The Rise of the Third Reich

On the night of December 23, the Japanese Navy’s First Fleet, which had five battleships including Yamato, Nagato, Mutsu, Hiei and Kirishima, as well as a convoy carrying the entire Army’s 2nd Division and 38th Division, had already The murderous man arrived on the ocean off North Haleiva, Oahu.

Although the five battleships Yamato, Nagato, Mutsu, Hiei and Kirishima had been shelling Pearl Harbor and Honolulu on the south coast of Oahu for days, they finally chose to land in the north of Oahu. No surprise either. After all, Pearl Harbor and Honolulu, south of Oahu, have been strongholds operated by Americans for more than half a century. Although several forts with large-caliber cannons were destroyed by the terrifying Yamato.

However, there are still many solid fortifications at the top of Diamond Head and the southern foothills of the Kurau Mountains. 12-inch (305mm) mortars are also placed in blind spots where some naval guns cannot shoot. There were also dozens of movable 8-inch (203mm) and 5-inch (127mm) cannons that were hidden in the tunnels at the top of Diamond Head and the foot of the Koolau Mountains and were not destroyed. If the Japanese army wanted to land from Honolulu and Pearl Harbor from the front, these cannons would show their power.

In addition to Pearl Harbor and Honolulu, areas on Oahu suitable for landing large armies include Kaneohe Bay and Kailua Bay in the east of the island, and Makaha, Waianae and Nanakuli on the west coast of the island. and Haleiwa in the north of the island. These places have beaches where landing troops can go ashore, and there are also small and medium-sized ports nearby.

However, Kaneohe Bay and Kailua Bay are blocked by the Koolau Mountains between Pearl Harbor and Honolulu, making it difficult for landing troops to pass through, and it is easy for the US military to defend them, so they were not considered.

Makaha, Waianae and Nanakuli on the west coast of the island are too close to Pearl Harbor, and just ashore is the Waianae Ridge, the second largest mountain range on Oahu. To the south of Waianae Ridge is the Hatch Battery destroyed by Yamato. Although the fort was destroyed, a large number of fortifications protecting the fort remained, which could block the road from Vianney to Pearl Harbor and Honolulu. Moreover, the U.S. Army artillery deployed near Pearl Harbor was enough to blockade the southern foot of Waianae Ridge, so this was not a particularly ideal landing location.

After excluding the east, west, and south sides of Oahu, the only remaining place that is most suitable for landing is Haleiwa in the north of Oahu. Haleiwa not only has a great beach for landing, but it also has a small harbor. In addition, after landing from Haleiwa, there is the Oahu Plain - this is a plain located in the center of Oahu, between the Kulau Mountains and the Waianae Ridge. The northernmost point of the plain is Haleiwa, and the last To the south is Pearl Harbor and Honolulu.

In other words, as long as the Japanese army successfully landed at Haleiwa, they could rush south along the Oahu plains into Pearl Harbor and Honolulu. But Americans are not a race that cannot fight. They have long known the defensive weaknesses of Oahu, so many years ago they built Skerfield Barracks near Wasivaa in the center of the Oahu plains as a stronghold to defend the Oahu plains. Commander Admiral Short The headquarters is located in this military camp.

In addition to this barracks guarding the key point, General Short also has a trump card in his hand, which is the two tank battalions assigned to the 24th and 25th Divisions of the U.S. Army stationed on Oahu. These two battalions are equipped with a total of 152 M3 "Stuart" light tanks (and more than 50 units in reserve). Although the M3 tank is only a light tank, it is a good tool for killing infantry. It is equipped with a 37mm cannon and five 7.62mm machine guns. For infantry, this kind of firepower can be described as terrifying.

Therefore, General Short, who owned Skerfield Barracks and two tank battalions, decided to place the decisive battle on the plains of Oahu, and did not deploy heavy troops in the area of ​​Haleiwa on the north coast of Oahu where the Japanese were most likely to land. .

Admiral Short and his staff thought that no matter how powerful the Japanese battleships were, they would not be able to get ashore. In a land battle on the plains of Oahu far away from the beach, the two tank battalions would definitely show their talents. The Japanese army who came from afar would not bring tanks with them, right?

Therefore, at 11 o'clock in the evening on December 23, when the huge Japanese landing fleet arrived at the attack launch line on time as planned, the beach at Haleiwa was still quiet, as if there was no defense.

"Why is there no one defending? Are the Americans on Oahu so frightened by Yamamoto's battleships that they dare not fight the imperial army on the beach?"

Jun Imamura, the commander of the Japanese Army's 16th Army who commanded this landing battle, said to himself on his command ship "Changshu Maru" while holding a telescope to observe the quiet Haleiwa.

Although there is a friendship between Imamura and Yamamoto that transcends land and sea, this friendship cannot override the collective army. Therefore, Imamura could not set his military headquarters on the spacious and comfortable Yamato, and of course he could not board other naval ships. Instead, Imamura placed his military headquarters on a passenger ship named "Changshu Maru" - —Speaking of which, the total tonnage of ships currently in the hands of the Japanese Army is much greater than that of the Japanese Navy! Because most of the requisitioned civilian ships are used and controlled by the army, with a total tonnage of up to 2.1 million tons! The navy, including military ships and requisitioned civilian ships, totals more than 1.5 million tons.

"Commander, the main force of the U.S. military should be concentrated in the area in the middle of the Oahu plain where it is difficult for naval guns to shoot." Masao Maruyama, commander of the 2nd Division, was also on board the Choshu Maru. When he heard Imamura's words, he analyzed, "But there should be long-range artillery aimed at the beachhead of Haleiwa."

"It doesn't matter," Imamura said, "Navy reconnaissance planes are already in the sky. Once the US cannons fire, they will be exposed, and the naval guns will quickly destroy them." He frowned, "But Oahu will be won quickly. The key is the navy's surprise attack... If the strange method of using submarines to transport tanks works, it may be easy to capture the ports of Diamond Head and Honolulu, and then it will be easy to fight. "

Although the Japanese Army has aircraft carriers (no more now), landing ships, and landing craft such as large launchers, they do not have the ability to send two divisions to the beach at one time. Moreover, the 2nd Division and the 38th Division still have a lot of heavy equipment. It is too slow for this kind of heavy equipment to land at the small port of Haleiva. It would be much easier if the big port of Honolulu can be captured.

Therefore, after referring to the island landing plan formulated by the Navy, Imamura still retained the plan of carrying tanks on submarines for sneak attacks, and also asked Taiwan to form mixed brigades to cooperate. However, he did not come up with such an imaginative plan as soon as he came up. Instead, he had to wait until part of the 2nd Division and the 38th Division came ashore at Haleiwa to attract the attention of the US military before he implemented the imaginative plan. Open a sneak attack.

…

"Lieutenant General, telegram from San Diego, the Japanese have landed on Haleiwa Beach!"

"Damn it, it's finally here!"

On the USS Enterprise aircraft carrier, Commander Halsey of the U.S. 1st Task Force was woken up from bed by his staff and heard unexpected bad news. When he quickly put on his clothes and went to the bridge with his staff, the latest order from the Taiping Fleet Headquarters had already arrived.

"Lieutenant General, the headquarters ordered us not to return to San Diego." Captain George Murray, the captain of the Enterprise and the chief of staff of the 1st Task Force, said to Halsey, "Admiral Nimitz ordered us to go to G2 immediately. Turn with the S1 supply fleet in the sea area, and immediately go to support Oahu after completing the supply.”

The so-called G2 sea area is a temporary code name, located about 200 nautical miles west of the Gilbert Islands, which is about 900 nautical miles from Oahu and not very far from the current position of Halsey's fleet.

Halsey's fleet has been drifting on the sea these days, carefully avoiding Japanese aircraft carriers, and also staying far away from Hawaii where Japanese ships are gathered, so the sailing speed is not very fast. Until the early morning of the 24th, it was still in waters about 1,000 nautical miles southwest of the Hawaiian Islands. At this rate, it would not be able to reach San Diego within 1941, so Nimitz simply asked Halsey's fleet to receive supplies at sea and then continue fighting.

The S1 supply fleet is part of the original SH01 fleet, consisting of several oil tankers, cargo ships and a destroyer. Shortly after the night battle on Hawaii Island, Nimitz, who succeeded Kimmel as commander of the Pacific Fleet, was sent to the G2 waters to stand by. The purpose is to resupply Halsey's 1st Task Force when necessary.

"Support Oahu?" Halsey frowned, "How?"

"Release all the SBDs and F4Fs on the USS Lexington and USS Saratoga in the sea 1,000 kilometers away from Oahu, and let them mount high-explosive bombs to bomb the Japanese troops landing on Oahu. But it will not be implemented immediately. , but to wait for Commander Nimitz’s orders.”

"What to do after the explosion?" Halsey asked. "These aircraft cannot return to the aircraft carrier."

"Land at the temporary airport on Oahu," Colonel George Maury said, "and then put it under the command of the Hawaiian Army. In addition, the 1st Task Force immediately turned to San Diego after releasing the carrier-based aircraft. Nimitz on It is expected that Japanese aircraft carriers will come to pursue us. If we can get rid of the Japanese aircraft carriers, then Task Force 1 will be divided into two, with Lexington and Saratoga as the core to form Task Force 6 and head to San Diego. . The remaining ships are still part of Task Force 1 and will join the SS01 fleet."

"SS01?" Halsey was stunned. "From where to where?"

Colonel George Murray said: "It is the San Diego-Sydney First Transport Fleet. Admiral Nimitz specifically mentioned in the telegram that this is a very large and important transport fleet and they must be sent to Australia safely."