Malaya What If
- Thread starter Fatboy Coxy
- Start date
Deadtroopers
Banned
The Carcano in 7.35mm was rubbish; not helped by very poor quality control of the powder used. In 6.5mm it was a with good powder it is a different beast. Like Japan, war caught the Ities changing calibre. They reverted to the 6.5mm, so the Finns not only got non-standard cal. rifles with bad ammunition, but had no way to replace it as it was out of production. You might have stop-gap rifles; but the ammo is going to be wildly variable. Unless new ammo that can be vouched for was provided; such stop-gaps would be worse than useless.
It sounds like the problem was actually one more level up the chain of command?
"The Chief of Naval Operations authorized the use of the obsolete destroyer USS Ericsson, but placed so many restrictions on its use Newport was forced to decline the offer. As a result, the Mark VI exploder never underwent a live test, and its shortcomings would not become apparent until the outbreak of hostilities."
State and National Politics and union politics, FDR needed Rhode Islands Senate and House votes.. The State leaders said all torpedo testing and construction will be at Newport, unless in a state of war. This is simplistic but you could write a Thesis on the subject.
When they had them. The Japanese often lacked enough radios from what I've read. While Allied radios could often be twitchy (especially early war) or shorter in range in some types, at least they had often plenty of them. Late war the Allies had MORE than enough!
Japan's disdain fir ASW warfare dated to far before the war: Surface fleet commanders felt protecting merchant ships was "beneath" them. As for their submarine doctrine that was developed far back in the early 30s as part of their plan to attrite the US Fleet as it pushed through to relieve the Philippines. So nope. That's on them...and shows just how myopic their military culture was.
So nothing to do with piss poor US torpedoes, that's all on the Newport clique's incompetence.
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This is true. But just because the torpedo testing and construction was in Newport doesn't mean it had to done in a crappy manner. That's on the naval officers who didn't do their jobs and on Congress and Navy budget directors for being stingy a-holes on R&D.
Then everyone at the yards being truly shitty on a epic level on both development and manufacturing quality control.
Not that Newport wasn't first class at ass covering mind you. They KNEW they'd screwed up and scrambled to protect that little bit of info for years into war...which is outright treason in my book.
Fatboy Coxy
Monthly Donor
Blimey Guys, I leave you alone for a few days, and the posts go wild, pages to read and reply to, has Christmas come early for some of you?
Fatboy Coxy
Monthly Donor
Hi Parma, thank you for this. I need to do a bit on what the Dutch had, especially in Java, who's development was similar to Malaya
Fatboy Coxy
Monthly Donor
Re the floating Dry Docks, as discussed by Butchpfd, Driftless, Neverinemex, and gallen95, these were not very easy to redeploy, see
But that was still quicker than building a new one
eresources.nlb.gov.sg
Singapore Dock 1928
Floating dry dock singapore 1928 Swan Hunter Wigham Richardson Wallsend
www.tynebuiltships.co.uk
The Singapore Floating Dock, later renamed the 'Admiralty IX …
A FLOATING DOCK IN SINGAPORE The Singapore Floating Dock, later renamed the 'Admiralty IX Floating Dry Dock', was officially declared open by the then Governor …
www.nas.gov.sg
But that was still quicker than building a new one
National Library Online
As custodian of Singapore’s documentary heritage, the National Library, Singapore collects, preserves and makes accessible our digitised and born-digital content for present and future generations
eresources.nlb.gov.sg
Fatboy Coxy
Monthly Donor
Regards the USN Asiatic Fleet, I'll have a few posts on that for timeline context, but Butchpfd is doing a pretty good job, 
Surely not the Japanese aircraft radios. The memoirs of pilots like Saburo Sakai consistently describe them as next to useless - you could only communicate with your land base or aircraft carrier if you were practically flying right above it, and plane to plane communication was a pipe dream.
Fatboy Coxy
Monthly Donor
hi Ventinari, not forgotten, but not central to the story. There will be a few Australian focused posts, but once the bullets start flying, Australia will figure more in my writings
Fatboy Coxy
Monthly Donor
Japanese aircraft to aircraft R/T was useless, at least in 1941-42, not sure about later in the war, that's partly why bomber formations flew in tight formations. For fighters, once they were in combat, they were reduced to a Vic of three, at best.
However aircraft to land based station communications worked ok, often using a ship as a repeater station. So maritime aircraft were able to report sightings, the problems they had were mostly atmospheric, December 1941 was full monsoon season in the South China Sea. This problem also plagued the Allies.
No problem. I like your detailed timeline, with the focus on the seamingly small, personel items. The History of the Japanese attack on British Malaya and the Dutch East Indies are very connected or interconnected there for I thought I posted this comment regarding shipyard facilities on Java.
I didn't expect this would start a lively discussion
Fatboy Coxy
Monthly Donor
Thank you for this Logan2879, I have read it before, there's a lot here, and I will give more comment when I have a little more time.
MWI 41062321 The Canadians Are Here
Fatboy Coxy
Monthly Donor
1941, Monday 23 June;
Park sat, as a guest of the newly formed RCAF 404 Squadron at Tengah, at its first formal meal, along with another guest, Air Commodore Archie Wann. Sitting with them were a few RAF officers, transferred or seconded from RAF 226 Sqn, and the rest, very young Canadian pilots, including sergeant pilot Eddie Alworth, all trying to display their best table manners, with little nods and subtle gestures correcting those in ignorance of the proper etiquette. They had arrived on the auxiliary cruiser HMCS Prince Henry last week, straight from the flying schools in Canada.
They were a bright cheerful lot, full of self-confidence, which they were going to need, as they learnt the art of flying a Fairey Battle in operational service. They were going to learn to hate, but at the same time love, Archie Wann, as he drove them to a level of competency way beyond what they would think achievable, but probably for Wann, only average. They wouldn’t normally fly with a navigator, perhaps one in the lead aircraft, but the rest would fly just pilot and radio operator/rear gunner. They would learn to fly ground attack, interdiction and close support operations. It wouldn’t be safe level flight, bombs away and home stuff, it would be a lot hairier than that, not that Wann would tell them that, he knew they’d figure it out quite quickly enough anyway.
The plan was for 226 squadron to foster 404, and later a second Canadian squadron, 414, both Article XIV squadrons, just as fast as the aircrew and aircraft arrived. At the moment they trained on general flying, maintaining formation, and navigating. But it would soon be time to start the hard work, while late arrivals would have to play catch up. It wasn’t a perfect plan, but Park was convinced Wann could make it work.
Also, on HMCS Prince Henry, was the advance party of a company of the Royal Canadian Signals Corps, The Canadian Cable and Construction Company, colloquially known as the 4C’s, a one-off unit of telephone cabling engineers, volunteers, nearly all in their forties, who would be used to upgrade and develop Malaya’s telephone network. They came with light trucks, and all the equipment a telephone cabling unit would want, and would progressively grow in numbers, until nearly 300 strong, by the end of the year. Although not a combat unit, they were equipped with pistols and rifles for self-defence.
The few others on the ship were a couple of radar trained technicians for the AMES units, and half a dozen or so newly commissioned Canadian second lieutenants, who had volunteered to transfer to the Indian Army, and, on condition they passed the required courses in Urdu, would see a significant increase in pay. They were the start of a steady trickle of officers choosing this career path.
Further shipments in Canadian chartered steamers had recently delivered a large quantity of signalling cable, numerous light and medium trucks, the ever-needed steel products and cement, and most significantly, enough newly built earth moving equipment to equip a second airfield construction company, which would be held for the expectant arrival of a New Zealand company.
But the best news for Park had been the arrival of the first 20 crated Canadian built Hurricane MK IIA aircraft, armd with eight guns, and no engines. From now on there would be a steady arrival of Hurricanes from Canada, coming across the Pacific in freighters sailing alone with no need of a convoy escort. Meeting them in Singapore were Merlin XX engines, being shipped from Britain, and the first batch were due in the next WS series convoy. When assembled these would first re-equip the OTU, and then begin equipping the fighter squadrons.
The more formal toasts had been taken, the meal eaten, and as the men around the table began to relaxed, so the drink began to flow, Eddie Alworth was well on his way to becoming very drunk, but decorum dictated he keep pace with everyone else. Air Marshal Keith Park, himself beginning to feel the effects of drink, called for another toast, he waited while charges were filled and then called out, to the Maple Leaf, Forever, and the reply cried around the room, to the Maple Leaf, the Maple Leaf Forever!
Park sat, as a guest of the newly formed RCAF 404 Squadron at Tengah, at its first formal meal, along with another guest, Air Commodore Archie Wann. Sitting with them were a few RAF officers, transferred or seconded from RAF 226 Sqn, and the rest, very young Canadian pilots, including sergeant pilot Eddie Alworth, all trying to display their best table manners, with little nods and subtle gestures correcting those in ignorance of the proper etiquette. They had arrived on the auxiliary cruiser HMCS Prince Henry last week, straight from the flying schools in Canada.
They were a bright cheerful lot, full of self-confidence, which they were going to need, as they learnt the art of flying a Fairey Battle in operational service. They were going to learn to hate, but at the same time love, Archie Wann, as he drove them to a level of competency way beyond what they would think achievable, but probably for Wann, only average. They wouldn’t normally fly with a navigator, perhaps one in the lead aircraft, but the rest would fly just pilot and radio operator/rear gunner. They would learn to fly ground attack, interdiction and close support operations. It wouldn’t be safe level flight, bombs away and home stuff, it would be a lot hairier than that, not that Wann would tell them that, he knew they’d figure it out quite quickly enough anyway.
The plan was for 226 squadron to foster 404, and later a second Canadian squadron, 414, both Article XIV squadrons, just as fast as the aircrew and aircraft arrived. At the moment they trained on general flying, maintaining formation, and navigating. But it would soon be time to start the hard work, while late arrivals would have to play catch up. It wasn’t a perfect plan, but Park was convinced Wann could make it work.
Also, on HMCS Prince Henry, was the advance party of a company of the Royal Canadian Signals Corps, The Canadian Cable and Construction Company, colloquially known as the 4C’s, a one-off unit of telephone cabling engineers, volunteers, nearly all in their forties, who would be used to upgrade and develop Malaya’s telephone network. They came with light trucks, and all the equipment a telephone cabling unit would want, and would progressively grow in numbers, until nearly 300 strong, by the end of the year. Although not a combat unit, they were equipped with pistols and rifles for self-defence.
The few others on the ship were a couple of radar trained technicians for the AMES units, and half a dozen or so newly commissioned Canadian second lieutenants, who had volunteered to transfer to the Indian Army, and, on condition they passed the required courses in Urdu, would see a significant increase in pay. They were the start of a steady trickle of officers choosing this career path.
Further shipments in Canadian chartered steamers had recently delivered a large quantity of signalling cable, numerous light and medium trucks, the ever-needed steel products and cement, and most significantly, enough newly built earth moving equipment to equip a second airfield construction company, which would be held for the expectant arrival of a New Zealand company.
But the best news for Park had been the arrival of the first 20 crated Canadian built Hurricane MK IIA aircraft, armd with eight guns, and no engines. From now on there would be a steady arrival of Hurricanes from Canada, coming across the Pacific in freighters sailing alone with no need of a convoy escort. Meeting them in Singapore were Merlin XX engines, being shipped from Britain, and the first batch were due in the next WS series convoy. When assembled these would first re-equip the OTU, and then begin equipping the fighter squadrons.
The more formal toasts had been taken, the meal eaten, and as the men around the table began to relaxed, so the drink began to flow, Eddie Alworth was well on his way to becoming very drunk, but decorum dictated he keep pace with everyone else. Air Marshal Keith Park, himself beginning to feel the effects of drink, called for another toast, he waited while charges were filled and then called out, to the Maple Leaf, Forever, and the reply cried around the room, to the Maple Leaf, the Maple Leaf Forever!
Deadtroopers
Banned
To benefit himself. He wrecked this country. That is his entire political career. I can't think of anything he did that was of a sigificant benefit to us.