Keynes' Cruisers Volume 2

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Corporal Tommy

fester said:
Tumangang, Korea, July 14, 1945

Half a dozen horsemen continued their patrol along the river. Across the border the Soviets were not being subtle about the road improvements. They had not been subtle about the improvements for months now. The only thing of note today was that a company of tanks were driving up and down the new road. Engineers, and likely officers, were trailing behind the small force noting where the shoulders needed to be reinforced and identifying spots where combat forces might wish to get off road and behind some of the gently rolling cover.

Three hours later, the patrol's report was being aggregated with half a dozen other reports before the new data was sent to the area army headquarters.
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This is what we call in the business, foreshadowing
 

Curtain Jerker

fester said:
Tumangang, Korea, July 14, 1945

Half a dozen horsemen continued their patrol along the river. Across the border the Soviets were not being subtle about the road improvements. They had not been subtle about the improvements for months now. The only thing of note today was that a company of tanks were driving up and down the new road. Engineers, and likely officers, were trailing behind the small force noting where the shoulders needed to be reinforced and identifying spots where combat forces might wish to get off road and behind some of the gently rolling cover.

Three hours later, the patrol's report was being aggregated with half a dozen other reports before the new data was sent to the area army headquarters.
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One side has horses, the other has tanks. If that doesn't illustrate both the supply situation and the overall state of the two sides in mid-1945 nothing will.
 

jlckansas

Curtain Jerker said:
One side has horses, the other has tanks. If that doesn't illustrate both the supply situation and the overall state of the two sides in mid-1945 nothing will.
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The Russian army used horses out there also in the Far Eastern Army. They would use horse mounted troops to go places and cover gaps that they would. have trouble with the open spaces there.
 

Paulo the Limey

Curtain Jerker said:
One side has horses, the other has tanks. If that doesn't illustrate both the supply situation and the overall state of the two sides in mid-1945 nothing will.
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Horses have a lower logistical footprint in some regards, especially if food can be locally sourced. Good for low density patrols and policing. You would want them backed up by slightly more armed units though.
 

Trevayne

Paulo the Limey said:
Horses have a lower logistical footprint in some regards, especially if food can be locally sourced. Good for low density patrols and policing. You would want them backed up by slightly more armed units though.
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fester said:
Horses have their places even today.
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Agree, as the US Army found out in 2001.

from wiki
Once they arrived in-country, the Northern Alliance troops provided the US forces with horses, the only suitable transportation for the difficult mountainous terrain of Northern Afghanistan. Only ODA 595 commander Capt. Mark D. Nutsch had any significant experience on horseback, but all readily accepted.[36] Capt. Will Summers, Special Forces team leader, said "It was as if The Jetsons had met The Flintstones."[37] The last U.S. Army unit to receive horseback training had been the 28th Cavalry in 1943[38] and the ODA teams were the first U.S. soldiers to ride horses into battle since 16 January 1942, when the U.S. Army's 26th Cavalry Regiment charged an advanced guard of the 14th Japanese Army as it advanced from Manila.
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en.wikipedia.org

5th Special Forces Group (United States) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org
 
Story 2939
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    • fester

    Ishigaki, July 16, 1945

    Half a dozen B-29s entered the landing pattern. They had made another pumpkin run against Nagoya. Within twenty minutes, the crews were walking to waiting jeeps, mechanics were already going over the routine post-mission checklists and the recon specialists had stripped half a dozen cameras of their film.

    Once the photographs had been processed, the analysts looked for the signature of the test bomb. Soon they found it. The lead aircraft had placed the bomb one hundred feet long and three hundred feet wide.
     
  • Index
    • Driftless

    Driftless

    Donor
    With the Soviets up on the Korean border, is that approximately where they were OTL on that date (July 14, 1945)? IF so, will this be the same OTL race to occupy the pennisula before the Japanese formally surrender to the US in August?

    Or, be patient. All will be revealed in it's appropriate time.
     
    Story 2940
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    • fester

    Near Guam, July 17, 1945

    USS Clancy slowed as she approaching the listing battleship. Pennsylvania had been on the gunnery range. She had done one full evolution of radar directed fire. As she was making a fairly lazy turn to port to resume her drills using only manual control, four large torpedo wakes had been spotted. She increased speed, turned hard away and managed to dodge two of the manned torpedoes. Another was destroyed by gunfire from half a dozen ships. However the last suicide torpedo exploded just aft of her tripod mast but ahead of her rear turrets. Several thousand tons of water were already in the ship which had started to list to starboard.

    The destroyer soon connected herself to the old battlewagon. She provided pumps and power along with another little tin can. Half a dozen ships and soon a dozen aircraft began to search for the offending submarine without luck. By nightfall, the battleship's fate was known. She would be saved as she made a slot seven knots back to the anchorage. Once there, construction and repair teams from the fleet train would assess her damage and plan temporary and long term repairs.
     
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    • Donald Reaver

    Donald Reaver

    Donor
    fester said:
    Near Guam, July 17, 1945

    USS Saban slowed as she approaching the listing battleship. Pennsylvania had been on the gunnery range. She had done one full evolution of radar directed fire. As she was making a fairly lazy turn to port to resume her drills using only manual control, four large torpedo wakes had been spotted. She increased speed, turned hard away and managed to dodge two of the manned torpedoes. Another was destroyed by gunfire from half a dozen ships. However the last suicide torpedo exploded just aft of her tripod mast but ahead of her rear turrets. Several thousand tons of water were already in the ship which had started to list to starboard.

    The destroyer soon connected herself to the old battlewagon. She provided pumps and power along with another little tin can. Half a dozen ships and soon a dozen aircraft began to search for the offending submarine without luck. By nightfall, the battleship's fate was known. She would be saved as she made a slot seven knots back to the anchorage. Once there, construction and repair teams from the fleet train would assess her damage and plan temporary and long term repairs.
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    What do you mean by a suicide torpedo? Are they manned, otherwise a torpedo is a torpedo doing its job, not another option.
     
    Hydra1234

    Hydra1234

    Donald Reaver said:
    What do you mean by a suicide torpedo? Are they manned, otherwise a torpedo is a torpedo doing its job, not another option.
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    Probably the Kaiten, so yeah, manned suicide torpedoes packed with explosives. There was a submarine group of them patrolling near Guam OTL, I believe one of which was responsible for the sinking of the USS Indianapolis (albeit with regular torpedoes).
     
    Donald Reaver

    Donald Reaver

    Donor
    Hydra1234 said:
    Probably the Kaiten, so yeah, manned suicide torpedoes packed with explosives. There was a submarine group of them patrolling near Guam OTL, I believe one of which was responsible for the sinking of the USS Indianapolis (albeit with regular torpedoes).
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    I did not know they were that far out from Japan itself.
     
    Driftless

    Driftless

    Donor
    fester said:
    Near Guam, July 17, 1945

    USS Saban slowed as she approaching the listing battleship. Pennsylvania had been on the gunnery range. She had done one full evolution of radar directed fire. As she was making a fairly lazy turn to port to resume her drills using only manual control, four large torpedo wakes had been spotted. She increased speed, turned hard away and managed to dodge two of the manned torpedoes. Another was destroyed by gunfire from half a dozen ships. However the last suicide torpedo exploded just aft of her tripod mast but ahead of her rear turrets. Several thousand tons of water were already in the ship which had started to list to starboard.

    The destroyer soon connected herself to the old battlewagon. She provided pumps and power along with another little tin can. Half a dozen ships and soon a dozen aircraft began to search for the offending submarine without luck. By nightfall, the battleship's fate was known. She would be saved as she made a slot seven knots back to the anchorage. Once there, construction and repair teams from the fleet train would assess her damage and plan temporary and long term repairs.
    Click to expand...

    I'm betting at best, this is a slightly different twist on the last act for the Pennsylvannia. It gets patched up enough to travel to Bikini Atoll and be part of the OTL test ships for Operation Crossroads
     

    vl100butch

    USS Saban hmmmmmm, did someone watch Alabama-Texas last Saturday? Check out this weeks SEC Shorts on you tube (to include the sponsorship blurb with Kirk Herbstreit at the end)
     

    Marquis

    fester said:
    Near Guam, July 17, 1945

    USS Clancy slowed as she approaching the listing battleship. Pennsylvania had been on the gunnery range. She had done one full evolution of radar directed fire. As she was making a fairly lazy turn to port to resume her drills using only manual control, four large torpedo wakes had been spotted. She increased speed, turned hard away and managed to dodge two of the manned torpedoes. Another was destroyed by gunfire from half a dozen ships. However the last suicide torpedo exploded just aft of her tripod mast but ahead of her rear turrets. Several thousand tons of water were already in the ship which had started to list to starboard.

    The destroyer soon connected herself to the old battlewagon. She provided pumps and power along with another little tin can. Half a dozen ships and soon a dozen aircraft began to search for the offending submarine without luck. By nightfall, the battleship's fate was known. She would be saved as she made a slot seven knots back to the anchorage. Once there, construction and repair teams from the fleet train would assess her damage and plan temporary and long term repairs.
    Click to expand...

    Scrap her. Barely even worth the bother of dragging her back into Guam, not when there so many more potent capital ships available including the RN/MN battlefleet on the scene.

    Even better, drag her into Guam, use her as a base ship hulk until the preservation era gets swinging.
     
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