Turn 2 Battle Report - Sector 46

Initial Deployment: A large German battle fleet enters the sector, only to find the British forces reinforced with another Battleship to support the powerful N3 battleship, HMS St. George.

Turn 1:Both sides launch heavy air strikes.  German fighters knock down a flight of Halifaxes and the German bombers cripple the HMS Carlisle.  The British airborne ASW sinks the U-106.

Turn 2:With most of the aircraft rearming, the air strikes are reduced and only result in aircraft casualties.  The German Me155s shoot down a flight of Sunderlands only to be shot down themselves by the escorting Martlets.  The HMS Tynedale lays smoke, but this doesn't prevent fire from the Z-28 from crippling it.  The Z-19 lays smoke of its own.  The Type IX u-boat manages to get a torpedo into the side of the HMS Anson.

Turn 3: The rearmed British air fills the skies as the German destroyer squadron charges into the HMS St. George.  One of the defending German fighter squadrons is shot down by Martlets but the fighters defending the U-boat do better and manage to shoot down a squadron of Albacores.  Bombs from Hurricane IICs blow up the Z-28.  The remaining destroyers combine their gunnery to sink the HMS Lance and manage to get a torpedo hit on the HMS St. George.  Long range gunnery from the Admiral Hipper even manages to hit the HMS Jamaica.  The combined gunnery of the St. George and Kent easily finishes off the brave German destroyers.

Turn 4: With the German air rearmed, the British brace for the worst.  A defending Martlet manages to down a squadron of Stukas, but the German air strikes are, overall, quite effective, crippling both the HMS Gurkha and HMS Mohawk and crippling the HMS Jamaica.  The British air, combines to hit one of the Peter Strasser's twice and a Sunderland cripples the Type IX u-boat.  The German surface gunnery is effective, with the Anson hit, the Kent crippled, and the Jamaica sunk.  The British return fire is even more devastating, hitting the Tirpitz and Nuernberg and sinking the u-baot, the Z-20, and the Admiral Hipper.

Turn 5:  Retreating as much as they can before the two powerful British battleships, the Germans brace for the worst.  The Nuernberg charges forward, sacrificing itself to save the carriers.  The British air strikes are heavy and the German fighters rush to stop them.  Flak from the Nuernberg splashes a squadron of Albacores, but bombs from the Hurricane IIC cripple the cruiser.  Martlets knock down another squadron of German fighters, allowing the Halifaxes go get through and land a bomb hit on the Graf Zeppelin.  The smaller German air strike manages to sink the HMS Kent.  The German fire is mostly ineffective, not damaging the British battleships at all and only succeeding in sinking the HMS Gurkha.  The guns from the St. George blow up the Tirpitz and the remaining British gunnery sink the damaged Peter Strasser, sink the Nuernberg, and damage the Graf Zeppelin again.

Conclusion:With most of their fleet beneath the waves, the Germans retreat, having lost 4 squadrons of aircraft along with a battleship, 2 cruisers, a carrier, 2 submarines, and 4 destroyers.  The British held the valuable sector, losing only 2 cruisers, 2 destroyers, and 4 squadrons of aircraft.