SRA Military Developments and Projects

[Markus Wilding]

The Socialist Republics Armed Forces have begun experiments with increased air mobility concepts, notably that while the Socialist Republics Airborne can effectively respond to many threats far more quickly than other units, the light armament and limited support options increasingly leave them vulnerable during initial deployments. This especially can cause situations where the Airborne are at risk of being overrun without armored or artillery support outside of extremely light man portable weapons. Integrating the Airborne with new helicopters such as the UH-3 Aleut and UH-4 Navajo has increasing their response times compared to conventional WWII-style combat paradrops, but the lack of effective armored support is still a clear issue that must be addressed. Therefore, the Army has ordered the construction of the M212 Infantry Fighting Vehicle, which is in effect a scaled-down M211 IFV with similarly reduced passenger capacity, though it still retains the 73mm low-velocity gun of its larger comrade. Also included in the expansion of the combined arms experiments for the American airborne is the addition of the M551 Hancock tank, technically an Armored Recon and Airborne Assault Vehicle, as well as the M1964A MLRS, popularly nicknamed the Light Smokes.

In other related developments, the Socialist Republics Armed Forces are now reporting back to 100% strength for the Army and Army Air Force, with the Navy still reporting at least two more years wait time for new ships. Given recent threat assessments, the Joint Chiefs are confident that the SRAF is able to effectively engage any known threat within a reasonable timeframe.

[Markus Wilding]

Due to damages sustained during recent cowardly terrorist attacks, the Socialist Republics has begun repairing affected infrastructure projects, reinvesting industry to affected areas, as well as alleviating the complaints of areas that are affected by riots and protests.

[Markus Wilding]

Due to increasing priority to maintain control and prevent terrorism, Congress has ordered an expansion to the National Guard, intending to federalize at least ten divisions from across the nation.

[Markus Wilding]

New conscripts have been inducted into training centers in order to replace losses sustained by combat in Cascadia. Likewise, new production has begun to replace damaged and destroyed vehicles and aircraft during the campaign. The interred Cascadian airpower and naval ships have been categorized and will be sold off as either military aid to friendly nations, dismantled for scrap, or in the case of the Cascadian carrier fleet, used for training targets.

[Markus Wilding]

The Joint Chiefs of Staff have concluded Phase 1 of their review of Operation Whistleblower and the effects of the Socialist Republic Army and its performance in the campaign. Immediately, several conclusions became apparent;

1. The Socialist Republic Army's standard M14 rifle was consistently and almost totally outmatched in combat by the Cascadian CAR-15 assault rifle. Despite the range and inherent power of the 7.62x51mm round, the higher rate of fire afforded to the average Cascadian infantryman meant he consistently outmatched a comparably or even better trained American soldier armed with an effectively single-shot M14. Furthermore, in urban combat such as in San Francisco, Fresno, and Boise, soldier complaints list the M14 as unwieldy and difficult to use. This is in direct contrast to soldiers from the 101st and 82nd Airborne Divisions, who expressed satisfaction with their M16 rifles in nearly all conditions.
2. Cascadian armor (in the form of the M62 main battle tank, see appendix B) typically struck American M65 Clark tanks in the turret. This did not lead to many severe injuries except in the most exceptional cases, however this has caused greater armor degradation in general on the turret, as non-penetrating hits from the Cascadian 105mm gun causes voids in the armor. Tanker complaints from the 12th, 15th, and 16th Armored Divisions, among others, note that the Honeywell DCS5700 engine proved unreliable and complicated to repair; furthermore, the 13th Armored Division claims it lost seven tanks to a Cascadian attack when the DCS5700 engine failed to start in time due to Montana's cold weather. These problems and more are explored in detail in Appendix D, alongside the M65A1 variant proposal.
3. In general, dissatisfaction is noted with the response times of the SRAAF. The F-4 is a perfectly capable platform, but the vast majority of the Cascadian Air Force was grounded not by the skill of SRAAF pilots, but by ground anti-air systems and SRA units occupying Cascadian air bases. This is unacceptable, and will be investigated. Until then, the Joint Chiefs have proposed the full production of the F-13 interceptor. This should allow the SRAAF to allow fighter pilots to engage enemy fighters, as well as prevent enemy close-air support and bombers from engaging in targets of opportunity while the fighter jets clash with enemy fighters.

[Markus Wilding]

Per Joint Chiefs recommendations, the SRAAF has ordered three new wings of fighters - the 21st Fighter Group will be reformed and retrained on the new F-13 jet, while the 22nd and 23rd Fighter Group will be raised from new commissioned pilots, also to be trained on the F-13. In order to sustain this production, new factories in Montana are under construction.

Furthermore, the construction of new schools - particularly a new pilot's school in Nevada, a school utilizing California's natural coasts to train sailors and marines, a new school to properly instruct incoming air defense officers, and a school for the artillery corps in Idaho. This combined with new radar systems, low frequency antenna systems for navigation and communicating with the SRA's vast submarine fleet, and new mountain bunkers specifically for fallback purposes and to prosecute a potential Pacific war, are all new strategic assets that will undoubtedly help bring the SRA and its military into the modern era.

[Markus Wilding]

The Joint Chiefs have concluded Phase 2 of their review of Operation Whistleblower, which has drawn the following conclusions:

1. The M551's anemic combat performance can be tied to its unique ammunition. Army engineers are aware of this issue and did propose a scavenging system to alleviate this problem, which in turn increased the likelihood of ammunition fires. A new scavenging system has been proposed and is being tested now. Multiple electrical faults have been found, most of which include problems relating to the turret traverse and issues caused by firing the main gun shaking delicate electronics within the tank. Additional problems are noted with the MGM-51 missile. It is recommended to field a suitable replacement for the entire vehicle as soon as possible.
2. The use of National Guard units to protect a rear-line area is suitable in theory. However, the Joint Chiefs have found the manner used by the Army in this operation to be unsatisfactory. Primarily, the National Guard units were informed they likely would not see active combat and would primarily be undertaking police duties in occupied areas, and as such they were not prepared for active combat with a well-equipped, well-motivated foe. This directly led to the Cascadian occupation of Arizona and Utah. In the future, National Guard units should be supplemented and reinforced with regular Army units to ensure surprise enemy attacks such as this do not occur again.
3. The Joint Chiefs have praised the Army Air Force for its ability to destroy key Cascadian military infrastructure, as well as preventing the continued operation of civilian production efforts. In particular, the Joint Chiefs have had excellent words for the AC-130A ground attack aircraft.

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In the 1971 budget, Congress has approved the construction of the new Bellau Wood-class aircraft carrier. This, along with new Pensacola-class cruisers, will form the nucleus for the SRN's Pacific Fleet. It is expected that these new ships will commission in 1974-75 and be fully prepared to reinforce a full-fledged Fleet in 1976.

[Markus Wilding]

The SRAAF has authorized the go-ahead to phase out the UH-3 Aleut helicopters and begin production of the UH-5 Algonquin to replace both the UH-3 and UH-4 Navajo in the gunship role. The UH-5 Algonquin represents the pinnacle of American ingenuity in gunship design and airborne tactics, featuring troop space for up to a full squad of American airborne and enough weapons to safely deal with any potential enemy threat. The Army has also begun experimentations with anti-tank guided missiles and guided missile carriers to ensure motorized and mechanized infantry units do not have to rely on short-range anti-tank weapons to destroy enemy armored vehicles.

Additionally, new satellites have been orders as well as the construction of a space launch vehicle, Apollo 1, set to take a man to the moon.

[Markus Wilding]

With the new 1972 funding approval and expansion, the Socialist Republic Navy has ordered the new Spruance-class destroyers and California-class nuclear guided missile cruisers. Half of the new California-class are destined to the newly-produced Pacific Fleet, while the other half have been assigned to the 2nd Fleet to replace aging Providence-class cruisers. By 1975, the Pacific Fleet will not only boast a powerful new carrier, but modern escorts to safely annihilate any naval enemy of the American people!

Further developments include the completion of new fighter jets for the SRAAF, as well as the introduction of the M327 5-inch mortar for the infantry.

[Markus Wilding]

Dissatisfaction within the Army during recent conflicts has led to the conclusion that current American units are too unwieldly, and that the Socialist Republic Army would be much better suited by trimming the fat from divisional structures and adopting a brigade combat team organization. Under this new organization, many divisions have been streamlined and made independent of one another in order to operate effectively even during sustained campaigns, which should afford the American military with the flexibility needed to survive on the modern battlefield.

In related developments, armored units shall be receiving the new command variant of the M65 tank this year. Full-scale testing of the M65A1 continues with minimal issues, though Hewlitt-Packard has noted issues regarding the software requirements imposed by the Army for the new fire control system.