[chico20854]

October 27, 1997

Nothing in canon for today!

In response to the continuing losses in Europe and the SACEUR decision to try to hold the Oder River line between Poland and East Germany, the Army command authorizes the release of the 353rd Engineer Group (Combat) (US Army Reserve) to Europe. The unit begins moving its equipment to Corpus Christi, Texas for movement overseas.

On the front line in Poland, NATO troops launch local counterattacks to keep their Pact opponents from consolidating the prior day's gains.

The 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment joins the 107th in reserve in central Germany as they recover from their periods isolated behind enemy lines in Poland. Unfortunately, replacement armored vehicles are in short supply. US Army Material Command in the US has been dispatching a wide array of tanks to the European theater - LAV-75s, Cadillac-Gage Stingrays, M-60A4s and M1s of all models (the older ones either stripped from the test and training establishments or returned to service after battle damage repairs). It is up to exhausted logisticians at US Army Europe to allocate these vehicles (as well as the trickle that are returned to service after repairs from the severely damaged repair facilities in theatre) to the units that need them most, balancing the need with their current fleet and ability to maintain them. (i.e., most M-60A4s go to National Guard divisions that originally had them or had them in the 1992-5 time period, hoping that those units mechanics have memory of how to maintain the type). In this situation, the ACRs in the rear area are of lower priority for replacement vehicles than units still at the front.

The Bavarian defense is bolstered by the efforts of German territorial Wallmeister (rampart master) troops. These are Bundesheer soldiers trained in demolitions, obstacle creation, and key infrastructure denial. They use military painted civilian vehicles, and assigned their area of operations on a long term basis, allowing them to blend in thoroughly if needed. Armed with small arms, they travel with demo, tools, etc. At this stage of the war, they also make use of propositioned caches of demo and prepositioned obstacles designed as part of the existing infrastructure.

Along the high ground between the Danube and Main River valleys, VII Corps' defense is proving successful against a depleted and exhausted Soviet 21st Army.

Another naval action rages in the Baltic Sea as desperate Soviet commanders push a convoy of large merchantmen south, heading for the devastated harbors of Gdansk and Gdynia. The American carrier Coral Sea, which has been operating in the western Baltic for months, launches its remaining squadron of F/A-18s armed with unguided munitions (cluster bombs, iron bombs and rockets) to damage the Soviet convoy, which is escorted by a pair of aged destroyers and several frigates and corvettes. As the American attack aircraft wheel above the convoy's ships, strafing the merchantmen, a squadron of German missile boats arrives at high speed, adding their firepower to the effort. As their missiles are expended (many of them entered the action with only one or two aboard) they weave through the convoy at high speed, attacking the Soviet ships with deck mounted guns and even machineguns. As the Allied force departs, a single Marineflieger (German Naval Air Force) Tornado flies overhead and drops a B-61 tactical nuclear bomb, which bursts in the air over the convoy.

The carriers USS John F Kennedy and HMS Illustrious move close to the Turkish coast east of Crete in an effort to evacuate Allied citizens from the disorder that is rapidly spreading across the battered country. Helicopters from the carriers evacuate stranded personnel, while the carriers' fighters provide cover for a stream of airliners that are bravely evacuating civilians to airports in Egypt and Israel. 6th Fleet's request for additional helicopter carriers from SACLANT is approved, but they are all days away from the Mediterranean. CENTCOM refuses to release its amphibious ships, which would entail a voyage around Africa as the Egyptian effort to clear the Suez Canal is hopelessly delayed.

The 14th Armored Cavalry Regiment launches a successful raid on outposts of the Soviet 4th Army, forcing that formation to burn thousands of gallons of diesel fuel when it dispatches a tank regiment to reinforce the incursion.

The first strike mission is flown by a R-5D Aurora hypersonic spy plane, striking the tank rebuild facility in Kiev, Ukraine with a B-61-11 nuclear bomb. (The facility had survived the general attack on Kiev in September, and the plant had continued operations using workers who had been evacuated to the factory's "workers rest camp" 75 km from the city, brought in daily on surviving commuter trains.

Detachment 1, 102nd Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron resumes its journey to Kenya, departing Cairo West Air Base at dawn.