196 - Black May, Nazi Subs Defeated - WW2 - May 28, 1943

by Panzer
yeah, it ain’t the hit it’s the humidity, huh?
What?
You’re got a saying like that?
A new one?
It ain’t the jet-propelled bombs, it’s the rockets?
I don’t understand that at all.
May 28th, 1943
They have been the scourge of Allied shipping for the entire war, sinking millions of tons
of shipping and sending tens of thousands of men to watery graves.
They are the German U-Boats, but this week… this week they are withdrawn from
the Atlantic.
I’m Indy Neidell; this is World War Two.
Last week in North Africa, the Allies held their victory parade, while well over 200,000
Axis POWs swelled their camps.
The Trident Conference began in Washington DC among British and American command, the
Dambuster Raids knocked out power in the Ruhr, the Japanese were advancing in China, but
they were being pushed back by the Americans on Attu Island.
The Japanese there are, actually, supposed to be reinforced.
Mineichi Koga, who took over the Combined Feet after Isoroku Yamamoto died last month,
and the Fleet have headed north from Truk, and the Northern Pacific Fleet cruisers are
halfway across the Pacific, so this relief force is four carriers, three battleships,
7 cruisers, and 11 destroyers total, but Imperial Naval Headquarters calls off this relief expedition,
which would draw the navy’s strength many thousands of kilometers away from their defense
perimeter and would likely not arrive until after the Americans have already won.
The fighting this week on Attu is pretty brutal, but by week’s end the Japanese have been
pushed back until they’re now in a pocket around Chichagof Harbor.
The Japanese launch an attack of their own this week, another big one in Hubei province
in China.
This is on the 27th, and their 53 captured barges I mentioned the other week do finally
run the gauntlet from Yichang down the Yangtze and reach Wuhan.
By now their attacks are heading toward Shipai Fortress.
If they can take this then they are well placed to move on Chonqing, the Nationalist Capital.
Hu Lian and his 11th division of the Nationalist Army prepare to meet them.
There is also yet more fighting in the Kuban this week.
The Battle of Moldavanskoye begins on the 26th.
Ivan Petrov, now in command of the North Caucasus Front is attacking.
He’s got more artillery and armor than before, and a 3-1 local superiority in manpower over
the enemy, which he’ll likely need for an attack against a fortified line to succeed.
“However, Petrov’s actual battle plan was very similar to Maslennikov’s last two