New Scenario for testing: Operation Journeyman 1977

[Meroka37]

Operation Journeyman was a Royal Navy operation sending a naval group (including 1 SSN, 2 frigates and 2 auxiliary ships) to the South Atlantic in reaction to the creation of a Argentinian base with 50 scientists on Southern Thule. Later a military base on Thule was set up by the Argentinians.

The action was stopped by diplomatic means.

What if the Royal Navy was ordered to attack the Argentinian base?

Any comment will be welcome.

Note: An error with events has been solved

[Pergite!]

Great scenario!

SPOILERS


I totally messed up and let the British ships come too close. They where actually first spotted by my ground units.
My plan was to lie and wait with my destroyers and attack from the rear. This actually worked sort of.
My helicopters got airborne when first contact was made and with the excellent intel on British AA ranges where able to navigate between the the frigates and throw every AS.11 missile they had at those auxiliary ships. Half of the missiles malfunctioned and missed. The ships where burning and had at least light damage when the scenario ended. Regardless if the British formation was set-up to allow for a good 1nm wide attack corridor intentionally it was still a nice thing "game-play" wise.

The royal navy shelled my base and managed (with 316 114mm/HE) to destroy a barrack, a runway access point and a helicopter that had landed. The others diverted to my destroyers.

Some comments:

My destroyers had just launched their exocets the British frigates when the scenario ended.
I would have believed that I had the upper hand at that time, so the surrender message was rather disappointing. I guess it was triggered by a British frigate getting within 1nm of the island.
Maybe the scenario briefing should better clarify the victory conditions. I instinctively saw the auxiliary ships as troop carries and the main target, since a frigate would never be able to seize that remote island. Then yet again, objectives like this is all about politics. Another thing, Lynx helicopters, I doubt that they where in active service by 1977.

Again a great scenario!

[Meroka37]

Thanks for your feed back, I'll take it for my next scenario update.

[Coiler12]

Played it twice. First battle was a close-run mutual kill of our fleets, except the Resource, which withstood my helicopter fire and got within range. Second battle involved a British sub that fired torpedoes, dived to evade the counterfire, and was not seen for the rest of the scenario. This time my sub was in position and wrecked the fleet. The surviving frigate got off an Exocet salvo and I lost a destroyer, but the return fire sank it, and the rest of the scenario was spent patrolling without any more engagements.

You didn't have formal scoring, but I got a "100" the first playthrough, and "300" the second, which was a clear victory for my side.

[Meroka37]

Thanks for the feedback Coiler

A new update of the scenario ready in first post.

- Changes in scenario briefing wording, including a clarification of victory condictions; now it's clear Argentines need to destroy both auxiliaries while British need to bring one of them to the island.

- Replaced Lynx for Sea kings of 814 Sqn in the British OOB

- Changed scoring according victory condictions.

[NickD]

The British force blundered straight past my sub without detecting it, and I was able to easily torpedo both the AOs, scoring a triumph

SIDE: Argentina
===========================================================

LOSSES:
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EXPENDITURES:
------------------
9x SST-3 Seeal



SIDE: Britain
===========================================================

LOSSES:
-------------------------------
2x Sea King HAS.2
1x A 122 Olwen
1x A 480 Resource


EXPENDITURES:
------------------
16x SSQ-947 Julie Active Range-Only [AN/SSQ-47]



SIDE: Neutral
===========================================================

LOSSES:
-------------------------------


EXPENDITURES:
------------------

[Jorm]

very fun scenario, well balanced

no problems with it other than those in game system like when my helos fire off their last missile they go to 3000 m RTB maode and promptly get shot down by the ship they are attacking.

1970's naval battles are bloody thats for sure.

one minor nit pick.
Are you sure the D 29 Piedra Buena was there, it was in training for a year in 1977 after being commisioned in may i think and only got its exocets in 1979 ?

Not sure when Bouchard got its exocets but JANES 1975-76 lists it with out any.

[.Sirius]

Hi there your RN Frigates should have wasp helicopters from 829 Sqn, Seakings or Wessex on the RFA's should be ok

ORIGINAL: Meroka37

Thanks for the feedback Coiler

A new update of the scenario ready in first post.

- Changes in scenario briefing wording, including a clarification of victory condictions; now it's clear Argentines need to destroy both auxiliaries while British need to bring one of them to the island.

- Replaced Lynx for Sea kings of 814 Sqn in the British OOB

- Changed scoring according victory condictions.

[Meroka37]

ORIGINAL: Jorm

very fun scenario, well balanced

no problems with it other than those in game system like when my helos fire off their last missile they go to 3000 m RTB maode and promptly get shot down by the ship they are attacking.

1970's naval battles are bloody thats for sure.

one minor nit pick.
Are you sure the D 29 Piedra Buena was there, it was in training for a year in 1977 after being commisioned in may i think and only got its exocets in 1979 ?

Not sure when Bouchard got its exocets but JANES 1975-76 lists it with out any.

Thanks for the comments, I'll investigate about the destroyers.

[Meroka37]

ORIGINAL: .Sirius

Hi there your RN Frigates should have wasp helicopters from 829 Sqn, Seakings or Wessex on the RFA's should be ok

ORIGINAL: Meroka37

Thanks for the feedback Coiler

A new update of the scenario ready in first post.

- Changes in scenario briefing wording, including a clarification of victory condictions; now it's clear Argentines need to destroy both auxiliaries while British need to bring one of them to the island.

- Replaced Lynx for Sea kings of 814 Sqn in the British OOB

- Changed scoring according victory condictions.

Thanks Paul, I'll change the helos in the frigates.

[Meroka37]

New scenario update (in first post):

- Replaced the helos of the frigates.

- Changed Piedra Buena for Segui (this later has not Exocet)

- To balance added helo to argie side

Attached missing images of Argentinian platforms for this scenario (CWDB)

[mercho]

Hi Meroka,

the download link for the scenario seems to be missing in the first post...

[Bazza042]

I suspect I was lucky.



Possible Spoilers







The Salta I set to creep at periscope depth and it found what was likely to be the invasion force almost immediately. Once the force got closer I went above the layer and waited. The Salta identified the frigate and the 'Olwen' so I manually targeted, what I assumed to be, the two transports, one of which sank immediately, the Olwen remaining afloat despite a substantial 'hit'. I also managed to get off a torpedo at the frigate before the Salta started (automatically) avoiding the incoming torpedoes, presumably from the British sub which I never located. I put one helicopter in the air with a view to finishing off the Olwen but that sunk just as the chopper arrived and as one of the frigates had been hit by the torpedo fired earlier the helicopter finished that off without encountering any return fire.

The Salta having successfully avoided the 3-4 incoming torpedoes had in the interim fired two torpedoes manually at the Phoebe and the scenario (automatically) ended with the Phoebe departing stage left hotly pursued by two torpedoes. And with two, presumably, homeless, helicopters angrily buzzing around the Salta which, by then, was sitting happily on the bottom.

Although the two ships were heading towards the battle zone neither they nor the remaining helicopters played a part in the fight

So I got 200 points and a Triumph (which makes a change from the normal 'minus' figure I usually achieve.....)

An excellent scenario with, I suspect, considerable replay value.

Many thanks, Meroka37.

[Flankerk]

Tried twice, as I got massacred the first time!
I think a lot depends upon the positioning, in the first the Salta never got close, while Tigerfish were popping up everywhere near my ships.
In the second, slightly similar, but managed to get an Exocet strike onto the transports, this failed by sinking one escort instead after they locked onto that. However the subsequent gun battle destroyed the remaining escort, and then the rest.

All working very well I think.