Thayne
Posts: 748
Joined: 6/14/2004 Status: offline
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Friday, January 9, 1942 Henry: With the Japanese carriers heading west from Canton Island, I was able to get a good night’s sleep for one. Losses I know that I have not needed this section for a while, but things have changed. • 8x P-40C Tomahawk (Flying Tiger) at Kweilin, China • 1x B-17C over Rangoon. This is not, in itself, a significant event – except to note that we are now flying B-17 missions into Rangoon. AVG: China The Japanese air force launched an attack against Kweilin air field yesterday. A few AVG fighters attempted to defend the city, losing four of their number to an equal number of Japanese – while also losing 4 planes on the ground. The AVG is suffering heavily from insufficient numbers of skilled mechanics and air service personnel. Most of their planes (and I mean literally, most) are damaged and unable to fly. They sit at the side of the runway waiting for somebody to make them fliable again. Burma I am getting some disturbing reports out of Rangoon. In spite of the fact that the Number 103 Royal Navy Base Force was charged with demolishing all strategically important resources in the city, Japan seems to have captured the city more or less intact. Oil fields, pipes, and transfer stations are all intact. The docks, train yards, and warehouses were not destroyed. I have no specific information regarding the fall of the city or how this could have happened, but I am not pleased. The remnants Number 103 have fled into the swamp west of Rangoon. Attempts will be made to rescue them. However, their commander, Lt. Col. Usher, will be relieved of duty immediately. In response, we have started to launch bomber raids against Rangoon. 11 B-17s out of Diamond Harbor attempted to destroy the airfields. They were met by an equal number of zeros, who managed to shoot down one of the heavy bombers. According to our bomb assessment team, the group’s bombs missed the airfield -- hitting instead a service road in a rubber tree plantation 5.8 miles from the target. Re: John Connelly I thank you for your offer, Henry, but I fear that it would do more harm than good. John Connelly's life depends on his neutrality. If we try to offer him aid, no matter how covertly, rumors would spread and his independence and his life would both be in greater danger. Besides, John can take care of himself. I would not be surprised to hear of him riding out of Singapore on a Japanese destroyer sharing tea with the captain. Nor would I dream of asking him to spy for us. If I were even to hint to Mr. Connelly that I once entertained the notion of possibly asking him to obtain military information, I would never hear from him again. As for his anti-English bias, I do not hold it against him. It has been the root cause of his success and has given him access to places where others could not go. Foreign officials know that, when they are talking to him, they are not talking to a mouthpiece for the British propaganda machine. Besides, you know my opinion of the colonial system. And I find this type of information useful. I have said often enough that the most important factor in the fighting ability of any unit is its morale. This is a measure that one cannot obtain by reading the commanding officer's report. I had hoped that Mr. Connelly would give me information to suggest that the British at Singapore could hang on and endure a protracted siege. His writings suggest that they cannot. Java will be the next target for the Japanese troops. Generaly A.P. Wavell (who I still keep confusing with that former Colonel that we have running things in Singapore now) is withdrawing the Dutch air force back to Australia, awaiting the arrival of spare planes and parts. As the air units get rebuilt, he intends to fly them back into battle. Negotiations It seems that some things are starting to come together. The Brits are sending some Hurricanes, and the Australians are getting their 7th Division. The fate of the 6th and 9th Divisions are still under dispute. Henry, I hate to say this, but now it's your turn. Do you happen to have an extra infantry division that you can spare? I know what I said about the Hitler First strategy, and I'm sorry. You're right. I am here to execute the will of the President, not execute my own agenda. But, this fits in with your Hitler First strategy, I assure you. I think that I can handle the issue with the 6th Division. The issue is with the 9th. Quite simply, if you do not give me an American division to send to Australia, the Aussies will pull the 9th Division from the fight against Hitler. Either way, you are going to have one less division with which to fight Hitler. Isn't it better that it be an untrained and untested American unit that is an ocean away from the conflict, than a tried and tested Australian unit sitting on the front lines? Give me a division. I'll ask the Aussies to accept it and to leave the 9th Division where it is. I recommend some urgency to this decision. If Java falls, Prime Minister Curtin will quit negotiating the return of the 9th Division and simply issue the order for it to come home. We have until then to work out an alternative arrangement. Heroes I understand your request. You need heroes that you can parade before the American press to build up morale at home. That recent string of Japanese victories certainly did not help matters. The inevitable fall of Singapore will not help either. If you want to focus on heroes, I have to mention the following: The 24th Fighter Group, Philippines. Five weeks into the war, and they are still a cohesive unit, flying in defense of the small pocket of territory that the allies have been forced into. They have shot down 40 enemy airplanes according to our most conservative estimate. This one unit has our top five pilots of the war to date. • Lt. J. H. Moore, 6 kills • Cpt. G. M. Mahony, 5 kills • FO P. Arnold, 4 kills • FO D. Wirth, 4 kills • FO N. Young, 4 kills These are among 26 pilots still operating 17 fully functional P-40 Warhawk fighters in the midst of the Philippine jungle. To be honest, if you can come up with a brilliant excuse to pull this unit out of the Philippines, give them some rest and some new equipment, I would certainly hate to lose their experience. However, I consider the presence of this unit in the Philippines to be a significant boost to the morale of the local soldiers. Besides, it keeps the Japanese bombers away. The American Volunteer Group This group, since it became active in China, pulled off two stunning victories – one right after the other. The first was a raid on the Japanese air units at Wuhan, China, where they shot down 17 enemy fighters at the cost of 1 of their own. The raid was so successful that Japan pulled its air force out of China for a couple of weeks. To entice the Japanese back into China, the AVG lead a bombing raid against the infrastructure at Canton – the region where trains bring cargo to the docks. It is a region packed with factories, warehouses, and the means for getting plunder from China back to Japan, while bringing in arms and ammunition. The raid was a stunning success. Food and ammunition stores, textile factories, lumber yards, fuel depots, rail yards, all suffered massive damage. It even succeeded in bringing the Japanese air force back to China. But, the AVG is suffering from a lack of decent repair facilities. More than half of its planes can no longer fly due to a lack of spare parts and qualified maintenance. Battle of Sulaween River The Burma army set up an ambush that caught the 33rd Japanese Division, forcing them back across the river in retreat. This was the first (and only) substantial victory to date over a Japanese force. Recall, they set up an ambush where they allowed Japan to send a few units across the river, then attacked those forward units while the bulk of the Japanese were still on the other side of the river. They inflicted tremendous casualties. The units involved in this ambush were: • Burma Frontier Force Brigade • 13th Indian Brigade • 16th Indian Brigade • No. 106 RAF Base Force It should be noted that the soldiers in all three combat brigades are Indian, and not British – though they were under British command. Well, I got some letters to write. Let me know about that division as soon as you have news. Thayne
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< Message edited by Thayne -- 3/6/2005 10:22:08 PM >
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