The Megablitz Archive - Messina part 1

The Race for Messina - July 1943.  This scenario has been played a couple of times - both at Newark - in 2000 and 2008.  For this post we have the map and the Axis briefing.

Axis Briefing                             July 23^rd, 1943

Allied forces landed on this outpost of Festung Europa on July 10^th, and despite a number of successful counter-attacks, our forces have slowly being pushed back.

It is expected that the Italian 6^th Army can hold Sicily for at least another eight days, in order that the evacuation of personnel and equipment may proceed in an orderly manner.

From day two, Axis forces may ‘evacuate’ D6 stands per game turn from Messina.  Any units remaining on Sicily when Allied forces take Messina are lost.

6th Army

Italians:

54 Napoli Infantry Division (represented in the game by 102 Trento Div)

28 Aosta ID (represented in the game by 60 Sabratha Div)

4 Livorno ID (represented in the game by Blackshirt Div)

Mobile Group ‘Sicily’ (a brigade sized formation)

Germans

10 Panzer Division

PanzerGrenadier Division ‘Sicily’ (represented by 164 ‘Afrika’ Div)

Flak Regiments 4, 7, 48

Artillery Rgt 54 (105mm guns)

Werfer Rgt 53

plus HQ troops and rear echelon transport elements.

Available in Italy

 5 Fallschirmjager Division (-)

(this unit may be airlifted to Sicily – a limited lift capacity is available – 1 Regt may fly in per day)

 20 Panzergrenadier Div – may arrive in Messina – each day roll 1D6 per stand – arrives on a 5 or 6, lost on a 1.  

Note that there can be no evacuations on days when 20 PzG is arriving.

Air assets

 1 MC-202

1 Cant Z-1008

1 Ju-87

1 Bf-109F

 All based at close airfields (near Messina).  There is sufficient fuel for only 6 sorties in total.

Report on enemy forces

British 8^th Army – advancing from south of Catania

4x Infantry Divisions, 2x Tank Brigades

US 7^th Army – advancing from west of Troina

3x Infantry Divisions, 1x Armoured Division

Vijay revisited

A few weeks ago I ran Bob Cordery's Operation Vijay game at the Sheffield Club.  Five players attended (of whom more later).  Bob had lent me all the maps and briefings for the game - the toys are all mine anyway!

The Indian team took the decision to have their army units advance in a single column - in contrast to the three-pronged approach adopted at COW in July!  The Air Force was sent in to bomb the radio station and a crucial bridge.  Sadly they couldn't find the former and missed the latter.  Naval vessels had a worrying encounter with a Portuguese gunboat but fog soon ended the indecisive action.

The Indian Navy landed a shore party which was beaten back by Portuguese troops, but heavy naval gunfire soon discouraged further resistance (and levelled much of the capital...)

 The first land encounter - Portuguese armoured cavalry acting as a 'speed bump.'

The IAF was soon back in action in support of the Army - I confess to some disappointment when there was no friendly fire!
Superior Indian force soon prevailed but not quite in time to prevent a UN resolution.

Martin reprises his role as the Governor General.

The pride of the Indian armed forces - John, Mark, Pete (who had made a special journey from darkest Huddersfield for the game) and Jerry.

Battered Blenheim - better?

Having mended this monstrosity as far as I could it now has paint and markings.  The limiting factor in terms of the choice of nationality was the fact that the kit had been built as a Mk.IVF.  This ruled out jollies like Finnish and Romanian.  Yugoslav and French (the original kit included Free French markings) were also out.  More internet research offered a solution. 

Apparently a couple of Fs were interned by Portugal - and I just happened to have a set of Portuguese markings (from an incomplete Spitfire kit) in the decal box.

The markings are sufficiently unfamiliar as to require a second glance to identify the aircraft!

The underside - showing the 4-gun pack.  Sadly it also reveals the mangled undercart and missing exhausts....