How do you fly "Over Flanders Fields"?

[Olham 164]

We didn't have any polls recently, so let's have another one now.

Edited March 20, 2011 by Olham

[Bullethead 12]

I have 4 QC-only test pilots, 1 for each nationality, to get the feel of new planes. They never die. Besides them, I usually have about 1 American, 1 French, and 2-3 each German and Brit pilots in different squadrons who fly DiD. When these guys die off, I make a new crop of them. Thus, I average 6-10 active pilots.

 

I mostly fly for the King in early 1917 and for the Kaiser in mid-late 1918. I rarely fly at other times and places, but I like the N.28 and occasionally have to fly a French career. Problem is, in the US/French areas, there's not a lot of variety (as in a severe shortage of 2-seaters) so I mostly fly in Flanders. I hope P4 addresses this issue.

 

I almost always do scouts (the Fee is a SCOUT!!!!). However, I do the odd 2-seater career, either as an RFC gunner or as a Schlasta pilot. I suppose doing a DH5 careerr during Passchendaele counts as a 2-seater career, even though it's just you in the pig.

 

I only fly campaigns. As mentioned above, my QC time is entirely restricted to wringing out new planes prior to doing a campaign in one.

[Olham 164]

I mostly fly for the King in early 1917 and for the Kaiser in mid-late 1918. I rarely fly at other times and places...

Quite the masochist, eyh?

 

I almost always do scouts (the Fee is a SCOUT!!!!).

What did I say?

[Bullethead 12]

Quite the masochist, eyh?

 

If you say so. But I think Shakespeare's Henry V said it best:

 

 

The adrenaline from surviving while being the decided underdog makes tamer times seem as small beer.

[Lewie 7]

Until I get a new system I'm rather stuck in QC mode, as I'm having to fly transplants in CFS3, It satisfies my flight itch, and the aircraft of OFF have FM's that are pretty good.

 

Oddly the Roland CII has a lot of gyro procession like it was a rotary, and yet I find the Sop Camel to be almost tame like it was an inline engine, I'm tempted to look into the aircraft config file to see if there's an adjustment I can do. This is odd as I'm used to the TargetWare Richthofen's Skies Camels and their highly twitchy flight natures. Was there a patch to correct some FM bugs when BHaH came out?

 

BTW Olham the Fee was a scout when it was used against the Eindekker. This was also the time of the Martinsyde G100 Elephant which was big enough to be a two seater in it's own right, but was flown as an offensive scout.

Edited March 21, 2011 by Lewie

[TSmoke 2]

The last question on your poll Olham is kind of misleading, at least for me. I always start campaigns from the earliest start date possible, and continue on from pilots death with a new recruit. So the pilots seem to complete more sorties than say one of the same nationality starting at a later date ie. mid 1917.

 

Nice idea for the poll though.

[TaillyHo 2]

Oddly the Roland CII has a lot of gyro procession like it was a rotary, and yet I find the Sop Camel to be almost tame like it was an inline engine, I'm tempted to look into the aircraft config file to see if there's an adjustment I can do. This is odd as I'm used to the TargetWare Richthofen's Skies Camels and their highly twitchy flight natures. Was there a patch to correct some FM bugs when BHaH came out?

 

I was surprised by the Roland's gyro qualities too, Lewie - no amount of trimming will get it flying straight, so I gave up and don't fly it at all. Seems a shame - and I've always wondered what a bit of 'air-wrenching' would throw up. But until now, I've never seen anyone else comment on this, so presumed it was just some weirdness in my installation. Haven't been brave enough to try the Camel yet (that and I haven't got that far into the War).

 

Will complete Olham's survey now ...

[TaillyHo 2]

The last question on your poll Olham is kind of misleading, at least for me. I always start campaigns from the earliest start date possible, and continue on from pilots death with a new recruit. So the pilots seem to complete more sorties than say one of the same nationality starting at a later date ie. mid 1917.

 

Well I imagine Olham means how many mission between when you enlist a pilot and when he gets killed. The fact you might resurrect a 'dead' pilot's identity and continue on in the war would count as another 'new' pilot and for Olham's survey purposes, you'd start your count of missions from 1 again. In effect, he's asking how often (as measured in missions, as opposed to flight hours logged) we lose a pilot.

[Olham 164]

True, Lewie - the Camel appears too easy to me too, after all I've read about it's twitchyness.

I think it's a concession made to the players, so that this famous bird wouldn't frustrate them too much.

And yes, I know the Fee is a fighter - Bullethead keeps chiseling that into our common memory every now and then.

 

Now you got ME confused, TSmoke - I meant it, as TaillyHo explained.

[TaillyHo 2]

So do you not get tired of having to lean the stick to the right all the time in the Walfisch, Olham - or do you just accept that as part of its 'character'?

Edited March 21, 2011 by TaillyHo

[Olham 164]

I didn't find it that bad, but you make me wonder now - think I shall have another ride on it later.

[Lewie 7]

I was surprised by the Roland's gyro qualities too, Lewie - no amount of trimming will get it flying straight, so I gave up and don't fly it at all. Seems a shame - and I've always wondered what a bit of 'air-wrenching' would throw up. But until now, I've never seen anyone else comment on this, so presumed it was just some weirdness in my installation. Haven't been brave enough to try the Camel yet (that and I haven't got that far into the War).

 

Will complete Olham's survey now ...

 

The Roland just seemed to be an anomaly. When I was taxiing it it seemed to have quite a bit of fixed pitch in the prop as no amount of engine idle speed reduction would keep it from coming to a complete stop without killing the engine. And what was most unusual was the quite pronounced swing of the plane in yaw when I rotated in pitch for takeoff. Intrigued by this, I climbed up to 3000 feet and proceeded to yank and twist the stick around just to see if it was actually happening, and not me catching the wheels in the 'rough' alongside the runways. Yeah this bird has the Camel's somewhat missing yaw-pitch gyro procession coupling. It also seems to have bit much prop pitch which explains the constant need to keep the stick leaned into the engine torque.

 

The Camel is quite tame, I mean really well behaved considering it was a killer of novices. I loaded it into the sim and tried it repeatedly. Loops and Flat turns didn't nudge the tracking of the complementary axis' all that much. A lot is made of it's nasty shortcoupled-ness when combined with the gyroscopic forces of the engine. Enough that you should really need to have left rudder on any turn requiring some up elevator. I guess I'm not seeing it because it turns to the left and right just fine.

 

These observations should be prefaced with the fact that I'm flying these planes in CFS3 and there might be an addition flight modeling tweaking that happens under OFF, I have the flight model setting at 'hard'.

[Herr Prop-Wasche 7]

Another bird with high gyro is the stock N28. Try to make a single loop in that crate--I dare you!

 

That's why I had some of my "riggers and mechanics" adjust the FM a bit so it is now able to "straighten up and fly right!"

Edited March 21, 2011 by Herr Prop-Wasche

[Lewie 7]

OK I just flew the Nupe 11 in QC against the Roland CII. I have to comment that it wasn't a picnic, and the second spawned Roland creamed my left wing after the first one spiraled in, crashing me.

 

But I think there is this tactic, I was able to deflection shot kill the first Roland. If you keep low and to the outside while swinging in a sideslip, slightly closer to fire. Although it was almost analogous to firehosing it.

 

I went through my first drum of ammo and part of the second, for this kill. One thing you have to watch when you do this is bleeding 'E' while in a sideslip while firing, I came awfully close to stalling twice.

Edited March 21, 2011 by Lewie

[carrick58 23]

How do I fly OFF ? Carefully

[Olham 164]

Good idea, Carrick! Ah, I see, Hasse Wind must have voted - "Mostly two-seats, occasional scouts - 1 vote" must be him!

[Lewie 7]

Good idea, Carrick! Ah, I see, Hasse Wind must have voted - "Mostly two-seats, occasional scouts - 1 vote" must be him!

 

nope, guess again...

[Olham 164]

Raaaahhhh! More crazy pilots here than I thought! Mmuahahahahahahaaaaaa!!!!!

[Lewie 7]

Raaaahhhh! More crazy pilots here than I thought! Mmuahahahahahahaaaaaa!!!!!

 

Yup, as barmy as it gets, I mean look at my Avatar, I'd bring a AVRO Tripe to a furball, just because...

[RAF_Louvert 101]

.

 

Once a B/R pilot, always a B/R pilot.

 

.

[Olham 164]

What - your avatar is a two-seater?

I thought it was an outdoor toilet?

[almccoyjr 7]

Poll: How do you fly "Over Flanders Fields"?

 

First things first, I always yell "CONTACT...CLEAR..." and then proceed to crank my pc up.

 

plug_nickel

[Lewie 7]

Oh yeah! Well your mother smells of elderberries.. I, sir, demand satisfaction! Balloons and Blunderbusses! At dawn!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4fVp-hEPOk&feature=related

[Olham 164]

Until this very day, I still wonder, what elderberries may be?

Oh yes - that would be a great duel, Lewie. But I know I couldn't beat our good old Gert Froebe in that role.

Please forgive me - I had a clown for breakfast!

That's nice, that you chose this video!

 

Did you guys recognise also Karl Michael Vogler - he played Stachel's Hauptmann in "Blue Max".

And some say, we Germans had no humour!

 

Edited March 22, 2011 by Olham

[Lewie 7]

Until this very day, I still wonder, what elderberries may be?

Oh yes - that would be a great duel, Lewie. But I know I couldn't beat our good old Gert Froebe in that role.

Please forgive me - I had a clown for breakfast!

That's nice, that you chose this video!

 

http://www.bing.com/...2150&FORM=LKVR#

 

Bert Froebe excells in that role, his human beatbox routine while loading the gun is one of the best scenes of the film, along with his consulting the "German Book of Instructions"... Step one; "Get into the aeroplane", Step two; "Sit Down."

 

We have some elderberries growing in our backyard, I'll take a photo of them later and post it when they start to bloom. We actually have a lot of native berries on our land, I guess I could do a "Lewie's wild foods" cooking thread here this summer.