CV32

Russia cancels Syrian S-300 deal (Jane's)

Further comments: * the Blue submarines have a chokehold on the Gulf of Gdansk - it is relatively easy to damage or sink the bulk of the Russian task force without even moving from their current position * it would make sense to have an amphibious force stationed here (a Mistral with Ka-52K would be sweet but not meet your timeline) and the Kuznetsov elsewhere in the Baltic (even the North Sea if you really want to complicate matters) * no Blue surface ships? * Blue has too many heavy long range bombers at its disposal - it is easy to skirt the battleground in Poland and hit the Russkies from behind * I like the confused, chaotic battleground on the Polish front * no ballistic missile strikes? * why not deepen the German contribution instead of the heavy bombers? * no neutrals? * AH-64D helicopters (presumably American) have been forward deployed (at their peril) but without further or other support?

13 August 1926 Fidel Castro is born at Biran, Oriente Province, in Cuba.

The Polish base Warsawza is duplicated. Easy to do by accident. More comments later.

12 August 2000 The Project 949A Antey (NATO Oscar II) class nuclear powered cruise missile submarine Kursk (K-141) is lost with all 118 hands during a Russian Navy exercise off the coast of Severomorsk. The culprit is believed to have been a failure of one of its HTP fueled Type 65 torpedoes.

Got my butt handed to me fairly early in this one. Basically USS New York City tried to make a name for itself in the history books, and certainly did, but not in the manner hoped.

Musta been. I don't think I engaged any in flight.

11 August 1984 While preparing for a weekly radio address, US President Ronald Reagan joked with technicians and offered the following as a sound check:

8 August 1946 The Convair B-36 Peacemaker strategic bomber, the largest mass produced piston engine aircraft ever built, takes to the air in its first flight.

What History Says about China's Chances in a War with America (The National Interest)

7 August 2008 Responding to attacks by Ossetian separatists, former Soviet republic and now independent nation Georgia launches a large scale military offensive against South Ossetia, sparking a heavy response by Russia and starting the short lived South Ossetia War.

6 August 1945 A modified US Army Air Force B-29 Superfortress bomber, called Enola Gay, drops the first atomic bomb - codenamed Little Boy - over the Japanese city of Hiroshima. It explodes at an altitude of roughly 2,000 feet over the city, with the force of about 16 kilotons.

AAR follows. Usual spoilers apply. * * * * * Achieved victory with 0:05:12 to go. Lost one cargo ship, the USS Cape Nome, torpedoed by a Soviet Victor III. No other friendly losses. Sank 16 enemy ships (with 11 helos aboard) and four submarines, including that marauding Vic III. Turns out the F-5 with 2.75 inch rocket pods is quite a useful ASuW tool, as long as the target ship doesn't have SAMs or an effective long range air defense gun.

5 August 1781 The Battle of Dogger Bank, fought between British and Dutch squadrons, takes place in the North Sea during the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War, as part of the American War of Independence. It is one of five 'Battles of Dogger Bank', including one previous (1696) and three subsequent (1904, 1915 and 1916).

Bit of an AAR: Usual spoilers apply! * * * * Stopped the convoy about 350 nm out from its intended destination. Destroyed it at will after that and achieved victory with 1:15:11 to go. Having E-3B Sentry AWACS on hand probably was the deciding factor, as it permitted me to keep Soviet bombers at bay (they never did detect the US Navy) and scope out a safe route for friendly maritime reconnaissance. I lost an RF-4C that went snooping around the Vietnamese coast (which wasn't really necessary) and eight F-4E Phantom II fighters. All of the latter were lost to roving MiG-23MLD Flogger K patrols that tended to pop up and bounce my CAP at the fringes of AWACS coverage. Destroyed 24 ships and damaged two others, destroyed 112 aircraft and 15 helicopters. Damaged the rebel base and smacked four MANPADS there.

Canada Expands Frigate Upgrade Plans (DefenseNews)

Playing this one now, Enrique. Very thankful that I have to 'catch up' with your newest scenario releases.

4 August 1964 The second of two confrontations in the Gulf of Tonkin, off the coast of Vietnam, between US Navy Allen M. Sumner class destroyer USS Maddox (DD-731) and Forrest Sherman class destroyer USS Turner Joy (DD-951) come under attack from North Vietnamese P-4 type torpedo boats. This second incident (which is claimed to have never actually happened) was an impetus for retaliatory air strikes against North Vietnam and, ultimately, the Vietnam War.

1 August 1957 The establishment of North American Air Defense (NORAD) by both the United States and Canada, is first announced.

Russia lays keels for three nuclear subs (Jane's)

31 July 1991 The Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (later called START I) nuclear arms treaty is signed between the United States and the Soviet Union. It was the largest and most complex arms control treaty in history, and by late 2001 had resulted in the removal of about 80 percent of all strategic nuclear weapons then in existence.

30 July 1945 Having delivered components for the Little Boy atomic bomb to the South Pacific island of Tinian, the Portland class heavy cruiser USS Indianapolis (CA-35) is torpedoed and sunk by the Japanese submarine I-58. 880 of the 1,196 men aboard survived the sinking, but only 321 men came out of the water alive, with 317 ultimately surviving what was to be the greatest single loss of life at sea in the history of the US Navy. The Legacy of USS Indianapolis (USNI News)

29 July 1967 While conducting air strikes from a position known as Yankee Station, off the coast of North Vietnam, the aircraft carrier USS Forrestal (CVA-59) suffers a disastrous fire. An electrical fault causes a 5 inch Zuni rocket to fire from under the wing of an F-4B Phantom II and strike the underwing fuel tank of an A-4E Skyhawk awaiting launch. The rocket does not explode but its impact tears the fuel tank off the wing and ignites a spray of jet fuel, starting a conflagration. Two 1,000 lb M65 iron bombs are also dislodged and fall into the burning fuel. One cooks off (due to unstable Comp B explosive) and detonates within minutes, causing a chain reaction of eight more bomb explosions. 134 men are killed and 161 injured. Forrestal is put out of action for over 200 days.

28 July 1914 Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia, marking the start of World War I.

Does Canada Need Submarines? (Canadian Military Journal (CMJ))