Qeshm Island has declared independence from the mainland Iranian government after a major earthquake.
Help fly in relief supplies by removing the air defence threat and any forces preventing access to the airfield.
Updated 4th Jan 2021, added pdf briefing and maps, minor edits to the mission itself.
Updated 6th November 2021 to reflect changes to Harrier ordnance options.
Installation:
Download the zip file, use 7zip or similar to unpack it, copy the .miz file to your DCS Missions folder:
C:\Users\User’s name\Saved Games\DCS.openbeta (if you’re using the DCS OpenBeta)\Missions
If you’ve got loads of missions, you might want to save it to a sub folder marked ‘Harrier’ or similar so you can find it more easily.
Short briefing:
Take off, fly toward WP1, destroy air defences, listen out for radio messages.
Full briefing:
Situation:
A major earthquake has hit Qeshm island. The Iranian government has been very slow to respond with aid, and the resulting frustration has led to an unexpected development. The regional government of Qeshm Island has declared independence fr om the Iranian mainland and requested aid from the UN as a sovereign nation.
Unsurprisingly, the Iranian government aren’t best pleased and have denounced their declaration, instructing the local garrison to impose martial law and execute the governor and his co-conspirators. Unfortunately for the Iranian government, some of the local military have sided with the governor and requested help from the UN to hold off the Iranian government mainland forces.
The UN have granted limited assistance – which is wh ere you come in. They’ve granted permission for relief supplies to be flown into Qeshm airport.
A flight of Chinooks are flying in troops and disaster relief, due to land at Qeshm Airport ASAP.
However, a force of Iranians loyal to the mainland government are holding the airport and are denying the Chinooks permission to land. We need you to help persuade them to desist.
Objectives:
Their defences comprise an old Rapier battery and a couple of ZSU23 anti-aircraft guns around the perimeter of the airfield – these are your main objectives. They also have a handful of armour that they’re using to hold off local rebel forces.
Tarawa - callsign Black Pearl – will co-ordinate air ops, while a Marine Force Recon team - callsign Barbossa - are overlooking the airport and in contact with local rebel friendlies who’re planning to attack the forces guarding the airport this morning. They’ll co-ordinate ground ops and alert you to any defences they’d like your help with.
Once the main airport defences are destroyed, Barbossa will confirm with the codeword “Tortuga” to avoid alerting the Iranians on the mainland, and the Chinooks will land and drop off their load. They will abort if they meet significant resistance, so clear out as many defending forces as possible to allow them a safe landing zone by the airport buildings.
The area is dangerously close to the Iranian airbases at Bandar Lengeh and Havadarya, so the UAE will provide CAP for the mission in case any flights are launched to intercept the transports.
We still don’t have AWACs available in the area, so communication between flights is the only way you’ll know what bandits are in the air.
Good luck and good hunting!
Flights:
Dodge Flight (will be replaced by an AI flight if you choose the CAP mission)
Type: 2x Harriers
Freq: 243MHz
Task: SEAD and CAS
Ordnance: 1x AGM122, 2x AGM65G, 6x MK82LD, 1x AIM9M, ECM pod
Objectives: Rapier battery, AAA emplacements, CAS as requested
Waypoints:
WP1: Qeshm airport – Rapier battery and AAA emplacements are nearby
WP2: Vicinity of the Tarawa for landing
WP3: Divert field – Khasab airport
Or
Type 2x Su25T
Freq: 124MHz
Task: SEAD and CAS as above
WP1: Qeshm airport – Rapier battery and AAA emplacements are nearby
WP2: Khasab airport
Take off / Land Khasab
Pontiac Flight (will be replaced by an AI flight if you choose the SEAD mission)
Type: 2x F15C (Freq: 124MHz), or 2x F/A18C (Freq: 305MHz)
Take off from Al Minhad airbase, task: CAP
Waypoints:
WP1: Vicinity of Qeshm airport – be aware of air defences
WP2: Al Minhad airbase - Landing
OR
AI CAP flight: 2x UAE Mirage 2000 (Freq: 251MHz)
Other flights:
Uzi flight: 2x Cobras, take off from: Tarawa, task: CAS
Ford flight: 4x Chinooks, take off from: Al Minhad airbase, task: Deliver Military and Humanitarian aid supplies to Qeshm Airport.
Other notes:
Weather: 26C cloudy, Wind 10kts, 240
Bullseye: Al Minhad Airport
