Japan gets bloodied in WW1

[CalBear]

Ya because tanks on small tropical islands make so much sense . . . I can see it now, the tanks on Kwajalien, Iwo Jima and Saipan really turn the tide of the battle, rumbling across the open . . . oh wait, the Americans carpet bombed the islands before hand and kept a healthy artillery barrage going, so the tanks would get destroyed. I know that tanks are really cool in Europe, but strategies that protect Pacific islands are not the same as the ones used on the Russian steppes, I'm sorry.

Ever been to Saipan? How about Okinawa (2,271 sq km) where, even today, the Corps holds armored exercises? Even on Iwo, which was more or less a pit, some decent armor would have doubled, if not trebeled losses in some initial assault units. If the bombing, or off-shore gunfire support, was as effective as indicated above, American losses would have been nil.

Imagine a Sherman inside a three sided coral & palm log bunker (the IJN standard defensive structure). The normal American tactic was to rush the bunker by leapfrog & toss in a grenade, killing the infantry inside. Not too useful vs. a tank.

The Japanese were going to lose every battle. The difference is losses inflicted.

48 hours huh? So thats why all those Pacific island hopping invasions only lasted two days and were such a cake walk for the Marine Corps, cause after the initial landing the Japanese were nice enough to kill themselves. Except of course, that most of the invasions took far longer than that, and the cost for the Americans was orders of magnitude higher for the Americans.

Again, look at Saipan (initial Banzai charge 18 hours after H-Hour, followed by several other exceptionally wasteful uncoordinated, unsupported infantry charges), or Tarawa (initial Banzai charge 53 hours after H-Hour, final climatic charge 71 hours after H-Hour), or the almost unimaginable waste of infantry by the IJA & IJN on the "Canal. Clearly the campaigns did not take two days, since there were a small number of fanatical troops who were forbidden to attack, but ordered to instead remain in hiding and act as sappers/snipers. There were exceptions, especially later in the war, with Okinawa being a prime example where the Japanese did not go Banzai Charging to eternity, but they were rare, and the officers who prevented the charges were considered to be cowards.

I'm not sure what the

Americans were orders of magniture higher for the Americans

means. I assume that one of the two is supposed to be "Japanese", and Japanese losses were always nearly 100% KIA & several times that of the invading troops.

 

[Cockroach]

The IJA lost in New Guinea to American Forces, and, most notably, got manhandled by the Red Army on both ends of the War. This is hardly a record to be happy about.

No, In New Guinea the Japs lost to Australian troops... yes, we had some US support... but you'll note that in the pitched battles and decisive campaigns (Kakoda, Milne Bay, assorted counter offensives) the vast majority of troops involved were drawn from wither the 2nd AIF or the CMF.

 

[The Sandman]

Have the Japanese send an expeditionary force to aid the British in Mesopotamia - then have all or most of that force be trapped and destroyed along with the British at Kut. Hoping to regain some honor after that crushing defeat, the Japanese volunteer a corps or two for Gallipoli, which is still an Ottoman victory here. After that, I'm not sure what the Japanese might do.