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  1. "Outcome in Doubt": Invasion of Tarawa fails, 1943

    There were troops on Green Beach (the base of the Betio "triangle" starting on D-DAy. They were relatively successful from the beginning of the battle, actually having moved back at dark from their deepest advance into a stronger defensive position. This was where the Shermans had landed and the...
  2. "Outcome in Doubt": Invasion of Tarawa fails, 1943

    Which is exactly what happened IOTL. The three hours of gunfire was shown to be totally inadequete, later invasions would have DAYS of pre landing bombardment. The excess losses at Tarawa probably saved five or six times their number in future landings.
  3. For Want of a Yam

    Love PODs from a seemingly minor change!:) I do, unfortunately, have to disagree with you regarding the percentage of native die off from imported European diseases. Western Hemisphere experiences indicate a die off more on the order of 90%+, especially in areas with some population density...
  4. Sino-Soveit Nuclear war

    10,000? Maybe three months, except for down wind from any reactor that Ivan targeted.
  5. German 43 decison changes war

    You are correct that the difference is dramatic. Mustard and Lewisite are far more effective in the military sense. Sarin is short shelf life (as low as a few weeks), low persistence, gas that kills as it's primary effect leaving a relatively small number of wounded virtually all of whom will...
  6. An American Coup

    Fair enough. Pending the current Constitution being replaced by some Hitlerian oath to a madman, the U.S. militry will not stage a coup.
  7. MacArthur is made Supreme Allied Commander

    VERY doubtful. The ETO needed a uniter, a politician as much as a commander. McArthur was none of the three. He would have been relieved inside of a year (and, in a just world, court marshalled for insubordination and cashiered) since he would have pulled the same BS he did in Korea if he...
  8. An American Coup

    No. Not now. Not in 2001. Not ever. To loosely quote Ghost88 "If the U.S. military didn't rise up in the aftermath of the Walter Reed scandal, it never will". Since there wasn't even a ripple over that smack in the face, there is no chance (not there ever really was one). The...
  9. German 43 decison changes war

    Hmmm... Interesting 1. SAMs were NOT a serious weapon in the era. Guidance was simply not up to the task, and the rocket tech itself was also not qute there. The Wasserfall & the Taifun were both liquid fueled, making them extremely hazardous (arguably more hazardous to the ground crews than...
  10. Sino-Soveit Nuclear war

    I would actually love to read that statement, if for no other reason than to see the context. Can you provide a link or a reference?
  11. Sino-Soveit Nuclear war

    I agree that the POD doesn't add up. However... If you look at most open source scenarios you will find that escalation to full exchange in any nuclear war is just about 100% certain. It is unlikely that, in the posited scenario (as low order of probability as it is), that the exchange would...
  12. Sino-Soveit Nuclear war

    It would be remarkably one sided. 1980 totals PRC +/- 280 total warheads, with about 30 on some sort of IRBM USSR 30,000 total warheads. with about 9,000 on ICBM/SLBM 1990 Total PRC 430 USSR 37,000
  13. "Outcome in Doubt": Invasion of Tarawa fails, 1943

    ZERO probability. The outcome was "in doubt" until the next wave arrived and that was what the Marine officer was referring to (in point of fact it was never in doubt, it was simply that the level of losses was unprecedented resulting in the broadcast). By sunset of the first day the...
  14. WI: UK and USA sit out World War 1.

    The Kaiser crushed France and Russia. Russia loses fast enough that it is not destabilized, meaning no October Revolution. The AH (and probably the Ottoman) Empire does not break up. The face of Europe is changed beyond all recognition. The butterflies from the event are the size of 747s.
  15. China in space around 1973. What impact in manned spaceflight flight ?

    Forget about manned flight. This would give the PRC true ICBM capacity by 1973 standards (something that they STILL lack by 2008 standards). It would, put another way, move the PRC 40 years ahead from OTL in rocketry.
  16. No Bombing restrictions against North Vietnam

    I'm fairly sure I agreed with you on the problems with the RVN government. Unfortunately, the rest of your position is utterly undefendable from a factual basis. The U.S. DID NOT bomb North Viet Nam for nearly FOUR YEARS. When bombing temporarily resumed during Linebacker I Hanoi and areas...
  17. No Bombing restrictions against North Vietnam

    In fact between 1968 & mid 1972 the entireity of North Vietnam was "off limits" to U.S. bomber crews. Even when limited bombing was renewed there were actually severe restriction on targets, some of which would have utterly devestated North Vietnam. They range from the Red River dike complex to...
  18. No Bombing restrictions against North Vietnam

    It's hard to say if unrestricted bombing would have achieved enough to win (whatever the hell that means). It is interesting to note that, during the Christmas bombing, the PoW's noted a sudden, rather dramatic change in the conduct of the guards at the Hanoi Hilton. One of the prisoners, who...
  19. Just How Stupid Was Japan?

    Let's use foolish if you prefer instead of stupid. The simple fact is that the Japanese government (military dominated, but still the civilian government) choose to go to war with a succession of countries that they flat could not handle, starting with China, followed by an attempt at the...
  20. Just How Stupid Was Japan?

    Unquestionably, especially since the Kwantung Army tried it IOTL. The IJA & IJN were effectively clueless.
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