This update will start a bit different so bear with me as we go through some information regarding industry and the air force.
The LW was active all over the front last week, running GS where the fighting was heaviest. Unfortunately their presence was not enough to turn a Soviet attack into a hold but they have contributed greatly by hitting Soviet assault forces hard.
This has come at a very high cost. More than 1.200 Axis pilots have been lost together with 1.890 aircraft. The Soviets have also bled this week, 3.231 pilots and 3.870 aircraft have been lost. This has been the week with the heaviest air losses so far and the LW has been mauled beyond recognition.
Loss Ratios:
-2.7:1 in pilots
-2:1 in aircraft.
The Soviets can take these losses just fine, their main issue right now is finding enough tarmac (air bases) for their air groups. The Soviet air OOB sits at 11.3k compared to the Axis one at 1.2k.
Highest losses for the campaign for both sides:
To fill our existing air groups we would need 1.784 pilots. Since that is impossible and most groups only have 3-5 aircraft left, the LW has undergone a major reorganization. Out of the 57 air groups (Fighters, FBs and Tactical Bombers) at the start of the week, only 29 remain. The disbanding of air groups has allowed us to concentrate experienced pilots in earmarked units. These air groups have been set to rest and wont be carrying out operations for now, as they lack both the morale and also machines due to the heavy losses taken.
Before and After Reorganization:
Hungarian air force as well as LBs, Patrol, Recon and Transport groups not included since they have not been reorganized/changed.
The forces that remain have been reorganized under Luftflotte 6 defending Berlin and Luftflotte 4 defending Prague. This new organization will be shown next week. Luftflotte 5 has been sent west and Luftflotte 1 has been left with only Flieger Führer Ost containing 91 patrol aircraft to conduct Naval Patrols if the Soviets try to close the shipping lanes to Kurland.
These changes have also reduced the number of airbases in use as the forces are being concentrated in specific areas. Luftflotte 6 and 4 each have 9 air bases in use and Luftflotte 1 has only 2. A total of 20 airbases.
A notable mention here should go to the Hungarian Air Force which has fought bravely by our side during this whole time. Unfortunately even though the Hungarians still have pilots ready, they lack aircraft to fill up their fighter groups and only their 2 Tactical Bomber groups can be filled up.
On to Industry
The fall of the Ruhr and Hannover puts a further strain on German industry. Another 40.000 tonnes of fuel have been used this week and now the Axis pool sits at 85k, which means that in about two weeks fuel will run out completely and units will have to make do with what they have on hand. Oil Stores have also fallen to an all time low of 18k tonnes. Around 12k recruits are being added to the Army each week but these numbers are also falling fast as the territory of the Reich is shrinking.
The truck situation is still good, we have around 8.5k trucks in the pool although losses during the campaign so far have been extremely high: 52k trucks lost. The Soviets have lost only 16k trucks and have been using a lot of the captured German stock (38k) to help their advance.
Unfortunately for me, this turn another bug came up relating to arriving reinforcements from TBs reported here:
https://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=5143815
Basically I have 3 Mechanized/Armored Divisions that have arrived with 0 trucks and only have 6 MPs to move, when they should have arrived with their full truck component. These units have been sent to depots and placed on refit so they can get some trucks to regain their mobility. I hope this works and they can get some trucks for next turn.
In terms of replacements the situation remains the same as before. I continue to believe that the current replacement system that always places priority on TBs is absolutely wrong and have made another post about it here:
https://www.matrixgames.com/forums/tm.asp?m=5132514
For the AAR readers, suffice to know that the entire Eastern Front has only received a measly 4.700 men this week, while in the Western Front TB, 2 regiments have received around 7k men and multiple units in the TB have gotten a lot of replacements while the on map army is being starved for manpower. The supply situation on the other hand is looking good and all Armies are getting what they need.
Weather continues to be rain so we have light mud over most of the front save for the mountain areas in Bohemia where the snow is melting and the ground has turned to heavy mud. The weather will continue to be rain next week too so the Soviet offensive will probably continue unhindered by it.
