Letters from a Prime Minister

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1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

From
The Office of the Minister of Opposition
to
Prime Minister

Dear Frank

I have only just heard that your youngest son, Jeffery lies seriously injured
in the United States, injured during service to our country.
I wish to express my deepest sympathies on his injuries, and offer whatever help I can
in the future.
I also know that Jack is at Kalgoorlie, and John is at sea. The strain of war leadership, I know,
cannot equal the strain of having a son at the front.
We may differ on many things, but in this time of darkness for Australia, rest assured
I will never allow any one to say that the Ford family has not given its all.

Sincerely
Tony
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Ian R
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by Ian R »

ORIGINAL: 1275psi

Its people like British Exile that keep one writing, it can be hard work at times!![:'(]

There are many lurkers such as I who are enjoying this, kudos. Please continue.

Just one thing though, at McArthur's suggestion, PM Curtin offered the OC AMF spot to Morshead, with Blamey to be shifted to Chief of Staff, and a more administrative role.

Morshead knocked him back - because he was a combat soldier with NO interest in political B/S. He preferred command of I corps, an active combat formation.

I wonder if you were to spend the pp to put Morshead in place of Blamey, would it make a difference game-wise?

It should. Morshead (& Lavarack, Rowell & Sturdee) were all better equipped than Blamey for actual direct command of combat troops.
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Lecivius
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by Lecivius »

ORIGINAL: Ian R

ORIGINAL: 1275psi

Its people like British Exile that keep one writing, it can be hard work at times!![:'(]

There are many lurkers such as I who are enjoying this, kudos. Please continue.


I cannot but agree [:)]
If it ain't broke, don't fix it!
1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

April 18th

0200 hours, some 120 miles north of Efate.

A small ship. A tight crew. Men who have known each other for some time now, who
inside this small destroyers frame have learnt to live with each others foibles, each others
stink.
Men drawn even closer together by the stresses of war.
Destroyer Stuart, a little ship alone on a big ocean, sailing where she really should never be.

The operation against Ndendi has been cancelled, spread over 100's of miles half a dozen task
forces are fleeing south.
Carriers at Tulgia. Fleet ones at that.
Stuart is tail end Charlie, covering arses.

The night is dark, visibility is crud.
And yet the Japanese find them.
One moment, darkness, the steady hiss of the ocean, the quiet murmers on the bridge.
Then, brilliant daylight, as the star shells explode overhead.

A close crew. A well trained crew.
A brave crew.

Stuart does the only thing she can do....she heels, turns, swings her guns towards the enemy,
a line off metal, no, a great wall of metal, just 2000 yards away.
Her guns get just one round away.
Her torpedo officer a full spread.

They slice, 6 good fish, straight towards the leading ship, Battleship Ise, and plough
straight into steel.
A destroyers steel
And then Hyuga fires a full salvo, and Stuart dissolves in violence and flame.

A close crew, a brave crew.
Sailing together now, forever.
big seas, fast ships, life tastes better with salt
1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

From
Former Naval Officer
to
POTUS

I, and my Generals now agree. There seems to be little chance of an amphibious
invasion of India. There May be a thrust over the mountains aimed at Southern India,
which we can contain.
Thankyou for the support of the Carrier force. I now place all British Naval
forces under temporary command of your in situ Admiral.
On other matters, this Gen Chiang-Kai-Chek, in China, is he reliable?
Do you think China really can hold?, the line certainly has stabilised lately.......




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1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

April 19

Bridge, CV Enterprise, 100 miles north of Addu

The messages that come in, come quickly, bang, bang, bang.
"message from Resolution sir.........have been sighted by Japanese Patrol plane"
Resolution is just 80 miles to their east.
"Message sir, Destroyer Inconstant is reporting multiple Kate torpedo bombers"
She is further south, just south of Diego, enroute from Cape Town to Colombo
'message sir.....SS Salmon reports a small convoy, 120 miles east of Diego, apparently inbound"

The plot is thick.
Enterprise and her companions, near Addu. The British heading south towards Diego.
Several ASW groups in the area.

Lt Jackson can almost see his Admiral's internal wrestle.
He wants to attack, he needs to attack.
The Japs are there, South of Diego.
But..............

More importantly, 1st corp is at sea, still steaming West, just 300 miles to the north.

THEY Must be protected.

"I smell a trap Jackson. Damn it!"
It is quite possibly the hardest decision Halsey has ever made
"All ships retire North.....God knows what is lurking down there""


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1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

April 19th
It has been a world Jeffery could never imagined.
A child of the great Western plains of Australia, the concept of mountains, real mountains,
is one he has never grasped.
The Last three days have been eye opening, the hospital train wending its way slowly
south towards Seattle.
He has had plenty of time to think as the world slides by.
He still has his leg. He still has his life.
Somehow, its changed. Somehow, its gotten a whole lot more serious.

He wonders about Margeret
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1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

April 20th

Kalgoorlie airfield.

25th squadron.
A squadron stripped to its very core. It seems to Jack now that life is just
the plane, the strip, the dust, the scrap of canvas that has become his shelter.
The routine is punishing.
Rise before dawn. Eat, eat whatever mix of bully beef and biscuits the cooks
come up with (some days its beef and biscuits, the next, biscuits and beef)

Brush the dust, the ever present dust off, then, to the flight line.
They are flying in flights of 6 now, 6 up, 6 refuelling, 6 returning, or circling.
The strip grows, but is still crowded, hudsons, the wirriways (the wishiways they call them, wish
they would actually hit something).

The Japs seem to be everywhere.
There are fighters at Esperance, Oscars, yet to be tackled. Also Transports, and, it is
rumoured, bombers.
Tanks to the North, a division to the south, another to the south east.
And tanks on the rail line east of them, where 1st Division is being led a merry chase.

Yet nobody seems worried.
What is there to worry about?
No money problems.
No relationship problems, no material problems
Just his solid fighter, his friends, and a chance to fight Japs.

First flight is returning.
2 come in, dead stick...one smoking. 6 have gone out, one returned early.
The other 5 all are damaged.
The Oscars at last????

But the pilots leap from the cockpits grinning, smiles splitting faces.
Betty bombers.
Unescorted betty bombers

Jack curses. He's missed out.
18 betty bombers, and 8 of the barsteds shot down.

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1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

From
POTUS
to
Prime Minister of Australia

Frank

I am delighted to let you know, that in addition to the troops already en route or
in Australia,, I have wrangled a new division for you, the 32nd.
Its going to South West pacific command, which should keep
a certain general quiet for a few days, at least.

I understand the Americal has arrived, we would like to.............
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1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

Australian Command HQ.

"Port Kembla??"

Frank looks at the intelligence report: 48th div planning for an attack on Port Kembla''.

He eyes his General nervously. "Blamey has stripped the east coast, if this happens, we are
#@!@#$!"
The General shrugs. "Actually Blamey has taken an acceptable risk, we think. The Yanks are arriving,
and Port Moresby is the Jap focus. If Port Moresby had been lost, yes, maybe. But that place
is going to buy us time, time for the Yanks to come, time for 1st Corp. This, this Port
Kembla stuff is a decoy, 48th is spread all over PNG, it will take weeks to gather it"

I hope you are right General. Gods, I hope you are right
1st Corp. So much depending on first corp.
If, gods, if we can get it here in one piece.
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1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

20th April
CV Enterprise.

"There they are sir"

Lt Jackson re focuses his glasses. There is no mistaking the shape.
Lady Sara, Lady Lex, and Yorktown standing proud on the horizon.

"Thankyou Jackson" Halsey gives a wry grin. "That is all our eggs in one basket now, isn't it"

Yes. yes it is. 4 carriers. 2 Brit carriers. Those bloody too slow and useless
R class. The entire Aussie navy.......and North of us, First Corp.

And coming hard North, after us, the Japs.

Akagi, Kaga, at least 2 more CV, and maybe 3 cvl.
Now North of Diego.
a destroyer lost today, 3 ASW ships.


And seemingly every ship asking for fuel.

"Don't worry Jackson, I am not going to do anything rash...I do understand 1st Corp is the mission.
We keep running North, as fast as those bloody brits can go.. Its the Cape, or nothing now"
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1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

20th April
80 miles North of Kalgoorlie
2/8th Arm regiment finally engages 2nd tank regiment.
Its the Stuarts that do it, the Matildas at 9 mph simply are not in the chase today.

"its like herding bloody Cats"
But the Cats tail has been caught.

13 of the little mobile tin cans are destroyed today, the rest boxed in.
Tomorrow, the Matildas will show Japan what a proper tank is all about.........
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1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

April 21st
North of Kalgoorlie.

2nd tank regiment, sent to sweep around the airfield and to isolate it.
Now finding itself relentlessly driven North, hunted, harassed.

Today, it turns south, attempts to break the chase.
There are just 12 Matildas entering the plain the Japanese must cross.
Its good tank country, if you own the superior tank.

The Matilda is definitely the superior tank..
25 enemy tanks burn after an hours "battle"
25 more are damaged

18 full Japanese formations landed on this great brown land
1 down, 17 to go.
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1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

April 21st

KB keeps coming North
South of Addu island , it sinks a fleeing KV .
It misses DD Foxhound, a ship that now believes in a million blessings.

It fails to sight the allied fleet to the North.

Its more than a good thing that it does.
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1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

21st April

There is not a little stress on Napiers Bridge.
In fact, Captain Smith is fairly ropable
"Who in the bloody hell do they want us to fuel from now?"

Jason rubs his head in shared frustration "THIS message says the Resolution, where
ever the hell she is"
"Didn't she just emergency top up from one of the transports?"
Jason looks around the ocean about them. Never, ever, he thinks, has he seen
such a muddle.

Carriers, Battleships, cruisers, and Transports, God, so many transports, great
Liners some of them.
And scattered amongst them, too few tankers.

Halsey and his staff, must be going out of their minds......juggling who gets what, and
how much.

Some ships are on their bare arses for fuel, Napier amongst them.
Smith curses " Oh to hell with it, last I heard of it, that fat cow was over there.....plot
the best course you can. I am going below, call me only if some idiot really is going
to run us over, or we run out of fuel, whichever happens first"
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1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

Jason watches the refuelling with some interest.
A strange feeling looking down at another ship. The Aquitania,"ex liner, might have
been a nice ship, once. Now, packed to the gills with first corp troops, not so much......

"Hey Jason....your Brothers in the Navy, is this normal, you know, transports
fuelling destroyers?"
"You mean trying to fuel destroyers"

Many decks below the guard rail Jason and most of his regiment lean against, a unusual
battle is underway. From a hatch on Aquitania, a hatch perilously close to the waterline,
an attempt to transfer a thick hose to a destroyer is being attempted.

Jason wonders, which will occur first. Someone will get worried at the amount of water crashing
through the hatch from the wakes crashing against each other, or they will run out of ropes,
and hoses......

Whichever, it sure is entertaining to watch..........









A shommozle of a turn, as I :refuel ships at sea: and task forces steal fuel from each
other willy nilly.
End result, no ops points left, entire fleet marooned 3 hexes from map edge, KB a day at
full speed away........
Crappolla!!!

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1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

To
Port Moresby
from
Milne Bay

"Get your heads down, 2 Jap Battlewagons headed your way"
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Long pig
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by Long pig »

The Matilda is not fast or beautiful but she does hit with a mailed fist 🇦🇺
Only 17 formations left you say, I wonder how worried they are now ?
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zuluhour
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by zuluhour »

ORIGINAL: 1275psi

Jason watches the refuelling with some interest.
A strange feeling looking down at another ship. The Aquitania,"ex liner, might have
been a nice ship, once. Now, packed to the gills with first corp troops, not so much......

"Hey Jason....your Brothers in the Navy, is this normal, you know, transports
fuelling destroyers?"
"You mean trying to fuel destroyers"

Many decks below the guard rail Jason and most of his regiment lean against, a unusual
battle is underway. From a hatch on Aquitania, a hatch perilously close to the waterline,
an attempt to transfer a thick hose to a destroyer is being attempted.

Jason wonders, which will occur first. Someone will get worried at the amount of water crashing
through the hatch from the wakes crashing against each other, or they will run out of ropes,
and hoses......

Whichever, it sure is entertaining to watch..........









A shommozle of a turn, as I :refuel ships at sea: and task forces steal fuel from each
other willy nilly.
End result, no ops points left, entire fleet marooned 3 hexes from map edge, KB a day at
full speed away........
Crappolla!!!

I know I 've been there before.

1275psi
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RE: Letters from a Prime Minister

Post by 1275psi »

April 22nd

The Japanese carriers remain near Addu.
The Convoy carrying 1st Corp finally refuels, shakes itself out, and makes a clean escape towards the Cape.

Its going to be a long journey.

The Battleships too slip away.
The Carriers remain.
Still not enough fuel, or still insufficient time to distribute it all. It does not
matter, they remain fixed today still hanging arses out there, with the bad guys
just begging to smack them.

The Japanese Battlewagons wait a day near Milne bay, allowing the last planes
to evacuate the base.

Japanese ships remain active in the Aleutians , he probes, we probe, a clash must soon come.

Lets chase a Jap continues in West Aussie,, it is now quite simply, all about the rail line
If it gets cleared, there are many more troops just waiting to rail in.

Something Japan cannot afford, surely.
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