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All Forums >> [New Releases from Matrix Games] >> War in the Pacific: Admiral's Edition >> After Action Reports >> RE: The Solomons Situation

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RE: The Solomons Situation - 3/10/2012 5:51:36 PM

LoBaron

Posts: 4776
Joined: 1/26/2003
From: Vienna, Austria
Status: offline

Sep 06/07, 43

Nothing worth mentioning so just an update on the best time for sinking IJN assets in the war:

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Sep 06, 43
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub attack near Daito Shoto at 97,73

Japanese Ships
xAP Teifu Maru, Torpedo hits 3, heavy damage
xAP Kamo Maru
DD Oite

Allied Ships
SS Runner

SS Runner launches 6 torpedoes at xAP Teifu Maru
DD Oite fails to find sub, continues to search...
DD Oite fails to find sub, continues to search...
DD Oite fails to find sub, continues to search...
DD Oite attacking submerged sub ....
DD Oite fails to find sub, continues to search...
Escort abandons search for sub

Mike begins to lose ships to subs on a regular basis in the Pacific.

_____________________________

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 481

RE: The Solomons Situation - 3/11/2012 11:19:59 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

Brutal air combat over Moulmein for 2 days. CW command decided to take advantage of the heavy bombardment by the Royal Navy
and sent in the bombers with (what was thought enough escorts) .. sweeps of P47's in addition. It did not go well.

Day 1

Sweeps hit 100+ defending fighters but did well none the less.
Bombers arrived with P47 but no hurricanes on escort. (weather was appalling)
Very little damage to the runways and heavy bomber losses.
A few further small bomber groups got caught and mangled THEN the hurricanes arrived in force
oddly 1/2 way through the animations 20 odd bombers appeared as if by magic and made it through
Never seen bombers turn up mid combat animations before (same happened day 2 too)

Day 2 was scaring me.

Afternoon Air attack on Moulmein , at 55,55

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 76 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 26 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 63
Ki-45 KAIa Nick x 35
Ki-61-Ia Tony x 44
Ki-61-Ic Tony x 8

Allied aircraft
Liberator II x 6
Liberator GR.III x 9
B-17E Fortress x 15
B-17F Fortress x 9
B-24D1 Liberator x 12
B-25C Mitchell x 18
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 21

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 4 damaged
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 1 destroyed, 22 damaged
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
Liberator GR.III: 1 destroyed
B-17E Fortress: 1 destroyed, 1 damaged
B-17F Fortress: 2 destroyed, 1 damaged
B-17F Fortress: 1 destroyed by flak
B-24D1 Liberator: 1 destroyed, 5 damaged
B-25C Mitchell: 5 destroyed, 4 damaged
P-47D2 Thunderbolt: 5 destroyed

Airbase hits 4
Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 11

Afternoon Air attack on Moulmein , at 55,55

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 75 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 21 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 18
Ki-45 KAIa Nick x 9
Ki-61-Ia Tony x 15
Ki-61-Ic Tony x 3

Allied aircraft
Hurricane IIc Trop x 40
B-25D1 Mitchell x 6
B-26 Marauder x 9

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-45 KAIa Nick: 1 destroyed
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
Hurricane IIc Trop: 2 destroyed
B-25D1 Mitchell: 1 damaged
B-26 Marauder: 2 destroyed
B-26 Marauder: 1 destroyed by flak

Runway hits 1

Day 2

Big raid with all of 6 P47s flying escort , eek ! .. bombers did make it in however for some good damage
BUT losses are unsustainable for both the RAF (especially) and the limited B17's still in service. B25's
are lining up to be used as replacements. Wellington's and Brit liberators are rare as hens teeth.

Afternoon Air attack on Moulmein , at 55,55

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 75 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 25 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 52
Ki-45 KAIa Nick x 23
Ki-61-Ia Tony x 36
Ki-61-Ic Tony x 7

Allied aircraft
Liberator II x 8
Liberator GR.III x 8
Wellington B.X x 11
B-17E Fortress x 8
B-17F Fortress x 9
B-24D1 Liberator x 18
B-25C Mitchell x 21
B-25D1 Mitchell x 9
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 3

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 13 damaged
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 6 destroyed on ground
Ki-45 KAIa Nick: 7 damaged
Ki-45 KAIa Nick: 3 destroyed on ground
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 1 destroyed, 35 damaged
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 5 destroyed on ground
Ki-61-Ic Tony: 2 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
Liberator II: 6 damaged
Liberator II: 1 destroyed by flak
Liberator GR.III: 4 damaged
Wellington B.X: 1 destroyed, 3 damaged
B-17E Fortress: 1 damaged
B-17F Fortress: 1 destroyed, 3 damaged
B-24D1 Liberator: 1 destroyed, 8 damaged
B-25C Mitchell: 3 destroyed, 10 damaged
B-25D1 Mitchell: 4 damaged

Airbase hits 14
Airbase supply hits 2
Runway hits 48

Overall a very expensive day for the allied bombers in Burma. Time to rest and rebuild them, think ill pull off 1-2
units for anti naval duty (with LR aircraft for use in port Blair).. as not much to do in Burma as we cannot hit
infrastructure till 44 (house rule).

Attachment (1)

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to LoBaron)

Post #: 482

RE: The Solomons Situation - 3/15/2012 11:01:03 PM

LoBaron

Posts: 4776
Joined: 1/26/2003
From: Vienna, Austria
Status: offline

Sep 10/11, 43

I wrote a 5nm long analysis of the initial phase of operation Stepstone, the attempt
to achieve air superiority over Rabaul.

Did a bold mouseclick about 3 pixels too far to the right, and then, YAY, blank page.
I am too angry to write all of it again, so this is a bit shorter than required to explain the whole situaiton
and the results in detail.

OP Stepstone:

Goals:

Phase 1)

Achieve short term air superiority over Rabaul with sweeps originating from
Shortlands: USMC Corsairs and Wildcats on sweep, Warhawks on escort
Munda: Army Lightnings on sweep
Lunga: Liberators on airfield attack

Phase 2)

Maintain air superiority with a favourable kill/loss ratio and remove Rabaul
as an offense platform

Phase 3)

Prevent relocation to and buildup of Bismark Archipelago, or at least make this process as costly as possible.

The timing is, as already explained in my last post, in order to shift Mike�s focus to this area, and
so bind a second large force concentration (besides Burma) to further improve chances of Java OP success.

The affair will be bloody, but I know that.

The Japanese had, before today�s combat, about 270-300 fighter aircraft at Rabaul, this
is more than the Allies can muster. Advantage for the Allies is a higher overall quality of planes
(Corsair/Lightning), but already the first Georges are arriving so this balance will tilt if we
cannot establish superiority fast.

Today, as feared but not completely surprising, the first loss figures favour the Japanese.
Mike defended extremely well and used a CAP layer with Georges on top, Tonys at med alt and
Zekes as low alt bait. It worked, many allied pilots lost their lives today.

But I did not start this op with empty pools, and the first turn losses can be replaced. The next turn
will decide whether I need to take a break or am able to keep up the pressure.

These are the loss figures of Phase 1 until now, B-24s will only start contrubuting today:

_____________________________

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 483

RE: The Solomons Situation - 3/16/2012 3:28:49 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Sep 12, 43

Sept 12/13 was a busy few days for both allies , and Risky ones too, but they paid off imo.

The Dutch sub found a Japanese BB SCTF in the south DEI and holed a CL for fun. The ASW was a bit
Anaemic and did no damage.

Sub attack near Bara at 74,106

Japanese Ships
CL Tenryu, Torpedo hits 1, on fire
BB Mutsu
CA Kako
CA Furutaka
CL Kiso
CL Jintsu
CL Naka
CL Sendai
DD Yunagi
DD Kikuzuki
DD Sagiri

Allied Ships
SS O16

Mean while in Burma the Japanese airforce struck at Rangoon under the cover of night. No night fighters were
operating as all available hurricanes were on daylight air cover over the Royal Navy group heading to hit Moulmein
from the sea again. 2 Japanese subs were encountered with the TF in question. One on the way in scared me silly
as i imagined all the ops points being used up and the Attack stalling or leaving the ships at moulmein come dawn.
Fortunately this did not occur and the egress attack by an I boat missed a DD and Allied ASW had run out of ammo.

ASW attack near Moulmein at 54,55

Japanese Ships
SS I-24, hits 15

Allied Ships
BB Royal Sovereign
CA Frobisher
CA Hawkins
CL Kenya
CL Emerald
DD Isaac Sweers
DD Rotherham
DD Racehorse
DD Tenedos
DD Witte de With

The Bombardment was truly a sight to behold and even lit up the skies over Rangoon and Pegu many miles away.

Night Naval bombardment of Moulmein at 55,55

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-45 KAIa Nick: 60 damaged
Ki-45 KAIa Nick: 3 destroyed on ground
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 68 damaged
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 2 destroyed on ground
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 74 damaged
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 8 destroyed on ground
Ki-61-Ic Tony: 11 damaged

Allied Ships
BB Royal Sovereign
CA Frobisher
CA Hawkins
CA Shropshire
CL Kenya
CL Emerald
DD Rotherham
DD Racehorse
DD Tenedos
DD Witte de With
DD Van Nes
DD Tjerk Hiddes
DD Van Galen
DD Isaac Sweers

Japanese ground losses:
110 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 6 destroyed, 26 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 8 disabled
Guns lost 13 (4 destroyed, 9 disabled)
Vehicles lost 10 (4 destroyed, 6 disabled)

Manpower hits 5
Fires 435
Airbase hits 12
Airbase supply hits 4
Runway hits 44
Port hits 4
Port fuel hits 1
Port supply hits 2

200 Planes damaged ! maybe wildly over optimistic but the follow up sweeps hit only a dozen Tonys compared to the
many mixed Tony and Nick flights the previous day. The Elite P47's units chopped their way through them with
surprising ease.

Tomorrow the Bombers are heading back to Moulmein just to add to the hurt. Escorts arigned from Rangoon, while
the sweeps continue.

The USA has some big action over Rabaul too. LoBaron can fill you in on this however.

PS. The Royal Navy bombardment group is heading back to Ceylon for some repairs as accumulated fatigue is beginning
to hurt the slow old BB, maker her even slower. Rangoon will eventually become a good CA base (narrow river approach
is too small for the BB) but unless Japan really puts some serious naval attack units in place I'll be happy here.

Actually the entire point of this is to attract Japanese naval attack groups away from Java.

Edit .. as you can see the Andaman islands are being built up nicely to act a threat to mainlanf Malaya.
CW troops and esp naval support units are readying to take 2 more small dot bases for a truly interleaving
airfield defence. Japan's missed an early re-take of these, however not knowing what japan has in mind
is a bit worrying. And come 44 we are allowed to hit resource centres in the DEI. might as well have some
nice airfields to launch them from in January.

PPS edit , chang Mai is the next objective with Moulmein being the big focus.

Attachment (1)

< Message edited by Rob Brennan UK -- 3/16/2012 3:34:30 PM >

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to LoBaron)

Post #: 484

RE: The Solomons Situation - 3/17/2012 6:51:03 PM

LoBaron

Posts: 4776
Joined: 1/26/2003
From: Vienna, Austria
Status: offline

Sep 12/13, 43

Only short update.

OP Stepstone proceeds nicely, losses are bearable, Corsairs suffered heaviest and might be relieved soon.
Both sides are wearing out slowly, but the Japanese faster than me. I got lots of reserves to take over
should the kill/loss ratios tilt.

For all who expected more than 3 lines while the war is just getting more interesting, say thanks to the
guys in General Discussion for making me reinstall IL-2.

_____________________________

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 485

RE: The Solomons Situation - 3/18/2012 1:47:46 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Sep 14, 43

Japanese night bombing continues over Rangoon and elsewhere. Rangoon has good flak defences now and several Helens
were shot down for no damage (weather was appalling). We did lose a couple of skytrains in the south DEI where i
was using them to rearrange some base units in the area for maximum AV support.

Night Air attack on Saumlaki , at 78,117

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid detected at 42 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 13 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 17

Allied aircraft
no flights

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
C-47 Skytrain: 2 damaged
C-47 Skytrain: 1 destroyed on ground

Night Air attack on Rangoon , at 54,53

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 65 NM, estimated altitude 8,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 20 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 15

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 4 damaged
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 1 destroyed by flak

Moulmein was devoid of fighters in the air today and the bombers hot the airfields to kill off as many fighter frames
as we could (for free) .. large coastal airfields are very vulnerable and I for one am happy that Japan never cottoned
onto this when i used chittagong/akyab/rennel island and cox's bazarre as maajor fields in the past.

Morning Air attack on Moulmein , at 55,55

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
B-17E Fortress x 12
B-17F Fortress x 15
B-24D1 Liberator x 24
B-25C Mitchell x 15
B-25D1 Mitchell x 27

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-45 KAIa Nick: 2 destroyed on ground
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 4 destroyed on ground
Ki-61-Ic Tony: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 4 destroyed on ground

No Allied losses

Airbase hits 24
Airbase supply hits 2
Runway hits 18

Morning Air attack on Moulmein , at 55,55

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 72 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 22 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
Liberator GR.III x 2
B-17E Fortress x 12
B-17F Fortress x 15
B-24D1 Liberator x 24
B-25C Mitchell x 3
B-25D1 Mitchell x 18

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 2 destroyed on ground
Ki-45 KAIa Nick: 3 destroyed on ground
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-61-Ic Tony: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
B-24D1 Liberator: 1 damaged
B-24D1 Liberator: 1 destroyed by flak

Japanese ground losses:
13 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

Airbase hits 12
Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 46

OH , and the US had an eventful turn too !

Attachment (1)

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to LoBaron)

Post #: 486

OP Stepstone - 3/18/2012 3:39:35 PM

LoBaron

Posts: 4776
Joined: 1/26/2003
From: Vienna, Austria
Status: offline

Sep 14/15, 43:

Mixed turn for the US forces, as Rob mentioned we have some really good news, and some not so good ones.

First the not so good:

OP Stepstone requires to keep the pressure up on Rabaul without pause. If I stop operations to R&R the units
in combat, I provide the same opportunity for the Rabaul defenders - not a good option.

The problem is, I would be able to handle all CAP fighters, except for the George. That plane is a formidable
opponent with a single drawback, the SR 3.
There are two obvious options to fight George equipped units into submission: numbers, or an equally strong fighter
type. The only fighter available to fight the George on eye level is the P47, which was so skillfully used by Rob in the
destruction of the Japanese Burma airforce.
We had a short exchange on this topic and I understand perfectly well that Rob needs all Tbolts ready for Java.
Rabaul is only a secondary target and so I will do without the USAAF high performance airframe.

This leaves me with numbers. I haven�t got enough Corsairs and P38s to do the job alone and so need to put Warhawks
and Wildcats on target, which clearly cannot compete with the George. In addition I need to phase out my single
P38G unit to make them available for Java, which leaves me with a small pool of P38H.

Last turn the results were mixed. We kill Georges, but not in the numbers I would prefer. The Tony and Zero units
should be in really bad shape by now though and I am still confident that the Georges will wear out.

Our losses spread over the whole spectrum, last turn was worse because of weather. This time the B24 attack went in without
protection and got handed a good one, with 12 planes lost over the course of the last 2 days.

The Japanese losses are similar in numbers to the Allied ones, but bear in mind that many of the destroyed planes
- and all ground losses - are numbers on the CW scoreboard in Burma. Total Georges destroyed up to now is about 20
(my estimate when comparing combat animations to the clearly exaggerated loss board)

Below is an overview of current Stepstone key bases and intel on the Japanese defenders of Rabaul.
What already can be called a success is that the numbers of ready fighters at Rabaul dropped from initially
240 to 36. This is not as great as it looks on first glance though, as available fighters on US side dropped
by roughly 40-50% as well. Still, as pointed out in the last post, were wining the numbers game.

And now for the good news:

I introduce OP Backyard, main mission a small CV raid on Truk and the shipping in this area.
To be honest I dod not expect a smashing success. It is just another op to give Mike the feeling
I am free to roam in the Pacific and pull away attention from Java.

Because of this - and becaus the major combatants are already preparing for the invasion - the limitations on
TF composition and striking power prevented the option to overwhelm with numbers.
So I had to compromise and sneak in, strike hard, and run like hell. The run like hell part is yet to come
btw, so fingers crossed.

Below you see the TF composition which raided Truk. The prerequisite was that my intel showed high air concentrations
on Rabaul and the Bismark Archipelago bases, but next to nothing at Truk.

The attack was twophased, first a port attack on extreme range on day 1, and then, depending on traffic either
another port strike or attack on naval targets in the area.
The decision to strike form max range (and improving chances of port attack because of lower ranged naval search)
was a succes, with 20/20 hindsight I even should have left Lexington II�s DB group on port attack only, but this
was a too high risk for my tast.

Now for the smashing results:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on Truk , at 112,108

Weather in hex: Light rain

Raid detected at 35 NM, estimated altitude 18,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 12 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M3a Zero x 22

Allied aircraft
SBD-5 Dauntless x 35

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
SBD-5 Dauntless: 2 damaged

Japanese Ships
CVE Hosho, Bomb hits 1, on fire
CV Zuikaku, Bomb hits 2
CV Katsuragi, Bomb hits 2
CS Chitose, Bomb hits 1
CV Amagi, Bomb hits 1, on fire

Port hits 2

Aircraft Attacking:
8 x SBD-5 Dauntless releasing from 3000' *
Port Attack: 1 x 500 lb GP Bomb
17 x SBD-5 Dauntless releasing from 2000' *
Port Attack: 1 x 500 lb GP Bomb
10 x SBD-5 Dauntless releasing from 4000' *
Port Attack: 1 x 500 lb GP Bomb

CAP engaged:
Hosho-1 with A6M3a Zero (4 airborne, 10 on standby, 8 scrambling)
4 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 36750 , scrambling fighters between 9000 and 36000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 31 minutes

Paint scratchers, but thats 3 flattops less for Java.

And the next day:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on TF, near Truk at 112,108

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 40 NM, estimated altitude 16,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 14 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M3a Zero x 14

Allied aircraft
F4F-4 Wildcat x 8
F6F-3 Hellcat x 22
SBD-5 Dauntless x 34
TBF-1 Avenger x 23

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M3a Zero: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
F4F-4 Wildcat: 2 destroyed
F6F-3 Hellcat: 2 destroyed
TBF-1 Avenger: 1 destroyed by flak

Japanese Ships
xAK Cuba Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire
xAK Cheribon Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires
xAK Taian Maru, Bomb hits 2, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
xAK Bandoeng Maru
xAK Nikki Maru
xAK Italy Maru
xAK Kusuyama Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Victoria Maru
xAK Ayato Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire
xAK Thames Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Enzyu Maru
xAK Eli Maru
xAK Hokuriku Maru, Torpedo hits 1
xAK Yosyu Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires
xAK Kazan Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire
xAK Kosei Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Truk at 112,108

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid detected at 38 NM, estimated altitude 17,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 13 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M3a Zero x 13

Allied aircraft
F4F-4 Wildcat x 7
F6F-3 Hellcat x 20
SBD-5 Dauntless x 34
TBF-1 Avenger x 17

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
F4F-4 Wildcat: 1 destroyed
F6F-3 Hellcat: 3 destroyed

Japanese Ships
xAK Chile Maru, Bomb hits 6, and is sunk
xAK Clyde Maru, Bomb hits 4, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Enju Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire
xAK Enzyu Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire
xAK Thames Maru, Bomb hits 1, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
xAK Holland Maru, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Hokuzyu Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Kazan Maru, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Bandoeng Maru, Bomb hits 2, on fire
xAK Hokuzyu Maru, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage

I guess it is clear that I am very pleased with this outcome.

Now, as Rob already mentioned in his last mail, it is time to RUN! Run where is the big question...

_____________________________

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 487

RE: OP Stepstone - 3/20/2012 6:29:19 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

Next turn

Not much to report from the CW side ..

Japanese bombed Rangoon at night and met some hurricanes on night fighter duty , all very dull 2-3 shot down
over 2 days as well as the AAA impact means a fair few Helens not returning to Bangkok (as a guess)..

Allied bombers hit jap fields and KO a few day fighters on the ground 3-4 maybe , while dive bombers hit
Chang-mai in daylight for little effect apart from some valuable intel on the defending forces. 3 jap
brigades there as a minimum.

However the big news is operation "Flat foot" (Java invasion) , has begun loading up at Perth .. all ships heading to
points west of Cocos to avoid jap recons .. then we hit Tjiljap hard , allied recon is looking all over Java/Sumatra so as
not to give away too much.

Attachment (1)

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to LoBaron)

Post #: 488

RE: OP Stepstone - 3/23/2012 4:24:52 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Sep 18, 43

2 more quiet days for the CW. Small bombing runs on Chang Mai and some troops moving out of Pegu/Rangoon area to
slowly approach the target. Rangoon and Pegu are both horribly low on supply (again the Burma supply annoyance
comes back to haunt me) . transport TF coming from Madras to help out with c 20k tons of supply. I really
gutted the merchant marine in India for the Java invasion. not many large ships left here and only small short
legged AP/AKL are able to help.

1st British spits are now flying over Rangoon , shame I have no access to the Aussie ones as their pool is
pretty healthy. Only bad thing about spits is the lack of drop tanks , hurricanes have them and really helps
range (7) compared to 4 normally. Fortunately Moulmein is only 2 hexes from Rangoon , and even if Japan has
left the air fields there we can at least dominate the airspace when we move up.

bombing Chang mai does give nice info .. eg.

Morning Air attack on 2nd INA Gandhi Regiment, at 58,53 (Chiang Mai)

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid spotted at 38 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 14 minutes

Allied aircraft
Hurricane IIc Trop x 8
Vengeance I x 13

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
6 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Aircraft Attacking:
11 x Vengeance I releasing from 4000'
Ground Attack: 2 x 500 lb GP Bomb, 2 x 250 lb GP Bomb
2 x Vengeance I releasing from 3000'
Ground Attack: 2 x 500 lb GP Bomb, 2 x 250 lb GP Bomb

Also attacking 1st INA Subhas Regiment ...
Also attacking 2nd INA Gandhi Regiment ...

Aussie and US bombers from New Guinea also help out the Americans in the SW Pacific , these have been flying for
weeks now and despite their bad bombing skills (mostly) they are at least getting good exp . most are dedicated
search or ASW/torpedo bombers . ground pounding is secondary . hence the high alt attacks to preserve the pilots.

Morning Air attack on 86th Naval Guard Unit, at 109,130 (Torokina)

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 18,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 6 minutes

Allied aircraft
Beaufighter Ic x 9
Beaufort VIII x 22
Hudson III (LR) x 12
Mitchell II x 12
B-24D1 Liberator x 12

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
36 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Piccie if the Perth exodus/ Java invasion fleets . fastest ones have been reduced to cruise speed. Its all a real
mess if I am honest. But given the enormous numbers of transports and CV/SC/ASW TF's here , cannot micro manage too
much else my head will implode.

Plan is to meet up east of Cocos .. then land them as follow on from the cocos invasion TF. After so long at sea the
troops loaded at Perth will be heavily disrupted and fatigued. So landing unopposed is a major consideration here.

As for the timetable ?? anyone's guess .. most likely end Sept .. I don't want to wait till October as the longer this
lot is at sea the greater the chance I'll get detected .

TTFN

PS . Please note that the Base info is for china .. was just map browsing when the screen shot was taken.

China now the Burma road is reopen should start upgrading and rebuilding the large corps in Chungking .
The air bridge from Ledo has been closed due to a huge supply shortage (again) . Gievn i have million of
supply elsewhere in India , the lack at Ledo is annoying to say the least. Indian theatre HQ heading
there to hopefully draw in more supply . Why Madras is overflowing with the stuff i have no idea ?

Attachment (1)

< Message edited by Rob Brennan UK -- 3/23/2012 4:29:51 PM >

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 489

RE: OP Stepstone - 3/28/2012 12:39:01 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Sep 22, 43

Slow updates right now , apologies.

However the game is slowing down anyway for a few days. The US air attack has been halted on Rabaul for now as Allied
discussions have an alternative plan for the place.

The final departures from Perth are happening today , Its the Brit CV Victorious (due to withdraw shortly grrr) .. and
the CVE Benning with RAF fighters aboard.. Basically a bit of a 'bait' TF if needed.

Only combat today was some unexpected low level Mitchell strikes on Japanese shipping east of new guinea. I had no idea
they were even there . LR Liberators must have noticed them and radioed for attack a/c to be deployed.

This is the entire Combat report text as an illustration of how damn quite the turn really was.

TF 314 encounters mine field at Rabaul (106,125)

Allied Ships
DMS Hovey

5 mines cleared

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASW attack near Pagan at 106,84

Japanese Ships
SC Ch 5
SC Ch 12
SC Ch 8

Allied Ships
SS Pompano

SS Pompano is located by SC Ch 5
SC Ch 12 fails to find sub and abandons search
SC Ch 8 fails to find sub, continues to search...
SC Ch 8 fails to find sub, continues to search...
SC Ch 8 fails to find sub, continues to search...
SC Ch 8 fails to find sub, continues to search...
SC Ch 8 fails to find sub, continues to search...
Escort abandons search for sub

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Sep 23, 43

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on TF, near Hollandia at 93,116

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid spotted at 14 NM, estimated altitude 2,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 4 minutes

Allied aircraft
Beaufighter VIc x 7
Mitchell II x 4

No Allied losses

Japanese Ships
xAK Koto Maru, Bomb hits 4, heavy fires, heavy damage

Aircraft Attacking:
4 x Mitchell II bombing from 1000 feet
Naval Attack: 3 x 500 lb SAP Bomb

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on TF, near Aitape at 97,116

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid spotted at 15 NM, estimated altitude 3,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 4 minutes

Allied aircraft
Mitchell II x 6

No Allied losses

Japanese Ships
xAK Midori Maru, Bomb hits 1
xAK Meiten Maru, Bomb hits 2, on fire

Aircraft Attacking:
6 x Mitchell II bombing from 1000 feet *
Naval Attack: 1 x 500 lb SAP Bomb

Picture is of New Guinea .. White circles are the two hexes attacked today. Recon has been directed to hollandia to check if Japan
has troops here now (was empty) also sent to the red circled ones as we have paras in Madang prepped for these 2. if empty we'll grab them
in a few days.

Attachment (1)

< Message edited by Rob Brennan UK -- 3/28/2012 12:40:22 PM >

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 490

RE: OP Stepstone - 4/1/2012 5:06:09 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Sep 24, 43

The war continues at a slow pace for now - LoBaron is away in Barcelona ? (somewhere in Spain anyway) until Thursday.
I hope he has a great little holiday and I am tempted to play the US in the interim but decided that common sense
dictates that I don't

I do know the new plan for Rabaul is to hammer it from the sea - US minesweepers have been dodging in and clearing a few
over the past week. Commonwealth naval officers have persuaded the US that a bombardment group of CA's should be able to hit
the place and not worry about mines too much so long as the escorts do not bombard either. As mines are sewn close to shore
in most cases all should be well for the Yanks. BUT recon today showed some possible CV's in Rabaul ?? true ?? i doubt it
as CA's are commonly reported as carriers. Still the US Heavy Cruiser TF is refuelled in Shortlands and should imo go in
regardless as he might catch some CV's in port ! It's worth a gamble. Even if Japan creates a CV fleet he might catch it
at night as it forms up.

Australian Transports carrying more support elements to Lae have been diverted to Milne bay as a precaution to CV
activity in the area. It might have been more prudent to sail them back to Townsville but as i stated earlier i do
not really think he has CV's in Rabaul.

Meanwhile Hollandia has some troops in it , recon shows 1900 and 11 fighters so Japan has finally started to make
some defences in north New Guinea, We will still start the para drops next turn regardless as spits can now reach
the landing bases to provide some LR CAP.

1st Australian Para Battalion will land on Wewak. Covered by spitfires.
2/6 Cavalry commando battalion will land on Aitape. Covered by Hurricanes.

How I can keep these places is a bit moot as they are more of a diversion to the main attack (see below)the next big
Goal(s) for the Aussies are Gasmata to help isolate Rabaul, this will be v risky landing but now we have Finchaven
up and running as a fighter base we will attempt to invade it in a week or so. Planners havnt set much in the way
of troops to take the place but we do have sufficient Base forces to get it to a useful state relatively fast
once its secured by the 2/11 Armoured Car Battalion and the 2nd RAA Jungle arty regiment. the Port Moresby defence
Battalion can be shipped over if needed too (which it probably will be). 1st Australian HQ is also 100% Prepped
to help keep the place once taken.

Our main attack will be on Manas in the Admiralty islands , but only once Rabaul is closed for business. both 1st and
4th Australian Divisions are preparing (being on refit in Sydney right now) along with SW Pac HQ and 2nd Australian HQ.
Both or either of these divisions could also be railed to Perth for use in Java too if needed. So its more of a strategic
reserve right now.

JAVA INVASION

WE have roughly the following troops loaded up :-

11th West African division
5th Australian Division
5th Indian Division
Several Batallions/brigades , one motorised and one Tank
TD and artillery
Base forces and Air HQ for Torpedo usage upon capture for land based air.

most is prepped for Tjiljap but the follow on and one HQ is prepped for Batavia as next target. This will ofc be subject to change
as Japan reacts.

Over 100 P47's have been assembled in Christmas island for Land based fighter protection , along with search a/c . The bases ASW squadrons
have been withdrawn to Cocos as the base was overloaded with groups. Its now 100% safe and functional to maximise the fighters which i suspect
we will need badly. Some smaller fighter units are also present ( P40E/P40N1/hurricane and spits arriving) as added numbers. While albacore
and swordfish provide the anti shipping punch. Being Commonwealth we don't have dive bombers.

Additionally we have another African Division in Mombasa preparing for Java while filling out and refitting. by the time i get AP's there
it should be upto 100% with a 72 skill leader.

The lead invasion TF's have been spotted near Cocos so its time to push everyone forward to Christmas island and send in the landing next turn.
I was preparing for a very detailed landing order but this has gone completely out of the window as some TF's have gone a lot faster than others,
We will just use the kitchen sink approach and try and bully our way in ASAP.

This whole operation could be end of the CW forces if it all goes wrong , OR we can start denying Japan its vital Oil mid war, potentially
driving her economy into the ground in 44 (I hope).

America has been most generous in its loaning od large numbers of APA/LST and AP ships along with the essential Carriers and escorts
needed for this operation.

Burma ..

Port Blair was hit by Japanese bombardment a/c . WE NEED an Air HQ in the region badly to allow the stationing of longer range torpedo a/c
in the Andaman islands .. range 6 Vengeance dive bombers just don't work well at all.

Night Naval bombardment of Port Blair at 46,58

Allied aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft losses
Hurricane IIc Trop: 21 damaged
Hurricane IIc Trop: 1 destroyed on ground
Hudson IIIa: 68 damaged
Hudson IIIa: 3 destroyed on ground
Catalina I: 26 damaged
Catalina I: 1 destroyed on ground
Vengeance I: 28 damaged
Vengeance I: 1 destroyed on ground

Japanese Ships
BB Yamashiro
BB Fuso
CA Aoba
CA Takao
DD Maikaze
DD Kiyonami
DD Hayanami
DD Onami
DD Tamanami
DD Takanami
DD Makinami

Allied ground losses:
445 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Non Combat: 12 destroyed, 41 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 3 disabled
Vehicles lost 6 (4 destroyed, 2 disabled)

Airbase hits 34
Airbase supply hits 10
Runway hits 49
Port hits 1

Losses were minimal I'm happy to report , one Hudson and 2 vengeance .. many damage a/c however.

Allied ships hit Boela again , and for just one CL and some dinky DD's the damage is great (if true)

Night Naval bombardment of Boela at 80,110

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 7 damaged
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 34 damaged
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 7 damaged
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 1 destroyed on ground
A6M3a Zero: 10 damaged
A6M3a Zero: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied Ships
CL De Ruyter
DD Piet Hein
DD Vendetta
DE Express
DE Decoy

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

Airbase hits 14
Airbase supply hits 3
Runway hits 31

CL De Ruyter firing at Boela
DD Piet Hein firing at Boela
DD Vendetta firing at Boela
DE Express firing at Boela
DE Decoy firing at Boela

Allied planners are sending down large numbers of liberators to cocos islands for both long range naval search and
ground attacks in Java as needed.

That just about covers the Allies turns and CW plans for now , + we are landing at Car Nicobar, in the Andaman's as
yet another airfield to threaten Sumatra and Malaya. Again its a distraction for Japan but damn useful if i can keep
it. As its a level 0(0) port , naval support has been maximised to help it build up and unload eng. vehicles (i hope).

Attachment (1)

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 491

RE: OP Stepstone - 4/10/2012 12:16:04 AM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Sep 28, 43

The game is Afoot .. Last turn we assembled in Christmas island for the strike into Java .. this turn we met japan !

As I'm posing this and watching the turn at the same time I'll divide it into chunks ..

Chunk 1

Japan sends sweeping a/c to Burma against my forward infantry and aux units advancing on Chang Mai .. the small hurricane and
spitfire defence units got sucked out of Rangoon and beaten piecemeal .. not a great day for the RAF .. actual losses yet
to be assessed ..

Next is New Guinea .. we took Aitape and Wewak with para drops last turn , this turn japan arrived to bomb us .. some few aussie
fighters intercepted the helens and bagged a few freebies.

Morning Air attack on 1st Australian Para Battalion, at 96,119 (Wewak)

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 18,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 6 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 70

Allied aircraft
Hurricane IIb Trop x 6
Spitfire Vc Trop x 4

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 2 destroyed, 5 damaged

No Allied losses

Allied ground losses:
132 casualties reported
Squads: 2 destroyed, 21 disabled
Non Combat: 2 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 4 (2 destroyed, 2 disabled)

Aircraft Attacking:
28 x Ki-49-IIa Helen bombing from 14000 feet
Ground Attack: 4 x 250 kg GP Bomb
22 x Ki-49-IIa Helen bombing from 14000 feet
Ground Attack: 4 x 250 kg GP Bomb
16 x Ki-49-IIa Helen bombing from 14000 feet
Ground Attack: 4 x 250 kg GP Bomb

JAVA . barring anything else happening , we will concentrate here ..

First thing at dawn Japan sent in sweeps over Christmas island and caught the P47's heading off to LRCAP Tjiljap. and mixed it up
with the local defending hurricanes and warhawks ..

Morning Air attack on Christmas Island IO , at 45,104

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 34 NM, estimated altitude 45,010 feet.
Estimated time to target is 10 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 29

Allied aircraft
Hurricane IIc Trop x 28
P-40N1 Warhawk x 17
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 40

Japanese aircraft losses
N1K1-J George: 4 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
Hurricane IIc Trop: 4 destroyed
P-40N1 Warhawk: 1 destroyed
P-47D2 Thunderbolt: 1 destroyed

Morning Air attack on Christmas Island IO , at 45,104

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 37 NM, estimated altitude 41,740 feet.
Estimated time to target is 10 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 29

Allied aircraft
Hurricane IIc Trop x 15
P-40N1 Warhawk x 14
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 36

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 6 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
Hurricane IIc Trop: 1 destroyed
P-47D2 Thunderbolt: 1 destroyed

Aircraft Attacking:
4 x Ki-44-IIa Tojo sweeping at 36740 feet *

Then a large Helen raid tried to hit the airfields , fortunately we had enough fighters up in the air and on call to
put a lot of the bombers off target .. minimal damage we hope

Morning Air attack on Christmas Island IO , at 45,104

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 76 NM, estimated altitude 19,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M3a Zero x 13
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 60

Allied aircraft
Hurricane IIc Trop x 7
P-40N1 Warhawk x 11
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 33

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M3a Zero: 3 destroyed
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 3 destroyed, 13 damaged
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 2 destroyed by flak

Allied aircraft losses
P-40N1 Warhawk: 1 destroyed
P-47D2 Thunderbolt: 1 damaged

Runway hits 2

Attachment (1)

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 492

RE: OP Stepstone - 4/10/2012 1:35:43 AM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

Cont ..

Much to my surprise , day was just the same as day 1 , Japan attacks Burma/NG/Christmas islands and apart from 12 (now dead) jills
attacking the ships and one failed (and sunk) sub attack .. nothing scratched the ships or caused the Allied attack planes to sortie.

The Burmese a/c losses were pretty bad as the hurricanes had been set to 10k LRCAP to cover the incoming convoys and got diverted
inland where they were bounced badly , pilot losses were 6 in total .. i.e. not much ,, planes are easily replaced.

The landings in Java went very smoothly , only one ship damaged (badly) limping back to CI with small MS escort.

Piccie is what's landed so far .. more to come .. much more ! Shock attack ordered before railed troops arrive.

Attachment (1)

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 493

RE: OP Stepstone - 4/10/2012 6:26:20 AM

LoBaron

Posts: 4776
Joined: 1/26/2003
From: Vienna, Austria
Status: offline

Beautiful work my friend!

D day +2 and more than 70k troops ashore. Mike has to fight for Java. And I guess he will.

On US side not much to report, except that Stepstone is proceeding at a bit slower pace than expected because of
Japanese employment of the new George fighters, but the overall picture does not change by much.

Losses are about 1:1 - 2:1, and my supply paths are clear, the Japanese aren�t:

quote:

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Sep 28, 43
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASW attack near Truk at 108,111

Japanese Ships
CL Noshiro, Torpedo hits 1
BB Haruna
BB Kongo
CA Ashigara
CA Chikuma
DD Kisaragi
DD Hatakaze
DD Mochizuki

Allied Ships
SS Sunfish

Mike moves a lot of hardware around, far away from Java. Hope I can convince him to stay in the area a bit longer.

_____________________________

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 494

RE: OP Stepstone - 4/12/2012 1:32:23 AM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

Mike will most definitely fight for Java .. today had me alternating between terror and mayhem

.

The night time turn was uneventful for the CW (not the US) .. but i was getting very very nervous about Task Forces
being moved due to the prescence of Japanese ships .. come daylight i can see why ! .. This HURT badly , but I am
grateful that more was not lost as the majority of the amphib groups had pulled back one hex to the CV's . Sadly this one
did not ..

What was lost i have no real idea ..

Day Time Surface Combat, near Tjilatjap at 51,102, Range 20,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
BB Fuso, Shell hits 1
BB Yamashiro, Shell hits 1
CA Takao
CA Aoba
DD Makinami
DD Takanami
DD Tamanami
DD Onami
DD Hayanami
DD Kiyonami
DD Maikaze

Allied Ships
DE Austin, Shell hits 18, and is sunk
AM Deloraine, Shell hits 1, and is sunk
AM Firm, Shell hits 1, and is sunk
xAP Benjamin Lundy, Shell hits 15, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
xAP Charles P. Steinmetz, Shell hits 7, and is sunk
xAP Daniel Drake, Shell hits 6, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
xAP Henry J. Raymond, Shell hits 7, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk
xAP John A. Rawlins, Shell hits 2, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk
xAP John C. Calhoun, Shell hits 9, and is sunk
xAP Leslie M. Shaw, Shell hits 5, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk
xAP Morrison R. Waite, Shell hits 4, and is sunk
xAP Peter Donahue, Shell hits 11, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
xAP Peter Silvester, Shell hits 16, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
xAP Athlone Castle, Shell hits 12, and is sunk
xAP Durban Castle, Shell hits 51, and is sunk
xAP Dunnatar Castle, Shell hits 5, Torpedo hits 3, and is sunk
xAP Rajula, Shell hits 20, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
xAP Indora, Shell hits 17, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
xAP Khandalla, Shell hits 12, and is sunk
xAP Poelau Bras, Shell hits 1, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk
xAP Tjisaroea, Shell hits 8, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
xAP Raranga, Shell hits 4, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
AM Bombay, Shell hits 4, and is sunk
AM Punjab, Shell hits 2, and is sunk
AM Bengal, Shell hits 6, and is sunk

Allied ground losses:
25898 casualties reported
Squads: 95 destroyed, 127 disabled
Non Combat: 917 destroyed, 1410 disabled
Engineers: 132 destroyed, 68 disabled
Guns lost 317 (303 destroyed, 14 disabled)
Vehicles lost 334 (309 destroyed, 25 disabled)

We will however get revenge .. But not from the dedicated allied heavy SCTF that was one hex away with reaction orders and
a good commander , as a mater of fact they did squat all the entire 2 days.

more to come

Attachment (1)

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to LoBaron)

Post #: 495

RE: OP Stepstone - 4/12/2012 1:42:42 AM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

Cont ..

New guinea was not quiet either ,, allied sweeps over Manaus hit determined Japanese defenders and its was pretty even
all round. Japan did send in the bombers to Wewak again unescorted and the small spit and hurricanes had a field day.
Then oddly japan launched a ground attack on Lae itself ! and only 3 allied planes intercepted , no idea why it was so
bad but nothing was lost a few helens bagged.

Thats enough about NG .. JAVA again . directly following the horrible SCTF result Japan sortied a huge number of helens
and i was very fearful they were on naval attack as out CAP failed to break through.. fortunately they tried to hit
our ground forces .. PHEW !

Morning Air attack on 15th USN Naval Construction Regiment, at 51,102 (Tjilatjap)

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid detected at 112 NM, estimated altitude 18,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 35 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M3a Zero x 41
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 40
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 167

Allied aircraft
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 12
F6F-3 Hellcat x 131

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M3a Zero: 13 destroyed
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 7 destroyed
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 20 destroyed, 36 damaged
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 1 destroyed by flak

Allied aircraft losses
P-47D2 Thunderbolt: 1 destroyed
F6F-3 Hellcat: 4 destroyed

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

October saw these groups returning BUT in smaller packets that we utterly decimated .. EG

Morning Air attack on 5th Australian/A Division, at 51,102 (Tjilatjap)

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 116 NM, estimated altitude 17,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 36 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M3a Zero x 10
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 4
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 29

Allied aircraft
Sea Hurricane Ib x 6
Martlet IV x 8
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 6
F6F-3 Hellcat x 109

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M3a Zero: 3 destroyed
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 1 destroyed
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 16 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
F6F-3 Hellcat: 1 destroyed

However , back to the time line , ground attack phase arrived and the allied troops already ashore massacred the defenders so we do
now have our toehold in Java ! this was worth the loss of the Transports realistically.

Ground combat at Tjilatjap (51,102)

Allied Shock attack

Attacking force 57758 troops, 1169 guns, 1133 vehicles, Assault Value = 2351

Defending force 5695 troops, 162 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 171

Allied engineers reduce fortifications to 2

Allied adjusted assault: 6586

Japanese adjusted defense: 51

Allied assault odds: 129 to 1 (fort level 2)

Allied forces CAPTURE Tjilatjap !!!

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), forts(+), op mode(-), preparation(-)
Attacker: shock(+)

Japanese ground losses:
1748 casualties reported
Squads: 59 destroyed, 47 disabled
Non Combat: 131 destroyed, 38 disabled
Engineers: 62 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 137 (113 destroyed, 24 disabled)
Units retreated 6
Units destroyed 1

Allied ground losses:
1421 casualties reported
Squads: 9 destroyed, 114 disabled
Non Combat: 4 destroyed, 44 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 52 disabled
Guns lost 51 (2 destroyed, 49 disabled)
Vehicles lost 13 (1 destroyed, 12 disabled)

Defeated Japanese Units Retreating!

We will rest a turn or 2 in Java and I'm tempted to pull back to CI for a few days as possible CV's sighted in the Indian ocean.
Although i suspect its not the KB.

So what happened to the Japanese SCTF ? Its got murdered from the air thankfully , although it took a lot of strikes and we still have
not quite got them all. In addition 3 DD's and 4 ASW ships were sunk in SOerbaja (no jap cap) ..

I'll have to check on torpedo load out for the CV's before deciding to stay or resupply ..

Attachment (1)

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 496

RE: OP Stepstone - 4/12/2012 1:43:18 AM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

CV's ?? very small if they are ..

Attachment (1)

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 497

RE: OP Stepstone - 4/14/2012 5:37:31 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Oct 02, 43
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Decision was reached to withdraw the forces to CI as all the transports were empty (or nearly so)..
Better safe than sorry and we have more Men prepped and ready to load up in CI for Java.

The threat of KB is still a real worry and with that in mind i want as many land based airfields as
we can grab in the shortest possible time. Air Hq is already in Tjiljap to facilitate Torpedo bombers.

Things quietened down a little these past 2 days. However overnight on the 2nd , 2 Jap DD's managed to
bump into 4 Allied CV TF's .. Fortunately only one engagement and that was concluded when the CV
Enterprise landed a 5 inch shell on the Jap DD .. I guess they were out of torpedoes (thankfully).

Night Time Surface Combat, near Tjilatjap at 49,103, Range 4,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
DD Tamanami, Shell hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage
DD Onami

Allied Ships
CV Enterprise
CV Hornet
CVE Chenango
BB Washington
BB Prince of Wales
CA Suffolk
CL Richmond
CL Detroit
DD Hutchins
DD Jenkins
DD Philip
DD Radford
DD Patterson
DD Maury

Japanese Subs also tried to get into the action, while Allied ASW kept all but one attack away we lost an AK returning
from the landing zones and a second AK running supply to Rangoon.

Submarine attack near Christmas Island IO at 48,104

Japanese Ships
SS I-37

Allied Ships
xAK Michael Embiricos, Shell hits 1, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage

xAK Michael Embiricos is sighted by SS I-37
SS I-37 attacking on the surface

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Submarine attack near Rangoon at 51,53

Japanese Ships
SS I-176

Allied Ships
xAK Marpessa, Torpedo hits 3, on fire, heavy damage

xAK Marpessa is sighted by SS I-176
SS I-176 launches 6 torpedoes

The Japanese had a few bombers try to hit Tjiljap today buy hastily flow in P47's kept them away and downed a few
for no loss. I'm guessing Mike forgot to reset the orders (easily missed when multiple airfields have been involved).

Morning Air attack on 4th RAAF Base Force, at 51,102 (Tjilatjap)

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 108 NM, estimated altitude 20,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 34 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 9
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 11

Allied aircraft
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 22

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 3 destroyed
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 2 destroyed

No Allied losses

While Allied heavy bombers hot and closed a nerby fighter airfiled (now empty) .. but all helps.

Morning Air attack on Bandoeng , at 50,100

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 6 minutes

Allied aircraft
Liberator II x 9
Liberator B.III x 9
Liberator GR.III x 9
B-17E Fortress x 8
B-24D Liberator x 6
B-24D1 Liberator x 30

No Allied losses

Airbase hits 20
Airbase supply hits 9
Runway hits 82

Burma isn't forgotten as the RAF Went for an all out fighter sweep over Chang Mai , seems honours about evens.
But im happy to keep the pressure up with the least tired groups.

Morning Air attack on Chiang Mai , at 58,53

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid spotted at 49 NM, estimated altitude 39,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 10 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 42

Allied aircraft
Spitfire Vc Trop x 11

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
Spitfire Vc Trop: 1 destroyed

Morning Air attack on Chiang Mai , at 58,53

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid spotted at 35 NM, estimated altitude 41,600 feet.
Estimated time to target is 8 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 34

Allied aircraft
Hurricane IIc Trop x 80

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
Hurricane IIc Trop: 2 destroyed

Tomorrow we will try and catch the retreating units with armour before pushing onwards in Java (see piccie).

Attachment (1)

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 498

RE: OP Stepstone - 4/15/2012 7:07:03 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Oct 04, 43

Hello again.

Time for me to switch hats (To US one) as the US has been in action over past weeks but Lenny has been
awfully busy IRL and I for one rather he spent his time playing the game. In brief the US now has
air dominance over Rabaul. the Naval bombardments combined with incessant and bloody air sweeps
have finally pushed Japanese Air from the place. It seems most Jap ac have retired to Manus and
Kavieng. This leads up nicely to the planned Aussie invasion of Gasmata in the coming week.

In New guinea the poor paras in Wewak have been blown out of existence but Aitape holds on
with air dropped supply (tiny para unit there) . We will have to find any spare eg inf to try and
fly them in if possible to level 0 airfields .. else its a fast dash with single AP from
Madang. ASW ops have detected and hit (allegedly) some jap subs off the NG coast.

In Java the retreating Japanese had a very very bad day , hit from the air :-

Morning Air attack on 16th Infantry Regiment, at 50,101 , near Tjilatjap

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid spotted at 21 NM, estimated altitude 14,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 7 minutes

Allied aircraft
Liberator II x 6
Liberator B.III x 6
Liberator GR.III x 10
B-17E Fortress x 3
B-24D Liberator x 6
B-24D1 Liberator x 33
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 4

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
61 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 18 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

And then run over by advancing allied troops :-

Ground combat at 50,101 (near Tjilatjap)

Allied Shock attack

Attacking force 7001 troops, 255 guns, 129 vehicles, Assault Value = 770

Defending force 2577 troops, 97 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 32

Allied adjusted assault: 200

Japanese adjusted defense: 28

Allied assault odds: 7 to 1

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), op mode(-)
Attacker: shock(+)

Japanese ground losses:
1259 casualties reported
Squads: 54 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 56 destroyed, 11 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 22 (16 destroyed, 6 disabled)
Units retreated 6

Allied ground losses:
15 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Defeated Japanese Units Retreating!

Assaulting units:
641st Towed Tank Destroyer Battalion
255th Armoured Brigade
7th Indian Division
1st Motor Brigade
5th Australian/A Division
X' Force
24th Indian Mountain Gun Regiment

Defending units:
16th Infantry Regiment
18th Mountain Gun Regiment
10th Ind. Mountain Gun Regiment
20th Ind. Mtn Gun Battalion
5th Field Artillery Regiment
56th Field Artillery Regiment

Day 2

Allied bombers followed the retreating Japanese and hit Bandoeng. Recon had suggested high numbers of
Japanese troops here (18k) and seems at least one division has parked. I doubt he's prepped for this
hex, but then again neither am I. Some armoured units have been ordered to break out East across the island
and try and nab a few/outflank strongly held Japanese bases. I strongly suspect that Japan will rush in troops
in short order. With that in mind Australian 1st and 4th Divisions (refitting in Sydney) have been railed to
Perth so as to be shipped up at a later date. FYI a second African Div is Prepping for Batavia in Mombasa
and Ak;s are heading there for pick-up.

Morning Air attack on 6th Air Division, at 50,100 (Bandoeng)

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 16,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 6 minutes

Allied aircraft
Liberator II x 12
Liberator B.III x 7
Liberator GR.III x 12
B-17E Fortress x 7
B-24D Liberator x 15
B-24D1 Liberator x 29

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
34 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 14 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Japanese subs are now infesting the waters between CI and Java. 3 Allied ASW groups are set to patrol
the area and while I would love some good ASW air groups in CI , its only an AF 5 so i really do not
want to overload it (50planes/size) .. not sure its a house rule , but its a self imposed one
on my part except units set to rest (ignored).

Attachment (1)

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 499

RE: OP Stepstone - 4/19/2012 5:05:46 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Oct 06, 43

Mixed bag of results today. The Subs west of Java are extracting a heavy toll on allied combat ships while also
suffering themselves. CVE Sangamon suffered 50%flotation damage and is being ordered into Tjiljap port asap to unload
its fighter wing to help the defence. While the BB Ramilles (all new and shiny from refit) was badly damaged too
and will head back to CI with escorts for quick repairs before heading back to CT (again!) for lengthy repairs. grr.
Still we bagged the sub responsible and ASW groups reportedly damaged 2 more this turn.

Sub attack near Christmas Island IO at 48,104

Japanese Ships
SS I-164, hits 5

Allied Ships
CVE Sangamon, Torpedo hits 1, heavy damage
CA Astoria
DD Converse
DD Walke
DD O'Brien

Sub attack near Tjilatjap at 49,103

Japanese Ships
SS I-123, hits 23, and is sunk (by gunfire on the surface , so definitely a kill

Allied Ships
BB Ramillies, Torpedo hits 2
BB California
BB Arizona
CA Wichita
DD Abbot
DD Hughes
DD Frazier
DD Bancroft
DD Bailey

Supply ships reached Tjiljap and are unloading rapidly while the reinforcement TF got bogged down
with ASW attacks and is still 60 miles from landing. Large (actually huge) supply and fuel convoys
from CT are approaching cocos and CI in a well timed move (by pure accident) to keep the ammo
dumps and oilers at full capacity. with plenty left over for shuttling to Java in smaller supply
ships.

The new torpedo bombers in java had a baptism of fire today when Japanese Tankers were spotted in
Soerbaja harbour. Swordfish with P47 escorts and Albacores with hurricanes made a great pincer attack
and looks to have wiped out most of the convoy. A follow on attack vs DE's was roughly handled by Japanese
CAP and the P47's got a bit batterd. Time to stand down and sweep next turn. While refitting the damaged
fighter groups. Tjiljap airfield has be expanded to size 6 (from 3) in 4 days ! gotta love American engineers.

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Soerabaja at 56,104

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 38 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 8
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 8
Ki-61-Ia Tony x 24

Allied aircraft
Swordfish I x 18
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 40

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 2 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
P-47D2 Thunderbolt: 2 destroyed

Japanese Ships
TK Noshiro Maru, Torpedo hits 2, on fire, heavy damage
TK Hofuku Maru, Torpedo hits 1
TK Bushu Maru
PB Kakyu Maru, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Soerabaja at 56,104

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 41 NM, estimated altitude 7,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 5
Ki-61-Ia Tony x 8

Allied aircraft
Albacore I x 20
Hurricane IIc Trop x 19

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
Hurricane IIc Trop: 1 destroyed

Japanese Ships
TK Bushu Maru
TK Hofuku Maru, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk
TK Urato Maru
TK Hachijin Maru, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk
TK Seiwa Maru, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Soerabaja at 56,104

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid detected at 78 NM, estimated altitude 10,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 51 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 8
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 7
Ki-61-Ia Tony x 17

Allied aircraft
Swordfish I x 18
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 23

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
P-47D2 Thunderbolt: 4 destroyed

Japanese Ships
DD Fumizuki

Given the weather conditions the torp bombers did superbly , but then again the pilots are the cr�me de la cream of the
Fleet air arm.

Elsewhere in Burma the allies heavily bombed Chang Mai over 2 days with no interferance and managed ok results given the
appalling weather conditions.

EG....

Morning Air attack on Chiang Mai , at 58,53

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 6 minutes

Allied aircraft
B-25D Mitchell x 3
SB-III x 3
Blenheim VD x 12
Hurricane IIb Trop x 11
Hurricane IIc Trop x 9
Vengeance I x 16
Wellington B.X x 3
B-25C Mitchell x 3
B-25G Mitchell x 3
P-40E Warhawk x 15

No Allied losses

Airbase hits 9
Runway hits 28

RAF Hurricanes had been sweeping the base in the AM phase for jap fighters but none were encountered.

America too has been busy and much to my surprise invaded and took Eniwetok in the central pacific. I do wonder
if the CW efforts in Burma and now in Java are having a detrimental effect of jap garrisons in the Pacific. It would
seem so if this place was empty. Well spotted and managed without fleet CV support too.

Rabaul cant seem to repair itself in time to get any decent air cover up anymore, the Naval attacks seem to have
tipped the balance here and the daily Liberator visits just keep bagging a few more planes. Good news as the Aussies
will be invading Gasmata in the very near future (just assembling ships atm).

Morning Air attack on Rabaul , at 106,125

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid detected at 68 NM, estimated altitude 16,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 23 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
B-24D1 Liberator x 18
B-24J Liberator x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-56 Thalia: 2 destroyed on ground
J2M2 Jack: 1 destroyed on ground
L3Y2 Tina: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
B-24D1 Liberator: 5 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
4 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Airbase hits 6
Runway hits 30

For now lets hope the damaged ships can get to safety . Im thinking of sending off 2 CV's to south Java as
some jap ships spotted here last turn. CV victorious will go (as shes due to withdraw soon) along with
one American CV.

Heres hoping for a few freebies ..

Attachment (1)

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 500

RE: OP Stepstone - 4/21/2012 8:47:44 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Oct 08, 43

SW PACIFIC

The CV sweep to south java was uneventful so they retired in good order. I lied about Rabaul as this turn American air got badly hurt
sweeping over the place, also 2 jap BB's identified and attacked by low naval B26 bombers .. the Bombers got devastated over 2 days
and even the B24's were hurt badly .. Looks like Japan's fighting for Rabaul after all. To assist the RAF has LR torp bombers in range
of Rabaul with LR beaufghter escorts.

JAVA

Japans also moved in ground troops to hexes that are forward occupied by an australian brigade. ALL bombers inc the naval air ones
have been assigned to hit this (poss division ??) .. Allies have more men advancing to help but holding here would be a great
advantage. so to Quote star wars " let them see the power of this fully operational battle-station! " .. so barring huge CAP over it
fingers croeed it'll be badly mauled. P47s will sweep in advance (i hope)

Anyhoo air losses for comparison ..

Attachment (1)

< Message edited by Rob Brennan UK -- 4/21/2012 8:51:45 PM >

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 501

RE: OP Stepstone - 4/24/2012 9:28:22 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Oct 10, 43

Two area to concentrate on today , Rabaul and Java. However I would like to say a thank you to PzB
for coming round to visit last Sunday, it was great with beer and curry all round ! Not to mention 2
free books

. And yes i did get some handy tips.

Anyhoo , on with the AAR

Rabaul ..

From a recent communication with USN HQ in the SW Pacific " we have a plan for Rabaul and the 2 BB's there.
Could you place the small Dutch SCTF under US command for a few days ? " OFC the admiralty had no option
to agree with the USCV'c operating for the British near Java. The response from the Dutch commander is
unknown. (don't think anyone asked them ). Admiralty sources now state that the 'plan' is completely unknown
to our staff and the whole thing is the USNs responsibility. Australians agreed to cooperate and placed
LR torp attack a/c in range of Rabaul if called for and P47's in NG sent on a sweep mission to assist.

At midnight on 10th Oct the radios sprang to life with reports of multiple US subs hitting mines in Rabaul harbour.

TF 371 encounters mine field at Rabaul (106,125)

Allied Ships
SS Balao, Mine hits 1, on fire, heavy damage

Allied Ships
SS Gar, Mine hits 1

Allied Ships
SS S-35, Mine hits 1, heavy damage

Allied Ships
SS S-45, Mine hits 1, heavy damage

USN forces then ambushed a small jap naval patrol and gutted it.

Night Time Surface Combat, near Rabaul at 107,126, Range 9,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
PB Chokai Maru, Shell hits 7, and is sunk
PB Hozugawa Maru, Shell hits 7, and is sunk

Allied Ships
CA Houston
CA Pensacola
CL Leander
DD Caldwell
DD Anderson
DD Selfridge
DD Balch
DD Monaghan
DMS Elliot

Improved night sighting under 89% moonlight

Then the USN surprised the main japanese force and utterly botched the attack ,, high moonlight levels
mean they engaged from longer range and that helped the large BB guns immensly. and also hampered
USN escape attempts , Some damage was inflicted but not much.

Night Time Surface Combat, near Rabaul at 106,125, Range 11,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
BB Kongo
BB Haruna
CA Chikuma, Shell hits 1
CA Ashigara, Shell hits 3, on fire
DD Kisaragi, Shell hits 1, on fire
DD Satsuki, Shell hits 1
DD Mochizuki, Shell hits 1
DD Hatakaze, Shell hits 3, on fire

Allied Ships
CA Houston, Shell hits 2
CA Pensacola, Shell hits 4, on fire
CL Leander, Shell hits 3, on fire
DD Caldwell, Shell hits 2, on fire
DD Anderson
DD Selfridge
DD Balch
DD Monaghan, Shell hits 1
DMS Elliot, Shell hits 4, and is sunk

Then Daylight arrived and the small Dutch CL led TF was surprised to see 2 large shapes on the
horizon just 40 miles N of Rabaul. Had the Japanese left Rabaul ? The porr ill informed Dutch
commander did not know and sadly we will never find out as hit flagship was destroyed by
heavy shell fire along with one DD.

Day Time Surface Combat, near Rabaul at 106,124, Range 20,000 Yards

Allied aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft losses
C.XI-W: 1 destroyed

Japanese Ships
BB Kongo
BB Haruna, Shell hits 2
CA Chikuma, Shell hits 1
CA Ashigara, Shell hits 1
DD Kisaragi
DD Satsuki, Shell hits 1
DD Mochizuki
DD Hatakaze

Allied Ships
CL De Ruyter, Shell hits 14, and is sunk
DD Vendetta, Shell hits 8, heavy fires, heavy damage Sank on the return trip
DD Arunta, Shell hits 2, heavy fires
DD Kortenaer, Shell hits 3, and is sunk
DD Piet Hein, Shell hits 1, on fire

Notice that DD Arunta once again survived contact with superior Japanese forces. This small ship
is now a legend in Australian Naval circles and a must have posting for anyone wishing to live
through the war

The combined allied sweeps over Rabaul were successful and did allow both USN and Aussie air to
target 2 small jap DD's just north of Rabaul the following day.

Morning Air attack on Rabaul , at 106,125

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid detected at 33 NM, estimated altitude 46,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 9 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M5 Zero x 48
J2M2 Jack x 13
N1K1-J George x 17
Ki-61-Ia Tony x 3
Ki-61-Ic Tony x 12

Allied aircraft
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 23
F6F-3 Hellcat x 10

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M5 Zero: 6 destroyed
J2M2 Jack: 1 destroyed
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 1 destroyed
Ki-61-Ic Tony: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
P-47D2 Thunderbolt: 2 destroyed
F6F-3 Hellcat: 2 destroyed

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Rabaul at 106,124

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid detected at 40 NM, estimated altitude 3,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Allied aircraft
B-25D1 Mitchell x 6
B-25G Mitchell x 6

No Allied losses

Japanese Ships
DD Hatakaze, Shell hits 2, Bomb hits 1, heavy damage Sunk
DD Mochizuki

JAVA

The expected ground attack from Japan was a division sized unit and allied air did indeed manage to
hurt it badly and allowed the Australian brigade to hold (for now) .. losses were heavy among the
front trenches (fort lvl1) and the aussie unit is about 60% broken. more men are dispatched to help.

here are 2 example air attacks , many more were conducted and no jap fighters opposed us.

Morning Air attack on 4th Division, at 52,101 , near Semarang

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid spotted at 12 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 7 minutes

Allied aircraft
Albacore I x 20
Swordfish I x 18

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
94 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 10 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 15 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Guns lost 4 (1 destroyed, 3 disabled)

Morning Air attack on 4th Division, at 52,101 , near Semarang

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 5 minutes

Allied aircraft
Hurricane IIc Trop x 20
Spitfire Vc Trop x 10
B-17E Fortress x 3
B-17F Fortress x 6
B-24D Liberator x 6
B-24D1 Liberator x 15
B-25D1 Mitchell x 9
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 35

Allied aircraft losses
B-17F Fortress: 1 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
275 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 19 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 18 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled

The ground attack :-

Ground combat at 52,101 (near Semarang)

Japanese Deliberate attack

Attacking force 11401 troops, 113 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 373

Defending force 3841 troops, 54 guns, 43 vehicles, Assault Value = 153

Japanese adjusted assault: 83

Allied adjusted defense: 87

Japanese assault odds: 1 to 2

Combat modifiers
Defender:
Attacker: disruption(-)

Japanese ground losses:
144 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 14 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled

Allied ground losses:
546 casualties reported
Squads: 2 destroyed, 75 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 14 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 7 disabled
Guns lost 9 (1 destroyed, 8 disabled)

Assaulting units:
4th Division

Defending units:
5th Australian/B Division

Ouch ! , but the USCV's had not attacked the day before due to a bad weather front coming in
off the Indian ocean , today they arrived in force :-

Afternoon Air attack on 4th Division, at 52,101 , near Semarang

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid spotted at 18 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 7 minutes

Allied aircraft
Sea Hurricane Ib x 10
Martlet IV x 18
F6F-3 Hellcat x 143
SB2C-1C Helldiver x 69
SBD-3 Dauntless x 58
SBD-5 Dauntless x 36
TBF-1 Avenger x 100

Allied aircraft losses
SB2C-1C Helldiver: 1 damaged
SBD-5 Dauntless: 1 damaged
TBF-1 Avenger: 3 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
771 casualties reported
Squads: 3 destroyed, 43 disabled
Non Combat: 3 destroyed, 26 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 11 disabled
Guns lost 16 (1 destroyed, 15 disabled)

Artillery should arrive tomorrow with 2 more brigades and some light armour en-route.

The second wave has unloaded in Tjiljap and been sent out to designated targets. Also we will trade
shellfire with the heavy jap defenders north of Tjiljap and see what's here. The CV's are to pull back and rearm
in Christmas island.

I hope tomorrow is nice and quiet in Java , although the bombers are still heading into ground attack duty.

TTFN

Attachment (1)

< Message edited by Rob Brennan UK -- 4/24/2012 9:31:39 PM >

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 502

RE: OP Stepstone - 4/25/2012 2:17:21 AM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

Double update today !

The war expanded into new(ish) territory today with alled air attacks on a convoy loading up oil
in Boela. Japanese CAP was heavy but high up so the low level attacks went in even with limited escorts.
Losses are however bad for the allied air crews but the Dutch (b25C) were hit hardest. And with nil
new replacements we have a limited pilot replacement system going on. (Basically trying to train up
every Dutch pilot in multiple skills at Aden) ..

Still 2 TK's is a good haul.

Morning Air attack on TF, near Boela at 80,110

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid detected at 74 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 21 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M3a Zero x 12
A6M5 Zero x 8
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 17

Allied aircraft
Beaufighter VIc x 11
Beaufort VIII x 10
Mitchell II x 4
B-25C Mitchell x 5
P-40N1 Warhawk x 8

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M5 Zero: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
Beaufighter VIc: 1 destroyed
Beaufort VIII: 1 destroyed, 1 damaged
B-25C Mitchell: 1 destroyed, 1 damaged
P-40N1 Warhawk: 1 destroyed

Japanese Ships
TK Tsushima Maru, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
PB Okuyo Maru
SC Ch 25, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
SC Ch 44
SC Ch 15

Morning Air attack on TF, near Boela at 80,110

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid detected at 40 NM, estimated altitude 3,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M3a Zero x 16
A6M5 Zero x 15
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 20

Allied aircraft
B-25C Mitchell x 9
Mitchell II x 6
P-40N1 Warhawk x 9

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M5 Zero: 1 destroyed
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
B-25C Mitchell: 1 destroyed, 2 damaged
Mitchell II: 1 destroyed, 1 damaged
P-40N1 Warhawk: 1 destroyed

Japanese Ships
TK Tsushima Maru
TK Otoriyama Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
SC Ch 15

Aircraft Attacking:
8 x B-25C Mitchell bombing from 1000 feet *
Naval Attack: 1 x 500 lb SAP Bomb
6 x Mitchell II bombing from 1000 feet
Naval Attack: 3 x 500 lb SAP Bomb

Elsewhere the US plan actually makes some sense now as the US CVL fleet hit the
approaches to Truk in an attempt to get the jap BB fleet. I think the BB's escaped
due to bad weather (or good luck if your Japanese) and only a pair of DD's in truk
were engaged while the escort fighters took a pounding but did a great job protecting
the bombers.

Morning Air attack on TF, near Truk at 112,108

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid detected at 59 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 21 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M3a Zero x 21

Allied aircraft
F6F-3 Hellcat x 23
SBD-5 Dauntless x 18

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M3a Zero: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
F6F-3 Hellcat: 5 destroyed

Japanese Ships
DD Mochizuki, Bomb hits 1, on fire, heavy damage

USN ships again bravely hit Rabaul airfields and when the allied air sweeps
went in no fighters were encountered for 2 days .. stood down ? or too much
field damage to fly ? unknown right now.

Night Naval bombardment of Rabaul at 106,125

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Japanese aircraft losses
L3Y2 Tina: 10 damaged
L3Y2 Tina: 2 destroyed on ground
A6M5 Zero: 9 damaged
Ki-56 Thalia: 3 damaged
Ki-56 Thalia: 1 destroyed on ground
N1K1-J George: 12 damaged
N1K1-J George: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied Ships
CA Vincennes
CA Salt Lake City
CA Northampton

Japanese ground losses:
112 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 19 disabled
Engineers: 2 destroyed, 1 disabled
Guns lost 3 (1 destroyed, 2 disabled)
Vehicles lost 2 (2 destroyed, 0 disabled)

Airbase hits 7
Runway hits 41

Over in Burma the allied bombers took advantage of full moonlight to hit the
main Japanese fighter base in Thailand , clear weather greeted the surprised
pilots over the target and while a whole string of small raids proceeded the
parked a/c did take a few hits. as its night I don't trust these reports on
principle , but here is just one of many that flew on both nights.

Night Air attack on Rahaeng , at 58,56

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid detected at 55 NM, estimated altitude 16,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 21 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
Wellington B.X x 6

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-61-Ia Tony: 1 destroyed on ground

No Allied losses

Meanwhile in Java, allied air hit the enemy 4th division hard today with many heavy
and medium bomber strikes , once again no sign on Japanese aircraft.

Morning Air attack on 4th Division, at 52,101 , near Semarang

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid spotted at 12 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 3 minutes

Allied aircraft
Hurricane IIc Trop x 20
Liberator B.III x 8
Liberator GR.III x 12
Spitfire Vc Trop x 10
B-17E Fortress x 3
B-17F Fortress x 12
B-24D1 Liberator x 21
B-25C Mitchell x 25
B-25D1 Mitchell x 9
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 35

Allied aircraft losses
B-17F Fortress: 1 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
706 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 54 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 12 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled

There was one heart stopping moment when a jap sub fired on CV Lexington ,, and missed ! Phew

Sub attack near Tjilatjap at 51,104

Japanese Ships
SS I-34

Allied Ships
CV Lexington
BB North Carolina
CA Astoria
CLAA Reno
DD Walke
DD O'Brien

SS I-34 launches 6 torpedoes at CV Lexington

Also we have a clear idea of what's now defending Bandoeng in Java. I am unsure
whether to just try and hammer it with air and try and push through in a few days
or pull back a div + tanks and just pin him here . I think I'd rather not get bogged down
in a mountain fight for now and pull back. leaving a force to stall him.

In china japan started to shell some front line positions ,, no idea why and the intel
is as valuable for me as it is for him .

Ground combat at Bandoeng (50,100)

Allied Bombardment attack

Attacking force 24773 troops, 573 guns, 497 vehicles, Assault Value = 1078

Defending force 28717 troops, 450 guns, 88 vehicles, Assault Value = 969

Assaulting units:
1st Motor Brigade
XV Corps Engineer Battalion
641st Towed Tank Destroyer Battalion
5th Indian Division
7th Indian Division
5th Australian/A Division
X' Force
III Indian Corps
24th Indian Mountain Gun Regiment

Defending units:
38th Division
16th Infantry Regiment
65th Brigade
Yokosuka 1st SNLF
54th/C Division
3rd Ind. Mountain Gun Regiment
10th Ind. Mountain Gun Regiment
18th Mountain Gun Regiment
20th Ind. Mtn Gun Battalion
5th Field Artillery Regiment
5th Mortar Battalion
3rd Mortar Battalion
56th Field Artillery Regiment
14th Ind.Art.Mortar Battalion

TTFN .. piccie of Boela , in case you'd forgotten where it is:-

Attachment (1)

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 503

RE: OP Stepstone - 4/27/2012 7:14:19 AM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Oct 14, 43

Lots of sub and ASW action on both sides today, The Jap subs around Christmas island get a let of attention
from allied ASW efforts but all that was achieved was the loss of a very good destroyer escort! lucky
subs.

ASW attack near Christmas Island IO at 43,101

Japanese Ships
SS I-178, hits 3

Allied Ships
DD Relentless
DD Redoubt

Sub attack near Christmas Island IO at 43,101

Japanese Ships
SS I-178

Allied Ships
DE Edward C. Daly, Torpedo hits 2, heavy damage
DD Relentless

American subs also scored a few kills , including an escort and an AO (part of a tanker group so not with
KB .. might have been valuable intel otherwise).

ASW attack near Laoag at 82,70

Japanese Ships
E W-17, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
PB Hayakafuku Maru
xAK Achou Maru
xAK Victoria Maru
PC Ashi

Allied Ships
SS Dorado

Sub attack near Taytay at 74,80

Japanese Ships
AO Notoro, Torpedo hits 1, heavy damage
PB Eiko Maru #2
PB Chitose Maru #2
AO Tsurumi
AO Erimo
TK Ryusho Maru
TK Ayayuki Maru
TK Jinei Maru
TK Manju Maru
TK Eiyo Maru
PB Kenan Maru
PB Kasyu Maru
PB Kamitu Maru
PB Hirota Maru

Allied Ships
SS Bonefish

Batavia took a few hits today too from P47 sweeps and follow on dive bomber attacks on AK's in port.
The George is a mighty opponent and im guessing honours are even this turn, but the George has a worse
service rating so will hopefully be less on patrol next turn when I have doubled the P47 sweeps to
100 a/c and the air wings from 7 CV's will hit the airfields (secondary target) if no naval units detected.
There on we might be in a position to keep it shut for a while with heavy bombers from Cocos.

EG day 1 sweeps.

Morning Air attack on Batavia , at 49,98

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid detected at 12 NM, estimated altitude 45,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 3 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 54

Allied aircraft
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 25

Japanese aircraft losses
N1K1-J George: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
P-47D2 Thunderbolt: 4 destroyed

CAP engaged:
253 Ku S-1 with N1K1-J George (0 airborne, 16 on standby, 13 scrambling)
7 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 41010 , scrambling fighters between 37000 and 41010.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 36 minutes
261 Ku S-2 with N1K1-J George (0 airborne, 12 on standby, 0 scrambling)
6 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 41010 , scrambling fighters between 41000 and 41010.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 21 minutes

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Batavia , at 49,98

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid detected at 49 NM, estimated altitude 43,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 14 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 30

Allied aircraft
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 24

Japanese aircraft losses
N1K1-J George: 3 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
P-47D2 Thunderbolt: 1 destroyed

Aircraft Attacking:
2 x P-47D2 Thunderbolt sweeping at 42000 feet

CAP engaged:
253 Ku S-1 with N1K1-J George (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
19 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 2 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 41010 , scrambling fighters between 41000 and 45000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 47 minutes
261 Ku S-2 with N1K1-J George (0 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
9 plane(s) not yet engaged, 0 being recalled, 0 out of immediate contact.
Group patrol altitude is 41010 , scrambling fighters between 39000 and 44000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 30 minutes

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Batavia at 49,98

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid detected at 57 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 27

Allied aircraft
F6F-3 Hellcat x 18
SB2C-1C Helldiver x 36

Japanese aircraft losses
N1K1-J George: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
F6F-3 Hellcat: 5 destroyed
SB2C-1C Helldiver: 4 destroyed

Japanese Ships
xAK Hiteru Maru, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Daisin Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires
xAK Ryoyo Maru, Bomb hits 4, heavy fires, heavy damage
PB Kinsyo Maru #4, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAKL Nissen Maru #2, Bomb hits 1, on fire
xAKL Nanka Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire
xAK Tonegawa Maru
xAK Burma Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires
xAKL Hoki Maru, Bomb hits 2, on fire, heavy damage
xAK Tihuku Maru, Bomb hits 2, on fire, heavy damage
xAK Yae Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires

A few torpedo bombers tried to hit soerbaja too , but with no escort it went badly for them , although
we did sink another TK (loaded with oil) . Is Japan making a last ditch effort to grab everything from Java ?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Soerabaja at 56,104

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid detected at 29 NM, estimated altitude 10,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 13 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M3a Zero x 34
A6M5 Zero x 6
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 13
Ki-61-Ia Tony x 17

Allied aircraft
TBF-1 Avenger x 18

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
TBF-1 Avenger: 9 destroyed, 3 damaged

Japanese Ships
TK Bushu Maru, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
TK Nanrei Maru

Allied bombers keep the heat on the Jap 4th inf division. Next turn we will shock attack with
the newly arrived African Div and several arty and lt armour units. AV looks favourable from
bombardment attacks.

Morning Air attack on 4th Division, at 52,101 , near Semarang

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 14,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 6 minutes

Allied aircraft
Liberator II x 3
Liberator B.III x 11
Liberator GR.III x 12
B-17E Fortress x 3
B-17F Fortress x 12
B-24D Liberator x 15
B-24D1 Liberator x 21

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
517 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 15 disabled
Non Combat: 5 destroyed, 52 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled

RABAUL -- Is now devoid of fighter cover .. interesting .. and I'm loading up a small invasion force
for Gasmata in Lae .. escorts arrive tomorrow , courtesy of the USA as replacements for the lost Dutch
and British units vs the BB's a few days back.

Morning Air attack on Rabaul , at 106,125

Weather in hex: Light rain

Raid detected at 72 NM, estimated altitude 18,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
B-24D1 Liberator x 15
B-24J Liberator x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
L3Y2 Tina: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-56 Thalia: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
B-24D1 Liberator: 1 damaged

No piccie today as i forgot to paste the image before typing this up .. was not ver interesting anyway.

One bit of very very good news is that Japanese forces have withdrawn from Djoerkata . the small inf unit
that's arrived will capture next turn and a lot of engineers and better troops are boarding trains in
Tjiljap to dash in and start building up a secondary airbase .. much needed. Im also going to strip the
south DEI and north Australia of any planes i can fly into java .. its a far far more important
theatre right now and I'm running out of fighter groups to assign. AKV's are heading to broome for the shorter
range units , while most can relocate by air , esp when the new base is on-line.

TTFN

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 504

RE: OP Stepstone - 5/2/2012 2:25:45 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Oct 16, 43

This is a double update for 4 days.

Good start to the day with another AO being sunk to the wst of the Phillipines.

Sub attack near Busuanga at 76,79

Japanese Ships
AO Notoro, Torpedo hits 3, on fire, heavy damage
PB Kenan Maru

Allied Ships
SS Corvina

Lets start with Burma.

Allied medium bombers hit moulmein on the 16th and Chang Mai on the 18th , neither had any fighter cover and deep recons are showing
only a few fighter in Bangkok as the nearest enemy planes. Even Raheng is now empty. Troops have arived at chang mai on the 18th and
next turn we'll start shelling the place with continued allied bomber raids on the defending troops. ( airfields been damaged
for ages with little repair , so no recent fort building). We are also moving to moulmein with the bulk of the army. Given the
river crossing i will have a more technical question next turn for any readers.

EG..:-

Morning Air attack on 80th Garrison Battalion, at 58,53 (Chiang Mai)

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid spotted at 20 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 5 minutes

Allied aircraft
B-25D Mitchell x 11
Hurricane IIc Trop x 10
Hurricane IId Trop x 10
Vengeance I x 2
Wellington B.X x 15
A-20G Havoc x 15
A-36 Mustang x 25
B-25C Mitchell x 3
B-25D1 Mitchell x 15
B-25G Mitchell x 15
P-40E Warhawk x 32

Allied aircraft losses
Wellington B.X: 1 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
233 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 11 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 13 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

The main action has of course been in Java, and some surprising news .. 16/17th Oct saw heavy sweeps from the Thuds and
CV a/c flew as intended after killing off the last of the AK's in Batavia harbour. 18/19 saw the CV's recalled for new a/c
as the losses in hellcats was quite bad c.30. The land bombers were split 50/50 on sirfield attacks and port attacks.
NO Japanese fighters were encountered at all and the last few docked ships were destroyed. while the airfields got a punding
and will hopefully be closed for a few days.

Morning Air attack on Batavia , at 49,98

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid detected at 78 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 21 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
Hurricane IIc Trop x 14
Liberator II x 9
Liberator B.III x 3
B-17E Fortress x 3
B-17F Fortress x 12
B-24D Liberator x 6
B-24D1 Liberator x 21
B-25C Mitchell x 16
B-25D1 Mitchell x 7
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 15

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 1 destroyed on ground
N1K1-J George: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-46-III Dinah: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
Liberator II: 1 damaged

Japanese Ships
xAKL Nissen Maru #2, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Florida Maru, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAKL Nanka Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage

Airbase hits 12
Runway hits 27
Port hits 7
Port fuel hits 4

Afternoon Air attack on Batavia , at 49,98

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid detected at 57 NM, estimated altitude 14,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 21
Ki-44-IIa Tojo x 11

Allied aircraft
F6F-3 Hellcat x 55
SB2C-1C Helldiver x 36
TBF-1 Avenger x 18

Japanese aircraft losses
N1K1-J George: 2 destroyed, 2 damaged
N1K1-J George: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-44-IIa Tojo: 1 destroyed
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 3 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
F6F-3 Hellcat: 5 destroyed
SB2C-1C Helldiver: 3 destroyed, 5 damaged
TBF-1 Avenger: 1 destroyed

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

Airbase hits 21
Runway hits 38

Japan has also moved out ! of the mountain city that looked to be such a thorn in allied plans.. I suspect thats because of the flank march by armoured columns
up the east coast of Java. Allies have stopped this march and ordered them back as to meet that large army would be suicide. But that's job done and another
base will be ours next turn. (hopefully with forts intact)... WE are also perusing the 4th div south on the East coast and railed in large engineer
contingents to Djakarta which is now a forward recon/search base.

There has been a problem getting replacement a/c for the CV's so we have disbanded them in CI .. im not overly happy about this as it does leave them
vulnerable . BUT 70% of the thuds have been sent back to provide air cover along with the air contingents from the CV Victorious , which is overdue
for withdrawal and planners have decided she needs to get home asap. So heading to Perth at flank speed with DD escorts. The sir groups will remain
in theatre.

One odd occurrence around N Australia .. jap CA group ?? maybe was detected near boela and sailed past a few of my bases at night causing the CS groups
to dash away to safety. Come daylight however the air force was semi ready and while weather in bases closest forced a no fly day. 12 beuforts flew
from Darwin and hopefully hurt a CA .. its a perma restricted unit that just finished training up new torp bomber pilots. they did well.

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Molu at 80,116

Weather in hex: Light rain

Raid detected at 68 NM, estimated altitude 7,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 23 minutes

Allied aircraft
Beaufort VIII x 10

Allied aircraft losses
Beaufort VIII: 2 damaged
Beaufort VIII: 1 destroyed by flak

Japanese Ships
CA Chokai, Torpedo hits 1
CA Atago

Aircraft Attacking:
9 x Beaufort VIII launching torpedoes at 200 feet
Naval Attack: 1 x 22in Mk 13 Torpedo

NOTE :- .. with the CV's in dock ,, all land based bombers are on naval search this turn as im beginning
to get very nervous about Japanese naval involvement in the area. Is he trying to slip through around Timor ?
or even up the straights from Singapore ? .. the malacca straight is reasonably well cover by search a/c
but the southern route is much more open with holes in the search patterns (lack of decent search a/c).

Anyway ,, if im disbanded in port its unlikely he will have port attack as a mission even if he appears
from nowhere this turn.. I hope !

EDIT - on a technical note I'm using PP's to covert bases to ABDA command. this is the only way I can use
the restricted dutch air units back in Java. Sadly the Dutch get nil fighters forever so the fighter groups
saved are a waste of space , however the bombers can use old US B25's so are very handy search/asw units
with some superb pilots. The search a/c are limited too and groups tiny (3) ,, they clog up airbases
and arent much use , BUT with the new base in Java (Djakarta) we can use them there as its coastal (just).

TTFN

Attachment (1)

< Message edited by Rob Brennan UK -- 5/2/2012 2:38:54 PM >

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 505

RE: OP Stepstone - 5/4/2012 10:21:01 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Oct 20, 43

The Japanese CA force in the south DEI bombarded Dobo after sinking the small AK on CS supply runs. No
great loss and the effect was minimal despite the combat report :-

Night Naval bombardment of Dobo at 83,116 - Coastal Guns Fire Back!

Allied aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft losses
B-25C Mitchell: 24 damaged
B-25C Mitchell: 1 destroyed on ground
Mitchell II: 31 damaged
Spitfire Vc Trop: 13 damaged
Spitfire Vc Trop: 1 destroyed on ground
Beaufighter VIf: 15 damaged
Catalina I: 6 damaged

22 Coastal gun shots fired in defense.

Japanese Ships
CA Chokai
CA Atago
CL Tatsuta
CL Kiso
CL Jintsu
CL Naka
CL Sendai
DD Tokitsukaze
DD Shiranui
DD Yukikaze
DD Natsushio

Allied ground losses:
293 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 67 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 13 disabled
Guns lost 9 (1 destroyed, 8 disabled)
Vehicles lost 16 (2 destroyed, 14 disabled)

Airbase hits 27
Airbase supply hits 3
Runway hits 57

In actual fact 2 spits , 1 Mitchell C were destroyed, and by morning the AF was repaired and ops continued
as per normal. There were a few pilot spaces that needed filling , but not sure if they died due to the
attack or just op losses and wounded in action.

The invasion of GAsmata occurred and Japan did intervene with a few sporadic air raids from judys/Betties/Helens
and Lilys , none were escorted and the LRCAP of P47 and beaufighter scored numerous kills. The only
casualties were the hits on the CL Honolulus radar which was blown off and a 60kg bomb hit the AP Fiona.

The invading a/c battalion (armoured car) wass as a test of invading with vehicles off AP's , it worked fine and al
unloaded in 2 days with sufficient supply. The base is ours without a fight and the Aussies have
base forces and a decent inf regiment waiting to head over.

Morning Air attack on TF, near Gasmata at 103,127

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid detected at 33 NM, estimated altitude 17,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 9 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-48-IIb Lily x 18
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 18

Allied aircraft
Beaufighter Ic x 2
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-48-IIb Lily: 2 destroyed, 2 damaged
Ki-48-IIb Lily: 1 destroyed by flak

No Allied losses

Allied Ships
xAP Kaiping
xAP Fiona
CL Honolulu, Bomb hits 3
DD Lardner

Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Gasmata at 103,127

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid detected at 38 NM, estimated altitude 17,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 14 minutes

Japanese aircraft
D4Y1 Judy x 2
G3M3 Nell x 3

Allied aircraft
Beaufighter Ic x 4
P-47D2 Thunderbolt x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
D4Y1 Judy: 1 destroyed
G3M3 Nell: 1 destroyed

No Allied losses

Allied Ships
xAP Fiona, Bomb hits 1

Burma

Chang Mai fell to the 1st assault from the Indian troops and we took the place with little loss of life.
Allied bomber attacks surely contributed to this win as the mas 2E bomber units were flown with large
escort and made a big impact on readiness and disruption.

Ground combat at Chiang Mai (58,53)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 10735 troops, 146 guns, 166 vehicles, Assault Value = 486

Defending force 3358 troops, 39 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 148

Allied engineers reduce fortifications to 2

Allied adjusted assault: 461

Japanese adjusted defense: 115

Allied assault odds: 4 to 1 (fort level 2)

Allied forces CAPTURE Chiang Mai !!!

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

Japanese ground losses:
1292 casualties reported
Squads: 52 destroyed, 29 disabled
Non Combat: 40 destroyed, 8 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 8 (3 destroyed, 5 disabled)
Units retreated 4

Allied ground losses:
178 casualties reported
Squads: 4 destroyed, 30 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 7 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 8 disabled
Guns lost 3 (1 destroyed, 2 disabled)

Defeated Japanese Units Retreating!

Assaulting units:
3rd Carabiniers Regiment
17th Indian Division
IV Indian Corps

Defending units:
Yokosuka 3rd SNLF
2nd INA Gandhi Regiment
1st INA Subhas Regiment
80th Garrison Battalion

Java

The town of Bandoeng fell to the allied forces today as Japan had abandoned the place. It had/has level 6 forts !!! I am damn
glad we did not assault this place earlier and gut instinct was correct on this occasion. WE will garrison with a weakened div and bit
of arty. rest of the troops have left for pastures new in Java as the south seems to be less well defended. The large search effort
will be scaled down a bit as nothing has been found and the CV's will be out of port next turn too.

TTFN

Attachment (1)

< Message edited by Rob Brennan UK -- 5/4/2012 10:22:31 PM >

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 506

RE: OP Stepstone - 5/8/2012 5:19:41 PM

Rob Brennan UK

Posts: 3685
Joined: 8/24/2002
From: London UK
Status: offline

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Oct 22, 43

Hello again reader(s).

Both the CW and the US had bombardments in mind fof this turn ,, CW on Moumein from Rangoon , should be a very safe and repeatable
attack that will go in daily so long as supply remains steady. The US hit one of the few operational jap airbases in the SW
Pacific.

Night Naval bombardment of Moulmein at 55,55

Allied Ships
CA Frobisher
CA Hawkins
CA Sussex
CA Shropshire
CL Kenya
CL Emerald
DD Rotherham
DD Racehorse
DD Tenedos
DD Witte de With
DD Van Nes
DD Tjerk Hiddes
DD Van Galen
DD Isaac Sweers

Japanese ground losses:
86 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 12 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Vehicles lost 5 (1 destroyed, 4 disabled)

Airbase hits 14
Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 23
Port hits 1
Port supply hits 1

Night Naval bombardment of Kavieng at 106,122

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Japanese aircraft losses
E13A1 Jake: 12 damaged
E13A1 Jake: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 9 damaged
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-61-Ic Tony: 9 damaged
Ki-61-Ic Tony: 1 destroyed on ground
G3M3 Nell: 22 damaged
G3M3 Nell: 1 destroyed on ground
A6M5 Zero: 37 damaged
Ki-48-IIb Lily: 23 damaged

Allied Ships
CA Salt Lake City
CA Northampton
DD Aylwin
DD Balch
DD Porter
DD Buchanan
DD Claxton
DD Bush
DMS Hamilton

Japanese ground losses:
159 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 5 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 42 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 9 disabled

Airbase hits 30
Airbase supply hits 2
Runway hits 48
Port hits 7
Port supply hits 2

This is a useful tactic as it prevents forts building due to runway and port damage getting auto priority. Rabaul also seems
devoid of fighters these days and we now have gasmata as a small operational airfields in very close range to Rabaul. The
Australians have offered the base services to the USA to help the long range fatigue build up from planes based in shortlands
or even further away. The Aussie airforce in the area is more a self defence set-up as most has been sent elsewhere for the
foreseeable future.. ie N Australia and some to Java.

Allied bombers continue to harass the retreating Japanese from Chang Mai with great success and still no sign of jap fighters
in any quantity to worry about (for now) ..

Morning Air attack on 2nd INA Gandhi Regiment, at 59,54 , near Chiang Mai

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid spotted at 10 NM, estimated altitude 14,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 2 minutes

Allied aircraft
B-25D Mitchell x 12
Blenheim VD x 3
Hurricane IIc Trop x 13
Vengeance I x 2
Wellington B.X x 15
A-20G Havoc x 15
B-25D1 Mitchell x 33
B-25G Mitchell x 3
P-40E Warhawk x 15

Allied aircraft losses
Wellington B.X: 1 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
61 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 8 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

In Java the Japanese 4th division trying to defend an east coast town was hammered from the air then
obliterated in a great assault from the east African division (with friends)

Morning Air attack on 4th Division, at 53,102 (Semarang)

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid spotted at 42 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Allied aircraft
Liberator B.III x 12
B-17E Fortress x 6
B-17F Fortress x 6
B-24D1 Liberator x 6
B-25D1 Mitchell x 7

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
253 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 13 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 8 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

Ground combat at Semarang (53,102)

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 20309 troops, 388 guns, 389 vehicles, Assault Value = 923

Defending force 7577 troops, 112 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 142

Allied adjusted assault: 624

Japanese adjusted defense: 1

Allied assault odds: 624 to 1 (fort level 1)

Allied forces CAPTURE Semarang !!!

Combat modifiers
Defender: op mode(-), leaders(+), disruption(-), preparation(-)
morale(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
6201 casualties reported
Squads: 179 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 141 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 40 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 96 (96 destroyed, 0 disabled)
Units retreated 1

Allied ground losses:
16 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

Defeated Japanese Units Retreating!

Assaulting units:
632nd Tank Destroyer Battalion
4th Armoured Brigade
11th (East African) Division
14th Canadian Brigade
100th Indian Brigade
5th Australian/B Division
134th Field Artillery Battalion
22nd Indian Mountain Gun Regiment

Defending units:
4th Division

That Japanese division is now a complete wreck and we will pursue it south. As a point of interest the Japanese
surface force that wiped out my AP convoy with huge loss of life and vehicles have left the 11th East African
div on 50% TOE , however the sharp end (i.e combat squads and guns) are all ok , it was the support and mot
support that got hammered. Will a lack of support matter much if HQ's can make the required number up ?
I'm guessing not as it seems its the total in hex rather than for each unit. One other div is down to 45%
TOE in the same situation , its the 4th Indian and for now it'll be on garrison duty in the new level 6
Fort and on rest orders to try and regain some lost support squads.

3 mor divisions are heading to cocos right now , 2 Australian (1st and 4th) and the next East African one.
There will be needed for any push north , for the near future we will continue to try and head south to
Soerbaja. Recon is not showing up much in the way of heavy troop numbers so I really do not want a huge jap
convoy arriving .. However given the lack of KB recently I suspect its covering a huge troop convoy from
the jap home islands.. So next turn the Thuds will hit soerbaja and try to clear the skies .. Not guaranteed
by any means but Mike (our opponent) does not seem to enjoy massed air attacks and even if i take large losses
he will likely withdraw. With no LBA the ailed CV's will lurk to the west Javanese coast in the hope of catching any
troops ships in Soerbaja .. 40 odd torpedo bombers are land based in Java now too as an additional threat.

Question Time

Look at the piccie below pls .. IF i say split my troops so 50% head down the arrow to the east of Moulmein and
then move in ,, will the rest have to shock attack if i move over the river ? I'd really like to know as I suspect
this is a line in the sand base for Japan and will be very well defended .. anyone know for sure ?

Thanks in advance is i get any replies ..

PS .. the other arrow is the advance down from CHang Mai .. Note we have transport planes in Mandalay just waiting
for the runways to get cleared in Chang Mai before flying in base forces and AV support. The supply situation there
might be nasty given the lack of good overland supply routes so no more troops planned to go that way. but we will
push down towards Raheng.

Attachment (1)

< Message edited by Rob Brennan UK -- 5/8/2012 5:22:38 PM >

_____________________________

sorry for the spelling . English is my main language , I just can't type . and i'm too lazy to edit :)

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 507

RE: OP Stepstone - 5/8/2012 5:48:17 PM

KenchiSulla

Posts: 2948
Joined: 10/22/2008
From: the Netherlands
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: Rob Brennan UK

Look at the piccie below pls .. IF i say split my troops so 50% head down the arrow to the east of Moulmein and
then move in ,, will the rest have to shock attack if i move over the river ? I'd really like to know as I suspect
this is a line in the sand base for Japan and will be very well defended .. anyone know for sure ?

Thanks in advance is i get any replies ..

[/color]

Try to recon the hex you are moving into. I believe it depends the amount of AV (enemy and friendly) already in the target hex so there is no way of answering your question with the information provided.

_____________________________

AKA Cannonfodder

"It happened, therefore it can happen again: this is the core of what we have to say. It can happen, and it can happen everywhere.�
� Primo Levi, writer, holocaust survivor

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 508

RE: The Solomons Situation - 5/8/2012 5:59:51 PM

KenchiSulla

Posts: 2948
Joined: 10/22/2008
From: the Netherlands
Status: offline

Apparantly it depends on the amount of AV that has crossed the hexside previously (minimum 1/3 AV of defending forces). If you want to prevent shock attack you should cross the river next to occupied hex and move in from the flank. When hex is cleared move remaining forces over the river...

This is why I like to split divisions in Burma (playing as the Japanese). I hold a long thin front with all flanks secured. Then I use reserve divisions to reinforce if a hex is under attack or about to come under attack... 1/3 of a division can hold of a superior force in the jungle for at least a week when dug in.

Attachment (1)

< Message edited by Cannonfodder -- 5/8/2012 6:03:25 PM >

_____________________________

AKA Cannonfodder

"It happened, therefore it can happen again: this is the core of what we have to say. It can happen, and it can happen everywhere.�
� Primo Levi, writer, holocaust survivor

(in reply to LoBaron)

Post #: 509

RE: OP Stepstone - 5/8/2012 6:04:23 PM

Alfred

Posts: 6685
Joined: 9/28/2006
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: Rob Brennan UK

Question Time

Look at the piccie below pls .. IF i say split my troops so 50% head down the arrow to the east of Moulmein and
then move in ,, will the rest have to shock attack if i move over the river ? I'd really like to know as I suspect
this is a line in the sand base for Japan and will be very well defended .. anyone know for sure ?

Thanks in advance is i get any replies ..

Read page 16 of this thread.

http://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=2859420&mpage=16&key=river%2Ccrossing�

Alfred

(in reply to Rob Brennan UK)

Post #: 510

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RE: The Solomons Situation