Battle Of Bonis...History in the making!!!

[IanLister]

It's June 1943, and the allies are making good progress in the Solomons. 2 Marine div have landed in northern Bougainville, isolating Shortland and Buin. Jap carrier air is dwindling, and reinforcements are building up. Bonis quickly turns into a level 2 base, with Corsairs and P39s (good bargebusters). Things are looking good, and the base on Bonis is going to hurt Rabaul when it gets to level 4.
2 a.m. June 12th. 6 PTs are on patrol outside the anchorage when radar detects approaching ships, big ones. The little boats head for the shadows along the coastline, close to within 1000 yards and let go their fish.......a minute later, 3 blinding flashes light up the night sky, explosions rumble across the water and tracers and muzzle flashes turn night into day. PT 68, having scored a hit, is cremated and sunk in a flurry of secondary battery hits, and the Jap force turns to escape. Who did we hit? sailors are asking excitedly as they return to port.
9 a.m. June 12th. P39s are scrambled to intercept a surface force 60 miles north of Bonis. Flying through patchy cloud, they spot 10 Japanese ships heading slowly north, including 2 big ones. Closing the range, they recognise Musashi and Mutsu, Musashi down by the bows and Mutsu listing to port. Ignoring the curtains of fragments tearing through the screaming air, they dive on their targets like SBDs. 4 hits later, the Musashi is on its way down, and another 4 have the Mutsu blazing from stem to stern. 2 P39s do not return.

Aftermath: Mutsu docked in Rabaul and was blown to bits by 60 Liberators from Lunga a week later. The Battle of Bonis goes down in history, and the humble P39 suddenly becomes the star of the USAAF.
Japanese confirm the loss of both ships, but are too shamefaced to explain what kind of damage control was bring practised on the Musashi.

Ahistorical? Just a bit, but exciting to watch, and I'm prepared to accept it was a freak result. What's your weirdest combat result?


Postscript: UV is everything I've ever wanted in a game, and the patch makes it even better.

[Rob Roberson]

Sounded like "In Harm's Way" with that bit about the PTS vs the BBs

Rob

[Scouters]

Thanks for the nice AAR - exciting and well written!

-Scouters