650404 First F-105 Losses for SF2V

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650404 First F-105 Losses for SF2V

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Three F-105Ds were shot down on April 4, 1965.

At least two of them were lost to MiG-17s from the 921st Regiment at Noi Bai.

These were the first US aircraft lost to VPAF MiGs in Vietnam.

 

Zinc flight of the 354th TFS was bounced while orbiting the Initial Point.

The lead pair of F-105s never saw the MiGs and did not respond to radio calls.

One pair of MiGs fired on the lead pair of F-105s and badly damaged them.

The trailing pair of F-105s evaded another pair of MiGs.

The damaged F-105s tried to divert to Da Nang, but could not make it.

Both pilots ejected at sea, but neither survived.

Zinc 01, Maj Frank Bennett in 59-1754, drowned before being recovered.

Zinc 02, Capt James Magnusson in 59-1764, was never found and declared MIA.

 

 

/*****Sources******************************************************************/

 

A. USAF "Red Baron" WSEG Report 116 Event II-1

Incredibly detailed account. (very detailed, most accurate)

 

B. Osprey Combat Aircraft 84 F-105 Thunderchief Units of the Vietnam War

by Peter E. Davies, pp. 24-25. (general account)

 

C. Osprey Combat Aircraft 25 MiG-17 and MiG-19 Units of the Vietnam War

by Istvan Toperczer, pp. 30-31. (from enemy's perspective)

 

D. http://taskforceomegainc.org/m007.html (interesting but very inaccurate)

 

/*****Design*******************************************************************/

 

After extensive testing, this mission uses the following design decisions:

 

Written for a stock SF2V install, no mods required.

 

The stock environment does not permit multiple levels and types of clouds/haze.

So the only the haze and cirrus layer are modeled.

 

The F-105 mission is a STRIKE on the Thanh Hoa "Dragon's Jaw" bridge.

The initial aircraft positions reflect WSEG Report 116 Event II-1.

The F-105s are in an orbit at the IP, 10 miles south of the bridge.

The mission starts when the 2nd pair of MiGs are first detected by Zinc 03 & 04.

The lead pair of MiGs start very close to the lead pair of F-105s.

The lead pair of F-105s have poor pilot quality to simulate their unresponsiveness.

This almost guarantees that the MiG-17s will immediately shoot down Zinc 01 & 02.

The trailing F-105s are modeled as a separate flight with the same Zinc callsign.

This permits historical positioning of the aircraft and different pilot quality.

The player is flying as Zinc 03 (Zinc 01 of the 2nd Zinc flight in the game).

 

The MiG-17s have been broken up into two flights.

This permits historical starting positions and target objectives.

 

Two flights of F-100s were in the area and may have gotten one or more MiG kills.

However, the F-105s never saw them, so I have left them out.

 

Outcomes are typically very close to the historical results.

 

/*****Playing Tips*************************************************************/

 

The mission begins with the enemy very close at 7 o'clock and closing fast.

The first thing the player should do is jettison all ordnance and break hard.

The player should also issue a "break" or "cover me" command to his wingman.

If the player survives, try to support any other survivors.

Continuing the bridge attack after escaping the MiGs is the only way to "win",

but the game engine victory conditions should be ignored for this mission.

A true victory is landing at Da Nang with more than two F-105s.

It is possible to pick up some kills, but very risky, so consider disengaging.

In reality, the undamaged F-105s ignored the MiGs to help the damaged ones.

 

Do the following to make this mission challenging and realistic:

 

ONLY USE THE NORMAL IN-COCKPIT VIEWS: <F1>, <F2>, and <F3>

Do not use map <M>, target <T>, padlock <F4>, or any view target <F8> keys.

Doing so provides the player with exceptional situational awareness.

The player unrealistically always knows everyone's location.

This extra knowledge allows a skilled player to escape and possibly kill MiG-17s.

 

Be proficient with the POV hat, look up <NUM 5> key, and zoom view controls.

Due to the way the game renders distant targets, spotting MiGs is very hard.

MiGs that are not very close cannot be seen at all when zoomed out.

Learn to zoom in and scan the horizon for small moving dots.

This will be frustrating and the spotting distances may seem unrealistic.

The end results are exceptionally realistic.

The player may frequently get lost or disoriented.

Like real pilots, level out and/or use check turns to find your way back.

It will take skill and luck to spot MiGs.

It requires even more skill and luck to get one or more kills.

Of course, TrackIR makes this whole process much easier and realistic.

 

Play the mission several times following these restrictions.

Once used to it, the player will learn two skills critical to real pilots:

1) Visual scanning discipline to focus and pick out distant contacts.

2) Situational awareness to mentally track planes not within view.

 

Good luck!

 

/******************************************************************************/

 

This mission was designed by Stephen "streakeagle" Flores.

For questions/comments, send email to: streak_eagle@hotmail.com

 

This mission is intended solely for free distribution.

It may be copied or changed by anyone as long as it is not for profit.

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• Submitter
  streakeagle
• Submitted
  01/21/2011
• Category
  User Made Missions