Air Force OOB Planning for Germany, The Wunderwaffe 1944-49

Two-Front War (part 2)

WEHRMACHT--OOB:

(above) Looking at what Germany has to work with the above formations are the best possible fit.

In addition to standard infantry (3+0), infantry corps have a tough heavy infantry division (4+0) as well as their own light recon force (2+0) that use trucks for rapid advance. The upgrade path to Advanced Infantry Corps is simply the addition of artillery, rocket artillery, and armored cars. Advanced infantry corps have much more firepower and punch for very little additional manpower or supply. A very devious upgrade.

Mechanized infantry divisions make extensive use of medium panzers and tank destroyers. The upgrade path is simply to add light panzers and self-propelled guns. Again, another simple and devious upgrade as Armored Infantry Corps have harder units and much more hard and soft attack.

The '44 Panzer Corps has the perfect blend of speed and power, it's just too bad there are none of these to start with! Here's the breakdown:

1) Panzergrenader's are rated the best overall mobile division in the game, these having a superior combination of soft and hard attack.
2) Heavy armor supported by engineers provide near unstoppable cross-river and fortification assault power.
3) Light recon armor is the fastest unit in the game, and has enough firepower to stand up to almost anything.

Germany's reserve units are all designed for rapid production, and these 2-brigade formations can be mixed and matched to form even more effective units:

a) Auxiliary Cavalry may be used either for skirmishing or anti-partisian duty.
b) Garrison units provide good security and an effective defense against land or sea assault.
c) Militia formations are either, Anti-Aircraft or the Volksturn. Anti-aircraft are used at or near the front to provide defense against air strikes, while the Volksturn specialize in anti-tank defense.


Army Production Request for Fall 1944:

(above) Starting forces are mostly centered on the Ukraine. Units in Norway are too spread out to form effective corps, so a number of guards and militia will be created to free-up divisions from rear eschelon duty. Production requests are fairly slim to begin with, but these should start to ramp-up in 1945. In the mean time, there will be just enough activity to keep existing production practicals from falling (i.e. infantry, militia, motorized, artillery, and armor).

Only six (6) infantry corps at this time will be upgraded (green) to Advanced. The infantry is short trucks, so several motorized units will be built. In the mean time, a few extra mechanized divisions will be assigned to the infantry to fill any gaps.

Following the disasterious Kursk campaign the panzer armies are fairly depleted and in need of panzers and tank destroyers. Once these needs are met (green "6") these corps will begin the upgrade process to armored infantry. No panzer corps are in the works as yet because Germany is still on the defensive.



KREGSMARINE—OOB:

(above) Germany has very good battleship and cruiser squadrons, but there is no time to build any more. The current focus is on submarines as these have a destabilizing effect on the Allies. Submarine upgrades and technical improvements (torpedoes, sonar, and AA) will remain a priority.


Navy Production Request for Fall 1944:

(above) The newest submarine, XXI Class, has a range of 3500 miles, and several of these are already in the queue. This production is sufficient to keep submarine production practical at high levels (currently 15). One new destroyer flotilla will be created for patrol and escort duty (and to boost destroyer production practicals).


LUFWAFFE—OOB:

(above) Germany's air formations are designed for maximum efficiency in the role they play. (note: These formations were designed for FTM, and the advantages in SF are not as apparant.)

Defense wings of short-range conventional aircraft and jets will be used to protect key industrial sites. These interceptors will be backed-up by long range fighters on daytime combat air patrol. Night fighters will rule the sky's during twilight hours.

Specialized wings for army support are divided into; tank busters, infantry busters, and ground support missions (i.e. interdiction). These missions require air superiority, and there are not enough aircraft to supply that need at present. So, for the time being, these aircraft will all be grounded.

Naval bombers are separated into regular and coastal varieties. Tactical bomber wings perform a range of missions against fixed targets, but may also substitute for naval bombers. Naval and Tactical bombers do not require escorts or air superiority.

Missile wings are separated into tactical (i.e. cruise missiles) and strategic missiles. As strategic bombers are too time-consuming to construct, strategic missiles will perform all strategic missions. Tactical missiles will otherwise be used to perform a range of other missions (logistics, airfield cratering, facilities, etc.) against fixed targets. Missile wings may either fire two (2) weapons in tandem, or one after the other depending on the desired effect.


Air Force Production Request for Fall 1944:

(above) The air fleet has been fairly decimated by the 2-front war and must be rebuilt. Germany has entered the jet age, so a smaller, but more technologically advanced air force is in the planning. A smaller fleet will also be easier to upgrade and is less demanding of production. Aircraft and missile technology, especially engine technology, will recieve the highest priority.

Germany is now committed to the production of jet interceptors to the exclusion of conventional aircraft (note, jets are currently dubbed "rocket" interceptors). Jet engine practical is currently at zero (0), so the program must ramp-up slowly to begin with. In the mean time, a second combat air patrol wing will be built. This production should be sufficient to keep light aircraft practical numbers from falling. Missile practicals are also quite high (25), so their production will be continued at a steady pace.

Air Force Wings and Groups:

(above) Interceptor Wing: Current conventional aircraft have very good offensive numbers, but are minimal on defense. These will be organized into air defense wings and used to protect vital provinces from strategic bombers.

The Me-109 design has run its course, and will be replaced by a single jet design TBD. Current research (orange leafs) will focus on engines and jet engines, RADAR, ground crew training, pilot rescue, and air-to-air missiles.

(above) Rocket Interceptor Wing: Short range, but extremely fast, these are the most deadly interceptor in the war. If Germany can build enough of these they will never again have to worry about strategic bombers. Rocket interceptors have no upgrade path, so these are just an intrem weapon systems until conventional interceptors are upgraded to jet engine aircraft.

(above) Fighter Wing: Current conventional aircraft have good offensive and defensive numbers, but are too few in number to defeat enemy patrols. These aircraft will be gradually phased-out in favor of jets that can perform the same job with greater effect.

The FW-190 design has run its course and is scheduled to be replaced by a new twin-engine jet model ME-262. Current research (orange leafs) will focus on jet engines, RADAR, ground crew training, pilot rescue, air-to-air missiles, and improved bomblets.

(above) Night Fighter Wing: Conventional aircraft have good offensive and defensive numbers, and are rather effective under night-fighting leadership.

The TA-154 design has run its course and will be replaced by a jet design TBD. Current research (orange leafs) will focus on engines and jet engines, RADAR, ground crew training, pilot rescue, and air-to-air missiles.

(above) Tank Buster Wing: This wing is designed especially to work against enemy tanks, but conventional aircraft are too slow and have almost no defense against enemy aircraft.

The Hs-129 design has run its course and will be replaced by a jet design TBD. Current research (orange leafs) will focus on engines, bomblets, and ground-search RADAR.

(above) Ground Attack Group: This multipurpose group is effective against both tanks and infantry and is designed for the introduction role. Again, conventional aircraft are proven to be too slow and have little defense against enemy aircraft.

The current designs have run their course and will be replaced by jets (Me-262 and TBD). (see prior entries for upgrades)

(above) Infantry Buster Wing: This wing is designed especially to break-up infantry formations. Still, conventional aircraft are too slow and have almost no defense against enemy aircraft.

The current designs have run their course and will be replaced by a jet designs. (see tactical bombers below).

(above) Tactical Bomber Wing: This wing is designed to work against fixed targets, but conventional twin-engine aircraft are too slow and don't have enough defense against enemy aircraft to be completely effective.

The current design has run its course and will be replaced by a jet aircraft (TBD). Upgrades will be made to airframe, armament, bombs, navigation RADAR, and these will eventually be fitted with RADAR-guided bombs and missiles.

(above) Naval Bomber Wing: This wing is designed to work against fixed targets as ports, and against slower moving merchant fleets. Conventional twin-engine aircraft are slow and have little defense against enemy to be completely effective.

The current design has run its course and will be replaced by a jet aircraft (TBD). Upgrades will be made to airframe, armament, bombs, navigation RADAR, and these will eventually be fitted with acoustic torpedoes and RADAR-guided bombs.

(above) Coastal Bomber Wing: This wing is designed to be most effective against enemy war ships, but has limited range. These formations require air superiority before attacking aircraft carriers. Conventional aircraft are proving too slow and have little defense against enemy aircraft to be completely effective.

The current designs have run their course and will be replaced by a jet aircraft (TBD). Upgrades will be made to airframe, armament, bombs, navigation RADAR, and these will eventually be fitted with acoustic torpedoes and RADAR-guided bombs and missiles.

(above) Tactical Missile Wing (i.e. cruise missle): Tactical missles don't pack the necessary punch against attack strategic targets, but they are still very effective in the conventional role. These missiles can be produced in great numbers, and will be relied upon almost exclusively until conventional bombers can be upgraded to jet aircraft.

The V-1 design has no upgrades.

(above) Strategic Missile Wing: These missile wings can be produced in great numbers and are very effective against strategic targets as they cannot be shot down by conventional aircraft. This weapon is an acceptable substitute to strategic bombers for the time being.

The V-2 design can be upgraded with better engines, structure, and warheads. It may even carry a nuclear bomb in the not-to-distant future.


Next Time: Prussian Officer's Coup

Surt said:

Every other '44 AAR I've seen have started with the assault on the Invasion, so this will be exiting to watch.

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Thanks. It's been a monster to get set-up. About 3 weeks in testing and trials, and then another week for the final set-up.

But, it's ready now, and will be making the first opening moves by tonight. The first war-update will be this weekend.

Stuyvesant said:

Ah, we're getting to the meat of things. sounds like the Luftwaffe will return to its role as terror from the sky, if you can pull it all off. I guess in the short term that'll be down mostly to whether you can protect your IC and resource flow.

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Yes. Every wing is being recalled to Germany, but have to careful not to leave them in the sky's too long for fear of attack. So, am puddle-jumping from one airfield to the next. Should have the Fatherland's air defenses up in less than a game-week.

BlackPaw said:

Sorry for the newbie question here, but how many interceptor units do you have in the air korps? Germany has only 15 interceptors and I didn't see in any fighter planes

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Yes, everything is listed in the bi-annual reports, the first one for the 6mo. from July-December '44. Looks like eight (8) interceptor wings (18 total interceptor squadrons), one (1) Fighter wing (total 4 fighter squadrons incl. reserves), and one night fighter wing (two interceptor squadrons total).

These are going to be bunched in central Europe to try to take-down as many strats as possible (or at least rough them up a bit so they don't come around as often).

NERFGEN said:

Eagerly awaiting updates.


I'm concerned about the 'weight' of your divisions; especially the armored and mechanised portions of the army. How will they stand up against the attacks from entire armies? Or will you have enough infantry to not use them in defence?

How far do you plan to retreat (if you do plan on any retreat) on the eastern front?

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Yes, armored units will have 6-7000 troops per division to begin, and upgraded later to 8000 troops. It's not the typical 9000 of infantry divisons, but armored units are also generally tougher.

The Eastern front is something of a toss-up. During game testing a defense-in-depth strategy was used to good effect. But, the AI is not as efficient in large front advances as it's cracked-up to be, so for this scenerio will be using a combination of armored-counter attacks and defense-in-depth.

Romania is a key ally, and if the Soviets get to the mountains it's very tough to dislodge them. So, will be massing an armored counter-attack coming up from the south to flank the Soviets as they push the Romanians backwards. Also, have totally dismissed all the Romanian (and Hungarian) HQ's in exchange for German HQ's, because German HQ's have superior doctrines.

In the Baltic region, the Soviet AI tries to cut-off the Latavian pennsula, so this will be met by an armored counter-attack.

Along the rest of the line (marshes, etc) will move to defense-in-depth in the quiet sectors. Otherwise, any Soviet attack along the line will be met by an armored counter-attack.

Will also bring-up skirmishers(cavalry) to slow Soviet advances. This strategy is simply to move skirmishers into a province after the battle is lost (while German forces are retreating). Any Soviet divisions advancing into the gap will be met by sappers and trigger the combat delay. So, it's delay, delay, and more delay--giving German units more time to recover and re-organize. To minimize re-organization time there are lvl-4 leaders at every Army HQ, and a leader w/re-org bonus (School of Psychology) at Chief of Staff (note: Soviet Army HQ's all have at least lvl.3 leaders too!).

EDIT: Skirmishes, not Sappers.

Viking_Manstein said:

Firstly I would like to say that this is an awesome concept you have got here, really like it Secondly, how did you get the epic pictures for ground attack aircraft etc?

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This is not my first AAR--sorta discovered along the way what people like. Here I scan the web for pictures, and what I like most are the action shots or units in action. Real war photography gives the AAR a documentary look.

June 44 (continued) Air Campaign:



(above) The air campaign in Europe at the end of June, 1944. Allies were effective in bombing five targets, while Axis intercepts were effective on three occasions.

Bombing of Leipzig:



(above) British bombers make night-time raid on Leipzig and are met by night-fighter wing under Air General Hellingbrunner. The Axis attack modifier was less than the Allied defend modifier, and as a result Allied bombers went undeterred.



(above) As the bombing continued into the morning General Schenck's interceptors arrived from Kassle airfield to continue the attack. With a higher attack factor, and no longer under nighttime penalty, the interceptors did better, but still lost the battle because they had to break-off first. No matter as by this time the city was already in ruins.


Next Time: Holding the Line in the East

July '44: Balkan Crisis



AIR TECHNOLOGY:

Germany currently holds a slim lead in several key areas and is looking to expand its advantage. Most notable is the advantage in strategic missiles, which over time will become more powerful and have longer range. RADAR, specifically navigation radar is important for intercepting enemy bombers and fighters, is now a high priority for both sides.

The Soviet Union is currently researching:
Medium Air Search Radar
Installation Strike Tactics

The United States is researching:
Rocket Interceptor
Small Navigation Radar
Airbase Strike Tactics
Strategic Rocket Development

The UK is researching:
Rocket Tests
Civil Nuclear Research
Jet Engine
Large Navigation Radar
Ground Attack Tactics
Interdiction Tactics
Airbase Strike Tactics
Strategic Rocket Development

Germany has almost all its leadership working on aircraft and missile technology, including nuclear research. The following are current projects:

BOMBERS:
Medium Bomb 2
Twin Engine Armament 2
Medium Navigation Radar 1

FIGHTERS:
Aero Engine 4
Small Nav Radar 1
Jet Engine 1

SECRET WEAPONS:
RADAR-Guided Missile
Acoustic Torpedo
Strategic Rocket Engine 1
Strategic Rocket Warhead 1
Strategic Rocket Structure 1

DOCTRINES:
Fighter Ground Crew Training 6
Fighter Ground Control 6
Bomber Target Focus 6
Logistical Strike Tactics 6
Strategic Bombardment Tactics 4
Strategic Air Command 2

AIR WAR OVER EUROPE:



(above) The Allies continue usual bombardments in the west, and now the Soviets begin hitting targets in Eastern Prussia and Slovokia. British interceptors attacked Germany's air defenses near Paris and Antwerp. Air patrols continued both day and night, but no bombing missions were deterred.




(above) Western Front: Air General Hellingbrunner's night fighters are engaged by a large force of interceptors from Great Britain. The huge stacking penalty combined with night modifier render Allied aircraft virtually useless.




Mediterranean Front: Allied interceptors have a better luck in the daytime above Antwerp. Now, Air General Lozer defends against enemy aircraft, and holds a slim advantage in both attack and defense.




(above) Lozer's fighter are badly malled as allied aircraft continue the chase over Bruxelles. Germany's reserve fighters would take to the sky's the next day.


CRISIS IN ROMANIA:



(above) Soviet forces massing in the south threaten to break-through and take Romania out of the war. There are virtually no forces beyond the front lines, and so the Red Army could easily sweep through Croatia, Bulgaria, and Greece (yellow arrows).

The operational plan to defeat the Soviets is to counter-attack (blue arrows). Armored elements from Southern Ukraine will sweep down from the north while panzers from the Black Sea region will meet them half-way. If successful, a new defensive line will be established along the Danube River.

Battle for the Danube: 21June-23August 1944



(above) Soviet assaults (red arrows) disperse Romanian divisions and cross the Danube river threatening to break Axis lines wide open. If the Red Army manages to get into the mountains beyond they will be extremely difficult to dislodge.

By July 1 the Soviet front (orange arrows) in the north continues moving along (orange arrows) while German defenders in the south (blue arrows) hold the line.

By July 9 the front is stabilized (white arrows). Black Sea panzers support the armored assault from the Ukraine (blue arrows) effectively flanking the Soviet pincer.

The Romanian front is mostly stabilized by 23 August (white arrows). Ukrainian Panzers are urgently withdrawn to shore-up defenses around Kiev.



ITALIAN FRONT:



(above) Intensive fighting around Monte Castello from late June to early July resulted in an Axis victory.



(above) Seizing the advantage, reserve panzers under Maj. General von Schwerin sweep along the coast and force beleaguered Allied forces into defending Rome. If the Axis can capture Rome it would shore-up its defensive line in the south, and provide a key forward air base from which to attack allied shipping and logistics.



Next Time: Fall of Finland