Most supplies to Egypt came from the East, it was only the exceptional items like tanks that had to come via the Cape. Until Japan enters the fray , US supplied kit could as easily come across the Pacific ( as its not a war zone US hulls could be used so it eases shipping and East coast stuff just goes via Panama )
Sir John Valentine Carden survives.
- Thread starter allanpcameron
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But the last leg is up the red Sea which was regarded by the USA as a war zone until the British eliminated the threat. So, until Italian east Africa is no longer a threat, the US would not allow merchant shipping into the Red \Sea
And how much free tonnage do the Germans have to shift stuff to Greece when their main draw is Russia?
28/29 April 1941. Greece
allanpcameron
Donor
28/29 April 1941. Greece
During the night, the Royal Navy had managed to successfully complete the evacuation of both the New Zealand 4th Brigade from Raphina and Porto Raphti, and also the Australian 16th Brigade from Navplion. As on previous days, the ships were attacked from the air as they made their way to Crete and more casualties were inflicted, but the majority of the men made it safely. This was to be the last night that Pireas was used to evacuate men and equipment. Priority was given to guns of the anti-aircraft and field artillery, which were loaded onto a variety of ships and, sailing long before dawn, had managed to get away, though two of the ships were sunk by the Luftwaffe out at sea.
5th Brigade had withdrawn from Erithrai during the night to await embarkation on the night of 29/30 April. The New Zealand Divisional Cavalry had fallen back, putting as much distance between themselves and the advancing Germans. They joined the elements of 1st Armoured Brigade covering the road to Athens and the beaches used by the New Zealanders, and would retire with them to Megara.
The A13 tanks of the Kings Dragoon Guards and the three battalions of 17th Brigade were covering the Corinth Canal and the withdrawal of the Australian Division from Navplion. As the last of the Australians had passed over the bridge, Brigadier Savage made the decision to bring all his men onto the western side of the canal. In addition to the tanks and infantry, the Bofors guns of 122 Light Anti-Aircraft Battery were also sighted to protect the area from Luftwaffe attacks. The bridge over the canal was ready to be demolished, the Australian engineers had plenty of explosives left. Their plan was to drop the bridge into the canal, thereby blocking it. Rear-Admiral Tom Baillie-Grohman had asked General Papagos if it would be possible to scuttle some ships in the canal to make it very difficult for the Germans and Italians to use it. Papagos had replied that he would look into it, but so far nothing had been done.
At 07:25hrs, after 25 minutes of concerted dive bombing and strafing, the first paratroopers and gliders appeared, being dropped from Ju52s. Only one of the Bofors was still in action after all the earlier attention, and it managed to account for at least four transports before it was silenced by escorting Bf110s. The Australian engineers had been warned to set the fuzes on the demolitions in case of such an eventuality, and when the glider-borne troops arrived at the bridge, it had already been spectacularly destroyed. Parachute Regiment 2, almost 2500 men strong, under the command of Colonel Strum, had been dropped very accurately to take control of the Canal area, hoping to block the escape of any more British troops.
The fact that the bridge was blown, and they landed on top of a battalion of dug in Australians, with two squadrons of tanks in the vicinity, meant that the paratroopers’ task was well nigh impossible. The Australians had learned quickly to aim at the feet of the parachutists, meaning that many Germans landed already dead or seriously wounded. The other two Australian battalions that made up 17th Brigade were initially slow to react, but once it was clear where and what the Germans were up to, they soon were moving towards the fight and overcoming German resistance, especially as each of these battalions had one squadron of tanks attached. The Germans had very limited capability to destroy the British tanks. Although they managed to destroy six tanks altogether, eventually, all the paratroopers and glider troops who had dropped on the Peloponnese side of the canal were killed, captured, or went into hiding in small groups.
Those Germans who landed on the eastern bank of the canal had a much easier time. They had time to gather their equipment and sort themselves out into organised groups. With little or no resistance, they seized the objectives they had been set, and began to move towards Megara. This led them directly into the tanks and men of the 4th Hussars, the support group of the 1st Armoured Brigade, and the New Zealand Divisional Cavalry all heading towards Megara. Warned by radio of the German parachute landings, Lt-Col Lillingston had considered turning around and heading for Raphina and Porto Raphti, but petrol supplies were beginning to run out, so, he decided to push forward with his tanks, and allow the rest of the men under his command get to the embarkation point.
The arrival of a regiment of tanks, with various armoured cars, carriers and lorried infantry was initially thought to be the arrival of the leading elements of the Panzer Division that was heading to relieve the paratroopers. When it became clear that this was a British attack, the lightly armed Germans found themselves retreating headlong, unable to do more that disable a few tanks and knock out a few universal carriers. The New Zealand Divisional Cavalry and the 1st Rangers from the Support Group worked alongside the 4th Hussars to push the German paratroops back towards the canal. Like those on the Peloponnese side of the canal, the men of the 5th Parachute Regiment tended to scatter in small groups to avoid the British and New Zealand troops, but they were no longer an effective fighting force. As the day wore on, the 17th Brigade and Kings Dragoon Guards withdrew to Navplion to await the Royal Navy that night. Likewise the remnants of 1st Armoured Brigade withdrew into Megara, where they awaited embarkation. The Luftwaffe's efforts to support the paratroopers had caused all sorts of problems for the British Empire forces, but, as previously as night fell, air operations tended to stop.
During the night, the Royal Navy had managed to successfully complete the evacuation of both the New Zealand 4th Brigade from Raphina and Porto Raphti, and also the Australian 16th Brigade from Navplion. As on previous days, the ships were attacked from the air as they made their way to Crete and more casualties were inflicted, but the majority of the men made it safely. This was to be the last night that Pireas was used to evacuate men and equipment. Priority was given to guns of the anti-aircraft and field artillery, which were loaded onto a variety of ships and, sailing long before dawn, had managed to get away, though two of the ships were sunk by the Luftwaffe out at sea.
5th Brigade had withdrawn from Erithrai during the night to await embarkation on the night of 29/30 April. The New Zealand Divisional Cavalry had fallen back, putting as much distance between themselves and the advancing Germans. They joined the elements of 1st Armoured Brigade covering the road to Athens and the beaches used by the New Zealanders, and would retire with them to Megara.
The A13 tanks of the Kings Dragoon Guards and the three battalions of 17th Brigade were covering the Corinth Canal and the withdrawal of the Australian Division from Navplion. As the last of the Australians had passed over the bridge, Brigadier Savage made the decision to bring all his men onto the western side of the canal. In addition to the tanks and infantry, the Bofors guns of 122 Light Anti-Aircraft Battery were also sighted to protect the area from Luftwaffe attacks. The bridge over the canal was ready to be demolished, the Australian engineers had plenty of explosives left. Their plan was to drop the bridge into the canal, thereby blocking it. Rear-Admiral Tom Baillie-Grohman had asked General Papagos if it would be possible to scuttle some ships in the canal to make it very difficult for the Germans and Italians to use it. Papagos had replied that he would look into it, but so far nothing had been done.
At 07:25hrs, after 25 minutes of concerted dive bombing and strafing, the first paratroopers and gliders appeared, being dropped from Ju52s. Only one of the Bofors was still in action after all the earlier attention, and it managed to account for at least four transports before it was silenced by escorting Bf110s. The Australian engineers had been warned to set the fuzes on the demolitions in case of such an eventuality, and when the glider-borne troops arrived at the bridge, it had already been spectacularly destroyed. Parachute Regiment 2, almost 2500 men strong, under the command of Colonel Strum, had been dropped very accurately to take control of the Canal area, hoping to block the escape of any more British troops.
The fact that the bridge was blown, and they landed on top of a battalion of dug in Australians, with two squadrons of tanks in the vicinity, meant that the paratroopers’ task was well nigh impossible. The Australians had learned quickly to aim at the feet of the parachutists, meaning that many Germans landed already dead or seriously wounded. The other two Australian battalions that made up 17th Brigade were initially slow to react, but once it was clear where and what the Germans were up to, they soon were moving towards the fight and overcoming German resistance, especially as each of these battalions had one squadron of tanks attached. The Germans had very limited capability to destroy the British tanks. Although they managed to destroy six tanks altogether, eventually, all the paratroopers and glider troops who had dropped on the Peloponnese side of the canal were killed, captured, or went into hiding in small groups.
Those Germans who landed on the eastern bank of the canal had a much easier time. They had time to gather their equipment and sort themselves out into organised groups. With little or no resistance, they seized the objectives they had been set, and began to move towards Megara. This led them directly into the tanks and men of the 4th Hussars, the support group of the 1st Armoured Brigade, and the New Zealand Divisional Cavalry all heading towards Megara. Warned by radio of the German parachute landings, Lt-Col Lillingston had considered turning around and heading for Raphina and Porto Raphti, but petrol supplies were beginning to run out, so, he decided to push forward with his tanks, and allow the rest of the men under his command get to the embarkation point.
The arrival of a regiment of tanks, with various armoured cars, carriers and lorried infantry was initially thought to be the arrival of the leading elements of the Panzer Division that was heading to relieve the paratroopers. When it became clear that this was a British attack, the lightly armed Germans found themselves retreating headlong, unable to do more that disable a few tanks and knock out a few universal carriers. The New Zealand Divisional Cavalry and the 1st Rangers from the Support Group worked alongside the 4th Hussars to push the German paratroops back towards the canal. Like those on the Peloponnese side of the canal, the men of the 5th Parachute Regiment tended to scatter in small groups to avoid the British and New Zealand troops, but they were no longer an effective fighting force. As the day wore on, the 17th Brigade and Kings Dragoon Guards withdrew to Navplion to await the Royal Navy that night. Likewise the remnants of 1st Armoured Brigade withdrew into Megara, where they awaited embarkation. The Luftwaffe's efforts to support the paratroopers had caused all sorts of problems for the British Empire forces, but, as previously as night fell, air operations tended to stop.
allanpcameron
Donor
I've been playing with the above update for the past week. Again, I'm a bit worried about making things go too well for the British. My thinking is that it is a smaller version of Arnhem, a regiment of paratroops being dropped among two Regiments of tanks and four battalions of infantry.
Allan
Allan
OTL it was 1 Battalion of troops (probably with poor cohesion) and 4 light tanks
I would add that only about 800 troops were used in the assault OTL not the full regiment
Good news for the German transport aircraft and the pilots (although they won't know it) as compared to the original timeline if thanks to the canal drops the paratroops wing of the German armed forces is too exhausted to go for Crete.
Although the Allies will still have Crete...
Although the Allies will still have Crete...
It is far from a fortress zone, even if paratroopers don't drop by. Tanks will be pulling double duty as earth movers and compactors to improve the infrastructure of Crete.
They (the Allies) might have enough construction equipment to go around if they can avoid Rommel pushing them around so much in North Africa in this timeline, and aren't constantly having to rebuild defences and to write equipment off due to 'change of ownership'.
Edit:
I'd guess they (the Allies) will still have as much construction stuff sent as in the original timeline, but that wastage rates may be lower, so it might stretch/spread further.
Bad luck for the German's. Might also see a general rethink about paratrooper assaults as you need overwhelming numbers (and weapons in hand) to win an air landing.
Oh well Australia 1 Germany 0.
Oh well Australia 1 Germany 0.
No no no. See, clearly what should have happened was the Paratroopers be utilised earlier, and in larger numbers! That way, they could have seized the bridge, preventing its demolition, and held out for long enough for relief forces to reach them! Clearly, what's needed is more Airbone forces. And perhaps a specialised Armoured unit to spearhead that breakthrough to relieve them. Under Luftwaffe control, of course.
</Goering>
Mercifully Goering's influence is declining by this point owing to the failure of the BoB and the Blitz. I'm sure the SS and the OKW will happily stab him in the back to make sure the Luftwaffe doesn't get any extra toys at their expense.
Except haven't the SS missed out on some of their original timeline 'glory' from the Greek campaign due to Allied resistance in this timeline? They may be too busy trying to explain away why they didn't perform to standard - and Goering's air-force has been doing its bit to support the Axis advance by conventional strafing & bombing means.
(edit) Goering will be able to claim that the only reason that the Germans were able to advance with any speed was because of the work that the conventional aircraft were doing. (And... uh... let us not mention (from Goering's perspective) the paratroops.)
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Oh yes... They would have been in Athens within a week, they will no doubt claim, if Goering had supported their advance properly, and hadn't had to divert forces to bail out the SS... (The Heer thereby neatly stabbing both Goering and Himmler in the back.)
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