly sank. The
last torpedo missed, but the other two hit Yorktown low down in the hull, dooming
the plucky American carrier to a watery grave.
.P I-168 managed to survive the subsequent attacks from the US destroyers and
despite being damaged, she made it back to Japan almost two weeks later. Yorktown
was the biggest scalp achieved by the IJN`s submarine service.
.P After this episode, I-168 was patched up once more and took part in delivering
cargo to outposts such as the Solomons and the Aleutians. However, this was to be
a short assignment. In July 1943, while sailing in the Steffen Strait, north of
Papua New Guinea, I-168 came across USS Scamp and was destroyed with all hands by
the US submarine.
.P I-75 / I-175 was a B-type variant of the KD6-class. She was also part of the
3rd SS at the start of the Pacific War and took up position south of Oahu for the
attack on Pearl Harbor. She was at least partially successful here, sinking an
American merchant vessel as well as bombarding Maui and Palmyra. But like her
half sister, her patrols during early 1942 were marked by their lack of success
of any sort.
.P While continuing to operate from Kwajalein, from July 1942, the re-numbered
I-175 moved into the South-Pacific and she sank one merchant and damaged a second
that month. The following month saw her sink an Australian trawler before being
damaged herself by US aircraft, and she had to sail to Rabaul for repairs.
.P At the end of 1942, she was damaged after a collision with a Japanese merchant
ship and after repairs I-175 was sent to northern waters to assist operations in
the Aleutians; firstly to provide supplies to the garrisons until July 1943,
after which she assisted the evacuation of troops from the inhospitable outpost.
.P I-175`s biggest victory came during the US invasion of the Gilbert Islands.
Led by Lt-Cdr Tabata, she was ordered to sail for Makin Island which she reached
on the 24th November. In the early hours of that morning, the US escort carrier
Liscome Bay was sailing off Butaritari Island and was preparing to launch her
aircraft, when she came into I-175`s view. Two torpedoes were launched, one of
which hit the escort carrier near one of her magazines. A huge explosion quickly
followed and the carrier sank in about twenty minutes. Almost 650 men died during
the attack. I-175 was subjected to an intensive counter-attack but she managed to
escape back to Kwajalein.
.P The start of 1944 saw I-175 based in the Marshall Islands for the forthcoming
US invasion and she was to meet her end there the following month. At the start
of February she was attacked by two destroyers and lost with all hands.
Now Maitland, now's your time!
Duke of Wellington to 1st Guards Brigade - Waterloo 18 June 1815
For starters a general question You write "Japan`s" instead of "Japan's". So uhm, that's an " ` " instead of an " ' " Same with IJN`s instead of IJN's.
Not sure if that's correct. I've noticed that you have used it in every writedown... so I'm not so sure if it's worth the trouble changing it all.
" The dates printed on the back of the counters
do not tie up in any meaningful way with build dates for the various classes of
Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) submarine class and therefore the counter date
should be ignored in most cases. "
Shouldn't this be: ... various classes of the Imperial Japanese Navy... ? ... not sure though, the sentence doesn't read fluidly.. if you know what I mean.
".P The size of World War II Japanese submarines gave rise to further problems
too. They were very slow to submerge and so were much easier to attack and kill
once found. Generally, the maximum depth they could operate at was significantly
shallower than their contempories."
Contemporaries... right?
" As such
they were faster and could dive further, although their basic armament was the
same."
