1 October, 2010
Ash had been hoping for a smooth deployment for a couple of days after returning to Sand Island. Karma decided to bite her in the ass for hoping for the best. Manning the combat air patrol roster alongside Nagase, ten minutes after they had departed from the runway, they detected bandits approaching the island.
"Bandit, 310 for 200, level." Samurai called it out for her pilot.
"Tally." Blaze saw. "Edge, on me, 800 knots."
"Copy." Nagase followed Blaze as they flew out to meet the contact. The bandit was emitting radar signals. The Mudhen's onboard computer registered the bandit as a Yuktobanian reconnaissance drone. The drone entered the effective range of Blaze and Nagase's AMRAAMs.
"Edge, fox 3." Nagase lofted a missile at the drone. Her AMRAAM closed the distance with the drone and scored a direct hit. "Edge, splash one!"
"Picture's clear." Samurai said. The drone was operating on its own. That or the control station was out of Wardog's range. In any case, Blaze and Nagase returned to their patrol pattern until they were relieved by F-15Cs from Fencer Squadron.
2 October, 2010
Chopper and Grimm encountered a similar situation the following day while on patrol. Two reconnaissance drones approaching Sand Island straight from the west. The result of the incursion was the same as yesterday.
"Chopper, fox 3."
"Archer, fox 3."
Two dead drones and the two pilots went on with their day. To most of the pilots this seemed like an uncanny coincidence, but men and women in air conditioned offices on the mainland who had access to a wider source of information knew that these appearances were connected. An increase of SOSUS activity, a massive surge in drone flights close to the mainland, amphibious assault groups returning to Yuktobanian ports to pick up marine battalions, inland airfields stockpiling long-range cruise missiles to soften up Osean defences. The Osean Intelligence Agency assessed that the most likely target of this operation was Sand Island.
This assessment was passed on to the president and secretary of defence. From the SecDef, this information was then passed onto OSECOM - Osean Command. Flag officers with fancy titles, shiny medals and expensive uniforms were convened from all four branches. Weather forecasts indicated clear skies from the fourth of October to the sixth, with thunderstorms predicted for a week past that date. If a Yuktobanian offensive was coming, it would be within that date bracket.
The conclusion of the flag officer meeting was clear. Sand Island was not to fall to the Yuktobanians under any circumstances. The immediate reaction battalions of the 82nd Airborne Division were activated and deployed to Sand Island within the hour, with two full Patriot batteries, a THAAD battery and associated counter-rocket systems to follow in the next twenty-four hours. Three of the six operational carrier battle groups assigned to the Third and Fifth Fleets were reassigned from their stations to Sand Island. A landing hangar dock and its complement of F-35B Lightnings was attached to the carrier groups. Escorting the LHD was a surface action group centred around the old battlecruiser OFS Hammer. Additional Navy support was provided in the form of a squadron of P-3 Orion anti-submarine warfare aircraft and an AEGIS Ashore battery. The Marine Corps provided a marine expeditionary unit and the F-35B squadrons embarked upon Wasp-class vessel OFS Butterfly. Finally, the OADF forward-deployed a fighter wing from McNealy, including two Raptor squadrons and a squadron of EF-111 Ravens providing electronic warfare support.
A battalion of the OMDF's Naval Construction Force, the infamous Seabees, showed up ahead of the main body of the force to make preparations for the arrival of five separate battle groups.
On 3 October, the OFS Hammer battlegroup and the OFS Butterfly assault group arrived at Sand Island, marking the first time in over a decade that units of the Osean Federation Marine Corps and Osean Maritime Defense Forces had been stationed at Sand Island's deactivated port.
3 October, 2010
Ash and Nagase found themselves watching the Butterfly as it entered the port. The Wasp-class, to which the Butterfly belonged, at its very basics looked like a giant box with a box on top of that box acting as the superstructure. The rear two thirds of the ship being shaped like a box had purpose however, that purpose being to maximise the amount of space inside the ship so that it could carry all the personnel and equipment of a Marine Expeditionary Unit.
"God, those things are so fucking ugly." Ash mused as the ship made its way to a pier.
"Look at the upsides, they're bringing a whole squadron of stealth fighters." Nagase looked at the positives. Ash conceded that Nagase had a point. Accompanying the Butterfly was a full complement of Osean Marine Corps F-35B Lightnings, Osea's newest fifth-generation aircraft that was meant to be a low-cost alternative to the F-22 Raptor, provide a stealth fighter for the Navy to replace their ageing F/A-18As and Cs, and to provide a replacement for the Marine Corps' Harriers.
"First combat debut… let's see how it goes." Ash said. The Lightning was very new to the fleet. The Marine Corps had just started receiving the Bravo model a couple of months prior. The Air Force Alpha and Navy Charlie models had been delayed from entering service owing to engine issues. Ironically, that meant that the Marine Corps were the first to receive the shiny new toys for a change.
"Remember all the news headlines the Lightnings brought up a couple of years ago?" Nagase asked her flight lead.
Ash scoffed. "All the morons who thought it wasn't as capable as the Viper or Eagle?"
"Mmm. I think they're about to put their money where their mouth is." Nagase said.
"Quite." Ash agreed. "Quite."
At its lowest point, Sand Island had a mere seven aircraft at its fingertips. With the massive wave of reinforcements, the number of deployable aircraft had risen all the way up to a hundred, with more than two hundred aircraft on top of that being provided by the carrier battle groups. The newly promoted war correspondent and former pilot Genette was walking around the base with a notepad, writing down his findings for an upcoming report he was mandated to give to the media. Genette's search brought him to what used to be Vampire Squadron's hangars, now occupied by F-15Cs. After failing to find any Eagle pilots to potentially interview, he turned around to find that one of the older pilots was standing around tapping a Strike Eagle.
"Good evening, Pops." Genette said as he approached Captain Buchner.
"Hello Genette." Pops faced Genette with a smile. "Can I help you with something?"
"If you've got a spare five minutes, I was hoping to ask you some questions in relation to the war effort." Genette explained his intentions.
"I believe you'd be better off corresponding with Captain Paige or Major Hamilton." Pops stopped what he was doing. "But I'd be happy to give you some answers to the best of my ability."
"Sweet." Genette displayed a pen. "First question. With the rumours of an attack planned sometime in the next few days, do you believe that the Yuktobanians could take over control of Sand Island."
Pops seemed to ponder for a few seconds. "I think it's a faint possibility. The Yuktobanians have demonstrated that they can reach out and attack the base at will. That said, with the recent reinforcements, Yuktobania would have to dedicate a considerable amount of its combat power to take the base, let alone keep it."
"Fair enough." Genette dotted down Pops' answer. "Second question. Do you think the base garrison has the resolve to defend against a major assault?"
"Absolutely." Pops seemed to think so. "For many of the people here, this island is their home. I can't speak for everyone, but I know many of the pilots stationed here would fight to their last breath to defend this island."
"Alright." Genette dotted that down. "Final question, bit of an odd one. The Wardogs are earning a reputation for being the people at the very front of the war effort, in no short part because of the loss of so many aircraft at this base. With the waves of reinforcements flowing in to cover that shortage, do you think they may start to lose that reputation?"
"I don't think so." Pops thought. "It'd be an unprecedented move if they were moved away from the frontlines, certainly it'd be a mistake. The pilots are amongst the most blooded on the front."
Genette noticed Pops deliberately avoided using the word experienced as he dotted down bullet points to use for an article later.
"Well, that's all I've got. Thank you for your time, captain." Genette thanked Pops for answering his questions.
"Not a worry. Take care." Pops returned the sentiment as the journalist walked away with his notes in hand. Pops returned to performing his checkup on the F-15E he was standing under.
One would think that with the imminent threat of an attack the atmosphere amongst the defenders of the island would have been tense and serious. Granted, that was most likely the current mood with the base's command staff, but in Wardog's squadron room, the atmosphere was relaxed. Wolf, Kitagawa, Chopper and Grimm were playing pool, Nagase was reading a book about the Wellow War of the 1960s, and Ash was catching up with the world on her phone. Virtually every news outlet on the continent was talking about the war, so she switched over to social media. A minute after she appeared online, Ash got a message from Jacob. She opened the chatbox.
JACOB: Tasty captain's bar.
Ash grinned and replied.
ASH: Tastes like paperwork and late night drinking.
JACOB: Sounds about right. I hear you've made a name for yourself.
ASH: My squadron has, not me specifically.
JACOB: If you say so. I also hear there's a storm coming.
ASH: Who says?
JACOB: A friend.
ASH: Right. Well, figuratively and literally. We're about as prepared as we can be.
JACOB: Brilliant. Try not to die.
Ash giggled.
ASH: Not in a million years.
ASH: Been up to much?
JACOB: Nothing interesting. I had an escort contract for some cargo in Estovakia a couple of days ago.
ASH: Humanitarian aid?
JACOB: Food shipment or something to that effect.
JACOB: Internet's pretty shit here, but that's whatever.
ASH: Anything lined up?
JACOB: Lending a hand to a Red Flag exercise in North Point. Aside from that, nothing in the short term.
ASH: Sounds like fun.
JACOB: Getting to bully recruits for a week? Definitely.
ASH: Definitely.
Jacob went offline on the app. Ash presumed he had gone to sort something out, so she moved on with the rest of her day and went back to scrolling through news outlets and social media.
4 October, 2010
On the morning of the fourth, the entire base was placed on alert. Apparently, one of the Orions of the submarine hunter squadron posted to the island had detected a submarine a short flight due west of the base. A second P-3C had been dispatched to assist the Orion with interdicting, engaging and sinking the submarine, while two Raptors were scrambled to provide air cover for the two anti-submarine aircraft. Wardog Squadron were all sitting on alert five in case the worst happened. It was too early in the morning to deal with this shit, so Ash leaned back in her seat, placed her helmet over her head and slept until the alert was called off.
The rest of the day was mostly uneventful until very late in the afternoon where Ash was called over to the briefing room. There weren't any pilots from the component squadrons, but all of the squad leaders and wing commanders were present. Hosting the briefing was an officer from the Office of Naval Intelligence, presumably a subject matter expert in the kind of threat they would be facing at some point. Once attendance was checked and everyone was accounted for, the rear admiral began.
"The main body of the Yuktobanian landing force left port twenty minutes ago. Based on their current speed and course, they'll be within operation range by sunrise tomorrow." The admiral explained the situation. "We will be conducting a counterattack against the enemy's force before they start launching strike missions. At 0500, all land-based combat aircraft will take off and move to staging point alpha by 0520. All Raptor, Lightning and Eagle squadrons will be providing air cover and screening for the attack force. The attack force will be made up of the Falcon and Mudhen squadrons, carrying Harpoon anti-ship missiles. At 0530, you will move to attack point Bravo for H-Hour, targeting the enemy's ships tasked in the air defence role. Once BDA has been confirmed against the escorts, the attack force will rotate back to Sand Island to rearm for another strike at 0545, while the air cover force will remain on station to cover the Navy's attack force, also at 0545. The Navy attack force, as well as the surface attack group centred on the battlecruiser, will be attacking the amphibious force itself. Before I continue, are there any questions?"
The admiral looked around the room for five seconds. The squadron leaders were writing down notes to convey to their subordinates, but nobody had questions yet.
"We anticipate that the enemy will be launching massed cruise missile attacks against the base in the leadup to the operation. In addition to this, the submersible carrier Scinfaxi was confirmed to have slipped harbour along with the rest of the enemy fleet. We anticipate that she will be taking part in the operation. If you have a targeting solution, take it, but understand that the priority targets are the enemy landing ships. Are we clear?"
"Yup yup!" The answer was unanimous.
"Excellent." The admiral went onto specific mission timings. "OFS Hammer will be-"
Large scale missions with dozens of points and alternative plans gave Ash a headache, but she managed to stay awake enough to get down all of the information that was pertinent to her and her squadron. Half an hour later, the briefing was concluded. Ash went upstairs to the Wardog room.
"Listen up!" Ash called out to grab everyone's attention. "D-Day is tomorrow. We've got a mission plan to go through."