Fantasque Time Line (France Fights On) - English Translation

[Wings]

December 15th, 1942

Operation Uranus (against the 2. PanzerArmee)
The 45th and 10th Soviet Armies push back the German and Hungarian forces a little more.
But they are severely tested by the continuous battle of the last days and progress only very slowly. South of Vinnytsa, the front stabilizes more or less on the positions held before the beginning of Wintergewitter.
In the Tarachtcha pocket, food rations have to be reduced further.

 

[Wings]

December 15th, 1942

Tuscany - Early in the morning, two F4A-1-LO (Lockheed P-38F converted into photo aircraft) fly over the airfields of the Tuscan coast. One of them is shot down by a Bf 109G of the II/JG 77, but the other one brings back extremely interesting photographs. In the evening, their analysis confirms that Germany has reconstituted its anti-ship attack potential in the region.

Rome - A crisis meeting is held around the Duke of Acquarone, Badoglio and Ambrosio.
The Duke speaks in the name of the King: "I am very astonished and even scandalized that in these days capital for the future of Italy and of the Dynasty, the security measures around His Majesty have not been reinforced!" Badoglio wants to be reassuring: "Monsignor, the situation is certainly delicate, but it is advisable not to give in to panic, His Majesty can be assured of the love of his soldiers and their vigilance!" General Ambrosio is more pragmatic: "We have taken precautions in this sense, Monsignor. For example, the airfields of Rome are held by Italian troops." The discussion lasts about 90 minutes and, as usual, does not lead to any concrete decisions.

Ancona - The German units stationed in the Ancona area set off for Pescara. On the way, they are photographed by a French Mustang I reconnaissance plane.

Bombing - In the afternoon, the allied bombers hit several targets, in particular Viterbo and Terni. The planes of the Viterbo raid are attacked by the German fighters of the I/JG 77 and the II/JG 77. An American B-26 and a Mustang II are shot down, while the II/JG 77 loses one Bf 109 shot down and three severely damaged.

 

[Wings]

December 15th, 1942

Off the coast, between Alger and Bône - Emboldened by his success of the day before, commander Longhi tries to repeat the feat. Having moved westward, he attacks a convoy of fourteen cargo ships, which is none other than the first part of the YMB 7 convoy, logically named YMB 7A (YMB 7B was to join it in a few days in the bay of Bougie). Once in firing position, he launches a new salvo of four torpedoes. If none of them hit a cargo ship, one of them hits and sinks the minesweeper HMS Algerine.
But the reaction of the escort, which is still ten ships of various types, is fatal to the Mocenigo.
After three and a half hours of hunting, Commander Longhi has to bring his severely damaged boat to the surface. He scuttles it under fire from his pursuers (thedestroyers HMS Bicester and Zetland [type Hunt II] as well as the corvette HMS Samphire), which cause the death of six of his men.

 

[Wings]

December 15th, 1942

Genazzano - American planes drop their bombs on the Colonna's castle. The building is considerably damaged, but fortunately there are no deaths, clear proof that Our Lady of Albania still watches over the city! The wounded are taken to the convent's hospice, where Schwester von Rethy immediately takes charge of the organization of the relief effort. Her authority and her professionalism are marvelous, whether it is a question of the organization of care and the dressing of the wounded.
To the Mother Superior, who is discreetly surprised by this (but delighted), she reminds them that she had earned her stripes as a war nurse twenty-five years earlier. The nun blesses the Madonna, who has sent this exceptional guest to the convent at just the right time, while the guest seems absolutely delighted with this opportunity to get away from the routine of her daily life.

 

[Wings]

December 16th, 1942

Alger - The EMG Marine publishes the first part of the reorganization of the Aéronautique Navale effective January 1st, 1943. Planned in August 1940, successive events have repeatedly postponed it [see Aéronavale 1942 report for the old organization], but the upcoming commissioning of the Jean-Bart and the new equipment no longer allows it to be postponed (some mission orders already take this into account, like that of Yvon Lagadec).

1 - The combat squadrons are called Flotillas, whether they are fighter (AC), bombing (AB) or torpedoing (AT) squadrons or ASM or composite fleets. Flotillas will be identified by a number and the letter F, regardless of their specialty.

2 - Long-range reconnaissance squadrons, as well as service, support and training squadrons, are not subject to this reorganization [see Aéronavale 1942 report].

3 - The AB 12 and AT 19 squadrons are disbanded.*

4 - The AC 1 and AB 5 squadrons are reactivated and take the names 1F and 5F respectively.

5 - Four groups are formed:
GAE 1: for embarkation on board the Jean-Bart.
GAN 2: combat units operating in the Mediterranean.
GAE 3: for embarkation on board the Lafayette, Quentin-Roosevelt and Dixmude.
GAN 4: combat units operating in the Pacific and the Indian Ocean.
Another grouping, GAE 5, was formed in 1944 for embarkation on board the Joffre and Clemenceau**.
.........
GAE 1 (Jean-Bart)
1F (fighter, ex AC 1)
3F (fighter, ex AC 3)
5F (bombing, ex AB 5)
7F (bombing and torpedoing, ex AT 7)
.........
GAN 2 (Mediterranean)
2F (fighter, ex AC 2)
4F (fighter, ex AC 10)
6F (bombing, ex AB 6)
8F (bombing and torpedoing, ex AT 11)
.........
GAE 3 (Dixmude, Quentin-Roosevelt and Lafayette)
12F (composite, ex AT 17) [Lafayette]
14F (composite, ex AC 14) [Quentin-Roosevelt]
15F (composite, ex AC 15) [Dixmude]
16F (composite, ex AB 16) [reserve]
.........
GAN 4 (Pacific and Indian Ocean)
10F (bombing and torpedoing, ex AT 4) [Port Blair]
17F (bombardment, ex AB 9) [will remain deployed in the Mediterranean as long as needed].
18F (bombing, ex AB 8) [Nouméa - being reconstituted after the very heavy losses suffered in August]
19F (fighter, ex AC 14) [will remain deployed in the Mediterranean as long as needed].
20F (fighter, ex AC 20) [Nouméa and Guadalcanal]***

6 - The equipment selected is :
Fighter: Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat, then F4U Corsair as soon as it enters service (1F, 2F, 3F, 4F, 19F, 20F).
Dive bombing : Douglas SBD Dauntless (5F, 6F), to be replaced during 1944 by a type of aircraft to be determined****.
Torpedoing and bombing : Grumman TBF Avenger (7F, 8F).
Land-based bombing: Douglas DB-73M1/M2, then North-American PBJ1-D (B-25D) Mitchell during 1943 (17F, 18F).
Composite fleets (11F, 12F, 14F, 15F, 16F): SBD Dauntless or TBF Avenger on the one hand, F4F-4 Wildcat and then F6F Hellcat from July-August 1943 onwards.
The 10F, based at Port Blair, continued to fly Northrop N-3PBs (it took over the AT 11 aircraft). During 1943, it will be re-equipped with Bristol Beaufighters.

7 - The number of aircraft per flotilla is 16, except for the composite flotillas and the bombing flotillas based on land: 20 aircraft. The surplus aircraft in the flotillas providing escort aircraft carriers are kept at the Bizerte - Sidi Ahmed base, from where they contribute to the air defence of Tunisia.

* The AB 12 was reactivated in early 1944 as a night fighter squadron, the 9F, of which a detachment will serve on the Jean-Bart and another within the GAE 5. The AT 19 was reactivated in 1944 in the form of a composite squadron, the 11F.
** The GAE 5 will include the flotillas 2F, 4F, 6F, 8F, plus a detachment of the 9F. These flotillas will be partially replaced within GAN 2 by the 11F and 16F flotillas.
*** It should be noted that in addition to numbers 9 and 11, 13 has not been assigned (but this goes without saying).
**** The solution chosen was to use Corsairs armed with bombs, and Avengers.

 

[Wings]

Organization and equipment of the air combat units of the Aéronavale until December 31st, 1942

Fighter squadrons
AC 1 16 F4F-4 CVE Dixmude (Atlantic)
AC 2 16 F4F-4 Sicily
AC 3 16 F4F-4 Sicily
AC 10 16 Martin-167 Mod Oran-La Sénia
AC 14 16 F4F-4 CVE Lafayette (Mediterranean)*
AC 15 16 F4F-4 CVE Quentin-Roosevelt (Atlantic)*
* The three CVEs only embarked 10 F4F-4s each; the other aircraft and crews are kept at the Bizerte - Sidi Ahmed base, from where they contribute to the air defense of Tunisia.

Bomber squadrons and dive bombers
AB 5 being reconstituted in Martinique on SBD-3
AB 6 16 SBD-3 Oran-La Sénia
AB 8 being reconstituted in Noumea on DB-73 M1/M2
AB 9 20 DB-73 M1/M2 Rhodes (Dodecanese)
AB 12 16 SBD-3 Sicily
AB 16 16 SBD-3 Sicily

Squadrons of torpedo bombers
AT 4 18 Northrop N-3PB Port Blair (Andaman)
AT 7 16 Swordfish Oran-La Sénia
AT 11 18 Northrop N-3PB Lesbos, Limnos
AT 17 20 Swordfish CVE Dixmude, Lafayette, Quentin-Roosevelt**
AT 19 16 Swordfish Aegean Islands
** Each CVE embarks 6 Swordfish; the other aircraft and crews are kept at the Bizerte - Sidi Ahmed base.

Organization and equipment of the air reconnaissance and servitude of the Aéronavale

Maritime Reconnaissance Squadrons (Exploration)
E 1 12 Hudson III & 3 Lockheed 37 Alger
E 5 12 Hudson III Alger
E 7 9 Sunderland II Dakar
E 21 12 Consolidated 28-5MF (PBY-5) Dakar
E 22 12 Consolidated 28-5MF (PBY-5) Oran/Mers-el-Kébir
E 23 18 Consolidated 28-5MF (PBY-5) Benghazi/Rhodes
E 24 9 Consolidated 28-5MF (PBY-5) La Réunion, Diego Suarez
E 25 9 Consolidated 28-5MF (PBY-5) Martinique
E 29 dissolved
E 31 12 A-W Whitley VII ASM Casablanca
E 33 12 A-W Whitley VII ASM Casablanca

Coastal surveillance
S 26 8 Grumman JRF-5 (Goose) Martinique
S 27 6 Grumman JRF-5 Cayenne
S 28 7 Grumman JRF-5 Libreville
S 30 4 Grumman JRF-5 and 3 Loire 130 Djibouti
S 32 4 Sikorsky JRS-1 and 3 Loire 130 Nouméa
S 46 5 Grumman JRF-5 and 7 J4F-2 (Gosling) Malta

Catapultable seaplanes
HS 2 8 Vought Kingfisher with the Dunkerque, Strasbourg and Jeanne d'Arc in the Pacific.
HS 3 5 Vought Kingfisher with the Lorraine
HS 4 6 Vought Kingfisher with some cruisers in Oran and Algiers
HS 6 2 Vought Kingfisher with the Algérie
Notes - The seaplanes of the battleship Richelieu (HS 5) were landed.

- The two Kingfishers of the Jeanne d'Arc were a gift from Admiral Turner, for services rendered during Operation Shoestring. The Jeanne does not have a catapult, but only two parking bases, on the starboard and port sides. The seaplanes were launched with the help of two loading horns placed at the base of the rear mast.

Links, communications and colonial aviation
L 45 LeO H-246, H-470 and Grumman JRF-5 Tripoli, Benghazi
L 46 Grumman JRF-5 and J4F-2 Alger
L 47 Sikorsky S-43 (Baby Clipper) Libreville
L 48 dissolved Indochina
L 49 Sikorsky JRS-1, Grumman JRF-5 Dakar

Colonial squadrons
LC 4 Loire 130, Grumman JRF-5 Madagascar
LC 5 dissolved Indochina
LC 6 Loire 130, Grumman JRF-5 Papeete

Note - The number of aircraft in the colonial and liaison squadrons is variable (5 to 12)

French Aéronavale Vought OS2U Kingfisher of the MN Richelieu

 

[Wings]

December 16th (31st), 1942*

New York - Yvon Lagadec is invited to celebrate New Year's Eve at the French Consulate - like everything else wearing a French uniform within 200 km.
"A crazy world! I don't know anyone, but as soon as I arrive, I'm grabbed by a civilian, an embassy attaché no doubt, who introduces me to a bunch of men wearing tuxedos or big uniforms (there are all colors, I even saw a Russian, I think, and most of them are covered with stripes). More interesting: I was also introduced to a crowd of women in evening dress. Refined alcohols, petits fours... The restrictions of Nouméa and the absolute lack of everything from "Canal" are not the order of the day here.
Luckily, my still tanned complexion, my Rouge, my Purple Heart and my DFC (the last two worn with the special permission of the ministry!) attract me the general interest. Especially from these ladies, who seem to smell gunpowder at a hundred miles!
Alas, an American admiral covered with decorations gets hold of me and starts telling me how he took Cuba from the Spaniards all by himself forty-five years ago.
My air of a beaten dog must have pitied a man in civilian clothes, in his forties, with a refined elegance, who comes to my rescue, a luxury cigarette between his fingers, tracing smoke spirals in the air. His face is not unfamiliar to me... "Excuse me, Admiral, this young man is expected!" He turns to me and holds out his hand, "Antoine de Saint Exupéry. Come along, dear friend, the air is better over there..."
He leads me into a corner of the room where everything with wings on its uniform seems to have gathered, including some (very pretty) WAACs. A black waiter in a white jacket uncorks bottles of champagne and fills flutes as if he was born in Reims. "Champagne! Where did it come from?"
My host bursts out laughing: "With the compliments of Benito! A whole stock, recovered from an Italian warehouse and blocked here since the beginning of the war. When Italy fell apart, the consul did the same and his wife negotiated with the American customs."
As we toast, I spot a civilian explaining something so captivating to some USAAF pilots that they forget about the ladies and the champagne. From his gestures and sound effects, I understand that he too is a pilot. Saint-Exupéry followed my gaze and informs me: "Jacques Lecarme, a test pilot at Lioré, is currently a temp at Glenn Martin, for the moment. You'll like him, come, I'll introduce you."
We approached him. Without interrupting him of course, I catch the end of an explanation on the art of how to land a B-26 Marauder - which some nasty tongues have dubbed Widow Maker - without having to take a one-way ticket to Heaven. To hear him tell it, it's a cinch: "Easy, boys! Just do like that and you'll live!"
Saint-Exupéry takes advantage of a break to introduce me. The Air Force guys freeze, squinting at the left side of my jacket (I didn't have time to find the proper spencer). Well yes, I want to tell them, if you had been fighting for three years instead of one, you too could have a nice closet like that!
Lecarme smiles, holds out his hand and winks like the Parisian titi that he seems to have remained despite his age (he is ten years older than me, which makes him an old man of about 32 years...). A flute, another one, another one, and another one - as long as we don't mix, right! At 4 o'clock in the morning, we are still talking store (the language a little heavy all the same) when his cab drops me off in front of my hotel. We hardly noticed the passage to the new year.
And the WAAC, you tell me? I'm afraid I neglected them a bit. In fact, I've always wondered if Anne-Marie's grandmother had only gotten rid of my little problem with aircraft carriers, that famous night on the Pebble... "

* The update is registered as December 16th in the FTL but it is clear that the events take place on the 31st.

 

[Wings]

December 16th, 1942

Brussels - New message from Clarence for London. "Xavier says: Xavier saw Yvonne and given vacation photos. Yvonne ready to help reconciliation between Therese and Henrietta [the London government], but easier if Henrietta apologized. Yvonne will talk to Therese at Christmas."

 

[Wings]

December 16th, 1942

Varazdin (Croatia) - Arrival by rail of the 162nd German ID, coming from Radom (Poland). Particular sign: it counts in its ranks several battalions of volunteers from the Caucasus, Crimea and Central Asia, defectors from the Soviet army taken six months earlier and turned. About twenty languages are spoken, and the leaders sometimes have to give their orders in Russian. The Turkestan Legion has as its new leader Oskar von Niedermayer, nicknamed "the German Lawrence", the man who, during the First World War, had undertaken to raise the Middle East against the British.
The Allied secret services, quickly informed, wondered for what project this legion is intended.

 

[Wings]

December 16th, 1942

South Atlantic - Cruising between the Brazilian island of Fernando de Noronha (off the coast of Natal) and the Saint Peter and Saint Paul Archipelago, the cruiser USS Omaha and the destroyer USS Jouett are on the lookout, because a B-24 from Ascension Island spotted at nightfall a cargo ship sailing parallel to the Brazilian coast, about 100 miles offshore. Around 22:30, the American watchmen see a ship sailing east with all lights off. The Omaha signals "What ship?" The unknown ship then swings round to starboard to present its stern to the American ships. Faced with this attitude, the two American ships open a heavy fire. After a few minutes of ammunition fire, a violent explosion is seen by all. In the early morning, the Jouett discovers, in the middle of hundreds of rubber bullets, a single shipwrecked man. The latter informs the American sailors that their victim is the blockade runner Rio Grande (1939 - JB : 6 062 tx - PL : 9 600 t).

 

[Wings]

December 16th, 1942

Laos - The Japanese sentries who scanned the darkness of the night at the limits of the small post, poorly protected from the rain by the standard raincoat, were hoping for only one thing: relief. When shots rang out, they looked at each other, undecided. Already men were waking up and lights were going on in the tents. Having barely taken the time to put on his boots, Lieutenant Matsuada emerged bareheaded into the rain. He was holding a rocket launcher and fired a flare. In the gusts, the light at the end of his parachute revealed only the mountains in a shadowy outline. "There, Lieutenant!" The man cocked his M96 FM, but the officer put his hand on the barrel: "Don't shoot, they're ours." A small group of men in Japanese uniforms was trying to reach the post by shooting into the dark jungle, from which a heavy fire was coming. "They'll never get to us, Lieutenant."
The remark confused the Japanese officer. He had originally had about thirty men, but the jungle, the ambushes had caused his numbers to dwindle at an alarming rate. This fact carried away his decision. He could not let what he now saw as reinforcements die. "Forward!" Covered by the FMs from the watchtowers, he dashed forward with a dozen of men. Two or three fell to the unseen enemy, but the attacked soldiers were able to withdraw and returned to the post with the lieutenant's team - safe from the rolls of barbed wire, sandbags and FMs, they were safe.
The lieutenant was mauled to death by a burst of fire that simultaneously mowed down several of his men behind the sandbags. Those on the watchtowers only survived a few more moments. Down below, some Vietnamese came out of the undergrowth and rushed to the post, where they arrived just in time to help eliminate the remaining Japanese soldiers. Their leader stood at attention before the largest of the attackers dressed in Nipponese uniforms, "Lieutenant, permission to speak freely." "Go ahead, Bui" replied Lieutenant Delayen, "That uniform is much too small, Lieutenant. If they hadn't had rain in their eyes, even at night they wouldn't have made a mistake."
(Le Guerrier des Rizières, by Pascal N'Guyen-Minh, J'ai Lu ed., 1973)

 

[Wings]

December 16th, 1942

Guadalcanal - CC Iishi is forced to sit down and read over the message Rabaul had just sent him. While he is waiting for new personnel, spare parts and torpedoes to continue his nightly harassments, he is ordered to redeploy his squadron to the Shortlands as soon as possible!
In fact, Yamamoto dos not want to waste time after having obtained what he wanted during his conference with Hyakutake. Iishi and his experienced men are far too valuable to be wasted on Guadalcanal when the island is about to be abandoned.
Making light of the odds, Iishi immediately orders his crews to begin their preparations and, first of all, to thoroughly overhaul the engines of the eight vessels, three heavy speedboats - G-352, G-353 and G-354, four light ones - G-1, G-3, G-10 and G-11, and the gunboat H-15.

Truk - The submarine I-21 begins a series of tests with equipment that arrived from Japan. Missions to Guadalcanal conducted over the past month have revealed the vulnerability of the submersibles during offloading or when towing a Daihatsu barge. The watertight barges attached to the deck are satisfactory, but only the I-5 and I-6 submarines are equipped with them- other systems will therefore be tried.
For the first test, small watertight rubber containers are attached to the deck. They are to be released underwater so that they can be fished out once they are brought to the surface. For the second experiment, a much larger container will be fixed on the deck of the submarine; it will have to be unhooked once it arrives at its destination and towed to the coast by the boats already on site. Within Komatsu's staff, there are whispers that other projects are under consideration in Japan, including a container towed by the submarine and even a self-propelled container.
There are also whispers that the Guadalcanal refueling efforts will soon come to an end... But the techniques being tested will surely find use elsewhere in the vast Pacific.

 

[Wings]

December 16th, 1942

Central Ukraine - Weather is dry, but with 10/10 cloud cover. 0°C.
The VVS are still very active (especially the ground support units, which use a lot of old I-153 and I-15bis fighters). Attention is focused on Tarachtcha, where the main runway is out of service for 24 hours.

 

[Wings]

December 16th, 1942

Operation Uranus (against the 2. PanzerArmee)
At the cost of severe losses inflicted in particular on the 5. and 8. Panzer, Wintergewitter was able to save four divisions: the 9. and 11. Panzer and the two SS motorized divisions, the Leibstandarte Adolf-Hitler and the Wiking. But all four lost at least 50% of their heavy equipment and a good part of their personnel. It will take several months to reconstitute them. The XIV. PanzerKorps of the late Hans-Valentin Hube is temporarily disbanded.

 

[Wings]

December 16th, 1942

Rome - In the morning, general Carboni meets general Ambrosio and indicates to him that the 252. and 263. Infantry-Divisions have left the Italian territory to go to Greece. On the other hand, the SS-Division Hohenstaufen seems to want to settle around Lake Garda and in the Brescia area. Moreover, the concentration of German forces around Pescara becomes worrying. Finally, it is confirmed that the German troops control almost all the railway stations and the railway network of Northern Italy up to Bologna!
If Ambrosio is happy with the departure of two German divisions from Italian territory, other news do not fail to worry him. In the afternoon, he speaks to Marshal Badoglio, who remains serene: "Don't worry, Ambrosio, an old Italian like me will be able to fool these Germans to the end. The best thing to do is to gain time before the announcement of the Italian armistice until the beginning of the year, let's say January 6th."
For Ambrosio, such a plan is completely unrealistic: "It is far too late, Mr. Marshal. The announcement will have to be made by December 25th at the latest."
Finally, the two men agree to decide... that it is not up to them to decide: the safest date would be when the Allies land on Peninsular soil. At that moment, it will be time to declare the armistice.

 

[Wings]

December 16th, 1942

Tunis - After a week of intense activity, the 15th Army Group staff has finished developing its plan, which is validated by the Joint Chiefs of Staff and presented to the governments.
The so-called Salerno landing (Operation Avalanche) will take place on December 25th under the command of General Clark*. In reality, the Allied troops will land simultaneously north and south of Naples.
On the Pozzuoli side, in the Gulf of Gaeta (Avalanche-North or Avalanche I), will be put ashore a Franco-American armoured corps comprising on the one hand the 1st US-AD, the 34th US-ID and the 17th and 36th Artillery Regiments, on the other hand the French 3rd armoured division and the 14th ID, the 2nd Algerian Spahis Regiment (Corps Reconnaissance Group), the 12th Corps Artillery Brigade (French) and the 1st Belgian Armoured Brigade. These units are to be commanded by General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny.
Around the town of Salerno (Avalanche-Sud or Avalanche II), will land the Xth Commonwealth Infantry Corps, commanded by Major-General Ritchie, the 44th and 46th British Infantry Divisions, the 1st Army Tank Brigade, the 4th Armoured Brigade, the 6th AGRA (Army Group Royal Artillery) and the 1st South African ID. An airborne force will be formed with the 82nd Airborne under General Matthew Ridgway, plus the 3rd RCP and elements of the 6th RALP (Light Parachute Artillery Regiment) commanded by Lt-Colonel Glaizot. These forces are intended to secure the airfields in the Rome area.
A support operation, called operation Bedlam, is entrusted to General Allfrey's V Corps.
It has to cross the Messina Strait at Reggio Calabria and move up towards Foggia and the Adriatic coast "as quickly as possible" with the British 6th and 50th (Northumbrian) IDs, the 5th Indian Division and the 231st Infantry Brigade.
Finally, to ensure a port in case of difficulties in the conduct of Avalanche, the British paratroopers of the 1st Airborne are transported to Taranto by the ships of the Aegean Sea Squadron (in the absence of troop transports, all of which were used for Avalanche).
It is hoped that the cooperation of the Italians would allow a smooth landing. This operation is given the code name Slapstick.

* Major General Mark Wayne Clark, born in 1896, fought and was wounded in France during World War I before serving in the Army of Occupation in Germany (3rd Army). After returning to the U.S, he served in staff and training positions. He was appointed to the US Army staff in Washington in August 1941. He became assistant to the chief of staff in January 1942. In June 1942, he was sent to North Africa, where he has been General Eisenhower's personal representative to the U.S. troops ever since.

 

[Wings]

December 17th, 1942

Melilla, Spanish Morocco - A small fishing boat takes Nahcen and Cavailhé into French territory at night. They manage to escape the gendarmerie patrols and reach Oran.

 

[Wings]

December 17th, 1942

Chatou - The failure of the execution of Soupé in October does not discourage the men of the Valmy detachment. Suspected of treason, Georges Déziré, head of the Normandy inter-region of the clandestine PCF, is summoned under the pretext of making his report, locked up in a cellar and interrogated by "Cerbère", "Laon", "Tours" and "Bordeaux" in person. Then, he is shot without any other form of trial.*

* It would be revealed, in 1970, that the poor man had nothing to do with what he was accused of...

 

[Wings]

December 17th, 1942

Laeken - Following the exchanges of the day before, the King writes a letter to Professor Pierre Nolf, president of the Belgian Red Cross, about "the painful ordeal of forced labor, by which our workers are forced to put Belgium at the service of belligerent Germany. He is particularly sorry for the fate of the "young girls, separated from their families, sent to a foreign country whose language they do not even know, [...] exposed to dangers, among which those of a moral nature are not the least". He refers to his letter to the Führer: "I have informed him that these mass deportations are causing deep emotion in all strata of the population, which still as in its memory the labor camps of the 1914-18 war, and I urgently invited him to withdraw a measure that unjustly affects a people for whom nothing can be blamed in this conflict. I was told that the necessities of war prevent Germany from suspending the deportations. I am obliged to accept this rejection; but I would renounce the duty imposed on me by my conscience if I did not try to alleviate the suffering caused by an ordeal that has become inevitable." Leopold III concludes his letter by asking Nolf how the Red Cross could provide assistance to the deportees and their families.
This letter immediately makes the rounds of Belgium. It even reaches London and Algiers, where excerpts are published by Reuters and Havas.

 

[Wings]

December 17th, 1942

Oro Province (northeast coast of New Guinea) - The submarine I-176 was ordered to deliver supplies to the garrison of Buna. For this purpose, she carries drums fixed on her deck and some small waterproof rubber containers. The latter are designed to deliver ammunition or provisions while keeping the submersible in the water.
However, it is not the choice which was made for this mission, because the underwater relief of this sector is practically unknown. In fact, when we arrived in the estuary of the Mambare River (about fifty km north of Popondetta), the I-176 runs aground on a sand bank. Waiting for the soldiers who had to recover the supplies, the submarine manages to free itself.
This mission is finally successful, and the Navy staff in Rabaul decides to retain the mouth of this river, now known, for the following operations. The limited tonnage transported by the Japanese submersibles will contribute to the resistance of the troops of the Imperial Army in New Guinea.