The Whale has Wings

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Thanks astro.

Now where is the rest of KB?

Is it me or is the Zero:Sparrowhawk exchange rate getting around 1:1 while the Zero:Wildcat much more lopsided, understandibly.
 
Thanks astro.

Now where is the rest of KB?

Is it me or is the Zero:Sparrowhawk exchange rate getting around 1:1 while the Zero:Wildcat much more lopsided, understandably.

Not only is the Wildcat inferior to the Zero in combat performance in the one-on-one combat, but even though US Navy fighter pilots are literally the absolutely best trained combat pilots America has, they still lack the level of training and experience the Japanese do.(1) Of course, regarding the current first crop of Japanese fighter pilots, no one in the world matches their training expertise.

Japan's problem all along was in vastly over-training their pilots, taking 3-4 years to finish their training regimen. Even Saburo Sakai, Japan's leading surviving fighter ace, commented on the wrongheadedness of a policy that basically provided one generation of incomparable fighter pilots who were used until they all died. While the Allies kept pulling back their most experienced veterans to be used as trainers to provide a constant steady stream of good replacements.

Sakai often felt like he was fighting the tide as he watched his elite comrades die around him, to be replaced by ever greener pilots, while the Americans (and for his experience, the Australians) were producing an endless supply of able pilots. In his wartime history, he never faced a superior pilot in a superior fighter. But he DID three times face superior pilots in inferior aircraft (one RAAF Hudson and one RAAF P-39, each time over New Guinea, and one USN Wildcat at Guadacanal). Which is a big reason he survived the war.

1) OTL, this was not really solved until the (for Japan) bloodbaths of their aircrews at Coral Sea, Midway, and the Solomons Campaign. But by the time US air power had truly learned their lessons well, their best opponents were mostly dead.
 
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So Lexington's crew were largely saved?

Yep. That was generally the case in the South Pacific. In tropical waters, with many destroyers standing by, and in broad daylight with little in the way of overcast, heavy seas, and fog, SAR missions and abandoning ships were relatively quick and easy. Provided the enemy has done you the favor of withdrawing. This was not always the case of course.

In the closing days of Midway, just when it looked like the USS Yorktown might be saved, the Japanese submarine I-168 snuck in and torpedoed her and the destroyer USS Hammann that was along side providing auxiliary power. Ironically, few lives were lost of the mostly evacuated Yorktown, but 80 men were killed on the Hammann when her depth charges exploded.

Though nothing excuses the incompetence that caused the deaths of so many men on the Indianapolis. A rare case of North Atlantic level casualties on a lost ship, and the idiots responsible beat the rap, leaving the poor captain holding the bag.:mad:
 
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Thanks astro.

Now where is the rest of KB?

Is it me or is the Zero:Sparrowhawk exchange rate getting around 1:1 while the Zero:Wildcat much more lopsided, understandibly.

The Sparrowhawk is mainly doing better because they are facing good, but not excellent pilots. The USN has to fight the carrier pilots who are the best in the world.
TTL the RAF/RAAF pilots have had the chance to learn the weaknesses of the Zero; once these are known its not so tough.

At sea, those IJN pilots will soon have the pleasure of trying to match the Zero against the Sea Eagle. That wont be in the favour of the Japanese...
 
So, both sides get bloodied, with the Japanese hurting more in the short term with two decks out, but not so much in the longer term since one is repairable, and the permanently lost one being only a CVL. Of course given the American industrial capacity, that loss means little in the long-run, whereas the Japanese one will mean much more overall.
 
So, both sides get bloodied, with the Japanese hurting more in the short term with two decks out, but not so much in the longer term since one is repairable, and the permanently lost one being only a CVL. Of course given the American industrial capacity, that loss means little in the long-run, whereas the Japanese one will mean much more overall.

This is on top of the light carrier losses they've already suffered at the hands of the RN. It's going to put still more pressure on the IJN with some missions now either having to do without air support or the KB being broken up into penny packets for escort duties on more operations.
 
This is on top of the light carrier losses they've already suffered at the hands of the RN. It's going to put still more pressure on the IJN with some missions now either having to do without air support or the KB being broken up into penny packets for escort duties on more operations.
Oh I know that, I was just commenting on the update.
 

Hyperion

Banned
On the plus side, Halsey has now successfully sunk or helped to sink two carriers so far. Enterprise should be well experienced later on.
 

Hyperion

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Indeed.
Oh hang on, you mean JAPANESE ones...:D:D:D

Yes, he sunk the Hiryu at Wake. Saratoga was lost, but Fletcher was in command at the time.

Lexington would have been under the command of Vice Admiral Wilson Brown at this date, and Enterprise itself didn't take any actual damage, so Halsey wouldn't be penalized for that.

On top of that, Enterprise has two battles beyond OTL under her belt at this point, giving them a lot of badly needed experienced that they lacked in OTL.

On top of that, the US still has five carriers in the Pacific right now, Enterprise, Wasp, Hornet, Yorktown, and Ticonderoga. This isn't counting the light carriers with will likely start arriving later in 1942, what with no North Africa landings being needed, the Sangammon class can reinforce Nimitz and lighten the load on his big ships.

And this isn't counting further British carriers arriving in Singapore or Ceylon.

Also, this is of course assuming the Zuiho, which you mentioned was still somewhere near Java, doesn't get knocked off by Somerville. Japan is already down six carriers, loosing a seventh would be a disaster.
 
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Japan's naval power is rapidly fading away. While their big carriers are mostly intact, they have no flexibility, and their pilot losses are staggering compared with OTL - as well as skilled mechanics etc. Non CV/CVL losses of combatants are high, and the losses in transports and merchant vessels (and maybe even tankers) have not only made further offensive operations difficult if not impossible, but will rapidly hurt industry. Once some CVs sink or are put out of commission for >6 months with damage, things will unwind very rapidly...
 
Japan's naval power is rapidly fading away. While their big carriers are mostly intact, they have no flexibility, and their pilot losses are staggering compared with OTL - as well as skilled mechanics etc. Non CV/CVL losses of combatants are high, and the losses in transports and merchant vessels (and maybe even tankers) have not only made further offensive operations difficult if not impossible, but will rapidly hurt industry. Once some CVs sink or are put out of commission for >6 months with damage, things will unwind very rapidly...

Agreed. The wheels have already come off, but the Japanese are yet to realise it. After all, they're still moving downhill. It'll be when the descent becomes a free-fall that they will start worrying.

Then again, it might be that losing a Fleet Carrier, after these minor losses and setbacks in a sea of glorious victories (as they are probably interpreted) may wake the Japanese up to their predicament rather earlier.
 
Japan's naval power is rapidly fading away. While their big carriers are mostly intact, they have no flexibility, and their pilot losses are staggering compared with OTL - as well as skilled mechanics etc. Non CV/CVL losses of combatants are high, and the losses in transports and merchant vessels (and maybe even tankers) have not only made further offensive operations difficult if not impossible, but will rapidly hurt industry. Once some CVs sink or are put out of commission for >6 months with damage, things will unwind very rapidly...

On the bright side for the Japanese, they only:rolleyes: have the British:eek: to worry about for now.

The Americans still need to build up the US Marine Corps, their Fleet Train, deploy and train up their Pacific US Army divisions (for jungle warfare) and help the British dispatch the U-Boats (not to mention get back to using convoy tactics like the British as they did in WWI) before they'll have the escorts available to protect a good part of their navy. And sadly, their submarine force is still firing spitballs, and will be for a long time to come.:(

Until then, the US is only a problem if the Japanese are foolish enough to continue offensive operations against New Guinea, the Solomons, and Australia. That is, rather than once and for all putting their eye on the ball with a Manhattan Project level of national priority (*) for taking the DEI. The problem is for the Japanese, is that for now, like Rommel OTL (during 2nd El Alamain), they are facing the full wrath of a relatively unengaged British Empire.:mad::mad::mad::mad::D

*-Of course, such was the "Warlord System" of the Japanese Empire that there never really WAS anyone, not Tojo, not Yamamoto, not even Hirohito who could give such orders.:p
 
Japan's naval power is rapidly fading away. While their big carriers are mostly intact, they have no flexibility, and their pilot losses are staggering compared with OTL - as well as skilled mechanics etc. Non CV/CVL losses of combatants are high, and the losses in transports and merchant vessels (and maybe even tankers) have not only made further offensive operations difficult if not impossible, but will rapidly hurt industry. Once some CVs sink or are put out of commission for >6 months with damage, things will unwind very rapidly...
Also, they have few oil wells, and probably none in decent repair, which is going to mean that any ships they have are soon going to be forced to sit out the rest of the war anyway.
 
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