At dawn we slept...in the cab on the way back from Olongapo

[capmandrake2]

I feel like I may have told that story. Oh well, can't be helped.

Reader's Digest once published a story called "I'm Joe's Prostate"

Book of the Month Club:

January: "Metatmorphosis"
February: "A Tale of Two Cities"
March: "I'm Joe's Prostate".....

[capmandrake2]

The Wah:

Fighting has switched to the Sundas and Flores and NW New and Improved Guinea since the failed attack on the Marinaras.

Kendari: A surprise massed B-24 raid shut down Kendari AF when the LYB's moved all their planes to the Marinaras....but then the industrious little yellow baaastards rebuilt the place and now it has hundreds of planes.

Koepang/Roti: Koepang is level 8 and Roti level 4. It looked like the Empire was going to try a landing at Roti or Koepang so I surged the USN carriers south of Timor....but at the same time the IJN carriers moved to Ternate in the Moluccas...so I started the USN carriers back to Darwin to draw Av Gas and pound out some dents in the hulls...and the Jap carriers jet back down to Kendari with nearly 600 Zekes aboard. I think they are using the carriers as a kind of Death Star of fighters. They day before the Japs jetted up to Ternate, I had plastered the place with B-24's without a fighter escort. I has worked for them before. Even a big B-24 raid has trouble with 500 Zekes. And if the B-25's run into that it is bad news. Then when they moved to Ternate, the B-24's switched to hitting the IJA ground troops on Flores. Then the next day they smashed the AF at Bima. The idea is to be unpredictable and to avoid flying into the hornet's nest. The Jap carriers at Kendari are VERY light on bombers so they seem to have a defensive role for now. The USN carriers will continue to Darwin and let the air groups rest and take on ammo and Av Gas as planned.

[capmandrake2]

Bima: Bima, you say? Well, that's West of Flores of course on Sumbawa. Flores, you say? Why that's in the Sundas, of course. Sundas, you say? Why, yes that's in the Dutch East Indies. Dutch East Indies, you say? Zeider Zee, you say? Nah, it's called Indonesia now. Indonesia, you say? Look pal. Just Google it, OK?

[capmandrake2]

Bima: We snuck some engineers in there and started building an AF and some other stuff and the LYB's sent a whole freaking brigade. They lost a bunch of ships and troops but they did take the place and now they have more POW's to not feed. AF is kind of a scruffy level 2

[capmandrake2]

*************Bima, Sumbawa Is.**************

<A sign reads "Bima Shores, a Four Star Couple's Retreat on Sumbawa"


There is a lovely collection of gayly painted beach cottages with matching umbrellas and a palapa style bar. A man of European extraction in fine linen slacks is speaking with a Japanese officer.

Man in Fine Linen Slacks: For you Colonel, $115 US nightly and free continental breakfast.

Col. Saito: What-ah continent-ah breakfast come from?

Man in Fine Linen Slacks: Local fruit and croissants, Colonel....and coffee too, of course. Cup'a Java you might say.

Col. Saito: One hundred-ah fifteen rot of monies. How about Imperial script?

Man in Fine Linen Slacks: HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHA OOOOHHHHHHHHHHH The Colonel make-ah funny.

Col. Saito: Rook, funny mans. How about Colonel Saito take buirdings with guns. How you rike that?

Man in Fine Linen Slacks: Yes, you could certainly do that Colonel but who would provide maid service? Your men DID murder the village chieftan in front of the entire town.

Col. Saito: ONE HUDNRED-AH DORRARS and Coronerh Saito wish chocoratte undah pirrow!

[capmandrake2]

Ambon and Boela: Mexican stand-offs. A Jap brigade in a jungle hex is not easy to dislodge. Both AF's are trashed but air attacks on the dug in infantry is not very effective. I brought up a prewar BB to lay some heavy lumber on Boela but then the Jap carriers sortied to Ternate so I had to pull the heavy stuff back toward Darwin.

[capmandrake2]

Namlea: Br 2nd Para and US 503rd PIR took the place. Very satisfying. Supply is iffy however.

[capmandrake2]

New Guinea: Sorong now has naval mines and CD guns so the IJN bombardment groups are picking on Sansapor. Except for Madang, the entire Northen coast of New Guinea is in Allied hands plus huge bases at Hollandia and Rabaul.

Unfortunately, the Moluccas and Manado are now very strongly held. We are building pioneer bases closer to the Moluccas. Each with two Conastogas and 4 oxen

[capmandrake2]

I caught the 'Rona. 3rd doc in a suite with 4 docs to get it. I think Pfizer owes me a partial refund.

Also, the notion that Omicron is "mild" seems like false advertising to me. I spent 4 days on the couch watching Netflix and now they have me doing telehealth.

If 3 weeks from now there is another variant and we start all over again I am not going to be pleased.

[capmandrake2]

The lost map of the Lesser and Medium Sundas

[capmandrake2]

*****************August 26, 1943(e)************

Timor, Flores etc.: Heavy bombers hit Jap 16th Div at Flores. A second division is marching over from the other side of the island. Koepang is a level 8 now.

The opposing forces at Ambon and Boela

Ground combat at Boela (80,110)

Allied Bombardment attack

Attacking force 6476 troops, 122 guns, 47 vehicles, Assault Value = 320

Defending force 15025 troops, 78 guns, 64 vehicles, Assault Value = 251

Allied ground losses:
20 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 1 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Assaulting units:
10th LH Cav Regiment
763rd Tank Battalion
161st Infantry Regiment
35th Infantry Regiment
251st Recce Battalion

Defending units:
19th Ind Engineer Regiment
65th Brigade
4th Naval Construction Battalion
10th Special Base Force
19th Army
16th JNAF AF Unit
46th JNAF AF Unit


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ground combat at Ambon (76,109)

Allied Bombardment attack

Attacking force 6924 troops, 121 guns, 91 vehicles, Assault Value = 360

Defending force 6944 troops, 67 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 153

Assaulting units:
1st Tank Battalion
754th Tank Battalion
164th Infantry Regiment
14th NZ Brigade
6th Cav Recce Rgt /1
2/592nd Boat&Shore Engineer Battalion
29th Australian Bde /2

Defending units:
113th Infantry Regiment
56th Field Artillery Regiment
21st Special Base Force
44th JNAF AF Unit

[capmandrake2]

Sumatra: Australians and US 40th Div coming ashore slowly NW coast of Sumatra. JJ shuts down our crappy little AF at Djambi

Morning Air attack on Djambi , at 48,88

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid spotted at 40 NM, estimated altitude 23,560 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 15

Allied aircraft
P-40N5 Warhawk x 2
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 3

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
P-40N5 Warhawk: 1 destroyed
P-47D2 Thunderbolt: 1 destroyed

Aircraft Attacking:
12 x Ki-44-IIa Tojo sweeping at 22560 feet

[capmandrake2]

*********************August 27, 1943(e)****************

Flores: IJN parks 2 carrier TF's with almost 400 Zekes North of Flores and sends hundreds of sorties against a US/RAN cruiser/DD TF on station at Flores. The planes from Flores, Koepang and Roti provide good overhead cover, destroying perhaps 120 Zekes, Judys and Kates with no shipping losses except an LCM, LCT and minesweeper. 250 troops of Br 53 Brigade lost at sea. IJN fighters shoot down 8 B-24's and perhaps 10 B-25's over Flores. That's like a month worth of B-24 replacements but overall we win the exchange bigly

[BBfanboy]

ORIGINAL: capmandrake2

The lost map of the Lesser and Medium Sundas

Mexicans?? In the DEI??? Are they running the resorts or something? [8D]

[witpqs]

ORIGINAL: capmandrake2

The lost map of the Lesser and Medium Sundas

Is that little unlabeled dot Kong Island?

[anarchyintheuk]

ORIGINAL: capmandrake2

I caught the 'Rona. 3rd doc in a suite with 4 docs to get it. I think Pfizer owes me a partial refund.

Also, the notion that Omicron is "mild" seems like false advertising to me. I spent 4 days on the couch watching Netflix and now they have me doing telehealth.

If 3 weeks from now there is another variant and we start all over again I am not going to be pleased.

Condolences on becoming an omicronian. It's an unpleasant experience.

[capmandrake2]

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy

ORIGINAL: capmandrake2

The lost map of the Lesser and Medium Sundas

Mexicans?? In the DEI??? Are they running the resorts or something? [8D]

Gardeners. Nobody wants Japanese gardeners anymore.

[Disco Duck]

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy

ORIGINAL: capmandrake2

The lost map of the Lesser and Medium Sundas

Mexicans?? In the DEI??? Are they running the resorts or something? [8D]

No, they are flying P-47's. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6hpw4rbBrA&t=4s Axtec air force

[capmandrake2]

There was a Mayan Air Force as well but they kept crashing because they could not see over the instrument panel.

[capmandrake2]

*****************August 28***********

Medium, Lesser and Extra Large Sundas: Jap carrier arr ovah prace. Now ovah by Namlea. Namlea PT squadron attacks.

Night Time Surface Combat, near Namlea at 76,108, Range 2,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
CL Yura
DD Natsugumo
DD Yamakaze
DD Umikaze

Allied Ships
PT-109
PT-110
PT-254
PT-280, Shell hits 1
PT-282
PT-340