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Old 05-02-2022, 12:52 PM
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chico20854 chico20854 is offline
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May 1, 1997

The Great War of Africa begins with a joint Rwandan/Burundi invasion of the Congo in pursuit of Hutu rebels and militia.

Unofficially,

Map of the front lines in Poland

The tanker Cheemung is delivered in Erie, Pennsylvania and put into naval service as the USNS Cheemung, T-AOT-210.

The 267th Air Defense Battery (Laser) (Provisional) is formed at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico. Nicknamed "the Jedi Knights", the unit is equipped with XM12 ADA laser weapons. The unit is initially a test, development and trials unit.

Pact air defenses (which beyond Soviet interceptors range from ultra-sophisticated SA-12 theater-level SAMs and SA-10s guarding the Soviet frontier to aged Polish militiamen firing bolt-action Mosin-Nagant rifles at passing aircraft) have downed approximately 60 percent of pre-war NATO tactical aircraft.

A new Radiotechnical Warfare officer arrives at the Western TVD headquarters in Poland. He advocates for widespread heavy jamming to disrupt NATO operations, and receives permission to deploy several dozen newly developed wide-spectrum mobile jammers, mounted on trucks. The first test will occur the following day.

The Greek high command reacts violently to the raid on Alexandroupolis, catching the withdrawing naval task force as it traverses the northern Aegean Sea. Fierce dogfights erupt overhead while missile boats from both sides clash, with Turkish destroyers illuminating the action with starshells while the transports scurry back to cover of friendly territory. Overall, the Turks give more than they get, losing seven aircraft to the Greek's nine, and six Turkish vessels are sunk while the Greek Navy loses nine small craft and the destroyer Lonchi (built in 1942 and generally considered obsolescent).

The veteran all-female 1077th Ski Regiment is awarded the Guards title in recognition of its bravery in the battles on the Kola Peninsula.

Red Square in Moscow hosts the last May Day Parade for many years. It is an odd affair, with some formations from the famous 2nd "Taman" Guards Motor-Rifle Division at their usual level of parade perfection and other units, composed of mobilized reservists hastily corralled while passing through Moscow on the way to the front, looking considerably less refined. The traditional flyover is markedly smaller, but chilling... a series of low-flying Tu-160 Blackjack and Tu-95 Bear-H strategic bomber, bristling with nuclear cruise missiles. There are very few of usual missiles; again the limited numbers that are there are nuclear, SS-25 and SSC-4 mobile strategic missiles.

Much of the rest of Soviet Long Range Aviation is in action over the Balkans, striking the aluminum smelter in Kidricevo, Jugoslavia.

The Soviet Whiskey-class submarine S-383, lying nearly still in shallow water, locates the first escorts of Task Force 60 as the American force moves east. It relays the location to Black Sea Fleet headquarters in Sevastapol.

The USS Independence battle group moves west, towards the mouth of the Straits of Hormuz, and switches its main effort to suppressing the Soviet paratroops near Bushehr and Gaaveh. It detaches the destroyer Hewitt from its escort to supplement other Allied navies operating in the Persian Gulf.

The battered Convoy 136 has a relatively quiet day of sailing south of Iceland, protected by P-3s from Keflavik and aircraft from the accompanying escort carrier USS Langley.
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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...
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