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Battle of the Arctic Sea

147k Pilotmario  6.0 years ago

The Battle of the Arctic Sea, also known as the Operation Tropic, was a naval and air battle over the New Siberian Islands and Wrangel Island between the Paternian Republic and the Iridium Federation. Taking place between 8-19 April 2032, the results were largely inconclusive due to the variety of accounts.

While the unopposed Paternian landings by British Marines and subsequent reinforcement of the islands with British Army Gurkha regiments is certainly not disputed, all other aspects are. Paternian and Iridian accounts are quite contradictory in the conduct of the battle. Both sides claimed victory.

Paternian accounts state that their small naval task force was able to challenge numerically superior Iridian naval forces on account of their superior training, equipment, cohesion, and morale. Where Iridium employed conscripts extensively, all Paternian forces were recruited on a voluntary basis. Paternian servicemembers typically chose to fight, where Iridian servicemembers had little choice in the matter.

In addition, the whole Paternian Navy was equipped with domestically-sourced components, where Iridian naval forces relied on imported electronics. While these electronics were of high quality, they were unsecured and unshielded commercial-grade systems; the Paternian blockade did not restrict commercial-grade products. In contrast, Paternian electronics were sourced from domestic producers in a competitive process that resulted in systems with an excellent balance of cost and capability.

Iridian accounts claim that the assessment that their forces were demoralized, ill-equipped, and ill-trained are untrue.

Prelude

Tensions between the Iridium Federation and the Paternian Republic were high by this point, in part due to Paternian concerns regarding Iridium military buildup. The buildup was based on fears the Paternian Republic, a relatively liberal democracy with progressive leanings, would invade Iridium, a conservative quasi-monarchy with an extensive military-industrial complex. Thus, the Iridium government decided to conduct industrial espionage alongside a massive rearmament campaign to match the Paternian military in capability and power.

As a result, Paternia, concerned about the secretive nature and the high tempo of the rearmament, implemented a blockade of Iridium, as well as imposing sanctions on the sale or transfer of military equipment. This was later extended to items of "military value." Interpretation of this term has resulted in varying restrictions over time.

The Iridium Federation saw this as a breach of sovereignty, and threatened to fight the blockade. However, the Iridium Navy found itself powerless to break the blockade; the Paternian Navy controlled much of the naval chokepoints, and thus was in a position to enact these provisions. Some overland traffic could be passed through, but sympathetic local authorities in foreign states, assisted by Paternia's Information Control Agency, worked to cut off the transfer of military equipment.

The Iridian Navy saw itself as looking weak against the Paternian Navy, and harassed Paternian naval and commercial vessels near Korea and Japan. Paternian response was swift, sending warships through the Sea of Okhotsk in freedom of navigation patrols.

Here, international law was contested. Paternia did not recognize the artificial islands built by the Iridium government in the Sea of Okhotsk as sovereign territory, comparing them to the legal status of oil derricks. In accordance with international law, they only recognized a 12 nautical mile limit from the natural shoreline as Iridium territorial waters.

In contrast, the Iridium government claimed the whole Sea of Okhotsk as territorial waters, and recognized that the artificial islands it has built as sovereign territory of the Iridium Federation.

Both Paternian and Iridium militaries knew a conflict was inevitable, and both have prepared extensively.

Order of Battle

Both Paternia and the Iridium government have deployed extensive military assets in the battle.

Paternian Republic

Much of the Paternian units deployed were in fact from Britain, as the United Kingdom is a member of the Paternian Republic. However, Paternian forces from the US and Canada also participated. Canada has the distinction of contributing combat forces in both the New Siberian Islands and Wrangel Islands.

Ireland sent a single medical company alongside the British force.

Units

Paternian Army

Royal Canadian Army
British Army

Gurkha Brigade (New Siberian Islands)
Royal Irish Regiment
16th Air Assault Brigade
Irish Army (Wrangel Islands, medical personnel only)

Paternian Navy

United States Navy (Wrangel Islands)

Task Force 149
Royal Navy from the United Kingdom (New Siberian Islands)
Task Force 150
Royal Canadian Navy
Task Force 151

Paternian Air Force

United States Air Force (Wrangel Islands)

140th Tactical Fighter Wing
201st Air Mobility Wing
120th Strike Fighter Wing
Royal Air Force (New Siberian Islands)
No. 18 Fighter Squadron
No. 19 Fighter Squadron
No. 21 Logistics Squadron
No. 42 Logistics Squadron

Paternian Marine Corps

United States Marine Corps (Wrangel Island only)

1st Marine Division
Royal Marines from the United Kingdom (New Siberian Islands)
Royal Canadian Marine Corps

Special Forces

US Navy SEALS (Wrangel Island)
Special Air Service (New Siberian Islands)
Special Boat Service (New Siberian Islands)
Joint Task Force-2

Total Strength

58 warships (New Siberian Islands)

5 Landing Ship, Helicopter, Guam-class
6 cruisers, Monarch-class
6 destroyers, California-class
6 destroyers, Endurance-class
8 nuclear attack submarines, A-class
11 frigates, Abe-class
16 frigates, Hope-class
75 auxiliaries, including two hospital ships
175,000 personnel, including air force and naval

285 combat aircraft, 87.7% operational (250 aircraft)

40 C-130J Hercules, 87.5% operational (35 aircraft)
30 F-45B Barracuda, 93.8% operational (28 aircraft)
30 F/A-17C/D Wasp, 93.8% operational (28 aircraft)
45 AV-6B Kestrel/Kestrel GR.6B, 66% operational (30 aircraft)
20 CH-48 Pelican, 75% operational (15 aircraft)
20 MV-28 Vulture, 85% operational (18 aircraft)
100 SH-90A Lynx, 88% operational (88 aircraft)
10 E-2C Hawkeye, 80% operational (8 aircraft)

Over 200 unmanned combat vehicles, including:

55 MQ-151 Overwatch
120 QH-68 DASH
10 RQ-5 Sentinel
unknown numbers of Bluefin-21, less than 5
ScanEagle UAV, up to 30.

Iridium Federation

The Iridium Army was largely inactive, having little sealift capability by the Iridium Navy. Thus, the Iridium Navy and Air Force had to take up much of the strikes.

Iridium Army

2,000 troops (New Siberian Islands)
175 troops (Wrangel Island)

Iridium Navy

59 Aki-class DDG
28 Hariken-class CG (classified as a destroyer by Iridium Navy)
5 aircraft carriers, converted from Iro-class battlecruiser
73 Okhotsk-class PGM
Unknown submarine force
165+ vessels
Additional forces claimed present, never engaged or were not present

Iridium Air Force

Claims that half their Air Force was present, specifically types, including

537 Aurora fighters, all operational
427 Longbow fighters, all operational
38 Arukiri, all operational
81 AWACS, type unspecified, all operational
1083 total, all operational

Paternian intelligence and after-action assessment estimates:

75 Nakajima transports, 5-10 possibly AWACS (33% operational, 25 aircraft including 1 AWACS)
150 KRIEG F-7A/B+ Viper, operational readiness moderate (75%, 113 aircraft)
200 Longbow fighters, operational readiness extremely low (15%, 30 aircraft)
200 Aurora fighters, operational readiness very low (20%, 40 aircraft)
150 Arukiri bombers, operational readiness moderate (70%, 105 aircraft)
total of 775 aircraft (238 operational)

Paternian Invasion

On 8 April, Paternia launched Operation Tropic, the simultaneous occupation of the New Siberian Islands and Wrangel Island. Paternian special forces, notably the Special Air Service, Special Boat Service, and US Navy SEALS, landed in the night of the 7/8th, seizing the radar station and power generation station, destroying both and largely neutralizing the extensive anti-ship and anti-aircraft missile systems. Resistance in the main part of the landing was consequently light, given the vast Paternian numerical advantage in the assault, superior equipment, the low morale of the forces stationed there, and lack of preparation of defenses.

Almost all of the defending forces were captured in the first days. The Marines, assisted by Navy engineers, prepared defensive positions in the New Siberian Islands and Wrangel Island. These included the installation of Defender anti-aircraft missiles, GATOR multi-purpose radar systems, truck-mounted HSLAM anti-ship missile batteries, and Sentinel vehicle-based air defense systems. In addition, some of the Iridium defenses were reactivated, notably the Zircon batteries.

In addition, Paternian Air Force engineers set up airfields on Kotenly and Little Lyakhovsky Island, stationing several F-45B Barracuda and F/A-17C/D Wasp fighter aircraft in addition to a defensive perimeter against a ground invasion, naval attack or air attack.

Iridium Counterattacks

The Iridium government's response was swift, mobilizing much of their air force and naval assets in the area. However, the response was as swift as it was disorganized; much of the force was inactive, and the rapid mobilization was stymied by the poor conditions of the infrastructure as well as shortages of parts.

The Paternian blockade had limited the amount of foreign assistance which could be purchased, and thus precision machining and military-grade electronics were scarce or outdated.

The Iridium military, knowing they could not retake the islands without dislodging the Paternian Navy, launched a massive assault against the defending Paternian Navy.

However, problems began even before they could begin the operation. Many of the servicemembers were at home. Due to the slow telecommunications network and the surprise of the assault, they were slow to mobilize. In addition, the Paternian blockade meant that much of the intended equipment was not available due to difficulties in production, and those available were sub-standard. However, on 10 April, the Iridium force struck the Paternian Navy holding the islands.

Despite the massive numerical disparity between the forces, the Paternian Navy turned out to have significantly greater firepower; the corvettes were easy prey for Paternian Air Force and Navy strike aircraft. Iridium Air Force strike aircraft found it difficult to penetrate the extensive air defense screen around the islands in addition to that of the Paternian Navy destroyers.

Air War

Much faith was placed on the Aurora and Longbow fighters in establishing air superiority. In clashes with Paternian fighters, it was clear that the fighters were not any better than the Paternian fighters. Parts shortages ensured that the two types would not see much combat; they were maintenance-intensive and suffered from chronic parts shortages. Thus, they could only make an occasional appearance.

Paternian E-2 Hawkeye AWACS and ground-based GATOR stations proved more than adequate warning to their presence, their phased array radar more than sufficient to track and detect Aurora and Longbow. The air battles over the New Siberian Islands were tense, but inconclusive.

Few aircraft were lost; the Iridium pilots were reluctant to engage Paternian fighters in the coverage of air defense systems, and Paternian fighters were reluctant to pursue Iridium aircraft. The Vipers and Arukiri could not penetrate the extensive air defenses of the islands, and Aurora and Longbow fighter wings were reluctant to tie their aircraft to slower, less stealthy types and throw away what advantages they had over Paternian types.

The only significant air attack came on 13 April, comprising of 100 Arukiri and 25 F-7 Vipers for escort. Paternian missile defenses, ground and naval, downed sixteen Arukiri, and the appearance of F-45 Barracuda caused the rest of the formation to ditch their ordnance into the sea and return.

The Iridium Air Force did not make a significant presence; the aircraft which could successfully engage Paternian defenses were not present in any appreciable number, and the aircraft they could muster were unable to engage Paternian defenses without heavy losses.

Naval War

In the seas around the islands, the Iridium Navy was more successful, but hampered by the lack of any fighter cover, presence of anti-ship missile batteries on the East Siberian Islands, and superior Paternian reconnaissance assets.

Paternian strike aircraft from the carriers and the islands were modestly successful. While heavier warships such as the Hariken-class cruiser were able to fend off such attacks, the Okhotsk-class missile boats were far less able to defend themselves against the attacks. Paternian naval intelligence notes that up to 25 missile boats were either disabled or destroyed by Paternian naval and land-based aviation, and the Iridium Navy admits moderate losses. Paternian losses comprised of a single Kestrel, lost in an accident.

The Paternian Navy, knowing that they were severely outnumbered, withdrew to the northern islands, leaving the Paternian Marines and Gurkhas at Little Lyakhovsky Island without naval support. Iridium naval forces began to mine the waters around the Lyakhovsky Islands extensively, although their efforts were undermined by Paternian Marine howitzers firing guided shells from ad hoc Panama mounts and Paternian Navy missile batteries.

However, Paternian submarines remained. The HMS Contender, an A-class nuclear attack submarine, engaged the Hariken-class cruiser IFS Shinsaki with a pair of Mk 48 torpedoes. She broke in two and sunk in ten minutes. Of her crew of 452, approximately 319 were saved.

Another Paternian Navy submarine, the PRN Anglerfish, engaged a modified Iro-class carrier IFS Yamasaki and the Hariken-class cruiser Mitsuken. The five torpedoes fired had inconclusive results. Of the three attacking the Yamasaki, two were intercepted by anti-torpedo systems but one scored a keel strike. Of the two attacking the Mitsuken, one was intercepted and a faulty fuse on the other caused a premature detonation, causing minor damage to the hull.

From Little Lyakhovsky Island, Paternian Navy missile batteries scored hits on the destroyers Akizuki and Romanov, sinking the Akizuki and damaging the Romanov. Four missile boats or corvettes were also lost to Paternian missile batteries.

Because of the losses, the Iridium Navy force decided on 12 April to attack the Paternian Navy with its long range anti-ship ballistic missiles and hypersonic missiles. While such missiles outranged their Paternian supersonic counterparts, they were still fired from beyond their effective ranges. That and the lack of any sort of beyond the horizon targeting due to Paternian dominance of the airspace, the missiles largely failed to acquire their targets and fell harmlessly into the sea. After firing their entire load of missiles, they withdrew to their ports.

As a result, of the hundreds of missiles fired, only two ships were damaged, the MV Helsinki and the PRN St. Drexel. Both ships were only equipped with passive jammers and decoys, and had yet to deploy theirs in time. The former was a feeder-size container ship of 2,500 TEU, chartered by the Paternian Navy for the operation. The missile struck the ship but did not detonate, and fires started were quickly extinguished by the civilian crew. No civilian fatalities, although two sailors suffered mild burns.

The PRN St. Drexel however, was a hospital ship carrying 350 Iridium prisoners of war. The missile's warhead penetrated the length of the ship before detonating directly in the engineering spaces. The thermobaric warhead would cause catastrophic damage to the ship, and the St. Drexel sank within 3 minutes. Out of the 650 sailors, marines, hospital staff, and prisoners aboard, only 32 would survive the explosion, including three prisoners of war. All 32 survivors were recovered by her escorts' helicopters.

Negotiations

Paternian and Iridium diplomats convened in Prussia to discuss a peaceful resolution to the potential onset of hostilities.

While both diplomats agreed that the withdrawal of Paternian forces would be certain, the conditions which they would withdraw were contested.

The Paternian delegation stated that they will withdraw from the islands if the South Kuril Islands, specifically Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan, and the Habomai Islets were ceded.

The Iridium delegation stated that an unconditional withdrawal was the only acceptable solution. If this was not agreed to, then they would drive away the Paternian Navy and Air Force and lay siege to the islands.

The Paternian delegation, seeing that the Iridium government would not concede to anything, withdrew from talks on the 13 April.

Paternian Withdrawal

Wrangel Island was considered indefensible by the Paternian Joint Command, and was vacated on 11 April. Iridium forces did not reoccupy it until 19 April, after the Paternian Navy withdrawal.

On 14 April, Operation Indigo, the invasion of the South Kuril Islands, began. The Japanese Armed Forces, with support from the Republic of Korea Navy, quickly overwhelmed the defenders on the four islands and established defensive positions on the islands by 16 April. Because of Operation Indigo, Operation Tropic was no longer a priority, and Paternian High Command decided that they could not maintain the occupation of the New Siberian Islands and the South Kuril Islands simultaneously. Due to the proximity of the South Kuril Islands to Japan, it was decided that they were of higher priority to control; the New Siberian Islands could conceivably function as a launch point for a Paternian assault, but the seizure of the South Kuril Islands would remove them as a potential launch point for Iridium government operations against Paternian Japan.

On 15 April, the Paternian High Command decided to withdraw from the New Siberian Islands. They were able to complete the withdrawal complete on 17 April with no serious opposition. Several corvettes shadowed the Paternian forces, but did not engage the Paternian force. The withdrawal occurred without incident, and the Paternians were able to destroy the facilities they constructed. Iridium forces would reoccupy the New Siberian Islands on 18 April.

Losses

Iridium Losses

The Iridium Navy suffered the loss of 29 missile boats, a single destroyer, and a single cruiser to Paternian actions. In addition, a destroyer, a cruiser, and a fleet carrier were damaged, and forced to return for repairs.
Up to 73 aircraft of all types were lost to Paternian anti-aircraft batteries and fighters, with 36 lost to naval anti-aircraft missiles, with 25 lost to Defender and Sentinel systems on the islands, and 12 lost to Paternian fighter aircraft. Up to 1,500 personnel were estimated to be lost in total.

Paternian Losses

The Paternian Navy would lose two frigates to Iridium Navy mines, the PRN Roberto Saoit and the PRN Exeter, both Hope-class frigates. Total losses between them amount to 15, out of the 300 crew from both ships. The PRN St. Drexel was lost with 618 sailors, hospital staff, and 347 of the 350 Iridium prisoners. In addition, a civilian auxiliary was lightly damaged.

Six Paternian aircraft were lost, with only one due to enemy action; a Kestrel GR.6B piloted by Lt. James North was shot down by Iridium Navy air defenses. He was unable to eject and went down with his aircraft. Total Paternian losses are 289 sailors, marines, aircrew, and soldiers.

Iridium government sources indicate that they sunk a cruiser, the HMS King George IV by a missile boat strike. However, the HMS King George IV was in drydock since 5 April due to routine maintenance, and was never deployed in the operation.

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    147k Pilotmario

    @RocCrafter101 ...

    Fine.

    6.0 years ago
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    @Pilotmario
    1) Actually, we split our forces in numbers by threat level in the area with NSF and ESF being roughly equal in threat. So we split them equally between the two. WSF, SSF and CF are currently classified.
    2) You never mentioned the SAS forces or the night raid attacking the islands. I don't accept it as canon as you're changing the past. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ODkziY9RLIwMUfNGdcSQE1rP8ut9LZNoxGSlRCTMuh8/edit?usp=sharing
    Here is the original that I accept as default canon till I release my version for the voting in council.

    6.0 years ago
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    147k Pilotmario

    @RocCrafter101
    1) While you may have prepared for a couple of years, the attack came as a surprise since much of the forces were concentrated in the east, far away from the attack.

    6.0 years ago
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    @Pilotmario
    Two years of preparation is not considered hasty.
    And what happened to responding in multiple points.

    6.0 years ago
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    147k Pilotmario

    @RocCrafter101 And in such a situation, a cohesive response would have been difficult under such hasty preparations.

    6.0 years ago
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    @Pilotmario
    1) Actually, the Queen panicked at this information and ordered the Iridium Military Central forces to mobilize toward the north and for the Northern Forces yo prepare for combat.
    2) We know they didn’t believe us, we explained to the people that the supplies were going to the Federation and provided details. We got through to a lot of people. But it wasn’t that huge of an impact. Shipments carried on as no one successfully stopped them.
    3) Korama and it’s citizens are aware of the state of the Federation. The below statement about the Federation Markings shows where they are going to.
    4) The weapons were marked with the Iridium Shield.

    6.0 years ago
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    147k Pilotmario

    @RocCrafter101
    1) Regardless, your forces were surprised. Just because you have the radar doesn’t mean your officers knew of its intent. Cue Opana Station in the Pearl Harbor raid.
    2) The cops didn’t believe you. They knew the alleged destination was Iridium, but we gave strong evidence that they were diverted to terrorist groups, as many of the weapons delivered were devoid of markings. No NG personnel were directly involved in the inspections. Given that the Iridians pulled the trigger and shot the cops, they aren’t exactly well thought of.

    6.0 years ago
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    @Pilotmario
    1) We had Civillian reports and military reports from fishing boats that had radar equipment. Along with radar buoys and SOSUS arrays. Our North Sea class spotted the incoming force and quickly reported back.
    2) I know, you didn’t. But we count the islands near the coast as Mainland.
    3) In my story, we made a more realistic Operational Airforce amount.
    4) We also boosted our airforce numbers as our Central forces joined the battle.
    5) We warned them and stated our true intentions to them. If they fired on us, they were arrested or killed. It’s sad to say that many of them refused to believe our information and continued attempts to stop us. We had to deal with them. Compensation has been sent to their families. Korama had told the NG to stand down. If they didn’t, they were shot for treason. We exposed Paternia’s lies to the Koraman civilians, they believe Paternia is at fault for the deaths. We have no reports of being successfully haunted by local police forces or the National Gendarme. All shipments were successful.

    6.0 years ago
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    147k Pilotmario

    @RocCrafter101
    1) We didn’t establish a beachhead on the mainland. That was never the intention.
    2) Whatever early warning systems you had were ineffective; the Iridium Forces were taken completely by surprise, as the anticipated attack would have arrived via Korea or Alaska.
    3) 100% operational readiness is still exceptionally implausible, especially with the claimed numbers. Not even the Paternian military, a force maintained at high readiness and the benefit of a strong, mature, well-established domestic arms industry, and enough money to buy everything short of complete satisfaction and happiness, suffered maintenance issues with some of its types, namely the tiltrotors and the Kestrel jets.
    4) Koraman-Iridium trade was certainly present, and was a significant portion of trade the Paternian Navy had no legal authority over. However, local police and customs officials did halt a majority of the shipments, thanks to efforts by the National Gendarme and the ICA. We provided information that they refused to pay taxes and the weapons were really there to provide weapons for terrorists in Korama. The violent response to otherwise routine halts and inspections simply reinforced this perception.

    6.0 years ago
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    @Pilotmario
    1) I’ll explain the tactics used in my story.
    -Also, you can’t seriously think it’s possible to establish a beachhead on a Mainland without years of warfare. You were detected by various radar buoys long before. With midair refuelling, we had had central forces able to enter the fight mid battle.
    2) The drills were based on launching as many aircraft as possible and servicing them. 2 years of extensive training with fake (but weighted) missiles, pilots dropping them, and coming back to be serviced.
    3) The Paternian blockade was effective over seas. Bulk shipments happened within territorial waters to the border at the Gulf of Ob, then moved across into Federation Ports. The thousands of flights and freight trains via underground railway system assisted very well. Like I said, the whole operation required a vast amount of money to pull off. The Federation owes a lot to its supporters. The shipments were not able to be stopped as they weren’t to the Federation, they were sent to ports in the Gulf outside Federation Borders, then moved across the territorial waters border into Federation hands.
    4) Aurora was released 6 years ago into the Federation Airforce. Longbow was released 5. Predecessors are actually company aircraft that have been designed by/for other nations for years. The Federation commissioned them for assistance. Along with heavily modernised facilities, we were able to amass them in large enough quantities.

    6.0 years ago
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    35.0k AdlerSteiner

    i would like to have this story teaser of mine...

    back in 1941, while Nazi Germany betrayed the Rodian Liden Republika ( Road Leaders Republic ), Republic suddenly declared war between Germany and Allied and Axis forces...coming soon now i don't want to interrupt this operation but. sorry i just couldn't resist it lol

    6.0 years ago
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    147k Pilotmario

    @RocCrafter101 About this:
    1) One can usually determine tactics based on their equipment.
    2) The preparations were extensive, but were hasty and thus incomplete. Priority was clearly based on number of units than the ability to actually sustain these units.
    3) The general verdict was that the Paternian blockade was effective. Even Iridium propaganda implies the effectiveness.
    4) Land transportation is relatively inefficient compared to the sea, especially with truck convoys.
    5) The main limiting factor of your air force operations was the parts situation. Simply put, there wasn't enough of them. The only fighter aircraft we encountered in significant numbers were Paternian-designed, CAF-manufactured F-7A+ Viper. Due to the long period of manufacture and the large number of export operators, it would be easy to procure parts on the black market.

    The Aurora and Longbow were in fact present. They were considered somewhat faster and slightly stealthier than the F-45 Barracuda and considerably more so against the F/A-17 Wasp. While there was a lot of aircraft available, most were not operational due to the issue of parts. Namely, the types were far more complicated than anything you've built, and even with extensive supposed foreign assistance, would have been difficult to make without years of development.

    6.0 years ago
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    @Pilotmario
    Theres a bit of problems with this story the contradict with events that took place and our tactics and procedures.
    -The problem with writing this story is that it ignores our tactics and procedures. We've been preparing for an invasion for 2 years. We've proven multiple times we can launch around 500 aircraft.
    -The Paternian blockade was effective at blocking naval transports. It doesn't cover overland effectively. You were able to get forces there such as bribed local police forces, and other organizations. We assure you, we didn't fire on them unless they fired on us. We can also assure you, they were easily defeated as Military>Police
    -We were able to fuel aircraft at pretty low costs due to our fuel surplus allowing for air transport of supplies and V.I.Ps who played a very very crucial part in building up our industries.
    -Underground Metro systems were also used to transport large amounts of supplies across the border undetected.
    -About the radios and your claims that our military used commercial electronics. We know that commercial electronics won't cut it for military use against Paternia. We forbid their use for military purposes. We made deals with multiple nations for military grade technology by providing a technology exchange. Blueprints of our weapons systems, for electronics and assisted build up of industry to produce the weapon systems. In which we gave part of our forces in return. With the modernization of our facilities, we were able to produce large amounts of military grade electronics.
    -The Aurora and Longbow have been proven to be much faster and more maneuverable than Paternian aircraft. Our pilots though had around 4 years of experience with the aircraft. Which is assumed to be less. But we can assure we launched at least 500 fighter aircraft. The nation owes quite a large amount of vessels and weapons systems to its aiding nations.
    -The first wave of Longbows charged in to spot the Paternian force and engage aircraft. The Longbows reported being able to evade many Paternian missiles, only being destroyed by being overwhelmed. Once the force was spotted, long range attacks would take place with Z-X Hypersonic Missiles launched by Okhotsk missile boat force and our Abyss Class ballistic missile subs. The missiles were launched around the general area avoiding radar detection and coordinating with each other. A couple missiles took a longer route around to confirm the location of the forces, which of course ran out

    6.0 years ago
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    147k Pilotmario

    @RocCrafter101
    Here’s parts we’ve confirmed:
    -The Paternian Navy encountered no enemy submarines, and Paternian satellite imagery could not ascertain the number of submarines present due to the fact they’re in bases dug into cliff faces and shorelines.
    -The Paternian blockade was not airtight, but it was certainly effective at preventing the passage of a significant amount of material.
    -The Iridium Navy still didn’t do anything to break the blockade because of political factors.
    -The aid was extensive, but was of varied quality. Our analysis of the use of commercial electronics and other systems in your military was known, since your radios had almost no encryption, the radars were of limited resolution to detect military aircraft, and the wide variety of systems recovered from both the islands and from aircraft wrecks.
    -Complete operational readiness of that many aircraft can be found right next to the unicorns, fairies and the concept of a secret weapon that’s an instant-win button. Not even the actual US Air Force, which mind you is a much more logistically capable organization with hundreds of domestic suppliers, well-trained personnel galore, and is funded by the best economy you can find, has an operational readiness of 100%.

    6.0 years ago
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    There’s quite a bit of mis information here. I’ll get a full list later.
    -But the un-identified submarine force is the North Sea Class.
    -The Federation was in no shortage of supplies. Supplies were shipped by underground metro, convoys, and cargo aircraft. Over land borders where Paternia can’t legally interfere as they would be trespassing.
    -We received extensive aid from other nations in the modernization of industries. Those nations will be kept secret for their safety.
    -We we’re not short of morale as Paternian acts infuriated citizens and many military pilots were extremely eager to take action.
    -The electronics imported were of military grade quality. We gave a lot to get them to get this. Our Modernized facilities could produce them easily.
    -Our economy didn’t take as severe of a hit. I’ll explain the measures we took later.
    -Our navy could fight the blockade, we could easily bust through with armed convoys. But we chose not to as it would be an act of war.
    -All airbases and carriers reported empty hangers. Routine checks have reported the aircraft we claimed are all operational and ready to launch. Naval forces, coastal radar, ATC, AWACs, and ground force radar systems have all reported an average of 917 fighter aircraft were launched. We’ve prepared for an invasion by Paternia for years.
    -Federation reports the loss of 7 Missile Boats. Emergency floatation devices stalled the sinking long enough for them to be towed to port for repairs. Though 9 are considered unrepairable.
    -The Cruiser Hariken and destroyer Aki that we’re reported sunk. Had emergency floatation inflated and towed to port in radio silence. Aki sunk in the harbor but was raised and salvaged.
    (Anyways, we’re holding a vote in the SP Int Council to see who’s story should be canon. I’ll post mine later, but I’m not as skilled in the website features and writing)

    6.0 years ago
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    Hmmmmmmmmmmmm.

    6.0 years ago
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    Hrmm.

    6.0 years ago