Reverse Monsun : data for a British campaign in the IO

[keltos01]

Far East Campaign
From the outbreak of war in Europe until December 1941, active naval operations in the Far East were on a very minor scale. Much of the Far Eastern submarine force withdrew to the Mediterranean, depriving the Commander-in-Chief Eastern Fleet of any operational striking force. Preparations began towards the end of 1941 for the upcoming attack from the Japanese, which finally occurred in December.
The rapid loss of naval bases such as Hong Kong and Singapore to the Japanese forced the withdrawal of British submarines still located there. The Navy's Eastern Fleet moved to Sri Lanka, whilst the Pacific Fleet operated from Sydney.
Operations remained on a small scale until reinforcements arrived from Europe at the end of 1943, when the Allied position in the Mediterranean improved. The great distances limited the range of the British boats to the Indian Ocean, the waters around Malaya and the Dutch East Indies, and the South China Sea. They could not yet reach the Pacific.
The policy in the Far East was to hold the Japanese in the Malay barrier and then attack in the Pacific. This made it worthwhile to take advantage of the shallow waters around most of Sumatra, Java, Borneo and the Malay peninsula. A large mine-laying programme began as nearly all of the modern boats could lay mines from their torpedo tubes. Ammunition for guns was also stored onboard for attacking junks used by the Japanese to transport goods. The Far East offered fewer targets than European theatres and successes were therefore harder to come across. Gunfire was often used to dispatch enemy vessels as they were not large enough to merit a torpedo.

'Tommy Hambly and Co - Well 4 Ever More!' cartoon (RNSM)



The Far East campaign proved successful, with the Allies sinking nearly all of Japan's merchant navy fleet over the course of the war. British losses in the Far East only amounted to three submarines, even with half the Royal Navy submarine service based in this region.

Japanese silk ensign with Japanese handwritten symbols (RNSM)



A Class
The British Admiralty ordered these diesel-electric submarines in 1943 to assist in the Pacific theatre of war, commissioning 16 in total. They replaced the S and T class pre-war submarines, which were too slow and unable to dive deep enough to be suited to the Pacific. They were one of only two new British submarine designs, along with X Craft, produced during the war.
Quick construction, using an entirely welded hull fabricated in sections, meant that each submarine took about eight months to complete. Although only two of the boats were finished before the end of the war, HMS Amphion and Astute, neither of which saw action.
The A class also included features such as air conditioning for the tropical climate. One of the main problems for submarine crews serving in the Far East was the heat and humidity. In submarines not fitted with air conditioning, life onboard in tropical regions could be appalling. The crew often suffered from various skin complaints, such as *****ly heat, ulcers, or cuts which turned septic and stayed so due to the foul conditions. To help this matter, submarines would retire from patrol positions occasionally for a day and spend it on the surface, in order to give the crew a break from working long hours in such high temperatures.

found on :
http://www.seayourhistory.org.uk/con...w/475/625/1/3/

[keltos01]

HMS Trenchant sinks the Japanese battleship ‘Ashigara'
HMS Trenchant undertook a patrol by the entrance to the Banka Strait near Palembang in Sumatra on 8th June 1945. HMS Stygian accompanied Trenchant and positioned herself out to sea. A Japanese destroyer emerged but spotted Trenchant as she fired a torpedo. Trenchant managed to withdraw in the darkness, and Stygian launched a follow up attack which was also unsuccessful. The destroyer launched its own similarly unsuccessful counter attack.
Meanwhile, Trenchant spotted the 12 700 ton Japanese cruiser ‘Ashigara'. She carefully positioned herself and as this was such a valuable target she fired all eight of her bow torpedoes at a range of 4000 yards. Five torpedoes hit the target, blowing off the cruiser's bow. Fire quickly spread and she developed a list and sank a couple of hours later.

Crew in working rig on casing of HMS Trenchant at Freemantle in Australia, July 1945 (RNSM)



This was a spectacular result for Trenchant, but more importantly it removed the only Japanese heavy cruiser in that area. She had been in the process of transporting thousands of Japanese troops to Singapore on what was the eve of the Australian landings on Borneo, and it potentially saved many Allied lives. The submarine's Commanding Officer, Commander Arthur Hezlet, received the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) for his role in the attack.

HMS Trenchant entering a harbour in the Far East, camouflaged, flying Jolly Roger flag, 1945 (RNSM)




Jolly Roger of HMS Trenchant (RNSM)

[Fish40]

Very interesting, and thanks for posting As far as the airconditioning on the boats, like US Fleet Boats I think the AC was installed as a measure to prevent condensation from the tropical climate from playing havoc with the electric circuits of the equipment, rather than a comfort for the crew. The crew as a result benefited greatly of coarse from this. Thanks again for the info.

[keltos01]

can anyone do this campaign ? we have the Class T but are too busy with the IJN campaign to build a british one.

keltos

[Ducimus]

It sounds interesting. Hopefully someone picks up on it. I had no idea they were in the IO, i thought it was mainly the med and north atlantic for the brits. They really don't get their fair due.

[iambecomelife]

"*****ly heat"

I love the unnecessary censorship on this site.

Interesting write-up, too.

[lurker_hlb3]

Originally Posted by keltos01

can anyone do this campaign ? we have the Class T but are too busy with the IJN campaign to build a british one.

keltos

So where is this T-class for download

[keltos01]

Originally Posted by lurker_hlb3

So where is this T-class for download

v 1.64 Class T submarine :

http://www.mediafire.com/file/i4jwml...ant_T_class.7z



you might wanna check out this thread :

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=137856

and this (older) one which has all the subs versions :

http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/show...=140383&page=6
keltos