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Energisteron -> RE: Coral Sea (Scenario 3) Human Allies v Hard AI (10/24/2017 8:35:44 AM)
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Day 6 - May 09
The Outcome.
No need for a diagram today, since it turns out to be fairly quiet!
Unloading continues throughout the night at Port Moresby, and the defenders are still lobbing a handful of shells in our direction, but they really make them count! Approaching the beach for the first time, xAK Tatumiya Maru is hit twice (from 5 shots!) and set on fire but she remains operational for now. At dawn 16x Nells from Rabaul make a harassing air raid on the defenders with indeterminate results.
In daylight, unloading continues unabated, as does the fire from the shore. In an action bordering on folly, the already badly damaged, and several times extinguished xAK Kansai Maru is hit once more, and this time the damage is terminal. She immediately ignites again and sinks rapidly. She still held 2k tons of supplies in her holds!
During the afternoon, xAK Kasuga Maru is also hit once, and promptly bursts into flames. If the fires can be brought under control other damage isn't critical. Again she holds nearly 2k tons of supplies. In a retaliatory air strike, entirely at his own initiative, the Commander of CVL Shoho launches an attack against the port which has little effect. The defenders continue to fire 5-10 shells at each Freighter as she closes on the beach.
As per the emergency plan the Carrier TF was split into four TF; two TF with a single badly damaged Carrier head for Rabaul, one TF with a damaged Cruiser heads for Truk, and one operational Surface Combat TF of a single Cruiser which heads for Lae. The enemy seemingly do nothing to intervene, perhaps supposing the Carriers were beyond saving in any case, which proves partially correct, since as dusk approaches CV Zuikaku loses its battle with the inrushing sea and sinks. Hopefully the valiant damage control parties were rescued by the attendant Destroyers.
The status of CV Shokaku improves a little. The flooding is brought under control and all fires are extinguished. This comes at the expense of deterioration to her engines however, and her maximum speed is now just 22 knots. She is 120 miles from Rabaul in Sub infested waters! CA Myoko makes it through the Solomon Chain to the open sea to the east, and CA Haguro makes it to Lae. The 4xCA (unescorted) get through the straights NE of Lae without incident on their circuitous route to Rabaul (to avoid the enemy Sub cordon south of Rabaul). They badly need replenishment after expending over 80% of their main armament ammunition on bombarding Port Moresby.
Our gathering of Subs around the enemy Carriers is detected and one is attacked by a float plane but no damage results. Did this pack of Subs actually deter the enemy from pursuing our damaged Carriers?
So, the best we can hope for now is a Pyrrhic Victory; capture Port Moresby at the cost of two Carriers!
What is the enemy plan? It would appear to be to preserve their Carriers and not risk land-based (Bettys at Rabaul) air attack in order to punish our surviving Transports as they head home past Milne Bay. Well, maybe we won't go home! If we can capture Port Moresby airfield, and make it operational (we've not bombed it since their aircraft stopped flying from it), then we can fly in land-based bombers and fighters which would make it an intimidating target to take on, and we'd have a range advantage.
So, maybe it's still to be decided. Certainly at the moment the score looks very unhealthy (Allies 1428 : Japan 171).
By the way, while these dramatic events unfolded we slipped a platoon into the Russell Islands 80 miles NW of Tulagi. They're ours. All OURS!
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