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Cuttlefish -> RE: Small Ship, Big War (9/24/2007 7:09:00 AM)
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April 4, 1943
Location: Rabaul
Course: Docked
Attached to: TF 8
Mission: Bombardment
System Damage: 2
Float Damage: 0
Fires: 0
Fuel: 403
Orders: Attack enemy positions in and around Gili Gili
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The two destroyers reach Rabaul late the following day after an uneventful voyage. Hibiki steams into Rabaul’s spacious harbor and drops anchor. The mouth of the harbor is flanked by a pair of volcanic mountains, and the beyond the airfield and town climb terraces of forested hills.
It’s a charming tropical scene, but a more volatile one than first appears. The nearby volcanoes are active, and an eruption in 1937 did heavy damage to the town, then under Australian rule. The harbor itself is an old volcanic caldera; now partially collapsed and filled by the sea, it makes an ideal anchorage.
The 1937 eruption caused the Australians to scale back the base they had planned to build here. Though the Australians were worried about the volcanoes, the Japanese have so far shown no such qualms. Rabaul is one of the largest and best defended bases in the Pacific. Hibiki anchors alongside a force that includes four battleships, eight cruisers, a dozen destroyers, and several auxiliary vessels. The large airfields hold over 250 aircraft, most of them A6M3 and Ki-44 fighters and G4M bombers.
A full division of infantry is bivouacked in the town, and there are thousands of supporting troops as well. The hills overlooking the harbor are filled with pillboxes and other fortifications holding artillery and anti-aircraft guns, all connected by trenches and tunnels. This is a charming tropical paradise ringed with concrete and steel.
Captain Ishii turns the ship over to Lieutenant Miharu and orders the ship’s boat lowered. Ensign Handa pilots him over to battleship Hiei, the flagship of Task Force 8. He receives permission to come aboard and goes to report to his new commander, Captain Masao Nishida.
Ishii has never met Nishida, though he knows him by reputation. Nishida is a former member of both the General Staff and the Navy Department. He served for a time as the Japanese naval attaché to Engand, and was a member of the Japanese delegation to the London Naval Treaty. He is said to be intelligent and demanding, not one to suffer fools gladly.
He seems to be in a genial enough mood when Captain Ishii enters his cabin. He inquires after Ishii’s tastes and pours the captain a small glass of premium rum.
“I became fond of the stuff during my stay in England,” Nishida explains as Ishii samples the drink. “Careful, it has much more of a kick than sake does.” Ishii finds that this is so and drinks slowly as Nishida fills him in on the situation.
“I’ll be honest with you, Captain Ishii,” Nishida says. “You are here because the attrition on destroyers here has been heavy. About two weeks ago the enemy ran a cruiser force in right under our noses and blasted the hell out of Lae. Our planes put torpedoes into two of the bastards on their way out, but they escaped anyway.
“Needless to say, that event was not received well at Imperial Headquarters. We sent in a heavy force to bombard Gili Gili and knock their airfield out of action. It’s those new fighter planes they have there that have kept our forces out of the air over their base and allowed their ships to sneak up on us.” He smiles grimly. “Our fighter pilots call the new fighters ‘Whistling Death’. Poetic, isn’t it?
“Anyway, we ran into a mess of torpedo boats. We lost two destroyers and the bombardment was disrupted. So we’re going to try it again, this time with a covering force to deal with the torpedo boats and anything else we run into. Our force, the battleship force, is going to try and knock out the airfield long enough for our bombers to come in and finish the job.”
“Very good, sir,” says Captain Ishii. “Hibiki will be ready to do her part.” Nishida pours himself a little more rum.
“I am sure you will, Captain,” says Nishida. “I have heard good things about you, Ishii. That you are a fighter and not afraid to speak your mind. If you ever have anything you want to say to me, go ahead and say it.”
“Yes sir,” says Ishii. Captain Nishida raises his glass.
“Welcome to Rabaul,” he says. He and Captain Ishii drink. Ishii has a feeling he and Captain Nishida are going to get along just fine.
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A note for those who followed the efforts to save CV Hiryu: though Captain Ishii is unaware of it, back at Tjilitjap Hiryu’s flooding is finally eliminated. The carrier sails for Singapore with the destroyers left behind to escort her. It will arrive safely several days later, and repairs will commence in earnest.
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