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    SAM Combat Colours 04

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    1K views72 pages

    SAM Combat Colours 04

    Uploaded by

    Raul Garcia
    SAM Combat Colours 04

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    of 72
    Gale meratt odemin lo LB re Ri Gis’ | aE Vf DLOUR | RS Number 4 Peas RBOR oe YY ON D Decemoenngy4 | to May 1942 H C Bridgwater and Peter Scott Series Editor Neil Robinson COMBAT COLOURS - 4 ‘SPECIAL’ STAAL A by H C Bridgwater artwork by Peter Scott INTRODUCTION Unlike the first three titles in this Combat Colours series, this “Special ‘does not seek to cover the camouflage ‘and markings of one particular type of aircraft. but a whole host of types, belonging to those nations dragged into 2 Pacific War following, the Japanese attack on Peart Harbor, Malaya and the Netherlands East Indies in December 1941 ‘The scope of this subject, has meant a broader, more general, ‘approach has been adopted, but it is ‘ervisaged that some of the aircraft ‘types, dealt with briefly here, will be the subject of later tiles to be covered in more detail The Far East is a subject about ‘which comparatively lite is stl known ‘with regard to some of the participants, ‘most notably Britain. Ths is because @ large number of documents were destroyed as a deliberate act of policy ‘during the disaster which overwhelmed ‘the British in the first few months of the war, and as a consequence there ‘are comparatively few primary sources left for parties interested in aircraft ‘camouflage and markings to draw upon. ‘Much research is still going on into the finer details of aircraft camoutlage ‘and markings in general, so it is perhaps inevitable that some of this information may subsequently need Page|48 revision. That said, the contents ofthis ern Pe eee cr cur colectne Sar knowledge ofthis subject atthe time of Per wating. Peet {am again indebted to Paul Lucas eater for sharing some of his research with de ieeial ime: to Peter Scott for his helo with the Japanese aircraft and his ever excellent artwork; and to the series editor Neil Robinson who does his best to keep ime slaving away over a hot keyboard. HC Bridgwater Luton October 2003. ‘Pearl Harbor and beyond December 1941 to May 1942" by H C Bridgewater Artwork by Peter Scott ‘Steve Page ‘and Markings: | Published by Guideline Publications Noa og omer 5 H8e0. OK Basel 252 Seoure Road, ton Hedordshie LU ANU INo 2: The Bettie for Britain - RAF May to December 1840 | el: OF582 505999 No 3: The Israeli Air Force: Part One 1848 to 1967 | eewcsamnet co.uk No 4: The Israeli Air Force: Part Two 1968 to 2001 Tne Iinoeria! Jndanese Ney andatneslimpernallsapanesesAtumny Japanese economic and military strength ‘went hand in hand, which can be seen by the buildup of the Japanese military during the 1930s. Whilst the Army looked ‘towards the threat posed to Japanese interests on the Asian mainland by the Soviet Union, the Navy was looking ‘towards the threat posed by the United ‘States and the European empires in the Pacific. As the Army was the more influential of the two services in Japanese politics, it was the Amy view which generally prevailed, leading to the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War in 1937. ‘The road to war Despite its best efforts, the Japanese ‘Army found it impossibie to obtain a decisive victory and the cost of the campaign started to soar, placing 2 ‘tremendous burden on the Japanese ‘economy. AS a result the national debt spiraled upwards as the Japanese ‘government was forced to borrow ever ‘more money to finance the war. This situation was not helped by Japan's Shrinking stocks of foreign currency and raw materials, and increasing dependence upon imports of raw ‘materials from disapproving Americans, British and Dutch. This situation was made all the more Intolerable to the Japanese as they believed that Chinese resistance was only possible due to the flow of western supplies which came, notably from the United States, by way of the Burma Road, French Indochina and other routes. It slowly became apparent that Japan would have to strike south both to isolate China and to gain a firm grip on the raw materials of southeast Asia which would ensure Japan's economic security. ‘Over the next year and a half, the situation grew progressively worse as Japan signed the Tripartite Pact joining the Axis powers and signed a non- ‘aggression pact with the Soviet Union. ‘When Germany invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941, the Japanese Army ‘began to press for further expansion to the south as the northem flank was considered secure with the Soviets fully ‘occupied fighting the Germans. In July 1941 Vichy France yielded to demands from the Japanese for air bases in southem Indochina that would ut all of Malaya within range of Japanese bombers. The resulting Japanese occupation of French Indochina ‘was the last straw for the American Government, and on 26 July 1941, Roosevelt froze all Japanese assets in the United States. In Japan, October saw the moderate Prince Konoye replaced by the aggressive General Tojo as head of the Japanese 2 ‘government and itis from this point that it is generally considered that the Outbreak of war was only a matter of time. There was little doubt in Japan that the British and Dutch could be easily ‘swept out of their possessions in the Far East, especially with Britain fully committed to the war in Europe. The United States was however quite a different matter and it was apparent that the economic security Japan yeamed for ‘would only be obtained at the price of war with the United States. The plan ‘The strategy which emerged was that of a surprise attack which would knock out the US Pacific fleet at one stroke. It was hoped that this would shift the strategic balance in the Pacific in Japan's favour. If Japan could move far enough, fast enough and hard enough in the Immediate aftermath of such an attack, it ‘might be possible to conquer the vast regions of southeast Asia necessary for Japan's continued economic independence whilst fighting a protracted war. It might also be possible to Consolidate its position with a negotiated peace which acknowledged the new status quo. Planning for the attack on the American Pacific Feet which by this time was based at Pearl Harbor, Hawai, is thought to have begun in March or April ‘1940, and to have been decided upon in December of the same year. A Task Force made up primarily of aircraft carriers, cruisers and destroyers, would deliver an aerial strike against the Americans, either whilst their fleet was in harbour, or out at sea. (On 3 November 1941 in the light of Japan's. worsening economic situation, ‘Admiral Yamamoto’s pian to eliminate the US Pacific Fleet was approved, and on 5 November, war orders were issued. The Japanese bid for supremacy in the Far East would be made through six ‘operations, which would commence ‘almost simultaneously on both sides of the international date line. ‘© Japanese troops were to land on the hhorth east coast of Malaya at Kota Bharu to capture the nearby British airfield at 0215 hrs, 8 December, Tokyo time. ‘+ Japanese Naval airraft would attack ‘the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor at (0325 hrs, 8 December, Tokyo time, (0755 hrs, 7 December, local time). ‘+ Japanese troops were to land at SSingora and Patani in Thailand at (0400 hrs, 8 December, Tokyo time, and these ports would then become the main supply bases for the Malayan campaign. After this point, the operations to follow ‘would depend ‘on the success of the ‘three initial attacks. Ifthe attack on Peart Harbor was judged to have been a success, then Japanese aircraft would take off from Formosa at 0530 hrs, 8 December, Tokyo time, to attempt’ to destroy American air power in the Philippines before landings on the main Island of Luzon. Similar, if the initial attacks in Malaya had succeeded, the Invasion of the leased territories of Hong Kong would begin at 0830 hrs, 8 December, Tokyo time. Smaller ‘Operations would then be mounted to ‘occupy Guam, Wake and the Gilbert Isiands. ‘At the end of November, talks between the Americans and Japanese ‘broke down and in America, this marked the end of any hope there might have bbeen for a reasonable settlement. In Japan, Admiral Nagumo's carrier force Started on the first leg of its joumey to Pearl Harbor. Under conditions of complete ‘secrecy, the Imperial Japanese Navy had ‘assembled a task force at Hippokapu Bay. The UN's ‘Outer Combat Force’ used all’ six available fleet carriers and intended to attack Peart Harbor first and then Wake Island during the retum voyage. The American aircraft carriers were a particular target, and it was anticipated that such units that remained ‘rom the American batte fleet would be defeated at a time of the UN'S own ‘choosing. AS a target area, Pearl Harbor on Oahu Island consisted of the port itself, together with dockyard, drycock, repair ‘and bunker facilities: the Middle, South ‘and East Loch anchorages. containing cruisers, destroyers, submarines and ‘auxlianes; and “Battleship Row’ itself, consisting of a series of concrete dolphins to which the battleships were moored, generally double-berthed in pairs. At the time of the attack, seven battleships and two auxiliaries were at the dolphins. The Naval Air Station at Ford Island was immediately behind ‘Battleship Row’, whilst the Army airfield {at Hickam Field, (bombers), adjoined the ‘southern part of the naval base on Oahu Island. Ewa Field (Marine Corps) lay ‘about three miles away on the west side Of the entrance to Pearl Harbor, Bellows Field, (light observation), was on the ‘east coast of Oahu about eleven miles from Pearl, Wheeler Field, (fighters), was in the centre of the Island about six miles away, whilst Haleiwa Field, (an ‘auxiliary landing ground), was at the orth end. Kaneohe Naval Air Station, (flying boats), was on a small island off the east coast of Oahu, about six miles from Bellows. Fortunately for the Americans, their aircraft carriers. were absent at the time of the attack. The Task Force consisted of 406 aircraft ‘aboard the carriers Akagi, Kaga, Sony, Hin, Shokaku and Zuikaku; the battleships Hie’ and Kirishima, three cruisers, nine destroyers, eight oilers and three submarines. It sailed on the same day that the American War Waring was issued and took a northerly route across the Pacific, avoiding likely shipping. The task force refuelled periodically and topped up on 6 December. The oilers then separated from the warships and headed to the homeward refuelling rendezvous. The warships increased to 24 knots and altered course due south towards the Hawalian Islands. From the point of view of surprise, the weather was perfect, with heavy cloud ‘and rain squalls, rendering detection difficult. There was also a heavy swell ‘unning that was far from ideal for launching aircraft. The fist aircraft to take off were two ‘Aichi E13A1 ‘Jake’ floatplanes, from the hheawy cruisers Chikuma and Tone. These were launched by catapult, thirty minutes prior to the first attack wave. They Lndertook a final reconnaissance of Pearl Harbor and Lalhana anchorage, respectively, where it was found that there were ‘no aircraft carriers present ‘and the anchorage itself was empty. Although both aircraft were detected by five radar stations, the incursions were ‘not reported. The first wave was launched, at 0615 hs local time on 7 December, when the task foroe was 230 miles north of Pearl Harbor. The first wave consisted of forty three A6M2 ‘Zeros’, fifty-one O3A1 ‘Vals’, fifty torpedo-cartying BEN2 “Kates! ‘and thirty-nine ‘Kates’ carrying 7OOkg. bombs. Fifyfour A6M2s remained with the warships and flew continuous. air ‘patrols over the carriers, in three patrols of eighteen aircraft ‘Also at 0615 hrs, the Enterprise launched eighteen SBD2 Dauntless dive bombers from 250 miles due west of earl Harbor. The aircraft were from both VS6 and VB-6 and their mission was to Conduct a sweep of the area ahead of the carrier. They were then intended to land ‘at Ford Island NAS. Also inbound, but from the east, were twelve B-17s, reinforcements for the Philippines. ‘These were flying singly, at about ten minute intervals. The first of these machines anticipated arriving at Hickam Field shorty after 0800. The second ‘wave started to launch at 0715 hrs. ‘The attack was first detected by the radar station at Kahuku Point, when the first wave was 132 miles out. Unfortunately this information was disregarded, in view of the anticipated arrival of both the Fortress and Dauntless formations. The Japanese fighters covering the first wave encountered several of the sweep aircraft from Enterprise and shot down four Dauntlesses. Very shortly afterwards, they encountered the first of the approaching B47s and attacked them too. ‘The attack proper commenced at 0750 hrs, as the various groups Separated and deployed towards their individual targets. At 0753, the signal Toral, Tora, Toral’ was sent to the Task Force, indicating that complete surprise had been obtained. The first Japanese bombs were dropped at 0785 hours, onto a cluster of completely unsuspecting miltary bases. The Army Commander had developed an obsession with sabotage and had insisted that all aircraft should be parked close together, unarmed, so that they Could be better guarded. At Bellows Field, the fighter ammunition was stored in Hangar 3 and the aircraft on the base were unarmed. Surprise was complete and many, both ashore and afloat, initially made the ‘natural assumption that the numerous lowflying aircraft belonged to US service aircraft. Furthermore, being 2 Sunday, ‘many of the warship crews were on shore leave of, in the case of many of the Senior officers, ashore at home. Many Soldiers remained in their barrack blocks. Even worse, the battleships were at peacetime status. They were all at X’ watertight condition, with all of the ‘watertight doors open to permit access. The dive bomber force, under Lt/Cdr Takahashi, (in O3A4, £1238), split over Wheeler Field, with twenty-five ‘Vals’ attacking there and twenty-six more striking at Hickam and Ford. The first bombs actually fell onto the seaplane ramp at Ford Island, wiping out all the PBYs of VP-22. These concentrated attacks on the airfields ensured that ‘there was no American interference in the early stages and, with no tangible fighter ‘opposition, the “Zero” escorts undertook strafing of suitably worthwhile targets. ‘The dive-bombers hit barrack blocks. and €@ crowded breakfast canteen, as well as hhangars and aircraft aprons. The casualty figures were dreadful The First Wave torpedo attack commenced at 0757 hs, involving fifty B5N2 ‘Kates’, equipped with torpedoes that had been fitted with wooden tailfins to prevent the weapons plunging too deeply into the shallow harbour waters at junch. These bombers actually flew very low over Hickam whilst on their attack ‘uns and were initially considered to be Navy or Marine Corps aircraft “buzzing” the airfield! At "Battleship Row’, only the Outboard ships were the subject of the torpedo bombers’ attention. USS California was berthed on her ‘own, about a quarter of a mile south-west fof the Oklahoma. She was hit by two torpedoes and slowly sank, on an even keel, due to the effects of the damage ‘and remedial counter flooding. Oklahoma suffered between five and ‘seven torpedo hits in the first fifteen ‘minutes of the attack, then she capsized and sank, West’ Virginia was hit by seven torpedoes and she, too, started to sink Prompt counterlooding by two ratings kept her upright, as did the mass of the Tennessee alongside, although oll fuel Started to leak in quantity. Her OS2U Kingfisher floatplane was blasted from the ‘catapult, leaving onty the floats behing! ‘On the next set of dolphins was the ‘Anzona, which was inboard of the repair ‘ship Vestal. A single torpedo passed undemeath Vestal and detonated against the Arizona. The next set of dolphins was ‘occupied only by the Nevada, which was ‘also hit by a single torpedo, but shot down a ‘Kate’ in return. BSN2s from the Sonu obtained two hits on USS Utah, Which capsized and sank. A message was sent at 0758 hrs to the entire fleet: “Air raid Peart Harbor - this is no dil”. ‘The horizontal bombers. went in next, under the command of the Strike Force leader, Cdr Fuchida. These were fying at ‘about 10,000 feet and found cloud cover to be a problem, which necessitated 2 ‘second orbit for some of the aircraft before they could release their weapons. Their targets were the indoard battleships ‘on ‘Battleship Row’. USS Manfand, (inboard of the capsized Oklahoma and wedged tight up against her dolphins), received two fits and _ suffered considerable flooding. USS Tennessee was hit twice, with relatively minor damage, and West Virginia was hit by two ‘bombs, both of which failed to explode. Arizona was hit by at least eight ‘bombs and it was the weapon dropped by Left: ABM2 Zeros’ in the foreground with BAT Val being, warming up on Aka’ flight deck prion to "the ‘Strike against Pearl Harbor. All are in the ‘overall ame-ro finish. The. "AM is ‘AV01, flown by POTC Tadao Kimura. 3 @ BON2 from Sony, (BF318), which detonated her forward magazines, at (0810 fs. These blew the sides out of the ship and the two unsupported forward turets fell into the hull, as did the armoured citadel and bridge structure The surrounding ships were showered with debris, and many of the crew of the Vestal, which was. stil alongside, were blown into the water. USS Arizona sank within minutes, taking Rear Admiral Kidd ‘and 944 crew with her. She had recently taken on fuel oll for a forthcoming exercise and her tanks ruptuted in the explosion. This oll ignited and died down onto Tennessee, which had her aft section completely gutted by fre. Nevada was hit by several bombs around 0825. She already had steam up ‘on one boiler $0, on the initiate of @ junior officer, her moorings were slipped and she proceeded alone into’ the Enirance Channel. She was also the only battleship to stay afloat long enough to shut her intemal watertight doors. ‘Akagi nine ‘Zeros’ found no fighters around, but shot down one sight-seeing aircraft and three trainers, then strafed Hickam and Ewa Fields, claiming twenty five aitoground victories for the loss of one AGM2..Kaga also contributed nine ‘Zeros’ to the frst wave, who ciaimed ‘one air victory and twenty by strafing, but lost four of thelr own number. Soni put up eight AGM2s. and claimed. five Victories. in combat, (most probably including the SBD2 Dauntiesses from Enterprise), then strafed Wheeler and Ewa and claimed twenty-seven destroyed aircraft. Six of these eight Zeros’ got lost on their return fight, so went back to Hawaii with a view to committing jioaku {Gelfdestruction). However, in the event they found some returning bombers, tagged on to the formation and returned to their carrier. Hi contributed six ‘Zeros’ to the first wave. These had no aerial combat, so strafed Ewa, claiming twenty-two airto- ‘ground victories. Zeros’ from Shokaku Strafed Kaneohe and Bellows airfields and claimed thirtythree aircraft. Finally, Zuikaku's ‘Zeros’ strated Kaneohe ‘alongside their own bombers and claimed thiry.two aircraft destroyed. Pears defences Considering the surprise nature of the attack, the defences got into action remarkably quickly, although their effectiveness was dubious. In the chaos, every aircraft was assumed to be Japanese and the sweep aircraft from Enterprise were also shot at as they tried to land. One Dauntless was shot down and three were damaged by American ‘ground fre. Some of the SBDs orbited for fortysive minutes until the shooting stopped and they could land at Ewa. The first American fighter response got airbome at about 0830 hs, when 2/Lis Taylor and Welch took off from Haleiwa, where some P-40s had been ‘temporarily based for gunnery practice. This pair destroyed two ‘Vals’ each over Ewa, then landed at their normal base of ‘Wheeler to refuel and re-arm, By the end of the First Wave's attack, the American defenders had destroyed a total of nine enemy aircraft, due to a ‘combination of flak, fighters and a mid air collision. In return, Utah, California, ‘Arizona and Oklahoma had ail been sunk, West Virginia was sinking and both Nevada and Tennessee were on fie. Three cruisers and three destroyers were ‘also damaged. The wreck of the Arizona had also settled on to the freshwater pipeine to Ford Island and cut off the water supply. Left D3A1 Val E206, in overall ameio, {from the First Wave dive bomber f wate Sh Sie teer eaage ‘The Second Wave ‘The Second Wave, led by Lt. Commander Shimazaki, (whose aircraft identity is tunknown, but may have been E1301), consisted of thinyfive ‘Zeros’, seventy. ‘eight ‘Vals’ and fityfour ‘Kates’. This. formation arrived at 0850 hs, although the defenders were apparently unable to make the distinction between Waves, due to the continual air activity. The ‘Kates’ hit Kaneohe, Hickam and Ford and a single A6M2 made an ‘opportunistic strafing attack on civil aircraft at John Rodgers Airport, outside Honolulu, ‘The American fighter response was Still limited to five aircraft, so the Japanese fighter cover again reverted to Strafing, Including Bellows Field, where Hangar 3, containing all of the stockpiled ammunition, blew up. The ‘Zeros’ also attacked a'B-47C making a desperate landing at Bellows, to the extent that it overshot the runway and finished in @ ditch. It was then repeatedly strafed Akagi) had contributed nine aircraft which again strafed Hickam Field, but ‘only achieved two victories. Nine fighters from Soryu claimed six victories. by strafing at Kaneohe, but Lt. lida’s Zero’, (81151), was severely damaged and he Committed jibaky (selfdestruction) by crashing into a hangar. Also at 0850, four 36s got airbome from Wheeler and three of the pilots each got single Victories. The fourth was shot down over the sea. Lts Taylor and Welch, (in P-40s), hhad a Second crack at the enemy, with Taylor getting @ third ‘kill before being wounded, whist Welch gained two more Victories. Again, both were ‘Vals’. A further pilot, Lt Dain, flew two missions during the attack, and apparently shot down a ‘Zero’ before being shot down himself, by American A/A near Wheeler. Li/Car Egusa, (in Bk231), then led the ‘Vals’ into a further assault on Ford ‘and the harbour area, where the dive- bombers from Sonu made attacks on California, using 250kg bombs. The ‘magnificent sight of Nevada steaming out to do battle, despite being on fire, made 2 terrific morale booster, but her actions were doomed. Twenty.one D3A1 ‘Vals’ of the second wave divebomber force were ‘tumed onto her by the Strike Force leader, Car Fuchida, rather than their original targets, (which included Pennsylvania in dry-dock), with view to blocking the channel and bottling up the remainder of the fleet. ‘Nevada was hit by five more bombs Let: BENZ ‘Kate’, ENL307, from Zuikaku/s Tevelbom successfully attacking Peal Harbor Note ‘the. weathered and flaking paint on the fuselage and wing roots, revealing the natural metal finish underneath and damaged by numerous near misses. Due to this damage, she was ordered to be run aground in Middle Loch, rather ‘than block the channel. However, she was in such a bad way by this stage that ‘she was run aground off Hospital Point instead, at 0910. She eventually settled Upright. At 0915 fnrs and about a quarter of a mile away, the destroyer Shaw blew up whilst in a floating dry

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