Strategy & Tactics Press World at War #89

Missed Opportunity: The Japanese Indian Ocean Raid, 1942

By Jon Cecil

Following the Japanese surprise attack on the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor and the destruction of Allied ground, naval and air forces defending the Netherlands East Indies, the Japanese turned their attention to the destruction of the British Eastern Fleet based at the Crown Colony of Ceylon (Sri Lanka). From the strategic perspective, such an offensive offered the opportunity to cripple British power in the region and possibly coordinate with an Italo-German offensive in North Africa. The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) staff developed a strategy to accomplish that and codenamed “Operation C.” However, the lack of strategic and operational coordination among the Axis powers resulted in a missed opportunity to change the war’s course in their favor.

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The Crimean Campaign, 1941–42

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Articles:

• The Crimean Campaign: 1941–42 When Army Group South crossed into the Soviet Union, no part of its orders included taking the Crimea. The plan was, once Soviet forces in the Ukraine were destroyed west of the Dnepr River, peripheral areas could be taken bloodlessly in subsequent mop-up operations. That changed when Soviet planes based in the Crimea began raiding the vital Axis oilfield in Romania. On 23 July, Hitler therefore raised the capture of the Crimea to the status of a “priority” mission.
• Missed Opportunity: The Japanese Indian Ocean Raid, 1942 Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, they turned their attention to the destruction of the British Eastern Fleet at Ceylon (Sri Lanka). Such a move offered the opportunity to cripple British power in the region, in addition to coordinating with German offensives in North Africa. A strategy to accomplish it was developed codenamed Operation C.
• The Hump: Strategic Heavy Lift When the Japanese cut the Burma Road in 1942 they cut the last Allied controlled land route to China. The US attempted to restore communications and strengthen China via a massive airlift. Known as the “Hump,” that costly logistical operation became the largest airlift ever conducted. Its impact remains open to question.
• ·ortress Assault at Bitche In December 1944, the US 100th Infantry Division fought a bitter engagement to overcome former French Maginot Line forts the Germans were determined to hold. This is our tactical and operational analysis of that battle.

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