Search the Community
Showing results for tags 'asw scenario'.
Found 68 results
-
Operation Lancette, 15 May 1981. Historical Scenario. A Harpoon Commander's Edition scenario for the EC2003 Battle for Mediterranean Battleset and the HCDB-140909 1980-2015 era Platform Database. Image: The French aircraft carrier Clemenceau (R98) underway in the Mediterranean Sea. The photo was taken by a U.S. Navy Grumman F-14A Tomcat from Fighter Squadron VF-84 Jolly Rogers, Carrier Air Wing 8 (CVW-8), from the USS Nimitz (CVN-68) using a TARPS reconnaissance pod. November 1981. Taked from Wikipedia Commons. This scenario is designed to be played from the Blue/French side or from the Red/Soviet side. You should play a few times first the Blue side to avoid spoilers, and only later play the Red side. A simple and introductory scenario based on historical facts. In the heydays of the Cold War at a time of particular tension, two days after the Pope John Paul II assassination attempt in Rome instigated by the Bulgarian/Soviet Secret Services, was the moment of one of the most scaring naval situations in the Cold War, Just when the Clemenceau CVBG and his reduced peacetime escort was sailing from Toulon for the exercise Coriolan, was detected a submarine contact by the ASW picket (DDs Georges Leygues and Guepratte) only 50 nautical miles from Toulon and actively stalking the carrier group. The subsequent Operation Lancette was launched, resulting in the chase of the unknown submarine continuously for more than eighteen hours and with the submarine alternating creep speeds with peaks of 28-30 knots and even passing below the Georges Leygues towed sonar array. La Royale (French Navy) employed both forward escort destroyers, Lynx helicopters and Atlantic ASW planes based in the very near BAN Nimes-Garons, and at last forced she to surfacing. Ultimately she was visually identified on surface at night from a Lynx helicopter of the Georges Leygues as a Soviet Victor-type SSN and compelled to quit the area. But this scenario represents the possibility of the things going wrong and hot, and both sides firing in anger at the enemy forces. This scenario also could gives an idea of the difficult submarine hunting, the difficult of hunting surface ships with submarines without long range target determination, the limited sonar ranges and convergence zone feasibility on a sea with high levels of salinity and density, the high limitations of small diesel-electric submarines employed as hunter-killers against SSN (the French SSN force was then yet two years on the future), and about the necessity of employing half of the French Aeronavale ASW forces to catch only one submarine, even when she was fortunately emplaced very near to a main ASW air base. Key of the unnamed Air Bases: AGa BAN Nimes-Garons LFTW, France (closed on July 2011). At Nimes-Garons on this time period were based two Aeronavale ASW units, the Flotille 21F equipped with Atlantic and the Flotille 6F with Alize. Enrique Mas, December 2011. -
File Name: Operation Lancette, 1981. Historical Scenario. File Submitter: broncepulido File Submitted: 04 Dec 2011 File Category: MEDC Operation Lancette, 15 May 1981. Historical Scenario. A Harpoon Commander's Edition scenario for the EC2003 Battle for Mediterranean Battleset and the HCDB-140909 1980-2015 era Platform Database. Image: The French aircraft carrier Clemenceau (R98) underway in the Mediterranean Sea. The photo was taken by a U.S. Navy Grumman F-14A Tomcat from Fighter Squadron VF-84 Jolly Rogers, Carrier Air Wing 8 (CVW-8), from the USS Nimitz (CVN-68) using a TARPS reconnaissance pod. November 1981. Taked from Wikipedia Commons. This scenario is designed to be played from the Blue/French side or from the Red/Soviet side. You should play a few times first the Blue side to avoid spoilers, and only later play the Red side. A simple and introductory scenario based on historical facts. In the heydays of the Cold War at a time of particular tension, two days after the Pope John Paul II assassination attempt in Rome instigated by the Bulgarian/Soviet Secret Services, was the moment of one of the most scaring naval situations in the Cold War, Just when the Clemenceau CVBG and his reduced peacetime escort was sailing from Toulon for the exercise Coriolan, was detected a submarine contact by the ASW picket (DDs Georges Leygues and Guepratte) only 50 nautical miles from Toulon and actively stalking the carrier group. The subsequent Operation Lancette was launched, resulting in the chase of the unknown submarine continuously for more than eighteen hours and with the submarine alternating creep speeds with peaks of 28-30 knots and even passing below the Georges Leygues towed sonar array. La Royale (French Navy) employed both forward escort destroyers, Lynx helicopters and Atlantic ASW planes based in the very near BAN Nimes-Garons, and at last forced she to surfacing. Ultimately she was visually identified on surface at night from a Lynx helicopter of the Georges Leygues as a Soviet Victor-type SSN and compelled to quit the area. But this scenario represents the possibility of the things going wrong and hot, and both sides firing in anger at the enemy forces. This scenario also could gives an idea of the difficult submarine hunting, the difficult of hunting surface ships with submarines without long range target determination, the limited sonar ranges and convergence zone feasibility on a sea with high levels of salinity and density, the high limitations of small diesel-electric submarines employed as hunter-killers against SSN (the French SSN force was then yet two years on the future), and about the necessity of employing half of the French Aeronavale ASW forces to catch only one submarine, even when she was fortunately emplaced very near to a main ASW air base. Key of the unnamed Air Bases: AGa BAN Nimes-Garons LFTW, France (closed on July 2011). At Nimes-Garons on this time period were based two Aeronavale ASW units, the Flotille 21F equipped with Atlantic and the Flotille 6F with Alize. Enrique Mas, December 2011. Click here to download this file
-
File Name: Swedish Submarine Incident October 17-24, 2014. Historical scenario/Alternate history scenario. File Submitter: broncepulido File Submitted: 08 Nov 2014 File Category: GIUK Swedish Submarine Incident October 17-24, 2014. Historical scenario/Alternate history scenario. A Harpoon Commander's Edition scenario for the EC2003 Battle for GIUK Gap Battleset and the HCDB-140909 1980-2015 era Platform Database. Image from Wikipedia Commons: Swedish corvette K31 Visby in Aura river in Turku during the Northern Coasts 2014 exercise public pre sail event, 31 August 2014. Author: MKFI. This scenario is designed to be played mostly from the Blue/Swedish side or from the Red/Russian side. You should play a few times first the Blue side to avoid spoilers, and only later play the Red/Russian side if you've interest on it, but I think the victory conditions are very difficult to get for an AI-controlled Blue side. Years after the demise of Soviet Union, the prudent, neutral and natively well-armed Sweden did start near 2008 to downsizing clearly his armed forces (Forsvarsmakten), retiring whole categories of weapons systems, as the useful HKP-4B/C/D Boeing Vertol Kawasaki KV-107-II (CH-46 Sea Knight-derivative) twin-rotor ASW helicopters, specially configured for shallow and difficult waters. All this despite the habitual submarine incidents that had taken place continuously since at least 1962 on the Swedish territorial shores and archipelagos, originated in Soviet clandestine activities, of which the most obvious and memorable event was the stranding of S-363 "Whiskey on the Rocks Incident" in the vicinity of the sensible naval base of Karlskrona in November 1981. But from the other side of the Baltic Sea the President of Russia Vladimir Putin was working for years in a plan to recover the Russian Empire and later Soviet territories, to reinstitute the greatness of his Russia, to guarantee his passage on the History as saviour of the Rodina, and doing return the ghost of the past. Some months before the Crimean and Ukrainian crises, from 8 December 2013 begun the deployment of updated Su-27SM3 Russian fighters in the Belarusian 61st Fighter Air Base at Baranovichi, with all the pilots deployed qualified as Pilot First Class, and later apparently to form a full Flanker regiment to be based at Lida 206th Assault Air Base from 2015 (the Su-27 was previously retired from Belarusian service in December 2012).. Also, deployment of advanced Iskander surface-to-surface missiles and a battery of the very impressive S-400 Triumf/SA-21 SAM in the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad between Lithuania and Poland (Formerly Konigsberg in East Prussia. What better excuse to request a land bridge from Russia, nobody remember the very near Danzig Corridor and the 1939 German Ultimatum to Poland?) can give some ideas about future events. More clear even from 7 April 2014, when after only a day of occupation by Russian affine forces was proclaimed the Donetsk People's Republic. At last in Autumn, as another of the multiple World Crisis of 2014, in October 2014 were intensified Russian military flights with long range elements in the Pacific and Caribbean areas, Black and Baltic Seas shores and so far as the Portuguese Atlantic Coast. But the more eye-catching and symptomatic incident on 17-24 October was the Swedish submarine chase of unidentified submerged object, with multiple but unclear sights on Kanholmsfjarden in the Stockholm archipelago and radio transmissions linked to a military site in Kaliningrad, compatible with a Russian submarine in distress. All with the addition of at least three Russian-operated civilian ships very probably equipped with submarine holding bays orbiting the near Baltic zone: NS Concord, a converted 105000 tons oil tanker sailing in circles in middle of the sea for one week, R/V Professor Logachev (an 3900 tons standard ex-AGI Project 12283M ship), and the 18425 tons LPG tanker Sibur Voronezh with very reduced IR signature, the two tankers operated at last instance by the Russian company Sovcomflot (SCF). On this scenario the idea is to show the currently reduced ASW capabilities of the Swedish Armed Forces against a possible multiple midget submarine menace, at the same time facing and defending against some limited Russian air incursions potentially menacing the nimble Swedish surface ASW elements. Is present the current Swedish OOB (the in service JAS.39C Gripen Block 19 (2010) and Block 20 (2012) have a slightly improved radar than plain JAS.39C, but are not yet armed with Meteor or Taurus) , and the limited Russian OOB showed in the scenario is as accurate as possible on open sources in October 2014. Enrique Mas, November 2014. Click here to download this file
-
Swedish Submarine Incident October 17-24, 2014. Historical scenario/Alternate history scenario. A Harpoon Commander's Edition scenario for the EC2003 Battle for GIUK Gap Battleset and the HCDB-140909 1980-2015 era Platform Database. Image from Wikipedia Commons: Swedish corvette K31 Visby in Aura river in Turku during the Northern Coasts 2014 exercise public pre sail event, 31 August 2014. Author: MKFI. This scenario is designed to be played mostly from the Blue/Swedish side or from the Red/Russian side. You should play a few times first the Blue side to avoid spoilers, and only later play the Red/Russian side if you've interest on it, but I think the victory conditions are very difficult to get for an AI-controlled Blue side. Years after the demise of Soviet Union, the prudent, neutral and natively well-armed Sweden did start near 2008 to downsizing clearly his armed forces (Forsvarsmakten), retiring whole categories of weapons systems, as the useful HKP-4B/C/D Boeing Vertol Kawasaki KV-107-II (CH-46 Sea Knight-derivative) twin-rotor ASW helicopters, specially configured for shallow and difficult waters. All this despite the habitual submarine incidents that had taken place continuously since at least 1962 on the Swedish territorial shores and archipelagos, originated in Soviet clandestine activities, of which the most obvious and memorable event was the stranding of S-363 "Whiskey on the Rocks Incident" in the vicinity of the sensible naval base of Karlskrona in November 1981. But from the other side of the Baltic Sea the President of Russia Vladimir Putin was working for years in a plan to recover the Russian Empire and later Soviet territories, to reinstitute the greatness of his Russia, to guarantee his passage on the History as saviour of the Rodina, and doing return the ghost of the past. Some months before the Crimean and Ukrainian crises, from 8 December 2013 begun the deployment of updated Su-27SM3 Russian fighters in the Belarusian 61st Fighter Air Base at Baranovichi, with all the pilots deployed qualified as Pilot First Class, and later apparently to form a full Flanker regiment to be based at Lida 206th Assault Air Base from 2015 (the Su-27 was previously retired from Belarusian service in December 2012).. Also, deployment of advanced Iskander surface-to-surface missiles and a battery of the very impressive S-400 Triumf/SA-21 SAM in the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad between Lithuania and Poland (Formerly Konigsberg in East Prussia. What better excuse to request a land bridge from Russia, nobody remember the very near Danzig Corridor and the 1939 German Ultimatum to Poland?) can give some ideas about future events. More clear even from 7 April 2014, when after only a day of occupation by Russian affine forces was proclaimed the Donetsk People's Republic. At last in Autumn, as another of the multiple World Crisis of 2014, in October 2014 were intensified Russian military flights with long range elements in the Pacific and Caribbean areas, Black and Baltic Seas shores and so far as the Portuguese Atlantic Coast. But the more eye-catching and symptomatic incident on 17-24 October was the Swedish submarine chase of unidentified submerged object, with multiple but unclear sights on Kanholmsfjarden in the Stockholm archipelago and radio transmissions linked to a military site in Kaliningrad, compatible with a Russian submarine in distress. All with the addition of at least three Russian-operated civilian ships very probably equipped with submarine holding bays orbiting the near Baltic zone: NS Concord, a converted 105000 tons oil tanker sailing in circles in middle of the sea for one week, R/V Professor Logachev (an 3900 tons standard ex-AGI Project 12283M ship), and the 18425 tons LPG tanker Sibur Voronezh with very reduced IR signature, the two tankers operated at last instance by the Russian company Sovcomflot (SCF). On this scenario the idea is to show the currently reduced ASW capabilities of the Swedish Armed Forces against a possible multiple midget submarine menace, at the same time facing and defending against some limited Russian air incursions potentially menacing the nimble Swedish surface ASW elements. Is present the current Swedish OOB (the in service JAS.39C Gripen Block 19 (2010) and Block 20 (2012) have a slightly improved radar than plain JAS.39C, but are not yet armed with Meteor or Taurus) , and the limited Russian OOB showed in the scenario is as accurate as possible on open sources in October 2014. Enrique Mas, November 2014. -
File Name: Battle of the USS Midway 1988. Hypothetical scenario in WWIII. File Submitter: broncepulido File Submitted: 04 Aug 2014 File Category: WestPac Battle of the USS Midway 1988. Hypothetical scenario in WWIII. A Harpoon Commander's Edition scenario for the EC2003 Battle for Western Pacific Battleset and the HCDB-130818 1980-2015 Era Platform Database. Image: USS Midway (CV-41) on the Persian Gulf in 1988, with F/A-18A on deck. Photo retrieved from navysource.org and taked by a US Serviceman, and in consequence public domaint. Attributed to Kelly Scherer, SFC, USA (Ret) (Former AO1). This scenario is designed for play with the US-Allied/Blue side or with by the Soviet-Vietnamese/Red side, to avoid spoilers is better to play a few times first the US-Allied/Blue side, and only after the Soviet-Vietnamese/Red side. This is a complex scenario and worth of play many times for the experienced Harpoon player because a lot of random elements and composite Total Victory Conditions requiriments. This is the third scenario of a series inspired in old boardgames of the 1970's and 1980's, but modified mainly to introduce the accumulated knowledge about weapons and forces deployment after the Cold War end. In the wake of the Black Sea naval incident of 22 February 1988, and with other clashes droved to WWIII and after the neutralization of a Soviet convoy to Philippines with support of his old Vietnamese allies on the South China Sea, carrying weapons and on board the new revolutionary government to be imposed on Philippines, the US and Allied forces need to keep a firm operations base in Philippines. As consequence, two Allied convoys with MPS ships are sailing to Manila to reinforce Philippines against any new Soviet attempt, and to keep at bay the Soviet-driven local insurgence. Another US force of amphibious ships is probably sailing to reinforce the Luzon Strait. At same time two Soviet convoys with reinforcements are sailing to Vietnam. Some of the remaining Soviet Long Range Aviation elements at the campaign start in Vietnam have returned, as most of the 3rd Tactical Fighter Wing based at Clark AB. Another risk for the Allied convoys will be the Soviet submarines. Is probably both side have displaced an aircraft carrier to the South China Sea. To get Total Victory both sides should arrival on time and destination with his convoys. Enrique Mas, August 2014. Click here to download this file
-
File Name: Manila Galleon 1988 File Submitter: broncepulido File Submitted: 19 Jul 2014 File Category: WestPac Manila Galleon 1988 ... in WWIII. A Harpoon Commander's Edition scenario for the EC2003 Battle for Western Pacific Battleset and the HCDB-130818 1980-2015 Era Platform Database. Image: USS Trípoli (LPH-10), undated, but clearly after 1972(installation of Sea Sparrow. Credited to Dennis Stephenson SMC USN Ret in navysource.org, and showed on Wikipedia as public domain because taked by an US serviceperson on duty. This scenario is designed to be played with the US-Philippine/Blue side or with by the Soviet-Vietnamese/Red side, to avoid spoilers is better to play a few times first the US/Blue side, and only after the Soviet/Red side. In part is pretended as an introductory scenario, but worth of play for experienced Harpoon players. Second scenario of a series inspired in old boardgames of the 1970's and 1980's, but modified mainly to introduce the accumulated knowledge about weapons and forces deployment after the Cold War end. In the wake of the Black Sea naval incident of 22 February 1988, and with other clashes droved to WWIII and after the neutralization of a Soviet convoy to Philippines with support of his old Vietnamese allies on the South China Sea,carrying weapons and on board the new revolutionary government to be imposed on Philippines, the US and Allied forces need to keep a firm operations base in Phllippines. As consequence, three Allied convoys with amphibious and transport ships are sailing to Manila to reinforce Philippines against any new Soviet attempt, and to keep at bay the Soviet-driven local insurgence. After the first clash the remaining Soviet Long Range Aviation elements in Vietnam were retired far North, but also most of the 3rd Tactical Fighter Wing based at Clark AB is displaced North, to protect Japan and South Korea. The main risk for the Allied convoys reinforcing Philippines will be the Soviet submarines. The reduced US and Allied ASW forces (with old and odd types of planes and ships on his force composition like a remembrance of the ABDA force 46 years before) in theater have the task of protect the sail and unload of the convoys near Subic Bay. Enrique Mas, July 2014. Click here to download this file
-
Manila Galleon 1988 ... in WWIII. A Harpoon Commander's Edition scenario for the EC2003 Battle for Western Pacific Battleset and the HCDB-130818 1980-2015 Era Platform Database. Image: USS Trípoli (LPH-10), undated, but clearly after 1972(installation of Sea Sparrow. Credited to Dennis Stephenson SMC USN Ret in navysource.org, and showed on Wikipedia as public domain because taked by an US serviceperson on duty. This scenario is designed to be played with the US-Philippine/Blue side or with by the Soviet-Vietnamese/Red side, to avoid spoilers is better to play a few times first the US/Blue side, and only after the Soviet/Red side. In part is pretended as an introductory scenario, but worth of play for experienced Harpoon players. Second scenario of a series inspired in old boardgames of the 1970's and 1980's, but modified mainly to introduce the accumulated knowledge about weapons and forces deployment after the Cold War end. In the wake of the Black Sea naval incident of 22 February 1988, and with other clashes droved to WWIII and after the neutralization of a Soviet convoy to Philippines with support of his old Vietnamese allies on the South China Sea,carrying weapons and on board the new revolutionary government to be imposed on Philippines, the US and Allied forces need to keep a firm operations base in Phllippines. As consequence, three Allied convoys with amphibious and transport ships are sailing to Manila to reinforce Philippines against any new Soviet attempt, and to keep at bay the Soviet-driven local insurgence. After the first clash the remaining Soviet Long Range Aviation elements in Vietnam were retired far North, but also most of the 3rd Tactical Fighter Wing based at Clark AB is displaced North, to protect Japan and South Korea. The main risk for the Allied convoys reinforcing Philippines will be the Soviet submarines. The reduced US and Allied ASW forces (with old and odd types of planes and ships on his force composition like a remembrance of the ABDA force 46 years before) in theater have the task of protect the sail and unload of the convoys near Subic Bay. Enrique Mas, July 2014. -
Battle of the USS Midway 1988. Hypothetical scenario in WWIII. A Harpoon Commander's Edition scenario for the EC2003 Battle for Western Pacific Battleset and the HCDB-130818 1980-2015 Era Platform Database. Image: USS Midway (CV-41) on the Persian Gulf in 1988, with F/A-18A on deck. Photo retrieved from navysource.org and taked by a US Serviceman, and in consequence public domaint. Attributed to Kelly Scherer, SFC, USA (Ret) (Former AO1). This scenario is designed for play with the US-Allied/Blue side or with by the Soviet-Vietnamese/Red side, to avoid spoilers is better to play a few times first the US-Allied/Blue side, and only after the Soviet-Vietnamese/Red side. This is a complex scenario and worth of play many times for the experienced Harpoon player because a lot of random elements and composite Total Victory Conditions requiriments. This is the third scenario of a series inspired in old boardgames of the 1970's and 1980's, but modified mainly to introduce the accumulated knowledge about weapons and forces deployment after the Cold War end. In the wake of the Black Sea naval incident of 22 February 1988, and with other clashes droved to WWIII and after the neutralization of a Soviet convoy to Philippines with support of his old Vietnamese allies on the South China Sea, carrying weapons and on board the new revolutionary government to be imposed on Philippines, the US and Allied forces need to keep a firm operations base in Philippines. As consequence, two Allied convoys with MPS ships are sailing to Manila to reinforce Philippines against any new Soviet attempt, and to keep at bay the Soviet-driven local insurgence. Another US force of amphibious ships is probably sailing to reinforce the Luzon Strait. At same time two Soviet convoys with reinforcements are sailing to Vietnam. Some of the remaining Soviet Long Range Aviation elements at the campaign start in Vietnam have returned, as most of the 3rd Tactical Fighter Wing based at Clark AB. Another risk for the Allied convoys will be the Soviet submarines. Is probably both side have displaced an aircraft carrier to the South China Sea. To get Total Victory both sides should arrival on time and destination with his convoys. Enrique Mas, August 2014. -
File Name: The Search for Cyrus the Great, late May 2014 (Alternate History Scenario) File Submitter: broncepulido File Submitted: 13 May 2014 File Category: IOPG The Search for Cyrus the Great, Alternate History Scenario, late May 2014. A Harpoon Commander's Edition scenario for the EC2003 Battle for the IOPG Battleset and the HCDB-130818 1980-2015 Platform Database. Image: source Wikipedia. Iranian F-14A. 2008-04-14 18:09 taked by Amirmgh. This picture is taken in an exhibition in Tehran. This scenario is designed to be played mainly from the Blue/US side. You should play many times first the Blue side to avoid spoilers, and only later play the Red/Imperial Islamic Iran side. On November 27, 1978, when visiting San Francisco a few days away from his long and mild Paris exile, in a meeting deeply impressed and touched by the stringent gay rights ordinance for the city, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini besides the Mayor George Moscone and City Supervisor Harvey Milk were assassinated at the City Hall by former Supervisor Dan White. As consequence, the 1979 Islamic Revolution not happened, and the old Shah keeps in power to 1988, when forced by the people abdicated in favour of his son Reza. The Soviet/Russian occupation of Afghanistan lasted only to 1985 because the strong Shah support to the anti-Soviet not-Islamist Afghans. And in support of the Shah, the United States does generous weapons transfers, keeping Iran as the Persian Gulf Guardian. With a stronger Iran, the Iraq-Iran War neither happened, and Saddam Hussein keeps in power in 2014. Aside the planned weapons programs, in 1978 the USS Franklin D. Roosevelt (CV-42) was not scrapped, she was transferred to Iran to be renamed Darius the Great. After a long and painful conversion process, to almost the level of the USS Midway SCB-110.66 conversion, she was recommissioned in 1986 and employed mostly for training. After, in 1988 and because the Darius the Great was too small to operate the F-14A Tomcat the Imperial Iranian Navy want to operate and in service previously in the Imperial Iranian Air Force, the United States transferred Iran the USS Forrestal (CV-59) and was renamed Cyrus the Great. It was possible because after the Afghanistan debacle in 1985 and the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear accident the Soviet Union was dissolved a few years earlier than in our timeline, on 1987, and the US Navy can ride out of some carriers. But from 1988 the problems begun in Iran. As in our timeline violent Islamic movements spread all the planet as consequence of the lack of balance between two hyperpowers and the multiplicity of power poles. And in Iran turmoils and rampant Islamism forced the old Shah to resign, abdicating on his elder son Reza, formed as fighter pilot in the West. The new state entity of Imperial Islamic Iran survives from 1989 to 2014 with a very difficult balance between Imperial and Islamic traditions, keeping the Pahlavi dynasty nominally on power and with the clerics supporting Islamic terrorist groups worldwide. But directly this politic almost isolated Iran, and was punished with successive weapons embargoes from 1990. The Imperial Islamic Iranian Armed Forces now are not state of art as in the 1970s, but count with some semi-clandestine support from China, India and Israel. And when from February 21, 2014, erupted multiple crises in Ukraine, Baltic States (well staged by President Putin) and China, and in front of the feeble and hesitating Obama Administration, Iran saw his opportunity as a major player. Iran menaces to close the Persian Gulf with his carrier force and control the oil flow with very superior power to previous historical attempts. Some days before, pressed by Iran, the Gulf minor States forced the Western forces to quit Al Dafhra and the other Persian Gulf bases. With his forces divided between Europe and the Far East, only the isolated small Bush CVBG with very little support from Camp Lemmonier in Djibouti and some occasional SSN can prevent the Persian Gulf blockade. Enrique Mas, May 13, 2014. Click here to download this file
-
The Search for Cyrus the Great, Alternate History Scenario, late May 2014. A Harpoon Commander's Edition scenario for the EC2003 Battle for the IOPG Battleset and the HCDB-130818 1980-2015 Platform Database. Image: source Wikipedia. Iranian F-14A. 2008-04-14 18:09 taked by Amirmgh. This picture is taken in an exhibition in Tehran. This scenario is designed to be played mainly from the Blue/US side. You should play many times first the Blue side to avoid spoilers, and only later play the Red/Imperial Islamic Iran side. On November 27, 1978, when visiting San Francisco a few days away from his long and mild Paris exile, in a meeting deeply impressed and touched by the stringent gay rights ordinance for the city, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini besides the Mayor George Moscone and City Supervisor Harvey Milk were assassinated at the City Hall by former Supervisor Dan White. As consequence, the 1979 Islamic Revolution not happened, and the old Shah keeps in power to 1988, when forced by the people abdicated in favour of his son Reza. The Soviet/Russian occupation of Afghanistan lasted only to 1985 because the strong Shah support to the anti-Soviet not-Islamist Afghans. And in support of the Shah, the United States does generous weapons transfers, keeping Iran as the Persian Gulf Guardian. With a stronger Iran, the Iraq-Iran War neither happened, and Saddam Hussein keeps in power in 2014. Aside the planned weapons programs, in 1978 the USS Franklin D. Roosevelt (CV-42) was not scrapped, she was transferred to Iran to be renamed Darius the Great. After a long and painful conversion process, to almost the level of the USS Midway SCB-110.66 conversion, she was recommissioned in 1986 and employed mostly for training. After, in 1988 and because the Darius the Great was too small to operate the F-14A Tomcat the Imperial Iranian Navy want to operate and in service previously in the Imperial Iranian Air Force, the United States transferred Iran the USS Forrestal (CV-59) and was renamed Cyrus the Great. It was possible because after the Afghanistan debacle in 1985 and the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear accident the Soviet Union was dissolved a few years earlier than in our timeline, on 1987, and the US Navy can ride out of some carriers. But from 1988 the problems begun in Iran. As in our timeline violent Islamic movements spread all the planet as consequence of the lack of balance between two hyperpowers and the multiplicity of power poles. And in Iran turmoils and rampant Islamism forced the old Shah to resign, abdicating on his elder son Reza, formed as fighter pilot in the West. The new state entity of Imperial Islamic Iran survives from 1989 to 2014 with a very difficult balance between Imperial and Islamic traditions, keeping the Pahlavi dynasty nominally on power and with the clerics supporting Islamic terrorist groups worldwide. But directly this politic almost isolated Iran, and was punished with successive weapons embargoes from 1990. The Imperial Islamic Iranian Armed Forces now are not state of art as in the 1970s, but count with some semi-clandestine support from China, India and Israel. And when from February 21, 2014, erupted multiple crises in Ukraine, Baltic States (well staged by President Putin) and China, and in front of the feeble and hesitating Obama Administration, Iran saw his opportunity as a major player. Iran menaces to close the Persian Gulf with his carrier force and control the oil flow with very superior power to previous historical attempts. Some days before, pressed by Iran, the Gulf minor States forced the Western forces to quit Al Dafhra and the other Persian Gulf bases. With his forces divided between Europe and the Far East, only the isolated small Bush CVBG with very little support from Camp Lemmonier in Djibouti and some occasional SSN can prevent the Persian Gulf blockade. Enrique Mas, May 13, 2014. -
Fate of PNS Ghazi, 1971. Historical Scenario. A Harpoon Commander's Edition scenario for the EC2003 Battle for the IOPG Battleset and the HCCW-130923 1950-1975 Cold War Platform Database. Image: AGSS-479 USS Diablo after the Fleet Snorkel conversion in 1964, in Long Island Sound and before the delivery to the Pakistani Navy. Source: Wikipedia Commons and navsource.org, probably first released by LCDR Tomme J. Lambertson USN (RET). To avoid spoilers is better to play this scenario a few times first playing the Pakistani/Blue side, and only after the Indian/Red side. Is a long ASW scenario with very limited forces in quantity and quality in both sides, sailing the immense Bay of Bengal, where from long time nothing happens, but with frantic moments after the enemy is in contact. The PNS Ghazi (a title given to Muslim warriors or champions) was a Tench-class submarine (SS-479 USS Diablo) transferred to Pakistan on 1 June 1964 after a Fleet Snorkel conversion (The Fleet Snorkel conversion were conversion of fleet boats by far cheaper, slower, noisier and with poorer sensors than the more celebrated GUPPY conversions, developed to fulfil the number of submarines requested by the US Navy, impossible with the expensive Guppies. The Fleet Snorkel keep the four original fast-running electric engines not replacing them by two quieter slow-running engines, as the Guppies, and her hull and sail are not so streamlined as in the Guppies. Also, it was at least two Fleet Snorkel main variants: an US Navy variant with the big German-derivative BQR-2 chin-mounted passive sonar array, and other diverse austere variants for export, mainly for training submarine crews and employ the Fleet Snorkels as targets in ASW exercises in many allied navies, with simpler sensors, usually the BQR-3 passive sonar, an old JT in a dome. And as a Tench-class Fleet Snorkel converted her torpedo capacity was 28, not 24 as in the Gato and Balao-classes conversions. In the 1965 Indo-Pakistani War PNS Ghazi was the only submarine in both sides, and sailed in deterrent preventing the major ships of the Indian Navy to came out of harbour, and supporting Operation Dwarka, but not firing anytime in anger. In the 1971 Indo-Pakistani War, concluded after a fast 13 days campaign with the secession of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), the Pakistani Navy strategic plan was to send Ghazi into the Bay of Bengal, to mine some ports, to do some intelligence and to menace and prevent with her presence the use of the Indian Navy sole carrier, INS Vikrant. Ghazi was the only one Pakistani submarine capable of that task because her greater range (11000 nm against 4500 nm) and higher weapons capacity than the three modern Pakistani Daphne-class submarines, but noisier and with older sensors than the French-made boats. As the mission was considered highly dangerous Ghazi staff was changed to employ young naval officers, under the new command of Commander Zafar Muhammada Khan, promoted to this rank only four days before the mission begins. After looking for Vikrant in Madras/Chennai, and perhaps induced to go to Visakhapatnam by some Indian settled HUMINT trap, Ghazi was sunk near the entrance of that last harbour, when was executing minelaying operations. She was lost with all hands, but the sinking causes are dubious, more probable an spontaneous internal explosion caused by hydrogen leaked from the batteries or the accidental explosion of one of her own mines, less probably sunk for a pair of depth charges randomly launched without sonar contact by INS Rajput. This scenario departs from this initial historical situation the first day of war, and speculates with Ghazi surviving the minelaying attempt at Visakhapatnam, and hunting for Vikrant in the Bay of Bengal. Unnamed places are: ZTp Visakhapatnam port, India. ZQp Madras/Chennai port, India. ZRp Haldia/Calcutta port; India. ZQp Port Blair port, India. Enrique Mas, September 2013. -
File Name: Fate of PNS Ghazi, 1971. Historical Scenario. File Submitter: broncepulido File Submitted: 28 Sep 2013 File Category: IOPG Fate of PNS Ghazi, 1971. Historical Scenario. A Harpoon Commander's Edition scenario for the EC2003 Battle for the IOPG Battleset and the HCCW-130923 1950-1975 Cold War Platform Database. Image: AGSS-479 USS Diablo after the Fleet Snorkel conversion in 1964, in Long Island Sound and before the delivery to the Pakistani Navy. Source: Wikipedia Commons and navsource.org, probably first released by LCDR Tomme J. Lambertson USN (RET). To avoid spoilers is better to play this scenario a few times first playing the Pakistani/Blue side, and only after the Indian/Red side. Is a long ASW scenario with very limited forces in quantity and quality in both sides, sailing the immense Bay of Bengal, where from long time nothing happens, but with frantic moments after the enemy is in contact. The PNS Ghazi (a title given to Muslim warriors or champions) was a Tench-class submarine (SS-479 USS Diablo) transferred to Pakistan on 1 June 1964 after a Fleet Snorkel conversion (The Fleet Snorkel conversion were conversion of fleet boats by far cheaper, slower, noisier and with poorer sensors than the more celebrated GUPPY conversions, developed to fulfil the number of submarines requested by the US Navy, impossible with the expensive Guppies. The Fleet Snorkel keep the four original fast-running electric engines not replacing them by two quieter slow-running engines, as the Guppies, and her hull and sail are not so streamlined as in the Guppies. Also, it was at least two Fleet Snorkel main variants: an US Navy variant with the big German-derivative BQR-2 chin-mounted passive sonar array, and other diverse austere variants for export, mainly for training submarine crews and employ the Fleet Snorkels as targets in ASW exercises in many allied navies, with simpler sensors, usually the BQR-3 passive sonar, an old JT in a dome. And as a Tench-class Fleet Snorkel converted her torpedo capacity was 28, not 24 as in the Gato and Balao-classes conversions. In the 1965 Indo-Pakistani War PNS Ghazi was the only submarine in both sides, and sailed in deterrent preventing the major ships of the Indian Navy to came out of harbour, and supporting Operation Dwarka, but not firing anytime in anger. In the 1971 Indo-Pakistani War, concluded after a fast 13 days campaign with the secession of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), the Pakistani Navy strategic plan was to send Ghazi into the Bay of Bengal, to mine some ports, to do some intelligence and to menace and prevent with her presence the use of the Indian Navy sole carrier, INS Vikrant. Ghazi was the only one Pakistani submarine capable of that task because her greater range (11000 nm against 4500 nm) and higher weapons capacity than the three modern Pakistani Daphne-class submarines, but noisier and with older sensors than the French-made boats. As the mission was considered highly dangerous Ghazi staff was changed to employ young naval officers, under the new command of Commander Zafar Muhammada Khan, promoted to this rank only four days before the mission begins. After looking for Vikrant in Madras/Chennai, and perhaps induced to go to Visakhapatnam by some Indian settled HUMINT trap, Ghazi was sunk near the entrance of that last harbour, when was executing minelaying operations. She was lost with all hands, but the sinking causes are dubious, more probable an spontaneous internal explosion caused by hydrogen leaked from the batteries or the accidental explosion of one of her own mines, less probably sunk for a pair of depth charges randomly launched without sonar contact by INS Rajput. This scenario departs from this initial historical situation the first day of war, and speculates with Ghazi surviving the minelaying attempt at Visakhapatnam, and hunting for Vikrant in the Bay of Bengal. Unnamed places are: ZTp Visakhapatnam port, India. ZQp Madras/Chennai port, India. ZRp Haldia/Calcutta port; India. ZQp Port Blair port, India. Enrique Mas, September 2013. Click here to download this file
-
File Name: Operation Ivy Bells, 1971. File Submitter: broncepulido File Submitted: 27 Jan 2013 File Category: WestPac Operation Ivy Bells, 1971. The Halibut finest moment. This picture of USS Halibut in San Francisco Bay is a USN official photo apparently in public domain, retrieved from navysource.org, published on that site as courtesy of Darryl Baker. A Harpoon Commander's Edition scenario for the WestPac Battleset and the HCCW-120614 Cold War Platform Database. This scenario is designed for play by the US/Blue or the Soviet/Red side, to avoid spoilers is better to play first some times the US/Blue side and only after play the Soviet/Red side. The noisy and peculiar USS Halibut (originally SSGN-587) was previously a Regulus strategic missile carrier later converted in a apparently conventional SSN, after the Regulus cruise missile was retired and his patrols deleted just some months before the introduction of the SSBN patrols. But Halibut was not a quiet fish. Halibut was converted for special covert operations in the Cold War, exploiding the room of her cavernous hangar, but her conversion and her missions not yet full exposed or detailed (aside this one, Halibut was previously employed on at least another great mission, Operation Sand Dollar, locating on 1968 the accidentally sunken K-129, a Soviet Golf-class SSB, for her ulterior recovery in Project Azorian). The basic design was developed by Dr. John P. Craven head of USN Deep Submergence Systems Project. From summer 1971 she was equipped on the after deck with a fixed divers decompression and lockout chamber simulating a DSRV submersible, for very deep saturation divers breathing an helium and oxygen mixture with methods researched at SeaLab. Operation Ivy Bells was based on the intuition of Captain James E. Bradley Jr. director of undersea warfare at the Office of Naval Intelligence about the existence of a undersea communications and telephone cable in the Sea of Okhotsk between the Soviet SSB/SSBN base at Petropavlosk in the very far and almost isolated Kamchatka Peninsula and his Pacific Fleet Headquarters near Vladivostok. The idea was, one time determined the cable emplacement (and previously guaranteed his existence in the same mission!) to tape it with a device working through induction, without violate physically the cable, and even with the adequate legal converture within the bounds of international law, out of the three mile limit of the Soviet territorial waters. The mission was a complete success, the cable was taped, and the Soviets delivered unencrypted plain text messages by the cable, thinking it was sure. Later, other cables will be taped by other US submarines, but this was the first one. And so, on October 1972, Halibut sailed with her captain Commander John E. Mcnish from Mare Island to hunt the West Shore of the Kamchatka Peninsula with the covert mission of retrieve debris of the SS-N-12 anti-ship missile, but actually after signals of fantasy cables and to an uncertain future. Probably this is not an easy scenario. Enrique Mas,January 2013. Click here to download this file
-
Operation Ivy Bells, 1971. The Halibut finest moment. This picture of USS Halibut in San Francisco Bay is a USN official photo apparently in public domain, retrieved from navysource.org, published on that site as courtesy of Darryl Baker. A Harpoon Commander's Edition scenario for the WestPac Battleset and the HCCW-120614 Cold War Platform Database. This scenario is designed for play by the US/Blue or the Soviet/Red side, to avoid spoilers is better to play first some times the US/Blue side and only after play the Soviet/Red side. The noisy and peculiar USS Halibut (originally SSGN-587) was previously a Regulus strategic missile carrier later converted in a apparently conventional SSN, after the Regulus cruise missile was retired and his patrols deleted just some months before the introduction of the SSBN patrols. But Halibut was not a quiet fish. Halibut was converted for special covert operations in the Cold War, exploiding the room of her cavernous hangar, but her conversion and her missions not yet full exposed or detailed (aside this one, Halibut was previously employed on at least another great mission, Operation Sand Dollar, locating on 1968 the accidentally sunken K-129, a Soviet Golf-class SSB, for her ulterior recovery in Project Azorian). The basic design was developed by Dr. John P. Craven head of USN Deep Submergence Systems Project. From summer 1971 she was equipped on the after deck with a fixed divers decompression and lockout chamber simulating a DSRV submersible, for very deep saturation divers breathing an helium and oxygen mixture with methods researched at SeaLab. Operation Ivy Bells was based on the intuition of Captain James E. Bradley Jr. director of undersea warfare at the Office of Naval Intelligence about the existence of a undersea communications and telephone cable in the Sea of Okhotsk between the Soviet SSB/SSBN base at Petropavlosk in the very far and almost isolated Kamchatka Peninsula and his Pacific Fleet Headquarters near Vladivostok. The idea was, one time determined the cable emplacement (and previously guaranteed his existence in the same mission!) to tape it with a device working through induction, without violate physically the cable, and even with the adequate legal converture within the bounds of international law, out of the three mile limit of the Soviet territorial waters. The mission was a complete success, the cable was taped, and the Soviets delivered unencrypted plain text messages by the cable, thinking it was sure. Later, other cables will be taped by other US submarines, but this was the first one. And so, on October 1972, Halibut sailed with her captain Commander John E. Mcnish from Mare Island to hunt the West Shore of the Kamchatka Peninsula with the covert mission of retrieve debris of the SS-N-12 anti-ship missile, but actually after signals of fantasy cables and to an uncertain future. Probably this is not an easy scenario. Enrique Mas,January 2013. -
File Name: Pearl Harbor Midget Submarine Action, Day of Infamy File Submitter: broncepulido File Submitted: 22 Aug 2012 File Category: WestPac Midget Submarine Action in the Pearl Harbor Attack. This scenario is designed to be played from the Japanese/Red side, or the American/Blue side, but is better to play first the Japanese side. The Day of Infamy 7 December 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor is almost only remembered by the Japanese carrier-based air attack, but a very controversial, analysed and with few results midget submarine attack was in course a few hours earlier, and it was near to denial the surprise to the main Japanese attack. Later midget submarine actions against Sidney, Madagascar and other places were also a failure, and they were as consequence redeployed as last stance coastal defence. In fact, the first shots and victory in the Pacific War was those of the DD-139 USS Ward (here represented by USS Kane) against one of the Japanese mini-submarines, sinking she. This scenario is an essay to force the limits of the GE and the DB, and of probably impossible victory for the Red/Japanese player (Some hints: one solution can be to slown down the game to 10 or 30 seconds compression and reset the height to periscope deep each time the submarine surfaces, it's possible to penetrate the port and get again periscope depth in the interior bay). As Hawaii is not present in the WestPac map, I used the wider Cavite Bay in representation of Pearl Harbor. Also, I've replaced some few ship classes or configurations with other of similar characteristics. Enrique Mas, August 2012. Picture credit: DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY -- NAVAL HISTORY AND HERITAGE COMMAND http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-forn...apsh-h/ha19.htm Updated 23 August 2012: modified course of groups AES and AIS to avoid going aground. Click here to download this file
-
Midget Submarine Action in the Pearl Harbor Attack. This scenario is designed to be played from the Japanese/Red side, or the American/Blue side, but is better to play first the Japanese side. The Day of Infamy 7 December 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor is almost only remembered by the Japanese carrier-based air attack, but a very controversial, analysed and with few results midget submarine attack was in course a few hours earlier, and it was near to denial the surprise to the main Japanese attack. Later midget submarine actions against Sidney, Madagascar and other places were also a failure, and they were as consequence redeployed as last stance coastal defence. In fact, the first shots and victory in the Pacific War was those of the DD-139 USS Ward (here represented by USS Kane) against one of the Japanese mini-submarines, sinking she. This scenario is an essay to force the limits of the GE and the DB, and of probably impossible victory for the Red/Japanese player (Some hints: one solution can be to slown down the game to 10 or 30 seconds compression and reset the height to periscope deep each time the submarine surfaces, it's possible to penetrate the port and get again periscope depth in the interior bay). As Hawaii is not present in the WestPac map, I used the wider Cavite Bay in representation of Pearl Harbor. Also, I've replaced some few ship classes or configurations with other of similar characteristics. Enrique Mas, August 2012. Picture credit: DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY -- NAVAL HISTORY AND HERITAGE COMMAND http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-forn...apsh-h/ha19.htm Updated 23 August 2012: modified course of groups AES and AIS to avoid going aground. -
File Name: "Iron Lady" SNS Dedalo, Mediterranean ASW 1989 File Submitter: broncepulido File Submitted: 17 Apr 2011 File Category: MEDC A Mediterranean basically ASW scenario inspired by the old scenario booklets of the Harpoon 3 series of the late 1980s and early 1990s, good for easy gameplay and for testing generic tactics and weapons. Actually is a mix-up of individual naval scenarios as only the Computer Harpoon can provide. And reflecting all the knowledge adquired the last years in some matters, as about Soviet/Russian platforms and forces composition. The scenario is also a tribute to the USS Cabot CVL-28/SNS Dedalo R01 and her American and Spanish crews. Dedalo/Cabot was a Leyte Gulf veteran, survivor of two Kamikaze impacts and many more suicide attacks, and called by Admiral Halsey "Iron Lady". Serving in the Spanish Armada from 1967 as helicopter carrier and equipped with Harriers from 1972, historically Dedalo was decommisioned contemporary to the scenario timeline, traversed the Atlantic Ocean the last time from 12 July 1989 towards New Orleans and was sadly scrapped on 2002 after some failed attempts to preserve she as museum ship. The scenario reflects the start of the conventional WWIII as was forecasted for about 1989, the first movements in the Mediterranean Sea to determinate the early control of the sea lanes, and the first days of open combat after the previous period of Phoney War. Modification 18 April 2011: missing ASW patrols in the Dedalo group added. Modification 9 May 2011: 1xalternative starting point changed for Agosta, to prevent running aground. Enrique Mas, April 2011 Click here to download this file
-
A Mediterranean basically ASW scenario inspired by the old scenario booklets of the Harpoon 3 series of the late 1980s and early 1990s, good for easy gameplay and for testing generic tactics and weapons. Actually is a mix-up of individual naval scenarios as only the Computer Harpoon can provide. And reflecting all the knowledge adquired the last years in some matters, as about Soviet/Russian platforms and forces composition. The scenario is also a tribute to the USS Cabot CVL-28/SNS Dedalo R01 and her American and Spanish crews. Dedalo/Cabot was a Leyte Gulf veteran, survivor of two Kamikaze impacts and many more suicide attacks, and called by Admiral Halsey "Iron Lady". Serving in the Spanish Armada from 1967 as helicopter carrier and equipped with Harriers from 1972, historically Dedalo was decommisioned contemporary to the scenario timeline, traversed the Atlantic Ocean the last time from 12 July 1989 towards New Orleans and was sadly scrapped on 2002 after some failed attempts to preserve she as museum ship. The scenario reflects the start of the conventional WWIII as was forecasted for about 1989, the first movements in the Mediterranean Sea to determinate the early control of the sea lanes, and the first days of open combat after the previous period of Phoney War. Modification 18 April 2011: missing ASW patrols in the Dedalo group added. Modification 9 May 2011: 1xalternative starting point changed for Agosta, to prevent running aground. Enrique Mas, April 2011
