Duel With the Veltro After Action

Same day, second game! (see HERE for the first game).

I had remembered to bring along a second scenario in case the guys wanted to game more after flying in the skies over Britain. Four of us could indeed stay (understanding wives), so I was able to put my version of "Protecting Them All" on the board, updated based on the information I could find from historic accounts, called "Duel With the Veltro." It features the Red Tails of the 302nd Fighter Squadron, part of the 332nd Fighter Group, known (well) after the war as the Tuskegee Airmen.  

One of the two Mustang elements. Those P-51s really stand out with their red trim and tails!

The game featured a damaged B-24 making its way home, being jumped by a pair of Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana Macchi C.205s. Screaming down from above was a flight of P-51Cs, led by Alfonza Davis. The bomber and the Italians were at Medium CAB, while the American Fighters stated at TAL 6, Medium Top CAB. It would be a case of timing to see if the Americans could dive fast enough to engage the pair of Macchis before the latter could destroy the wounded bomber.

In need of protection

The Italians closed in, but had a tough time against the bomber - perhaps the veteran aircrew rating I gave the bomber, with its already impressive robustness 4 rating, was overkill.

A pair of Macchis close in.

The Americans were able to power dive, then steep dive (with just one failing the resultant aircrew check - thank goodness for no doubles), then power dive, which actually caused the Yanks to overshoot the Macchis. But upon reverse the American veteran pilot plopped on the tail of the green Macchi at two hex range and...well that was that! 

But then there is but one Macchi.

The veteran Macchi skillfully maneuvered around the bomber, but then came in range once again of the veteran Mustang and within just a few turns it was pretty much game over. The second pair of Italian fighters, entering on Turn 3 at low altitude, had no impact by the time we decided to call the game.

Escorting the Liberator, Red Tail style.

A few takeaways on this scenario - first, the bomber probably started too far into the board (eight hexes). Changing that to five hexes. Second, since I wrote the scenario I have done a lot more reading on the 1st Fighter Squadron of the ANR - it was filled with skilled pilots, so that means the green Macchi is going to skilled. Third, a veteran bomber aircrew - a bit too much. Dropping that rating to skilled. And lastly, in order to get the second pair of Macchis to have a possible impact, they enter on Turn 2 - no longer will a random die roll determine its arrival.

The short game and the fact I was playing yielded fewer piccies.

Planes - Flight Deck Decals painted by Misc. Minis.

Decals - Misc. Minis and Sieben Schwaben Spiele.

Mat - Deep Cut Studio.

99th Fighter Squadron Scenarios

Ohhhh, it was bad, very bad. Spending too much time at the I-94 Enterprises booth during DayCon led to several different purchases. Poor Chris, he probably thought I was being an inconsiderate chap by not combining all my purchases into one transaction, but being under the influence (of others, not alcohol) I kept going back and sniping items. The first trip was a pair of painted Bearcats and the Star and Pyramid scenario book. Then the second drive by was to grab the Over the Channel and Days of Glory scenario books. The final stop yielded six Packard Merlin-powered P-40F models - which for some reason I had no idea I-94 even made - for some fun gaming in either the southwest Pacific or in the Med. 

An olive drab P-40L

In doing a little more research into the uses of the P-40F, I could go a few different ways. While some did see service in the Pacific, seemingly they were more prevalent in North Africa. Some were used by the 99th Fighter Squadron (which would later form part of the 332nd Fighter Group, known later as the Tuskegee Airmen), along with P-40L models, the differences being mostly in armament and a bit of a reduction in some armor on the L model. Plus, color schemes on the 99th's Warhawks varied between the British Dark Earth/Middle Stone/Azure Blue and the American Olive Drab 41/Light Grey 43. So within this squadron I can use a mix of plane colors and two models of P-40s at the same time.

Decals! Oh no, no one makes decals for the 99th - but I have sent off a request to Blue Falcon Hobbies to see if a sheet could be generated. Heck, prior to this week I did not even know of the existence of this firm, which makes a variety of products, most notably a slew of decals for World War II and modern squadrons in various scales, including 1/300. Fingers crossed for a positive response!

Of course the next step was to check AI to see what scenarios could be generated. There are already a few in the Battles Above scenario book, but I always want more. AI stepped up and provided several air to air and air to ground scenarios. Some of course will need to be scaled for playability purposes. There is also a lot of flak, as there probably should be. While one does not want flak to dominate what is mostly an air to air combat game, I do not believe we use nearly enough anti-aircraft as we should. AA can always be handled by the referee/game host if one is being used.

Stats for some of the various P-40 models

One area I am having difficulty in determining is what model of P-40 was being used for any given scenario. Some sources indicate that both the F and L models were being used, with the L being predominant. However, sources indicate only a "handful" or "small number" of F models were present. To handle this, every scenario will utilize a random die roll to determine the model of P-40. 

I will be providing scenarios for the above over the next several weeks. One already makes its appearance on the Downloads page.

Work in Progress

Have I mentioned the brush and decal work that Kevin at Misc. Minis is exceptional? Here is a work in progress picture of yet another project I am having commissioned.

I would say he is capturing the feel of the 332nd Fighter Group rather well! These planes will be used in my revamped version of "Protecting Them All" from the Battles Above 1 scenario book, which I call "Duel With the Veltro."

I cannot wait to see the work he does on the ANR opponents!

Another Scenario

Admittedly, my newest scenario has a lot in common with the "Protecting Them All" scenario in the Battles Above 1 scenario book. To be honest I used it as the basis, but, upon reviewing various historical sources, I believe some of the details of the original scenario were missing or in need of updating. Then I took my interpretation to a different level by checking the facts using AI and have created a scenario that has more of a grounding in the history of the engagement that took place on July 16, 1944 between the fighter group later known (well after World War II) as the Tuskegee Airmen and Mussolini's Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana, although it is still unconfirmed the number of Italian fighters that were present.

Flight Deck Decals 3D prints painted by Misc. Minis.

On the Downloads page you will now find "Duel With the Veltro," a game ideal for four or five players. Due to damage a lone B-24, after bombing Weiner Neustadt, is making its way home, stalked by at least a pair of Macchi C.205Vs. Arriving just in time is a flight of P-51Cs from the 302nd Fighter Squadron. 

Commission Time

I am finally getting around to sending off some commission work to Miscellaneous Miniatures. While I am becoming proficient in my painting skills, my limitations are mostly solid colored aircraft, and what I am sending off to have painted are, for the most part, planes that need more brush work, or ones that go along with planes Misc. Minis has painted for me in the past and I want to keep consistency.

Vietnam - While I had bought the decals needed from Misc. Minis and Sieben Schwaben, and thought to tackle this one on my own, the amount of decals having to go on each American aircraft is something I just do not want to deal with applying so many and am completely happy allowing someone else to do that work. 

Tuskegee - I have owned the planes and the ANR decals for quite some time for a scenario in the Battles Above 1 scenario book and I think it will make a great convention game with four fighters on each side and a crippled B-24 that I could run. I am changing the scenario a bit, bringing it more inline with the historical encounter. 

Slovak-Hungarian - I have a pair of Heinkel He 70s that will allow me to bring another scenario to the table top. I think that will take care of my collection for this war.

Burma - I have a collection of Allied and Japanese planes for this ongoing project. I decided to expand upon the handful of scenarios I could host previously, so in the future more Flying Tigers games will be making an appearance on the tabletop and the blog.

The P-47N - Over the Straits of Taiwan

I am guessing the blue used on the top of the fuselage to reduce glare really should be flat black as I have never seen blue used for that purpose.

I have been working on a series of scenarios for the Second Taiwan Strait Crisis, which featured the first combat use of the AIM-9 Sidewinder, fired by an F-86F Sabre and shooting down either a MiG-15bis or a MiG-17. Details are a bit confused as I have come across a couple of encounters that took place on September 24, 1958 that were part of a large Republic of China fighter sweep which was providing cover for recon missions. Seemingly the first encounter involved MiG-15s, and then shortly thereafter a group of MiG-17s appeared and more Sidewinder, as well as gun kills, occurred. But more on the 1958 crisis in future posts.

What I also found interesting was the mention of P-47Ns being engaged against Communist Chinese MiG-15s just a few years before.  I like the P-47N, the enlarged yet clipped wings gives it a bit of a different feel. Also, it is the plane the 332nd Fighter Group used after World War II to win a gunnery competition. But I digress.

While most of the Republic of China P-47 encounters (and hence losses) occurred against Communist anti-aircraft fire, there are a few air to air combat events. Here is a list of those encounters that resulted in a shoot down (taken from the "trusty" source WikiPedia, but in turn sourced from the Prop Wash Gang website so hopefully accurate):

• 29 July 1950 – A RoCAF P-47N Thunderbolt was shot down by anti-air fire from Xiamen, killing its pilot.
• 16 June 1953 – A RoCAF P-47N Thunderbolt was shot down by anti-aircraft fire from Dongshan Island, killing its pilot.
• 17 December 1953 – A RoCAF P-47N Thunderbolt was shot down by anti-aircraft fire from Jejiang, killing its pilot.
• 22 May 1954 – In an engagement involving six PLAAF MiG-15, RoCAF pilots Chien and Yen shoot down one of the MiGs with machine gun fire from their P-47N Thunderbolts.
• 3 June 1954 – A RoCAF P-47N Thunderbolt was shot down by a La-11 of the PLAAF, killing its pilot.
• 6 July 1954 – A RoCAF P-47N Thunderbolt was shot down by cannon fire from a MiG-15 of the PLAAF, killing its pilot.
• 21 January 1955 –A RoCAF P-47N Thunderbolt was shot down by anti-air fire over the PRC, killing its pilot.
• 1 July 1957 – A RoCAF P-47N Thunderbolt is shot down by anti-aircraft fire over the PRC, killing its pilot.

Admittedly unless one really wants to game anti-aircraft actions, there are only three that might be turned into Check Your 6! Jet Age scenarios. However, through the use of AI, I believe I have come up with enough details to add a few more historical scenarios into the mix - and yes, more on this in future posts.

Rating the P-47N for Check Your 6! and Check Your 6! Jet Age is as follows.

Obviously the P-47 will have its challenges against MiGs, but if a hit can be made, the eight .50 caliber machineguns should wreak havoc. The agility difference will also help with obtaining a hit. In defense, the agility again gives the Thunderbolt an assist, as does the robustness rating. While I followed the conversion process found on Page 39 of the Jet Age rules, I might add the Hx back in for low to medium altitudes. I understand that the D rating for World War Two means the Hx is lost when converting, but this is pretty much the penultimate version of the P-47, and those clipped wings and improved engine should translate better.

Artificial Intelligence, which sourced numerous documents and articles, also generated the following analysis, which I find interesting (my comments in italics):

5. Tactical Analysis and Doctrine

5.1 The ROCAF "Turtle" Tactic

ROCAF pilots, aware of their aircraft's limitations, often flew in a defensive "weaving" formation. When attacked by jets, they would turn into the attack, forcing the faster MiGs to steepen their dive or overshoot. The P-47's ruggedness allowed pilots to risk head-on passes, knowing their radial engine offered substantial armor protection compared to the MiG's delicate nose intake. Does this mean that the MiG-15 should have a robustness of 1 when attacked head-on, or for that matter any jet with a large intake?

5.2 PLAAF "Boom and Zoom"

Soviet advisors drilled the PLAAF to avoid turning fights. The standard doctrine was to dive from altitude (High/Very High CAB), fire a burst from the heavy 37mm cannon, and use the zoom climb to reset. In Check Your 6! this is represented by maintaining high energy states. After a recent game the group talked about this very thing, that boom and zoom, and in general aircraft that have a superior dive or climb rate, really does not have a good representation in Check Your 6! The climb and dive rates are lost within the maneuver charts, so any plane with B maneuver chart has the same climb and dive capabilities against any other plane rated as a B, no matter if the first plane had a superior climb and/or dive rating. 

5.3 Gunnery Considerations

The P-47N's eight .50 caliber machineguns (3400 rounds total) allowed for long bursts and "spray" tactics, increasing hit probability against small, fast jets. The MiG-15's heavy cannons (two 23mm and one 37mm) had low muzzle velocity and different ballistic arcs, making deflection shooting difficult for inexperienced pilots. In game terms, the P-47 should have a higher "To Hit" chance but lower damage per hit, while the MiG has low hit probability but catastrophic damage potential. The damage is taken care of by the dice type used for the various weapons, but one might consider giving a green MiG aircrew an additional -1 to hit when firing a deflection shot, while adding a +1 for all P-47 attacks due to the amount of lead being discharged.

Final Thoughts

Flight Deck Decals happen to offer the P-47N so sourcing the miniature is not a concern. I will be creating a few scenarios as well - they are all rather small (the largest is about a dozen aircraft), but include MiG-15s, Yak-9s, and La-11s, along with a variety of American aircraft. 

Sieben Schwaben Spiele Decals

From the Gaeten Marie website

In my quest to recreate a few aircraft from the Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana I stumbled across a decal company based in Germany - actually I think someone might have recommended them on the Check Your 6! Facebook group. This company, Sieben Schwaben Spiele Decals, make a variety of decals in 1/200 scale. However I sent a message to them to see if they could scale sheets to 1/285 and received a timely and favorable reply. 

My plan is to have a few Macchi C.205s painted up, mainly for a scenario from Battles Above 1 entitled Protecting Them All. This scenario features three P-51s from the 332nd Fighter Group (the Tuskegee Airmen) protecting a damaged B-24 from a pair of ANR Macchis. In doing a little more research, the historical account indicates that there were four Mustangs, so I placed an order for a fourth Mustang (and a slew of other planes) with Flight Deck Decals to fill in the missing Mustang. I am using a combination of Leading Edge Miniatures and Flight Deck Decals for the Macchis, and will be having a total of six Italian fighters painted, even though the scenario just calls for two. Anyway, back to the decals.

Image from Sieben Schwaben website

I placed my order with Sieben Schwaben Spiele and received the decals about a month later (a longer than normal mail time). The decals are cleanly printed with a blue paper base layer so as to be able to see the white portions. One does need to cut closely around each desired decal as the full sheet is the decal.

The rescaled 1/285 decal sheet

The sheet will produce eight distinctly marked Macchis, with nine number choices. I am eager to see these decals making an appearance on the tabletop.

The Commissioned Projects - Part II

The Gruesome Twosome

The next Check Your 6! project being sent off to Miscellaneous Miniatures is for a single scenario, but with possible expansion....

A beautifully printed B-24 by Flight Deck Decals

Within Battles Above 1 is a scenario that features the Tuskegee Airmen of the 332nd Fighter Group - Protecting Them All. This small scenario will make another good introductory game as it has but one B-24, three P-51s, and two Macchi C.205s. The B-24 was a straggler, returning damaged after a bombing mission, and it was being stalked by the Macchis of the Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana. Seeing the bomber about to be attacked, a flight of P-51s came to its rescue (the scenario only gives three Mustangs, but the historical record I have come across indicates four Mustangs were involved). As the game master I would take control of the B-24 and allow each new player to focus on one fighter. The planes I have gathered for the scenario are all from Flight Deck Decals.

This beautiful print is going to look great as a Red Tail

I've recently begun a bit of a fandom for the ANR, and will have the Macchis painted in the German inspired scheme shown below. This is a dramatic break from the standard Italian sand, brown, and green swirls seen on Macchi aircraft up to 1943.

I am adding to the collection of books on the ANR, and am hoping that one title winging its way to me will have enough details to do more scenarios using details from that book, that focuses mostly on the three ANR fighter groups. More on that once it arrives!

Thoughts on the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site

Boeing Stearman trainer in Building One

Every year for a number of years my wife and her family would spend a week at Pensacola beach. For years I have resisted in going, not because I wasn't interested, but I was waiting for the National Naval Air Museum to reopen, which it finally did in 2024. Last October my wife and I did a trip that incorporated several historical sites, such as Forts Blakely, Gaines, Morgan, and Pickens, along with American Rev War sites around Pensacola, and yes, the Naval Air Museum, which I featured in a previous post. On our return drive back to Ohio we stopped at the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site, about 40 minutes east of Montgomery, Alabama. To be clear, this site is located on the grounds of Moton Field, the initial training area for the airmen that would become known as the Tuskegee Airmen - the main airfield is not yet part of the preservation.

View from the path from the upper parking lot. Building One in the foreground with Building Two to the rear.

Getting to the site from I-85 is very easy, but what wasn't easy, or perhaps I should say what wasn't clear, was where to park. See, there is a large parking area on high ground above the field, but then also parking nearer the two buildings that make up the site. We parked in the upper area and walked down the hill. Luckily, while it was humid and warm, it was also overcast. I can't imagine the typical American family walking from the upper parking lot down the hill in July in a full sun!

It wasn't very clear on where to go once we came into the heart of the facility. There are interpretive panels around the grounds, but no system or map to indicate where to start. We were able to find the "main" entrance into the first main building, which was filled with displays, and a BT-19 trainer. The building was "odd," the main hanger (no air-conditioning so you have been warned) had several small offices with closed doors that indicated to go inside and view. These offices interpreted various aspects of the functions that were needed to build the Tuskegee program (and they WERE air-conditioned). One office had to be reached by going outside first. Strange layout.

P-51D in Building Two

We walked across the open space that separated the two main buildings. Ah, here we go, more like a visitor's center with rangers and volunteers there to greet us (we had yet to see an NPS employee up to that point). Modern displays, a fairly well done film, air-conditioning, and a P-51D suspended from the roof. One could also walk up to the original tower, even though several warnings of wasps graced the climb (we did not encounter a single one). The gift shop was also located in the second building. 

View from the tower, sans wasps. Look, another parking lot!

While there we only saw four other visitors, two of whom had to be transported back up the hill on a golf cart. 

It is a "strange" National Park Service site. From where to park, where to start, the confusion offices in building one, warnings of wasps, and the lack of visitation made it feel "forgotten." What was cool was the sounds of Moton Field being used by civilian prop planes - it provided the feeling of activity as it might have been in the 1940s. What would have been cool would have been active World War II aircraft using the field. Also, more displays of the different fighter aircraft that the 332nd used would have been a nice touch. But really clear instructions on where to park and where to start would have been ideal.

I do recommend a visit, but be prepared to be a little confused!

The Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana

A Macchi C.205V in RLM color scheme

As you are now well aware, I do like the oddball and obscure. While the Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana might not be as obscure to Check Your 6! gamers as say, the 100 Hour or Slovak-Hungarian Wars, I am guessing that not too many gamers collect the aircraft of the ANR. My interest in ANR is actually rooted in my interest of the United States 332nd Fighter Group, known more commonly as the Tuskegee Airmen. One of the scenarios in Battles Above 1 features both the 332nd and the ANR (Protecting Them All) - the Americans, flying P-51Cs, coming to the rescue of a straggling B-24 that was being tracked by a pair of Macchi C.205Vs from the Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana. My only quibble is the rating of the Italian pilots - one is skilled and the other green, but I feel they should most likely be skilled or even veteran, even though one pilot did, in an effort to get away from a P-51, clipped the Veltro's wing along a mountainside, causing the Macchi to be destroyed. Overall the Italian pilots in the ANR were experienced flyers.

In preparation for gaming this scenario, I had some beautiful planes printed by Flight Deck Decals in 1/285th scale. And they are beautiful!

Back to the ANR - The Italian pilots who decided to keep fighting on the Axis side were fairly small in number, but also consisted of some of the best Italian aviators from the Regia Aeronautica. Initially the Germans were very hesitant in accepting the Italians as a separate entity, while confiscating numerous Italian aircraft of the "5" series. One will find examples of the Italian aircraft painted with German markings in late 1943. By the end of 1943 and into 1944 the Germans allowed the formation of Italian squadrons to serve under Italian direction. The Italian planes initially would have sported the typical Italian tan and green swirled camouflage, but by March/April 1944 started being seen in schemes like that illustrated above. 

There are several books on the ANR, but I just own one at this time. Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana (1943-1945): The Aviation Of The Italian Social Republic, written by Eduardo Martinez, published by Kagero in 2018, covers the subject suitably for a gamer's needs with several color profiles and black and white photographs to go along with enough historical context to give the reader enough background. It does not detail combat actions. However, the text seems to have been translated from Italian to English using software as at times the sentence structure and terms used are awkward. There are several other titles that detail the ANR, but most of them are hefty in price. I do have The Camouflage & Markings of the Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana 1943-45, written by Ferdinand D'Amico and Gabriele Valentini, on order. Another book, Mussolini's Hawks, details the ANR fighter squadrons, and that is probably the book to have for scenario creation.

There will be more on the ANR in future posts, including progress on the aforementioned scenario.