Dej

Ah, but the AI still seems to try and turn with me, which is where they go wrong. You're correct about the DVa of course, I'm just thinking if I can beat them then the DIIIs will be easier still. Mind you, I think the DIII's your favourite lady so perhaps it's better than the DVa?

I've just started the Sopwith Tripe with my new campaign pilot James Tepes. It's a delight to fly and turns on the proverbial sixpence... nose down, full rudder, touch the edge of a spin, pull her up and she whips round ... straight onto the arse of the Alb that thought it had me. I'm practising in QC with Tepes and provided my wingies do their jobs the DVas don't stand a chance... unless they run, of course

Bloody Excellent. 'Nuff said.

Your copy of 'Under the Guns....' doesn't look as well-thumbed as mine. Awesome binder for OFF stuff . Though I'm a little disappointed that neither Olham, Siggi nor I are on the cover!

1. SE5a H-S 2. RFC No. 56, Vert Galand/Liéttres 3. 6 4. 19 hours 5. DiD 6. 100%

How depressing... I seem to be in the common age bracket.

I hated scramble missions in the SE5a. Either I was left alone long enough to extend and get some height, at which point I could pick my target and close back in or I'd be shot up before I had much of a chance. In the former situation I gained two kills, in the latter I spent the best part of two months in hospital!

Olham, I can't explain it but it did happen to me on one pilot back before 1.28. It seems that, if claims that are made later are confirmed whilst claims that were made earlier are still pending the earlier ones can be scrubbed out as if they didn't exist. It may be a small bug. As I say, I've only seen it once before.

Superb Bletchley. I really enjoy your posts, they're always so delightfully informative.

Nice one, Siggi, keep it up. Like the typewriter idea, that's handy.

France, April 1917 Dearest Ma and Da, Well, here we are, 56 in France at last. Jolly good thing too, I think some of the old hands were growing bored back in Blighty Diolch yn fawr for the parcel, Cook’s bara brith is a home comfort I definitely will miss out here. I shared it out in the Mess, I think I have some converts to Welsh culture! Being out here at last has finally broken the ice for the new chaps like me. I spent some time talking to Arthur (Rhys-Davies) and picked up a few more tips. You remember I told you about him in my last letter. Sadly, he is not a relative, sorry Da! I have to say those tips came in handy yesterday. We were on a routine patrol at eight thousand feet when we spotted a gaggle of Hun up sun at about ten. Well, Albert Ball can say what he likes about our new machines but the SE5 can certainly climb. We had a tremendous scrap, it was like Cardiff on a Friday night! I managed to get on the tail of an Albatross, painted all in black with white stripes on the tail and horrible vomit-coloured wings and put a few rounds into him until he went down – or so I thought. Then some other gaudy clown passed in front of me and I went after him. I think he was an ace though because he shook me off pretty easily, but not before I’d hit him too. Then, lo and behold my original adversary reappeared and started taking pot shots at me. As you can imagine, I wasn’t having any of that and chased him down to tree-top level, letting my guns reprimand him for his cheek. I would have had him too, if my engine hadn’t cut out and forced me to land. The ground was a little rough and I’m afraid I broke my machine. I walked away without a scratch though, so don’t worry. The sad part is that, after nearly downing my first Hun on my first day I end up putting up a bit of a black instead. Never mind. Plenty of time yet, and I’ll remember that black Hun, he and I have some unfinished business. Your loving Son, Llew

Every variation in any genre of any creative achievement has its supportors and its detractors, c'est la vie. Many of you folks have been around this particular genre a lot longer than I so maybe that's where particularly strong feelings arise. Me, I'm still a promiscuous flight sim tart. I'll fly any of 'em at least once. If they do what they say on the tin I don't complain. BHaH is the best flight sim I've ever played. Period. But if this OOF thing completes I'll play it. One aspect I'll enjoy is being able properly to record and play back my missions, changing camera and aircraft etc. with the potential to make machinema out of them. That' something the lack of a flight recorder in CFS3 makes difficult. Not impossible, with FRAPS, as the BHaH preview movies ably demonstrate but definitely more difficult than in IL2.

No. 56 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps France, 29th July 1917 Dear Reverend and Mrs. Rhys, It is with deep sadness that I put pen to paper to report upon the death of your son, Lt. Llewellyn Rhys DFC, and the circumstances in which he died. I hope it may be of some small solace to you to know that Llewellyn was very popular and much-loved, both by his fellow officers and the men in his charge. I personally am proud to have known so courageous, compassionate and conscientious a young man. I regret to say that Llewellyn died not in combat, but in a tragic accident that also cost the life of his good friend Capt. Oliver Tepes. En route to the defence of one of our vital artillery-spotting balloons a member of Llewellyn's flight experienced trouble with his machine and failed to make a turn correctly. His machine banked toward Lt. Rhys' forcing Llewellyn to take evasive action, this coincided with Capt. Tepes making a slight descent to correct his own course and the two machines collided, both falling to the ground from approx. 6000ft. I am assured by Lt. Hoskins, who witnessed the event, that both pilots would have died instantly and would not have suffered. In total, Lieutenant Rhys accounted for seven enemy machines (six confirmed). He served his King and his Country exceedingly well and has made the ultimate sacrifice. I am sorry to say that it has not yet proven possible to recover your son's remains, but his personal effects will follow. The squadron will miss both pilots greatly. We offer our most sincere condolences. I have spoken today with the CO of No. 12 Squadron and Llewellyn's brother Geraint is given two weeks leave with immediate effect. I hope you may all find comfort in each other when he arrives home. Yours in Sympathy, RG Blomfield (sgd) R. G. Blomfield, Major, Commanding Officer, No. 56 Squadron =========================================================== So ends the chapter on Llewellyn Rhys and is a salutory reminder NOT to try and squeeze in a campaign mission at midnight on a Sunday when you've been working on a presentation for 5 hours, just because you're going to be away and aren't going to get to fly for the rest of the week!

Ausgezeichnet! Vielen Dank Creaghorn. Ich muss mich erinnern, auf Deutsch auch zu suchen, wenn ich etwas über den Ersten Weltkrieg finden will (hope I got that at least nearly correct... my schoolboy German is a little rusty)

"OOF" I reckon is to be taken as a sign of respect. I wish them luck. I particularly like the idea of a busy English Channel when I fly over it, assuming it'll feature on the maps they'll develop.

My son came back from a week in Plymouth yesterday with an unexpected present for me. A Track IR 3 which he'd picked up for a few quid in some Cash Converters type place! I downloaded the latest software from Natural Point and set it up and I'm beginning to see what I was missing. Slight problem though, it doesn't work in OFF! It works perfectly and straightaway in CFS3, WoW, IL2, FE, LOMAC, Falcon 4 and BoB II I'm running Vista 32, TrackIR v4.1.036 and the Natural Point Driver version is Track IR 3 v 2.41.0.0 I did try to spare my blushes by asking Siggi's advice first but I couldn't see anywhere on the NP site just to d/l new drivers as he recommended, only the d/l link for the latest interface software. I've uninstalled and reinstalled it twice. It doesn't even recognise OFF as being loaded when you look as the current game bit on the TIR panel and certainly isn't trapping the F9 or F12 keys. I think I've done everything in the posted advice but no doubt it's some forehead-slappingly simple setting or check box that I've overlooked and will feel a lemon for. TIA

Thanks for all your input, chaps. I'll give VE a go sometime in the week or next weekend, won't have time tonight and I'm working away for most of the week.

Superb job, both in the writing and in leaving Johnny Hun's train set in pieces.

Transcends all nations indeed. Invented by the Brits, though. IAGO Some wine, ho! [sings.] "And let me the canakin clink, clink; And let me the canakin clink A soldier's a man; A life's but a span; Why, then, let a soldier drink." Some wine, boys! CASSIO 'Fore God, an excellent song. IAGO I learned it in England, where, indeed, they are most potent in potting: your Dane, your German, and your swag-bellied Hollander—Drink, ho!— are nothing to your English. CASSIO Is your Englishman so exquisite in his drinking? IAGO Why, he drinks you, with facility, your Dane dead drunk; he sweats not to overthrow your Almain; he gives your Hollander a vomit, ere the next pottle can be filled. OTHELLO. Act 2, Scene 3. Good ole Shaky Bill.

France, July 1917 Dearest Ma and Da, You may have heard from Sioned that I bagged another Hun. Sorry that you weren't the first to know but Sioned's letter arrived at the most opportune time. I shan't go into detail; one scrap has begun to seem pretty much like another these days. Though, that said, pickings are pretty slim in these parts, I wish they'd send us further south. The only other news of note from here is that we've all been struck down, one by one, by a rather nasty stomach upset which has progressively invalided us all. I'm in bed at the moment, feeling as weak as a kitten and I'm almost over it. Haven't flown for several days, though, simply couldn't. Diw! I'm glad I wasn't the first to catch it; there are some 'bodily matters' one absolutely does not want to happen in a cramped cockpit at 10000ft! I pity poor Bates' crew having to clean out his SE! Of course, they then all came down with the same thing and that pretty much accounted for the NCOs and the ranks and then the officers started to fall ill. So all-in-all we've not been that effective as a squadron this past week! Hopefully August will bring better health and better luck. In answer to your question, I haven't heard from Geraint at all this month. I'm sure he's okay though, just probably very tired, the reccy boys have been frightfully busy finding out what Jerry's up to. Lots of love to you all, Llew

Just a thought, seeing as it's screwed anyway, try progressively reducing the number of aces in the Jasta. I reckon the error message points at a historic incompatibility. Course, that could be bollocks!

Good report Eisenberg, we'll inform Gunter's family, I believe he has brothers in service too. Now, Command would like to know where you acquired that colour camera, as some of the Fl. Abt. (Inf.) units are interested. What was the total flight time, by the way. How quickly Death can come upon even the best of us, eh?

That's a valuable definitive statement to have Pol, thanks. 'Game Update' reports the games as being up-to-date, I even d/l'd the separate game signature files from NP and overwrote the directory ones to double check. Your point above is kinda what I hoped and why I thought I'd overlooked something really simple. Oh well, a process of elimination begins :yes: