"We are off to look for trouble." - Captain Tennant of HMS Repulse to his crew on December 9, 1941 upon leaving Singapore harbor.

Introduction: In the opening stages of World War II, Japanese airpower destroyed Allied surface units before the anticipated surface battles could be fought. The raid on Pearl Harbor was such an attack, as was the sinking of the British battleship HMS Prince of Wales and battlecruiser HMS Repulse. On December 10, 1941 a massive shore-based air strike caught the two battleships and their escorts less than 100 miles east of the Malayan Peninsula and sank them both. However, during the night of December 9, 1941 both Japanese and British fleets barely missed each other, losing the chance to settle the matter ship-to-ship. This scenario assumes those fleets meet during the hours of darkness and then clash again with the morning sun.

Location: South China Sea, approximately 120 miles south of Point Camau in French Indochina and 175 miles east-northeast of Kota Bharu on the Malayan Peninsula. 2115 local, December 9, 1941.

Operational Situation: The Japanese invasions of Malaya and Thailand have begun. On December 8, 1941, seven invasion landings occurred in Malaya and Thailand. Under the overall leadership of Vadm Kondo, the invasion force was landed under the guidance of Vadm Ozawa and Radm Hashimoto, with close protection provided by Radm Kurita and the 7th Cruiser Squadron. The carefully designed plans had been skillfully executed, but with a considerable portion of the Japanese Army ashore in Thailand and Malaya, lines of supply via the sea had to be kept open. Without these supply lines, the Army would be cut off and crippled. This meant that the Japanese Navy must block any attempt by the Royal Navy, based in Singapore, to interfere with the invasions or interrupt the supply lines.

Caught unprepared by the location of the landings, but not surprised, the Royal Navy was already preparing for some form of Japanese attack. Prince of Wales, fresh from the hunt for Bismarck, was sent to join Repulse at Singapore. The carrier Indomitable was also enroute, but had run aground in the Caribbean and had not yet finished repairs when hostilities broke out. The Royal Navy in the Singapore area had been newly organized to meet the impending Japanese threat. Designated as Force Z, this battle fleet was Britain's last major hope to deter Japanese aggression in the Pacific. Hope was dashed however, on December 8, 1941 with the invasions of Malaya and Thailand. American forces in Pearl Harbor were shattered by a surprise Japanese carrier-based air assault on December 7, 1941. The commander of Force Z. Admiral Sir Thomas Phillips, was forced to plan how to counter Japanese Naval Forces in the South China Sea as well as destroy the fledgling landings along the Malaya Peninsula. Force Z departed Singapore on December 8, 1941 at 1735, swinging east of the Anamba Islands to avoid any submarines waiting along the coast of Malaya, and then headed north towards the Japanese landings.

The departure of Force Z on December 8, 1941 caught the Japanese by surprise. Invasion plans had counted on a slower British response. A massive search for the British Battle Force was immediately mounted by Japanese Naval Air Forces and Japanese submarines. On December 9, 1941 at 1315 the submarine I-65 sighted Force Z south of the Poulo Condore Island, headed north. Vadm Kondo quickly sent out orders to bring his forces to bear in order to close in and catch the British fleet before Force Z could strike at any of the invasion landings. Kondo also ordered all transports enroute to the invasion sites to retreat north to the Gulf of Siam. Vadm Kondo and Radm Kurita are to close from the east and Vadm Ozawa from the west where his ships have been providing covering fire for the invasions in Thailand and Malaya. All three Japanese forces would converge on the anticipated British position.

Tactical Situation: At 1700 this evening a Japanese spotter plane from Kumano sighted Force Z steaming northwest. With the sunlight fading, Vadm Kondo has ordered Radm Kurita's Covering Force and Vadm Ozawa's Escort Force to close and attack during the night. With the arrival of dawn, all ships will regroup with Kondo's Southern Force and attack the British together. Force Z must be kept away from the invasion sites!

Aboard Prince of Wales, Kumano's aircraft was sighted by lookouts and reported to Admiral Phillips. Disappointed at the loss of surprise and suspecting that all the transports would flee in the night, Phillips has decided to turn back towards Singapore. But after dark, just before executing the turn south, radar has revealed a force of enemy ships closing from the northeast. Believing the Japanese force to be at best an old battlecruiser, Admiral Phillips repeated the orders he issued when Force Z departed Singapore. "Whatever we meet, I want to finish quickly and so get away to the eastward before the Japanese can mass a formidable scale of attack against us." The orders issued to the gun crews are "Shoot to sink!"

Environment: Overcast, intermittent clout cover, ceiling 3000 meters, visibility 10%, with rain clouds fading by dawn. Winds 065° at 15 knots, sea state 3. Dawn at 0500. By morning weather is clearing to 50% visibility, with no winds, and sea state 1.

Japanese Forces: Malaya Force, Vadm Nobutake Kondo in Haruna

Covering Force - Radm Kurita in Kumano
7th Cruiser Squadron
Kumano (Mogami class CA)
Mikuma (Mogami class CA)
Mogami (Mogami class CA)
Suzuya Mogami class CA)

11th Destroyer Division
Fubuki (Fubuki class DD)
Hatsuyuki (Fubuki class DD)
Shirayuki (Fubuki class DD)

Escort Force - Vadm Ozawa in Chokai
Chokai ( Takao class CA)
Sagiri (Fubuki class DD)

3rd Destroyer Flotilla - Radm Hashimoto in Sendai (Sendai class CL)
12th Destroyer Division
Murakumo (Fubuki class DD)
Shinonome (Fubuki class DD)
Shirakumo (Fubuki class DD)
Usugmo (Fubuki class DD)

19th Destroyer Division
Isonami (Fubuki class DD)
Uranami (Fubuki class DD)
Shikinami (Fubuki class DD)
Ayanami (Fubuki class DD)

20th Destroyer Division
Amagiri (Fubuki class DD)
Asagiri (Fubuki class DD)
Yuguri (Fubuki class DD)

Distant Escort Force - Vadm Kondo in Haruna
2nd Division, 3rd Battleship Squadron
Haruna (Kongo class BB)
Kongo (Kongo class BB)

1st Division, 4th Cruiser Squadron
Atago ( Takao class CA)
Takao ( Takao class CA)

4th Destroyer Division
Arashi (Kagero class DD)
Hagikaze (Kagero class DD)
Nowake (Kagero class DD)
Maikaze (Kagero class DD)

6th Destroyer Division
Ikazuchi (Akatsuki class DD)
Inazuma (Akatsuki class DD)

8th Destroyer Division
Asashio (Asashio class DD)
Oshio (Asashio class DD)
Michishio (Asashio class DD)
Arashio (Asashio class DD)

Japanese Orders: Destroy the British threat to the Malayan invasion. Vadm Ozawa, Radm Kurita, and Radm Hashimoto are to make best speed and conduct a night attack and either cripple the British battleships or drive them north towards Vadm Kondo's Southern Force approaching from the NNE. Any surviving British ships will be engaged at first light by the combined Japanese forces. Vadm Kondo will arrive in the battle area shortly after 0800 on December 10, 1941.

Japanese Victory Conditions: Decisive (Night Engagement): Sink both Prince of Wales and Repulse with less than 50% of all attacking Japanese forces sunk or crippled (greater than 50% damage). Tactical (Night Engagement): Cripple Prince of Wales and Repulse with less than 50% of all attacking Japanese forces sunk or crippled. Decisive (Day Engagement Sink both Prince of Wales and Repulse with minimal damage (less than 25%) to both Haruna and Kongo. Tactical (Day Engagement): Sink or cripple both Prince of Wales and Repulse.

Allied Forces: Force Z, Admiral Sir Thomas Phillips in Prince of Wales.
Prince of Wales (King George V class BB)
Repulse (Renown class BC)
Express ("E" class DD)
Electra ("E" class DD)
Vampire (Admiralty "V" class DD)
Tenedos (Admiralty "S" class DD)

Allied Orders:Drive towards the Japanese landings at Kota Bharu in northern Malaya. Do not risk damage to Prince of Wales or Repulse unless opportunity to inflict greater loss to Japanese exists.

Allied Victory Conditions:Decisive (Night Engagement): Sustain less than 10% damage to both Prince of Wales and Repulse and sink or cripple (greater than 50% damage)at least two Japanese heavy cruisers. Tactical (Night Engagement): Sustain less than 25% damage to both Prince of Wales and Repulse and sink or cripple at least two Japanese heavy cruisers. Decisive (Day Engagement). Sink or cripple both Japanese battleships with less than 25% damage to Prince of Wales and Repulse. Tactical (Day Engagement). Sink or cripple either Japanese battleship and at least two heavy cruisers with less than 50% damage to Prince of Wales and Repulse.

Setup: Prince of Wales and Repulse in a column formation with 1000 yards between ships. Express, Electra, Vampire and Tenedos are in line abreast with 1000 yards between ships, 2000 yards in advance of and centered on the battlecruiser column. Force Z is on course 310° at 14 knots.

Vadm Ozawa with Chokai and Sagiri are in column formation with 1000 yards between ships on course 240° at 20 knots. Prince of Wales bears 17 nm at 215°.

Radm Kurita and 7th Cruiser Division are in two columns with Kumano, Mikuma, Mogami, and Suzuya in the northern column, distance 1000 yards between ships. The southern column of Fubuki, Hatsuyuki, and Shirayuki, distance 500 yards between ships, is parallel to the northern column at a distance of 2000 yards with lead ships abreast. The group is on course 245° at 20 knots. Prince of Wales bears 20 nm at 230°.

Radm Hashimoto and the 3rd Destroyer Flotilla are in three parallel columns, 2000 yards separation between columns and 500 yards between ships in column. The northern column is the 12th Destroyer Division: Murakumo, Shinonome, Shirakumo, and Usagumo. The southern column is the 19th Destroyer Division: Isonami, Uranami, Shikinami, and Ayanami

The middle column is the 20th Destroyer Division, led by the Flotilla leader Sendal, Amagiri, Asagiri, and Yuguri. The Flotilla is on course 110° at 20 knots. The Sendai bears 35 nm at 300° from the Prince of Wales.

Vadm Kondo and the Southern Force is 200 nm, bearing 025° from the Prince of Wales on course 215° at 18 knots. Formation is at discretion of Japanese player, based on ships available if a daylight engagement occurs.

Special Rules: Forming for battle the next day - After the battle at night has been fought, players may agree to end gaming or continue the struggle with the remainder of the Japanese forces. Game play should shift to Intermediate Turns for tracking movement and checking for detection of enemy units. If at anytime either the British or Japanese forces wish to engage, shift back to Tactical Turns, resolve the combat and then return to Intermediate Turns until the arrival of the main Japanese battle fleet.

Disengagement - At anytime one of the forces may choose to break off from combat or withdraw. This requires that the force desiring to withdraw must "disengage". Disengaging from the enemy occurs when the enemy has lost contact with ship(s) being pursued or engaged in combat. This occurs when visual, sonar or radar contact has been lost for two consecutive Intermediate Turns.

Historical Outcome:Unlike the decision to continue north presented in this scenario, Admiral Phillips completed his turn south during the evening of December 9th. While proceeding south, Force Z was again sighted by a Japanese submarine which reported the British movements. After a short high speed run towards a false reporting of another invasion landing, Force Z was enroute back to Singapore when it was spotted by a Japanese naval air strike from French Indochina. The air strike was headed back to base after vainly searching further south for the elusive British. Sheer circumstance allowed the Japanese to chance upon Force Z as the aircraft were nearing the limits of their fuel endurance. The aircraft formed into attack formations ant swept down upon the British force. Tenedos was not with Force Z. having been detached earlier because of fuel restrictions. While she survived an earlier aerial attack, Prince of Wales and Repulse were not so fortunate. Despite valiant efforts and adroit shiphandling, the Japanese aircraft pressed home their attack and achieved multiple torpedo hits on both Prince of Wales and Repulse.

The sinking of Prince of Wales and Repulse was a grievous shock to both the British and Americans for two reasons. First it sounded the death knell of the supremacy of the battleship on the high seas. Second, the loss of Force Z. combined with the disaster of Pearl Harbor, gave undeniable control of the Pacific to the Japanese. Winston Churchill wrote that after receiving the news, "Over all this vast expanse of waters Japan was supreme, and we everywhere weak and naked."

Variations: Japanese air assets: Japanese air strikes had been seeking to find and engage Force Z from the time it was discovered having slipped away unnoticed from Singapore. Allow for a daylight attack from scrambled forces of the 22nd Air Flotilla. Because the 22nd Air Flotilla had just landed back around midnight from a failed search for Force Z there is not enough time to prepare the entire force to fly out and rendezvous with Vadm Kondo at first light. Roll a D6 twice to determine which air group is able to arrive on time for the battle.

Allied Air Assets: Admiral Phillips had requested air cover for his raid on Japanese landings prior to the departure of Force Z from Singapore. At that time, none had been available as requested. However, when the tactical situation changed, Phillips maintained wireless silence and did not repeat the request. Change both Phillips' silence and the answer to "yes." Provide 11 Buffaloes of the 453 Squadron from Singapore to rendezvous with Force Z at first light to provide fighter cover and coordinate in an attack on the Japanese fleet.

The lack of air cover for Force Z was also due to the grounding of the Indomitable. Add the Indomitable to Force Z as originally planned, with an air wing of 18 Skua and 40 Swordfish.

Japanese Air Group Composition
Die Roll	Air Group	Composition
1-2	Genzan Gp	2 Squadrons Nells (17 planes) with Type 91 Mod 1 torps
.	.	1 Squadron Nells (9 planes) with one 500 kg bomb
3-4	Mihoro Gp	1 Squadron Nails (8 planes) with two 250 kg bombs
.	.	2 Squadrons Nells (16 planes) with one 500 kg bomb
.	.	1 Squadron Nells (8 planes) win Type 91 Mod 1 torps
5-6	Kanoya Gp	3 Squadrons Bettys (27 planes) with Type 91 Mod 2 torps
Use Type 99 No 25 250 kg and Type 2 No 50 500 kg SAP bombs

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University of Delaware Press,Newark, DE.: 1977.

Raymond Callahan, The Worst Disaster The Fall of Singapore
University of Delaware Press, Newark, DE.: 1977.

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Houghton Mifflin, Boston, MA.: 1950.

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Atlantic Communications, Inc., New York: 1981

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Garland Publishing, New York, NY.: 1980.

Paul S. Dull, A Battle History of the Japanese Imperial Navy (1941-1945),
Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD. 1978.

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Warn Morrow and Co., New York NY.: 1986

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Naval Institute Press, Annapolis,MD.: 1992.

Arthur Swinson, Defeat in Malaya: The Fall of Singapore,
Ballantine Books, New York NY.: 1969.

Colonel Masanobu Tsuji, Singapore, The Japanese Version,
St. Martin's Press, New York, NY.: 1980.BT