NationStates Jolt Archive

The River Plate Estuary...
After a long period of wait, the Neuvo Rican empire had received the chance it needed to expand within South America and make a large step towards having a unified state.

The two Neuvo Rican Navy Bismarck II Class Battleships Hidalgo and Leon crept into the estuary, around them a group of Devlin Flight II class destroyers. Further out at sea, several CGNs and SSGNs had maneuvred into position, whilst several Vampire, Wasp and Ynoga assault carriers geared up for an aerial assault. Supporting operations were 5 Almirante Class Supercarriers, whilst in between all of the major groups other assault vessels and frigates buzzed. On the battleships, the 15 inch turrets rotated into position and the bombardment began. Up and down the coastline of the estuary, multiple explosions broke out. Smoke was rising over each side of the river, as the 15 inch shells ripped apart anything that moved. Overhead, formations of F-29A fighters and F-18E fighter bombers roared.

As the barrage began to move further inland, the assault vessels came into operation. Landing craft began to head for the coast. On board, marines said prayers and re checked assault rifles for the hundredth time. The main bulk of the force would head north into Uraguay, and crush what little resistance was expected back up against the Roman border. To the far south, bombers based out of the South Orkney islands were beginning to systematically obliterate every military installation within range.

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There was a deep rumble as the landing craft thundered ashore. Somewhere from the sky, two missiles streaked down and hit something just beyond the visible range. The marines charged ashore and dived for cover. Ahead, infantry units were giving the marines hell, but in from the sea came four AH-1Z attack helicopters, which made the ground dance as the bullets peppered the top of the beach. The marines pushed on. Commander Vasquez led the way, beyond the rim of the beach, the hinterlands looked like hell. Smoke covered the field as everything lay torn and twisted from the battleship barrage.

Someone next to him trod on a mine, showering Vasquez with parts of an ex-marine and clods of earth, before diving for cover as a company strength force of infantry began to move forward. Attacking uphill, the attackers stood little chance, and were mowed down by the crack shots. Overhead, enemy fighter squadrons were beginning to arrive...

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Wing Commander Rialto was at the head of the one of the 6 naval air squadrons in the battle. More and more red symbols were coming onto the radar screen of his F-18E, as enemy fighters flooded in from inland bases. Within seconds, an enemy was on his tail - he moved his fighter around, and turned it back to the sea in an Immelmann maneuvre. Either the fighter following him was stupid or not paying proper attention, as the two aircraft roared in low over one of the air defense destroyers in the River Plate estuary. The enemy dissapeared from radar, and with a clean radar screen Rialto headed back into the fray.

Rialto loosed off two AIM-120 missiles at an enemy ground attack aircraft that was harrassing forces on the beachead before turning back. Down to his right, four F-29 naval fighters flew in low and fast, releasing a series of cluster bombs over the enemy targets behind the beach.

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On the beach, hundreds of vehicles were now beginning to land. More powerful SAM units were now unloaded, and enemy resistance in the sky was beginning to thin out. A Belem class assault cruiser beached itself, and keel doors were swung open, to pour another several hundred marines onto the beach, coupled with the powerful gun and air defense the ship provided. Vasquez looked on as Stingray light tanks began to secure the beach once and for all. Far out to sea, something was pouring rockets onto the ground behind the beach. Helicopters were everywhere overhead, some firing at targets behind the beach, others simply unloading troops.

Tanks were beginning to push onwards now, with marines moving in behind. Urban targets had been assigned, and the task force was already moving out. Back at the beach more and more troops began to arrive - including army units, which would provide a heavier punch when the time came. Engineers also began to construct helipads and pads for VTOL fighters. All the military needed now was an airport. Supplies were not a problem, the Neuvo Rican navy was out in force around the south Brazillian coast, protecting the various vessels that were transporting the valuable supplies.

When Neuvo Rican operations began against the Varsolan territories of Argentina, Uraguay, and Paraguay, the Empire was all too anxious to help. A deal worked out with the Neuvo Rican government would give the Empire two precious lands south of the Yucatán state in Mexico in exchange for their assistance against Varsola in these territories. The Empire would make good on that promise and when word came that the Neuvo Ricans had opened up on the territories with air, land, and sea assets, the Empire responded in due force. Formations of Imperial Layartebian Air Force aircraft were put in the air immediately. In assistance with the Neuvo Rican assault, the Empire was working with the Roman government to secure flyover rights. They were going to be difficult to obtain but the only way for the Empire to get there, without wasting fuel and hours, was to fly over Roman territory in Bolivia and through Brazil. There was an air route through Neuvo Rican Brazil but if the Empire could fly over Bolivia it would cut their trip in half and give them much quicker on-station times. Still, for now, since approval had yet to come, the Empire would be flying through Neuvo Rican Brazil.

The first group of sorties saw twelve B-7B Incubus and twelve B-4A Magnum bombers aloft with escorts from twenty-four F-24A Knightowls and twelve F-25B Firefoxes. It was a small strike platform but the mission was simple and it didn't need a lot of aircraft. Between the twenty-four bombers, they carried 576 AGM-203 Imsdal missiles, powerful scramjet powered cruise missiles. The 576 were tasked against twelve airports, eleven command centers, two government buildings, and thirteen SAM sites.

Tasked against the two government buildings were six missiles, four AGM-203A Imsdals with 1,200 pound AUP warheads and two AGM-203E Imsdals with EMP warheads. The EMP warheads would hit first, followed by the penetrating missiles.

Tasked against the thirteen SAM sites were one hundred and four missiles, fifty-two AGM-203D Imsdals equipped with 920 M74 APAM submunitions and fifty-two AGM-203C Imsdals equipped with a blast-fragmentation warhead containing 58,825 10 millimeter spheres, made of Depeleted Uranium. Four of each type were tasked per site. The submunitions would work to destroy the mobile launchers and other systems while the blast-fragmentation warheads tore everything to shreds. Their DU spheres would be flying through the air in excess of Mach 10. The goal was to ignite the missiles, destroy the radars, pepper the command vehicles so that their wiring was torn to shreds, basically to shower the area like a shotgun.

Tasked against the eleven command centers were two hundred and twenty-six missiles, one hundred and twenty AGM-203A Imsdals, eleven AGM-203E Imsdals, and ninety-five AGM-203C Imsdals. The missiles would be assorted per site but each site would get a single EMP blast before the penetrating and blast-fragmentation warheads detonated, blowing up the sites to nothing.

Lastly, the twelve airports were set to get two hundred and forty missiles, forty-eight AGM-203B Imsdals loaded with 240 BLU-123 IISM incendiary submunitions, which would pass over the tarmacs and fuel depots, igniting fires that would destroy grounded aircraft and the fuel reserves of the airbases, twelve AGM-203E Imsdals, eighty-four AGM-203C Imsdals, thirty-six AGM-203D Imsdals, and sixty AGM-203A Imsdals. The airbases would be shaken to their very core as five AGM-203As, four AGM-203Bs, seven AGM-203Cs, three AGM-203Ds, and one AGM-203E slammed into them, destroying hardended command bunkers, radar masts and antenna, the runways, aircraft on the tarmac, the ammunition and fuel storage bunkers, hangars, and the control tower(s). Nothing would survive the punishing strike. The Imsdal missiles had an impressive range of 1,000 miles and they attacked from a dive at Mach 7 for maximum penetration or as a fly-over in excess of Mach 3.5, allowing them to dispense their munitions. They could fly high at 85,000 feet or low at 500 feet, making them nearly impossible to shoot down.

In addition to the Imsdals, the bombers also sported other weaponry as well. Inside the twelve B-4A Magnums were forty-eight AGM-88F AARGM Block I anti-radiation missiles, for use against search radars and other high-performance radars and forty-eight AGM-205A AMESM missiles, which were excellent replacements to the xGM-84 Harpoon and xGM-180 Harpoon II. The AMESM missiles had a range of 200 miles and were equipped with deadly 800 pound penetrating blast-fragmentation warheads, that hit their targets at Mach 3.8 in a terminal dive. For ships, a single AMESM could take out a large frigate with one strike, two or three for a large cruiser, a half dozen for a battleship. The AMESM was a deadly weapon and that was for sure. However, shipping wasn't its only target. It worked excellently against ground targets, especially bunkers and other buildings. While the forty-eight AARGM missiles would go after their radars, the AMESM missiles would be tasked against command and control targets and other bunkers, adding to the penetrating strike.

Inside the twelve B-7B Incubus bombers were two hundred and sixteen AGM-205A AMESM missiles, to be sent against command and control targets, bunkers, radar sites, and other important targets.

Between the twenty-four bombers, they also carried an array of air-to-air missiles for self-defense. They had ninety-six AIM-204A Escape missiles and ninety-six AIM-120D-9 AMRAAM missiles inside the Incubus bombers but the Magnum's carried none, mainly because they had their air-to-ground weaponry inside of the bays.

The escort fighters, on the other hand, carried more than enough air to air missiles to keep up with the whole of them. The F-24A Knightowls carried ninety-six AIM-204A Escape missiles, ninety-six AIM-120D-9 AMRAAM missiles, and ninety-six AIM-202A Dodsengel missiles. The F-25B Firefoxes carried ninety-six AIM-204A Escape missiles, ninety-six AIM-179C BVRAAM missiles, sixty AIM-202 Dodsengel missiles, and twenty-four AIM-216A Halycon missiles.

The whole strike force of sixty aircraft, extremely stealthy, assembled in the air at 70,000 feet and proceeded through their waypoints at 600 miles per hour, a speed of Mach 0.91. They were below the speed of sound and even though all of the aircraft were capable of supersonic flight, in the case of the F-25 and the B-7, high supersonic flight, as long as they stayed underneath the speed of sound, they were undetectable. Because they were underneath the speed of sound, they created no shockwaves, did not fall victim to excessive heating, which would ionize and create a large radar return, and they made no audible noise. The aircraft were practically invisible and in the night sky, they were even harder to detect.

They passed through Neuvo Rican airspace without much incident and approached Varsolan airspace soon enough. They would be attacking targets throughout Uruguay and Argentina, with most of the strikes concentrated around Buenos Aires and Montevideo. Neuvo Rican airstrikes would complement these and it promised to be a large battle. The missiles were planned to be launched at ranges between 600 and 900 miles from the targets. Follow on strikes, once clearance through Bolivia was granted, would concentrate on Paraguay as well.

OOC: To prevent fraticide & confusion, what sector do you want me to concentrate on?

Word came down through the ranks quickly: Rome had granted flyover rights. The ILAF was in business and the only condition was that the aircraft remain above 32,000 feet and not carry any radiological weapons. The Empire wasn't in the business of using nuclear weapons so close to home or in a conventional war so that concern was easily dismissed for the Roman Senate. With this, the Empire prepared for full honoration of its promise to the Neuvo Rican government. With 888 missiles in the air, making their way towards targets around Buenos Aries and Montevideo, the Empire set off for another round of air strikes.

.:. bump .:.