WI Allied Victory at Java Sea?

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Yeah I know its a long shot... but then again so was Midway...

So what would happen if the ABDA taskforce under Karl Doorman decisively defeats the Japanese at the Battle of the Java Sea and mauls the troop convoy forcing the Japanese to postphone their invasion?

-How could the Allies have won the Java Sea?
-What would the Japanese do in light of the defeat?
-How would der Poorten (Dutch Land Commander) react?
-How Would Wavell React?
-What would the course of the Pacific War look like?
-And if the Dutch do manage to hold on to Java and perhaps Indonesia what will their role in the war be?
-How will a strong Dutch Presence in Indonesia affect the post war situation?
 
perhaps the Code breakers get a breakthru in time to vector a half dozen Submarines into the Java Sea before the US battle fleet arrives.
 
Allright, so the Allies were hopelessly outclassed by the Japanese. It was pretty much the same situation at Midway. But the Allies did have some things going for them...

-They had the numerical advantage in Cruisers 5 to 4 Japanese.
-They had the element of surprise kind of...

Also the Allies were hampered in the battle by the disabling of the Exeter early on in the battle. So lets say that the Exeter is not knocked out of the fight immediately and continues to fight on.

OR lets change the speed of the Japanese and Allied taskforces minorly. A couple of knots difference could mean the Allied Taskforce crossing the Japanese "T". With this superior position the Japanese Escorts would be hard pressed and it would leave the convoy open to attack by Allied Forces. Perhaps a torpedo attack by the ABDA strike force takes down some Japanese Cruisers causing the Destroyers to fall back and cover them with a smoke screen...

How realistic is this?
-How else could we orchestrate a Allied Victory here?
 
IMHO the ABDA fleet was very unlikely to have been able to win the Battle of the Java Sea, since the USN, RN, RAN and Royal Netherlands Navy ships were all scattered, had no common tactical doctrine or communications system with which to co-ordinate their manouevres, and most of the non-Dutch ships IIRC were actually retreating from the NEI when the Japs struck. Of course, these disadvantages on the Allied side in addition to the Long Lance possessed by the Japs.

Anyways, how much would this hypothetical Allied victory have significantly assisted the Dutch, when the NEI Command was still hampered by poor morale, and largely unreliable and under-equipped local KNIL troops ?
 

Nonny

Banned
This from Jan of the Dutch Navy site:
"Winning the Battle of the Java sea is a long shot for the allies, but assuming it happened......then I would think along the lines of a shell or fragment hit in the torpedo banks of the Japanese cruisers. The Japanese torpedoes were known to explode much easier than the Allied types. One can even wonder if these torpedoes sank more Japanese or Allied ships....."
 
"--Anyways, how much would this hypothetical Allied victory have significantly assisted the Dutch, when the NEI Command was still hampered by poor morale, and largely unreliable and under-equipped local KNIL troops ?[/QUOTE]

It might not have necessariy helped the Dutch, but it might have forced the Japanese to redirect ships and men that might have been intended for use elsewhere. Indonesian oil was the main reason they went to war, and without it they wouldn't last long. This unexpected setback might have affected the speed of the Phillipine conquest, maybe delayed the push to Port Moresby, and affected in unknown ways naval strategy throughout the south and central pacific. It also might have caused some interesting rethinking by the Japanese about their capabilities and made them more cautious overall. After all, if a motely group of poorly organized allied ships could defeat them, they might be less willing to push their envelope against the USN in the Solomons and central pacific later. Oddly enough, this might have the long range affect of improving their strategic position later in the war (maybe no lossses of aircrew and ships at Coral Sea, Midway).
 
What If

Ok, so lets say that after the battle has started and the heavy cruisers on both sides begin exchanging 8 inch shells, we have a Hood-esque situation happen between the Exeter and the Nachi. An 8 inch shell goes through an open door and explodes in the forward magazine initiating an explosion that tears the Cruiser apart. Now with their flagship gone the Japanese force is in dissarray, the destroyer group under the Naka turns north to escort the convoy while the Destroyer group under the Jintsu is engaged with the ABDA taskforce. The battle continues and by the end the Allies have lost 5 destroyers and the Perth is heavilly damaged. The Japanese have lost 2 heavy cruisers, 4 destoryers and the Naka is heavilly damaged. Over 20 transports are lost and Dozens are damaged. The results are that the Invasion is delayed by 1 month.

So what happens now?
-Will the Japanese begin an agressive bombing campaign against the island?
-Will Wavell send the 3 squadrons of Hurricanes to Java instead of keeping them at Ceylon?
-Will the Japanese start bombing Port Darwin?
-Where will the 3 American Squadrons of Fighters go Port Darwin or Java?
-Will the Japanese pull troops out of the other fronts to invade Java if so where?
-Will Wavell reinforce the ABDA taskforce?
-Will the Allies try to retake Bali and Timor?
-How will this affect the Indian Ocean Raids?
-How will America Respond?
 
Two points to make.

1. I was reading a book about the history of the heavy cruiser USS Houston, and I noted that a convoy with 4600 troops, 8 batteries of artillery, 18 P-40s and 52 A-24s was nearby and went to Darwin. A victory might have diverted it to the Dutch East Indies, leaving the non-Dutch forces with 12,000 men, slightly over 100 war planes, and 10 batteries of artillery.

2. Japan's advances in the first few months were astounding, especially since practically every ship involved was assigned to several operations. Transports were literally rushing back from one battle to reload the next invasion force. A serious loss of 50+ merchant men might have become a genuine problem, perhaps in Guinea.
 
Timeline!!!

There is Always Hope
A Fearless Leader WWII TL©​
POD: The Battle of The Java Sea, February 27 1942

The Prelude
By January 27th 1942 all hope for the Allied forces in the Dutch East Indies seemed forlorn. The only Island left under Allied control was the tiny island of Java now cut off by the Japanese capture of Bali and Timor. Java itself was poorly defended, while having up to 30,000 troops stationed on it they were all of poor quality and would not put up much of a fight. The only real line of defense Java had was the ABDA strike force consisting of a motley bunch of ships with exhausted crews. The Japanese had assembled a huge invasion force of 41 transports protected by some of the finest ships in their fleets. The taskforce set out in good spirits seeing that this was going to be a very easy operation and that no real Allied resistance was going to be encountered. However they were soon to find that the God of War was not on their side…

The Battle
The infamous Battle of the Java Sea began precisely at 1620 hours when the British Destroyer Electra spotted the Japanese Taskforce. 4 tense minutes passed before the Japanese cruisers Haguro and Nachi entered the picture and began lobbing shells at the allies. The Jinstu and her destroyers seeing their favorable position attempted to take up a superior position to launch a torpedo attack upon the Allies. The Allies however were totally caught in disarray, Rear Admiral Karl Doorman of the RNN seeing that the Japanese were going to “cross his T” ordered the taskforce to alter course to avoid this. However at this point in time the Allies communications completely broke down and the Taskforce continued on its course carrying them ever closer to the Japanese (1). Finally after nearly 5 minutes of total chaos communications were re-established and the Taskforce changed course narrowly avoiding a torpedo attack from the Japanese Cruiser Jinstu and her contingent of destroyers (In TTL due to no course change the Jintsu launches a torpedo attack earlier however an allied course change causes the torpedoes to miss. To compare in OTL the first Japanese attack used more torpedoes (72) and only sank one ship). Both sides were now in nearly point Blank range. Almost immediately the Allied Cruisers begin to trade shells with the Japanese forces. After nearly 8 minutes of intense firefight the Allies score a critical victory. At 1634 hours an 8-inch salvo from the Exeter’s “B” turret impacts on the Nachi 2 out of the 3 shells explode normally doing minimal damage but one shell does more. Flying through an open door the fortunate 8-inch shell easily rips through 2 bulkheads and explodes within the Nachi’s forward magazine. The resulting explosion was tremendous, the Nachi is completely and totally obliterated. Besides losing a critical cruiser, the Japanese have now lost a flagship, Rear Admiral Takeo Tagaki is killed instantly (2). The Japanese fleet is in complete and total disarray. The convoy is ordered to turn north, and seeing this the Jintsu and her group turn north as well. The Allies take full advantage of this, altering course to pursue the retreating Japanese. Retreating Japanese Destroyers are mauled by the superior guns of the Allied Cruisers, the Yukikaze is sunk by 3 8 inch shells and 10 5.9 inch shells almost instantly. The Hatsukaze suffers a similar fate as the Japanese scramble to re-organize. Meanwhile the Haguro alters its course to try and cover the retreat of the convoy. However the timing is bad as it gets the full attention of 5 allied cruisers. The resulting Salvo’s disable the cruiser and a torpedo attack by the Evertsen gives it a heavy list. The Haguro is effectively out of action. Meanwhile the 3 British destroyers in the head of the ABDA column find themselves in a constant firefight with the remaining Japanese Destroyers. The Japanese however have one trump card, the Light Cruiser Naka and 6 destroyers never entered combat due to the most fortunate hit on the Nachi, but now with the re-establishment of communications, they head back into the fray engaging the rear of the ABDA column. In the north the Allies are gaining on the Japanese, Allied cruiser shells prevent the Japanese destroyers from doing much damage, and 8 inch shells from the Houston and Exeter rain down on the Japanese transports. For the next hour the Allies will fight a running battle with the convoy and the battered remnants of its escorts. However things are not all going well for the Allies, in the south the Perth alters course to lead 6 Allied destroyers in a battle against the Naka and 6 Japanese destroyers. The Japanese use their superior torpedoes and gunnery to sink 3 Allied destroyers however the brave Allied crews stand their ground and force the Naka to turn back. In the North Allied gunfire and torpedo attacks massacre the convoy. The Jinstu is taken out of action by a series of salvos from the Houston, and the Japanese destroyers find their situation constantly worsening. Soon after the Jinstu withdraws they follow ordering the convoy to disperse. The result is total massacre for the convoy. Only 8 ships survive out of the 41 transports that set out. But the battle is not over, after the Battle the Northern contingent of the ABDA strikeforce turns south to head back to Java when they are met by the Destroyer group under the Naka, tired and weary the engage them opening fire with whatever they still have left. They are soon joined by the Perth and 3 destroyers which turns the tide of the third stage of the battle. The unexpected entry of the Perth caused the Naka to receive several devastating hits forcing her to turn back and with her the rest of the destroyer group. And with that the battle was over, in the most hopeless of situations somehow the Allies had prevailed. The war would never be the same…
 
Part II

Part II: The Aftermath​
This most stunning turn in the Pacific theatre left Wavell with a very interesting predicament. Java was the only Island in the Indonesian Archipelago still under Allied control and it was isolated with the capture of Bali, and Timor. It was also the only piece of the once mighty “Malay Barrier” Still intact. Der Poorten was digging in all over Java and was preparing for a Japanese Invasion. Although the Air strength was less than Wavell would have liked he decided it would have to do for now. The bureaucrats however had made several very important decisions for Wavell. With Java still holding out Wavell must rebuild the Malay Barrier and ensure the protection of British Assets in the Indian Ocean especially Ceylon. So the British Eastern Fleet was established 5 Battleships, 3 Carriers, 6 Cruisers, and 14 Destroyers. Total Air assets were gathered on Ceylon and at their height included 3 Hurricane Squadrons, 3 Fulmar Squadrons, 1 Blenheim Squadron, and 2 Catalina Squadrons. As for ground troops, besides the ones already stationed in Java and Burma. Wavell held the 6th and 7th Australian Divisions in Reserve.
On the Japanese side of things, the situation was dire, they had just been defeated by the Allies in a decisive naval battle. A tired ragtag obsolescent Allied taskforce had routed their mighty invasion force with heavy losses. Java was there sticking out like a thorn in their side and it needed to be removed. However the loss at the Java sea had deprived the Japanese of the materiel to take the island with speed. It would take nearly a month for the merchant marine and troops to arrive from Japan. Siphoning off troops from Burma would take longer than Japan and so the commander decided to bomb Java into submission. Hundreds of Japanese planes would turn Java into a gigantic bomb crater. Nagumo’s 1st Air fleet was essential to this operations success and so his planned sortie into the Indian Ocean was cancelled. Only the light carrier Ryujo was sent to sortie in the Indian Ocean leaving the majority of the Japanese forces to deal with Java. The beginning of the soon to be dubbed Battle over Java saw the Allied Forces stand at around 100 obsolescent fighters. Against them were stacked horrible odds from the Japanese Airforce nearly 200 fighters and over 150 bombers of varied types. Combined with the naval assets adding another 200+ elite fighters and an equal number of bombers. The stage was set for one of the most lopsided Air battles ever fought.
The Battle for Java began on March 4 1942 with the Japanese forces striking Allied Airbases along the length of the island. Within hours whatever remained of the Netherlands Airforce was reduced to burning rubble. However a small number of Dutch Fighters fought on and would continue to see action throughout the Netherlands campaign. Wavell seeing the recent turn in events decided to marshal as many air assets as he could and move them to Java. On March 19th 3 American Squadrons arrived on Java and began operating. Then on April 5th the British Fighter forces totaling nearly 6 squadrons arrived in Java. With Doolittle’s raid on April 19th about half of the Japanese Air assets were transferred back to Japan. By the End of April things were looking dire for the Japanese Yammamoto claimed that they were getting bogged down in Indonesia. He said they needed to keep on pushing the Allies back instead of focusing on Java. And so the 1st Air fleet and its air assets were pulled out of the Battle of Java to not only regroup but to prepare for a new offensive, one that would take the Americans attention off Indonesia preventing the Allies from relieving Java. With the Navy pilots gone the Allied defenders had a much easier time fighting the remaining Japanese Army Airforce. By the end of April the Japanese Raids began to lose intensity arrayed against them were 4 American Squadrons, 6 British Squadrons, and 1 rag-tag Dutch/ Australian Squadron. The Allies had held off the final blow and had once again saved Java from Japanese Invasion. Troops originally earmarked for the invasion of Java were diverted to Yammamoto’s grand plan in the Pacific. Java had once again withstood the Oriental storm.

So what do you guys think? I Would really like your help in ironing out the 2nd part of my TL....
-Would the Japanese take this course of action?
-What was the Dutch Airforce's strength at this time (Pre-Java Sea)
-Were there any RAF, USAF, RAAF assets on Java in this timeperiod? (Feb 27-March 8)
-What happens next???
 
The Java campaign- air strength

Fearless Leader, excellent TL you've created- very interesting and plausible on the whole. I take back my initial reservations on the Allies winnability of the Java Sea.

As to your queries re Allied air strength in Java, there were a fair few good squadrons which ABDA had, including 48 RAF Hurricanes flown off the HMS INDOMITABLE, 32 P40 Kittyhawks, 2 bombardment groups equipped with B17 Flying Fortresses and B24 Liberators for the USAAF, other squadrons equipped with A24 divebombers and LB30 light bombers, and another 27 P40s which had been transported in crates by the seaplane tender USS LANGLEY- although OTL these ended being dumped into the sea at Tjilatjap since there weren't enough trained aviation personnel to assemble them. There were also 2 RAAF squadrons equipped with 26 Lockheed Hudsons, and a couple RAF sqns equipped with Bristol Blenheims and Vickers Wildebeeste biplane torpedo bombers, which attempted to harry the Japs as much as possible, together with an RAF Catalina flight (most of which IIRC had escaped from Singapore). The RNEIAF AFAIK was equipped mainly with Brewster Buffalo fighters and Glenn Martin bombers, plus Catalina and Dornier flying-boats, and its order of battle can be found at

http://www.geocities.com/dutcheastindies/Dutch_OOB.html

OTL, after the Allies were forced to evacuate to Darwin with the fall of the NEI, No. 18 RNEIAF/RAAF sqn was formed at Batchelor (just down the track from Darwin a bit), equipped with B25 Mitchells. Now, in TTL, if the NEI holds out, maybe the RNEIAF still holding out could receive these nice new toys ?

Hey Grimm Reaper, I've read info to a similar effect re the USS HOUSTON convoy that was turned back, which was contained in such locally written hist books as THE SHADOW'S EDGE by Alan Powell (a local NT historian, whom I actually met and interviewed when I was in Yr 8), which is all about the NT during WWII, NOR THE YRS CONTEMN by J.D. Rorrison, which is all about the air war which raged over the NT, FORTRESS DARWIN by J.B. Rayner, and AUST'S FRONTLINE: THE NT'S AIR WAR by Frank Alcorta. Had the convoy managed to get thru, perhaps the advance units of the 41st Inf Div (who were from the West coast states and South Dakota), such as the 147th and 148th Field Arty Regts, could've meaningfully reinforced the defenders of the NEI instead of being sent to the NT ?

As to next Jap intentions- could they, while thwarted in the main attack against Java and Sumatra, still try to conduct invasions on the smaller islands of the NEI such as Ambon, Timor, and Bali, which OTL only held a few bns of Dutch and Aust defenders ? How would TTL manouevres against these smaller islands fare, without the Japs already having taken the rest of the archipelago ? What about perhaps extending their offensive ops in New Guinea ?
 
Correction

Oops, need to make a bit of a correction- the RN carrier ferrying the Hurricanes to Java was FORMIDABLE IIRC, not INDOMITABLE. And there's plenty of good websites on the NEI campaign besides the 1 I cited, if you want I could provide a few more references.
 
Thanks for the Info Melvin, but IIRC Bali and Timor had already been taken by the Japanese by the time of the Battle of the Java Sea... Java was the only important island the Allies had left...

Would Wavell try to organize a counter offensive to retake these islands and open up a clear line of supply to Java? If so when and with what troops?
 
Australian Divisions

Fearless Leader said:
Part II: The Aftermath​
As for ground troops, besides the ones already stationed in Java and Burma. Wavell held the 6th and 7th Australian Divisions in Reserve.

First off let me say these two TLs are great stuff. My only hassle with them is the Australian position towards military ventures after the fall of Singapore.

Now committing the RAN (HMAS Perth) to help out in the Java Sea is one thing, but you can forget the committment of the 6th & 7th AUS Div I'm afraid. There was no chance that they were going anywhere but Australia, at this point in time, as the Australian govt had lost all faith in any British army commander in the Asia/Pacific Theatre or, more importantly, any promise by CHurchill.

Furthermore, in OTL, Churchill tried every trick he could pull to divert these two divisions away from their recall to Australia & the Australian govt at the time held firm to their recall orders. As far as Australia was concerned the 6th & 7th Divs were going to PNG to fight the Japanese & no where else.

The same recall orders would eventually be given to the 9th AUS Div as well. So after their committment to Monty in North Africa, this division came home to fight in campaigns suited to Australian interests & no one elses.
 
Part II REVISED

Part II: The Aftermath 2/28/42 – 4/5/42
The Allied victory at the Battle of the Java Sea was as much a surprise to the Allies as it was to the Japanese. Java although safe for now, was not out of the fire yet. Most of the other Islands in the Indonesian Archipelago were in Japanese hands and the strategic position looked dire. The only Dutch garrisons that had not surrendered were the garrison forces on Java, and the small remaining garrison force in Northern Sumatra. The Japanese were in a very tight position the loss of so many transports at the Battle of the Java sea severely impaired their offensive abilities in the south Pacific. Very quickly a plan was made to try and salvage the situation in the East Indies. All offensive naval operations in regards to the Island of Java were to be postponed until further notice. Instead of focusing on Java, the Japanese decided to launch an invasion of Northern Sumatra and the Andaman Islands, establishing a Malay Barrier of their own. Java was to soon be the target of Thousands of Japanese air Attacks. Dozens of IJAA squadrons were gathered on the Islands of Bali and Borneo to literally bomb the Island of Java into submission. However the Allied forces on Java were determined not to go down without a fight.

The Battle for Java
The official start of the new Japanese Air offensive on Java was March 3 1942, almost immediately they encountered staunch resistance from the Allies. Although flying inferior planes the Allies utilized superior position and excellent piloting to keep things on equal terms with the Japanese. Wavell meanwhile was quick to react to these recent turns of events. ABDA command was quickly reformed with an emphasis on Dutch commanders. Wavell pulled many strings and managed to amass a considerable RAF force on the Island of Java. The RAAF also sent contingents to Java where they fought with distinction alongside British, American, and Dutch Units. Java was quickly becoming a bastion of Allied strength. Advance elements of the American 41st division along with 2 fresh batteries of Artillery and nearly 60 warplanes arrived on the island on March 10th augmenting the already formidable allied forces arrayed there. 3 more squadrons of American planes arrived on the 19th bringing the total number of Allied fighters on Java to around 300. The Japanese however were not without re-inforcements of their own. Soon air contingents from the Ryujo, and Nagumo’s 1st Air fleet were joining the IJAA in bombarding Java. Thousands of sorties were flown each day by the Japanese and every sortie encountered some kind of resistance. By March 30th Java had become a meatgrinder for the Japanese Air force. Yamamoto had his own plans for the 1st Carrier airfleet and this was not it. Satisfied with the results over Java he pulled the 1st Airfleet out of Indonesia to participate in his grand plan for the Pacific. Coupled with this event was the arrival of more squadrons from America and Austrailia. These squadrons relieved the battered defenders of Java somewhat, long enough for the Japanese to give up on Bombing Java into submission. By April 1st the Japanese air raids over Java began to die down. Squadrons began being transferred to other fronts and soon it had become apparent that the Allies had won yet again. It is estimated that the Japanese lost over 500 aircraft to the Allied fighters and Anti Aircraft Guns however those numbers have never been determined. Over 100,000 Indonesian civilians died as a result of the campaign. Nearly all the major cities On Java were completely destroyed as a result of the campaign. But in the end it was determination to fight on that won the Battle of Java for the Allies.

The Second Phase of the Sumatra Campaign
It could be argued that March 8th 1942 began the second phase of the Sumatra campaign. With the air battle over Java raging the Japanese did not really expect to much from the beleagured and unorganized defenders of Northern Sumatra. A severe surprise awaited them when they landed in northern Sumatra. A large number of KNIL troops awaited them however things were not as good as they seemed. Most of the KNIL elements on the Island were poorly equipped and badly trained however they were motivated and would prove a very capable foe for the Japanese to encounter. By March 8th the Dutch command on Sumatra had been reorganized into two main areas. There was the Middle Area of Sumatra which was defended by troops under Major-General Overakker, and there was Northern Sumatra defended by troops under Colonel Gossenson. March 12 saw the Japanese Invasion of Northern Sumatra. Crack Imperial Guard Battalions landed all over the island and were immediately engaged by the KNIL forces under Colonel Gossenson. In the south the Japanese 38th division began a ferocious attack aimed at crushing the KNIL forces under Overakker. However the irregular forces of the KNIL proved their mettle time and time again in the early stages of this campaign. Repeatedly throwing off Japanese attacks. In the north things were further complicated with the advent of a general rebellion by the Islamic residents of the Atjeh province. The dire situation in Northern Sumatra caused Wavell and Der Poorten the two allied Land commanders a great deal of consternation. Finally it was decided that Northern Sumatra must be held no matter what the cost. So after pulling the ABDA strike force out of Java a relief convoy was sent to Northern Sumatra. Very quickly the Airfield at Medan became a center for Dutch resistance to the Japanese. 3 battered squadrons of Fairey Fulmar Fighters arrived there on the 20th to provide air support for the Dutch Forces there. They were followed by elements of the American 41st infantry division and 2 fresh Brigades from India. These troops soon found themselves deployed in the Atjeh region fighting not only the Japanese but the Islamic citizens as well. These new reinforcements eventually helped turn the tide in the Battle for Atjeh. After Colonel Gossenson’s counter attack on the 28th, the northern part of the island was secure more or less allowing the Allied forces to focus on stopping the rest of the Japanese Army which they did. By April 5th a front had been established 5 miles south of the crucial airfield at Medan. The Imperial Guard had been forced to withdraw to the south and yet another piece of the Malay Barrier had held its ground.

(In OTL the KNIL forces defending northern Sumatra were surprisingly effective in fighting the Japanese. Some resisted until late March 1943. The fall of Java in OTL severely hampered their operations meaning that in OTL official resistance ended March 28th. However in TTL Java does not fall and as a result troops are re-directed to Sumatra to aid the ailing KNIL forces. Due to no Dutch Surrender the Dutch Forces on Sumatra are also more motivated than TTL leading to the defeat of the Imperial Guard on the beaches and its eventual rout south to join up with the advancing Japanese Armored units.)

The Battle of The Malacca Strait
With Major Gossenson’s rout of the Imperial Guard in Northern Sumatra, and the subsequent halt of all offensive operations on that island the Japanese High Command desperately thought up a way to regain the initiative on that front. Another amphibious invasion was to be launched (Also note that in TTL due to the massive loss of shipping at the Java sea the earlier landing at Java was much, much smaller than OTL, a lot of units that made it ashore in OTL did not in TTL and as a result they are being used here in addition to the forces used in the OTL invasions of Iran Jaya, the Andaman Islands and Christmas Island.) All told around 16,000 troops were amassed compared to the paltry size of the earlier invasion of 8000. Among them were several field artillery brigades and an armored brigade, not to mention various construction battalions. The convoy set out on April 2nd with the actual landings taking place the night of April 5th.
However they were not totally un-opposed. The newly reinforced ABDA strike force having been forced to retreat from Java had established a temporary base at Port Blair on the Andaman Islands. Consisting of 4 Heavy Cruisers(3 RN, 1 USN) , 3 Light Cruisers (2 RNN, 1 RAN) and 13 Destroyers (1 RNN, 1 USN, 11 RN) was more than ready to take on the Japanese. Arrayed against them were the Convoy’s escorts of 2 Light cruisers (Yura, Sendai) and Around 14 Destroyers. Also in the Area were the 5 Cruisers of the 7th Cruiser Division (Chokai, Kumano, Suzuyu, Mikuma, Mogami). The following naval battle between these two forces would be essential to the fate of Northern Sumatra. Departing from Singapore on April 2nd the Japanese convoys were spotted on April 3rd by a Catalina operating out of Medan. The Japanese Completely unawares continued on towards their desired landing zones. Meanwhile the ABDA strike force sailed with all haste from Port Blair in the Andamans. Sailing down the Malacca Strait they were constantly protected by Fairey Fulmar fighters operating out of Medan. The actual battle of the Malacca strait took place when the elderly allied Destroyer Vampire spotted the Japanese Convoys at 2315hrs on April 5th. The Japanese transports were in an incredibly vulnerable position unloading troops and so their escorts scrambled into action. Immediately available to the Japanese were the destroyers of the 5th division (4 all told) and the Cruiser Sendai. The Yura and 6 other destroyers were not too far off and the cruisers of the 7th Cruiser division were at least 30 minutes away. This gave the Allies at least a temporary advantage. Almost immediately the transports came under attack from the cruisers Cornwall and Dorshetshire. This prompted the convoy commander to order the convoy to turn back to Singapore. Meanwhile the Allied Destroyer Screen found itself the recipient of a very nasty Japanese torpedo attack. 2 Destroyers were sunk in the attack with 2 others damaged. Meanwhile The De Ruyter, Java and Perth swung up behind the Allied Destroyers and engaged the Japanese destroyers with superior gunnery. The Sendai became the Allies next target 8 inch shells from the Exeter and the Houston quickly reduced it to a burning wreck. As the remaining Japanese destroyers pulled back the Yura and her destroyers arrived. They were immediately greeted by a hail of gunfire which caused them to disperse. Several Hits to the Yura from the 8 inch guns of the Houston caused the elderly cruiser to erupt into a brutal maelstrom of chaos, confusion and flame. 3 destroyers were sunk by the vengeful guns of the ABDA taskforce before the 7th Cruiser division arrived. Engaging the Cruisers Cornwall and Dorshetshire they covered the retreat of the battered convoy only to be engaged themselves by the rest of the ABDA strike force. The result was a brutal firefight which ended in a torpedo attack from the regrouped Japanese destroyers. 2 More Allied Destroyers were sunk, the Allies also lost the Cruiser Exeter to the guns of the Chokai, and the remaining Allied ships all limped away from the battle with some sort of damage whether it be severe like the Java or minor like the Perth. All told the Japanese lost 2 Light Cruisers, and 3 Destroyers. The Allies fared slightly worse losing 1 heavy cruiser, 6 destroyers, and having all of their ships damaged in some way or another. However the Allies did force the Japanese to retreat, and the Damage to the convoy would delay the renewed Japanese invasion of Northern Sumatra permanently.

(Note that the ABDA taskforce is now much better than the ABDA taskforce at the Java sea. Morale is high, and communications are excellent. The strategies developed by Karl Doorman have been put into practice making the ABDA taskforce one of the most efficient taskforce’s in the fleet.)

Outlook
In Early April 1942 the outlook for the Japanese looks incredibly bleak. The allies are now pouring forces into Indonesia. All attempts at amphibious invasions have resulted in the loss of transports, something that the Japanese cannot afford to lose right now. The Allies on the other hand have salvaged the situation in Indonesia to that of a somewhat stable front. American forces are beginning to arrive in the theatre to bolster the exhausted British, Australian, and Dutch forces. The Japanese have finally lost the initiative in the Pacific, However Yamamoto plans to change that with his new offensive…

_________________________________________________________________

Ok, I just put an insane number of man hours into that revised installment of Part II. Alot of information was gleaned from the OOB page of yours Melvin. Thanks again. So how is it? Any holes I forgot to patch? I do have several questions...

-What forces does Wavell pull out of India to support Northern Sumatra?
-What's Yammamoto's target? New Guinea? Midway?
-When did the 2nd generation of US fighters (F6F Hellcats, P-38s etc. etc.) start arriving on the Pacific?
 
Independence

In july 1945 The Japanese And Indonesia signed a Treaty of Alliance, and the Japanese started training a Indonesia Army, Navy and Airforce, they planned to turn some Older Equipment to them. Instead when Japan surrendered these troops got a lot of the 1st level Jap equipment. This was then used against the Dutch and British in 1946 & Indonesia War of Independence.

ITTL Maybe the Indonesians will be using Leftover American Weapons.
 
Hmmm... Well in this TL the Indonesian leaders whose names escape me right now are still in Dutch Prisons on Java... In OTL the Japanese released them and they formed the Indonesian government. In TTL ... well we'll see what happens after I finish running through WW2. The post war situation will be... interesting...
 
Fearless Leader, the names of the most prominent Indon nationalist leaders in jail at the time are Mohammed Hatta and Achmed Sukarno.

Re Timor, Ambon and Bali, you're right, these smaller islands had fallen to the Japs before Java did, but IMHO if the Allies were to successfully reinforce Java, they'd have to somehow retake these islands which were OTL used as bases with which the Japs bombed northern Aust and which would severely interfere with any Allied attempts to reinforce ABDA Command further westwards, esp since Java is so much further away from Darwin. Of course, you'd still have 2/2 Independent Commando Coy operating on Timor to harry the Japs, and they'd possibly play an even more significant role than they did OTL in diverting large nos. of Jap troops and resources to hunting down these guerilla forces in the hills.

Of the 6th and 7th AIF Divs, OTL there was a bde-3400 strong- of the latter formation (vets of the North African and Syrian campaigns) who were actually diverted to Java by Churchill, and pretty much were compelled to surrender by the Japs without seeing much fighting at all. Maybe in TTL, this bde is still detached from the remainder of the AIF divs returning to Aust, and are able to, alongside the 41st Div and other Allied land, air and sea reinforcements, able to contribute substantially to the successful defence of Java. Also in TTL, the Aust and US troops who OTL wanted to fight on but were compelled to lay down their arms by the Dutch, such as the 7th Div AIF vets and the 131st Arty Regt (Texas NG), will be able to get their wish to keep on fighting.
 
Looking very nice...and what a nightmare for any commander, to be protecting defenseless transports IN THE PROCESS OF UNLOADING as an enemy fleet shows up. Ouch.
 
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