The Pacific's 1812
The Pacific's 1812
1st August 1940- 1st September 1940
The fortunes of war are now clearly favoring the Axis. To the West, Germany has conquered all nations who would not submit to her will, and now only the isolated British and the increasingly worried Soviet Union stand in her way. Italy, the weakest Axis major, has established her new empire, ranging from the Balkans to the Suez canal, and is pressing into the Middle East. And of course, Japan. With the American fleet in tatters, the rest of Allied forces presence nearly obliterated, it was time to to turn Imperial High Command attention to expansion once more. This would begin with taking of the tropical island of Palmyra in the Southern Pacific. A relatively useless rock, the entire US navy was currently sheltering in it's tiny port. During the time it took the marines to get into place, there was a few minor engagements, resulting in the sinking of a few American DD's, Submarines and transports, but no Capital ships to speak of bar a obsolete Heavy cruiser. The Marines took the island on the 15th, and our fleets were able to get a few shots at the the huge combined American fleet, but again only managed to damage and de-organize the capital ships further, while sinking some destroyers and transports. Whilst hunting is poor, the good news is we have not lost any ships thus far to the Americans thus far, a sign perhaps they are out of supply. The Americans have sheltered on Jarvis island; we will wait till our carrier air groups are repaired to pursue further. For now, they are contained.
The massive, crippled American fleet flees Palmyra, but manages to evade heavy losses. However, it is of little use to the Allies in it's state
Back home, we are reading ourselves or the production of our new carrier fleet, which finishes completely soon. At the the end of August, the first of the destroyer escorts were built, and the carriers and remainder escorts won't be too far behind. Another excellent development is the the construction of new carrier air groups, to replace those lost or heavily damaged. Experience has shown how invaluable even 1 of these are, so we are eager to have more at our disposal. Technology wise, new submarine torpedoes have been developed, which should allow our already prosperous convoy hunters to take on heavier and more numerous targets, not that they needed much encouragement anyway.
Even a single carrier air group can make a huge difference in the new world of naval warfare; we are pleased to have more at our disposal.
As activity is winding down in the Pacific momentarily, Imperial High Command must decide what action to take next. Many generals and Admirals want to invade the the West Coast of America, others to invade the Panama canal and deny Allies access through them, similar to the Italians on the Suez. But such bold moves can not be made with a certain Allied nation so close to Japan; The Philippines. The American puppet on it's own poses no threat, the fact that the Americans could base there is too much of a risk to leave unchecked. To that effect, Operation Broadside has been drawn up and sanctioned. Using the recently decorated 2nd Army, who subdued the Chinese warlords and puppets, we will invade the three major ports in the Philippine principle island , including Manila proper. Once beachheads are stabilized, we will secure the rest of the country, a process that we estimate will be complete in 3 weeks with all going well. This will remove the thorn in our side, and add another slice of land to the Glorious Empire.
Operation Broadside; Our answer to the long overdue Philippine question
On a positive note, in order to ensure that the American fleet cannot reach safety, Admiral Koga's surface action group has been deployed to blockade Los Angles and San Diego, which are huge naval centers. During this process, he managed to sink a Canadian destroyer and a American submarine. A symbol that America's grip on the Pacific is nearing the end, and that the war will soon be on their doorstep.
A blockade of Los Angles and San Fransisco; the American influence in the Pacific is nearing it's end
