limited
operations we propose. With two divisions, three at most, we could isolate
Australia and perhaps even knock them out of the war.”
“A worthy goal,” Nagano agreed.
“Yes! The Americans will see this as
surely as I do now, and they will fight. They tried to stop our Port Moresby
operation and lost a carrier for it. The Lexington is at the bottom of
the Coral Sea. Thankfully Shigeyoshi Inoue had the backbone to press the
invasion home in spite of the American counter operation. Now we have Port
Moresby, neh? Now the Americans are denied a base from which their B-17 bombers
would be pounding Rabaul. Soon we can also have Darwin and deny them that base
as well. The Americans will see the noose tightening around Australia, and
believe me, then Yamamoto will have his decisive engagement, I can assure you.”
Nagano breathed deeply, nodding his
assent. “I will present your proposal at the next meeting of the Imperial
General Staff. Captain Tomioka in the planning
division has also argued that we could take Australia with a token force. You
are not alone in your views.”
“ Tomioka has
a good head on his shoulders. Remember the Army-Navy agreement earlier this
year which determined the strategic importance of Papua New Guinea and the
Solomons in the first place. We must deprive the Allies of key positions they
will most certainly use in their counter operations, and Australia is the
foundation of their whole defense in this region. This plan is merely an
extension of those same ideas. But do not say we will ‘take’ Australia. Argue
that we will secure vital bases to defend Indonesia while isolating Australia
at the same time and forcing the Americans to a decisive engagement here, where
we have adequate resources and land based air power to support our carrier
operations—not at Midway, a thousand miles east on an axis that leads us
nowhere. This whole operation can be done with two divisions. Throw in one
more, or even a few brigades for the Fiji-Samoa operation and we will have a
decisive advantage in the Pacific for years.”
“Very well, General. It is at least
encouraging that someone in the Army is willing to side with the Navy and see
the big picture. If the Tiger of Malaya says these things can be done, perhaps
others will be convinced as well.”
“Do not flatter me, Admiral. Just
support me.”
Nagano smiled. “Between the two of
us,” he said “we can hardly muster a single handful of hair, but our heads may
prove to be of some use to the empire after all.”
Chapter
5
Admiral of the Fleet Isoroku Yamamoto sat in
his private cabin aboard the Battleship Yamato , and considered. His eyes
played over the map, thoughts moving from one island to another in the long chain
of the Solomons, imagining the position he would have three months from now,
six months, a year. And always as he considered, it was the establishment of
vital air bases that was uppermost in his mind. He had been a strong proponent
of the Naval Air Arm for decades, opposing the construction of large unwieldy
battleships like the one now serving as his headquarters—‘Hotel Yamato ,’
the men called it, for the ship had done little in the way of real fighting
thus far in the war.
Now, as his eye strayed east to the
tiny islet of Midway, he still pictured the great ship leading a long line of
battleships, the heart of the fleet, but to what end? The carriers were tasked
with finding and destroying the enemy fleet, not his battleships. If he took
the big ships east what would they do beyond burning up enough fuel to run the
entire navy for the next three months? Did he really expect the Americans to
sortie with their battle fleet at Pearl Harbor? Those old battleships were
already obsolete, he knew. They could not find his fleet, nor could they catch
it if they did.
No… It was the carriers that would
decide this war. He had been wrong about Pearl Harbor and was inwardly glad the
operation had been deemed
operations we propose. With two divisions, three at most, we could isolate
Australia and perhaps even knock them out of the war.”
“A worthy goal,” Nagano agreed.
“Yes! The Americans will see this as
surely as I do now, and they will fight. They tried to stop our Port Moresby
operation and lost a carrier for it. The Lexington is at the bottom of
the Coral Sea. Thankfully Shigeyoshi Inoue had the backbone to press the
invasion home in spite of the American counter operation. Now we have Port
Moresby, neh? Now the Americans are denied a base from which their B-17 bombers
would be pounding Rabaul. Soon we can also have Darwin and deny them that base
as well. The Americans will see the noose tightening around Australia, and
believe me, then Yamamoto will have his decisive engagement, I can assure you.”
Nagano breathed deeply, nodding his
assent. “I will present your proposal at the next meeting of the Imperial
General Staff. Captain Tomioka in the planning
division has also argued that we could take Australia with a token force. You
are not alone in your views.”
“ Tomioka has
a good head on his shoulders. Remember the Army-Navy agreement earlier this
year which determined the strategic importance of Papua New Guinea and the
Solomons in the first place. We must deprive the Allies of key positions they
will most certainly use in their counter operations, and Australia is the
foundation of their whole defense in this region. This plan is merely an
extension of those same ideas. But do not say we will ‘take’ Australia. Argue
that we will secure vital bases to defend Indonesia while isolating Australia
at the same time and forcing the Americans to a decisive engagement here, where
we have adequate resources and land based air power to support our carrier
operations—not at Midway, a thousand miles east on an axis that leads us
nowhere. This whole operation can be done with two divisions. Throw in one
more, or even a few brigades for the Fiji-Samoa operation and we will have a
decisive advantage in the Pacific for years.”
“Very well, General. It is at least
encouraging that someone in the Army is willing to side with the Navy and see
the big picture. If the Tiger of Malaya says these things can be done, perhaps
others will be convinced as well.”
“Do not flatter me, Admiral. Just
support me.”
Nagano smiled. “Between the two of
us,” he said “we can hardly muster a single handful of hair, but our heads may
prove to be of some use to the empire after all.”
Chapter
5
Admiral of the Fleet Isoroku Yamamoto sat in
his private cabin aboard the Battleship Yamato , and considered. His eyes
played over the map, thoughts moving from one island to another in the long chain
of the Solomons, imagining the position he would have three months from now,
six months, a year. And always as he considered, it was the establishment of
vital air bases that was uppermost in his mind. He had been a strong proponent
of the Naval Air Arm for decades, opposing the construction of large unwieldy
battleships like the one now serving as his headquarters—‘Hotel Yamato ,’
the men called it, for the ship had done little in the way of real fighting
thus far in the war.
Now, as his eye strayed east to the
tiny islet of Midway, he still pictured the great ship leading a long line of
battleships, the heart of the fleet, but to what end? The carriers were tasked
with finding and destroying the enemy fleet, not his battleships. If he took
the big ships east what would they do beyond burning up enough fuel to run the
entire navy for the next three months? Did he really expect the Americans to
sortie with their battle fleet at Pearl Harbor? Those old battleships were
already obsolete, he knew. They could not find his fleet, nor could they catch
it if they did.
No… It was the carriers that would
decide this war. He had been wrong about Pearl Harbor and was inwardly glad the
operation had been deemed
Similar Books
