Excerpts from "The Myth of the Turning Point". J. Weisberg, F.N. Doubleday, New York 1996
THROUGH a postwar lens, it is tempting to think that by 1942, the Allies had all but won the war already, with only the exact circumstances and the route of the parade through Berlin yet undecided. However, to Allied commanders at the time, the situation was far more complicated. The situation on several fronts appeared to be in grave danger of deteriorating, causing no small measure of alarm.
It was indisputable that the Allied nations had nearly uncontested global naval supremacy everywhere outside the Baltic Sea, and merely naval superiority over the Italian navy in the Mediterranean. This, while clearly advantageous especially since the flow of supplies would not be interrupted, was nonetheless of little comfort to Allied field commanders thousands of miles from any ocean. Allied aircraft production outstripped the Pact of Steel's, although not yet by the crushing margins of the last year of the war.
The Pact of Steel had made huge inroads into Russia, and had nearly -far too nearly- taken Moscow. In some of the most horrific fighting imaginable, the Soviet forces defended their capital, and although slow to start, pushed German forces westward. That the Germans had overrun their supply lines was of great advantage to the Red Army, who themselves struggled to bring formations up to required strength. However, the survivors of the Battle of Moscow proved especially motivated, and this was now a Red Army that was no longer the Red Army of the Winter War.
That this was a war for survival was abundantly clear as reports of Nazi atrocities mounted. Even in the West, the cruelty the Nazis displayed against the defenders of Moscow, many of whom were young teenagers became cause for outrage. The brutal treatment of Soviet prisoners of war, and the Commissar Order were repaid in kind- SS and Waffen-SS prisoners were often summarily executed, and lines of Heer troops, their coat sleeves slashed with bayonets (to quickly discover SS tattoos) being marched off to the gulags made for a grim subject for photographs.
The most alarming aspect of the situation in the Soviet Union was the fact that after the spring rasputsia, the Germans would launch another summer offensive. The Soviets would, naturally, do their best to repulse it, but it would be very hard on a nation that had already suffered so heavily. The greatest fear among all the Allied nations was that the oilfields in Maikop, Grozny and then Baku would be threatened.
France too suffered heavily under the weight of Nazi oppression. The French government demanded that preparations be made for an amphibious assault to land troops in France as soon as possible, and were displeased with Eisenhower's and Alanbrooke's assessments that such a landing was unlikely to be practicable until late summer 1944. Norway had demonstrated to the Pact of Steel and Allies alike that amphibious operations are exceedingly difficult, even without the Royal Navy opposing the operation. An increasingly pugnacious Charles de Gaulle was usually the loudest voice in the room in arguing the necessity of an earlier liberation of Metropolitan France, whatever the costs in French blood and treasure it took.
In the East, the Allied position in Malaya was bolstered the arrival of an additional Japanese division in late January 1942. Major General Shojiro Iida's division comprised several Imperial Guard regiments and one Russian White volunteer regiment from Manchukuo, the 7th Harbin Volunteers, named "Yekaterina Velikaya". However, Percival declined to send any additional reinforcements to Montgomery in Rangoon and weaken his own position. Montgomery was positively enraged by this slight and complained to Percival, Auchinleck, Wavell, Alanbrooke and Churchill himself. In late February, an additional brigade from the Indian Army, including two Gurkha regiments arrived in Rangoon, transferred by Wavell upon the fall of Lashio on February 3rd, 1942. This was especially troubling as Lashio was the Burmese terminus of the Burma Road, which extended to Kunming. The Road was now completely within Chinese hands.
Off the coast, the battlecruiser Hiei was recalled to Japan via Singapore, and the hybrid battleships Ise and Yamashiro took her place, adding their D4Y dive bombers to the firepower at Montgomery's disposal.
The National Army placed their highest priorities on reinforcing the Burma Road against Allied counterattack, severing the Allied border connection with Thailand at the Kawkerik Pass, and capturing Rangoon. General Li Zhonggren entrusted the thrust southwards to Lieutenant General Lu Zhouying, and the preparations for the attack on Burma to Lieutenant General Du Yuming.
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THE War in the Air: Mid-War Western-Japanese Allied Aircraft development:
Aircraft were a matter of increasing concern for the Allies, across all types, and the war in the air escalated through ought 1942.
The Luftwaffe, ceaseless in its efforts to improve its proven types and introduce new ones such as the potent Focke-Wulf Fw 190, which proved highly effective as both a fighter and multirole aircraft, remained a dangerous foe. The Republic of China's Air Force (ROCAF) began to order the type as well, built under licence. Even with detuned engines and poor quality Chinese aviation gasoline, it proved to be an uncomfortable surprise for Allied aviators.
The Allied air forces were confronted with their deficiencies as well, as they flew in the Far East and attempted to blow the roof off of Hitler's Fortress Europa. The Royal Air Force came to accept that precision night bombing was simply impossible with current technology, and the focus shifted to area bombing. The Avro Lancaster heavy bomber began to reach Bomber Command squadrons in February 1942, a welcome replacement for the aging Wellington, Whitley and Hampden medium bombers.The other British four-engined heavy produced in significant numbers, the Short Stirling, was undergoing revisions. Built to an earlier specification, the Stirling was larger than the Lancaster and Handley-Page Halifax (produced in smaller numbers due to its divided bomb bay that precluded carrying large bombs), but hampered in performance, particularly at altitude, by the requirement to have a 100' wing. This was in spite of the Stirling's close relation to Shorts' Sunderland flying boat, which had a 116' wing. Shorts' approached the Air Ministry to trial a Stirling with a Sunderland wing, and the prototype proved successful. Production of the Stirling Mk. III, with the new wing, would begin in Canada in autumn 1942. Another significant addition to the Royal Air Force's roster was the wooden constructed De Havilland Mosquito, an extremely fast, twin-engine bomber and fighter. The Hawker Tornado, although initially experiencing teething troubles, eventually finding its niche as a fighter-bomber. The navalized counterpart, the Typhoon, was positively received by the FAA, its inability to fit on Ark Royal's small elevators notwithstanding. The introduction of the Typhoon also allowed the Fulmar to transition into a fleet scout, a role at which the Fulmar excelled.
The US Army Air Force began to accept the B-17 Flying Fortress in large quantities beginning in 1942, based in Britain for daytime strategic bombing operations over occupied Germany and France. Operations were hampered by the lack of a long range escort fighter, and the call was answered by prototypes from Republic and North American Aviation. In the interim, the P-38 Lightning was available, but not in the quantities required. Bell, meanwhile, was producing large numbers of the P-39 Airacobra, as well as the F1L Airabonita for the Navy's hybrid cruisers. Their next product, the Kingcobra was originally specified for use as a fighter bomber without a turbocharger to reduce costs, but the XP-39 built as such demonstrated worse performance than the aircraft it was intended to replace. This was clearly unacceptable, so the XP-63A was specified with a turbocharger and heavier armament. Demand was so great for this version, serving as a fighter-interceptor, that Bell had to seek a manufacturing partner to keep pace with demand. General Motors' Fisher body works had the required capacity, and as such, the aircraft entered service as the Bell-Fisher P-63 Kingcobra. For a dedicated fighter-bomber, the USAAF turned to Curtiss-Wright for an unusual, pusher-propelled aircraft, in addition to more conventional types from other manufacturers. The Navy evaluated aircraft from Vought and Grumman as well, for the fighters that would be accepted as the F4U and F6F respectively.
Meanwhile, the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (1) began work on replacing the successful Nakajima Ki-43 (Ki referring to 'Kitai';"airframe"). The Hayabusa, although extremely maneuverable, was much lighter than its contemporaries, as was its armament, usually only two heavy machine guns firing explosive ammunition. Chinese pilots reported that they were difficult to catch, but if hit, often blew up, broke apart or burned with only a few hits. The next series of fighters would have to be heavier, with larger engines and heavier armament than their predecessors. Two such aircraft emerged as the successors. The first was another entry from Nakajima, retaining the familiar barrel shape, with a radial engine and all-around view bubble canopy. The Ki-44 Shoki sacrificed some of the Hayabusa's legendary handling for increased durability and climbing speed. The increased engine power and durability, as well as an armament of two heavy machine guns and two 20mm cannon made the Shoki a competent fighter bomber, replacing a plethora of obsolete light bombers. Kawasaki KK developed a lightweight fighter of their own, the iconic Ki-61 Hien ("Flying Swallow"). Kawasaki held a licence for the Rolls-Royce Merlin V-12 liquid-cooled engine, and this would become the powerplant for the sleek Ki-61. Faster than any other Japanese fighter of the time, and second only to the Ki-43 in maneuverability, the Ki-61 proved itself as a fighter and interceptor, earning top marks from pilots for its speed and maneuverability, at the cost of being a somewhat "hot" airplane compared to the easy to fly Ki-43 and 27. High octane aviation fuel and exacting manufacturing standards were required, but in the hands of an experienced pilot, the "Showa Spitfire" was a force to be reckoned with. The first production examples featured a hood-type canopy; the II, -kai and -otsu models featured the familiar teardrop bubble canopy.
The IJN continued to work on the proven "Zero", while Mitsubishi worked on the large, powerful A7M Reppu ("Strong Gale"), while the smaller N1K fighter which could be flown off the IJN's smaller carriers was developed by Kawanishi. Aichi Kokui was tasked with developing the large B7A Ryusei, which, for the first time, would combine the torpedo and dive bomber lineages into a single "strike" aircraft. Nakajima continued work on the G8N heavy bomber and worked up a prototype for the superheavy G10N bomber, the latter which was designed to be able reach Berlin from Manchukuo. Yokosuka continued work on an all-metal fast bomber and attack aircraft as well.
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(1). In the Imperial Japanese Army, several voices began to call for an independent air force, modeled after the RAF. Among the biggest proponents of an independent air force were Baron Tokugawa, Inspector General of Army Aviation and General Yamashita. The Navy, however, was not eager to give up any measure of control they had, and argued that air power, strategic air power especially, was an extension of the IJN's force projection capabilities. Debates, heated at times, came up within the War Council. Ultimately, it fell to Emperor Hirohito himself to decide what would happen.
The decision was spurred by a Council meeting in 1941, originally convened to discuss production targets. The Emperor, looking at the figures for production of 20 mm autocannon ammunition, questioned why there were so many different types required by the Navy and the Army. Dissatisfied with the explanations offered by the representatives of the two services, and increasingly agitated over what he described as "senseless waste", he ordered the Army to adopt the 20 × 100 mm ammunition used by the Navy's Type 99 Mk.1 Cannon (the 20 × 110 mm round used by the Type 99 Mk. 2 deemed to be too heavy) for their proposed Ho-5 cannon- and the Navy was likewise ordered to share tooling to make the ammunition. Henceforth, these two types of 20 mm ammunition would be the focus for production, unless there was a pressing need for another type.
Both the Army and Navy registered their protest, but this simply led to the Emperor reminding the Army and Navy ministers that they served the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy, and as the only dai-Gensui (Grand Marshal; a six-star rank) in and Commander in Chief of both forces, it was his prerogative to intervene if he saw fit.
In early 1942, after investigating production numbers further, the Emperor made his decision. The creation of an independent air force was a matter that would be investigated after the war, but that did not mean that it would simply be business as usual for the services. As of March 1942, the 'Type Order' came into effect. Henceforth, the Navy would be responsible for strategic bombers, all carrier aircraft, and a limited number of types for the defence of shore installations. The Army would be responsible for tactical bombers, fighter-bombers and interceptors. This order was intended to reduce the amount of duplication of research and resources, and largely succeeded.
