Gladysynthia Crisis

Gladysynthia Crisis
Gladysynthian troops surrender to Zamastanian forces on the Angenta Friendship Bridge between Danaska and Angenta on 3rd November, 2018
Date 24 October - 6 November, 2018 Location Gladysynthia and the Northern Isle, Zamastan Result Ended upon signing of Treaty of Mönusÿnthys 2018-9B
Belligerents
Gladysynthia	Zamastan	Gladys Popular Freedom Fighters
Commanders and leaders
Gladysynthia Seswitch LaFlaunce	Zamastan Zacharias Castovia Gerard Foss Percy Tavoka	G.P.F.F. Unknown Leader
Strength
Gladysynthia 149,000	Zamastan 123,000	G.P.F.F. 22,000
Casualties and losses
Gladysynthia 978 dead 7,240 wounded 127 MIA 46 jets shot down 11 ships sunk 13 tanks destroyed	Zamastan 486 dead 3,209 wounded 18 jets shot down 3 helicopters shot down 7 ships sunk 1 tank destroyed	GPFF 19 confirmed dead, estimated 700 dead
Gladysynthia - 703 Civilians Killed, 4,000+ Injured Zamastan - 14 Civilians Killed when fishing boat torpedoed

The Gladysynthia Crisis, also referred to as the Third Danaska War was a military conflict situated mainly in the city of Danaska on the southern coast of Gladysynthia between that nation and Zamastan. A complicated and interconnecting series of events including the 1945 Danaska Conflict (First Danaska War) and the Tariel War (Second Danaska War), as well as the rebellion by the Gladys Popular Freedom Fighters led to Zamastan airstrikes on Gladysynthian airbases, but the shootdown of Zamastanian pilot Yan Randolph led to the ultimate invasion of the city. The conflict started on October 24th with the hijacking of the GMS Lockwood and its firing on the city of Lower Tariel on the Northern Isle, a region historically conflicted over the two parties. It ended on November 6th, 2018, with the withdrawl of Zamastanian troops from Danaska and the reinstitution of tariffs until the Treaty of Mönusÿnthys 2018-9B in Mönusÿnthys a week later lifted those trade sanctions.

Background

The Northern Isle

The Northern Isle is a section of land on the southern side of the Zamastanian border with Gladysynthia, which had seen a refugee crisis of nearly 20,000 residents of Danaska, a city not far from the border. The 'Isle' is situated at the divergence of the Danaska River and Yost River, and is actually connected to the rest of Gladysynthia by a narrow strip of land less than three miles wide. This particular landmass, however, had not been attached to Gladysynthia until 2003, when a change in the flow of the river allowed the natural land bridge to form. For 15 years, the two nations contested the sovereignty of the territory, but after the discovery of the massive Picotheca oil sands, Gladysynthia made it known through an annexation in 2011 - deemed illegal by Zamastanian courts under international law - that the land was officially theirs. The area has been known for historical conflict between native peoples of Gladysynthia and Zamastan, as well as the 20th century conflicts in the form of the 1945 Danaska Conflict and The Tariel War and smaller, less note-worthy skirmishes.

The Gladys Popular Freedom Fighters

In June of 2012, the residents of the lower Danaska area declared secession from Gladysynthia. The separation was not enforced by the government of Gladysynthia, and the revolution became violent. Protests soured southern regions of the nation, and for the next six months several bombings in Danaska, a city of 400,000 people, resulted in the deaths of 23 people and the maiming of hundreds more. Martial law was put in effect in December, and the military began a campaign to root out rebel forces. The G.P.F.F., as the revolutionaries named themselves, retreated into the wilderness of northern Zamastan and the Northern Isle territory, seeking help from the Zamastan military. President Cassious Castovia even met with leaders of the rebel movement and declined any support, rather saying that any aggression deemed threatening to Zamastanian citizens would be met with force. In early 2013, Zamastan placed tariffs on Gladysynthian exports and blocked the importation of many of its' own goods following violent protests across the nation regarding the G.P.F.F.'s occupation of the Northern Isle border.

The rejection of the Zamastanian government's caused a rift in the G.P.F.F., and in addition to the continuing Gladysynthian military buildup according to declassified documents, was the fore-fronting reason for the eventual hijacking of the GMS Lockwood which led to the crisis beginning. The subsequent Toleruna Insurgency, which began in 2015 and is still active as of November 2020, further increased tensions between Zamastan and Gladysynthia as border skirmishes became frequent. On June 5th, 2018, two Zamastanian soldiers were killed in a cross-border misfire accident by Gladysynthian forces, leading President Zacharias Castovia to close diplomatic relations further and Premiere Seswitch LaFlaunce closed off all flights from Zamastan and Avergnon.

Conflict Begins

Hijacking of the GMS Lockwood

At 9:22 AM, 16 rebels from the G.P.F.F. approached the destroyer GMS Lockwood off the coast of Danaska. Using an improvised EMP device, they disabled the ship's radar and went aboard discretely and not alerting anyone. Killing the crew of 26 and tossing their bodies over board, they set a course for Zamastan. On the bridge, the leader, a man named Forestal Yannoi, turned off the transponder so that the ship could not be seen on any scopes, and the Gladysynthian armed forces didn't even realize the ship was missing until 1:37 PM. By then, the ship had already crossed into Zamastanian waters.

Premiere Seswitch LaFlaunce ordered jet fighters scrambled to intercept the hijacked vessel. Zamastanian military officials noticed the sudden military movements, and scrambled their own Z-14 Ospreys. Unknown to both parties was the location of the ship. Gladysynthia's communications failed to let the Zamastanian military know that there was a rogue ship, so the Zamastanians were reacting solely to the action for possible retaliation. There was no warning of the take-offs either, leading to a rapid escalation of assuming military preemptive strikes.

Attack on Lower Tariel

At 2:42 PM, the GMS Lockwood turned port with that side facing the Zamastanian coast. About 5 nautical miles away was the popular tourist city of Lower Tariel. One of the forward skud cannons on board fired three shells towards the city. This is believed to have been the attempt to bring Zamastan into conflict with the Gladysynthians on the side of the rebels, though of course the Zamastanians never sided with either party. The shells exploded within a half mile radius of each other, one destroying a significant portion of the famous boardwalk along the shoreline, one hitting an open field in a park, and one exploding on a street corner, destroying a light post. No one was killed, but 43 people sustained injuries, including a man whose arm was blown off. The Lockwood completed its turn and 180'd back towards Gladysynthian waters. Two Zamastanian F-22's intercepted the ship but were ordered not to fire, simply pursue. At 5:23 PM, the GMS Lockwood sailed across the international boundary and the jets pulled away as is required by maritime law.

At 6:26 PM, a Gladysynthian helicopter dropped a team on special operations soldiers onto the Lockwood, where a short gunbattle ensued and the ship was retaken. However, during the fight, the rebel leader took his own life and the others were gunned down, resulting in no arrests or captures.

Retaliatory Airstrikes

Zamastanian Z-14 Osprey attacks Gladysynthian warship in Danaska Primal naval base

Following the reports of explosions in Lower Tariel, President Zacharias Castovia ordered a two-hour period of cruise missile strikes on multiple sites in Gladysynthia, including a military airbase in Mönusÿnthys and naval and oil facilities in Danaska. Added increased political dissent following numerous bombings in Tofino in the month before, as well as the attack on Lower Tariel, led to the decision by President Castovia to make a preemptive strike. Zamastan had sent an additional three naval vessels, including the ZMS Aebutius Aircraft Carrier to the Northern Isle as a retaliatory statement. Admiral Percy Tavoka spoke to The Tofino Times cameras aboard the ZMS Harodia as the ships left the Second Fleet towards the conflict zone:

"We're fully prepared onboard the Harodia and all of our additional ships for war, if indeed that ends up being the case. We have jets performing quick reflective supersizes around the clock, and exercises are being performed consistently. Should we be provoked, we have full authorization to strike preemptively and secure the territory. Hostile action has happened in the region before, but not to this extent."

Conflict Begins

President Zacharias Castovia formally declared that a state of battle was existing between the two nations from the Gaviria Press Room at the Zian Presidential Mansion only moments after the missile strikes extremely early in the morning at 1:38 AM, while many Zamastanians were still asleep. His address was as follows:

“Greetings, Zamastan. A few minutes ago, I ordered a coordinated airstrike on two airbases in Gladysynthia. Our two nations have historically never been friendly, and escalating tensions since last month’s political dissident-motivated bombings in our capital ultimately culminated this early Thursday morning when our intelligence confirmed military buildup on the Gladysynthia border with our Northern Isle territory. To add to the worrying threat, we believe strongly that Gladysynthia was preparing preemptive strikes on Zamastan naval vessels in the Lower Tariel Port and off our northern coast.

I can confirm tonight that we have struck these airbases on heavy providential and informational decisions. My military officials and I will be working around the clock to keep the nation up to date as this situation unfolds, and we ask for cooperation and solidarity from other allies in the region. We demand that Gladysynthia stands down from their military stance and leave our Northern Isle, as well as the inhabitants of the city of Lower Tariel. Thank you, and God Bless Zamastan.”

Naval Fleet Response Team + Sortie Raids

The Zamastanian 2nd Navy Fleet was sent out directly following President Castovia's announcement, consisting of the carrier ZMS Aebutius, three frigates; the ZMS Clift, ZMS Birchwood, and ZMS Harodia, two corvettes; the ZMS Avi Taures and ZMS Shawman, and the destroyer ZMS Ostigaard. The fleet began running sorties with fighter jets, conducting bombing raids on air fields and oil basins. Stationed twenty miles off the coast of Danaska, they were out of range of artillery fire but susceptible to Gladysynthian missile fire. In the first 24 hours of the conflict, roughly 60 airstrikes took place against military and industrial targets around and in Danaska.

Fort Yost Airstrikes

Fort Yost, a Zamastanian military base 15 miles south of the PCZ (Perceived Combat Zone), came under Gladysynthian aircraft fire during a torrential downpour, making any retaliation extremely difficult. Two Z-14 Osprey's from the Gladysynthian Southern Dispatch strafed the base early in the morning, hitting two turret posts and a barrack, killing 12 soldiers. This was the first Gladysynthian attack on Zamastanian soil.

Special Forces

At 11:03 PM on October 28th, 80 Zamastanian Special Forces troops landed on the grasslands 14 miles east of Danaska. The first squad of SpecOps Horseshoe settled into a building from an obscure alley two blocks off of the tide-wall in southeastern Danaska. About one and a half hours earlier, the team had landed 14 miles away on the grass hills overlooking the city and the ocean. The building, three stories with small windows, a warehouse, and boxes upon boxes of ammunition and explosives, had been used by Zamastanian covert intelligence agencies in the months prior to the war.

Yan Randolph is Shot Down

During a sortie mission of October 25th, four Z-14 Ospreys Zamastanian fighters bombed an oil field in Danaska, destroying the target but activiating anti-aircraft response systems, one of which fired rockets towards the fleeing jets. One of the planes was hit and decompressed mid-air, and the pilot, Captain Yan Randolph, ejected. He fell behind enemy lines and avoided capture for several hours before being arrested in a village outside Danaska. His capture didn't make news headlines until the conflict was almost over, as Zamastanian intelligence was not able to determine whether or not he had even survived since his transponder was damaged upon ejection. President Zacharias Castovia said in his address later that night:

"Zamastan, you have my word. We will be doing everything we can to get Captain Randolph back to us, just as we will be doing everything we can to keep up the assault until Gladysynthia stands down. We will fight in the air like tonight, raining hell down upon the enemy until they can't fight us on land or sea. We will win this war one way or another. And Captain Randolph, we will get you home. Goodnight, and God Bless."

Battle of Danaska

Sinking of the GMS Rastonia

Six hours after the shootdown of the Zamastanian Z-14, at around 2:00 AM on October 26th, the Gladysynthians lost the Type 42 destroyer GMS Rastonia to fire following an Exocet missile strike from the Zamastanian 2nd Naval Air Fighter/Attack Squadron. Rastonia had been ordered forward with two other Type 42s to provide a long-range radar and medium-high altitude missile picket far from the Gladysynthian carrier operating in the region. At 1:00 AM, the ships were fifteen miles from the Zamastanian fleet, and by this point, the order to fire retaliation shots. She was struck amidships, with devastating effect, ultimately killing 20 crew members and severely injuring 24 others. The ship was abandoned several hours later, gutted and deformed by the fires that continued to burn for 2 more days. She finally sank outside the Maritime Exclusion Zone on October 28th.

Sinking of the ZMS Clift

A missile launched by the GMS Kinsla struck the ZMS Clift around 4:30 AM. 63 of the Clift's 75-man crew died in the incident. 12 men were rescued from the open ocean despite cold seas and stormy weather. The loss of the ship hardened the stance of the Zamastanian government and was the first form of death casualties on the Zamastanian side of the conflict.

Fighting begins in Danaska

Zamastanian troops fire at enemy foxholes while landing at Danaska

During the night of 31 October, the Zamastanian Amphibious Task Group under the command of Commodore Gerard Foss mounted Operation Pelican, the amphibious landing on beaches around Danaska Waterhead, on the southeastern coast of the downtown boardwalk section of the city. The bay, known as Bomb Alley by Zamastanian forces, was the scene of repeated air attacks by low-flying Gladysynthian jets.

The 15,000 men of 12 Commando Brigade were put ashore as units from the ZAF Artillery, ZAF Engineers, etc. and armored reconnaissance vehicles were also put ashore with the landing craft. Rapier missile launchers were carried as underslung loads of Sea Lion special forces for rapid deployment.

By dawn the next day, they had established a secure beachhead from which to conduct offensive operations. From there, Admiral Percy Tavoka's plan was to capture the boardwalk and Asaria Park before turning towards the center of Danaska. Now, with the Zamastanian troops on the ground, the Gladysynthian Air Force began the night bombing campaign against them using Canberra bomber planes until the last day of the war.

At sea, the paucity of the Zamastanian ships' anti-aircraft defences was demonstrated in the sinking of ZMS Ardent on 1 November along with a vital cargo of helicopters, runway-building equipment and tents. The loss of all but one of the Sikorsky UH-60 helicopters was a severe blow from a logistical perspective. Also lost on this day was ZMS Perricula, a sister to Ardent, whilst in company with ZMS Tofiniua after being ordered to act as a decoy to draw away Gladysythia aircraft from other ships at Danaska Bay. ZMS Harodia and ZMS Brilliant were badly damaged. However, many Zamastanian ships escaped being sunk because of weaknesses of the Gladysynthian pilots' bombing tactics described below.

To avoid the highest concentration of Zamastan air defenses, Gladysynthia pilots released ordnance from very low altitude, and hence their bomb fuzzes did not have sufficient time to arm before impact. The low release of the retarded bombs (some of which the Zamastanians had sold to the Gladysynthians years earlier) meant that many never exploded, as there was insufficient time in the air for them to arm themselves.

A simple free-fall bomb in a low altitude release, impacts almost directly below the aircraft, which is then within the lethal fragmentation zone of the explosion. A retarded bomb has a small parachute or air brake that opens to reduce the speed of the bomb to produce a safe horizontal separation between the bomb and the aircraft. The fuse for a retarded bomb requires that the retarder be open a minimum time to ensure safe separation. The pilots would have been aware of this—but due to the high concentration required to avoid SAMs, Anti-Aircraft Artillery (AAA), and Zamastan Sea Harriers, many failed to climb to the necessary release point. The Gladysynthian forces solved the problem by fitting improvised retarding devices, allowing the pilots to effectively employ low-level bombing attacks on 5 November. Thirteen bombs hit Zamastanian ships without detonating. The Gladysynthians lost 22 aircraft in the attacks.

File:Battle of asaria park.jpg

Zamastanian troops stand watch during the Battle of Asaria Park

From early on 1 November until the next day, 4 Para, (approximately 1,000 men) with naval gunfire support from ZMS Harrison and artillery support from 8 Commando Battery, ZAF Artillery, approached and attacked the boardwalk and Asaria Park, which was held by the Gladysynthian 12th Infantry Regiment. After a tough struggle that lasted all night and into the next day, the Zamastanians won the battle; in all, 217 Zamastanian and 347 Gladysynthian soldiers were killed. In total 961 Gladysynthian troops (including 202 Gladysynthian Air Force personnel of the Danaska lower airfield) were taken prisoner.

Capture of South Danaska

On the night of 2 November, after several days of painstaking reconnaissance and logistic build-up, Zamastan forces launched a brigade-sized night attack against the heavily defended ring of high ground surrounding southern Danaska. Units of 3 Commando Brigade, supported by naval gunfire from several Navy ships, simultaneously attacked in the Battle of Grass Hill, Battle of Dillian's Creek, and Battle of Mount Longdon. Grass Hill was taken at a cost of 2 Zamastanian and 18 Gladysynthian soldiers. At Dillian's Creek, the Zamastanians faced both enemy resistance and friendly fire, but managed to capture their objectives. The toughest battle was at Mount Longdon. Zamastan forces were bogged down by assault rifle, mortar, machine gun, artillery fire, sniper fire, and ambushes. Despite this, the Zamastanians continued their advance.

The morning of 3 November saw the start of the second phase of attacks, in which the momentum of the initial assault was maintained. 2 Para, with light armor support, captured Wireless Ridge, with the loss of 3 Zamastanian and 25 Gladysynthian lives, and the 2nd battalion, Special Operations captured Mount Tumbledown at the Battle of Mount Tumbledown, which cost 10 Zamastan and 30 Gladysynthian lives. The Angenta Friendship Bridge, serving as the main road connection between Zamastan and Gladysynthia, was also captured by Zamastanian forces. With the last natural defense line at Mount Tumbledown breached, the Gladysynthian city defenses of Danaska began to falter. A ceasefire was declared on 14 June and the commander of the Gladysynthian garrison in the southern portion of Danaska surrendered to Commander Gerard Foss the same day, ultimately ceasing a fourth of the city to the Zamastanians.