MODERN WAR: AIRSTRIKE Airstrike Is a Chopper and Air Combat

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Airstrike is a chopper and air combat campaign supplement for the Zozer Games’ RPG called Modern War.

Author Paul Elliott

Thanks to Anthony Mcilwain, John Griffiths, Ian Stead, Omer Golan, Michael Johnson, Ewan Spence, Jason Depew, Bill & Derek Elliott.

Cepheus Engine and Samardan Press are trademarks of Jason “Flynn” Kemp

Designation of Open Game Content Airstrike is Open Gaming Content.

Designation of Product Identity Any title of a product published by Zozer Games, including name ‘HOSTILE’, as well as the trademarks ‘Cepheus Engine’ and ‘Zozer Games’, are designated as Product Identity. References to companies, setting history, planets and worlds constitute Product Identity.

Traveller This Product is derived from the Traveller System Reference Document and other Open Gaming Content made available by the Open Gaming License, and does not contain closed content from products published by either Mongoose Publishing or Far Future Enterprises. This Product is not affiliated with either Mongoose Publishing or Far Future Enterprises, and it makes no claim to or challenge to any trademarks held by either entity. The use of the Traveller System Reference Document does not convey the endorsement of this Product by either Mongoose Publishing or Far Future Enterprises as a product of either of their product lines.

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1 CONTENTS

Contents 4

Pre-Flight Brief 6

The Air War 8

The Campaign 16

Aircrew Training 36

Air Combat 49

Aircraft 56

Aircraft Conversion 92

Author’s Note 94 Sample file Legal 95

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1-1-2029, the stars are shining bright

Nerves connected to the centre, we are tied to the machine Invisible and silent, circling overland The planemakers designed us to outturn and outmanoeuvre Intruders in the skies, intruders in our skies

1-1-2029, tonight the stars are shining bright

Backbone of the fighter force, of the defence industry Devoted tools of the power, warrants of the order

1-1-2029 tonight the stars are shining bright

Silicon advisers leading the way We reach our cruising altitude 1-1-2029, West Europe, midnight Invisible and silent, circling overland Scanning, taping, filing, instantly checking Every human, car and plane of the quarters we survey

CIRCLING OVERLAND

CIRCLING OVERLAND Sample - fileFront 242

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2 PRE-FLIGHT BRIEF

2 PRE-FLIGHT BRIEF I was in a starboard turn looking at the target I’d just bombed. I shouldn’t have been doing that, I wasn’t thinking about MiGs. I reversed port and saw two MiGs slashing in with guns going, inside gun range. I don’t know why they didn’t hit me, I could see tracers flying by the canopy. - Lieutenant Randall Cunningham, USN VF-96

Above the mud, dust and smoke of the modern battlefield roar the fast jets, inbound to their target, laden with free-fall munitions and precision-guided missiles… From the soldier’s perspective they seem distant, aloof and remote from the dangers and threats of the ugly ground war – but the fast jet pilot has his own war to fight - with its own dangers. At 8,000 feet there are no foxholes to hide inside, and every enemy gunner within five kilometres can see and hear you. And when your jet disintegrates around you, you’ll be parachuting into enemy-held territory, where, just a few minutes ago, you were dropping high explosives and cluster bombs on their troops and tanks. They’re not going to be pleased to see you, and there are no comrades behind you to drag you to safety.

Airstrike simulates the air campaigns of modern conflicts and is designed to be used in conjunction with Zozer Games’ Modern War roleplaying game. Players are pilots and other combat aircrew flying dangerous combat missions, planning their own attacks and making decisions as the inevitable surprises and complications are thrown at them.

Players and Gamemaster decide on a squadron and a conflict, and can then create their pilots. Options allow players to create ‘back-seaters’ if desired, these are the weapon system operators who operate the radars and drop the ordnance (particularly in the older combat jets). Helicopter pilots are also catered for.

Mission ideas, complications and explanations of the pilot’s routine are included as are brief descriptions of the air campaigns of the six fictional wars featured in Modern War. There are extensive air-to-air and air-to-ground combat rules and allowances made to enable the customisation of rules for play within historical air conflicts, such as Rolling Thunder or MiG Alley. Of course, a catalogue of representative fast jet types as well as military helicopters from around the world is included. Finally, a set of guidelines Sampleis presented for converting aircraft and choppers that were not ablefile to be featured within Airstrike, allowing the players to bring almost any aircraft type into the game.

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TECH LEVELS IN AIR COMBAT The ‘Tech Level’ or technology level is an aspect of the Cepheus Engine science-fiction roleplaying game that Modern War is based on. This is a ladder of technological development, stretching from TL 0 (the stone age) through to the modern era and beyond into the far future. On this tech level chart of progression the modern era could arguably be said to be TL 8. Players interested in air combat within historical periods might want to utilise earlier tech levels and their ramifications to create games set in the early 80s, in the Vietnam War or perhaps even earlier, within the Suez Crisis, Korean War or even World War Two.

The Tech Levels relevant to air combat are described below, and will be referred to throughout the air combat rules for those who are interested.

Tech Level Historical Aviation Developments Period Post-War Light, Medium and Heavy Machineguns, Light and 6 1950-1970 Medium Autocannon, Rotary Cannon, Supersonic Jets, Air-to-Air and Precision Guided Bombs, Cluster Bombs. Cold War Air-to-Air Missiles, Air-to-Ground Missiles (early), 7 1970-1990 Thermobaric (FAE) Bombs, Laser Guided Bomb, Anti- Radiation Missile (ARM), HUDs. Modern GPS Guidance, Low-Level Cruise Missiles, Stealth 8 1990-2020 aircraft, Air-to-Ground Missiles (advanced), Helmet Mounted Displays.

USEFUL ABBREVIATIONS

AAA Anti-Aircraft Artillery HMD Helmet Mounted Display AGM Air-to-Ground Missile HUD Heads-Up Display ARM Anti-Radiation Missiles ISTAR Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acqui- Altitude Typically expressed in feet sition and Reconnaissance ASE Allowable Steering Error JDAM Joint Direct Attack Munition ASHM Anti-Ship Missile JSOW Joint Stand Off Weapon BVR Beyond Visual Range LGB Laser Guided Bomb CBU Cluster Bomblet Unit LZ Landing Zone CCIP Continuously Calculated Impact Point NOTAM Notice to Airmen CCRP Continuously Calculated Release Point PGM Precision-Guided Munition Distance Typically expressed in nautical miles, QRA Quick Reaction Alert in Airstrike we use km RTB Return to Base DTC Data Transfer Cartridge SAM Surface-to-Air Missiles DTOS Dive Toss SEAD Suppression of Enemy Air Defences ECM Electronic Countermeasures Speed Typically expressed in knots, in FCC Fire Control Computers Airstrike we use kph GPS Global Positioning System TWS Track While Scan WSO Weapon Systems Officer

Sample file NATO codenames: During the Cold War, NATO gave codenames to Soviet aircraft, this persists today. I use the NATO codenames in Airstrike out of familiarity. The Russians might call the Ka-50 a ‘Black Shark’, but I call it the Hokum!

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3 THE AIR WAR

3 THE AIR WAR The first lesson is that you can’t lose a war if you have command of the air, and you can’t win a war if you haven’t. - Jimmy Doolittle.

The freedom and effectiveness of combat jets over a battlefield can be judged by one of three levels: air supremacy, air superiority and air parity.

 Air supremacy is the highest level, where a side holds complete control of the skies. It is defined by NATO and the United States Department of Defence as the "degree of air superiority wherein the opposing air force is incapable of effective interference.” Air supremacy is a term used to describe total air dominance over an enemy territory. It assumes that the aircraft of an enemy air force have been driven from the skies and that enemy anti-aircraft measures have been destroyed or drastically curtailed. This kind of air supremacy was achieved by the Allies over France during D-Day, by the Coalition air forces over Iraq in 1991 and by the Israeli Air Force from 1 November onwards during the Suez Crisis.  Air superiority is the second level, where one air force is in a more favourable position than the opponent. It is defined in the NATO glossary as the "degree of dominance in an air battle ... that permits the conduct of operations by one side … at a given time and place without prohibitive interference by opposing air forces.” Israeli Air Force superiority was demonstrated against Arab forces during the Yom Kippur War of 1973. During Operation Barbarossa the Luftwaffe achieved air supremacy for some time over the Soviet Union.  Air parity is the lowest level of control, both sides have an equal presence over the battlefield, without one coming to easily dominate the other. This kind of air parity existed during the Falkland’s War of 1982, over the south of England during the Battle of Britain and during the Indo-Pakistani Air War of 1965.

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THE AIR CAMPAIGN

A modern air campaign conducted against an enemy state or province typically follows five key phases:

Phase 1 Deterrence – In this phase, a crisis is brewing. Strategic bombers or a squadron of multi-role jets deploying close to the hot spot will create a flexible deterrent option. Likewise, the positioning of intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) aircraft to the region will provide the intelligence needed should the air campaign move into phase 2.

Phase 2 Seizure of Initiative – Short of an all out aerial assault, seizing the initiative will involve taking actions to actively curtail the enemy’s military actions. This might involve establishing a no-fly zone or the limited use of airstrikes as retaliation for hostile enemy actions. Examples include striking a chemical weapons factory after those weapons have been seen to be used by the enemy against international law, intervening on the side of a friendly force within the enemy nation or province which has asked for assistance, or Operation Deny Flight, begun in 1993 which established a no-fly zone over Bosnia and Herzegovina. This phase greatly increases the need for recon and surveillance flights over the contested region and forces the air planners to take measures to protect their airbases or aircraft carriers from retaliatory attacks.

Phase 3 Domination – This is the large scale aerial assault on the enemy state or province. The aim is to suppress enemy air defences (SEAD) and rapidly gain air superiority with targeted attacks on airfields and combat aircraft, as well as enemy surface-based air defences, including not only surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) and anti- aircraft artillery (AAA) but also interrelated systems such as early-warning radar and command, control and communication (C³) functions, whilst also marking other targets to be destroyed by follow-on air strikes. Suppression can be accomplished both by physically destroying the systems or by disrupting and deceiving them through electronic warfare. Some combat aircraft will be tasked to attack strategic targets, such as power stations, headquarters and key points of infrastructure. ISTAR missions fulfil demands for over-watch, for data on fixed, mobile, and high-value targets and for battle damage assessment. Some targets may require follow-up strikes. Should the enemy forces prove robust and effective, phase 3 may not succeed at all with the attacking aircraft suffering an unsustainable level of losses. This occurred at the end of the Battle of Britain to Goering’s Luftwaffe, and to the US Air Force and Navy during Operation Rolling Thunder over North Vietnam (partly due to extremely restrictive ‘rules of engagement’).

Phase 4 Stabilisation – Should phase 3 succeed and air superiority be achieved, a land invasion may well follow unmolested by enemy airstrikes. Surveillance aircraft will Sampleassist the army units in their advance, as will ‘on-call’ close air supportfile aircraft that perform airstrikes on enemy ground units engaged with friendly forces. An F-15 circling over a US ground patrol is on a Phase 4 mission as is a Su-25 Frogfoot supporting a Russian ground assault against rebels. Combat air patrols perform strafing and

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‘presence’ flights, as well as the direct support of troops. This phase may involve counter-insurgency warfare that could follow a conventional invasion.

Phase 5 Assisting Civil Authority – As part of the long-term goals of the war against the enemy nation or province, a withdrawal with peace must be planned. Often, local forces are retrained and rebuilt and tasked with maintaining peace against any remaining insurgents. Whilst this training and handover of combat duties occurs, the air force provides close air support, armed over-watch and surveillance support not just for the new civil authority and its rebuilt military but also for the friendly army forces that are training and supporting them on the ground. An example of phase 5 is the reconstruction of the Afghan National Army by Coalition forces during the War in Afghanistan.

AIR WEAPONS Weaponry carried by combat aircraft can be divided into seven categories: guns, unguided rockets, air-to-air missiles, free-fall bombs, anti-radiation missiles, precision- guided weapons and anti-ship missiles.

GUNS Most combat jets carry a forward-firing automatic cannon and in American service these are multi-barrelled rotary autocannons of 20mm or 25mm calibre. The M61 20mm Vulcan cannon has equipped all American combat jets for decades, whilst the Russians have used 25mm and 30mm single or double-barrelled autocannon in their combat jets, rather than rotary guns. High firing rates call for very large magazines and high- capacity feed systems; the rate of fire is selectable, with a high rate suitable for fleeting Sampleair-to-air engagements and low rates for ground attack strafing runs.file Guns are always a back-up weapon for fast jets, used when missiles are spent or unable to lock-on. Helicopter gunships typically carry cannon in a chin-mounted turret that has full traverse and is used as a dedicated air-to-ground weapon, capable of dealing with both enemy infantry and light armoured vehicles.

MODERN WAR: AIRSTRIKE