Do you fly Fighters or Bombers in Campaign?

[UK_Widowmaker 571]

Hi All

 

Just interested to know how many Bomber Pilots are out there

Edited March 11, 2009 by UK_Widowmaker

[Todt Von Oben 0]

Hi All

 

Just interested to know how many Bomber Pilots are out there

 

I just got the game and am still working out the kinks so I've only flown a couple fighters so far. But I'm itching to get into a two-seater because I want to try my hand at being a tail gunner!!! Is there something that becomes available when you select the Bomber that makes it possible to serve as the gunner?

 

Thanks!

 

TvO

[RAF_Louvert 101]

Oh, I'm a bomber puke at heart, so I have been taking full advantage of the new and improved B/R's at my disposal. I had a great run going with my Strutters in #3 RNAS; 9 kills, 22 hours, 30+ missions. Had lost four of my own planes to hard landings and AA damage. Was promoted all the way to Squadron Commander. And then...the end came whilst flying a recce of Hun gun positions. Entered a storm cloud and came out upsidedown and totally out of control. Both my gunner and I died in the mud. Our bits and pieces were given a proper funeral after collection by some nearby Anzac troops.

 

I have discoverd that, just like in the real Great War, high-altitude bombing was and is almost completely PDL. If you actually hit something it not because you've done anything particularly right or wrong, it only means the gods of cordite, gun powder, and windage are smiling on you that day. Now, dive bombing with the Strutter is a real hoot, especially with the functioning dive brakes and bomb bay doors. Zipping down from on high with four 20-pounders at the ready while Fritzie does his best to blast you from the sky with MG's and Archie will get the blood pumping. But oh the satisfaction as you watch a hanger or troop train disintegrate into their primary atomic values when you hit the mark. After that and upon your safe return to base it is definitely time to relax in the local pub house and enjoy a fine cigar and a Tullamore Dew as you regale your squaddies with your heroic exploits.

 

Cheers!

 

Lou

[+MK2 12]

Hi All

 

Just interested to know how many Bomber Pilots are out there

 

You can fly bombers in the campaign?????

 

JK

 

Fighters.

[UK_Widowmaker 571]

I just got the game and am still working out the kinks so I've only flown a couple fighters so far. But I'm itching to get into a two-seater because I want to try my hand at being a tail gunner!!! Is there something that becomes available when you select the Bomber that makes it possible to serve as the gunner?

 

Thanks!

 

TvO

 

Yes, you most certainly can be a gunner in a bomber!..great fun (I think it's F6 to swap to gunner?)

[Siggi 10]

Fighters.

 

I got about one mile from the aerodrome in a 2-seater in a bomber-campaign I'd started, thought "sod this" and threw it into the side of a hill.

[Rickitycrate 10]

I've done a number of 2 seater campaigns. As of yet not had a bombing mission. Mostly recon. Shot down 6 EIII with my Be2c before going down behind the line.

[Bullethead 12]

I fly bombers from time to time, but not very often. I just don't find it that much fun, because almost all I ever get to fly are recon missions. This boils down to flying along doing nothing, waiting to get swooped by the enemy scouts. I learned quickly that using the tail gun myself was not a good idea, because then my plane flies along straight and level, making it even more of a target than it already is. You're not likely to win shoot-outs with scouts like that; the best you can hope for is mutual destruction. Fighting isn't much of an option, either, because while you can throw 2-seaters around fairly well, you can't see ahead in most of them, and your AI buddies never fight but run straight away, leaving you behind.

 

However, I haven't yet tried flying for a Schusta. If the campaign has them doing a lot of close air support missions over the trenches, that could well be fun :).

[Rooster89 0]

I usually start out with a 2 seater career....then after a bunch of hours or a few promotions I "transfer" to a fighter squad, like many real aces did.

 

-Rooster

[77Scout 3]

Yep, I fly a two-seater campaign occasionally just for a change and a challenge.

 

Currently flying a Roland CII campaign to try and have something to post on Siggi's DiD killboard. Nothing like doing things the hard way. :black eye:

[Mr_Dirt 1]

Flying British Fighters now or should I say attempting to fly last about 5 hours then get shot down. But what fun!

[Herr Prop-Wasche 7]

Until my recent unpleasantness (kidney stones), I was flying a DFW C.V. out of Schusta 29b. Mostly recon missions, but had one bombing mission in which I destroyed two AA emplacements! Unfortunately, my squad mates buggered off before we arrived over the target. The DFW is a solid bird, but you can't see snot from the pilot's seat. It's a little tricky to land, mainly because it keeps rolling a long way after touch down. Almost clipped some trees at the end of my runway!

[Todt Von Oben 0]

Yes, you most certainly can be a gunner in a bomber!..great fun (I think it's F6 to swap to gunner?)

 

GREAT! Thank you!!!

 

I think, first time out, I've GOT to shoot off my own vertical stab and rudder, just for general principles.

 

Prost!

 

TvO

[Olham 164]

Flown all Albatros, all other fighters a little bit; no two-seaters yet.

But I'll start a Roland C II campaign, and then report here again.

Should be some relaxing, to switch over to rear gunner, after one or two fighter sorties -

those are really exhausting or tiring for me.

[griphos 0]

Funny you should ask. I flew a mission with my DiD pilot tonight and when I went to briefing, lo and behold, he'd been moved out of a Pup into a Strutter. This wasn't what I signed up for!!! But, queen and country and all that....

 

It was actually pretty fun. I remapped the key for switching to gunner to "g" (when will I EVER need that for landing gear?!?!). I never got to shoot at anything, though. Never saw any enemy. Our target was a rail yard DEEP into enemy territory. And I got 40lb BOMBS!!!

 

And it was a night mission. Beautiful moonlight on the snow. We cratered that rail yard! Very satisfying. And I flew in the gunner position for a good chunk of the 70 miles back just to look at the scenery. Stopped to shoot up an OB at the front. Satisfying! Slept a bit the last few miles, huddled in my sheepskin there in the back. Then hopped up front and landed and headed to the officer's mess for some tea!

 

Still, I advanced the time a few weeks until Ed was put back into Pups. It's the fighter life for me!

[Olham 164]

Hey, that sounds good, Griphos

Maybe I'm still missing a lot by flying fighters only. But then there are still all the Allied fighters yet to be flown.

Ah - it's incredible - maybe stuff for years!!!

[Baywing 0]

Haven't tried it yet, but there's more than enough in BHaH to keep one busy for years.

[Creaghorn 10]

i would try to have a typical german flight career. starting as franz or emil and later becoming a fighterpilot. i red some doing that in BHAH. how can i manage that? as long as i know there is not transfer option.

[Underdog 0]

I'm curious. How do you see the bombs hit? I've seen several posts about watching the bombs create their devastation, etc. that imply that the pilot is watching as the bombs explode. When I'm pilot I am busy pulling up and away and, although I have TrackIR, can't "look down" to see the explosions.

 

Furthermore, what's the technique used to drop the bombs? How do you know when to drop? Practice? Or is there some other trick? Thanks.

[griphos 0]

Hey Creaghorn, I think that the way to do what you want is to try to enlist in a squadron that lists a large mix of the different planes used in those different missions. Some squadrons just list a few fighters, which means, to me, that they stay in those throughout the war. But others list lots of different planes used, which suggests, as with my guy in 9 RNAS, that he will get shuffled around in different planes for different missions.

 

Underdog, I use TrackIR, and I rudder turn as I'm climbing away (but I don't climb much). That pulls my tail out of the way so I can see my damage. This is easier in the stable bomber planes than it would be in a Tripe, for instance! Hard to fly that baby if I'm not looking out the front, she's so tail heavy.

 

I use the standard keys (haven't remapped them to my stick, and doubt I will). It's "backspace" to select weapons, and 'enter' to drop or shoot (rockets) them.

 

As for knowing when, I guess practice would help. I just try to line up on my target in the most advantageous way. For instance, if it's a rail yard, I'll fly in with the train longitudinal to my flight path rather than transverse. If I fly over them that way, when I drop, I pretty much hit something! If it's planes on the airfield, same thing. I fly at them when they're in a nice little row for me. I even try to fly over things so that the MG emplacements are at the end of my path, so if I miss the stuff I'm supposed to blow up, I may hit the MG! If it's supplies, I try to line them up as well. Plus I fly low (and so dangerously) so that I improve my chances of hitting something. To escape, I stay low and hug terrain while slipping like crazy under full power to get away from the MG. I take hits. Every time. But so far, on my few bombing/rocket missions (offline and MP), I've not been shot down by enemy fire, just damaged.

[UK_Widowmaker 571]

I'm curious. How do you see the bombs hit? I've seen several posts about watching the bombs create their devastation, etc. that imply that the pilot is watching as the bombs explode. When I'm pilot I am busy pulling up and away and, although I have TrackIR, can't "look down" to see the explosions.

 

Furthermore, what's the technique used to drop the bombs? How do you know when to drop? Practice? Or is there some other trick? Thanks.

 

Again , Bomb view is one of the 'F' keys (cant remember which one)... Maybe shift F9 summat like that (it will be in the keyboard layout somewhere)

 

Might be worth mapping a joystick button to bomb view..cos I have crashed watching bombs drop in the past!

Edited March 13, 2009 by UK_Widowmaker

[flynnj 0]

As for knowing when, I guess practice would help. I just try to line up on my target in the most advantageous way. For instance, if it's a rail yard, I'll fly in with the train longitudinal to my flight path rather than transverse. If I fly over them that way, when I drop, I pretty much hit something! If it's planes on the airfield, same thing. I fly at them when they're in a nice little row for me. I even try to fly over things so that the MG emplacements are at the end of my path, so if I miss the stuff I'm supposed to blow up, I may hit the MG! If it's supplies, I try to line them up as well. Plus I fly low (and so dangerously) so that I improve my chances of hitting something. To escape, I stay low and hug terrain while slipping like crazy under full power to get away from the MG. I take hits. Every time. But so far, on my few bombing/rocket missions (offline and MP), I've not been shot down by enemy fire, just damaged.

 

When exactly do you release though? When the target you want to hit initially gets cut off by your cockpit? Do you dive bomb like in a Stuka?

[griphos 0]

No, I haven't tried dive bombing as in a Stuka, mostly because I don't think that's the way these aircraft did it (although I could easily be wrong about that). I fly in a shallow dive and to tell you the truth, haven't worked out a visual cue for release point. I don't think my approach is that uniform yet that such a visual cue would be accurate. I release before I am directly above the point of impact by an amount similar to how high above it I am, minus a little bit. Basically so the parabola of the falling bomb matches my path through the air after release. I say minus a little bit, because once it's not attached to me anymore, I think drag slows it down a little.

 

Of course, I have to picture all this in my head. :umnik2: And I imagine this technique would only work very well for the kind of low bomb passes I've been doing.

 

But you probably shouldn't use me as too much of a guide. I've only done this a few times. I've managed to blow up a train and a MG emplacement and some supplies at a railyard, but I've not had much practice at this either, and my success is probably due to the strategy of lining targets up so that I hit SOMETHING rather than any great release technique. I prefer rockets, as you mostly just point at the target and fire, as with bullets (although the rockets seem to hit high to me).

[Rickitycrate 10]

Griphos, the rockets hit high sure enough. Take an outside view of your plane and the angle which the rockets are mounted. You must compensate and I do believe they are WWII style besides so they probably fly better than they should.

[Cpt.Kremmen 0]

I think only dive bombing style tactique was used in scout vs. balloon situations. 2 seaters propably were far too fragile for long dives.

But then again, I might be wrong in this...