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January 18, 1997
Nothing in the canon for today... The FBI announces the establishment of sixteen regional internment centers for Warsaw Pact nationals. The first units of the California and Texas State Defense Forces report for duty. The Hawaii State Guard is hastily formed from retired Hawaii National Guard officers and NCOs, prison guards, police officers and veterans, to patrol beaches and vital infrastructure on Oahu. Initially armed with rifles and shotguns taken from police armories (and suitable weapons taken from evidence rooms!), they were issued M14 rifles from federal stockpiles flown in from the mainland later in the month. The last flight carrying the 25 ID(L) lands at Kimpo AB, Korea. German territorials rush to border in Bavaria, trying to contain Pact offensive. Their deployment is slowed by fierce snowstorms, which also hamper the Pact advance, while shielding the attackers from Allied airpower. The 72nd Naval Infantry Brigade is formed from personnel of the Severomorsk naval base outside Murmansk. The Soviet destroyer Buliny, under the command of Captain 2nd Rank Mikhail Mischenko, sinks the Liberian-flagged containership Aramac with 130mm gunfire. 25 rioters are killed by Cyptiot Army troops, 18 Turks and 7 Greeks. Soviet ASW aircraft locate the damaged American submarine Bluefish and maintain active pursuit for eight hours. The last flight carrying troops of the 278 ACR arrives in the Netherlands. Iranian National Security Force paramilitary troops arrest suspected Tudeh rebels attempting to hide in a southbound flow of refugees. photo The US Navy, alarmed at the continuing losses of merchantmen around the world, orders the establishment of light carrier forces to hunt down Soviet raiders, freeing more formidable units for front-line duty. The Essex-class fleet carriers Oriskany, Hancock and Bennington join their sister Lexington reactivating in shipyards. The Navy also takes custody of the light carrier Cabot, which it had decommissioned in 1955 and lent to Spain, which had returned it in 1989 and spent the intervening years in various ports in the Gulf Coast. All these reactivations would take months (at least) to complete, so as an interim measure several containerships were requisitioned and began conversion to sea control ships. The aircraft to fly from these ships were to come from three sources. 44 AV-8C Harriers remained in storage in Arizona, alongside several dozen SH-3 helicopters and a smaller contingent of SH-2s. (Contracts were signed to quickly convert some of the SH-3s to EH-3I Airborne Early Warning aircraft, the American designation for the British Sea King AEW.5). T-2C armed trainers and various models of A-4 light attack aircraft were diverted from the Navy's shoreside training establishment, and T-45 trainers came from training units and from the production line in St. Louis, Missouri. Five Carrier Air Group headquarters, three Marine Scout-Bombing Squadrons and 30 Navy attack and helicopter squadrons were authorized to command this aerial armada. |
January 19, 1997
photo The British 24th Infantry Brigade is moved to Newcastle but bad weather cancels its orders to deploy to Norway. With completion of the 25th Infantry Division (Light)'s deployment, Military Airlift Command shifts its Pacific airlift effort to deploying the 7th Infantry Division (Light) from California to Korea. unofficially: Border Patrol agents on routine patrol in the Yuma Sector in Arizona are engaged by group of men armed with automatic weapons. Two agents are killed and another wounded. The 1st Brigade, 28th Infantry Division (Pennsylvania National Guard) completes Rotation 97-3 at NTC-2 at the Yakima Training Center and is declared combat ready. SACEUR receives the requested supply status report from his J-4. German Army stockpiles have been largely expended, UK has one week of supplies remaining, US has three weeks and Canada four days. Dutch and Danish stockpiles are in better condition, but future operations depend on industrial production in Europe and resupply over the North Atlantic. The Soviet Kilo-class sub B-227 shoots down a civilian Puma helo with a SA-14 in the North Sea. The helicopter was carrying workers to offshore oil production platforms. The Turkish government lodges a complaint with the Cypriot government about the disproportionate use of force against Turkish Cypriots. Dozens more are killed in Cyprus as rioters have armed themselves and local militias formed. In the Black Sea, a Soviet surface ASW task force, led by the destroyer Svedushiy, locates the damaged USS Bluefish and sinks her. The remnants of Convoy 110 arrive at Den Helder, Netherlands containing half the vehicles and heavy equipment of the 278th ACR (Tennessee National Guard). |
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US/UK Compendium of Joint Logistics Plans Plan No Brief Title Present Plan Date 801 Outload of RAF Welford 31 Jul 1990 802 Staging of II MEF 2 Aug 1990 803 Aeromedical Airfields (Tactical) 804 The Activation of the US Army Marine Reserve Fleet 28 Nov 1980 805 The Transit of the Air Wing of II MEF 5 Apr 1989 807 Outloading of RSA Caerwant 26 Oct 1988 808 US Navy Advanced Logistic Support Base-Clyde 8 Dec 1989 809 Outloading of NATO AD Broughton Moor 27 Mar 1990 810 Outloading of NATO AD Glen Douglas 22 Sep 1989 811 Outloading of RSA Burtonwood 3 Nov 1986 812 Strategic Recovery Fields 21 Jul 1989 813 Resupply Airfields 29 Jul 1989 814 Support of two Squadrons of US Navy P-3 Aircraft at Machrihanish 7 Feb 1991 815 USAF Wing Support Mildenhall 8 Mar 1990 816 USAF Wing Support Alconbury 4 Apr 1989 817 USAF Wing Support Lakenheath 23 Jun 1988 818 USAF Wing Support Bentwaters 31 Aug 1990 819 USAF Wing Support Upper Heyford 21 Feb 1989 821 USN COD/VOD Operations through selected Forward Airfields 21 Feb 1989 822 Contingency Plan for operation of a USN Carrier Air Wing from Airfields in the UK 8 Dec 1989 825 SOCEUR 31 Dec 1985 826 Movement Control Liason Organization 20 Apr 1983 827 USAF Wing Support Fairford 31 Oct 1988 828 USAF 2nd Echelon Medical Sites 831 Support of US Army Complexes 833 Seaport Clearance 5 Mar 1991 834 Transhipment 14 Dec 1990 835 Interim Medical Support 11 Jan 1990 836 USAF Support RAF Chicksands 27 Jul 1990 837 US Army Hospitals 13 Oct 1989 838 Auxiliary Hospital Support 31 Jan 1989 839 USAF Hospitals 28 Aug 1989 840 US/UK LOC Command & Control 3 Jan 1989 841 FMFEUR (USMC) Wartime Expansion 25 Sep 1989 842 USN & USMC Aircraft Repair 845 Support for 28 Infantry Division (no date, Revised SOR Awaited) 847 Menwith Hill (Comms Site) 17 Jul 1989 848 RAF Greenham Common 2 Feb 1989 849 1st PERS Comd Elements (Individual Rft) 850 Repair and Recovery of USN ships 20 Nov 1990 851 Support for US Wartime Construction Bns 853 Outload of RAF Chilwell 854 Resupply of Mk 48 Torpedoes 855 Support to 200 Theatre Area Material Management Support Centre 856 EUCOM Joint Intelligence Centre 857 Flight Detachment 858 Regional Wartime Construction Management |
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For 814, I had figured on one squadron, but more than happy to put two there! |
January 20, 1997
Nothing official today, but unofficially: In a low-key ceremony in Washington, US President John Tanner is sworn in for his second term. His inaugural address speaks to the need to "resolutely strive for victory while seeking an immediate end to this terrible conflict." SACEUR requests guidance from the Atlantic Council (composed of NATO heads of state) on the further direction of the war. SACLANT (Supreme Allied Commander, Atlantic) orders an all-out effort to verify the identity of shipping in the Atlantic. Fewer than 150 merchantmen are under escort by NATO navies, leaving over 1500 ships at sea (allied and neutral) carrying cargo and presenting an opportunity for Soviet raiders to hide among them. The mining effort in the GIUK Gap, nearly complete, is halted and the assets redirected to obtaining a visual sighting, bearing and speed of as many ships as possible. Training sorties and voyages are curtailed or redirected towards surveillence missions. A massive manhunt begins in southern Arizona for the assailants in the prior day's firefight. The 41st Infantry Brigade (Oregon NG) completes Rotation 97-4 at the Joint Readiness Training Center-2 (JRTC-2) at Fort Chaffee, AR and declared combat ready. The 118th Field Artillery Brigade (Georgia National Guard) begins to arrive at Avon Park Air Force Range, FL for additional training and integration of replacements from the training base. The Pact offensive in Bavaria stalls, hampered by poor weather, NATO attacks on its supply lines through the difficult terrain, and increasing German resistance. The 115th MRD is deployed to Finnish border west of Leningrad to deter any Finnish designs on Karelia. The Cypriot coast guard intercepts an unidentified small boat off the island's north coast, loaded with unmarked military-grade weapons and ammunition. The Romanian army launches an offensive in northeastern Romania, taking advantage of harsh winter conditions in the Carpathians. photo The crude oil tanker Ocean Prosperity, bound for the US Gulf of Mexico, is sunk by a Soviet surface raider 300 nm south of Lagos, Nigeria. |
January 21, 1997
The first module of the US space station Freedom is launched into space aboard space shuttle Endeavor. Unofficially: The Freedom-class cargo ship Georgia Freedom is delivered in Beaumont, TX. The 264th Engineer Group (Combat) (Wisconsin National Guard) is declared operational and begins movement from its mobilization station of Ft. McCoy to Oakland, CA for deployment to Korea. The State of Maryland stands up its 121st Engineer Regiment, Maryland State Defense Force in Towson (outside of Baltimore). The unit is staffed mainly by people with experience in the construction industry and has access to heavy equipment owned by the state Department of Transportation and other state and local agencies. The Dutch 1st Division (Mechanized) is deployed to Bavaria to bolster NATO defenses there as Czech troops consolidate control of the city of Regensburg. The front line in Bavaria stabilizes along the Danube. American Green Berets of the 10th SFG lead their protoges of the Lithuanian Free Army on their first attack on Soviet supply lines, derailing a train carrying ammunition to the front. The Cypriot government accuses Turkey of attempting to secretly supply Turkish Cypriot militias. Romanian troops recapture the town of Suceava and continue across the plains towards the town of Botoșani. The 97th GMRD is brought up to 150 percent strength in the Kiev MD with an influx of reservists, 18-year old draftees and recent graduates of training divisions, beginning a two-month long process of identifying the most capable soldiers, training them for service in Romania, and transferring the rest to the unit's shadow division, the 232nd Rear Area Protection Division. |
January 22, 1997
Nothing official today... A patrol from the 76th Infantry Brigade, 38th ID (Indiana NG), having just completed Rotation 97-2 at NTC-3 at the Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona, intercepts the armed men that had engaged the Border Patrol agents 3 days prior. A firefight ensues, and when the smoke clears a six-man Spetsnaz team and a squad of infantry from the 2nd Battalion, 293rd Infantry lay dead in the desert. Responding to requests from several state governors, the US Army TRADOC approves a partial exemption from the order to disband ROTC units for those programs that operate a cadet Corps (such as the Citadel, VMI, Norwich University, etc.) so that governors may incorporate the corps into their state defense force planning. The last of the paratroopers are withdrawn from the bridgeheads over the Oder-Niesse Rivers in Poland, replaced by mechanized troops of the British 1st Armoured Division, German 7th Panzer Division and US 35th Infantry Division. The bridgeheads are subject to constant artillery attacks, but NATO Combat Air Patrols and surface to air missile batteries defeat most Pact air attacks. The unified German government requests NATO assistance in providing relief to the population of devastated East Germany. The former nation suffered extensive damage to its roads, towns, electrical generation equipment and much more in the campaign from October through early January. Military assistance is requested in transporting food and fuel, in clearing unexploded ordnance, rubble and obstacles and repairing roads and other infrastructure. Many NATO support and service units are fully engaged in their normal missions, but the US 7th Army commits several engineer units and USAF Red Horse civil engineering squadrons are released as well. Other than the Combat Air Patrols, the air over the front line in Germany is relatively quiet. The NATO air forces have suffered, especially the Luftwaffe and East German LSK, have suffered from enemy action, bad weather and wear and tear. Many remaining aircraft are out of service for deferred maintenance, and others are awaiting arrival of spare parts from depots in the US and UK. Stocks of precision guided munitions and modern air to air missiles have been depleted as well. RAF pilots jokingly refer to the period as "The Second Phony War". The Soviet destroyer Buliny, under the command of Captain 2nd Rank Mikhail Mischenko, sinks the Maltese-flagged containership Sea Princess with a pair of SS-N-22 missiles. The first battalions of the 7th Infantry Division (Light) enter combat in Korea. The front there has settled into a terrible equilibrium with continual fierce artillery barrages and nighttime infiltration attacks.** An isolated Greek-Cypriot village is attacked by unidentified gunmen and its inhabitants massacred; 48 adults and 27 children. 1st Ukrainian Front gathers forces to halt the Romanian drive; the 40th Air Assault Brigade is landed by helicopter on the southern flank of the Romanian drive, while a scratch force of motor-rifle troops from the 86 GMRD protects the guns of the 751st and 758th Anti-Tank Regiments as they dig in on the outskirts of the communicators hub of*Botoșani. |
they might need some more of these. have to wonder what other armored construction (improvised and factory built) might show up. what would a huge crawler crane look like? might be a heck of a sniper, FO, or even IR SAM site. i just had an image of a wrecking ball and a T-72 having a close encounter.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/F...on_flatbed.jpg |
January 23, 1997
Another day with nothing official, so unofficially: A 767 airliner taking off from McChord AFB, Washington carrying troops to Korea is shot down by a SA-14 MANPADS missile fired by a Spetsnaz team that had crossed the border from Vancouver, Canada. In the Netherlands, the decision is made to deploy the Dutch 1 Leger Corps in Bavaria, avoiding the delicate question of having Dutch troops in what 6 months prior had been Warsaw Pact territory. The German army organizes salvage parties to comb conquered East German territory. The intent is to secure as many Pact-standard vehicles, ammunition and parts as possible to sustain the former East German Army, whose divisions have been cut off from resupply from the Pact. Orders are placed with third-party manufacturers, but they are few, of limited capacity and already fully engaged producing for their home markets and other Allied combatant nations that use Pact calibers. Also in the Netherlands, the last ship carrying cargo for the US 278th ACR has been unloaded. A commander's conference follows, where it is noted that over half the regiment's vehicles were lost in transit. Second Squadron has its complete complement, as do the engineer, MP, MI and air defense troops and Charlie Troop, 1st Squadron. This remnant of the regiment will be released to 7th Army for assignment, while the regiment's supply officer will work with 7th Army to locate replacement vehicles for the rest of the unit. The Soviet submarine K-495 locates the San Jacinto being towed by the US Navy salvage tug USNS Mohawk at 6 knots across the North Atlantic and sends two torpedos into the cruiser's side. The tug is forced to cut the tow cable to avoid being pulled under; the Soviet commander does not use a precious torpedo on the tug. A B-52G of the 42nd Bomb Wing, Loring AFB, Maine, is called in to strike the Soviet frigate Gromkiy, located east of Bermuda by a US Coast Guard HU-25 patrol plane. The frigate is sunk with three Harpoon missiles. Rival accusations are traded about the prior day's massacre in Cyprus; The Greeks blame Turks while the Turks claim it was a Greek provocation. The advancing Romanian force hits the Soviet defensive line. The Soviet heavy anti-tank guns slice through the obsolescent Romanian tanks like a hot knife through butter. Within hours the Romanian troops are in retreat. The Soviet paratroopers launch an active pursuit, and by midnight Suceava has been recaptured. |
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Ahhh...more research. It will be in the update after the one I'm currently working on...if I remember... |
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one ton of mass moving fast (falling or swinging) enough will knock off the turret, Russian tanks don't have a bussel(sp). in WW2 a 152/155/5.5 in hoz would knock off Tiger turrets just by the force of the hits. (KV2 i know did this). they would not pen the armor. i also could see that it would knock off the tracks. and aspirin is not going to help with that headache. it would be a new take on city fighting. :) |
Dont see why the San Jacinto would be getting towed back to the US - the Brits have repair facilities and having her towed back home when the Atlantic is full of Soviet subs is a death sentence. Would make more sense to have her sitting in a British repair yard
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850 Repair and Recovery of USN ships 20 Nov 1990 |
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278th ACR re-equipment
The cannon re-equipping of the 278th was always a bit confusing. I appreciate that it gave an early model of the hodge-podge nature of the the military as a whole after two and a half years of “broken-backed” warfare and allowed for the introduction of a variety of esoteric vehicles.
That said, the Army had a variety of light cavalry and motorized infantry organization models using the hmmwv or jeep, up to the OTL ACR(L). With production of TOW, small arms, hmmwv, and potentially M198 howitzers presumably ramped up for the war in China, material may be available in quantity. This equipment is easily transported, supports existing doctrine, and uses existing logistics stockpiles. Plus, the combat mos manning numbers in the light ACR/CAV TOE are less than or equal to those of a heavy ACR or CAV unit. Any excess support personnel in HHTs and RSS can be released back as replacements. With a heavy squadron (+), all the separates (MICO, ADA btty, Sapper CO, and MP plt), and two reequipped light squadrons the regiment can still perform most reconnaissance and security missions. The biggest handicap would be the loss of the RAS, assuming that the helo’s were cocooned and shipped and not sent by strategic airlift. I wonder what the chain of events is that sees the 278th requipped with nonstandard material prior to the nuclear strikes? |
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i think that they are a good way to get fire support HMMWVs into production. you could say that its made at Corp Maintenace depots out of spare parts. they have the base Hmmwv (from MP units. you can replace them with armored SUVs or police cars made in Germany), 25mm from a m2/3 and an early gen CROWS. |
I love the smell of napalm in the morning. You know, one time we had a hill bombed, for 12 hours. When it was all over, I walked up. We didn't find one of 'em, not one stinkin' body. The smell, you know that gasoline smell, the whole hill. Smelled like... victory. Someday this war's gonna end...
hellodear.in tea tv |
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There should be a rule for that... |
As a quick and dirty rule so as not to slow down play, I have had every point of armour absorbs 1 dice of concussion damage. I use this for solid structures people are hiding behind too. I'm not sure what I would do if the vehicle was noted as being blast proof like modern armoured vehicles, it's not come up yet.
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I envisioned that the damage from the Norwegian Sea and convoy battles was so extensive (as would be fitting a struggle that saw 80% of the Northern Fleet sunk) that the British repair facilities would be overwhelmed. I did have Scapa Flow as a forward repair base, with several USN and RFA depot ships, tugs and repair ships (and probably a floating drydock) stationed there, with the twofold mission of repairing minor damage to get ships back in the fight as quickly as possible and stabilizing heavily damaged ships so that they had enough structural integrity to survive transit to a full-capacity repair yard. I agree that its risky to tow the ship through sub-infested waters, I'll attribute the decision to desperation to get a semi-premier asset back into service rather than have it languish at a British repair yard waiting for a berth. And, frankly, I was trying to provide something a little more interesting than "the San Jacinto was sunk while on patrol!" :D:D |
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January 24, 1997
Another day with nothing in canon! The attack submarine USS Tunny, with SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team One aboard and the one of team's SDVs in the DDS on deck, departs San Diego. The Lithuanian Free Army ambushes a truck convoy containing MVD troops searching for their base camp. The US 8th Marine Regiment, aboard amphibious shipping, enters the Mediterranean Sea to commence a series of raids on enemy facilities. A Turkish village in Cyprus is burned by a Greek militia; 68 civilians are killed. The 89th TFS (part of the 482nd TFW, AFRES) intercepts a Tu-16 strike force over Black Sea. Unfortunately, three F-16As are lost to escorting PVO Su-27s. Three Naval Aviation bombers are downed and the strike on the Turkish naval base at Bartin is largely ineffective. In Romania, the front line has been restored to where it was a week before. The Romanians have lost 2000 men (600 KIA, 800 wounded and 600 captured), while the Soviets lost a similar number. The first Soviet raider (the Riga-class frigate SKR-71) links up with a flotilla of Soviet fish factory ships, trawlers and support vessels in the South Atlantic. The frigate is able to obtain food, fuel, and small amounts of 100mm ammunition before transiting east into the Indian Ocean. Convoy 210 departs San Francisco Bay, repeating the route San Francisco-Honolulu-Guam where it will split into sub-convoys to Subic Bay-Singapore-Diego Garcia and Okinawa-Pusan, which has been followed by other convoys. |
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I did ROTC too. First at Allegheny College right behind the Admiral (Lee) and later in the unified program that included Allegheny, Ganon, Mercyhurst, and Edinboro Universities. All our "drills" were held at Edinboro. I still declined a commission though, I LOVED being on a gun crew and wouldn't give it up, even after they disbanded the 4th/92nd FA. That's how I ended up on active duty with the 10th Mountain during RESTORE HOPE. |
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I place the LCG Penetration numbers in V2.2 in the DAMAGE column. This Damage is treated just like Small Arms Damage and is the number of DICE of Damage that the LCG can do to people or structures. When striking objects like the components in tanks or other large or tough items, the Damage is treated as "points" not "dice," so IF you shot the side of a generator, you would not need to roll 80 D6s (see below)! I then give the various rounds the normal Small Arms PEN numbers like 1/2 (APDS), 1/4 (APDSDU), 1(HEAT), 2 (HEDP/HESH), 3 (HE), 4 (HE-Frag/Illum/WP). The armor is multiplied by the PEN and that amount is subtracted from the Damage with the excess going through. When you hit a vehicle with an EXPLOSIVE ROUND, the armor CAN stop a large amount of the physical damage BUT the occupants will take 1 POINT of Concussion Damage per Die of HE/HEAT Damage the armor stops. These points are distributed equally to all locations with excess points being assigned to Heat, Chest, Abdomen, Arms, and Legs in that order. Spaced armor/Blast-Ablative armor halves the Concussion Damage and Chobbam armor/Mine-Resistant armor quarters it. Any Damage that penetrates is distributed on a Vehicle Location Hit Chart (this is just a random chart with 20 lines on it with components listed on each line. Large components like autocannon can take up multiple lines). This is just a listing of major components and crew on that facing of the vehicle. You roll a 1D20 on this chart to see what is hit and I then have the players roll ANOTHER 1D20. This represents the percentage of damage to that item. If you roll a 7, the item was hit for 35% of its capacity. I give every item what is essentially like a Durability Rating which represents 10% of its Durability. So IF you hit the radio (5 Durability) and roll a 10 on that D20, the radio is 50% damaged and you subtract 50 points from the Damage remaining and roll then for another item to take a hit IF any Damage Dice remain. If a crew is hit each point on the D20 equals ONE DIE of Damage received. So a roll of 12 would equal 12D6 Damage. IF All the penetrating damage is absorbed by a single component, that is the only thing which is hit. For example, a 125mm DU round penetrates the turret of an M60A3 with 30 Damage and hits the main gun (150 durability). The player doesn't even need to roll the Percentage of Damage die because it is just 10%. No additional items are damaged either. If you're wondering, yes this is 2300AD's ship damaging system mixed with v1 & v2.2 damage rules. |
i now you have a lot on your plate. but the attached might be use full. the first is civi trucks and cars for combat. the second is popeye that was almost made for the IDF (maybe a second supply point). the penguin can be mounted on a UH 60, and the old sea apache. I could see the 1st proposal being green lighted with 2nd being worked on or in test phase by this point in the war.
https://tanks-encyclopedia.com/dacia-duster_td/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popeye_(missile) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penguin_(missile) http://www.aviastar.org/helicopters_...sea_apache.php |
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I could see a second refit of the 278th after combat attrition of the light vehicles in Poland. As history has shown, the 1025/1026/966/988 have limited survivability against most threats. Maybe the re-equipment with V series, peacekeepers, etc came after regeneration following losses early in the 97 campaign? Plus, I can’t see the USAF giving up airfield security and EOD vehicles as they are trying to protect airbases from SOF, UW, and UXO threats. There weren’t that many of them either. |
January 25, 1997
nothing in the canon for today, but unofficially: NATO heads of state hold a secret meeting to determine war goals. Consensus is reached to present the USSR with an option to end the conflict worldwide, with a return to prewar borders in Poland, Korea, Iran and the Balkans; a unified Germany will remain and the USSR can retain the areas of Manchuria north of the Sungari River. The Freedom-class cargo ship Arizona Freedom is delivered in Pascagoula, MS. A Seattle city police officer pulls over a van for running a red light and is shot dead by the driver. A massive police response results in a barricade situation. photo The first MiG-29 sortie at a Red Flag air combat exercise at Nellis AFB, Nevada, is flown by LSK (East German Air Force) Major Jan Hoche in an aggressor role. The Red Flag exercises were decisive in giving NATO pilots an edge over their Soviet and Pact opponents, since the realistic training replicated the vital first combat missions that had historically cost so many pilots their lives. Having a top of the line MiG flown by a Soviet-trained pilot increased the value of these exercises even more. There was an intense Soviet-Polish artillery barrage on bridgehead opposite Frankfurt-on-Oder; otherwise the Central Front was quiet as both sides licked their wounds and tried to replenish their depleted stockpiles. Headquarters, 7th US Army orders the release of war reserve vehicles to re-equip the 278th ACR. 2nd Squadron, 278th ACR assumes responsibility for a sector north of Regensburg facing Czech troops. A Nimrod patrol aircraft operating from RAF St Mawgan (42 Sqn RAF) sinks the Soviet Victor II submarine K-495; Maritime patrol aircraft had been searching for the sub since it sank the San Jacinto two days prior. The Turkish government makes a unilateral decision to intervene in Cyprus; 39th Infantry Division begins loading onto amphibious shipping in Antalya on the Mediterranean coast. Soviet long-range aviation turns its attention to the Balkans, launching a massive nightime air raid on the Romanian "23 August" tank plant in Bucharest. The strike uses conventional "dumb" bombs and inflicts light damage, for the loss of two Tu-16s. The US 6th Fleet commits the attack submarine USS Spadefish to patrol the Black Sea following the loss of the Bluefish. |
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The Carnegie Mellon ROTC battalion got consolidated into the Pitt one when I was there. Post-Cold War drawdown spelled the end of that unit and my comissioning; that's ok I had more fun being enlisted! |
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The USAF bought the Popeye starting in 1989 as the AGM-142 Have Nap; I'll have to write it into the timeline coming up. Likewise, I think the US Navy deployed Penguin from SH-60s; I have a photo of one being fired in my Illustrated History of the Third World War, page 84! On Sea Apache, I think the limiting factor is going to be plant capacity... the MDD helo plant is running full speed producing for the Army, which still has several active-duty divisions with Cobras rather than Apaches, and once combat starts all production is trying to keep up with combat losses, and the US really didn't maintain war reserve aircraft stocks beyond the retired aircraft at AMARC and miscellaneous "hacks" in various units. |
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Don't worry, the light cavalry regiment will make a non-canon appearance in CENTCOM! Coming to a conflict near you! |
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I pity the ACR(L) in combat against a medium or heavy force, especially in an offensive role. Low rate of fire against armored vehicles or field fortifications (and no stabilization), low vehicle survivability, can’t breach mounted, and can only dismount scouts by removing crew from scout trucks. It’s a little better on the defense. High PK and range of of TOW, ability to rapidly lay two scatterable minefields (air and ground volcano), can create lots of obstacles, and establish a deep security zone. Great for an austere theater though. IRL, the ACR(L) was supposed to be HMMWV/M8 based according to MTOE, with 966s as substitutes for the M8. Apparently there were studies (pre-Stryker) of equipping the regiment with LAV-III and M8s. Budget killed the M8 and the LAV-III morphed into the Stryker to be “C-130 transportable”. I’m always awed by the amount of information GDW put in the various guidebooks. Just getting the details of reforger, mobilization, and reconstitution put together in a believable manner across a multi theater campaign took a lot of doing pre-internet. They did a pretty good job with projected tech and projects (the Stingray and RDF light tank were contending for Sheridan replacements long before the M8). |
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Sending an SSN into the Black Sea isn't a good idea. Only one way in or out...
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January 26, 1997
Nothing in the canon for the day! The San Diego harbor channel is fully reopened after removal of the wreck of the tug Janet Pommet, sunk by a Spetsnaz team on January 11. photo The Seattle barricade situation concludes with a massive explosion as a Soviet Spetsnaz team tries to break out of police encirclement; three police officers, a firefighter and five Soviets are killed. One Soviet escapes. The Commonwealth Defense Attache, UK Lieutenant General Sir Robert Owens, is dispatched to New Delhi on "a special mission." The artillery bombardment of the Oder bridgeheads continues. NATO commanders divert engineer battalions from restoring battle damage behind the lines to adding bridges across the river and constructing deep shelters for the troops. Marshall Papkov, the Western TVD commander, is recalled to Moscow. The 264th Engineer Group (Combat) (Wisconsin NG) begins loading vehicles and heavy equipment aboard the freighters Arabian Breeze and Cape Horn in Oakland, CA. Soviet bombers return to the skies over Bucharest, inflicting more damage on the tank plant. The Turkish 1st Battalion, 2nd Commando Brigade lands at Nicosia airport and immediately is engaged against Cyptiot police, customs and Army units. The Turkish submarine Sakarya sinks the Soviet transport Volzhsky-10 bringing supplies into the beseiged city of Burgas, Bulgaria. Turkish Army orders additional forces into Bulgaria to resume the northward advance while maintaining the isolation of Burgas. A small USAF team consisting of contracting officers, communications specialists, weather observers and a small security detachment arrives at Point Salines Airport, Grenada to establish it as a minor transit stop for aircraft headed to Africa and the Middle East. |
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