Part II REVISED
Part II: The Aftermath 2/28/42 – 4/5/42
The Allied victory at the Battle of the Java Sea was as much a surprise to the Allies as it was to the Japanese. Java although safe for now, was not out of the fire yet. Most of the other Islands in the Indonesian Archipelago were in Japanese hands and the strategic position looked dire. The only Dutch garrisons that had not surrendered were the garrison forces on Java, and the small remaining garrison force in Northern Sumatra. The Japanese were in a very tight position the loss of so many transports at the Battle of the Java sea severely impaired their offensive abilities in the south Pacific. Very quickly a plan was made to try and salvage the situation in the East Indies. All offensive naval operations in regards to the Island of Java were to be postponed until further notice. Instead of focusing on Java, the Japanese decided to launch an invasion of Northern Sumatra and the Andaman Islands, establishing a Malay Barrier of their own. Java was to soon be the target of Thousands of Japanese air Attacks. Dozens of IJAA squadrons were gathered on the Islands of Bali and Borneo to literally bomb the Island of Java into submission. However the Allied forces on Java were determined not to go down without a fight.
The Battle for Java
The official start of the new Japanese Air offensive on Java was March 3 1942, almost immediately they encountered staunch resistance from the Allies. Although flying inferior planes the Allies utilized superior position and excellent piloting to keep things on equal terms with the Japanese. Wavell meanwhile was quick to react to these recent turns of events. ABDA command was quickly reformed with an emphasis on Dutch commanders. Wavell pulled many strings and managed to amass a considerable RAF force on the Island of Java. The RAAF also sent contingents to Java where they fought with distinction alongside British, American, and Dutch Units. Java was quickly becoming a bastion of Allied strength. Advance elements of the American 41st division along with 2 fresh batteries of Artillery and nearly 60 warplanes arrived on the island on March 10th augmenting the already formidable allied forces arrayed there. 3 more squadrons of American planes arrived on the 19th bringing the total number of Allied fighters on Java to around 300. The Japanese however were not without re-inforcements of their own. Soon air contingents from the Ryujo, and Nagumo’s 1st Air fleet were joining the IJAA in bombarding Java. Thousands of sorties were flown each day by the Japanese and every sortie encountered some kind of resistance. By March 30th Java had become a meatgrinder for the Japanese Air force. Yamamoto had his own plans for the 1st Carrier airfleet and this was not it. Satisfied with the results over Java he pulled the 1st Airfleet out of Indonesia to participate in his grand plan for the Pacific. Coupled with this event was the arrival of more squadrons from America and Austrailia. These squadrons relieved the battered defenders of Java somewhat, long enough for the Japanese to give up on Bombing Java into submission. By April 1st the Japanese air raids over Java began to die down. Squadrons began being transferred to other fronts and soon it had become apparent that the Allies had won yet again. It is estimated that the Japanese lost over 500 aircraft to the Allied fighters and Anti Aircraft Guns however those numbers have never been determined. Over 100,000 Indonesian civilians died as a result of the campaign. Nearly all the major cities On Java were completely destroyed as a result of the campaign. But in the end it was determination to fight on that won the Battle of Java for the Allies.
The Second Phase of the Sumatra Campaign
It could be argued that March 8th 1942 began the second phase of the Sumatra campaign. With the air battle over Java raging the Japanese did not really expect to much from the beleagured and unorganized defenders of Northern Sumatra. A severe surprise awaited them when they landed in northern Sumatra. A large number of KNIL troops awaited them however things were not as good as they seemed. Most of the KNIL elements on the Island were poorly equipped and badly trained however they were motivated and would prove a very capable foe for the Japanese to encounter. By March 8th the Dutch command on Sumatra had been reorganized into two main areas. There was the Middle Area of Sumatra which was defended by troops under Major-General Overakker, and there was Northern Sumatra defended by troops under Colonel Gossenson. March 12 saw the Japanese Invasion of Northern Sumatra. Crack Imperial Guard Battalions landed all over the island and were immediately engaged by the KNIL forces under Colonel Gossenson. In the south the Japanese 38th division began a ferocious attack aimed at crushing the KNIL forces under Overakker. However the irregular forces of the KNIL proved their mettle time and time again in the early stages of this campaign. Repeatedly throwing off Japanese attacks. In the north things were further complicated with the advent of a general rebellion by the Islamic residents of the Atjeh province. The dire situation in Northern Sumatra caused Wavell and Der Poorten the two allied Land commanders a great deal of consternation. Finally it was decided that Northern Sumatra must be held no matter what the cost. So after pulling the ABDA strike force out of Java a relief convoy was sent to Northern Sumatra. Very quickly the Airfield at Medan became a center for Dutch resistance to the Japanese. 3 battered squadrons of Fairey Fulmar Fighters arrived there on the 20th to provide air support for the Dutch Forces there. They were followed by elements of the American 41st infantry division and 2 fresh Brigades from India. These troops soon found themselves deployed in the Atjeh region fighting not only the Japanese but the Islamic citizens as well. These new reinforcements eventually helped turn the tide in the Battle for Atjeh. After Colonel Gossenson’s counter attack on the 28th, the northern part of the island was secure more or less allowing the Allied forces to focus on stopping the rest of the Japanese Army which they did. By April 5th a front had been established 5 miles south of the crucial airfield at Medan. The Imperial Guard had been forced to withdraw to the south and yet another piece of the Malay Barrier had held its ground.
(In OTL the KNIL forces defending northern Sumatra were surprisingly effective in fighting the Japanese. Some resisted until late March 1943. The fall of Java in OTL severely hampered their operations meaning that in OTL official resistance ended March 28th. However in TTL Java does not fall and as a result troops are re-directed to Sumatra to aid the ailing KNIL forces. Due to no Dutch Surrender the Dutch Forces on Sumatra are also more motivated than TTL leading to the defeat of the Imperial Guard on the beaches and its eventual rout south to join up with the advancing Japanese Armored units.)
The Battle of The Malacca Strait
With Major Gossenson’s rout of the Imperial Guard in Northern Sumatra, and the subsequent halt of all offensive operations on that island the Japanese High Command desperately thought up a way to regain the initiative on that front. Another amphibious invasion was to be launched (Also note that in TTL due to the massive loss of shipping at the Java sea the earlier landing at Java was much, much smaller than OTL, a lot of units that made it ashore in OTL did not in TTL and as a result they are being used here in addition to the forces used in the OTL invasions of Iran Jaya, the Andaman Islands and Christmas Island.) All told around 16,000 troops were amassed compared to the paltry size of the earlier invasion of 8000. Among them were several field artillery brigades and an armored brigade, not to mention various construction battalions. The convoy set out on April 2nd with the actual landings taking place the night of April 5th.
However they were not totally un-opposed. The newly reinforced ABDA strike force having been forced to retreat from Java had established a temporary base at Port Blair on the Andaman Islands. Consisting of 4 Heavy Cruisers(3 RN, 1 USN) , 3 Light Cruisers (2 RNN, 1 RAN) and 13 Destroyers (1 RNN, 1 USN, 11 RN) was more than ready to take on the Japanese. Arrayed against them were the Convoy’s escorts of 2 Light cruisers (Yura, Sendai) and Around 14 Destroyers. Also in the Area were the 5 Cruisers of the 7th Cruiser Division (Chokai, Kumano, Suzuyu, Mikuma, Mogami). The following naval battle between these two forces would be essential to the fate of Northern Sumatra. Departing from Singapore on April 2nd the Japanese convoys were spotted on April 3rd by a Catalina operating out of Medan. The Japanese Completely unawares continued on towards their desired landing zones. Meanwhile the ABDA strike force sailed with all haste from Port Blair in the Andamans. Sailing down the Malacca Strait they were constantly protected by Fairey Fulmar fighters operating out of Medan. The actual battle of the Malacca strait took place when the elderly allied Destroyer Vampire spotted the Japanese Convoys at 2315hrs on April 5th. The Japanese transports were in an incredibly vulnerable position unloading troops and so their escorts scrambled into action. Immediately available to the Japanese were the destroyers of the 5th division (4 all told) and the Cruiser Sendai. The Yura and 6 other destroyers were not too far off and the cruisers of the 7th Cruiser division were at least 30 minutes away. This gave the Allies at least a temporary advantage. Almost immediately the transports came under attack from the cruisers Cornwall and Dorshetshire. This prompted the convoy commander to order the convoy to turn back to Singapore. Meanwhile the Allied Destroyer Screen found itself the recipient of a very nasty Japanese torpedo attack. 2 Destroyers were sunk in the attack with 2 others damaged. Meanwhile The De Ruyter, Java and Perth swung up behind the Allied Destroyers and engaged the Japanese destroyers with superior gunnery. The Sendai became the Allies next target 8 inch shells from the Exeter and the Houston quickly reduced it to a burning wreck. As the remaining Japanese destroyers pulled back the Yura and her destroyers arrived. They were immediately greeted by a hail of gunfire which caused them to disperse. Several Hits to the Yura from the 8 inch guns of the Houston caused the elderly cruiser to erupt into a brutal maelstrom of chaos, confusion and flame. 3 destroyers were sunk by the vengeful guns of the ABDA taskforce before the 7th Cruiser division arrived. Engaging the Cruisers Cornwall and Dorshetshire they covered the retreat of the battered convoy only to be engaged themselves by the rest of the ABDA strike force. The result was a brutal firefight which ended in a torpedo attack from the regrouped Japanese destroyers. 2 More Allied Destroyers were sunk, the Allies also lost the Cruiser Exeter to the guns of the Chokai, and the remaining Allied ships all limped away from the battle with some sort of damage whether it be severe like the Java or minor like the Perth. All told the Japanese lost 2 Light Cruisers, and 3 Destroyers. The Allies fared slightly worse losing 1 heavy cruiser, 6 destroyers, and having all of their ships damaged in some way or another. However the Allies did force the Japanese to retreat, and the Damage to the convoy would delay the renewed Japanese invasion of Northern Sumatra permanently.
(Note that the ABDA taskforce is now much better than the ABDA taskforce at the Java sea. Morale is high, and communications are excellent. The strategies developed by Karl Doorman have been put into practice making the ABDA taskforce one of the most efficient taskforce’s in the fleet.)
Outlook
In Early April 1942 the outlook for the Japanese looks incredibly bleak. The allies are now pouring forces into Indonesia. All attempts at amphibious invasions have resulted in the loss of transports, something that the Japanese cannot afford to lose right now. The Allies on the other hand have salvaged the situation in Indonesia to that of a somewhat stable front. American forces are beginning to arrive in the theatre to bolster the exhausted British, Australian, and Dutch forces. The Japanese have finally lost the initiative in the Pacific, However Yamamoto plans to change that with his new offensive…
_________________________________________________________________
Ok, I just put an insane number of man hours into that revised installment of Part II. Alot of information was gleaned from the OOB page of yours Melvin. Thanks again. So how is it? Any holes I forgot to patch? I do have several questions...
-What forces does Wavell pull out of India to support Northern Sumatra?
-What's Yammamoto's target? New Guinea? Midway?
-When did the 2nd generation of US fighters (F6F Hellcats, P-38s etc. etc.) start arriving on the Pacific?