Operation Passenger:
Aims:
1. Short term: securing the SLOC West Coast - Australia.
2. Medium term A: establishing a staging post for the first counter-attacks in SoPac/CentPac (Wallis Island, Canton Island, Ellice Islands)
3. Medium term B: creating a LBA trap for KB. See this thread:
tm.asp?m=980486
4. Long term: Establishing a major fleet base in SoPac, home for the US CVs
Allocated Forces:
LCUs (see screenshot):
High Priority: 1 Base Force for Pago Pago, Savaii and Upolu. 1 RCT, 1 CD unit, 1 ENG unit (EAB, Seabees) and 1 AA unit for Pago Pago and Savaii.
-> 1st and 2nd Wave - check
Medium Priority: 1 RCT and 1 AA unit for Upolu, 2nd RCT and 2nd AA unit for Savaii and Pago Pago. 1 Aviation unit for Savaii.
-> 3rd Wave and consecutive convoys - en-route
Low Priority: 2nd AA unit, 1 CD and 1 Aviation unit for Upolu, 1 ART unit for Savaii. 1 Division for the Samoan Islands.
-> not yet assigned - in planning phase
LBA:
- 72 P40E Warhawks - check
- 24 P40B Tomahawks - check, replacement AC needed
- 48 P36A Mohawks - check, replacement AC needed
- ?? Airacobras - at Pearl Harbor
- ?? Wildcats - en-route from CentPac
- approx. 100 2Es - 50% at Suva, 50% at Pearl Harbor (waiting for aviation support)
- approx. 50 4Es - 50% at Suva, 50% at Pearl Harbor (waiting for aviation support)
- 16 Dauntless - at Canton Island
- 36 PBY Catalinas - check
Ships:
- 1 Submarine division - check
- 1 PT boat division - at Palmyra
- 1 or 2 DD division - check (escorts of the 2nd and 3rd Wave)
- 1 Cruiser division - repairing at Auckland
- several minelayers, 1 MLE - en-route
- auxiliaries: AVD, AR, AS, AD, AE, MSW - en-route
White = LCU is at its destination
Green = LCU is at Pago Pago
Yellow = LCU is in the 3rd Wave
Red = LCU is behind the 3rd Wave
Looks like I have to deal with aim No. 3 already. Comments, ideas, suggestions? Do I have delusions of grandeur? [;)] The downside of Operation Passenger is that the Fijis and Noumea will be weak for at least another month (the Americal Division has just left Panama for Noumea, and a RCT + supporting units are waiting at SF, destination: Suva).