Invasion Sicily
"On the night of 9-10 July 1943, an Allied armada of 2,590 vessels launched one of the largest combined operations of World War II— the invasion of Sicily. Over the next thirty-eight days, half a million Allied soldiers, sailors, and airmen grappled with their German and Italian counterparts for control of this rocky outwork of Hitler's 'Fortress Europe.' When the struggle was over, Sicily became the first piece of the Axis homeland to fall to Allied forces during World War II. More important, it served as both a base for the invasion of Italy and as a training ground for many of the officers and enlisted men who eleven months later landed on the beaches of Normandy". (courtesy: ehistory.com)
So sets the stage for the next Aces High scenario, "Invasion: Sicily" (designed by Buzzbait).
Invasion: Sicily is perhaps the most ambitious scenario we've ever undertaken. It encompasses the combined efforts of our air, naval and ground units, inextricably linked to supplies and resources through rail, ship and road. The terrain (created by Sundog) finds the island of Sicily flanked by the coast of North Africa to its West, the toe of the Italian peninsula to the North, the islands of Malta and Pantellerina to the South. On land lies a web of airfields, cities, towns, factories, depots, and batteries - many of which will become an integral part of your operations. At sea await a host of fleets, poised for invasion or defence.
Funked (Allies) and AUB (Axis) will be your Commanding Officers. Both of them are proven leaders and it will be up to them to decide on the course of action (out of the myriad of possibilities) that will lead them to victory. Both may attack to gain territory, both may defend. Both may split operations to strike at resources, or both may concentrate forces on a limited number of objectives. The possibilities are endless, and the outcome is anyone's guess.
You are cordially invited (strongly encouraged!) to take part in Invasion: Sicily. Registration opens this Saturday, February the 16th, and remains open for 10 days. It will not be first come first serve, and you will not be asked to register for a particular plane type. Instead we'll be going with a lottery system. At the end of the ten day registration process, if more than 250 people register, only 250 people will be selected (randomly). You will be asked for your contact info, plane-type preference (only), and any squad affiliation. Once we have the registrants sorted into sides, the CO's will then sort them into the scenario squads based on their own criteria. Squads and singles will both be accomodated, and we will be accepting walk-ons.
Invasion: Sicily will be played out over two consecutive weekends as follows:
Frame One: 3 PM EST, Saturday March 16
Frame Two: 5:30 PM EST, Saturday March 16
Frame Three: 3 PM EST, Saturday March 23
Frame Four: 5:30 PM EST, Saturday March 23 Stay tuned for the Invasion: Sicily website (open this Saturday the 16th) for more scenario info.
-----------------
Sides :
Allied Squadrons and Aircraft :
British Commonweath :
Malta Fighter Wing
- 417 RCAF Squadron Spit V
- 249 Squadron RAF Spit V
- 242 Squadron RAF Spit IX
Malta Tactical Wing
- 1st SAAF Squadron Hurricane IV's (sub Hurricane IIC)
- 3rd SAAF Squadron Hurricane IV's (sub Hurricane IIC)
Based on Aircraft Carrier HMS `FORMIDABLE`
Fleet Air Arm
- 800 Squadron F.A.A. Seafire IIC
- 804 Squadron F.A.A. Sea Hurricane IIC
- 820 Squadron F.A.A. Avenger TBM
USAAF
1st Fighter Group
- 27th Fighter Squadron P-38F (Sub P-38L)
- 94th Fighter Squadron P-38F (Sub P-38L)
57th Fighter Group
- 64th Fighter Squadron P-47D11`s
- 65th Fighter Squadron P-47D11`s
USAAF Bomber Groups
- 310th Bomber Group B-25 (Sub B-26)
- 340th Bomber Group B-25 (Sub B-26)
- 250th Bomber Group B-24 (Sub Lancaster)
- 98th Bomber Group B-17F (Sub B-17G)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Axis Squadrons and Aircraft
German
Jagdgeschwader 77
I Gruppe
- 1st Staffel 109G2
- 2nd Staffel 109G2
Jagdgeschwader 53
II Gruppe
- 4th Staffel 109G6
- 5th Staffel 109G6
Schlachtgeschwader 2
II Gruppe
- 5th Staffel 190A5
- 6th Staffel 190A5
Kampfgeschwader 77 (Staffels with 9 Pilots)
II Gruppe
- 5th Staffel Ju88A
- 6th Staffel Ju88A
Reggia Aeronautica
- 3o Stormo
- 83a Squadriglia MC205
- 153a Squadriglia MC202
- 154a Squadriglia MC205
Naval Task Groups
British
- 1 CV Task Group (Carrier and Cruiser, plus DE's)
- 1 Cruiser Task Group (2 Cruisers, plus DE's)
- 1 Convoy Task Group (8 DE's)
U.S.
- 1 Cruiser Task Group (2 Cruisers, plus DE's)
- 1 Convoy Task Group (8 DE's)
Italian:
- 1 Cruiser Task Group (2 Cruisers, plus DE's)
Both sides have a limited number of PT Boats, LT2's and LT4's and C47's for troop transport and Ground Vehicles.
-----------------
Best of luck,
Aces High Scenario Team
Nash - Team Leader
banana
DmdJordi
Buzzbait
BNg
