Sir John Valentine Carden Survives. Part 2.

22 January 1942. Balikpapan, Borneo.
22 January 1942. Balikpapan, Borneo.

The Royal Navy ships had sailed with the morning tide, led by the auxiliary minelayer Soemenep, which had laid a protective minefield to the entrance to the port. The Navy had delivered two depleted Indian Battalions (3rd Bn 16th Punjab Regiment and 5th Bn 14th Punjab Regiment) to try to work with the Dutch forces to strengthen the defences of the port and oil production facilities.

KNIL Lieutenant Colonel van den Hoogenband had just over 1000 men in various positions, along with coast, with anti-aircraft and field batteries protecting the city. At Balikpapan and the nearby oilfields in Samarinda well-trained destruction groups were busy destroying the important oil installations.

Lt Colonels Henry Moorehead and van den Hoogenband, with translators, spent some time walking the area to see how best to use the newly arrived 800 Indian troops. Because Moorehead’s men had already resisted a Japanese invasion, the Englishman thought he had some ideas that would help the Dutch. Unfortunately, despite the very positive messages of support from the Dutch commander at Singkawang II airfield, Hoogenband wasn’t terribly keen to listen.

Hoogenband’s orders were quite clear. He was to cover the destruction of the oil producing equipment and all else that would be of use to the enemy. First of all, to resist any attempt at a coup de main, secondly to fight a slowing action to allow the demolitions to be completed. Thirdly the plan was for the men to withdraw into the hills and wage a guerrilla campaign. The demolitions had already been carried out to a large extent. The smoke from the burning oil farms and other factories was choking. Moorehead was shown the refugee accommodation and stocks of food and equipment that had been dispersed for the guerrilla campaign and to protect the civilian population.

To Hoogenband’s mind the Indian troops were a complication with their different equipment and ammunition. Confident in his own men and their dispositions he suggested that Moorehead should have his men act as a counterattack force. While Moorehead wasn’t keen on the idea, what made it worse was that Hoogenband wanted to have the two Battalions stripped down into company sized forces at various points for counterattacking. To this Moorehead couldn’t agree. It was clear to him that his Dutch counterpart had no idea of the aggressive way the Japanese troops went about their business. Defending Kuching with a force of a similar size to the KNIL at Balikpapan had proven impossible, despite their best efforts. From Moorehead’s point of view, the Dutch plan was likely to hand the Japanese troops a fairly easy victory.

Since the British officers were under the direct command of the KNIL’s Commander in Chief, Hein Ter Poorten, and Moorehead’s orders were to cooperate with Hoogenband, he offered another idea. He would keep his two battalions based at Manggar airfield, providing a strong defensive position on the Dutch flank. It seemed that airfields were always a priority for the Japanese. Having a strong force protecting the landing ground would throw a wrench in their plans. The Dutch plan didn’t include the airfield as it was too far from the essential oil infrastructure, and Hoogenband didn’t have a strong enough force to extend his defensive positions that far. The airfield itself was already out of commission, it had been bombed by the Japanese a few times and the secret airfield at Samarinda II was where the Dutch aircraft were based. Hooganband thought about it, and decided it was probably best to keep the two forces separate.

When Moorehead asked for a levy of coolies to help prepare defensive positions he was promised some, though in the event they never arrived. His own Indian troops were well used to digging and fortifying their positions so they just got on with it. The one concession given to the Indian Battalions was the attachment of two "Overvalwagens", trucks amoured with boiler plate and armed with a .50 machine gun for aerial defence. These would be the only vehicles available to the Indian troops whose vehicles and heavier equipment had been left with the Dutch at Pontianak.

The Dutch did provide trucks to carry the Indians and their supplies to Manggar, where they got busy preparing to resist another invasion. Moorehead managed to get hold of some workers of the main oil company, Bataafsche Petroleum Maatschappij, who lent the British officer a couple of cars to help out. His Intelligence section immediately took these and began to trace out the various ways in which the Battalions would be able to withdraw. The BPM employees also gave over some maps which allowed the Battalion commanders to reconnoitre their positions properly.

The Dutch liaison officer was the ML-KNIL commander of the airfield, who was otherwise out of a job. His small detachment proved extremely valuable, as some stores of fuel and bombs which hadn’t been destroyed or moved were made available to the Indian engineers to provide some extra explosive ordnance to play with. Moorehead had placed three Companies along the coast to provide a first line of defence. The majority of the rest of the force were digging in at the airfield itself, while one Company were working with the Intelligence section at sorting out evacuation routes.

From Moorehead’s point of view, this wasn’t the best situation he and his men found themselves in. He just hoped that the Royal Navy, with the Dutch submarines and surface forces would do their job and prevent the Japanese force from being able to land in the first place.
 
The situation on Balikpapen does not sound at all promising and I agree with the Colonel Morehead, his and his men's only hope is the RN.
 
22 January 1942. Balikpapan, Borneo.

The Royal Navy ships had sailed with the morning tide, led by the auxiliary minelayer Soemenep, which had laid a protective minefield to the entrance to the port. The Navy had delivered two depleted Indian Battalions (3rd Bn 16th Punjab Regiment and 5th Bn 14th Punjab Regiment) to try to work with the Dutch forces to strengthen the defences of the port and oil production facilities.

KNIL Lieutenant Colonel van den Hoogenband had just over 1000 men in various positions, along with coast, with anti-aircraft and field batteries protecting the city. At Balikpapan and the nearby oilfields in Samarinda well-trained destruction groups were busy destroying the important oil installations.

Lt Colonels Henry Moorehead and van den Hoogenband, with translators, spent some time walking the area to see how best to use the newly arrived 800 Indian troops. Because Moorehead’s men had already resisted a Japanese invasion, the Englishman thought he had some ideas that would help the Dutch. Unfortunately, despite the very positive messages of support from the Dutch commander at Singkawang II airfield, Hoogenband wasn’t terribly keen to listen.

Hoogenband’s orders were quite clear. He was to cover the destruction of the oil producing equipment and all else that would be of use to the enemy. First of all, to resist any attempt at a coup de main, secondly to fight a slowing action to allow the demolitions to be completed. Thirdly the plan was for the men to withdraw into the hills and wage a guerrilla campaign. The demolitions had already been carried out to a large extent. The smoke from the burning oil farms and other factories was choking. Moorehead was shown the refugee accommodation and stocks of food and equipment that had been dispersed for the guerrilla campaign and to protect the civilian population.

To Hoogenband’s mind the Indian troops were a complication with their different equipment and ammunition. Confident in his own men and their dispositions he suggested that Moorehead should have his men act as a counterattack force. While Moorehead wasn’t keen on the idea, what made it worse was that Hoogenband wanted to have the two Battalions stripped down into company sized forces at various points for counterattacking. To this Moorehead couldn’t agree. It was clear to him that his Dutch counterpart had no idea of the aggressive way the Japanese troops went about their business. Defending Kuching with a force of a similar size to the KNIL at Balikpapan had proven impossible, despite their best efforts. From Moorehead’s point of view, the Dutch plan was likely to hand the Japanese troops a fairly easy victory.

Since the British officers were under the direct command of the KNIL’s Commander in Chief, Hein Ter Poorten, and Moorehead’s orders were to cooperate with Hoogenband, he offered another idea. He would keep his two battalions based at Manggar airfield, providing a strong defensive position on the Dutch flank. It seemed that airfields were always a priority for the Japanese. Having a strong force protecting the landing ground would throw a wrench in their plans. The Dutch plan didn’t include the airfield as it was too far from the essential oil infrastructure, and Hoogenband didn’t have a strong enough force to extend his defensive positions that far. The airfield itself was already out of commission, it had been bombed by the Japanese a few times and the secret airfield at Samarinda II was where the Dutch aircraft were based. Hooganband thought about it, and decided it was probably best to keep the two forces separate.

When Moorehead asked for a levy of coolies to help prepare defensive positions he was promised some, though in the event they never arrived. His own Indian troops were well used to digging and fortifying their positions so they just got on with it. The one concession given to the Indian Battalions was the attachment of two "Overvalwagens", trucks amoured with boiler plate and armed with a .50 machine gun for aerial defence. These would be the only vehicles available to the Indian troops whose vehicles and heavier equipment had been left with the Dutch at Pontianak.

The Dutch did provide trucks to carry the Indians and their supplies to Manggar, where they got busy preparing to resist another invasion. Moorehead managed to get hold of some workers of the main oil company, Bataafsche Petroleum Maatschappij, who lent the British officer a couple of cars to help out. His Intelligence section immediately took these and began to trace out the various ways in which the Battalions would be able to withdraw. The BPM employees also gave over some maps which allowed the Battalion commanders to reconnoitre their positions properly.

The Dutch liaison officer was the ML-KNIL commander of the airfield, who was otherwise out of a job. His small detachment proved extremely valuable, as some stores of fuel and bombs which hadn’t been destroyed or moved were made available to the Indian engineers to provide some extra explosive ordnance to play with. Moorehead had placed three Companies along the coast to provide a first line of defence. The majority of the rest of the force were digging in at the airfield itself, while one Company were working with the Intelligence section at sorting out evacuation routes.

From Moorehead’s point of view, this wasn’t the best situation he and his men found themselves in. He just hoped that the Royal Navy, with the Dutch submarines and surface forces would do their job and prevent the Japanese force from being able to land in the first place.
@allanpcameron
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22 January 1942. Balikpapan, Borneo.

The Royal Navy ships had sailed with the morning tide, led by the auxiliary minelayer Soemenep, which had laid a protective minefield to the entrance to the port. The Navy had delivered two depleted Indian Battalions (3rd Bn 16th Punjab Regiment and 5th Bn 14th Punjab Regiment) to try to work with the Dutch forces to strengthen the defences of the port and oil production facilities.

KNIL Lieutenant Colonel van den Hoogenband had just over 1000 men in various positions, along with coast, with anti-aircraft and field batteries protecting the city. At Balikpapan and the nearby oilfields in Samarinda well-trained destruction groups were busy destroying the important oil installations.

Lt Colonels Henry Moorehead and van den Hoogenband, with translators, spent some time walking the area to see how best to use the newly arrived 800 Indian troops. Because Moorehead’s men had already resisted a Japanese invasion, the Englishman thought he had some ideas that would help the Dutch. Unfortunately, despite the very positive messages of support from the Dutch commander at Singkawang II airfield, Hoogenband wasn’t terribly keen to listen.

Hoogenband’s orders were quite clear. He was to cover the destruction of the oil producing equipment and all else that would be of use to the enemy. First of all, to resist any attempt at a coup de main, secondly to fight a slowing action to allow the demolitions to be completed. Thirdly the plan was for the men to withdraw into the hills and wage a guerrilla campaign. The demolitions had already been carried out to a large extent. The smoke from the burning oil farms and other factories was choking. Moorehead was shown the refugee accommodation and stocks of food and equipment that had been dispersed for the guerrilla campaign and to protect the civilian population.

To Hoogenband’s mind the Indian troops were a complication with their different equipment and ammunition. Confident in his own men and their dispositions he suggested that Moorehead should have his men act as a counterattack force. While Moorehead wasn’t keen on the idea, what made it worse was that Hoogenband wanted to have the two Battalions stripped down into company sized forces at various points for counterattacking. To this Moorehead couldn’t agree. It was clear to him that his Dutch counterpart had no idea of the aggressive way the Japanese troops went about their business. Defending Kuching with a force of a similar size to the KNIL at Balikpapan had proven impossible, despite their best efforts. From Moorehead’s point of view, the Dutch plan was likely to hand the Japanese troops a fairly easy victory.

Since the British officers were under the direct command of the KNIL’s Commander in Chief, Hein Ter Poorten, and Moorehead’s orders were to cooperate with Hoogenband, he offered another idea. He would keep his two battalions based at Manggar airfield, providing a strong defensive position on the Dutch flank. It seemed that airfields were always a priority for the Japanese. Having a strong force protecting the landing ground would throw a wrench in their plans. The Dutch plan didn’t include the airfield as it was too far from the essential oil infrastructure, and Hoogenband didn’t have a strong enough force to extend his defensive positions that far. The airfield itself was already out of commission, it had been bombed by the Japanese a few times and the secret airfield at Samarinda II was where the Dutch aircraft were based. Hooganband thought about it, and decided it was probably best to keep the two forces separate.

When Moorehead asked for a levy of coolies to help prepare defensive positions he was promised some, though in the event they never arrived. His own Indian troops were well used to digging and fortifying their positions so they just got on with it. The one concession given to the Indian Battalions was the attachment of two "Overvalwagens", trucks amoured with boiler plate and armed with a .50 machine gun for aerial defence. These would be the only vehicles available to the Indian troops whose vehicles and heavier equipment had been left with the Dutch at Pontianak.

The Dutch did provide trucks to carry the Indians and their supplies to Manggar, where they got busy preparing to resist another invasion. Moorehead managed to get hold of some workers of the main oil company, Bataafsche Petroleum Maatschappij, who lent the British officer a couple of cars to help out. His Intelligence section immediately took these and began to trace out the various ways in which the Battalions would be able to withdraw. The BPM employees also gave over some maps which allowed the Battalion commanders to reconnoitre their positions properly.

The Dutch liaison officer was the ML-KNIL commander of the airfield, who was otherwise out of a job. His small detachment proved extremely valuable, as some stores of fuel and bombs which hadn’t been destroyed or moved were made available to the Indian engineers to provide some extra explosive ordnance to play with. Moorehead had placed three Companies along the coast to provide a first line of defence. The majority of the rest of the force were digging in at the airfield itself, while one Company were working with the Intelligence section at sorting out evacuation routes.

From Moorehead’s point of view, this wasn’t the best situation he and his men found themselves in. He just hoped that the Royal Navy, with the Dutch submarines and surface forces would do their job and prevent the Japanese force from being able to land in the first place.
Hmm. According to wikipedia (edit: at the time of this post) on the 1942 original timeline Battle of Balikpapan ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Balikpapan_(1942) ; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Balikpapan_(1942)#Ultimatum_and_demolition_(16-20_January) ) the Imperial Japanese had already delivered an ultimatum by the date mentioned in this update (22nd January) and were on the way from Tarakan...
Of course that's wikipedia, and they might have been a day or two out with their dates, and/or the Imperial Japanese could be behind schedule in this timeline, but I notice no mention of an Imperial Japanese ultimatum having been delivered yet to Sumatra in this timeline.
 
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I think only events differing from OTL are getting mentioned now.
Not really, just stuff I'm interested in. The fact that the demolitions are being carried out is the same as OTL. The difference is the arrival of the two (weakened) Indian Battalions heading for the airstrip.
 
Not really, just stuff I'm interested in. The fact that the demolitions are being carried out is the same as OTL. The difference is the arrival of the two (weakened) Indian Battalions heading for the airstrip.
Okay. Well the invasion is due to start tomorrow but instead there being just 1,100 green-as-grass (combat wise) Dutch soldiers, they'll also eventually be facing 800 veteran Indian ones. The Japanese will almost certainly still win, but I'd expect the cost to be a lot higher, and for the Dutch to be getting far more soldiers back. This might see the Japanese too exhausted to hit Banjarmasin, or at least seriously delay it.
 
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Okay. Well the invasion is due to start tomorrow but instead there being just 1,100 green-as-grass (combat wise) Dutch soldiers, they'll also eventually be facing 800 veteran Indian ones. The Japanese will almost certainly still win, but I'd expect the cost to be a lot higher, and for the Dutch to be getting far more soldiers back. This might see the Japanese too exhausted to hit Banjarmasin, or at least seriously delay it.
Also can prepare to demolish a kot6of the infrastructure the Japanese will need as well which will be a major help. Adding to this I wonder how it will change the view of things in the occupied Netherlands since a great deal of pride is taken in the Dutch far east.
 
Not really, just stuff I'm interested in. The fact that the demolitions are being carried out is the same as OTL. The difference is the arrival of the two (weakened) Indian Battalions heading for the airstrip.
If or when the place falls the Dutch will blame the British for not following their plan and the British will blame the Dutch for not listening to the experienced commander.
 

Orry

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Okay. Well the invasion is due to start tomorrow but instead there being just 1,100 green-as-grass (combat wise) Dutch soldiers, they'll also eventually be facing 800 veteran Indian ones. The Japanese will almost certainly still win, but I'd expect the cost to be a lot higher, and for the Dutch to be getting far more soldiers back. This might see the Japanese too exhausted to hit Banjarmasin, or at least seriously delay it.

Was there a minefield in OTL?
 
Also can prepare to demolish a kot6of the infrastructure the Japanese will need as well which will be a major help. Adding to this I wonder how it will change the view of things in the occupied Netherlands since a great deal of pride is taken in the Dutch far east.
A lot of it was destroyed anyway, but this time it might take the Japanese longer to get it back into service.

If or when the place falls the Dutch will blame the British for not following their plan and the British will blame the Dutch for not listening to the experienced commander.
Or they could blame the fact that Japan had a better than 3:1 advantage in numbers, and far more support.

Was there a minefield in OTL?
Not sure.
 
A lot of it was destroyed anyway, but this time it might take the Japanese longer to get it back into service.
Given you will probably have the people built them are still there, they can probably help do a more complete job which probably means the Japanese have to spend more time replacing everything lock, stop and barrel.
 
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Orry

Donor
Monthly Donor
Not sure.

Since the RN did not deliver reinforcements in OTL I assume that they would not have been their to lay the minefield

Even one or two ships hitting them is another beat of the Butterflys wings
 
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