YAP RW Team announces the release of Vietnam Air War "Phase One - Enhanced Edition (2025)"

[potentesciamano 9]

Dear All,

Today we proudly announce the release of a new, re-edited and upgraded version of the Yankee Air Pirate project known as: "YAP RW Phase One - Enhanced Edition (2025)".

We have spent more than a year and a half doing our best to correct all the issues, errors and mistakes contained in the original release.  This includes removing assets used without proper permission or those that came from unauthorized sources.  We apologize for the past. We were unaware of many of these aspects and concerns, and therefore we did not respect other's work as we should have done.

First, we would like to thank those who contributed to the project and gave us help, support, ideas or made their assets available.  We all know that without the brilliant creations of this site, YAP RW could not even exist.  So for that, I extend my sincere thanks to CombatACE for being such a great source of top quality works and talented modders.

For this release, we have paid special attention to the Credit List, doing our best to cite authors and ensure proper credit has been given.  We realize that with all the complexities and edits that have been done, it’s very possible we may have forgotten to include credits for certain works or there may be inaccuracies with our source citations.  If that is the case, please let us know and we will immediately correct it. 

That being said, people should fully respect that all of the models/assets in our project cannot be used anywhere else without our direct permission, they remain exclusive to this project like John would have wanted but also allows us to better manage artist permissions so we hopefully don’t have any future concerns. 

Please keep in mind that the YAP RW project is made by fans for fans. None of us were part of the original development team, and we never made a single cent out of the old payware products (plus we have no control over the old homepage and purchase options).  We do not have debts with anybody for the old assets bought by John Shelton during the YAP1/2/3 Era and are only looking forward at this point.  

We legally bought all the 10 asset packs, installed them while still running WOV and then decided to challenge ourselves by trying a conversion to the SF2 engine.  We knew we were going to lose many unique features including aerial refueling, low clouds, carrier catapult positioning and more.  But we thought it was still worth the effort.  We worked a lot before releasing this version, but we know it is not perfect. We tried to correct all the errors, but there are bound to be mistakes and oversights and for now we feel satisfied with the current state.   

If anyone has suggestions to make it better, well we are open to proposed fixes and improve what we can.  We have a group on Facebook, and because it is already well established we plan to continue to use this as a primary collaboration forum.  It's a private group, since we had to defend ourselves from hackers and so on, but the group is free and open to anyone who wants to join in. You are all welcome, just show us you want to support and appreciate the project and there will be no issues. Of course, we do not like denigrators, haters, detractors, generic trouble makers just like they are not welcomed here.  

That's all. The new YAP RW version is free and is available for download on our new, independent homepage: www.yap-revamp-works.com, along with all the other chapters we revamped so far.  This version there are 102 missions (92 combat plus 10 training), all revamped in chronological order and in logical sequence: we decided to go back to the original idea of reconstructing the Vietnam Air War per year and therefore will cover the early period from 1954 to 1966.

We will be honored to hear your comments, suggestions or any screenshots or videos you might make.  And maybe you would be willing to contribute even more to the project.  Thank you for your collaboration and have a nice day in the skies. 

The YAP RW Team

Website and download pages: https://www.yap-revamp-works.com/

[+swambast 726]

 

Wow, what good timing to see this as I’ve been out of action for a few months, but felt it important to respond to this.  The original YAP project has a complicated history, and as someone who has been around since the very beginning, I’ve seen firsthand the issues that arose.  Assets stolen directly from CombatAce modders and others, used without permission from nearly every category including terrains, aircraft, ground objects, effects and so on.  In addition, it included numerous model rips from commercial games, “Russian” hosting sites, and so on.  You also had many incidents where YAP artists/contributors were not being fairly paid, their intellectual property being abused and so on.  Then monetization of the project leveraging existing freeware and stolen assets greatly complicated things.  It was frustrating to say the least and obviously at that time caused a community divide.  

But time marches on.  With John’s passing, a new leader took over and I’m going to be the first to acknowledge the march towards improvement.  He has taken significant strides to address these piracy and theft concerns, and build something more respectful and ethical. Many mistakes have been corrected and problematic assets removed when possible.  It’s not perfect, there is still cleanup needed and questionable models still exist.  But let’s be completely honest here, shall we?  Even sometimes renowned projects and assets here face the same challenges with “interesting model acquisitions.”  So I bring that up in transparency, since it wouldn’t be fair to single out YAP-RW for that.  

While there’s still room for improvement—some of their modeling team certainly do better in maintaining higher ethical standards -- at least the leadership has demonstrated a clear willingness to course-correct and take greater care.  I also appreciate the new protective clause they’ve added: "All models/assets in our project cannot be used anywhere else without our direct permission. They remain exclusive to this project as John would have wanted, allowing us to better manage artist permissions and prevent future concerns." This statement not only honors the project’s legacy but also helps establish better boundaries to protect the artists and their work.  

While the journey isn’t perfect, the team’s effort to rebuild YAP-RW with integrity deserves recognition.  A hearty congratulations, the amount of effort put forth is amazing, especially the care given to the missions.  Count me in.  They’re on the right path, and I hope they continue to refine their practices and earn the broader trust and support of this community.  

Swambast
 

 

 

[+streakeagle 883]

Ironic that the master thief didn't want anyone stealing property that he had stolen. He didn't want anyone posting screenshots that he didn't approve of. He accused Third Wire/TK of trying to intentionally sabotage his project with the changes TK made to SF2. The goal of accurately recreating the history of Vietnam was great. His execution of that goal is not a legacy I would want to honor in any way. I respect his service to the country as a fighter pilot who risked his life in combat. But that doesn't pardon his behavior in this community.

[+EricJ 4,343]

1 hour ago, streakeagle said:

Ironic that the master thief didn't want anyone stealing property that he had stolen. He didn't want anyone posting screenshots that he didn't approve of. He accused Third Wire/TK of trying to intentionally sabotage his project with the changes TK made to SF2. The goal of accurately recreating the history of Vietnam was great. His execution of that goal is not a legacy I would want to honor in any way. I respect his service to the country as a fighter pilot who risked his life in combat. But that doesn't pardon his behavior in this community.

This.

[Wrench 10,064]

My opinion:  as someone who was to join the project, way back when, and declined ...

I think these new guys are starting to get it right. Good on you all!!