The first change is obvious from the above description of the SAMs on both sidesâmuch greater numbers of SAM types. In Downtown there was one type, in Elusive Victory there were four, and in Red Storm there are a whopping fifteen.So, those are the weapon systems available to both sides in Red Storm, but how has the system changed âunder the hoodâ? Overall, I think the basic system of SAMs in the series is sound, so I am likely to only make modest changes to adapt the rules to the late-1980s war imagined in Red Storm. NATO would deploy these different systems in three zones, much like the WP side, with the short range systems near the front lines, corps-level systems 10-15 km behind, and then area air defense SAMs like the âPatriotâ and âNike-Herculesâ in rear areas. The MIM-23 âHAWKâ provides a major part of NATOâs air defenses the the 1980s in the form of the âImproved HAWKâ. A wide range of short-range/low-altitude and long-range/high-altitude systems join it in West Germany. Close to the front, the NATO units represented in Red Storm would have fielded three different SAMs: the IR-guided US MIM-72 âChaparralâ and the radar-guided UK âRapierâ and West German âRoland 2â. All three have relatively short ranges and cannot engage targets at high or very high altitude, but do provide a significant threat to any WP flights at medium or lower altitude. Farther back from the front, the main line of defense for NATO appears in the form of both MIM-23 âI-HAWKâ and MIM-104 âPatriotâ SAMs. The Patriot significantly upgrades NATOâs defenses with its highly capable phased array radar and long-range missiles capable of engaging targets at all altitude bands. In rear areas, there were still a limited number of MIM-14 âNike-Herculesâ SAM systems. Although very vulnerable since they are in fixed locations, these had been steadily improved over their many years in service and continued to pose a deadly threat to medium/high altitude WP aircraft.Ī likely NATO SAM and AAA layout in the West German III Corps area early in the war… The NATO side of the front fielded an equally impressive and effective array of air defense systems, which by the late 1980s was, while not as dense, arguably just as capable as the Warsaw Pactâs network. The only non-Soviet SAM in the system in the first two games was the US âHAWKâ system operated by Israel in Elusive Victory. If a NATO player âgoes lowâ he has to deal with the dangerous IR SAMs and numerous AAA threats. If he âgoes highâ then heâll likely face three layers of radar-guided SAMs (not to mention Soviet fighter aircraft). A typically scary portion of the Warsaw Pact front in Red Storm to attack or get through…Īs you can see, a daunting array of SAMs to fight through. The Soviets were well aware of how the United States and Israel tried to overcome their client state air defense systems in the 1970s and had adapted their defenses on the NATO central front accordingly. They sought to create threats at all altitudes, with overlapping coverage in terms of both range and radar frequencies.
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