Gunnery in the Albatros and Fokker

[Saint19]

Hi all,

 

New to First Eagles and WW1 in general. I'm having the most difficult time hitting anything in the Fokker, and the Albatros. I mean I really suck. I see two gunsights ...but no centralized gunsight. I try to aim with the closest thing to a central gunsight.....some reference point in the middle. But I can't hit a thing. Any help is appreciated. Thanx.

[+Tailspin]

Fly level and watch where your tracers are going. On the Dr.1 use the crossed wires in the center of your view. For the Albs, the small square "knob" sticking up from the top of the engine. For the Fokker DVII the aimpoint is centered between the gunsight rings and level with or slightly above the horizontal cross hairs on the sights. Once you get used to the correct aimpoint lining up shots will become more natural.

[Saint19]

Thanx. Is there a reason why the gunsights were made this way?

[+quack74]

The Dr.1 was notorious for being an unstable gun platform anyway. So it will take some time to get used to it anyway. I find with the flight model I use for my Dr.1, It is hard to get a good bead on an EA. But as Tailspin said, You need to train your eye on those tracers. Practice shooting balloons at level flight.

[Saint19]

Cool. Thanx for the ideas. I'll give them a try.

[Spad13]

I know what you're saying though, Saint. You'd think they'd have put some kind of sight on the deck. If only to give you a fixed point to sight on or around. It's really tough with those wing mounted guns like the earlier Nieuports. I can't sight it at all- tracers coming from above you and all!. If I'd been a pilot back then I'd have found some way to jerry-rig some kind of sight.

[Southside Bucky]

In some plane's, like the Fokker Dr.I and the Nieuport 11 for instance, I think the sighting point is where the fuselage cross bracing meets...The middle of the 'X', if you know what I mean.

 

Regards.

 

Bucky