Following Purrqings reaction, Askaria commenced their dastardly plan. Several factors plagued the Purrqing forces at the time, for one, the troops relocated from the north of the country were not suited nor properly conditioned to fight in the wet jungle land south of the country. For 2, Askari forces posessed superior armor, the A35 is far more maneuverable and well armed than much of the Purrqing arsenal, this was not the case for Askari medium tanks, with although possesed the needed firepower and armor, are rather unreliable and not preferable for maneuverability. In the early morning hours, 10 gliders, 30 fighter-bombers, and 90 fighters took off with the objective of capturing key strategic airfields behind enemy lines. A total of 1400 troops to be airlifted in an ambitious assault. 3 of the transports carried AFVs. 100 of the paratroopers were pilots instructed to steal enemy aircraft and fly into Askari lines. As one would expect, about half were shot down by friendly fire. In order to avoid Purrqing flak, air fleets flew across water. As expected, the airfields were heavily guarded, and only 3 could be captured, 350 died. The past 12 hours before the airlift, there had been a relentless ground attack by the Askaris, who had been extensively deploying counter-battery fire to silence superior Purrqing artillery, this strain was partially relieved by the kommando attack, which did manage to ambush rear artillery formations. Over the next 12 hours, Askari infantry cut communication lines, railroads, and mined roads. Interestingly enough, rather than burn their gliders, the 5 gliders that did land at their respective airfields used their turrets to assist the defense and continue to hold out. Additional food shipments are not needed, the troops have subsisted on rations from intercepted Purrqing supply lines. Due to the lack of heavy machine guns aside from planes, troops have not burned through much ammo at all. In total, 1200 troops and 9 AFVs were assigned. 24 hours since they took off, 900 infantry and 7 AFVs remain. 1 glider was shot down, 5 fighter-bombers lost, and 15 fighters. In the naval sector, Askaria deployed 5 submarines and 1 merchant raiders. Askari troops forced thousands of Purrqing refugees north prior to the attack, leading to Purrqing lines being overwhelmed. -8000 felines dead, 5000 sick or wounded, 100 AFVs knocked out (note that Purrqing data includes civilians) -2000 Askari dead, 5000 wounded, 50 AFVs knocked out. space to change slide
