Session #3 Report
Well, for the most part things went as expected on the Commonwealth side.
We opened with the siege and reduction of Bardia by the 4th Indian division, which took slightly longer than expected but was successful.
Also in here the last remains of the Sidi Barrani garrison were rounded up and escorted to the camps.
As the action at Bardia was winding down a sudden attack by the 7th Armored on the southern side of Tobruks defenses was successful in punching through an Italian infantry division and overrunning the artillery park in a bloody fight.
Follow on forces poured through the gap and it looked like Tobruk would fall with barely a whimper. Sadly the winds of fortune suddenly abandoned the CW forces and the final reduction of the port took over a week and cost the destruction of the "Selby Force" scratch brigade.
Meanwhile, the Long Range Desert group and a number of small infantry and recon forces raced ahead of the main forces. Securing strategic passes, ports, oasis and airbases across Cyrenaica. The LRDG was first to cut the coast road south of Benghazi, easily fending off the clumsy efforts of an italian MG battalion to dislodge them.
We wrapped up shortly after New Years, 1941. At present the bulk of the 7th armored is inland, SE of Benghazi paused to restock fuel and ammunition before continuing - small elements of the division hold the coast road south of Benghazi.
The 6th Australian and 4th Indian infantry divisions are closing on the Benghazi perimeter from the east along the coast road - again proceeding somewhat slowly as the supplies are brought up.
Tobruk has been occupied by the fortress brigades with artillery support. Some anti-tank forces backed by artillery sit astride the Halfaya pass and Sollum areas. Bardia is held by 2 damageed infantry brigades and a strong artillery reserve.
All across Libya we are pondering how to deploy our newly risen Senussi and Libyan forces..as well as the captured stocks of italian tanks.
Things will heat up again shortly, but we are confident we can reduce Benghazi with minimal losses. After which we will have to settle in and prepare for the offensive on Tripoli (after all we don't know greece is about to happen..heh)
Additional losses from this session:
Selby Infantry brigade
1 BN of the 7th Armored Divisions light forces
Re: Session #3 Report
For those who are keeping track:
Dates Covered: 12 December 1940 thru 1 January 1941
As Eric mentioned, Bardia fell quickly and not entirely unexpectedly. Tobruk's outer defenses were easily breached, and I feared Tobruk itself would fall quickly; the Sirte Infantry Division fought better than could be expected, repelling multiple assaults before running out of ammunition and being overrun.
The 4th Indian and 6th Australian are advancing up the coast, supported by the upgraded Commonwealth HQ for 13 Corps. Their supply base seems to be Derna. The 7th AD is based near Msus in the interior; lead motorized infantry battalions are as far west as Mersa Brega. The Italians have about a division's worth of independent battalions and companies of various sorts; the quality is pretty good, although my best unit was destroyed in an ambush by the LRDG when I attempted to teach the desert raiders a lesson. I have two CR.42s providing air cover over Benghazi; the rest of the air force has relocated to Sicily.
Rear Areas: well, that is only Tripoli and Sicily at the moment. The first German unit arrived, a Ju52 transport to help ferry supplies to Tripoli. The German Fliegerkorps has also become active, helping to suppress Malta. Shipping capacity remains low for the remainder of January and thru February. Italian reinforcements are being ferried into Tripoli, including the lead elements of the Ariete AD; the first infantry regiment landed on 1 January.
Expectations: Barring bad luck upon the Commonwealth end, I expect to lose Benghazi by the middle of the month. At that point, it will be waiting for the Germans to enter.
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