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[Sheb]

Well, at least you didn't loose any plane. I'm surprised he didn't flew a CAP the second day... Is the airstrip cratered? Also, I really don't know how the map stand, but would it be possible to move by land to cut the train link to Chittacong? We don't need to hold the land, we can just move in and destroy the rails.

[Erkki]

Well, at least you didn't loose any plane. I'm surprised he didn't flew a CAP the second day... Is the airstrip cratered? Also, I really don't know how the map stand, but would it be possible to move by land to cut the train link to Chittacong? We don't need to hold the land, we can just move in and destroy the rails.

Chittacong should still be operational... Or if it isnt, it probably gets repaired overnight.

I think both me and my opponent know that he cannot really defend it because the next closest fields are too far away, and now during monsoon season the supply flows very slowly, even along rails. If he puts fighters there they'll get sweeped to death and then bombed on the ground. If he does not, he will not have a base to escort his own bombers from for some time anywhere near Rangoon or Magwe. The other fields are too far for most Allied fighters to reach Magwe area, or do not have rail connection(like Imphal). Its a kind of a catch 22 to him - he cant really start effective air offensives of his own before he has Chittacong, Dacca and that 3rd base between them built up, and he cant build up Chittacong if he doesnt defend it far from his other fields(long range CAP is usually ineffective as planes have to fly often long distance to the patrol area and would suffer) and start accepting losses. As long as Chittacong is hammered daily, I think Magwe's oil wells and refineries are reasonably safe, unless Bart decides to use his heavy bombers. Magwe still has dedicated air defenses in the form of a Zero and a Ki-45 sentais, 60 planes in all, those 90+ Ki-44s and 40 Ki-43s being available(but being used against Chittacong now) and quite a lot of flak. And more is on its way. Theres also 8 of the latest type of radar sets.

Unfortunately Chittacong is still pretty far for our troops. Its in a kind of a "bulge" in the front, so while in theory the rail connection could be cut using, say, airborne infantry(1st and 2nd Raiders are in reserve near Rangoon), they would be next to impossible to supply from the air or through the jungles and and over the mountains. And they would be impossible to defend from enemy air attacks and would be destroyed in weeks by enemy troops. Taking Chittacong would be a major commitment. I'll post a screenshot in the next update so that you can see the situation... 

[Sheb]

Great, thanks. Another thing: You keep referring to "the allied CVs". How many of them does he have?

[Erkki]

Great, thanks. Another thing: You keep referring to "the allied CVs". How many of them does he have?

I dont know for sure. Majority of them are probably now at Pearl, but all of the Allied CV force is currently at least:

The big US capacity 90 carriers that can operate 99 planes(and carry even more, remember that each reserve or packed, half assembled plane counts as 1/4 of an operational plane):

CV Lexington
CV Saratoga     these 2 are the biggest and meanest of them all, through the war
CV Enterprise
CV Hornet

I dont know when Wasp arrives from the Mediterranean as we play without the fixed reinforcements. Theres 15 or 30 day variance for every ship, air and ground unit etc.

CV Wasp capacity 76 --> can operate 83 without reserve planes. Its weakest of all American CVs
a CVL?
CVE Long Island
possibly 1-2 more CVEs

RN also has:

CVs: 2 or 3 with a capacity of 50(-ish). One of them should have capacity of only 35 or so. They're rather small for CVs but they are much thicker skinned than Japanese or USN carriers and can be painful to kill with just 250kg bombs. Bigger bombs, which we'll be getting before January 1943, and torpedoes work well.
CVL Hermes - an ancient carrier and the least capable CVL, even less useful than the tiny CVE Hosho...

[Sheb]

Shouldn't you try to get at the CVs?

[Erkki]

That'd be just waste of time and fuel and would reveal KB's location and risk it to submarine attacks. Whats the chance to get within launch range when they are at seas, without getting detected well in time? They can just avoid a battle. If they sit at Pearl or nearby, going in is an Allied commander's dream: Japs playing on their terms, right next to their largest base in the Pacific, far from Japanese repair yards, where they have hundreds of land-based fighters and strike aircraft to help them even the odds... No thanks! Bart would just flee at flank speed and let his land based aircraft and submarines try their luck - that is if KB even gets close and not get detected 2 or 3 days prior.

Heres a tracker screenshot of Burma with some additional info. No units, just the map with the bases. You should see why I'm bombing the crap out of Chittacong...

[Sheb]

Yup, and I can also see why you can't cut that link with land troops. Well seems like only B-17 and B-24 are a real risks, as they can do well even without escort.

[Erkki]

Slightly related... Japanese intel believes that the famous American commander of the AVG, "Pappy" Boyington, to have been shot down by IJAAF fighters near Chittacong week ago. Banzai!

[Erkki]

July 15


Burma: Weather grounds today's attacks on Chittacong, but recon still flies. We'll try again tomorrow. No Allied movements detected.

DEI: 16th Regiment attacks at Ambon and yet again fails against the 37 defending AV - I'm moving a 3rd of a division to reinforce. This is a farce...

[Erkki]

Okay, lets open the new pilot sign-up here.

Post here to sign up in the "Bay 12 squadron". Mention

- Branch(Army or Navy)
- Wanted rank and/or pilot skill and/or experience level(not required)
- Where you would like the Bay 12 squadron to be posted once its ready(stay in reserve, Burma, Pacific, DEI and so on)
 -depending on branch, which aircraft would you like to see the squadron flying?

The Bay 12 squadron will be one of the smaller units, 12 or max 27-ish planes, so role playing it a little will have at best minimal impact on the campaign. Wherever its going and whatever its going to fly, I would have other units go there and fly that any way. At worst only a handful more of additional political points are lost when assigning new HQs and leaders.

At the moment, available Army types are

Ki-43-Ic -slow, unarmored, weakly armed but long range and maneuverable - not a good fighter at all
Ki-44-IIa - best fighter either side has at the moment, even if unarmored and weakly armed

Next 2 months:

Ki-43-IIa - still unarmored but much faster and otherwise better performance, even more range
Ki-44-IIb - Ki-44 with 40mm caseless ammunition cannons. I dont think I'll build many of these
Ki-61-Ia - not quite as good performance as Ki-44 but is armored and has better weapons configuration. Bad service rating. For good pilots only

Later:
Ki-43-IIb - fast and armored Ki-43. Still weakly armed, but super long range
Ki-44-IIc -armored Ki-44 with 4 heavy machine guns, best of the series
Ki-61-Ib, Ic and Id - Ki-61 line with increasing firepower, up to 2 cannons and 2 heavy machine guns in c and d
Ki-84 - Army's best fighter, badass fighter with serviceability issues. For fighter vs. fighter combat, Ki-84 series(a, b, r) are the best Japan has
Ki-100 - later war Ki-61 with a radial Ha-33 engine, not stellar performance(=same as Ki-61) but low service rating and heavy firepower - Japan's best anti bomber fighter


Navy:

A6M2: the first Zero, CV capable - ok armament, maneuverable but not fast and vulnerable - not that stellar fighter...
A6M3: improved non CV capable Zero

next month or in 2 months:

A6M3a: improved, CV capable M3

later, early 1943 onwards:
A6M5 - in many ways the best Zero, more durable but improved speed and durability
A6M5b - arrives over year after M5, only improvement is 1 rifle calibre machine gun swapped to a heavy 
A6M5c - mid 1944 Zero - FINALLY armored and also with 2 more weapons giving it heavy punch, but speed is even worse
A6M7, M8 - late war Zeros - these are the best of the series but against the Allied fighters there like P-47, F4U, P-51, they will suffer
J2M: low serviceability but armored and high performance fighter with good firepower
N1K series - very high firepower, high performance, armored and maneuverable fighter. First model has serviceability issues, second model(I hope to become available by late 1943) is better service rating wise and possibly Japan's best all-round fighter
A7M - late war CV fighter to replace Zero - we are researching it but at earliest you can expect it to enter production by January 1945 or so. Its as good or slightly better than N1K, and about as good as Ki-84a vs. other fighters, but until it arrives the CV fighter pilots have to survive in their Zeros


So put shortly, in Army you have the best chances of surviving with the current and near future fighters, while in the Navy you'd have to fly the vulnerable and not that great Zero for a long while. But late in the war the Navy land based fighters are just as good or better than Army's. Personally I think a new pilot would have the best chances in now a Ki-44-IIa unit, then in Ki-61 series until getting to fly the Ki-84s until the end of the war. Or best, now in some behind-the-lines Zero unit and then directly to N1K1-J and the last 1-1½ years of the war in N1K2-J. 


My sign up:

- Army
- SGT or equivalent rank but high skill and exp
- any front
- any fighter that isnt Ki-43 or Ki-27



EDIT: I forgot to mention that we will, of course, use pilots who have no prior combat sorties, so they're either fresh graduates or guys who have been in reserve or behind the lines duty for until now. And the Bay 12 squad is unlikely to be sent to the front right away, as it will not be getting much of the special treatment.

[Sheb]

-Navy
-Squadron leader
-Operating from a CV
-A6M3, then A6M3a then A7M.

[Fishbreath]

Sign me up for a member of Sheb's squadron. >.>

[timferius]

- Army or Navy, doesn't matter
- Somewhere near the front!
 -Something exciting! Either long range or heavy firepower

[Erkki]

July 16


Burma: Ki-21s manage to find their way to Chittacong despite of the weather and even score some hits. Aerial recon reports the airfield to be about patched up again, but no Allied fighters were found flying CAP.

DEI: Mataram invaded. The troops are ordered to hang nearby the beach a couple of days and recover from the disruption and fatigue from the landing before attacking inland and securing the island. Ki-21s from Soerebaja will practice their aim on the local Dutch garrison. Manado invasion force is about 3 days from target.

Industry: Ki-49 production factories are expanded so that in a week it should be steady at 110/month. A Ha-35 factory is converted to Ha-34 to match the increased engine consumption. Ki-21 production is terminated, but the size 35 factory is left alone for now to later produce Ki-61(most probably).

[Korbac]

Korbac, reporting for duty, sir!

Available at any rank and location.