Operation Zeboim

[Haruspex]

Operation Zeboim

Perya City-State, Fifth Circle Headquarters-

Admiral Tihun Xun grinded his cigarette into the provided ashtray slowly and methodically. The somewhat dimly lit conference room was showing a plotted position of HIN-193, located within the central Geltic Sea. A brief encrypted emergency signal had been received by Kaldana Naval Command and Control (GHLL) and had transferred it to the Fifth Circle command and control. 

On the other side, slightly scrunching up her nose at the smell of the smoke, sat the head of the Seventh Circle, Ria Mel'Ana Velven. Overseeing the security services, both internal and external, she had to be included. 

At the head of the table, Kaorin Huat Jargo Vlos resided. Advocate of the Empress, head of the illusive bogeymen, the Haru intelligence services. Tihun spoke to get things started. So, the news release is out. This gives us a limited time to find HIN-193, ascertain if she can be secured either by naval security officers via DSRV or a retrieval vessel that will be dispatched with assets from the KCN [Kaldana Colonial Navy].

A slow lean into his high backed chair, Tihun glanced over towards the rather imperious and hawk like featured woman and continued. The 8th squadron that was accurately reported by the news outlet, have orders to secure the area, and if HIN-193 cannot be retrieved or secured, to destroy her.

This earned a nod from Ria. However the rest of Eurth perceives us, we cannot allow our encryption communique equipment to find a home other then within our hands. Data retrieval from HIN-193 would be ideal, but also it should not become known that our surveillance craft are cruising about.

Kaorin nodded a bit, looking at a bit of paperwork. We should correctly assume that all hands have been lost, 100 sailors in all. It will be at extreme depth for divers as well. Tihun I am told you have a way around that with this DSRV?

Yes Advocate, the DSRV has been in trials for about a year now, we believe it is ready. It has done two successful deep depth training runs. The HIN-193 is well within the range we believe it to be. He lit another cigarette before proceeding, to calm his nerves more or less. 

Eight Squadron is to locate its precise location via active sonar. Which means they will be very loud, and anyone that is listening will be curious. It will not be a normal instance, it may very well raise the hackles of the naval powers nearby.

Ria chimed in. We know that several Argic nations are or well be in the area following the release by the news. The colonial naval vessels have told not to infringe upon the Argic vessels, and to fly flags in the open. They are to maintain a presence however near the area the squadron is within and be ready to deliver the DSRV once HIN-193 is properly located.

Tihun glanced towards Kaorin. The 8th Squadron should be reaching the first area of sweeping by now, its been several days since the news release.

Eighth Squadron
Geltic Sea, Zones 1-3

HIN-092, one of three  942 Fetuf (Widow) class SSBN's had taken Zone-1. There was some traffic in the area, commercial, and what had been identified as not. Still orders were orders. A slow placement of hands behind back as he stood next to the plotting table. Faint glance to his second in command, then a nod to the junior officer at the sensory station. Active sensor sweep, wide band. Begin. 

Another sailor, headphones on, glanced towards the officer, of which the individual in question bore the rank of Liet. Noting the sweat coming down the enlisted sailor's cheeks he spoke to give him a sense of calm. Keep your eyes on your screen sailor, let the Prata-Khan deal with the stress. We just have to focus. A nod from the sailor and keeping his eyes to the screen.

HIN-096 had been surface running for a bit. The vessels captain, Prata-Khan Yelare Elemmiire had a few officers in the cupola of the conning tower. A contrail behind them in the waves as the eight blades churned and propelled them. Running silent they were not.  After a time, Yelare gave the order to submerge as they entered the area of Zone-2. As with HIN-092, they almost immediately after levelling out, began to actively ping with sonar, hunting for something.

HIN-104 was head of the three, and had already made it to the coordinates for Zone-3. Siet-Khan Ula Yars nodded at her second in command and the boat chief. Rising upwards in depth, moving ahead at quarter flank speed. The second, a Ji, gave the order for active sonar to be applied. Ula did not relish the idea of giving her position away, but such was the case at the moment. On the surface, the colonial navy would have to endure a bit of scrutiny with all the traffic in the area.

GHLL Taskforce
Geltic Sea, Center of the three Zones.
Dra Cayc Knyla (The Seas Grace) Flagship 
Enuh Femm (Iron Will) class ASW Destroyer

Commodore Elias Yarren wore the colonial navy service uniform consisting of a double-breasted tunic with a round collar and matching trousers, a pair of black boots, a belt, and a kepi cap. All in the hue of light bluish-grey to contrast with the boots and the belt. A somewhat burly man, and already nervous about being out of the territorial waters of Imperial territory, he quelled such as the taskforce assembled itself within reach of each of the zones. 

The communication and sonar observation stations were ablaze with activity as the submarine force began. Keen eyes waiting for the blip, any blip to emerge. Admittedly this would have been much easier if the transponder emergency signal had continued, but whatever damage HIN-193 had suffered, had been enough to end the broadcast. Now they had just a general location and news of a training regime to act as a cover. 

The retrieval vessel sat within the center of five other ships. Two Cfunt (Sword) class guided missile frigates, and three 210 Dekan (Tiger) class frigates. A massive tarp covered the DSRV in the center of the retrieval ship, and its open hull, of which allowed the craft to be dropped in and continue on its way.

Prata-Khan Nolis, when we have confirmation, alert the retrieval ship and the DSRV crew of HIN-193's location. Yes sir. We are standing by to receive location data from the 8th Squadron. Very good.

[Iverica]

Context: Reference Post

 

Training Task Force Fian

Location: MGRS-32S |  38°57'42.26"N ,  8° 4'9.36"E

 

12 June, 2021 | 0900 Zebra (Zulu)

Aboard CG-995 Pura Rassa, Flagship of no. 27 Mobile Strike Group

 

Almirante Albein Costas-Fei, Group Leader of no. 27 and organising officer of Geltic Sea Joint Exercise, addressed the collection of admirals, commodores, and captains in one of the executive boardrooms of Pura Rassa, or "The Pure Bred". Designed as a Group Flagship, the Saragossa-Class Cruiser had ample space to play host to such meetings. Costas-Fei had called for a top-level briefing on the morning the exercise was to begin. Assembled were the commands of 6 navies including the Armada Iverica. Thematically named Training Task Force "Fian" for the Warrior-Hunter bands common across a variety of Geltic traditions, the assembled multinational task force totalled an impressive 30+ vessels from @Delamaria, @Gotneska, Iverica, @Nyantastan, @Tagmatium Rules, and the North Adlantic Union (@Seylos).

 

On paper, Exercise Fian was a simple show of unity among nations operating in the Geltic Sea. Only the most ignorant of the public could be fooled with that. The real reason was obvious- Haru Ballistic Missile Submarines were operating around the Geltic. As obvious launch platforms for Ballistic Missiles, the strategic implications were clear. Not a soul on the Pura Rassa was happy about the deployment and the odd collection of governments had been quick to pledge their forces when the Almirantasgo invited a united response. However, recent updates turned unsettling stones and left more questions than there was actionable intelligence. It was this that Costas-Fei wanted to address especially.

 

The moment the last of the assembly had found seats, Costas-Fei cleared his throat and stood. He had been over the intelligence two-score this past morning, so there was no need for the dossier left forgotten on the desk. He merely gestured for this XO to cycle through the projector for visual aids. 

 

"Honoured officers, all. I thank you and your crews for taking this matter seriously enough to muster here. This is a matter of some sensitivity so I will not waste time. The intent of this operation sans the public excuse is to demonstrate the protest of our nations in the face of Haru provocation. While this intent and its succeeding objectives remain the same, we must acknowledge some real strategic opportunities presented to us by this situation. Furthermore, new developments have made it necessary for my staff to reconsider our approach to this operation. I will deconstruct these point by point."

 

"First, on the matter of our operation goals. Our goal is to positively ID any of the 3-5 SSBNs operating in inside the grids 31S and 32S and obstruct their activities in any manner not constituting an act of war. Aiding in this objective will be satelite Imaging Intelligence of some 6 Haru surface ships operating in the grids. Our targets will likely be loitering close to their surface support. A further aid to our operation is the relatively low depth of the Epipelagic and Mesopelagic waters within those grids."

 

"Second, on the strategic opportunity mentioned earlier- this provocative action by the Haru has given us a unique opportunity to stalk and harass the Haru 942-class SSBN. If we are successful in intercepting these submarines, we will be in an unprecedented position to collect acoustic and other signals data. Such data will assist us in identifying this class of submarine in the future without any OSINT pieces to announce its involvement. This will also be an excellent opportunity for less-experienced personnel to learn how to take turn-counts, use frequency modulation for their sonar pulses, and get real experience with sonar usage against submarines."

 

"Third and last, new intelligence indicates that the SSBNs are using active sonar. Assets we have in the Dolch noted a ping sonifying from a point of origin less than 1,500kms from their receivers. This was further confirmed when an SUA-80 from General Alston Airbase, Estaria, dropped several clusters of sonobuoys and ATAC/DLC ELINT buoys which narrowed our target AO into a circular zone. The centre point of this zone is 34°17'39.91"N, 3°57'54.05"E and has a radius of 150km around. We have also outlined possible paths the target SSBNs appear to be taking based on the directional changes of their pings over time. the SUA-80 Asset will continue to support us with daily sonobuoy drops. This third point is especially important because it suggests that the targets are actively looking for something important enough to risk detection with active sonar. Thus, our secondary objective is to shadow the target SSBNs and ID whatever it is they are searching for. As of now, we have no indication of what the Haru target is."

 

"With that in mind, I will clarify our Rules of Engagement and our navigation plan. We are not to engage unless we are engaged first, however, we are free to use whatever non-lethal or indirect methods we have at our disposal to obstruct the targets' actions. All captains, at their discretion and in their regard for safety, are free to engage in very-close tailing and interception manoeuvres that might otherwise threaten a collision. While I do not advise any untoward or potentially deadly course of action, I would like to remind this assembly that surface ship hulls are in all probability, more survivable than the hull of a submarine. Furthermore, the use of variable depth sonar to physically or acoustically obstruct the target submarine may be a useful last-resort course of action. Bear in mind that towed sonar cables may present a physical threat to a submarine."

 

"Our navigation plan has already been forwarded, along with the staggered echelon and line abreast formations that will be employed in a classic anti-submarine screen. As you can see, we will be heading due south-west at an average speed of 18 knots until the first navigation point, at which point we will break into Task Units. Frigates and Corvette Task Units will proceed aggressively to the target AO at 28 knots, slowing again to 18 knots toward the final navigation point."

 

"Be advised that your task force mates will be employing rotor assets to use dipping sonar and Magnetic Anomaly Detection devices. Along with that, later phases of this operation will have our task force operating beyond visual range of one another, hence we have set up a data link and IFF coordination schemes to prevent any untoward incidences."

 

"That is all. Please consult your mission packets for more details. God speed and happy hunting."

 

---

 

OOC: Tag and Seylos joined. I dont really expect anyone to respond to Costas' briefing but you can if you really want to.

 

[Haruspex]

Kaldana City Aeroport
2nd Long Range Aero-Wing Squadron

Siet-Khan and senior pilot Torna Vek sat within the cockpit of the long range strategic bomber aerocraft, a HAD LRADO-8N variant outfitted with sonar buoys and detection systems where a bomb bay would have been. His copilot was currently going through the flight checklist, the communications operator gave a thumbs up as to the equipment working.

Navigation, flight engineer and the gunnery officers all checked in. With list marked blue for complete, and the control tower authorizing take off, he pulled slowly on the throttle, letting the rather large aerocraft nose forward slowly on the tarmac towards the runway.

The HAD LRADO-8 continues the Haru fascination with both push-props and contrarotating propellers.

Each of the engines, two per wing, has two propellers, the second one spinning in the direction opposite the first. This not only counteracts the torque created by the rotational airflow of the first propeller, but harnesses it for greater speed. Contrarotating propellers are therefore modestly more efficient, yet they are very, very noisy. So much so that submarine crews and jet pilots have spoken of it.

The tips of its eighteen-foot diameter propellers actually spin at slightly over the speed of sound. The LRADO is also one of very few propeller planes with swept-back wings, which only benefit aircraft capable of flying at higher speeds.

Two twin-barreled twenty-three-millimeter cannons in the belly and tail, and a single fixed gun in the nose complete the standard armament, though for the 8N the belly and nose armament are removed. The 8N such as the one that Vek is flying, is officially a maritime reconnaissance variant: it has surface-search radar system, and in the nose, is a Magnetic Anomaly Detector in a nose boom, that replaces the cannon armament as listed above.

Traditionally the LRADO platform serves as aeroborne cruise missile deployment system for the Haru aero-services.

Navigation officer Turek spoke through the headset that the naval taskforce that had left earlier, was already aware of several foreign nation vessels in the area. This was confirmed with orders that they were to fly below radar, yet if detected to ascend to a level where the detector system could still operate effectively.

He groaned a bit as there was no air-cover provided either. Kaldana's fighter aerocraft were busy elsewhere and there was no carrier involved where they could land given the ferry range. 

As the wheels left the runway, and levelling out was proceeded, he nodded to the co-pilot putting them on a course towards the taskforce at a ceiling level of just under six-hundred meters. A bit nerve wracking to be piloting a massive aeroframe just over the ocean's licking waves to be sure.

GHLL Taskforce
Geltic Sea, Center of the three Zones.

The taskforce had spread out a bit more, two to three kilometers between the vessels, with its center being the cargo/research vessel. ASW helicopter variants of the Ryfg (Hawk). 

Specifically the AH-02/N2/ASW versions replaced their anti-armor belly cannon with a sonar pod. These were skittering about the zones of reference and acting as mobile picket forces at the moment. Instead of anti-aerocraft or armor missiles, each helicopter carried an ASM on each hard point. 

Commodore Elias Yarren had already predicted rightly to those officers under his command that the nations in the area would produce some sort of response. A steady gaze to the tactical monitors within the CNC of the flagship was therefore an unwelcome reminder to the truly ridiculous affair that was currently ongoing.

His second in command stood nearby, though stoic in presentation, even the smallest slipup would lead to tragedy for sure. Yarren spoke to Dolis. Inform our pilots that should they run into a foreign vessel, they are to return the taskforce. We will not be the ones to initiate some damn fool combat while we're here. Yes Sir. He paused, right hand to forehead. If they are fired upon, they are to report it and return fire if capable. The Prata-Khan made a slow nod of head. We are tracking our aerocraft, if one is shot down we will know it anyways, but I will alert the pilots. It was Dolis's turn to pause. What of the S-Boat commanders, if one of them is targeted, and they respond, they could start a war Sir.

Yarren made a slow nod of head to that logical assessment. Send encrypted transmissions to their captains. Wont the other vessels in the area be able to track such? My friend, the S-Boats are pinging away, what wont give them away now is the better question. You have a point Sir, I will inform communications to send a teletype to the boats in the area.

 

(Colonial Taskforce

Geltic Ocean Operation

HIN-092

HIN-096

HIN-104

Naval Taskforce Decision

Authorized by Commodore Yarren, GHLL Taskforce

Declaration of Teleptye, k2/22

Confrontation orders

1.       Continue with operation detection

2.       Acquire target for DSRV

3.       Avoid hostilities

4.       If fired upon, or otherwise engaged, only they are you allowed to return fire.

Response not required, will be assumed orders received.

Protocol 28-F in effect.)

[Iverica]

Training Task Force Fian

Location: MGRS-31S |   34°17'39.91"N ,  3°57'54.05"E

 

13 June, 2022 | 0440 Zebra (Zulu)

Aboard FFG-230 Fauxardo, Squadron Flagship of 272-COSURON

 

Eight bells, middle-watch was usually a caffein-fueled bore of staring at dark waters and blank displays. Not this morning. A young Subcomandante found himself as the officer of the watch (OOW) for this little event. Seeing as no one else was awake and he was in charge, the opportunity presented a small way to dispell the boredom. It started when bridge intercomm crackled to life, coming in direct from the TAO-Bridge circuit.

 

"Bridge, TAO. Bogey. Bearing 0-8-6 true, 1-1-6 clicks, altitude point-6-0-0. Speed approx. 0-point-7-1, Track ID assigned: 0861. No profile match on database, over."

 

Altitude 600? The Subcomandante sat up straight. The first thought through his head was alarm. An attack? Flying at that altitude was suspicious. But wait. Single contact, against a task force of 30 heavily armed ships... of which the Fauxardo was the forward picket and comms with 4-Fleet HQ were regular with no news update from the datalink about a war breaking out. No, this was probably paranoia. The Subcomandante knew that there was a small margin for error that he was wrong and his course of action had a sliver-of-a-chance to result in explosion but the cogs were whirring in his head. The ROE was clear, even if this was threatening, they couldn't engage with lethal force unless engaged first.

In the dim red glow of the bridge, a few milliseconds elapsed. Helm looked at the OOW expectantly. Should they wake the Captain? Maybe later. A slight grin formed on the Subcomandantes face. He gave a thumbs-up to the COM-O and signalled orders for the squadron to follow action. COM-O redundantly reached out to squadron ships FFG-231 and 232 currently in formation with the Fauxardo. The ANCILE system would have exchanged data with theirs but the current orders were to mime Fauxardo. COM-O also started his interrogations, transmitting requests for identification and warning messages on all appropriate frequences.

 

"TAO, Bridge. Action SPG-62. Active, illuminate Track-0861, give me solution", the Subcomandante was grinning the whole time. Almost as an afterthought he added another line.

 

"Break. Prep cells 1-through-3/40 Break. Prep cells 38-through-40/40. Break, track Orthros on standby. Over.", the Fauxardo's interceptors, short-range air-defence missiles, and CIWS would stand by just in case.

 

"Bridge, Aye. Solution set. Batteries on standby."

 

The OOW looked at the COM-O and gestured to the bridge surveillance radar display.

 

"They probably won't respond. But I sure as hell want to watch for jinking once the poor blighters notice that they've just been painted by 3 high-resolution targeting radars. On my go, transmit this message in morse: Tag <stop> you it <stop>, end message. Oh and yes, do wake the Captain in a bit."

By the Subcomandante's calculation, the bird would remain inside their radar detection range for about 20 minutes assuming the speed, altitude and bearing were constant. 20 minutes to make a few pilots sweat in their flight suits.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41llBu0c2fU

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSHbbTcbcds

 

[Haruspex]

2nd Long Range Aero-Wing Squadron

Senior pilot Torna Vek listened to the communique officer repeat the message. Only an appropriate response could be made as he glanced over to said officer. " Commence frequency jamming on all non-essential comms." Hult'ah Yarek glanced over towards Vek. " Yes sir, fleet-command is set to priority, aero-command is a secondary."

" Very well. Alert fleet-command of this instance." Navigation officer Turek glanced over. " Shall we drop our buoys and follow protocol back towards base?" Vek slumped a little and then nodded. " Have the Weapons Officer make ready the buoys for deployment, we'll drop every two kilometers through the four grids."

" Copy that sir." Turek spoke into his headset soon after, pausing to switch channels to speak with the Weapons Officer and flight crew beyond the cockpit area. " Load Officer is ready sir, the flight crew has already done their checks." 

" Good. We are nearing first deploymen." Vek switched channels to the Weapons Officer, a Kenyet named Alus. " Alus, open bomb-bay doors." Brief pause before a response came through. " Sir, doors are open, we are ready for drop."

" Copy. We are approaching now. Ready on my mark...Drop!" There was a rattle felt throughout the aerocraft's frame, and the canister fell from the bomber, eventually splashing into the sea. This would happen several more times until eight buoys were sent into their zones. 

A slow banking turn, the airframe felt a moment of stress, not wanting to snap the wings and all. Something that could happen when making a twisting, ascending turn to that the aerocraft up to a higher altitude and back to the home base. 

" Sir, Fleet-Command is responding. We are being ordered to return to base. There are no other orders beyond that." Vek grumbled but nodded head some. " Very well, once we've passed the taskforce, cease jamming of non-essential channels, but comm-lock them. I'd like to not get some Facd cgeh (Skin of the West, Haru-slur in reference to the Western New Wurld) trying to mock us again."

" Yes sir." Yarek replied as turning back to her post and flicking some switches on the console. 

[Haruspex]

HIN-104, Eighth Squadron
Geltic Sea, Zone 1

Siet-Khan Ula Yars leaned slightly to the right as her boat made a slight banking turn. Her command was not ideal to what it was being used for, but the Colonial Navy did not possess submarine craft that could be used.

At 120 meters long and weighing 13,800 tons when submerged, the 942 Fetuf (Widow) class SSBN is the pinnacle of Haru submarine technology. Her boat could dive to a depth of 600 meters, and could be at sea for up to one-hundred days. The 942 series are a change in design as well, no longer utilizing the double hull, switching to that of a single hull.

The sub can attain a top speed of 37 kilometers per hour or 23 miles per hour when surfaced. When submerged, it travels at a speed of 52 kilometers per hour or 32 miles per hour silently and reaches a top speed of 65 kilometers per hour or 40 miles per hour. 

Of which was not on display, since she was essentially just lazily pushing in the sea at a very slow rate of propulsion. Still, her eyes were upwards as well. Fleet command had sent through an encrypted message about naval activity beyond their own. Which meant it was a foil, and the report mentioned buoys, aerocraft flights and so on.

With the sunken observation submarine being in a shallow sea area, the depth was not ideal. Yars favored open ocean, and much lower depths than current. Settled at a meager hundred-twenty meters currently, her command was risking detection and data.

The 942 Fetuf sensor suite comprises a spherical sonar array located on the bow, flank sonar arrays, and a towed array for backward detection. It is equipped with a navigation/surface search radar. Additionally, it includes an electronic support package. The 942 Fetuf class is equipped with ten VLS (Vertical Launch System) silos, two more than its predecessor the 941 Dobruuh. Ten VLS silos can accommodate 40 [10 x 4]P-800 missiles. The P-800, also known as Uhoq (Onyx), is a supersonic anti-ship cruise missile with 600 kilometers (373 miles). It is capable of reaching Mach 2.5. It features an advanced guiding system. Because Uhoq (Onyx) is a fire-and-forget missile, HIN-104 and her sister-boats can maneuver safely once the missile is launched.

The torpedo tubes are angled due to the vast size of this spherical array. In other words, unlike the earlier 941 class, the torpedo tube outer doors are relocated aft. The design allows ten 650 mm torpedo tubes. The tubes are capable of transporting 30 [10 x 3] heavyweight torpedoes. These are capable of carrying Type 65 torpedoes. It was designed to be used against aircraft carrier combat groups of the and big merchant targets such as supertankers and modern enemy submarines. Torpedoes have a range of 100 kilometers (62 miles). It is armed with a 550 kilogram (1212 pound) warhead. 

After accepting a bit of tea from a passing sailor of the kitchen, delicate sip taken. Ahead with direction change, reverse turn (Crazy Ivan), sweep area, then continue original course. Liet Uros issued the command and this was in turn spoken by the Ji whom held the status of senior navigation officer. 

Standard practice and a bit of paranoia really to check behind the baffles where another submarine could hide behind. The sharp turn made 104 angle, and Yars held onto the railing in that wrapped about the periscope clutch as such was done. 

Sonar, check for submerged contacts. Aye Sir. Checking.

With such a large craft, the 104 was as a whale when she made a change in direction. The massive dual propellers churning, she hoped that none of the foreign naval vessels would be so close, to risk damage should such a maneuver be pulled.

Within such proximity to each other, it was only a matter of time before something happened.

Edited August 9, 2022 by Haruspex (see edit history)

[Iverica]

Training Task Force Fian

Location: MGRS-31S |   34°17'39.91"N ,  3°57'54.05"E

 

13 June, 2022 | 0444 Zebra (Zulu)

Aboard FFG-230 Fauxardo, Squadron Flagship of 272-COSRON

 

On 8/1/2022 at 10:27 PM, Haruspex said:

2nd Long Range Aero-Wing Squadron

Senior pilot Torna Vek listened to the communique officer repeat the message. Only an appropriate response could be made as he glanced over to said officer. " Commence frequency jamming on all non-essential comms." Hult'ah Yarek glanced over towards Vek. " Yes sir, fleet-command is set to priority, aero-command is a secondary."

---

" Sir, Fleet-Command is responding. We are being ordered to return to base. There are no other orders beyond that." Vek grumbled but nodded head some. " Very well, once we've passed the taskforce, cease jamming of non-essential channels, but comm-lock them. I'd like to not get some Facd cgeh (Skin of the West, Haru-slur in reference to the Western New Wurld) trying to mock us again."

" Yes sir." Yarek replied as turning back to her post and flicking some switches on the console. 

 

CIC interrupted again, mere moments after they had sent their regards.

 

"Bridge, TAO. EWAR detected, RF Jammer. Estimated point of origin is Track 0861...", the Tactical Action Officer read out the details of the radio frequency jamming, which appeared on the Officer of the Watch's station terminal as well. It was mainly jamming radio comms and would likely not affect the squadron's radar SIGINT posture. Given the behaviour of the jamming, the source likely wasn't a dedicated electronic warfare platform, which ruled out the chance that their night-time visitor had EWAR as its primary objective.

 

The FFG-230 Fauxardo was a Trident-Class, Flight I-C, a dedicated command ship fitted for theatre-scale surveillance, command and control, and electronic warfare. It was designed to accommodate the Occulus ESM, a large electronic support and listening array mounted amidships on the forecastle mast mounts. It sported an additional compartment near the CIC to house analysts and their equipment, making the Fauxardo an organic intelligence centre attached at the squadron level. Data on the terminal already came with an initial analysis of Track 0861's jammer. Analysis from the Fauxardo estimated equipment details based on the signal strength of the jamming and its behaviour across different frequencies over time.

Given the amount and intensity of its output, it behaved more like a low-power constant jammer fitted more as an auxiliary system to contribute to its host's survivability. It was also fairly clear that the jammer didn't operate too many channels at once. It appeared to be quickly hopping around frequencies in its range and screeching into each one at a rapid rate, likely to compensate for its inability to cover a broader spectrum of frequencies simultaneously. If the frequency hopping was fast enough, a civilian radio operator or a military one with old equipment might well have taken it as a broad jamming of comms.

The Subcomandante smiled a little as he processed the analysis. Checking in with the ensign at the Communications Officer's terminal, he confirmed that the JDCS suite had already adapted to the jamming and was using adaptive frequency hopping and boosted signals to communicate normally. The Nousphera Data Link appeared to be unaffected. 

Considering the options the Fauxardo had at its disposal, he could order COM-O to keep bothering Track 0861 by repeating annoying messages across all channels. Alternatively, he could ask EWAR to sic the Sirena jammer on the track, potentially damaging their RF electronics. Making up his mind, he was about to issue orders when the bridge's aft hatch was opened by one of the watch Tercios on the other side of the bulkhead. 

 

"Capitan on bridge!", the Tercio sergeant on watch bellowed. The Subcomandante and the two ensigns on the COM-O and Helm terminals snapped to attention.

 

The Capitan strode in, his coat loosely fastened, having just woken and thrown the uniform on quickly. 

 

"My ship, Subcom", he grumbled as he strode up to the captain's terminal. 

 

"Aye, Capitan has the conn! Captain's ship", the Subcomandante responded, stepping away from his terminal. 

 

Without missing a beat, the Subcomandante gave a summary of the account starting from what they were doing when TAO registered a radar track. The Capitan said nothing and scrolled through his terminal. In just over a minute, the Capitan looked up.

 

"Looks like they'll be egressing out soon. Comandante, plot a course for points where those buoys landed. When you're done with that, notify Flight Ops to ready the helos for an ASW patrol on grids just south of those nav points. Helm, take us out when you have the course. COM-O, issue an alert to all civilian and military vessels in our grid warning of an unidentified aircraft putting international maritime and aviation communications at risk by use of a jammer. After that, apprise Fleet HQ of the events since contact and that our Track is likely a Haru military aircraft refusing to identify itself in accordance with international aviation protocols. Once you're all done with that, get off my bridge. Catch a break, let the next watch rotation take care of whatever comes."

 

The Capitan seemed entirely unconcerned about the bogey now that the payload had been dropped. The Subcomandante and his watchmates said their aye-ayes and briefly, the bridge buzzed with activity. The Capitan went over the logs again, procuring a steaming hot mug of pungent Altarian-blend coffee from his aide, who returned shortly after with a galleyman carrying a tray more of the same piping hot dark roast. With good caffein passed around the bridge, things returned to calm- the low thrum of the powerplant rumbling through the deck, interrupted occasionally by buzzed messages on the intercomm circuits and booted feet slowly drumming on the steel decks.

 

---

 

In the wee hours ours of the morning at 0500 Zebra, the picket squadron changed its heading to bear down on points where the aircraft had dropped its payload. Not too far off from their initial course, the Task Force command onboard the cruiser Pura Rassa ordered that the forward picket ships, lead by 272-COSRON, begin longer air patrols with their rotor complement's dipping sonar. Active pings from their quarries had already been detected. Armada intelligence confirmed that aircraft payloads had been sonobuoys based on signals detected from the forward picket's sonar receivers. Current estimates placed a point of intercept between the sonobuoy drop locations and the last intercepted submarine ping.

 

Whereas Task Force Fian submarines were carefully skirting the edges of the AO, surface ships were aggresively cutting through the waves in interlocking zones covered by their towed sonar arrays and helicopter dipping sonars.

 

--

 

OOC: It's been a minute as work has become more of a priority and has put my attention off of this. Since we know the main outcome of this scenario, all that's left is to explore what else could happen. I currently just intend to shadow the submarines with this move and interfere with their operations unless we get confirmation of their rescue mission. Since the mission's rescue/retrieval mission hasn't been announced, the behaviour of TF Fian is understandably aggressive given that SSBNs are involved. An announcement of intent from the Haru may change this.

 

As a side, I had to fill on how an small unspecified and probably unspecialised aircraft comms jammer might work. I made those guesses based on the fact that a small jammer dependent on an aircraft powerplant would be jamming at noticably less intensity and would probably not be able to jam too many frequencies simultaneously. If MH wants to share some more details on the jammer used, I'm happy to retconn the post.

[Haruspex]

GHLL Taskforce
Geltic Sea, Center of the three Zones.

Commodore Elias Yarren was in his stateroom when a knock was heard upon his door. He sipped a bit of tea and then as setting the cup back upon the saucer, spoke. Enter. His second in command, Dolis, entered within and slid his kepi cap from atop head. Sir, we have a priority message from Naval High Command. An extension of his right hand, the sheaf of plastic embossed with a logo at its bottom.

Yarren spoke to Dolis. This cant be good. A moment taken to ponder the message, the raise of his right eyebrow on the contents of said message before he rose to his feet. Dolis looked on.

What is it Sir? 

He paused a bit more before responding to his rather loyal second. We are being called off. Right as we received the probable location of HIN-193. Transmit orders to HIN-104, I believe her commander is the one that found it?

Yes Commodore, that is correct. 

Good, tell her to target HIN-193 and destroy it. Once confirmed, transmit to all S-Boats in the area that they are to with best speed, head for staging point Orion.

By the gods Sir.

Yes, let us hope they are listening to us. Inform the crew we are heading back to port as well. Retrieve all helo's, and get that damned transport out of the zone.

Yes Sir, it will be done!

Prata-Khan Dolis Velven stalked back to the command and control of the flagship. Upon his arrival, his lengthy stride led him to the dedicated communique station. Coms Officer, transmit the following, Code Black. There was a deafening silence in the C&C all of a sudden as the communication officer, a Yeyinde, nodded. Yes Sir, ready to transmit. 

Good. HIN-104 is to destroy target identified as HIN-193.

The hieroglyphs that comprise the language structure of the Haru language lit up as the keys were pressed. The coms officer glanced up. Continue Sir.

Notify the following surface assets. All three 210 Dekan (Tiger) class frigates shall escort the DSRV transport to Kaldana Port and then proceed to Levee Port. Remaining vessels including the flagship shall set sail for staging area Orion.

The officer nodded and began to type, the sound of the teletype activating again as the order was sent out to the surface component.

Lastly, you will transmit the following to HIN-104, HIN-096 and HIN-092 that they are to make way to stage point Orion.

After some time, the Yeyinde ranked coms officer spoke. Its been sent Sir.

Good. Attend to your duties as normal.

Sir!

Colonial Taskforce
Geltic Ocean Operation

HIN-092

HIN-096

HIN-104

Naval High Command Authorized 
Zero Council Authorized Teletype

Protocol 22 is in effect

All KCN will return to dock

HIN Vessels will regroup at staging point Orion

On the matter of HIN-193, nearest submarine will send a torpedo to destroy remains. 

DSRV operation will cease, Colonial Naval Assets will return to Kaldana territorial waters and assist with defense of said territory and expansion through Kabarria. 

HIN vessels will repeat, assume assignments at staging point Orion.

HIN-104, Eighth Squadron
Geltic Sea, Zone 2.2

Siet-Khan Ula Yars leaned slightly against the plotting station, almost absently sipping from a cup of sailors brew (A very potent form of coffee). The mood was good, they'd discovered the near perfect remains of HIN-193 some two hours earlier after playing keep away with foreign assets and hadn't made a ping since that time. 

Yars was waiting for the communique station officer to make word known that the transport and DSRV were overhead so they could move, but what was laid before her by a non-com nearly made her spit out her beloved wake up fuel. She glanced over towards her second who was at the moment timing a drill while they waited.

Stow the drill. Fire control, load tube one, and make ready to fire! 

Commander! What is going on?! Her second, Liet Tarus Vek Hallas advanced to where the periscope pillar was currently at. It extended towards the floor when not in use. Yars used a hand gesture to get him to cool down as she shared the contents of the order with him.

I knew we were probably one day going to be active, but now?

High Command is playing some sort of game, whatever it is, we are to follow our orders. 

Yes Commander. 

The fire control officer leaned her head to the right and spoke. Commander, tube one is load, firing solution is prepped. Am I authorized for outer door opening?

You are authorized. Target HIN-193 and fire.

Confirmed Commander, HIN-193 wreckage targeted! 

There was a vibration within the vessel, one could imagine the wooshing sound of the Type 65 torpedo as it hurtled from the tube towards the target area. The F&C officer watching a digital clock for time, and then after six seconds, the explosion made loose items scatter about the bridge, there was a slight rocking of the hull as the high explosive charge detonated against metal debris and rock. The five-hundred fifty kilogram warhead obliterated the wreckage, and if nerves weren't already frayed above, the firing of a torpedo and an explosion was probably going to not dampen such things.

Yars intended to not be around for such things. She quietly approached her plotter and navigation officers at their stations, leaning down to speak softly. Plot our course due northeast, towards staging point Orion. Enter the following command code 5 by 3, by 1. 

What she had them enter was a Naval High Command security code, to give the location of the Orion staging area within the Cetan Sea as a real set of coordinates for both navigation and the plot officer. It was slightly South of the North Korinon massing area for ships that could be disguised as sea-lane patrols or docking in one of the NK's ports.

A slow rise, hands behind her back. Navigation, return us to the depths from this Geltic Sea.

[Iverica]

Training Task Force Fian

Location: MGRS-30R

 

13 June, 2022 | 0540 Zebra (Zulu)

Aboard FFG-230 Fauxardo, Squadron Flagship of 272-COSRON

 

Shortly after reaching the last of the dropped sonobuoy locations, FFG-230 had picked up acoustic signal of an underwater detonation. Long before, the Task Force intelligence complement had already placed a high probability estimate that the three underwater tracks emitting active radar signals; 2018, 2101, and 2207, were the task force's quarries. Intelligence from the Task Force flagship CG-995 Pura Rassa believed that the track history across the AO suggested that their three tracks were conducting a very careful and very paranoid sweep of several grids in a shallow region. Other than the conclusion that the 3 suspected Haru tracks were looking for something, the Task Force wasn't certain of much else. Specific intent was virtually unknown. The class and hull identification of their tracks could only be guessed. Preliminary reports from towed variable-depth systems on the forward picket squadrons suggested something with 8 blades* was heard on sonar. Active pings sent out gave out returns that might rule smaller hunter-killer hull types- which raised even more questions about the mission profile. If the subs were looking for something to destroy or retrieve, why SSBNs?

*ruling out any other known subs on the database, an even number of submarine blades is very unusual given that even-bladed propellers have more notable harmonics and less propulsion efficiency than most odd versions, like a 7-blade.

None of it really clicked for the officers of the Fauxardo. The detonation registered did little to answer any questions. The frigate's captain was also fairly certain that the rest of the task force captains were equally stumped. Though the attitude of the task force turned somewhat more excited after the detonation, the puzzling nature of the intelligence meant that they had been ordered to resume the tail, stalk, and observe routine- albeit now following tracks that appeared to be quickly egressing for deeper waters on the central Adlantic. The submarine element of the task force which had been skirting the grids quietly over the last few days now had orders to lie in wait to intercept and stalk the tracks further. The rest of the surface elements had been hastily reorganised to both provide live intellgence on the track movements via rotor missions and sweep the sectors around the registered detonation. 

Ordered to make way at flank speed, the picket squadrons coordinated sectors of responsibility while the swifter ships among them broke off in an attempt to follow the ocean current southward- in hopes of snagging whatever evidence might remain of the detonation. Based on signals from multiple recievers, the emission was believed to be a point in the vicinity of a high ocean shelf, one of the longest and highest in the region.

It had gotten more and more intriguing from there as an recce overflight reported traces of what appeared to be patches of lubricant slick and small debris. Later still, sonarmen heard the groaning of metal over their headphones.

 

---

 

OOC Dice Roll (based on Eurth Dice System)

1 - Complete Failure: The wreckage was both broken up and dislodged from the shelf by the torpedo impact. Nothing useful is found.

2-5 - Major Setback: Some evidence is found that a Haru submarine was destroyed by other Haru vessels but the details are not clear. The rest will have to be gleaned from an intelligence effort though the full story will likely never be known unless divulged.

6-9 - Minor Setback: Pieces of debris are found, enough to ascertain that an accident happened onboard the HIN-193 but with not much detail as to what made 193 so special.

10 - Things go just as planned: Sections of the hull are found, providing some insight to Haru submarine materials. Some details of the accident are discovered but the wreckage does not reveal anything conclusive about its powerplant and propulsion. The rest sank too deep for any useful analysis.

11-16 - Minor Success: Much of the hull broke apart but large sections of it floated a very short distance away, coming stuck on another submarine rise. Bits and pieces from various compartments are recovered and some minor insight into the 193's experimental nature is gained. 

17-20 - Major Success: The single torpedo fired did little other than vent a few non-essential compartment into the drink and place a bus sized hole into the thing. The wreckage shifted but remained lodged somewhat tenuously on the shelf. Long enough for the FFG-230 to deploy its UUVs to document and retrieve items of interest. The wreckage will be stabilised and recovered by a squadron of submarine tenders and float-on-float-off ship.

 

Important Note: I'll roll the dice when the bot is back up on the server. In all cases from, 2-20, varying quantities of human and material remains will be found. The Iverican Ministry of Foreign Affairs will reach out to the Haru and arrange for human remains and personal effects to be returned after being prepared appropriately. This may or may not take place in-RP but this note serves to underscore that it will happen canonically.