[BnW, 1942 UK vs Yugo] 7 - Last Chance

[StuccoFresco]

The conquest of the three bridges in the previous battle has forced the enemy to search a retreat route further west, but to even get there they’ll need to fight their way through our closing northern pincer. This also gives us time to close even that escape route.

The LII Motorized Corps has been tasked to race ahead once again and occupy the possible escape route even before the enemy can reach it. This time, however, we will run into prepared defenses, since this is untouched territory. It’s unlikely we will find veteran troops, but dislodging an entrenched enemy isn’t going to be easy for a “light” Corps like us, so the Southern Command has graciously promised more support this time.






6/11/1942
The LII Corps races ahead; the 7th Mechanized Division will take Zema head-on, while the 202nd and 204th Motorized Divisions will try to flank the town from the northern and southern side respectively. At the end of the day, the Motorized units arrive in range of their objectives and spot the first Yugoslavian units.




7/11/1942
The enemy forces sally forth, cutting off the 204th from supplies and attacking the lead elements of the 202nd. It’s a bold move, but the 7th Mechanized Division is ready to strike back, and leaving their fortifications has made the enemy units vulnerable. The enemy III Pesadija Korpus’ HQ is especially vulnerable to the counterattack: it’s forced to flee in the woods, cut off from the rest of the Yugoslavian units.

The 32° Ironsides Brigade arrives on the battlefield.

The Yugoslavian 92nd Pesadija Division is decimated in the fighting east of Zema and retreats. Enemy CAS planes hit one Regiment of 7th Mechanized Division, and the first elements of the Motorized Divisions start fording the river on the flanks of the enemy Stronpoint. My artillery is getting into position.




8/11/1942 - morning
Two Bomber Wings with Fighter escorts has been sent to help us. The attack on Zema is stalling as the enemy’s routed III Pesadija Korpus’ HQ has cut off the supplies before being overrun by the 32° Ironsides Brigade. Fighting resumes as soon as the supplies resume flowing. The enemy CAS Wing is decimated by AA fire and the Fighters’ attacks.


8/11/1942 afternoon
In the afternoon, enemy Interceptors retailate by hunting our Bombers unopposed, almost wiping out an entire Wing. The offensive against Zema resumes, with our forces finally able to clear the eastern bank and put up solid bridgeheads on the western side. The artillery starts hitting the Strongpoint.




9/11/1942 - morning
British units swarm north and south of Zema; the Yugoslavian units are dispersed, with only some company here and there fighting as an organized force. The 32° Ironsides Brigade approaches the town, inflicting heavy losses on an enemy Motostrelci Regiment.


9/11/1942 - afternoon
The encirclement of Zema is completed. Our units are mostly disorganized and low on supplies, forcing most of them to stop to rest. 32° Ironsides attacks the Zema Strongpoint.

[StuccoFresco]

S/F-6 “Predator” Fighter
The newest iteration of the Supermarine F-series is a direct improvement on the old “Prowler” design: bigger engine, more aerodynamic frame, bigger wings, more powerful armament. The new fighter is faster, climbs higher and retains the maneuverability of the older one, albeit its turn rate is a bit bigger than the F-5’s.

The new engine has been supplied by the Whitney and Pratt firm, replacing the older Aston Martin. While more expensive to produce, it has better performance overall.

The armament has seen two machineguns being replaced by two 20mm cannons in the chassis. While the machineguns granted a higher rate and volume of fire, the introduction of sturdier frames by foreign powers highlighted the need for a weapon that could inflict catastrophic damage on a hit.

[StuccoFresco]

10/11/1942
Zema falls to the 32° Ironsides Brigade after a brutal urban night battle. The 202nd Motorized Brigade heads toward Glavinitsa, hitting the lines of 83rd Motostrelci Division north of the town; a Regiment from 7th Mechanized Division is sent to help break through enemy lines while the 204th Motorized Division tries to outflank the enemy’s northern side.

The aviation sends help again, bombing the enemy’s 83rd Motostrelci Division to soften it up. Our Fighters try again to fend off the enemy CAS, that is hitting hard our Mechanized troops.


11/11/1942 - morning
Our attack smashes through the 83rd Motostrelci Division’s lines encircling one of their Regiments, which will be forced to surrender by sundown. The bridge near Glavinitsa is held by another Pesadija Regiment, so I bring up the Ironsides and the Artillery. Despite the shelling and the Ironsides’ assaults, the enemy Regiment maintains its position.

A battered Yugoslavian Tenkovkse Division has been spotted retreating through the area. Trapping and destroying it would be a big success for us.

The aviation is sending another wave of Bombers and Fighters to help us. Losses are very high but their contribution is invaluable so far.




11/11/1942 - afternoon
Glavinitsa falls. The 202nd Motorized Division is given the task to stop the enemy Tenkovske Division from retreating; to do so it must conquer the village of Balgarovo, but when it reaches its outskirts it spots an entire Pesadija Regiment defending the crossroads.

The rest of the LII Corps is attacking Chiprovtsi, where the Yugoslavian 169th Pesadija Division is mounting up a fierce defense. The Artillery Regiments are brought up again.


12/11/1942 - morning
Chiprovtsi falls around midday after a brief but violent urban battle. The enemy’s 169th Pesadija Division is fragmented and pushed away from the town, but still fighting. The 202nd Motorized Division attacks Balgarovo inflicting heavy casualities to the enemy, but still hasn’t conquered the town.


12/11/1942 - afternoon
We are too late: the Yugoslavian 16th Tenkovske Division races through Balgarovo, pushing back the 202nd Motorized Division with considerable losses and driving off to the west. I decide to put the Division in a defensive position NE of the town and let the armored enemy units go.

Scattered enemy units around Chiprovtsi are still fighting, but most of them have surrended or dispersed. My units are already moving toward Kermen, the final primary objective.

[StuccoFresco]

CAI-C(2) Close Air Support
After the troubled development of CAI-3, their first CAS design, the CAI design bureau didn’t want to suffer another embarrassment with the War Committee. The plans for a successor design started almost immediately after the 1940 war and proceeded steadily.

The new plane was overall a huge improvement: it was much faster and maneuverable despite the bigger chassis, and the new powerful R-2800 radial engine allowed three bombs instead of the two of CAI-3. The 40mm gun was kept, and a machine gunner in a reversed backseat was introduced.

All those improvements, however, impacted the operational range and the costs of both production and maintenance: the CAI-C(2) was a massive drain on the Aviation’s budget, and so it was used only on the most important fronts and operations.

[StuccoFresco]

13/11/1942
With the 16th Tenkovske gone, the 202nd Motorized Division resumes its offensive and takes Balgarovo, forcing the surrender of the decimated enemy Regiment. In the evening, the Division reaches Byala and attacks the enemy garrison.

The 204th Motorized and 7th Mechanized Divisions have subdued the last pockets of resistance around Chiprovtsi and are approaching Kermen, with the 32° Ironsides Brigade leading the column. In the afternoon, the Ironsides starts the battle for the town with a deep incursion in the urban area that leads them directly onto the enemy artillery force. Many field guns are destroyed by the Ironsides before the enemy infantry could stop them.




14/11/1942 - morning
The battle for Kermen rages on: our two Artillery Regiments rain death on the enemy’s positions as the Mechanized units and the Ironsides try to break their lines. While inflicting heavy losses, our troops are still facing a stiff, entrenched resistance. The 204th Motorized Division tries a flanking move west to divert some enemy units from the urban battlefield.

Meanwhile, the 202nd Motorized Division is fighting in Byala: the town is almost completely destroyed in the bloody battle that started with a night assault on Yugoslavian positions, but the defenders are still fighting from the rubble.


14/11/1942 - afternoon
Byala finally falls as the sun goes down, the defenders trying to flee west but being intercepted and forced to surrender.

Kermen is conquered by the 7th Mechanized Division after hours of fierce battle; the enemy reorganizes outside the town, and 167th Pesadija Division launches a counterattack on the northern outskirts.




15/11/1942
The Yugoslavian forces try to retake Kermen, but the loss of the town’s depots and the inability to offload supplies elsewhere are limiting their effectiveness. The brutal fighting exhausts ammo at a staggering rate, and the lack of heavy weapons makes the 7th Mechanized Division’s IFVs as well as 32° Ironsides’ assault guns a very hard bone to chew. Eventually, the attempt to liberate the town cease altogether.
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