AAR: Foothold [Spoiler Alert] - Red

AAR: Foothold [spoiler Alert] - Red

By Daren Lorentz

Following independence from France in 1956, President Habib Bourguiba established a strict one-party state. He dominated the country for 31 years, repressing Islamic fundamentalism and establishing rights for women unmatched by any other Arab nation.Tunisia has a diverse economy, with important agricultural, mining, energy, tourism, and manufacturing sectors. Located in a strategic location in central Mediterranean; Malta and Tunisia are discussing the commercial exploitation of the continental shelf between their countries, particularly for oil exploration.

 

A Magnitude 7.2 Earthquake has hit the Kairouan region in central Tunisia. In an emergency session of the UN, the Tunis Government has requested international aid of food, water and civil and structural engineers. The Tunisian Army is stretched to the limit at this time trying to re-establish order.

 

In an astounding announcement at the UN table, it seems that Libya is making threatening overtones to block all aid underway to Tunisia. Following France's reluctance to put its navy in harm's way to aid an ungrateful colony, the United Kingdom has agreed to provide an escort for the humanitarian ships now assembling at Portsmouth.

Well, the orders were clear enough. Sink the convoy or don't bother coming back. The Colonel certainly had a way of motivating people.

I ordered my Bear AEW assets to spot the Convoy and coordinate for the subs. Unfortunately, the first one was killed by marauding fighters as she passed Cagliari. I would have to give that base a wide berth in the future. I sent the second Bear far to the south. She spotted the convoy making it's transit of Gibraltar and issued intercept vectors to the Rajs Hadi Mubarek and Dzik.

Rajs Hadi Mubarek ate a torp on her approach. Dzik was detected and had a torpedo dropped on her, but she broke contact and raced in. No time to be stealthy. She was barely able to get into range before another torp was dropped on her. She salvoed her 8 torpedoes at two escorts and ran for her life.

Three struck a Sheffield-class frigate and blew her right out of the water. The other four torpedoes cleanly missed the Duke-class FF they were aimed at. However, they did get a consolation prize. They converged on an unsuspecting merchant and put her on the bottom. Dzik had very little time to enjoy her victories. Another helo dropped two more torpedoes on her and both struck. The score was even. Two subs were exchanged for an escort and a merchant.

I ordered a mixed-group of fast missile boats and frigates to full speed. I wanted them to try and widen the hole in the screen so that the submarines could penetrate more easily. However, as they were making their approach, three of them just EXPLODED! Curses, they must have fallen prey to roving ASuW (Anti-Surface Warfare) patrols from Cagliari. The sole survivor was a Sirte-class torpedo boat; more of a liability than an asset. She might be effective against unarmed merchantmen, but she could not stand up to any of the escorts. Only if the remaining escorts could be killed, would she be useful.

The next submarine to make her approach to the convoy was the Foxtrot-class Wilk. She received reports from the orbiting Bear and could see the thick cloud of ASW helos on patrol. The patrols were well-spaced and she would not be able to approach from an oblique angle in order to avoid the screen. Even at flank speed, she could only match the convoy's speed of eighteen knots. A very difficult decision for the skipper. Eventually, he elected to try and penetrate the screen where the Sheffield had already been killed. He would pray and trust in Allah that his boat would survive long enough to deliver her torpedoes.

After a quick sprint, she was in! However, her fortune was short-lived. Helicopters outward-bound to replace those already on patrol must have caught her scent and immediately dropped torpedos on her. Since she had already been detected, there was no further need for stealth. She went to flank speed and kept her trust in Allah. Wilk was able to launch 4 torpedoes at the Montrose, a Duke-class frigate. She barrelled in towards the convoy's centre in hopes of delivering her other four torpedoes into the merchants. However, her luck had run out. A torpedo struck her and she carried her remaining torpedoes with her to the bottom. The crew did not know, but Allah did not forsake them. The four torpedoes struck and sank the Montrose a few minutes later. The score remained tied at 3:3.

A flotilla of missile boats and frigates was annihilated as it attempted to make passage around Cagliari. The next submarine to make contact was the Lada-class boat. There was a gaping hole in the screen, however, the helos were still present. They had been thinned out a bit, but were still very dangerous in their reduced numbers. The Lada elected to try the same daring approach and attack from the front. She was detected and attacked by no less than four helos with a total of 10 torpedoes. After another torpedo exchange, she was killed and her 3 USET-80 torpedoes missed. She would draw no blood.

Well, the direct approach did not prove successful. I only had four Kilo boats left so I decided to try and make an oblique approach from the flank and hope to get behind the screen. The excellent coordination efforts of the Bear allowed the Orzel to slip in behind the screen along with another Kilo. Once in, she approached to point-blank range before loosing her deadly cargo. She sank her 533mm fangs into the Duke escort and ravaged the formation with her UGST claws. A total of eight more ships were sunk and victory was awarded.

A super-challenging scenario from the Red perspective. I can't believe that this is a premiere effort for a new designer.

Check it out on:

HarpGamer.com - Home of the HCDB.

SZO file archives - Home of the Harpoon3 PlayersDB

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