The Wargamer

Editor's Note: This is the continuation of an AAR first published yesterday.  This is the second and final part.  This article is also available in Adobe PDF format.

1304:58 Hours Local (20:02 Game Time Remaining)

The Phantoms “virtually” maneuvered into a Split-S position and issued snap-shots on rolling out. They caught the MiG 21’s unaware. The relief was audible in Elvis Flight’s transmission. “Oh, beautiful! Splash 2 Fishbeds, Waistcoat Leader!”

Now for a lock-on and volley at the remaining two Frescos, formerly Bogey 4. The Control + right click was issued. “Waistcoat Leader to Coyote Flight. Change assignment. Select Mil throttle and vector north. Engage Bogeys 5 and 6. Elvis Flight looks clear.”

Coyote Flight veered according to the Strike Commander’s right click. A lock-on for Bogey 5 would be seconds away.

1305:05 Hours Local (19:55 Game Time Remaining)

Elvis Flight launched two of its last three Sparrows. “Waistcoat Leader: this is Elvis Flight. Splash one MiG 17! “The voice betrayed its stress. “This will be close. Accepting the order now. Fox 1! That’s trash on Fresco 2! We’re Winchester on Sparrows and head-on!”

Elvis Flight now lay beyond the Strike Commander’s control. Though its weapons selection had defaulted to Sidewinders on depletion of its Sparrows and the enemy sat within its small red firing arc, the AIM 9E was a rear aspect heat seeker. Unless Elvis Flight could somehow force the overshoot and angle back for orders, a dog fight with guns was about to ensue that only the artificial intelligence of both sides could resolve.

Good thing too, for with Elvis Flight about to mix it up and Coyote Flight still to make lock-on with its bogeys up north, Cheetah Flight reported another SAM near miss as the battlefield changed again. A new SAM site adjacent to the “The Bridge” far to the east powered up and launched at Cheetah Flight afresh.

Two clear fronts to this mission had clearly developed. It was “MiG Day” in the north and most definitely “SAM Day” down south. Bai Thuong airbase would not scramble this afternoon.

“Waistcoat Leader to Waistcoat Flight. Fox 3!” An ARM 78A roared towards SAM Site 2 at “The Bridge” too.

1305:12 Hours Local (19:48 Game Time Remaining)

Across the strike frequency, Waistcoat Leader could hear the swirling dog fight of which Elvis Flight was now a part. The chatter was crisp, the commands urgent. All in a “virtual” arena where aerodynamics and not missiles held sway.

The lone MiG 17, agile and built for close combat, “virtually” pulled extreme G’s, jinked and undercut against the full flight of Phantoms as they, with their heavier weight, employed thrust in vertical scissors and broad scoops in an effort to force the overshoot. Short staccato bursts raced against the roar of engines, and then the cry came.

“May Day! May Day! Elvis 3 is hit and in a spin!” A brilliant explosion followed. “Elvis 3 is gone!”

Static momentarily filled the package’s helmets, then a matter of fact “virtual” command. “Elvis Leader to Elvis 2. Follow me in.” 

“I see no chutes, Elvis Leader.” It was a thought Elvis 4 added, almost in an undertone. The Strike Commander shifted his gaze to the lower corner of his console and saw the Victory Bar grow in favor of the VPAF. Three seconds later, the strike frequency crackled with a clipped report.

1305:15 Hours Local (19:45 Game Time Remaining)

“Waistcoat Leader: this is Elvis Flight. All clear”.

In its brief moment of elation, the Fresco let its concentration slip. It made an unlucky turn, giving Elvis leader a positional advantage. The Phantom’s 20mm Vulcan took its opportunity, peppering the MiG’s hydraulics along the fuselage. It flipped in a mechanical sigh and went down like a rock.

Everything within the space of two red and blue icons on a map was gripped in a “virtual” close combat that no human could control. “Waistcoat Leader to Elvis Flight. Reduce speed to Cruise. Hold current vector and set CAP against Bogey 6. Coyote Flight is in action to your west.” Elvis Flight accepted the throttle setting. Its three Phantoms “virtually” took up pyramid formation and maintained its current course. It’s next potential conflict, Bogey 6, was seventeen nautical miles north and closing.

“Waistcoat Leader: this is Coyote Flight. We have lock on to Bogey 5. “Fox 1!”