FAST CARRIERS: Okinawa 1945

 

Before an all out invasion of Japan's main islands could be attempted it was apparent to both American and Japanese war planners that the island fortress of Okinawa would need to be captured. As part of the Ryukyu Islands chain it lay between Luzon in the Phillipines and Kyushu. It's airfield was the main prize as it allowed a wide area of air operations to whomever held it.  As the main striking force of the US Navy the Fast Carrier Task Force would provide the air cover and striking power to the invasion forces of Operation ICEBERG. The British Pacific Fleet (Task Force 37) would also play a part in the campaign being solely responsible for operations in the Sakashima Islands to the south west. In March of 1945 Allied naval forces closed in.

 

Japanese air power on Okinawa was a mix of both Imperial Navy and Imperial Army Air Forces. In addition to these units the Japanese could also sortie air groups from Kyushu to attack the invasion forces. The IJAAF and IJN fighter crews were made up of surviving veterans of earlier campaigns and intermixed with green pilots. In addition to interception duties they flew a gauntlet of CAP fighters and anti-aircraft guns to escort their charges to within striking distance of the Allied fleets.

 

Some of the most intense fighting of the Pacific War was fought during this campaign. Ultimately the island fell to the invaders in June of 1945 but at great cost. 368 Allied ships and some 768 U.S. planes were lost. The Japanese lost 16 combat ships and a further 7,830 aircaft to all causes, many of them Kamikaze. Added to that grim figure were 62,000 U.S. serviceman killed and 107,539 Japanese dead. The campaign marked the last major invasion of the war in the pacific as two months later Imperial Japan surrendered unconditionally after the Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic raids.

 

This FSO focuses on the initial phase of the Okinawan campaign as the Allies engage Japanese air power in a struggle for air and naval supremacy around the island.

 

Country Percentages:

 

Axis 50%
Allied 50%

 

Field Assignments:

 

Axis Bishop
Allied Knight
CM Rook
 
OOB:
 
Axis (IJN/IJAAF):

 

Ki-84 Hayate (max 36)
Ki-61  Hien
Ki-43 Hayabusa
N1K2 Shiden (max 24)
A6M5b Zero-sen (min 36)
Ki-67 Hiryu 

 

Allied (USN/USMC/RN): 

 

F4U-1D Corsair
F4U-1C Corsair (max 12)
F6F-5 Hellcat (min 48)
FM-2 Wildcat
Seafire (max 24)
TBM-3  Avenger

Recon Aircraft: F4U-1P (F4U-1A, 4 per frame) *Special mission aircraft (OPTIONAL)

 

Special Rules and Ordnance Restrictions:

 

* All aircraft types must be used by a minimum of 12 *players*.
* Bomber formations are off.
* 1000 lb bombs are disabled for the Allies.
* Air-ground ordnance is disabled for the F4U-1C and FM-2. 
* Recon missions are OPTIONAL. Recon missions are filmed (ALT-R) over a strike target at 4000 ft or less within light flak range and/or over the center area of the target after the strike is completed but within 60 min of frame start.

* ALL AIRCRAFT ARE TO BE LANDED AND THE PLAYERS TOWERED OUT BY FRAME END OR WILL BE CONSIDERED SHOT DOWN AND THE CREWS KIA.

 

Scoring:

 

Aircraft Pts
------------
Fighter = 5 pts
Bomber = 10 pts

Recon= 25 pts
Landing Bonus = 2 pts

 

Target Pts
----------
Gun = 0.5 pts
Hangar = 25 pts
Carrier = 200 pts
Cruiser = 100 pts
Destroyer = 50 pts

Recon Mission = 50 pts

 

Arena Settings:

 

- Okinawa terrain
- Fuel burn 1.5
- Icons friendly 3k/enemy 3k
- 0.2 Ack
- Fighter and Bomber warning range 42,000 (about 8 miles)
- Tower range set to 42,000 (for display only to match the above setting)
- Haze/fog full visibility (17 miles)
- Radar off
- Enemy collisions on
- Friendly collisions off
- Killshooter off
- Time: 15:00 ( 3PM ) Game Clock
- Formations: Off

- Formation Autopilot: On

- Bomber calibration: Manual
- Wind: 0-2k NO WIND
           2k-10K NW TO SE - Speed 5
           10K-18K W TO E - Speed 10
           18k-26K W TO E - Speed 20
           26k+ SW TO NE - Speed 40

 

Designer's Notes:

 

* The F4U-1C and FM-2 are representing fighters assigned to Combat Air Patrol and escort duty only.
* The F4U-1Ps were varients of the Corsair with field modification recon cameras added.

* Although the bulk of the Japanese offensive air operations in 1945 were Kamikaze sorties in this setup they will be represented by conventional attack methods.  

 

Design by Warloc