Darwin - A Pair of Scenarios

A few weeks ago I hosted a pair of games from my forthcoming scenario booklet on the American involvement at Darwin. These scenarios featured the rather green pilots of the 33rd Pursuit Group against Pearl Harbor veterans from the Imperial Japanese Naval Air Force. In both scenarios, as was historically, the Americans are placed in an impossible position. I was called out for this by a member of the Check Your 6! discussion group, complaining about play balance. War is not play balanced, but the premise behind these two scenarios is to have the players change sides and keep track of victory points by player and by team. And in this aspect, the scenarios now become balanced as players vie to obtain points.

I was, however, hesitant to spring these two scenarios on my gaming buddies as now I was worried about how they might react to the impossible American setup. 

The First Game (Zeros, Zeros, Zeros!)

In the first game I flew the single P-40 flight leader and I played it rather historically as I dove through the oncoming A6M2s and fled the table, securing a few victory points for myself. The other two American players took on the Japanese headfirst, which did not bode well.

The American setup...

...and the Japanese.

Nice formation there, eh?

Off to the races I go, leaving my fellow players to take on the swarm of A6M2s.

Not looking good, eh Yank?

The game ended with nearly all P-40s shot down. I grabbed two victory points with my rapid exit, which did pull some of the A6M2s away from the remaining Americans.

The Second Game (The Death of A Flight)

This game was more of a bounce, with the Japanese coming in from the northwest, turning to take on A Flight, which had landed, and now was scrambling to get airborne after hearing the radio calls that Darwin was under attack. The goal for the Americans? Survive and get off the board to obtain VPs. Bear in mind the American players for this scenario were the Japanese players in the first game, so they now felt the frustration of the historical event. I hope they banked enough points from Game One!

The American flight leader was able to get off a friendly edge, earning victory points. He was the overall winner of the two games, with a few others coming close. The feedback from my experience band of CY6! brothers was actually favorable - they appreciated being with the advantage and the disadvantage, and thought the tracking of points was a motivator to do well as the Japanese and to survive as the Americans. Guess that dude on the discussion group doesn't know what he is talking about.

Mat - Deep Cut Studio

Planes - Flight Deck Decals

The American conga line, taking off at Speed 1, TAL 1.

Three shotai (or one chutai if you prefer) in actual shotai formation.

Some of the Americans decided to move towards the Japanese. Why, oh why?

Which simply made it easier for the Japanese to close in. The American flight leader, watching my epic performance in the first game, is trying to get offboard.

A P-40 sandwich. IIRC he survived via robustness rolls and poor Japanese shooting.

Genda's Blade

Website image - not great

I am trying to fill in gaps in my World War II gaming -the challenge being the number of theaters that makes this an impossible task to go along with my interest in just about everything. Regardless of my lack of focus, recently I have been looking at late war action in the Pacific, and to that end purchased the "Genda's Blade" pack from I-94. The pack features either eight or sixteen Kawanishi N1K2-J Shiden-Kai (Violet Lightning-Improved) fighters (Raiden Miniatures) along with a decal sheet for the 407th Hikotai (made by the now defunct Dom's Decals) which is not available for separate purchase (and because I have a bit of an addiction, I have also ordered the same planes from Flight Deck Decals, for a future comparison post). The N1K2-J, known to the Allies as "George", was a beast - fairly fast, decently maneuverable, and armed with four 20mm cannons, albeit I believe the same type found on the A6M series (and hence meriting only LVC in Check Your 6!). 

My image, a little better

The term Genda's Blade comes from the formation of the 343rd Kōkūtai, an elite unit created in late 1944 by Minoru Genda, himself an extremely experienced pilot, although one with no victories during the war. Genda recruited the best Japanese Navy pilots he could gather, which included several aces. The following chart lists some of them and their number of kills before joining the 343rd (if Japanese records can be believed). Bear in mind I use the same convention for rating aircrews as found in the Battles Above series of scenario books with experts having fifty kills or more given a +4 rating and the ability to adjust up to three turn codes left or right of the originally plotted turn code (although I still need to test that last tweak a bit). Aces then have twenty to forty-nine kills, veteran aircrews are either highly experienced and/or have five to nineteen kills, skilled pilots are well trained and/or have one to four kills, and green are just that. 

Several other pilots became aces while serving with the 343rd Kōkūtai. Overall, aircrew quality for the kōkūtai should be similar to early war Japanese ratings, with little to no green aircrews, a bulk of skilled, and as you see from the above table, numerous veterans.

Raiden version - needs some cleanup but the casting is crisp

When American pilots encountered this unit, they realized they were not facing the remaining dregs of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Force, but pilots with skill as great if not better than their own, flying an aircraft as good if not better than their own. 

There is an exceptional book titled...wait for it...Genda's Blade! This detailed offering provides an insight, through several first person accounts. However, the book is out of print and is expensive on the aftermarket sites. But if one wants a deep dive into The N1K and/or the 343rd Kōkūtai, it is a must have title. Using Genda's Blade and AI I will be woking up some scenarios in the future.

FJ Fury

Those navy blue schemes are so cool!

I have a bit of an affinity for the FJ Fury, with its cool Sabre look (particularly the FJ-2 or -3 versions) but sporting a U. S. Navy paint scheme (I really wish someone would make the -1 and the -2/3 versions as 3D prints - wait, there are some available, but they do not look grand). One can obtain a quality FJ-4 model and I have a pair from Flight Deck Decals (you can see the posts featuring these HERE). I could order some F-86s and try to fool with the stabilizer as the Fury had a horizontal version while the Sabre's was slightly angled upward) but that sounds like 3D print breakage waiting to happen. 

Here are a selection of books one should consider if wanting to learn more about the FJ Fury:

FJ Fury in Action - Venerable Squadron Signal offering from 1990 and authored by Jim Mesko, who has written several other titles for Squadron.

FJ Fury in Detail & Scale Vol. 68 - There can be some great value in Bert Kinzie's books, although they can be very detail heavy (and hence more suitable for model builders). Packed with photos and some color profiles. This is the first edition - the Detail & Scale coverage of the Fury was later expanded into two volumes (see following).

FJ Fury in Detail & Scale Vol. 12 Part I - A much expanded version of the previous entry that covers the Fury FJ-1 through FJ-3 series and includes 102 pages, 264 photos (many in color), along with ten color profiles. 

FJ Fury in Detail & Scale Vol. 13 Part II - An extensive look at the FJ-4 series with 102 pages, 209 photos (145 in color), and eleven color profiles. 

The North American FJ Fury - From the classic Profile Publications series (Number 42, 1965). A dozen pages with some color profiles. This can be found on aftermarket sites, usually for just a few dollars.

And of course we need stats. I based the following on the last model of the F-86 which appears in the Indo-Pakistan scenario book. The weapons have been updated to reflect the four 20mm cannons found on the Fury.

Heading to Darwin

projected cover image

Well, not physically, but I believe the next scenario booklet will feature the American experience in the skies over and near Darwin during 1942. I have thirteen scenarios completely written, and perhaps will create a few more. My decision to do Darwin next is because today I received a VERY generous offer to have some planes painted gratis, and with my Blue Falcon Hobbies 49th Fighter Group decals just waiting to be used (admittedly I have to obtain the planes to use them on), this seems like the best direction for the next scenario booklet. It will still be a few months before the booklet will be ready for publication as I have to order the planes, ship them off to be painted, then play some scenarios as well as take some pictures of the scenarios in progress. The good news is I already have nine carrier based A6M2s painted, and I have five P-40Es painted for the 33rd Pursuit Squadron, both of which will be featured in the first two scenarios. The bad news is I need to paint a dozen G4M2s (after purchasing them) or use a dozen G3Ms I already have for my Wake Atoll booklet (and also need painting). Realistically I should buy nine more A6M2s and paint them properly in the 3rd Kōkūtai colors (and which I have decals for, also from Blue Falcon)....decisions, decisions!

Soooo, I went forward and ordered the P-40s and the A6M2s (yeah, like I really need nine in the proper green scheme) from Flight Deck, and while I was on my mad shopping spree ordered a desert aerial mat from Deep Cut Studio. The desert mat isn't perfect for the outback, but it will find use in many other scenarios and eras. And now...the A6M2s were painted in ame-iro...I did not need to order nine more, but at least then I can do these nine in proper 3rd Kōkūtai decals.

Back to the booklet - I have the background also written, and I just need to add my usual rules modifications, color schemes, miniatures and publication sources, and then paste the scenarios in. Sounds like a lot of work, but most of it is relatively easy. The booklet will be titled Eagles Over the Top End. UPDATE (7/31/26): this will be the largest booklet thus far, coming in at nearly thirty pages.

And More New Toys

As part of my new Spanish Civil War project, I ordered small batches of a few needed planes from both Flight Deck Decals and Table Top Flights. From Flight Deck came three I-15s, three Arado Ar 68s, three I-16 Type 10s, and mistakenly (because I might have been ordering while I was at work), one Tupolev Tu-2, which has nothing to do with the Iberian Peninsula! I had to double check my order for the Arado, thinking maybe I pulled another bone-head move and ordered the 1/200 scale as that plane is a beast compared to the diminutive Soviet fighters - no, the Arado is simply a beast! 

I-15

I-16 Type 10

Arado Ar 68

From Table Top I sourced three I-16 Type 5s, three Nieuport NiD-52s, three Breguet XIXs, and six Heinkel He 51s, the latter being my initial prime focus for the Legion Condor scenarios I am working up (and four appear on the Downloads page).

Breguet XIX

NiD-52

The Type 5 I-16

Heinkel!

Sino-Japanese - Japanese Planes Completed

Most likely these are just the first wave of Japanese....

Another previously started project checked off. I had much of the work already completed, but had to do a little paint touch up and then add decals before applying varnish. A fairly easy project, although painting 1/285 scale struts on the Aichis wasn't a pleasant time. And, once I started putting on the varnish, I found several spots to touch up with paint!

• Planes - Flight Deck Decals (1/285).
• Paints - Vallejo Model Air Aluminium (71.062), Army Painter Warpaint Pure Red mixed with Vallejo Model Color Carmine Red (70.908), Vallejo Model Air NATO Black (71.251), Foundry Bavarian Cornflower Blue (Shade 73C).
• Decals - Flight Deck Decals.

These planes are featured in my "Melee Over the Mausoleum" scenario, found HERE.

The North American A-36

Those Operation Torch styles roundels are pretty cool...

No, not the Apache, not the Invader, not the Screaming Helldiver - the North American A-36 Mustang. Contrary to common parlance, the official name of the A-36 was the Mustang, North American Aviation's dive bomber version of the P-51. It was North American Aviation that called the A-36 the Apache, while in the 27th Fighter Bomber Group it was known as the Invader. To add even more confusion, much like "fork-tailed devil" and "whistling death," allegedly the Axis called it the Screaming Helldiver - not certain if I buy that story even if historical accounts indicate that it made a louder screeching noise than the Junkers 87 Stuka.

Michael T. Russo

Much like the early P-51 Mustangs, the A-36, using the Allison V-1710 engine, delivered poor performance at higher altitudes, but at the altitudes that dive bombers would start their run (typically 12,000 feet or less) the Allison performed well. The top speed of the A-36 was 365 miles per hour, while in a nearly vertical dive it needed air brakes to limit the dive speed to 390 mph, otherwise speeds would become excessive and lead to the A-36 not being able to pull out of their run. Carrying up to 1,000 pounds of bombs with six .50 caliber Browning M2A2 machineguns, the A-36 packed a decent punch. The gun arrangement was unique - four guns in the wings, and two under the engine firing through the propeller. And when the A-36 was not carrying bombs, it could hold its own against enemy fighter aircraft - eighty-four kills were claimed against Axis aircraft. And the 27th FBG even produced an A-36 ace - Michael T. Russo, who shot down a variety of aircraft (including Focke-Wulf Fw 190, Messerschmitt Bf 109, Fieseler Fi 156 Storch, and even a Junkers Ju 52). Russo is called by many the first Mustang ace.

I have been able to cobble together about a dozen scenarios that mostly feature engagements in the Mediterranean, but also one action in the China-Burma-India theater. I will get a few of those into Check Your 6! format and post them in the future.

Ratings - With the Allison engine and issues with the single stage supercharger at higher altitudes, here is my take on the P-51A and the A-36 for CY6!:

Miniatures - Flight Deck Decals and Table Top Flights make the A-36 while Raiden has a P-51A which would work as a good proxy especially if the casting has the fuselage guns (most P-51As had only the wing guns). For some excellent decals that cover the A-36 specifically, check out Scale Specialties available from I-94. There is a sheet that covers early P-51s and A-36s in North Africa.

...but the red outlined star and bars add some color.

Paint schemes for North Africa and the Mediterranean are simple (and I like simple for my own painting) - Olive Drab 41 upper surfaces over Neutral Gray 43 undersides. The propeller hub was usually painted red with yellow identification stripes on the wings (and included in the decal sheet mentioned above). National insignia could be the white star on blue circle with yellow surround (Operation Torch style) or the 1943 star and bars with red outline - later the blue outlined star and bars would be used. Add in some yellow aircraft numbers and tail codes usually found in white and you have a fairly utilitarian scheme, but one with some color with the nose and national insignia outlines.

There are a few books on the A-36, but one that I would recommend for a deep dive (pun intended) is Straight Down! - The North American A-36 Dive-Bomber in Action, written by Peter C. Smith in 2000. While out of print, and on the pricey side on the aftermarket sites, it details the development and use of the A-36. Most other titles on the A-36 include sections dedicated to modeling, which I do not find useful.

FINNished

After sitting about for several months and lately inspired by my friend Scott who is working on Finns, I completed six Model 75As today. I just needed to do some touchup, add decals, put a little decal set on same, and then hit them with a coat of gloss and a coat of matt varnish. While not perfect (my yellow is so thin that even after five coats there is some bleed and a few other little paint gaffs) they are pretty decent gaming pieces.

Ready to face those sneaky Soviets - looking much darker and shinier in the pic

I went with the early war scheme - as these had been planes the Germans had taken from the French and Norwegians they had been painted in RLM71 (Dunkelgrün) over RLM65 (Hellblau) by the Germans and left that way by the Finns (the more known black and olive green scheme came into use later in the war). I used Vallejo Model Air paints for nearly all the work (the aforementioned RLM71 and RLM65 along with natural metal, chrome yellow, and NATO black), the exception being Foundry Bavarian blue on the canopy. National insignia are decals from Beacon (from I-94) which are nicely done individual decals (although I split one somehow) and finished with numbers from Flight Deck Decals. Oh, the miniatures themselves are crackin' good 3D prints, also from Flight Deck.

The color is better in this snap - and now I see more touchup work needing to be done!

Caudron-Renault CR.714

Let's just get this out of the way first - while it looks kinda ugly cool, it's a pig. Unlike several other French fighters that could hold their own against the Bf 109E, the Caudron-Renault CR.714 Cyclone was a fairly unsuccessful effort to take French racing plane designs and militarize them, with wooden construction. As a light fighter it was supposed to supplement the lack of fighter aircraft in the French stable without having a negative impact on French fighter plane production. One might think that a "light fighter" design would result in a speedy and maneuverable aircraft, but with a top speed of just 290 miles per hour (keeping in mind that the aforementioned Messerschmitt had a top speed of 355 miles per hour), the 500 horsepower Renault engine just could not deliver. Surely being a light fighter then would at least yield a superior climb rate? Alas, no, as the Caudron could only manage twenty-three feet per second, with the German fighter coming in eleven feet per second higher. Okay, then it has to be more maneuverable and more agile, yes? No. Based on the Bf 109's rating in Check Your 6! the Caudron would use the C turn chart, with an agility of just +1. And let's not talk about robustness - without any self sealing fuel tanks, pilot armor, or even a radial engine, it warrants an R0 rating. Sign me up!

The CR.714 was first delivered to French squadrons in January 1940. However, it was such a shite plane that it was withdrawn from service - the following month! And the Finns, those crafty Finns who could make a fight with just about any plane discarded in their direction, said ei when it came to the wooden fighter (winter conditions and wooden plane - not a great combination). Ah, just who is deserving of this failure of a plane - I know, let's give it to the Poles, they won't know any better! And to the Poles it went.

Groupe de Chasse polonais I/145, the Polish Warsaw Squadron, received thirty-five Cyclones in mid-May, 1940. But even the Poles were leery of such an airframe, and one week after delivery and many complaints, the French Minister of War said pas plus and ordered the Caudron withdrawn from service. But the Poles, desperate to fight the Huns, and not having any other aircraft available to them, ignored the withdrawal order and used the Cyclones fairly effectively over a four day span in June. A dozen confirmed kills against Bf 109s, Bf 110s, and Dornier Do 17s were recorded, along with three additional unconfirmed claims. In return the Poles lost nine Caudrons in the air and an equal number on the ground. Hmmm, maybe it IS the man and not the machine....

Oh Bernhard, I need this in 1/285, pretty please!

Of course, those who know me also know that I like the obscure, and as long as I have some wonderfully painted (heaven no, not be me) Germans of the types mentioned, why not get a few Caudrons to recreate those scenarios. Wait, does anyone even make this pig in miniature? Why yes, yes they do - my friends at Flight Deck Decals and Table Top Flights both offer the Cyclone as a 3D print. Hmmm, decals, that will be my roadblock. A quick check at my favorite resources yielded a sheet of decals for the Caudron, for the Groupe de Chasse polonais I/145, over at Sieben Schwaben Spiele Decals! This MUST be fate!

Check out the YouTube video made about this plane over at Showtime112's channel and keep an eye open for a few upcoming scenarios. Now, don't tell my wife but I am going to go order some shite planes! Oh, and then decals. And darn it, I have NO French paint colors! Oh, and I need a book on this plane (there happens to be one in the Polish Wings series - and now ordered!).

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.

Prepping for the Condor Legion Scenarios

Moving into the realm of buying aircraft for the Spanish Civil War...

While the scenario list I have created includes a huge number of aircraft, I am not looking to go into yet another massive project. To that end, I have placed a couple of orders, more like sample orders, to review some of the cool aircraft that can be found in the Spanish Civil War.

From Dan at Flight Deck Decals I have on order three Arado Ar 68s, three Polikarpov I-15s, and three Polikarpov I-16 Type 10s. I forgot to order Tupolev SB-2s but will do so in the near future.

From Mike at Table Top Flights I have ordered three Polikarpov I-16 Type 5s, three Nieuport NiD-52s, three Breguet XIXs, and six Heinkel He 51s. These fill in the gaps that Flight Deck does not cover. 

My focus will most likely be on scenarios that feature the Heinkel – I just find it to be neat plane even though it was not a great performing one.

Once these arrive I will write a post to review the miniatures and include pictures.

Don Gentile

About an hour north of where I grew up it the small city of Piqua, Ohio. Its name derives from Othath-He-Waugh-Pe-Qua, a Shawnee term meaning "he has risen from the ashes." The name is associated with one of the five septs of the Shawnee nation, the Pekowi. Ironically, it is not the first Shawnee town with that name - as white settlement kept pushing the Shawnee west, the new towns they established took on the name of the previous town that was abandoned or burned down by white raids, rising from the ashes to build a new town. The high school mascot are the Indians, and in this case a term fitting as a tribute to the areas first permanent settlers.

Gentile's Spitfire while with 133 Squadron

On December 6, 1920, Dominic Gentile was born to Italian immigrant parents. Gentile, going by the more acceptable American name of Don, starred as a halfback on the Piqua Indians football squad, and by the summer of 1941 had logged over three hundred hours of flying time, mostly on an Aerosport biplane. In July of that year Gentile tried to join the United States Army Air Corps but the requirement of two years of college for pilots meant that Gentile, with no additional education beyond his high school years, did not qualify. Instead, Gentile found an avenue with the Royal Canadian Air Force, and was posted to the United Kingdom in December 1941 as a pilot officer. After training he would be assigned to 133 Squadron, one of the three American Eagle squadrons. Gentile would fly the Spitfire Mk V, and on August 19, 1942, he would begin his victory tally by downing two German aircraft (a Junkers Ju 88 and an FW 190). These first kills occurred during Operation Jubilee, better known as the Dieppe Raid.

Updated with American markings (note missing underwing roundel)

The 133 Squadron would transition into the 336th Fighter Squadron the following month, still flying their nimble Spitfires, but now with American roundels painted over the British. The 336th would utilize the British aircraft into 1943. It must have been an interesting day the first time Gentile climbed into the cockpit of a P-47, which the squadron started to receive in March. It is unclear if he was flying a Spitfire or the powerful Jug but on March 13th Gentile shot down another Fw 190 (he received claim for 1/3 of a Junkers Ju 88 in December 1942). The squadron flew the Thunderbolt for a year, and during that time Gentile had another six victories. His P-47 started with the white star in a blue circle, with the fuselage marking encircled by the previous British yellow ring, before later converting to the star and bars insignia in all positions, first with red outline, then blue.

First this...

...ending with this

Once the 336th made the change to the sleek Mustang, Gentile would rack up 16.5 more victories. Gentile's most iconic airplane was the P-51B named Shangri La, which he crashed on April 13, 1944 while beating up the field at Debden. He was grounded, and sent home for a war bond tour, and did not return to combat. His total of victories is still somewhat cloudy, but most records give him a final tally of 19.83 victories in the air, with three additional damaged, and six destroyed on the ground. 

Gentile's P-51B

Gentile would marry in November 1944 and have three sons. He would be assigned to Wright Field as a test pilot, and be killed on January 28, 1951 while flying a T-33A over Maryland. 

Miniatures - Flight Deck Decals makes the Spitfire Mk Vc, a P-47C, and the P-51B. The first two are very close proxies and should work fine. Raiden have the specific Spitfire Mk Vb and the P-47D Razorback.

To come...scenarios featuring Gentile's actions during the war.

Oh Canada!

111 Squadron Kittyhawk Mk IA of Kenneth Boomer

Going back to a bit of an Aleutian theme with this post, as I wanted to delve deeper into the Canadian involvement in the Aleutian Campaign, and I have to say there wasn't much of one from a front line perspective. After seeing numerous photos in The Aleutian Warriors - A History of the 11th Air Force & Fleet Air Wing 4 by John H. Cloe, I was hoping to locate more information on the Canadian participation in active duty against the Japanese, but have been a bit disappointed in that aspect. That is not to take away the importance of the RCAF and their Bristol Bolingbrokes (license built versions of the Blenheim Mk IV) and Curtiss Kittyhawks in filling a support function, there is but one mission in which 111 Squadron took an active part. 

By late summer 1942, Allied forces initiated the "Kiska Blitz." On September 25, a massive joint US-Canadian strike force took advantage of a break in the fog to hammer the occupied island. The operation was immense by Aleutian standards, with nine Consolidated B-24 Liberators, twelve Bell P-39 Airacobras, and twenty Curtiss P-40 Warhawks/Kittyhawks taking part. To bolster the overstretched 11th Air Force, the RCAF deployed four pilots from 111 Squadron, under the command of Squadron Leader Kenneth A. Boomer, a veteran with service in England. The flight from 111 Squadron was assigned to fly close and high cover in company with the USAAF 11th Fighter Squadron's P-40s. The Japanese 452nd Kokutai managed to scramble airborne resistance, but the severe weather and relentless bombing meant they only had two A6M2-N Rufes in flight-ready condition.

After protecting the bombers, the Allied fighters dropped down to strafe the harbor. In the ensuing low-altitude skirmish, Squadron Leader Boomer engaged the floatplanes and successfully shot down one of the Rufes, marking the only recorded RCAF air-to-air kill over North American soil during the Second World War.

Of course, this led to the creation of a scenario, starting with the Canadians after they completed the bomber escort portion of their mission. Next will be to buy even more P-40E models from Flight Deck Decals (need to buy more anyway to use with my Blue Falcon Hobbies 49th Fighter Group decals). Here is the single Canadian combat during the Aleutian Campaign:

Oh Canada!

Operation Torch

Over the last few days I've been on a bit of an Operation Torch tear, creating scenarios, drooling over the Flight Deck Decals website, ordering books from Amazon, and updating aircraft stats and various listings needed for the scenarios I will be formatting and uploading. As it stands, I have sixteen scenarios to work up, with a wide variety of aircraft and ranging from two player to massive furballs. Most likely I will scale down the latter, simply as putting more then six or seven players around the gaming surface is not an ideal situation based on my own Check Your 6! gaming experiences. 

Here is the scenario list with plane counts:

The VF-27 Scenarios

What follows is the aircraft mix needed for the seven scenario outlines I have cobbled together featuring the Hellcats of VF-27, calling this group of scenarios "The "Cat's Mouth" Killers of VF-27." Not a huge number or variety of planes are required, and these scenarios are ideal for 2-6 players (typically I run games with two planes per player). I will probably just order the requisite fighters as I do not need six Jills for just one game - seems to be a waste of money and waste of time to paint them. However the Judys are useful for other Hellcat scenarios from the Desperate Measures scenario book, so I might also add those to my next Flight Deck order - plus it is a different looking aircraft for a Japanese design.