Posts from Mike ('wulfie', 2./JG 14) are archived on this page (with some comments from others). The subjects cover everything from advice to new users to advanced tactics... all aimed, of course, at keeping you alive longer in the arena... thus "Arena Basics".

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Posted by: Mike ('wulfie', 2./JG 14)

Message:

Red Raiders

You know, there's something to be said... for an attack aircraft.

This image is from Joe of the Red Raiders, and I think it's bad ass.

Fighters are cool...I love the Fw 190.

But attack aircraft, like the A-6, the Ju 88, the A-26, the B-26, the B-25H, the Hs 129, the A-10, etc., they kind of have this evil attitude to them.

They aren't defending anything. Their pilots aren't getting dates with USO dames because they made ace or scored a bunch of kills. Whenever they take off, it's not recon, or escort, or sweeping, or whatever. They are always on the way to blow stuff up.

There's no patient live to fight another day be a chess player don't spill the champagne on my silk scarf steward please make sure my shoes are polished before I go to joust in the sky and make sure the ladies know I'll be at the dance by 2100 hours in attack pilots. It's make sure the beers are in the cooler if we make it home, double check the fuses on the napalm, and make sure the ventral gunner has his camera so we can take pictures of the enemy burning.

Attack pilots are right down there in the mud with the infantry. An attack pilot in WW2 didn't really have any confidence in a parachute. If you get hit bad at 225' AGL and 275 MPH IAS odds are you aren't going to have a lot of time and altitude to pop the canopy and bail out at a safe altitude.

German soldiers called Stuka pilots 'The Soldiers in the Sky'. German ground attack pilots frequently painted a replica of the German Infantry's Close Combat Badge on the side of their aircraft - to tell the unknowning where their 'office' was. I can see why - I was recently working on a WW2 simulation as a contract researcher and got to sit in on some interviews with WW2 veteran pilots from several different Nations. Hs 129 and Ju 87G pilots were known to engage Soviet tanks with their AT cannon from a range of 50 to 75 meters and an altitude of less than 15 meters. There are numerous accounts of B-25 crews in the Pacific theater suffering near fatal damage from the blast caused by their own bombs and rockets.

Whenever these guys take off, they are going to get shot at. The same doesn't always apply for a fighter pilot. And there's no 'I was able to make my escape by keeping my altitude and evading the enemy' for an attack pilot. You bore in, slam some target at dangerously close range, and you either make it home or you don't.

Look at the picture of the Ju 88 above, with the Skull and Crossbones on the side. You probably won't find the pilot's name on some list of top scoring LW aces, but I'll bet you that he has at least as many gray hairs as Fritz the average LW fighter pilot with 25 or more kills. An interesting fact - KG 200, considered to have the best all around pilots of the LW, drew a large (over 75%) number of its pilots from KG, NJG, and SG units. Guys who maybe didn't have a kill list that contained 3 digits, but they sure could fly I guess. 8)

The Mosquito is going to be a hot ride. Someday, maybe, I'll get a crack at tearing things up in a Ju 88C-6. 8)

Until then, see you guys up there (as opposed to seeing you guys running for the trenches as I bore in with cannons blazing and a thumb on the bomb release), 8)

Mike ('wulfie', 2./JG 14)

Newsgroups: warbirds.training

Subject: Bomber information...

The 'Warbirds Manual' is basically online help. But you can go to the training arena for some really good 1 on 1 instruction.

Ok, first...the level bombsight that you find on the Ju 88A-4, B-25C, B-25J, B-17F, B-17G, B5N, and TBF. To use this sight (simple simple instructions)...

1. Trim the bomber for level flight (you can bomb while trimmed for speed, but we won't bother with that right now).

2. Hit the 'y' key to go to the bombadier position.

3. Hit the '2' key on your keypad to 'look down into the bombsight'. As you hold the key down, you will notice the needle on the gauge in the upper right corner of the screen slowly moving towards the 'center' position. When the needle reaches the 'center' position, a green light will light up on said gauge. At this point, a bomb dropped will hit very near the point where the crosshairs were when you released it.

4. You can move the crosshairs from side to side with your stick, but don't move the stick too far too quickly - if you do you will notice that the green light will go out...then your bombs will not be aimed accurately with the crosshairs. ...always remember to open your bomb bay doors (by using the 'o' key) when flying the B-17, B-25, or TBF - there is an indicator within the bombadier view that tells you if the bay doors are open.

Also, it usually helps to zoom in with the bracket ('[' and ']') keys while in the bombsight view (i.e. while holding the keypad '2' button down) as the targets appear larger. This makes for easier aiming.

Another thing to remember is to cut your power to the 60% range as you approach the target - this makes the crosshairs move slower over the target area, which makes hitting multiple targets and/or adjusting for a bad line up on the target easier. Remember that if you turn the bomber, you will throw the sight 'out of whack' (i.e. the needle will be a great distance away from the center position). The more/harder you turn, the farther the needle will shift. So it is best to line up on the target as accurately as possible from a fair distance (call it 20 miles, or 1 grid) away, then fly over the target trimmed for level flight. This will give you time to have the sight aligned, your speed down, and you ready to rain explosive vengance upon the enemys of your color with laser guided accuracy (at least for now).

As far as gunner positions go, you cannot man gunner positions on the aircraft you are piloting *at present*. Word has it that you will be able to do this in Warbirds 2.5, but I do not know for sure. So for now, stop trying to kick the gunners out of their positions - you are a pilot and a bombadier already, do your job and let them do theirs! 8)

For some more in depth specialized B-25 and B-17 training (if you are into that), look up some guys from one of the dedicated level bomber squadrons online. Some squadrons to look for are the Red Raiders, the 305th BG(H), and the 925th CABS. This is by no means an inclusive list.

See you up there, and don't forget to have escorts! 8)

Mike ('wulfie', 2./JG 14)