AAA in A-10A Campaign

[EbonySeraphim]

I've gotten much better at identifying my targets and knowing where to look since I got LockOn just a little bit ago, but now I've run into another wall -- and it's AAA. The 3rd and 4th missions have targets with flight paths and/or targets near two SA-11 "Snow Drift's" just over a range of mountains. They prevent me from making a high altitude approach and engagement to avoid the many AAA threats that exist down low, and taking them out isn't turning out to be too successful. I tried for several hours to hunt them down and managed to consistently take one out many times over (and learned the hard way that you should take out the entire battery because the launchers might still be used with another target acquisition radar). But the second one always proves to be a problem and doesn't appear to be taken out as easily as the first one with the same approach even though it's the same type.

 

I've linked the replay to demonstrate what I'm talking about. Fast forward to when I move beyond waypoint 3 and go for the SAMs. I make a very low altitude approach and take out the first SAM with ease, fully aware the other is there. Then I try to stay above the forest and go for the second and it launches many times at my wingman and myself. We evaded more than a few of the missiles but still managed the bite the dust in the end. After watching the replay just now, I'm wondering if I was being tracked by a radar at the air strip I got shot down over. Maybe that's the one that acquired me. Either way, though, I tried approaching from another direction (mountain side with the cities) in another similar attempt but that battery still acquired me well before I could target it. My question is - is there a weakness to these things that I can successfully exploit and take them out? If so, as soon as I'm done with them, I could stay above 10,000 feet and go for the mission targets free of AAA guns. I haven't put much effort into sweeping all of the AAA guns and short-range IR SAMs then going for a low altitude target approach, but I think that is a much more luck oriented approach as its much harder to know whats there until you see the bullets in the air and look back to where they came from if they haven't already hit. Even T-72s and T-80s can damage the A-10 if I fly ultra low.

 

Track file -- http://www.csh.rit.edu/~oguns/files/SeriousSAMEvasion.zip

 

Strategically, I'm running low on options. Right now I think my best approach is to approach from the other mountains (southern), and if the snow drifts on the other side launch at me, take cover behind them. This is limiting as I need to get much quicker at target acquisition with the Maverick and I can only use it if the targets are relatively out in the open. (not behind trees where one mission target T-80 was hidden)

[bobdude11]

I quit flying the A-10 - target designator dosen't work and I can't ever get AGM to lock on to anything but ground. Strictly flying F-15 and maybe a 33 or 29, but frogfoot and a-10 are out - I shouldn't have to play twister to get a target lock.