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Situation in the Mediterranean Theater at the beginning of the turn:



The Italian POWs continue to press Allied logistics.
60k Axis forces have surrendered so far, while only 148 Allied soldiers have been captured:



Shift of garrison from Belgium to SW France so that 14th Pzr Div can move to SE France enroute to Italy. Hopefully it can fight before going east in a few turns.

17th LW Inf Div shipped to Corsica from Piombino despite isolation of island.
18th LW Inf Div shipped to N Italy from low countries.
1/19th and 2/19th LW Inf Div railed to southern France for transfer to Corsica.
3/19th LW Inf Div still in the Netherlands, will move to rail next week.
4th FJ rails to Piombino and may sail next week to the island depending on how our fortunes look.

Shuffle security regiments from cities to rough terrain so that 29th PzG Rgts can take up positions in the Toe cities. Expect new landings down here next.

Air losses beginning of turn:



Air losses after Axis air phase this turn.
Attempted to use NFs to attack Allied patrol aircraft, but escorting fighters and air superiority from the Allies ravaged this force.



Disappointed that the enemies focused naval patrol succeeded in isolating Corsica. Luftwaffe was hurt last week trying to prevent this. Will need to focus on securing one port to keep up the fight, or start the exfil sooner rather than later. Maybe his airpower will wane first and we can maintain non-isolated status
Moved some more patrol craft to the area, and will try to force the issue next week.

More forts built in the Gothic Line, Army Group C is now maxed on command points. Will have to move some level 3 forts back to OKW.

Unit level map of Mediterranean Theater:

With the arrival of September garrison requirements in the occupied areas won't change for a while, but we'll need to pay attention to automatic withdrawal of units to the Eastern Front.
I've tried to move units due to go East to S. Italy so that I'm not juggling garrisons every week a unit withdraws.

Below is a breakdown of the German forces in Western Europe, generally working from north to south.

Denmark:

Holland:

Belgium:

France:



7th Army is stationed in the Cherbourg region and overseeing port fortification efforts.



19th Army is in the Marseilles region of France:



Army Group B is currently stationed in SW France:

Italy.

Army Group C has overall responsibility for this Theater.



First Army is in charge of the Corsican defense.



10th Army is building fortifications central Italy, with emphasis on the western coasts.



15th Army is managing defenses in Southern Italy.



Hube's XIV Panzer Corps is adroitly commanding the German side of the action in the Sicilian theater.
Only 3/15th PzG Rgt has lost a battle

September was a historically busy month on Mainland Italy in 1943.
Below is a map showing actions taken by the US 5th and BR 8th Armies.

Turn 11
September 11, 1943

Weather Report:



Low pressure system making its way from Gibraltar, hopefully interferes with Allied airpower next week!
More landings in Corsica, all TFs committed to the effort.
Luftwaffe barely keeps the lines open.

Cumulative shipping losses:
Troop ships 72
Cargo ships 289

Abwehr's estimated Allied naval capacity tracking.
Allied troop ship fleet is only 88% of initial, while cargo fleet capacity is 101%:

Overall strategic map of Med Theater at the beginning of the turn:

Heavy losses in the air at the outset of the turn:



Another phase of heavy Luftwaffe losses trying to control the seas around Corsica.

The reality is the remaining four TFs arriving means the Allies are pot committed to conquering Corsica. They are trying to overwhelm it quickly, and they possess a better conveyor for getting units to this battlefield than I do.
But that is the point of defending this sector, to compel an Allied response and the time it will take to plan, execute, and exfil for the next operation.
The clock is always ticking on the Allies.
He came in with two landings, confirmed it wasn't enough, and immediately followed up with reinforcements. If he sees reinforcements from the Germans it should compel him to redouble his commitment.



Army Group C agrees to send 4th FJ to the island and try to rebalance existing forces to contain multiple beachheads.
One ship hit enroute. Insufficient port capacity to unload. This could be a problem for division sized units, and a factor in thoughts about holding for any time.
17th LW Fld Div is unloaded from ships and defending the port lifeline back to Italy.



The German goal is to tie up some TFs for as long as possible, cause as much attrition on TFs and the Allied shipping pool as possible while the Luftwaffe still has its best relative strength, and to extract the Corsican defenders without losing any units.
Transports are repositioned to begin pulling out depleted formations, and processing the evacuation of any cities 1st Army decides to abandon. I want to avoid last stands and surrenders wherever possible and frustrate the enemy's prospective gains.

Army Group C moves 18th and 19th LW Inf Div to closest ports in Italy and unloaded them from trains to potentially take transports to the island. May decide not to feed anymore units to this maelstrom.
Allies have at least two corps worth of troops committed to the invasion so far. Even more at sea. We noticed that a FF Inf Rgt was lost the week prior. Not sure if invasion bounce, or lost at sea.

In Sicily the Schmalz Bde was pushed back.
With the Allied commitment to Corsica the fear of Allied landings pinning the Sicily force fade for a while.
Still intend to withdraw orderly and not be compelled to suffer retreat losses wherever possible.



Hube is hoping to hold this island until October.
Allies still have around two corps worth of troops tied up here.
What we've seen so far:



Hube pulls the perimeter back again, leaving some Italians to hold the front lines.

With the sharp contests on Corsica and Sicily the Allies are finally starting to bleed in this campaign:



As mentioned before, a Free French Rgt was lost at sea.
The Italians continue to valiantly fight for il Duce.

Turn 12
Sept 18, 1943

Weather report:



The battle of Corsica continues!

Ground losses:



More Allied units have come ashore. Some battles, with favorable results, but the 194th Sec Rgt is routed from the island.
The depleted 198th and 200th Sec Rgt are airlifted out by Italian transports.

Units on Corsica at the start of the turn:



Still no Italian surrender, but their units continue to disintegrate under Allied assault.



Air losses:

Allied VP losses on the battlefield begin to weigh on the overall score:



17th LW Inf Div moves inland to help maintain LOC between Bastia and Calvi. LOCs are restored inland between all ports, but will be lost for good next week.
Allies expect to clear the island by mid-October. We hope to hold some ports into November. 18th and 19th LW Inf Div regiments are shipped to the island and gather near the closest ports to make the trip next week.

The Luftwaffe and their Italian friends are able to keep the sea lanes open to Bastia for another week. Capability here is degrading fast, but Allies are struggling too, and weather may eventually help make Allied isolation very difficult. I just want to force the TFs to stay put supporting the temporary ports.

On Sicily the British keep pounding forward.
Down to the Messina perimeter now, a regiment of the 15th PzG has returned to the mainland.
Schmalz Bde switches places with H. Goering Pzr Div and fresh Italian infantry divisions traverse the straits while more are railed southward.
We estimate we can hold here at least another two weeks, maybe longer depending on Allied luck.

Fort built in Taranto to boost fortification level beyond 4. We will put forts in the major Italian ports.

Overall Unit Level map of Italian Theater:

Turn 13
September 25, 1943

Weather report:



VP chart:

Corsica barely isolated. Which means completely isolated.



Naval patrols break through.



This week we check how to airlift as much as possible and reposition air assets to get the rest next week if necessary.

3/2nd FJ island hops from a tenuous position in the port of Ajaccio across the island to Porto Vecchio to beef up the defenses.



192nd Sec Rgt is airlifted to mainland Italy.

More Italian units destroyed:



Ground losses in turn 13:



Air losses in Allied phase last turn:



Air losses in the German phase this turn:

Supply situation on Corsica and CV values at the end of the turn after moves.
Before evacuating the 3/2nd FJ Rgt put all supplies in Ajaccio to the torch.



Allies get more units ashore and clear the interior.
The Allies have made a huge commitment and it will take some time to get these force back out of the small ports available once this island is conquered.
The last column denotes the last time the unit in question was directly spotted.