Part 31: Operational Report: 06/01/42

Although its not the Carrier we were looking for, Task Force Y find a heavily loaded troop transport and its escort during the night, and attack and sink them both. With nearly 800 confirmed enemy casualties, wherever they were planning to invade with this force is going to be safe for a few days more at least.



Later in the day they repeat this trick with more heavy enemy casualties.




Over Singapore, the enemy decides to stop messing around, and brings two squadrons of Zeros to defend one of Sally's. Needless to say the three Buffalo's in the air were outclassed.








Bataan sees relentless bombing today, whatever defending aircraft we have are no where to be seen.



Hundreds of enemy planes and their attack runs go unanswered beyond whatever flack can be put up by the defenders.

The GI's on the ground continue to hold out at Clark Field, there are now nearly 30,000 men fighting in the area. So far our men and their defences are holding out.



They are buying time, as the men in Manilla itself are able to continue to build their defences, this will make it harder for the enemy to take this city once they get there.





Our oft forgotten friends continue to fight on, the enemy are bombarding many of their units, and small but constant battles are going on across the country.







A fairly quiet if effective day, we may only have sunk four ships, but the troops on board and the enemies losses in other areas bring their losses up from a rating of 173 to 210. not bad for a days work.

Plane losses on both sides were negligible, mostly coming from accidents and pilot error. We lost three ships, one of which was damaged on the previous days raids on Port Moresby.



A Jap Tanker is moving to Tokyo. You think that's relevant information to bring to the commander in chief of the GODDAM PACIFIC? Send it to the sub commanders, tell me where their god dam carriers are, not a ten penny tanker.
Barring that, the report actually has some useful information, the enemy are planning to attack Malacca and Ambon.
Although the fact that Ambon has had a enemy task force sitting across the water for a few days now may have tipped me off about this.



And Malacca is on the route down to Sinagpore. But at least their trying.







Task Forces Y and Z will be withdrawn back for repair and rearming. I could send them further north, but that would risk them running into the enemies carriers and land based planes. They have been lucky so far, and I'm not going to risk them. We'll have to let the enemies lone carrier escape. It has travelled down the other way to my ships and is now moving towards Ambon.



They've done their job, those two ships were most likely the assault forces for Samarinda and Balikapapan, so those bases have been defended, even if it is just through blind luck.
Our luck, not that of the two thousand dead Japs. But that's what they get for attacking the major powers of the western world.

We also have some more Hurricanes at Aden that are now on their way down to Soerabaja on the first available transport.



As Task Forces Y and Z are to far to help Ambon, I have formed another force at Darwin in Australia and ordered it north.



This may not accomplish much, but it will keep the enemy guessing to where our punches will be coming from.