Turn 2 Battle Report - Sector 44

Award Ceremony and Engagement Report

Fregattenkapitän Hans Leuters

Battleship Gneisenau, Chief Gunnery Officer

Spring 1941 Operational Sector 44

Konteradmiral Strauss:  Fregattenkapitän, please give your report of the engagement.

Fregattenkapitän Leuters: Thank you, sirs.

Our formation was defending our base in Sector 44 when our scout planes reported an enemy formation approaching.  Our three Atlantis class armed merchants immediately deployed forward in a skirmish line of sorts while our warships deployed by our base.  The smaller Japanese formation, supported by a submarine, deployed in the Northeast in a defensive shell.

     Our warships advanced while the Japanese remained in place, with a two Köln light cruisers leading our attack.  Our merchantmen even closed on the enemy.  With both sides having aircraft carriers and supporting land-based air, the initial air attack was furious.  The Japanese flak was especially effective and we only had reports of a single bomb hit on the enemy carrier.  The Japanese, on the other hand, were able to land torpedo hits on a Köln and the Z-25, sinking the latter, and bomb hits on the other Köln and on the Z-28.

     Despite our losses, we continued to advance.  The Japanese torpedo boats leave their formations to hunt our armed merchantmen.  The next round of air attacks only managed a single bomb hit, but it sank the Z-28.

     At this point, I had the Japanese Aircraft carrier lined up at extreme range and we took the shot.  The next thing we saw was a large explosion.  When the smoke cleared enough to get a better view, the carrier’s bow was already rising out of the water.  Unfortunately, we didn’t see any aircraft on the deck when it went down.  The uncrippled Köln sinks one of the torpedo boats and the Atlantis closest to the enemy formation lands both guns and a torpedo into one of their cruisers, sinking it.  The return fire from the Japanese is devastating to the lightly armored merchantmen though, sinking two of them and heavily damaging the last one.

     Desperate at this point, the Japanese torpedo boats charge our heavy ships while the remaining units consolidate around our last Atlantis.  Now with air superiority, our aircraft act with good effect, sinking both torpedo boats.  The Japanese fire everything they have, managing to sink both the crippled Köln and cripple the last Atlantis.

     I line up our guns on the last Japanese cruiser and our shots, literally, blow the ship to pieces.  We are then forced to watch helplessly as the Japanese submarine lands a torpedo in our last Atlantis, sinking it.

     The submarine attempts to run, but the Z-20 and our flight of BV138s manage to catch and sink it before it can escape.    

Konteradmiral Strauss:   Excellent Report, Leuters.  Your Iron Cross is well deserved for shooting like that.

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Japanese Forces

Hiryu (Soryu class Carrier)

 - A6M2 'Zeke'

 - D1A2 'Susie’

 - B5N2 'Kate'

Jintsu (Sendai class Cruiser)

Myoko (Myoko class Cruiser)

T51B TP Boat (x3)

I-25

H8KI Type 2 'Emily'

G3M 'Nell'

G4M 'Betty'

G4M1 'Betty'

German Forces

Gneisenau

Graf Zeppelin

 - Ju-87D

 - Me-155

Admiral Hipper

Prinz Eugen

Kőln (x2)

Z-20 Karl Galster

Z-25

Z-28

Ju-87B (x2) (1 sector distant)

Bf-109 (x2) (1 sector distant)

Bf-110 C-4 (x2) (1 sector distant)

BV138 (x2)

Japanese Losses

Hiryu

Jintsu

Myoko

T51B TP Boat (x3)

I-25

German Losses

Kőln

Z-25

Z-28

Atlantis (x3)