Duce Lewis

I searched quite a bit and finally found this link: http://www.airminded.net/n28/n28.html From the readings (different sites) there were between 4 to 6 wing failures All of them were in 94th and 95th Squadrons When Spad replacements came, these 2 squads were eager to get them The other 2 squadrons, 27th and 147th, were described as heartbroken and called it a catastophe To my mind the N.28 has always been the tainted plane Every article starts out "American's 1st combat aircraft ...plagued by wing failures" Even though; The problem was fixed by Summer of 1918 The USAS still ordered 600 more at the end of the war They remained in USAS service (and others) into the 20's All that is said is "wing failures" The Camel is generally considered WWI's most succesful AC and flown right to the end This and the Snipe prove rotaries weren't obsolete yet The N.28 with it's excellent manueverability, climb, and good speed, still had useful service life in it Most probably the descision was made to switch to Spads and the brass just weren't gonna change it The N.28 did have many engine problems though The Gnome Monosoupe's problems are detailed pretty well As you no doubt can tell this is my favorite WWI bird Olham's right, she is cute, but a real performer too

ROF got me intrigued when I saw the video of an airfield being shelled Even the Albatross that weren't hit were bouncing up and down Wow! great physics But only 2 flyable planes and the on-line requirement really turned me off But now we're hearing about the AI flying straight and level ...where's the challenge? I'm planning on waiting till they make a lot of improvements And I hope they do I have alot of respect for anyone that creates something this complex and entertaining That's how I felt about First Eagles and I still haven't bought that 1 either

Thanks guys, Rick, long and lonely is right It was 1 of those 'I think I'll get up and walk away from the computer now' type of fights ...long and intensive All defensive but had to get some offensive hits in to get outta there Olham, I've been a dark side member since shortly after P2 came out Fell in love with the DVII after the 1st flight I'd have put this in the Special Reports Sticky but it was so similar to your fight, I posted here I used to post write-ups and screenies alot but so far in BHH, I've only taken 1 screenshot! Just love flyin her I guess I only got a quick glimpse of the 3 D7's from the rear Light to medium blue fuselages Whoever they are, I'm toasting them with champagne tonight

Burners are rare treats here too Most crates just smoke and spiral in I just get more Camel flamers than Spads

Olham, I had to make the decision this morning It was an artillary spotting mission, A flight leads with 4, I followed with 4 Tanked up with 75% extra fuel load and off we went Halfway to the target a small flight of Biff's and Se5's (3 total) showed up A Flight was ahead and higher so they took them on 1st We struggled to catch up but I managed to get a solid burst into an Se He spun down but a wingie zoomed past and issued the coupe des gras shot That's the trouble with flying the elite Jasta Boelke (D7's) The wingies are good ...good thieves We reformed, A Flight in the lead again Approaching the line, a flight of 5 Se5's appeared and dove on A Flight There was no hesitation as we pressed on to join the fray Maybe it was the Se's altitude advantage but 1st there was 1 D7 smoking then another A Flight was geting a butt whipping before our eyes By the time I was able to assign targets, there was only 1 A Flight D7 left down low Nevertheless we roared in, slightly lower than most of the Se's Dove slightly wide and then pulled underneath into an Immelmann Picked out a target and gave a burst then broke for another Se The fight was a wild one as it seemed Se's were coming out of every direction Saw a wingie get hit and go down smoking Oh crap it's 5 on 3 now but I wasn't worried yet Then 5 more Se5's showed up high above They didn't join in right away, but their presence affected the fight It was hard to concentrate on targets when having to continually look up to see when they're gonna dive in Finally one came down and made a look-see pass slightly above I was turning at the time and kicked top rudder and hit him with a short burst Maybe this triggered the rest as we were soon swimming in Se5's Now it was our turn at a butt whipping as the blued dots on the TAC turned black All alone now, I had 6 Se's in close proximity with at least 3 making passes A quick check of the map showed that we had drifted over enemy territory The only thing that had saved me so far was that I'd stuck to my rules; Stay high and fire short burts then break into a turn Spotting one Se make a pass, I pulled inside him with a semi-wingover Hit him pretty hard forcing him to snap roll and dive away Hair stood up on the back of my as I knew his buddies were lining me up Kicking rudder into a diving turn to gain speed and change course as quickly as possible Prang, Crack, zhhht, zhhht, zhhht, hit by a short burst form his m8 Looked to see an Se roll and zoom past The only thing that saved me was that I'd initiated the turn before he hit me The clock starts ticking now as I must assume my engine's on borrowed time Controls took some hits too as they're not as responsive, but I can still fight Knew I had to get outta there, engine's gonna die, how can I deadstick throught this mob?, even if I can, POW at best Turn, fire, turn, fire, every time an Se rolled into a dive, it was victory They didn't crash but I needed to drive them down Eventually it worked, top of the heap, hauled back on the stick and tried to climb away But they weren't through with me yet, clawing after me One seemd the highest so I reversed and dove on him, firing a strong burst then zooming away Some had crashed so it was now 4:1, most of them down low Leveled out and crossed back over the lines, but still they followed, one of them gaining height When he got within 1/2 mile, I turned and attacked Learned long ago never to take on AI head-on, but made a curving attack flying towards a point 100 yards behind him Whipped into a wingover as he passed, neither of us firing shots Had a good position but he snapped rolled and dove away a couple times Just let him go and resumed course for home ...those other 3 are down there But he still didn't give up, engine must be damged as he soon overhauled me Same thing, when within 1/2 mile, turn and attack Zoom past, wingover, roll and dive, let him go Still he followed but now a flight of 3 D7's showed up and headed for the 3 Se's down low Don't know who they are but I'd like to kiss them, blue fusalage and all When He got within a 1/2 mile, I swung around for the attack again But this time he changed his mind and broke away Maybe he went to help his buddies but who cares, I'm alone now It sure was a lonely flight and landing back at base, 8 flew off, only 1 returned I must admit, I cheated, and put in a high number of claims then reduced I wanted to see how many I'd gotten In the end, we'd fought even with the Brits We got 3 from the 1st little skirmish, I got 3, and the winigie must have gotten at least 1 vs. our 7 losses Even so, I still feel like we got beaten up pretty badly

Rabu, great job on those skins, they're gorgeous ...in a dirty sort of way The progressive weathering would be a nice addition, but I can understand the size limitations Was there any thought of adding progressive engine performance? ie. When you join up, you're given the oldest serviceable crate with 90-95% power and reduced acceleration

It's been a long while, but I remember a WWI show that detailed the N.28's wing issues The issue was whether it was a design or manufacturing problem As best I can remember, they stated that some American squads used them right to the end of the war with no structural issues She'd be a beautiful addition to OFF

Now there's some good news It's a long wait, but to see a really well crafted WWI air movie

I like the DM balance in OFF The flamers and wing failures are there, but IMO a lot depends on your accuracy and concentration of fire For example, I rarely flame Spads, they're so fast, most shots are medium range Camels flame much more often as it's easier to get close and put a concentrated burst into the engine But if you can slow a Spad down with some engine damage, get close and hit him hard in the engine, he'll flame too

Gotta support A Flight so I'd fight ...but I'd try to stay high til the fight dissapated Congrats!

Olham, That's a wonderful place to visit When I was a youngster, we used to go there once or twice a year Been mnay years since I've been there But one of my fondest memories was a Fly-Ride in a 1929 New Standard Biplane The pilot took us out over the Hudson River and pulled a Hammerhead turn Thanks for the reminder

Happy Fathers Day+3 Shred! Congratulations on your precious little bundle of joy How's Mom doing?

I agree, there are times where a wingie will foolishly dive down to the deck I get mad (immersion mad) at the situation he's put the flight in As you say, we have to protect each other, but I sure feel like scolding him when we return

Badger, I feel your pain man I learnd the (very) hard way that crossing over the front is like entering into a whole different world If both sides assign 1/2 their missions over the front lines then you're leaving 1/2 your friends behind But the 1/2 that the enemy sends to your territory have to take-off, fly through, and return over their own territory This means that odds are about 2:1 against us Add to that, there are AA concentrations at balloons, earodromes, and any sneaky area MG'ers down low Any hit in the engine and you're cooked Best hope is a POW Camp I lost so many promising pilots this way that I finally changed my tactics Stay high, avoid combat unnecessary to the mission, think out safest option before attacking, if I get hit, head for home General rules as nothing can be hard and fast Seems to be working though Anyone know how RL pilots handled this?

Steve / Dej, Is there anything worthwhile here?: http://books.google.com/books?q=%22Robert+...nG=Search+Books HTH,

Ditto, I warp alot and never have any fuel problems Similar to Olham 150% fuel load for missions our side of the lines 200% whem crossing over Sometimes land back at base low 10-15%, if circumstances require deviating from the planned route But watching the fuel gauge adds another bit of immersion/risk to the sim

In the USA I'm getting dear ol' dad a gift certificate to a nice German restaurant Some nice pork sausage and a Hefewiezen maybe...

It's just too easy to lose a pilot over enemy lines Now we get an idea how Hawker felt when the frontline was as much an enemy as MVR I have 2 tactical modes Crossing the lines, try to stay high and only engage where necessary Over friendly territory, the fangs come out

No worries, that just never happens here

Thanks Mr. Lucky Historic Aviation is Roger's favorite website Probably bought the book there He probably has all the T's but I saw a nice P-51 diecast that would look good on his desk Steve, you pretty much pegged him right Rog is about as nice a person as you can meet It's a treat when he sits at the break table with you You leave with your sides hurting as he's hysterically funny too Homeboy, If you're looking for Osprey books, here's a link: http://books.google.com/books?q=%22world+w...nG=Search+Books Google Book Search is an excellent source for old & out of print books Some are free downloads if the copyright has expired If not, they usually allow you to read a chapter or 2 online and provide links to sellers GBS is on the lower left of the Advanced Search Screen Cheers all,

Rock on M8!!!

Pol, I have a 24" WS now and like you say, it does give more viewable area It just seems that with the advent of all the really big video, the future of sims is a larger FOV I knew it was a biggie but you Devs have kcocked off a lot of big accomplishments, so I thought I'd ask

Funny you should suggest "Ghosts" Yesterday a Co-Worker walked into the break room and gave me a copy It is a great coffee table book, mostly pictures (RL and replicas) But there's lot of anedotal facts & short RL stories Roger is a great guy He was a corpsman in Vietnam ...seriously wounded too He found out that a daughter of another co-worker was failing reading comprehension He started buying her booksa and she's getting A's now I tell him that he's my hero all the time He's an avid WWII aviation buff Tried many times to get him interested in OFF But his dad flew P51's and Black Widow's so he's hooked He likes WWII T-Shirts Anyone know a good site where I can pick some up for him? Cheers,

I don't worry about it much Compared to new PC, JSticks, Peds, TIR, OFF is but a small piece of the pie ...monetarily speaking

Pappy, sounds like you hit the lottery! I have TIR4 but I think the 5 has a wider operating range Here's a little tip; TIR can be customized by adjusting the curves for each DOF I always set the center 3 points to 1 for the X & Y axis This allows for small little movements necessary for lining up your gunsights