marcuswatney
Posts: 279
Joined: 2/28/2006
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In the game, could we please give Addu Atoll its proper prominence? It was a major naval base established before the war, and considered superior to Trincomalee. Male, in comparison, was of no significance.
The sea zone boundary should certainly pass through Addu Atoll, and it should be considered a major port, comparable to Truk (delete Male entirely in compensation). Given the way the larger scale in India helps the Japanese find an unopposed landing along the west coast, this change might help discourage wild Japanese drives westwards.
I suppose it would be too complex to work in the fact that the Japanese never found the base.
Here is the relevant part of the Wikipedia entry:
"The British Royal Navy established a base ("Port T") on the island of Gan (pronounced “Yahn”) in 1941, during World War II. From 1957 the Royal Air Force would take control of the base, and became known as RAF Gan. During the Cold War it was used as an outpost.
The original naval base was established as a fall-back for the British Eastern Fleet. Despite public pronouncements to the contrary, the official view was that the main base at Singapore would be untenable if the Japanese made serious headway in Malaya and Java - which, in the event, is what happened in 1942. The intention had been to operate from Trincomalee, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). Upon inspection, however, the naval commander-in-chief, Admiral James Somerville found the port inadequate, vulnerable to a determined attack and open to spying. An isolated island base with a safe, deep anchorage in a suitably strategic position was required, and Addu met the requirements. Once available, its facilities were used extensively by the Fleet.
Royal Navy engineers landed in August 1941 from HMS Guardian to clear and construct airstrips on Gan for the Fleet Air Arm. In the interim, Catalina and Sunderland flying boats operated from jetties on the northern, sheltered side of Gan. Large oil storage tanks were built on Gan, and on Hitaddu Island on the western edge of the atoll; vital elements for a naval base. These were visible from a long distances at sea, but this was unavoidable, given the atoll's low profile.
Ship's supplies for the fleet were provided from a pair of Australian refrigerated ships, Changte and Taiping that included Addu in a number of bases that they serviced regularly. Three times these ships replenished forty or more ships of the Eastern Fleet. Several large Australian Imperial Force troop convoys also refueled at Addu on their way from Aden to Fremantle, Western Australia.
The six major islands were garrisoned by the 1st Royal Marine Coast Defence Regiment, manning shore batteries and anti-aircraft guns. To facilitate the defence, causeways were built connecting the western islands of Gan, Eyehook, Maradhoo and Hithadhoo and, much later in the war, they were linked by a light railway. Addu was an unpopular posting due to the hot, humid climate, lack of recreational facilities and lack of socialising with the local population.
The Japanese remained unaware of the base’s existence until their plans for expansion in south-east Asia had come to nothing, even during their carrier raids in the Indian Ocean in April 1942. Later in the war, submarine reconnaissance established the base’s existence. Despite openings into the lagoon being permanently closed by anti-submarine nets, the German U-boat U-183 torpedoed the tanker British Loyalty in March 1944 (she had been previously torpedoed and sunk at Diego Suarez); it was an impressive long-range shot from outside the atoll through a gap in the anti-torpedo nets. Although seriously damaged, the tanker did not sink. She was not fully repaired but kept as a Ministry of War Transport Oil Fuel Storage Vessel."
Pretty impressive that a U-Boat operated this far from base.
You can find a detailed (post-war) map here: http://www.gan.philliptsmall.me.uk/AdduMapsLinks.htm
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RE: MWiF Map Review - India & Burma - 
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