Modern Dogfight using Lacquered Coffins (Modified)

[Lord Kermit of Birkenhead]

Wernt critical, just askin

[bigjackmac]

Ian,

Nah man, I was thanking Terry for his offer of reference material, not a comment on the insignias

V/R,
Jack

[bigjackmac]

All,

So it's 1130 on 3 Feb 1990, and again the Cuban Liberation Air Force (CLAF) is enroute to tangling with Communist fighters of the Castro regime.  But things have changed up a bit: Generalissimo Waraldonez ordered a reorganization of the CLAF fighter squadron.  Heavy casualties have been sustained, and while the aircraft can (and are) be replaced, getting new fighter pilots is an altogether different story.  The Generallissimo ordered the best pilots of the attack squadrons (also flying F-4 Phantoms) to be reassigned as replacement pilots to bring the fighter squadron back up to 12 pilots.  The attack squadron commanders complained, but relented when the Generalissimo pointed out the attack squadron aircraft wouldn't survive the war without a fighter squadron to take on the enemy MiGs.

The first fight on the morning of Day 3 saw an even up fight between three F-4 Phantoms and three MiG-21s, in which the Castro forces downed one F-4 and Bruiser 04 downed all three of the enemy MiGs, becoming the CLAF's first Ace.  Now we have Blackjack 01 (a Veteran), 02 (Regular), and 03 (Veteran) squaring off against four of Castro's Air Force MiG-21s, so stand by for action.


Overview, north is up, with the CLA aircraft at right (east), heading west and the Castro regime aircraft at bottom left (southwest), heading east.   So the sides are bit different, with two groups of fighters having been out and about looking for trouble, but not finding any until they turned about to head home. 


Blackjack 03 is a bona fide killer.  To see how the fight went down, please check the blog at:
http://cubalibrewargame.blogspot.com/2017/08/phantoms-over-havana-fight-8.html

In the next fight we see a four on four match, thought he CLAF has two Regular and two Rookie pilots heading into the fight.  Coming right up!

V/R,
Jack

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

Oh nice

[Terry37]

Always enjoy seeing pictures of your games. Keep'em coming please!

Terry

[bigjackmac]

Thanks fellars, more to come!

V/R,
Jack

[bigjackmac]

All,

So it's 1800 on 3 Feb 1990, and the Cuban Liberation Air Force (CLAF) has an entire flight inbound, looking to clash with a flight of Castro-regime MiGs intent on intercepting inbound CLAF ground attack aircraft.  Boxer 01, 02, 03, and 04 are ready for a fight; Boxer flight had suffered the heaviest so far in the campaign, and so now they were down to two Regular pilots and two Rookie pilots, men that flew F-4 Phantoms in the close air support/interdiction squadrons, now pressed into duty as fighter plots.  They will treated as Rookies only for their first fight, after that they will considered Regulars (they're not actually Rookie pilots, they're just not used to being used for air superiority missions).

The first two fights on Day 3 of the War of Liberation have been unqualified successes, with one F-4 lost and one damaged, to five MiGs lost and one damaged, with one pilot in the Bruiser flight becoming the CLAF's first Ace, and a pilot in the Blackjack flight getting his fourth kill.  Boxcar flight has but a single pilot with a kill, Boxcar 01, and it is but a single kill.


Apparently the Communists were pissed!  MiG-21s slash hither and thither, damaging Boxcar 02 and launching a missile at Boxcar 01.  To see how the forces of liberation performed, please check the blog at:
http://cubalibrewargame.blogspot.com/2017/08/phantoms-over-havana-fight-9.html

Three more dogfights over Havana to come, then some different stuff, on the way!

V/R,
Jack

[Terry37]

Great Report, and looks like it was a fun game.

I believe you said you were using 1:600 scale models, which for the more modern jets seems right. I have some 1:300 and they are huge!

I am not familiar with your rules, but please tell me how you handle a plane flying off the edge off the board? In my rules (modified Blue Max) they come in on he opposite edge.

Please keep those reports coming!!!

Terry

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

Wow, a bit interesting that one! 🇨🇺

[bigjackmac]

Lemmey, ya bastid

Terry - yes Sir, 1/600.  I wish I'd have done WWII in 1/300, but the smaller scale works well for me with jets.

Regarding heading off the table (and trying to get back into the fight, as opposed to withdrawing), the game used card activation.  So when a plane goes off the board I leave its card in the deck, and he has to pass a pilot check to come back on, arriving in the same spot he left, just facing the opposite direction.

V/R,
Jack

[bigjackmac]

All,

So it's 0900 on 4 Feb 1990, and the Cuban Liberation Air Force (CLAF) has an entire flight inbound, looking to clash with a flight of Castro-regime MiGs intent on intercepting inbound CLAF ground attack aircraft.  The Cuban Liberation Army's blitzkrieg-style invasion has been an unprecedented success, and the CLAF pilots can feel it.  The way CLA ground forces are thundering forward, eating up Castro's territory, it won't be long before the Communists no longer have serviceable airfields available.  

Bruiser flight is in the air, with a Regular pilot (Bruiser 03) and two Rookies (Bruisers 02 and 04) led by an Ace (Bruiser 01, looking for a fight.


The Cuban Ace, Bruiser 01, is a predator.  He leaves the formation, cutting hard left and going nose to nose with Red 03, sending the MiG-21 down in a ball of flames with some well-placed 20mm cannon fire.  To see how the fight went, please check the blog at:
http://cubalibrewargame.blogspot.com/2017/09/phantoms-over-havana-fight-10.html

Two more fights left in the War of Liberation.

V/R,
Jack

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

Interesting fight, they're never one sided!

[bigjackmac]

Just lucky I s'pose.  Next fight coming right up!

V/R,
Jack

[bigjackmac]

All,

So it's 1330 on 4 Feb 1990, and the Cuban Liberation Air Force (CLAF) has a pair of F-4 Phantoms on Combat Air Patrol, circling above Havana, as a trio of MiG-21s streaks out to meet them.  The ground war is so successful that the Castro regime is on its last legs, and his pilots are finding it harder and harder to locate fuel, munitions, and even serviceable airfields still in Communist hands!

The CLAF fighters are members of Blackjack flight, specifically Blackjack 01, a Veteran pilot, and Blackjack 02, a Regular pilot.


Yeah, just look at that mess!  Quite the furball!  To see how the fight went, please check the blog at:
http://cubalibrewargame.blogspot.com/2017/09/phantoms-over-havana-fight-11.html

Well, one more fight to go, and it really makes me angry...

V/R,
Jack

[bigjackmac]

All,

So it's 1640 on 4 Feb 1990, and the Cuban Liberation Air Force (CLAF) is once again on the prowl.  But the focus of this report, Gentle Reader, is you.  Because I am angry with you, because, for you, I tinkered with the scenario setup and, for you, I tried to make it more interesting and, ultimately, for you, I got the ever-loving @#$% kicked out of me!  So I've got a bone to pick with you, Gentle Reader; but first take a gander at the disaster you inflicted on me.  Or I inflicted upon myself for your benefit...  If it weren't for you, for the "oh, you cheated/used Magic Dice" comments I was sure I'd receive, I'd have probably been a lot happier with the last dogfight of the War of Liberation.

This is a simple two-ship vs two-ship fight, with two of the last MiG-21s left in Castro's Air Force up and about to run into Boxcar 01 and 02, both Regular pilots.


This picture about sums it up...  To see how the fight went, and to check the new posted, official squadron roster, please check the blog at:
http://cubalibrewargame.blogspot.com/2017/09/phantoms-over-havana-fight-12.html

and:
http://cubalibrewargame.blogspot.com/2017/09/cuban-liberation-air-force.html

In any case, enough pissin' and moanin', the War of Liberation is over, we won!  The whole thing was a tremendous amount of fun, and the air campaign portion was a blast.  I think the rules have been sufficiently tested (12 total fights) and they worked like a champ, delivering a lot of tense, fun, dogfights.  I won't claim they're the most realistic or anything, but they do exactly what I want them to do, and I'll be playing them in other eras as well.

So, as always, lets get to some stats.  The Cuban Liberation Air Force started and ended the war with a single fighter squadron: they began with 12 pilots.  Though the war lasted only five days, the squadron quickly lost three pilots killed in action, then robbed some of the ground attack squadrons to replace them, then lost another two pilots killed in action (including one of the replacements).  But they scored well: the Free Cubans ended the war with two Aces and a Veteran pilot.  The CLAF scored a total of twenty victories versus Castro's Air Force, against thirteen losses, with sixteen of those victories coming from the two Aces and one Veteran.

So, with the War of Liberation thus concluded, the single Expeditionary Force's fighter squadron is being expanded to a total of four flights of four (vice the three it had for Liberation), and reorganized in preparation for worldwide deployment.

V/R,
Jack