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Black Tiger V, 2015

A Fictional November, 2015
The Persian Gulf has erupted into flame.
Bolstered by a new secret alliance with Russia and the influx of a wealth of modern aircraft and weapons systems, the Iranians have executed their plans to become a nuclear power and seize permanent control of the Persian Gulf region.
Febrary 8th, 2015, will forever rank as the 21st Century's 'Day of Infamy.' On 2/8/15 the United States Navy was subjected to a devastating surprise attack as a carrier strike group transited the Strait of Hormuz. A dozen SSM missile batteries launched a saturation attack when the ships were at the most vulnerable point of their passage, backed by additional support and strikes by the air and sea assets of the Iranian military and the mercenary Russian Volunteer Group. Every ship caught in the strait was sunk, killing close to 8000 USN personnel- the largest military defeat ever handed to the United States or its Navy. A major air battle raged over the waters of the gulf for hours afterward, with the survivors on the U.S. side recovering at bases in Bahrain. The exit channel in the Strait of Hormuz was blocked with sunken ships, creating an even tighter chokepoint than before.
The Gulf Coalition was thrown into turmoil in the immediate aftermath of the attack. In the weeks prior to 2/8, Russian diplomats were working behind the scenes with foreknowledge of the coming attack. They made quiet overtures to the Gulf States whose populations have Shia majorities, warning them that U.S. influence in the region was waning and that siding with Iran might be the only way to prevent popular uprisings against their minority Sunni governments. When the attack actually happened, the Russian outlook seemed almost prophetic to the shell-shocked members of the Gulf Coalition. Saudi Arabia was all but politically paralyzed in the aftermath of the attack. In Bahrain the situation deteriorated rapidly- the Shia population erupted into open revolt against the minority Sunni government, and United States was forced to evacuate its people and the resources that could be airlifted out. As a practical matter, the United States 5th Fleet essentially ceased to exist except on paper.
In the months since the battle, worldwide pandemonium has ensued. Iran has successfully tested its first nuclear weapon and declared itself a nuclear power. The flow of shipping in and out of the Persian Gulf temporarily stopped, markets erupted in panic, and world oil prices skyrocketed. Iran soon allowed shipping to proceed through the strait again, but subject to strict Iranian control and tariffs- the Strait of Hormuz has become an Iranian toll booth to all but its closest allies. The United States formally declared war on Iran on February 9th, warning them in no uncertain terms that the employment of any nuclear device anywhere in the world would be met with a full, nuclear retaliatory response. Since that declaration, no further nuclear tests have taken place in Iran, although it is believed they possess at least a half dozen warheads. The United States, its people roused to a fury not seen since December of 1941, has spent the past several months conducting a difficult campaign to degrade Iran's modernized, integrated air defenses. Two carrier strike groups in the Arabian Sea, coupled with Air Force assets making long range strikes from allied bases in Europe, have spent months gradually peeling back Russian-supplied defenses and opening the way to the Strait of Hormuz.
The time has finally come for the U.S. Navy to carry out an operation to re-open the strait and restore freedom of navigation in the Persian Gulf. For several years the USN was experimenting in secret with the F-14E Tomcat 21 prototype, with the aim of returning the striking range of the modern carrier battle group to its former Cold War levels. In the aftermath of the attack, a squadron of prototype Super-Tomcats was rushed into production, and manned by some of the Navy's top pilots and former F-14 operators. The new squadron has been established as FIGHTING SIX, the Black Tigers. Armed with experimental AIM-152A long range air-to-air missiles, they are expected to be a force multiplier. The success or failure of the Tomcat 21 in this conflict will determine whether or not the program is put into full production.
Task Force 51.1 consists of two combined carrier strike groups. USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT is carrying an experimental air wing which has already been dubbed the Cactus Air Force in memory of a similar ad-hoc collection of aircraft at Guadalcanal in WWII. In addition to the Black Tigers, the first Marine Corps squadron of F-35B aircraft is deploying into combat, as well as the first E-2D Advanced Hawkeyes. The Big Stick's air wing is the most technologically advanced force ever sent into combat. The USS JOHN C. STENNIS is the second flat top, and she has a more traditional air wing embarked.
In the coming days, the conflict between Iran and the United States over freedom of the seas in the Persian Gulf is going to be resolved once and for all.