Slitherine

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ORIGINAL: CV2

You have a problem with BBs there, but you dont have a problem with an invasion force trying to maneuver in a river?

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you dont have a problem with an invasion force trying to maneuver in a river?

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Early in February 1942 British and Indian forces were hard-pressed in Burma. By 22 February these forces had been forced back behind the Sittang River. The threat to Rangoon was developing. Reinforcements were vital, but the dock situation in Rangoon did not permit the acceptance of the complete convoy of 17 ships due there on 21 February by the General Officer Commanding the Burma Coast. Japanese raids had scared all labour from the docks and in fact a large part of the civilian population had left the city, thereby causing great difficulty in maintaining essential services. Most of the convoy had, therefore, to be sent to India, but the 7th Armoured Brigade, one Indian Artillery Regiment, a British battalion and an Auxiliary Pioneer Battalion were landed. H.M.I.S. Hindustan (Commander I.B.W. Heanly, R.I.N.) provided escort for this part of the convoy which proceeded to the port of Rangoon.

On the night of 20 February, the convoy was piloted up the Rangoon river in complete darkness. The Hindustan remained at the river mouth on anti-submarine patrol until the forenoon when she proceeded upstream. But owing to an air raid on the port she had to remain under way and did not anchor until sunset. All civilians had evacuated the city. Tanks and other equipment remained unloaded by the army, while R.I.N. personnel assisted in the warehouses and manned local launches.

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Protected by sloops of the Royal Indian Navy the convoy steered to the rendezvous on the mouth of the Rangoon river entirely without incident. Other convoys, heading in the same direction, passed them on or were overtaken. In the distance carriers with their escorts shadowed their course. It was the middle of the night when they arrived at the rendezvous. Troop carriers and ships of all sizes were already assembled. A fitful moon intermittently lit the scene as troops piled from the big ships into small assault craft. To their south lay the powerful units of the East Indies Fleet including battleships and aircraft carriers which secured them from surface interference. Skilful seamanship was required in that strong tide and swell to get the landing craft lowered, and with their light escorts they set off to the assault.

[snip] Bombardment from big ships was ruled out by the shallow water, and for supporting fire reliance was placed on the motor launches and the guns mounted on the landing craft. "In this Assault, Royal Indian Navy was proud to play a minor but nevertheless a worthy part" wrote a Royal Indian Navy observer. Two sloops H.M.I.S. Sutlej and H.M.I.S. Cauvery which had helped escort convoys to the mouth of the river now stood ready to bombard shore positions if required.

The convoy arrived at the lowering point off the mouth of the river and the intricate task of putting soldiers into assault craft was carried out in darkness and heavy rainstorm which drenched the troops. The apparent confusion as hundreds of craft manoeuvred for positions rapidly resolved itself into orderly formations, and at dawn a splendid spectacle presented itself of twin assault forces destined for east and west banks of the river complete with guns, tanks and supporting weapons moving off on the flood tide exactly according to schedule.

It was important for the troops to move up the river with a strong six-knot tide in their favour according to schedule, disembark ii H-Hour and allow craft to return to their ships on ebb tide for the next wave of the Assault Force. Everything went as planned and the initial landings met with little opposition. In this assault a major part was played by Indian troops. In addition to paratroopers who were dropped on Elephant Point at the mouth of the river on D-minus-one and had successfully secured their objective, the first wave included the Jats, Frontier Force Rifles and Eighth Gurkhas On the west bank and Garhwalis, Lincolns and First Punjabis on the east bank of the river, while Sherman tanks of the 19th Lancers supported the assault. A naval feature of the assault was the support provided by landing craft guns which were intended to eliminate Japanese strongpoints by close-range bombardment. Air bombing, which preceded the landing was also heavy and effective.
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A particularly dangerous role was assigned to a force of auxiliary minesweepers of the Royal Navy. These drew less water than their consorts and were therefore given the task of proceeding into the Rangoon river and sweeping the shallow reaches as well as the navigational channel. They took with them surveying parties to ascertain and mark out the navigational channel and to make points of bearing ashore more conspicuous. As there was no time to lose, these minesweepers proceeded on D-Day into the river while the rest of the force continued outside widening the approach channel already swept. It was believed that the estuary was mined and, in fact, the little minesweepers steaming bravely in formation found a number of mines on the first day in the river and bagged others during the next 48 hours. All the time the surveying parties were at work and buoys were being laid along the route that the minesweepers had cleared.