A bad day in Flanders

[Hasse Wind 46]

This has been a really lousy OFF day for me! First I lost a brand new British SE5a pilot on his second flight when the bloody Huns decided to clip his wings off with an AA shell. I then decided to continue my longest-lasting campaign career ever as Oberleutnant zur See Joachim Faber of Marinefeldjagdstaffel I in early 1917, hoping to finally reach the magical 50 flight hours I've been trying to achieve ever since I got OFF.

 

It all started as a routine escort mission with 3 Roland C.II's from SS-6, their orders to bomb something near Ypres. My flight of 4 Alb D.IIs was to fly close escort for them. It was a sunny day for a change with excellent visibility to all directions, no clouds except some cirrus here and there. Shortly after we crossed the front we were surprised by a flight of some RNAS Nupe 17s - they were painted with green and brown instead of the usual white. I never saw them coming from behind and below us, so I must have been too lax and overconfident, just scanning to sky above and left and right to my Alb, but not down and behind. I broke left to meet them and quickly ordered my wingmen to attack, and then it was all over - my Alb was riddled with bullets, the engine was hit, I almost completely lost the ability to use the right aileron and then I went down out of control. I fully expected my pilot to die, but he survived only to become a POW for the rest of the war.

 

So close to 50 hours... ****! :angry2:

 

 

 

 

[Olham 164]

Oh dear! I really feel sad for him/you, Hasse Wind. So many hours - I must express my

deepest respect. You must have been really careful and level-headed to make it so long.

 

But as someone said about WW1 fighter pilots: on a long enough timeline, your chances

to survive this war descend towards zero. And he did at least survive!

 

I like to see your logs, and if you ever want your personal pictures for them, feel free to

send me pics, where you are 20 - 40 years old, and I'll do my Photoshop tricks on you.

 

Sometimes, I don't feel right to fly any of my longer lasting pilots - after all, it is stress to me.

But one must admire the form of attack - camouflaged right for a sneak up from below!

A big compliment to the devs for making the AI so much more unpredictable.

[Hasse Wind 46]

Thanks for the Photoshop offer Olham.

 

Yes, I was very careful with this pilot, but I guess was finally outwitted by the AI. It doesn't always help to stay high - sometimes they'll stab you into back from below! I'm really impressed by the AI's tactics in this battle, it was such a quick and fierce attack that I was completely surprised.

 

Oh well. Time to create a new pilot. At least Oberleutnant Faber will live through the war in captivity - but with my luck he'll probably die of the Spanish influenza the day after the Armistice!

[Olham 164]

I'm still thinking about such a campaign - 50 hours! I'm so far from that still.

You are now my other hero to follow, next to Creaghorn.

I haven't been flying for 2 days now and get the fever. I will enter one of those MFJs

now, to check, what's going on up there. But I'll choose a nicer season - I hate grey

wheather (we often have that at the north sea, where I come from).

[Hasse Wind 46]

I will enter one of those MFJs now, to check, what's going on up there. But I'll choose a nicer season - I hate grey wheather (we often have that at the north sea, where I come from).

 

You could join my old marine Jasta in April 1917 - they'll get the D.III then and the worst weather is gone already. I was really looking forward to it, but that's history now (I've started a D.VII career in July 1918 with Jasta 5 - what a plane!).

 

And do shoot some crumpet Nupes down to avenge my pilot, bitte. Especially those bastards with the green and brown paints.

[Olham 164]

I will sure look out for those Nupes, Hasse! Where they British or French?

I have enterd MFJ1 in Aertrycke, May 1917.

My first flight was a recon escort of 4 DFW. Nothing happened, but after your event, I was

triple careful, and my nerves where really strained after 17 minutes, I must say!

 

But I always wanted to find a simulation, that would be able to give me exactly this:

not at all arcade, but the toughest trial to survive. Incredible, who they got this done!

[Hasse Wind 46]

They were British, I had time to see the blue roundels before I crashed. Most likely some criminal RNAS gang sneaking cowardly behind our brave Heldenflieger, as is typical of the British.

[Olham 164]

I'll install the alternative damage model by Herr Prop-Wasche and Fortiesboy,

and when I find them, I'll use their roundels as target markers, shoot all fabric

off their wings, and watch them falling down in their crates.

[carrick58 23]

I'll install the alternative damage model by Herr Prop-Wasche and Fortiesboy,

and when I find them, I'll use their roundels as target markers, shoot all fabric

off their wings, and watch them falling down in their crates.

 

 

U guys are struggleing to get 50 hours ! Ive never passed 8.5 flight hours in the game. The AI is a stinker I agree. Carrick58

[Olham 164]

Hey, Carrick

You are still very new to this. Be patient and learn your lessons.

Once you have lost some 50 pilots, you may be prepared to make the 17 hours - and more.

But it's all a matter of flying reasonable. No adventures, no winning the war single handed,

no here come I - but flying as if they could really kill you any minute.

 

I am not as patient as Hasse Wind or Creaghorn - I usually still die before the 17 hours are

reached. Some may never learn it.

[Herr Prop-Wasche 7]

Heh. I think the maximum I have made so far is 3.5 hours!

[Olham 164]

Herr Prop-Wasche (I will never get used to that name - do you mean Propellerwäsche, or how did

you get this name?),

 

Where do you fly and what craft? Perhaps you should start a pilot in an easier, more defensive

region and squadron. In a defensive squad., I would click "advance time", whenever I had to cross the

lines. That way you could fight over own grounds, to grow some hours and last longer?

[Hasse Wind 46]

Beginners shouldn't lose their hope, because it takes some time to learn to survive long in this sim, and even experienced players lose a lot of pilots. That's just the way things are in this war. Bad luck can end the longest of careers without any mistakes being done by the simmer - you can't always dodge the flak successfully, for example, no matter how skilled you are.

 

Alsace is probably the most peaceful region in the sim for the whole war. I'd recommend flying there for some easier campaigns to become familiar with the planes and get some extra flight hours. The Germans have some decent Albatros Jastas there, and the French their Nupes and Spads.

[Herr Prop-Wasche 7]

To be honest, the reason I get shot down so easily is that I am primarily a poor shooter, due to a head injury I had as a child. As a consequence, I have a slight tremor in both of my hands which makes aiming difficult. Also effects my flying a bit. Therefore, I tend to get target fixated as I try to shoot enough holes in the enemy craft to down him.

 

Secondly, I have spent more time lately modding and tweaking than flying, so I don't have a lot of flight time logged to begin with. I'm hoping to spend more time flying and less time tweaking now that OBD has finished patching for the most part and my DM is close to where I want it (although I am finding it hard to resist making some additional changes based upon some of the new settings in the stock DM).

 

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm afraid I'll never be an OFF 17 hour person, however! Still, the sim is quite fun and fantastic so I don't feel like I have wasted any of my money.

[Olham 164]

Herr Prop-Wasche, there are planes, which don't fit tremors (Dr.1, SPAD),

and others, that lay rather solid, like the Albatros. Just try the right plane?

[Herr Prop-Wasche 7]

I do mainly stick to the more stable gun platforms: Albs, DVII, Se5a, Pup. Occasionally I will make a foray into the DH2's, Camels, and DRI's, but usually get my a** kicked!

[Fliegenhund 0]

I think you should try an early Jasta flying the EIII. With all the fokker fodder around you can get alot of kills without running into Ace flights every other day. Plus once you get the nuances of the EIII down you will find it is a blast to dogfight in.