YaATW2KT: The Soviet's Aleutian Front

[copeab]

If Japan could occupy some islands in the Aleutian chain in 1942-43, I think the Russians could do at least as much, possibly island-hopping their way to Anchorage ...

[sglancy12]

If Japan could occupy some islands in the Aleutian chain in 1942-43, I think the Russians could do at least as much, possibly island-hopping their way to Anchorage ...

Well, landing troops on the Aleutians during the latter years of the Twilight War is a recipe for starvation, cannibalism and mutiny. I can imagine Soviet Naval Infantry storming Adak Island Naval Air Station, but after wrecking the place they'd have to withdraw, move forward, or die in place. There's little that could support the invasion force until they reach Kodiak Island, Anchorage and the Seward Peninsula.

Nevertheless, your point is well taken. If the Japanese can get away with dumping troops into the Aleutian Islands, maybe it's no so preposterous that the Soviets (given some plausible alternate history) could occupy the coastal areas of Alaska or even British Columbia. Although for my money the Soviets would more likely end up strung out along the Can-Am Highway through B.C, the Yukon and south-eastern Alaska than places like the Queen Charlotte and Vancouver Islands. Ah well, the canon does have it's warts...

...but that's sort of why this site exists. To exchange ideas so that we can smooth out those warts.

A. Scott Glancy, President TCCorp, dba Pagan Publishing

[sglancy12]

In order to affect an effective invasion of Alaska, the Soviets would have to have certain things happen in advance. A majority of the based forces in Fairbanks and Anchorage would have to be shipped overseas to some place.

The canon seems to cover that, with only the 47th ID and two national guard brigades to stand against the 13 division, 3 brigade invasion. Throw in a strategic nuke into Anchorage and the Soviet use of tactical nukes and things get pretty dodgy for NATO.

But America's naval and air assets will need to have been catastrophically degraded prior to the invasion. Otherwise the Soviet invasion will be drowned in the arctic waters before even seeing land.

Key places they'd need to take out:

Fairbanks
Anchorage area (yes, the entire area, including the Matanuska valley)
Kodiak Island (at least the major Coast Guard station there)
isolate the Seward Peninsula
Valdez
Tok

Outside of Alaska, they'd need to take:
Whitehorse, Yukon Territories
Prince Rupert, British Columbia

(SNIP)

Key choke points, for either side:
Whittier Highway coming out of Whittier and going into Anchorage.

Highway 2 (The Al-Can) that runs from Beaver Creek, Yukon Territory to Tok, Alaska. (SNIP) Take and hold these and you seal the main body of Alaska off by land.

Haines Junction - Whitehorse (both in Yukon Territories).

Neutralize the airfields at Yakutat and Cordova.

Prudhoe Bay. People seem to think if you take the pipeline you control the oil. Well, if Prudhoe Bay stops pumping the oil, the only thing you've got further down is an empty pipeline. Worthless.

Well, not completely worthless. By controlling the terminus at Valdez and the lower end of the pipeline, they do cut off the lower 48 states from the critical strategic resources of Alaskan oil.

And that's a really good list of strategic choke points. I think that is going to be the dominant principal in any war in Alaska. Control of naval access and then control of key choke points on land. "Controlling" huge areas of Alaskan wilderness is utterly pointless and suicidal for either side.

Control the Inside Passage. (SNIP)

I don't see how the Sovs can effectively do this. Even if the Sovs have the naval forces to get the invasion in. and keep the logistical links open for a period of time, I really can't imagine them being able to project naval and air assets into the Inside Passage. The best the Sovs could probably manage would be to lay some mines down there after maybe seizing Juneau by sea. Otherwise the US could use Juneau to project naval power and air power north to raid Soviet logistical links back to Siberia.

So winter offenses only. Hunker down and defend in summer and scrounge, scrounge, forage and scrounge...because you'll need it. It would suck to be the Soviet forces stationed in Fairbanks. Ugh! Cold as you've probably never seen it.

Sounds like sound advice.

Hopefully this helps a little.

Thank you Grimace. I have read your comments in earlier threads on the subject of the Twilight War in Alaska and always found them enlightening.

A. Scott Glancy, President TCCorp, dba Pagan Publishing

[Grimace]

Glad I could help out a bit. Any other questions you have relating to Alaska I'll be glad to offer what I know or what I've discussed with others.

One of my good friends up there belonged to the Alaska National Guard. He was an "old fart" running around doing stuff that was but a shadow of what he used to do. I found out, after a little while, a glimpse of what he used to do when I found a plaque he had. SSgt...his name.... sitting above his name, the badge with the triple lightning bolts and sword of the Green Beret. So he'd done quite a bit in his younger years.

I picked his brain quite a bit on an invasion of Alaska. We didn't deal so much with the logistics of getting the enemy forces OVER to Alaska. It was mainly focused on what they would do once they got here...what they would HAVE to do to stay here and what they should refrain from doing. Taking Juneau (the capital city of Alaska) was one of those things that they should refrain from doing. Isolating and starving it is so much easier to do than taking and holding it.

[sharpe]

When my group played it we used a sort of The Eagel Has Landed type scenario. ( The movie with Michael Cain, were the Fuhrer decides on a whim at one meeting he wants Churchill captured. Himmler assigns the plan to some Colonel who almost makes it happen but Hitler didn't really mean it ..or something like that and the Colonel gets shot)
Basically some aging senile politbeureau member wants the war taken to the Americans, A poor unlucky General in the Far East is given the mission, finds every transport / tramp steamer available with as much supplies as they can hold , gathers up the remnents and scrappings fron the Chinses front and dumps them in Alaska without any chance of resupply or reinforcement. Only the fact that US and Canadian troops are thin on the ground allows even a minimal success in landing. The Soviet troops are then left to hold what the can , most going into cantonments while a few head south in hopes of either of warmer areas or a way home ( Going Home Ivan style )
You end up with troops in the same locations etc but the units that were labelled Divisions were never more than regimental in size with tank divisions maybe being nothing more than a battalion of tanks to begin with etc.
Then of course when the old fools in Moscow find out what happened the shoot the General.