Fantasque Time Line (France Fights On) - English Translation

[Wings]

February 22nd, 1942

Between Salween and Sittang - RAF attacks on the Japanese columns of the 55th Division converging on the Bilin front continue. The most notable one sees eight BVAS Audax light bombers escorted by four P-40s of the ROCAF. Coming from Rangoon, the planes cross the Gulf of Martaban and bomb a column eight kilometers south of Thaton. The anti-personnel bombs of the Audax cause many casualties, despite intense flak that shoot down two of the small biplanes. After the liberation of the region, inhabitants of the area reported that the crew of one of the aircraft had survived, but that the pilot and gunner had been executed by the Japanese.
Above the bridge over the Sittang River, a Mitsubishi Ki-15 "Babs" reconnaissance aircraft of the 1st Chutai, 8th Sentai, based at Nakhorn Sawan, is chased by two Hurricanes of Sqn 67, to the delight of the men of the 18th Indian Brigade. One of the British claims a victory, and Lt Takasada Nakatani is wounded, as is his gunner, but he manages to bring back his Ki-15 as far as Moulmein, where 119 holes are counted. The other Hurricane, victim of an engine failure before being able to attack, falls in the Sittang, where its pilot is rescued by Chinese soldiers.

 

[Wings]

February 22nd, 1942

Malaya Campaign
To the north... - The Commonwealth forces occupying the position of Tanjong Malim are preparing to hold on to it to gain time to evacuate Central Malaya.
Japanese Army planes bomb Kuala Lumpur, which is a shadow of its pre-war self, while Navy dive-bombers focus their attention on Port Swettenham, from where the men of the 8th Australian Division are evacuating to Sumatra. The small Hunt-class escort HMS Garth is slightly damaged, but the old destroyer Tenedos does not survive a direct hit from a 250 kg bomb.
.........
To the south... - Commonwealth troops begin to withdraw from Kluang. They are heading south, through Batu Pahat and Ayer Hitam.

 

[Wings]

February 22nd, 1942

Sumatra - At dawn, 17 of the Manchesters of Sqn 106 land at Palembang-II airfield, coming from Calcutta via Rangoon. The planes are immediately dispersed under cover.
.........
Tjilatjap (Java) - On the order of ABDAF, the cruiser Emile-Bertin leaves Tjilatjap for Fremantle at high speed, taking along local personalities. "We will have done everything, in this war," comments (discreetly) Commander Battet. "Transporting troops to land or evacuate, couriering in the Mediterranean, rescue expeditions for sunken fleets, shooting against land, naval combat, laying mines (all the same!) and now here we are, a luxury yacht for big businessmen!"

 

[Wings]

February 22nd, 1942

Darwin (northwest coast of Australia) - The port, where most of the civilian ships fleeing the Japanese cruisers after the fall of Timor and Bali are located, is under terrible
attack.
First come the bombers of the 1st Kokutai and the Takao Kokutai, escorted by the Tainan Kokutai fighters, which left the fields of Ambon and Kendari for that of Kupang, in Timor. This first wave consists of 54 G4M1 and 27 A6M2. Shortly after come 60 D3A1, 66 B5N2 and 48 A6M2 escorts launched by the four aircraft carriers of vice-admiral Nagumo. The latter, whose ships are at about 0100 hours at the limit between the Banda Sea and the Timor Sea, decided to make a quick night approach through the Banda Sea and came into the wind at dawn to launch.
Against this display of air power - 255 aircraft in all - the defenders of Darwin have only 26 USAAF P-40s without any early warning radar.
When at 08:30 the first planes are seen on the horizon, the Americans manage to send to the air 17 P-40s commanded by Major F.S. Pell. Only the first 11 planes manage to reach the altitude of the bombers and shoot down three G4M1s before being swallowed up by successive waves of Zeros, which shoot down nine of them. The other six P-40s have the good sense not to try to engage the masses of Japanese aircraft, but two of them are shot down on landing while trying to land on a field constantly strafed by A6M2s. The airfield is heavily bombed and three other P-40s, two B-17s and four Hudsons from Sqn 13 (RAAF) are destroyed on the ground.
Other bombers devastate the port and the city. Seven merchant ships of all sizes are sunk or burned and nine damaged. Port facilities and stores are severely damaged and the bombs that fell on the city caused a panic. Darwin is deserted by its civilian population for several days, fearing that such a massive attack was a prelude to an imminent Japanese landing.

 

[Wings]

February 22nd, 1942

East coast of Australia, 02:00 - The I-5 sees successively three steamers off Cape Otway; it pursues the largest one. At 04:30, its commander, CC Nakamura, succeeds in placing it in firing position and launches two torpedoes on a beautiful modern cargo ship, the Dane Amerika (10 218 GRT, East Asiatic Company, going from Capetown to Melbourne with cotton and 150 workers). One of the torpedoes hits the stern, stopping the freighter. The I-5 surfaces to finish off its prey with a gun, but the Dane rebels: it is the submarine that is taken under the precise fire of small guns. One man is killed by shrapnel, and the I-5 dives to get closer. At 05:15, it fires two new torpedoes at 800 meters. This time, both hit and the Amerika sinks in 15 minutes.
The I-5 does not wait to chase another ship, seen at a distance of nearly four nautical miles. At 06:30, it comes within 1,500 meters of an American tanker, the Edwin R. Cox (4,928 GRT, Atlantic Refining Co, going from Abadan to Melbourne). This time, it is an old, unarmed vessel that usually drags at 8 knots, and accelerates to... 9 knots to try to escape. The I-5 opens fire with its gun, and hits the Cox four times between 06:40 and 06:50. At that moment, an Avro Anson of the RAAF appears from the sun and drops four 100-pound depth charges. The small twin-engine aircraft manages to frame the submarine perfectly, one of the bombs even hit it head-on. Fortunately for the I-5, this bomb doesnot explode and remains stuck in the grills of the rear deck! The other bombs are too small for their explosion, even close, to do any harm to the thick hull of the submarine, which dives immediately. Despite the damage, old Edwin R. Cox, escorted by two other Ansons, manages to reach Port Phillip Bay a few hours later. As for the unexploded bomb, it would not be discovered until the I-5 returned to Kwajalein. It provides the Imperial Navy with a good example of what not to use to attack submarines (the Australians had understood this too, and the 50 kg bomb was quickly reserved for training!)
Meanwhile, the Ro-63 finally gets the reward of two nights of patrol near Caloundra, in shallow water, and two days on the bottom. Trying to check which channels were being used, the submarine sees a convoy going out of the harbor and another one entering the harbour, but without being able to take up a firing position. On the 22nd, at 21:00, a large steamer about to enter Moreton Bay is sighted, and the Ro-63 set off in pursuit on the water. At 21:40, it launches four torpedoes on the American freighter City of Dalhart (American Pioneer Line, 5 878 GRT, going from San Diego to Brisbane with military equipment, 20 light tanks in the holds, planes in crates and trucks on the deck).
Two torpedoes hit and the freighter catches fire. The fire brilliantly illuminates the submarine, which could do without this honor and leaves the scene as quickly as possible! An hour later, the City of Dalhart lists down on its port side and sinks in 25 meters of water.

 

[Wings]

February 22nd, 1942

Benghazi - The CVE Bois-Belleau and its screen leave Benghazi for Heraklion with a convoy of 37 ships.

 

[Wings]

February 23rd, 1942

Aberdeen (Maryland) - A very instructive day, both for the American officers and for the Soviet delegation (minus Molotov, who has a new appointment with Cordell Hull).
Generals Zhukov and Antonov visit the Armor Test Center and comment the "show": armored vehicles in static or moving presentation, as well as well as various projects.
In front of the new M3A1 (light), Zhukov just bursts out laughing, and his hilarity increases when he sees its 37 mm gun.
Learning that the M3 Medium requires a crew of seven men, Zhukov slams his fist on the armor and exclaims frankly (if not diplomatically): "This is not a tank, it is a coffin for seven brothers!"
Discovering the prototype of the M4 Medium, with its low-velocity 75 gun, it's not better "The design of this machine is outdated! It is too high, not armoured enough and its gun is not powerful enough for its calibre."
The prototype of the T1E2 heavy tank (M6), just delivered to the Test Center, is not better received: "Too high, and too complicated to be effective on the battlefield! And for such a big tank, its gun is ridiculous." More diplomatically, Antonov adds that the gun in question (the 3-inch T9 AA) is still far superior to the 75 mm of the M3 and the M4.
Then come the tanks developed on French orders, starting with the Sav-41, which had covered itself with glory in Indochina. "Ah," smiles Georgi Konstantinovich, "finally a good light tank!" The translator leans over to his ear and whispers to him that, for the French and the Americans, dismayed, it is a medium tank. Zhukov raises his eyes to the sky and his mimicry needs no translation.
The M3F is also considered outdated. Only the new M7F, still under test, attracts some approval.
Other comments, however, are more positive.
Zhukov and Antonov - lovers of big guns like all Russian generals since Ivan the Terrible - are very favorably impressed by the T32 self-propelled howitzer. The T49 project, a fast tank fighter of 12 tons armed with a 57 mm gun, is very appreciated; the two generals even look at the exhibition chassis of the two Buick car engines to be used by the T49 with the kind smile usually reserved for a baby in the cradle. The Sav-AU-41 tank hunter with casemate gun, developed by the French, also receives a good grade.
Finally, Zhukov and Antonov are deeply impressed (although they try not to show it) by the quality of the mechanical components, the generalized use of radios and the already visible efficiency of the organization of the American armored industry, still a beginner though.
.........
The evening is no less exciting for the American officers. To thank their hosts for having shown them around the Test Center, the Soviet delegation offers Marshall and Eisenhower a private dinner at the USSR embassy. Late at night, after many speeches on "Friendship between Peoples" and on "The Destiny of the Great Nations", going as far as to recall the Russian support for the Union side during the Civil War, Georgi Konstantinovich Zhukov sits down between Marshall and Eisenhower, takes them by the shoulders and, to the surprise of his Soviet translator, begins to tell them the story of the battle of Khalkin-Ghol, especially the last part, the Soviet offensive. In a voice as clear as if he had not just lived a very busy day and swallowed a copious meal with plenty of "water", he describes the tactics of the Japanese infantry, the propensity of the Imperial troops to attack when cornered, the density of their entrenchments, and the fact that the Soviet soldiers had to use flame-throwing tanks to seize certain defensive positions...

 

[Wings]

February 23rd, 1942

Off Venezuela - U-502 leaves two more victims in its wake, the tankers Thallia (Panamanian, 8,329 GRT) and Sun (American, 9,002 GRT), both sailing empty. The first is hit by three torpedoes (two others miss their target), after which it is necessary to finish it off with a gun: no less than 103 shells are fired by the submarine! It was a miracle that there is only one victim among the crew. The second ship is severely damaged by a torpedo; the crew (who had not suffered any losses) abandoned the ship, but re-boarded when an aircraft arrived on the scene, forcing the submarine to dive. The Sun is then able to take refuge near the Venezuelan coast.
Having run out of torpedoes, the U-502 ends its mission and returns to the Atlantic.
.........
275 miles west of Martinique - The American freighter Lihue (7 001 GRT) is severely damaged by a torpedo from the U-161. The submarine surfaces to finish off its victim with the gun but the crew of the latter retaliates, forcing the attacker to dive. The freighter dodges two more torpedoes, then U-161 stalls, suspecting a trap. The sailors of the Lihue evacuate their ship, which is in bad shape; they are rescued after a few hours by a British tanker. The cargo ship sinks three days later, while the aviso Ville d'Ys was towing it to Fort-de-France.
.........
Off the coast of British Guiana - The U-129 succeeds in making a double hit during the night. The submarine torpedoes the American cargo ship West Zeda (5,658 GRT), loaded with bauxite, and then the Canadian George L. Torian (1,754 GRT), carrying Turkish chrome ore.
The crew of the West Zeda had time to send out distress calls. In the morning, some of the sailors are rescued by a schooner from Saint Vincent and a Catalina from Trinidad. During this time, the Grumman JRF-5 from Cayenne take turns all day long to patrol the area. Their searches are unsuccessful, but U-129 is forced to remain underwater. It misses another cargo ship loaded with bauxite.

 

[Wings]

February 23rd, 1942

Bilin - The battle of Bilin should not have taken place. It was only a holding position, where Harvey's 17th Brigade deployed along the river, supported by two mountain artillery batteries. But as Thai elements launched frontal feints, pretending to cross the destroyed bridge, the Japanese 143rd Infantry Regiment (Colonel M. Uno) attempts to cross five kilometers further north to envelop the 17th Brigade and destroy it.
After several hours of skirmishing and artillery fire over the river, the 143rd succeeds in crossing the Bilin and forming a bridgehead. The Gurkhas notice this and the brigade's reserve battalion comes to cover the exposed flank. Benefiting from a growing numerical superiority, the 143rd I.R. begins to increase its pressure.
But Harvey still has an ace up his sleeve: the only armored force at the disposal of His Majesty's troops in Burma, the Calcutta Light Horse. This improvised unit aligns at this moment 12 old Vickers Mediums and 11 Mk V Lights, equally outdated (the ten other Vickers Medium and the nine other Mk V Light remained west of Sittang, not because of shyness, but for mechanical incidents). The people of the Calcutta LH will readily admit that they had no idea what combat tactics to adopt with an armored force, but that "charging at the enemy flank while shooting at him as much as possible seemed satisfactory." So that's what they do with a hardy-concealed enthusiasm in their old machines.
Pushed over, the Japanese retreat, giving the Gurkhas time to replenish their ammunition.
Four of the Mediums, who had lost the rest of their troop in the smoke of a brush fire, join the Gurkhas and, playing the role of infantry tanks, bring them an effective support when the Japanese attack again. The fight becomes more and more confused, and the other armoured vehicles charge the Japanese flank several times, their machine guns spitting continuously. These charges are far from being without danger: the Mk V Light are very poorly armored and six out of eleven are victims of heavy machine guns firing at short range, but isn't that the fate of light cavalry?
Meanwhile, the frontal attack along the river having been recognized as a feint, a second Indian battalion comes to the rescue of the first and at dusk, elements of the Japanese 143rd I.R. that had crossed had been pushed back seven or eight hundred yards.
During the night, Harvey, realizing that it is impossible to hold out any longer along the Bilin River, pulls back the 17th Brigade and the Calcutta LH to Kyiakto. He is very satisfied with the result obtained in large part thanks to the armor, which made up what they lacked in equipment, with training, tactics and mechanical reliability.
Terauchi, disgruntled, can only notice that this little action has cut his momentum while costing him a lot of ammunition.
In the air, Wing-Cdr. Carey (267th Wing commander), flying a Hurricane, shoots down a Ki-15 "Babs" of the 70th Independent Chutai on reconnaissance over the Sittang. During this time, three other Hurricanes collide with six Ki-27s of the 50th Sentai. Both sides lose one aircraft and its pilot. Ki-51 "Sonia" of the 31st Sentai bomb Toungoo, causing violent fires that devastate the small town.

 

[Wings]

February 23rd, 1942

Malaya Campaign
In the north... - The position of Tanjong Malim is attacked at dawn by the Japanese forces.
For the first time, the planes of the 1st Dokuritsu Sentai are engaged in ground support and dive-bombing missions. To the surprise of the British, the Japanese use, next to the "ground" Val, biplane dive bombers, which are mistaken for German Henschel 123. These first missions arenot a great success and the accuracy of the bombings is considered as weak by the British, compared to the previous ones (due to the planes of the Navy). However, their threat is enough to prevent the correct use of the British artillery.
.........
In the south... - The Japanese control the field of Kluang at the end of the day, but they discover that the British sappers have very carefully rendered it unusable.
.........
Singapore is again the target of heavy bombardments, which are now concentrated on power stations.

South China Sea - During the night, a Japanese submarine attacks an evacuation convoy leaving Singapore. One transport is sunk (a Dutch charter boat) and another damaged. The old destroyers Sabre and Stronghold counter-attack, but cannot damage the culprit.

 

[Wings]

February 23rd, 1942

Sumatra - Arrival at Palembang-II of the seven other Manchesters of Sqn 106, reconstituting the RAF's long-range bombing weapon in the region.

 

[Wings]

February 23rd, 1942

Nauru Island - Arrival of the cruiser Jeanne d'Arc, whose mission is to start the evacuation of the phosphate mine workers (many of whom were Chinese) and of the civilian population, as there is fear of an imminent Japanese invasion. Indeed, since the beginning of the war, the island has been flown over several times, and sometimes bombed, by Japanese planes coming from the Marshall Islands, which destroyed the radio transmitter.
The representatives of the British Phosphate Commission had to fight with the Australian administration to obtain the decision to evacuate. The government feared a loss of prestige among the local population and doubted the Japanese interest in these islands, which have no deep-water port or airfield.
Several rotations will be necessary to evacuate Nauru as well as the neighboring island of Banaba, while the phosphate mining facilities are sabotaged. A few diehards will remain on site.

 

[Wings]

February 23rd, 1942

East coast of Australia, 08:00 - The I-5 sees a column of smoke on the horizon and the route that the approaching ship should follow. It dives as soon as he sees the mast of his prey and has to wait four long hours. The boat in question is indeed the ancient Greek steamer Elini T, launched in 1897 (3 039 GRT, Theodore L. Teryazos Ltd, going from Chittagong to Melbourne with jute bags, rice bags and rum bottles). This museum piece is sailing at its best speed: 6 knots. The I-5 fires two torpedoes at 14:00. Both hit and the old ship breaks in two and sinks immediately.

 

[Wings]

February 23rd, 1942

Gibraltar - After refuelling, the aircraft carrier USS Ranger and its TF-34 joins the battlecruisers Dunkerque (where Vice-Admiral Duplat has put his flag) and Strasbourg.
Task Force 34 becomes one of the components of the "Force de Raid Ouest" (Admiral Duplat).

 

[Wings]

February 23rd, 1942

Sicily - The Comiso airfield is violently attacked by the Armée de l'Air. The latter loses three DB-73 light bombers and five fighters, for three Italian fighters and one German.

 

[Wings]

February 23rd, 1942

Greece - The Aegean Air Force attacks the Corinth Canal bridge again, without more results than the first time.

 

[Wings]

February 23rd, 1942

Ionian Sea - Since the beginning of 1942, fate has been kind to the Allied submarines. Whether in the Western Mediterranean or in the Adriatic and Ionian Sea, they have obtained several successes without suffering any losses. The first part of February was marked by a victory of HMS Una (Lt. D.S.R. Martin). Having gone to patrol the entrance of the Strait of Messina after the success of the operation Dark Knight carried out on the eastern coast of Sicily during the night of the 7th to 8th, it intercepted and sank the military tanker Lucania (10,200 GRT), which was heading from Taranto to Genoa.
The beginning of the first offensive patrol of the submarine HMS P-38 (Lt. R.J. Hemingway) is in the same vein: it obtains its first success by sending, on February 16th, off Valona, the cargo ship Ariosto (3,889 GRT) to the bottom. But luck is to change.
Heading south, the P-38 is able to attack a Brindisi-Patras-Piraeus convoy. But this one is strongly escorted and the continuation will be known only of Italian source. At 08:00 (Rome time), the torpedo boat Circe, which has already recorded the sinking of the submarines HMS Grampus (June 16, 1940) and Union (December 31, 1941), spots the periscope of the P-38.
For more than two and a half hours, supported by the big destroyers Pessagno and Usodimare, the commander of the Circe, CC Stefano Palmas, carries out a methodical hunt. At 10:50, the stern of the P-38 briefly breaks the surface, then the submarine sinks definitively: there are no survivors.

 

[Wings]

February 24th, 1942

Burma Campaign - Eight P-40s of the ROCAF attack the Raheng airfield; they destroy a Ki-27 and damage four others. On the other hand, marauding Ki-27s shoot down a BVAS Rapid Dragon near Mingaladon, killing three NCOs from Sqn 67.

 

[Wings]

February 24th, 1942

Malaya Campaign
In the north... - The Commonwealth units are forced to evacuate the position of Tanjong Malim under the pressure of Japanese troops.
.........
In the south... - The Japanese advance from Kluang to Ayer Hitam is close to cutting the Peninsula in two. Lt. General Percival orders the evacuation of all of Central Malaysia.
However, this evacuation is met with intense Japanese air force activity. The aircraft of the Navy attack Port Dickson (where the armed cargo ship Kybra and the patrol boat V3 are damaged beyond repair) and those of the Army attack the retreating troops. If the 1st Dokuritsu Sentai loses two D1A2s and a Ki-36 under flak fire, the dive bombers cause numerous military and civilian casualties on the increasingly congested road between Kuala-Lumpur and Seremban. At the end of the day, the medium bombers of the Army join the attack on Port Dickson.

 

[Wings]

February 24th, 1942

Java Sea - During the night, the submarines HMS Urge (Lt Cdr E.P. Tomkinson) and MN L'Aurore (LV Libiot) attack a large Japanese convoy going from Balikpapan to Macassar.
The Urge is able to sink a transport. The Aurore damages another one, but is pushed away from the convoy by a well-coordinated and persistent counter-attack led by three submarine hunters.
.........
Broome (west coast of Australia), 08:45 - The small harbor is attacked by 36 D3A1 escorted by as many A6M2 fighters. They find the harbor empty, except for two coasters. The Japanese planes send the two ships to the bottom and bombed the city without opposition.
.........
Java - Tjilatjap is bombed for the first time, but very inaccurately, by 18 G4M1 whose bombs fall on the city and not on the ships in the port.
Sœrabaya is also attacked, but the bombardment is much more precise and seriously damages the naval base, sinking the Dutch coastal dredgers Aroe and Bantam.
At the end of the evening, a new meeting of the ABDAF command is held in Bandœng to discuss the measures to be taken. The observations of the submarines and the photos taken by the last two Spitfire reconnaissance aircraft clearly show that a large Japanese landing force is heading towards Java, with elements coming from the Straits of Macassar and others from Kendari, under the protection of the same group of Navy aircraft that had already supported the landing in Timor. The news of the Japanese attack on Broome confirms the presence of a strong squadron of aircraft carriers in operation south of the Malayan barrier, threatening communications between India and Australia.
"In such a serious situation," comments General Wavell soberly, "it must be admitted that the defense of Java is no longer possible. I will recommend to my government to evacuate the Commonwealth forces stationed in Java to Sumatra or Australia as soon as we have no more fighters to cover Allied operations. I am afraid that will be the case in a day or two."
Admiral Helfrich jumps up, "It's far too early to be thinking of evacuating Java! You must understand that this island is the heart of the Dutch East Indies. If, in three days, the
Langley lands her fighters at Tjilatjap, its defense would become possible!"
General ter Poorten supports his compatriot as best he can, but Rear Admiral Palliser (Royal Navy) explains that it would be better for the Langley, the Sea Witch and their escort to return to Fremantle, because of the obvious risk of attack by Japanese aircraft carriers.
"We cannot afford to sacrifice the few ships we have to protect the west coast of Australia and communications with India by throwing them hopelessly against vastly superior enemy forces!"
But Helfrich does not admit defeat: "In this case, it is the ships of the old Strike Force who will take over from the Eastern Escort Group to escort the Langley. Note that they are all Dutch, so I'm not asking anyone to sacrifice other warships!"
He exclaims with emotion.
American generals Brereton (USAAF) and Brett do not accept this argument and agree with Wavell. But Rear Admiral Purnell, former chief of staff to Admiral Hart and the highest ranking US Navy officer remaining in Java, agrees with Helfrich.
After reflection, Admiral Decoux sides with the Dutch admiral: "Even if the attempt was desperate, it was necessary to try," said Decoux in 1962, interviewed for the twentieth anniversary of these dramatic events by Dutch television. "Evacuating without having even tried to fight would have created a disastrous precedent for the Dutch, and even for the other Allies, after the fine conduct of the British in Malaya and of our troops in Indochina. I was well aware, and Admiral Helfrich was no doubt also aware, that from a strictly military point of view, it was a mistake, but it was not a purely military decision. I am convinced that it was such choices that allowed the decolonization of Indonesia to take place under fairly good conditions, and I believe that France's support forHolland in those terrible hours created the bonds of friendship between our two countries that we see flourishing today in the European Community."
It is therefore decided that the CL Tromp, the CLAA Jacob van Heemskerck and their six destroyers leave Tjilatjap during the night to meet the Langley and the Sea Witch near Christmas Island. Meanwhile, the work that will allow the Langley's fighters to take off directly from the port of Tjilatjap, but most of the local workers had fled for fear of bombing and the Allied sailors have to do most of the work.
In addition, the mine-cruiser HMS Adventure is sent from Tjilatjap to Port Blair (Andaman), as it is too slow to go to Fremantle without fear of encountering Japanese raiders off the coast of Australia.