AI flights, do they fly or appear magically?

[Stratos]

Anyone know If the AI flights make all the fly until they reach they assigned targets? I mean do they take off, fly all the way until target and then back to land, or they simply appear in the air near their intended targets?

What I want to know If it is possible to find the enemy in the radar and then engage them before they can be targeted with "T" key (I think you can target them when they appear on the map, but I'm not sure), when you fly 50's and 60's and even 70's is not that important, but in the 90's and modern scenarios makes more sense.

 

BTW I'm interested in single missions, not in campaigns.

 

Thanks a lot!

[Gunrunner]

They do and it is possible.

 

The only exceptions to making a full mission are either in campaign (TRANSPORT missions and off-map based units) or irrelevant because friendlies (calling for reinforcements through the com menu, they magically spawn).

[SayethWhaaaa]

Stratos, you can use F10 (flypast camera) to cycle through all the aircraft that are in play, and then target them that way, irrespective of whether they're within the detection range of your radar or not.

[Emp_Palpatine]

I've seen that in Sweep/migCap missions, usually, the [target] flight usually magically spawns above the "principal" waypoint when you are above it or in the vicinity. 

Otherwise, except off-map ones such as heavies in NA or transport, they usually take off, navigate and land. 

[+dtmdragon]

To increase your engagement ranges use the mission editor to move the waypoint directly before the objective waypoint five or so times as far away from the objective waypoint that game puts it. This is the waypoint you jump to when you time jump. Do it for every flight of aircraft, yours and enemy.

[jeanba]

I've seen that in Sweep/migCap missions, usually, the [target] flight usually magically spawns above the "principal" waypoint when you are above it or in the vicinity.

As far as I remember, they spawn when you reach the waypoint before the "target waypoint"

[Stratos]

Stratos, you can use F10 (flypast camera) to cycle through all the aircraft that are in play, and then target them that way, irrespective of whether they're within the detection range of your radar or not.

 

How you do that? I tried to hit T when the proper plane appears, but is not selected when I return to my cockpit.

 

I'm trying now to enlarge the distance of the last waypoint before the target.

[jeanba]

I'm trying now to enlarge the distance of the last waypoint before the target.

This is what I did, especially when planes have BVR weapons