Since I'll be working on "Battle for Europe" anyway...

Rami

Rami

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Since I'll be working on "Battle for Europe" anyway...

Hello all,

Since I'm going to be working on "Battle for Europe" as the final Late ETO update, (The ETO Tuskegee Airmen missions are just about done, only two left) I've decided to build and include the "Operation Frantic" missions as an optional add-on for the "Battle for Europe" campaign.

For those who are unfamiliar with this, here is some background info...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Frantic

I have more concrete sources than this for the numbers, but this is more-or-less accurate. The missions will be either escort or ground / air attack. I won't have you driving a bus for these missions. You'll be able to fly the missions either as a mini-campaign or as an addendum for BFE.

The goal is to have the entire update complete with these missions by the end of August.
 
Rami,
You might be interested in a book called "The Poltava Affair" by Glenn Infield. It is a detailed account of operation Frantic Joe. I'm sure you could pick up a copy on ABEbooks.
 
Reply...

Ravenna,

Thanks! I found two copies of the book at local libraries in the area, I will be heading up there this morning with my eldest daughter to borrow it.
 
Go for it RAMS!

One of these days I have to get out of the Pacific and back in the Med or Europe!
 
Reply...

This morning I read the first four chapters, so that tomorrow's read begins with the first "Frantic Joe" mission.

This is the Fifteenth Air Force's run to the Soviet Union, escorted by Mustangs of the 325th Fighter Group, better known as the "Checkertail Clan."

But this section made me laugh...

"Hogg, commander of the 318th Squadron, went to bed early the night of June 1, 1944, feeling that he was as ready for the shuttle mission to Russia as he would ever be. His escape kit was prepared, including the out-of-uniform picture he had been ordered to obtain. The happy-go-lucky Hogg had worn a nurse's blouse, a beard, and had his hair as unkempt as possible in the photograph. "That picture was bad enough to scare both the Germans and the Russians," he told the flight surgeon who was his roommate at Lesina. Hogg also took one more precautionary step in his preparation for the mission. Since his squadron had the highest VD rate in the Fifteenth Air Force at the time, he had the ammunition removed from the right-wing guns and the boxes filled with prophylactic kits and contraceptives. He wanted his men as ready for the Russian women as for the Luftwaffe fighters."

The background information provided in this book is astounding. I knew of Stalin treatment to his own people and the Germans, but his delay tactics and demands almost derailed the entire project numerous times. In addition, the underlying ulterior motives and the compromises he forces the United States into providing, coupled with the intelligence he gathered on American equipment, communications, and tactics, gives you the sense that the Cold War was already well underway in 1944, despite the genuine efforts of the folks on the ground at Mirgorod, Piryatin, and Poltava.
 
Reply...

Sigh...It's only the beginning, but it's a start...:wiggle:

"title_string"=Operation Frantic - Destination: Poltava
"summary_string"=Today, you airmen have been carefully chosen to participate in a Top Secret project. You'll escort B-17 bombers as they attack the rail yard located at Debrecen, Hungary. But then instead of turning around and landing back at Foggia, you will keep flying to the east, landing at Piryatin aerodrome, located in the Ukraine near the city of Kiev!
"objective_string"=Despite many months of delays, indifference, and sabotage by Soviet military and political leaders, "Operation Frantic" began just before the D-Day landings on June 2, 1944. This ambitious project had the goal of easing relations between the two "Allies" and to force Germany to divide dwindling resources between the OstFront, Anglo-American forces in Italy, and the massive landings about to get under way in the Normandy sector.
"intelligence_string"=After taking off, you'll escort the bombers to the rail yard, where they hope to inflict considerable damage to the facilities. Once the target has been struck, you'll then proceed east-northeast across the Russian steppes to the three assigned Soviet airfields: Piryatin, Poltava, and Mirgorod, where American personnel and planes will be stationed.
"player_aircraft_name_string"=North American P-51b Mustang
"airfield_string"=Italy - Foggia Amendola
 
Good grief....you have been busy! Well done and keep up the good work.
Now just how do you code prophylactics into the DP file?:jump:
 
A great idea, indeed!

Rami said:
......gives you the sense that the Cold War was already well underway in 1944, despite the genuine efforts of the folks on the ground at Mirgorod, Piryatin, and Poltava.
Click to expand...

Rami, I must thank you very much, as now I know of another WWII chapter I was completely unaware of!

This is what SOH and CFS2 are all about: LEARNING HISTORY!
​

As to your comment above, Stalin was at war with the entire world. He was the other side of the same coin where Hitler was.
We all know that the methods and the targets were the same: Hitler wanted Germany dominating the world, Stalin wanted for Russia just the very same thing. NKVD (later KGB) shared the same methods as Gestapo's and SS's, extermination camps were built on both sides, mass killings of Jews (the word "pogrom" is Russian), Polish and Finnish people were carried out by both.
Many times I thought how unfortunate and uncanny was that so many criminal minds had power in their hands contemporariliy in so many places on earth in the 1930's-'40's! Italy, Germany, Japan, Russia and several Central Europe countries were governed by evil monsters.

Russian war criminals got away with their crimes only because they had won the war and, in retrospective, with France beaten and England down on her knees, America would have had a tough time beating the Axis if Russia would have not dulled a good chunk of Hitler's sword edge on the Eastern front. WWII might have lasted a lot longer, God forbids!

So, in the end, Stalin served the purpose of "beating Hitler first", but I am sure that if Hitler had not started WWII, Stalin would have done it at a later stage!!

Cheers!
KH :ernae:

P.S.: Rami did you include something about Motecassino in your Tuskegee pack? Italian history satellite channel (RAI Storia) just showed a three-hour special about the whole 1944 Anzio-Montecassino-Rome liberation campaign two days ago! And to think some historians still consider Italy as a "secondary front"!
 
"Frantic" question for you...

Hello,

When designing these missions, would you prefer to have the missions remain as close to "history authentic" as possible, or would you like me to add a couple of fictitious missions / elements?

For example, for the Poltava raid after Frantic II, I could easily write a nighttime mission where Soviet and American fighters do get off the ground to attack the German bombers. This would include searchlights, Yakovlev Yak-9s, P-39 Airacobras, and P-51 Mustangs.

However, this would be entirely fictitious, because in actuality the Germans bombed the base with impunity for more than an hour and a half! If I were to do this, I would make a notation that the premise of the mission is fictitious.

So, which way do ya want it?

Pour Ajax,

Lors de la conception de ces missions, préféreriez-vous avoir les missions rester le plus proche de «l'histoire authentique» que possible, ou préférez-vous comme moi d'ajouter quelques missions fictives / éléments?

Par exemple, pour le raid après Poltava Frantic II, je pourrais facilement écrire une mission de nuit où les combattants soviétiques et américains ne descendez le terrain pour attaquer les bombardiers allemands. Il s'agit notamment des projecteurs, Yakovlev Yak-9, P-39 Airacobras, et P-51 Mustang.

Cependant, ce serait tout à fait fictif, car en réalité les Allemands ont bombardé la base en toute impunité pendant plus d'une heure et demie! Si je devais faire, je voudrais faire une mention que la prémisse de la mission est fictive.

Alors, de quelle manière il ne te veux?
 
Hi Rami,

Why not do one of each and let the users decide which one they want to fly. As you probably know, I prefer historical accuracy.

BTW did you find out why those B-17s on the ground at Poltava could not be destroyed in that first mission?
 
Reply...

Kdriver,

With three young kids and another on the way, I simply don't have time to do both. The "Poltava defense" mission would probably be the only mission that I'd write which would be entirely fictional.

As far as the B-17s, I was able to blow them up, but it's really gotta be a direct hit.
 
Two more written...

I managed to write two more this afternoon...

"title_string"=Operation Frantic I - Strike on Galati
"summary_string"=Listen up! After our initial bombing run to Russia, we have been called on to escort a bomber raid on the Romanian airfield at Galati. We will be leaving from our bases and then returning to the Ukraine, word has it that our next mission will return us to our aerodromes in Italy.
"objective_string"=After being warmly welcomed by Soviet personnel on June 2nd, American forces launched their first raid from Soviet soil on June 6th, 1944, the same day that Allied troops were landing on Normandy beaches some 1,300 miles to the west. This strike by the 15th Air Force was on the Romanian base at Galati, where the bombers inflicted some damage to the facilities there despite opposition from German fighters. Of the 112 bombers dispatched, 104 were able to bomb the target, 7 aborted and one was lost. 42 of the 47 Mustangs were able to escort the bombers to the enemy field; two were lost for the destruction of six enemy fighters.
"intelligence_string"=After takeoff, we'll rendezvous with the bombers departing Mirgorod and Poltava, then escort them to the enemy aerodrome. Be aware that Germany is aware of our presence in Russia, though they do not yet have firm intelligence as to where we are stationed. Nonetheless, do not expect a "milk run" similar to that of our flight to Piryatin!
"player_aircraft_name_string"=North American P-51b Mustang
"airfield_string"=Russia - Pyratin (South)

"title_string"=Operation Frantic I - Return to Foggia
"summary_string"=Listen up! Today we will be returning to our bases in Foggia, Italy, leaving our comrades behind. On the way, we will strike the Romanian aerodrome of Focsani. Your duty is to escort this raid, ensuring that the bombers are able to attack the target and get home with minimal losses.
"objective_string"=On June 11th, 1944, 129 Flying Fortresses of the 15th Air Force completed the first Frantic mission by striking the Focsani airfield in Romania before continuing home to their bases in Italy. One B-17 was lost over the target, but this seemingly minor loss would have dramatic consequences. Onboard this B-17, an American media member disobeyed a Soviet order and took a box of photographs which contained detailed pictures of American bombers at Poltava and Mirgorod. When it was shot down, the pictures were gathered from the wreckage as well as the surrounding countryside, providing German forces the detailed intelligence required to launch an enormous bombing strike against the Americans. All that remained was to find out when they would be returning...
"intelligence_string"=Because the Germans are aware of our presence, you can expect to tangle with Messerschmitts and Focke-Wulfs over the target area. There is even a chance you could spot a Romanian IAR-80, due to the fact that our friends in Italy have seen them in the Ploesti-Bucharest sector. Again, we wish to keep our losses to a minimum, so remain alert!
"player_aircraft_name_string"=North American P-51b Mustang
"airfield_string"=Russia - Pyratin
 
Reply...

I just laid the initial groundwork for the 8th AF mission from England to Poltava...and it is 1,393 statute miles from Bodney to Piryatin. :jawdrop:

I just tested the mission path using the FDG P-51b Mustang with the 110 gallon drop tanks, and I am happy to report that I flew from Bodney to Piryatin aerodrome using settings of 65% throttle, and 2,000 RPM giving me 41 inches of manifold pressure. I arrived at Piryatin with 68% of fuel remaining (internal) which means there is a reserve for SOME, but not a lot, of combat.

The flight duration was an astounding 8 hours and 30 minutes!

"title_string"=Operation Frantic II - It's a long way to Kiev
"summary_string"=Today, we are getting underway early for a very lengthy mission. You will compose a small portion of a massive American formation which will target the city of Berlin. You'll split from the main force and protect the B-17s while they hit the synthetic fuel plant, then continue on to land at bases in the Ukraine!
"objective_string"=On June 21st, 1944, the 8th Air Force began their participation in Frantic by hitting a synthetic fuel plant in Ruhland, Germany. The bombers were part of an immense USAAF armada, consisting of over 2,000 bombers and fighters whose main objective was Berlin. When the formation split, the Frantic portion turned east-southeast, crossing Poland en route to the Ukranian airfields.

Over Poland, the Frantic formation was trailed by a Heinkel He-111 bomber which followed them all the way to the Russian front, confirming that the B-17s would indeed be at the airfields which they had photo intelligence on. Consequently, the night of June 21-22 saw the Poltava airfield raided by He-111s and Ju-88s in one of the most successful German raids of the entire war. During the raid, 47 B-17s were destroyed beyond repair, and more than 200,000 gallons of 100-octane fuel, as well as other supplies, went up in flames.
"intelligence_string"=Make no bones about it, fuel consumption will be absolutely critical for today's mission. You'll have to make every drop of fuel count, so it is crucial that you do not dogfight with any enemy fighters unless they directly attack the bomber formation. Good luck, and use the loo before takeoff!
"player_aircraft_name_string"=North American P-51b Mustang
"airfield_string"=England - Bodney
 
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