Fantasque Time Line (France Fights On) - English Translation
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5022 - Fall of Tartu
July 20th, 1942
Barbarossa
- Northern sector and Baltic Sea
Around 09:00, a Soviet squadron with seven DD Type-7 or 7U, the Serdity, Silny, Smelny, Smertlivy, Statny, Steregushchy and Stoiky, and four old DD, Engel's, Kalinin, Karl Marx and Volodarskij, leave Talinn, taking the Ladoga Brigade to Ventspils. At nightfall, this squadron is joined by four large minesweepers (Fyodor Mitrofanov, Luka Pankov, Vassiliy Gromov and Vladimir Polukhin) and three coastguards (Baltinskyi Rabochyi, Konstruktor and Markin), which carry the 12th PVO Brigade.
Considering the relative normalization of diplomatic relations with Finland, the Stavka assigns General K.A. Meretskov's 7th Independent Army to the North-Western Strategic Direction. This large unit is to be deployed with the 1st Baltic Front.
In Tartu, after 48 hours of fierce fighting, the Germans are finally masters of the city.
But, exhausted, they are hardly able to progress beyond.
.........
In the evening, General G.K. Zhukov is called back to Moscow. He is put in charge of the 1st Belorussian Front and the coordination of the two fronts in Belarus. At the moment when he transmits to Major-General M.M. Popov the North-Western Strategic Direction, Zhukov has stabilized the situation after the failures of Voroshilov and the German breakthrough on the Dvina.
The forces inherited by Popov are structured as follows:
- 1st Baltic Front (Lt-General Vatutin): 1st Army, 42nd Army, 7th Independent Army. Lake Peipus and Pskov Flotilla (PPOVF).
- 2nd Baltic Front (Lt-General Sobennikov): 27th Shock Army, 34th Army, 55th Army.
- Berzarin Group, defending Ventspils (Lt-General Berzarin): survivors of the units of the Curonian pocket, reinforced by the 1st Marine Infantry Division, by elements of the 4th IMD and the Ladoga Brigade.
- Chernyakovsky Maneuver Group (operating with the 2nd Baltic Front): 21st Mechanized Corps, 101st Heavy Tank Brigade, 198th Motorized Division. This group is in the process of reconstituted after the violent battles of early July.
- Shestopalov Maneuver Group (directly commanded by the Strategic Direction): 20th Mechanized Corps (reconstituted), 7th Motorized Division, 20th Cavalry Division.
- 5th Airborne Corps (General I.S. Berugly) (directly subordinated to the Strategic Directorate): 9th, 10th and 214th Airborne Brigades.
- The Baltic Fleet was integrated into the North-Western Strategic Direction. Admiral Tributs is Popov's first deputy. The Central Baltic Command (Vice Admiral Yu.
F. Rall) manages naval operations in the Gulf of Riga and around Ventspils, with specific units .
- The commanders of the air forces (VVS and IA-PVO) of the former Leningrad Military District are also subordinated to the North-Western Strategic Direction.
...
- Central sector
The OKW approves von Bock's proposal to temporarily halt offensive operations. In a private meeting with von Bock, Guderian tries again to obtain the organization of a new assault of the armored forces on the Smolensk-Moscow axis: "I am now certain that the enemy forces have suffered terrible losses, Herr Field Marshal! If maintenance units can quickly bring 200 panzers back into service, only 200, PanzerGruppe 2 can attack again, and I promise you to reach Vyazma and Mojaisk in less than a week!"
But Bock refuses "First, I doubt that it is possible to reconstitute the forces of your PanzerGruppe so quickly. Secondly, I remind you that we have to wait for new orders from the OKH."
...
- Southern sector
The Luftwaffe launches a major offensive against Zhitomir and Vinnitsa. Its aircraft accomplish in the day 414 combat missions, which cost 43 aircraft to Luftflotte 4 and 68 to the VVS. In addition, the Soviet troops are well entrenched and the bombing is not very effective against them, especially since many of the Ju 88 crews, novices, are not trained for dive attacks and have to content themselves with bombing in horizontal flight. But many of the most experienced crews are at the bottom of the Mediterranean...
To the south of the front, von Schobert organizes the conquered territory. His troops are victorious but exhausted. He now has to negotiate with his Romanian allies and, which is not easy, with Von Stülpnagel, who demands the return of the two borrowed divisions to the 17th Army. The decisive assault on Odessa would require considerable equipment and, to begin with, the restoration of the railroad: nothing will be possible for several weeks. Germans and Romanians know that the great port will be an even more difficult piece to take than Kishinev and they are studying the lessons of the previous days' fighting.
...
- Black Sea
At the beginning of the morning, the Lend-Lease convoy enters the waters of the Bosphorus while its Soviet escort returns to Sevastopol.
Barbarossa
- Northern sector and Baltic Sea
Around 09:00, a Soviet squadron with seven DD Type-7 or 7U, the Serdity, Silny, Smelny, Smertlivy, Statny, Steregushchy and Stoiky, and four old DD, Engel's, Kalinin, Karl Marx and Volodarskij, leave Talinn, taking the Ladoga Brigade to Ventspils. At nightfall, this squadron is joined by four large minesweepers (Fyodor Mitrofanov, Luka Pankov, Vassiliy Gromov and Vladimir Polukhin) and three coastguards (Baltinskyi Rabochyi, Konstruktor and Markin), which carry the 12th PVO Brigade.
Considering the relative normalization of diplomatic relations with Finland, the Stavka assigns General K.A. Meretskov's 7th Independent Army to the North-Western Strategic Direction. This large unit is to be deployed with the 1st Baltic Front.
In Tartu, after 48 hours of fierce fighting, the Germans are finally masters of the city.
But, exhausted, they are hardly able to progress beyond.
.........
In the evening, General G.K. Zhukov is called back to Moscow. He is put in charge of the 1st Belorussian Front and the coordination of the two fronts in Belarus. At the moment when he transmits to Major-General M.M. Popov the North-Western Strategic Direction, Zhukov has stabilized the situation after the failures of Voroshilov and the German breakthrough on the Dvina.
The forces inherited by Popov are structured as follows:
- 1st Baltic Front (Lt-General Vatutin): 1st Army, 42nd Army, 7th Independent Army. Lake Peipus and Pskov Flotilla (PPOVF).
- 2nd Baltic Front (Lt-General Sobennikov): 27th Shock Army, 34th Army, 55th Army.
- Berzarin Group, defending Ventspils (Lt-General Berzarin): survivors of the units of the Curonian pocket, reinforced by the 1st Marine Infantry Division, by elements of the 4th IMD and the Ladoga Brigade.
- Chernyakovsky Maneuver Group (operating with the 2nd Baltic Front): 21st Mechanized Corps, 101st Heavy Tank Brigade, 198th Motorized Division. This group is in the process of reconstituted after the violent battles of early July.
- Shestopalov Maneuver Group (directly commanded by the Strategic Direction): 20th Mechanized Corps (reconstituted), 7th Motorized Division, 20th Cavalry Division.
- 5th Airborne Corps (General I.S. Berugly) (directly subordinated to the Strategic Directorate): 9th, 10th and 214th Airborne Brigades.
- The Baltic Fleet was integrated into the North-Western Strategic Direction. Admiral Tributs is Popov's first deputy. The Central Baltic Command (Vice Admiral Yu.
F. Rall) manages naval operations in the Gulf of Riga and around Ventspils, with specific units .
- The commanders of the air forces (VVS and IA-PVO) of the former Leningrad Military District are also subordinated to the North-Western Strategic Direction.
...
- Central sector
The OKW approves von Bock's proposal to temporarily halt offensive operations. In a private meeting with von Bock, Guderian tries again to obtain the organization of a new assault of the armored forces on the Smolensk-Moscow axis: "I am now certain that the enemy forces have suffered terrible losses, Herr Field Marshal! If maintenance units can quickly bring 200 panzers back into service, only 200, PanzerGruppe 2 can attack again, and I promise you to reach Vyazma and Mojaisk in less than a week!"
But Bock refuses "First, I doubt that it is possible to reconstitute the forces of your PanzerGruppe so quickly. Secondly, I remind you that we have to wait for new orders from the OKH."
...
- Southern sector
The Luftwaffe launches a major offensive against Zhitomir and Vinnitsa. Its aircraft accomplish in the day 414 combat missions, which cost 43 aircraft to Luftflotte 4 and 68 to the VVS. In addition, the Soviet troops are well entrenched and the bombing is not very effective against them, especially since many of the Ju 88 crews, novices, are not trained for dive attacks and have to content themselves with bombing in horizontal flight. But many of the most experienced crews are at the bottom of the Mediterranean...
To the south of the front, von Schobert organizes the conquered territory. His troops are victorious but exhausted. He now has to negotiate with his Romanian allies and, which is not easy, with Von Stülpnagel, who demands the return of the two borrowed divisions to the 17th Army. The decisive assault on Odessa would require considerable equipment and, to begin with, the restoration of the railroad: nothing will be possible for several weeks. Germans and Romanians know that the great port will be an even more difficult piece to take than Kishinev and they are studying the lessons of the previous days' fighting.
...
- Black Sea
At the beginning of the morning, the Lend-Lease convoy enters the waters of the Bosphorus while its Soviet escort returns to Sevastopol.
5024
July 20th, 1942
Benghazi - The 1st Greek I.D. and the 1st Greek Armoured Brigade, both modeled on the British and armed with British or Canadian equipment (Valentine tanks for example), embark for the Peloponnese. No precautions are taken to conceal this transfer; on the other hand, the return of French and British troops from the Peloponnese to Africa is done in the greatest secrecy.
Benghazi - The 1st Greek I.D. and the 1st Greek Armoured Brigade, both modeled on the British and armed with British or Canadian equipment (Valentine tanks for example), embark for the Peloponnese. No precautions are taken to conceal this transfer; on the other hand, the return of French and British troops from the Peloponnese to Africa is done in the greatest secrecy.
5025
July 20th, 1942
Peloponnese - Sqn 112 and 250 of the RAF (Aegean Air Force) leave for Benghazi where they will take over their Spitfire Vb/c. Sqn 33 and 213, operating from Naxos, are already equipped with Spitfire Vs, since they have taken over those of the 1st French E.C.
.........
Oran-La Sénia - The 244th Wing of the RAF (Sqn 73, 92, 145 and 601) begins to re-equip with Spitfire Vb/c in anticipation of Operation Torch.
Peloponnese - Sqn 112 and 250 of the RAF (Aegean Air Force) leave for Benghazi where they will take over their Spitfire Vb/c. Sqn 33 and 213, operating from Naxos, are already equipped with Spitfire Vs, since they have taken over those of the 1st French E.C.
.........
Oran-La Sénia - The 244th Wing of the RAF (Sqn 73, 92, 145 and 601) begins to re-equip with Spitfire Vb/c in anticipation of Operation Torch.
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5026
July 20th, 1942
Rome - General Giovanni Messe leads the mission of reflection entrusted by Mussolini, multiplying the trips to the field and the interviews with the local officials. The Duce receives today the report that came out of it (and which was duly channeled through the hierarchy, but with remarkable celerity).
The report concludes first of all that the evolution of the strategic situation must lead to redraw the very vast territory that had hitherto belonged to General Caracciolo di Feroleto's 3rd Army: in order to react quickly to the enemy's actions, it is necessary to react quickly to the enemy's actions, smaller commands are needed, whose headquarters would be closer to the points under threat. Wherever there is only one army, three are needed.
The 3rd Army should only be responsible for defending the center of the peninsula (as well as Corsica and Sardinia). It is proposed to entrust another army with the defense of Sicily and a third one that of the south of the peninsula (the old continental part of the kingdom of Two Sicilies). But even though each of these three armies would be composed of mobile and positional units, the second conclusion of the report is that it is necessary to set up a fourth army, not of defense but of counter-attack, formed of the most modern units available from the Regio Esercito, armored and mechanized.
These various proposals are not to go unheeded. Before the end of the month, the necessary decisions will be taken.
Rome - General Giovanni Messe leads the mission of reflection entrusted by Mussolini, multiplying the trips to the field and the interviews with the local officials. The Duce receives today the report that came out of it (and which was duly channeled through the hierarchy, but with remarkable celerity).
The report concludes first of all that the evolution of the strategic situation must lead to redraw the very vast territory that had hitherto belonged to General Caracciolo di Feroleto's 3rd Army: in order to react quickly to the enemy's actions, it is necessary to react quickly to the enemy's actions, smaller commands are needed, whose headquarters would be closer to the points under threat. Wherever there is only one army, three are needed.
The 3rd Army should only be responsible for defending the center of the peninsula (as well as Corsica and Sardinia). It is proposed to entrust another army with the defense of Sicily and a third one that of the south of the peninsula (the old continental part of the kingdom of Two Sicilies). But even though each of these three armies would be composed of mobile and positional units, the second conclusion of the report is that it is necessary to set up a fourth army, not of defense but of counter-attack, formed of the most modern units available from the Regio Esercito, armored and mechanized.
These various proposals are not to go unheeded. Before the end of the month, the necessary decisions will be taken.
Their answer:
The clause for the passage of the Bosphorus only forbids the transit of warships. Merchantmen, even armed, can freely pass the straits. Therefore the Allies give coverage until Turkish territorial waters, the merchantmen then transit these waters without escort, and they are picked up by Soviet escorts once they leave territorial waters.
They couldn't do this OTL because the Germans (and Italians) held all the islands of the Aegean from Crete to Limnos.
Except Wikipedia seems to indicate that armed merchant vessels and auxiliary vessels were banned when the Axis tried it, following pressure from the other side during WW2: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montreux_Convention_Regarding_the_Regime_of_the_Straits#Implementation
And with Germany (plus supporters) on the offensive in mid-1942, and apparently winning, it seems to me that Turkey really should have been saying 'nuh-uh' to armed Allied flagged merchantmen - absent extraordinary diplomatic pressure from French experts in the region, and/or alien space bat intervention.
There's scope here possibly for the original writers to go back and retcon in a piece regarding French diplomatic flair on this topic.
I cannot help thinking that in a way
things are going better for the Japanese in TTL than in OTL. There has been no Battle of Midway with the loss of 4 Japanese aircraft carriers.
things are going better for the Japanese in TTL than in OTL. There has been no Battle of Midway with the loss of 4 Japanese aircraft carriers.
It seems like it's broadly? going better at sea. Or perhaps worse for the allies, more correctly.
But notably worse/behind on land.
Remember that with the Irak affair, Germany isn’t in the good graces of Turkey at all. And the British have kindly offered the Turks some Spitfires and access to South American and African markets.
If Turkey refused them the access to the Straits, the Allies would’ve pressured the Turks again.
Going slightly better, but they’ve still lost two carriers (Zuikaku and Shoho) and two battleships (Ise and Fuso), plus the Kongo.
Yes. Singapore hasn’t fallen, Sabang, the Andamans and Penang still hold, they haven’t reached past the Salween in Burma, Indochina is in a permanent state of armed revolt and the French still hold the Northwestern part of the country, and the KMT is doing much better than OTL.
And I think the Americans are still organized and fighting in the Southern Philippines as well. (And the Japanese took longer to take the military defenses around Manila.)
And even if the writers are incorrect and an armed cargo ship with tanks or machine gunswould be rejected, there were things that were absolutely dual use that the Turks even if completely neutral would let through. The USSR needed to import a *lot* of rubber and in fact a *LOT* of military trucks were imported as well (which weren't shipped iOTL with any sort of weapons as part of it.) It is my guess than more than 3/4 of the imports to the Soviet Union would be dual use and if Arctic Convoys *had* to be used for some of it, the combination of fewer convoys *and* fewer German subs would still make things easier.
5027
July 21st, 1942
Isle of Wight - Troops selected for Operation Rutter conduct a large-scale landing exercise to test procedures and communications. In the late evening, reviewing the results of the exercise, Major-General John H. Roberts exclaims: "This is going to be a piece of cake!"
Isle of Wight - Troops selected for Operation Rutter conduct a large-scale landing exercise to test procedures and communications. In the late evening, reviewing the results of the exercise, Major-General John H. Roberts exclaims: "This is going to be a piece of cake!"
5028
July 21st, 1942
London - This national holiday offers Belgian Prime Minister Pierlot an excellent opportunity to organize a little game of musical chairs.
It took Charles d'Aspremont-Lynden only a few months to make himself unbearable as Belgian Minister of Defence. He made a lot of blunders with certain army officers (whom he probably did not find sufficiently Leopoldist), and even with his allied counterparts. It became clear that he had to be replaced.
On the eve of the national holiday, Pierlot was offered a replacement on a platter: Antoine Delfosse, Minister of PTT, Transport and Communications, who had been caught in Flanders in May 1940 and was unable to reach London. Remaining in Belgium, he participated in the creation and animation of a Resistance network that had just been hit hard by a series of arrests made by the Gestapo. He himself was exfiltrated in a Lysander on July 14th.
His experience as a Resistance fighter seems to make Delfosse an excellent candidate to take over the National Defense. As for d'Aspremont, as a consolation prize, he gets back Delfosse's former responsibilities (until then they had been exercised by August de Schryver, the Minister of Economic Affairs).
London - This national holiday offers Belgian Prime Minister Pierlot an excellent opportunity to organize a little game of musical chairs.
It took Charles d'Aspremont-Lynden only a few months to make himself unbearable as Belgian Minister of Defence. He made a lot of blunders with certain army officers (whom he probably did not find sufficiently Leopoldist), and even with his allied counterparts. It became clear that he had to be replaced.
On the eve of the national holiday, Pierlot was offered a replacement on a platter: Antoine Delfosse, Minister of PTT, Transport and Communications, who had been caught in Flanders in May 1940 and was unable to reach London. Remaining in Belgium, he participated in the creation and animation of a Resistance network that had just been hit hard by a series of arrests made by the Gestapo. He himself was exfiltrated in a Lysander on July 14th.
His experience as a Resistance fighter seems to make Delfosse an excellent candidate to take over the National Defense. As for d'Aspremont, as a consolation prize, he gets back Delfosse's former responsibilities (until then they had been exercised by August de Schryver, the Minister of Economic Affairs).
5029
July 21st, 1942
Alger, Assembly of the Elected Representatives of the Republic - In the wake of Pierre Taittinger and Henri Becquart (who returned from his Indochina expedition seriously wounded but all the more vicious), several members of the Republican Federation and of some other right-wing formations are violently indignant following the replacement of their parliamentary colleague Ernest Beluel, who died on the 2nd, by one of his party comrades - from the left, that is!
While nothing is yet acted, they anticipate the coming replacement of Léon Sireyjol, Senator Gauche Démocratique of Dordogne, who died eleven days earlier!
"It is improbable that black cabinet agreements, or perhaps those of the Blue Lodge, allow to maintain sine die in power the elected members of a majority which led the country to the brink of collapse just two years ago! And this, with the support, too opportune to be completely honest groups that have, as everyone remembers, undermined the very foundations of the Republic and its Defense since before the beginning of the conflict" exclaims Becquart during an outing which will lead to a suspension of the session, quite rare fact during the "Algerian period" of the war.
Becquart, Taittinger and their supporters complain in particular, not about the fact that the eighteen parliamentarians who died since the Grand Demenagement were almost all left-wing (except for Félix Braise, a Union Républicaine senator who died in March), but that their replacements are also left-wing! Pierre Taittinger adds: "The Assembly of the Elected Representatives of the Republic is not representative of the True Fighting France. That of the Sursaut! The one who fights against the enemies from outside as well as from inside, some of whom, with all shame forgotten, are knocking on our door today [he is obviously referring to the communists]. We are 570 today, the Constitution authorizes us to be 600, I propose to renew at least part of the composition of our Assembly."
Paul Reynaud, exhausted by two and a half years at the head of a state "with a broken back", then decides to unburden himself of the problem by appealing to the very institution that had approved the replacement of the deceased elected officials by their party comrades: the Constitutional Consultative Commission. The CCC thus takes over, with the authority conferred on it by a series of arbitrations rendered without partisan spirit - which does not prevent the bad tongues from calling it the Commission of Corpses and Morticians.
Alger, Assembly of the Elected Representatives of the Republic - In the wake of Pierre Taittinger and Henri Becquart (who returned from his Indochina expedition seriously wounded but all the more vicious), several members of the Republican Federation and of some other right-wing formations are violently indignant following the replacement of their parliamentary colleague Ernest Beluel, who died on the 2nd, by one of his party comrades - from the left, that is!
While nothing is yet acted, they anticipate the coming replacement of Léon Sireyjol, Senator Gauche Démocratique of Dordogne, who died eleven days earlier!
"It is improbable that black cabinet agreements, or perhaps those of the Blue Lodge, allow to maintain sine die in power the elected members of a majority which led the country to the brink of collapse just two years ago! And this, with the support, too opportune to be completely honest groups that have, as everyone remembers, undermined the very foundations of the Republic and its Defense since before the beginning of the conflict" exclaims Becquart during an outing which will lead to a suspension of the session, quite rare fact during the "Algerian period" of the war.
Becquart, Taittinger and their supporters complain in particular, not about the fact that the eighteen parliamentarians who died since the Grand Demenagement were almost all left-wing (except for Félix Braise, a Union Républicaine senator who died in March), but that their replacements are also left-wing! Pierre Taittinger adds: "The Assembly of the Elected Representatives of the Republic is not representative of the True Fighting France. That of the Sursaut! The one who fights against the enemies from outside as well as from inside, some of whom, with all shame forgotten, are knocking on our door today [he is obviously referring to the communists]. We are 570 today, the Constitution authorizes us to be 600, I propose to renew at least part of the composition of our Assembly."
Paul Reynaud, exhausted by two and a half years at the head of a state "with a broken back", then decides to unburden himself of the problem by appealing to the very institution that had approved the replacement of the deceased elected officials by their party comrades: the Constitutional Consultative Commission. The CCC thus takes over, with the authority conferred on it by a series of arbitrations rendered without partisan spirit - which does not prevent the bad tongues from calling it the Commission of Corpses and Morticians.
5030 - Raid on Sydney
July 21st, 1942
Sydney - Six G4M1s, overloaded with gasoline, with one less gunner to save weight and only 600 kg of bombs, take off from Tenaru (Guadalcanal) for one of the boldest attacks of the war. Two of them turn back due to engine problems, but the other four fly to Sydney to the limit of their endurance. They arrive over the main harbor shortly after sunrise. They are of course detected, but, coming from the north, they are mistaken for allied planes arriving from Brisbane. The four planes then attack as in training, two attack the Cockatoo shipyard and two the Garden Island naval base.
On Garden Island, two workshops are burned and the power station is seriously damaged, as the fuel tank dug in the rock behind the power station was hit (it will burn for two days). On Cockatoo Island, it is worse. A cluster of bombs does damage to the metal workshops and opens a gaping hole in the cruiser dock.
Paint and carpentry shops are also hit and catch fire; the fires are not controlled until after several hours. Three 250-pound bombs hit the cruiser HMAS Hobart, moored at Sutherland Wharf, where repairs were being completed after a torpedoing by a submarine the previous February. The forward superstructure is hit and the forward boiler room is destroyed by fire.
At this early hour, only a few Boomerangs were flying over the city for training. Only one of the pilots has any experience. He spots the bombers, identifies them, gets his little fighter into firing position and shoots down one of the G4M1s right after it drops its bombs, and lands at Bankstown. In flames, the G4M1 crashes on the outskirts of Sydney, in Manly, destroying several houses. Four crew members jump by parachute (which is very unusual for Japanese over enemy territory) and are captured without difficulty.
The other three planes manage to return to Tenaru, where they land with their fuel tanks almost empty.
.........
Meanwhile, twelve other G4M1s, in groups of four, scour the ocean for Allied ships, but without success.
Croydon (England) - D.H. 91 n°11 (Second series) of Transport Squadron 271 takes off for Cairo, via Casablanca and Benghazi. The wooden long-range aircraft is one of the ten communication aircraft that the RAF hastily purchased in July 1940, to ensure the easy maintenance of its relations with North Africa. On board, 500 kg of electronic equipment and two radar and jamming specialists, whose final destination is much further away than Cairo.
Sydney - Six G4M1s, overloaded with gasoline, with one less gunner to save weight and only 600 kg of bombs, take off from Tenaru (Guadalcanal) for one of the boldest attacks of the war. Two of them turn back due to engine problems, but the other four fly to Sydney to the limit of their endurance. They arrive over the main harbor shortly after sunrise. They are of course detected, but, coming from the north, they are mistaken for allied planes arriving from Brisbane. The four planes then attack as in training, two attack the Cockatoo shipyard and two the Garden Island naval base.
On Garden Island, two workshops are burned and the power station is seriously damaged, as the fuel tank dug in the rock behind the power station was hit (it will burn for two days). On Cockatoo Island, it is worse. A cluster of bombs does damage to the metal workshops and opens a gaping hole in the cruiser dock.
Paint and carpentry shops are also hit and catch fire; the fires are not controlled until after several hours. Three 250-pound bombs hit the cruiser HMAS Hobart, moored at Sutherland Wharf, where repairs were being completed after a torpedoing by a submarine the previous February. The forward superstructure is hit and the forward boiler room is destroyed by fire.
At this early hour, only a few Boomerangs were flying over the city for training. Only one of the pilots has any experience. He spots the bombers, identifies them, gets his little fighter into firing position and shoots down one of the G4M1s right after it drops its bombs, and lands at Bankstown. In flames, the G4M1 crashes on the outskirts of Sydney, in Manly, destroying several houses. Four crew members jump by parachute (which is very unusual for Japanese over enemy territory) and are captured without difficulty.
The other three planes manage to return to Tenaru, where they land with their fuel tanks almost empty.
.........
Meanwhile, twelve other G4M1s, in groups of four, scour the ocean for Allied ships, but without success.
Croydon (England) - D.H. 91 n°11 (Second series) of Transport Squadron 271 takes off for Cairo, via Casablanca and Benghazi. The wooden long-range aircraft is one of the ten communication aircraft that the RAF hastily purchased in July 1940, to ensure the easy maintenance of its relations with North Africa. On board, 500 kg of electronic equipment and two radar and jamming specialists, whose final destination is much further away than Cairo.
5031
July 21st, 1942
Kokoda Track - With the Japanese stopped short of Myola since July 11th, the Australians have a moment to catch their breath. They make the best of it.
"Brigadier Wootten, like many officers and men of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF), had hitherto regarded with contempt the "Chocolate soldiers" of the Australian Militia Force (AMF). But when, on 11 July 1942, his 18th Brigade (of the 7th Division) reached Templeton's Crossing after a terrible forced march, rescued the 49th Battalion of the 30th AMF Brigade and discovered the last survivors of the 39th Battalion, he had a complete change of heart about the fighting capabilities of the AMF (as well as of the Japanese)." (B. Marcus, The Australian Armed Forces in World War II)
Wootten concentrates two of his three battalions (2/9 and 2/10) in front of Templeton's Crossing, with 2/12 in reserve three kilometers to the rear, where the Trail crosses Eora Creek. As they stand guard, all available transport aircraft in New Guinea are rushing to accumulate supplies at Myola.
"One of the few surviving Ju 52s from the Wau gold mines was worth his weight in gold in this task. Most of its fuselage roof had been removed to allow it to take excavation material from Lae to Wau. But to unload the transported material, a crane was needed - and in Myola, no such machine. Yeap Chooi Yeong's workshop in Port Moresby succeeded in building a very ingenious crane, which was transported in parts to Myola. Once reassembled, it was used to unload large items from the "stripped" Ju 52, and first of all four American four-wheel drive trucks, stripped of all but the essentials, the famous "skeleton trucks", nothing more than a chassis, an engine and a set of wheels (the driver's seat was made of wood cut on the spot, like the truck's platform). Crane and trucks freed up more than 800 men, who no longer had to act as porters between the fields and Myola's depots. As a result, Wootten was able to take the offensive as early as August 1st, while gradually improving his supply situation." (B. Marcus, op. cit.)
The key to Australian logistics is air transport, the backbone of which is, and will remain for months, the Netherlands East Indies Air Force (NEIAF).
"The echo given by the press on the essential role of the NEIAF was a balm for the morale of the Dutch forces exiled in Australia, as it was clearly a valuable contribution to the war against the Japanese. Moreover, the work of the Lodestar crews attracted the attention of Lockheed, as the Dutch sent a series of recommendations to the firm to improve the use of the machine in a tropical environment. These recommendations speak volumes about the conditions and the savage way in which the machines were used. From little things reveal the nature of the campaign, such as the demand for much stronger tires, stronger shock absorbers... as well as a slight camber in the cabin floor and the removal of the small rim on the rear fuselage door - to make it easier to be able to clean the blood of the wounded more easily! Workers on the Lockheed assembly line, hearing of these requests, created a special badge for NEIAF crews, the "NEIAF High Jungle Lodestar Warrior" badge, much to the delight of the Dutch crews. The latter were entitled to it after twenty trips from Myola to Port Moresby with wounded or sick people. Within a few weeks, it became completely impossible for a man wearing one of these hard-earned badges (called "Myola Patches" by the Australians) to pay out of his own pocket for a beer anywhere in the presence of a member of the AMF or AIF." (B. Marcus, op. cit.)
Kokoda Track - With the Japanese stopped short of Myola since July 11th, the Australians have a moment to catch their breath. They make the best of it.
"Brigadier Wootten, like many officers and men of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF), had hitherto regarded with contempt the "Chocolate soldiers" of the Australian Militia Force (AMF). But when, on 11 July 1942, his 18th Brigade (of the 7th Division) reached Templeton's Crossing after a terrible forced march, rescued the 49th Battalion of the 30th AMF Brigade and discovered the last survivors of the 39th Battalion, he had a complete change of heart about the fighting capabilities of the AMF (as well as of the Japanese)." (B. Marcus, The Australian Armed Forces in World War II)
Wootten concentrates two of his three battalions (2/9 and 2/10) in front of Templeton's Crossing, with 2/12 in reserve three kilometers to the rear, where the Trail crosses Eora Creek. As they stand guard, all available transport aircraft in New Guinea are rushing to accumulate supplies at Myola.
"One of the few surviving Ju 52s from the Wau gold mines was worth his weight in gold in this task. Most of its fuselage roof had been removed to allow it to take excavation material from Lae to Wau. But to unload the transported material, a crane was needed - and in Myola, no such machine. Yeap Chooi Yeong's workshop in Port Moresby succeeded in building a very ingenious crane, which was transported in parts to Myola. Once reassembled, it was used to unload large items from the "stripped" Ju 52, and first of all four American four-wheel drive trucks, stripped of all but the essentials, the famous "skeleton trucks", nothing more than a chassis, an engine and a set of wheels (the driver's seat was made of wood cut on the spot, like the truck's platform). Crane and trucks freed up more than 800 men, who no longer had to act as porters between the fields and Myola's depots. As a result, Wootten was able to take the offensive as early as August 1st, while gradually improving his supply situation." (B. Marcus, op. cit.)
The key to Australian logistics is air transport, the backbone of which is, and will remain for months, the Netherlands East Indies Air Force (NEIAF).
"The echo given by the press on the essential role of the NEIAF was a balm for the morale of the Dutch forces exiled in Australia, as it was clearly a valuable contribution to the war against the Japanese. Moreover, the work of the Lodestar crews attracted the attention of Lockheed, as the Dutch sent a series of recommendations to the firm to improve the use of the machine in a tropical environment. These recommendations speak volumes about the conditions and the savage way in which the machines were used. From little things reveal the nature of the campaign, such as the demand for much stronger tires, stronger shock absorbers... as well as a slight camber in the cabin floor and the removal of the small rim on the rear fuselage door - to make it easier to be able to clean the blood of the wounded more easily! Workers on the Lockheed assembly line, hearing of these requests, created a special badge for NEIAF crews, the "NEIAF High Jungle Lodestar Warrior" badge, much to the delight of the Dutch crews. The latter were entitled to it after twenty trips from Myola to Port Moresby with wounded or sick people. Within a few weeks, it became completely impossible for a man wearing one of these hard-earned badges (called "Myola Patches" by the Australians) to pay out of his own pocket for a beer anywhere in the presence of a member of the AMF or AIF." (B. Marcus, op. cit.)
5032
July 21st, 1942
Tam-Quam (Annam) - At dawn, the Japanese destroy the railroad track and all the equipment they had found: six locomotives and twenty wagons. They then leave Tam-Quam, not without having massacred all that was still alive, destroyed the houses and burned the fields, according to the directive of the "Three Ones" (kill everything, burn everything, destroy everything).
Tam-Quam (Annam) - At dawn, the Japanese destroy the railroad track and all the equipment they had found: six locomotives and twenty wagons. They then leave Tam-Quam, not without having massacred all that was still alive, destroyed the houses and burned the fields, according to the directive of the "Three Ones" (kill everything, burn everything, destroy everything).
5033
July 21st, 1942
Barbarossa
- Northern sector and Baltic Sea
03:30 - As the Soviet squadron leaves Ventspils after having disembarked its entire cargo, they fall into a trap laid by the 2nd German S-Boat Flotilla. The Markin and Konstruktor are torpedoed and sunk. A brief battle ensues, but the German boats escapes without difficulty.
The Soviet submarine Shch-405 is lost off Memel in a minefield.
The Soviet air force remains very active over the Curonian Spit, but loses 17 aircraft in exchange for seven German aircraft.
...
- Central sector
Army Group Center begains to redeploy. During this time, the discussion on "What to do with the Smolensk and Velikye Luki salients" is being brought forward again. Guderian bypasses his direct superior, von Bock, and appeals directly to Halder to persuade him to order a resumption of the offensive. However, as Hitler had not yet made up his mind, Halder is embarrassed. That is why he calls General von Sodenstern, Chief of Staff of the Army Group Center, and tells him that for the moment, the OKH is leaving the decision to von Bock.
On the Soviet side, General G.K. Zhukov arrives in Vyazma to relieve General Vasilievsky, who must return to the Department of Operations of the Stavka. The two men spend a part of the night discussing the strategic and operational situation. Zhukov then obtains from Vasilievsky the guarantee that the Stavka will let him use the "Reserve Front" that he has created to crush the German forces around Smolensk. "Don't worry, Alexander Mihkaylovich," Zhukov explains to Vasilievsky before he boards the plane back to Moscow. "I have no intention of attacking until I have created the best operational configuration possible. But then I will do everything to destroy as many fascist forces as possible."
...
- Southern sector
PanzerGruppe 1 attacks at dawn the area of Zhitomir, while the 17th Army relaunches its attack on Vinnitsa.
In the Zhitomir area, the bulk of the task falls to the XLVIII. PanzerKorps, which attacks south of the city. This corps has been reinforced: it now includes the 16., 57. and 75. ID, the Leibstandarte SS Adolf-Hitler (mechanized infantry) and the 11., 13. and 16. PanzerDivisions ; but it should be noted that the 13. Panzer has only 81 tanks and the two other armored divisions are reduced to 51 and 53 tanks. The infantry divisions are also clearly understaffed. For its part, the XIV. PanzerKorps attacks north of Zhitomir, hoping to attract some of the Soviet defenders.
Very quickly, the armored formations find themselves under the crossfire of two anti-tank brigades and in the middle of vast minefields. The battle rages all day and the German columns cannot advance more than 5 km. The intensity of the Soviet artillery fire is terrifying and its effectiveness is formidable. On the other side, the German artillery is seriously handicapped by the counter-battery fire of the A-19 long-range field guns.
In the Vinnitsa area, Stülpnagel assigns the IV Corps the task of attacking south of the city to cut the road from Vinnitsa to Uman', leaving it to the XLIX Corps and the Hungarian Corps to fix the Soviet forces north of the city. This attack is slightly more successful than that of PzG 1. IV Corps forces advance to the Youjny Bug (South Bug), but slowly, as the divisions of the 17th Army are just as short of manpower as those of PzG 1.
In the air, the Luftflotte 4 and the Hungarian air force encounter the entire 5th Soviet Air Force. The losses are once again very heavy on both sides (32 planes lost for the Luftwaffe and the Hungarians against 54 for the VVS).
...
- Black Sea
The Soviet submarine M-33 attacks the Romanian destroyer Marasesti off Sulina, but misses.
Barbarossa
- Northern sector and Baltic Sea
03:30 - As the Soviet squadron leaves Ventspils after having disembarked its entire cargo, they fall into a trap laid by the 2nd German S-Boat Flotilla. The Markin and Konstruktor are torpedoed and sunk. A brief battle ensues, but the German boats escapes without difficulty.
The Soviet submarine Shch-405 is lost off Memel in a minefield.
The Soviet air force remains very active over the Curonian Spit, but loses 17 aircraft in exchange for seven German aircraft.
...
- Central sector
Army Group Center begains to redeploy. During this time, the discussion on "What to do with the Smolensk and Velikye Luki salients" is being brought forward again. Guderian bypasses his direct superior, von Bock, and appeals directly to Halder to persuade him to order a resumption of the offensive. However, as Hitler had not yet made up his mind, Halder is embarrassed. That is why he calls General von Sodenstern, Chief of Staff of the Army Group Center, and tells him that for the moment, the OKH is leaving the decision to von Bock.
On the Soviet side, General G.K. Zhukov arrives in Vyazma to relieve General Vasilievsky, who must return to the Department of Operations of the Stavka. The two men spend a part of the night discussing the strategic and operational situation. Zhukov then obtains from Vasilievsky the guarantee that the Stavka will let him use the "Reserve Front" that he has created to crush the German forces around Smolensk. "Don't worry, Alexander Mihkaylovich," Zhukov explains to Vasilievsky before he boards the plane back to Moscow. "I have no intention of attacking until I have created the best operational configuration possible. But then I will do everything to destroy as many fascist forces as possible."
...
- Southern sector
PanzerGruppe 1 attacks at dawn the area of Zhitomir, while the 17th Army relaunches its attack on Vinnitsa.
In the Zhitomir area, the bulk of the task falls to the XLVIII. PanzerKorps, which attacks south of the city. This corps has been reinforced: it now includes the 16., 57. and 75. ID, the Leibstandarte SS Adolf-Hitler (mechanized infantry) and the 11., 13. and 16. PanzerDivisions ; but it should be noted that the 13. Panzer has only 81 tanks and the two other armored divisions are reduced to 51 and 53 tanks. The infantry divisions are also clearly understaffed. For its part, the XIV. PanzerKorps attacks north of Zhitomir, hoping to attract some of the Soviet defenders.
Very quickly, the armored formations find themselves under the crossfire of two anti-tank brigades and in the middle of vast minefields. The battle rages all day and the German columns cannot advance more than 5 km. The intensity of the Soviet artillery fire is terrifying and its effectiveness is formidable. On the other side, the German artillery is seriously handicapped by the counter-battery fire of the A-19 long-range field guns.
In the Vinnitsa area, Stülpnagel assigns the IV Corps the task of attacking south of the city to cut the road from Vinnitsa to Uman', leaving it to the XLIX Corps and the Hungarian Corps to fix the Soviet forces north of the city. This attack is slightly more successful than that of PzG 1. IV Corps forces advance to the Youjny Bug (South Bug), but slowly, as the divisions of the 17th Army are just as short of manpower as those of PzG 1.
In the air, the Luftflotte 4 and the Hungarian air force encounter the entire 5th Soviet Air Force. The losses are once again very heavy on both sides (32 planes lost for the Luftwaffe and the Hungarians against 54 for the VVS).
...
- Black Sea
The Soviet submarine M-33 attacks the Romanian destroyer Marasesti off Sulina, but misses.
5034
July 21st, 1942
Sicily - Another day of Allied raids, this time with 513 combat missions. The 41st E.C. (B) is in the game, hoping to celebrate the Belgian national day, but the Belgian P-40E come back empty-handed. Indeed, the Regia Aeronautica did not react. The flak shoots down three bombers and another is lost on mechanical failure.
Belgian Air Force Bell P-39 Airacobra, Hammer Raids, July 1942
Sicily - Another day of Allied raids, this time with 513 combat missions. The 41st E.C. (B) is in the game, hoping to celebrate the Belgian national day, but the Belgian P-40E come back empty-handed. Indeed, the Regia Aeronautica did not react. The flak shoots down three bombers and another is lost on mechanical failure.
Belgian Air Force Bell P-39 Airacobra, Hammer Raids, July 1942
- Status