WesWorld

As I said, YMMV. Everyone has different standards of what is decent and offensive; and it's worth remembering that not everyone will share your standards.

(Note - this was not aimed at Hoo or Walter, just at all of us in general.)

Yes, I'll emphasize it's nothing personal, Walter; I just know we have at least one player who'd rather not have that kind of image pop up at him when he comes by to check on your news.

[size=1]and no, it's not me. I see stranger all the time <_<[/size]

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Lacking any women on the boards, I dare say it's just more socially acceptable to have pictures of attractive women than some of the stranger things that could be mentioned.

In my opinion, 'more socially acceptable' doesn't automatically mean 'more decent'.

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I can do the same to Shady Lady if you really want.

Only the one Hoo posted that comes out as "REMOTE LINKING FORBIDDEN" etc. That is most definitely the most socially unacceptable and indecent thing I have run accross on this board.

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I just know we have at least one player who'd rather not have that kind of image pop up at him when he comes by to check on your news.

But that is exactly the reason why I posted that picture!!

May 11, 1941

Further plans of the Imperial Military Command were released. In order to improve flexibility of the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces, the decision was made to split up the Army and the Navy into smaller segments.

As of May 15, 1941, the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces will in the coming months be reformed into:

- Imperial Japanese Army.
- Imperial Japanese Navy.
- Imperial Japanese Air Force.
- Imperial Japanese Navy Air Force.
- Imperial Japanese Landing Forces.

The Army, Air Force and Landing Forces will use Army ranks while the Navy and Navy Air Force will use Navy Ranks.


May 16, 1941

Preparations have been completed for next month's inaugural Fuji 24 Hour Endurance Race, well ahead of schedule.

Some sections of the Yamanaka Ring run over existing roads while other sections are new and which will be opened for public use after the race. Several sections will be closed for motorized traffic when no race is held and only accessible for pedestrians and cyclists.

The Yamanaka Ring is also connected to the Fuji Speedway where the automobiles will race over a special section within the Fuji Oval as well as part of the Grand Prix section. The Fuji Speedway has been completely resurfaced as part of the preparations and that means that August's Fuji 200 Race as well as the Fuji Grand Prix in September will take place on Tarmac for the first time.



Yamanaka Ring circuit. Mount Fuji is to the Southwest of the track.
Main map: Black is the circuit for the 24 hrs of Fuji. Red is the Pitlane. Green is the Fuji Speedway pitlane not used for the 24 hrs of Fuji. Light Grey are main roads in the area.
Insert: Fuji Speedway layout for the 24 hrs of Fuji (left), Fuji Grand Prix (center) and the Fuji 200 (right)


OOC:
The WW Fuji Speedway is a mix of the original Fuji track and the current track (kind of) with an additional piece to make it a bit of a D-shaped oval like the Michigan International Speedway. The historical Speedway was never completed as an oval and is of a later date. (and this way it is actually a Roval which is a more modern concept)

The Yamanaka Ring was made using bits of the Nurburg Ring and Cirquit de la Sarthe (1921-8 version + the current version). The Ring is pretty big, a bit longer than the 1911-1913 Le Mans circuit but not nearly as long as the original Le Mans layout.

June 15, 1941

Today was the official opening of the Kanmon Tunnel, connecting Honshu with Kyushu. With completion expected in either 1937 or 1938, several delays meant that the tunnel wasn't completed until last year.

After the opening, the first trains ran through the Kanmon Tunnel without any problems. With the official opening of the Kanmon tunnel, the final section of the Aomori-Kagoshima high speed line is completed as well. From next week on, Aomori-Kagoshima passengers no longer need to use the Shimonoseki-Kitakyushu ferry to get across the Kanmon Strait as the train will be using the tunnel from then on.



Submarine I-401, 500 nm WSW of Yonaguni.
July 6, 1941

"Captain, a coded message has arrived." The XO handed over a piece of paper.

Miyuki yawned as she returned to her quarters. She grabbed the seventh book on her shelf in order to decode the message. It did not take her long and once she was finished, she headed back to the bridge.

"Well?" the XO asked.

"We'll be heading East where we will have a rendez-vous with a supply ship to take on stuff," Miyuki told. "We'll get new orders there as well."

"Where's the rendez-vous point?"

"The message said 10 nautical miles South of Yonaguni... but we'll see when we get there. You know how those things change."

The XO nodded. "Change course to 0-9-0," he ordered.

Submarine I-401, 10 nm North of Yonaguni.
July 8, 1941

While the submarine was being replenished, Miyuki was busy decoding her new orders.

"Captain Iida?"

Miyuki looked up at an officer from the supply ship who had come over. "Yes?"

"You need to sign these." The man held out several sheets of paper. "To indicate that you received everything."

"Sure." Miyuki put her orders inside her jacket and got up. She took the papers and looked at it. "Hmmm.... Fuel... Food... Planes? I already have planes with me. And why do I need torpedoes? Not only that, why do I need a full wartime load of them instead of the half peacetime load? Is command expecting a war?"

"The planes are new ones. More capable than the ones you have now. The Type 89 torpedoes you curently have with you will be replaced by the Type 99. As to why you're going to be armed with 32 of them instead of 16? I do not know the answer to that."

With the papers, Miyuki went outside onto the deck and kept an eye on the proceedings as the Type 89 were hauled out of the I-401 one by one and the Type 99 torpedoes were loaded into the submarine. After that, she went back inside to check the fuel gauges as well as all the other things that had been brought aboard. Everything was in order so Miyuki signed the papers and handed them back to the supply ship officer. The man signed as well and handed one of the sheets back to Miyuki while keeping the rest.

"Best of luck, Captain." The man then left.

Miyuki went back to her quarters and continued with the decoding. Once finished she read the message a few times and returned to the control room to examine the navigational maps.

"Anything special?" the XO asked.

"Not really. There was a lot of stuff in the message but basically it said that we need to meet up with a cargo ship about 60 nautical miles south of Diego Garcia on the 18th between 12:00 and 17:00."

"The 18th?!"

Miyuki nodded. "I know. We'll have to fly to get there."

The XO looked also at the maps. When it comes to distance, I don't think that there is much difference between going through the Sunda Strait or the Malacca Strait. However, considering surface activity, it is probably quicker via the Sunda Strait."

"Yes, but if we are not in time, going via the Malacca Strait means we might still run into the ship if it decides to move on."

"That would work if you knew which ship we're going to meet."

"... which we don't. Sunda it is then. The Dutch are friendlier than the British anyway."

Submarine I-401, 15 nm off the coast of Tempurung Island.
July 13, 1941

Miyuki looked at the dark evening sky to the south. The storm clouds she spotted to the southwest were moving towards them. It would only be a matter of time before it would reach the I-401.

Miyuki glanced down at the watch around her right wrist. "We'll be submerging in 40 minutes," she told the XO.

"Understood," the XO replied. He went back inside to prepare the submarine.

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Originally posted by Rooijen10
Submarine I-401, 15 nm off the coast of Tempurung Island.
July 13, 1941

Miyuki looked at the dark evening sky to the south. The storm clouds she spotted to the southwest were moving towards them. It would only be a matter of time before it would reach the I-401.

Miyuki glanced down at the watch around her right wrist. "We'll be submerging in 40 minutes," she told the XO.

"Understood," the XO replied. He went back inside to prepare the submarine.

An extremely speedy transit of the South China Sea, no doubt well photographed by the reconnaissance aircraft of several nations. This is turning into an illuminating exercise.

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An extremely speedy transit of the South China Sea

Yes, high speed is necessary to get to the destination in time.

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no doubt well photographed by the reconnaissance aircraft of several nations.

We'll just submerge for a short period of time when a plane wants to fly over the submarine so they will only have a lot of pics from longe range. Of course, being so big, even at long range a lot can be seen on the submarine.

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This is turning into an illuminating exercise.

Exercise? What exercise? Who said anything about an exercise?

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Originally posted by Rooijen10

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no doubt well photographed by the reconnaissance aircraft of several nations.

We'll just submerge for a short period of time when a plane wants to fly over the submarine so they will only have a lot of pics from longe range. Of course, being so big, even at long range a lot can be seen on the submarine.

I'm certain that the Dutch will wait until the transit of the Sunda Strait. The general shallowness will force the transit to be made surfaced, and the chance of running aground high, particularly without the latest Dutch charts.

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This is turning into an illuminating exercise.

Exercise? What exercise? Who said anything about an exercise?

Unless Japan has declared war on someone and not said anything about it (which is sort of Japan's style) it must be an exercise of some sort. A submarine is hardly the instrument for a goodwill mission.

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I'm certain that the Dutch will wait until the transit of the Sunda Strait. The general shallowness will force the transit to be made surfaced, and the chance of running aground high, particularly without the latest Dutch charts.

The subs have been around for a few years now and would have been running around the East Pacific area numerous times, even if I haven't written about it. I expect that the Dutch have had a number of looks at the subs already.
The Japanese are probably more worried about running into a certain volcano in the Strait.

*torpedoes volcano*

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Originally posted by Rooijen10

"... which we don't. Sunda it is then. The Dutch are friendlier than the British anyway."

The Dutch have deliberately maintained generally friendly relations with Japan, despite the alliances. I've indicated in the past that Dutch practice is to shadow SATSUMA forces and use the event for an alert drill. Aircraft from Greater Natuna, Pontiak, Palembang, and Batavia would simply hand off- given the shallow depths of the sea, I doubt a sub could easily loose aerial escort.

Sunda straits themselves are shallow, with currents, but the charts would be commercially available to encourage merchants to stop in Batavia, not Singapore. The straits are fairly well fortified with guns from 280mm and down, with MTBs handy and can be rapidly mined, so hostile wartime passage is not greatly feared.

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The Dutch have deliberately maintained generally friendly relations with Japan, despite the alliances.

Something the Japanese are well aware of. So I would guess that anything new from Japan would go the way of the DEI first so the Dutch have the honor to take the frst shots of the ships at sea. In this case though, I expect the Dutch to go "Geez! That old wheely bin again! Why can't the Japanese send something newer and more exiting our way!!"

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given the shallow depths of the sea, I doubt a sub could easily loose aerial escort.

I get the impression that it is possible to run just below the surface, but planes should still be able track the dark shadow of the submarine with ease.

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Sunda straits themselves are shallow, with currents, but the charts would be commercially available to encourage merchants to stop in Batavia, not Singapore.

*starts campaign to encourage shipping to move through the Sunda Strait.*

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The straits are fairly well fortified with guns from 280mm and down, with MTBs handy and can be rapidly mined, so hostile wartime passage is not greatly feared.

And it helps a lot that there is this big island (Sangiang) in the narrowest part of the strait between Sumatra and Java. Anything going through there would either get a taste of the 280mm guns or hit a mine or get hit by a plane or run into the island.

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Originally posted by Rooijen10

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I expect the Dutch to go "Geez! That old wheely bin again! Why can't the Japanese send something newer and more exiting our way!!"

To a certain extent that is true. Monitoring the transit of each SATSUMA vessel may be good practice..but does get a bit humdrum. Especially a single craft- a larger group would have combatants shadowing. Standard practice would reasonably include Photos would be taken and eventually checked against earlier information to check for refits/new variants, but it wouldn't be a rush job.

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I get the impression that it is possible to run just below the surface, but planes should still be able track the dark shadow of the submarine with ease.

Thats my impression/recollection as well, at least for the first 100 feet or so. I've had trouble finding good depth maps of the DEI, but much of the north end is shallow, with much of the Karimata Strait region seems to be 75feet or less. Google Earth ranges from -50 to -140 in the area. overall not a good hiding place for Subs.

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And it helps a lot that there is this big island (Sangiang) in the narrowest part of the strait between Sumatra and Java. Anything going through there would either get a taste of the 280mm guns or hit a mine or get hit by a plane or run into the island.

Islands complicated my life when I was deciding on where to put fortifications, as they create a dead zones. So I wound up putting guns on both sides and on an island. As late as Q2/41 they were emplacing the last howitzers to finish the plan- admittedly a couple years later than intended. Only 7 places are incomplete in DEI, and all those have the basics done, and all the MTBs were deployed on schedule.

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Originally posted by Kaiser Kirk

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Originally posted by Rooijen10
I get the impression that it is possible to run just below the surface, but planes should still be able track the dark shadow of the submarine with ease.

Thats my impression/recollection as well, at least for the first 100 feet or so. I've had trouble finding good depth maps of the DEI, but much of the north end is shallow, with much of the Karimata Strait region seems to be 75feet or less. Google Earth ranges from -50 to -140 in the area. overall not a good hiding place for Subs.

1) The SenToku's draw noticably more water than your average sub, and likewise have a lot more above the waterline to effectively submerge, I'd think.

2) Would not running this passage submerged be considered, at best, suspect? Or at worse, hostile?

2a)Also, considering it's a restricted waterway with decently dense merchant and military traffic, rather dangerous?

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Originally posted by ShinRa_Inc

2) Would not running this passage submerged be considered, at best, suspect? Or at worse, hostile?

2a)Also, considering it's a restricted waterway with decently dense merchant and military traffic, rather dangerous?

Unusual, but not greatly more hostile than usual. Foolish however, as periscope navigaton of a restricted waterway with submerged hazards would be considerably more dangerous than surfaced.

The Dutch would find it very interesting if the entire ~670nm journey from abreast Greater Natuna island to the far side of the straits was made submerged though. Seaplanes from Greater Natuna search up to 400nm into the South China Sea, so the observation distance could be 1000nm in the "worse case".

Looking at things OOC for a moment -

There is a presumption of speed in the mission of the I-401, transiting from a point south of Okinawa to a point south of Diego Garcia in but ten days. Surfaced the I-401 should be able to accomplish this; transiting the entire length of the DEI submerged - if even possible - would totally defeat the timetable set for its mission.

Unless, of course, the I-401 has an iincredibly high submerged speed and endurance.

This ought to be interesting to watch.

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Originally posted by Kaiser Kirk
Unusual, but not greatly more hostile than usual. Foolish however, as periscope navigaton of a restricted waterway with submerged hazards would be considerably more dangerous than surfaced.

This is more what I meant by Dangerous...not so much that he'd be shot at (though, that would be a realistic risk, I'd say), but that he'd be run over by a stray merchant, as historically was not uncommon for a submerged (or even surfaced) submarine traversing shipping lanes.

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Originally posted by BruceDuncan
Unless, of course, the I-401 has an iincredibly high submerged speed and endurance.

The last time the sentoku's came up, the only explanation was "Snorkel"...which still limits the ship's speed to around 10 knots, iirc.

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Originally posted by ShinRa_Inc

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Originally posted by Kaiser Kirk
Unusual, but not greatly more hostile than usual. Foolish however, as periscope navigaton of a restricted waterway with submerged hazards would be considerably more dangerous than surfaced.

This is more what I meant by Dangerous...not so much that he'd be shot at (though, that would be a realistic risk, I'd say), but that he'd be run over by a stray merchant, as historically was not uncommon for a submerged (or even surfaced) submarine traversing shipping lanes.

Given the density of shipping near the Strait of Sunda itself, and the general amount of north-south shipping between Singapore and Batavia, the risk of collision with a submerged submarine operating near the surface would be quite high. If the I-401 were to operate in such a way, it would be risking much for small gain.

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Originally posted by BruceDuncan
Unless, of course, the I-401 has an iincredibly high submerged speed and endurance.

The last time the sentoku's came up, the only explanation was "Snorkel"...which still limits the ship's speed to around 10 knots, iirc.

Quite so. I don't recall seeing a note in the I-400 class design indicating that snorkels had been fitted (wasn't aware that Japan had such technology). And use of an air mast would require a submerged submarine to operate at rather shallow depths, increasing the risks alluded to above.

Very interesting.

It's Japan. It obviously contains a nuclear reactor capable of producing a shaft horsepower of over 35,000 hp, and has rubber bottoms to rebound off of the ocean floor.