THE WAR COLLEGE-Rio Bravo (A) v. El Lobo (J)

[Rio Bravo]

[center]Combat Report[/center]
[center]for[/center]
[center]August 2, 1942[/center]

The Allies captured Marcus Island today without any Japanese resistance. CVE Long Island is on station 120 miles due East of Marcus Island. The Long Island will remain on station at least until all of the 5th Marine Defense Battalion and all of the 177th USAAF Base Force plant their feet on dry land.

The Allied Carrier Task Forces and Combat Surface Forces haven't spotted any enemy around Wake Island as a Base Force unloads at port.

Near Colombo, five Zeros are shredded and go down in flames.

U. S. Army ground forces cross the India-Burma border and set-up house in Kalemyo.

Allies Amphibious Assault Marcus Island!

Amphibious Assault at Marcus Island (123,85)

TF 298 troops unloading over beach at Marcus Island, 123,85

Allied ground losses:
43 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 6 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 2 (0 destroyed, 2 disabled)
Vehicles lost 2 (0 destroyed, 2 disabled)

and

Amphibious Assault at Marcus Island (123,85)

TF 346 troops unloading over beach at Marcus Island, 123,85

Allied ground losses:
32 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 5 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 13 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 1 (0 destroyed, 1 disabled)

5 troops of a US MMG Section accidentally lost during unload of 5th Marine Def Bn

Allies Capture Marcus Island!

Ground combat at Marcus Island (123,85)

Allied Shock attack

Attacking force 506 troops, 10 guns, 3 vehicles, Assault Value = 19

Defending force 0 troops, 0 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 0

Allied adjusted assault: 2

Japanese adjusted defense: 1

Allied assault odds: 2 to 1 (fort level 0)

Allied forces CAPTURE Marcus Island !!!

Combat modifiers
Attacker: shock(+)

Assaulting units:
177th USAAF Base Force /2
5th Marine Def Bn /1

Five Less Zeros!

Afternoon Air attack on Colombo, at 29,48

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid detected at 13 NM, estimated altitude 16,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 4 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 17

Allied aircraft
Hurricane IIb Trop x 16
Hurricane IIc Trop x 8

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 5 destroyed

No Allied losses

CAP engaged:
No.67 Sqn RAF with Hurricane IIb Trop (2 airborne, 6 on standby, 8 scrambling)
8 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 15000 , scrambling fighters between 11000 and 15000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 10 minutes
No.607 Sqn RAF with Hurricane IIc Trop (2 airborne, 6 on standby, 0 scrambling)
8 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 15000 , scrambling fighters between 7000 and 12000.
Raid is overhead

One Less Sally!

Afternoon Air attack on 14th Chinese Corps, at 77,47 , near Chungking

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid spotted at 14 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 4 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-21-IIa Sally x 10

Allied aircraft
P-66 Vanguard x 1

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-21-IIa Sally: 1 destroyed, 1 damaged

No Allied losses

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

Aircraft Attacking:
4 x Ki-21-IIa Sally bombing from 10000 feet
Ground Attack: 4 x 250 kg GP Bomb
5 x Ki-21-IIa Sally bombing from 10000 feet
Ground Attack: 4 x 250 kg GP Bomb

CAP engaged:
5th FG/17th FS CAF with P-66 Vanguard (1 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(1 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
1 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 10000 , scrambling fighters between 0 and 10000.
Raid is overhead

Scolded John D. Edwards for Messing with My Airfield!

Night Naval bombardment of Marcus Island at 123,85

Allied Ships
DD John D. Edwards

Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 3
Port hits 1
Port supply hits 1

DD John D. Edwards firing at Marcus Island

Best Regards,

-Terry

[Rio Bravo]

pontiouspilot-

In response to your question: The Allies did not encounter the Japanese Battleship Matsu at Marcus Island.

Perhaps, the Matsu will show itself so that the Long Island can put a couple torpedoes in her.

I doubt El Lobo will take too long to send evil Red Sun guys to retake Marcus
island.

Best Regards,

-Terry

[BBfanboy]

ORIGINAL: Rio Bravo

pontiouspilot-

In response to your question: The Allies did not encounter the Japanese Battleship Matsu at Marcus Island.

Perhaps, the Matsu will show itself so that the Long Island can put a couple torpedoes in her.

I doubt El Lobo will take too long to send evil Red Sun guys to retake Marcus
island.

Best Regards,

-Terry

Let's get this straight - there is a Matsu in the IJN. It looks like the picture below. BB Mutsu is somewhat bigger.

[Rio Bravo]

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy

ORIGINAL: Rio Bravo

pontiouspilot-

In response to your question: The Allies did not encounter the Japanese Battleship Matsu at Marcus Island.

Perhaps, the Matsu will show itself so that the Long Island can put a couple torpedoes in her.

I doubt El Lobo will take too long to send evil Red Sun guys to retake Marcus
island.

Best Regards,

-Terry

Let's get this straight - there is a Matsu in the IJN. It looks like the picture below. BB Mutsu is somewhat bigger.

The July 28, 1942 Combat Report lists the Mutsu.

[BBfanboy]

I am simply trying to get you to be accurate with the ship name [:D] - it makes a difference, and really new readers who are not familiar with the OOB will be confused about which you are talking about, a BB or Matsu.

[Rio Bravo]

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy

I am simply trying to get you to be accurate with the ship name [:D] - it makes a difference, and really new readers who are not familiar with the OOB will be confused about which you are talking about, a BB or Matsu.

BBfanboy-

It is always best to be accurate. I try to be accurate. I should have looked back for the correct spelling of the battleship. But heck, I can spell "Tienshui" without having to look back

*laughing*

Anyways, I wasn't upset and it is good that you pointed this out. You obviously have a great deal of knowledge about the War in the Pacific, which is valuable to me in trying to give El Lobo a good game.

Best Regards,

-Terry

[awaw]

Except that "Tienshui" is not spelled correctly in the first place

[fcharton]

ORIGINAL: awaw
Except that "Tienshui" is not spelled correctly in the first place

Depends on what you call "correct" in the case of romanized names. Tienshui follows the postal romanization, which was in use at the time of the war, and is used consistently all over the map.

The same cannot be said for pilot and leader names, which seems to follow a complex mix of pinyin, Wade, Yale, and other schemes.

Francois

[awaw]

I would think it is spelled tianshui. "Tien" is correct on its own, but not quite the same "dialect" as "shui". I understand that we are referring to pingyin here and not a Chinese dialect proper.

[BBfanboy]

Interesting stuff - but linguistics is maybe a subject for the General Forum.
My point only went as far as trying to keep the info the game actually gives us accurate, to avoid confusion with other info. I know I am not perfect in that regard at times and I do appreciate when people nudge me in the right direction. [:)]
There are enough ship and map names that are one or two letters different from each other that you can easily confuse the reader about which you mean.
At least Greyjoy's creative spelling was so unique you knew which place he was renaming! [:'(]

[Rio Bravo]

[center]Combat Report[/center]
[center]for[/center]
[center]August 3, 1942[/center]

Opening Note

El Lobo has advised that he will soon be visiting Marcus Island to destroy all Allied ground forces, aircraft, and ships that may be on "....that worthless piece of sand." I am not surprised and believe him. El Lobo will not allow the Allies to be so close to Japan proper this early in the war. Presently, all the Allies have at Marcus Island is the 177th USAAF BF, the 5th Marine Defense Battalion, 12 Catalina PBY-5As, six patrolling submarines, and 120 miles due East is the CVE Long Island accompanied by a Battleship, a CL, and five destroyers. I am considering, packing up the BF and Defense Battalion, ordering the Long Island back to Adak Island, and flying the Catalinas back to Wake Island, so that when El Lobo arrives there is nothing at Marcus for him to destroy. It would be futile to throw more troops onto Marcus (and it is an atoll so couldn't toss much onto the island anyway). I think it would be funny if El Lobo shows up with a big invasion force to find the sand only inhabited by crabs and seagulls. What do the War College Members think?

Additionally, SIGNIT reports that the Guards Tank Division is planning to attack Akyab. The statistics at Akyab are as follows:

Port: 0(23%)
Air Capacity: (3 (1%)
Fort: 4 (52%)
Supply: 169
Supply Required: 1,665

Assault Value: 291

The big problem for the Allies at Akyab is supply. Six transports fly supply to Akyab every day, but the supply is used up immediately. And, considering that it is the Monsoon Season, only a trickle of supply is dripping down from Chittagong through Cox's Bazar to Akyab.

I have decided to pull out the construction engineers and port service detachment.

I have the entire Eastern Army and elements of I Australian Corps (a total of 1,769 AV) at Cox's Bazar. So, I could easily reinforce Akyab, but again, no supply.

I am considering pulling out the ABDA forces. What do the members of The War College Think?

Japanese Forces Shove Chinese Back Near Kweiyang:

Ground combat at 73,47 (near Kweiyang)

Japanese Deliberate attack

Attacking force 9363 troops, 74 guns, 352 vehicles, Assault Value = 426

Defending force 5982 troops, 0 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 258

Japanese adjusted assault: 208

Allied adjusted defense: 70

Japanese assault odds: 2 to 1

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), experience(-), supply(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
186 casualties reported
Squads: 2 destroyed, 16 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

Allied ground losses:
2233 casualties reported
Squads: 57 destroyed, 32 disabled
Non Combat: 38 destroyed, 32 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Units retreated 2

Defeated Allied Units Retreating!

Assaulting units:
57th Infantry Brigade
7th Tank Regiment
10th Tank Regiment
2nd Recon Battalion
2nd Mobile Infantry Regiment

Defending units:
84th Chinese Corps
Lusu War Area

Japanese Destroy a Vanguard Near Kweiyang:

Morning Air attack on Kweiyang, at 74,49

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid spotted at 29 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 6 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 7

Allied aircraft
P-66 Vanguard x 3

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
P-66 Vanguard: 1 destroyed

CAP engaged:
246th Sentai with Ki-44-IIa Tojo (0 airborne, 5 on standby, 0 scrambling)
5 plane(s) intercepting now.
0 plane(s) not yet engaged, 2 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 10000
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 2 minutes

Allies Send Three More Sallys to the Scrapyard Near Cungking!

Morning Air attack on 30th Chinese Corps, at 75,47 , near Chungking

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 14,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 5 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-21-IIa Sally x 18

Allied aircraft
P-66 Vanguard x 4

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-21-IIa Sally: 3 destroyed, 4 damaged

No Allied losses

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

Aircraft Attacking:
14 x Ki-21-IIa Sally bombing from 10000 feet *
Ground Attack: 2 x 250 kg GP Bomb

CAP engaged:
5th FG/17th FS CAF with P-66 Vanguard (4 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(4 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
4 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 10000 , scrambling fighters between 0 and 10000.
Raid is overhead

Also attacking 65th Chinese Corps ...
Also attacking 30th Chinese Corps ...

End Note

Map of the Allies first conquest shown below.

Best Regards,

-Terry

[BBfanboy]

I always wondered what you intended to do with Marcus Island if you took it. Now you have it, and it seems to be a vulnerable place without many uses. Unless you have some critical operation that needs Marcus in the execution, I would abandon it and let him bombard his own seagulls.

[Rio Bravo]

ORIGINAL: BBfanboy

I always wondered what you intended to do with Marcus Island if you took it. Now you have it, and it seems to be a vulnerable place without many uses. Unless you have some critical operation that needs Marcus in the execution, I would abandon it and let him bombard his own seagulls.

BBfanboy-

The Allies captured Marcus Island for the following reasons:

1.) I figured the island was empty and it would be an easy capture.
2.) I wanted to give El Lobo a nudge.
3.) I wanted some experience at an amphibious landing and some practice at coordinating the Amphibious Assault with an Air Combat Task Force.
4.) I wanted to further encourage El Lobo to believe that the Allies intended an early invasion of Hokkaido and the Kurile Islands so that he would divert troops from the front lines to garrisoning Hokkaido and the Kuriles.

I knew it was too early in the war for the Allies to keep Marcus Island. I also thought that if I wanted, I could probably pull the troops off Marcus and ship them back to Pearl before El Lobo could do anything about it.

Having said all that, Iwo Jima sure looks good.

*laughing hard*

Best Regards,

-Terry

[Rio Bravo]

[center]Marcus Island[/center]
[center]August 4, 1942[/center]

A Catalina PBY-5A Squadron (12 aircraft) has spotted three enemy ships northwest of Marcus Island moving east; at least one is a CL (see map below).

Part of the 177th USAAF BF and 5th Marine Defense Battalion are still unloading at Marcus.

The Air Combat Task Force (CVE Long Island, BB North Carolina, CL St. Louis, CL Helena, DD Edsall, DD John D. Edwards, DD Paul Jones, and DD Hatfield) are 120 miles (3 hexes) due east of Marcus Island.

Major T. C. Green commands 18 Carrier SBD-3 Dauntless Dive Bombers. His ratings are as follows:

Leadership: 56
Inspiration: 63
Naval: 31
Land: 60
Air: 62
Administration: 49
Aggression: 64

The Dive Bombers are set for Naval Attack, 6,000 feet altitude and range of 7 (normal radius). The average experience is low at 51, morale is good at 99, and fatigue is perfect at 0.

The Allies have not moved yet.

I am thinking that the Air Combat Task Force stays put in an attempt to sink some Evil Red Sun ships.

Does The War College concur?

Best Regards,

-Terry

[Rio Bravo]

[center]Combat Report[/center]
[center]for[/center]
[center]August 4, 1942[/center]

The Imperial Japanese Navy sink an Allied transport near Cochin; one of them carrying the 223rd FA Battalion.

Japanese Bettys sink an Allied xAK near Marcus Island.

Chinese hammer Japanese ground forces near Chungking.

Japanese Combat Surface Ships Sink Allied Transport Near Cochin:

Day Time Surface Combat, near Cochin at 21,35, Range 14,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
CL Tama
DD Isokaze
DD Amatsukaze
DD Shinonome
DD Shirakumo
DD Tadeyame

Allied Ships
xAK Anniston City, Shell hits 4, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk

Allied ground losses:
Guns lost 14 (12 destroyed, 2 disabled)
Vehicles lost 14 (12 destroyed, 2 disabled)

Low visibility due to Rain
Maximum visibility in Rain: 15,000 yards
Range closes to 19,000 yards...
Range closes to 17,000 yards...
Range closes to 15,000 yards...
Range closes to 13,000 yards...
CONTACT: Allied lookouts spot Japanese task force at 13,000 yards
Allied TF attempts to evade combat
Range increases to 14,000 yards...
CONTACT: Japanese lookouts spot Allied task force at 14,000 yards
DD Tadeyame engages xAK Anniston City at 14,000 yards
Range increases to 17,000 yards
DD Shinonome engages xAK Anniston City at 17,000 yards
xAK Anniston City sunk by DD Shinonome at 17,000 yards
Combat ends with last Allied ship sunk...

Japanese Bettys Sink Allied xAK Near Marcus Island:

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Marcus Island at 123,85

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 76 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 26 minutes

Japanese aircraft
G4M1 Betty x 3

No Japanese losses

Allied Ships
xAK President Quezon, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk

Aircraft Attacking:
3 x G4M1 Betty launching torpedoes at 200 feet
Naval Attack: 1 x 18in Type 91 Torpedo

Japanese Sally Litters Ground Near Chungking!

Morning Air attack on 46th Chinese Corps, at 77,47 , near Chungking

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid spotted at 7 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 2 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-21-IIa Sally x 8

Allied aircraft
P-66 Vanguard x 4

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-21-IIa Sally: 1 destroyed, 2 damaged

No Allied losses

Aircraft Attacking:
3 x Ki-21-IIa Sally bombing from 10000 feet
Ground Attack: 4 x 250 kg GP Bomb
3 x Ki-21-IIa Sally bombing from 10000 feet
Ground Attack: 4 x 250 kg GP Bomb

CAP engaged:
5th FG/17th FS CAF with P-66 Vanguard (4 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(4 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
4 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 10000 , scrambling fighters between 0 and 10000.
Raid is overhead

Chinese Crush Japanese Attack Near Chungking!

Ground combat at 75,47 (near Chungking)

Japanese Deliberate attack

Attacking force 97230 troops, 1049 guns, 173 vehicles, Assault Value = 2956

Defending force 43681 troops, 129 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 1484

Japanese adjusted assault: 1746

Allied adjusted defense: 1498

Japanese assault odds: 1 to 1

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), experience(-), supply(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
5703 casualties reported
Squads: 34 destroyed, 383 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 60 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 47 disabled
Guns lost 52 (1 destroyed, 51 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
1329 casualties reported
Squads: 20 destroyed, 310 disabled
Non Combat: 6 destroyed, 89 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 13 disabled
Guns lost 31 (3 destroyed, 28 disabled)

Assaulting units:
40th Division
51st Infantry Brigade
102nd Infantry Regiment
3rd Division
52nd Infantry Brigade
104th Division
39th Division
19th Ind.Mixed Brigade
6th Division
55th Infantry Brigade
22nd Division
138th Infantry Regiment
8th Mountain Gun Regiment
28th Mountain Gun Regiment
2nd Mobile Field Artillery Regiment
2nd RF Gun Battalion
5th RF Gun Battalion
21st Mortar Battalion
2nd JAAF AF Coy
RGC Army
23rd Army
1st JAAF AF Coy
67th JAAF AF Coy

Defending units:
67th Chinese Corps
65th Chinese Corps
63rd Chinese Corps
59th Chinese Corps
30th Chinese Corps
74th Chinese Corps
48th Chinese Corps
68th Chinese Corps
85th Chinese Corps
9th Group Army
1st Group Army
7th Chinese Base Force
13th Chinese Base Force
29th Group Army
5th Chinese Cavalry Corps
16th Group Army
20th Chinese Base Force

Best Regards,

-Terry

[HansBolter]

He is seven hexes out from Marcus and can easily make a full speed run in and back out in one turn.
At the end of the day movement phase he will be ten hexes away form your dive bombers.

The only way air can dissuade naval bombardment is if the planes have the legs to reach the start point of the run into the hex.

Alas, this is usually not the case for the Allies.

The best way to interdict his bombardment run is to send in your surface force to intercept his run in the target hex.

There is a chance that the time he spends sinking your transports and troops will use up sufficient ops points for him to be in range of your bombers in the morning.

However, this is not the desirable solution.

I would suspend unloading, move the transports back to the carrier, break off a surface force from the carrier TF and go cruiser hunting in the target hex.

After, you sink the cruiser TF you can either finish unloading or decide to re-embark.


p.s. about that lost artillery....always split LCUs across multiple ships, that way you aren't placing all your eggs in one basket and will always have a portion of the unit to rebuild.

[Rio Bravo]

ORIGINAL: HansBolter

He is seven hexes out from Marcus and can easily make a full speed run in and back out in one turn.
At the end of the day movement phase he will be ten hexes away form your dive bombers.

The only way air can dissuade naval bombardment is if the planes have the legs to reach the start point of the run into the hex.

Alas, this is usually not the case for the Allies.

The best way to interdict his bombardment run is to send in your surface force to intercept his run in the target hex.

There is a chance that the time he spends sinking your transports and troops will use up sufficient ops points for him to be in range of your bombers in the morning.

However, this is not the desirable solution.

I would suspend unloading, move the transports back to the carrier, break off a surface force from the carrier TF and go cruiser hunting in the target hex.

After, you sink the cruiser TF you can either finish unloading or decide to re-embark.


p.s. about that lost artillery....always split LCUs across multiple ships, that way you aren't placing all your eggs in one basket and will always have a portion of the unit to rebuild.

Hans-

Exactly what I did regarding transports; ordered them to head back to Pearl.

So, those Japanese aircraft weren't off a Carrier?

Tomorrow, I will order the Long Island, by herself, to head back to Adak Island. And, I will send the combat surface fleet to Marcus.

Exactly how does one have a combat surface fleet slip in and out? Do you use waypoints?

Good idea regarding splitting LCUs among several transports versus just loading on one. Though I like having my transports to transport supplies and fuel, I think it is better to save LCUs.

As always, thank you for your help, Hans.

Best Regards,

-Terry

[pontiouspilot]

Pls forgive my earlier dickshun, grammer and the like...in Winnipeg all demm guys got to do in the winter is correct dat!! I should know, I spent 2 years in Winnipeg 1 weekend...LOL

Remember that after Ap. 1st the Japanese will have a real chore assaulting a small island against any half decent defense. He will have to organize what he is doing and carry it out properly or he will fall on his sword. You can afford a defense battalion or two and Base force. The big deficit for you is the proximity of bombardment forces. I would mine the hell out Marcus and post any S-subs you can in the area. Meanwhile he will be focused on this so see what else you can diddle on his perimeter...I vote for the Fukoshima reactor! If you could afford to leave behind a few Wildcats they would sure make a mess of a few unescorted Betties. The problem is they may get bombarded into dust. What is the airfield at Marcus?

[Rio Bravo]

[center]Combat Report[/center]
[center]for[/center]
[center]August 5, 1942[/center]

Combat Report

Fortunately, there isn't much combat to report for today. The Allies lost one Vanguard in China in exchange for four damaged Sallys. Japanese bombers hit several Chinese locations, however, did very minimal damage.

Akyab is a Growing Concern

As many of you may recall, in an effort to get a head-start on Operation Land Shark (i.e., the leisurely drive from India to Fusan), the Allies crossed the Burma Border with primarily ABDA and Easter Army ground forces and settled at Akyab. Considering supply was so minimal, Allied troops were experiencing unacceptable levels of fatigue and disruption. Accordingly, the Eastern Army forces moved back to Cox's Bazar.

Presently, only the ABDA forces, a couple Base Forces, an AA unit, and a couple Construction Engineer units remain at Akyab. The Fort Level is 3 (53%) and the Air Capacity is Level 3 (1%). The Assault Value is 292. A few more ABDA units have passed through Chittagong in route to Akyab with an approximate total Assault Value of 70. So, in a few days the ABDA Assault Value will rest at around 350.

The concern is two fold:

First, the present supply is at 144 (crippling).

Second, intelligence reports that El Lobo is preparing to attack Akyab.

The Allies do not intend to evacuate Akyab.

I am hoping that the ABDA forces can hold out until the end of the Monsoon Season.

Allied Presence at Kalemyo

Again, in an effort to get a head-start on Operation Land Shark, the following ground forces crossed the Burma Border and have taken-up residence at Kalemyo:

Southwest Pacific Headquarters
110th USA Base Force
34th Combat Engineer Regiment
205th Coastal AA Regiment
159th (Sep) Armored Infantry Regiment

Total AV is 192.

Supply is not too bad holding at around 1,256 (1,329 supply required). The engineers have began to build the fort with the present level being 0 (10%).

The Americal Division with numerous Artillery units, an AA unit, a Base Force, and a Construction Engineer are at Imphal. More elements attached to the Americal Division, including but not limited too, 4 Tank Battalions and 2 Tank Destroyer Battalions are at Kohima. All of these units are in full supply.

If supply increases at Kalemyo, more elements of the Americal division will cross the border into Kalemyo.

Marcus Island

El Lobo moved very quickly in an attempt to hammer the Allied invasion of Marcus Island; sinking one transport. Accordingly, only partial elements of the 177th USAAF BF and 5th Marine Defense Battalion landed on Marcus. The balance of the 177th and 5th are headed back to Pearl. The Long Island and most likely the Combat Surface Ships accompanying her will return to Adak Island tomorrow (August 6th).

Wake Island

The three American Carrier Task Forces and three Surface Combat Task Forces are holding on station 120 miles due East of Wake. Intelligence had indicated that El Lobo was planning an attack on Wake.

These six Task Forces will remain on station hoping to intercept a Japanese attack on Wake, but for how long, hasn't been decided.

Best Regards,

-Terry

[Rio Bravo]

ORIGINAL: pontiouspilot

Pls forgive my earlier dickshun, grammer and the like...in Winnipeg all demm guys got to do in the winter is correct dat!! I should know, I spent 2 years in Winnipeg 1 weekend...LOL

Remember that after Ap. 1st the Japanese will have a real chore assaulting a small island against any half decent defense. He will have to organize what he is doing and carry it out properly or he will fall on his sword. You can afford a defense battalion or two and Base force. The big deficit for you is the proximity of bombardment forces. I would mine the hell out Marcus and post any S-subs you can in the area. Meanwhile he will be focused on this so see what else you can diddle on his perimeter...I vote for the Fukoshima reactor! If you could afford to leave behind a few Wildcats they would sure make a mess of a few unescorted Betties. The problem is they may get bombarded into dust. What is the airfield at Marcus?

pontiouspilot-

It please me that El Lobo will have a tougher time attacking Allied held atolls. And, that is what I wanted, causing him to make a major effort to take Marcus back. I have submarines in the area; Northeast of Marcus.

The airfield at Marcus is at Level 1.

Wildcats would be nice, but I am not in a big hurry to send transports back to Marcus. El Lobo is no doubt still around with at least a Surface Combat Fleet.

Your grammar seems just fine to me.

Best Regards,

-Terry