Hi, gang. Well, we held mission 5 last night, which involved the TOD pilots try to protect (Germans) or destroy (Soviets) a German armored column before the panzers could smash a Red Army depot (an oil refinery, actually). The armor column consisted of 4 panzers and 2 flakpanzers. Flying top cover for this were 6 Fw190A-8 fighters, with the 4x20mm gun package. Opposing this were (if I've got this straight) 6 lend-lease Typhoons escorted by 5 La5 fighters.
Dawn found the German column a scant 12 miles from their objective. The sight of friendly aircraft overhead heartened the panzer crews, and advanced reccon showed no Red Army mechanized forces anywhere near enough to prevent the anhilation of the Soviet fuel depot. Destruction of the target would significantly delay a Soviet offensive expected to begin within days. The only thing standing between the panzers and their target was the Red Air Force.
The commander of the Red Air Force unit tasked with smashing the German column attempted to send his light fighters in high to engage the Luftwaffe top cover, while his tank-killing aircraft came in low. It might have worked too, had the two groups of aircraft arrived over the battle field at the same time. The Soviet La5 fighters did indeed engage the German planes hovering protectively above their charges, and the ensueing fight last several minutes. Had the Russian-flown Typhoons arrived at that decisive moment, they would probably have had at least one quick, unmolested pass at the German armored vehicles. Unfortunately (for the Russians), their ground-hugging altitude prevented them from locating the armor for the crucial few minutes the Fw190's were dealing with the Soviet escorts.
"The fog of war..." As things happened, the La5's were quickly dispatched by the superior aircraft of the Luftwaffe. Their gallant sacrifice was in vane. Just as the Germans finished dispatching the last of the La5's, the Typhoons were spotted by the armored vehicles. A radio call to their own top-cover brought the Luftwaffe fighters screaming down out of the dawn sky like avenging angels, and the Red Air Force fighter-bombers were slaughtered to the last man.
Minutes later, the German tanks found themselves on a ridge overlooking the depot, within easy maingun range. Their enemy postrate before them, the skilled German tank crews unleashed a rain of destruction. The fuel depot was left a raging inferno, with only minor losses to the attacking force. The Red Army juggernaut was halted...for the moment. The Wehrmach, realing like a punch-drunk prize fighter, had gained a few precious weeks respite in which to search for some miracle to prevent the inevitable onslaught...
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Well done, all who participated last night. We ran this once before, and the results were a smashing victory for the Germans. I thus adjusted the side ratios to give the Russians an almost 2:1 advantage in aircraft (in numbers, if not quality) for this second go-around...it didn't help. The Russian plan might have worked, but was predicated on the twin assumptions that A) the La5's could keep the Fw190's busy; and B) that the Typhoons would arrive at precisely the right moment. Any Russian flyers who bailed or ditched are considered rescued for purposes of their TOD life. Any Germans who bailed/ditched within icon-range of a German vehicle is considered rescued as well. Please send me a short AAR, even if you died, so your status within this TOD can be logged. Thanks again, and hope it was fun for all.
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Sabre, a.k.a. Rojo
(S-2, The Buccaneers)
