Flankerk
Posts: 417
Joined: 6/21/2006
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This is a first attempt at an AAR for my first outing with Command. The usual spoiler alerts apply.
I thought I’d try out Duellists as my first game, from the RN point of view this is clearly a pretty difficult scenario, but it has a lot of varied missions involved. Some frankly went better than others.
Effectively Duellists sees the Royal Navy trying to stem the Red Banner Fleet with a group centred on the Invincible. Some air support is available from Scotland but only from Nimrod and Buccaneers.
The CVHG is effectively some way North and in the GIUK Gap.
I set that group to head slowly in a North Westerly direction. Some serious scouts were available with Torbay and Sceptre SSN’s ahead in the Norwegian Sea. I frankly expected these to be by far my best strike and reconnaissance assets…….
Late on 3rd September 1989 we set off.
20.00 Combat Air patrols were set up with a relatively small number of Sea Harrier FRS1.
20.56 A Big Bulge emitting radar detected.
21.42 Sea Harriers splash one Hormone B, but these don’t have a long range.
22.05 Skunk detected, but not localised, and the main group not yet found.
23.26 Now most of the group identified.
23.47 Two Harpoons launched from a patrolling Nimrod to wake things up. No effect.
4th September
02.00 A Badger D breaks through the CAP and gets a decent look at the CVHG. Genuinely surprised to see the aircraft accelerate away from closing Sea Harriers once they were guns only.
3.12 Downbeat radars detected, always a bad sign.
3.38 To cap it all Torbay blew up from a series of depth charges, not funny.
3.40 Some revenge a single Sea Harrier disrupts the Backfire formation, kills two and slows the attack as they turn defensively. A very nice combat but the Harrier eventually runs out of missiles and fuel.
3.50 Vampire Vampire Vampire, and high speed one’s at that.
3.56 A concerted effort against Kitchens generally works, but Cleopatra hit and sinks.
6.46 Sceptre is creeping to rear of the SAG and with Tigerfish torpedoes doesn’t fancy a head on attack. Used mostly to shadow the group now.
9.32 A serious attack now goes in from the available Buccaneers with something like 24 Sea Eagle targeting the Slava class.
9.35 Slava jams and manages to spoof the majority straight onto the Kiev, not actually my target.
9.36 One hit only on Kiev and one hits but malfunctions.
9.38 Harpoons from Nimrods inbound. Again one hit one hits but malfunctions. I have developed a habit of watching the missiles in as that is a game in itself. Two hits doesn’t seem a great return for all that effort to be frank, and the next strikes are some considerable time away.
9.55 Sceptre is shadowing the formation, some way to its rear. Loads up four Harpoons and launches into the group.
10.00 No hits, all swatted down by S-AN-6, frustrating, but an attempt to check any battle damage reveals Kiev is sinking. A good result.
10.20 Got carried away in the excitement and started readying an additional 2 Harriers with Sea Eagles, yeah right.
12.08 Sceptre gets a ping from a Helix, then a torpedo is struck and sinks.
13.51 A solo Nimrod now harassing Slava with two Harpoons, no joy but at least using up defences.
17.17 The next big effort as six Buccaneers take off from Lossiemouth.
18.54 Twelve Sea Eagles away again at Slava.
18.59 One hit registers.
22.05 a follow up attack from Nimrods, this time on Slava who is slowed at the rear of the formation and only making ten knots.
22.26 Two hits and speed immediately dropped to 5 knots.
22.49 Slava sinks. Probably a high point for the RN.
September 5th
5.29 Fleet out of range for a Buccaneer strike. A few Nimrods available and set off.
10.13 Boris Chilikin identified as straggling from the main group and in range of a Sea Harrier with Sea Eagles.
11.31 Boris Chilikin sinks.
11.47 Aspect change on the Red Banner fleet as they head North. Largely lose contact, and few assets that can now reach them. They turn South but running out of time. At least the group only now consists of two Udaloy and two Sovremenny.
16.57 with three hours remaining four Sea Harriers attack, one hit recorded on a Sovremenny which is now lagging behind and on fire.
19.05 Last remaining Buccaneer strike hits with one Sea Eagle onto Boyevy. Both Sovremenyys now in trouble and assumed not to have full SSM capacity.
19.17 The sting in the tail, high speed incoming vampires identified as SS-N-19 Shipwreck. In rapid succession, and just before the game end lost Battleaxe, Newcastle, Invincible and Fort Grange. Both Sovremenyys would have sunk but not in the remaining game time.
Scored as a minor defeat, though more like a defeat snatched from the jaws of victory. Must admit I hadn’t expected the shadowing Oscar and never got a peep from her until too late.
Quite a few real surprises. The AI is nastier than I’d expected, and on a couple of occasions caught me on the hop. Scenarios are very replayable, I will return to this one just to see if I can trap the Oscar.
The scenario looked fantastic, the GIUK looks superb with the bathymetric layers showing.
I found the mouseover data block very useful for plotting attacks, in fact I prefer this to using the range tool.
Both air to air and missile defence is a real game in itself and I tend to find myself watching out for the flak and manoeuvring, highly entertaining. The first time I saw a recon aircraft accelerate away from a following Harrier on guns gave me a bit of a shock too!
LOSSES:
-------------------------------
1x S 107 Trafalgar
1x F 40 Sirius [Type 12I Leander Batch 2TA]
1x S 108 Swiftsure
3x Lynx HAS.3
1x F 88 Broadsword [Type 22 Batch 1]
1x D 80 Sheffield [Type 42 Batch 1]
6x Sea Harrier FRS.1
4x Sea King HAS.5
3x Sea King AEW.2
1x R 05 Invincible
1x A 385 Fort Grange [Fort Class]
EXPENDITURES:
------------------
30x AIM-9L Sidewinder
11x 30mm ADEN Mk4 x 2 Burst [50 rnds]
16x AGM-84D Harpoon IC
39x Sea Dart Mod 1
2x Type 2066 Bandfish
19x Sea Wolf Blk 1
9x Corvus Chaff [Seduction]
38x Sea Eagle
4x UGM-84B Harpoon IA
4x Generic Chaff Salvo [5x Cartridges]
14x Plessey Shield Chaff
11x 20mm/85 Mk15 Phalanx Blk 0 Burst [200 rnds]
13x 114mm/55 Mk8 HE(MP) HE
SIDE: Red Banner Northern Fleet
===========================================================
LOSSES:
-------------------------------
3x Ka-25Ts Hormone B
2x Tu-142MK Bear F Mod 3
6x Tu-95RT Bear D
3x Tu-16RM-1/2 Badger D
2x Tu-22M-3 Backfire C
12x Ka-27PL Helix A
1x TAKR Kiev [Pr.1143 Krechyet]
1x RKR Slava [Pr.1164 Atlant]
1x VTR Boris Chilikin [Pr.1559V]
EXPENDITURES:
------------------
23x Generic Flare Salvo [4x Cartridges, Single Spectral]
1x 23mm AM-23 x 2 Burst [50 rnds]
21x SA-N-7 Gadfly [9M38]
37x AK-130 130mm/54 Twin Frag Burst [2 rnds]
34x AK-630M 30mm/65 Gatling Burst [400 rnds]
69x SA-N-9 Grinch [9M330-2 Kinzhal]
9x Generic Chaff Salvo [4x Cartridges]
3x RGB-75 [Basic Search, Passive Omni]
2x APR-2 Orlan-M
8x PLAB-250 Depth Charge
8x AS-4 Kitchen A Mod 3 [Kh-22N ASM]
3x 23mm AM-23 x 2 Burst [50 rnds]
15x SA-N-4b Gecko [9M33M3]
63x SA-N-6a Grumble [5R55RM]
2x AK-726 76mm/60 Twin Frag Burst [2 rnds]
12x AK-630 30mm/65 Gatling Burst [400 rnds]
20x PK-2 Chaff [TSP-47]
21x AK-100 100mm/59 Frag
24x SS-N-19 Shipwreck [P-700 Granit]
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