AAR: Return of the Ottomans

[Aeraaa]

Scenario 7: Romanian Block

In this scenario, I have an understrength Turkish mechanized infantry battalion trying to open the mountain passes in the Bulgarian-Turkish border that have being blocked by Romanian mountain troops airlifted to the area. As always, I have to be methodical about this, since not taking casualties is very important. The map of the battlefield is the following:



The report of the battle is:
The first Turkish unit that appeared on the map was a single mechanized platoon, shown at position (1). This unit advanced to secure the crossroads at (2). There it was engaged by a Romanian mountain infantry platoon. After heavy fighting, in which a pair of SU-25s appeared to support the Romanian platoon, both opponents had their respective units mutually eliminated.

At around turn 4, the rest of the battalion started to appear north of location (3). Turkish units advanced up to the beginning of the woods at (4), where the lead elements came under intense rifle, MG and recoilless rifle fire from Romanian units, arranged in an L shaped ambush formation as shown in a blue line. 3 APCs were destroyed, and 2 rifle squads became combat ineffective. Eventually, thanks to skillful use of smoke, APC fire and close assault by the infantry, Turks managed to clear the northern edge of the wood at (5). Mortar fire, dismounts drawing enemy fire and intense APC fire helped suppress the Romanians at the southern edge of the L. The SU-25s continue to interdict my units up until turn 15, destroying 4 APCs in total.

Turks managed to break through at (5), as well as through the road at (6). Mutual support between dismounted infantry and APCs helped keep casualties to a minimum, but still I lose one APC and several infantrymen. Fighting happens at 200 meters at most and this is inevitable. Eventually, I manage to neutralize the resistance around the road and several APCs dash forward to secure the road at (7). At (8) is the maximum extent of my advance when the time ends. Result is:



Turks managed to clear most of the road, but with heavy casualties for both sides. End result is a draw.

[DRG]

The renumbered and corrected set for V12 is HERE

[DRG]

Because the ERA M60's that were used in ( as I recall...) two of the Sofia scenarios did not actually exist I had to choose between making the replacements either more or less capable and because there were only a few of them in each I went with more capable so in the revised version they have the M60T with the 120mm guns ( and reactive armour )..so they will be a bit more capable than those M48's

[Aeraaa]

Advance on Sofia part 1

The Turkish advance to Sofia has begun. The first objective is the control of a pass that is defended by Bulgarian units. The Turkish 1st Armored Brigade spearheads the advance, but the advancing elements are short on infantry. Instead, an airmobile battalion will support by an air assault.

In the beginning of the battle, I have the airmobile battalion and a cavalry platoon (or troop depending on the army). My tank support, a tank battalion equipped with M60Ts) will arrive starting from turn 6. My plan is as follows: the airmobile battalion (-3 platoons) will use the woods to the south for masking and will land directly behind the objective line, the road between the wooded area. From there it will try to secure the objective flags that are to the rear, dig in and wait to be relieved. The 3 platoons that remain will be used to support the Turkish armor that arrives. The Cobra helicopters that I have (4 in total) will support the air assault operation when it begins.

The map of the battle is the following:



The battle report follows.

My helicopters come under intense MANPADs fire from the positions (1), (2) and (3). One Puma transport and one Cobra attack helo are shot down (and I also lose one Milan team). Nevertheless, my remaining Cobras and heavy MG fire eliminate the thread very soon. Small arms fire hits every helicopter that reveals itself from the same positions. In addition to that, I receive ATGM fire from position (4) that force 2 helicopters to withdraw, and also knock down one of my 2 M60A3s that belong to the Cavalry troop. The Cobras and mortar fire eliminate that threat as well.
After I deal with the initial fire, I begin my air assault, shown with the tilted red arrow passing through the woods to the south. I do receive some small arms fire from scout at (5), but nevertheless, I manage to infiltrate. I land my troops at position (6), airmobile infantry, 120mm mortars; 81mm mortars a 105mm howitzer and heavy MGs. This force moves northeast and encounters light resistance. I find 2 82mm mortars at (7) that were firing at my position and take care of them. Alas, a M-2001 tank company shown at (8) shows up. Serbs volunteers fighting for Bulgarians? Who knows? Anyway, they fire at my helicopters, destroying 3 of them and forcing the others to withdraw. I do manage to knock down 2 tanks with a Cobra and a Milan, but the tanks are successful in shooting down my attack helo.

The tanks force my airmobile force to take a defensive posture, making only small probes to the south. Soon however, my tank force shows up (Turn 6 to 10). The tanks, supported by the 3 airmobile platoons that stayed back, advance forward like a steamroller, finding and clearing resistance from the blue positions (9), (10), (11) and (12).

Thanks to the combined arms force of M60Ts, airmobile infantry and indirect fire support, I capture all objectives. I decided to attack the tank force to (8). The result is not in my favor, since I lose 5 M60Ts to 2 M-2001s (I damage one more). The game ends and the final results are:



The game is a draw. The Turks secure the forest road, but the unexpected arrival of Serbian tank reinforcements halt their advance.

To be frank, the last battle is what has cost me the marginal victory I believe (each M60T is worth 505 points, so I lost 2525 points in the final turn). But the tank battle between the two forces was totally worth it so it does not matter.

Anyway, this is my last battle with the last patch. The final two missions will be played with the V12 missions.

[Aeraaa]

Advance to Sofia part 2: they shall not pass!
The Turkish 1st Armored Brigade has managed to clear the first pass towards Sofia. Unfortunately for them, the resistance of the M-2001 tank company seen in the previous scenario gave time to a Serbian mechanized brigade to come to the aid of Bulgarians. The brigade has dug in around the small town to the northwest of the pass previously seen in the last scenario and will conduct an area defense to delay the Turks from their advance northwest. A battalion of M-2001 tanks will support the infantrymen, and SPG battery and MRL Plamen battery will conduct fire support. There are 4 L-39 Bulgarian military trainer aircraft that will attempt to perform CAS. In addition to that, if the Turks strike the artillery park of the Serbs, allied Polish and Czech aircraft are free to strike at the Turks, as this will violate a no-fly zone above the aforementioned area. The map of the battlefield is the following one:



Battle report:
The 1st Armored advanced outside the woods to engage the Serbian forces around. Serbs are dug in an L shaped formation (1) to the south, to the north at position (2), inside the town at (3). There is a second line of defense composed mostly of AA at (4), while at (5) and (6) are the SPGs and MRLs respectively.

The Turkish advance at (7) is met by direct and indirect fire from Serbian M-80 IFVs, MG positions, mortars and other artillery, while the MRLs interdict the Turkish advance, causing casualties. The Turks break up their force and advance at 3 different axes. The one at (8) was engaged by Serbian tanks and IFV and could not advance. The Turks tried to counter with Cobra attack helos and F-16s, but the Serbian AA (Tunguskas and Sa-10 Gopher SAMs) made them pay dearly for that. After around turn 8, 4 Cobra helicopters and 7 F-16s are shot out of the sky, with the rest of the aviation retreating from the battlefield. The Turkish air strikes knock out 3 M-2001s while some Milan ATGMs manage to destroy 2 more by the end of the game.

At (9), Turkish mechanized infantry and around 25 tanks assaulted the Serbian positions at (1). Serbian tank fire knock out the majority of Turkish armor, while the latter manage to knock out 1 M-2001. 5 more are eliminated by Milan ATGMs and heavy artillery fire. In the end, only some dismounts manage to reach the forward Serbian positions, and fail to proceed any further.

The Turks also advance at (10) after they eliminate the Serbian infantry platoon forward of them and reach the town, with some vehicles entering it. One M60A3 inside the town is knocked out by a M-80 firing its 30mm cannon at the tanks rear at close range. The other vehicles, APCs, are knocked out by IFVs and man portable AT weapons. Turkish infantry is unable to support.

Serbian reinforcements arrive. One tank company and a helicopter flight. The latter maneuver around the woods at (11) and strike the Turkish artillery park. 9 artillery pieces are knocked out by the end of the game. In addition to that, my MRLs conduct counterbattery fire, destroying 2 T-122 Sakarya MRLs. Finally, my own air strikes of L-39 were also totally ineffective, aided by my own negligence (I didn’t change the air strike path and my planes flew over the Turkish forces. While their AA are mediocre, the volume of fire was enough to shoot down all of my planes, aided by the fact the L-39 is not the fastest, not the sturdiest plane out there).

In conclusion, Turks cannot advance past around 1 km beyond the woods. The total losses are:



Serbs lost 9 M-2001 tanks, 2 Tunguskas, 1 Sa-10 SAM, 1 MRL and 4 L-39 aircraft. Turks lost 34 M-60A3 tanks, 5 Firtina SPGs, 2 M-110s SPGs, 2 T-122 MRLs, 4 Cobra attack helicopters and 7 F-16 aircraft.

The end result is a Serbian minor victory, which gives them the opportunity to withdraw in good order (they have to withdraw because of ammo shortages and the numerical superiority of the Turks). The final line of defense will just outside of Sofia itself. Unfortunately, since the Turkish air force did not strike my forces at (6), I could not unleash the allied air force on them. But, judging from the final score, that may be redundant.

[Aeraaa]

Advance to Sofia part 3: Sofia through binoculars

The final battle of the series is the Turkish advance towards the Bulgarian capital. The outskirts of the city are visible on the western side of the map. The defenders are mostly the Serbian forces, composed of a tank company, an artillery battery, a MRL battery, a helicopter flight and a paratrooper battalion hidden in the woods. Serbs will get the rest of the mechanized brigade (two tank companies and a mechanized rifle battalion) as reinforcements later.

The Turkish forces that will be used to attack the defenders of Sofia will be the 1st Armored Brigade again, augmented with elements of the 23rd motorized division, since the former suffered significant losses in the previous battle.

The map of the battlefield is the following:



Battle report:
The Turkish forces advance towards Sofia. Their movement look more like a probe, than a full scale assault. When they are in position (1) they get engaged by my helicopters and also bombarded by artillery. As a result the force is seriously disrupted.

My paratrooper battalion at (3) moves forward. Its mission is to scout the enemy dispositions and make small ambushes when necessary. In general, it is successful in its mission, but the paras suffer serious losses from the Turkish artillery.

The Turkish forward element advance to their maximum extent at (2). At that point, I receive my reinforcements. The tank company (4) and mechanized company (5) will form one combat team, company (6) will join the tank company already deployed at (9) and (7) and (8) will be the final combat team. My plan changes from defense to counterattack, as I estimate I have the superiority in armor to do so. Due to that, the rest of the battle resembles more of a meeting engagement than a set piece assault.

Initially, my tanks wipe out the forward Turkish elements. Every combat team moves forward as shown by the blue arrows. Turkish artillery manages to cause some casualties on my APCs, but my movement is not slowed down in general.

When the southern combat team reached position (2), they come under fire from Turkish tanks deployed in (10). A fierce tank battle develops, where the Turks lose more than 10 tanks for no losses on my own. Hidden ZTA TOW tank destroyers manage to damage to of my tanks. Aided by artillery support (which can come very accurately thanks to the Paras) I suppress the tank destroyers and finally knock them out by accurate tank fire. Probably the most dangerous Turkish weapon for my tanks is out of action. Brilliant!

The center wing also moves forward. More tank fire manages to damage two of my tanks and knock out one. The retribution is swift, and disproportionally more effective. The combat team deploys at village (11), where it overwatches the movement of the northern combat team.

The northern combat team moves forward, engaging the Turkish infantry that appears in front of it a position (12). After fierce close combat fighting, the infantry is annihilated and both central and northern combat teams can move forward. The southern also follows soon.

The Turks have two more tank positions at (13) and (14). Since they are comprised of M60A3s, they cannot do anything but die valiantly. In a frontal engagement, the M-2001 is definitely superior to the M-60A3 in every aspect.

My forces move forward, all combat teams now combined, and they receive more tank fire from positions (15) and (16). This time, the more capable M-60Ts are my opponents. They manage to knock out 5 of my M-2001s, but thanks to superiority in numbers and aided by artillery strikes, I manage to destroy all M-60Ts (well, there were only 4 of them).

My forces come out of the woods, where an impressive spectacle awaits them: around 100 BTR-80s, as well as the artillery park of the enemy awaits them in the circle at (17). The outcome cannot really be described as a battle, but rather as a turkey shoot (pun intended). My tanks and artillery have a field day, destroying around 60 vehicles by the end of the scenario. It is a disaster for the Turks.

Nevertheless, one final attack is being made by the Turkish forces. An M60A3 tank company, makes a maneuver at (18). They come out of the woods and find my own artillery park at (19). I lose 4 Plamen MRLs to tank fire and I’m forced to relocate my artillery.

The battle ends soon, and the Serbs have pulled off an amazing victory!

Total losses are:



Serbs lose 6 M-2001 MBTs and 5 MRLs. Turkish losses are much more severe. They lose 42 M60A3 tanks, 4 M60T tanks, 2 ZTA tank destroyers, 2 Firtina SPGs, 4 M-110 SPGs, 15 T-122 Sakarya MRLs. The 1st Armored is practically destroyed and the 23rd motorized infantry division has taken severe losses and is combat ineffective. The Turkish offensive is stopped dead in its tracks.

The Turkish newspaper Hurriyet, publishes an article in which it claims that the Bulgarians were saved by a huge European coalition aimed at denying Turkey the right to protect its minority in Bulgaria. It also remarks that 620 Turkish soldiers have martyred with many more wounded and missing, but their opponents have approximately 10000 casualties in total. The chief of general staff of Turkey announces that the goal of the offensive is achieved, and the Turkish army will switch to defensive posture to protect its gains.

The Serbian commander, Major Obranovic, received a hero’s welcome in Serbia, while his conduct of the defense of Sofia was covered by every military form of media in the Balkans.


So this concludes the Return of the Ottomans scenario package. Total losses of all factions are given below:

Turkey
3876 men
333 APC
151 tanks
3 tank destroyers
13 SPGs
17 MRLs
10 AA vehicles
7 attack helicopters
4 transport helicopters
7 aircraft

Bulgaria
1248 men
17 APC
17 tanks
13 aircraft

Romania
650 men
31 APC
25 tanks

Serbia
499 men
37 APCs
19 tanks
3 AA vehicles
6 MRLs