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Cuttlefish -> RE: Small Ship, Big War (7/24/2007 2:40:10 AM)
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February 2, 1943
Location: 100 miles north of Koepang
Course: Holding position
Attached to: TF 72
Mission: Air Combat
System Damage: 2
Float Damage: 0
Fires: 0
Fuel: 224
Orders: Protect reinforcement convoys approaching Timor.
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Captain Ishii awakens early and goes immediately to the bridge. He has a feeling in his bones about this day and is filled with restless energy. He takes his breakfast on the bridge, and does not chide Lieutenant Miharu when his executive officer does not head below after transferring command back to the captain. There will be time for sleeping later.
The captain looks out at the sea. The weather has moderated to some extent, though clouds still cover most of the sky. The glass is steady. Captain Ishii notes that the eastern horizon is free of clouds and that the rising sun is casting a long track of light across the waves towards the Japanese ships. He hopes it is a good omen.
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Japanese submarine I-122 has spent the night laying mines off Broome on the Australian coast. As the sun rises the submarine, mission accomplished, is already some 70 miles out to sea and heading back towards Singapore. The commander orders the submarine to periscope depth for a look around and is startled to see a large transport convoy heading northwest. It is heavily escorted. With few torpedoes aboard he makes the intelligent decision not to attack, but instead radios in a report of what he has just seen.
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The Japanese airfield at Koepang is battered but operable. As the sun comes up some 60 Zero-sen fighters, flown in from Kendari late yesterday afternoon, begin to warm up their engines. The pilots eat a quick breakfast, aware that they will not have much warning before the expected enemy bombers arrive.
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Captain Ishii almost jumps when the excited voice comes through the speaking tube from the radio room, but suppresses the urge to manages to look calm and collected in front the rest of the bridge crew.
“Captain, sir!” says the voice. “I’m getting a report from a D3A from Kaga. He is broadcasting that there are many enemy ships, including battleships and aircraft carriers, 225 miles southeast of Koepang. He says they are already launching planes, sir!”
“Thank you, radioman,” says Ishii. “Please continue to keep me informed. Ensign Handa, tell the lookouts to keep an eye on Shokaku. I expect Admiral Ozawa will be communicating orders to us shortly.”
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Admiral Ozawa and his staff are bending over a map in Shokaku’s chartroom. The sighting puts the enemy carriers some 300 miles from the Japanese ships. That is barely within range of his aircraft, though the torpedo bombers will not be able to carry torpedoes that far. He orders the carriers under his command to switch their B5N torpedo bombers from torpedo to bomb loads and to prepare to launch planes.
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Half an hour later comes the order that Captain Ishii has been waiting for. All carriers and their escorts are to come about on a southwesterly course and launch planes. Hibiki joins the other Japanese ships in changing course. Nine Japanese carriers in three task forces scattered across 40 miles of ocean begin to launch their planes.
Captain Ishii orders the Hibiki to combat stations. If he has figured it correctly enemy planes should begin arriving in about another half an hour.
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As the morning advances the transports at Koepang continue to unload. They have been at it for almost 36 hours now, and despite the inadequate facilities the work has gone swiftly, largely because the ship’s crews are gripped by a sense of urgency. Already almost all the troops are ashore, though a lot of their supplies and gear remain aboard.
Suddenly a siren begins to wail from the harbormaster’s office. An officer runs down to the dock, yelling and gesticulating at the ships. His message spreads quickly – all ships are to cast off at once, enemy air attack is imminent.
The lumbering transports frantically begin to obey. Already light cruiser Kuma and four destroyers are racing for the harbor entrance. The channel beyond is narrow, but provides much more room to maneuver than the harbor.
Kuma has not quite cleared the harbor mouth when a steadily growing drone can be heard to the southwest. Breaking through the clouds in neat echelons are over 200 American carrier planes. A few anti aircraft guns open fire, though the enemy is still well out of range.
A cheer rises from the harbor as some 45 Japanese fighters from the nearby airbase suddenly appear and tear into the American formation. The enemy F4F fighters are taken off guard, and some of them are quickly shot down. The rest recover, however, and fight back. The Japanese pilots are good but are heavily outnumbered, and they soon find themselves fighting for their lives. The Wildcats force the Japanese planes away from the bombers, who begin their attack runs on the ships in the harbor.
Kuma comes under attack first. The cruiser twists and turns, surrounded by geysers of water from near misses. Then the first of several bombs strikes her, followed quickly by the next. As the light cruiser slows she takes two torpedo hits on the starboard side, one near the bow and one amidships. The burning ship comes to a stop and begins to sink.
The nimble destroyers escape unscathed, but the transports in the harbor are easy marks. Dive bombers score one or more hits on half a dozen of them, and soon columns of thick smoke from the stricken ships rises high in the air over Koepang.
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The radio reports from Koepang reach the Japanese carrier task forces shortly after the last air groups have formed up and departed in the direction of the American carriers. On Hibiki’s bridge even Captain Ishii stares in astonishment at what he has just heard from the radio room.
“Enemy carrier planes attacking Koepang?” he says. “That doesn’t make any sense at all!”
“Unless the enemy has no idea we are here,” says Lieutenant Miharu. Captain Ishii considers this.
“They should at least be picking up our radio signals by now, though,” he says. “It must be that they learned too late, or could not change the target of their strike for some reason.” Ishii is a destroyer man and not versed in air combat. It does not occur to him that the Japanese carriers are currently out of range of the American carrier planes.
“Or they may have launched more than one strike,” muses the lieutenant.
“Cocky bastards, if so,” snorts Ishii, “to attack the transports before dealing with us.”
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The main force of the Japanese strike, launched from the six carriers that carried out the attack on Pearl Harbor and fought the Battle of the Phoenix Islands, finds a task force of two American carriers. There are a lot of Wildcats over the enemy task force, but even more Japanese fighters. As fierce air battles rage the Japanese bombers bore in on their targets.
Aboard Hibiki they listen to the radio signals from the Japanese planes, and are elated with what they hear. Two enemy carriers receive multiple bomb hits, and both are left burning.
The next news is not as good. The B5N and D3A bombers from Hiyo, Junyo, and Ryujo have gotten separated from their fighter escort in the overcast and find themselves facing some very angry and motivated American fighter pilots. They press their attack bravely, though, and even though over 20 are shot down they score more hits on the burning carriers. Some 43 Zero-sen fighters arrive about 15 minutes later shepherding three stray bombers they have found, and the fighters take some measure of revenge against the Wildcats.
The Japanese planes return to their carriers, where they refuel and rearm. The next strike is smaller but still powerful, and finds a third American carrier. This carrier too receives multiple hits, and is also left burning.
The planes scouting for more targets report that there are still enemy fighters in the air. This argues that there are more enemy carriers in the area, but if so they cannot be located.
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Admiral Ozawa looks out at the planes returning to Shokaku. He is aware that one enemy carrier, the Wasp, has already sunk, and that Saratoga and Enterprise are now drifting, burned out hulks. The Japanese carriers have lost around 100 planes, but the ships themselves have not even been attacked. It is as complete a victory as one could wish for.
The American fleet is now retreating towards Australia, and Ozawa faces a difficult decision: pursue the fleeing enemy or hold his position. As the afternoon wanes he orders a strong fighter patrol placed over the carriers and calls his staff together for consultation.
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The last strike has returned to the carriers. News of the victory has spread through Hibiki like wildfire, and most of the crew has come out on deck to watch the returning planes.
From the mast of Shokaku a single pennant is raised. As it streams out in the wind every man in the fleet can read it: “Victory”.
From the destroyer ahead a shout rolls out across the water, so loud it can be heard aboard Hibiki. Not to be outdone Hibiki’s crew takes up the shout. From every throat the crew roars back, and the sound carries to the next ship in line.
Aboard Shokaku Admiral Ozawa looks up and cocks his head as if listening, then steps out onto one of the platforms off the bridge. From all around he can hear the men of the task force shouting, and the sound of it seems loud enough to him to carry across the Savu Sea all the way to Timor. He is not ashamed of the tears that suddenly sting his eyes as he listens to them.
“Banzai!”
“Banzai!”
“BANZAI!”
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