English Jets over Uganda, 1973 (Uncle Marks Tutorial #2)

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All Forums >> [New Releases from Matrix Games] >> Command: Modern Operations series >> After Action Report >> English Jets over Uganda, 1973 (Uncle Marks Tutorial #2)

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English Jets over Uganda, 1973 (Uncle Marks Tutorial #2) - 2/23/2020 9:25:41 AM

Varancar

Posts: 19
Joined: 1/31/2020
Status: offline

===================================================================================
BRIEFING
SECRET

090200Z - FLASH PRIORITY

TO: COMMANDER OPERATION PRESS MAGNET

FROM: CHIEF OF AIR STAFF (CAS)

SUBJ: INITIATE OPERATION PRESS MAGNET

1. SITUATION: A WX: BROKEN CLOUDS FORECAST NEXT 12-24 HOURS. NO SIGNIFICANT PRECIPITATION EXPECTED IN AO. WINDS S AT 5 KTS.

B. ENEMY: UGANDA POSSESSES SEVERAL MIG-17 AND MIG-21 A/C. AA ARTILLERY PROBABLY LIMITED TO OLDER PIECES SUCH AS ZU-2S.

C. FRIENDLY: NO CHANGE.

D. ATTS AND DETS: NO CHANGE.

2. MISSION: YOU ARE DIRECTED TO INITIATE OPERATION PRESS MAGNET AT YOUR EARLIEST CONVENIENCE.

A. ATTACK AND DESTROY UGANDAN MILITARY A/C IN YOUR AO. ESTABLISH AIR SUPERIORITY IN YOUR AO.

B. CONDUCT RECONNAISSANCE OF ENTEBBE. SORTIES FLOWN BY THE TWO A/C EQUIPPED WITH RECON GEAR SHOULD FOCUS ON GATHERING INFORMATION ABOUT THE DISPOSITION OF MILITARY FORCES IN ENTEBBE AND ENTEBBE AIRPORT.

PATROL AREA FOR RECONNAISSANCE FLIGHTS IS THE RECTANGULAR AREA BOUNDED BY 0�10'N, 0�N, 32�20'E, AND 32�30'E.

C. ATTACK AND DESTROY FACILITIES AT ENTEBBE AIRPORT, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THE AIRPORT TERMINAL.

D. ATTACK AND DESTROY UGANDAN GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS IN ENTEBBE.

3. EXECUTION: WEAPONS TIGHT. YOU ARE AUTHORIZED TO INITIATE HOSTILITIES, BUT ONLY AGAINST TARGETS IDENTIFIED AS HOSTILE.

BE AWARE THAT YOU WILL BE CONDUCTING YOUR MISSION IN A POPULATED AREA. TRY TO KEEP CIVILIAN CASUALTIES TO A MINIMUM.

B. GROUPINGS AND TASKS: UC NO CHANGE.

SUPPORT EL NO CHANGE.

C. COORDINATING INSTRUCTIONS: NO CHANGE.

D. OPERATIONAL RESTRICTIONS: NO CHANGE.

4. ADMINISTRATION AND LOGISTICS: NO CHANGE.

5. COMMAND AND CONTROL: A. EMCON State C (Unrestricted Emissions).

B. COMMANDER OPERATION PRESS MAGNET IS OFFICER IN TACTICAL COMMAND.

6. GOOD LUCK AND GOD SAVE THE QUEEN, CAS SENDS.

SECRET
===================================================================================

OPERATION PRESS MAGNET
Date: Saturday, 9 June 1973
Zulu: 02:00:00
Local: 04:00:00
Duration: 18 hours
Location: Entebbe, Uganda
Weather: Moderate Middle Clouds 7-16k ft, No Rain

Background:
In 1972, Idi Amin broke diplomatic relations with the United Kingdom and nationalized several British companies operating in Uganda. Following this, a series of incidents have led to increased hostilities between Uganda and the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom has decided that a show of force is necessary.

There are three basic missions:
� Cripple the Ugandan air force in the sky and gain air superiority
� Fly reconnaissance missions over Entebbe
� Conduct air strikes against selected ground targets.

Key Tasks:
� Attack and destroy Ugandan military aircrafts
� Establish Air Superiority
� Conduct Reconnaissance of Entebbe
� Attack and Destroy
- Facilities at Entebbe Airport (exception: Airport Terminal)
- Ugandan Government buildings

Known Enemies:
� Aircrafts
- MIG-17, several
- MIG-21, several
� Anti-Air
- ZU-2S

Available Assets
� x2 Buccaneer S.2B, Recon, Camera Pod [Visual]
� x6 Buccaneer S.2B, Mk13 1000lb GPB
� x8 Lightning F.6, A/A: Red Top
� x4 Phantom II FGR.2, A/A: AIM-7E2 Sparrow III, AIM-9D Sidewinder, SUU-23/A Gun Pod, Heavy
� x4 Phantom II FGR.2, SNEB 100mm Rocket
� x2 Shackleton AEW.2, Airborne Early Warning (AEW)

Initial Thoughts
Distance from Moi Air Base in Kenya to Entebbe is about 275 nm. At an average speed of 480 knots, most aircraft would take about 35 minutes to get there.

To ensure minimum casualties, I need some intel. Local time is 4 am with moderate to middle clouds between 7-16ft. I have 2 Buccaneers with a Recon loadout, however, without daylight, it is pretty useless.

There are many land targets to neutralise. With 6 Buccaneers loaded with Mk13 1000lb GPB and a ready time of 6 hours. Similarly, the 4 remaining Phantom II with SNEB 100mm Rockets also have a ready time of 6 hour. That means that each of my land strike aircraft is only good for 2 sorties each.

I have a dilemma. Should I ignore their Anti Air platforms and go for maximum damage against their buildings or play it safe?

Post #: 1

RE: English Jets over Uganda, 1973 (Uncle Marks Tutoria... - 2/23/2020 9:30:06 AM

Varancar

Posts: 19
Joined: 1/31/2020
Status: offline

Phase 1: Recon
Intent
� Gather intelligence on the disposition of military force in Entebbe to assist in target selection
� AEW airborne with EMCON � Active Radar
� Air Superiority over Lake Victoria to facilitate bombing missions

Summary of Events
At 02:46:57, 2 bogeys were type-classified at fighters over Lake Victoria. Given that they are within Ugandan airspace and no other known military are operating in the same area, I believed that it is safe to say that they�re more likely to be hostile.

Bell #1 (Buccaneer S.2B) has been destroyed by AAA Battery at 02:55:46 while performing reconnaissance. With recon altitude at 200ft AGL, it was well within range of AAA and a costly mistake. Mission parameters were adjusted accordingly to 6,100 ft ASL and another Buccaneer was assigned.

Lion #1 (Lightning F.6) was destroyed at 03:03:50 by hostile MiG-21MF Fishbed J while on Bingo fuel. The pair of Lightning was simply outclassed by the MiGs in a dog fight. With multiple new contacts detected coming out of Entebbe at 480 knots, I concluded that OpFor has scrambled all their jets. I�ve likewise dispatched all my Anti-Air aircrafts to intercept them.

2 Phantoms and 6 Lightnings engaged 12 Bogeys over Lake Victoria. 1 Lightning F.6 was lost in exchange for 11 Ugandan aircrafts. The resulting dog fight forced the strike force to return to base on Bingo and Winchester. We lost another Lightning F.6 to an attack of opportunity by a pursuing Bogey.

At 03:40:42, my last remaining Recon Buccaneer S.2B was intercepted and destroyed over Entebbe by returning aircrafts.

Observations
� Anti-Air platforms range need to be taken into account
� Anti-Air Rear Aspect missiles on a low agility aircraft is a disadvantage against a more agile opponent
� Patrol Area too far from base. Too easy to bingo fuel

(in reply to Varancar)

Post #: 2

RE: English Jets over Uganda, 1973 (Uncle Marks Tutoria... - 2/23/2020 9:32:30 AM

Varancar

Posts: 19
Joined: 1/31/2020
Status: offline

Phase 2: Neutralise AA
Intent
� Neutralise Anti-Air Defence

Summary of Events
Due to the failure to achieve air superiority in Phase 1, mission timelines have been pushed back. There are a few Uganda aircrafts still in the air which makes bombing runs dangerous without escorts. I�ve also pulled back our AEW to be closer to the Moi Air Base as there are 2 hostiles aircraft on intercept course.

Entebbe Anti-Air defence were neutralised at 04:40:00 with one Phantom lost.

Ammo shelters were assigned as additional targets as the Phantoms have not exhausted their supply of rockets. Results were not as expected with only light or medium damage inflicted. No fires reported.

Observations
� Ensure WRA for Rockets are set to 8 rounds instead of 2 rounds. This is a major cause of x1 Phantom casualty

(in reply to Varancar)

Post #: 3

RE: English Jets over Uganda, 1973 (Uncle Marks Tutoria... - 2/23/2020 9:41:32 AM

Varancar

Posts: 19
Joined: 1/31/2020
Status: offline

Phase 3: Land Strike
Intent
� Destroy Ugandan government buildings
� Disable Airport to prevent further sorties
� No civilian casualties

Summary of Events
At 0500 hours, 2 missions were launched. 3 Buccaneers were assigned to neutralise the government and the other 3 were to disable the runways access point. At the same time, Bogey #249 was observed increasing speed from 350 knots to 480 knots heading on an intercept course.

2 Lightnings were ready for launch at were dispatched to intercept. 8 minutes into the mission, bearing was adjusted to Entebbe and contact lost over the airport. Mission appears safe for now. Lightnings were reassigned to patrol Lake Victoria.

At this stage, I have 2 more Lightnings and a Phantom ready to go. 1 Phantom will be ready in just under 1.5 hours, and the remaining 2 Lightnings in 1h50mins time.

The Lightnings arrived within firing range at approximately 0535 hours. Ugandan command and control capabilities has been severely damaged with the lost of their State House at 05:37:37.

At 05:37:37, reports that the State House in Entebbe has been destroyed. If the reports are accurate, we have severely damaged Ugandan command and control capabilities in Entebbe. A minute later, we received reports of a small civilian building being destroyed. The water treatment plant in Entebbe has been destroyed at 05:38:28. We have severely damaged the infrastructure of the city. It is going to cost the Ugandans a lot to fix that, and that's exactly the kind of message Whitehall wanted to send President Amin. Unfortunately, we received reports of a small civilian building being destroyed in the process.

Of the 8 Runway Access Points, 2 were heavily damaged and on fire, and 1 with light damage. The remaining 5 Runway Access Points remained unscathed. We failed to disable the airport.

At 0625 hours, the 3 Phantoms with SNEB 100mm Rocket won�t be ready for another 5h15min and the 6 Buccaneers with Mk13 1000 lb GPB won�t be ready for another 6 hours. 2 contacts were detected leaving the airport and the 2 Lightnings patrolling Lake Victoria has reached Bingo fuel. I needed another 6 more minutes before I can field 4 more planes to overwhelm them. They were neutralised quickly.

6 more contacts were airborne about 5 minutes after which was bad news. My 1 remaining Phantom will be no match for them. At 0655 hours, judging by their speed (best guess 550 knots) and distance (220 nm), they will be on top of Moi Air Base in 24 minutes. I need another 20 minutes for the grounded planes to be ready and another 2-4 minutes to be airborne. My Shackleton may be a casualty at this stage due to its slow speed. The contacts vanished at 0720 hours. Unless they reappear, my assumptions are they�ve returned to base due to Bingo fuel.

In terms of the status of my Air Superiority capable aircrafts:

Aircraft | Status | Loadout | Time to Ready
Phantom II FGR.2 | Parked | Air Superiority | Ready
Phantom II FGR.2 | Parked | Air Superiority | Ready
Phantom II FGR.2 | Parked | Air Superiority | Ready
Phantom II FGR.2 | Readying | Air Superiority | 2hr 59m
Lightning F.6 | Readying | Air Superiority | 0hr 45m
Lightning F.6 | Readying | Air Superiority | 2hr 24m
Lightning F.6 | Readying | Air Superiority | 2hr 25m
Lightning F.6 | Readying | Air Superiority | 2hr 44m
Lightning F.6 | Readying | Air Superiority | 2hr 47m

It will take another 5 hours for all my land strike capable aircrafts ready to go. Unless the situation changes, I will be waiting for all my aircrafts to be readied before launching a coordinated strike.

During the �down time�, a series of missions were set up to overwhelm Uganda forces:

Zulu Time | Mission | Intent
12:00 | Bomber Coverage | Establish Air Superiority over Entebbe before the arrival of the bombers.
12:15 | Neutralise Runway Access | Complete original mission to disable runway access to neutralise response via aircrafts
12:20 | Neutralise Ammo and Fuel | Remove ability to rearm aircrafts
12:25 | Neutralise Government | Operation Press Magnet objective

A hostile MiG-21MF Fishbed J was neutralised on route to establish Air Superiority over Entebbe. 6 more hostile contacts were detected shortly after.

Due to the difference in launch times, OpFor outnumbered us by a 2:1 ratio. After hitting Winchester, we disengaged and were pursued. Missiles were fired buy we managed to evade them.

At 1245 hours, some of the OpFor disengaged, but the first wave of bombers are getting too close for comfort. Unfortunately, without fighters screening them, we lost a Phantom II at 12:51:11.

3 Runway Access points are heavily damaged and on fire. An equal amount was lightly damage and 1 unscathed. Most of the fuel tanks and ammo were also taken out. The only remaining 2 ammo shelter was heavily damaged with 1 on fire. The Control Tower and Ministry of Agriculture was also destroyed with the Military Base suffering medium damage.

By 1350 hours, with the exception of the AEW still airborne, all aircrafts have landed back at Moi Air Base. With 6 hours 10 minutes to go on Operation Press Magnet, there just isn�t enough time left for another bombing run unfortunately.

Observations
� The loss of 2 recon planes early in the operation hurt us badly as we could not determine where the remaining Ugandan air crafts are.
- This meant that we had to target the Runway Access Points instead which is challenging given the sheer number of them
- OpFor aircrafts continue to be able to launch and harass us
� Aircraft launches could be better calibrated to ensure they fly together. Arriving piecemeal is not ideal
� Bombing Runs scheduled to close to fighter screens

(in reply to Varancar)

Post #: 4

RE: English Jets over Uganda, 1973 (Uncle Marks Tutoria... - 2/23/2020 9:44:35 AM

Varancar

Posts: 19
Joined: 1/31/2020
Status: offline

After Action Report
There are objectives for Operation Press Magnet:
� Cripple the Ugandan air force in the sky and gain air superiority
� Fly reconnaissance missions over Entebbe
� Conduct air strikes against selected ground targets.

We failed to cripple the Ugandan air force and gain air superiority during Phase 1. We were overly cautious at the beginning by only sending in small amount of aircrafts that got swiftly overwhelmed. The early losses of some fighters and 2 recon planes greatly hurt our ability to plan optimally to disable Entebbe Airport. This meant that the Ugandan air force were able to continue putting pressure on our forces throughout the operation.

Failure to take into account the Rear-aspect nature of the Red Tops the Lightnings were armed with against the All-aspect missiles the OpFor MiGs have caused unnecessary casualties for us. We should have factored this in and include Phantoms with the Lightnings to cover the weakness.

In the future, we would:
� Change timing of our initial foray to just before dawn to ensure our recon planes have enough daylight to give us better intelligence
� We would be sending in an overwhelming force of Air Superiority aircrafts early on in Phase 1.
� The first wave of bombers would follow shortly behind prioritising Anti-Air defences
� The recon would do quick a recon pass right after
� Targets for the second wave of bombers 30 minutes behind the first wave will be updated with new intel

We should hopefully be able to disable OpFor aircrafts that are still in hangars to reduce the amount of response they could muster throughout the Operation.

We would then repeat the same wave again to gradually wear down the OpFor.

Losses & Expenditure
SIDE: United Kingdom
LOSSES:
� 2x Buccaneer S.2B
� 3x Lightning F.6
� 2x Phantom II FGR.2

EXPENDITURES:
� 3x 30mm ADEN Mk4 x 2 Burst [60 rnds]
� 20x Red Top
� 38x AIM-7E2 Sparrow III
� 3x AIM-9D Sidewinder
� 310x SNEB 100mm Rocket
� 48x Mk13 1000lb GPB

SIDE: Uganda
LOSSES:
� 5x MiG-17F Fresco C
� 10x MiG-21MF Fishbed J
� 12x 14.5mm/73 Twin ZPU-2
� 3x Vehicle (Fire Can [SON-9])
� 1x Radar (Generic Air Traffic Control)
� 12x 37mm/63 M1939
� 3x Binoculars (Visual)
� 1x Building (Very Large)
� 1x Building (Small)
� 1x Structure (Industrial Plant)
� 3x Ammo Shelter
� 2x AvGas (400k Liter Tank)
� 1x AvGas (750k Liter Tank)
� 1x Building (Large)
� 1x Building (Control Tower)

EXPENDITURES:
� 95x 37mm/63 M1939 [5 rnds]
� 9x 23mm Gsh-23L Burst [40 rnds]
� 25x AA-2a Atoll [R-3S]

SIDE: Neutrals
LOSSES:
� 1x Building (Small)
� 1x An-2T Colt

(in reply to Varancar)

Post #: 5

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