A Deliberate Attack: Flashpoint Campaigns Red Storm AAR

 

The Witches' Cauldron: The Battle of Rinteln

Romanian, I believe, motor riflemen dismount from a BTR. 

"The essence of Soviet maneuver theory rests on two tenets: rapid tempo and concentrated firepower...For the Soviets to succeed in the attack they must organize their forces so that they can concentrate overwhelming firepower rapidly at a specific point..." - Richard H. Gribling, Soviet Attack Tempo: The Linchpin in Soviet Maneuver Doctrine

Situation

D+3, 0700 Hours. The Germans refuse to break. For two days they have clung onto the Weser River valley doggedly, with a determination bordering on the fanatic. Worse still, the intact bridges they hold hostage have acted alternatively as a backstop or pivot, allowing wounded NATO forces to pull back to relative safety or launch local counter offensives against our flanks. 

These counteroffensives have been short and sharp, but never enough. A company where there should be a battalion, a battalion where there should be a reinforced brigade. NATO has not yet brought to bear enough reserves and so opportunity still abounds for a breakthrough. Our reserves are, of course, much nearer to hand. 

The 11th Guards Tank Division's lead regiment was stopped cold two days ago at Hameln. Now, the remaining two regiments are going in further to the northwest to try and force a crossing at Rinteln and recharge the offensive. The Front Commander has made it clear: he wants a crossing over the Weser today. It is not an order that brooks argument or debate. 

Mission

At all costs, establish a bridgehead over the river Weser.

Friendly Forces

The surviving elements of the 11th GTD have reorganized into Operational Group "Red Storm." Essentially a division minus a regiment, consisting of the 44th Guards Tank and 27th Guards Motor Rifle regiments. Fire support comes from the 27th's regimental artillery group (RAG) and the divisional artillery group (DAG), consisting of towed 122mm and 152mm howitzer battalions respectively. 

The tank force is not homogenous, presumably due to earlier losses or the usual quirks of procurement, with one battalion in the regiment having modernized T80BVs and gun launched anti-tank guided missiles (GLATGM). The rest are older T80B1s and they lack both the applique armour and missile capability. 

The regiments are formed into two distinct task forces, and each sub-battalion into a tactical grouping.

Enemy forces

Here too, the implacable 7th Panzer Division hound us. A combined arms force is holding in the vicinity. We can expect them to be understrength and spread thinly, but fortified. Equally without doubt will be the presence of some type of mobile reserve or counterattacking force. 

Battle Plan

I have two potential courses of action that I have templated. 

The first: the direct route.

 It is only six kilometres to Rinteln from my potential line of departure. Fire support is plentiful if not overwhelming. Surely I can shoot my tank regiment through any obstacles and into the intervening village behind this curtain of fire. There I can pivot, and pour the motor rifles through the gap and onto the objectives. 

Lots of merit to this plan, particularly with regards to the space to deploy. My enemy is a mechanized formation so the idea of taking strong enfilading fire from the forested ridge to the north is not, I think, a serious concern. Lots of merit, therefore...if it was D+1. It is not D+1, and the Germans have been in position for several days, so I suspect I would simply be hurling my forces right into a killing zone. I may as well burn my tanks and PCs now and save the Germans the effort. 

That moves us onto option two: the hook. 

Initial terrain is narrow and claustrophobic. However, the confined terrain affords certain advantages: less, and more obvious, targets for my fire support to hit. This allows for an easier way to concentrate direct and indirect fire. The small hills also allow for some small unit action to provide supporting fire if I hit a more organized defence here than I expect. Even if the infantry units suffer atrociously once on the nearby objective, it doesn't matter much if the follow on units can burst into the enemy's rear swiftly. 

From there, where? Cross the Weser to the west of Rinteln, where my tank regiment can avoid the urban terrain, I think. A two-fold solution, the tank regiment can assume an excellent attack by fire position over Sud Rinteln, or block the inevitable counterstroke. 

So, option two it is. With luck, even if the MRR suffers two-thirds of its forces lost, I should retain ample punch to secure most, if not all, of the four bridge objectives. 

Sitrep 0728

As suspected, there's an enemy obstacle belt; a considerable one. What catches me off guard is that there's an obstacle belt to the north as well. By 0728 I've made a breach in the concertina wire, despite taking some losses from long range tank and TOW fire. A huge, dangerous traffic jam builds up though during the recce's breaching efforts. My indirect fire hammers suspected firing positions but does not appear to have any luck.

I take losses but nothing major, and more importantly we are not struck by any artillery heavier than mortars. Nevertheless, losses are inflicted. Off to a bad start. Grit my teeth, and push on.

Fortunately, the Germans appear to be a tripwire force, they hang around for only a few minutes and fade away. The Wiesels are caught and destroyed attempting to cut across country, providing some consolation. 

Nevertheless, we're through the gap by 0728 and the traffic jam is starting to unravel itself as the lead battalion tactical group fans out for its initial objective. 

Sitrep 0801

An eerie quiet as the first objective is declared secure and devoid of the enemy. The lead MRC, despite its losses, takes up its flank guard position as the rest of the battalion fans out to secure the respective bridges for the following battalion group. 

Only my artillery sees action in this time. Paranoid due to the Germans fading away so quickly, the divisional artillery fires scatterable mines along suspected reinforcement routes into Rinteln. They appear to catch something but I am not able to follow up with any effect. Second, a ruthless all-tubes barrage is ordered on an enemy HQ identified via SIGNIT at 0739 hours. 

Where are the Germans?

Sitrep 0842

Light rain begins to fall and visibility does not exceed 2000 meters. It still feels like I'm punching air, though my artillery fire in the vicinity of my minefield seems to have knocked out more units, whatever they are. Surely, a good sign...

At this point I became convinced the Germans were pulling back across the Weser, which would vitiate much of my plan if so. The "demonstration" force that had been held in readiness in an assembly area is ordered to launch an attack directly towards Rinteln, both to confirm my suspicions and pin any enemy. 

BRDMs identify more obstacles, and one of the sections is able to cut a gap in the concertina wire without any fuss. They report no incoming fire direct or otherwise. Now I'm sure the Germans have pulled back across the front. What remains to be confirmed is how far and in what strength. The bulk of the demonstration force have their orders cancelled, since I think there would be very little for them to pin down, now.

Sitrep 1018

Things don't stay quiet for long, surprising no one I trust. 

At 0903 hours the BRDMs in the south, with the demonstration force finally report taking direct fire as they move to the far side of the obstacle belt. The fire is coming from the south side of the Weser river! A gap in the rain confirms that an enemy Leopard 2A4 company is on the far side of the bank, dug in on some high ground. Two BRDMs are lost but the other section breaks contact successfully.

Normally I'd use my air power but even with "light" rain it is apparently inclement enough that only fighters rated for all-weather missions can sortie. Mine are not rated as such, so are unable to assist. 

The main effort further north progresses smoothly, but for the lead battalion of the tank regiment overtaking the trailing battalion of the motor rifles. I suspect this was due to the knock-on-effects of the much earlier traffic jam at the obstacle breach. The tank regiment was on enough of a delay that it never piled up behind their infantry counterparts. 

This could have been disastrous, but serendipity intervenes to make for a welcome coup. As the lead TB exits a forest defile, they run into what appears to be a company of Panzergrenadiers on route to reinforce Rinteln. In a running firefight, still in a long column, my armour eviscerates the hapless German infantry. Three T80B1s are all the astonished enemy are able to account for. Belated German artillery lands behind as the lead group clears the gap. The two battalions motor on and have thrown a few companies across the Weser by 1018 hours. 

The situation as of 1018 can be seen below. The rain persists, and visibility remains at 2000 meters. This effectively means I'm groping for the Germans, and I hope breaking across the Weser so swiftly will maximise surprise and minimize the weather disadvantage. 

The difficult part is over, I think. What follows will be far from rote and the Leopard 2A4s are in a strong, if exposed position, but at this point it's pretty clearly my battle to win. The tank regiment has every available howitzer put in direct support in anticipation of a firefight with the enemy armour. 

Sitrep 1055

The rain finally goes away and stays gone, increasing visibility to just over five kilometres. At 1033 the Germans finally appear to wise up to the presence of a tank regiment in their rear. They bring down the thunder, this time with much greater accuracy. The regiment runs a gauntlet of indirect fire from howitzers and some type of MLRS. 

This is what I had hoped to avoid, or at least delay. The slow bleed and nibbling of Soviet forces at long range by NATO that saps men, machine and readiness is usually more fatal to Soviet efforts than any flaws in their plan or approach. The fire is most certainly corrected and observed, as it focuses on the moving battalion headquarters. Some command BMPs are lost, but the Commanders' tanks survive. Losses are, on the whole, fairly light, and I feel as if I have gotten away with some kind of petty theft as the regiment emerges on the far side of the barrage and begin to take up battle positions at 1044 hours. 

My own artillery has been softening up the now-known position of the Leopard 2s, and is even able to disable one. At 1033, taking advantage of the cleared weather, a belated sortie is put in by frontal aviation on this same position. 

Four "bombed up" Mig-23MLs come screaming in from the east, following the Weser valley and popping up for their final attack. They barely have time to register the radar warnings before three of them are blotted out of the sky at close range by gun ADA from somewhere near the bridges. The sole remaining pilot bombs in an inaccurate panic, hitting nothing. The pilot is able to identify more enemy units, probably from the fire they put up in the air at him, but its a very costly bit of recce. 

Now a direct firefight begins in earnest, with the two battalions of the tank regiment engaging enemy forces on both sides of the Weser. My armour is at relatively low readiness, entirely understandable giving the deep, fighting assault they have just conducted. This likely accounts for their initial losses to enemy SPAT firing from the north bank, picking off T80s that search in confusion for effective positions. Never the less, six companies of T80s is a strong argument and massed fire begins to tell, with revenge swiftly exacted on the menacing SPAT. The T80s also brew up several PCs trying to reorient their infantry, before they shift their fire and attention to the Leopards. 

Sitrep 1133

You always expect some type of counter stroke, I think, when fighting West German forces, but what surprises me is how often they still surprise me. 

As the rear elements of the MRR close up with the much-delayed 3rd Battalion (who have begun to dug in on their objective) they are surprised to see smoke rounds landing in front of the village of Kleinenbremen. Any questions they may have had are soon violently answered, as a Panzergrenadier company comes roaring out of the town and fans out in line to the south! 

The Germans fight mounted, firing from roof hatches and halting to use the mounted Milans. Their immediate targets are the commanders of the 27th MRR and the 3rd Battalion, plus some air defence units. It is, as you can imagine, not an even fight, and soon the command vehicles are burning, the HQ staff killed, wounded or scattered as they attempt to run south to the cover of some woods. This has devastating effect on my command and control. 

A screencap taken a few minutes before the PzGren wheel south.

This seems to be the start of a general counterstroke. I'm sure it is a lot less coordinated than it appeared at the time, but over the next twenty-three minutes I am fairly roughly handled. For in addition to the sudden assault of out Kleinenbremen, a separate company of Leopard 2A4s appears to try and cut off the 44th Tank Regiment. This unit blasts its way north, back across the Weser, and gains purchase in the town of Eisbergen. 

The MRB's accompanying TC is deployed on the northwestern outskirts, in vain anticipation of enemy reinforcements coming down that road, so the Leopards have a field day, shooting up dozens of PCs and even managing to discomfit a few infantry squads, as they were not yet fully dug in. The Leopards wisely do not turn west to try and brawl with the riflemen, and appear to be continuing north, initially. 

The only bright spot continues to be in Sud Rinteln. A company of Panzergrenadiers mounted in M113s are seen approaching from the southwest and are duly shot up. A wholesale slaughter is avoided when another rain squall occurs at 1123 and the German infantry shift their advance about a kilometre to the south of the road, it appears, in that time. When the rain lifts, two platoons of German infantry are nearly on top of my tanks, and are repelled by fire in time. 

Sitrep 1213

The German counterstrokes continue, but begin to run out of impetus. The aforementioned rain does nothing but to enhance my misery in Eisbergen as the Leopards there disappear in the mist for thirty minutes. Naturally, they continue to engage with aplomb, as they fight their way north.

3/27th MRR, as a result, finds itself in mortal peril for a very stressful half-hour. They are attacked from both north and south. Luckily, they have managed to complete digging in and have good cover. Unlike in Eisenbergen, their accompanying armour has good fields of fire, and uses it to excellent effect as the rain once again lifts. First, the PzGrenadiers sweeping in from the north are taken under tank fire, and they lose multiple IFVs before they can close to Milan range. The Germans wisely dismount, and swing southeast into the forest to try and break into our position on foot. 

The terrain is complex, though, and slows them down. This allows my artillery to ponderously shift their support and the infantry company they attack is able to see them off with only minor losses, mainly in PCs, when the Germans finally emerge from the treeline. 

The Germans shift their own artillery onto the battalion, and the weight of fire from the rockets is able to knock a platoon's worth of T80BVs out of the fight. Infantry get their fair share of high explosive as well, once again however it mainly knocks out the BTRs. Despite the shelling, the southern-most infantry are able to see off a platoon of Leopards, and the German armour does not press their attack into wooded terrain. They break off to the southwest, heading cross country towards Rinteln. 

It's always very easy to write off infantry in Flashpoint games, I think, but to do so is definitely a mistake. If well sited and husbanded carefully, they can be decisive in any role. The little victory for 3/27th MRR does much to restore the prestige of the regiment after what has been a battle bereft of any dramatic successes for it. 

 

With the Germans having broken contact I can finally apply some thought to reorganising the companies to make up for the loss of so many of higher headquarters. 

ENDREP 1504

Once the German counter offensives finally abate, I begin organizing the finishing blow. 

The two battalions of 44th Tank Regiment in Sud Rinteln have regained much of their readiness, despite having kept the enemy under some long range fire for this intervening period. They have enough ammunition for a short, sharp assault and, unsurprisingly, will be the main effort. 

1/27th MRR are equally recovered from their ordeal of breaching the obstacle belt in the morning, despite having taken such a drubbing from mortars while doing so. They, along with the long-idle "demonstration" force, will attack in conjunction with the forces from Sud Rinteln. The intent is to take the eastern bridges and then roll up the enemy flank, fighting along the northern shore of the Weser where adequate cover can be provided by the armour. 

As you can imagine, organizing all this is a nightmare due to the loss of a regimental HQ and several battalion HQs. This imposes great delay, as it takes over an hour for my hard-pressed staff to issue the orders and have them filter down. Some units are given orders well before others, then are compelled to delay execution to achieve synchronicity. It is not until 1324 hours that we're ready to go. 

When the assault does begin, it goes exceedingly well, despite bitter resistance from a company of German infantry and the remaining 'runners' from the Leopard 2s repulsed by 3/27th MRR. The TR achieves its objectives swiftly and is able to do some proper mischief now, with the ranges reduced to around a kilometre on targets identified. 

Covered by this assault and SPAT, the lead MRC comes in from the northeast and secures the northern end of the bridge swiftly, meeting only token resistance. Behind it comes the rest of the battalion tactical group (in reality a marriage of the feint force and 1/27th MRR), who mass on a frontage of 1000m and attack through the city blocks. The accompanying 'heavy flamethrower' battery skirts north and fires a terrifying barrage of thermobaric rockets ahead of the attack. 

While the barrage effects no losses, its suppressive effect is welcome enough; enabling the two following MRCs and their supporting armour to kick out the remaining Panzergrenadiers with only a few more losses. 

By 1504 all objectives are firmly in Soviet hands and the remaining Germans have retreated northwest, deeper into Rinteln. The battle is in extended play, so I end it. 

The result is a decisive success, and a hard-earned one at that. Naturally I'm well happy with the result. Losses are atrocious in quite a few callsigns, and a lot of BTRs are irretrievably destroyed. None of that is surprising, given the circumstances. 

The German force has been thoroughly rubbished, though they sold themselves dearly. The intermittent rain showers did nothing to help me, and many of my losses came from thermal-equipped forces shooting through the accompanying mists. The worst killer was the enemy artillery, especially during the initial breach of the obstacle belt. 

It is the obstacle belt itself that is my main cause for self-criticism. I correctly assumed there would be one, given the operational circumstances. I found myself caught off guard by how forward the belt actually was. That's entirely my failure, since the intel brief always gives a good idea of the front-line trace. 

So, when we hit the belt, half a regiment found itself stacked up. Artillery-inflicted losses were obviously downright rapacious as a result; but even then I got off lightly as the Germans did not elect for a pugnacious forward defence, so direct fire was minimal. The plan itself was, in the broad strokes, still good and I'm glad I ignored my initial instinct to issue a flurry of corrective orders, and let matters progress. That was obviously the right decision. What was the wrong decision was to not 'plan for friction.' The timetable of the attack was tight, with following sequential echelons starting their movement at the ETA of the preceding one. That's something more appropriate for a road march than an attack: lesson learned. Lengthen the space/time between echelons to account for having to move and fight, prevent bottlenecks, and to keep potential alternative routes actionable. Not too great a distance, however, or you can be separated and defeated in detail. A tricky balance to strike, and I think the reason why the Soviets are immensely satisfying to play.