Elusive Victory: The Air War over the Suez Canal, 1967-1973

About this board game

Elusive Victory: The Air War over the Suez Canal, 1967-1973 is a two-player air warfare game with an approximately 240-minute playing time. It covers the air operations of three conflicts: the Six Day War, the War of Attrition, and the October War, also known as the Ramadan War or Yom Kippur War.

Set above the Suez Canal, the game recreates battles between the Egyptian Air Force, supported by Arab and Soviet allies, and the air arm of the Israel Defense Force. Its map stretches from the Sinai desert to the Nile river, allowing players to simulate missions ranging from close support for front-line army units to deep strikes into Egypt.

Elusive Victory uses the Downtown: Air War Over Hanoi, 1965-1972 air combat system, modified to represent the distinctive conditions of warfare above the Canal Zone. The game includes the major aircraft types that operated on the southern front and adds several notable threats and weapons systems.

• SA-3 and SA-6 surface-to-air missiles
• Man-portable SAM systems
• Shilka self-propelled anti-aircraft artillery
• AS-5 cruise missiles

Across three wars spanning 1967 to 1973, players can explore the changing demands of air operations over one of the era’s most contested battlefields. The game was designed by Terry Simo, based on Lee Brimmicombe-Wood’s Downtown system, with art by Lee Brimmicombe-Wood and Nicolás Eskubi.