Historical AE. Cantona2 (A) vs Fletcher (J)

[cantona2]

Well fucked off

Oh how im laughing at those who shouted AFB game when this came out!!!! FFS AFB my arse.

How can a unit with over 65 exp, flying over its own base get mauled by enemy planes in action for three constant days? Mines that are made out of paper, whereas my subs seem to have magnetic hulls!!! And why cannot dud torpedoes fuck off and do one?

AFB game indeed, its seems to me with supersonic ranged fighters and bombers the Japanese can be sipping sake in Chicago in a few days

Rant Over
Bakc to getting a spanking by Ramon

[cantona2]

Turn Synopsis 9th June 1942

Phew what a trio of turns in which the following conclusions have been made. Japanese carrier power is supreme. Japanese submarine captains in RL wish they had the efficiency of Ramon's captains. Dud hits are the most frustrating thing in this game!!!

B-17s on Luganville proved the only planes capable of launching strikes against the KB. 12 bombers flew off on the 7th, braved a massive CAP of A6M2s and launched an attack on the enemy carriers. Three enemy fighters were shot down but all bombers returned with light to substantial damage. suffice to say that from 13,000 feet the accuracy of the bombers was nill!



Suffice to say that retaliation was instant. On the 7th the might of Japanese carrier power hit the American base on Lunganville. Though only one B-17 was destroyed on the ground a large number of them were damaged by shrapnel despite the protection of revetments. Those planes capable of flight were withdrawn to Suva while 50 fighters were flown in from Noumea. These proved their worth against a strike on the 8th June that was targetting shipping at dock and in the surrounding waters. Though two Clemson Class Destroyers were sunk, over 25 Japanese carrier planes and pliots joined them in their watery grave.

Around the Gilberts, USN operations around Tabiteuea had to be abanadoned after Japaense subs sunk three transports unloading there. Heads were going to roll after no escorts had been assigned to them. CARDIV 1 (Enterprise and Saratoga) launched a raid against Tarawa that heavily damaged the base there, the dark plumes of smoke indicating that fuel dumps had been hit. Several large Japanese flying boats attacked the transports at Tabiteuea but were shot down by F4F-4s from the Enterprise. News that the main Japanese Carrier Fleet was moving East caused the immediate cancellation of all landings on the Gilberts and the withdrawal of USN Carriers towards Baker Island. 7 2nd SUBRON boats are shadowing the Japanese ships as they leave the Santa Cruz Islands. Though damage was extensive and losses heavy US High Command takes solace that they weathered the heaviest Japanese storm thrown at them so far. Immediate plans are afoot to reinforce and resupply Ndeni and most importantly, many USAAF squadrons have gained invaluable battle experience.

The Santa Cruz's were far from the only active theatre. Intensive air battles were also fought in the India-Burma border region, particularly over Imphal, Comilla, Chittagong and Manadlay. USAAF P-40s and Hurricanes of the RAF fought well and were able to achieve a 2:1 loss ratio against veteran Ki-43 units of the IJNAF



Further to the north, unescorted naval strikes by aircraft identified by Intell as a new G3M model were also shredded over the Bay of Bengal. Small but important morale boosting victories!!!!



The Eastern Australain seaboard was also under attack from Japanese bases on New Guinea. Portland Roads had been developed as a fighter base and was subjected to light aerial attacks. IJAAF planes also struck at Cooktowna nd Cairns, airsapce protected by USAAF Pursuit Squadrons.



The immediate Allied plans revolve around the consolidation of the Santa Cruz position and the landings on Tarawa once it has been established that the main Japanese carrier force has returned back to base.

[cantona2]

I have been out of action for a week due to a PC death. New machine all rigged up and ready to go. Just sent off turn to Ramon

[1275psi]

sniff................... zuiho waits to raise anchor.............. LOL

[cantona2]

ORIGINAL: 1275psi

sniff................... zuiho waits to raise anchor.............. LOL

lol need the turn from you Herb then the Zuiho can meet her fate

[cantona2]

Quite a problem has arisen with my subs after we've applied the patch. As Speedy has pointed out on the Subs thread on the main page, all tubes have been halved! I hope we can find a way around this as it could be a game killer if we cannot find a solution or go back to pre patch

[cantona2]

Not withstanding these problems the war continues:

• Air raids fly to and fro across the Burma-India Border. Sometimes I ambush him. Sometimes he ambushes me!
• Southern Offensive in China to compound his attacks in the North
• Ndeni is being blasted but resupply missions are enroute
• Im building up for a strike on the Marshalls, Tarawa, with the 1st Marine Division. 3 CVs and 4 BBs in support.

[cantona2]

Turn Synopsis 15th June 1942

USN transports once again moving towards Tabiteuea, this time with surface and ASW escorts, were spotted by flying boats. High Command assumes they are based at Tarawa. As such, these ships have been diverted to the island of Arorae. Earlier surveying of the island suggests that a decent fighter strip can be developed here and as such two SeeBee units will unload here and start hammering out a strip post haste. Once fighters can be based here they can cover the development of further bases in the Southern Gilberts and support Ocean Island. where a small detachment of Australian engineers have been hunkering down and digging in since December 7th. Extreme caution however has been advised as the approach to Arorae begins as SBDs from the covering CARDIV 1 report many submarine contacts.

[IronWarrior]

ORIGINAL: cantona2


The 19th Fighter Squadron appeases its honour after Pearl Harbour

Hope you don't mind, but a quick newbie question about this picture. Is there any difference between using sweep and escort when setting patrol levels to 100%? For example, if you set CAP to 100%, would it make any difference in performance if they were on escort or sweep?

Thanks for doing this AAR!

[cantona2]

ORIGINAL: IronWarrior

ORIGINAL: cantona2


The 19th Fighter Squadron appeases its honour after Pearl Harbour

Hope you don't mind, but a quick newbie question about this picture. Is there any difference between using sweep and escort when setting patrol levels to 100%? For example, if you set CAP to 100%, would it make any difference in performance if they were on escort or sweep?

Thanks for doing this AAR!

Hi Iron Warrior and thanks for the comments. In WitP there was a quantitative advantage to put fighters on escort rather CAP in order to minimize sorties and therefore ops losses if no raids were incoming. TBH I haven't noticed an increase in ops losses, well more than normal, in AE by leaving fighters on Sweep/CAP orders.

Oh we were once all noobs and without asking we'd have never learnt, hell we're all still learning. Great thing is that the community is the best on the web!

[IronWarrior]

Thanks for the reply. We've adopted the same house rules in the Grand Campaign pbem just started a few days ago, so I'll be watching this one with great interest! I've played Guadalcanal a few times, but am taking a crash course in the GC. [:D]

[cantona2]

Welcome to the madness Iron Warrior, but I guarantee you'll love it!!!!

[cantona2]

Turn Synopsis 16th June 1942

Massive offensive Japanese operations in China. Sian had already been targeted by a Japanese attack that had been stopped cold in the forests south of the city. Two days ago armoured units crossed the river and cut off the railway into Sian. Two veteran and supplied/rested infantry corps moved to intercept and engaged the Japanese tanks with artillery. Two move Corps move to support before the Japanese armour can have the benefit of Infantry assistance. A twin offensive has also started in the south with the city of Luichow being sieged and moves being made on Changsha. Though the Japanese have been successful in the former, they have come up against solid Chinese defensive lines in the latter.

[cantona2]

Turn Synopsis 17th June 1942


Headlines from the Fronts

CBI
BBC NEWS CORRESPONDANT

"Monsoon rains have severley curtailed aerial operations in what hitherto had been a very active theatre of war. Local fields were socked in with heavy rains or turned into quagmires of mud impeding the landing and take off of aircraft. Thankfully the enemy is also suffering from the incessant downpour."

CHINA
REUTERS IN LUICHOW

"The Chinese Army continues its controlled withdrawal from the city towards the North East. 9 divisions are conducting a fighting withdrawal in the face of a three pronged Japanese attack. As of this morning only 16 miles separated the leading elements from the railway leading into Kweilin. Sporadic Japanese bombardments have cause some casualties but the Generalissimo feels he had made the right decision in wanting the city evacuated."

TOWNSVILLE
SYDNEY TIMES

"The arrival of the Seventh US Air Force has caused quite a stir in the Townsville area. Rumours abound that the arrival of this HQ signifies the escalation of the air war against New Guinea and enemy bases in the Solomons. Reinforcement of aircraft is also expected soon."

ABOARD THE CRUISER ASTORIA, SOUTHERN GILBERT ISLANDS
ASSOCIATED PRESS

"More submarine sightings but still our engineers continue to unload and this strategic little island. Already bulldozers are a work clearing the sparse jungle that will soon become a fighter strip that will cover the 134th Base Force to the north, Currently isolated after landing at Tabiteuea."

[cantona2]

Turn Synopsis 18th June 1942

Hectic day of submarine and ASW activity around Arorae. Picket destroyers reported the presence of Japanese submarines from the many contacts from Sonar devices. An initial depth charge attack on an enemy submarine near the island failed to sink the enemy vessel but more alarmingly was the attack on the Enterprise that resulted in a heavy retaliation by the screening destroyers which caused the enemy ship to surface and then to be sunk by gunfire. Immediate orders were given to steam east towards Baker Island at full speed.



As the Enterprise and Saratoga task forces, plus their replenishment oilers, set off a wily submarine captain opted to use the extra noise of so many propellers to steal his way into the main body of capital ships and bypass the pickets. At approximately 12:35 two torpedoes struck the Indianapolis. The cruiser immediately slewed to a very slow speed gushing smoke and observers from attending destroyers saw flames from the aft areas of the ship. Depth charges were dropped in the general area of the attack but no sign of an enemy submarine was seen at all. One destroyer from each carrier screen was ordered to detach and escort the Indianapolis to Canton Island were emergency repairs could be carried out. She could only make 5 knots and thus could not keep up with the main body of ships in their move east.

[cantona2]

Elsewhere in the theater:

Intensive day of battle to the North of Sian as 5 enemy armoured regiments clashed with two Infantry Corps of the Northern Army. The battle was a stalemate as the Japanese lacked infantry support to dislodge the dug in Chinese from their positions on the hills dominating the roadway, while the Chinese lacked sufficient anti-tank capability to throw the Japanese tanks back. That said over 40 enemy tanks lay burning and many more were seen to take on damage from shell bursts and grenade impacts. The Chinese general on the ground kept sending urgent requests to the high command for more 3.7 anti tank guns to reinforce his infantry. In Luichow the fighting withdrawal continued as the main bulk of the Army Corps there had almost reached the relative safety of the wooden railway line to Kweilin. A ferocious Japanese assault was repulsed.

Royal Navy Command at Colombo was forced to give up a couple of its destroyers as the losses incurred in the Eastern Mediterranean caused the Admiralty to call upon reinforcement from the Eastern Command. The Paladin and the Pakenham set off from Colombo to Aden and henceforth from there up the Suez Canal to Cairo and then Alexandria. Intensive cat and mouse games continued against a large presence of Japanese submarines off Colombo. A large resupply convoy from Cape Town has also entered the Bay of Bengal, giving Ceylon a wide berth but also starting to zig zag NNE to also avoid the attention of Japanese planes in the Andamans.

South Pacific HQ was created at Pearl Harbour, the same day that Admiral Kimmel was replaced by Admiral Chester Nimitz as the commander of the Pacific Ocean Areas HQ. SOPAC's first order of the day was to reassign the commander of the Americal Division at Sydney for a commander better suited for offensive and combat operations. The outgoing General was redeployed to the 37th Infantry Division on Suva, his administrative and organisatonal skills deemed very important in bringing this National Guard unit up to scratch as he had done with the Americal.

[cantona2]

Turn Synopsis 19th June 1942

'Japanese Carrier Operations in the Southern Gilbert Islands'

As unloading continued on the island of Arorae a cloud was gathering on the horizon as the main Japanese Carrier Battle Fleet threw its substantial might and weight against the USN assets in the region. Admiral Nimitz had already ordered the Enterprise and Saratoga Eastwards toward Baker Island to meet the arriving Yorktown. Had the American carriers loitered in the area they would have surely come into action against the Kito Butai, and it wouldn't bear to think what outcome such an unbalanced fight would have had.

A cock up in communications meant that the Mississippi Battle Group did not receive the withdrawal orders as well and as dawn broke on the 18th, the New Mexico Class Battleship was still in the Arorae area covering against any sortieing Japanese ships. What it came against was the very sharp, serrated edge of the Japanese Carrier Air Arm!

Several search planes of differing types had been observed over the island and the positions of the USN ships. The longer ranged flying boats raised no particular concern, the shorter ranged ones however did. The most pessimistic outlooks were confirmed when at about 10:25, Japanese carrier planes were spotted overhead. This first contact was a false alarm as observers on the Mississippi confirmed the enemy planes as A6M2 Type Zero fighters. The second contact at approx 11:56 was rather different. A6M2s once again approached Arorae but this time they escorted smaller, deadlier friends. As the fighters roared over head, tracers and cannon shells peppering the battleship's steel carapace, B5N2 Torpedo Bombers skimmed just above the wave tops arrowing towards the Mississippi. The first three vics of planes all missed their target, aggressive maneouvering by the helmsman saw to that, and three planes were destroyed by the large amount of flak put into the air. The second pass, however, saw the Kates hit their target with one torpedo. It hit close to amidships but the armour seemed to have taken the worst of the impact and the immediate damage reports sent to Captain Conlon were quite positive. Damage control teams rushed to the damaged areas of the ship and soon had any flooding under control. By 12:11 the Japanese planes had left towards the North West.



They were back by 13:46 though this time they seemed to have ignored the presence of the battleships and in a series of swooping attacks bomb armed B5N2s and D3A1s delivered a devastating blow to two destroyers that had been detached from the Mississippi's Battle Group to provide an ASW escort to the transports unloading at the island. Despite their lithe and swift movements, the destroyers could not avoid the large shower of bombs descending upon them and by 15:14 both had been sunk, yet their demise had spared the Mississippi from more attacks and she was already steaming south at 19 knots.



Status of BB Mississippi at sundown 19th June 1942



The question before Admiral Nimitz now was what to do with his carriers? Engage the Japanese or retire to Pearl? Saratoga, Enterprise and Yorktown were all due to meet 90 miles east of Baker Island, what was the Admiral going to do?

[cantona2]

Elsewhere in the theatre:

Chinese forces completed their successful withdrawal from Luichow and were now in better defensible terrain and on the railhead supply from Kweillin. In the air, three fighters were able to shoot down 6 enemy aircraft as the dwindling numbers of Chinese planes continue to fight back where possible. A Japanese assault of battalion strength was bloodily repulsed at Tsyunyung. A local counterattack tomorrow is hoped will eject the Japanese infantry from its positions in the suburbs.

5th Marine Defence Battalion has just left San Diego, destination Baker Island. A first step in building up an infrastructure and a network of bases and supply dumps for a future attack on the Gilbert and Marshall Islands.

In the Aleutians, surveys of Attu Island suggest a viable air strip can be built. Transports have left Seattle to move a construction unit from Adak to Attu to start building basic facilities. Long Range Cover will come from the Canadian Kittyhawks and USAAF P-40s on Adak.

[traskott]

Well, just two DDs...It could have been worse !!! 

[cantona2]

Turn Synopsis 20th June 1942 or Heads and Tails

Its all going on in the Southern Gilberts! Both submarine arms deserve credit today. Pig Boats they may be, but they have the sting of a bee! SS S-45 was able to sink a torpedo into a Kaga Class Aircraft Carrier off Tabiteuea in the early hours. Initial damage reports suggest extensive damage was inflicted on the enemy vessel. The sub captain has been ordered to continue to pursue the carriers in the hope his luck holds out.



Just as fortunate was the Japanese captain of a submarine just to the North of Funafuti that was able to spot and attack the damaged Mississippi. She took another torpedo but is still afloat and going strong! (Flotation at 36)



However, as expected, the remaining Japanese carriers were able to finish off a damaged transport at Arorae!