NationStates Jolt Archive

Captain Mason could now see the crashed transport through the cockpit windows of his huey, and the lead helicopter started to slow as they approached it. Glancing back, he checked to make sure the rest of the formation followed and then he took the controls from his co-pliot for the actual landing.

Behind him, in the passenger cabon the light infantry soldiers checked their weapons one final time and the gunners were ready to release a hail of 7.62mm rounds if the enemy decided to come out and play. By now, the enemy would have heard them and would have had a chance to set up firing positions on the LZ, making the prospect of being the second helicopter on th eground that much more apetising.

A call came over the radio from the lead helicopter, "Yellow One is approaching LZ, all flights check formation, after touch down assume clock wise circuit around the LZ and provide fire support, but no firing until enemy contact is made, repeat weapjns tight."

The lead UH-1 then tilted its nose up and it descended nearly striking the trees but just making the clearing. Captain Mason in Yellow Two saw that One had undershot his landing position and he adjusted so he would touch down more inthe middle of the LZ, and just as the helciopter passed over the treeline he could see the details of teh twisted and mangeld plane wreck.

As the second helicopter's skids touched ground, eight soldiers jumped out through the open doors and rushed to find cover, so far a shot had yet to be fired.

Lusaka, a response?

ooc:Where are they coming down, exactly? Because the Vultures melted away from the crash site quite soon after realising everyone was gone.. the half-dozen who tracked down the survivors later looped around and headed back to the area from where we fired at the transport.. which is probably a couple of miles away from where it crashed? Now the larger group of a dozen Vultures plus unknown numbers of Gabonaise light infantry and civilians, with their Rhodesian captives, are moving away from where we fired on the transport back towards Mekambo (which can be seen on the link provided by Gabonaise).

It's all a little confusing, heh.

ooc:Where are they coming down, exactly? Because the Vultures melted away from the crash site quite soon after realising everyone was gone.. the half-dozen who tracked down the survivors later looped around and headed back to the area from where we fired at the transport.. which is probably a couple of miles away from where it crashed? Now the larger group of a dozen Vultures plus unknown numbers of Gabonaise light infantry and civilians, with their Rhodesian captives, are moving away from where we fired on the transport back towards Mekambo (which can be seen on the link provided by Gabonaise).

It's all a little confusing, heh.

OOC: They are coming down eacatly at the crash site with the intnent of rescuing the survivors (obviosuly they dont know theve been captured yet) so its your decison whether to foght or flee, either way you'd have been able to hear the choppers fro miles around.

ooc:Right, right.. I'll stick with the original direction then, we've scarpered ;)
It makes no sense to turn back and fight, really. We're on a minor victory already, and word's just reached the team of major reinforcement not too far away, getting dragged into a small scale fire fight when half the army's just around the corner would be a fairly amature mistake, and these are Vultures. I can't speak for the Gabonaise civilians milling about- we'd armed some of those and they had been helping on the hunt, but I don't want to assume that they'd be willing to treck miles through the rain with us, leaving their homes behind, so they might well still be in the area.
Presumably Rhodesia's just getting word via Elias that massive Lusakan forces are arriving not far away.

Crash Site, Eastern Gabon

As Yellow Two lifted off from the LZ, another huey immediately took its place and more infantry poured out onto the crash site. Captain Mason, while manouvering his ship into a holding pattern, scanned the trees below, looking for any sign of the Rhodesian crew or enemies but so far no indication of either.

Down on the ground, the Light Infantry moved professionally across the LZ to the crashed plane where they found the bodies of their countrymen. While some lifted the bodies out of the wreck, others fanned out into the jungle, searching for the survivors and wary of the rebels.

Within five minutes nearly all of the twenty 'slicks' had unloaded their troops and the search area grew as men spread out in different directions.

Captured GLA airfield 'X-Ray One', Eastern Gabon

At the captured airbase, the forty five or so Selous Scouts waited, listening intently to the radio, irritated they were'nt there to help. In the last day, they had improved the bases defences, using various materials around them to create defenceive position as well as upgrading the perimiter fence with motion detectors. Now there was nothing else for them to do but wait for orders, after all they wouldnt be going home any time soon.

Lieutenant Gardiner paced the corregated iron hangar, swinging his combat knife and ranting on how much he wanted to 'slaughter the savages.'

OOC

:oops: Sorry to be annoying but we're gonna have to pause this RP for six days or so as Im going away and most lilely will not log on, anyway I'd appreciate it if you refrained from posting further until I return on Friday morning. Thanks a lot guys.

Also I think we should congratulate ourselves on what is turning out to be a very realistic and well RPed war/crisis, something which is becomong rarer and rarer here.

Seeyou guys later!

This would be an excellent time to post a quick re-cap of each Nation's forces and motivations for being in Gabon...

Roycelandia has deployed the 2nd Foreign Legion Jungle Combat Batallion to train Guerrillas and harrass Lusakan and United Elias troops.

Officially, they aren't there (cf US Army SOCOG teams in the Vietnam War), but the troops they have trained are now knocking out Trains, Roads, Power Lines, Telecommunications etc.

There is a small force of "Civillian Vounteer" pilots, in the form of the Eagle Squadron. Flying Roycelandian Aircraft (with different roundels), they will be attacking Lusakan Transport Aircraft etc as soon as Rping resumes. Roycelandia denies all knowledge of their existence, but obviously Eagle Squadron are Roycelandian Pilots and Aircrew.
They are operating from a camouflaged airfield described in an earlier post.


Operation Thunderball is being co-ordinated from Port Imperial in Roycelandian East Africa (see the NSAfrica map link posted earlier...)

And I agree, this is an excellent RP- I'm really enjoying it, and I can't wait for it to resume!

OOC: Man, someone's going to have his Congo River Research Facility ceased ;)

Lusaka has a few dozen members of the LRAC 17th Division Vultures in country, and they have been on the ground since the crisis began.. they were doing pretty much what the Roycelandians have since done.

They have finally been joined, thanks to African Commonwealth co-operation, by major conventional forces. So far a couple of hundred LRAC regulars are on the ground at Mekambo, with some racing to Makokou and its paved runway. Probably my next IC post will revolve around arrival there and co-operation (hopefully) with the Gabonaise, and the arrival of inbound Lusakan fighters.

Several thousand regular army (the LRAC is a better trained and equipped core of several divisions, while the regular army is closer to something one would expect to see in Africa) personnel are arriving by train, and they are bringing with them armour and such.

Quite how many we end up deploying depends on what the invaders state for their forces.

In support of Gabonaise and Lusakan anti-imperialist sentiment, the AC government(AKA the secular party) has improved railroad and RAC support divisions in order to give Lusakan detachments faster access to ammonition and fuel. Earlier today, Commonwealth President Mshone Ndelebe issued a statement to fellow African nations.

"Give no quarter, expect no quarter. The Commonwealth sustains you."

RP reopened, I'm back, thanks for waiting.

Current Deployments in the Gabon Theatre of Operations:

Libreville Airport:

2nd Infantry Battalion of the 1st Brigade, 4th (Army) Airborne Division:

1,024 infantry
128 Artillerymen
32 Recon soldiers
84 Air Defence soldiers
28 Battalion HQ staff
30 Battalion Medical Staff
90 Logistical staff
24 security police
32 Engineers
8 Avenger HMMWVs
150 HMMWVs
59 5 ton trucks
4 Cobra WLAV Recon Versions
16 ELS-119 105mm Howitzers
+associated equipments

Rifle Company Charlie, 3rd Marine Battalion, 2nd Marine Division:

96 Infantry in four platoons
+associated equipments

Alpha Flight, 6th Air Assault Squadron, 2nd Marine Division

5 (-2) EA-24G Helicopters (2 lost over Libreville awaiting removal and repair)
15 Marine Pilots
28 Enlisted Personnel (Crew chiefs, ground crew, gunners etc)

Air Force Field Support Unit (to support daily supply flights)

6 Command Staff
18 Administrative Staff
65 Enlisted Personnel (ground crew, logisticians etc)

Port of Libreville

Rifle Company Delta, 3rd Marine Battalion, 2nd Marine Division:

96 Infantry in four platoons
5 Navy liason staff
+associated equipments

Naval Task Group - Task Force 35

Flagship:

1x Victor class Aircraft Carrier

-3 EA-60B ASW/ASuW Aircraft
-2 EA-60C AEW Aircraft
-5 EA-60D EW/ELINTAircraft
-10 EA-220B Joint Tactical Bombers
-18 F/A-18ME ‘Ultra Hornet’ Two seat Multirole fighters
-18 Su-37MKE Single Seat Counter Air Fighters
-3 EA-24H Naval helicopters


Amphibious

2x Dolphin Amphibious Assault Ships

4x Sea Lion Amphibious Landing Ships

2x Sturgeon Combat Support Vessel

Escorts

2x Abdullah class Cruisers (modified Slava class)

3x Sovremenny class Destroyers

4x Tigris class destroyers (modified Arleigh Burke Flight IIA)

8x Beluga class Guided Missile Frigate

10xBarracuda Corvettes

2xTigershark Diesel Electric Submarine

1xLeviathan Nuclear Attack submarine

Support

3xEM-50 Minesweeper

1xEM-90 Sealift Ship

4xEM-75 Fleet Oiler

Somewhere near Franceville, Gabon

The IAe Spitfire was flying relatively low above the Jungle Canopy when the pilot spotted movement on the AC-Libreville Railway Line.

The Spitfire was sporting a full array of cannon and Ground-Attack Missiles, and a Swooping Eagle Roundel (identical to the GDI logo from "Command & Conquer") replaced the usual Roycelandian markings.

The Pilot- a Roycelandian East African "Volunteer" smiled as he saw the train- an easy kill!

The Spitfire dived out of the sun, firing rockets and cannon at the locomotive and carriages, hoping to destroy them and the rail tracks they rode on...

OOC: Welcome back!

"IGLA! IGLA!" Screamed the rifleman from his vantage point atop the troop train's guard wagon, though he was half drowned-out by dozens of other calls to arms and shouts of "Spitfire!" from the infantry packed aboard.
A few rifles cracked 7.62mm rounds in the general direction of the easily recognisable Roycelandian aircraft for several seconds before the SA-16 - in LRAC hands only since the Roycelandian threat came to Beth Gellen attention- lept forth from the guard wagon at over Mach 2.

"Aah!" The back-blast delt the Lusakans their first injury as a young private failed to anticipate the effects of firing a surface to air missile through the window of a small carriage.

Soldiers lept from the slow-moving train on both sides, some still firing into the air. Others were climbing to the roof when a rocket hit their half-full carriage, knocking it over and derailing the guard wagon behind.

The engine, its cabin perforated by cannon fire, rolled on for a few hundred yards, several carriages still in tow, before grinding to a halt as dozens of men dashed back to the last two cars and their wounded comrades.

It wasn't long before word reached New Lusaka City- Roycelandian aircraft had attacked a Lusakan train in Gabon and there had been casualties. No word as yet on the fate of the aircraft. Within the hour twelve F-20G Tigers, previously schedueled to leave the next morning, were in the air, drop-tanks hurridly filled, and bound for Makokou.

Secretary Miyanda was already demanding Roycelandia give him a reason not to send the Lusakan Army to Nairobi and beyond when the President's official statement of protest and request for information arrived in the Roycelandian embassy.

Nobody else this side of 1950 flew Spits, certainly not in sub Saharan Africa.

[double post]

*coughUE, what about that call?cough*

Train Wreck, Gabon

The IAe Spitfire pilot was incredibly pleased with this- his first confirmed combat kill, albeit of a train...

He looped the Spitfire around, oblivious to the small arms and SAM fire, and started to strafe the immobilised train and troops again.

The Spitfire was so low that it was impossible for the Lusakan SAM and AA fire to miss- the port wing was quickly parted from the Spitfire's fuselage, and the plane spiralled out of control and crashed into the jungle maybe 500m from the wrecked locomotive. The pilot was killed instantly, and wreckage from the plane was strewn all around the crash site- despite the burning Aviation Fuel and ammunition, the tail was relatively unscathed, still bearing the Swooping Hawk roundel... clearly NOT Roycelandian markings, although they were the only nation in Southern Africa to be operating the Spitifre....

Port Imperial, Roycelandian East Africa

Commander Sword swore very loudly as reports of Lusaka's displeasure with the attack on the train came in.

"Susan, draft this reply to secretary Miyanda for me:

The Roycelandian Government is saddened to hear of the unfortunate incident regarding your Supply Train in Gabon. We find it difficult to beleive that one of our Spitfires was responsible, primarily because we have none based in Gabon or anywhere within combat air range of the site of the alleged incident.

Imperial Aerospace has sold large numbers of Spitfires to both foreign governments and individuals in recent years, so it is quite possible some have found their way to Gabon. If this is the case, please accept our apologies that such an oversight has occured and take comfort knowing that the Manufacturer's Warranty has been invalidated by their use against a Nation not at war with Roycelandia.

It is worth remembering that Imperial Armaments, Colonial Aircraft Factory, and Imperial Aerospace weapons and vehicles are highly sought after on the International Market, so the likelihood of them appearing in the conflict in Gabon is extremely high. Rest assured, Roycelandia has not officially committed troops or equipment to the conflict, nor does it have any plans to do so, either now or in the foreseeable future.

If there is anything further I can do to be of assitance, please do not hesitate to contact me via Communique or Telegram.

[signed] Commander Jack Sword, Imperial Defence Forces, Port Imperial, Roycelandian East Africa

Jungles of Gabon

The Imperial Foreign Legion troops were sweltering in the heat as they taught the villagers about Bengal Tiger Traps, Molotov Cocktails, and weapons maintenance. Certainly, Roycelandia had neither the intent nor the ability to completely take over the country. But they certainly could ensure that no-one else could have it, either...

Spitfire Reconnaisance aircraft had been seen over the Jungles near targets of possible strategic importance, especially railway lines, bridges, power substations, and telecom facilities...

OOC: Doesn't this all have a wonderfully "War Picture Library/Commando Comic" feel to it?" :D

Crash Site, Eastern Gabon

The two companies of Light Infantry soldiers had now secured the immediate area around the crashed C-123 and as dusk approached, half of the one hundred and eighty or so men remained on guard duty while the others slept. The force would remain there in case the enemy returned and also they launch patrols in the vicinty.

In the six hours since the hueys had depared and landed at the captured GLA airfield 'X-Ray One' some twenty one miles away, the troops had searched for several miles around, unable to find the missing scouts, only tracks left signs that the enemy had been around.

Looking out of one the of temporary bunkers they had just dug around the permiter of the LZ, Private First Class 'Tommy' Smith scans the darkened tree line with his new RCR-556 assault rifle, aware that fifty yards of claymores and booby traps protect the approaches. Suddenly a silhouette appears and he squeezes the trigger. Seconds later the figure drops.

The Sergeant then rushes up behind him in the trench, "Tommy, good shot, take Sam and Charlie and bring back the corpse, we'll cover you but I think he's a loner.

The three black soldiers then advance slowly through a narrow channel through the minefield and reach the trees. They then rush back with the body of the black rebel. The sergeant inspects it before calling the Captain on the radio, "Sir, we nailed one of 'em, he's Gabonese looking at what he's dressed in, basically a farmer, problem is his AK has ''Lusakan State Armouries' stamped on it."

"Sh*t, that means the Lusakans probably have our guys, I'll notify the brass."

Office of Prime Minister Charles Howard-Fraser, Salisbury, Rhodesia

It was not uncommon for the PM to have military brifefings in the early evening but this was different. On his expansive mahogany desk, pictures from United Elias satellites showing an airfield were Lusakan planes were bringing in war supplies. Chief of the Defence Staff the gung ho General Gardiner then offered suggestions, "Prime Minster, we have to hit these f*ckers hard this time, we let it go and they'll have their way with us and that could threaten the security of the nation. My advice is to bomb this little airfield back to the stoneage then send a diplomatic complaint demanding our POWs back."

"Do we know they have them?"

"Sir, these are Selous Scouts we're dealing with, they wouldnt get captured by a bunch of jungle bunny farmers."

"Okay, get on it, if we do it, make it fast."

"Of Course."


Fort Victoria, Rhodesia

Just thirty five minutes later, alert crews at RRAF Fort Victoria scrambled in a hive of activity. The 23rd Strike Squadron had originally been formed in the 1950s, equipped with first of all, ex RAF Lancasters before receiving Canberras. The squadron had been designed to act as a long range strike force that could hit targets at great distance from the Federation such as Angola, Namibia, Zaire and even further. During the 1980s, the squadron had been given former RAF Vulcan bombers and they had performed many deadly strike missions on Lusaka City during the height of the war; gaining somewhat of a notorious reputation for being fairly indiscriminate with their weapons. Since then, and equipped with the same aircraft, the squadron had been used frequently in ‘showing the flag’ missions, intended primarily to intimidate but they had never actually dropped ordnance on an enemy for over eight years.

Tonight that was about to change as the airfield comes to life amid the cacophony of claxons. Maintenance crews perform checks on the six Vulcan B2 bombers that would be used in the strike, as trucks ferry ‘iron’ bombs from concrete bunkers. Under the floodlights, the crews work for nearly an hour, making their precious aircraft ready for what in Rhodesian military jargon is known as a ‘Hostile Intervention Mission’ (HIM).

After only two hours since the PM gave the order, the supersonic behemoths taxi out onto the active runway, each carrying twenty one 1000lb HE bombs. A few minutes later and the bright glow of afterburners and the deafening roar of the jet engines, fill the air as the laden bombers rise into the air gracefully. Seconds later they bank to the North West, and in two more hours they would reach Gabonese airspace.

On the other side of the airfield, twelve Tornado GR.4 aircraft, also take to the sky in quick succesion, armed with AMRAAM and ALARM missiles to defeat air threats and destroy any air defences before the bombers strike.

[OOC: i hope some indirect intervention will be agreeable to all RPers here assembled..]
Hall of the Revolution, New Grey Havens
" Imperialist pigdogs strike Africa again...so. I don't suppose we're able to aid Lusaka directly without sending in troops?"
"Doubtful, comrade. The quinquennal plan is already stretched to the limit, and any substantial aid will wreak havoc upon attempts to reach our targets.The PRES covert spending budget might be used for that, though.Also, we could tell Lusaka that should they wish so, we can ask for IFTA clearance to trade arms with them."
"Any other ideas?"
"Economic warfare. Have the PRES buy up as many Rhodesian Sterlings as possible from Mafia sources so it dosn't appear on official records, then float them on the international money markets, via various fronts, when they have enough. With the snowball effect, should cause their Sterling's value to crash. Plus, we can release vast amounts of counterfei banknotes into their country a few days prior to enhance the Rhodesian Sterling panic. Diminished purchasing power will cut into any arms imports, amd the associated inflation hurt their domestic economy. If the IFTA approves-a mere formality, i hope-we could also sell our significant uranium reserves on the open market at ridiculously low prices, since we hadn't planned on doing anything with them. That should drop world uranium prices at least temporarily, and thus hurt Rhodesian export earnings."
"Implement it. And issue the appropriate diplomatic statements."

A few hours later, imperialist adventurism in the Gabon was strongly condemned, a message of support for nations striving to defend the right to self-determination and ensure their regional security was issued, and more discretely the Lusakans and the Republique Gabonnaise had been informed that should they need arms, Cirdanistan would sell them the goods required at as low a price as the country could afford, while PRES agents meet with with mobsters for black market acquisition of Rhodesian sterlings and their comrades ran presses, counterfeiting high-value rhodesian banknotes. The fakes would be just good enough to cause a scare, while not good enough to escape detection at, say, a major bank.

[OOC: i hope some indirect intervention will be agreeable to all RPers here assembled..]
Hall of the Revolution, New Grey Havens
" Imperialist pigdogs strike Africa again...so. I don't suppose we're able to aid Lusaka directly without sending in troops?"
"Doubtful, comrade. The quinquennal plan is already stretched to the limit, and any substantial aid will wreak havoc upon attempts to reach our targets.The PRES covert spending budget might be used for that, though.Also, we could tell Lusaka that should they wish so, we can ask for IFTA clearance to trade arms with them."
"Any other ideas?"
"Economic warfare. Have the PRES buy up as many Rhodesian Sterlings as possible from Mafia sources so it dosn't appear on official records, then float them on the international money markets, via various fronts, when they have enough. With the snowball effect, should cause their Sterling's value to crash. Plus, we can release vast amounts of counterfei banknotes into their country a few days prior to enhance the Rhodesian Sterling panic. Diminished purchasing power will cut into any arms imports, amd the associated inflation hurt their domestic economy. If the IFTA approves-a mere formality, i hope-we could also sell our significant uranium reserves on the open market at ridiculously low prices, since we hadn't planned on doing anything with them. That should drop world uranium prices at least temporarily, and thus hurt Rhodesian export earnings."
"Implement it. And issue the appropriate diplomatic statements."

A few hours later, imperialist adventurism in the Gabon was strongly condemned, a message of support for nations striving to defend the right to self-determination and ensure their regional security was issued, and more discretely the Lusakans and the Republique Gabonnaise had been informed that should they need arms, Cirdanistan would sell them the goods required at as low a price as the country could afford, while PRES agents meet with with mobsters for black market acquisition of Rhodesian sterlings and their comrades ran presses, counterfeiting high-value rhodesian banknotes. The fakes would be just good enough to cause a scare, while not good enough to escape detection at, say, a major bank.

OOC: Ingenius plan but how do you expect to be able to meet with so called 'mafia' sources inside Rhodesia and buy currency. We have strict currency controls, i.e no foreign banks are allowed to change R£s into other currencies and also you are not allowed to leave with more than R£1000 per person. In addition the governments own reserves are kept in US dollars and Gold as well as UK sterling. A low currency should help our export business which has been suffering a bit. Our main exports are: tobacco, gold, ferroalloys, textiles/clothing and small arms (although not so much anymore).

Makokou

The BMP and attached assets, having met no unpleasant surprises on their dash north, were now visible on the edge of the airport's paved runway as LRAC officers met with airport staff. In this part of the country the Lusakans were met with feelings of neglect more than anything else. While elsewhere there was fighting, invading forces, competing ..'diplomats', out here there were Gabonaise. Central government didn't appear to the Lusakans to have much hold this far east, or surely the puppets would have attempted to block their progress by now.

As Rhodesian aircraft prepped for take-off hundreds of miles away, the LRAC officers explained to staff at Makokou airport that this was to become the new centre for Lusakan forces in their efforts to drive out the invaders and restore democratic order to Gabon.

By the time the Rhodesian bombers were aloft, the (foreign upgraded) Lusakan F-20s were leaving AC airspace, and Lusaka's previously arrived forces were in the middle of uping sticks to depart their dirt airstrip for Makokou's relative luxury. By the time the bombers arrived there would be only the light defensive garrison first established by the LRAC, a few piled-up supplies to be collected on a later return trip by a C-130, and whatever the Gabonaise had on hand.

Railway near the AC border

The rescue effort had done all that was possible. Anyone still inside the remains of the last two carriages hit by the Spitfire's rockets was staying inside, nobody wanted to hang around any longer- it was a long walk to Makokou with the tracks not far ahead blown out.

So far it appeared that eight soldiers were dead, and there was certainly a dozen to be counted seriously wounded. They'd have to be stabilised and taken back across the border in the hopes of finding hospital space in the Commonwealth. Two dozen more were counted walking wounded and put on the next train behind to return home to Lusaka.

More than forty men out of action before they'd even got off the train.
From now on Lusakan troop trains would stop inside AC and the men would march to ever changing locations just across the border to be picked up by truck or BMP and taken to Lusakan strong-points close to Makokou.

New Lusaka City

Igomo was interested by Cirdanistan's offers. Lusaka's army was large, and its air force was reasonably well equipped as native African air forces went, but the army lacked cutting edge armaments. This was usually considered for the best, since what they had worked reliably and cheaply. Still, the opponents in this conflict were wealthy and modern. Getting the LRAC, at least the 17th, some more modern equipment wouldn't hurt.

The President responded with an interest in effective man-portable or crew-served anti-tank and anti-aircraft weaponry. The troops were impressed with the SA-16's recently acquired, but they were few and far between, and several had been lost on the attacked train. The old RPG-7 was very useful, but no one wanted to go up against a modern MBT with such a thing.


(sorry if this post is.. crap, I'm quite distracted right now..ah well)

[OOC: Rhodesia, money is not a black-and-white matter....sure, a low R£ might help exports, but it would also cause high inflation, and because a sudden crash in value would occur before inflation followed and adjusted, and a phase of hyperinflation is detrimental to the economy also, your GDP would diminish in real terms. but if you spend $ and british £ for your imports, another plan will have to be studied...]

Hall of the Revolution, New Grey Havens
A quick note was transmitted to Lusaka, saying that Cirdanistan had the capacity to manufacture and deliver the SA-16 shoulder-fired SAM, which presented the obvious advantage of being a system the Lusakan troops were already familiar with, and a variety of sytems capable of taking out a modern MBT: the Eryx, for short-range work, and either the Kornet-E or the Milan for longer-range engagements. Additionally, light AA vehicles, such as the SA-11 lancher or the ZSU-30 could be sold. Despite the economic strain currently placed on Cirdanistan, without which no payment at all would have been required, the arms could be made available at less than a quarter of their market prices, with payment delayed until convenient. [OOC: tried to keep it down to RL systems to keep matters simple...if your not sure what they do, just check out one of those military sites such as globalsecurity.org, that's where i looked them up anyway ;) ]
Somewhere else, officials from the PRES and the Department of Economics met to discuss economic warfare..Rhodesia was proving a tougher target than expected.

South Atlantic, 110nm West of Port Gentil

Aboard the flag bridge of the aircraft carrier President Meir the intelligence officers review sets of fresh satellite pictures, the FIB having already labelled various things at Makokou airport and the surrounding area. Under the glare of the low light lamps they realise the Gabon problem just got more serious.

"Admiral, we've located what appears to be a new Lusakan operating base, we see numerous armoured vehicles, aircraft and a good lot of personnel."

"What about the dirt strip?"

"Seems to be just residual stuff, they've been moving out all day."

"Damn, can we divert the Rhodesian sortie to the new target?"

"Negative Sir, they've already taken off and following prearranged flight plans, complete radio silence."

"Okay, well we have to act then, how quickly can we generate a standoff strike package?"

"Thirty minutes or so, how many birds?"

"ten to twelve, mixed payloads."

"Yes Sir."

***

Half an hour later and the appropriate missile flightplans had been sent to the appropriate ships in the battle group. Admiral Shultz looked out from the wing of the flag bridge and watched as the destroyers and frigates fired off their cruise missiles in quick succesion, the bright contrials lghting up the ocean like flares.

OOC:

A total of twelve EAW-22 (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=79705&highlight=) cruise missiles have been fired, all programmed to fly to Makokou airbase. They are stealthy and they are designed to fly in from different directions, meaning interception is nearly impossible. They are timed to arrive in two waves, firstly four 'A' versions with BROACH warheads that will destroy hangars, buildings etc, followed ten minutes later by eight 'B' versions. The EAW-22B uses a cluster type warhead (details on link provided above) to destroy aircraft, vehicles, small structures and personnel. However, unlike the export 'B' version, nearly a third of the bomblets in each missile are fitted with proximity or time delay fuses thus making it extremely hazerdous to try and clear up the mess after the strike. Enjoy! :wink:

PRES Headquarters, New Grey Havens
Following increased difficulties with the economic warfare plan, it had been put on hold. instead, it was decided to use substantial chunks of the covert funds of foreign cash as secret donations to Lusaka and the Republique Gabonaise. A way of bringing the arms down from being sold to being given, while tapping only pre-existing funds...

The Interior of Gabon

Huge numbers of Roycelandian Arms & Ammunition were being airdropped and smuggled into Gabon by Roycelandian Sunderlands and C-47s, many operating from either Coral Palm Island, or the Franceville Airstrip.

The loss of a Spitfire by the Special Operations Command was unfortunate and regrettable, but it was felt that the damage done to the Lusakan train about evened out the loss, and it would considerably slow down Luskan reinforcements- with no rail lines into the country, troops and supplies would have to be brought in vai road or air, and Luskan Herky Birds would be easy prey for Spitfires and Tigersharks... The planes might LOOK old, but underneath the WWII exterior, they were as modern & advanced as any Jet Fighter... in fact, Roycelandian Spitfires had bought down many Modern Jets which had been fooled by the Spitfire's antique appearance and underestimated them accordingly...

**************************************
Top Secret Encrypted Communique to Rhodesia & Nyasaland

Once again, our Governments find ourselves involved in a regional conflict owning to the inability of our African Neighbours to handle their internal affairs or security and Govern themselves in a civilised manner.

It cannot have escaped your notice that Roycelandian Special Operations and Foreign Legion troops and vehicles are operating in Gabon- without the Roycelandian Government's Official Knowledge, of course- but it would be most unfortunate if our respective Nation's operatives were to unwittingly cross paths and, owing to a lack of information, become involved in what would essentially be a Blue-On-Blue.

Accordingly,We should like to enter into an agreement whereby Roycelandia and Rhodesia & Nyasaland co-ordinate their Intelligence and Operations Plans to better acheive our goals in Gabon, namely keeping the Government destabilised and preventing further growth of African Nationalism.

We have established a small airfield in Gabon which we would be prepared to make available to your troops, and aircraft, no doubt extending their operational range significantly...

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact either Commander Sword or Myself for clarification.

[signed] His Imperial Majesty Emperor Royce I, Port Royal, Roycelandia

**********************************************
Franceville Airstrip

Foreign Legionnaire Claude Boules had undetaken many different tasks since joining the Imperial Foreign Legion- he had hunted Tigers near the old Port Imperial colony in what was now Lusaka, he had fought against Rebels in Dutch Elm Island, and he had recently returned from a foray into Madagascar, but none of them compared in danger to his current task: Teaching Villagers to drive the Land Rovers that had been driven in that morning.

Oh, they bunny-hopped, they stalled, they crashed into things (fortunately the Land Rover was a sturdy vehicle!), but it was hair raising... the Villagers could only drive at two speeds- slow crawl or recklessly breakneck!

As Claude hung on for dear life he prayed that he'd never have to rely on one of the Villagers to act as Getaway Driver when the raids started in earnest...

While President Igomo's Defence Secretary Colin Olongwe confirmed the United African Republic's interest in the Cirdanistani SA-16s, anti-tank weapons, and SA-11s, the nation's current equivalents continued to roll and fly west. C-130s were now joined by C-124s in hauling men and equipment to Makokou, F-5L Tiger and F-20C light fighters flying escort as they hopped across the Commonwealth.

The SA-9 Gaskins already on the ground near the airport weren't of much use to the Lusakans or the civilian personnel on hand when the Elias cruise missiles arrived. The hectic scene with one C-124 unloading drums of fuel, one F-5L taxiing towards its take-off location and another already airborne, several Lusakan trucks, UAZs, and BMPs, and scores of people was scarcely changed by a few shouts and a smattering of rifle-fire from the edge of the airport.
Seconds after the futile shots reported a blast was heard, and shortly smoke began to rise from the far end of the runway. There had been some sort of explosion in a hangar. Mechanised infantry sprang into life, their vehicles dashing away from other hangars and such fearing that bombs may have been planted. Still the majority of the Lusakans were oblivious to the sighting by a few of incoming missiles. A second blast was followed quickly by the overflight of a third missile, which attracted a hail of small arms and cannon fire to no effect before plowing into a storage building of some sort.

It was evident that Gabon's invaders were finally paying attention to the Lusakan force, and frankly the men on the ground at Makokou were happier when they didn't seem to matter.

A fourth explosion occured dangerously close to the C-124, and as flames crept towards the surrounding fuel drums efforts were underway to effect missile interception of further incoming targets while commanders bellowed into radio sets, informing all who listened in.

(NB. The F-5s and F-20s flown by the Lusakan Air Force have been heavily upgraded by the nation's allies (in Soviet Haaregrad). This much is probably at least assumed by neighbouring nations with an interest in such matters, whether they know the extent of the aircrafts' modification is less clear- most F-5s in service today mount wing-tip AA-11 Archer instead of AiM-9 Sidewinder, and are now capable of carrying AA-10 Alamo. Add Mach 2 Class speeds, helmet-mounted targeting systems, and agility to that and never mind Spitfires being underestimated, this 3rd world state has some useful fighters of its own, and they're still cheaper to operate and more reliable than most modern fighters.)

The formation flew high, approaching Gabonese Airspace from the South. Originally destined to bomb a small dirt airstrip used by Lusakan troops, they had since learnt that it had been abandonded in favour of the one in Makokou. Therefore the lubering but graceful Vulcans had turned back. However their escort of 16 Tornado GR.4s continued.

The planes changed course slightly, their new mission to unleash their ALARM (http://globalsecurity.org/military/world/europe/alarm.htm) missiles on the Makokou airbase, hopefully destroying as many of the Luskan air defences as possible. Each Tornado also carried a pair of AMRAAMs, just in case they met hostile fighters, although they would only be those cheap and obsolete F-5s.

Just as the planes crossed the border, two of the fighters broke off formation, having identified a large and slow radar contact just a hundred miles away. A Lusakan transport plane would be easy prey.

As soon as Lusaka had confirmed their interests, gears were set in motion. Factory production boards implemented new orders, and export weaponry was dug out of warehouses. The first transport soon set off towards Lusakan airspace, loaded with several hundred SA-16 handheld SAMs, twoscore Eryx launch systems with half-a-dozen missiles each, an even dozen of the longer-ranged Kornet missile tubes (also with six missiles per launcher), and a lone SA-11 vehicle, with a dozen missiles.

Simultaneously, the Cirdani ambassador in New Lusaka City passed on a note to the Africans, proposing the scheme to 'recycle' the PRES' covert funds into paying for Cirdani exports of weapons to Lusaka, and wishing success to the LRAC troops in Gabon.

we are a large supplier of nuclear weapons and fish autocannons. Call:1-800-DIE-FRANCE

Port Royal, Roycelandia

Many thousands of man hours had gone into the research and design of the new fighter aircraft. Radically different from anything Roycelandia currently operated, they were the pride of the Imperial Air Force, and now, they stood on the runway at Tropical Harbour Air Base.

The lucky 12 pilots chosen to fly the IAe Harrier Jump Jet were the Air Force's best Spitfire Pilots, all with Air Combat Experience.

Coincidentally, 4 of the pilots were African, and had "Volunteered" to fly with the Special Operations Command in Gabon- their Harriers had been repainted, accordingly. 4 of the remainder were off to Roycelandian East Africa, and the other 4 were to remain in Roycelandia.

The route to Gabon was circuitous, flying around through The Sudan, around the top of the AC, through Equitorial Guinea, and into Gabon below radar coverage. More aircraft would follow, and the UE and Luskans wouldn't know what hit them...

The Harrier carried the very latest in ASM, AMRAAM, and General Purpose missiles (Radar, Heat, and Dumbfire guided), as well as a 20mm cannon and 4 .303MGs in the nose. Coated with a Radar-reflecting polymer and featuring an Exhaust Coolant, the Harrier was the pinnacle of Roycelandian Air Might, and more importantly, it was VTOL and could hover in mid air, making it very handy indeed...

Franceville Airstrip, a few days later

The Harriers were greeted with surprise and interest by the SOC air crews... so many missiles and guns, and the VTOL thing. It would come in very handy against the Lusakans and UE forces, if it came to that conflict...

That morning, one of the Spitfires took off on a routine reconnaisance mission towards Libreville, scouting for a Target of Oppurtunity...

Radar, patrols or what-have-you around the northeastern borderlands of the African Commonwealth will show a radical increase in mobile SAMS, mechanized infantry patrols and F-15E Air Superiority fighter cruises. Roycelandian air forces passing around the area are unmolested, but it seems the CAF* is preparing for the worst.



*Commonwealth Armed Forces.

Isochron forces in our West African colonies are on standby to deploy with 18 hours notice. Awaiting approval from our Roycelandian and UE allies.

Our navy detachment in the area is sorting through extensive intelligence before launching our involvement.

(ooc:Ach, it's getting difficult to keep up with all the problems faced by Lusaka. We seem to be pretty much alone here :? And facing economic and technical superiority on several sides, for that matter. Just assume any sloth in casualty reports and the like is the result of the relative isolation of Lusakan forces, and the related technical and information delays and so on and so forth)

Heading for the newly secured airport the last C-124 authorised to fly before the reported attacks could be confirmed and a response be formulated flew under unusually heavy escort.

The air force wanted to get more fighters into Gabon right away, and as such four rather than two F-5L escorted what was meant to be a pair of transports, and was new reduced to one carrying only the most essential supplies to troops already on the ground.

While two fighters more or less clung to the lumbering transport the second pair were flying above and ahead, hoping to provide a much needed moral boost by arriving at Makokou as soon as possible. It was the wingman of this little formation that first picked up aircraft inbound from the south.

"Two contacts!" The young pilot burst out, prompting his leader to reach for countermeasures and brace for evasive manoeuvres, before the wingman composed himself and directed the leader's attention towards the limit of their radar's southern reach.

Both aircraft armed their twin AA-10 missiles and alerted the other escorts to the situation. The second pair of fighters gambled on breaking off from their ward as the C-124 made a course correction and headed further north, intending to turn back sharply once close to the airstrip's longitude.

The first two F-5E came about and made for the targets. Lusaka was quite confident that it was without friends in the Gabonaise skies, and unlike the hectic mix of hurridly arrived attackers, had no serious fear of friendly fire. Assuming the two made it to within fifty miles of the targets they would each loose a Mach 4 AA-10 missile, following it five or six seconds later with a second each. Having depleted their long range weapons the Lusakans would race on to a range of 20-25 miles before launching an AA-11, one of the world's finest SRAAMs, leaving them each with one AA-11 and cannon should hostiles remain.

The second pair of fighters was several seconds behind and armed in similar fashion. The hope was for these to avoid using their AAMs if at all possible.. Lusaka's economy was not coping well with the war even at this early stage.

While well-concealed, it wasn't hard for these seasoned jungle fighters to find the tripwires laid by the Ghetto team to slow their progress. The booby-traps were impressive, with some close to the ground and others attached to branches which if moved would trigger a blast.

A sergeant in the leading scout platoon waved for a soldier with engineer training to defuse the traps. While it slowed the force down some, not enough to prevent them from reaching their goal.

The Free Gabon soldiers swarmed over the defenders attacking in waves by platoon in the hope of overwhelming the enemy.

===

OOC - Sorry for the delay in returning to the RP, but you lot seem to be doing a lovely job without us!

General Janvier didn't react well upon hearing that his forces lost two of their APCs in an ambush in the interior. He refused to view the north-south line marking the frontier between his loyal forces and those of la Republique Gabonaise as anything more than a fabrication of his enemies.

Upon walking into a command bunker unannounced and seeing the line which accurately depicted the border between the two forces, he screamed an obscenity and stormed out. Moments later his body guards stepped into the bunker and shot everyone inside.

===

MESSAGE TO UNITED ELIAS ALLIES FROM PRESIDENT JANVIER

The situation in the interior of my country is out of control. Rebels have recently destroyed two of my armoured personnel carriers and in a seperate attack murdered a command bunker near Libreville.

We have requested your assistance in these matters, but so far that assistance seems to be lacking. Please advise.

===

The fact that this message went out on an open channel wasn't lost of the private in the communications tent. The jerky movements of the former general & current president made the soldier do his duty and quickly left the tent.

Whispering to a comrade in the latrine, "I think Janvier is starting to lose it. He doesn't seem to be acting rationally..."

"So what can we do about it?" the other soldier asked.

"I know what I'm going to do..." the private said buttoning up his fly.

===

That night, a dozen members of the headquarters company disappeared into the night. Taking light arms and a jeep, they started moving east toward the frontier that they knew existed even if it wasn't on any map...

OOC: Free Gabon, United Elais needs to rp reciving my distress call from the Ghetto Team. Also, SC can't rp the Ghetto Desert Team, so I gotta go back and do that.

After making contact with the Lusakan forces, Col. Jacques Renaud returned to the Gabonaise HQ to make his report.

After a brief conversation, he was ordered to serve as liaison between the Gabonaise forces and the foreign fighters assisting la Republique in its struggle.

As Renaud departed again with plans for an upcoming offensive, he began to wonder if his country would ever see peace again.

===

Back in the command bunker, Gen Thibault agreed to permit a 'black squad' to make their attempt at toppling the regime in Libreville.

An hour later the dozen men dressed like civillains boarded a public transport bus and settled in for the long ride back to the coast. Like a real bus, they stopped frequently along the way to pick up passengers. But they would have been blind to miss that more people were walking along the roads heading east and there was little traffic heading into the heart of the so-called 'Free Gabon'.

After 14 hours the bus stopped at its final stop, disgorging the last civillian passengers. They then set off again, stopping in front of the new 'Palace du President'.

The driver climbed out and quickly disabled the engine and then rolled up his sleeves and began to work on fixing the damage he had done...

[code:1:f808396c8d]To: All nations in this conflict
From: Credonia

MESSAGE
As one of the most prominate, outspoken, and most visible members of the IADF alliance, I must voice my concern over the events currently unfolding in Gabon. Credonia, serving as a spokesmen for the other nations in the IADF question the true motives of United Elias, which is why i am calling for a full investigation and review of United Elias and its actions in the supposed war on terror in Gabon. I must say that I am quite disturbed by what factions from Gabon and my own allies say about this campaign, and it disturbs me even more to see that the conflict still wages on, with no sign of an end in sight. Something must be done and Credonia shall see to it that it is done.

Alexander Nicolas Sutton
Emperor of the Credonian Empire[/code:1:f808396c8d]

Libreville

The situation in the Airport command tent was tent, indeed the panicked message from Janvier had been quite alarming to say the least.

"President Janvier, Victor Six, we now have confirmation that units engaged by guerilla activity (the Barbarosean/Ghetto team) have been determined to be friendly, please withdraw immediately from the vicinity.
We have a Marine helicopter alert force ready and will dispatch to any confirmed guerilla activity as soon as locations are given.

Currently we have implemented a contingency plan codenamed, 'Blue' and further Marine units have been requested to reinforce the capital and Port Gentil, Naval aviation is currently implementing combat air patrols and will protect your forces from air attack."

***

Several Miles away, the Port of Libreville was coming alive as equipment from amphibious ships a few miles away. Helicopters touched down with further infantrymen and HMMWVs while LCACs unloaded Stryker Armoured vehicles. Several of the newer AAAVs then drove directly up onto the concrete, after driving across the calm coastal approaches.
Immediately the vehicles fuelled up and proceed in formation out of the Port and towards the centre of the city.


Baghdad, United Elias

At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs it was realised that the crisis in Gabon needed to be addressed, indeed the aims of the operation had never been explained fully to the world and the citizens were nearly completely in the dark about the situation. The official spokesman straightened his tie and then walked out in front of the cameras, a loose pile of papers on the lectern ready.

"The Situation in the West African of Gabon is as follows, first of all the previous government which is known to have supported terrorism or did not actively prevented terrorist cells from using Gabon as a staging base has fled to the Eastern extremities were it is being assisted by foreign insurgents. With the help of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, United Elias has a very limited military presence in Gabon which is protecting the interim government led by President Janvier. The former regime has mounted guerilla attacks on the Free Gabon forces and more are expected in the near future.

"We admit that so far the aims of our government have not been made clear and now I will attempt to correct that. In the short term, our forces will remain to oversee reconstruction of the country and more importantly to verify that terrorists no longer use Gabon for clandestine purposes and prevent the corrupt and despotic regime from returning. In the longer term, we intend to make Gabon democratic and legalise banned opposition parties, free and fair elections will be administered by the international community and Gabon will hopefully become a free market democracy. However this transition cannot be made while crucial areas of Gabon remain under rebel control and therefore we urge foreign powers and the former regime to allow progress. It is ludicrous to allege that United Elias has any wish to retain Gabon as a colony as we have no such Imperialist ambitions and no desire to be responsible for the Gabonese people any longer than is necessary.

"We also urge the international community to join us and assist our efforts to prevent civil war from breaking out, which would create an inevitable humanitarian catastrophe. To the Gabonese people, we ask that you also place your trust in President Janvier and by joining the Free Gabon military you can help to make your nation truly free."

Franceville Airstrip

The giant turboprop engines on the CAF Lancaster Heavy Bomber spluttered into life- port outer, followed by the others.

Nearby, the 3 Spitfires started their own engines, whilst two of the Harrier Jump Jets went through final checks before flight.

Radio Triangulation had given the location of General Janvier's emergency broadcast... somewhere outside Libreville. The fact he was broadcasting on an open channel meant the man was dangerous, and a threat to Roycelandia's plans in the area.

Accordingly, all non-Roycelandian, Isochronian, or Rhodesian communication facilities outside Libreville have been targeted as part of Operation Mute Button.

As soon as the first of the Broadcasting Facilities was located, the bomber released it's 5,000lb payload, and turned for home, alert for roaming fighters- the CAF Lancaster was well armed, but even so, having the Spitfires there was and enormous reassurance.

The Harriers, meanwhile, were on Search & Destroy missions- anything of strategic importance was to be bombed, shot, rocketed, and generally rendered totally useless.

Commander Sword's orders, delivered via Foreign Legion HQ had been clear- Gabon was to be rendered totally ungovernable by anyone.

Skywatcher Airport

The place was a bustle, and most of it was to blame on the war in Omz222, but for a special platoon (144) of ghosts, that was not the reason. They had loaded up into a Z-7 and were ready to move very shortly.
"Sir, Alpha Lance (72) has been boarded and is ready, Bravo Lance is almost ready SIR!" A Sergent Major reported.
"Very well, Operation: Bushwacker can be commenced." Captain Drake Iman replied. He hopped aboard the Z-7 and the rest of Bravo Lance hopped in. The back ramp was closed and the enormous Z-7 engines thrusted the aircraft foward.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Roger, ETA is 0030 hours, target is dead ahead at One-Twenty-Niner. Catail Out."

Franceville Airstrip

The giant turboprop engines on the CAF Lancaster Heavy Bomber spluttered into life- port outer, followed by the others.

Nearby, the 3 Spitfires started their own engines, whilst two of the Harrier Jump Jets went through final checks before flight.

Radio Triangulation had given the location of General Janvier's emergency broadcast... somewhere outside Libreville. The fact he was broadcasting on an open channel meant the man was dangerous, and a threat to Roycelandia's plans in the area.

Accordingly, all non-Roycelandian, Isochronian, or Rhodesian communication facilities outside Libreville have been targeted as part of Operation Mute Button.

As soon as the first of the Broadcasting Facilities was located, the bomber released it's 5,000lb payload, and turned for home, alert for roaming fighters- the CAF Lancaster was well armed, but even so, having the Spitfires there was and enormous reassurance.

The Harriers, meanwhile, were on Search & Destroy missions- anything of strategic importance was to be bombed, shot, rocketed, and generally rendered totally useless.

Commander Sword's orders, delivered via Foreign Legion HQ had been clear- Gabon was to be rendered totally ungovernable by anyone.

Err how exactly did you get past the CAP aircraft and the air defences to bomb near Libreville? I think that post should be ignored but its up to Gabon.

Top Secret Encrypted Communique to Rhodesia & Nyasaland

Once again, our Governments find ourselves involved in a regional conflict owning to the inability of our African Neighbours to handle their internal affairs or security and Govern themselves in a civilised manner.

It cannot have escaped your notice that Roycelandian Special Operations and Foreign Legion troops and vehicles are operating in Gabon- without the Roycelandian Government's Official Knowledge, of course- but it would be most unfortunate if our respective Nation's operatives were to unwittingly cross paths and, owing to a lack of information, become involved in what would essentially be a Blue-On-Blue.

Accordingly,We should like to enter into an agreement whereby Roycelandia and Rhodesia & Nyasaland co-ordinate their Intelligence and Operations Plans to better acheive our goals in Gabon, namely keeping the Government destabilised and preventing further growth of African Nationalism.

We have established a small airfield in Gabon which we would be prepared to make available to your troops, and aircraft, no doubt extending their operational range significantly...

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact either Commander Sword or Myself for clarification.

[signed] His Imperial Majesty Emperor Royce I, Port Royal, Roycelandia



As it stands, our nations share many mutual interests in keeping Africa from being run by corrupt and totalitarian native leaders who brutalise their people in senseless battles and mismanage the great continent that we have as much claim to as they do.

However on the issue of Gabon, we fundamentally disagree with your governments actions. Rhodesia does not want a socialist Gabon, we do not want a nation that supports terror on the civilised world. Unlike your nation though, we do not want anarchy, we are in favour as are United Elias in their recent announcement, of a capitalist state with democratic freedoms. This will give us a new trading partner and a new ally in the struggle against communism and African nationalism that have numerous times in the past, nearly ravaged our nation.

As such, we give the Roycelandian government a chance to either withdraw from operations in Gabon or to assist us in pacifying the country. Failure to do so will result in Rhodesian Forces being forced to use force against Roycelandian supported assets and this could potentially ruin the relations our nations share and be detrimental to the greater number of issues in which we share common interests.
I, as Prime Minister of the Commonwealth Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, ask you to reconsider as anarchy suits no one and as civilised nations it is our responsibility to alleviate suffering rather than causing it.

Yours Sincerely,

The Prime Minister,
The Rt Hon Sir Charles Howard Fraser QC DFC,
Commonwealth Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland

Top Secret Message to Rhodesia & Nyasaland

After careful consideration of your message, His Imperial Majesty Emperor Royce I has decreed that the Roycelandian Assets in Gabon shall henceforth be used in support of Rhodesian Operations to pacify the country.

However, we are unable to make our presence in Gabon official at this time, so the Troops and Aircraft in the area shall still be operated by the Special Operations Command.

All current missions and sorties have been cancelled, pending co-ordination with Rhodesia & Nyasaland and UE (OOC: Including the bombing strike on the Communication Facilities), but we are pleased to report that we have a reasonable number of trained Guerrillas that are only too happy to act in support of these operations and bring down the Communist Government in exile.

We trust these arrangements will be satisfactory, and look forward to a fuller period of co-operation with our allies and neighbours in Rhodesia & Nyasaland.

[signed] Commander Jack Sword, Port Royal, Roycelandia

[OOC: the first arms shipments from Cirdanistan ought to arrive a day or two after the UE/Rhodesian attack on Makokou, Lusaka can decide wen exactly. And since the current fad is to send in troops to train local guerillas, and the good guys rather have the odds stacked against them, i think i'll do some training of my own...]

Central Gabon, North of Lambaréné

Jean-Matthieu stoped suddenly. He had been sent to Lambaréné by his village to see if they could still sell their timber there, but he was certain he had seen the tree ahead of him move. He came closer, shook his head. He must be seing things; probably the bread he had eaten at breakfast had been bad. Then he looked again. Something wasnt natural. It wasn't that the pattern of the leaves was too regular; it wasn't regular at all. Yet somehow it wasn't a natural pattern; to average. Like a synthesis of all the dense foliage he had seen in his life. He stared at it for several minutes, then it moved. Only this time it didn't stop. He saw what had to be a white woman wearing what the whites would call camouflage emerge from the shadows of the tree. She was shrugging off some kind of of shroud, and underneath it was wearing some kind of clothing or equipment that bulged her out, as if her whole body was swollen, with a kind of helmet above her head. He saw a reflection of the Sun hanging in front of her face, and he realised it had a faceplate, although how she had letters and...stuff chnaging constantly on it was beyond him. Then he caught sight of a torsade of hair, of a peculiar dull earthy red colour, coming out from beneath the helmet, and he remembered what it meant. He had been chosen to go to the city because he had had education, and even had been to France in order to complete it. There he had seen women with hair like that: the daughters of whites and Antillais. And she had to be a soldier: he had never seen a woman fight like a man, but he had heard that in some white countries women fought in the army; and Gabon was crawling with white soldiers, although the thing she held resembled no rifle he knew. Some kind of fancy, high-tech weapon no doubt.
He took a cautious step backwards, and waited.It was the only thing to do: if she was going to kill him he had no doubt she could gun him down even if he ran, he was unarmed, and if she was friendly then it would serve no purpose to risk antagonizing her-she might take umbrage at being disturbed while doing whatever it was she was doing. Besides, maybe she just didn't care if he was there and would pass on her way. But she just disentangled herself from the camouflage cloak and shrugged off a heavy-looking pack, and stood straight. Presently she brought her hand to the side of her helmet, and said a few phrase in a language Jean-Matthieu didn't recognize: the words sounded like German, maybe, but the voice sounded more like it was speaking English. Then she turned her head slightly, as if noticing him for the first time, and stepped forwards, raising her faceplate and saying in flawless French "Bonjour, camarade". He was slightly taken aback. Then she leaned over, and in the best french tradition, placed four pecks on alternate cheeks. It had been the last thing he expected her to do, and he was off balance, but he responded normally to the bises out of sheer reflex.
[OOC:ha! ph34rz0r my 1337 753nch! either that or reach for babelfish]
"Par ou est votre village?" she asked, and he pointed to North-North-West.
"Pouvez-vous nous y conduire?"
Several men in camouflage, carrying heavy packs of gear, broke out the foliage behind her, apparently called in by her radio.
"Je voudrais bien, mais je devais aller voir le marché à Lambaréné..."He paused, looking for a reaction. There was none."Pour voir si l'on pouvait y vendre du bois"
"En pleine guerre?et pas loin de la ligne de front? Je ne pense pas. Mais de toute façon il y a plus important pour vous. Si vous ne réagissez pas, les envahisseurs venus des Elias Unis vous ecraseront, et leurs marionettes vous traiteront a peine mieux que des esclaves. Ce sera comme un retour a la colonisation." [OOC: assuming UE treats Gabon like the US treats its clients, strictly true]and of course, he realised there was an unspoken offer of aid. He pondered for a few seconds, then took his decision.
"Suivez-moi."
He turned back towards his village.

Jean Matthieu's trip back to his home village was supposed to be uneventful. Crazy White people with guns running around was somewhat disturbing, but he was not prepared for what happened when a Shrubbery appeared to speak to him on the way back.

"Hold it right there!" Corporal Anna Kurt of the Imperial Foreign Legion said in English, followed quickly by "Arrete! J'ai un Fusil Automatique!", as she stepped out from the foliage in full Jungle Camouflage.

(OOC: I know the French is appaling, but that's intentional- the Imperial Foreign Legion's first language is English...)

IC: Jean-Matthieu could see that she wasn't lying- in her hands was a FN-FAL assault rifle (rechambered to .303 British).

"Que-c'est que vous desirez?" she enquired, not raising the FAL, but not lowering it, either...

"Hold it right there!" Corporal Anna Kurt of the Imperial Foreign Legion said in English, followed quickly by "Arrete! J'ai un Fusil Automatique!"

(OOC: I know the French is appaling, but that's intentional- the Imperial Foreign Legion's first language is English...)

IC: Jean-Matthieu could see that she wasn't lying- in her hands was a FN-FAL assault rifle (rechambered to .303 British).

"Que-c'est que vous desirez?" she enquired, not raising the FAL, but not lowering it, either...
[OOC:errr....i know it's abad habit to post unfinished snippets of posts :oops: sorry for the confusion]

Shortly after dark in Port Gentil, a small flight of eight EA-80 transport aircraft touch down at the airport, within minutes of each other, their lights extinguished to reduce the risk to small arms fire on the approach.
As they taxi from the runway towards the flood lit terminal buidlings, the pilots see that Free Gabon guards are waking up and start looking at the planes with a combination of bemusement and apathy.

As the rear ramp of the first plane reaches concrete, Colonel Shohet disembarks with the rest of his headquarters squad and proceeds over to the terminal buidling as Ranger infantrymen organise their equipment and unload

(yes the French is supposed to be broken)

"Bonsoir, Ou le batiment de controlle? Mes soldats ferait un petit garrison militaire par ce que on voudrait faire votre pays saun et sauf. comprendez?"

OOC:

This deployment consists of 1,585 personnel of the 2nd Ranger Brigade COmbat Team. Details of the Elias Rangers can be found here (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=2331578#2331578) .

Roycelandia, I'm not going to comment ICly on your change of stance as we dont yet quite know how exactly your governmrnt is involved but we know that it is in some way, there is no way we could know what side though. Of course you may wish to send a message enlightening us.

Top Secret Message to United Elias

Greetings,

No doubt your Military Intelligence network has alerted you to the fact that the Roycelandian Imperial Foreign Legion is operating in Gabon- although you are probably unaware as to which capacity they are operating in.

Let me assure you that Roycelandia is most assuredly Anti-Communist and Anti-Terrorist, and has no desire to see Gabon over-run with either.

Our troops are all currently under the jurisdiction of the Special Operations Command, and as such not "Officially" on Roycelandian military deployment.

However, after extensive consultation with our Allies in Rhodesia & Nyasaland, we have decided to operate the Imperial Foreign Legion in Gabon in assistance of Rhodesia & Nyasaland and your Nation, as opposed to their previous ROE which consisted of blowing up anything useful to the Communists and preventing Lusakan aid from reaching the country.

IFL Troops have also trained a number of Gabonaise Guerrillas to assist in our Gabonaise Operation, all of whom would be only too happy to see the total elimination of the Communist regime in exile.

We look forward to co-operating with our UE and Rhodesian Allies to end this conflict, and trust that the eventual outcome is democratic, prosperous, and secure Gabon.

[signed] Commander Jack Sword, Imperial Defence Bureau, Port Royal, Roycelandia

(ooc:Sorry I've been a little slow over the last day, I spent most of yesterday locked out ( :oops: ) and today I am drinking and gig-going, but I'll be back either tomorrow (hungover), the day after (probably fine), or tonight (drunk). What am I still needing to post reaction to? Ahh, there's so much chaos!)

OOC: Roycelandia, in case you havn't noticed i made my last post and completed it by editing after the start, and your posting in response was while i made my first edit. I apologize for the confusion, although i kndof didn't expect anyone could undertsand it that way...anyway, if you could edit your own post to make it fit in with my (now complete) post? so it could happen on the wya back? or whatever.]

Duly edited... It's odd how these things happen, isn't it? :D

OOC: My french is a little rusty but I'm pretty sure 'Fusil Automatique' is automatic shotgun as opposed to assault rifile. However Fusil may mean rifle also, I can't remember...

[OOC: UE, 'fusil' is primairily rifle, but also can be used to designate a shotgun or musket. There is no common French word designating specifically a shotgun, although the expression 'fusil a pompe' is often erroneously used as a straight translation (technically, it only designates a pump-action shotgun).]

Sergeant Helen Gallior thought everything was going according to plan. The 'chutes had been buried, all equipment gathered, and contact with a local made almost immediately. Then they had almost stumbled into what could only be an ennemy soldier, waving a somewhat elderly but still deadly assault rifle: the only friendly whites in the country were themselves (plus, just maybe, the odd guy in the Lusakan armed forces, but she doubted that very much). At least, the woman (it was a woman's voice,anyway) didn't seem to have noticed the Cirdanis tailing Jean-Matthieu. She heard the Gabonese-surprised out of his senses by bumping into two well-armed women pointing guns at him in a single day- blurting out:
"mais, madamne, je ne fais que rentrer chez moi..."
at least he seemed to have the sense to recognize that having bumped into a party of heavily armed foreigners and doing their bidding might get him shot by this other heavily armed foreigner. The Lieutenant gave a quick hand signal, and she nodded, moving out left with a private in tow, the other two troopers moving out right, as discreetly as they could, while the Lieutenant shifted ground slightly to adjust the ennemy soldier in his sights. The Gabonese kept up a flow of profuse, if somewhat confused and marginally incoherent, explanations he hopped would get him out of here in one piece. Then someone on the right-hand fire team stepped where they shouldn't, and the sharp sound of a twig breaking resulted. Cursing silently, she swung her gun for the ennemy, shouting "Mettez-vous a couvert!" at the local. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the Lieutenant release a carefully aimed shot..

Duly edited... It's odd how these things happen, isn't it? :D[sure is. There are some short periods when every possible point of doubt in any of my posts leads to miscomprehension, and then for a few weeks not a single accident.Meh, eat that randomness!]

Corporal Kurt threw herself out of the way at the warning shout to Matthieu, her insticts kicking in even before the bullets started flying.

What the Cirdanistanians couldn't have known was that they had managed to Paradrop right into the middle of a Roycelandian Guerrilla Training Exercise.

Jean-Pierre was a very big, strong lad. Whenever something heavy in his village needed moving, Jean-Pierre was the man for the job. Which was why these Royceterreais had trained him in use of the Lewis LMG- A rather large LMG with a distinctive 100 round drum magazine mounted on top of the receiver. A bipod was mounted under the barrel for added support, should itbe required.

Jean-Pieerre was not stupid- his talents just lay elsewhere. However, he did have enough presence of mind to work out that the people shooting at the nice Royceterrian Madame was not a friend. Staying in the cover the Jungle provided, he pointed the Lewis Gun at where he imagined the Cirdanistan troops were and opened fire, spraying the Jungle with .303 bullets.

Higher up in a tree overlooking the area, Oda Toranaga spotted the flash from the Cirdanistan rifle shot and sighted in the area with his No. 4 Sniper Rifle, looking for irregularities through his scope.

Two more Guerrillas started firing wildly into the jungle with their No. 5 Jungle Carbines, effectively giving away their position- although they may be more in the Jungle...

Anna, meanwhile threw herself behind a fallen tree trunk, clicked the safety off her FAL, and fumbled for a grenade...

OOC:

All the guns used by the Roycelandians and their trained Guerrillas are of new manufacture- Imperial Armaments in Torpedo Bay are the main manufacturer, but most of the guns being used in Gabon are made by the Colonial Armaments Factory in Nairobi. Roycelandia still uses WWII era guns, but the troops are all trained as marksmen and can hold their own against troops with Semi-Autos and Assault Rifles. The Imperial Foreign Legion in Gabon are the first to be equipped with .303 chambered IA-FALs.

The French word for Shotgun is "Fusil de Chasse", literally "Gun of Hunting", although it's generally used to refer to Side by Side guns rather than modern semi-auto or pump actions.

"Fusil Automatique" is correct for Automatic Rifle, AFAIK. The FAL in FN-FAL stands for "Fusil Automatique Léger", literally Light Automatic Rifle. (FN being Fabrique Nationale, the French National Arms Manufactuer (although they're also in Belgium).

"Mitrailleuse" is the French word for Machine Gun, and "Pistolet" is a handgun.

Sorry for the long OOC, but I thought this might be helpful to everyone...

OOC: BTW we have thousands of FN FALs we can sell as theylre being replaced by a newer, lightweight 5.56 weapon. You could always just rechamber them.

IC:

A company of Light Infanty soldiers, having departed their small LZ defences at the crash site, where the other company remained to guard, made their way through the dense rainforest. In a long staggered formation, the soldies moved stealthily and quickly, sometimes hacking the undergrowth out of the way with machetees and knives.

In the past six hours they had managed to cover a fair distance and the map plsced them approximately twelve miles North of the Landing Zone.
The pointman then saw something aboout twenty yards infront of him.
He sneaked up to find a leftover water flask, probably Lusakan juding by the design.

"LT!"

The platoon Lieuntenant then moved up through the through the formation to teh very front. "Yes?"

"It looks the Lusakans were here, not long ago, look there's a trail as well."

The officer checked the map and thr trail looked like it lead to a small vilage a few klicks North West.

"Okay, we'll steer clear of the trail and take a different route to the village, they must have an operaing base there, or they're giving the locals training and weapon. Could get hot. Okay men, move out!"

"Shit!"
the Lieutenant's shot had missed. Bloody idiot must have forgotten to use the fire-control computer; after lugging the extra weight of a computerized rifle all this way, he forgot to use it! just her luck to be commanded by an officer like that.
Helen flipped her sights onto thermal to locate the Roycelandian, and cursed again, silently this time. it was a perfect shot with her underbarrel grenade launcher, but the friendly Gabonese was in the blast radius. At least he had sought cover. She slipped out of her massive equipment pack, dropping a navpoint on her integrated INS, and began shifting positions quietly...

As the pro-Roycelandian guerrilla lowered his sniper rifle, the scope's surface caught the light from the sun. The quick flash was enough to give away his position to Corporal Vigdis Sterkarm, who had been moving to the right with a pfc in tow.
"Sniper! sir, he's got to have your position"
They were now using their radios, with mic sensitivity up, to talk silently to each other during the firefight.
Vigdis raised her rifle, shading her own scope, adjusted the sniper with the IR mode, and fired a three-round burst. Off somewhere to her left, she heard an automatic weapon open up, and heard the whoosh of one of the Cirdanis replying with a 40mm grenade. The blast, apparently right on top of the LMG, shook the jungle...

The Lieutenant quickly shifted to his left after the missed shot and the corporal's warning... his troops were responding well, he could see, taking on the ennemy immediately. He dumped his bulky equipment pack to move more freely, while a trooper apparently took out the LMG with his grenade launcher. Further back, he could see a couple of ennemies firing away with semi-automatic rifles [OOC: well, he's hardly going to assume they're using a derivative of the good ole' SMLE, is he?] and switching his computer module to thermal, aimed a three-round burst at one of them, before swinging his muzzle around and releasing his own 40mm grenade...

[OOC: i might be slow to post over the coming week, though i'll try to repsond to anything that needs responding to. Incidentally, Rhodesia & Nyasaland, it would be more realistic if your troops found freshly disturbed earth, dug it up, and foud parachutes buried there if it's my troops that are suppose to have left the water-flask, because they are highly unlikely to loose one-and certainly not one of Lusakan design. If it's nothing to do with me, then all very well then :) ]

The United African Republic of Lusaka

The recession wasn't slowing down. Trade with REA and R&N was slowing down still further, and rail links to west Africa were ..messed up. Aid was coming in, but all this did was to make the visible effects of the economic slump less serious, in real terms the government wasn't much better off for it. They couldn't maintain the deployment, inspite of some increased trade with the likes of easterly Beth Gellert brought on by recognition of common rival.

Igomo himself had stepped in to order a change to Lusaka's deployment. Expensive aircraft began withdrawing by nightfall, Lusaka aware that F-5's lost in Gabon may not be replaced in defence of Lusaka itself for quite some time. Firing off expensive AAMs and burining aviation fuel was of no help.

From now on Lusaka's presence would be maintained by a mass of infantry. They'd live in part off the land, but their main lifeline would be land routes through the Commonwealth, with airdrops and landings in secure areas provinding some extra supply. If anyone wanted to break Lusaka's supply chain they'd have to attack the Commonwealth, which would more or less assure their own defeat in Gabon.

The major Lusakan-held airport was largely ruined after UE missile strikes anyway, and was in truth not really up to supporting a major air command. Lusaka would only lose an all out high-tech war against multiple first world powers, but the UARL could put more guerrilla, partisan, militia, and special forces infantry into Gabon than the little republic had people.


Thousands of Lusakan troops began to move west that night, as aircraft flew east. The Lusakans began quite rapidly to spread out across the entire width of the Commonwealth-Gabon border, with hundreds more men setting out from home almost hourly aboard crowded troop trains.

Any hostile forces in eastern Gabon would now find themselves actively sought out by the vast numerical superiority of the region's largest army as its constituents swarmed through jungle and town alike, weighed down by all the supplies they could carry. Supplies would be inserted by isolated paradrops, brought by light trucks in very small convoys along likely dangeorus roads, or carried in by the next wave of men.

Typically Lusakan army units are organised in platoons of twelve men, most armed with semi-automatic M59/66A1(L) rifles of the SKS family. These are relaible and accurate, and mount a folding bayonet as well as accepting muzzle grenades of which the Lusakans have many. They will very often be used to walk fire as if from light mortars, herding opponents into kill zones where aimed semi-auto fire should pick them off. Also useful for taking out light vehicles, machinegun nests, targets out of a direct line of sight, and so on.
Other men carry Uzis, often covering men preoccupied with loading and firing grenades. There is frequently at least one sniper with an old Soviet bolt-action rifle attached to each platoon, and platoons in the LRAC very often have PKM machineguns, SA-7 (or SA-16) SAMs, and RPG-7 or other Cirdanistani anti-tank weapons. Most of these heavier weapons are available to regulars, but not in anything like such numbers.

(By the way, there are whites in the Lusakan military, some fight in the regular army, though most have traditionally held on to well enough paying jobs that such was not greatly appealing. Others have been allowed to join the LRAC, though there is still much quiet debate over whether it is reall proper to have whites in the 17th Division. None the less, there they are. Depending on the unit anything from zero to twenty percent may be none-black, excepting in Zanzibar units where the majority are Arabic. Most commonly a good 90% or more will be black, and a couple of percent white.)

Crouched behind her log, Cpl. Kurt could see that this was getting messy. She pulled the pin on her Grenade, and threw it over the top of the log to the Enemy troop positions.

The rather scary thing about this particular grenade was that, in addition to it's usual HE fragmentation properties, it also had a mixture of Lye and Water in it... in other words, anyone not killed by the blast has a high risk of being horribly burned by the Lye/Water mixture. Considering how hot and humid it is in the Jungle, this is not a pleasant grenade to get hit with...

Jean-Pierre never had a chance. No sooner had the Lewis Gun "clicked" onto empty, The 40mm grenade sent him flying back into the forest, the blast killing him instantly. Miraculously, the Lewis Gun fell almost right on top of Cpl. Ivan Tula. He had remained hidden in the undergrowth, waiting for the right time to strike. Initially, he had planned to use his captured Lusakan AK-47, but the Lewis Gun would be much more useful. Unlike Jean-Pierre, though, he was going to aim his shots.

Taking the spare magazines from Jean-Pierre's mangled body, he started firing controlled bursts into the enemy troops, keeping behind a stout log and rock as cover.

Meanwhile, in the tree, Marksman 2nd Class Oda Toranaga was knocked from his perch just milliseconds after firing a shot at the Enemy soldier in his sights. He hit the ground with a thud, and immediately lost conciousness. (OOC: Anyone with a Rank is Foreign Legion, just to clarify).

Other soldiers in the undergrowth fixed bayonets, drew handguns, primed grenades, and got ready for the fertiliser to hit the ventilator.

One of the Jungle Carbine armed Guerrillas took three rounds in the chest and immediately went down, but the Jungle was rapidly coming alive with gunfire and it was evident that not all the Enemies were local villagers with Roycelandian SMLEs...

Somewhere in the skies over Gabon that evening

The two Special Operations Command Harriers and two SOC Spitfires had a relatively uneventful CAP, until radar showed some contacts heading for Lusakan airspace. IFF confirmed them as enemies...

"Bandits, Green Leader! Probably Lusakan... shall we engage?"

Green Leader, flying one of the Harrier Jump Jets, realised how much the loss of a Jet Fighter would affect the Lusakans. "Go for it, Green Flight. TALLY HO!"

The fighters climbed 3,000ft above the Radar contacts and began to dive, missiles and guns ready...

*********************************************
Message to Rhodesia & Nyasaland

The Imperial Roycelandian Government is interested in your offer of FN-FALs. We have commenced production of a Self-Loading Lee-Enfield rifle (SLLE, nicknamed "Sally" by the troops). Owing to the popularity and reliablity of the SMLE, the new SLLE will never completely replace the Mk III or the No. 5 Jungle Carbine currently in service, but can be expected to operate in addition to these weapons.

However, as you can never have too many weapons, especially in this sort of environment, we would be interested in negotiating for the purchase of some R&N FN-FALS, to be rechambered for .303 British calibre

[signed] Commander Jack Sword, Imperial Defence Bureau

ATTENTION UNITED ELIAS AND ITS ALIES
CC: Gabonaise

In cooperation with the current IADF investigation into United Elias's War on Terror in Gabon, Kisnesia will be sending a small cargo plane into Gabonaise territory to pick up two officials of their nation (or former nation) and transport them to Kisnesia to testify in front of our Investigative Board.

You are reminded that under International Law, you are obligated to safely allow this plane to pass through your territory unhindered. Any obstructionism is a violation of international protocol, and may be considered a declaration of War against Kisnesia and/or the IADF.

We WILL return these officials to Gabonaise territory after their depositions, but you are also asked for safe return of these officials to Gabonaise territory. Should Gabonaise no longer hold territory when it comes time for them to return, we will make an extradition deal with Free Gabon, or else grant them asylum.

Thank you,

Kisnesia
IADF Security Council
Chair, UE Investigation Board.
-------------------------------------------------------
ATTENTION GABONAISE
CC: United Elias and Allies

You will be allowed to have two (no more!) officials testify in front of our board here, and then will have those officials returned (in the manner described in your attaced letter, which was sent to UE and its allies. Please respond, and we will send in our plane to bring your officials and a maximum of 6 bodyguards to Kisneisia.

Note that you WILL be returned to Gabon, no matter whose hands it is in. Trying to escape into Kisnesian society will be treated as illegal immigration, and you will be either imprisoned or deported immediately to Gabon (to anywhere we see fit).

Thank you,

Kisnesia
IADF Security Council
Chair, UE Investigative Board

The lieutenant had his scope on thermal, searching for enemies. He never heard the sound of the grenade hitting the ground less than half a meter from his position, masked as it was by the multiple explosions. he had located his target had was about to fire when the explosion hurled him into a nearby tree, devastating his right side; the high-tech body armour suit he was wearing had inbuilt measures to help a wounded soldier, but they never had any chance of coping with damage on such a scale; suffering from acid burns and massive haemorraging, notably from a fragment that found his carotid, in shock, he could only lie there, dying slowly.

The explosions and gunfire were deafening, as troops, bullets, and bits of tree trunk went flying everywhere.

Usually, the Roycelandian troops would be firing in volleys in such a situation, sending a solid wall of lead at their enemies. But only the Legionnaires had subvocal comm units, and they were too preoccupied to worry about ordering the Guerrillas about.

Cpl. Kurt stuck her IA-FAL over the log and fired a few more shots roughly where the enemy should be, and then thought about calling for some air support.

Meanwhile, Ivan's Lewis Gun was out of ammo again, and a combination of Fog of War and not being the best English reader in the world caused Ivan to reload the drum from a carton labelled "500 rnds .303 British- Tracer/Incendiary".

One of the Guerrillas caught a bullet right in the head and fired off an entire magazine from his M1A1 Thompson SMG into the air before he hit the ground, very dead.

"All this over a stupid Frog villager" thought Ivan as he continued reloading the Lewis Gun.

Vigdis had hardly fired that she felt a shock to the flank rock her. It didn't
hurt-she had way to much adrenaline in her bloodstream to feel pain, the blocking molecules synthesized instantly by her body-, but she knew it would later, and might impair her fighting capability. An injector beside a vertebra pulsed in synthetic hormones, to block the sensory nerves in that part of her body, while the local breach of a piezzo-electric system brough her suit to contract around the wound, stemming the bleeding. She turned to the pfc behind her-he was the team's intelligence/electronics man-and hissed "locate the targets!" at him. he duly complied, breaking out his gear; he switched on a large metal box that was the team's Hive Queen unit, and then sent two objects that strongly ressembled well-adapted birds but that were really minidrones, flying on a flapping wings in a way thought to be impossible for machines by most people.[OOC:the first prototypes of flapping-wing flying minirobots do exist IRL, although many people do beleive they are impossible] Camouflaged for the jungle, relatively silent, and looking like wildlife, they could go wherever they wanted and remain unnotice din a firefight, sneding back data to their operator. While the trooper did this, Vigdis sat back and, holding her gun with one hand and the stock resting on the uninjured side, she poured antiseptic into the wound, then, lifting her camo cloak, stuffed a wad of sterilized surgical cotton in the hole in her armour and drenched it with antiseptic before taping it in place, the whole operation taking only a few seconds of well-practised gestures. Then she took position, guarding the electronics man, and apparently out of the main axis of fire.

Over eastern Gabon

Following the call of, "Bandits high! Eight o'clock!" And a barrage of related information, Green Leader (what a coincidence) had hurridly confirmed the crossing of the nearest Herky Bird into AC air space.

He replied to his wingman's frantic requests to break-off and engage in the negative- the whole reason they were up here was that they were under orders to get these fighters home. The four Lusakan fighters simply changed course slightly and accelerated to Mach 2. They were pretty sure they'd make the border, after all, the only hostile aircraft seen in the east had been Spitfires, transports, and helicopters. They didn't know that Harriers were after them, but that wouldn't have worried them any more- even the last mark of Harrier couldn't get within hundreds of knots of their own airspeed, and they'd been picked up out of typical AIM-120 range to begin with.

On the ground in eastern Gabon

On average some eighteen-hundred Lusakan soldiers were coming across the AC border every day, sometimes more than six hundered above that. Easily a division a week, and Igomo was prepared to keep this up for months.

Major George Tanko of the 17th had been promoted to Colonel, and was taking on a role probably above even that rank. He was interested in making eastern cities entirely secure while most of his forces scattered about the jungles and countryside. At his request New Lusaka City was filtering to Cirdanistan requests for assistance with setting up AAA and SAM batteries in Belinga, Mekambo, and Makokou. These towns were by now swarming with Lusakan infantry, their commanders insisting that the locals fly the Gabonaise flag and consider their republic still in effect.

SA-3, SA-4, and SA-9 mobile SAM launchers as well as infantry with SA-7 and SA-16 shoulder-launched missiles, and 7.62mm, 12.7mm and 14.5mm machineguns positions, and several ZSU-23-4 formerly brought to the airport were now, since the aircrafts' evacuation, dispersed into the mentioned towns, with Makokou receiving most of the vehicle-based defences -it was prefered not to transport those far over land.

New Lusaka City repeatedly stated through Secretary Livingstone Miyanda, President Derek Igomo, and Defence Secretary Colin Olongwe that these towns and the land around them was free Gabonaise republican soil, and that it was under the protection of the United African Republic of Lusaka, representing the civilised world until more nations were willing to step forth in Gabon's defence.

Meanwhile, Lusakan troops advanced along the course of the Ivindo river towards Booué on the Ogooué, and following the Makokou-Okandja road towards the latter city, while soldiers also advanced on said from the north east via the Commonwealth.

Helen crept through the jungle as bullets flew around her. She saw her target throw a grenade and saw her helmet flash up the lieutenant's casulaty beacon announcing he had been critically injured, and then that it picked up a C3I network. Obviously, Corporal Sterkarm had gotten the electronics trooper into action. her target fired another burst of fire, then she reached the perfect position, carefully ligned up the woman who had started this whole sorry mess [OOC: i.e. your cpl Kurt ;) ] and triggered a three round burst into her back and head. She hardly realized she had reflexively shifted positions after the shot until a hail of machine-gun fire ripped into the spot she had just vacated; she launched her 40mm grenade along a reciprocal bearing to the firing and broke into a low run, keeping a screen between her and the ennemy until she had moved into a better position for mutual support with her private. She saw he had pulled out a chunky weapon, known as a pump-action grenade launcher, which essentialy was the underbarrel 40mm GL with a stock, a large magazine, and a reload mechanism, and had started firing a grenade at muzzle flashes and movement. It was by no means the most accurate of weapons, but it gave effective fire-suppression, and by raining fragmentation grenades on known and suspected ennemy positions, it gave as near a guarantee as one could get in warfare that some ennemies would be killed and others stunned or injured. She reloaded her rifle's GL and resumed shooting and dodging, while the private did the same...

Can we slow it down a little or just post things that dont need Gabon since it doesn't seem to be around at the moment.

Also can someone maybe make a map of Eastern Gabon showing the position of Luskan, Rhodesian, Cirdanistan troops etc. It would make RPing much easier and help a lot, especailly as it looks as though this is gettign pretty drawn out. I would do it, but Im not totally sure where everyone is.

OOC: Cirdanistan, I'm not complaining here, but the equipment your troops are using seems a little... futuristic (more like the stuff used by the Space Marines in "Aliens" than what a contemporary Army would have). Obviously, Body Armour and Thermo imaging etc is OK, but built- in hypodermics, electronics, and so on seems a bit advanced for this RP. I'm not aware of flapping wing-type drones, and again it seems to belong more in a future-tech RP than this one, but I'm willing to stand corrected on all this if everyone thinks it's OK.

Also, modern Kevlar can only stop ONE round from a Centrefire rifle (maybe two or three from a 5.56mm gun). So, if you take a burst in the chest from a 7.62 or .303 MG, you're still dead.

Kevlar is great against handguns and the like, but it's a myth that it grants invulnerability to rifle fire.

IC: Cpl. Kurt's helmet was coated in Kevlar, but that wasn't much help against a 3-round burst from a 7.62mm rifle. The last thing she knew before everything went black was that the Napalm Grenade was on its way to the enemy positions and that the AirStrike Locator Beacon on her belt had been activated... Spitfires would arrive within 15 minutes, bringing napalm, 20mm depleted uranium slug cannon, and rockets with which to level the area.

Some of the Guerrillas had withdrawn, but not before lobbing a few Petrol & Lye bombs at the Cirdistanian troops (OOC: fire AND chemical burns... ouch :wink:).

The rock and log Ivan was crouched behind protected him from the grenade blasts, but also meant he didn't get the signal to withdraw over the subvocal unit, parly because Cpl Kurt was dead, and partly because he couldn't hear anything of the "RAT-A-TAT-A-TAT" of the Lewis Gun.

Trees everywhere where smouldering, chunks blowing off them, almost in slow motion.

The few remaining Foreign Legionnaires saw that their ALBs were beeping and began to withdraw, firing all the way, lobbing grenades, and looking for cover.

Two of the Guerrillas, crazy with bloodlust, charged the Cirdanistanian troops with fixed bayonets, firing, reloading, firing, bayoneting, and clubbing anything that got int their way.

A third, disgusted with his jammed AK-47, threw it away, drew two handguns (a Roycelandian-Issue Tiger .357/12gauge, and a Browning Hi-Power 9mm) and simply opened fire on the Cirdanistanians, aiming for their heads.

Meanwhile, two IAe Spitfires on Combat Air Patrol received the request for an Air Strike and headed for the area... all things going well, they would be there in about 10 minutes.

Near the AC Border

The Spitfires broke off the chase, as they couldn't hope to get anywhere near Mach 2, but the Harriers kept going.

"ALRAAM Missiles armed, Green Leader. They'll be well out of range soon, and we're pushing it even now..."

"Missiles Away, Green Flight!"- with that, 4 ALRAAM (Advanced Long Range Air-To-Air Missiles) launched from under the Harrier's wings and streaked towards the fleeing Lusakan aircraft.

The missiles had been set to auto-detonate as soon as they hit the AC border, to prevent diplomatic unpleasantries with the African Commonwealth. Even so, it was going to be close...

Just eighteen nautical miles West of Port Gentil, the Barracuda (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=35757&highlight=) class corvette, Soufa made a steady easterly course on the gentle swells. In support of Operation ‘Tranquil Ebony’, the ship was going to anchor of the city in order to provide air defence cover, in the unlikely event an air attack was mounted on the forces at the airfield.

Thirty feet below him the sea surged restlessly against painted steel, the water was murky, dark but at its surface, fresh white crests tossed chaotically throwing up the dregs of a forgotten ocean, one where few ventured and those who did regretted. He stared out, and where most would see nothing but eerie blackness, his trained eye spotted the tiny details, such as the direction of the current and estimate the size of the waves as well as their periods even though it was still nearly pitch dark. Commander Saatchi then glanced up and down the length of the ship, listening intently to the small pitch changes of the turbines’ seemingly monotonous hum. From behind him, a man approached on the bridge wing and the crude steel hatch slammed shut again in the balmy breeze. “Sir, we’re coming up on a waypoint.”

“Okay, I better come in.”

The adjutant then opened the hatch again and the XO ducked his head as he entered the bridge. Around him, it was still apparent that the dawn watch had yet to be relieved. The tell tale signs of fatigue were all around, empty coffee cups lay strewn over chart tables and control consoles, the dull glow of the red lamps, only aggravating the feeling of weariness further.

“Officer of the watch, come left ten degrees relative to present course.”

“Aye, left ten degrees relative, helmsman, execute manoeuvre, bring her round smartly.”

The ship heeled as the rudders bit water and slowly the bow could be seen to turn towards the distant marker lights of the Port Gentil channel.

Suddenly a huge vibration knocked the ship, a loose objects flew off the control consoles and a second later a huge and catastrophic rumble vibrated across the decks. A huge amount of water buried the bow for a few seconds, as the stern lurched so high that the screws were nearly out of the water, before the ship stabilised itself in a violent lurch. Then there was another great crashing sound, as the two gas turbines came off their mounts, ripping apart the main engineering spaces. Now water was pouring in amidships at the point of damage as well as through the broken seals around the propeller shafts.

As the Commander picked himself up off the steel floor still in shock from his fall, he realised that something had gone very wrong. He realised less than a second later that his position of Executive Officer put him in charge until the Captain reached the bridge. He shouted above the noise of the claxons, “Damage Reports Now!”

Meanwhile in the Combat Information Centre a few decks below, the situation was equally chaotic but now smoke was appearing, and the deck underneath them was becoming hot, and now the crew had what every sailor feared, a fire at sea. Only here it was also combined with flooding. A few seconds later and the lights went out all over the ship but luckily the diesel backup generators were still online and the emergency power kicked in. Quickly men reached for their damage control gear and organised themselves to fight the fire first, then the flooding.

In the engineering spaces, at least nine men were already drowning, and faced with the massive flood of water, most of the others had fled through the hatches and secured them. After all, even if some compartments were flooded, the ship would still survive.

Five minutes later the XO ordered that a distress message be sent to the rest of the fleet.

FLASH TRAFFIC

ENS Soufa FSG
Current Position: 18 miles due West of 0.42 S 8.45 E
Situation: Suffered major explosion amdiships, possible minestrike. Severe flooding and fires in engineering spaces and other compartments. Casualties. Dead in the water. Require Assitance. Urgent.

[OOC:yes, the equipment is far in advance of anything in military usage IRL, but it is buildable-either now, technically, or within a matter of a few years at most; i just happen to spend alot on R&D and deployment of weapon systems, to compensate for the relative numerical weakness of my army. The infantry DASHs, by example, arn't used by any real-world army, but equivalent equipment is available on the civillian market for recreational uses (at a steep price, sure, but it exists). The portable C3I processor is, if you think about it, not that different from a wireless network hub-all it does is receive and pass on data, after all. The piezzo-electric circuit exist also, but yet again has not been thought of for this particulary military usage, or has been rejecte due to priceing restraints. One of the many flapping-wing drone tests is recorded here (http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A8852-2003Aug31?language=printer). The integrated electronics systems arn't any more advanced that the US army's Land Warrior program (scheduled for deployment this year), and while the integrated hypodermics sound fancy, they arn't all that incredible-indeed, the whole suit seems rather tame compared the Yanks's Objective Force Warrior program: after all, by the end of the decade they'll have troops running around in bloody exoskeletons, or so they claim . As for the hit on Vigdis, it wasn't stopped(although it was slowed; her body armor is actually not Kevlar, but made out of a synthetic polymer based on the webs of certain spiders, and much tougher than good ol' Kevlar-more expensive also), it just didn't drop her; she wasn't crippled and her body blocked out the pain because of the hormonal loads in her sytem.
EDIT: here (http://publish.investorlook.net/investorlook-com/web/irpages/client-sites/nexia/companynewsreleases.cfm?newsID=1088&companyID=31&companyLogo=nexia.gif) is some data on synthesizing spiderweb, and just how useful it is, because i know it sounds incredible to make armour out of it]

[OOC: and by the way, my bullet are 7.65mm ;) ]
"Grenades incoming!" Helen and the private jumped for cover and lay down flat, escaping the grenade blasts, just, but the jungle ahead of them caught on fire, and the acid hissed and steamed viciously on the wood it hit[ok, i'm dramatizing the acid (or is it an alkali? i don't even remember which one water and lye makes, just that it's pretty strong stuff) but it's all in the good cause of making it sound even more interesting than it is]. As she stood, she saw two men charging her position with guns firing wildly, advancing recklessly into the open ground of the track. She switched to full auto and cut them down, then ducked back behind cover as a bullet whizzed by her head, reaching for a spare clip.
Meanwhile, the electronics operator had located what was probably the ennemy's LMG with one of his drones-the miniaturized gimballed camera and IR sensors gave poor image quality. She raised her rifle, and using the computers integrated in suit and rifle, fired a 40mm grenade on the electronic cue, the high trajectory calculated to take over the ennemy's cover and blow up the LMG. Guided by the other drone, she flanked the remaining ennemy and killed him efficiently with a three-round burst, but the rest had faded away, and that was not a good sign...

Lusaka's call for aid in setting air defences had been heard, and was responded to. Transports set off, carrying large quantities of AA weapons-SA-11s, ZSU-30s, ZSU-23-4s, mobile radars , and of course thousands of SA-16s- accompanied by smaller ammounts of AT weapons, and Cirdani military advisors to help the Lusakans set up the weaponry and familirairse their troops with it. Meanwhile, the Department of Economics saw a golden opportunity to get Lusaka into the IFTA-they needed trade partners to compensate for the war-induced fall in trade, and so the IFTA developmetn graph was sent in a diplomatic note.
http://69.57.141.218/330/185/upload/photo-4.jpg

OOC: Cirdanistan, I'll overlook the obvious godmoding (ie dictating that my troops have been killed by yours, and the strange ability of your troops to dodge MG and rifle fire etc) for now, in the interests of RPing...

IC: The Guerrillas and Foreign Legionnaires quietly melted into the Jungle, leaving their dead comrades where they had fallen. This was against everything they had been taught, but then the Operation was totally deniable, so they had to expect that sort of thing.

Their withdrawl was none too late... the skies above the Jungle clearing where this little firefight had taken place were soon home to two IAe Spitfires, who, homing on the late Cpl. Kurt's ASB, unleashed several Napalm Rockets into the area, and fired several hundred 20mm Depleted Uranium Slugs into the area, completely levelling it and setting the jungle ablaze with sticky, burning Napalm...

Aboard the Soufa the situation was changing by the minute as the Executive Officer attempted to co-ordinate damage control efforts from the bridge. In the last forty minutes since the explosion, the fire had been contained to just the lower decks but burning fuel would eventually melt away the decks amidships. Already at least one of the foam storage tanks had been destroyed giving them even less to fight the fire with. Just to hinder the effort even more, there was distinct shortage of fire fighting equipment and much of it was inadequately maintained.

Towards the stern of the ship, the situation in the engineering spaces was worsening and the entire Main Engineering Room {MER) which housed the gas turbines had been completely flooded, and although this itself was not catastrophic, the incredible heat generated from the fire in neighbouring compartments was creating super hot steam that would eventually create enough pressure to snap the already leaking bulkhead between the MER and the auxiliary machine room. This would mean the hull would fracture and the ship would be lost.

Another problem facing Commander Saatchi was that the ship was drifting dead in the water in what was most probably a dense minefield and this was also not a pleasant thought. Faced with having to make impossible decisions, the Commander realised that with the Captain still missing, everyone was looking to him for orders.

A call came in through the sound powered back up phones, “Sir, we’ve found the Captain, he must have been inspecting the generators.”

“Is he Okay?”

“No Sir, he’s dead.”

The news hit the XO harder than the mine had and he fought to keep himself composed, “Very Well.” Turning around on the bridge, he saw the terrified faces of his subordinates and he made a decision, the ship was doomed, there was no way around it. “Lieutenant, here is my key, go to the Captain’s safe, remove all the documents and burn them, then go to the CIC and order them to do the same, everything sensitive must be destroyed.”

“Aye Sir.”

“Chief, organise the deck parties and prepare to abandon ship. Arrange the wounded on the helo deck and we’ll medevac them first, then the bodies.”

“Aye Sir.”

On the Northern Frontiers of Gabon, far away from the guerilla warfare in the East and the the enemy occupation in the West, the small group of GLA Rebels trained in the art of death.

The rebels, were a small splinter faction of the GLA terrorist group who had been ashamed of their brothers decisions to retreat and hide from the powers determined to wipe them out. For the four hundred or so rebels, their organisation was a sort of holy sect, and under their new pink an white banner, they swore devotion to liberation.

In an effort to maintain complete devotion within their ranks, the men discareded their names in favour of 'Cobra' numbers. Cobra 1 was their leader and Cobra 412 was their newest convert.

Thei rcause was radical, the elminiation of all governments and nonbelivers and the unification of all believers in one world, where supposedly all would be free.

Cobra 1 inspected his troops who were taking turns to fire sniper rifles at cut out wooden targets at least 500 metres down range. They seemed ready, he thought, ready to take on teh occupiers, ready to convert people to the cause and ready for marterdom. The only problem he faced was where to strike first, Libreville was the obvious answer but how would they get there? That was a question he needed to answer first.

[OOC: ok, i did technically godmode by calling deadness, but small firefights have the annoying ability take up more of my time than i'd like to allocate to such actions. As for dodging fire, i'm not sure we have the same image of the scene in our heads-to me, it's a thick, thick forest, where seeing someone wearing camouflage is hard, and the range is perhaps 20m for the closest soldiers on both sides (excepting the two who charged). In such conditions, if you blaze away at moving targets, you'll miss alot. Now, time for me to come up with a post about being on the receiving end of the air attack...]

Libreville
"President Janvier, Victor Six, we now have confirmation that units engaged by guerilla activity (the Barbarosean/Ghetto team) have been determined to be friendly, please withdraw immediately from the vicinity.
We have a Marine helicopter alert force ready and will dispatch to any confirmed guerilla activity as soon as locations are given.

Currently we have implemented a contingency plan codenamed, 'Blue' and further Marine units have been requested to reinforce the capital and Port Gentil, Naval aviation is currently implementing combat air patrols and will protect your forces from air attack."


"Sir, a message from Victor Six," the communications sergeant said spinning in his chair in the command bunker.

"I heard what he had to say. Radio that we received the message and thank them," Gen. Janiver said in a hoarse whisper.

"Should I contact our ground forces to withdraw?" the sergeant asked.

"Did I order you to?!?" the general screamed. "That's treason you dirty pig!! How DARE you question me!!"

The general's aides frantically grabbed at him to prevent him from unholstering his sidearm and killing the communications officer on the spot.

"Prepare Command Bunker 17," the senior aide shouted as they wrestled the general to the doorway. "We'll be arriving within the hour."

=====

"Victor Six, we acknowledge your transmission. Be advised that the general is on the move again..." the sergeant said trying to hide the shaking in his voice.

"Command Bunker 17, the Eagle is on the way. Be advised he's in a foul mood."

The sergeant then leaned back in his chair and lit a cigarette. "Damn, that was close...."

OOC: Free Gabon, United Elais needs to rp reciving my distress call from the Ghetto Team. Also, SC can't rp the Ghetto Desert Team, so I gotta go back and do that.

OOC - They did, we received it, the general ignored it...

=================

The Free Gabon soldiers swarmed over the defenders firing their AK-47s from the hip and attacking in waves by platoon under a base of fire provided by their light machine guns. This tactic was used in the hope of overwhelming the enemy quickly to limit casualties outside of the first platoon.

ATTENTION GABONAISE
CC: United Elias and Allies

You will be allowed to have two (no more!) officials testify in front of our board here, and then will have those officials returned (in the manner described in your attaced letter, which was sent to UE and its allies. Please respond, and we will send in our plane to bring your officials and a maximum of 6 bodyguards to Kisneisia.

Note that you WILL be returned to Gabon, no matter whose hands it is in. Trying to escape into Kisnesian society will be treated as illegal immigration, and you will be either imprisoned or deported immediately to Gabon (to anywhere we see fit).

Thank you,

Kisnesia
IADF Security Council
Chair, UE Investigative Board

Message to Kisnesia
Free Gabon does not recognize your authority in this matter.

Any aircraft transporting the members of the illegal Gabonaise government in hiding will be attacked. This situation is an internal Gabon matter and does not concern the IADF or its members.

Please note that Free Gabon views interference by the IADF into our internal affairs as a most grave situation which threatens the welfare of our people. Such interference will not be tolerated.

-Signed
Gen Janvier
President-for-Life,
Free Gabon

Shortly after dark in Port Gentil, a small flight of eight EA-80 transport aircraft touch down at the airport, within minutes of each other, their lights extinguished to reduce the risk to small arms fire on the approach.
As they taxi from the runway towards the flood lit terminal buidlings, the pilots see that Free Gabon guards are waking up and start looking at the planes with a combination of bemusement and apathy.

As the rear ramp of the first plane reaches concrete, Colonel Shohet disembarks with the rest of his headquarters squad and proceeds over to the terminal buidling as Ranger infantrymen organise their equipment and unload

(yes the French is supposed to be broken)

"Bonsoir, Ou le batiment de controlle? Mes soldats ferait un petit garrison militaire par ce que on voudrait faire votre pays saun et sauf. comprendez?"

OOC:
This deployment consists of 1,585 personnel of the 2nd Ranger Brigade COmbat Team. .

The airport guards rose and approached the colonel. On hearing his attempt at French, they chuckled and the senior walked away lighting a cigarette despite the 'No Smoking' signs nearby.

The junior officer saluted the colonel, made an obscene gesture and walked back to the shade to rejoin his comrade...

After 14 hours the bus stopped at its final stop, disgorging the last civillian passengers. They then set off again, stopping in front of the new 'Palace du President'.

The driver climbed out and quickly disabled the engine and then rolled up his sleeves and began to work on fixing the damage he had done...

The driver slowly walked away when the last passenger climbed out of the bus and tapped him on the shoulder.

Twenty-five minutes he thought.

====

After the time had elapsed, the timer sent the charge to the detonators connected to the large packages of C-4 explosives in the undercarriage luggage racks.

The huge blast crumpled the face of the presidential palace and windows within two blocks turned to showers of broken glass from the overpressure wave.

Hundreds were injured on the fringe of the blast zone and another 75 nearer to the bus were killed instantly.

Free Gabon soldiers rushed to the scene as a second and third blast exploded in nearby doorways, spraying shrapnel into the kill zone.

The Gabonaise black team listened for further secondary blasts, but apparently the first explosion damaged some of the other explosives they had arranged around the palace.

"Bon," the team leader said as the group stopped in a chophouse for a quick meal before heading to their second target...

ATTENTION GABONAISE

You will be allowed to have two (no more!) officials testify in front of our board here, and then will have those officials returned (in the manner described in your attaced letter, which was sent to UE and its allies. Please respond, and we will send in our plane to bring your officials and a maximum of 6 bodyguards to Kisneisia.

Note that you WILL be returned to Gabon, no matter whose hands it is in. Trying to escape into Kisnesian society will be treated as illegal immigration, and you will be either imprisoned or deported immediately to Gabon (to anywhere we see fit).

Thank you,

Kisnesia
IADF Security Council
Chair, UE Investigative Board

General Thibault received the dispatch from Kisnesia and called for the friendly village priest to pass his reply to the world community. After scribbling a few short lines the priest bowed and mounted his bicycle, heading back toward the border...

===
At United Nations Headquarters

The ambassador received the note from the government in exile and phoned Kisnesia directly.

La Republique Gabonaise government in exile has authorised myself and my first deputy to meet with your board on the condition that we are returned to the embassy here.

We have been authorised to discuss the illegal invasion of our nation by the imperialist forces of United Elias. Their illegal actions have destabilised the entire African continent and their puppet government under the traitor General Janvier is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of civillians.

We await your response and are ready to travel on a moment's notice.

- Ambassador Paul Renoir
Gabonaise ambassador to the United Nations

As soon as the ennemy had left, they moved quickly, but it took time. Still, Jean-Matthieu was rescued from the flames closing in on him before he got any serious burns, the Lieutenant's corpse was tossed into the fire holding a "Garbage Incinerator"-a phosphorus bomb small enough to throw-on a fifty-second fuse, the equipment was collected, but the troops had only taken a few steps away from the all-to-visible forest blaze when the steady drone of propeller-driven aircraft was heard, aproaching fast from the [ooc: i assume] North-East. They broke into a steady run, Vigdis behining to breath hard from her wound, Helen frowning at the speed of approach, as she sheperded the local along: it was wrong, to fast for choppers. Maybe transports, but would any sane commander drop paras into a dense forest, especially if his target zone was alight? they could be running for nothing, but having spent her entire adult life in the military, she had learned to be cautious. The mystery thickened whe she saw wings flashing in the distance: to small for cargoplanes, and waaaaaay to large for rotorcraft gunships, but she got everyone, gabonese villager included, lying on the ground, beneath camouflage. peeping through her net, she was astonished to see that the aircraft were Spitfires-bloody WWII relics. But they opened fire, knocking trees down with cannons and launching a storm of napalm-spewing rockets into the firefight area and the zone around it. She felt a wave of heat wash over her and realised the two privates, behind the NCOs, must have been killed...

OOC: You do know that this could bring the wrath of Metus, along with Sniper Country apon you? Just an FYI, because I will personally be very pissed if my leader dies, and I make people pay dearly.

OOC: You do know that this could bring the wrath of Metus, along with Sniper Country apon you? Just an FYI, because I will personally be very pissed if my leader dies, and I make people pay dearly.

OOC: If you send us another distress warning, we can respond. After all I believ there are two UE gguys on the team. LAst time, Free Gabon ingored our warnign that they were friendlies.

OOC: You do know that this could bring the wrath of Metus, along with Sniper Country apon you? Just an FYI, because I will personally be very pissed if my leader dies, and I make people pay dearly.

OOC: If you send us another distress warning, we can respond. After all I believ there are two UE gguys on the team. LAst time, Free Gabon ingored our warnign that they were friendlies.
Yeah, but it's gonna back up, so I have a chance to respond to his "cutting, cuz we would have seen them.

The Spitfires performed Victory rolls as they turned and flew back to their operating base, very pleased with their pyrotechnic efforts for the sortie.

The Cirdanistanians had no way of knowing that the aircraft-which appeared to be WWII relics- were in fact highly modern products of the Imperial Aerospace factory in Roycelandia, right down to the ECM systems, HUD, ejection seats, and Imperial Motors "Dragon" Turboprop engines, as well as the Kevlar fabric and ArmourSteel frames.

The Imperial Foreign Legion, meanwhile, took stock of their losses- three Legionnaires and Four Guerrillas. They were trying to work out how the Cirdanistanian troops had survived their withering hail of gunfire and grenades. A Burst Radio transmission was fired off to SOC about these as-yet known intruders, along with further enquiries as to any specific missions that needed undertaking.

Libreville

The Marines just a few blocks away closed in on the epicentre of the explosion, their Stryker APCs making fast progress through thr emptying streets. Manning the machineguns atop their vehicles, they scanned the streets for enemies, knowing taht they could be anywhere.

All sixteen vehicles pulled up a block away from the Presidential Residence, as infantry dismounted, quickly attempting to secure a perimiter around the blast area. The first platoon of rifleman to reach the area of damage, were horrified, the Gabonese had taken to blowing up their own people.

"Victor Six, Echo Three One has reached the incident area, outisde the Presidential Palace. Report many dead and wounded, requestign air support to provide cover for security team."

"Roger Three One, confirm casualties, we will scramble two EA-24 choppers to provide overwatch. Maintain secuirty around the building and watch out for further devices. Assist civilian emergency services where appropriate."

"Roger, understood."


***

Port Gentil

The Ranger Colonel looked at the Gabonese soldier with disgust, his insolnece was inexcusable but what was he going to do to, shoot him? They needed these guys on their side so he just turned around and contiued to order his men to setup tents along the runway, while others remained on guard, fearful the enemy would take their fight here.

***

18nm West of Port Gentil

The crew of the EA-22H (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=80790&highlight=) naval helicopter had already flown two 40minute roundtrips to the stricken Corvette Soufa and along with three other choppers from the helicopter carrier Scimitar they had successfully evacuated the dead and wounded from the ship. Now that the ship would definitely have to be abandoned in the coming hours, the MoD had decided that rescuing as much of the expensive or sensitive equipment would be a priority, of course the crew would just have to brave their chances in small orange rafts until they could be airlifted.

The Aircraft Commander saw the smoking silhouette of the Soufa from his right hand seat in the cockpit and since his last visit an hour and a quarter previously, she had already lost some freeboard and the starboard listing was more pronounced. He quietly manoeuvred the helicopter towards the ship before speaking into the intercom to the co-pilot and the crew chief.

"Remember guys, we're her to pick up equipment, no doubt there will be some crew members who would rather come with us than abandon ship in a raft, but I'm afraid we can't let 'em. If they try to push themselves onto our chopper, we have the right to shoot them. Obviously this is a last resort but in any case, keep your Sig Sauers at the ready but subtly."

The helicopter then flared as it gracefully dropped itself on to the slightly tilting and smokey helo deck. Immediately, exhausted sailors started loading things into the cabin, encryption equipment, a pair of heavy fire control computers, documents including the weapons manifest, the crew list and of course the ship's log. As the ship's own EA-22 helicopter would have to be ditched over the side, its small surface search radar, a maintenance log, a pair of heavy Stingray torpedoes and a Sonarbuoy set all found themselves onboard.

The crew chief then shut the cabin door and spoke on the intercom, "Ready, lets go."

The Aircraft Commander pulled up the collective and drew maximum power from both engines to lift the helicopter reluctantly off the ship's deck. On their way out, they noticed the orange rafts being lowered over the side and ready to be loaded with sailors when the time came.

18 nm West of Port Gentil

The Imperial Roycelandian Maritime Air Service had a knack for showing up in strange places at strange times- The Roycelandian Government being somewhat inclined towards all manner of cloak & dagger schemes. The IRMAS crews had long since become used to it, and no longer questioned their COs when told to do strange things like "Ensure this Jade Monkey gets to the Temple of Gold before the Full Moon", or "Take this Crate labelled 'Machine Parts' and deliver it to this country with an unpronouncable name, and watch out for the AA fire while you're at it..."

Today was something of a change of pace, as this particular Sunderland Flying Boat (the aircraft the IRMAS operated exclusively) found itself ferrying arms, ammunition, and supplies from Coral Palm Island to the Imperial Foreign Legion in Gabon. The shipment was relatively small, considering the size of the plane, and the crew were somewhat bored by the routine nature of the mission.

They welcomed the sudden activity that came when the radar showed a contact a few nautical miles ahead. They waited until they were in visual range, and then ran an ident on the plane's on-board computer.

"Got it, Skip. It's the UES Soufa. Looks like she's sinking too... look at that list. I can see life rafts deployed in readiness too... d'ya think we should land and offer assistance?"

The Skipper (The Pilot- after all, this was a Flying Boat) thought for a moment. "Sparks, open a channel, and send them a message..."

"Ahoy, UES Soufa! This is Flying Fish One of the Imperial Roycelandian Maritime Air Service. We note you seem to be experiencing difficulties, and have spotted life rafts in the water. The smoke billowing from your decks is also something of a giveaway that something may be amiss. We have plenty of space in our cargo hold and would like to offer our assistance, if this is agreeable to you. Over..."

As they send the message, the Skipper banked the giant 4-engined Flying Boat over the Soufa, so that those on board could clearly see the Roycelandian markings- in other words, the plane was friendly...

A young and idealistic ensign was now manning teh communications equipment in the CIC alone as the more experienced officers were trying to organise the rest of the crew or salvage equipment. The room was nearly pitch darkand he could only just hear the offer of assistance, firstly he thought of lieing and saying taht everything was under control, but from the outside the ship must have looked as bad as it did on the inside.

"Flying Fish One, this is Soufa, thank you for your offer but we recommend you do not land, we think the damage was from a mine and there are probably more around, land at your own risk, but if your confident you don't take as much draft as a ship, you might be fine. After all they're probably moored mines, twenty-thirty feet below the surface. "

Helen shook-it had been a close, close call. Although the fringes of her camouflage cover were beginign to catch fire from the enarby napalm, she forced herself to remain calm until the aircraft were out of sight. She did consider standing up and trying to rbing them down, either with 7.65mm fire or with the Spidershot missile in ehr pack, but decided not to fire at Spits unless absolutely necessary until the mystery of what they were doing here had been solved. While she was far from suspecting the feats of avionics miniaturization the Roycelandian engineers had achieved in packing modern systems into an aircraft whose wingspan was less than the tailspan of most modern fighters, she did realize there was a strong chance they were superior to the original WWII fighters. When they were out of sight she stood, stomped out the flames licking at her camouflage cloak, raised, Jean-Mathieu to his feet, got Vigdis, now suffering very much from her wound, to stand, and broke out the team's backup satelitte radio-the main one had been lost along with the electronics trooper. The radio was much smaller than previous generation sattelite radios, with a main power-pack the size of a toolbox, a pistol-grip UHF line-of-sight emitter antenna, and a military-standard jack fitting into a plug on her helmet. Taking a compass bearing, she raised the antenna pistol, aimed for the comsat in high orbit, dialled up an appropriate encryption code, toggled the transmit trigger, and made her report, and asked for a new team to be sent in, citing the approximate location of Jean-Matthieu's village-it would be better if the transports left asap, and she'd always have time to find a DZ later.

At United Nations Headquarters

The ambassador received the note from the government in exile and phoned Kisnesia directly.

La Republique Gabonaise government in exile has authorised myself and my first deputy to meet with your board on the condition that we are returned to the embassy here.

We have been authorised to discuss the illegal invasion of our nation by the imperialist forces of United Elias. Their illegal actions have destabilised the entire African continent and their puppet government under the traitor General Janvier is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of civillians.

We await your response and are ready to travel on a moment's notice.

- Ambassador Paul Renoir
Gabonaise ambassador to the United Nations

Message to Gabonaise Officials at UN HQ

That is acceptable to us. We will transport you from UN HQ, and you will be returned there. Please note that we will not return you to anywhere else, as we are attempting to be as neutral as possible.

Please note that Kisnesia no longer maintains a presence in the United Nations, so while we expect no problems transporting you, we might have slightly more paperwork than usual following us.

Message to Free Gabon

This investigation is not into Free Gabon, but into United Elias, who is an IADF Security Council member. It is our intention to allow Gabonaise the full opportunity to bring charges against United Elias, and then allow us to decide based on key evidence whether those charges are true.

Kisnesia would expect that if Free Gabon was to testify, it would expect safe passage for its officials. We would request the same for Gabonaise.

However, we will instead not need to travel through Free Gabon's airspace in order to transport these officials. We will instead be escorting them from UN Headquarters. Any attacks on the transports we send to UN Headquarters will be considered a declaration of war.

Mercurion Naval Base, Kisnesia

Due to threats by Free Gabon, and the fear of terrorist plots, 2 fighter jets were added to the detail transporting the Gabonaise Ambassador.

The planes took off, and a few hours later, the transport was allowed to land at UN Headquarters (while the fighters refuled at a nearby friendly base). The Kisnesian Security team sent word to Gabonaise that they were ready for transport, and that Security Agents were standing by at the UN HQ Airport.

Sparks received the message from the Soufa and nodded to the Flight Engineer, who had heard the message as well.

A large, round Mine Exploding Device (basically a Magnet with some explosives built into it) was dropped into the sea near the sinking ship.

After either exploding any mines in the Sunderland's flight path, or nothing happening, the Sunderland touches down not far from the Soufa, and the plane's Zodiac Raft is made ready.

A message is radioed to the UE ship to the effect that the Sunderland can carry maybe 80 people, so understandably priority will be given to the wounded, then the Captain/Senior Officers, then anyone else who gets to the Sunderland.

The Sunderland's crew have Thompson M1A1 SMGs slung over their shoulders in case anyone gets any ideas, but the weapons are carried in a non-threatning manner, suggesting this is SOP for any Roycelandian aircraft in a potentially hostile area.

Radio Reports indicate that another Sunderland could be on the scene within 3 hours, maybe four depending on the weather, if the Soufa is still afloat. (The Sunderland would have to be despatched from Coral Palm Island, as there aren't any in Gabon at the moment... at least, not officially.)

(OOC: Congrats on using Sunderlands, they're beautiful! I doubt they'd carry 80 people though.)

The ensign in the CIC quickly replied, a copy of the ships crew manifest infront of him, before the incident there had been 74 enlisted and 10 officers, thirteen enlisted men had been killed and their bodies airlifted out, the Captain was also dead and his body was also safely on its way back to the fleet. There had been eighteen seriously wounded personnel who had been medevaced, all enlisted , leaving just 43 enliested personnel and 9 officers.

"Flying Fish One, currently we have 52 personnel aboard and we would like to get as many as possible off with your aircraft, our whale boats will shuttle the men back and forth until just the XO and two other officers remain. They'll check the ship one more time for sensitive material until a chopper comes to pick them up in an hour or so. Where exactly would the men be taken?"

if you need an help niallberg is willing and able

65,000ft above Eastern Gabon, a lone, extremely graceful aircraft, cruised at a constant speed. The unusal thing was the fact that the pilot was sat behind a console, thousands of miles away.

In an effort to track down enemy forces, the Elias Air Force had brought in its latest intelligence aircraft, the Global Hawk (http://globalsecurity.org/intell/systems/global_hawk.htm). Equipped with a synthetic aperture radar, it could detect vehicles from nearly a hundred miles away and at closer ranges, even clusters of human beings. The best part was that it could loiter for up to 36 hours beofre returning to Libreville for fuel. No longer woul dthe Gabonese or Lusakan troops be able to hide and hence they could now be destroyed.

The controllers back in UE were careful to keep the aircraft away from Gabon's borders, and flying at this altitude, it would be difficult to shoot down, even if they detected it. As the radar and photo imaging flowed in, it was autmatically sent to the Rhodesians and Roycelandians so they could target their fighters.

Eastern Gabon (somewhere Lusakans are operating)

The Company of Light Infantry had been following the tracks of what they knew where Lusakan soldiers and the search had brought them to the edge of what was said to be a small village according to the maps.
As the rest of the group remained a kilometre or so away, a platoon of some 32 soldiers was sent to investigate and if necessary attack the village.

After moving slowly through the forest they had reached the edge of the tree line, arranged in squads of eight. The Lieutenant watched as just sixty yards away from him, people moved around, some collecting food, others just waving their guns around. A little further away a few dark green tents were setup, which had a distinctly military look about them, a distinctly Lusakan look actually. Standing around the tents were a collection of soldiers, cleaning their weapons in a way far too proessional to be Gabonese militia. Although obscured by some small huts, a few more soldiers could just be made out behind and in total there must have been nearly thrity.

The LT whispered up and down the line to each squad leader. They were going to ambush the village and put a stop to this.

Three minutes later and the platoon's only sniper had aimed the crosshairs of his Remmington rifle at the head of what appeared to be the most sniper officer judging by his age, stature and uniform. He fired a single round and teh shot rang out across the village.

Immediately the gunners laid down fire with their FN MAGs, as the rest of the men took aim with their assaullt rifles, and soem sprang up form the prone position to toss grenades at a few of the huts. No distinction was made between the civilians and the armed men, they were all deemed as hostiles.

Eastern Gabon (somewhere Lusakans are operating)

The Company of Light Infantry had been following the tracks of what they knew where Lusakan soldiers and the search had brought them to the edge of what was said to be a small village according to the maps.
As the rest of the group remained a kilometre or so away, a platoon of some 32 soldiers was sent to investigate and if necessary attack the village.

After moving slowly through the forest they had reached the edge of the tree line, arranged in squads of eight. The Lieutenant watched as just sixty yards away from him, people moved around, some collecting food, others just waving their guns around. A little further away a few dark green tents were setup, which had a distinctly military look about them, a distinctly Lusakan look actually. Standing around the tents were a collection of soldiers, cleaning their weapons in a way far too proessional to be Gabonese militia. Although obscured by some small huts, a few more soldiers could just be made out behind and in total there must have been nearly thrity.

The LT whispered up and down the line to each squad leader. They were going to ambush the village and put a stop to this.

Three minutes later and the platoon's only sniper had aimed the crosshairs of his Remmington rifle at the head of what appeared to be the most sniper officer judging by his age, stature and uniform. He fired a single round and teh shot rang out across the village.

Immediately the gunners laid down fire with their FN MAGs, as the rest of the men took aim with their assaullt rifles, and soem sprang up form the prone position to toss grenades at a few of the huts. No distinction was made between the civilians and the armed men, they were all deemed as hostiles.

To all nations involved in this conflict:
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(OOC: Congrats on using Sunderlands, they're beautiful! I doubt they'd carry 80 people though.)

I didn't say they'd be comfortable, just that we could squeeze them in somehow... :lol:

Glad you like the Sunderland, though! It's one of my favourite planes, and a natural choice for a nation like Roycelandia...

IC:

"We can take all of the crew who need evacuation then. As for drop-off point, it will need to be a port, harbour, or lake of some description... doesn't UE control the main port in Gabon?"

The injured are assisted on board the gigantic flying boat, and made as comfortable as possible whilst the remainder of the crew are ferried out in Launches, Zodiac Rafts, and Whaling Boats.

Franceville Airstrip/SOC HQ

6 Spitfires of the SOC were sitting on the runway, fuelled and ready to go as soon as they got the co-ordinates.

Two of the Iroquois choppers were also ready, carrying 12 Foreign Legionnaires and Guerrillas, provisionally entitled the Armee d'Liberation Gabonaise, to give the whole exercise some legitimacy, and, more importantly, allow the ALG to harrass Lusaka without directly involving Roycelandia.

Armed with a variety of weapons- Roycelandian SMLEs and Jungle Carbines, Rhodesian FN-FALs (rechambered to .303), Lusakan AK-47s, and various M-16s and SKSs captured from other Roycelandian endeavours overseas, the IFL and ALG troops are

As soon as a target is relayed from the UE Spy Aircraft, the Strike Force is airborne, en route to create more trouble for Luska and Gabon.

(In the interests of fair play, I'll let Lusaka or Gabon indicate any targets of interest they have that might for us to 'liberate'... :D )

Eastern Gabon, the besieged village

Two platoons -twenty four infantrymen- of Lusakan soldiers almost outnumbered the locals in the village at which they'd stopped to gather intelligence and cook a meal. Thus far Lusakan commanders had hoped that stopping off in Gabonaise settlements to eat and sleep would afford their men some protection- they hadn't liked the idea of setting fires at their own camps for fear of attracting aerial assault, but supposed the villagers do it all the time, and they don't get killed for it, do they?

The cry of Lt.Roy as his left ear was taken off by a sniper's bullet seemed to suggest otherwise.

The semi-retired officer, reactivated in the Army of Lusaka's recent build-up, fell to the floor, stunned by the sudden blow. His men reacted quickly, though most without much particular direction as they variously sprang to their feet or threw themselves to the ground.

Two of the former sort were hit, one fatally, by machinegun and rifle fire before anyone returned a shot. One of three men who'd been out with villagers collecting some foodstuffs found himself perhaps 120 metres behind a number of apparent colonials of one sort or another -Roiks, Salis, there was little distinction- sadly he also found himself armed only with an Uzi. Under the best of conditions this was pushing it for range, and the jungle was really not helping as he squeezed off a couple of roughly aimed bursts through the dense scenery. He was soon joined by his two comrades, but one of them was similarly armed, while the third tried to get a clear line of sight with his M59/66A1(L) 7.62x39mm rifle.

It was occuring to some of the men on hand that Lusaka was surprisingly poorly armed for jungle fighting, with it's 9x19mm SMG being too feeble to penetrate far through the undergrowth, and the usually popular semi-auto rifle lending itself better to slightly greater ranges and better lines of sight. Several soldiers wished that the Army of Lusaka had as many AKs as everyone assumed- in truth anyone with such an assault rifle was probably a LRAC man who'd lifted it from a rebel or bandit in Bukoba.

In the village, where most of the Rhodesian fire was landing, several civilians had fallen besides the three downed Lusakans as stick and rifle grenades began to arc forth from behind huts where briefly panicked soldiers had rallied. Inside one of the increasingly perforated huts one man stammered into a radio, hoping (with much justification) that more Lusakan units would be close by- if the grenades and rather half-hearted attempt to set up a cross-fire between the main body and a measly three men didn't break up the attack soon mounting casualties would wipe this little outfit from the war.

..Just two miles away four more platoons were idling along towards their next waypoint when the radioman scuttled up to his Lieutenant with word of the engagement. Questionably equipped they may be, but the Lusakans must surely represent the largest concentration of troops Gabon had ever seen. Crammed into the east-central region of the tiny republic were already several entire infantry divisions, meaning that no unit was far from help..

Meanwhile, Roycelandian Intelligence had intercepted the Luskan cry for help, the SOC Spitfires were scrambled, along with the ALG troops in the Iroquois. They were heading for the beseiged village, and another Iroquois was scheduled to follow them 10 minutes behind, in case they needed medevacs, additional fire support, or an Eye In The Sky.

The ALG troops were looking forward to their first, "real" firefight, although some of them were visibly nervous. Not the lucky ones who had been selected to carry the Lewis LMGs and Bren Guns, though... automatic fire was always an advantage, and the .45 SMGs that the some of the Foreign Legion were carrying had more penetration and stopping power than a 9mm round, but still not really enough for Jungle Combat.

Still, the .303 round was more than ideal, and the Jungle Carbine was a good choice of weapon, considering the environment...

As the men keep their weapons firing on the village, most with a nearly unobstructed line of siight of their enemy, the radio spews out garbled words to the efffect that the Roycelandiands were coming to assist and more Lusakans would be coming as well.

Suddenly a sergeant watches as a corporal next to him falls to the ground, a shot in his soldier. He turns away from the village, spots muzzle flashes in the trees a fair distance away and fires his old, breach loading, M79 grenade launcher in their general direction before bringing his 5.56 assault rifle to bear and firing at the smoke from the grenade explosion.

Meanwhile the other soldiers attach bayonets and s one of the squads breaks their cover to dash forward to one of the, now mostly destroyed, huts under massive covering fire. They would close in where the Lusakan's long range fighting style would be challenged with up close and personal combat, a tactic often practiced by the Light Infantry.


***


Just a mile back the two other platooons begin to move towards the village affter hearing the gunfire and they move much more quickly than before, determined to reach the firefight and kill their oldest and most despised enemy.

"YIS! Got him! The bastard!" The rifle-armed member of the disparate trio was all but hopping up and down as he swore he saw an enemy soldier fall. Then the grenade went off a few yards to his right, knocking him to the floor. Though his ears rang, he was pretty sure the submachine gun fire to that side had also ceased with the blast. Moments later he barely made out the shape of his friend crouching over him, letting off an unaimed burst of 9mm fire and trying to drag the rifleman further away before more grenades came in. The first shooter was beyond help, the left side of his body mangled by grenade fragments and splinters from surrounding trees.

In the village another man was hit as he scrambled from a shredded hut, and fell in the path of approaching infantrymen, unable to fight their bayonet charge. As the light infantry closed on the hut they were confronted by three Lusakans sheltering behind its ruins and previously dispensing rifle-grenades with less direction than before their spotter was shot. Two of the men sprang forward, trying their damndest to keep the advancing infantry between them and their own covering fire they extended the folding bayonets attached to their semi-automatic rifles, while the third man accidently dropped his weapon -grenade attached- and skipped away from it with some alarm, drawing his machette as he went. The two rifle-wielding men when they rose revealed themselves to be each over 6'5", and one had grabbed a piece of corrugated iron from the hut's fallen roofing. He was now brandishing it as if a shield, holding his rifle by the middle, waving it above him like it might be an assegai- he was hollaring something fierce on top of all this, and clattering bayonet against iron.

Some yards away, poorly covered by a recentlly uprooted treestump, two other Lusakans had slightly different opinions on how to repel the charge, and as one cast a stick grenade towards the Rhodesian covering fire, the second attempted to move so as to engage the incoming light infantry with his Uzi.

The grenadier was hit three times within a split second of exposing himself to throw, barely loosing the grenade in time.

On the ground in the middle of the little village the wounded lieutenant, blood dripping from the left side of his face, struggled to raise his 9mm Vektor CP1 automatic pistol, obviously still heavily disoriented.

At least two of the Lusakan regulars had vanished along with half the local population, and three or four more were taking cover without managing to return directed fire- if they fired at all.

The seven advancing troops quickly saw the two huge men and at very close range and without time to think, aim, fire or even retreat they just continued to charge, their bayonets extended as far infront of them as possible. Their squad sergeant, also a huge man and just as black as his enemy, was slightly behind the rest of his men and he aimed his assault rifle at the man with protecting himself with flimsy roofing. He fired. click. Throwing down his jammed weapon he whipped out a Colt .45 and fired a few shots in quick succesion at his target, the powerful bullets negating the cover of the corregated iron.

Meanwhile back at the treeline, a second squad broke cover, recognising that they would get grenaded if most of the platoon stayed back. They charged on the other flank to their comrades, and advanced with less speed, leap frogging between cover. Leading their assault, the platoon pontman, therefore he was lucky enough to wield the platoon's only 12 gauge pump action shotgun, which he could use to great effect at close quarters.

The rather distinctive sound of the Imperial Aerospace Spitfire could be heard over the din in the village- or at least, that was the plan, anyway.

The 20mm cannon in the wings had been loaded with depleted uranium slugs, on the offchance that the Lusakans had some Armour in the area.

OK, it was a stretch, but not outside the realms of possibility...

Gold Leader had ordered two of the Spitfires to attack the village and assist the Rhodesians, with the others to remain on Air Cover for the choppers.

Flying in low over the trees, one of the pilots was singing "The Ride Of The Valkyries" as they opened fire on the village with their .303 MGs. The Spitfire's MGs had been loaded with tracer/incendiary rounds, so the effect on the Lusakan's morale would have been terrifying. The hard part was not hitting the Rhodesian Troops, so the Spitfires were aiming for the opposite side of the village, firing in short bursts to minimise civillian casualties.

One of the Iroquois choppers skirted around the village and dropped the 12 ALG/IFL troops behind the Lusakans in the village in an effort to block their escape, and maybe set up some booby-traps for the reinforcements.

The Second Iroqouis unloaded it's cargo practically right on top of the village, the IFL troops rappelling down ropes, firing at the Lusakans, as the Door Gunners on the Iroquois provided covering fire.

It had been decided not to send in "Puff The Magic Dragon", as this would simply level the village, Rhodesians and Lusakans, and the AC-47 could be put to better use later.

4 Spitfires were on Overwatch in case anyone bought any other aircraft to the party, and, off in the distance, an IAe Harrier Jump Jet had been parked in a small clearing, waiting for the Immediate Action order. No use letting everyone see your hand until it was time to up the ante...

The shield-waving Lusakan, confronted by bayonets, clattered one of the incoming enemy off-stride, but in doing do exposed himself to the sgt's .45 fire and fell wounded without being able to finish off the stumbling bayonet-weilder.

Surrounded and outgunned the surviving Lusakans -those who had not already fled- conceded defeat in this situation, and decided to pack it in. Five wounded, four dead and three escaped left the force at half strength and expecting reinforcement. The second rifleman before the bayonets cried out for his opponents to stop, and pointed his rifle skywards, holding up his other hand. Other Lusakans too raised their weapons in the air. Only a few rounds had been previously fired towards the Roycelandian aircraft, and no one in these two platoons had a SAM.

A prayer's better than a bayonet on a day like this the bleeding lieutenant said to himself.

They were inclined to stop fighting, but weren't in a great rush to lay down their arms and be spirited away to God knows where.

All around scores of Lusakan infantry closed in, many SA-7s and SA-16s amongst them, some men lugging RPGs and LMGs.

"Cease Fire!"

The Lieutenat jumped up from the tree line his rifle shouldered and shouted at the other men tostop firing into teh surrendering enemy.
As the Lusakans started to wave their rifles in the air he ordered mecics to tend to the wounded man who had been hit by the roof wielding giant.

As he walke forwards slowly towards the enemiees, he saw the Roycelandians converiging from the other direction and during their landing they had manged by some miracle not to shoot any of his troops even with the wild firing from the hueys' doorguns.

He pointed his weapon at point blan range at the bleeding Lusakan Officer and he ordered a medic to treat his wounds while he offered reasuring words to his enemy, "Don't worry you'll be fine, but soon you'll wish you were dead."

After his brief conversation he headed over to his Roycelandian counterpart, "Hey guys, nice to see you. Now these bastards here are ours, clear? They captured our scouts and shot ddown our plane, not to mention countless atrocities in the past, we owe these f*cks a lot pf pain. Of course we'll try a prisoner exchange but we all know that'll be a non-starter after all Igomo cares for his own people about the same amount as he cares for us. Bottom line is we want these guys to be takenour operating base in Middle Congo and from there we can fly 'em back to god knows where, can you do that?"

Helen waited as the paras got back up again, the red point of the tip of her Hell Bovinian cigarillo the only beacon for them to follow. There were rather more than she had expected: six of her comrades from the Red Storm Regiment, and two dozen members of the International Volunteer Forces, dissidents from just about anywhere who opted for guerilla training in Cirdanistan. A tall African in RSR battle gear started walking towards her, which caused her to simultaneously cock an eyebrow, remove the cigarillo from her mouth, and lower her faceplate into position. To her relief, they had dropped with an active C3I unit, and her faceplate identified the man as one "Cpt Sy" from her regiment. The name meant a Peul, she remembered, probably a francophone; no doubt they had dug him up specially for this mission. Black faces were a rare sight indeed at home. The IVF [OOC: please, no jokes about in-vitro fertilisation] guys were all Africans as well, she noticed. Probably a good thing. She saluted the captain, and stepped forward with the couple of strong young Gabonese men from Jean-Mathieu's village she had borught along, to help with the weapons cannisters. They set off towards the village at a brisk pace, intent on getting things moving, oblivious to the fact that the open clearing enabled a UE drone to monitor their landing....

The stealthy EA-220 (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=88103&highlight=) Tactical Bombers had just entered their loitering pattern at the holding point, approximately 80nm from the AC border. Now that the East of the country was becoming the frontline in the conflict which most had assumed would end after the Gabonese surrender, the MoD had elected to try and assist the allies using something which they appeared either to lack, or simply rather not commit, hi-tech equipment.

Following the deployment of the Global Hawk, the Navy was to make sure from now on that at least two EA-220s were over Eastern Gabon at any time since the only way the intelligence would be useful would be if it could be acted upon quickly. This was just about possible with the twelve such aircraft based on the carrier President Meir and it would have to do for now. Using extra fuel pods in place of long range AAMs which seemed to be unnecessary since there seemed to be no enemy fighters about and they were stealth, the aircraft could each remain on station for nearly five hours and more if they managed to expend some of their ordnance during the flight.

Captain Zilkha had not been allowed to fly since he had flown the bombing missions over Port Gentil but had managed to fight off an investigation into the raids which had killed many civilians. Now he was back in his favourite place, thirty-five thousand feet in a 132 million dollar plane loaded with weaponry. Suddenly a target popped up on his WSO's mission computer along with recon photos and radar scan images, all of which were only ten minutes old. The targets were enemy troops that had been spotted in the open, a good thing because the unit was so small that the radar scans alone would have been ignored as a local village or something irrelevant. Now, however even if the troops faded into the jungle, they would still be able to track their position, such were the wonders of hideously expensive technology.

The aircraft changed course towards their prey, only eight minutes away from their holding pattern. Meanwhile the other EA-220 remained to respond to any new contacts.

As they approached the target area, the Mk4015 radar operating in low emissions mode finally picked up the men, taking over the feed from the drone. The WSO computed a firing solution based on the targets location, dispersion and environmental conditions. Captain Zilkha reduced the throttles to nearly idle, slowing the aircraft for its bombing run but also making it unlikely they would be heard before they dropped their weapons

When they were just eight miles from the radar blips that symobilsed enemy soldiers, the fire control system automatically opened the internal bays and released six out of the fourteen Wind Corrected Munitions Dispensers which would guide themselves to several points in the target area. When the bombs approached they would each release 202 anti-personnel / anti-materiel Combined Effects Bombs (CEB) that would scatter over an area roughly 800 feet by 400 feet, killing or maiming anything within the 'death zone'.

Helen and her comrades would be in for a big suprise, of course the pilots did not or for that matter, anyone else in the MoD know who their enemy was.

After his brief conversation he headed over to his Roycelandian counterpart, "Hey guys, nice to see you. Now these bastards here are ours, clear? They captured our scouts and shot ddown our plane, not to mention countless atrocities in the past, we owe these f*cks a lot pf pain. Of course we'll try a prisoner exchange but we all know that'll be a non-starter after all Igomo cares for his own people about the same amount as he cares for us. Bottom line is we want these guys to be takenour operating base in Middle Congo and from there we can fly 'em back to god knows where, can you do that?"

IFL Sgt. Steve "Dingo" Clarke shook the hand of his Rhodesian counterpart and introduced himself as a "Technical Advisor" to the ALG.

After the usual pleasantries, Dingo asked the radio operator to get in touch with SOC regarding transferring the prisoners. The reply was almost instant- go right ahead.

"We can take them now if you like, along with any of your wounded. The Lusakans have called for backup, so the fireworks will start soon. We've got Spitfires and some choppers, but we can't evacuate the village and we can't level it. Maybe we should start digging in?"

One of the Iroquois lands to take the Lusakan prisoners, Rhodesian Wounded, and some escorts back to Port Gentil, where a Roycelandian Sunderland is waiting, having rescued the crew of the UES Soufa.

OOC: Remember, the troops Roycelandia are operating are NOT officially there- they're "Advising" the ALG, which is basically Roycelandian-trained Gabonaise villagers. Much like ARVNs in Vietnam, but the ALG has more motivation than the ARVNs because the IFL aren't doing all their work for them.

Port Gentil

Fortunately the Airport at Port Gentil was adjacent to the sea, and a company of Rangers escorted the men of the Soufa up from the Roycelandian Sunderland which was being fuelled up at a long pier. An EA-80 transport plane was on hand to fly the Naval personnel back to UE for immediate debriefing and medical attention. Luckily the more seriously injured had been rescued by helicopter from the ship and were aboard one of the many ships in the fleet.

As news of the firefight at the village filtered through, another EA-80 was being flown down from Libreville to take the prisoners back to wherever they wherever the Rhodesians wanted them, while a pair of EA-24 helicopters would whisk the Rhodesian wounded to the field hospital at Libreville Airport.

The Ranger military Police detachment eagerly awaited the UH-1s, dealing with POWs was the best part of their job, especially considering UE never signed the Geneva convention or any other treaty of its kind. In other words it would be a free for all, of course it would be embarrasing if any of them died while in temporary custody of United Elias but they were proffesionals and its not as though Rhodesia was exactly amnesty international.

The 33rd Fighter Wing comprising mainly F-22 Raptors and Harrier jumpjets, escorting the 88th Tactical Strike Wing (bombers) of B-1B bombers have taken off from bases in Ivory Coast, heading for key targets in Lusaka.

ETA: 45 minutes.

(ooc:In Lusaka, eh? Well, if you want all out war, and are willing to fly over the entire African Commonwealth, probably resulting in war with them, or to sign an agreement with Roycelandia, meaning we will be at war with them and pouring across the REA border by the million to kill every whiteman in sight, go ahead, Isochronous. I get the impression youv'e not thought this through very well and are going to deeply regret it, and I'm not even sober. I can't imagine what you're on :) )

Across north western Lusaka, the most heavily militarised part of the nation as luck would have it, fighter wings were scrambled en masse, some eighty F-5L taking to the skies and climbing over 50,000 feet with all haste their high speeds would allow. With them went a squadron of Harrier and several score YaK-130 as well as six F-20C Freedom Fighters. AA-10 and AA-11 missiles were armed by the dozen in the Lusakan sky as below hundreds of AAA positions were alerted, and SA-2, 3, and 4 batteries activated.

The Isochronous air force wouldn't be allowed to waltz across Igomo's Africa and into the republic- and certainly not back out again.

New Lusaka City

"Yis Mr.President, heading right for us, so I'm told. ...mhm.. I have to ask you for the code, you understand.."

Shortly Ndelebe received from Igomo the required clearance, and the small UARL IRBM arsenal was activated, the modest bomber wing readied.

Air raid sirens screamed across Bukoba Province and around the north and west.

Gabon

The surrendered Lusakans generally maintained an air of dignity, the less stoic amongst their original number having already fled. Probably most of them towered over their captors, though likely weighed little more.

Were it not for engine noise, the invaders may have heard the approach of forty eight of the closest Lusakan soldiers from the north and east as they hurried through the jungle. One platoon had sighted aircraft, and was trying to contact a nearby unit it knew to have an SA-16.

Across the east of the nation, thousands of scattered infantry continued to move, frequently stopping at villages and other settlements, sometimes leaving the locals, where they were willing, with arms and supplies. Many villages would be used as granaries and ammo dumps, provided the population was deemed trustworthy.

OOC: Isochronous, I strongly advise AGAINST striking Lusaka. Roycelandia will NOT give you access to our airspace to strike the Lusakans, owing to the political and military repercussions.

However, we will grant refuge to any Isochronous pilots or aircrew that are shot down and manage to eject, provided they can get across Lusaka or the AC and into REA.

IC: Liberated Village, Gabon

Some of the ALG soldiers had dug themselves into foxholes, camouflaged themselves, or climbed up trees on the perimeter of the village. As soon as the Lusakans approached, they would be met with a hail of gunfire at the appropriate time, as well as air support from the Iroquois and the Spitfires...

Port Imperial, Roycelandian East Africa

"THEY DID WHAT?!?!" Governor-General Fry half asked, half yelled at Kiff.

"Sir, they're attacking the Lusakans. Fighters, detected by Intel a few minutes ago."

"Suicidal fools. God knows what this will do for our plans in Gabon..."

"We had considered that, Sir. And there's the very real possibility that the Lusakans will think we have something to do with this."

"Kiff, what are the chances that the Lusakans are engaging their Nuclear Weapons?"

Kiff looked very, very worried.

"We hadn't considered that at all, Sir. This is a matter between Isochronous and Lusaka- we're not inv..."

"I don't care. As Governor-General of this Colony, and His Imperial Majesty's representative in Roycelandian East Africa, I ORDER our Glowing Sands Missiles to Stage Two Alert. And order Strike Force Khaki on 2 Hour Alert."

"Philip, I've known you for years, and I think this is over-reacting. I'm happy to order the Strike Force on alert, but arming the Glowing Sands Missiles? That would render most of Africa uninhabitable for centuries. If the worst comes to the worst, we can hit the Emergency Launch button and worry about the consequences from the next world. I implore you, don't take this action lightly. It is not our concern."

Fry was surprised. Kiff almost always agreed with him.

"Robert, you're right. I was caught up in the moment. Arm the Locust Missiles instead- that should be sufficient for the situation."

"Im glad you saw sense, Philip. I'll order it so now..."

On the runway in a secret airbase in REA's west, three CAF Lancaster Bombers were fuelled up, and rather large, shiny, cylindrical bombers were winched into their bomb bays. There was no marking to indicate that they were anything unusual, but the Lancaster Crews knew that their "Tubes of Instant Sunshine" were every bit as deadly and powerful as the movies had made them out to be...

At United Nations Headquarters
The Kisnesian Security team sent word to Gabonaise that they were ready for transport, and that Security Agents were standing by at the UN HQ Airport.

The ambassador to the UN for La Republique Gabonaise's government-in-exile never went anyplace without a press release preceding him and this was no exception.

A dozen camera's recorded him meeting with the Kisnesian security agents and boarding the aircraft. The fact that the IADF was willing to investigate United Elias' illegal invasion of his nation gave the ambassador something to smile about as he approached the aircraft.

Hmm. What an interesting war.

Libreville

The Marines just a few blocks away closed in on the epicentre of the explosion, their Stryker APCs making fast progress through thr emptying streets. Manning the machineguns atop their vehicles, they scanned the streets for enemies, knowing taht they could be anywhere.

All sixteen vehicles pulled up a block away from the Presidential Residence, as infantry dismounted, quickly attempting to secure a perimiter around the blast area. The first platoon of rifleman to reach the area of damage, were horrified, the Gabonese had taken to blowing up their own people.

"Victor Six, Echo Three One has reached the incident area, outisde the Presidential Palace. Report many dead and wounded, requestign air support to provide cover for security team."

"Roger Three One, confirm casualties, we will scramble two EA-24 choppers to provide overwatch. Maintain secuirty around the building and watch out for further devices. Assist civilian emergency services where appropriate."

"Roger, understood."



The Gabonaise 'Black Team' set up their rockets carefully. They knew that the small fireworks wouldn't hurt the large military helicopters that were surely enroute. But that wasn't the point...

From rooftops and back alleyways each of the five men opened his suitcase or rucksack and set up the fireworks. The variable-length delayed fuses would give them enough time to leave the area before the fun began.

And sure enough, as the helicopters two EA-24 arrived on station, the first of the rockets streaked skyward, a large smoke trail pointing back to its point of origin.

But by this time, the Black Team had met back inside a nearby church, sitting in a back pew for a quick prayer before seeking out a place to sleep for the night.

OOC: You do know that this could bring the wrath of Metus, along with Sniper Country upon you? Just an FYI, because I will personally be very pissed if my leader dies, and I make people pay dearly.

OOC - In combat, people get hurt- sorry but those are the breaks. Do you plan to RP this or not?

Libreville

The Marines just a few blocks away closed in on the epicentre of the explosion, their Stryker APCs making fast progress through thr emptying streets. Manning the machineguns atop their vehicles, they scanned the streets for enemies, knowing taht they could be anywhere.

All sixteen vehicles pulled up a block away from the Presidential Residence, as infantry dismounted, quickly attempting to secure a perimiter around the blast area. The first platoon of rifleman to reach the area of damage, were horrified, the Gabonese had taken to blowing up their own people.

"Victor Six, Echo Three One has reached the incident area, outisde the Presidential Palace. Report many dead and wounded, requestign air support to provide cover for security team."

"Roger Three One, confirm casualties, we will scramble two EA-24 choppers to provide overwatch. Maintain secuirty around the building and watch out for further devices. Assist civilian emergency services where appropriate."

"Roger, understood."


When news of the attack on one of his palaces reached Gen Janvier, he roared with rage.

"They are to attack me!?! At my home!?!" he then kicked a radio operator repeatedly until the presidential aides pulled him away. "Get me Victor Six at once!!"

As the radio crackled to life, the president-for-life of Free Gabon took the receiver and began softly:

"The Free Gabon government formally requests additional security measures to ensure that further attempts at assassination do not occur. We are willing to undertake any measures that you require to ensure the future safety of the president. We will sign the oil contract if you require it," then seeing the shocked faces in Command Bunker 17 his face flushed and he screamed, "These attacks cannot be tolerated! If you cannot prevent them, we will be forced to demand that you leave our nation at once!! This is Janvier out!"

The communications operator looked up with fear in his eyes, "Sir, you didn't tell me you needed that to be on a secure channel. That went out in the clear..."

"That's okay son," Janiver said before he pulled a handgun from his pocket and blasted the brains of the radioman all over his radio set. Sparks flew as the general turned and shouted to his aides, "We need to get to another bunker at once!"

"Yessir!" they shouted in unison, running to the vehicle to hide their own terror at the increasing instability of their commander.

Meanwhile, at a dozen small villages along the border between the Free Gabon and La Republique Gabonaise forces, Free Gabon combat teams disembarked from their APCs and started rounding up villagers.

Based on clan affiliation and little else, the villages were selected as 'examples' to show what happens to those who support the Gabonaise faction.

In each village a soldier read an order of execution before firing a pistol into the head of the village chief.

The message was the same and was left behind:

[code:1:ac4ccd1547]
You have been found guilty of aiding the enemy in time of war. The government of Free Gabon will not tolerate traitors.

For your crimes, will have been sentenced to immediate death. This is the fate for all those who support the Gabonaise faction.

Gen Janvier
President-for-Life,
Free Gabon[/code:1:ac4ccd1547]

In a few villages, people resisted the summary execution of their leader, prompting the soldiers to open fire into the crowds which were gathered to witness the punishment.

In a small village upriver from Mimango every man, woman and child was put to death by the soldiers and the village was razed to the ground - buildings which could not be burned were smashed into by the BMP until they collapsed.

OOC: You do know that this could bring the wrath of Metus, along with Sniper Country upon you? Just an FYI, because I will personally be very pissed if my leader dies, and I make people pay dearly.

OOC - In combat, people get hurt- sorry but those are the breaks. Do you plan to RP this or not?
OOC: For 1, I haven't had the chance to rp my side since you cut all my tripwires. Second, I have other rp's that I am also doing, and I'm very busy, so just be quiet, I'll do it now. But note, I am going to start from where your men were coming up the hill (It's a rather large hill)

IC: "Sir, here they come." First Sergeant Bruce Sanders whispered into his mic. "Alright, 78 Tundra, now." he whispered. All of them knew what that ment. Suddenly, the 2 heavy weapons people, behind their balistic shileds, just opened fire on the troops coming up the hill. The 2 longriflemen, poised under logs and such, took shots, 10 each. 4 of the shooters threw WP gernades down towards the troops. The other 2 shooters threw normal smoke gernades. The technition detonated the mines at the bottom from a remote, they were trip/remote mines.

The Z-7 was coming, ETA 0200 hours. The ghosts were ready to para-jump.

More soon...g2g right now

The light machine guns returned fire as the mines tore into the flanks of the advancing soldiers. An officer blew a whistle and the advancing men broke into a run firing from the hip - they knew the best policy in attacking was to leave the kill zone as soon as possible.

The first attack wave was suffering heavy losses as the second platoon began their own advance...

Meanwhile another officer blew three blasts on a bugle and a dozen soldiers far removed from the scene of the fighting went to work aiming their three 60mm mortars at the hilltop.

Within seconds, a single round was fired. The impact was to the left of the suspected enemy position and the bugler sounded two quick notes. The mortar crew adjusted their aiming point and fired again.

This time they were rewarded with the 'fire for effect' bugle call and all three mortars began lobbing rounds at the enemy. Their fire would continue until they received the 'cease fire' bugle call indicating that the infantrymen were too close to the enemy.

Libreville Airport

"President Janvier, up until now we have followed your requests, you asked us not to deploy further troops and it has not worked, you asked us not to patrol inside Libreville and it has not worked, so do not dare blame us for these problems. We are not an imperialist force but if your incompetance continues we will not hesitate to mobilise a massive force and effectivly takeover your country and replace you with a person of our choosing. We do not want to do this and we still have confidence in your abilities to prevent the violence.

"As of now we are increasing our presence in central Libreville and the MoD has ordered a standby battalion of airborne forces to deploy as soon as possible and it is hoped they will arrive within hours. Seeing that the problems are worse than anticipated we recommend that you remain in bunkers away from the capital and we ask you to implement curfews in all major towns and cities under your control. As of now all plans for democratisation will be put on hold and we have no choice but to enforce a no tolerance policy for anyone who attempts to sabotage, obstruct or oppose the formation of a secure and free Gabon.

"With regards to the damage outside your residence, we will continue to assist in getting casualties to hospitals and in securing the area. As of now I am going to move my headquarters to your residence so I can better direct the security operation. However maintaining a native look to the secuirty forces is important so we stress that as many Gabonese forces as possible shoudl be recruited for this role. If you require assistance in training, equipping or vetting new recruits we would be able to assist. Colonel Makram aka Victor Six, Out."

Immediately his command staff jumped up carying boxes of electronic equipment and they moved out to an awaiting EA-24 which was already spooling up to take them into the city.

Libreville

The EA-24s were just approaching the Presidential buildingas the air suddenly filled with bangs and lights. In the cockpit of the helicopter the pilots reacted quickly, descending and fishtailing.

"Sh*t! What the hell is going on? Gunners fire at will!"

The gunners opened fire with their miniguns, sending volleys of 7.62mm bullets towards where the fireworks seemed to be coming from. However through the thermal imaging sights they quickly realised the areas were deserted. However panic had once again ensued on the streets as people ran and screamed, thinking it was another brutal attack.

The helicopters, staying low swung around, the gunners scanning for the enemt which must have been around somehwere.

On the ground, the Marines immediately found cover, fearing a mortar attack and it took them at least a minute to realise the fireworks were just that. Still, it meant the enemy were around and teams of infantry quickly started to search the area, dangerous considering all the alleys and side streets not to mention places to snipe from but it was the only way they could stop the resistance from running amok right under their noses.

The stealthy EA-220 (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=88103&highlight=) Tactical Bombers had just entered their loitering pattern at the holding point, approximately 80nm from the AC border. Now that the East of the country was becoming the frontline in the conflict which most had assumed would end after the Gabonese surrender, the MoD had elected to try and assist the allies using something which they appeared either to lack, or simply rather not commit, hi-tech equipment.

Following the deployment of the Global Hawk, the Navy was to make sure from now on that at least two EA-220s were over Eastern Gabon at any time since the only way the intelligence would be useful would be if it could be acted upon quickly. This was just about possible with the twelve such aircraft based on the carrier President Meir and it would have to do for now. Using extra fuel pods in place of long range AAMs which seemed to be unnecessary since there seemed to be no enemy fighters about and they were stealth, the aircraft could each remain on station for nearly five hours and more if they managed to expend some of their ordnance during the flight.

Captain Zilkha had not been allowed to fly since he had flown the bombing missions over Port Gentil but had managed to fight off an investigation into the raids which had killed many civilians. Now he was back in his favourite place, thirty-five thousand feet in a 132 million dollar plane loaded with weaponry. Suddenly a target popped up on his WSO's mission computer along with recon photos and radar scan images, all of which were only ten minutes old. The targets were enemy troops that had been spotted in the open, a good thing because the unit was so small that the radar scans alone would have been ignored as a local village or something irrelevant. Now, however even if the troops faded into the jungle, they would still be able to track their position, such were the wonders of hideously expensive technology.

The aircraft changed course towards their prey, only eight minutes away from their holding pattern. Meanwhile the other EA-220 remained to respond to any new contacts.

As they approached the target area, the Mk4015 radar operating in low emissions mode finally picked up the men, taking over the feed from the drone. The WSO computed a firing solution based on the targets location, dispersion and environmental conditions. Captain Zilkha reduced the throttles to nearly idle, slowing the aircraft for its bombing run but also making it unlikely they would be heard before they dropped their weapons

When they were just eight miles from the radar blips that symobilsed enemy soldiers, the fire control system automatically opened the internal bays and released six out of the fourteen Wind Corrected Munitions Dispensers which would guide themselves to several points in the target area. When the bombs approached they would each release 202 anti-personnel / anti-materiel Combined Effects Bombs (CEB) that would scatter over an area roughly 800 feet by 400 feet, killing or maiming anything within the 'death zone'.

Helen and her comrades would be in for a big suprise, of course the pilots did not or for that matter, anyone else in the MoD know who their enemy was.

OOC: Lusaka, I'm not going to repeat all the lovely features of the weapons ad nausiam so just gleam them form the earlier post.

IC:

Just minutes after the EA-220 pulled away from their previous engagement, another lot of targets appeared on the WSO's mission computer, this time near a town where various labels showed that 'unspecified allied forces' were operating, no doubt The Roycelandians or Rhodesians. The Global Hawk had been vectored over the area and sure enough had spotted several company size formations towards the zone, sneaking up from different directions. The UH-1s had also appeared on the radar and they would have to becareful with their bombs. Either way the force approaching the village was significantly larger than the force defending it, however some Wind Corrected Munition dispensers might just even it out.

Six minutes later and Captain Zilhka was flying another attack run, at a similar altitude and speed to the last. However this time they would drop eight of the powerful weapons rather than six, each one targeted at a different platoon size range of radar blips. Once again the computer calculated the release point to a split second and the culster bombs detached in quick succession, each one designed to fall so there would be a few hundred yards between them, enough to destroy a good deal of the enemies and hopefully confuse and injure the rest of them enough that they would not be able to continue their attack.

However at least two platoons were already so close to the village that they could not be targeted safely, so the allies would still have to fend the off first wav .

OOC: UE, there are Roycelandian Spitfires in the area as well. If you transmit the target co-ordinates to them, they can conduct a Ground Attack on the Lusakan forces...

IC: The ALG troops and the IFL Legionnaires awaited the arrival of the Lusakan forces, from their hastily dug trenches, buildings, and covered fox-holes. Iroqouis were flying around the area looking for movement, and the Spitfires were waiting for a target fix...

Rifles were loaded, grenades made ready, spare LMG magazines prepared... this was more than a small firefight, it was chance to put a real dent in the Lusakan forces. From the sounds of it, Gen. Janvier was also due for a smackdown, but that could come later, when Roycelandia "officially" entered the war to deal with Janvier...

The ambassador to the UN for La Republique Gabonaise's government-in-exile never went anyplace without a press release preceding him and this was no exception.

A dozen camera's recorded him meeting with the Kisnesian security agents and boarding the aircraft. The fact that the IADF was willing to investigate United Elias' illegal invasion of his nation gave the ambassador something to smile about as he approached the aircraft.

While the cameras were not allowed on the plane, the Gabonaise ambassador was welcomed hospitably on board. As soon as everything was set, the plane left the UN, and headed back to Kisnesia.

Upon reaching international airspace, the plane was joined by 5 more fighters, just to be sure no attacks would be launched. None were, and the convoy touched down in Kisnesia with 'nary a hitch.

The Gabonaise delegation was kept in a highly secure hotel near the embassy district in Kisnesia (but not TOO close). The next morning, the delegation was brought before the Investigation Board.

The following instructions were given to the Gabonaise delegation:

You have been brought before the United Elias Investigation Board. Kisnesia is chairing the board, and the other current member is Credonia. There will be one additional member, who has not been selected yet. Because of this, your entire testimony in front of the board will be videotaped. The videotape will be made available to Gabonaise, as well as all three Board members.

In the spirit of fairness, United Elias will be given a copy of the videotape, so that they may defend themselves. You, in turn, will be given a record of United Elias's testimony.

After we have heard your testimony, United Elias will be given a chance to respond. After these first two rounds, the board will send each of you a set of questions, which you will fill out secretly and return to Kisnesia. After this, we will, in secret, discuss what we think the appropriate method of action is.

Please note that this Investigative Board has NO authority over United Elias, and has not been chartered by the Security Council. Therefore, any cooperation UE provides is strictly voluntary. Whatever we decide will simply be brought before the IADF Security Council for a vote.

Please be informed that if we decide at any point that UE is innocent of any wrongdoing, we can stop the proceedings at our discretion.

You may now address the board.

(Hm, well, sorry for the delay- initially I was waiting to see what, if anything, was going to come of Iso's attempt at kicking off world war #, and then ten or eleven pints later.. I have some catch-up reading to do, here.)

Near the internal Gabon border
(As we're tentatively calling the uncertain divide between Free Gabon and Gabonaise)

At least one of the men who'd tried to stop the killing of tribal leaders had been a Lusakan intelligence agent who unlike his comrades in other villages had been unable to hold his tongue. He'd paid for it with his life, much as the locals who stepped forth with him.

Those operatives who were able to remain focused now continued their fairly poorly co-ordinated attempts to gather intelligence.

Further east

For a brief moment at least some of the Lusakan SAM batteries based in and around towns and cities in the east became active, before the radar operator confirmed that he'd lost the contact. Probably it was a fault, or the raw recruit had misred something completely innocent. It wasn't a very strong signal in the first place, and he couldn't pick it up again.

The Elias bomber went unchallenged.

Its first attack took out all six Lusakans on duty as they trained a few keen locals in bush warfare. The six men of the platoon off duty were woken by the distant rumbling, but had been thus far unable to locate any Gabonaise survivors, and were frankly struggling to confirm that their comrades were dead amongst the splintered trees.

At the already hotly contested village some miles away the bombs had completely stunted the second wave of the building attack, wounding seventeen and killing nine men amongst the four platoons hit. More than half their strength was gone, and survivors were at best stunned and disoriented, previously thinking that they were about to engage a small infantry force with possible light air support by a handful of helicopters. SA-7s hadn't provided any defence against a high-tech bomber.

More units arriving behind found a scene of chaos and injury, halting or at least delaying their advance on the village.

Further ahead only a few of the two dozen infantry attacking the village even realised that blasts they'd heard were anything more than background noise from fire given by the village.. probably mortars were firing at their support. As such they believed four platoons to have their backs, and more to be on the way when they engaged.

Getting a glimpse of the village, the two platoons split and advanced at a silent crawl. In each, four men fitted muzzle grenades to their M59/66A1(L) rifles while four took aim with the semi-automatics. As so often with the Lusakans they hoped to score damage with their first shots, leaving the enemy shaken and more liable to slip up or retreat. Of course doing this ignorant of your lack of support meant that there was really no plan B.

Eight riflemen and two snipers with SVDs were supposed each to crack off a single well aimed shot, with grenades coming in fast behind them. In theory the grenades would cut men off on their way to cover in reaction to sniper fire, but of course this worked best when they weren't already dug in. Lusaka hadn't fought a serious offensive war with the exception of Nyasaland, and that fell apart as soon as it met prepared Rhodesian defenders. It..probably showed. The grenade-firing riflemen would not likely open fire with their 7.62mms for some seconds after loosing grenades, leaving the already under-strength attack even lighter in the early moments.

To follow the initial volley, the two platoons each had a PK light machinegun and an RPG-7. The latter should disable a serious bit of cover, and the former cut down anyone who ran.

(It's gone five AM, gimme a break :) )

Gabonaise Village, Eastern Gabon

Waiting until the Lusakans fired their rifle grenades into the village, the IFL/ALG troops that had dug into concealed trenches opened fire in a massive volley.

Further off to the side, a Lewis LMG opened up on the Lusakan Forces, and one of the Spitfires strafed the advancing enemies with Cannon, MG, and rocket fire.

"Engage! Volley fire, on my command!" went out over the subvocal comm units. The ALG troops were getting a real taste of action, and the smell of smokeless powder, napalm, and death was in the air...

As Captain Zilkha's stealth bomber banked sharply away as explosions ripped through the trees around the village, the second EA-220 had alkready left its loitering point and was now approaching the target area while Roycelandian Spitfires poured fire into the remaining Lusakans.

The second tactical bomber lined up on the radar blips depicting personnel size targets that were scatterd around the village, although luckily they had stopped after suffering many casualties no doubt.

As the plane approached the bomb release point, the fire control computer once again flipped the internal bays open and released ten munitions over a period of thirty seconds or so. These were also wind-corrected muniton dispensers but unlike the previous strike they were filled with dual purpose delayed action munitions, in other words each weapon scattered 950 lethal land mines that would arm themselves within three minutes of hitting the ground. If the first strike had temporarily paused the attack, the second would stop it. With ten 200 square meter minefields comprised of nearly 10,000 anti-personnel munitions, the Luskan force would certainly be unable to advance without killing themsleves, or retreat for that matter.

OOC: Enjoy! :wink:

OOC: Ouch! Roycelandia has been trying to keep this "Sporting", but hey, we like your way better. Much better news coverage for the REABC... :D

Well, this was an infantry company that wouldn't be operating again in a hurry. It was well that the Army of Lusaka had more than fifty thousand more where that came from.

The two dozen soldiers around the village had begun to take casualties, though it could have been worse. While Lusakan tactics were less than brilliantly diverse, it was widely held that Roycelandia was hardly breaking new ground with its own fighting styles.

The combination of infantry targets and air attack however was making life difficult, and the two platoons were keenly awaiting the arrival of reinforcements with SAMs.

The reinforcements with SAMs were having even less fun as more munitions came down. Someone had fired a single SA-7 rocket into the air, but he'd since been blown up, and no one even knew if he had a target when he launched. A handfull of the forty eight men caught in the bombing were staggering away, most were dead, wounded, or struggling to help those wounded, and unlikely to be leaving in a hurry.

Across the rest of the east however advances continued regardless. Wherever the Lusakans reached a city or even a small town they would leave behind at least a basic garrison. SAMs were raced from one town to the next along roads cleared by infantry, moving flat-out at night and usually alone save for infantry who might cling to the vehicles involved.

Scouts had reached the end of the Ivindo and were now advancing up the Ogooué towards Booué. Most of the Lusakans were moving in small units except when in Gabonaise towns, and if air attacks were going to have any serious impact on their scattered numbers civilian casualties were surely about to jump.

OOC:

I like my way too, after all it is not the one who is right that wins but the one who is left. Of course we also believe we're right. :wink:

OOC:But we are right.. and we're more left (wing)! 's win win, really. Then there's the fact that we of course have different victories in mind..

The situation in Libreville was obviously no longer tenable to UE alone- technology was one thing, but you needed a visible presence to back it up.

Accordingly, by Order of His Imperial Majesty Emperor Royce I, henceforth several thousand Imperial Guard will be posted to Gabon for peacekeeping duties.

Identifiable by their Redcoats, White Pith Helmets, Blue Trousers, and Mk III SMLEs, the Imperial Guard are both highly trained and well-disciplined.

OOC: If you've ever seen the movie "Zulu" then you know what these guys look like...

IC: Meanwhile, in the Jungles of Gabon, the ILF and ALG were completely wasting the Lusakans, from the sound of it... with a little help from the UE Air Force.

Yes, Roycelandia's tactics were outdated, but Volley Fire remained proved itself effective once again and the troops fired, reloaded, fired, reloaded...

All had fixed bayonets as well, should a bayonet charge or blade hedge become necessary...

The stealthy EA-220 (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=88103&highlight=) Tactical Bombers had just entered their loitering pattern at the holding point, approximately 80nm from the AC border. Now that the East of the country was becoming the frontline in the conflict which most had assumed would end after the Gabonese surrender, the MoD had elected to try and assist the allies using something which they appeared either to lack, or simply rather not commit, hi-tech equipment.

Following the deployment of the Global Hawk, the Navy was to make sure from now on that at least two EA-220s were over Eastern Gabon at any time since the only way the intelligence would be useful would be if it could be acted upon quickly. This was just about possible with the twelve such aircraft based on the carrier President Meir and it would have to do for now. Using extra fuel pods in place of long range AAMs which seemed to be unnecessary since there seemed to be no enemy fighters about and they were stealth, the aircraft could each remain on station for nearly five hours and more if they managed to expend some of their ordnance during the flight.

Captain Zilkha had not been allowed to fly since he had flown the bombing missions over Port Gentil but had managed to fight off an investigation into the raids which had killed many civilians. Now he was back in his favourite place, thirty-five thousand feet in a 132 million dollar plane loaded with weaponry. Suddenly a target popped up on his WSO's mission computer along with recon photos and radar scan images, all of which were only ten minutes old. The targets were enemy troops that had been spotted in the open, a good thing because the unit was so small that the radar scans alone would have been ignored as a local village or something irrelevant. Now, however even if the troops faded into the jungle, they would still be able to track their position, such were the wonders of hideously expensive technology.

The aircraft changed course towards their prey, only eight minutes away from their holding pattern. Meanwhile the other EA-220 remained to respond to any new contacts.

As they approached the target area, the Mk4015 radar operating in low emissions mode finally picked up the men, taking over the feed from the drone. The WSO computed a firing solution based on the targets location, dispersion and environmental conditions. Captain Zilkha reduced the throttles to nearly idle, slowing the aircraft for its bombing run but also making it unlikely they would be heard before they dropped their weapons

When they were just eight miles from the radar blips that symobilsed enemy soldiers, the fire control system automatically opened the internal bays and released six out of the fourteen Wind Corrected Munitions Dispensers which would guide themselves to several points in the target area. When the bombs approached they would each release 202 anti-personnel / anti-materiel Combined Effects Bombs (CEB) that would scatter over an area roughly 800 feet by 400 feet, killing or maiming anything within the 'death zone'.

Helen and her comrades would be in for a big suprise, of course the pilots did not or for that matter, anyone else in the MoD know who their enemy was.[OOC:sorry for not responding earlier, but i was very, veyr busy IRL. I'll try to cook up a post ASAP, hopefully tomorrow :) ]

Elias State News (and all other major television stations)

"Good Afternoon, citizens of United Elias we now go live for a special announcement from the President, please stay tuned for this important announcement."

Screen fades to image of a flag flying while the national anthem is played over it.

After it finishes the image flicks to the President's study, a pair of microphones are seen to be arranged on a grand mahogany lectern which is flanked by the flags of United Elias and the Presidential Seal. Behind the podium a massive emblem of the presidential seal hangs proudly. On either side of the raised platform, two guards in dress uniform clutch rifles ceremoniously.

After less than a minute, the President himself, dressed in a highly tailored dark blue suit and looking unusually concerned, walks up to the lectern and looks directly into the camera.

"My fellow citizens, tonight I intend to be brief and indeed by message is both simple and righteous. As may of you know the armed forces of our great country have been conducting operations to destroy terrorism in all its forms and also to fight the scourge of communism and tyranny. However I feel as though too few of you know that our military is currently operating in Gabon, the Southern African nation which until recently was home to a cruel, corrupt, socialist regime that harboured terrorists that intended to kill us and ruin our way of life.

"This crisis did not escalate to a war as the Gabonese people saw that their regime had no future and in surrendering to our forces they chose freedom over socialism. The government of the state of Free Gabon under President Janvier has not been unopposed however and former regime members assisted by foreign troops have set in motion a guerrilla war, killing hundreds of innocent Gabonese civilians in terrorist attacks. United Elias along with our allies which include Roycelandia and Rhodesia, two nations which are known through Africa for their political freedoms, prosperity and civil rights, will not tolerate this criminal activity. We therefore demand that the nations, who I will not name so not to dignify them, that are responsible for this senseless and futile resistance immediately discontinue their operations or face war.

"United Elias will not retreat, we will not abandon the fight against terror and we will not allow oppression whether it be through tyranny or under the pretext of enforcing a socialist order. I must therefore inform the people of our nation, our foreign allies and our adversaries that we will stand firm against this insurgency and we will persevere so that we prevail. I know this may take sacrifice and for thirteen crew members of the Soufa it already has but I believe this fight is worth winning.

"This does not mean total war, this does not mean that we will have to deploy many more of our serviceman, but I have decided that the time has come for the people to be aware that the situation in Gabon may become a long term problem. To the people of Gabon I ask you simply, to help in this great effort to restore unity, democracy and safety to your nation and to those who may consider supporting the resistance, you have been warned."


OOC: This doesn't really change anything, just sets forth that we aren't goign anywhere and to answer soem critiscm.

New Lusaka City

President Derek Igomo, Secretary Livingstone Miyanda, Defence Secretary Colin Olongwe. Three men bearing the public weight of the international community's only serious effort to protect Gabon's people and their freedom from imperialist aggression. Colonel George Tanko, commander LRAC 17th Division was a rather less public entity, of course. A fith Lusakan, a Zanzibar Arab, was even more mysterious. The shadowy possibility of a security branch little older than the Lusakan Republican Navy.

They were all in agreement as they sat in Igomo's bunker below the city, the old enemy had really gone too far. Official deployment of military personnel to Gabon whilest being know to fight an unofficial war against Lusaka and the interests of the African continent was agreed to be a Roycelandian declaration of hostility and direct opposition to the United African Republic and the Gabonaise.

Miyanda was speaking on the widening nature of threats to the republic on top of their responisibilities to Gabon. "Bukoba is very fast becoming a major issue again, we absolutely can't afford to wear blinkers.."

"Madagascar too." Added Olongwe. "If the Roiks don't co-operate with Beth Gellert's efforts to extract their rogues they [BG] are going to be back on my case about all out invasion."

"Yis." Laughed Igomo. "You know their eh Mr.Kezo offered me Kenya again yesterday."

Miyanda's eyebrow went up. In truth both, he couldn't get the hang of raising just the one and always ended up looking as if he was getting the fear.. which he probably was, but that was really a coincidence of continued substance abuse.

Before the Secretary could voice his support for the proposition a rather alarmed Arabian moved the meeting along.

"If we're at once diplomatic and radical enough about this the problems are not so great." He said, drawing significant interest from around the room.

"We mustn't let ourselves be caught up with local.. isolated concerns." He glanced at Miyanda. "If we attempt to win total uncompromising victory everywhere we can invent a contest then eventually we stand to lose a lot. The possibility exists that if we give a little ground we may make a lot of progress."

His last comment saw Igomo's eyes meet his own. The President appeared to be impressed by the mystery man's line of thinking.

"We are not spread so thinly as a cautious man might imagine." The man finished with a subtle nod to the Defence Secretary.

"That's right, at a stretch." Said Olongwe. "There are always the war veterans. Nobody knows how many million. With international attention on the area partisans shed a lot of their weakness.. normally we wouldn't dream of leaving our defence to them without well supported regulars, but what can anyone do? Carpet bomb Lusaka? With the Beth Gellens, Joshuans, Haaregradians all sat here? They'd start a world war with Communists and Christians united against them!"

Miyanda was nodding like a manic horse, he wanted giant Lusaka to get up and punch somebody in the face, but had always been over-ridden by frightened politicians and cautious soldiers.

"And with the new missile battalions -sixty six reporting operational, by the way- no airforce on earth could do it without suffering massively.. and we've kept 90% of fighter command at home anyway!"

Olongwe was begining to take on a slightly strange expression, he suddenly felt as if Miyanda had been right all along, as if he'd softened and lost sight of the revolution in his old age. What a fool he'd been!

"Excuse me." Whispered Col.Tanko. "What are we getting at?" All eyes turned to Igomo.

"We're redeploying. Secretary-" He turned to Livingstone. "Get me Kinshasa."


Secure ( ?) link, City-Kinshasa

President Igomo of the UARL had a lot to say when he reached his approximate opposites in the Commonwealth. Lusaka wanted to up the ante, and required Commonwealth co-operation in deploying twenty divisions or more straight across the Gabonaise border. Igomo wanted Commonwealth forces to join their Lusakan and Gabonaise comrades in the war of liberation there, either as partisans and light infantry much as existed already, or by full hi-tech means, in which event elements of the Lusakan Air Force and Armoured Corps would join.

The President stated that Lusaka was aware of AC's concerns over Bukoba and its militants, and was prepared to work things out. He hinted that Lusaka might voluntarily withdraw from the vast majority of Bukoba Province save, it seemed, for a thin strip on the shores of Lake Victoria on which Bukoba city was situated, up to the REA border. So long as Lusaka could be sure the land wouldn't fall into hostile hands, anyway.

"Fight for Gabon, win Bukoba." He seemed to imply.


The UARL was meanwhile in a state of great activity. "War veteran" militias were meeting one afternoon a week for "refresher courses" before returning each time to their farms, where they broke out their Revolutionary and Bush War rifles. The entire effective strength of the Army of Lusaka seemed to be on the road or rail, missile batteries swung their newly acquired tubes to the sky.. and classy dinners were aranged for foreign diplomats and officers in the region, and the crews of PoJ ships off-shore treated to the delights of the republic whenever they took shore-leave.

..And the recession was over!

Brazzerville

President Mambouli paced the hall as military officials sat around a large conference table, paper and memos spread everywhere and maps hanging on the walls. He was a visionary, and his vision today was that the Gabon conflict was one of two things. Either a sure way to get crushed, being squeezed between AC and teh Gabon if the Lusakans won or a great oppurtunity to modernise and develop the nation as one of the colonialists allies. Choosing the later emat militay involvement but that was fine, after all the small rebellion had more or less been out down and in any case it was of little consequence. The other factor that influenced his decision was that Mambouli was prone to paranoa, much of of which turned out to be accurate and right now he actually believed that the Lusakans had incited the rebellion and that the oly way to prevent civil war was to show that his nation could fight back.

"Generals, my decision is made, we will request help from the allied forces, continue to grant overfly and basing rights and also consider getting involved in subtle military ways. I want as many new regiments as possible formed, especially from Southern areas since they are always the most loyal. The new units should deploy along teh Commonwealth border but wew must not make it look agrressive. The last thing we need is a war on two fronts. Other more experienced units such as the 506th and 230th Regiments should deploy along the Gabon border and prepare to fight."

"Yes Mr. President, as I calculate our army strength is osmething like 204,000 men but obviously our equipment is not in good order."

"I understand, let me worry about getting new equipment and you worry about recruiting another 60,000 soldiers."

"Yes Sir."

The meeting brokeup and President Mambouli retired to his office to write a message to some hopefully interested friends.

***

Encrypted Transmission to Roycelandia, Rhodesia and Nyasland, United Elias.

I President Mambouli of Middle Congo, have hereby decided that it serves the best interests of our people to increase our support for your cause in Gabon and elsewhere in Africa. I have ordered the armed forces of Middle Congo to begin a mobilisation process both to defend in case of aggression against us and also to covertly support your forces in Gabon.

However, as you probably know, the armed forces of our nation have not seen any new equipment for many years and in order to join the coalition we would need to have modern or even old surplus arms which we expect you could provide us with. A large army is nothing if it is not equipped and trained correctly therefore in addition we also request experienced military officers to advise our commanders on how best to manouvre our forces. We do not pretend to be experts in the art of war but we are willing students.

Sincerely,
President Mambouli,
Middle Congo

Eastern Gabon

As the Lusakans attacked teh vilage , the Light Infantry were already in defensive positions and and along with the Roycelandian troops they put down withering amounts of suppressing fire into the treeline. As the other platoon reinforced them from behind, they watched in awe as bombs fell on their enemy, and the prospect of completely taking out the Lusakan company now looked likely. After all they had nowhere to retreat to, air dropped mines effectively cordoning them off.


X-Ray One Airfield, Eastern Gabon

At the Rhodesian airifled in the heart of Eastern Gabon, a few flights of C-130s had deployed an additional three companies of Light Infantry Soldiers as well as a towed Rapier SAM system. The supply flights were becoming increasingly dangerous and the almost half an hour trip from the Zulu One air base in Middle Congo was now one that all but the most courageous of transport pliots loathed. It seemed as though the Luskans were gradually improvong their air defences to the North lucikly however they still only had shoulder launched systems in this sector, yet they still made for a bitof a scary ride.

For the forty or so Selous Scouts who had been the first Rhodesian forces to enter Gabon, what seemed like a lifetime ago, the deployment had been a boring one, Several weeks of guarding teh ex-GLA airbase had worked the patients of all of them, especially knowing that all around them, the enemy was massing. Lieutenant Gardiner, one of the most experience Scouts demanded vengance for killing and capturing their scouts and he notcied that a flight of UH-1Hs were crewing up on the grass verge next to the recently upgraded runway.

He ran over to talk to one of the pilots before the engines started, "Where you guys going?"

"To the C-123 crash site, just rations and stuff for the company there."

"Got room for a few more?"

"Sure, where do you want to go?"

"Well after teh supply drop, your flight is taking my couts over to that village where the Lusakans are being pasted."

"We need permissionto fly into a hot LZ."

"Screw that, we gotts get some action and skin these bastards alive."

The pliot pondered this for a second before agreeing. Immediately a platoon of Selous Scouts grabbe their weapons and some equipment before running to the other side of the airfield and boarding the helicopters, six men to each.

The rotors then began to turn and a minute later, the helicopters took gracefully to the sky on a routine supply mission which would then become an air assault, one which no one had ordered. The Scouts after all were mostly a law unto themselves and their maverick attitude was often contagious.

the Commonwealth rises...
((Completely securely encrypted, secret IC missive))

General Ndelebe himself received Igomo's call, and listened cautiously. The offer was tempting, and the President has authorized free passage for any and all Lusakan forces moving through AC to fight for Gabon, even offering up infrastructural passage by train and plane for the Lusakan forces against a small compensation.

Joining the war was another matter entirely. The mainstay of the CAF were still in AC, ready to deploy within days, but auxillary forces were spread a lot, both locally and overseas. Ndelebe requests a complete explanation of the situation in Gabon, contestants and comparative military power levels, hinting that the commonwealth might lend special forces and militia regiments to Lusaka if the rewards are worth African blood.

Jungles of Northwestern Gabon

They were advancing at a good clip through the jungle when Helen heard a noise suspiciously similar to that of incoming ordnance. She turned around, but Captain Sy had been faster than her and was already shouting:
"A couvert! Bombardement aérien!"
She dived, rolling on her side to get between a small cluster of tree trunks, into a shallow depression. Around her she heard the noise of people crashing into the undergrowth, cannister parcels being dropped by untrained Gabonese villagers, and the slight whistle of falling bomblets getting louder. Then the earth shook, explosions sounded all around her, and the air was suddenly full of the whine of metal fragments and the harsh 'thud' of them striking wood-and the softer sound of them sinking into flesh, with the ensuing cries of pain. When the explosions stopped, she counted slowly to sixty, ignoring the steady moaning off to her right, then snapped rapidly up to her knees, scanning quicky around her for retarded-detonation munitions. Since there seemed to be none, she stood and looked for other survivors. Captain Sy stood at around the same time as here, but she could see no others.

Eventually it turned a couple more of the Red Storm regiment commandoes had survived uninjured, as well as three IVF fighters and a lone gabonese villager-it later turned out he had served with the French, and his reflexes had come back in time to save him from the fate dealt to his friends. They rounded up the surviving equipment and then she went ahead to the village with Armand, the local, to get more people to bear it to safety, making sure they kept to the densest of jungle paths where no radar or observers could spot them.

Jungles of Northwestern Gabon

They were advancing at a good clip through the jungle when Helen heard a noise suspiciously similar to that of incoming ordnance. She turned around, but Captain Sy had been faster than her and was already shouting:
"A couvert! Bombardement aérien!"
She dived, rolling on her side to get between a small cluster of tree trunks, into a shallow depression. Around her she heard the noise of people crashing into the undergrowth, cannister parcels being dropped by untrained Gabonese villagers, and the slight whistle of falling bomblets getting louder. Then the earth shook, explosions sounded all around her, and the air was suddenly full of the whine of metal fragments and the harsh 'thud' of them striking wood-and the softer sound of them sinking into flesh, with the ensuing cries of pain. When the explosions stopped, she counted slowly to sixty, ignoring the steady moaning off to her right, then snapped rapidly up to her knees, scanning quicky around her for retarded-detonation munitions. Since there seemed to be none, she stood and looked for other survivors. Captain Sy stood at around the same time as here, but she could see no others.

Eventually it turned a couple more of the Red Storm regiment commandoes had survived uninjured, as well as three IVF fighters and a lone gabonese villager-it later turned out he had served with the French, and his reflexes had come back in time to save him from the fate dealt to his friends. They rounded up the surviving equipment and then she went ahead to the village with Armand, the local, to get more people to bear it to safety, making sure they kept to the densest of jungle paths where no radar or observers could spot them.

Roycelandia is prepared to offer Middle Congo our full support, in the form of Lee-Enfield rifles, Lewis and Bren Guns, Tiger, Cheetah, and Lion Tanks, Il-2 and IAe-Spitfire aircraft. We can also send a division of the Imperial Guard and/or the Imperial Foreign Legion to advise and train your troops... and all for a very low cost, to be paid when your Nation can afford it (I hear a lucrative trade deal coming on! :D )

The Imperial Guard in Brazzaville have orders to fire only in self-defence, and anyone bothering to talk to them will note that they are all from Roycelandia or Coral Palm Island. The Colonial Guard are still in Roycelandian East Africa, although quite what's going on is anyone's guess.

The ALG are still hassling Lusakan forces wherever they can find them, but news of a possible AC involvement is met with concern, both in Port Imperial and Port Royal...

With the forces and equipment already present in Gabon, it was doubtful a guerilla movement could be organized. A new drop was necessary, but this time alot more planning would go into it. The failure of the rpevious attempt had been analysed; Cirdani planners were now aware of the existence of the Global Hawk, and suspected aircraft to be on constant patrol over the gabonese jungles. Without any radar coverage of the area, they had no means of being sure which nation of imperialist pig-dogs operated them, and did not suspect them to be stealthy, although that would not have changed the mission profile: still under the disguise of regular airline flights over Western Africa, another squad of Red Storm regiment commandoes, along with three dozen IVF members-all originating in Francophone Africa, all experienced-and a medical antenna [OOC: si tant est que that expression is also used in English-my English is rather rusty when it comes to that kind of terms] would be dropped, but this time protected by a smokescreen[OOC: smoke is no more, no less, than loose carbon molecules, which have the annoying property of dispersing radar, much like a stealth fighter...i doubt a Global Hawk has radars powerful enough to notice it's being blocked by a smokescreen at a decent range, but even if it does, all you'll know is there's alot of smoke, or something similar, in one place] and rapidly taken along densely wooded paths where they'd be safe from snooping aircraft. The drops would happen at nightfall, when the earth's surface radiates a maximum ammount of heat, so that anything with IR sensors would need to get close-up to locate people against the ambiant heat-especially in a tropical jungle-and several diversions would be set off by the personnel already on the ground, each consisting in a number of smokebombs and inflatable person-sized radar deflectors, acompanied by flares, set off by timers at the same time the paras were planned to touch the ground, and at locations well away from the real drop site, in case the patrolling aircraft had sensors of thier own to track personnel on the ground.
In addition to the personnel, large ammounts of equipment would go in, from rocket launchers and MANPADS to printing presses and radio transmitters-everything needed to set up a resistance movement. A diplomatic ntoe would also be transmitted to the Lusakans, in order to-hopefully-coordinate operations.

This is just a brief report on how we're organising things in Gabon, just remember that only our alliea ctually know this:

Clearly the President's message which had been broadcasted on military radio frequencies had increased morale and also coincidentally coincided with some changes in the way the war was run. First of all Lieutenant Colonel Makram, Commanding Officer 2nd Infantry Battalion of the 1st Brigade, 4th Airborne Division who ran the security operation in the Capital from the Presidential Palace was promoted to full Colonel. He would eventually command the entirity of the 1st Brigade comprising of some 6,540 personnel which would relieve the Marines stationed in Libreville over the next few days. Known as Task Force Alpha they would enforce Libreville and the surrounding areas while other units passed through.

The 6,215 personnel of the 3rd Marine Expeditionary Regiment, 2nd Marine Division had nearly begun deploying from the task force that had been drifitng offshore not doing very much until orders were given. Initially the new units would join he Mairne battalion already in Libreville before pushing Eastwards, in the first movement of troops in land since the crisis had begun. Task Force Bravo as the brigade would be known would act as a blocking force, securing places such as Booué where the enemy would no doubt try and infiltrate. The other half of their operation would be training the Free Gabon fighters and arming them, as well as encouraing recruiting through propaganda campaigns and the like.

Meanwhile the naval task force was to be scaled down as the amphibiosu ships deloyed their Marines, only the President Meir, her indispendable air wing and a few escorts would remain.

In Port Gentil, the first Ranger Brigade Combat Team of some 1,590 designated as Task Force Charlie will be responsible for maintaining secuirty for the city and training local forces.

In addition, more helicopters and aircraft will be deployed, and while the Air Force will be responsible for transport, some combat aircraft and intelligence duties, Navy/Marine helciopters will be used to provide air support for tactical units since they are already in theatre because of the Naval task force and as the majority of combat is expected to be seen by Marines as opposed to Army personnel.

Due to the complexities of commanding a joint force of approsimately diviosn size, a new command system will be placed in effect. As of tommorrow, Major-General Krieger will be head of GOTCOM (Gabon Operational Theatre Command) which will be located at Libreville Airport, and control 'Operation Tranquil Ebony' encompassing all Elias forces in the region. In addition the new command centre will seek to establish improved liason with our allies to make sure intelligence is passed on quicker and acted upon shortly afterwards.

Silhouetted against the spectacular African sunset, a wave of helicopters, flying in perfect formations followed the Oguee river, heading eastwards at 150 knots. Made up of the entire air group from the assault ships Scimitar and Shamshir, the formation was split into distinct waves. Firstly, fourteen of the nimble little EA-28Gs (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=66401) carrying six Marine Special Forces each. In the larger formation there were 26 EA-24Gs (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=40824) each carrying 22 Marine infantrymen. In total there were 672 Marines, making up the 1st Air Cavalry Battalion of the 3rd Marine Expeditionary Regiment, 2nd Marine Division.

In the cabin of one of the EA-24s, Sergeant Sadar sat against the fuselage reflecting on the mission. Back on the safety of the ships he had been ecstatic that the Marines would be the first ones to enter the interior of Gabon and he was desperate to see action. Now in the grim, blacked out cabin of the Navy helicopter he realised that there was a possibility he would never see home again, alarming at best and downright terrifying at worst. He tried to dismiss the thought as he knew that fear made people make mistakes and he could not afford to. As he glanced around at the men in his squad, unable to speak because of the deafening roar of the rotors, he saw they all had fear in their eyes. Opposite him a Corporal was clutching a crucifix and reciting prayers and the Private next to him was stroking the blade of his combat knife and reflecting the moonlight off it.

No matter what he thought he had to give off the impression of being fearless as a Sergeant always knew what to do and was totally fearless. He hazarded a look out of the open doors of the chopper at a few distant lights, and thought about the few scraps of information he had heard about this part of the world which amounted to a handful of conversation snippets and perhaps a documentary or two, in fact everything he had heard had ranged from dreadful to complete hell. Were the Stories True? Did they really skin prisoners alive? Were the enemy really cannibals? Just before he had a chance to think these possibilities through he saw the crew chief flash him five fingers. Five minutes to the LZ.

In the first wave of the formation, the EA-28s started to descend and the Marine special forces, who were sitting on people planks on the outside of the helicopters, engaged their NVGs, ready to engage any threat.

Two minutes later, the fourteen smaller helicopters were flaring as they approached the landing zone, a fallow field just a mile East of Booué that the Free Gabon forces had suggested. As soon as skids touched turf, the Marines released their harnesses and jumped off, grouping into their eight man squads and heading for prearranged positions around the field. Seconds later the EA-28s lifted off and proceeded to circle the LZ, providing cover and using their FLIRS to locate any enemies.

As soon as the 82 special forces had reached their defensive positions around the LZ, they radioed the EA-24 formation which split into smaller flights. Soon four helicopters at a time were touching down, Marines running down their rear ramps, and then they would lift off as another four approached.

Soon the entire Battalion was on the ground and the careful air cavalry tactics proved to be unnecessary as no resistance had been offered, hardly surprising given they were in the so called Free Gabon 'zone', though not by much.
The helicopters then turned back towards Libreville leaving the 672 Marines who were effectively alone, with no other Elias ground forces for 150 miles.

At a dilapidated airbase near Mayoko, South of the Gabonese border, the ‘Vampire Bats’ were preparing to fly. The squadron had been named because of the fact that they had originally flown De Havilland Vampires before a few years of Congolese Marxism had earned them some Mig-19s. The Vampire Bats were revered in the small Middle Congo Air Force as they were known to have the bravest and most experienced pilots. Of course the Air Force had more modern types such as the Mig-23 and Mig-21 but the Mig-19 was seen as being more macho and if you’re a crack fighter pilot that meant a lot, plain and simple.

Sixteen planes out of twenty four would fly on this mission, partly because the other eight were unserviceable and their pilots were nearly all too drunk to fly anyway. As the crude jets started their engines, the ground crew armed their weapons, their loads mirroring the history of their country, with each carrying a pair of modern, French built Magic 2 AAMs and two older, and Soviet built Kh-25MP anti-radar missiles. The Mig-19s had all been upgraded indigenously, only not all to the same standard, every plane was different and some were even Chinese J-6s, a copy of the original Russian design with a few avionics changes. Therefore every pilot could only fly the one plane they were familiar with, often resulting in a low readiness level.

The crude jets taxied out onto the runway and took off, afterburners lighting up the night sky. They then immediately turned north, IFF transponders off so no one would realize the jets were Congolese. Swinging west, the planes flew very low, so to avoid enemy radar and then when they were just fifty kilometers from Franceville they climbed.

Immediately, radar warners sounded in the cockpits and as the seekers on their anti-radiation missiles picked up the emissions, C, D and I bands commonly associated with SA-3 batteries, surely Lusakan, they pressed the triggers. The Kh-25MPs then homed on the enemy radars protecting the city.

i must ask that all hostilities cease. we do not need war at the moment so the british motherland requests all parties to assemble around the negotiation table. the british motherland is willing to moderate

Encrypted Message to Middle Congo

United Elias welcomes your support in Gabon and hopes that your nation will be able to contribute to our cause along with our other allies. We also fully acknowledge that your nation requires equipment with which to fight this war and the Ministry of Defence, Department of Foreign Assistance has granted the following on the basis of lend-lease, in other words it must be paid for after the conflict. The following list is mostly drawn from our ready reserve equipment desert storage and will be transported by chartered civilian ships. We have aimed to give you equipment which you will be familiar with already or that is simple to operate so you will be able to maintain, support etc.

Surplus Equipments:

-240 T-72M Main Battle Tanks
-26 T-72K Command Tanks
-124 BMP-2 IFVs
-88 MSTA-B 152mm Towed Howitzers
-34 Mi-8 Utility Helicopters
-22 Mi-2 Light Utility Helicopters
-28 Mi-24M Helicopter Gunships
-36 Mig-21-EAC Heavily upgraded equivalent to Mig-21-2000 (http://www.airforce-technology.com/projects/mig21/) standard
-24 Su-17 Ground Attack Fighters
-11 An-12 Transport Aircraft

New Build:

-38 EA-50A COIN/Light Attack Aircraft (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=40977)
-40 ELS-119 105mm Light Artillery Guns (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=1635384#1635384)
-16 EA-75A Tactical Transport Aircraft (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=118392&highlight=)

The sum of 1,584,200,000 will be payable in stages when this is possible, indeed we will be flexible on the payment plan and may be willing to take it in the form of commodities or trade agreements.

Also we will be dispatching a team of Special Forces to embed with units which will be entering Gabon so they can advise your commanders and liase with GOTCOM to make sure that all intelligence is passed on to your field armies thus maximising their efficiency.

(ooc:Just saying that I'm still here- I seem to have fallen a fair few posts behind today, and I probably won't post until tomorrow, as I'm sure *most* of us don't want me posting drunk (again) or asleep. A plea then that not too much should happen before I return, as Lusaka seems to be holding up about 90% of one end, and I think I've already a few things to respond to. Getting rather messy, isn' it? (fun!))

Roycelandia is trying to identify Targets of Military Significance, as well as work out how to deal with Ge. Janvier...

ooc

I should like to get involved in this, but I have a few requests, if not demands; or I will keep my nose out.

I know we, the players, are in vastly differing time zones; and if this conflict is not properly coordinated, few nations(usually those in the western hemisphere) will make a lot of posts, and this will seriously frag up game continuity and balance.

Therefore, I request that we only make one or two posts each when our nation would realistically respond to something that has happened, and then wait for a response before going on. It makes the game slightly slower, but a lot more balanced and fun to participate in.

I may be preaching to the converted, but... *Shrug* ...You know how it goes.

My military in it's most current form may be found on http://s3.invisionfree.com/nsafrica in the forum 'Military sizes'.

Also, could Lusaka or Roycelandia please message me with a review of the current conflict? I know what sides are involved and why, but I don't know what has happened thus far, and it will take a few days before I have the time to read the entire thread.

OOC: Firstly I would say that there already enough different sides involved and having another African nation involved would complicate the situation further. Also it seems unrealistic that a nation that is apparently in the middle of a somewhat precarious election would get involved in a controversial conflict such as this. With regards to time zones, I know from previous experience that if the RP is slowed for the sake of one or two players it becomes so slow that the flow is lost. In fact we are going pretty slowly as is.

I also suggest that someone who has slightly more developed MS Paint or Photoshop skills than I, produce a map of Gabon, showing where different forces are operating. Otherwise this is going to get rather muddled.

(OOC: UE, you still in IADF? Cause if you are, we're having a debate about the continuation, so go there and post...)

OOC: I'm not really in favour of slowing this particular RP down, primarily because it's not moving especially quickly as it is- at least, not compared to some RPs I've been in.

What we should do, perhaps, is clarify each Nation's reasons for being involved in this conflict, establish a tech level, and perhaps clarify some standard Rules of Engagement.

I'm having trouble establishing what interest Cirdanistan has in this conflict, for example. (I won't go into the fact that Cpl Helen has thus far survived an ambush by a company of Foreign Legionnaires, an IFL Sniper, several grenade blasts and MG bursts, an Air Strike by Spitfires, a carpet-bombing run by UE high-altitude bombers, and God only knows what else... :shock:)

Some of these other nations with no involvement whatsoever just stepping in and saying "We insist hostilities cease immediately" are getting on my nerves as well... yeah, the Entire Roycelandian Imperial Foreign Legion is just going to pack up and go home because some n00b nation thinks we should. Sorry, not going to happen. Find something meaningful to say or smeg off! (And my apologies for the brief but gratifying digression/rant. :D )

I think that UE, Rhodesia, Middle Congo, and Roycelandia should organise a proper plan of attack- at the moment, Roycelandia is really just trying to thwart the Lusakan's plans, I'm not quite sure what Rhodesia is up to, and UE seems to be sort of "Stuck" in Brazzaville/Libreville.

I also note that Gabon isn't posting very much in this thread, which makes taking action against or involving his forces a bit difficult (Commander Sword doesn't like Gen. Janvier and wants him assassinated, for example).

So far, this has been a really good RP, and it looks like it's going to get even better... especially once we get the teams sorted out properly! :D

OOC: I'm not really in favour of slowing this particular RP down, primarily because it's not moving especially quickly as it is- at least, not compared to some RPs I've been in.

What we should do, perhaps, is clarify each Nation's reasons for being involved in this conflict, establish a tech level, and perhaps clarify some standard Rules of Engagement.

I'm having trouble establishing what interest Cirdanistan has in this conflict, for example. (I won't go into the fact that Cpl Helen has thus far survived an ambush by a company of Foreign Legionnaires, an IFL Sniper, several grenade blasts and MG bursts, an Air Strike by Spitfires, a carpet-bombing run by UE high-altitude bombers, and God only knows what else... :shock:)

Some of these other nations with no involvement whatsoever just stepping in and saying "We insist hostilities cease immediately" are getting on my nerves as well... yeah, the Entire Roycelandian Imperial Foreign Legion is just going to pack up and go home because some n00b nation thinks we should. Sorry, not going to happen. Find something meaningful to say or smeg off! (And my apologies for the brief but gratifying digression/rant. :D )

I think that UE, Rhodesia, Middle Congo, and Roycelandia should organise a proper plan of attack- at the moment, Roycelandia is really just trying to thwart the Lusakan's plans, I'm not quite sure what Rhodesia is up to, and UE seems to be sort of "Stuck" in Brazzaville/Libreville.

I also note that Gabon isn't posting very much in this thread, which makes taking action against or involving his forces a bit difficult (Commander Sword doesn't like Gen. Janvier and wants him assassinated, for example).

So far, this has been a really good RP, and it looks like it's going to get even better... especially once we get the teams sorted out properly! :D

You have been brought before the United Elias Investigation Board. Kisnesia is chairing the board, and the other current member is Credonia. There will be one additional member, who has not been selected yet. Because of this, your entire testimony in front of the board will be videotaped. The videotape will be made available to Gabonaise, as well as all three Board members.

In the spirit of fairness, United Elias will be given a copy of the videotape, so that they may defend themselves. You, in turn, will be given a record of United Elias's testimony.

After we have heard your testimony, United Elias will be given a chance to respond. After these first two rounds, the board will send each of you a set of questions, which you will fill out secretly and return to Kisnesia. After this, we will, in secret, discuss what we think the appropriate method of action is.

Please note that this Investigative Board has NO authority over United Elias, and has not been chartered by the Security Council. Therefore, any cooperation UE provides is strictly voluntary. Whatever we decide will simply be brought before the IADF Security Council for a vote.

Please be informed that if we decide at any point that UE is innocent of any wrongdoing, we can stop the proceedings at our discretion.

You may now address the board.

We continue to protest United Elias' illegal occupation of our nation La Republique Gabonaise.

The UE government accuses our nation of socialism, a charge which we do not deny.

The government administers the health-care system, the railroads, ports and airports, the schools and universities, and the utility industries like telephone, electricity, and the water and sewer systems. The government also controls the oil industry, the gold mines and the uranium mines because only the national government had the capital reserve to exploit these natural resources.

We could have turned to more industrialized nations to assist us, but then we would have been subject to their interests and after being held under colonial rule for generations our people had no real desire to return to that situation.

We have also been accused by the UE government of harbouring terrorists. This is false. If there even were terrorist camps within the interior of our nation, they were operating without support or knowledge of La Republique Gabonaise.

So far we have seen no effort by the occupying UE forces to find these alleged terrorists. However, they were quick to request that the puppet regime (which they set up and continue to support) turn over the oil industries to UE control!

We are also accused of manufacturing a 'dirty bomb' which terrorists then used to attack UE interests. We insist that our nation does not have the technical prowess to process the uranium from our mines to anything even approaching weapons' grade.

We have demanded that UE prove these claims in the United Nations or to independent observers. They have refused.

Why do they refuse? Because their claims are all patently false. This is nothing more than an attempt to steal our nation and its resources under the guise of a 'war on terror'.

We ask the IADF to control its membership and prevent the destruction of my nation and its legitimate government.

Thank you.

OOC: I'm not really in favour of slowing this particular RP down, primarily because it's not moving especially quickly as it is- at least, not compared to some RPs I've been in.

What we should do, perhaps, is clarify each Nation's reasons for being involved in this conflict, establish a tech level, and perhaps clarify some standard Rules of Engagement.

I'm having trouble establishing what interest Cirdanistan has in this conflict, for example. (I won't go into the fact that Cpl Helen has thus far survived an ambush by a company of Foreign Legionnaires, an IFL Sniper, several grenade blasts and MG bursts, an Air Strike by Spitfires, a carpet-bombing run by UE high-altitude bombers, and God only knows what else... :shock:)

Some of these other nations with no involvement whatsoever just stepping in and saying "We insist hostilities cease immediately" are getting on my nerves as well... yeah, the Entire Roycelandian Imperial Foreign Legion is just going to pack up and go home because some n00b nation thinks we should. Sorry, not going to happen. Find something meaningful to say or smeg off! (And my apologies for the brief but gratifying digression/rant. :D )

I think that UE, Rhodesia, Middle Congo, and Roycelandia should organise a proper plan of attack- at the moment, Roycelandia is really just trying to thwart the Lusakan's plans, I'm not quite sure what Rhodesia is up to, and UE seems to be sort of "Stuck" in Brazzaville/Libreville.

I also note that Gabon isn't posting very much in this thread, which makes taking action against or involving his forces a bit difficult (Commander Sword doesn't like Gen. Janvier and wants him assassinated, for example).

So far, this has been a really good RP, and it looks like it's going to get even better... especially once we get the teams sorted out properly! :D

I have set out on the last page exactly what we are deploying, where the troops are and are going and generally our plan of action. I think that there is no fault with who is currently involved, there just seems to be some confusion over the geography of the situation. Perhaps an OOC thread is needed?

ooc: (Damn forums, so unreliable 97% of the day)

In this post I'll sum up Lusakan deployment- location, strength, and purpose.

I've been looking at this map: http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/maps/gabon.gif

At the moment Lusaka has been coming across from AC mainly around Mekambo (northern Congo being part of AC) and just north of there. Mekambo, Makoku, Belinga, Ovan, and much of the land south of the Djadie is occupied by Lusakan troops- the cities have significant AA defences. Just east of Booué our advanced scouts are presumably about to run into the isolated UE detachement just inserted by air, and once they do thousands of Lusakan infantry will be descending upon the area (of course this is still ooc!), which could be interesting.

I'm not sure where the village lies (where Roycelandian and Rhodesian forces with UE air support are in the process of taking apart a company of Lusakan light infantry).

South I think we're approaching Okondja and Lastoursville, with advanced scouts likely being there already. It would appear that Congolese jets are about to attack.. I don't know who, maybe Gabonaise positions, if none of the invading parties have forces in Franceville (but I'm sure someone's mentioned it before?)

It's difficult to say how quickly my men should be advancing, because we really need more Gabonaise input, I think.. I mean, if they're co-operating we can have them secure towns for us ahead of our arrival, and we can race on in. At the moment we're proceeding as if we might be attacked at any moment.

So, at the moment the central eastern area is largely under Lusakan protection. We have by now tens of thousands of infantry fanning out across the region, deploying as we are more like a traditional African army would in the area- sending masses of infantry to overwhelm an area, rather than sending in our several hundred jet airforce or 2,000 battletanks, which are mainly sat back east peering into Roycelandian East Africa and Rhodesia and Nyasaland.

We're not interfering with the Republic's proper running- we're treating the land as if it were simply the Republic Gabon and there was no contention and the government was never defeated- Lusaka will back-up the Republic's position before the UN or any other international body of the sort. We're willing to do whatever we can afford to arm the Republic in its own defence. If we knew how Brazzaville felt we'd be assuring them that they've got the wrong end of the stick- Lusaka's aim is to drive out the invaders and then we're going home, leaving the pre-invasion government in power, whatever of it survives.

Oh, I should note that AC is already involved- without them Lusaka couldn't have become involved either, as we'd have to go through Rhodesia or REA at the very least. Lusaka's position is difficult, we're facing Rhodesia & Nyasaland, Roycelandia, United Elias, Gabonaise collaborators, and UE's other allies, and now Middle Congo, with the help of only half of tiny Gabon and apparently Cirdanistan. President Igomo is trying hard to win increased Commonwealth involvement against the imperialists.

If we can sort out where everyone else is holding then I can get this advance under way.

The Imperial Foreign Legion and their Gabonaise Allies have their HQ in Franceville, along with the Airstrip that the Special Operations Command aircraft are operating out of. Expect reasonably heavy AA defences, entrenchments, and all sorts of other surprises. There are a handful of Cheetah light tanks and Meerkat Armoured Scout cars which have been airlifted into Franceville by C-130H... most of the Cheetah Tanks are near Franceville, but the Meerkats are heading towards Lastoursville along with a group of ALG troops...

Units have also established positions in Moanda, Leconi, and Akieni- again, there will be defences and maybe a few 20mm and 40mm AA guns, as well as entrenchments. Every unit has two RPG-7 rocket launchers, and many of the ALG are carrying AK-47s, SLRs, FALs etc in additon to Roycelandian arms.

The Imperial Guard (the Redcoats, if you're losing track...) have been deployed to Libreville, Port Gentil, and Cocobeach. A few may also be found in Ntoum, but deployment hasn't officially begun there. They are on Peacekeeping Duties only, freeing up UE troops to work elsewhere. They're carrying Lee-Enfields (Mk III and Jungle Carbine models), although there is 1 LMG (a Bren or a Lewis Gun) per unit (Just in case the Gabonaise get any ideas about looting, rioting, or such...)

The Aircraft in Gabon that the Roycelandians are using are operating under the Special Operations Command- Imperial Air Force "Volunteer" pilots on Leave of Absence from the IAF.

At present, there are 36 Spitfires, 12 Harrier Jump Jets, 12 Iroquois, 6 C-130 transports, 6 Kookaburra Recon Aircraft, and rumours that Jetfires and Stormclouds may have also been deployed to the theatre.

It goes without saying that Roycelandia is in Gabon partly to continue our Imperialist/Colonialist ambitions, partly to give the troops some Combat Experience, and partly to overthrow Communism and Terrorism, but mostly it's to harrass and annoy the Lusakans (We'll teach you to declare independence from us!!! :wink: )

Hope that's helpful! :D

(Thought so- looks like MC has fired on Roik positions then. Igomo will get the impression that they're entering on Gabon's side at this rate :) )

[OOC: actually, UE, i think an anti-imperialist war is a logical propaganda stunt for AC's leader-your perception of politics is obviously coloured from a deideologized US imperialist standpoint, seeing wars (probably at a subcoinscious level, or else you would have known better) as things that are paid for by the people for the benefit of the oligarchs.

Cirdanistan is in this for several good reasons:
1) we hate capitalists
2) we hate imperialists
3) we like to help the Proletariat out abroad
4) we like to spread Communist ideology
5) we saw an occasion to do all of the above

so right now, we're setting up a guerrilla network somewhere in the country's North-West (inside the 'free' Gabon zone).]

OOC; Cirdanistan, can you please explain how your troops are invincible?
Also how did you get from the North East to the North West. not to mention thats where all of the Elias troops seem to be and you wouldnt have a chance of getting there.

As far as Rhodesia is concerned, our participation is still localised.
BTW Lusaka, that map was a good find, thanks. Makes life much easier.

Currently we have:

-Air Base in Middle Congo known as Zulu One, with several C-123s, C-130s, helicopters and approximately 2000 Light Infantry.

-Captured GLA airfield known as X-Ray One in Eastern Gabon, 60 or so miles North west of Okondja with a few UH-1s, 150+ Light Infantry, Selous Scouts

-C-123 Crash Site known as X-Ray Yankee, 30 miles North of Okondja, approx 80 light infantry

-Village, (I think should be about 45 miles North of Okondja), where Lusakan forces are fighting Roycelandian forces and 80 Rhodesian Light Infantry.

In other words Rhodesia's holdings are exactly where Lusaka is pushing forward.

We continue to protest United Elias' illegal occupation of our nation La Republique Gabonaise.
....
We ask the IADF to control its membership and prevent the destruction of my nation and its legitimate government.

Thank you.

Gabonaise officials have been escorted out of the room, and we convene to a closed session of discussion before hearing the UE counter-testimony.

United Elias, please send Kisnesia your counter-testimony on the IADF boards by Personal Message.

OOC: Your transcript of the Gabonaise testimony is a few posts up. Please address those issues specifically, because if you can refute Gabonaise's claims, we will find no grounds for anything against you.

OOC

Well, if I am not welcome I shall of course not get involved.

However, new leader and elections in progress or not, AC and Lusaka are long time allies. As a member of the region, and a member that will undoubtedly be affected by the proceedings of this RP, I consider myself involved. I posted for the first time several thread pages ago, allowing Lusakan forces to travel through the Commonwealth to reach Gabon. If I had read Lusaka's posts in the first page of this thread, or his many Tgrams; in time, I would have responded many weeks ago.

As for thread continuity, I come here several times each weekday, and often in the weekends as well. Waiting for me to post before moving the action along is hardly a great sacrifice, now is it?

Sorry for muddling an otherwise great RP up with ooc posts, but I need to know wether you peeps want me in on this.

ooc:Personally I don't think we've got too many nations involved.. I can keep track thus far. I agree that if a whole new faction just came charging in it might be a bit much, though. AC's an interesting element, I think- he's vital to Lusakan involvement, without which the thread would just be an occupation opposed by part of the tiny native population and that's about it, but there's no absolute certainty of AC's ..devotion to Lusaka. They're usually a self-serving entity, eh? :) Always the possibility of a twist.
As for Cirdanistan, well, I agree that this woman's rather lucky- certainly luckier than the Lusakans who've been attacked thus far (for one team of Selous Scouts (they were scouts, weren't they?) captured we've had a team of soldiers captured and a company almost half wiped out and due for more once the thread gets rolling again), but one individual might well happen to get through a lot of scrapes- I imagine that if Helen thingi had been aboard Hood she'd have been one of the two? three? hands to survive. 's just the way it goes sometimes, so long as she's not actually invincible..

OOC: I'm all in favour of the AC joining in... that basically involves the entire Southern Africa Region in the war... BUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!

If, by some miracle, Rhodesia, UE, or Middle Congo capture "Helen" alive, we want her for... "Questioning". Failing that, maybe we'll just drop an Atomic Bomb on her and see how invincible she really is... :D

And I'm looking forward to the Roycelandian Forces meeting the Lusakans... hopefully we'll have some streetfighting, tank battles, and gunfire aplenty!

Roycelandia's Movie Industry are rubbing their hands in collective glee, as are Model Kit manufacturers, Arms Collectors, and anybody else who reckon that they can make some money out of the events unfolding in Gabon... :shock:

[OOC: Rhodesia, my troops are far from "invincible", i even actually overtstated casualties for UE's bomb attack(if you actually read records of past RL jungle warfare, you'd realize that it took, on average, a couple of tons of bombs to kill a single soldier in Vietnam/Indochina, and although in this situation efficiency would be considerably better than the average, you'd be surprised how many Vietminh and Vietcong soldiers survived cluster bombing. Essentially, shrapnel has a tendency to rise, and that which stays close to the ground to run into obstacles quickly, so if you lie down you have a fair chance of surviving if no bomblet lands right on top of you-trees increase chance of survival by slowing/stopping fragments as well), partly to compensate for luck in the ground firefight with Roycelandia(although he seems to expect unrealistically high casualties-even with grenades and machineguns, if you read actual combat reports from RL jungle combat, it's far from easy to kill someone). I have a sergeant who's been getting through a lot, true, but ICly it is-as Lusaka said- luck. OOCly, i've been keeping my losses to anonymous characters-except for one injured corporal who had a name, but she's still alive-so far, so she (as one of three soldiers named so far) has survived.]

OOC:

AC: Of course its your decison to join or not and a I respect your reasons for doing so but if you live in an awkward time zone then it might just be difficult for you to keep up.

Cirdanistan: I am happy with your RP thus far as casualties are concerned but I am slightly confused on how your men ended up in the North West.

Eastern Gabon

Commander Zilkha, his EA-220 and his Weapon Systems Officer were of course breaking regulations as they were flying many more hours daily than the Naval Aviation safety guidelines stipulated. Since he was a Squadron Leader and probably the best flyer in the Navy nobody seemed to mind.

Currently his plane was circling at a waypoint just East of Oban, further North than his last raid as now another Global Hawk had been deployed to watch over the area around the River Djadie (how do you do acute accents BTW?). Meanwhile the Navy had realised they had too few planes to protect the battlegroup and strike targets effectively deep inside hostile areas in any strength so the Air Force was finally being asked to contribute. That might take days so as of now only two bombers could be over Eastern Gabon at once, one in the Northerly areas and one further South.

Sure enough, a convoy of vehicles had been detected, approaching a bridge South of Makokou. Taking advantage of the night to move troops and supplies. no doubt. Captain Zilkha chuckled in his oxygen mask as he turned his flying wing towards the target knowing that once again he would get to kill in practically cold blood. Of course it would be a drop in the ocean as the country was crawling with rebels but it was a start.

Eight brief minutes slipped by as the bomber approached the convoy which was conveniently starting to cross the span. Unlike the last mission, the aircraft did not carry cluster bombs, Captain Zilkha had requested carrying munitions more commonly used by the Air Force and deemed as rather crude by his fellow Navy fliers.

At eight thousand feet, the fire control computer opened the internal bays and released six CBU-72 wind corrected munition dispensers, which were computed to land on the bridge and on both banks near simultaneously. Each bomb would release three fuel/air explosives (FAE) designed to air burst 30 feet off the ground, which would each ignite into an aerosol cloud some 60 feet in diameter. Quite apart from the devastation, the psychological effects might be enough to convince some of the enemy to desert or defect.

Village around 45 miles North of Okondja, eastern Gabon

The two platoons fighting on the edge of the village had fought on against unfavourable odds largely because they believed support to be close behind. The jungle had provided good cover while firing on targets concentrated in the village, and volley fire hadn't really impressed anyone with an automatic rifle or light machinegun, but this was getting out of hand. Reinforcements they hoped would flank the village and take out helicopters and Spitfires didn't seem to be materialising, and it had become evident by the volume of fire that the two dozen men were outnumbered. They hadn't expected eighty Rhodesians to turn up this far north. If they'd been in better contact with command they might not have been so surprised- a LRAC unit wouldn't be in this mess.

With five men dead fighting on seemed wreckless and probably pointless, but six wounded amongst nineteen survivors meant that withdrawl was going to be difficult. Something of a crossfire was arranged by the two PKMs, firing from probably too far too be highly effective, the point was to keep the enemy at a distance. The platoons fired every RPG-7 available in quick succession, hoping to shake the enemy and perhaps give the impression that an attack was about to materialise. While this was going on, the six wounded were helped out of the line of fire, leaving only seven men firing effectively as they edged back.

(I was about to post about other troop movements- we've a lot of enemy positions to overwhelm, but my pizza's here :) Back later.)

(ooc:Just wondering, is anyone else operating in much strength in eastern Gabon- I mean, the Gabonaise loyalists for example- merely partisans or a credible if small army? I just want to check if anyone else might be the target of any given imperialist attack, or whether I'm going to have to take the hit everytime someone spots an unidentified convoy or the like. I don't want to hog all the dying ;) (Of course I will, if we're pretty much alone. Just want to check. At least it'll be a small convoy, if it's ours.))

OOC: Cirdanistan, I'm not sure where you get the idea "It's not easy to kill someone" in a Jungle Firefight- going back to WWII, the Australian and NZ troops in the Pacific didn't seem to have any trouble, and unless the Japanese crawled into bunkers all you had to do was line up the shot and squeeze the trigger (same went for the Japanese soldiers, to be fair... names reversed, of course).

It's also worth bearing in mind that Roycelandia fights differently to the US... one of the reasons the troops have Bolt Action rifles is to encourage them to AIM, not spray bullets everywhere.

Even so, exactly where are your troops, and are they operating on an SAS-type incursion, or have they a base somewhere? They have to eat, reload, and fix things occaisonally...

IC: One of the ALG soldiers made the first mistake in trench warfare... he stuck his head over the dugout to see what was going on, and was rewarded with a 7.62WP round through the head. As he fell, his nearby comrades were shaken enough to cease firing for a moment, before the ILG got them to keep firing. In that time though, and RPG was heading towards the dugout, exploding at the front and causing rather nasty injuries to some of the soldiers. An Iroquois was pouring fire into the jungle where the Lusakans were retreating, and the roads leading to the East of the village were being shot up by Spitfires.

So far, this war was lots of fun, the IFL troops mused. How long it would stay that way was anyone's guess...

((ooc:Just wondering, is anyone else operating in much strength in eastern Gabon- I mean, the Gabonaise loyalists for example- merely partisans or a credible if small army? I just want to check if anyone else might be the target of any given imperialist attack, or whether I'm going to have to take the hit everytime someone spots an unidentified convoy or the like. I don't want to hog all the dying ;) (Of course I will, if we're pretty much alone. Just want to check. At least it'll be a small convoy, if it's ours.)) I can't believe how much the forums are crashing this week. Usually by this time of night they're at least as likely to work as to crash, but no, I'm trying about six times for every successful progress from page to page.)


Just inside Gabon near the eastern border, north of Okandja

Many of the relatively mechanised LRAC units were finding the going tough, but they quite expected it and were entirely used to those sort of conditions. This didn’t mean that their vehicles would co-operate, of course. This element of 8th Division had almost lost one of the primary constituents to its SA-4 Battalion down a ditch. Some were questioning the wisdom of moving caterpillar-like in this fashion –setting up scanning radar ahead and then racing assets from one end of its scope to another at such speed before placing the second radar unit and lifting the rear element to dash back ahead. Companies were in effect racing one another, but paying little heed to the uneven nature of conditions during the progress south. As the border fell away to the east the 8th stopped seeing fresh recruits streaming into Gabon, but they continued to run into scouts and patrols set up by regulars on their western flank.

Somewhat reassuring, thought Pvt. Verne, at least we can concentrate on this damned road. He was interrupted in his efforts to guide a Shilka around a deceptively large pothole by the shouts of a lieutenant further down the column. Word of heavy fighting not ten miles away- hostile air support in operation, Lusakans feared captured, Spitfires again. Fucking Roiks, why are we in Gabon, why not Khartoum?.

Moments before, a Lusakan army company north of Okandja had been hit by unidentified air power. The column picked up the pace and one BTR-152K APC pulled out ahead, Verne being bundled with the rest of his platoon into the covered troop compartment.

“Eh, eh! Daniel!” He called to his dismounted friend, waving frantically at the SA-14 he’d left on the deck of a SPAAG.

By the time the BTR was nearing, and had finally made direct radio contact with one of the shell-shocked survivors of the bombing, the fight at the village was characterised by long range half-aimed fire through ever thickening jungle. The only fire coming from the Lusakans was in the form of a few muzzle grenades hurled as far through the trees as they would go in the hopes of discouraging direct pursuit. Energy was instead focused into detecting incoming aircraft and getting the hell down at the appropraite time and to dragging wounded back towards.. whatever had become of their supposed support.

That support, what little survived, was keenly anticipating the arrival of an APC and more, and licking its assorted wounds.

(ooc:I know I've a lot of other directions to be advancing and positions to be encountering both south and west, but I can't do them all at once even though the large Lusakan deployment probably is- I mean, unless I say, "x-units run into Rhodesians at x-position, and y-z units turn up at the UE detachment, bang bang, your move". Aw yay, five crashes attempting to post and counting! This is putting me in just the right mood to RP well[sigh])

Ladies and gentlemen, it's... WAR

Although relatively downplayed in state and communal media, the Commonwealth's Defense Council activated the High Council by order of the 5-star general(President Ndelebe) today, thus approving troop transfers to Gabon. Number and strength of CAF deployed is thus far unknown, but mechanized infantry and special forces are likely committed to the theatre.

Currently, troops are entering barracks for last-minute prep and training, as the Secular Party is consulting the Middle Congolese government for permission to move troops, aircraft and armour through Middle Congo.

At the same time, a highly encrypted missive arrived in Lusaka's military command from the CAF high defense council:

((Secret IC))
------------------Decaying strontium-30 encryption activated-----------------
-----------------------------------loading---------------------------done. FYEO:

Initial CAF deployment underway, IN SUPPORT of LRAC units in Gabon.
Advancement will be made towards the border townships of Akiéni, Léconi and Okondja.

Currently, rural operative special forces and mechanized infantry have been committed by order of his benevolent excellency General Ndelebe. Request information on resistance, and as to what units the LRAC would need to combat the specific advantages our enemies have.

Regards,
Commonwealth Armed Forces, High Command.
For the Commonwealth. For Africa.
---------------------------------loading----........------Encryption secure. End Transmission.

[OOC: Roycelandia, it's aiming at a moving target constantly seeking shelter in dense undergrowth part that's hard. The French soldiers carried a rifle for aimed shots at range and a SMG for close-in combat in Indochina, you know; fat lot of use to them that was too. Whether you aim and fire shot by shot, or hose everything down on full auto, killing people just isn't easy.
UE, my troops started out in the North-West-my understanding is that UE troops hold the costline and the major towns, but that you don't occupy all the space between(in fact, you cannot-to fully occupy so much as a circle five kilometers in radius you need 3-4 divisions, and even that would leave a gap in the center). I'm presently operating in the Ndjolé-Médouneu-Lara-Bouué quadrangle, where there arn't any large settlements, which explains why i havn't bumped in to you yet. AS for question about how i'm operating, it's justa special forces incursion. I don't have a base, and atm there arn't any logistics problems because i havn't had troops in the country for long enough to even need to think about resupply. In time, local partisans will (hopefully) provide the basing needed, without there even being a base in any real sense of the word.]

Village, 45 miles North of Okondja

The hueys carrying Selous Scouts, flying just above the treetops were approaching the village from the opposite direction of the Lusakans and it was clear the fight was not over. Smoke obscured the Rhodesian positions and RPGs were streaking out of the trees.

Lt. Gardiner in the lead UH-1 leaned out of the open doors of the chopper and looked down at the jungle canopy, he could not see anywhere to land other than in the village which would have been suicidal. He instructed the pilot on the intercom to overfly the friendly troops and circle over where the Lusakans were. The pilot agreed and ordered his formation to follow suit.

As the choppers rode over the smokey huts and remains of the village tracer rounds were being fired at them. Suddenly the gunners opened fire with their FN MAGs on the trees and from inside the passenger compartment, the Scouts emptied magazines onto the as yet invisible enemy.

The second huey then erupted in smoke as its single powerplant was struck by a round. With all his skill the pilot entered the autorotation manouever and the helicopter was steered towards what looked like a gap in the trees where the locals had cleared for wood. The hellicopter slammed touched down with considerable force but everyone survived.
Immediately the crew and scouts leapt out grabbing weapons and proceeded to take cover.

The third huey's crew had seen this and immediately it broke formation to approach their downed comrades, as bullets struck the fueselage. The scouts inside were just ready to jump out of the chopper as it's skids touched the ground as well as an unseen cluster munition dropped by the UE plane. The crew from the downed helicopter then watched the chopper which was coming to rescue them turn into a fireball as metal fragments and limbs were strewn everywhere. Even if the mine had not totally destroyed the helicopter, the fuel igniting certainly was. There would be no survivors.

Leiutenant Gardiner ordered the remaining helicopters to turn back and set down at a clearing he had seen just over a mile south of the village.

55 miles North of Okondja

The Royal Rhodesian Air Force had finally managed to deploy aircraft to the airbase in Middle Congo and now twelve A-7D Corsair attack jets were racing at low level towards an armoured column that the UE global hawk had tracked. The Lusakans were attempting to reinforce their bealeagoured defence at the village and it wouldn't wash.

The A-7s might have been fairly old but they were incredibly rugged and simple as well as being capable of carrying a good size bomb load. However unlike their UE counterparts they were not stealthy and without precison guidance they would have to bomb at low level.

The planes approached their target and just as they entered the engagement envelope for man-portable SAMs, they released napalm canisters. This time the enemy had no time to react but when they came back in for a second strike with the rest of their bombs, the enemy would be waitiing.

Gabonaise officials have been escorted out of the room, and we convene to a closed session of discussion before hearing the UE counter-testimony.

We request the right to be a witness to the UE testimony and to hear the deliberations of the IADF. Otherwise we will have no choice to conclude that these precedings are nothing but a sham to support Kisnesia's ally United Elias.

OOC:

Gabonaise is operating in the eastern and central part of the country. We possess roughly 30 T-60 MBTs which have been split up into three attack groups.

We also have mechanised infantry troops supported by 20 BMPs.

The entire air force stayed loyal to La Republique Gabonaise

We still have two A-7 Crusaders deployed in hidden bunkers. We also have five MI-24 Hind D helicopters and ten MI-8 Hip helicopters which are operating in close support of the infantry.

The vast majority (2,000 men) of our forces are light infantry armed with small arms.

We also have partisans operating in cooperation with Lusaka.

Our forces have also received some foreign aid in terms of advisors and Avenger anti-aircraft systems which we are using in a air-defense role among our armoured units.

We're still hoping for a political solution to this crisis - even though it may very well take years to calm the situation in the east of the country. We have 'unconventional fighters' operating behind the lines in the western part of the country.

We also rely heavily upon the Catholic church to send messages back and forth between our units and our political element operating outside the country.

North of village engagement

The column from the 8th LRAC was one of the biggest Lusaka had in country moving outside of one of the occupied towns, being as it contained an battalion from the 7th Air Defence Brigade attached temporarily to the division. Still rolling along some way behind the departed BTR, the column, while depleted of much infantry support, retained almost all of its purposeful armaments- its SA-4s and Shilkas. Long Track radar soon alerted the formation to the incoming Corsairs. The one remaining APC wasted little time in pulling away, spilling infantry as it went- the Lusakans feared a repeat of the still mysterious attack a few miles away when infantry had been hit from the sky without apparently having time to respond. Seconds passed as men scrambled for SA-14s, and 14.5mm and 12.7mm guns were hastily manned. Giant Ganef missiles were rotated towards the tracked targets, which were handed over to guidance radar as they approached, still thousands of metres away. Word began to filter out from around the two radar-trucks- it’d be a time before man portable weapons were any use, the infantry may as well seek out better cover.

Even as the Rhodesian jets passed Okandja, one of the missiles was thundering from its launch vehicle- a few kilometres later than ideal, but then old-fashioned targets or not, these 150km range tracking and 90km range guidance radar weren’t top of the range, either. Seconds later another launcher parted with the first of its missiles, which followed the first against the same target. No sooner had that happened than the third and final launcher joined in. The column had six missiles in the air before the Corsairs were close to hand-held SAM range, though the missiles flew in pairs against a total of only three targets.

As the surviving jets neared (ooc:this only assumes that they don’t break off on seeing multiple SAMs coming in before they’re even close to the target- feel free to abort before running in to this, or not- whatever) soldiers with access to one radar system or another began to grit their teeth. “Why couldn’t City have accepted that Ukrainian approach?” Asked one boy, of his partner aboard the Shilka, in reference to a ZSU upgrade that would have given them a battery of fire-and-forget SA-18 on top of their guns. “I hear Igomo wanted to wait and see if things worked out with Commonwealth- we’re getting their SPAAGs, way I hear it.” “Now? Could we have them now?”

Nervous laughter followed for just a few seconds before the first of the battalion’s eight ZSU-23-4 opened up with its four 23mm cannon, shaking the rest into violent life in concert with a mere pair of SA-14 from the jungle ahead.

What odds the Rhodesians to attack an armoured column that turns out to be part of an Air Defence Brigade? Well, considering that the Lusakans had no other armour in the country, perhaps quite high..

Then the napalm came down..

(ooc:What with the forums going down so much I keep losing track of things, do tell me if I’m forgetting something. I think I’m taking a hit from UE back near most of the Lusakan occupied towns..)

East of Ovan

Over all there’d been relatively few problems with movement. The Lusakans had been cautious, moving relatively few convoys of more than three vehicles in size, and usually less anywhere other than the jungle trails of the very far east. No one was sure that Elias was flying only a handful of aircraft over the region- speculation about stealth technologies allowed some to think that the skies were full of aircraft just waiting for a juicy enough target. It was enough to keep pedals to metal and to assure a couple of driving accidents already.

A 4.5-ton Zil 131 truck had just suffered such a mishap, careening into a small ditch as it dashed along tasked with bringing hand grenades and boots to a small garrison. A BTR-152K had been sent to get her going again, along with a 14.5mm-mounting UAZ in escort.

Neither of the two machineguns on hand appeared to afford much comfort to the seven Lusakans sent burning into the depression across which the attacked bridge lay when the Elias bombs struck. The stricken driver watched from his truck, venturing forth from the far side of the wrecked bridge after the explosions stopped.

There was nobody for him to help, all of his would-be rescuers were beyond salvation themselves. He called in the attack and slumped against the side of his useless vehicle, noticing the frightened looks of a few locals intrepid enough to venture out in response to the explosions.

All he could do was shrug and let his head fall back against the vehicle’s canvas.

New Lusaka City

Over the past month Igomo had smiled more than he had been seen to do since the 80s. First the Triumf deal, then the most recent and enjoyable reports from Madagascar (Roiks facing rout at communist hands), and now Kinshasa was behaving like an upstanding and self respecting African capital.

The President was almost frantic in his orders for co-operation with Commonwealth forces of intervention. It could hardly be better placed or timed. General Theodore Tendyala sent a series of secure communiqués to AC, updating them on the latest known engagements in the east. The location of the village north of Okandja was given, though Lusaka was not certain of the situation- it was known to command that a considerable hostile force was present, and Roycelandian/Rhodesian involvement was suspected to be operating against native African interests there.

The towns of Mékambo, Makokou, Belinga, and Ovan were said to be occupied by Lusakan forces, and it was said that Okandje, Lastoursville, and relatively distant Booué were scheduled to be entered within days at most. Intelligence on enemy strength outside the east was poor, though Gabonaise citizens were often co-operative with Lusakan forces in gathering information on insurgents in the east. The area between 40 and 60 miles north of Okandje was repeatedly mentioned as a hot spot of Rhodesian terrorism. Dangerously close to the AC border, General Tendyala was keen to point-out.

North of village engagement

The A-7 Corsairs climbed quickly as they came out of the attack run, suddenly aware that the sky was filing with AAA fire, SAMs and small arms. By flying low they had managed to avoid being destroyed by the SA-4s on the way nbut now there was nothing they could do other than try and put as much distance between the enemy and their planes as possible.

Suddenly the squadron leader's plane exploded in mid air, the chaff and flares being dispensed all too late. Then three more went down in fireballs quickly afterwards after several of the huge SA-4s exploded close by. The rest of the formation had dispersed, flying in all directions.

Commander Larard then turned his A-7 towards the ground and banked sharply towards the convoy seeing that many of the SAM systems were engulfed in napalm. He dived towards a few remaining vehicles and while firing armour peircing shells from the 20mm cannon he dropped his last three canisters of gelatinous gasoline. The infrared warner then went crazy for a second time in in the same minute and he released his countermeasures.

The missile nevertheless struck the right wing and as the ground rushed up, he hit the ejection button.

The other plnes had finally escpaed to the South and were now flying quickly towards Middle Congo, with nearly half of their aquadron's planes having been shot down.

(ooc: As it was UE that really set this whole thread in motion, I feel I ought to check whether he’s significant long-term RP plans dependent upon victory in Gabon. I don’t really RP on NS with the intention of winning a race or out-competing anyone and as such I don’t mind ‘losing’ (Lusaka wouldn’t be a 3rd world state if I were ;) ), which is why we’ve been using mainly light infantry thus far. However, it now seems logical and in character (for my President, longer established than some of the nations here) that Lusaka would step-up operations. I just don’t want to throw Southern Africa’s largest army into the fray if it’ll mess with previously established and anticipated RP plans. [Revs 1,200hp Olifant L-2 diesel engine :D ])

Half a continent away from the chaos of Gabon, Commonwealth forces in the far northeast may notice that their evenings are no longer chattering with the sound of patrolling Mi-28s in Lusakan Bukoba. Indeed, the artificial jungle of 100 and 130mm tubes and antenna was in recession. Lusakan forces were uprooting their long established western defences and pulling back to the outskirts of Bukoba city and to the northern border, with Roycelandian East Africa.


(Don't worry, R&N, I'll get to the damage at the column later, I think I'm rather filling up the thread, at the moment!)

North of the Village

The Spitfire leader saw the Rhodesian aircraft go down in flames, and realised that meant one thing: SAMs.

The Spitfire was many things, but invulnerable to SAM fire it was not. Still, an Allied aircraft had been brought down and he still had a couple of rockets left...

Just before diving on the burning positions, firing guns and rocket, the Wing Leader had an idea.

Tapdancer One, this is Green Leader. Ack Ack Fire, North of engagement. Request you perform your routine, over.

In a jungle clearing a few ks away, the pilot of the Harrier Jump Jet was enjoying a smoke and taking a leak when his Wizard (Weapons & Information Systems Operator) leant over the fuselage and told the pilot to get in quick, as there were fireworks to be had.

The pilot flicked his cigarette into the jungle, finished his business, and clambered back in. The canopies closed, and the Harrier lifted straight up and headed for the village...

OOC: That's right, "ph34r" our mighty Harrier Jump Jet! :lol:

IC: Immediately, one of the Iroquois broke off from filling the jungle with hot lead and headed for the area where one of the escaping Jets had gone down... the Spitfires had reported a parachute, and that meant a survivor. It would be good for Morale if he could be rescued, not to mention keeping valuable Intel from the Lusakans...

Port Royal, Roycelandia

"Ah, Crap!" Commander Sword exclaimed loudly at the news the AC was entering the war in Gabon. "Crap!" he said again, to no one in particular.

That evening, a Recruitment Campaign for the Imperial Foreign Legion was stepped up, and a lot of people in prison for very minor or petty things were given the oppurtunity to "Volunteer" for "Valuable" assistance work in Gabon- not combat duties, but loading aircraft, handling fuel, and all the other sorts of things that SOMEONE has to do... but now that someone could be a fine defaulter or whatever instead of a trained soldier who would be of more use in the field.

A conference was called for the next morning (via Satellite Uplink from REA) to decide how to proceed...

(ooc: As it was UE that really set this whole thread in motion, I feel I ought to check whether he’s significant long-term RP plans dependent upon victory in Gabon. I don’t really RP on NS with the intention of winning a race or out-competing anyone and as such I don’t mind ‘losing’ (Lusaka wouldn’t be a 3rd world state if I were ;) ), which is why we’ve been using mainly light infantry thus far. However, it now seems logical and in character (for my President, longer established than some of the nations here) that Lusaka would step-up operations. I just don’t want to throw Southern Africa’s largest army into the fray if it’ll mess with previously established and anticipated RP plans. [Revs 1,200hp Olifant L-2 diesel engine :D ])



First of all I really appreciate you asking, manners are hard to come by in NS now. As far as your question is concerned, I haven't given it too much thought although I would like to stay involved in Southern Africa. RPing with you guys is a real pleasure and if my nation was to achieve victory it would give us a permament interest in the region which may be interesting for everyone. Of course this poses the question as to whether you want me around in the long term? :wink:

I for one have no problems with UE staying around... especially since they're Pro-Imperial, like our good selves and our friends Rhodesia & Nyasaland here. :D

Now, as for Lusaka throwing the entire Lusakan Army into the fray... please, go right ahead! Make sure you take plenty of soldiers away from the REA Border whilst you're at it, leaving the Lusakan border totally undefended as my Legions of Emperor Ultra-Heavy Tanks and Imperial Guard flood across, sparking off scenes of destruction not seen since the Ottoman Turks reduced Constantinople to rubble in 1453. :D

I'm sorry, did I say that out loud? Forget I said anything... :lol:

(Goes back to deciding whether or not to bomb the stuffing out of the entire Northern Region of Gabon, on the offchance some Lusakans and Cirdanistanians will be in the way of the falling bombs...) 8)

[OOC: btw Roycelandia, "Cirdanis" are the inhabitants of Cirdanistan. Of course, if ignorant imperialists like, er, the Roycelandians :P , refer to them as "Cirdanistanians" it could add flavour, but OOCly you might want to know ;) ]
Jungles of Northwestern Gabon
The reinforcements dropped down smoothly behind the protective smokescreen, with the gear packaged neatly into cannisters. The few Cirdanis already on the ground met them and, along with a number of local villagers, helped them gather up the gear and guided them into a jungle track, and while the decoy sites activated they started to trek under a leafy canopy which blocked out the stars. marching through the night, they arrived at the village near dawn, but there was no rest to be had. The medical personnel had to go to work on Corporal Sterkarm and the wounded from the air strike who were still alive; the others had to hide the newly dropped equipment and anything that looked even vaguely war-like so that snooping satellites or aircraft wouldn't see anything untoward, yet they could reach their weapons in seconds. A few soldiers had to take up positions as sentries, dissimulated in the jungle. Then they had to eat a quick breakfast-loco, or cooked slices of banana-and get down to work inside hastily-erected huts, assembling weapons, communications gear and miscelleaneous equipment. While all this had been going on, delegations from all the villages in the region, warned in advance, assembled in the main square, and after some civillities Captain Sy stepped forward to address them.
"Camarades, comme vous le savez, les Elias Unis ont envahis votre pays, avec l'aide des racistes Rhodesiens et très probablement des imperialistes Royceterriens. Ils ont renversé le gouvernement en place-votre gouvernement- et ont établit un régime sous le General Janvier. Ce régime non seulement est une marionette entre leurs mains, mais de plus se laisse utiliser par eux comme arme pour commettre des massacres par procuration. Il y a a peine quelque jours, les sbires de Janvier ont massacré des dizaines de chefs de village dans l'est [OOC: supposing i have access to the information-at least to the fact that the killings happened]afin d'intimider la resistance, et cela n'est que le centième de leurs crimes. Quand au but des envahisseurs, il est simple: ils veulent violer le Gabon, prendre tout le petrole, tout le bois, toute les ressources et vous voler tout votre argent sans même que vous vous en apercevez. Et ils ont sont capables. Voici comment ils feront, comment ils ont fait dans d'autres pays de par le monde: d'abord ils viendront dans vos villages, et diront que la terre n'est pas la votre car vous n'avait pas d'actes de proprieté valables..."
Here he was cut off by a man shouting: " Mais nous en avons!" and a murmur of agreement from the assistance. Calmly, hiding the anguish he felt, Sy continued:
"Sans doute, car le Gabon etait un Etat de droit avant leur arrivée. Mais ne vous laisser pas leurrer: ce ne sera plus comme avant. Ils feront declarer par Janvier que tous les titres validés par les gouvernements precedents ne sont plus valables et qu'ils faudrait les faire valider a nouveau. mais pendant que vous voyagez vers Libreville, eux n'attendront pas pour pretendre que vos terres sont sans proprietaires et ils les reclameront pour eux, et quand vous arriverez pour faire valider vos titres vous vous apercevrez qu'ils on pris possesion de vos terres."
A murmur of shock and disbelief, but also anger passed through the audience, then Sy resumed his exposé:
" Ensuite ils viendront chez vous, ils diront: "Vous êtes sur nos terres, vous devez nous payer pour vivre ici", et aussi "vos champs nous appartiennent, et la forêt, et la riviere; tout est a nous, et vous ne pouvez pas cultiver le café, ni le millet, ni recolter du bois ou des bannanes, ni même aller puiser de l'eau: il faudra nous acheter tout ça"."
An angry village chief broke in "Alors nous les tueront a coups de machettes! nous les chasseront de nos villages!" his fellows cheered, but Sy rounded on him: "Idiot! ils auront l'armée de Janvier derrière eux, et la leur! qu'est-ce que vous pourrez faire contre des dizaines de milliers d'hommes avec des hélicoptères, des fusils d'assaut et des avions? Ils lâcheraient du naplam et des bombes et vous mourriez sans pouvoir repliquer!"
Their moods dampened instantly, and one man said: "mais comment voulez-vous qu'ils nou demandent ça? si nous ne pouvons pas faire ce que vous avez dit, alors nous n'auront pas d'argent pour acheter tout cela. Sûrement ils sauront cela?"
"Certainement, mais justement c'est ce qui leur profite le plus: ils viendront dans un village où il y a deux cent hommes en etat de travailler; ils feront venir des machines, et des engrais chimiques, puis ils diront: "il nous faut cent hommes pour travailler aux champs et dans la forêt; nous prendront les cent qui nous demande le moins d'argent pour travailler" et quand ils auront ces cent hommes, ils utiliseront la pression des cent autres qui meurent de faim et de soif, qui prendraient volontiers un emploi même s'il paye peu, pour faire descendre les salaires jusqu'au point où ces cents hommes peinent a payer leurs loyers et acheter de quoi survivre pour eux, leurs femmes et deux de leurs enfants en travaillant quinze heures en une journée, mais le village produira bien plus qu'avant pour le profit des envahisseurs."
A stunned silence came over the assembly, then a man cried out "aux armes!" and then it erupted into life. Cries of "Mort aux envahisseurs!", "Mort aux Elias Unis!", and "Mort au General Janvier!" came up from the assembled ranks. Another cried "Prenons le maquis!" and others nodded their heads in agreement, taking up the cry. Soon all had agreed to take the Cirdanis' help, and the Gabonese were talking with the Cirdanis about how the sturggle would be led as lunch was taken in the Village Chief's hut....[edit: sorted out my tags]

Booué, Eastern Gabon

Only two days ago the first Marines had been helicoptered into a field a mile west of the town. Since then much progress had been made and a stretch of wide dirt road had been transformed into a make shift runway where EA-80s could just about land and take off. This had means that heavy equipment could be brought in quickly and now the town was being occupied by an entire Air Cavalry Battalion, a battery of 155mm howitzers, and a mechanised company.

Although the Marine firebases were being built just outside the town, to the east, civil affairs staff kept themsleves busy in the town centre, spreading good will and encouraging the locals to join the fight against the evil communist invaders. Soon the town was covered in leaflets bearing the words Liberté, Unité, Prospérité along with details of all the wonderful things the Free Gabon government would do for every Gabonese citizen.

The dissappointment to Lt Colonel Goldberg was the apathy of the Free Gabon forces, most of the sodliers looked as though they had never had even basic training and many seemed to spend teh days getting high on various narcotics. He realised that if the enemy attacked, it would be up to him and the nine hundred and seventy eight men under his command to frive back the enemy.

Imperial Guard deployment has been stepped up somewhat, and Foreign Legionnaires are out deploying to every village in the Special Operations Command Zone.

The Roycelandian Broadcasting Corporation World Service has also been carrying the Liberté, Unité, Prospérité message.

But more importantly, practical things were appearing. Medicines (marked Fabrique au Roycelandian Afrique de l'Est quite prominently) were distributed free of charge, along with dynamo-operated Transistor Radios that could receive the RBC World Service, along with Rhodesian and UE stations.

Children were given rides on Roycelandian Tanks, and the Imperial Guard and the Foreign Legion generally went out of their way to be nice to the locals.

Meanwhile, in a bunker under Franceville Airstrip, the IFL Commander was poring over a map and satellite intel, deciding which "Counter-Gabonaise" target would be next for a Napalm Shower...

Middle Congo-Gabon Border, South of Franceville

General Rotanga's UAZ weaved in and out of the conovy of trucks, BMPs, T-55s and even M60s as the great man himself raised his arm out of the windows and yelled rallying cries to his men who waved their AKs in the air triumphantly.

The 506th Infantry was revered in the Middle Congo Army for being tenacious, courageous and above all, totally ruthless. Its leader, General Rotanga who was actually a Colonel held more a status of a warlord than one of an army officer and during the civil war his unit had been instrumental in crushing the marxist rebels with extreme brutality. Now the regiment had lost all obvious appearances of being just an infantry unit as Rotanga had somehow procured tanks, armoured vehciles and artillery by lobbying one of his closest friends, President Mambouli.

Suddenly a pair of bright orange flares lit up the sky and the soldiers clambereed aboard their vehciles and the huge line started to roll forward across the border, the first time a significant Congolese force had entered Gabon.

In his command vehicle, a third the way back from the lead vehicles, Rotanga nodded with delight as his long time advisor, one of the only white men in the unit, showed him a map of Southern Gabon. Within a day they would reach Franceville and link up with the Roiks, then the fun would begin.

Jungles of Northwestern Gabon

Many villages between the Como and Okano rivers were now bristling with unusual yet discrete activity. The Cirdani commandoes and IVF guerillas, with the help of some older locals who had been spahis in the french army were training many young, healthy men who thirsted for the blood of the invaders. But the firts priority was the formation of Guerilla Propaganda Groups, who, although armed and combat-trained, would avoid fighting, instead travelling far and wide throughout Gabon, concetrating on propaganda and recruitment, stirring up trouble for the invaders and recruiting men for the Armée Rouge Gabonaise, the newly-founded (and communist-influenced) resistance army. The ARG was not, of course, the sole creation of the new rebels: a clandestine political party, the Ligue Communiste Revolutionnaire du Gabon, a newspaper, Le Gabonais Rouge, and a radio station, Radio Gabon Rouge had sprung into existence. Communication organs were vital to any resistance movement, after all, and the cadres of the LCRG and ARG had learned all about them from Vo nguyen Giap's People's War. The resistance would also assume the civil functions of government, such as marrying people and dealing with antisocial behaviour, while a major objective of the communists, if not all of the new resistants, was to get the leading citizens of every village to join the LCRG. The transmitter for the radio station would shift sites regularly, and be powered by Li-ion batteries, which would be recharged by villagers with handcranks, miniature windmills, and a handy dynamo that could be turned by the flow of hot air or steam rising from a fire or cooking pot. The major worry, of course, was the paper and ink for the newspaper, although it could probably be procured discreetly in Libreville.

More directly military untis were also being trained: commandoes capable of infiltrating major cities and other positions held by the invaders and the Janvierists in order to attack key targets, and of course large numbers of partisans, peasant-soldiers capable of retrieving stashed weapons, banding together, and attacking the ennemy at a moment's notice, and then vanishing into the jungle to hide their weapons and resume the daily occupations of Gabonese villagers. Armament would be higly heterogeneous: in addition to the various weapons dropped by the Cirdanis, once convinced of the necessity to fight the villagers had produced a surprising ammount of weapons, testimony to the Spahis' practice of keeping souvenirs from their time in the army. Thus, Lebel and MAS-49 rifles, Sten SMGs from the second world war, and even FN MAG and AAT mod.52 machineguns, not to mention many MAS 50 sidearms, were turning up as legacies of fathers and grandfathers, complete with stores of ammo. There was even a couple of FAMAS assault rifles, obviously "disappeared" during a more recent period of Gabonese history. Of course, the ammo for these toys was to short to count on them in the long run-the men stealing them had never intended to fight a war- but they provided a welcome boost to the ARG's immediate capacities. And so sections and groupements of partisans began to emerge, while training continued...

North of the village engagement, eastern Gabon

For a time there was elated chaos in the ranks of the 7th Air Defence Brigade's 3rd SA-4 Battalion as enemy jets dropped off radar and out of view one after the other. The air was lashed by 32 strings of 23mm cannon fire, with 12.7 and 14.5mm rounds chipping in as aircraft flew directly over. Soon the fire above was matched below as an SA-4 launch vehicle became obscured by napalm, then a second, and one of the near-by Shilka. For a moment it seemed the ZSU might survive, save the one figure whose head was protruding. After what seemed like minutes, but was infact seconds, the vehicle's attempts to pull away from the flames ceased, and soon so did efforts to reach the doomed crew.

Having dispensed with all of their loaded missiles, the surviving SA-4 was in no position to give fire on the retreating A7s, which quickly left SA-14 and cannon range. By the time the missiles could have been reloaded, the aircraft would be at the limits of the SA-4s engagement range and heading away. That was, if three out of four ammunition trucks hadn't been destroyed, and the last trapped off road behind a second burning Shilka.

The Long Track radar that'd given the column the better part of ten minutes in which to disperse its assets against the Rhodesian attack exploded seconds after the Corsairs had been thought beaten-off. The hum of a turboprop answered Lusakan queries, and a ZSU-23-4 quickly turned its quad 23mm guns to the issue of another damned Spitfire.

Across all Gabon, Lusakan fatalities were already believed to have passed one hundred, and the battle here would soon reveal a considerable rise. Perhaps almost three dozen men were dead or fast dying, covered in severe burns.

The OT-62B APC that'd disembarked and scattered its infantry and pulled away from the battle area before aircraft arrived was now returning, a dozen infantry and serveral dedicated medics in tow. Struggling to free trapped comrades and to help tow wreckage away from the road, they were covered by several surviving ZSU.

A few miles away, near the village north of Okandja

Pvt.Verne and his comrades from the 7th ADB, 3rd Battalion, aboard their BTR-152K APC had arrived at the scene of destruction caused by Elias bombs on those hapless reinforcements. There was little that two medics could do, but one was deposited none the less, where he attempted to marshall the care of semi-skilled medics from amongst the survivors of four decimated platoons.

The APC continued on, informed by survivors of the isolation of two more platoons near the village. The BTR-152K was soon crowded beyond anything remotely comfortable as the six wounded men from the firefight around the village were crammed aboard. A few bursts of 14.5mm machinegun fire put the 7.62s previously fired against the village to shame as the Lusakans attempted to prevent pursuit of the APC, struggling to pull away along the most unsuitable of trails.

Between two available APCs, the Lusakans effected a local evacuation, pulling together survivors from three sites within a few miles of each other. They would gather by the roadside, covered by shoulder-launched SAMs and ZSUs. Radio traffic increased sharply as the body of the Lusakan advance closed in, more ZSUs, SA-9 Gaskin vehicles, more SA-4, APCs and infantry all approached, thousands of men in all. Shortly they would overwhelm the village and anyone else who didn't depart the area in a hurry.

Commonwealth forces couldn't be far away east, either.


(ooc: All right- ic we're going to have a try at forcing invaders right out of Gabon by (almost) any means at our disposal, ooc I'll try to keep in mind the benefits of eventual compromise- perhaps the division of Gabon between self-governing interior and occupied coast or something.)

East of Libreville

The Navy EA-60D (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=84701&highlight=) Electronic warfare plane was enroute to a holding pattern near Booué where it would locate Lusakan radars and jam them while air strikes were called in from the Stealth bombers on call.

One of the signals operators then noticed a signal emerging, relatively weak but close to their position. Flicking switches and adjusting knobs he could now hear it through his headphones. He had been taught basic french vocabulary in the last week aboard the President Meir and the words 'Radio Gabon Rouge' were immediately obvious to him.

He informed the Flight Commander over the intercom and the plane changed course immediately,so they would not lose the signal and within minutes they had triangulated it using the AEELS system to a GPS co-ordinate in a small village about a hundred miles North of Ovan. This was immediately flashed over to the aircraft Carrier and two Su-35s which had been on three minute deck alert were scrambled into the air and vectored to the target.

Meanwhile the Marine helicopter QRF at Libreville Airport was also ordered to the area, someone had to find out what the hell was going on. Was this a local operation or were foreigners responsible?

***

Twenty minutes later and the two fighters were approaching the area, they descended into a sharp dive and at low level they released a total ofeight FAB-500kg high explosive bombs over the village where the transmitter was. This would be more than enough to level everything in the village, after all the locals had to know that if they conspired with the enemy they would be treated as such.

The Spitfire shuddered as the 23mm cannon shells exploded around it, but the pilot hung on long enough to empty his guns, cannon, and remaining rockets into the ZSU and APCs.

Finally, he pulled up and banked to starboard, briefly exposing his underside to the Lusakan AA fire. It was only a second, but it was enough. A cannon shell tore off part of the tail, and the Spitfire staggered in the air for a kilometre or so before rather nasty black smoke began to trail from something on fire in the tail.

As the plane lurched downwards, the Pilot pulled the Eject lever and the canopy blew off, launching the pilot out of the aircraft before safely deploying his parachute. The Spitfire ploughed into the Jungle, taking out several trees in the process, and the Pilot's person SOS beacon was already beeping, calling Roycelandian choppers to the location...

North of village engagement


A mile or so from the convoy of burning Lusakan vehicles, Commander Larard had managed to free himself from his parachute, tangled in a tree some twenty feet off the ground. He fell onto the relatively soft brush below the canopy, spraining his ankle and brusing his arms but little more than that.

Immediately he checked his distress beacon, luckily it was working and hopefully some people were on their way to pick him up. If that was the case he had to move to open ground and on his descent he had seen a clearing not far to the north, less than half a kilometre in fact. Colt .45 in hand, he drank some water and then proceeded slowly, away from the enemy.

OOC

Unless Igomo has bragged in public, I'm not certain Roycelandia or any other allied nation would know of Commonwealth deployment. Any spy planes, sats or long-wave radars would pick them up any time now, though.

Northwestern Middle Congo

General Shenedki wasn't too keen on the Lusakan updates - The LRAC were good men, and had taken severe losses. Then again, the RAC was a more technically advanced force, and would hopefully do better against the western invaders. He quickly reviewed his force again. 20 "Avenger"-configured HMMWVs could were in the front, and could quickly reduce aircraft threats to so much slag before they could cause serious losses. 10 Werewolf and 40 L-2 Oliphant MBTs were lagging behind, protected by 4 ADI-A72 AA artillery tracks. Safely stored in 1972 BMPs and ADI-A60 APCs, his 2000 mechanized infanterists were now rolling to the front, hopefully able to recoup Lusakan resources lost in the current fighting.

Now, if only those special forces would hurry up already...

Northwest of Okandja, Gabonaise jungle

Executive Captain Mbeshi of the Mshka M'Gharne(CAF spec. ops.) stayed low. His 1500 elite rural commandos had infiltrated the area, bringing a sizable cache of easily assembled Stinger SAMs. It could not be long before their radar officer would pick up some of the Lusakans. "If we can only keep those bombers at bay" he thought... "Then we can get this god damned land back for Africa.".


more OOC

Current deployment:

Survivors of the last corps deployed abroad are now en route to Gabon - numbers and strength are listed in the IC post.

1500 Ranger operatives have been deployed near the beleaguered Lusakans - they carry Stingers, as well as ADI-issue AT/AA and radar hardware.

More are considered inside CAF headquarters, but these are pending Lusakan reports of what countermeasures are needed.

AC: Why are your troops in Middle Congo? You realise MC's on our side, you cant just send your troops through there.

Booué

There they were. The first invaders of Gabon, and the reason we were here. Elias forces, rather a lot of them. The six Vultures had been quietly observing for hours on end, and messages had already been sent back to Ovan. From there word had been relayed to African Commonwealth forces. There was an enemy firebase being established just barely west of Booué- was the Commonwealth interested in some sort of offensive? Maybe it could be disabled by a precision air strike and then secured by elements of the LRAC, and if not the 17th Division was likely to lead a Lusakan ground assault.

By now, infanty platoons had long since bypassed Booué, and LRAC units were prepared to make attacks on the enemy's rear.

Other units were on their way up to Lara, and others moving towards that town from Makokou in the east.

Eastern Gabon

Fortified by Commonwealth entry into the conflict, Lusaka now felt confident enough to deploy significant material as well as human assets. Mi-28 Havoc helicopter gunships -of which Lusaka had 500 (though no one was sure how many had been cannibalised for spare parts)- were prepared across the AC border in serious strength. They were joined by small numbers of fighters -those withdrawn early on but not returned all the way home- and by assorted tanks (mainly T-56(L) and T-62) and large numbers of ZSU, SAMs, and APCs.

A pair of F-5L tactical fighters, armed with Russian BVRAAMs, flying at high altitude covered Lusaka's belated retaliation as four A-37C Dragonfly ground attack planes, laden with rockets and freefall bombs, bore down on the battered village. The Dragonfly flew low, hoping to hold the element of surprise- they were only a few minutes flight time away when they took off just inside the Commonwealth, and the firefight on the ground had barely ended when they crossed the border. It was reported by men on the ground that the village had been largely abandoned by its tiny population before or during the fighting, so the planes were simply to unload their munitions into the area in and directly around the village before turning for friendly airspace.

Meanwhile, Lusaka's tiny bomber command -eight B-47 Stratojet- was making ready for a sortie. Four were still on the ground in AC, while four were only just dispatched from the UARL. Their target, due to be hit by dusk, was 60 miles northwest of Okandja- X-ray One to its Rhodesian occupants.

Roycelandian Satellite Warning Systems had given Port Imperial warning of the Lusakan Air Force's arrival over the AC border.

It was long suspected that the AC were involved (how else were the Lusakans getting their materiel in?), but at this stage there was a delicate problem- Roycelandia wanted to step up their involvement, but short of officially declaring war on Lusaka, they had to make do with what they had.

Franceville received the scramble order, and within 5 minutes there were four IAe Jetfires and two Harrier Jump Jets on intercept with the Lusakans.

Meanwhile, Tapdancer One had arrived too late to waste the Lusakan AA equipment, but the Wizard knew the Radar Signature of the Lusakan Dragonfly aircraft.

Sure, there would be fighters on Overwatch, but there were also two Spitfires in the area as well... the choppers having left to rescue the downed Rhodesian and Roycelandian pilots.

Meanwhile, frantic communications were being sent from Port Imperial to Salisbury and UE Command in Libreville, advising them of Roycelandia's suspicions, among other things...

West of Village Engagement

The EA-220 stealth tactical bomber responded quckly to the Lusakan air threat. Although with only two, short range air to air missiles, it could still bring down two of the fragile little dragonflies with little effort.

In eight minutes, the plane had closed the distance and just before the enemy aircraft were over the village, two advanced EAW-67 'Viper' (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=135324&start=0) Short Range AAMs were fired which would force the A-37s either to break off the attack and attempt to get out of the missiles' 12nm range and likely fail or get destroyed after unloading their munitions.

The bomber then swung around, ready to rake the enemy planes with cannon fire from behind as they came off their attack run.


Booué

OOC: Just so you know, the main firebase is located next to a temporary airstrip about a mile West of the city along the main road and its pretty well defended. There are also nine covert spotting posts of special forces distriuted around the tow, normally a few kilometers out.

IC:

Two kilometers East of the town centre, nine marine recon operatives watched and waited. Four were taking advantage of the daylight hours to sleep and the Gunnery Sergeant had ordered a Skylark UAV (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=75781&highlight=) be deployed to watch out for enemies. Right now he watched the control laptop's screen, linked directly to the UAVs FLIR. He had been doing this for two hours and soon he'd be relieved by a subordinate. Suddenly white blobs appeared on the screen, human heat plumes. He steered the drone towards them, and now he could see what would have to be soldiers, lying in the undergrowth engaged in a similar operation to his. The only thing was he now had the advantage.

He shook the others awake and they crept to their defensive positions quietly, even though the enemy was still more than a mile away. Then he reached for his radio.

"Sierra Foxtrot Three One to Six, request arty support, fire mission at co-ordniates to follow, single barrage over." He then hit a button on the laptop and the GPS co-ordinates were immediately flashed to the artillery batteries fire control computers at the firebase.

"Three One, you have contact?"

"Six. Roger on contact, recommend Threatcon Delta."

"Roger, will do, fire mission to follow, ETA one minute thirty, over."

He kept his eyes on the screen and veered the drone out of the way, checking his wrist watch repeatedly. Sure enough, a minute later he heard the distant rumble of howitzers and then the much more pronounced shockwaves and bright flashes of high explosive blowing apart the whole area where he'd 'seen' the enemy.

A minute later he maneuvered the UAV back over to the area and the heat plumes had dimmed, while some of the other men appeared to lack limbs.

"Six, three one, fire mission on target, arty stand down."

***

At Fire Base 'Anvil', basically just a collection of dugouts, tents, sandbags and masses of barbed wire, alarms had sounded a soon as the scouts and called in contact. If that had not been enough to wake the entire base the sound of 155mm guns certainly was.

Immediately the troops on the perimeter were joined by more infantry and everyone was clambering for their helmets, body armour and weapons. As yet they had now idea if they were going to be attacked, but now the enemy was around and that meant it would get worse before it got better.

Signals were being flash trafficked to Libreville and air support was being requested, as it was everywhere. Apparently the Roycelandians had seen Lusakan air power and now the Navy was scrambling everything and the Air Force were finally flying out fighter squadrons to Gabon.


Libreville

In the heart of GOTCOM (Gabon Operational Theatre Command), intelligence analysts poured over recent satellite images. Suddenly two of them noticed something. It was a routine picture of an airfield in the African Commonwealth which had shown little activity in the last few days. Now there were eight large planes sitting on the tarmac. They looked at each other, the tiny details could be made out, six engines, swept wings. Neither of them immediately recognised the ancient cold war warriors but then they realised what was before them. A reference card produced by the Federal Intelligene Bureau told them they were Lusakan, after all nobody else in the world would possibly still use them. In light of their discovery encypted messages were sent to the necessary allies, who no doubt would be suprised at the sudden escalation.

Ten minutes later Colonel Makram looked at the pictures himself, and the first thought that came to his mind was perhaps paranoa but when dealing with states like Lusaka anything was possible and in Africa rational thinking seemed to be non-existent, seemingly a phillosophy championed by President Igomo. After all what better way to stand up to an 'imperialist aggressor' and demonstarte Lusakan power than to drop a nuke.

Another flash message was sent to all Elias units in Gabon as well as being broadcasted over the guard frequency:

All forces are to immediately assume REDCON 3 (NBC Readiness condition), this is not a drill, this is not a drill.

The colonel ordered that twelve Su-35s be immediately dispatched form the President Meir to maintain a combat air patrol, ready to shoot down the bombers as soon as they crossed the border. When they were low on fuel another twelve would relieve them, it might put some stress on the crews and the carrier but this time no chances could be taken.

OOC

Rhodesia>> My bad. Assume they went OVER the middle and are currently deployed near Gabon's western border. All AT/AA capability is at highest alert in case of Middle Congolese attack.

Northern AC, east of Mekambo

Shenedki sighed. This was the final frontier - The combat zone. His armoured column was well fortified, and could probably blow what Elian ground attack aircraft they could reach him with into shreds; but even so he was worried.

They were entering Gabon, a nation the Commonwealth had never had any significant relations with, and even if they routed the invaders, there were no reason Gabonaise forces would consider them friends. Oh well, the LRAC was there - Here goes nothing. He waved his arm for a full advance, and the column roared to life.

Lusakan field command, northwest of the contested village

Having negotiated a suitable ground assault plan with the LRAC commander, Exec. Captain Mbeshi ordered all 80mm mortars, Stingers and "Cracker" ADI-HEAP anti-tank rifles operational for the coming attack. They can and will assist the helicopter/infantry assault on the village.

Missile silo DG-4 and -5, Western/central Commonwealth

"it's due west of Booué, sir. Sheki-Zulu-Congo-niner-two-five, by my estimate. Can our eyes on the ground, confirm?" "You got it." "Authorize fire protocol Sheki-Zulu-Congo-niner-two-five. Three.. Two.. One.. Here we go". The radio went silent as the resident silo technicians looked outside. The shutters slid silently aside, and the two ADI-R6 "Long Spear" IRBM roared into the skies, bearing a 1000 kilogram HE warhead each towards the Elian firebase. "They're on their way. Inform our Lusakan friends to pull out and be ready to capitalize on the strike."

Internal Security Bulletin(secret IC)

Ready fifth ground attack wing. Prep all auxillary DA Helicopters, they may have gone into disuse.

Authorize mobilization of the light 150, and the first and second fighter wings.

By my hand,
Mshone Ndelebe
For the Commonwealth.

Libreville

In the Tactical Operations truck which controlled the SAM battery at Libreville, the radar operators could hardly believe it. Two minutes ago the entire force in Gabon had been ordered to REDCON 3 as someone suspected an NBC attack, the possibility of which seemed unlikely. Now, two ballistic missiles had appeared on their radar screen heading for a still unkown target. Thought and reflection were set aside and six EAW-36 (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=94000&highlight=) long range SAMs were fired from one of the launchers, more or less guaranteeing that both incoming missiles would be shot down.

***

Colonel Makram stood infront of the displays which coallated the data from various radars and other sensors. The missiles' flight paths an eerie pair of white lines originating from the African Commonwealth. He was not so much afraid as stunned. His strategic mind had removed him from the event, it was just a game of chess and to think of it in terms of people's lives, his people's lives was impossible if he was to act rationally.
He barked ordered to his subordinates many of which were running for anti-flash clothing and NBC equipment.

Yet another message was sent to all units, this time even more alarming than the last.

All forces immediately assume REDCON 1, consider force to be under nuclear, chemical or biological attack this is not a drill, this is not a drill.

It would be several minutes before the missiles were intercepted and assuming that they would be, teh Colonel ordered his staff to maintain their stations, after all it would be too late anyway. He contacted the Ministry of Defence, obatining immediate permission to strike across the borders at the agressors.

President Meir Battle Group, West of Libreville

Aboard the aicraft Carrier, preperations to launch twelve Su-35s to maintain a combat air patrol were quickly changed, the planes were being loaded with two
EAW-12 (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=135324&start=0) cruise missiles each as well as a few air to air weapons, to strike the enemy rather than wait for him. A sortie of EA-220 Joint Tactical bombers had also been rearmed, exchanging cluster bombs for EAW-12s as well, some armed with 340kt thermonuclear warheads, just in case.

Ships in the rest of the battlegroup for weeks have nothing to do except protect thr carrier finally had a role and in quick succesion barrages of stealthy EAW-22 Ship Launched Cruise missiles (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=79705&highlight=) spurted up into the sky under a blaze of fire.

(BTW there are 45 ship launched missiles which have been fired, 10 targeted at the Lusakan base where the B-47s were spotted and the rest at various missile silos near the ones that launched the first strike. As yet they are all conventionally armed and because you still have no idea that we assumed yours were nuclear you'd have no reason to think ours would be. Actually you wouldnt detect them at all until it was too late, they're stealthy.)

Gabonaise officials have been escorted out of the room, and we convene to a closed session of discussion before hearing the UE counter-testimony.

We request the right to be a witness to the UE testimony and to hear the deliberations of the IADF. Otherwise we will have no choice to conclude that these precedings are nothing but a sham to support Kisnesia's ally United Elias.

Were we continuing the proceedings, you would recieve a complete videotaped transcript of the United Elias testimony, and we would have allowed live viewing over closed circut TV (we wanted to keep members of each side apart from each other). However......
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kisnesia has announced today the closing of the Investigation into United Elias's war on terror in the Gabon.

Due to the resignation of IB member Credonia from the IADF, Kisnesia stands as the current lone member, as a third member was never selected.

The Investigative Board has concluded that there is insufficient evidence to continue the investigation, in the face of the current problems the IADF is facing.

We do not find United Elias guilty of any breaches of the IADF charter. However, we will allow this issue to stay open, should new evidence surface, and should the IADF be in a better position to examine this evidence.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please note that this is NOT saying that UE is in the right, but simply that we have no choice but to discontinue the investigation at this time.

Eastern Gabon, north of Okandja

The Roycelandian jets scrambled from Franceville wouldn't arrive near the village until after the Lusakans were long gone, but Tapdancer One might still make a scene.

The brilliant green over-flying Freedom Fighters had other things to deal with, however.

"..so I said 'you want your money, come and find it, 'cause I don't know where it is, y'baloney!' Hang on.. I think we've got something here.. 3 o'clock.. you see? What the f.."

"I think that's our phantom bomber, Ugo. Lets get the fucker!"

The two F-5L pilots hurridly selected their wingtip AA-11 missiles (much better than those AiM-9 they'd been stuck with over Lumbosa in their F-5Gs!) as the Elias bomber slipped briefly from view. After a brief shouting match as they tried to re-acquire the hostile aircraft it was decided (via a rather baffling non-visual scissors paper stone bout) that the lead plane would be the one to engage and that he did, firing both IR guided missiles at the mysterious target.

Below, the Dragonfly were most surprised by the realisation that they were under attack, they'd only been over Gabon for a couple of minutes, and were probably still in range of Commonwealth SAMs, if they had any half serious batteries on the border- if this were a Lusakan border country, S-400's small missiles would be flying to their aid. Amongst the four little aircraft opinion was divided on the AAM-free loadout.

One younger pilot, not old enough to have flown in Lumbosa or any of Lusaka's relatively minor conflicts, was still insisting that they should have a pair of AA-11 each when his plane was hit.

Others were quite happy to let the fighters do the fighting while they made use of their ECM pods and attempted to escape the remaining missile, which of course two of them did. The last, however, went down with smoke tralining, swinging over the village and heading for perhaps the same clearing that downed enemy aircraft had looked to.

The surviving Dragonflies made an attempt at attacking the village, one man not ceasing to mutter false alarms about further missiles throught the effort.


Booué

Vultures in the target area made away with no hesitation. Several were killed in the process, which didn't exactly serve to slow the rest in their flight. Two of the half dozen men were dead, another incapacitated, but his comrades, at least one of whom was also wounded, had no means to defend against artillery, and having scattered may not even meet up again for some hours. The men in their forward observation post hadn't the means to take down a UAV unless it came down and presented for them, but if it wandered far, LRAC teams close enough to hear the rumbling artillery would be happy to engage SA-14s.

(As for the cruise missile strikes, well, Lusakan radar on hand is unlikely to spot anything, as our best is rather tied to..Lusaka, so I'll have to wait to see if AC has any means of defending against or alerting us to the attack before I respond. At least the missiles have a way to go.. ie, the width of Gabon then some. Still..this is a bit of a step up- an attack on Commonwealth soil. I suppose Igomo doesn't have to worry about AC commitment to the conflict anymore!)

Eastern Gabon, north of Okandja

The pilot of the EA-220 (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=88103&highlight=) took a second to realise that he was actually being shot at, but the active countermeasures system reacted within milliseconds. Immediately flares dispensed in all directions, and the ingenius laser dazzling system, developed by the nation of Crookfur especially for the aircraft fired beams of high intensity laser at the infrared seekers of the missile, blinding them.

However the second AA-11 still exploded in close proximity to the aircraft but the crew could see no obvious damage, then the left engine sucked in a piece of metal debris from the missile. The engine was shutdown and the aircraft turned westwards, out of the range of the IR missiles and now invisible to radar once again. As the aircraft climbed through the clouds, an entire load of cluster munitions were jettisoned. The WSO had checked the synthetic aperture radar and teh area below seemed to be empty forest.


South of Makokou

The other EA-220 over Eastern Gabon quickly reacted to the emergence of enemy fighters and luckily it was armed with a pair of EAW-78 Cobra (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=135324&start=0) BVRAAMs instead of the short range infrared missiles.

The plane swung towards its targets, distant dots denoting the F-5s. The two missiles were then fired, 68nm from their target, perfectly within range. Immediately the missile's intertial guidance tookover and the EA-220s radar could once again be placed in low emmisions mode. Even if the missiles missed, they're would be no way for the Lusakan fighters to shoot back.

The bomber then descended, locating a convoy of vehicles, on the road from Mekambo. A few miles out, fourteen wind corrected munition dispensers released, overkill it may have been, but the plane was low on fuel and there was no point in returning to the carrier with ordnance.


OOC: The missiles have a very low radar cross section and fly low, so don't expect them to be detected until they can be seen visually. Of course you might pick them up on radar a mile or so from the target when they enter their attack manouvre but then its too late. Enjoy!

Electronic Warfare and Countermeasure Station Banthu, northern Commonwealth

He would not have believed it, but the systems never lied. Well, not since the last update, and the operator felt safe that this was no drill. This many missiles. Not having an exact match, he knew them to be cutting-edge cruise munitions, just as any other piece of hardware those accursed Elias troops had thrown their way. Figuring the AS-19s on the Mekambo-bound convoy(which the missiles so happen to fly over), probably could not intercept them, he quickly informed the Goshawk command center to fire all operational drones. When the Goshawks(or, perhaps, a nearby AWACS craft) had found the approximate location of the missiles, a hail of patriot missiles or ADI-AV-400 SAMs could bring them down.

ABM stations 1 to 5, close to targeted AC airfield

With a minimum of noise, the 30 operational ADI-AV-200 "Goshawk" ABM countermeasure drones flew from their cells and in the general direction of their target: EAW-22s. Under manual control, the instruction of the first ten were to jettison all their flares, chaff and laser blinds. If that failed to jam or destroy the missiles, the second 20 were to engage them in kamikaze strikes.

Governatorial palace, Kinshasa. The following day

The general president was not pleased at all. He wore the expression that implied that only his closest aides and members of the Manus Nigra should possibly be the ones to bring further bad news. "What are the extent of our damage?". "We don't know yet, sir", Colonel Tomé of the Manus Nigra answered. The others were relieved. If anyone could weather Ndelebe's bad mood, it was the towering head of the secret police. Tomé continued. "It is our estimate that they attempted to strike at our ballistic missile silos, but I don't suspect any one of them will be damaged, considering that they are all buried and cloaked as per directive Deep Six, and the Elias force has no way of finding them without entering the Commonwealth proper.". "Did our anti-Ballistic countermeasures work?", the president enquired. "Like I said, we have no way of knowing yet, but all 30 Goshawk drones were launched, as were the 5 Patriot SAM systems the missiles passed over, and a total of 15 ADI-AV-400 SAMs.". The President sighed, and thought aloud:"Why would they react so strongly? We only tried to take out a single damn firebase.." "If I may venture a guess, President, then I think they suspected that our Long Spears carried a weapon of mass destruction." "Preposterous imperialists!".

There was no sound after that, save a single aide clearing his throat nervously. Mshone Ndelebe never used the I-word, and he was clearly agitated enough to call bloody vengeance on the Elias forces now. "Well, then.. Inform United Elias that I wish to open negotiations for a ceasefire. Either they realize how much this will cost them and leave southern Africa alone, or they will face war with the Commonwealth." "Er... Should I tell them that?" "No. Just the bit about the ceasefire.".

OOC

Goshawks are unmanned drones packed with AM countermeasures, and ADI-AV-400 are sort of similar to your EAW-36s.

Gabonaise Village Firefight

Realising that the Jetfires scrambled from Franceville weren't going to arrive in time to make any difference, Tapdancer One's pilot decided to engage the Dragonflies with the help of the other Spitfire in the area.

TD1's Wizard armed the weapons systems and loosed off a couple of Missiles at the aircraft attacking the village. The Pilot decided that a 20mm cannon was a better option, and opened fire accordingly.

Now, the wonders of VTOL meant that, instead of having to make long passes to turn around again, the Harrier could basically perform a 180 spin in mid air, confusing the hell out of enemy pilots, and more importantly, missiles.

Additionally, it was not widely known that Roycelandia had Jet Aircraft (for all the retro-WWII equipment, the nation was actually quite advanced), so it was hoped that the appearance of Jet Aircraft would throw things for the Lusakan and AC Pilots.

The Spitfire began it's attack in a more traditional manner, diving out of the sun with guns and cannon blazing.

Meanwhile, troops in the village were taking a pounding from the Airstrike- several who had crawled out of their trenches or foxholes were killed, and many more wounded by flying debris.

An Iroquois was making a landing in the clearing by the downed Rhodesian pilot, the door gunners on the lookout for any enemy activity.

After helping Cmdr Larard into the chopper, it lifted off again, looking for the downed Roycelandian Pilot. Oblivious to the gunfire and ensuing air battle, the Chopper located the downed pilot, lowered the winch, and started lifting him into the helicopter.

OOC: All this over a tiny, insignificant village! :D

White streaks appear across the sky.

READ1 LEAD,"get the missiles off and lets get to dog fightin"
READ2,"Sir we got contacts all over."
READ1 LEAD,"its just the heat from the fire fight get the fighters first then move in on the coptors."
READ3,"lets get em!"
READ4,"YEEEHA!"

LOI1 LEAD,"lets take them out, Engage stay with your wingman."
LOI1,LOI2,LOI3,LOI4,"Yes sir!"

8 MIG's soared in on the attack taking the enemy completely by suprise as irkust makes their first move in this war.

OOC: Post Casualties

These are the troops i have commited to the defence of Gabon
Air Force
100 MIG 21's
30 A-10 Thunderbolt's (bombers)
50 Ka-50 Black Shark (helicopters, defencive)
40 Ka-52 Alligator Multi (rolled al weather helicopter)
Armor divisions
200 T-72 tanks's
50 TDA 2R2M Rifled 120mm Mortar System
300,000 Mobile infantry (humvys/jeeps)
Special Forces
Delta 1-9 troops (Demolitions)
Delta 2-9 troops (Demolitions)
Delta 3-9 troops (Recon)
Beta 1- 10 troops (Snipers)
Beta 2- 10 troops (Infiltration)
Beta 3- 10 troops (Sniper)
Army Regulars
Elite Assault team- 25,000
Elite Assault team- 25,000
Elite Assault team- 25,000
Elite Assault team- 25,000
The 1st Infantry Corp- 200,000
The 9th Infantry Corp "The Tigers"- 200,000
The 4th Infantry Corp:150,000
(the 9th infantry corp gained a name for themselves when they quelled the rebellions in irkust practicaly sweeping the jungles alone.)

The 9th Infantry Corp is Sent with air cover to sweep the enemy troops in the area, Dead or alive.

MIG's and KA 52 Aigator's begin to fight for control of the sky thunderbolts along with MIG escorts begin bombing smaller enemy outposts. the attacks are completely supriseing since Irkust had not been suspected of entering the war but soon the advantage of suprise will be lost and the Irkust Army will be left to fight there first major ground war in 40 years.
Air Force
100 MIG 21's
30 A-10 Thunderbolt's (bombers)
50 Ka-50 Black Shark (helicopters, defencive)
40 Ka-52 Alligator Multi (rolled al weather helicopter)
Armor divisions
200 T-72 tanks's
50 TDA 2R2M Rifled 120mm Mortar System
300,000 Mobile infantry (humvys/jeeps)
Special Forces
Delta 1-9 troops (Demolitions)
Delta 2-9 troops (Demolitions)
Delta 3-9 troops (Recon)
Beta 1- 10 troops (Snipers)
Beta 2- 10 troops (Infiltration)
Beta 3- 10 troops (Sniper)
Army Regulars
Elite Assault team- 25,000
Elite Assault team- 25,000
Elite Assault team- 25,000
Elite Assault team- 25,000
City Defence- 50,000
City Defence- 50,000
Beach Defences- 50,000
Beach reinforcements- 50,000

OOC: Assuming you somehow managed to detect the stealthy missiles they wouldn't be very hard to shoot down bearing in mind they fly in a more or less straight line but as they're GPS/Inertiailly guided countermeasures are pretty ineffective. So how about we assume that of the 10 fired at the Lusakan airbase nearer the border, most of them hit and of the 35 aimed at the silos, only 8 or so get through. Forgive me if I don't RP this but it would be pretty pointless.

Also should we have recieved a back channel communiqué about a casefire proposal?


IC:


Near Ovan

The flight of twelve Su-35s from the President Meir had reached their firing positions and just as their ship-launched relatives entered Commonwealth airspace, the more advanced EAW-12 'Shaheen' (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=135324&start=0) cruise missiles were fired , two from each aircraft. While the fighters peeled off and turned South to engage the enemy fighters, the cruise missiles descended to a terrain following flight profile.

The twenty four EAW-12s were all headed to various different targets West of Mekambo and just inside Commonwealth territory. Two missiles aimed at each target which included: three rail terminals, six military barracks and three air defence sites. Due to the short flight path, the missiles could afford to change direction often to avoid known radars so the possibility of detection was more remote.


Booué

For the nearly 1,000 personnel at Firebase 'Anvil' and in the surrounding area, it had been a somewhat alarming day. First of all an artillery strike against enemy recon troops, then the possibility of nearly being nuked or at least hit by some terrible chemcial or biological weapon. On the permiter the men maintained their watches, wearing their gas masks and chemical gear, excrutiatingly uncomfortable on a hot African day such as this one.

A pair of Marine EA-24s (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=40824) approached, carrying supplies, mail and some additional civil affairs personnel. On the appraoch, just three miles or so North of the firebase, the gunners spotted movement through their thermal imaging sights. Enemy soldiers and this was a platoon size unit, not just a recon squad.

They swung around immediately and volleys of minigun fire were fired into the trees where the men were hiding. Through teh sights they coudl aim their fire realtively precisely and they saw a few of the men go down instantly.

Port Gentil

At Port Gentil Airport, the first of sixteen EA-135A (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=130193) Joint Tactical Fighters touched down, much to the interest of the Army Rangers based there. In fact the planes were the first ever deployment of the brand new aircraft type and their performance in Gabon would be critical to future procurement strategy.

As the Air Force jets touched down, the pilots knew that on the other side of the country there was a conflict, one they would soon be thrown into the middle of. Of course being the first Air Force pilots in the conflict also made them think they could easily sort out the situation, after all Navy pilots werr obviously completely incompetent. In military circles it was widely known that Air Force pilots think they're the best and Air Force pilots simply know they are.

OOC: Assuming you somehow managed to detect the stealthy missiles they wouldn't be very hard to shoot down bearing in mind they fly in a more or less straight line but as they're GPS/Inertiailly guided countermeasures are pretty ineffective. So how about we assume that of the 10 fired at the Lusakan airbase nearer the border, most of them hit and of the 35 aimed at the silos, only 8 or so get through. Forgive me if I don't RP this but it would be pretty pointless.

Also should we have recieved a back channel communiqué about a casefire proposal?


IC:


Near Ovan

The flight of twelve Su-35s from the President Meir had reached their firing positions and just as their ship-launched relatives entered Commonwealth airspace, the more advanced EAW-12 'Shaheen' (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=135324&start=0) cruise missiles were fired , two from each aircraft. While the fighters peeled off and turned South to engage the enemy fighters, the cruise missiles descended to a terrain following flight profile.

The twenty four EAW-12s were all headed to various different targets West of Mekambo and just inside Commonwealth territory. Two missiles aimed at each target which included: three rail terminals, six military barracks and three air defence sites. Due to the short flight path, the missiles could afford to change direction often to avoid known radars so the possibility of detection was more remote.


Booué

For the nearly 1,000 personnel at Firebase 'Anvil' and in the surrounding area, it had been a somewhat alarming day. First of all an artillery strike against enemy recon troops, then the possibility of nearly being nuked or at least hit by some terrible chemcial or biological weapon. On the permiter the men maintained their watches, wearing their gas masks and chemical gear, excrutiatingly uncomfortable on a hot African day such as this one.

A pair of Marine EA-24s (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=40824) approached, carrying supplies, mail and some additional civil affairs personnel. On the appraoch, just three miles or so North of the firebase, the gunners spotted movement through their thermal imaging sights. Enemy soldiers and this was a platoon size unit, not just a recon squad.

They swung around immediately and volleys of minigun fire were fired into the trees where the men were hiding. Through teh sights they coudl aim their fire realtively precisely and they saw a few of the men go down instantly.

Port Gentil

At Port Gentil Airport, the first of sixteen EA-135A (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=130193) Joint Tactical Fighters touched down, much to the interest of the Army Rangers based there. In fact the planes were the first ever deployment of the brand new aircraft type and their performance in Gabon would be critical to future procurement strategy.

As the Air Force jets touched down, the pilots knew that on the other side of the country there was a conflict, one they would soon be thrown into the middle of. Of course being the first Air Force pilots in the conflict also made them think they could easily sort out the situation, after all Navy pilots werr obviously completely incompetent. In military circles it was widely known that Air Force pilots think they're the best and Air Force pilots simply know they are.

Air Force
100 MIG 21's
30 A-10 Thunderbolt's (bombers)
50 Ka-50 Black Shark (helicopters, defencive)
40 Ka-52 Alligator Multi (rolled al weather helicopter)
Armor divisions
200 T-72 tanks's
50 TDA 2R2M Rifled 120mm Mortar System
300,000 Mobile infantry (humvys/jeeps)
Special Forces
Delta 1-9 troops (Demolitions)
Delta 2-9 troops (Demolitions)
Delta 3-9 troops (Recon)
Beta 1- 10 troops (Snipers)
Beta 2- 10 troops (Infiltration)
Beta 3- 10 troops (Sniper)
Army Regulars
Elite Assault team- 25,000
Elite Assault team- 25,000
Elite Assault team- 25,000
Elite Assault team- 25,000
The 1st Infantry Corp- 200,000
The 9th Infantry Corp "The Tigers"- 200,000
The 4th Infantry Corp:150,000

This Squadron will now be known as Spearhaed 1
The 4th Infantry Corp is dispatched to attack firebase 'Anvil' along with 1 tank division of 10 T-72 tanks and 3 TDA 2R2M Rifled 120mm Mortar as well as 10,000 mobile infantry.

Troops look out from the sandbag bunkers unsuspecting an attack that morning. the CO stretched and yawned as a whine was heard coming across the sky. a Mortor shell burst into the Ammo Bunker and then the Mortor shels begin exploding all over the firebase when the Firebase was pretty much disabled the 4th infantry corp Advanced across the scorched fields to annialate the survivors

MIG's are in the clouds to fend off any air-force reinforcements

Go Away n00b, this is a closed RP

sry it says no where its a closed rp considering i was RPing just as fair as any of yall i don think i deserve to be called a newb just cuz you got hurt because of it.

Background:

United Elias has decided to take military action against the nation of Gabon as this nations' socialist autocratic regime has now been linked to an attemopted 'dirty bomb' attack in our nation. Thus it can be assumed that the GLA terrorist group is operating from Gabon and that the Gabonese government suplplied either teh GLA or another terrosit grouo with Uranium for use against us, and against our allies. Now arning or ulitamtum has been given and suprise is paramount to prevent terrorists leaving teh country before the invasion commences

The South Atlantic

Sixty miles from land the sea heaves in predawn darness. No buoy, no man made marke interrupts the undulant glitter if stars on an easerly swell.

The frigate is a sharp edged shadow against the stars. Since midnight the Kfir has cruised slowly before the prevaling sea. At 0330, suddenly she heels as her twin rudders bite water. The hum of turbines rises to a whine, the sound rollling out into blackness as a phosphorescent waterdall shoots from her screws. The frigate gathers speed, begins to pitch, dipping her bow to the swell, then lifting to shake hissing spray.

The Kfir approaches the line of departure for 'Operation Rapid Sabre' and the sound of claxons is heard as the ship comes to general quarters.

The warship then crosses the viritual line, sonars pinging and radars sweeping the sky and sea. On one side the tranquil minds of peace and on the other the irrecovable commitment to a battle that would soon begin.

Half an hour later, eight gray ships lift into view to the east. Their masts shown against the empty horizon, a faint glow of impeding daylight iluminating it. These ships are not so sleek as the frigates that escort them, but they are much larger, swelling with displacement lines and instead of guns and missile launchers, their decks are cluttered with aircraft, helicopters and stacks of containers.

Then two more ships come into view, steaming ahead of thee main body, their huge superstructures, laden with weaponry mean they are quickly recognised as the task force's missile cruisers.

***

High in the Island of the Aircraft Carrier President Meir, the Navy's newest Victor class (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=77139&highlight=), a stocky man in navy whites enters the flag bridge.

"Admiral's on the bridge!" At the shout, officers and enlisted men look up from dimly lit charts, flickering radars and coputer consoles. They glance at each other and a lieutenant moves cautiously towards the imposing Admiral, saluting formally.

"Good Morning Admiral, the Ministry of Defence has authorised Op Order 237/10104 'Operation Rapid Sabre." He consults a printed page in his hand then continues, "Also here is a signed Presidnetial directive authorising the 'Invasion of Gabon to remove current regime of government and dismantle terrorist infrastructure and personnel within the country."

"Very well, how are the preparations?"

"Sir, all ships are reporting ready as are all aviation wings and Marine battallions."

"Good, they still know we're coming for them?"

"Quite possibly but they will have found our fleet, but it will be too late for them."

"Hopefully."

(OOC; Any nation should feel free to start a puppet and RP Gabon providing they can be realisitc and have some knowledge of teh country, information an be found here:

http://cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/gb.html)

i am new but i will be happy to support you (united ellais)

OOC: don't have much time to continue RP, but just want to point the radio station didn't switch on yet-so UE, save your bombs for when it does ;) and i never said it would emit from the center of a village, either-although it might, depends on some characters i have yet to fully flesh out, and how badly they want UE atrocities to report ;) ]

North of Okandja

"You got him! Did you get him? Where's he gone?"
"Ugo! Get your arse back here, we've more contacts!"

The over enthusiastic wingman proved difficult to control, turning for a second as if to chase down the departing bomber, AA-10 and 11 still loaded and twin 23mm cannon armed. It was only his leader's insistance that they may have Spits and unidentified jets inbound that kept him from making a complete hash of things.

As the two F-5Ls swept down towards the near-village engagement the pilots caught a glimpse of the flash as a third Dragonfly went down, hit by Roycelandian missile or gunfire after loosing its unguided rockets on the village. Its bombs were armed but not dispatched when the little aircraft slammed into the treeline at the edge of the village at near 400knots.

The other surviving Dragonfly had survived long enough to loose its bombload, and was comming about with 30mm cannon pods armed. The last survivng A37C was lucky enough to benefit from the previously distracted fighter cover, and the wingman more than pleased to have acquired multiple targets. His new generation of fliers didn't consider the relatively advanced fire control much of a novelty, meanwhile the wingleader was still marvelling at his plane's ability to acquire, track, and engage more than one target at a time.

The youngster's wingtip AA-11s, some of the world's finest SRAAMs, flew away at up to Mach 2.5, one aimed on what had turned out to be a Harrier, another chasing down a Spitfire.

Barely seconds later the few surviving Lusakan aircraft would turn and break back across the nearby Commonwealth border, being long gone before Roycelandian or Elias support arrived. This was, after all its losses, a shoot and scoot raid in which the Lusakan jets were only airborn for a few minutes (or less in at least three cases).

A short distance away, the second of three downed Dragonfly finally hit the ground, skidding across the clearing that the Rhodesian had aimed for before coming to a violent stop, the two pilots injured but alive thanks to their cockpit's armour protection.

Inside the African Commonwealth

The targeted Lusakan airbase on AC soil was as yet host mainly to the four B47 already deployed. A few Lusakan air defence systems were dotted about, but nothing to contend with a large number of cruise missiles. It was well that AC was better prepared and able to take down many of the incoming missiles, for the Lusakans were largely unprepared. One Elian missile impacted on the ground beside a ground tanker that was moving towards the third bomber. The resulting flames caused much panic, set into motion a lengthy struggle to pull a huge bomber away from a spreading blaze, and damged the port engines of same aircraft.

A ZSU was hit directly, as was a hangar full of a hectic jumble of equipment and munitions. A second B47 sat nearby was soon subject to its own rescue operation, more Lusakans put in danger in what became an evidently futile operation.

Booué

"..can you confirm, withdraw order withdrawn?" Asked a confused platoon radio operator as AC strikes were reported on again off again.

"Wait, wait.." He called, "..we're not going..there's an attack on.. we're proceeding with the strangle.. I think."

Communications seemed a perpetual problem for Lusakan units abroad. The LRAC, even those units not part of the elite 17th, had reasonably modern gear (unlike the millions of regulars swarming over the eastern border), but they always managed to run into some sort of complication. Still, the attack was on, disorganised as it may be.

Several platoons were edging towards roads around the west of the city and even beyond the firebase, where they would variously attack hostile elements from the jungle and infiltrate built up areas. Since they were mainly infantry, it made sense to get into the town and somewhat negate the enemy's heavy weaponry, lest they bombard civilians. The town itself didn't at first appear to be heavily occupied, which fitted with the intelligence placing the firebase outside.

The confused radioman had just convinced his comrades to turn back when rotors were heard, heralding the frightening approach of helicopters just seconds before machinegun fire pattered through the trees. A pair of soldiers to the front fell as others scattered to cries of, "get the SAMs!" and so forth.

Two more amongst the platoon became isolated, having stopped to ready an SA-14. "There! There!" Shouted one, trying to point through the canopy while loading a missile. Seconds later he fell back in a veritable duststorm as gunfire churned up the trees and earth about him. Other men were scattering, loosing spatterings of small arms fire in the vague direction of the helicopter, often obscured by treetops.

"Oh shiiit! There's two of them!" The last words of a fourth man hit, save the low groan as both of his legs were ripped apart.

The slightly shaken man at the SA-14, struggling for some uncertain reason to acquire the first helicopter, swung around, launching his missile seconds later at the newly spotted aircraft as it sent more Lusakans diving for cover, at least one horribly wounded.

All around Gabon Lusaka seemed to be providing a presence simply for the sake of it, and for shooting at. Booué was now to be one half of the long awaited push, and the thousands of soldiers who'd been moving since the begining of the crisis finally picked up the pace. More and more platoons were arriving in and around the town, SA-4 battalions were coming within range, and lone APCs, ZSUs and SA-9 Gaskin quite suddenly went flat out, dashing for the town from across the east and north. The first elements were cautiously greeting locals and seeking intelligence on invaders and their operatives.

sry it says no where its a closed rp considering i was RPing just as fair as any of yall i don think i deserve to be called a newb just cuz you got hurt because of it.

Ah, but you AREN'T RPing "just as fair as any of us". First of all, what is your Government's interest in the Gabonaise war?

Secondly, how do you propose that you get this massive invasion force into Gabon WITHOUT ANYONE NOTICING? UE has AWACs, Roycelandia has Satellite Imaging, Lusaka has thousands of troops on the ground... someone would see these troops arrive.

Thirdly, you realise that any Nation in this conflict could stomp all over your Nation with no effort whatsoever?

If you're still interested in joining in, GO AND READ THE ENTIRE THREAD. That way, you'll get a feel for how the thread is progressing, the posting style etc.

IC: Doghfight over the Village

The Harrier's Wizard hit the ECM deploy button as the pilot executed a 180 degree spin in mid air, throwing the missile's guidance system off and looking pretty cool in the process.

The Spitfire also deployed ECMs, performing a loop and twist to shake the missile.

By this point, the spitfire was low on fuel, and having shaken the missile, headed back to Francevile.

The Harrier attempted pursuit, but the Lusakan planes were across the AC border before the Wizard could loose his missile. A note was made of this... the AC AA defences didn't blow the Lusakans out of the sky, which meant only one thing: They were co-operating....

Booué

The two helicopters continued to fire deadly bursts of fire towards the ground, when suddenly something streaked out of the trees. The pilots did not have enough time to evade it, being so close to the ground and the missile struck the main rotor of the lead helicopter but amazingly failed to explode. Whether the missile being a dud was down to just a bad batch or poor field care on the part of the Lusakans mattered not but in any event the helicopter was damaged.

"Anvil this is Whiskey Charlie Three One, contact at co-ordinates to follow, have sustained moderate engine damage but can make it back to Anvil, recommend fire mission on targets, over."

"Roger Three One, mortar fire mission inbound, eta one minute, clear the target zone and we hope to see you in one piece very soon."

The damaged helicopter had already turned towards the firebase, relying on only one of two engines to get it there. Now the second turned as well, knowing that anyone they'd missed with the minigun would be cleared up with 120mm pinpoint mortar strikes.

***

High above the town, a global hawk circled, now detecting moving vehicle and troop formations east of the town on its infrared lenses and Synthetic Apertur radar.

With no close air support aircraft available for a few more hours, the brass having decided in all their wisdom to prioritise on targets that were hundreds of miles away from the actual war, the 155mm battery at Firebase Anvil was once again ordered to bombard the enemy.

As the mortar platoons on the other side of the sandbagged city started to fire at the platoon which had fired at the choppers, the artillerymen crowded around their ELS-225 155mm Howitzers. The firing elevations had been automatically calculated using the GPS fire control computers, just a bunch of laptops with antennae and long wires connected to the guns. The artillerymen then loaded their rocket assisted projectiles and charges before the crew reported ready to the battery commanders. Nearly simultaneously, the twenty four crews all reported 'ready to fire'.

The battery commander then checked his screen again and clicked on the radio, "Battery Fire At Will."

The deafening thumps of howitzers echoed over the base one after the other, waking everyone not on watch and incensing everyone who was. This was not just one barrage either but they would continue firing two rounds until the target area, some 35km away was significantly cratered.

OOC: BTW, your troops and armour can expect to be under more or less persistent artillery attack but there will be a slight reprieve from air strieks as we're focusing on firing cruise missiles at AC and your precious 50s bombers. :D

BTW I hope ts okay to RP one of your SA-14s as a dud, it just strikes me as the sort of thing that happens in your army.

OOC

Elias>> I'm cool with your assessment. I feel confident AC would spot the cruise missiles, as we're at the technological level of the states, with a better economy and larger population. Well, that and the government are defense-oriented paranoiacs ;)

I won't RP the strikes themselves, but Lusaka has done a nice job with the airbase, and I assume that 8 of the underground ballistic missiles have had their firing position compromised and their systems damaged.

You will have received a ceasefire proposal, AFTER the dogfight that your aerial invasion sparked off.

AC border

The moment the SU-35s came close enough to the border for radars or AWACS patrol to detect, three wings(15 craft) of fighters - Namely 30 F-15E air superiority fighters and 15 SU-37K "Switchblade" Fighter-bombers - were scrambled to intercept and destroy them before they could withdraw from the firing area. Sidewinders and Sparrows were mainly deployed to blow them out of the air, each plane firing one missile in order to ensure that the majority of Sukhois were damaged or destroyed.

The 'Shaheen' cruise missiles that the SUs could fire before being engaged all veered unerringly toward their targets. Two rail terminals were extensively damaged, being unable to transport personnel or material before serious repair was undertaken. Seeing as all air defense sites and military barracks are equipped with either S-300 and ADI-AV-400 SAMs, patriot missile systems or 'Phalanx' CIWS mounted in towers, only light to medium damage were done to three of these targets, and the AV-400 long range SAMs also intercepted both missiles bound for the third rail terminal.

Commonwealth transmissions are now frequent, asking urgently for negotiations before a full-blown conflict gets underway.

Airbase 22, inside the Commonwealth proper

The Sky General blinked. He'd been informed of the damage to his own and Lusakan planes, but this was over the line. If they wanted a tussle, they got one. He ordered extensive repairs underway, restoring Lusakan craft first and then the AC tankers as well as the paved runway. Then he commanded a wing of 10 F/18 Hornets to take off for the contested village, with orders to destroy Roycelandian and United Elias aircraft with extreme prejudice.

Booué

Mbeshi's 1500 hundred men spread out after doing preliminary recon and spilled towards the least defended spots in the area. Noting the heavy resistance from the disciplined Elias' infanterists, Mbeshi frantically cranked up the comm-link, informing the various squads on his tactical decision. "Deploy all 80mm mortars. Load with Frag and white phospherous, I want those miniguns silenced NOW!". Not minutes later, satisfying columns of phosherous, dirt and flame tore up the enemy positions as HMGs rained death into the base perimeter, covering the advance of the elite rural commandos.

Port Banan

The admiral was pleased. Finally they could aid the land troops. He ordered all F-14 and SU-37Ks to be ready - several battleships and carriers were expected, and they could not be too careful here. However, they had no orders to attack. Yet.

sry it says no where its a closed rp considering i was RPing just as fair as any of yall i don think i deserve to be called a newb just cuz you got hurt because of it.

Ah, but you AREN'T RPing "just as fair as any of us". First of all, what is your Government's interest in the Gabonaise war?

Secondly, how do you propose that you get this massive invasion force into Gabon WITHOUT ANYONE NOTICING? UE has AWACs, Roycelandia has Satellite Imaging, Lusaka has thousands of troops on the ground... someone would see these troops arrive.

Thirdly, you realise that any Nation in this conflict could stomp all over your Nation with no effort whatsoever?

If you're still interested in joining in, GO AND READ THE ENTIRE THREAD. That way, you'll get a feel for how the thread is progressing, the posting style etc.

IC: Doghfight over the Village

The Harrier's Wizard hit the ECM deploy button as the pilot executed a 180 degree spin in mid air, throwing the missile's guidance system off and looking pretty cool in the process.

The Spitfire also deployed ECMs, performing a loop and twist to shake the missile.

By this point, the spitfire was low on fuel, and having shaken the missile, headed back to Francevile.

The Harrier attempted pursuit, but the Lusakan planes were across the AC border before the Wizard could loose his missile. A note was made of this... the AC AA defences didn't blow the Lusakans out of the sky, which meant only one thing: They were co-operating....

BTW sorry it took so long to reply its taken me 3 hours to get this dammed thing to load...

i know you could stomp all over my nation its support forces but none the less a surprise attack. i dont expect to win im just role playing so i mean if yall are not gonna want me to rp then theres no point so tell me if im aloud or not aloud.

also i had requested an alliance with the african commonwealth in telegrams so thats my connection to it. so stomp all over me its what im expecting! :). By the way its not much but my pop was 157 million when they reset. My troops are elite because we fought the austar union earlier if you want the link to see how i RP tell me anyways im gonna see how many tries it takes to post this :) lol
OOC
i will post more moves and such when you tell me if im aloud into this or not

right i forgot my army can cloak <wink> jk lol
i just figured since none of you were expecting me to have proposed an alliance because it was in telegrams no one would be paying attention to my small strike force but if you see it differently please tell me and i will change posts ASAP

Irkutsk: Here's the problem. The forces you posted, by the time you add in support staff and so on, add up to over ONE MILLION.

Try and imagine, if you will, the entire Indonesian (or Chinese, or Indian for that matter) Military invading a country the size of Gabon. Someone would notice. In fact, I strongly suspect that the Invading Army would outnumber the locals, and there certainly wouldn't be room to move for anyone. And let's not forget the months it would take to get one million people in place... you don't just charter heaps of 747s and start flying.

A "small" strike force, IMHO, would consist of maybe 100 Special Forces troops and a couple of choppers. Any more than that and the UE, Roycelandian, or Rhodesian Satellite/AWACS/Recon Planes would pick up on it.

Also, may I reccommend running future posts through a spellchecker? You've sad "Aloud" twice when you meant "Allowed". (And yes, it's pedantic, but the rest of us take the time to spell properly, so it's only fair that you do so as well.)

Bear in mind that your forces will be HEAVILY outnumbered by technologically superior forces (Even with the AC's backing), and the forecast for the rest of the conflict: Heavy military losses with a mild chance of Doom. :twisted: :lol:

Seriously though, I reccomend you try RPing the actual invasion attempt- give some of your soldiers names etc. Although you've managed to displease UE with your blatant act of n00bism (not helped by the fact that, thus far, AC hasn't confirmed an alliance with you in public).

Just sit back and watch the fireworks for now, I'd say...

(ooc:Yeah, it's all right. The SA-14's are relatively new, and should generally be quite profficient, they're a reasonably advanced weapon and all, but then a lot of them, such as the one fired, have been hauled across half of Africa on rickety trains and infantrymen's backs in some haste, so there's been little time to worry about keeping everything in proper order.)

African Commonwealth

The Dragonfly groundcrews were at first rather puzzled and soon alarmed by the return of just one out of the four ground attack aircraft sent out. Six trained pilots and a couple of million dollars worth of hardware had vanished in minutes, just a stone's throw away across the border.

Not far away, trains and transport aircraft continued to unload men and equipment. 130mm artillery, it had been decided, would deploy on the AC border near temporary Lusakan bases, and inside Gabon on friendly soil only where significant SAM and AAA cover was in place, and well within range of AC-based fighters and probably long range SAMs such as the S-400. If the invaders wanted to take out the entire resistance forces- Gabonaise, Lusakan, and Commonwealth, they'd have to move significant ground forces eventually- air power had its limits and carried its own risks, of course. Igomo wanted something with which to meet such an offensive, rather than to carry his own- no one wanted to bombard Gabonaise cities.

Booué

Another unfortunate platoon decimated. After the helicopters withdrew, the survivors knew they had to move, their position was betrayed. They didn't seem able to get far enough, however, as artillery and mortar fire fell in. When the dust cleared, ten of the platoon lay motionless, one of them groaning softly. One two men, one leaning heavily on the other's arm, had escaped thus far, and they were limping towards the city itself. By now friendly forces had to be there, they told eachother.

And they were right.

(ooc:What sort of situation are we facing in the town of Booué itself? We've got several thousand infantry coming in on a wide spread, many units moving more or less alone like the one just ripped apart, so they haven't really fire-support beyond hand and rifle grenades, light machineguns, RPG-7s, and SA-7 and 14 SAMs. After the first few hundred men have arrived the APCs, ZSUs and so on should be pulling in, but I dunno if we really need to fight for the town itself, or whether its going to be a case of walking in and then worrying about the firebase and air cover..
Oh, on another note, though it's probably not really important, I'm just wondering about the population of Gabon- in reality it's less than two million, I think.. are we assuming that to still be the case? I supposed that we would, and then afterwards, if Gabonaise or whatever is still an independent nation state, it would be allowed to grow like any other, maybe. Meh, like I say, probably not important now.)

OOC: I was under the impression that all the rail lines into Gabon had been cut by the Foreign Legion and the Gabonaise Guerrillas. I may be mistaken, in which case:

Franceville Airstrip

Four of Roycelandia's newest toys sat on the camouflaged runway... the Colonial Aircraft Factory "Stormcloud" Ground-Attack plane, recently flown in via Coral Palm Island and Port Gentil.

The Stormcloud boasted heavy armour, LOTS of rockets, and no less than 4 30mm cannon, as well as a rear turret with 2 20mm cannon and 2 .303MGs. Bombs, rockets, the works. (Try and imagine a modern cross between the Il-2 Sturmovik, the Boulton-Paul Defiant, and the A-10 Warthog- they'd look a lot like Spitfires to the Lusakans etc).

Their propellors increased in pitch as they were given their targets for this mission... rail lines, rail yards, river ports... effective immediately, all were to be blown to tiny pieces, denying their use to the Lusakan/AC/Cirdani forces.

Operation DragonLance was in effect...

ooc: what makes you think they haven't been? Lusakan trains are stopping inside AC.. unless you've declared war on AC and attacked their infrastructure we're fine. If you have done that, get ready for three million Lusakans in Nairobi, the CRRF, and Kampala by the weekend :)

We're going to enjoy tearing these absurd Roik toys to bits, mind. As romantic as they may seem, they were obsolete decades ago, and Lusakan AF technology is fairly modern, as we operate a small reasonably good airforce rather than a massive 3rd world one. 30mm cannon and their ammo weigh a lot, and do no good against modern, nimble, jets with multi-km range AAMs. Prop driven aircraft can have some impact in the modern world- the Argies used them in '82, but they were brought down by Stingers and the like.

Even Harriers are past it, now. They 'can' hover, but it eats fuel like crazy, and they can't go from any speed that isn't suicide in combat, to a hover in any period of time short enough to be of use in combat. I somewhat respect and admire Roycelandian military tech for it's romanticism, but it *is* obsolete. There are reasons no one else does it. There are reasons that supercruise is a significant advantage over high subsonic speeds, and against relatively low subsonic speeds.. well, your missile platforms are so slow! The weapons are launching off little momentum, and ours are launching off Mach 1+ platforms- even Lusakan jets are just going to eat the Roiks alive, I really feel. We'll appear out of nowhere, slam multiple missiles in, inside seconds, and be gone just like that. Your guys just can't do that to us. They can't keep pace, we can run their missiles out of range, we can take the platforms down with hand-held SAMs.

I'm just rambling on because I really need someone else to post next, and I'm drunk off ..ugh.. gin, of all things.

OOC: In the town itself there are probably quite a number of Free Gabon forces, and we've had a very concentrated propaganda effort which has included giving the locals Elias products and medicines so the citizens would for the most part be reasonably loyal to us. We have constant HMMWV patrols in the town as well as civil affairs troops druming up support. So while we may not have that many forces in the area it would be difficult just to walk in without serious fighting.

On another note, you will see in one of my last few posts that we fired some cruise missiles at various ril depots in AC so that might affect your deployment a little. As far as your air defences, do you actually have much more than MANPADS in Gabon/AC or are you just relying on AC's?

OOC: I'm well aware that technically the Spitfire is "obsolete"- we maintain the heavily updated version for RP purposes. And I respect the fact that everyone doesn't just blow the crap out of our Spitfires etc.

Anyway, Roycelandia has developed a completely modern Jet Fighter... called the "Jetfire", it's as modern as they get.

We're also introducing the CAF Lancaster II, a Jet-Powered version of the Lancaster.

Those with access to the Southern Africa Regional Forum will notice I have posted stats for the Roycelandian Aircraft etc there...

Roycelandia isn't getting rid of any of our aircraft or equipment, however... let's face it, a Lee-Enfield will kill someone just as dead as an AK-47, and use a lot less ammo in the process.

It's also worth noting that there is still a Prop-Driven Ground Attack plane in current service with the US, UK, and Australian Airforces (The AC-130U), and that a Spitfire can still fly faster and hold more ammo/rockets than a Helicopter Gunship. An IAe Sunderland can do the same job as a Herc, albeit landing on water, and a Bren Gun is still as efficient today as it was in 1941.

I know that Prop-driven aircraft were used in Vietnam (I've seen pictures of F-51 Mustangs, along with the McDonnel Douglas Raider etc). For this particular conflict, I don't see the Roycelandian Airforce as been outdated or obsolete. However, if we were to go toe to toe with the AC (for example), then we'd fully break out the Jetfires, as well as the MiG-21s, Mirage IIIs, F/A-18s etc that we've acquired from various places.

Our tanks are all modern, BTW.

And no, we aren't attacking the AC at all. Yet.

Let's face it, we in Roycelandia are hopeless romantics, harking back to a "Golden Age" of Imperialism. And I will point out that Roycelandia has quite a nifty little Overseas Empire, and Lusaka has what... Zanzibar? :D

For the time being though, I think it's a fairly safe assumption that pretty much every railway line, river port, and rural airstrip not under Imperial Coalition Command in Eastern Gabon is a smoking ruin after a visit from the IAF... :D

AC/Gabonaise Border air defense stations

Following the Elias' air strikes, all AV-400, Patriot and S-300 systems are on high alert with orders to strike all hostile air forces attacking infrastructure in the Commonwealth, but also everywhere they can reach within Gabonaise.

ooc

Royce>>

I'm not sure Roycelandia knows of the extent to which the AC has fortified itself IC, this is just so it won't come without a precedent when I launch a hail of SAMs at any of your ground attack craft I can reach!

EDIT: I've worked out ranges at which I can score hits on aircraft within Gabonaise. Measured in kilometers west or southwest of the AC/Gabonaise border, the S-300 can hit craft within 90 kilometers, the patriots at 155 kilometers, and the AV-400 at a whopping 196 kilometers! Note that Roycelandian air commanders probably are not aware of these ranges, and as such your ground attack and fighter craft may well meet some nasty surprises inland... This goes for United Elias or Rhodesian planes as well if you come this close to the AC, of course.

AC: No worries, thanks for the heads-up!

sorry for interfiering. i'm just trying to get in a good rp sorry ;/ have fun

OOC: So, in theory.. if AC had SAMs in the right place, he could just about reach skies around Ovan, and *almost* Booué, with the AV-400, at least. That works out well, because it means that until now, most Lusakan forces deployed have been under that air defence umbrella, and that with the attack on Booué we're moving outside of it for the first time in any real strength.

Apologies by the way if I went on a bit too much in that last post, Roycelandia, I was a bit tipsy :)

I suppose my deployment just inside AC is affected.. as much as AC says it is, I'll consider for now that reinforcements may be slowed down a little, and if we get the impression that serious chaos has been suffered in western AC's transport infrastructure, then I'll make some real supply problems start to hit our forces in the field.

As for air defences- well, we're coming in with infantry across a wide front, falling in on Booué (from slightly west of Ovan down to the Ogooué river, so the north and east of the town) the first few hundred men who're on the outskirts of the town now have SA-7 and SA-14, but right behind with the main body of the infantry advance there are SA-9 Gaskin (9M31M missiles with improved lock-on mechanism and higher ceiling), four SA-4 Battalions, such as the one recently engaged in a battle near Okandja. These are probably the largest 'convoy' assets Lusaka has in the country, comprising three SA-4 launchers, one or two Long Track radar vehicles, four to six munitions 6x6 trucks, and eight ZSU-23-4 Shilka. Often one or two BTR-152K or OT-62B APCs are attached directly for the defence of the battalion.

(We deployed three Air Defence Brigades to Gabon, and may deploy a fourth soon. Each has three SA-4 Battalions, so that was nine battalions- one has been more or less destroyed, one is at Belinga, one Mékambo, one Makokou, one at Ovan, leaving four advancing on Booué.)

By now the SA-4s themselves are probably close enough to engage targets over Booué, in theory anything up to eight targets with sixteen missiles, between them all. Not the most modern, but they're the slightly updated form of the missile, I forget their exact designation.

IC: Booué

The first LRAC platoon to reach the town, so they assumed. Looking around and radio contacting a few nearby units, Sgt.Williams -a man keen to become the first white officer in his battalion in six years- came to the conclusion that if any other Lusakans were at Booué, they weren't coming from the east.

"Serge! Guests! Ah, no! The friendly kind!" The rest of the platoon lowered their rifles. Private Sword -he found it hard to advance beyond that rank, despite several years of good service, strange- had run into a trio of armed natives down by the river, and they were purporting to be part of the Republican resistance.

There followed some discussion on whether the Gabonaise could be trusted, but Sword seemed quite sure. They even had a republican flag.

That flag was soon raised high as the fifteen men shuffled from the trees and into the outskirts of Booué, the vulture-bearing green of the United African Republic flying on the same branch, below the tricolour.

Lastoursville, Gabon

Roycelandian Hercules Aircraftdropped off the last of the soldiers, including, somewhat conspicuously, some Imperial Guard Redcoats on "Peacekeeping Duties" into the town. The Imperial Foreign Legion had been there for quite some time, training the locals and so forth.

The local airfield had been "volunteered" for the use of Roycelandian/Rhodeisian/UE Strike aircraft, as well as Hercules Aircraft and so on.

The the Lusakans were coming was beyond doubt. That they would also be in for a huge surprise when they arrive was also beyond doubt... Tanks had been flown in especially for the coming battles, and to provide increased fire support.

The Imperial Government was not going to allow the Lusakans- or the AC, for that matter- to gain the upper hand in Gabon. This "African Nationalist" crap had gone quite far enough, the ultra top secret memo had said. Stop it right now, and try to take prisoners in the process. Prisoners are good for PR...

News stations across Africa

Today, President General Mshone Ndelebe announced that he has postponed the elections six months, mere three months before the elections were to proceed. In a 'meet the press' segment, he said that the Commonwealth is unofficially, if not officially, at war with western imperialist forces that may or may not be collaborating with imperial territories in Africa under Roycelandia or possibly Rhodesia. This was done to calm fears after United Elias naval forces destroyed military and civilian transport facilities in the northern Commonwealth utilizing advanced cruise missiles.

After that, he affirmed that a peaceful solution is being sought with the dictatorship of United Elias, and that elections WILL be held eventually. While his decision was met with some critique(most vocally from the African Democratic Union and the African People's Front), the population has shown considerable support for their president, and several large demonstrations against Western occupation of Gabon and in solidarity with AC and Lusakan soldiers fighting inside the republic, was held today in Kinshasa and Mbandaka. Anti-war sentiments are also present, but not nearly as represented as the anti-imperialist, pro-action crowd. Saner voices, especially in right-wing intellectual circles such as members of the Secular Party Youth and the African Right; has noted that this might not be as much about solidarity and against imperialism as their president claims - Rather, it is about consolidating an alliance with Lusaka and stabilizing a region already war-torn. One such critic was jailed by the Secular Party.

Rapport on damage extent from the Commonwealth dept. of Transportation
(copies shipped posthaste to Lusakan command HQ)

Cruise missiles have damaged one rail terminal so extensively that it cannot be used, and disabled many rails at another. Still, 40 terminals or so remain active in northwestern Commonwealth, and military transportation capabilities are not notably impaired.

Regards,
CDoT.

Orders given to military assets in the Northern Commonwealth

Deploy the Light Fifty for defense duty inside Lusakan-held Gabon. Consists of 150 rather obsolete WWII-era ADI-A5 "Blackhawk" tanks, based on the soviet T-34.

Maintain infrastructure for the 10 F//18 Hornet and 15 F-15E air superiority jets currently patrolling the Gabonaise/AC border, and instruct them to be ready for further raids inside Gabonaise. When extensive helipads are ready in northern Commonwealth airfields, deploy 150 ADI-AV-33 Dedicated Attack Helicopter gunships.

Force 12th, 13th and 14th airborne infantry to undergo prep course and maintain alert status for possible airdrop inside Gabonaise.

By my hand,
Mshone Ndelebe

Office of the President of United Elias, Baghdad


The President and the Defence Minister sat opposite each other on two mahogany chairs, the President smoking a cigar and the Minister sipping Vodka. No aides were present and it was an informal meeting between two old firends, with the small matter of a war to be discussed over chess and drinks.

"Sir, did I mention we recieved a back channel message from the Afrcian Commonwealth, asking for a casefire and negotiations?"

"No, means they're running scared."

"Which is why we should take them up on their offer."

"Why on earth, we're winning, right?"

"Yes sir but the natively run countries are getting busy, satellittes show men streaming across the border and planes and air defences being tasked along the border between the Commonwealth and Gabon.
In short, yes we are winning at the moment it seems, and I can promise victory but I can't promise a cheap victory and the casualty rate is going to increase every time we put another man in theatre. In the end we need to consider whether its worth spending 20+ billion and possibly quite a few lives to take a bit of jungle, I mean I'm not totally clear why we're even fighting anymore, we know the terrorists have left."

"I see...well maybe yor right, but if we negotiate shouldn't we hit them hard first to show that we have leverage."

"Well we're plannign a massive strik tongight against the border regions concetrating on targets inside teh Commonwealth but I thinmk we should postpone it."

"Why?"

"Sir, they know what we can do, thats why they're suing for peace. I would rather not fire a hundred million dollars worth of cruise missiles if we don't need to. I mean, we're in a strong position and we'll continue deploying aircraft so they know we're prepared to fight."

"Okay, deal, send a message back to Lusaka and the African Commonwealth, sayinfg we'll play ball."

"Thank you sir, I'll get right on it."

Backchannel Communiqué to Lusaka and AC

The government of United Elias has considered your offer of negotiating a settlement to end the war taking place in Eastern Gabon. While we possess the capability and courage to fight off your guerilla forces, it is our belief that in order to avoid futher suffering and prevent a humananitarian crisis we will co-operate and hold a peace conference to be held in a neutral country (Middle Congo?).

As a statement of goodwill on our behalf we have suspended attacks on targets across thr Gabonese border. However until a settlement is reached we reserve the right to attack any enemies who act in a hostile manner towards our forces within the country. Therefore a rapid response would be in your best interests.

Signed and Approved by the President of United Elias.

Personal missive from the president's desk to the United Elias' military command and to the UE President's office.

A guerilla war is unfortunately not all this conflict might come to if we do not stop and reason - Rest assured, however, that we will not allow Gabon to become a wasteland just to satisfy western interests((Assuming UE is a western nation)) - However, I understand the reason for this strike, and if there are concessions we can make in the form of apprehending and trying all GLA terrorists found in Gabon, we will offer them.

The alternative will be bloody, and by no means easy. Therefore, I extend my offer of negotiation and ceasefire. Middle Congo is by no means a neutral country, however. If your delegates are not prepared to travel to AC capital Kinshasa to talk(and trust us, the Secular Party can provide for their security!), we could find an european nation willing to host talks?

Warmest Regards,
Mshone Ndelebe,
5-starred CAF general,
President of the GS Republic of African Commonwealth.

New Lusaka City

"Calm yourself, friend!" Said the President, raising his palms. "I don't know what you're talking about! Now, tell me, what's all this cease-fire nonsense?"

"You didn't? You didn't? Then why have we received a communiqué from Elias indicating the opposite?" Secretary Miyanda shot the document across Igomo's desk, and continued pacing the office.

"Hm." Said Igomo after reading the communiqué. Perhaps our Commonwealth friends have been negotiating.. I don't know this.. will they fire on our forces in Gabon? Can we use this to reinforce the towns, at least?"

Miyanda shrugged, though he seemed placated by the President's apparent innocence of under-the-table dealing.

"All right, Secretary. We must make sure that our friend knows that he has our support. We can't go soft on this now, Lusakans have died for something, the (economic) boom has stopped for it, Gabon expects."

Not much later, Miyanda sent to Kinshasa of the scale of Lusakan support. The UARL alone was prepared to put two or more men into Gabon than the total of enemy forces deployed. While Lusaka was willing to pause, should it offer tactical or political advantage, the UARL was not prepared to lose momentum or to abandon the Gabonaise conflict.

Troop and supply trains continued to rumble across the Lusaka/AC border, bearing thousands of men a day.

Gabon

Lusakan units around Booué began to receive orders to advance no further than they already had, and that they did, though forward positions did continue to receive reinforcement.

To the south east, units continued moving as normal, many platoons now slipping into Okandja itself. The village to the north, as well as the Rhodesian airfield, were by now islands in a Lusakan sea. No attacks were made as yet, though it was likely that any attempt to extract or supply these positions, or to operate from them, would attract serious fire.

Eastern Gabon

Ten EA-220s (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=88103&highlight=) were now over Eastern Gabon and having been ordered to suspend strikes on the African Commonwelath, they were once again hunting down Lusakan conovys. In fact there were many, the EA-60 electrnoic warfare aircraft had identified six air defence sites, later identified by the Global Hawk as all being ground convoys of SA-4s. Destruction of organic air defence was a mjor priority, and the life expectancy of the air defence troops would not be high.

Flying in five different pairs, the stealth bombers would hit each one in turn, releasing wind corrected munition dispensers from 6 miles out and at high altitude, fourteen per aircraft, all releasing anti-personnel/anti-armour cluster munitions as they neared the ground. The planes would fly with their radars off and chances for detection were extremely small. In most cases the giant SA-4s would explode after being struck by hot metal fragaments, furthering the damage and ensuring total obliteration of the fire control and early warning radars.

In their first combat sortie, the squadron of EA-135s (http://www.nationstates.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=130193) would maintain combat air patrol near Okandja, just in case the Lusakan's Air Force once again decided to charge into Gabonese airspace.

ooc

UE>> In the event that bomber planes strike Lusakan units in the northwestern Gabon where the AC combined division is also located, they may perceive this an attack on them, discharging high-altitude SAMs and cannons from the Avenger HMMWVs and ADI-A72 AA artillery tracks against the bombers - I am not entirely sure where the air defense batallions are located, so it's up to you and Lusaka if they would be nearby, really.

Encoded Express Communiqué to Lusaka and United Elias

A complete ceasefire is of the essence. Continued UEAF bombing of Lusakan positions undermine the possibility of negotiations - We implore the UE forces to stop bombing operations or relations with AC WILL rapidly detetoriate. We also thank the UAR of Lusaka for maintaining a state of non-agression while we try for ceasefire. Please answer soon, as tension is critical!

Communiqué to Lusaka and the African Commonwealth

United Elias has already ceased attacks inside the African Commonwealth in an effort to display our willingness to move towards a diplomatic settlement to this escalating conflict. However, in return we have had no response. Lusakan troops continue to flow into the country at an alarming rate and this is unacceptable. As of now, it seems that your nations are taking advanatage of the suspension of our air stirkes to bring in more troops and material to fight our troops and material. This is not an attitude which will result in peace only more needless casualties.

In order for us to stop striking at your forces within Gabon, we demand that all Lusakan and Commonwealth troops observe a ceasefire with immediate effect and do not advance any further. This must be associated with the closing of the Gabon-AC border and the Commonwealth must ensure that no further troops enter Gabon across its frontier.

In exactly twelve hours we will observe a tactical pause in our air strikes for exactly one hour. If, after this period, your combatants are still entering Gabon, we will immediaetley reassume our efforts to destroy these forces and we will be forced to deploy more aircraft and more troops to counter the increasing threat, resulting in escalation of the conflict. I am assuming that none of our governments wish for any more casualties whether it be civilian or military and I personnaly implore you to observe the cease-fire proposal so negotations can begin.

Signed and Approved by the President of United Elias.