34th Scenario posted this year!

 

See for yourself if history could have played out differently at the Bay of Pigs. This scenario uses the Colonial Wars database edited by Paul Bridge.

 

Bay of Pigs

 

 

On April 14th, 1961, six ships departed a Nicaraguan training camp where they had spent months training with CIA instructors. Brigade 2506 was to land at the Bay of Pigs in southern Cuba to overthrow Castro's regime. Sixteen B-26C Invader medium-range bombers were ready in Central America to support their invasion.

 

Cuba's army and militia, while numerically strong, were thought to be poorly motivated and likely to switch sides when the invasion took place. Cuba's air force was poorly equipped, had low servicability, and would be destroyed on the ground by the rebel B-26s and by US strikes on the main airbases. After all, it was the CIA who had organised the invasion.

 

In reality, President Kennedy had inherited the operation from his predecessors and, while unwilling to pull the plug, he severely limited the support that could be given and personally ordered a veto against air strikes on Cuban airbases.

 

This scenario starts on April 15th 1961 and lasts 24 hours. It uses Paul Bridge's Colonial Database (v1.5 July 6th, 2005). Thanks to Paul for many database updates.

 

ORDERS FOR CUBA

 

SITUATION

 

CIA remains committed to the removal of the Communist government of Cuba by any means possible. President Kennedy appears to be no different from his predecessors in advocating invasion and assassination plots against our country.

 

The Soviet Union has reacted enthusiastically to our requests for arms and, so far, 4 MiG-15s and some shipments of Czech submachine guns have been received. Most of our air force personnel are training on MiG-15, MiG-19 fighters, and the new SA-2 SAM rockets in Russia and Czechoslovakia. Only some trainee fighter pilots and the 4 captains piloting the Migs are available to support our B26 bombers in defending Cuba.

 

ORDERS

 

Your orders are to defend Cuba against potential aggression. The timing of such aggression is expected within the next day, but be wary of attempts to draw out our forces to reduce their effectiveness.

 

Intel reports that the CIA has used training camps in Florida, Nicaragua and Guatemala to train a unit known as Brigade 2506. They appear to have access to military aircraft and are thought to be planning a parachute or ship insertion somewhere in Cuba.

 

 

ORDERS FOR REBELS

 

"Men of Brigade 2506; the liberation of our country has begun!

 

We will invade Cuba! Our training has honed our small arms skills, taught us how to cooperate with our air power, and made us familiar with the Landing Ships from which we will unload our tanks, our infantry companies, and our supplies. Good Luck"

 

<<Eyes Only Commander Brigade 2506>>

 

President Kennedy has personally approved the operation. U-2 reconnaissance missions have been planned. The Amphibious Landing Ship USS San Marco with two escorting destroyers will support our invasion and escort us in.

 

The Essex Carrier group will be flying cover missions over the beachheads enabling our unescorted B-26C bombers to level the enemy.

 

Author: Freek Schepers

 

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There's an interesting article about the role of airpower during the Cuban missile crisis in the latest issue (August 2005) of Air Force Magazine, found here.