ozi_digger Posted October 29, 2003 Share Posted October 29, 2003 Hi again, after more research I've uncovered some 1:100 000 scale maps of Libya. They are Australian, dated between Dec 1940 to Jan 41 and produced for Operation Compass. Please note they do not show troop positions! Maps of most interest are: 1. Martuba - where 6 Aus Div and 7th Armd Bde made contact with Italians (12th Bersaglieri Rgt) on 24 Jan 1941. Also contains Siret el Chreiba where 2/11 West Aus Bn attacked the airfield the following day. 2. Also Gazala and Bengazi among others (sorry, no Bardia!) I'm intending to scan these maps over the next few days and e-mail them to interested scenario builders. Please let me know below or via e-mail if you'd like a copy and in what format (pdf or jpeg). 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flamingknives Posted October 29, 2003 Share Posted October 29, 2003 OK, go on then. Jpeg would probably be best. email in profile 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirReal Posted October 29, 2003 Share Posted October 29, 2003 Keep 'em coming. Same deal as last time. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andreas Posted October 29, 2003 Share Posted October 29, 2003 Yes please! If you ever manage to get to London (you should, we have a number of cute Australian ladies working in my office) I owe you a number of pints. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mace Posted October 29, 2003 Share Posted October 29, 2003 Originally posted by Andreas: Yes please! If you ever manage to get to London (you should, we have a number of cute Australian ladies working in my office)but.. but.. we have a whole country full of cute Australian ladies down here! :eek: Mace 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
High Krausen Posted October 29, 2003 Share Posted October 29, 2003 Send them on, jpeg please, and thank you very much. edited because I can't spell [ October 29, 2003, 07:05 AM: Message edited by: High Krausen ] 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andreas Posted October 29, 2003 Share Posted October 29, 2003 Originally posted by Mace: </font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by Andreas: Yes please! If you ever manage to get to London (you should, we have a number of cute Australian ladies working in my office)but.. but.. we have a whole country full of cute Australian ladies down here! :eek: Mace </font> 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozi_digger Posted October 29, 2003 Author Share Posted October 29, 2003 Originally posted by Andreas: </font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by Mace: </font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr />Originally posted by Andreas: Yes please! If you ever manage to get to London (you should, we have a number of cute Australian ladies working in my office)but.. but.. we have a whole country full of cute Australian ladies down here! :eek: Mace </font> 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonS Posted October 30, 2003 Share Posted October 30, 2003 Yes please! (er, the maps - not the sheep. Or the Aussie women. Lovely to look at, until they open their mouths. Er, the women that is. Not the sheep. They just belong on a farm. Or in the oven) Email as before. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Private Bluebottle Posted October 30, 2003 Share Posted October 30, 2003 Originally posted by JonS: Yes please! (er, the maps - not the sheep. Or the Aussie women. Lovely to look at, until they open their mouths. Er, the women that is. Not the sheep. They just belong on a farm. Or in the oven) Email as before. I can understand why you don't want to import any more sheep, Jon. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xerxes Posted October 30, 2003 Share Posted October 30, 2003 jpeg would be great! Thanks, this is very cool. -marc s vmclz@ * swbell.net * 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lars Posted October 30, 2003 Share Posted October 30, 2003 Originally posted by ozi_digger: Hi again, after more research I've uncovered some 1:100 000 scale maps of Libya.Where’s Qadaffi’s tent? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrSpkr Posted October 30, 2003 Share Posted October 30, 2003 Originally posted by ozi_digger: Hi again, after more research I've uncovered some 1:100 000 scale maps of Libya. They are Australian, dated between Dec 1940 to Jan 41 and produced for Operation Compass. Please note they do not show troop positions! Maps of most interest are: 1. Martuba - where 6 Aus Div and 7th Armd Bde made contact with Italians (12th Bersaglieri Rgt) on 24 Jan 1941. Also contains Siret el Chreiba where 2/11 West Aus Bn attacked the airfield the following day. 2. Also Gazala and Bengazi among others (sorry, no Bardia!) I'm intending to scan these maps over the next few days and e-mail them to interested scenario builders. Please let me know below or via e-mail if you'd like a copy and in what format (pdf or jpeg). Would love to. Check your email for my alternate email address. Steve 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozi_digger Posted October 30, 2003 Author Share Posted October 30, 2003 OK, I've managed to convince the librarian to give me a 'special' loan on the maps.... (oh, yeah I'm a postgrad student doing some research on battles in North Africa...) The librarian mentioned that the maps were surplus from the Australian War Memorial, so I'm going to search on their database for Bardia, Tobruk, Beda Fomm and Bir Hakeim (for Andreas). Tomorrow I begin scanning at work. They should be ready for posting by the weekend (fingers crossed). BTW, I've found another little gem and will be posting another offer on the forum as soon as this one is away. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mace Posted October 30, 2003 Share Posted October 30, 2003 Oz-digger! Has anyone mentioned how brilliant you are? How much safer Australia is for you being part of it? Well I'll do this and more if you put me on the mailing list for any of your content. I'll even shout you a beer if you're ever down here Melbourne way. Mace 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozi_digger Posted October 30, 2003 Author Share Posted October 30, 2003 Originally posted by Mace: Oz-digger! I'll even shout you a beer if you're ever down here Melbourne way. Mace Hmmm, I may just take you up on that one day, but just one beer? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedy Posted October 30, 2003 Share Posted October 30, 2003 The War Memorial archives are excellent, went there last time I was in Canberra, lots of records availble for public reading and copying. I only had one afternoon when you need days and days just to scrape the surface of what they have. Some of the highlights I recall reading was a company AAR from what I believe from memory was the Alamein fighting. Also remember reading a radio transcript recievied from an outpost reporting enemy tanks moving across their front, then later reporting that the position was about to be overrun and that they were surrendering ( I actually have a photocopy of this somewhere and will have a look and see if I can find it). So I suggest ozi_digger that you set aside several weeks to do a comprehensive search of the AWM's archives and then email out everything of interest you find {edit- The one problem I found was that a good proportion of the documents were written in pencil and in the intervening 60+ years have become somewhat difficult to decypher.} [ October 30, 2003, 03:44 AM: Message edited by: Speedy ] 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozi_digger Posted October 30, 2003 Author Share Posted October 30, 2003 Well, I live in Canberra, so this is an on-going project. I suppose I was just waiting for the release of CMAK to get motivated. I think the AAR of the radio transcript to which Speedy is referring, called Ruin Ridge, can be found at the AWM here: Ruin Ridge BTW, if BF ever decided to do a Pacific War CM, there is a plethora of maps, unit actions, etc., at the AWM. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedy Posted October 30, 2003 Share Posted October 30, 2003 That's the one ozi (AWM 54 527/6/6), I found it. It includes a 50 minute transcript of w/t messages between HQ 24 AUST INF BDE and 2/28 BN on the morning of 27 July 1942, forthose interested I will type it out below: About 0915 hrs IN- We are in trouble. We need help - now. We need armour. OUT- Where is trouble coming from? Arty support immediately. IN- Our front and right flank. Rock it in. OUT- You are getting what you asked for with arty support. Send map refs in clear arty and bombing targets. IN- Give us what we had after taking objective this morning. OUT- OK. 0938 hrs IN- Barrage too close on left. 0940 hrs OUT- How far barrage to move out on left? IN- 200 yds fwd on left flank. 0943 hrs IN- Are there any of our tanks helping us? There are tanks all around us. OUT- Whose are they? IN- They are Jerry's. You had better hurry. Rock arty in. 0945 hrs IN- Are there any of our tanks at 87352913? OUT- No. 0949 hrs OUT- Witchcraft (tks) with you soon. Stick it Mac. IN- 87352910 tanks. If not ours try barrage. IN- We are 1/3 strength. Is that barrage for the tanks now? 0952 hrs OUT- Enclosing your arty box. IN- Barrage needed 87412910. 1000 hrs IN- Barrage Kilo 10 270 yds. OUT- Kilo 10 astride or side of rd? Its coming! 1003 hrs IN- We have got to give in. 1004 hrs OUT- Hold on! Tanks will be with you immediately. IN- It is surrender VA VA VA Someone here might know for sure but I assume the VA VA VA signal means any subsequent message from the callsign is to be disregarded as probable enemy deception. If anyone has an accurate OOB for the Germans this could be an interesting scenario for CMAK. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedy Posted October 30, 2003 Share Posted October 30, 2003 Thanks to ozi I have just been browsing through the AWM's website for the first time in about 18+ months and have found that they have started to digitise WW2 unit diaries. Check them out here: www.awm.gov.au/database/awm52/index.htm {edit- just reading 2/1 BN war diary of 3 Jan 41 0300 Reveille - Hot breakfast and Rum ration (get the grog two and a half hours before an attack) } [ October 30, 2003, 04:44 AM: Message edited by: Speedy ] 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedy Posted October 30, 2003 Share Posted October 30, 2003 Just went skimming for Crete stuff and found a letter dated 16th June headed personnel unaccounted for in Greece. (with all numbers first is officers second is other ranks) Embarked for Greece- 35 671 KIA- 1 10 POW- 1 0 WIA and missing- 0 8 Missing- 0 32 Disembarked Middle East- 3 44 Diembarked WIA- 1 20 Sub-Total- 6 114 Reported on Crete- 29 557 Missing- 27 537 Disembarked in Mid-East- 2 19 Disembarked WIA- 0 1 Battalion was effectively wiped out on Crete, note as this was written a few weeks after Crete there is no info on how many of those missing are KIA, WIA or POW. Damn this is going to take ages going through this, over a hundred pdf pages per 1-2 months for each battalion. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozi_digger Posted October 30, 2003 Author Share Posted October 30, 2003 Originally posted by Speedy: Just went skimming for Crete stuff and found a letter dated 16th June headed personnel unaccounted for in Greece. **snip** Damn this is going to take ages going through this, over a hundred pdf pages per 1-2 months for each battalion. Whahahahaha! Welcome to the jungle, my friend... 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozi_digger Posted October 31, 2003 Author Share Posted October 31, 2003 ***Update*** Scanning at work was postponed today because the $50,000 scanner decided it did not want to function. :mad: Will try again on Monday. I apologise in advance for any inconvenience this may have caused, but please be patient. Scanning on my 'secret', yet to be announced, document is about 50% done and it is pure gold. Will keep you posted. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The DesertFox Posted November 1, 2003 Share Posted November 1, 2003 Originally posted by ozi_digger: Please let me know below or via e-mail if you'd like a copy and in what format (pdf or jpeg). Hi, If it´s not too much hassle, *.jpg would be brilliant DELETEthedesertfox@DELETEgmx.net Thanks 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrcar Posted November 4, 2003 Share Posted November 4, 2003 As before please send thursday or friday to my work address... I'm glad we got those large format scanners and they are being used for something useful Cheers Rob 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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