Doc3908

My vote goes for an early Bf-109 (A through E). It can be used in a variety of scenarios - from the Spanish Civil War, to the Battle of Britain, to the early days of Barbarossa on the Eastern Front. Speaking of the Spanish Civil War, there were He-51s that were much more prevalent before the Condor Legion brought over the -109Bs. It'll be an interesting duel - biplane vs. early monoplane. And, of course, there was the I-15, though it's a stablemate - not an opponent - for the I-16.

Lavochkin La-7. See the last picture from yesterday's update.

Back in the Mossie for some ground/water target strafing...

Wow!!! Let me be the first to say.... THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!!! Thank you for all the hard work on the I-16 - by far, my favorite DCS module. And a HUGE thank you for the FANTASTIC news on the long-awaited Lavochkin!!!! Put it up on pre-sale and take my money right now! Wishing you, your team, and your families a wonderful holiday season and much happiness and success throughout the New Year!!! Cheers!!!!

Lately, every time I log in, the weather over the Channel is overcast. I wonder if GS has set it up like that on purpose (Is the weather always that bad over the Channel?) I'd really like to see a nice clear day sometime...

Lots of great tips and advice here. I just wanted to add that a radar lock on a target you are engaging with guns at close range eliminates the need to guesstimate the lead. It's deadly effective.

I've been enjoying the GS WW2 server since it came out a couple of months ago. One wish I have, however, (in case GS is reading this) is to have larger formations of AI aircraft. Currently, we have AI flights of 4 bombers with no fighter escort trying to get to the opponent's side. I can easily take out all bombers by myself (assuming they survive the ground fire). I'd like to see BoB type formations - perhaps not 100 aircraft, but 20-30 bombers and 10-20 fighters escorting them. That will raise the stakes and force us human players to play as a team rather than as solo hunters. The primary purpose of flying a fighter was not to engage in dogfights for fame and glory, but to stop (or protect) the bombers. Hope GS can make it happen...

"With a landing like that, you can park it in suburbia."

I'm not an expert, but in my experience "hammerhead" is synonymous with "stall turn", i.e. fly upwards until the speed bleeds to 0 (or so), then kick (usually left) rudder so that the aircraft yaws around the left wingtip until pointing straight down. Then let the airspeed recover and pull out. (Obviously additional control inputs are needed to compensate for torque and other effects). I believe that what you are describing is a push-pull humpty bump: Start vertically as you would with a stall turn, but at the top, instead of kicking the rudder, push the stick forward (with a quick blip of throttle) so that you flop over the top straight ahead and you end up pointing down. Of course, this only works with a neutrally balanced aerobatic aircraft with large control surfaces. The Spit is simply not designed to do advanced aerobatics - its control surfaces are not large enough, do not deflect sufficiently and the engine will likely overheat if you "prop-hang" it. Not to mention that the engine will stall out when you push forward on the stick a the top. I'll see if I can jump in DCS later today and see what I can do in the Spit...

F-14 vs. two F-16s (Syria F-14 instant action mission "Dissimilar Air Combat"). Guns only!

F-104S carrier trials (and, NO, the US Navy never did any trials with the F-104...)

Please delete.

Wow! Can't wait.

Practicing guns-only engagement against the MiG-21. (Btw, same approach works against the MiG-19 and the F-5E - not in this video, though)

First combat sortie in the F-104.

Bf-109 online play on the Growling Sidewinder WW2 server.

A lot of people on the GS WW2 server yesterday.

Mosquito ship strike.

Don't know, but every time I took off from a Normandy dirt strip, my left engine started smoking. I've tried a few times with the filter open and never had an issue. Could be just random... Only ED can confirm.

An aerobatic routine in the Mosquito...

Trying out an aerobatic routine in the Mossie.

If you are taxing on a dirt strip (e.g. on the Normandy map), you should also flip the filter switch next to radiator switches. Not necessary on paved runways, but helped me on dirt runways (never overheated again while taxing).

The Channel is newer and more detailed, Normandy covers a larger area. Both are nice., but to run the Channel you need a pretty good machine. I find that playing multiplayer on the Channel is a slightly better experience since the action is concentrated mostly over the Channel, so it's easy to find where everyone is. On the Storm of War server, I often end up flying up and down looking for action and never find anyone. The Storm of War is played on the Normandy map. The Growling Sidewinder WW2 server runs the Channel map. Lately, I find myself flying more frequently on the GS server, but that's just a personal preference.

First sortie on the Growling Sidewinder WW2 server.

Here's a short video of my first sortie on the GS WW2 server.