Mission: INSURGENT AIRFIELD
Those who served: Dan, Berklesnort, Caverick
I sprinted down the hill toward the airfield. Four insurgents still guarded the hangars- each had one outside and one inside, and the convoy was due any moment!
By the time I reached the lip of the airstrip, Dan had sniped the two outside each hangar. I ran to the closest hangar, caught my breath, then edged around the doorway until I could see a grey-camo leg, and shot it. "First hangar clear" I reported. "Moving to the second".
"No time!" Dan replied, sprinting across the grass. "Just get airborne!"
I jumped into my trusty Hip-8 and started the engine. As I lifted off the airstrip, I heard the powerful whine of turbo jets and the su25 eased out of the hangar. The sound mixed with that of approaching vehicles- the convoy was upon us!
I headed for the rocks, hearing Dan swing around and take off behind me. I eased the chopper down to pick up Greg, and hopped out for a look. The convoy had stopped in front of the hangars, making a nice juicy target. I radioed this to Dan, and he swept in for a run.
It was spectacular. The whole area erupted into fireballs the height of the hangars, and cleared into smoke and burning trucks. Dan swept over for a second pass, and more fire blossomed over the convoy. I punched the air. Convoy blown to smithereens and a town ripe for the taking! Surely nothing could stop us now!
I jumped back into the chopper, and Greg settled into the seat behind his PKM door gun. We lifted from the hill and swooped across the airfield to mop up the leftovers.
Nothing moved amid the blazing trucks. We swept past the hangar.. and the field beyond crawled with Ivans like ants! There must have been at least 30. Greg poured fire at them and we swung out over Krasnostav.
I radioed to Dan to switch to missiles and see what he could target. He was already ahead of me- a missile rocketed past and slammed into a pickup south of the airfield, launching it into the air.
Greg and I came in for a pass. I tried to give Greg a stable firing platform, but we were still too far away for accurate MG fire. Just then we received a mayday from Dan. It was to the northwest, more than two kilometres away! I swung the Hip around and poured on the speed to get there in time.
Dan had lost power making a turn and ploughed a deep scar into a smooth green hillside. Greg leaped from the chopper and ran to his aid, then took some photos of it:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/splat_squadron/photos/album/394442576/pic/1261764335/view?picmode=&mode=tn&order=ordinal&start=1&count=20&dir=asc
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/splat_squadron/photos/album/394442576/pic/609651094/view?picmode=&mode=tn&order=ordinal&start=1&count=20&dir=asc
Now armed with two door gunners, I took off again and flew over the hills toward our hot zone. Ivan still swarmed over the western end of the airfield. We crossed them at a fair height, guns blazing, and I had just begun to turn for another pass when tragedy struck. Greg fell from the chopper! (some kind of bug)
"No!" I screamed as he plummeted to the ground. He'd fallen close to Ivan's large force!
I circled overhead for a moment, wondering what to do. To get down among those guys was suicide, but we couldn't just fly away and leave him. And if we were going to attempt a rescue, it had to be done now...
"Dan, switch to the left gun".
"Copy that" Dan climbed across to the seat Greg had just fallen from. I curled away to the east, then lost altitude as we came back to the west end of the airfied.. We entered the field at about eight meters. I gave the Hip some rudder to keep Dan facing the troops.
At first Dan didn't see the men, then he opened up with fury. We almost hit a tree (I saw us clip one), but Dan had mown down at least six insurgents before I throttled up again. Having thinned their numbers, we zoomed over some trees and I brought us in for a fast landing in the backyard of one of the buildings. It was to the south of the airfield, close to where Greg lay screaming.
Dan and I jumped from the chopper. Dan bravely ran to Greg and started reviving. I saw figures approaching through the trees, a LOT of them. I fired but don't think I hit anyone. It got their attention though, and bullets started tugging the air around me. As I dropped prone I caught a minor wound, but I saw Greg and Dan sprinting back to the copper.
"Get those guns working!" I cried. The rear one began to spray the trees. I bellied toward my bird but just as I crawled under the tail I was shot.
I lay there screaming and watching all the grey figures running around. Dan tried to revive me and was shot too, it looked like the end. But then I gasped for air as Greg pulled me back from the brink, and we crawled into the chopper as bullets hit it from all angles. We struggled into the air, and I sped us south. Woo-hoo!
"Now THAT, gentlemen," I said "is called teamwork".
We tried to come up with a plan. The only way I could see to even the odds was get to the other su25.
"It's too hot" Dan said. "We'd never make it".
"I'll get you there".
Now that we had escaped certain death I felt cocky. Or maybe I'm becoming more like a pilot. Our medevac under fire had lured the troops a little to the south, so I though we could do it.
I flew us in from the east, staying low to use the buildings to shield us. I flared the chopper and thumped her down at the western hangar door.
"Now?" said Dan.
"GO!"
As Dan jumped out the door bullets began to hit our bird again. I'd just started to throttle up when BOOM- an RPG round hit our rotors! Once again I thought we were toast, but she faithfully clawed us back into the air.
Dan rolled out of the hangar in the second su25 as the troops ran toward him. Now was the time he was vulnerable, so I kept us close and Greg let rip with 7.62mm. I know he got about six. He either suppressed the whole force or, at the very least, kept their attention on us. Dan swung the jet around, I punched the throttle, and I rode his wing all the way up the runway. It must have been an awesome view for Greg.
Once Dan was safely airborne Greg and I came back for another pass, but at long last the PKMs ran dry. We were only a transport now. As Dan started dropping ordinance, I flew us back to the ruins of the radio tower, landed and saved the game.
Greg and I had to switch back to infantry weapons, so I flew us back to the LZ. Greg picked a very nice grassy-looking sniper rifle, and I reloaded mine. I landed us on a hill on the west side of the airfield, and we got to work:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/splat_squadron/photos/album/394442576/pic/1464457275/view?picmode=&mode=tn&order=ordinal&start=1&count=20&dir=asc
We shot several as Dan made passes over them. When it seemed like they were all gone, another patrol would come up from the south.
I glanced at the map and saw that they were flanking us, approaching using a dip in the hill as cover, so I checked with Greg and we withdrew, jumping back in the chopper. Once again we took off with the sound of bullets plinking though the metal skin. I flew us back to the rocks, where the AI had been patiently waiting the whole time.
Dan made more passes until his ordinance was spent, then he ejected and joined us at the rocks. We shot another couple of Ivans, but the rest lurked to the southwest where we couldn't see them because of the hangar. Just then we hit another weird bug where I looked like I was bing dragged but nobody could drag or revive me. In the end I got Dan to shoot and then revive me.
As we discussed plans, I ran down to the airfield and returned driving a jeep I'd spotted. "Will this help?"
It was almost out of gas, but it would be enough for a charge. Dan took the 50 cal, I ordered the AI to advance and Greg accompanied them. I drove us up the runway, rounded the corder and screeched to a halt.
Dan opened up with the MG on the remaining ten or so Ivans. I'd just passed another jeep that looked serviceable, so I thought I'd get on its gun to help Dan. I ran back and found it was too damaged though. A bullet clipped me, so I dropped prone, lifted my sniper rifle and shot at least six.
The airfield, at last, fell silent.
Was Ivan really, finally gone? Time for a recon to find out. I took the jeep's wheel again, picked up Greg and we drove back to the trusty chopper:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/splat_squadron/photos/album/394442576/pic/573126058/view?picmode=&mode=tn&order=ordinal&start=1&count=20&dir=asc
I floated us gently over Krasnostav until we were completely sure that the enemy had been vanquished. After accumulating more than seventy kills between us, we'd done it!
Time to achieve the second objective. I eased the chopped down near a car so we'd have some transport, dropped the guys off, then got some height and ejected. I drifted down a happy man. Time to drive triumphantly to the exfil!
BOOM went my faithful Hip. The notification came up that the second objective was complete! All aircraft destroyed- now we had to take the town!
That's when the doors of Krasnostav flew open and ANOTHER large force swarmed out of the buildings! I was taken out as soon as my feet touched the ground. Greg and Dan ran for the hills to try and snipe, but were also cut down in moments. SPLAT was defeated.
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