FROM: Vizeadmiral Hans Putzkammer
TO: Gas Miners Guild
Dear Guildmasters,
I am contacting you in regards to an indecent that happened in GMG space earlier today. A Kruger transport was stopped, lawfully so, by GMG forces on patrol near Gas Miner Naha, while escorted by two Rheinland Military pilots. The pilots took it upon themselves to defend the Kruger transport when attacked, and thus helped to create the situation we are looking at now. A full report will follow.
Hauptmann Alois Dermen was leading a flight wing with Gefreiter Albert Holst. The two of them were returning from an exercise with Kusari forces from the Honshu system. After jumping into the Sigma 13 system, the Hauptmann was met by a Kruger transport, headed back to Rheinland. Unfortunately, this is where problems began. Dermen was not as familiar with GMG law as he should be, and neglected to remember the following:
Quote:2.4 Pilots associated with the following group(s) are banned from GMG Territory due to their crimes against the Guild and/or its allies, and are to be classified as criminals:
Thus, Alois, being a charitable man that he is, ignorantly offered the Kruger transport friendly escort back to Rheinland Space.
The trio began to traverse the Sigma 13 cloud, headed down the lanes towards the Frankfurt Jumpgate. This continued as normal until they reached Helgoland Station, where they were met by two GMG paramilitary patrol ships. The GMG ships demanded that the Kruger ship halt, as it was violating GMG law by being in Sigma 13. The GMG ships then determined a fine of 10 million credits was in order for the violation of the law.
Hauptmann Dermen conveys to me that he was quite shocked that such a demand was levied. Ignorant of the GMG laws as he was, he took such action to be one of piracy. Dermen then proceeded to request that the GMG stand down, mistakenly citing the Treaty of Sigma 13 between Republican, Rheinland, and the GMG as allowing Rheinlandic ships passage between Kusari and Rheinland. Dermen was mistakenly under the impression that "Rheinlandic ships" included those of Kruger, not simply Rheinlandic law enforcement.
As the situation grew tense, several corsair ships proceeded to arrive from the gas cloud. Things, from here, get a bit chaotic. I have reports that no shots were fired between any parties until the corsairs showed up. However, as soon as the Corsairs declared the intention to attack all parties present, the GMG and Rheinland ships exchanged shots with the corsairs and each other.
Alois, to his credit, only fired warning shots as GMG ships, not seriously damaging them, but proceeded to escort the Kruger transport back to Frankfurt. Once in Frankfurt, the hull of the Kurger ship could stand no more, and the GMG were successful in destroying it. After the destruction of the Kruger transport, the GMG pilots made it clear that they were only concerned with the Kruger ship, and left my pilots to their own devices. The situation deescalated and the GMG returned to Sigma 13.
This concludes my full report on the situation.
The Hauptmann and the Gefreiter did indeed safely return to Rheinland space, and I also understand that no GMG pilots were significantly harmed. This is good news indeed, as I chill to think what we may have on our hands if any of your pilots were wounded or killed by this action. Our deepest regrets are expressed and we offer our forthright apologies for this misguided situation occurring. Personally, I ask that you please excuse Herr Dermen. I know him to be a kind man at heart, and he only had the best intention when offering a fellow Rheinland citizen safe flight through dangerous space. I have indeed spoken to him and our officers. As a consequence of this reveled discrepancy we will all be undergoing a training program about GMG sovereignty and GMG law.
The Military of Rheinland formally apologies for such a woeful error on our part, and offers to pay any restitution and repairs as needed by the GMG pilots involved. We shall also be forwarding 10 million credits to the GMG to pay for the Kruger ship's fine. We ask that you notify us where to send this payment.
As a final note, we understand that tensions between Kruger and the GMG have been escalating recently. We are currently looking into that situation and express our desire to find some sort of middle ground where the GMG and Kruger may peacefully coexist after all these long years of conflict.
Rheinland Military High Command Officer, Vizeadmiral Hans Putzkammer
To: Vizeadmiral Hans Putzkammer
From: Guild Master Taro Katsuo
Location: Planet Miura, Okinawa
Konbanwa, Vizeadmiral Putzkammer-sama.
It's good to hear from you, considering the circumstances.
The report submitted by Hauptmann Dermen seems to match reports submitted by our own Paramilitary pilots, with a few minor discrepancies; Hauptmann Dermen and Gefreiter Holst seems to have started their patrol out of the Frankfurt system, not Honshu. But as I said, minor discrepancies.
The ban-evading Kruger vessels were halted along the trade lane from Naha to Helgoland by our Paramilitary, and fined accordingly for trespassing and treaty violation. I arrived at the scene myself just when, as Hauptmann Dermen reports, he Corsairs arrived howling wildly for blood. When the Kruger vessels refused to pay the fine set upon them by our Paramilitary, our pilots treated the criminals just as they've been trained and instructed to do. Our reports are otherwise consistent with Haptmann Dermen's own, followed up by the routing of the remaining Corsairs in Sigma-13.
The Guild urges the Rheinland Military High Command to, just as you intended, further educate its pilots currently serving outside House Rheinland in its bordering territories, as well as acting within the set RoE (Rules of Engagement) covering the Sigmas and Guild space and law.
The Guild would also like to urge the Federal Police serving in Frankfurt and aboard the Fulda Border Station to actively prevent Kruger vessels from violating the treaty marking the end of the Eighty Year War, to hinder them from entering Guild space as well as to ensure the safety of eventual Rheinland citizens aboard trespassing Kruger vessels. Reports and incidents have culminated, as we're receiving nearly daily information and reported events of trespassing Kruger vessels in Sigma-13 and even deeper in Guild space.
The 10 million credit fine set upon the trespassing Kruger vessels is to be paid by the transgressors, and not by the honest tax-paying people of Rheinland. I must respectfully decline your offer for covering it, Vizeadmiral Putzkammer-sama.
The Guild is currently neither willing nor able to change its stance of hostility towards Kruger Minerals, as their infractions and disrespect of our sovereignty and laws mustn't go unpunished.
I hope that the next time we speak, Vizeadmiral, it'll be during circumstances of a more pleasant nature.