FIGHTER PILOTS PARADISE: Malta 1942
FIGHTER PILOTS PARADISE: Malta 1942
For the Allies the fortress island of Malta was ideally situated in the Mediterranean. British strike aircraft and submarines took a steady toll of Axis shipping. To counter this threat the island had been under constant air attack since 1941 by the Italians and Germans. For air defence the RAF only had a small force of obsolete Gladiator fighters which were gradually replaced with Hurricanes. By the beggining of 1942 large numbers of Luftwaffe and Regia Aeronautica units had been moved to Sicily for the air offensive. The RAF Hurricane pilots found themselves outclassed by the new Bf 109F and attrition rates were high.
To bolster the hard pressed defences the British decided to reinforce Malta with Spitfires. The plan was to fly them to the island one way from aircraft carriers. The first such reinforcements arrived March 7th 1942 during Operation SPOTTER. Some 15 Spitfires landed safely on the island having been launched from HMS EAGLE. In the months that followed another 12 such operations brought in more Spitfires.
The Axis air offensive reached a crescendo in April 1942 causing heavy damage to airfields and military installations. With the Afrika Korps supply lines still under threat a plan for an airborne and seaborne invasion of Malta (Operation HERKULES) was approved by Hitler and Mussolini that same month with a date set for July 1942.
The number of Spitfire reinforcements gradually increased and by the beginning of May 1942 Spitfire equipped No.126, 185, 249, 601 and 603 squadrons were in action. The RAF managed to keep an effective air defence through the onslaught of Axis raids. In late 1942 the British offensive at El Alemain brought an end to the Axis plan to invade Malta. Luftwaffe units were needed to support the hard pressed Afrika Korps. Malta would remain in Allied hands.
Malta was awarded the George Cross by Britains King George VI in recognition of the bravery and fortitude shown by the people of the island during the seige. RAF fighter duty on Malta was dubbed both "A fighter pilot's paradise" and "no place for beginners".
This FSO recreates the intense fighting over Malta in the spring of 1942.
Country Percentages:
Axis 55%
Allied 45%
Field Assignments:
Axis Knight
Allied Bishop
CM Rook
OOB:
Axis (Luftwaffe/Regia Aeronautica):
Bf 109F
C.202
Bf 110C
Ju 87D
Ju 88A
Allied (RAF):
Spitfire V (max 24)
Spitfire Vc (Seafire) (max 12)
Hurricane II
Special Rules and Ordnance Restrictions:
* All aircraft types must be used by a minimum of 12 *players*.
* ALL AIRCRAFT ARE TO BE LANDED AND THE PLAYERS TOWERED OUT BY
FRAME END OR WILL BE CONSIDERED SHOT DOWN AND THE CREWS KIA.
Scoring:
Aircraft Pts
-----------
Bombers = 10 pts
Fighters = 5 pts
Target Pts
----------
Gun = 1 pt
Hangar = 25 pts
Cruiser = 100 pts
Destroyer = 50 pts
All Other = 3 pts
Survival Pts
----------
Landing = 2 pts
Pilot Survival = 1 pt
Arena Settings:
- Malta terrain
- Fuel burn 1.0
- Icons friendly 3k/enemy 3k
- 0.3 Ack
- Fighter and Bomber warning range 42,000 (about 8 miles)
- Tower range set to 42,000 (for display only to match the above setting)
- Haze/fog full visibility (17 miles)
- Radar off
- Enemy collisions on
- Friendly collisions off
- Killshooter off
- Time: 15:00 ( 3PM ) Game Clock
- Formations: On
- Formation Autopilot: On
- Bomber calibration: Automatic
- Wind: 0K-16K SE TO NW - Speed 5
16K+ SE TO NW - Speed 10
Designer's Notes:
* The Seafire is a stand in for the Spitfire Vc tropical.
Design by Warloc