The Man Cave: Stuka Ace: Crete Mission 2

10 July 2025

Stuka Ace: Crete Mission 2

22 May 1941

Airfield outside Argos, Greece

III/StG2 Ju 87s departing Argos to attack shipping off Crete, 22 May 1941

Hauptman Brüker delivered the pre-dawn operations brief personally.

“You did well in that complete shit-show of the last 2 days men. That drop on Heraklion was a mess, but no worse than the other three. We surpressed the defences as best we could and the fallschirmjaeger got their boots on the ground. It’s up to them now and while other Stukas will support them, today we have a different mission.

"We are going to sink the Royal Navy!”, which was met by cheers and whistles and Brücker smiled at their boyish enthusiasm

"British naval forces, mostly Light Cruisers and Destroyers are playing havoc out there and we have a troop convoy that needs covering.

"We are going to focus on the Kithera and Antikithera Channels - the eastern approaches to Crete from Greece and see if we can put a dent in their plans. There’s at least one Battleship out there, the WARSPITE, and two carriers including the FORMIDABLE, through they are likely to be standing off to the East and sending their Fulmar fighters in to cover the lighter naval forces.

Be in no doubt, ships are difficult and manoeuvring targets. Keep your dives sharp - their AA guns on orders ships don’t traverse up as high as they would like to be more effective. We want to make sure the hits we do get leave a dent so the ground crews are loading 1000kg bombs. You’ll be slow and sluggish while you have them but I understand the fireworks at the end are worth it!”

"The bad news is: no fighter cover. All the Messerschmitts are assigned to CAP over Crete - protecting our strike bombers as well as the boys on the ground. The Royal Navy is rather protective off its lovely ships so if we find ships, we WILL find enemy fighters, sooner or later. Keep your formations tight and your eye peeled - Good Hunting!”

As they formed up at high altitude to search for British ships, Andreas was way more excited than he thought Oberleutants probably should be. He didn’t care he decided, grinning under his mask, this was a great mission! He felt the extra drag and load of the bomb bomb he carried and was determined to place it somewhere where it would do the most good.

Looking about, he dipped his port wing to get a better look at the water below that wing. What that a ship's wake? No, just more whitecaps. Smoke haze from the battle, coupled with some morning cloud was impacting visibility. And it was getting thicker. His radio cracked - it was Brücker

“Andreas - take your Staffel beneath this muck and be my eyes. The Royal Navy doesn’t hide ships in clouds but it certainly does beneath them” Voss clicked in acknowledgment, signalled his Staffel and pushed the stick down.

Emerging from the cloud he saw two things immediately. First was an empty expanse of water containing no warships The second was a pair of Hurricanes hiding beneath the cloud and waiting for somebody to poke their head down below the clouds. They committed immediately, barrelling in at high speed.

Voss screamed a warning to Milo as he kicked the rudder to start an evasive manoeuvre, scattering his staffel with a radio burst. The lead Hurricane winged over and dove down on Voss as he slewed his tail around and gave Milo an angle. Milo didn't wait, spraying tracer out in the general direction. Barrel warm, he then settled his MG15 onto the bearing and squirted off another burst with barely a pause. The cockpit flooded with the acrid smoke and the stink of expended ammunition.

The RAF pilot was either green or low on ammo because he hadn’t opened fire yet, and compounded his error by driving directly into Milo’s tracer. As if he’d been stung by a bee, the Hurricane reared up and pulled off high and left, black smoke streaming from his engine.

“Take that you Tommy Bastard!” Milo cackled gleefully. Voss watched the RAF fighters brake off the action to lick their wounds and took the opportunity to get back above the clouds to high altitude. \

“That was some good shooting Milo” Andreas praised him.

“Well you don’t keep me around for my charm and good looks Boss. Pity he didn't come back so I could finish the job though”

“Careful what you wish for my friend!” Andreas replied. At that moment, though a break in the cloud, Milo saw something

“Smoke at 3 o'clock on the horizon - could be a ship” Andreas reported the sighting to Brücker, who got one of the better placed Kettes to investigate. Brücker was soon back on the radio

“All Gruppe Elements, smoke is confirmed warship - possible Town Class light cruiser. Prepare to attack and watch out for escorting destroyers as well as more fighters!” Instructions follow regarding attack direction and sequence - Andreas was disappointed his Staffel wasn’t first to attack but mollified at being second.

HMS GLOUCESTER manoeuvring to avoid Dive Bomber attack, 22 May 1941

The first wave went in and the skin burst into like with FLAK and tracer. Circling with his formation, Voss watched with great interest as the ship ducked and weaved, her stern skidding across the waves- desperately avoiding the bombs while spitting a continuous barrage up at her tormentors. It was clear to Voss that the higher the release, the more time to dodge the ship had. There was only one way to fix that. Brüker was back on the radio:

“Andreas - you’re up. Full Staffel attack - go!go!go!”

In they went, and Voss knew exactly what he had to do - drive his precious 1000kgs bomb almost into the ship’s deck with the lowest possible pullout. He warned his gunner

“Milo - we have to reduce their time to weave away from the drop. I’m going for a minimum altitude release and pull-up - Hold On!” Milo grunted as if he didnt expect anything else. After 2 years of flying together, he likely didn't. Voss went through the familiar pattern: invert, reacquire, dive!

In they went He lined up with the front of the ship, which seemed to skid less when the ship turned. AA Fire licked up at him but it was mostly tracer - the bigger guns not seeming to be able to traverse high enough.

closer. Closer! CLOSER! With the masts and stack of the ship reading up for him, Andreas pulled back and felt the release of the large bomb as the Gs kicked him. As the nose came up he heard Milo whoop:

“DIRECT HIT - YOU GOT HIM!!!!! When he finally emerged from his attack run,Andreas had time time to look back and see the plume of smoke coming from the ship’s front end (didn't sailors call that a foc’sle or something?) Even as he regained altitude he saw his first kette going in on the slowing ship to replay the sequence. Some missed, some exploded close alongside and slowly but surely the smoke plume built and the ship began to keel over. Voss was ecstatic!

“Great job everyone - let go home for Schnapps to celebrate!” Brüker radioed.

HMS GLOUCESTER sinking, 22 May 1941 off Crete

As they turned for home, Voss saw a lone Merchantmen, a tramp streamer really, fleeing from Greece in the direction of Crete- no doubt packed with escaping British troops going to reinforce the defenders on the island. Voss cursed his lack of ordnance - shooting it up with MGs wasn’t going to do much. He was still considering the value of giving it a go anyway when Milo screamed a warning

“Achtung- Fighters!!!! Voss whipped his around to see two Fulmars barrelling in- no doubt called in to and save the mortally wounded Cruiser and now wanting to extract vengeance. Tracers spat and Voss threw his Stuka around to get out of the way. The first Fumar broke left to go after the Staffel’s first Kette but his wingman shot overhead - and as he did so, Milo unloaded into his belly. Smoke immediately belched form the Fumar, which inverted and began a terminal dive. Amid Milo’s triumphant hooting, Andreas was pleased to see a white chute seperate and bloom before the Fulmar crashed into the sea.

Confirming that the other Fulmar was breaking off, Voss radioed his Staffel “Thats enough for one day men - lets go home!”

Back over occupied Greece, the trip back to their strip outside the ancient city of Argos was uneventful. The landing was procedural and Voss prioritised two of his Kette’s ahead of him due to fuel state, before making his own landing.

As the front wheels touched the ground, the port housing immediately collapsed. Clipped by the Fulmar’s cannons or the Cruiser’s AA guns , or maybe structurally weakened by use, it didn't really matter - the result was the same.

The Stuka’s left wing immediately dipped and grounded, slewing the whole aircraft off the strip. Careening out of control into the rougher ground, the aircraft was catastrophically unbalanced. The wing dug deeper into a patch of soft earth and the residual momentum of the plane flipped the Stuka - hanging almost vertically for a second before coming crashing down upside down. The last thing Milo heard was the fire engine sirens before everything went dark.

—————

Pain. The light was painful. Andreas went to shield it from his eyes and immediately regretted moving it as a raft of other pains shots through innumerable parts of his body. A woman's voice quietly but firmly shushed him and tucked his arm away again.

The next days were a blur in an out of consciousness. At one point he thought he was on a train, but he wasn’t sure.

Slowly but surely, he regained consciousness then strength in the following two weeks.

German Military Hospital, Berlin

Andreas was sitting up straight in bed in neatly ironed Luftwaffe pyjamas.

Next to his bed sat his mother, holding his hand. His father stood on the other side of the bed, standing tall in his Sunday best.

At the end of his bed stood Oberstleutnant Oskar Dinort in full uniform and sporting a wide, comradely grin. He had taken the time to come visit Andreas in hospital and had just formally presented Andreas not only with his silver wound badge, but also with the Iron Cross, 1st Class. Having completed reading the formal words on the certificate, Dinort added

“We are all very proud of you Andreas- not just because you took out that British Cruiser almost by yourself - though I admit that was rather spectacular! - but for the leader you have become, in Belgium, France, though your advanced training, and most recently in Greece and Crete. Your men are lucky to have you and cheered loudly when I told them I was coming to give you this piece of tin! Brüker and I are very proud of you too” Voss mumbled his thanks as his Mother squeezed his hand and his father patted his shoulder affectionately.

“I’m told you’ll be discharged today, so here is a 3 day pass to enjoy Berlin or wherever you want to spend it, and we look forward to having you back at the Wing soon. There’s work to be done - and you’ve been malingering long enough!" And with that, Dinort cut a jaunty salute and walked away - off to visit other StG2 members who had ended up here in recent weeks.

His visitors left after more smiles and hugs, and Andreas was dozing contentedly when there was a sharp rap on the bed frame— firm, familiar.

Andreas looked up and saw Milo, freshly shaven, grinning like he’d just won a card game, and wearing his flight jacket over a pressed shirt with the top buttons undone. Andreas noted the new Wound Badge on the left pocket of his tunic.

“Took you long enough to wake up, Sleeping Beauty,” Milo said, strolling in as if it were just another morning briefing.

Andreas laughed — a real one this time, despite the sharp pain in his ribs. They were quiet for a few beats, the kind of silence only shared by men who’ve seen death skim past them and then moved on.

“Ops over Crete and Greece are done and the Staffel’s been grounded for maintenance. Then we're redeploying back to Germany” Milo said

There was a knock, and a nurse popped her head in, politely but sternly reminding them that visiting hours were over.

Milo stood then paused. “Oh — and you owe me a drink when you’re out of this place for dragging your arse out of that wreck.”

Andreas chuckled. “Done.”

The door closed behind him, leaving Andreas with a quiet sense of peace. He wasn’t entirely whole yet but Milo was well, the Staffel was intact, and the war wasn’t finished with either of them.

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Historical Note:

HMS Gloucester was one of the last batch of three Town-class light cruisers built for the Royal Navy during the late 1930s. Commissioned in August 1939 shortly before the war, the ship was initially assigned to the China Station and was transferred to the Indian Ocean and later to South Africa to search for German commerce raiders. She was transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet in mid-1940 and spent much of her time escorting Malta Convoys. Gloucester played minor roles in the Battle of Calabria in 1940 and the Battle of Cape Matapan in 1941. She was sunk by German dive bombers on 22 May 1941 during the Battle of Crete with the loss of 722 men out of a crew of 807. Gloucester acquired the nickname «The Fighting G» after earning five battle honours in less than a year.

I also found conflicting information about StG2's operational bases during this period. Brücker and 10 aircraft were moved to the island of Scarpanto but it is unclear which ones. The rest appear to have been operating from Peloponnese bases - for ease I've left Andreas at the base outside of Argos (and also because I've always loved the Greek mythos of Perseus, King of Argos and slayer of Medusa and the Kraken!)

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Game Notes

I was really looking forward to playing out more of the infamous Stuka Attacks on the Allied navies evacuating Crete, but thats the way the cards landed. Andrea's serious wound seems a good place to put a pause on this campaign and begin prepping for the next one: Barbarossa.

As I move to the Russian Campaign, I'm going to put a bit of a twist to my game mechanics...well in fact the game that I'm playing. I quite like Stuka Ace but its really a game about you as a pilot, and there is significant abstraction about the men you are leading.

So I've picked up Storm of Steel, by Compass Games. Its also a Stuka game but its more focused on Staffel level management. Its also exclusively set in Russia. I'm going to see if I can merge the games a bit - and integrate the elements - should be a fun experiment!