Command: Modern Operations Command:MO LIVE - Commonwealth Collision

Command: Modern Operations Command:MO LIVE - Commonwealth Collision is Episode 8, a scenario set during a fictional India-Pakistan war that begins on June 3, 2018. You play as either the India-UK or Pakistan-China alliance, directing air and naval forces as the Commonwealth and Chinese-Pakistani sides fight over targets far from the border.

The conflict

The conflict begins after rocket attacks on Indian Army bases near Pakistan intensify, killing visiting British officers. An unexploded rocket is identified as a new advanced weapon beyond the reach of rag-tag militants. Pakistan’s diplomacy angers Britain, which backs India, while China supports Pakistan with modern equipment operated by purported volunteers or contractors who have left the PLA.

Britain rushes the new carrier Queen Elizabeth and its F-35 air wing into service. India also puts available ships to use, including the unfinished carrier Vikrant, which is made capable of basic flight operations. Peace negotiations fail, and fighting spreads across the subcontinent. On land, the Commonwealth armies use a broad-front, grinding approach that draws on India’s larger population and is intended to reduce the risk of provoking a nuclear launch.

Carrier operations

At sea, an improvised task force of three carriers strikes strategic targets beyond the border. Its ships and air wings are new or limited, while the defenders have few aircraft to spare from the front. The fleets include HMS Queen Elizabeth, INS Vikrant and a Type 45 destroyer, and both sides can fight with or against this carrier force.

Forces and objectives

You attack or defend targets that include seaport facilities, a deployed brigade and an admiral in his personal aircraft. Each side combines Western and Eastern platforms, ranging from new and untested to old and obsolete, so success depends on managing their different strengths and limitations. Forces have fewer resources than a Nimitz carrier strike group or a Backfire regiment, making planning and asset management important.

The scenario includes systems such as the CM-400AKG anti-ship missile, F-35 stealth fighter, Astute-class submarine and Soar Dragon high-altitude drone.