sinbad

This skin set is provided instandard resolution 512 x 512 to help with frame rates.
 
 
If you install this skin, please be sure to unload the 2048files as they are not compatible. There are several decals used in the 512model that are not in the 2048 version.
 
Please post or PM to let me know what frame rate differences you may findbetween this set and the hi res (2048 x 2048) set, as that information willguide future skin releases for this model.
 
Thanks.
 
 
 
sinbad
 
 

This skin set is provided instandard resolution 512 x 512 to help with frame rates.
 
 
 
If you install this skin, please be sure to unload the 2048files as they are not compatible. There are several decals used in the 512 modelthat are not in the 2048 version.
 
Please post or PM to let me know what frame rate differences you may findbetween this set and the hi res (2048 x 2048) set, as that information willguide future skin releases for this model.
 
Thanks.
 
 
 
sinbad
 
 

This skin set is provided instandard resolution 512 x 512 to help with frame rates.
 
 
 
If you install this skin, please be sure to unload the 2048files as they are not compatible. There are several decals used in the 512 modelthat are not in the 2048 version.
 
Please post or PM to let me know what frame rate differences you may findbetween this set and the hi res (2048 x 2048) set, as that information willguide future skin releases for this model.
 
Thanks.
 
 
 
sinbad
 
 

Gotha Revised Cockpit and Bomb sight
 
This cockpit is derived from a mod by Ravenclaw_007 10 May 2008 and from the FokkerDVII Cockpit by Third Wire. This mod is NOT intended to depict an authentic GIV cockpit, but to improve functionality (primarily adding back the compass) and the appearance. The bombsight is derived from one originally developed by Dfang in 2008 for the Staaken.
 
The Gotha bomb sight in this mod mimics a Goerz “telescope type” sight, one of several sights used by the Gothas.
 
There are no records I can find which depict the actual sight picture, so the cross hairs and reference marks are speculative. We do know the real sight was illuminated for night use; the mod attempts to depict that function. None of the sights used by the Gothas were especially effective (one was actually called a "non-precision" sight). Sights were only one reason bombing was less than accurate. The Gotha approach altitudes in England were usually at or above 3000 meters to avoid defending aircraft, balloon cables, and AAA. The real Gotha bombardier was the aircraft commander, operating in the forward observer station.
 
Installation- First back up everything. Then to install for and FE1 and FE2:
 
In The Objects/Aircraft/GothaGIV folder
 
GothaGIV_Cockpit.INI
 
GOTHA_sight.tga
 
GOTHA V24 HiRes_gunsight Full center 5 nums.tga
 
GOTHA V24 HiRes_gunsight Open center 5 nums.tga
 
DVII_DASH_AMMO.bmp
 
D_VII_FLOOR_FRONT_BACK_WALL.bmp
 
D_VII_LABLES.tga
 
In the FE or FE2/FLIGHT folder
 
VIEWLIST.INI
 
MISSIONCONTROL.INI
 
The Beta testers and I all used variations of the June 2009 FM by Peter01, who did some of the original FM work on this project back in 2008. The calibration of the sight relies on it, so it is strongly suggested. There are two versions of the sight. One has a open cross hair and the other has a full cross hair. The default (with the open cross hair) will install unless you substitute the other. To install the alternate, save GOTHA_sight.tga as GOTHA_sightBAK.tag, then copy the GOTHA V24 HiRes_gunsight Full center 5 nums.tga, and rename that copy GOTHA_sight.tga. That way you’ll still have a full set of the sights if you want to reverse the process. Keep all versions in the Objects/Aircraft/GothaGIV folder.
 
Operation- When the aircraft loads, the sight will appear at eye level. Hit the \ key [immediately below the BACKSPACE KEY] twice. The sight will drop to the floor. When approaching the target, engage the wing leveler or autopilot and hit the .DEL key, to go to invisible cockpit. Use the mouse and the NUM PAD + key to position the sight. In FE1, you can then use the \ key to select the bombs from the various choices in the loadout, if you have selected multiple weps in the load out screen. In FE2 the game will not display these choices, but the ordinance will be selected. Drop the weps in the usual manner with the ENTER key.
 
The default altitude for missions is set at 3000 meters, or approximately 10,000 feet, the most common approach altitude for attacks on London and the coastal areas. The sight is calibrated to operate at 110 kph for 3000 - 4000 meters, and 90 kph at 1000 meters. The calibration speeds are very important to accuracy. Targets should be attacked with a "stick" of several bombs some toggled a bit ahead, and some a bit behind the apparent aim point.
 
If you prefer a different approach altitude, you will find alternatives in the folder. Simply copy the one you want, delete the old file and then save the copy as missioncontrol.ini. Do not simply delete the MISSIONCONTROL.INI without using one of the enclosed files as other operational settings are also adjusted for the Gotha GIV in that file.
 
Known issues- the Gothas carried a very diverse load of stores. In configurations with heavy bombs loaded under the nose, the bomb sight may be temporarily blocked by the bomb on the forward port side. One way to deal with this is to manually toggle only that bomb at initial approach; another is to select a loadout that does not place a bomb in the forward port rack. The typical load for the attacks on England was 6 50kg bombs, so it is relatively easy to set up an authentic loadout which avoids the "bomb block" bug.
 
Thanks to Southside Bucky and OlPaint01 for exhaustive Beta testing. This was a challenging mod to develop and the comments and advice they provided was extremely helpful. Thanks also to the original developers whose work is incorporated here -- Dfang, Ravenclaw_007, Peter01 , and of course Capun and the team at the Skunk Works for the Gotha.
 
 
sinbad 20 April 2010

I did these a long time ago and then forgot about them after an illness.
 
 
Lt Wolf Jasta 5
 
 
This is perhaps the most colorful skin applied to a Jasta 5 Albatross. Obviously a Bavarian, Ltn.d.R. Wolf(f) served with Jasta 5 from 25Jun17 to 8Aug17 when he was sent to the hospital when some sources do report that he died..
 
The spelling of his last name is 'iffy', could be one or two "f's".
 
Wolff was credited with a victory on July 27th but first victory might have been obtained when he was a pilot with FFA 45 in Sept 1916.
 
In which case his first name might be Walter and he might have two victories.
 
 
Enjoy.
 
Notes for update June 12, 2010 - I just re-discovered these files, which are a bit later than those previously posted. I have not examined them to determine why they were revised, but I obviously regarded these as improvements back in January 2009. This was a very challenging project that ran on over two years;many of the revisions were minor. So update your previous DL if you wish.

This skin depicts the camo and markings on Albatros D.Va flown by Leutnant Walter Böning commanding Royal Bavarian Jasta 76b in October 1917. After scoring a total of 17 victories, while flying an Albatross with different markings on 31 May 1918, he collided with another member of his squadron and was then attacked and wounded by 70 Sq RAF. He managed to land safely but never flew in combat again.
 
There is some uncertainty regarding the details. The result you see is entirely my own, and my time machine is no longer operational. This is an interpretation, a well-grounded interpretation, but certainly a mix of accuracy and flaws.
 
There are no decals for this skin set.
 
Enjoy.
 
sinbad

This skin depicts the camo and markings on Albatros D.Va flown by Leutnant Walter Böning with Royal Prussian Jasta 19, his first assignment, where he downed 6 enemy aircraft between April and October 1917. It has often been misidentified as a plane he flew with Jata 76 later in his career. More than one source incorrectly suggests blue and white Jasta 76 markings (and I did a draft in those colors). Greg VanWyngarden and Bob Pearson both hold what I believe is the better view, rendered here, with the yellow and black horizontal stabilizer of Jasta 19 and red trim for the fuselage markings.
 
 

Here's a little bit of fun for Halloween.
 
I first saw this D.VII marking in a German magazine published in the late 1930s. Later I found it had also been included in a Windsock Datafile Anthology vol III.
 
August Hartmann served late in the war with Jasta 30, after that unit had moved on from the Pfalz D.IIIa and the orange diamond markings that are probably better known than the yellow fuselage and tail seen here. Some believe the nose and tail colors were orange because the previous markings featured that color, but a British intelligence officer reported that the fuselage was brown and the nose and tail were yellow.
 
 
 
 
After only a few weeks service, Hartman was wounded and never had any confirmed victories, so, you can conclude that the witch either helped or saved him!
 
There are two files sets, one for FE and the other for FE2. Just drop the appropriate file set in the Objects folder and you should be good to go. Both the FE and FE2 file sets include Halloween Fokker D7 Loading screens. All you need to do to get rid of them is delete those files. If you have special loading screens for the D7, back those up before installing. If you rely on the stock loading screens, those will reappear as soon as you delete the special Halloween screens.
 
Enjoy!
 
sinbad
 
 
 
 
 

Flyable Spad 7 for Eastern Front Campaign & FE2
 
This is a skin set and data/ini file mod to permit the stock Fe2 Spad 7 to be a flyable plane, using the TW quality LOD's and bump maps of the FE2 Spad 7. The only Spad 13 piece is the stock Spad 13 cockpit with minor adjustments. There are several skin sets for various IRAS units, including two of the leading aces, Kazakov and Smirnoff. The skins are a joint effort with Stephen1918. I could not do the Beta testing without doing skins! The FM is entirely my fault, a revised Peter01 FM, with adjustments for Russian service, but it could also be used for other nations. The Leprieur rockets are not part of the loadout packages, as I saw no reports of the Russians using them on the Spad 7. Only the 150 HP FM is included because that is the version used by the Russians (there were very few of the others, even in France). The original files are included in case you want to revert to them without expanding the entire Fe2 fileset.
 
I have not tested this mod in any version other than Fe2, but I see no reason why the skins and cockpit mod should not work in the various forms of FE1, provided you tinker a bit. You may or may not have to delete the bump maps.
 
IMHO the Jones Soft Mode enabler is the way to get this and other mods in and out of the game, but you can certainly do it all manually if you prefer.
 
There are also hangar and loading screens (apologies to Frank Luke) to help with immersion in Stephen1918s excellent Eastern Front Campaign.
 
Enjoy.

Morane Saulner N
 
This is a skin set for use with the excellent Eastern Front Campaign recently released by Stephen1918. The Morane N, one of my favorite 3rd party models, was originally released by P1oppy over 5 years ago, and rivals the best Third Wire planes for detail. It is a special ride, with a special gun, 8mm Hotchkiss and a propellor with deflector blades. The Imperial Russian Air Service bought about two dozen Morane Ns from France and most went to aristocrats, such Smirnoff. In addition to Smirnoff's plane there are three others, Nikolai Kokorin, who flew with the 4th KAO, and two generics, a CDL and one from the “Air Ships Squadron” whose primary duties were to escort Russian airships and the giant Ilya Murometz bombers.
 
I include the most recent FM by Peter01, as well as the original FM, and the original installation instructions. There are no decals, but there are special sounds for the Hoptchkiss, and some special FX, such as the ribbon streamers that load as “Weapons.” I confess I don't use those, but they are there and you can select them from the loadout screen as “FLT LDR.” When I reinstalled the plane for the Eastern Front Campaign Beta test, I had problems getting the Hotchkiss sound to run. I thought putting the wav file in the sounds folder would do it but it didn't. I needed to install the SOUNDLIST.ini in the Flight folder. The Peter01 FM calls for the Rotary Engine sound while the original FM calls up the lerhone, both are in the sounds folder and you can choose the one you want. The file structure in this release is set up for FE2, but if you follow the original instructions, you can install in FE1 or the other variants of the game.
 
Eastern Front Morane N Hangar and Loading screens are included to help with immersion. This skins set brings together the work of some of the best modders to work on First Eagles, Stephen1918, P10ppy and Peter01. They all deserve our thanks.
 
Enjoy.