Verusan Armed Forces Council Negotiations, Round 2:The arguing sessions reconvene in the ballroom, with the design team’s spirits bolstered by a tray of eclairs someone has nicked from the dessert table. Negotiations start off on a high note, with the offer of tracer ammunition securing the rest of the votes from the Army necessary to get the Sky Crusaders promoted to an autonomous corps. This comes with a caveat, though – the promotion will come only
after the proposed .60 cal ‘Ox Slayer’ HMG has been fully developed and passed to the army. One designer insists that .50 would be a more reasonable calibre, but he is quickly shouted down by the others who explain that .60 is simply better for killing horses. A separate proposal for the VSC to set up an air-mail service sees some interest from the army and navy, but it is shelved to focus on further discussions with the navy.
These discussions consist of three proposals, the first of which is a simple pledge by the Sky Crusaders to devote a Great Emu squadron to anti-ship duties.
War Council Proposal: Emu Anti-Warship Bombing Pledge
"After the VSC first series of engagements against the KPN, the VSC withdrew to develop more deadly aerial munitions. With these cutting edge munitions soon to be fielded, the VSC pledges to immediately dedicate a squadron of our highly-esteemed Great Emu bombers to hunting KPN warships. This assignment will continue until at least one destroyer is three destroyers are sunk by the VSC."
The pledge is accepted by the Navy without much fanfare, but it doesn’t really gain much favour amongst the admirals. The Sky Crusaders have already tried bombing ships, with limited success, and while the design team insists that these are now
Great Emu bombers, most of the admirals don’t seem to grasp the difference.
V.K-A "Kingfisher"
Verusan Koller Inc. Version A "Kingfisher".
The Verusan Sky Crusaders, working closely with Koller Inc., are proud to introduce the V.K-A "Kingfisher" biplane. An inline two-seater that makes use of our latest Barnett engine in tractor configuration, the Kingfisher is designed with naval capabilities in mind. The plane comes with the transmitter and receiver to the "Seashell" radio built-in, which is operated by the copilot. The Crossguard synchronous gear allows the pilot to operate a single Bolt MG in front, although combat is not the crafts main purpose. A defensive rear gun on a tracked ring can be operated by the copilot, though care must be taken to avoid shooting the tail plane. Fuel tanks and wings are configured for longevity, allowing the Kingfisher to stay in the air for long periods of time.
Landing gear can be either traditional fixed wheels or a long aerodynamic pontoon on the bottom to allow for water landings. With the float configuration, two additional floats are to be added to the ends of the wings to keep the craft from tipping over in the water.
Additionally, a hydraulic rail system can hold and launch a Kingfisher when equipped with pontoons, allowing it to be launched in a short distance. This rail system is to be mounted on top of a ships turreted gun, or on a clear deck space. A crane can then be used to pull the plane out of the water and remount it on the rail system.
We pledge to create a bomber capable of delivering one or more torpedoes. At least one squad of such bombers will be assigned to attack enemy ships, and carry radios capable of receiving information from the Navy. Our bombers assigned to attack enemy ships will prioritize targets deemed important by Naval officers. This will likely be a two-engine bomber and might land on sea or air, the exact details will be determined if the Navy would be interested in such a project. Until such time as such an aircraft is prepared, we will dedicate some Emus to bomb enemy warships.
This may be construed as in addition to the Emu bomber pledge, rather than in opposition to it.
The other two project proposals, however, see much greater interest. Both the Kingfisher and the hypothetical torpedo bomber are significant steps forward in the field of naval aviation, and both have obvious applications to the naval battle. The situation, as the navy explains, is that currently the Navy is preoccupied with hunting down Kolechian raiders in the straits north of Okinso, which are targeting the unescorted merchant ships making the dash southwards. Naval reconnaissance would be useful for keeping watch over the straits, allowing the Verusan squadrons to get to where they’re needed to sink the raiders. However, torpedo bombers could reduce the need for ships to hunt the raiders, by (hopefully) sinking them outright. Whichever project is chosen could free up the Navy to send more warships west, making attempts on the Kolechian troop convoys landing at Kodemo.
The admirals are split over which proposal is in the navy’s best interest. It looks like the Sky Crusaders have the opportunity to decide which plane is better, while the bickering is temporarily adjourned for the night. In any case, the navy representatives can agree on voting to promote the Sky Crusaders, once they have fulfilled the Great Emu bombing pledge and at least started on one of the naval aircraft proposals.
There is some commotion late in the night as a strange man is turned away by the guards outside for improper credentials, but that affair seems to have petered out now. Tomorrow, another day of negotiations awaits, but hopefully the Sky Crusaders will be done with this conference soon.
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Topic: Knights of the Skies: Verusa Thread - Early Summer 1916, Production Phase (Read 61216 times)