Operation Eastern Sentinel, 1997

The United Kingdom is months away from formally handing Hong Kong back to the People’s Republic of China. But the atmosphere is tense. The UK dispatches a Royal Navy task group to the region to underline British interests until the very last day of colonial administration. The PRC interprets this as a provocative attempt to “show the flag” on their doorstep. The PLAN moves a powerful surface force and submarines into the theatre, while PLAAF fighters surge into Guangdong airfields, effectively imposing a blockade on Hong Kong. The Royal Navy are heavily outnumbered, but hold an important technological advantage in advanced ASW capabilities and active-homing air-to-air missiles — as well as an ace up its sleeve in the form of the ultra-quiet Trafalgar-class SSN. Will the empire strike back?