Agree.

What I'd like to do with the 32nd is to send them to help play catch and kill with the IJA at Milne Bay to help 1st Div AMF to take back that damned airfield. Now, actually doing that is going to take fancy logistics footwork, but it would be well worth it.

That would mean that Eichelberger could become the Corps Commander at Milne. That'd be politically OK in Australia, because he'd be going in to assist in a bit of a mess and would have the fresher and stronger Division. MAJGEN Clowes is already there, maybe meaning that Eichelberger gets promoted anyway, with the clear aim of making him Vaseys 2IC later on after he gets Milne Bay experience against the IJA under his belt.

The 32nd worries me, though. In OTL it did not perform very well, mostly due to being raw AND being unacclimatised, a very bad combination when bad leadership from Dugour Doug was added. Even a month in Queensland would help, and I think they will get it. Basically, it will take time to assemble the shipping. I am going to have to steal all 3 RAN AMC/LSI plus a dozen of the WATCHTOWER transports if we want to move them all at once, which is the best action from the military perspective.

That means a fleet operation to cover it. That means a fight because the IJN is going to respond. That may raise the stakes too high. The Allies probably cannot afford that right now.

So plan B means moving them in a brigade at a time, which means maybe 5-6 transports. Probably no fleet action but there will be a response and it has to have a heavy escort. Might be a stoush.

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Cheers: Mark