Spanking Lowpe (NJP72 vs Lowpe (A))

[Lowpe]

Forward! Not willing to risk the fleet carriers here...will get some more forward CAT bases to give us the confidence to really surge up past Rabaul. Yorktown and Wasp and 3 CVEs are around the Baker Island area....hitting those ships in port at Tulagi sure does look sweet though....can't believe they are still there!

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[Lowpe]

Burma!

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[Lowpe]

China...our two zombie corps that took Neikiang will manage to retreat back out of the open terrain...

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[Lowpe]

Dec 27, 1942

Japan took Norfolk, and never really ever used it for anything except perhaps some naval search...

SPS 0 ports are kind of nice for Japan to hold as they have so much fast transport capability...but they are a pain for the Allies to hold as they can't leverage their insane naval support or armor & artillery very well. I am going to add to Japan's list of tactical advantages SPS 0 ports...

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Having experimented with the slow battleship bombardment groups, I have decided to standardize on 1 BB and 3-5 DD, DE, DMS for a total of 5-7 escorting ships. Having two in the sage groups can tax the AEs servicing them and really consume the supply. I will continue to use them against bypassed enemy strongholds...

[Lowpe]

Solomons....lack of preparation makes it a bit disappointing to be honest....unless the KB gets sent here we should be able to leapfrog up to Manus and Kavieng in less than a month. Then again not sure if this area is really worth fighting for until you get very close to Rabaul. Our naval search from multiple islands is doing great! I think.

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[Lowpe]

Fun times in China and Burma!

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[Encircled]

One thing that JFB do that is very hard to deal with early war is move an Air HQ plus flying boats into these small islands, and then torpedo anything within their range

Course, its nowhere near as effective after the allies get fighters, but its very effective till they do

[Lowpe]

He did get torpedo carrying Nells to fly from size 2 bases early on....but I think I blunted all of those attacks...I documented them way way back.

[Lowpe]

I got to thinking about the 9 enemy ships at Tulagi.

I did send Yorktown, Wasp and 4 CVEs forward from their basing area around Baker Island....but I am also patrolling with destroyer squadrons, setting up a sub net, bombarding nightly, building air bases, putting some PT boats on patrol there, invading Thousand Ships bay and Guadalcanal (sps 1 port), getting about a half dozen cruisers forward and soon the Idaho bombardment group....

and importantly losing a CV clash currently could put the Americans and their Allies on the back foot in the expansion push in the Pacific.

So showing some fleet carriers and CVEs doesn't really make too much sense to me. It might be the that he tries another crack at Marcus if that happens...keeping the fleet carriers dark seems wise to me right now.

[Encircled]

No other reason to leave those ships there I suspect

[Lowpe]

December 28, 1942

Solomons...

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[Lowpe]

Burma and China

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[BBfanboy]

I don't see a mine symbol at Tulagi. Perhaps a couple of your subs could drop a few to catch the ships there if they try to escape to other ports? OTOH, might not be worth it if the AS has already sunk.

[Lowpe]

I don't see a mine symbol at Tulagi. Perhaps a couple of your subs could drop a few to catch the ships there if they try to escape to other ports? OTOH, might not be worth it if the AS has already sunk.

The problem with dropping mines in an enemy base is that you are likely to hit them...and since we have PT boats, destroyers and minesweepers there that would be no good.

Turn is away, trying a few things this turn...wonder where his two squadrons of 3 destroyers are headed in the Solomons.

Decided to send some CVEs toward Tulagi, but keep the fleet carriers are returning to Pearl to form the Deathstar....ba ba dum!

[Lowpe]

Dec 30, 1942

Take two bases...all mines seem to be gone now from Tulagi (8 ships there now).

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[Lowpe]

I guess I have to attack here, although I can't combine my large Chinese division because one third doesn't have the new mmg teams. I am a bit leery of attacking since weather is always iffy (not sure my bombers will hit), and the Chinese Corp is really only a defensive unit which means I am really reliant on having a strong bombing day and there are two AA units present.

So, I will not attack today, but tomorrow hoping for some good Allied bombing runs....if he gets away, he gets away.

Funny experiment with the Fulmars and Beaufighters, I had them on LRCAP, 10% and 1K feet....in the hopes they would lower the defending LRCAP. Did it work? Who knows....

1st Sentai with Ki-43-IIb Oscar (12 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(2 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
12 plane(s) intercepting now.
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 2 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 36000 , scrambling fighters between 0 and 36000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 2 minutes

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[BBfanboy]

That's confusing - looking at the Intel report on plane losses (85 Japanese) vs looking at the three air combat reports showing 5 Japanese losses. Was there heavy action elsewhere that accounts for the loss? Is it possible your very low LRCAP shot down a lot of IJ planes taking off or landing but didn't show a combat report?

[Lowpe]

Sorry, only listed the two sweeps, lots more Hurricanes, P40s, P39s, even a P38 swept accounting for the losses...it all happened once hex north of Shwebo on the road...

[BBfanboy]

Thanks for the additional info!
Seems like Burma is often the place where Allied air power first gains ascendency over the IJ air forces. Must be all those surplus Hurricanes the British ship there to get rid of them!

[Lowpe]

Dec 31, 1942

End of the year, baby! Lets go out with a bang!!!!

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