Sea of Fire

Chapter 52

It would come to be called the Pearl Harbor of the West, an effort by Yamamoto to smash the main British bastion in the Indian Ocean and drive them all the way back to Madagascar and Cape Town. If successful, it would be the perfect complement to the Army’s operation then underway in Burma, which had already seized Rangoon, and now intended to drive the British back into India. After that, Japan would stand on defense there, and no further offensive operations against India or Africa were contemplated.

The Army’s sobering experience in China had led it to determine that it could simply not invade another country as populous as India. There was too much ground, and the British would have an almost endless source of manpower for recruits that would likely flock to their banners after such an invasion. They already had great forces there in the British Indian Army, so it would be enough to drive them from Burma, and then secure that flank. Hara’s Operation C was the naval element, aiming to supplant Britain’s valuable naval bases at Colombo and Trincomalee with Japanese forces. From there, Japanese air power could pose a constant threat to enemy shipping in the Bay of Bengal, and force British convoys to Australia deeper into the Indian Ocean.

Hara’s carrier group was 150 sea miles southeast of Port Blair when Takami fought its first defensive duel against those incoming Barracudas. They had traded seven irreplaceable missiles for eight enemy planes, which was the dilemma of these interlopers from the future. Every time they used the power they possessed, they grew weaker.

Receiving that report, Hara dispatched a pair of Zeros off Taiho to overfly the channel between the Big and Little Andaman Islands where Ozawa intended to take his task force. That was where Takami was now heading, and the planes would vector in on her coordinates, and then proceed northwest for a recon sortie. A little before 13:00 local time, the fighters made their rendezvous with Takami, and proceeded north.

“Come to 300,” said Harada, noting the time. They were now going to run up towards the Sentinel Island, passing south of that and continuing on this heading to scout the way into the Bay of Bengal. Ozawa’s Cruiser Force was just under seventy miles due east as they made that turn, bound to make that same transit of the channel. Eight minutes later, that recon sortie produced results when the Zeros spotted large wakes combing the sea.

“Sir,” said Shiota, “I am monitoring a signal from Scout 1. They have numerous contacts, 60 to 70 nautical miles out. Several destroyers and cruiser class ships, and three carriers. They now report the enemy is launching planes.”

“Notify Hara immediately.”

“Aye sir.” Shiota passed the information on to Ensign Teppo. She was at the comm station to be ears, but any communications with the Japanese fleet would go through Teppo’s mouth. It still would not do to have a woman make such a call in 1942.

“Scout 1 heading home, but they have what they think is a flight of fighters in pursuit.”

“Don’t worry about them,” said Fukada to the Captain. “Our Zeros can outrun anything the British have, and out fight them if they do try to intercept.”

“Very well,” said Harada. “Track those fighters, but take them off the missile targeting board.

“If they do persist,” said Fukada, “they may get close enough to spot us.”

“Lieutenant Otani, how far out are they?”

“47 nautical miles at a little over 12,000 feet and now climbing through 12,500. Speed 160 knots. If they continue on their present heading they’ll pass about 10 to 12 miles east of us.”

“Given all these other contacts reported, we’re sailing towards a lot of trouble. Helm, let’s come to 270.”

“Aye sir, coming to 270.”

“Mister Fukada, what is our Admiral likely to do here?”

“He’s about 200 sea miles southeast of the reported position of those enemy carriers. His dive bombers could get up there, but the Torpedo planes will only have a 160 mile strike radius, so he’ll hold those until the range closes.”

They did not have long to wait before Fukada’s prediction was verified. Otani reported planes forming up over Hara’s carriers, at 13:40, and soon they began to head northwest.

Aboard HMS Formidable, Admiral Somerville was still stinging from the loss of those first eight planes. Enemy rockets—a most unexpected development, to say the least.

“Opinion, Mister Wells,” he said to his new Captain. A rising star in the Navy, Wells had just come over from HMS Glorious, the ship he had single handedly saved from almost certain destruction when it was caught unawares by the Twins in the Norwegian Sea.

“Well sir, and with all due respect, I don’t think I would want to be here just now, not with the whole of the Carrier Squadron, and not for Port Blair.”

“You would not defend it? There it sits, like a good pawn in the center of the board. From there we can get search planes well down into the Strait of Malacca.”

“True sir, but we have very little at risk there beyond that single utility, and we haven’t even got planes there. Its usefulness now is limited to coast watchers, and its proximity to both Singapore and Rangoon will make it a very difficult square to cover.”

“Do go on,” said Somerville, wanting to hear Wells out.

“So we’re the gallant knight, sir, posted here to cover that pawn. And you’ve sortied the Slow Force battleships like a rook to watch this file we find ourselves on, but Vice Admiral Willis can’t really offer us much in the way of support. We’ve called it the Slow Force for good reason. The Japanese won’t come after us with a surface action group. They’ll strike with their carriers. It’s a fairly good bet those Zeros are on a heading back to their mother ships as we speak, but we don’t know just how far out those carriers are. Our fighters reported one contact, a lone ship passing south of Sentinel Island, but no carriers and only that single ship.”

“Most likely a picket,” said Somerville, “which could mean the main body is southeast of Little Andaman.”

“Yes sir, but those Zeros have a good long mission radius, 800 nautical miles for a recon like this. That could put the enemy carriers anywhere from 200 to 400 miles out.”

“All the same, wouldn’t you get a strike group ready?”

“If I had to stay here, yes sir, I would.”

“Yet you would rather be elsewhere. I see…”

“It isn’t that I’ve lost my stomach for a fight, sir,” said Wells.

“Of course not.”

“It’s just that I would take the fleet west of Ceylon, and not operate here where they could cut us off by simply turning southwest now, and bottle us up here in the Bay of Bengal. We can’t get around the north tip of Ceylon. The reefs and shallows there make such a move impractical.”

“I see. Yet it was my thinking to keep the fleet interposed between the enemy and his obvious objective.”

“That would have been a fine strategy, sir,” said Wells, “assuming…” He hesitated now.

“Assuming what, Mister Wells? Go right on and speak your mind.”

“Assuming we could at least match them.”

That pricked at an inner sore spot Somerville had been rubbing himself for a good long while. He knew his carriers were tough with their armored flight decks, and he had good, experienced crews. But they did not have the planes to match those of the Japanese, nor the skill to match their pilots in a duel like this.

“A point well taken,” he said slowly. “Yet match them we must. Ceylon is at stake here, and we’ve got to stand up.”

“I understand, sir. Shall we get a strike spotted?”

“I think we should.”

“Aye sir. May I suggest a mixed group, Albacores and Fulmars armed with the 1000 pound bombs. Seafires in escort.”

“Give the order and the fleet will come to 265. The wind has cooperated with us today. As we turn into it now, this new course will also take us off that enemy sighting vector, and towards our Cruiser Force.” And it will also take us west, he thought, for much in what Wells had argued stuck to him now, and he was beginning to see the potential trap he might find himself in here.

“Shall I pass the ready order on to the other carriers?” asked Wells.

“Please do so. Have Illustrious post a squadron of Martlets on CAP.”

Somerville knew he was at a decided disadvantage here. They could not match their enemy. The Japanese Admiral now had his location, and planes that could reach him, while he had nothing more than a good guess as to the position of the enemy carriers. He had to be ready to launch in any case, but now he wanted the support of his cruisers and destroyers. The game was on, but who would move next?

A moment later, they saw the enemy making their first big move. “Sir, Type 281 reports a large contact out at maximum range and bearing on our position. 130 miles out.”

Somerville looked at Wells. “Here they come,” he said. “Notify Indomitable to spot a second squadron of fighters.”

“Sir,” said Wells. “If those are strike planes, then they would be Vals or Kates. The former would probably launch no more than 250 miles from its intended target, the latter 160 miles. So I would now estimate their mother carriers to be somewhere here.” He circled a finger on the plotting table. “If I’m right, sir, we can hit them. At the very least we should clear our decks of anything armed and get it airborne while we can.”

“A wise precaution,” said Somerville. “Make it so.”

“We’ve got those two Martlets returning now. I’ll launch as soon as they are recovered.”

They saw Illustrious spotting aircraft as well, and Indomitable was already sending out a group of Martlets, the American Wildcats renamed by the British. Aboard Takami, the screens were suddenly alight with over 36 contacts, all designated friendly as the British planes launched and then were vectored southeast to look for the enemy.

As the British squadrons proceeded, there was one pair of Japanese Zeros out on long range CAP that spotted them, and went after a flight of Barracudas, downing one in a swirling fight that sent the others off in wild directions. The planes carried on, and the fact that they were not massed into one coordinated group would now weigh in their favor. A group of six Seafires with 1000 pound bombs were out in front, but by the time they had expended half their fuel, they had seen only a pair of enemy destroyers entering the gap between the islands. One by one, they began to reach Bingo fuel, and were forced to turn for home.

Other squadrons in the long train pressed on through the Channel, but more Zeros greeted them east of Little Andaman Island and they still had not spotted the enemy carriers. In the meantime, the enemy planes were drawing ever nearer, but Somerville’s sideslip to the west now paid him good dividends. The Japanese Vals had carried on with the heading given them for the initial contact, and they missed the British carriers. For a time, they persisted north, a few chasing and attacking a lone British destroyer, before the strike leader realized his error and turned. Seeing enemy planes to their southwest, he reasoned those must be British planes returning to their carriers, and turned in that direction.

The Vals were almost at the point where they would have to head home, but at least now they were headed the right way, the costly hunt to the north behind them. Finally, they saw the large wakes of enemy ships scoring the cobalt sea beneath them, and began to make their attack run. They were going to be too late. Most would be nearing Bingo fuel soon, but they pressed in to attack, with none of them dropping bombs on Formidable as the skies began to light up with Ack Ack fire. Most bombs fell wide of the mark, but one was very close, no more than 150 feet off the starboard side of the ship. The blast sent shrapnel raking over the flight deck, damaging several Fulmars spotted there, and effectively putting them out of the game.

Crews ran to move the planes below decks while others were already rising on the elevators, this time armed with 1000 pound bombs. The last of the Vals swooped through the flak, then the formation swarmed off like angry bees, heading south. They had put one stinger into their enemy, and those results were none too good considering that these were veteran pilots. Two stubborn pilots still had bombs when they got the order to return to base, but they could not go without attacking and bear the shame of having to jettison those bombs. Ignoring their fuel situation, they turned, braving the flak, and bored in on that carrier.

They each got off two 125kg bombs, but all fell well over 500 feet from the carrier. Wells and Somerville had dodged the first enemy attack, and now Formidable had frantically launched another group of Fulmars to try and follow those Vals home and find their unseen enemy.

Down south, the other squadrons of Barracudas had still not sighted the Japanese carriers, but they did find what looked to many like a battleship below. It was actually the Heavy Cruiser Tone, out in front of Hara’s group by some 30 miles. The British had come that close to finding the carriers, but now, in desperation, low on fuel, they decided to take the bird in hand. The first two Fulmars put their bombs nearly half a mile from the target in their haste, and the gunners aboard Tone actually laughed at their enemy. Most of the other British squadrons got hung up about 40 miles north of Taiho, where Hara had posted his long range CAP. The slashing attack of the Zeros was enough to so disrupt the enemy formations, that the strain on their fuel was now forcing them to turn for home.

So it was that these initial probing attacks saw both sides frustrated, shadow boxing with an enemy that neither one could clearly see. But Hara now had a very good idea where his enemy was, and he was determined to strike again with the remaining daylight. At 15:40 he gave orders for all carriers to launch a second wave. He would get those planes up and off the decks just as a group of eight Zeros were returning. As his squadrons headed out, he saw more Zeros launching from Hiyo as ordered to replace his defensive CAP. They were soon in a wild fight with anything the British had near Tone, as the Fulmar was a fighter bomber, and those pilots too far off to get an attack in, could jettison their bombs and take on the role of that fighter. Both side would take losses, but the net effect was that Hara would effectively parry and block the last punched the three British carriers had thrown at him.

An hour later, by 16:40, the first groups of that strike wave had already arrived at the last reported location of the carriers, and then turned west to look for those long wakes. The British could see them coming on radar, and they would surely vector in all the other groups in their train.

“We had better look to our defense,” said Somerville.

“Indomitable reports they have six Seafires ready on deck for immediate launch. Illustrious has two more on ready standby. I’ll have them scrambled at once. As for us, I’m afraid we’ve just got the Barracudas left below deck.”

“Leave them there for now. But we must be ready to arm them at a moment’s notice. Not just now, however. Particularly with enemy planes coming at us. Gentlemen, it may soon be every man for himself, but we’re likely to take the heat first, trailing the other two carriers as we are now. Let’s get off this heading and see if we can dodge another arrow.”

“Aye sir,” said Wells. “Helm, come to 320 and ahead full.”

Chapter 53

Those eight Seafires were not going to be enough. The long range CAP already up for the British had pounced on one of the squadrons of Vals, and took down five in a heated duel, but now they could see lower flying formations of Kates, and more Vals coming in higher up. They radioed home, telling their comrades the enemy was throwing the kitchen sink at them.

This time Somerville’s dodge would not work.

It was Lieutenant Ichihara off the Taiho that saw the carriers first, leading in two Shotai of B5N2 torpedo bombers. At a little after 17:00 the enemy planes swooped low over the water and began their attack runs, racing in at very high speed, which was a hallmark of the Kate. Soon the long wicked wakes of the torpedoes were clawing through the water, and one struck Formidable amidships, blasting through the torpedo bulwark and achieving partial penetration of the main hull.

The resulting explosion buckled the second deck where those Barracudas sat in open parking, but thankfully, only two were then armed with torpedoes, and neither of those were damaged. Several flak guns on that side of the ship took bad splinter damage, the crews cruelly clawed by shrapnel caused by the explosion. A fire broke out and a call came up to the bridge to report minor flooding amidships.

“They’ve gone and stuck one to us,” said Somerville coolly.

“It seems they have, sir,” said Wells.

The buckled deck had also thrown both elevators slightly off their bearings, and the engineers were now trying to see if they could keep them operational. Above, chaos reigned over the scene, with planes seemingly everywhere. Vals were swarming over Illustrious off their port quarter, and the few Seafires they got up were battling the enemy against steep odds. Between their efforts and the AA fire, at least eleven Vals were taken down in that wild attack.

Bombs were falling around Indomitable, escorted by the destroyer Napier. Vals that had already dropped their bombs then bravely went after the Fireflies. Planes were cartwheeling into the sea on every side, and losses were beginning to mount. Then two Vals got through the intense flak and both were able to put 125kg bombs right on the armored flight deck of Illustrious. Neither were able to penetrate all the way through to the hangar deck, but now came a group of eight Kates off the Junyo, bearing down on both the other two British carriers. One would hit the Illustrious aft with a torpedo that would put most of her remaining planes out of the game for a time when the explosion sent fire and smoke through the hangar deck. The minor flooding would be controlled, and the fires suppressed, but she was out of the fight at a critical moment.

By 18:00 it was all over, the smoke trailing up into the sky from all three British carriers. Formidable had it the worst, her fires spreading to ignite an aviation fuel bunker, with a violent explosion rocking the ship. Wells was thrown from his feet, Somerville holding on to the binnacle as the ship swayed, then righted itself. The Admiral came to his Captain, extending a hand.

“Mister Wells,” he said. “I am beginning to see the wisdom of your earlier arguments. We’ve no business being here now, and perhaps I was rash to put us in harm’s way, but that was my charge. Now we must look to our ship.”

A call came up that the damage control parties were having great difficulty getting the fires under control. The ship’s speed was exacerbating that effort, but if they slowed down, those fast enemy cruisers could find them. The reality of what had just happened finally hit Wells like a blast of cold air.

They were going to lose her.

That was the only thing running through his mind now—no more strategy, and nothing of chess moves as he had put it to Somerville earlier. His ship was going down. The Admiral, being much more experienced at sea, also knew the worst. He edged a bit closer and spoke to Wells, his voice low and controlled.

“I think we should see to getting the crew off as best we can. I’ll see to some documents from the plotting room. You see to the men and boats.”

“Very well.” Wells had a defeated look on his face, and Somerville saw it. The Admiral put his hand on the Captain’s shoulder.

“It happens, Mister Wells, and this is my fault, not yours. We get some of theirs, and they get some of ours. I’m afraid the two of us will likely look like a pair of wet dogs when they pull us out of the sea. Nestor is close by, and Napier. They can lend a hand. I’ll have signals sent to all other destroyers to muster on our position. As for Illustrious and Indomitable, they should continue west with all speed until we can sort ourselves out. Rear Admiral Boyd is on Indomitable, and he can manage. I’ll want him to effect a rendezvous with Admiral Willis and the Slow Force. Those battleships can put up a good deal of flak if the enemy comes looking for more trouble. Then I think the whole lot should move southwest…. Where we should have been all along.”

It was as much an effort to shore his Captain up as it was an admission of his own fault. The two men had a lot on their backs in the brief time they had collaborated. There was Mers-el-Kebir, and the dreadful consequences of that action that sent France firmly into the enemy camp. Then there was the action off Dakar, and the Canary Islands, where they got back in the game. This time, another island of great importance was at stake, and Somerville was beginning to doubt if they could defend it.

For his part, Wells realized the Admiral was trying to buck up his morale, but that he was also giving him his intentions as to future operations. When one went over the side in a situation like this, it was never certain where he might end up. The Admiral’s launch was readied for senior officers, but Somerville wanted to see the men off first. He had over a thousand souls on his mind now.

This was a blow that could cost us Ceylon, thought Wells. Every plane we’re carrying will go down with this ship, and what we have left on the other two carriers may not be able to hold the enemy off. If I had it to say, I would get those planes to bases on Ceylon, and get those last two carriers well west to safe waters. We weren’t ready to mix it up with the Japanese carriers like this, but what else could we do but our best?

Paladin, Panther, Hotspur, and Foxhound, would soon arrive on the scene to lend assistance as Formidable began to list heavily. There would not be enough boats for all the men, but those six destroyers would be able to pull the lion’s share out of the sea. In the end, they would lose only 76, mostly those already killed in the attack itself, and some to mishaps during the evacuation. That was the only solace Somerville could take from his fate, but the real sting was that Britain had lost a very valuable ship, and his carrier force as a whole was now much diminished as a defensive foil.

In fact, Indomitable had repaired most of its damage, though Illustrious was a little worse off. Both carriers were still seaworthy, and after being pull up onto Indomitable three hours later, Somerville now had to decide what to do. They had 44 planes left between the two carriers, and Wells sought him out to offer his own thoughts.

“Sir, if the enemy is still coming, and I think he is, then wouldn’t our remaining planes be better served ashore? Hermes has twelve more at Trinco, but that just leaves us 56 aircraft. We could be facing twice as many enemy planes from what I saw in that attack. If they joined the Hurricane squadrons ashore, our defense there might be thicker.”

“Sound thinking, Wells, but rather emasculating to order our boys landward like that. We’ll run west for Trinco, and then take stock of the situation.”

“They can’t sink the island, sir,” Wells put in one last argument. “We can hold back a few fighters on the decks, but move most of the strike planes ashore. The carriers would become a scouting force to try and locate the enemy on his approach, and they might do better southwest of Colombo. That way, if we have to retire, we’ve a clear route and open sea. As it stands, if we linger off Trinco, we can only go south to get around the island, and that could put us in a fix if the enemy is heading southwest from their last position.”

Somerville nodded, smiling inwardly. The man was already thinking about tomorrow, when he hasn’t even got the seawater out of his ears today. I like that.

“I’ll keep your suggestion in mind, Mister Wells. Now then… I think we’d best present ourselves to Captain Troubridge and inform him the flag is now planted firmly on his ship. I’ll post you to the plotting room, and do sound off if you have anything more to say.”

“The plotting room… Yes, sir.” Wells seemed a little despondent.

Somerville gave him a look. “Don’t worry, Welly,” he said, using the nickname he had heard the other men hang on Wells. “We’ll get you another ship. All in good time.”

Off to the southeast, Admiral Hara was also counting the eggs left in his nest. When darkness settled over the sea, Hiyo had 27 planes, Junyo 22, and Taiho 65, for a total of 114 aircraft now available to carry on the operation. It had been a costly day, but the pilots were still jubilant. They had hurt their enemy much more, and knew they had sunk at least one of the three enemy carriers.

This cruiser Yamamoto sent me was at least of some use, thought Hara. It covered that landing at Port Blair well enough, took down that first enemy squadron, and sent me a lot of useful and accurate information as to the location of the enemy carriers. So I will continue to post it as a picket, only this time I think it will operate with Tone and her seaplanes. Together they will make an excellent scouting force.

Losses were heavy. We lost twelve fighters, twenty-three dive bombers, but only six torpedo bombers. Forty-one aircraft gone… but I still have enough to carry on. I will move southwest now, for if the enemy retires west, that course gives me every chance of cutting them off. Tomorrow should see us in a very good position, and I will post Ozawa’s force about 30 miles north of my position as a screen.

The short night was ahead of them, and the service air crews worked feverishly to repair damage, refuel, and rearm all the planes scheduled for operations the next day. That night, the Japanese also flew in four seaplanes to Port Blair, and they began preparing for scouting operations. One plane went up that night for a long range patrol, scouting west to look for the British at their last reported position. With the night clear it was able to spot the wakes of several ships gleaming in the wan light of an evening crescent moon, low on the horizon as it began to set.

Hara got the report at 22:15, one carrier, one battleship, with numerous destroyers, and additional light units spotted further southeast of that position. It was immediately clear to him that the British were now running on a parallel course, possibly to attempt to cover Trincomalee, or perhaps in an effort to reach Colombo. He immediately gave orders for all fleet units to increase speed, ahead full, and the race was on.

Ozawa’s 7th Cruiser Division was about 65 miles northeast of his position and within 45 sea miles of the closest enemy contact. Confident in night actions, he signaled Ozawa to attempt to engage. At the very least, he might get better information on the size and composition of the enemy force. So at 22:30, the cruisers turned on a heading of 265, along with the 17th Destroyer Division. Even as they turned, contact was suddenly lost with that seaplane out of Port Blair, and this further reinforced Hara’s suspicion that the enemy carriers were there.

Hours passed as the day slipped away beyond midnight. The moon was down and darkness made the sea a sable cloth beneath increasing low clouds. With each passing hour, the positions of the enemy ships grew more uncertain, and no word had come from Takami, which had turned on a heading of 295 to look for the enemy. Finding nothing, Ozawa resumed a heading of 242, again running parallel to the carriers, but now over 100 sea miles to the north.

As dawn came, Hara altered his course 20 points to starboard, coming to 256. He immediately ordered fighters up to look for the enemy fleet. Departing on a heading of 320, they overflew Ozawa’s cruiser Force at a few minutes before 06:00, continuing on to the northwest.

Nothing was seen.

Frustrated, and thinking the enemy may have elected to run for Trincomalee, he nonetheless decided to check due west of his position, sending up another pair of Zeros off the Hiyo at 06:20. Then, at 06:37 the scouting group off Taiho suddenly radioed a sighting report—enemy carrier!

All that night, the British had moved towards the east coast of Ceylon. That first seaplane that had spotted them got entirely too curious, descending to an altitude that prompted the battleship Revenge to open up with its flak guns. A hit damaged both the engine and radio, sending the plane down.

All the destroyers that had come to the aid of Formidable, were then dispatched to Trincomalee with the survivors, save the senior officer party that had come aboard Indomitable. Somerville had cruised on a heading of 225 all night, intending to skirt very near the curving southeast coast of Ceylon. He was taking Wells’ advice to heart now, thinking only of how he might save his remaining carriers. His intention was to get down past the southern tip of the island at Koggala, where a small seaplane base was fueling up two Catalinas for their morning patrol.

All that night, Cruiser Force, with Cornwall, Dorsetshire, Emerald and Enterprise, had been steaming about 80 miles to his southwest, in a very good position to become entangled with Hara’s fleet, but they had seen nothing in the inky darkness after moonset.

Hara had moved to a position about 220 miles east of Koggala on the southern tip of Ceylon, and though he did not yet know it, he had already cut his enemy off, as Wells had feared. That first contact with the enemy came when Scout 1 off Taiho reported a carrier about 100 nautical miles to Hara’s north, and then a second carrier, 45 miles ahead of the first, and 116 miles northwest of Taiho. If those reports were good, both were in strike range, but why had the enemy separated? One must have battle damage or engine problems, he assumed, and ordered his planes to begin spotting to attack immediately. He elected to go with his torpedo bombers, all 17 then available on Taiho, and a fighter escort of two Shotai would launch from Junyo.

At the same time, Takami sent over information that there were two airborne contacts, most likely search planes originating from Koggala. They were on headings that might find the Japanese within the hour, and so Hara elected to go after them, ordering Hiyo to send up a Shotai of three more Zeros off Hiyo.

Takami watched the little drama unfold on its screens, the Zeros taking a heading that brought them right over the ship. At that point, about 07:50, the contact was 58 miles off, and Takami messaged the Japanese pilots, guiding them in. While this was happening, Scout 2, was able to refine its sighting report to three cruisers and a pair of destroyers. Thinking these must be an advanced screen, the planes turned to follow the enemy wakes in the opposite direction, thinking they might point them to the main body.

As the little engagement ensued, the Catalina, flown by one Leonard Joseph Birchall. Already famous in Fedorov’s history for spotting the approach of the Japanese fleet, he was out to double down on that fate line. All he had seen up to this point was a single cruiser, leaving a medium wake on the sea. He took it for what it was, a lone picket forward of the enemy fleet, and pressed on.

Then the Zeros found him.

Coming out of the eastern sun, barely visible, Birchall had no chance against those swift winged fighters. On the first pass they raked the wing and set the left engine afire. He struggled with the yoke to try and get the plane down, his only thought now being to land in one piece.

“Send out that we’ve found the Japanese,” he shouted over his shoulder to the radioman. “Send ‘Leading screen at our position.’ They’ll sort the rest out.”

Down he went, the smoke from that engine getting worse with each passing minute. The Zeros could have followed, but they stayed aloft, reporting back to Hara that the contact had been shot down. Birchall would descend until his smoking trail vanished into clouds, and eventually land his Catalina on the sea. In the meantime, Scout 2 off Taiho had followed those wakes and found the British carriers, which scrambled fighters to get up and challenge them when the Zeros were spotted. The report came back: Main body, three battleships, two carriers, five destroyers.

Chapter 54

After both sides ran all night, on roughly parallel courses, round two of the battle was now underway, and the situation if viewed on a plotting table looked very confused. Gurēgōsuto, the Grey Ghost as Takami was now being called, indicated the presence and position of the leading British carrier sighting that had been spotted by Scout 1 earlier that morning. They believed there was also a battleship present, and at least three destroyers, that this enemy force was following right in Takami’s wake, perhaps 32 sea miles behind.

Ozawa’s position now put him directly behind the other reported carrier sighting, following its wake. He was soon given permission to take his 7th Cruiser Division and intercept. Suzuya raced ahead, a fleet footed ship at 33 knots. The other cruisers followed, guns loading for action. Tense moments passed, the watchmen straining their eyes at the binoculars, but nothing was seen in the low marine layer.

The two fleets, now widely dispersed, had nearly collided with one another, but the darkness and low weather had obscured all until sunrise. Even the planes had difficulty finding contacts through small breaks in the cloud cover, which meant there might be difficulties with the strike wave. Hara looked at his watch, then leaned heavily in his chair on the bridge of Taiho, watching the Kates lining up for takeoff. He would probe with this first punch, a jab at the enemy’s chin. If all went well, he was ready to launch a much heavier strike on short order.

It was no longer a question of whether they should have been west of Ceylon. Now it was a question of whether they could get there safely at all. All through the night, Somerville had deliberately elected not to fly any cover. He knew where his enemy was going, and Wells had called it exactly. Now, with the sun up, he looked at his hand and found few cards worth playing.

He had 44 planes between the two carriers, but they were mostly fighters. His strike planes had suffered heavily in the action of the previous day, and he had lost a good many of the new Barracudas when Formidable went down. He had only 15 of those left, and that was all the sting at his disposal. All of his dual purpose Fulmars were gone. The rest were the 16 Martlets, 9 Fireflies and 4 Seafires, all new model planes that had only recently been delivered to F.A.A. squadrons. He considered arming them with bombs, but knew that was useless. None of those fighter pilots had ever been trained for naval bombing.

Again Wells’ admonishment came to mind—get the planes to bases on Ceylon. If the enemy were to find him this day, and strike his carriers again, all these planes would surely be lost. It was all a sad testimony to support Wells’ other assertion, that the fleet should not have been where it was at all, and that the effort to try and ambush the enemy landing at Port Blair was ill-considered. He ordered every Barracuda armed and aloft at once, with six Fireflies. Even as he did so, his radar crews reported a flurry of long range contacts loitering about 125 miles to the southeast, on a heading of 160.

He had found the enemy carriers, for those were obviously planes forming up for the attack. As the seconds ticked away, he had to decide what to do with those Barracudas. Trinco was 150 nautical miles to the northwest, and they could still reach that base. Colombo was a good deal farther, about 225 miles, and over the high central mountains on Ceylon. The enemy carriers were 125 miles to the southeast, but how many of those 15 planes would get through, and would they find a deck waiting for them if they made it back? If he sent them to Trinco, they could still act in defense of that base, and Wells was correct, the Japanese could not sink the island. But he would forfeit anything they might do to defend his carriers by bringing harm to the enemy.

He decided. They were heading for Ceylon.

When the startled pilots got that order they were quite put off. What were they doing up here if they were simply going to run for home when the going got rough? Just before they turned, one saw the long wake of a fast ship through a break in the clouds, and reported a single cruiser, requesting permission to attack.

Somerville relented. “Very well,” he told the signalman. “Order them to go on in. If that is an enemy cruiser, it’s right on the trail of Illustrious. Maybe this will buy her some time.”

Damn, he thought. Illustrious has a gimpy leg after that action yesterday. She’s been falling farther and farther behind all night, and without proper escort. I’ll detach a destroyer to look after her. There’s another thousand souls on that ship to worry about now.

By 08:00 hours, the last five planes aboard Illustrious were off the deck and climbing into the grey skies, three Fireflies and a pair of Seafires. That group of Barracudas went after their cruiser contact, which was the forward ship in Ozawa’s force, Suzuya. Some never got close enough. The Zeros sent on ahead to sweep the target area for enemy cap had already spotted them, and fell like hawks on doves, their talons sharp with bright MG fire. They would get three of the seven Barracudas in that group, but the other two would get to Suzuya, and with sheer will to put hurt on their enemy, they braved the thickening flak and got their torpedoes in the water.

Both ran true.

Suzuya rolled with a heavy explosion, then another as both torpedoes hit. The results were flooding amidships that could not be controlled, and the British, as intimidated as they were at the approach of the Japanese fleet, had finally drawn blood. Only two of the seven Barracudas survived, and decided to follow their original orders, heading off for Trinco.

Now, her decks and hangars empty, Illustrious was running for all she was worth, finally working up to 29 knots. Air alert was sounded, and the crews began opening up on a group of low flying enemy planes that began circling their prey. Illustrious had 48 two-pounder AA guns on six Octuple mounts, and they began chopping op the sky, their chattering fire accented by the dark roses of the bigger 4.5-inch dual purpose guns. They would put down at least five Kates, but one scored a hit, aft, where the flooding threatened one of her propulsion shafts.

Like jackals nipping at the legs of their prey, the Kates had slowed the carrier from 29 to 21 knots again, and the second squadron of torpedo planes was now vectoring in. Those five British fighters were in a swirling dogfight higher up with the Japanese Zeros, so they could not help. It would be Hara’s pilots against the gunners on Illustrious now, and the balance of power in the Indian Ocean was riding on the outcome. The Kates saw the thin stream of grey smoke from the carrier, and turned to follow.

Her speed still falling off, Illustrious was also starting to go into a slight list to port when those last nine Kates found her and made their attack. Gunner Jake Morton saw a pair of planes swoop down to line up for their attack. He was right on them, his 2-Pounders hot with fire, and had every confidence he would take both down. One had already been hit, its left wing streaming a thin train of smoke. Then, with a wrenching thud, his gun mount jammed. Someone had failed to mount a round properly, and at that critical moment, the stream of fire he had been putting out was cut off.

The other gunners could not hold them at bay, and soon the seas were streaked with the wakes of enemy torpedoes. Expert in their craft, and with a very deadly and accurate weapon, the Japanese would find their mark again that morning. The carrier rocked with two more explosions, and like Formidable the previous day, she would sink that same hour.

The outcome of the entire engagement had come down to one moment, but it was not Jake Morton on his 2-Pounders. It was Gunner’s mate Ed Wicker, two hours earlier, when he had failed to properly replenish that gun mount magazine after a long, sleepless night. Yet no one would ever know that. It was one of a thousand Pushpoints on the history, hiding in the seeming insignificance of a billion simple moments that made up that flow of time. Wicker’s woe was Morton’s mishap, and the end of Illustrious along with any hope that the Royal Navy could ever sortie here again to defend Ceylon.

When Somerville got the news that he had lost her, he lowered his head, rubbing his brow. His defense had been rash, ill-managed, and now he had lost two ships Britain depended on greatly for her continued survival. He was learning the hard lesson that the American Admirals Fletcher and Halsey had been taught when it came to carrier duels with the Japanese. If you locked horns with the Imperial Japanese Navy, be ready to suffer losses. They were just too good at this deadly art of war, and not to be ever taken lightly. He knew nothing of Ed Wicker at that moment, but stripes on his cuff meant that he would certainly shoulder all the blame for his lapse.

Meanwhile, Takami had been monitoring the complex situation on her SPY-1D radars. Otani spoke up, a warning in her tone. “Sir, that skunk I reported on a minute ago is getting close, and they’re three big mothers behind it, cruising at 20 knots.”

It was Somerville’s screening force, the light cruiser Caledon with destroyers Fortune, Vampire and Vendetta. The bigger ships following were Vice Admiral Willis with his battleships on close cover for Indomitable. The sea around them was already erupting with water splashes from the guns of the heavy cruiser Tone.

“Our escort is on the job, said Harada. Bring us about and steer 180. We’ll open the range. Monitor the situation and if Tone needs assistance, we’ll go to our deck gun.”

Tone would not need assistance. Her ten 8-inch guns were more than a match for Caledon, and the three destroyers broke off to the west, running towards distant Ceylon. The battleships could never get close enough, for Tone was a very fast ship.

“Sir,” said Shiota. “From the signal traffic I’m hearing, I think we got that carrier—Illustrious,”

Fukada smiled, rubbing his hands together. “Two down and one to go,” he said.

“Do we have a fix on that last British carrier?” asked Harada.

“No sir,” said Otani. “When we broke south away from those destroyers we lost the contact. Predictive plot still has them on the board, but that is not reliable information if they’ve turned. My best guess is that they’re at 350, probably 40 nautical miles out from our position—over a hundred miles from our carriers. Their second DD screen just slipped over the horizon and went yellow. The only firm red contact I have now is that cruiser at 250.”

“Probably Cornwall or Dorsetshire,” said Fukada.

“Bring us about,” said the Captain. “We’ll chase that ship off if it has any ideas about trying to support that carrier. Feed Hara your best guess as to the carrier’s position based on that predictive plot. It’ll take them time to arm and spot for a strike, so factor that in.”

By 10:15 the brief, but violent engagement had ended, and the surviving planes had been recovered. Somerville was by no means out of the hot water, and now he called a conference of Wells, and the ship’s Captain Troubridge.

“Our own speed is falling off,” he said. That splinter damage to the boilers yesterday was bound to make itself known. Pressure is off and we’re down to 22 knots. At this rate, I don’t think we’ll get around Ceylon. Our only chance might be to turn north now, and make for Trinco. From there we go on to Madras, and hopefully under cover of the planes the RAF moved there. It was a footrace, gentlemen, and they won it. Illustrious paid the price.”

“If we turn now we might slip away,” said Troubridge.

“Mister Wells?”

“Agreed sir. If we could get up to speed I’d say press on, but under the circumstances, better to head north. We might open the range enough to cause them difficulties, but I would expect at least one more air strike today, and possibly two.”

“Then make it so, Captain, and signal Vice Admiral Willis, and all close supporting units to break off north. Any ship farther out is to carry on and attempt to reach Addu. We’ve been given a good hard beating here, and one I’ll not soon forget. Let’s just hope we can save this last carrier.”

“Don’t forget Hermes, sir,” said Wells. “She’s still at Trinco.”

“And with twelve planes,” said Somerville. “Well, we’ve got less than two dozen here. Are the fighters on deck?”

“Eight Martlets and a pair of Seafires ready.”

“Good, leave them there. If we launch, they’ll just come up on the enemy radar and let them know exactly where we are. So we skulk off north, and hope for the best. We’ll scramble the fighters if the enemy tries to hit us again. As for the battleships, we can’t wait for them, as much as I might want their added firepower for defense. Let’s see if we can work up more steam and run like the wind. In the meantime, keep your fingers crossed, and hold tight to those rabbit’s feet.”

Hara now considered his own options. He had sunk a second carrier, but the other was reported some thirty or forty miles further on, yet that contact was now over 90 minutes old. His forward scout group with Tone and Takami was following a British heavy cruiser to the west, and that was now their only solid contact. The day was young, and he could get planes up to look for the enemy again, which is what he decided to do. Until he knew more, he would continue due west towards Koggala. He had not yet used his dive bombers, knowing the enemy had armored flight decks like Taiho. Now he began to consider using those planes to strike the British bases. He could always spot torpedo planes on one of the other carriers in the event he found the British fleet again.

Using information provided by Takami, he sent another scouting group northwest, looking to find his enemy running down near the coast of Ceylon. By 11:10 he had found a heavy cruiser, still running southwest as before, but there was no sign of the carrier. Or any other ships. Where might they be, lost in this low marine layer? Might they have turned north?

By noon, with no further word, he was beginning to think his quarry had turned to run for Trincomalee. We must have hurt them very badly yesterday. Today they did not even dare to draw their sword. Suzuya fell as she ran down the enemy, but after that, we have not seen a single enemy plane.

An hour ago, they should have been within easy strike range, but now that begins to change. I will ignore the ships fleeing west. My mission was to attack Colombo. Ozawa still has three heavy cruisers, and four destroyers. I will order them to look for the enemy to the north. For now, it is time to get the dive bombers on deck and prepare to hit the enemy port. In another hour we will be close enough, and the planes can fly right over the island

At 1:30 the planes were up and on their way. Somerville on Indomitable was just able to see them on their long range radar, but he was unwilling to launch fighters unless he knew the enemy had found him out. The last of his fighters were on deck, engines running, ready for takeoff, but he held them tight, waiting.

“Sir,” came a message from the radar crews. “We’ve lost contact with those enemy planes. They must have moved to the northwest. There’s nothing on the scope heading our way now.”

Somerville nodded.

“Get yourself to the radio room,” he said. “Have them send out a coded warning to Colombo. The Japanese are coming.”

Somerville looked at Wells, a look on his face like a man who had just received a severe dressing down. “Mister Wells,” he said. “We got very lucky just now, and must never forget it. You and I might have shared the dubious distinction of having been the only two officers in the Royal Navy to ride a sinking ship down twice in the same battle. They’re going to hit Colombo next. Thank God for low clouds when you need them.”

“Will we make for Trinco, sir?”

“Too close,” said Somerville. We’d better run all the way up to Madras. Number 67 Squadron has Hurricanes at Alipore, and 146 Squadron has more at Dum Dum. I’ll see about getting them moved to Madras.”

“We be in a bit of a box, sir,” said Wells.

“Yes, I know that, but the Japanese can’t stay here forever. Their fleet will have to withdraw to Singapore, and then we’ll slip out to sea.”

“Will they come for Ceylon sir?”

“Very likely, but I’m afraid we won’t be able to do a thing about that. It will come down to the fight on the ground there now. At our first opportunity, I’m taking the fleet to Addu; perhaps all the way west to Madagascar. We’ll need considerable reinforcements if we have any hope of showing our faces in the Bay of Bengal again soon. God only knows where we’ll find them. I’ve a lot to answer for here, and had I sat with you earlier, and listened to your good advice, things might be a good deal better. As it stands, this whole sad affair can be laid at my feet, and I’ll spend a good long time writing my report.”

Hara hit Colombo the following day, then swung around the Island and bombed China Bay at Trinco on the 27th. That was to be the main landing site, and so he committed all his fighters to a decisive battle with the Hurricanes of the British 30th Squadron and a few Fulmars of F.A.A. 261 Squadron. Even a section of old Blenheim Bombers from 11th Squadron got into the act and tried to bomb Taiho, albeit unsuccessfully.

In these actions, Takami had operated with Kurita’s battleships, out looking for any further sign of the enemy fleet south of Ceylon. No enemy ships were found. Ozawa looked for the British up north, but never found them, and was fortunate in that. His three heavy cruisers would not have had a good time with Vice Admiral Willis and his three battleships. The fight over Trincomalee was costly, with the Japanese losing another 12 planes, but they had established air superiority by nightfall. Satisfied that he had command of the sea and sky, Hara ordered the invasion task force to proceed.

One day later, on the night of the 28th of September, the Japanese landed the 11th Regiment, 5th Division, on the beaches near Trincomalee. Churchill’s worst nightmare had come true, and the battle for Ceylon would now begin on the ground. 98th Indian Regiment of the 34th Division had been posted there, with a battalion of the British 16th regiment to stiffen the ranks. As in so many confrontations with the rugged Japanese infantry before, they were no match for the seasoned veterans of the 5th Division.

Trincomalee fell on the 1st of October, but there had only been enough shipping to lift this first regiment along with supplies adequate for the first two weeks. Hara departed for Singapore, where he planned to then refuel and escort the 21st Regiment to Ceylon for the landing at Colombo. In that interval, a chastened and disheartened Somerville slipped out of Madras and made a run for the Indian Ocean, but not before the three old battleships under Admiral Willis paid a visit to Trinco, protesting the Japanese occupation there with their 15-inch guns. No effort could be made to try and defend Colombo from any subsequent Japanese landing, and no further troops were available to send there.

In spite of his greatest fears coming to life with this Japanese invasion, Churchill was persuaded to use that same interval to pull out anything he could. A bird in hand was worth two in the bush, and Madagascar would be that bird. Indomitable lingered briefly, while the remainder of the 16th Brigade, with 99th and 100th Indian, and 21st East African were moved by sea at night. Three days after the last men got off, the Japanese 21st Regiment arrived to claim their pearl of great price.