Stonehenge assault
The Stonehenge assault was an operation undertaken by the Independent State Allied Forces in the early days of the Continental War. Its goal was to eliminate the threat of the Erusean-controlled Stonehenge as quickly as possible.
The operation was a complete failure: all ISAF fighters were shot down before reaching Stonehenge and no damage was inflicted on the railgun facility. Erusea would maintain its air superiority over most of the continent, forcing ISAF to continue its retreat to the east.
History
Following the war's outbreak in late summer of 2003, the Erusean offensive, bolstered by Erusea's use of Stonehenge as an anti-aircraft weapon, had the ISAF in full retreat.[2] Without air support to assist its ground forces, the ISAF Army fell back and held its position at the city of Los Canas in central Usea and planned a high-risk air raid operation to either disable or destroy the STN.
A special attack squadron was commissioned, consisting of 24 veteran pilots—12 flying F-15C Eagle fighters for air superiority, and 12 flying F-15E Strike Eagle multiroles for long-range attacks. A window of opportunity soon presented itself, and the fighters scrambled to engage the superweapon while the Eruseans were off-guard.[3]
As the ISAF fighters approached Stonehenge, the AWACS accompanying them detected five unidentified IFF signatures inbound to the airspace. Much to ISAF command's disbelief, the unidentified aircraft proceeded to shoot down the entire ISAF squadron, ending the mission before it could begin.[3] The Eruseans would continue advancing to the east, and both Los Canas and Istas Fortress surrendered several days later. This series of defeats forced the ISAF to retreat to the east coast and eventually withdraw from the mainland altogether.[2]
References
- ↑ Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies - Perfect Guide, page 007.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Cutscene prior to Sitting Duck. Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Withdrawal from the Usean Continent. AC04Web. Retrieved on May 19, 2016.