DCS Black Shark: First Online Mission

Actually it was a while ago. I just didn't have the time to post about it.

It was a great experience to fly with the virtual pilots of the ECV56 "Condor" (Virtual Combat Squadron 56 "Condor"), a fine group of very dedicated Argentinean fans of flight simulation.

The mission was edited by "Argentinen" (ECV56 Condor) and it features a deep strike operation with 4 Ka-50 Russian helicopters attacking a Georgian Patriot missile air defense system located in the mountainous border between Russia and Georgia.

The mission was a partial success. We could destroy a significant amount of missile systems. Alas, we lost three helicopters during the operation. Two pilots ejected to safety and I was "killed" (I guess the missile that struck me killed me in the cockpit).

It was a great experience to fly with brevity code comms, maintaining formation (this is a thing I'm very bad at), and trying to make good tactical use of the terrain.

Some pics of the action follow.

"Charly" (background) and me (forefront) at the main battle position, acquiring targets. Image courtesy of "Argentinen" from ECV56 Condor.


I needed to lower my nose to aim one of my missiles and when I did so I dived down the slope of the mountain. The enemy shot at me with all they had. I narrowly evaded this missile. Image courtesy of "Argentinen" from ECV56 Condor.

Cheers,

Contemporary Military Thinkers: Martin van Creveld

Dr. van Creveld's contributions to the study of human conflict cover a wide range of military and political matters.

His most-recognized books, "The Transformation of War" and "Supplying War: Logistics from Wallenstein to Patton", are included in the US Army Officer's required reading list.

Showing an amazing erudition in military history, van Creveld puts forward not only new and exciting ideas on how to analyze the historical facts, but also his view on how previous analysis need revision. Not even the mighty Clausewitz escapes from scrutiny.

One of his books I think is under-rated in popularity and importance. In "The Rise and Decline of the State", van Creveld proposes that the sovereign state as we know it in modern societies has outlived his usefulness. "The Rise and Decline of the State" is one of those books that shakes your axioms to the core.

His latest book "The Culture of War", is in my night stand waiting to join the other books from this author in an special section of my bookshelf reserved for the books I consult the most.

Cheers,

Steel Beasts ProPE v2.46: Breaching Operations

In this "classic scenario" a company-strong US force has to breach through a minefield and make its way through fighting. The detail in which engineer operations are modeled is outstanding.

MCLIC-M113s move forward to start the breach. Part of the assault force waits in the background. Image is clickeable.

A MCLIC-M113 moves past a M1 MBT that is providing support by fire. Image is clickeable.

An engineer M113 in the forefront passes by a MCLIC-M113 on its way to mark the breach. Image is clickeable


An M1 MBT negotiates de breach. Note the breach marks the engineers deployed. Image is clickeable.


Better keep moving or enemy artillery will dispatch you. A platoon of mineplow-equiped M1 MBTs move forward to avoid de metal falling from the sky.

Cheers,

Steel Beasts ProPE v2.46: Pics from the Frontlines

I've been re-playing the so-called "classic scenarios" of Steel Beasts. These are scenarios from the original Steel Beasts and from the first version of Steel Beasts ProPE. These scenarios I played several times before but they don't cease to attract me for a new round. Really great stuff. This scenario in particular features a breach through a minefield and then a continued attack towards a road junction.

The images below are clickeable.


Cheers,

Pirates and Terrorists in the Same Boat?

This morning I was listening to WAMU's "Morning Edition" and besides all the buzz about what to do with the alarming problem of piracy, there was an interesting note about the possibility that in the future Al Qaeda or other terrorist organization could join or collaborate with the pirates.

At the time of this writing the program is still ongoing and I can't link you to the transcript. I will do that as soon as it becomes available. [UPDATE: The story is available now here] On the meantime, the web appears to be full of articles about the issue. Here is an article at Newsweek.

Cheers,

UPDATE: Another article here, from the Christian Science Monitor

"Belorussia 1944" by David Glantz, My First eBook Experience

I enjoy reading good military history books and war gaming what's in them. Also enjoy the reverse: war gaming some historical battle and then getting to read books about it.

HPS Simulations is one of my favorite companies for war games/simulations. Their Panzer Campaigns series features battles spanning all WWII. In their "Minsk 44" title, Panzer Campaigns puts you in the thick of one of the most dramatic battles of WWII, the battle for Belorussia in 1944.

David Glantz, one of the most prolific and respected authors on Soviet military history, has written a wonderful book about the very same battle: "Belorussia 1944: The Soviet General Staff Study". David Glatnz's books are not for the casual reader. They are studies in the military art, with profusive details on troop movements, command and control, logistics and the peculiarities of each country's way of waging wars. Both dense and lacking the narrative beauty of other authors like Atkinson, Glantz's books though contain the stuff the hardcore enthusiast of military history cherishes.

David Glantz's "Belorussia 1944" and HPS's "Minsk 44" form a great and enjoyable combination.

Instead of going the usual Amazon.com route, this time I decided to buy "Belorussia 1944" as an e-book from eBooks.com. Purchasing the e-book was a breeze and after the required installation of reading software from Adobe (Adobe Digital Editions), I was reading the e-book a few minutes after paying online. I don't particularly like any of Adobe's software in general because it asks you for updates every single time, but that's a personal peeve. Also, it's a bit disconcerting that both the printed and electronic versions of the book cost the same.

The "Belorussia 1944" book itself didn't disappoint. Very good read and perfect to understand what's being war gamed in "Minsk 44". The only thing that I am disappointed about is how the maps show in the electronic version. Many of Glantz's books contain maps that are hand-drawn and relatively small. These do not compress very well with the image-processing algorithms used to make e-books. The customer support people of eBooks.com were very gracious in trying to get me better resolution of the images, but unfortunately these small figures are helpless.

Cheers,

Steel Beasts ProPE v2.46, Back in the Hatch

I got my Steel Beasts ProPE v2.46 past Wednesday, but it was not until today that I got a chance to install it and take a ride. In a short time, I'm going to post some more detailed impressions about the upgrade. On the meantime, let me tell you that the new Abrams 3D model is a beauty. See clickeable screenies below.

Steel Beasts ProPE v2.46 Upgrade: Second Video by Sean

The second of the two videos showcasing the new stuff in Steel Beasts ProPE v2.46, again courtesy of Sean (forum admin. at the official eSims' forums). Thanks Sean!

Steel Beasts ProPE v2.46 Upgrade: Video by Sean

I actually linked you to this video in a previous entry.

Sean (administrator of the Steel Beasts Official forums and author of the video) has been very kind authorizing me to post both of his videos showing the new features in Steel Beasts ProPE v2.46. Thanks million Sean!

Second part is coming in a future entry.

Steel Beasts ProPE v2.46 Upgrade: Shipping Now!

For the charges of not being up to date in following the news on the upcoming upgrade of Steel Beasts ProPE: guilty as charged, your honor ...
Also, guilty as charged on procrastinating my pre-order of the upgrade at a discount price.

This morning I purchased the upgrade and I noticed that the discount rate didn't apply to my purchase. On closer inspection the eSim store has the full upgraded version of Steel Beasts ProPE already listed. I rushed to the official eSim forums and found this post made yesterday by Ssnake, stating:

Well, actually the packing will take most of the weekend. Shipping will start this Monday.

It is very likely the upgrade CD is shipping already for those who pre-ordered.

Cheers,

UPDATE: Tom tells us he received his upgrade copy. See comment below. It's happening. Thanks Tom.