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  1. #126
    Speaking on the update 4.008, which is planned for late June - early July, we have also something to show you already. Another legendary plane, P-47D-22 "Razorback", will begin the Early Access for Battle of Normandy:







    Patrick

  2. #127
    253
    Hello Everyone!
    Summer has finally come to us, but this is not a reason to relax and slow down - the work continues. Work is going on in many directions at once, especially now, when in the next big update, we will see two major events. First, the readiness and release of the American P-47D-22 “Razorback” fighter, which will mean the beginning of the Early Access stage of Battle of Normandy. Second, this is the completion and release of the German tank destroyer Sd.Kfz.184 “Ferdinand”, which will mark the completion of all the planned tanks in Tank Crew. Although, this does not mean we will stop working on it, more improvements will be made in the coming months, several are being designed and prepared now.
    Several aircraft, six in total, both for BON and a Collector’s aircraft, are currently under development. The P-51B, P-47D-22, C-47, Spitfire Mk.XIV, Typhoon Mk.Ib and Hurricane Mk.II are all on the production line at once, many of them are in a fairly high degree of readiness. For those who keep asking about the status of the Hurricane, today we will show you a couple of Work in Progress screenshots of the cockpit:


    Patrick

  3. #128
    Creating new aircraft is not the only thing our team is busy with right now. Having finished work on the airframe damage model airframe and control linkages, we smoothly proceed to the development of a more detailed model of fuel systems and their damage. After completing the next iteration of improving lower level logic for air combat AI fighter aircraft - maneuvering and aiming, we have moved on to improvements in matters of the upper level - the choice of targets and operational solutions. Work on the creation of the “Battle for Normandy” map has been launched on all fronts, its borders have been defined, a prioritized list of cities and airfields has been compiled, work has begun on the creation of ground equipment, and a list of development sites is under final approval before production begins. All these works are proceeding in accordance with the approved development plan and, at the moment, we have no serious deviations - we hope that this will continue in the future.
    In parallel with this, work continues on updating the flight crews for all previous projects, and a German pilot in early winter uniforms will be ready soon. And at the same time, owners of the U-2VS airplane, we have some good news: a special and famous pilot model is ready for this aircraft in three uniforms (summer pre-1943 and 1943+ and winter). However, such news, of course, is better to see than to read:






    Patrick

  4. #129
    254

    Hello everyone!

    As time goes on, the release date for the next update is approaching. As we said earlier, one of the central objects of this update will be a German tank destroyer - a self-propelled artillery Sd.Kfz.184 "Ferdinand". As many of you know, this monster was the result of the loss of Ferdinand Porsche in the competition for the creation of a heavy breakthrough tank for the Wehrmacht. That competition was won by the "Pz.Kpfw.VI Tiger" developed by Henschel. Porsche’s loss was caused by the extraordinary, even for the Germans, the complexity of the chassis. However, in the course of this rivalry, Porsche produced a significant amount of the chassis of a new type of heavy tank. This was subsequently used to create the most powerful and protected, at the time of the Battle of Kursk, anti-tank armored fighting vehicle in the world.



    On the Porsche chassis, an armored fighting compartment was installed, protected in the frontal projection by a 200mm armored plate, the weight of which was similar to the weight of a large truck. Even the Tiger gun is not able to penetrate this 200mm obstacle when using armor-piercing shells and 152mm armor-piercing shells of the ML-20 howitzer can't do it either. To bring the frontal armoring of the front of the hull in line with the existing 100mm armor plates, an additional piece of 100m armor was installed. The sides and rear of the vehicle were protected by 80mm armor plates, which were an extremely difficult, almost insurmountable obstacle for 76mm Soviet armor-piercing shells. The roof and the bottom of the hull were also armored considerably.

    The weak spots include the roof of a large-scale engine compartment, which was located in front of the tower and could be hit by large-caliber high-explosive fragmentation shells when they burst on the front armor plate of the fighting compartment. Also, the tank’s weak point is the relatively thin armor of the cooler exhaust manifold of the electric propulsion motors - a significant part of ammo is 'conveniently' located just above it. It is worth to note the completely unprotected gunsight of the main and only gun, located on the roof of the fighting compartment.



    The Ferdinand is armed with an extremely powerful 88mm KwK-43 L / 71 gun, that was created on the basis of the Flak 41 long-barreled anti-aircraft gun, while the shorter Tiger gun (also 88mm) was created on the basis of the shorter Flak 37 anti-aircraft gun. Firing a similar armor-piercing projectile, but with a more powerful charge and a longer barrel length, the KwK-43 L / 71 gun accelerated it to 1000 m/s against 800 m/s in the KwK-36. The Ferdinand had no machine guns at the time of the Battle of Kursk. The disadvantages of its armament include a panoramic sight that is not very useful in anti-tank combat since it doesn't allow entering corrections in the field of view (it had a significant degree of amplification though), and a low horizontal aiming speed.

    But the most remarkable feature of the "Ferdinand" is it’s progressive and promising, but very controversial electrical powertrain. This is one of those cases when technical thought was far ahead of technical capabilities. The idea of refusing the mechanical transmission of torque from the power plant to the propulsion system, which is widely used today in heavy equipment, at that time led to very serious problems. The electric drive motors gave an increase in speed, but with a significant loss of torque on the tracks. So the efficiency of the power plant as a whole, even when on a flat surface, was so low the vehicle could not reach speeds more than 20 km/h. Even with a huge fuel reserve of 950 liters, the range was just 150 km on the highway. Also, due to the features of the electric motors, the power plant had a reduced efficiency when driving backward.



    To supply the required amount of electric energy, two engines from the Pz.Kpfw.IV tanks were installed in the Ferdinand, each with a corresponding DC generator. Both generators were connected to a single line that supplied current to the electric motors, and each of the motors had its own regulator to control the speed and direction of movement. This made it possible to continue driving even if one engine or generator failed. The high cost of materials required for the production of windings, conductors and switches of the electrical powertrain, the use of two engines, plus its huge mass of 65 tons led to extremely serious technological and operational difficulties even for such a rich and industrialized country as wartime Germany. That is why the competition was won by the more traditional and easier to produce Tiger-I of Henschel design even though the Tiger from Henschel was also not a cheap tank by any means and the labor costs for its production were many times higher than required for a mass-produced T-34. On the other hand, the simplicity and ease of control of the tank, as well as the softness of the ride were a bonus to those who manned it. The ability to turn the vehicle on the spot without using advanced mechanical systems required for a traditional powertrain was a welcome bonus.



    Nevertheless, with all the technological and operational difficulties it had, this combat vehicle during the Summer of 1943 was the most dangerous on the battlefield - if it was able to reach it in time to participate in a head-on tank battle. It was important for us to recreate it as close to the real one as possible, just like all the vehicles we already have in Tank Crew, and it was really hard to do. There is only one early Ferdinand remaining in the world - #501, it is located in the armored forces museum in Kubinka near Moscow. Another one, later modification called Elefant with a commander cupola and MG installed, is in the US. The available documentation is very segmentary, short and incomplete. However thanks to the effort of our partners in Digital Forms and application of cross-checking analysis, we have one of the best recreations of this combat vehicle available. From our side, we contributed to the recreation of its maneuverability, armament and systems functioning peculiarities, which required a lot of work as well. On the screenshots, you see exactly that Ferdininand #501 that was captured in the Kursk battle and ended in the Kubinka museum.

    The last what we want to tell you about this tank destroyer - its release will complete the lineup of the combat vehicles we planned to recreate together with Digital Forms for the Tank Crew - Clash at Prokhorovka project. This moment will be a very important milestone in the history of our project. It won't mark the end of the work on this project - as usual, we continue to support, improve and deepen all our projects after the official release date. IL-2 Sturmovik and Digital Forms teams hope you'll enjoy the result of our joint effort.






    Patrick

  5. #130
    Senior Administrator huub vink's Avatar
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    The night witch looks really cool! But the Ferdinand/Elephant is a real monster

    So is this a new version of the beauty and the beast?

    Cheers,
    Huub

  6. #131
    Hello!
    Have you heard about wave interference? It’s amazing when the processes in people’s lives have direct physical analogies. In particular, how topics for our journal entries appear is a good example. In the development of projects of the IL-2: Great Battles series, there are a lot of very voluminous and lengthy tasks. And sometimes it happens that the intermediate results of different large tasks appear one by one, creating a subject for the diaries. Sometimes it happens that the “wave” processes of development progress in all directions and it gets to a stage when the intermediate results cannot yet be published, but sometimes it also happens that in all directions at the same time appears something that can be gladly demonstrated. And exactly this variant of “superposition of wave development processes in different directions” happened this week, which, of course, is always pleasant.
    The first thing we can show you today is a 3D render of the Hawker Typhoon Mk.Ib, the legendary fighter-bomber of the RAF, which is very much anticipated by many in our simming community. In Battle of Normandy, this aircraft will, as it should be, presented with its late version with a drop-shaped cockpit canopy, a modified stabilizer of the type used on Tempest aircraft, and with two versions of the propeller (three- and four-bladed). It will be armed with four 20 mm Hispano cannons and also rockets and bombs. Despite the fact that the aircraft belongs to the class of fighter-bombers, due to the mighty 2200-horsepower Napier Saber IIa engine (and when using the 11-pound boost and up to 2400hp), it possessed strong flight performance. All in all, it will be an extremely interesting Allied aircraft that will help its virtual pilot achieve success in battle against both the ground and air enemy forces.


    Patrick

  7. #132
    The second thing that we will show you today is important for the owners of all products in the IL-2: Great Battles series. We are talking about a new map! The new “Velikiye Luki, Summer 1941”, will be made available to everyone in the next update. This map was developed on a personal basis by one of our map team-members, and although it does not include all of our most modern map tech (such as buildings with increased detail), thanks to the creativity and variety of the implemented terrain and scenery, it looks extremely interesting and will add a lot of variety in your flights. The Velikiye Luki summer map, as well as an improved and updated winter version, will be available to all players. A lot could be written about the positive aspects of this map, but it seems to us that it is better to show them in the following screenshots:



    Patrick

  8. #133
    The third bit of news is that work on the Battle of Normandy is progressing, not only in terms of creating new aircraft but also in other directions. For instance, a lot has already been done in creating the map which will include some promising new technologies for our series. But it’s still early and we plan to show the progress on the development of the map later. Additionally, aircraft crews are also being created and as you already know, the G-suits worn by USAAF pilots appeared after the events of the Normandy, and therefore we created a model of an American pilot in an earlier uniform:

    And in FIRST for the combat-sim genre - the U-2VS, Yak-1 Series 69 and Yak-1b series 127 aircraft will receive a Soviet female pilot option! We have completed the process of animating the new female pilot model and they will be available in the upcoming 4.009 update. It is these aircraft that have the greatest basis for possessing this modification because the famous “Night Witches” from the 588th Night Light Bomber Aviation Regiment fought in the U-2, and the heroic ace pilot of the Soviet Air Force Guards Junior Lieutenant Lydia Vladimirovna Litvyak and her fellow female squadron mates flew the Yak-1 and Yak-1b. Also, the U-2VS aircraft will receive new models of male pilots.


    And to finish the today’s Dev blog, here is the news about the “Tank Crew” project. As we said earlier, the completion of the vehicle lineup does not mean that work on improving it has stopped. Update 4.009 will introduce a lot of new features that will definitely give you an interesting new experience in our tank simulator. Drivers of the German panzers and the Sherman tank will have the opportunity to use the course director. KV-1s, Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf.M and Sherman tank drivers interact with pneumatic fuel gauges in a realistic way. The working sounds of the radio motor-generators were added to all tanks and the German tanks have the working gyrocompass sound as well. All traveling locks of turrets, main and machine guns are now animated and have sounds as well. In general, due to these changes, the sound environments inside a tank has become much richer and more realistic. DT and M2 .50 machine guns now have a working range correction setting. Other changes have been made to improve the player experience - many of you have previously expressed the opinion that one cannot fully discover the possibilities of the project due to the lack of a description of what equipment each tank has and how to use this equipment. To resolve this issue, a new “Station Notes” dialog has been implemented, which can be invoked at any time by pressing the ESC button.

    Patrick

  9. #134
    259
    Hello!
    Although this crazy sequestered summer of 2020 is coming to an end, life goes on, and our work goes on. Many things are happening in our “virtual office” including finishing a new Free Scripted Campaign for Battle of Bodenplatte featuring the Tempest Mk.V called “A Violent Wind” built by Alex Timoshkov. Also, as a result of recent discussions in the community, work is underway to improve general aircraft visibility, which we hope will appear to be both realistic and more comfortable for players. This may require more than one future update to fully conquer, but we’ll see. Additionally, there is some progress towards the completion of the Air Marshal feature which has taken much longer than planned. We’ve also had to build up technical capacity in the field of map production, which is necessary to implement everything planned for the Normandy landscape. And as always improvements to the AI for both aircraft and ground vehicles continue.
    Our engineering department is fully engaged in the development of flight models of three aircraft - the C-47, Bf-109G-6 Late and the Spitfire Mk.XIV, while at the same time work on deepening the model of aircraft fuel systems is in the research and prototyping stage. Creating the technical specifications for all aircraft and other objects of for Battle of Normandy is coming to and end which is was a huge and complex research task. Completion of this allows Viks to now focus some attention to the Career mode. At the moment, 3D models of several aircraft are at various stages of development - the Hurricane, P-51B, Spitfire Mk.XIV, Bf 109 G-6 Late, Mosquito, Typhoon and C-47. It is the last aircraft from this list, the twin-engine C-47 military transport, that today we are ready to show you in the game world:





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    Patrick

  10. #135
    Dear friends,
    The Autumn is here and our project is very close to another milestone. The next version 4.501 that will be released in a few weeks will contain very important improvements. For instance, after constructive discussions in our community, we have come to decisions on two aspects of the sim which are very important for the players: providing a required visibility level for the airplanes in a dogfight and modeling a pilot reaction to high-G loads. We’re working on both things right now and the result of this work should be released in the aforementioned update. Another addition will be the MSAA x8 graphics setting, but please note that it will put quite a load on your graphics card.
    We have almost finished two neat features for Tank Crew as well: controlling a turret using your joystick or buttons and looking through the visors and view slits with the help of preset cameras. Good news for Bodenplatte owners: the long-awaited campaign for this module will be included in this update as well - its author Alexander =BlackSix= Timoshkov has much to tell you about it:

    In today’s Dev Blog we’d like to tell you more about the new historical campaign ‘Wind of Fury’ that will be released for free for all Bodenplatte owners very soon.
    It is dedicated to the No. 486 (New Zealand) Squadron RAF that flew Tempest Mk.V fighters and will picture the unfolding of the air battle in the skies of North-Western Europe since October 1st, 1944, till January 1st, 1945.


    With the V-1 launch sites in Northern France captured or destroyed and this threat against the England territory eliminated, at the end of September 1944 it was decided to relieve the five existing squadrons of Tempest interceptors from the ADGB (Air Defence of Great Britain) duties and move them to the continent. Unlike Spitfires and Typhoons, Tempests could not carry rockets or bombs at the moment, making them inadequate for a fighter/bomber role, so the 2nd Tactical Air Force had tasked them with patrolling over own territory, intercept attempts against the German Me 262 jets and free hunting for enemy aircraft and road and railway traffic far behind the enemy lines.

    Patrick

  11. #136


    The story of the campaign is based on the Operations Record Books of the 486th for the second half of 1944 and the historical works on the late war RAF and Luftwaffe actions available in English. After doing the research of the ORB, the most interesting missions were selected that were not too long to require the external fuel tanks which are not yet available in our sim yet. In reality, Tempests were flying with additional fuel tanks almost all the time and we’ll add them to the campaign later, but for now, you’ll be able to finish any mission with a default fuel amount.
    There are no B-26 and Typhoon escort missions yet as well - these birds will be available a few months later in the Battle of Normandy Early Access program. We plan to add all the required, but not yet available, objects like B-26, C-47, Typhoon Mk.Ib, Spitfire Mk.XIV, Fw 190 A-6, Bf 109 G-6 Late as well as the British ground vehicles and artillery to the campaign at a later date.


    It may appear counterintuitive, but having detailed reports on the squadron actions for many days and even hours may affect the campaign and its gameplay negatively if you use such data as is. During the long life of the IL-2 Sturmovik series, there were many attempts in the community to do just that, dramatize the historical documents or famous pilot memoirs word by word, but they reached only limited success, if not a failure.
    This is caused mostly by the well-known fact that most of the missions were routine and repeating, ‘Groundhog Day’ type ones and enemy encounters did not happen in each one, but also by the peculiarities of the process of recreating real combat operations in a flight sim. Even when you select the most interesting missions with much action going around and that are not too long, you may have a rude awakening finding out that:

    • several subsequent missions happen in the same time of day;
    • direct time of day recreation makes a ground attack mission nearly unplayable during dawn or dusk hours;
    • too few aircraft or vehicles participated in the action so the players will find the mission too dull and empty, even if real pilots back then thought that it was more than enough action for them (or vice versa, too many and the performance reasons come into play).

    Such factors mean that simulated events will differ from reality even if it is possible to recreate them exactly because of the performance, convenience and gameplay reasons. In the practice this means that a takeoff can happen in a different time, there will be less allies, but more enemy encounters or more enemy aircraft in a certain dogfight, etc.

    Patrick

  12. #137


    In general, Wind of Fury campaign will make you familiar with nearly the entire range of the real combat missions flown by Tempest pilots during the second half of 1944, briefly including the Battle of the Bulge, and will end with the Bodenplatte strike on the allied airfields on January 1st, 1945.


    Patrick

  13. #138
    P.S. We would like to thank the community member @Obelix for his 4K skins for the Tempests of 486th squadron which were used to create the images for the campaign and his advice on the additional official Tempest skin with the invasion stripes that was added to the sim.
    We will continue our Dev Blog with another important change that affects the aircraft visibility - update 4.501 will include the atmospheric haze setting. It will be adjustable in Quick Mission Builder for your liking and can be set by an author in other missions. The minimal setting corresponds to the haze level in the current public version while higher values will look like these screenshots. By the way, you can see the progress made on another important thing on them as well




    We’ll finish with a short report on the Normandy development. Here’s our hero of the day - USAAF pilot in early war uniform and without the G-suit that was introduced in the theater later.

    Patrick

  14. #139
    Update 4.501
    Dear friends,
    We just released the new update - 4.501. Its shifted version number means it is a kind of a milestone and it really is. First, the research we did on the community opinion on the aircraft spotting allowed us to make many improvements to this important part of the sim. The distant LOD scaling system has been adjusted, their lighting has been made full, atmospheric haze option and an increased MSAA level have been added. We’re sure that this update will make the online multiplayer experience totally different from how it was before. Now our next target, for the next update, is the improved pilot G tolerance model we do after asking the community taking the account the new reference data provided by the community members.
    Please take in attention: adding Haze option to the mission format makes previously saved .msnbin mission files obsolete. Delete them and save the new version using .Mission files.


    In addition to these very important changes, today’s update brings you the new campaign ‘Wind of Fury’ by Alexander =BlackSix= Timoshkov that is included in the Bodenplatte module. This means that our promises on what Bodenplatte will include are finally fulfilled. Of course, it doesn’t mean we’ll stop improving it, for instance, now we plan to improve the Rhineland Career mode.


    Also, P-39L-1 “Aircrobra” (Battle of Kuban) and Bf 109 G-6 now have 4k quality external texturing created by Martin =ICDP= Catney. The work on bringing all the aircraft in the sim to 4K texturing continues.

    Tank Crew gets the last planned features for its release in this update, making 4.501 a milestone for it as well. The new turret and gun control mode and fixed visor cameras were requested by the community for a long time and they are available now.


    We think that this update will mark an important step for our sim and we hope you’ll enjoy it!
    Main features

    1. The new scenario campaign “Wind of Fury” is now available to all owners of the Bodenplatte project for free;
    2. P-39L-1 “Airacobra” and Bf 109 G-6 fighters now have 4K quality external textures created by Martin = ICDP = Catney;
    3. The long-range LODs scaling system for aircraft has been adjusted. Aircraft spotting at short to medium distances, especially when using wide camera angles, is greatly improved. The visibility at distance has been adjusted to be closer to reality.
    4. Alternate Visibility has been renamed Enhanced Visibility: this mode gives a much greater increase in aircraft visibility at long ranges compared to the new standard visibility. At medium ranges, visibility is also significantly improved compared to the old Alternate Visibility option;
    5. MSAA x8 option has been added, but please note that this level of AA is very demanding to the graphics card performance;
    6. The atmospheric haze density option has been added to the Quick Mission Builder. Its minimum value corresponds to the haze density available earlier;
    7. Dawn/Dusk Fog option has been added to the Quick Mission Builder. This option is available only when the haze density is set to half of the maximum value or more;
    8. The haze density option (from 0.0 to 1.0) is now stored in a mission file. Radiation fog appears at dusk if the value of the haze is more than 0.5 and the weather preset name contains an odd number at the end. The denser haze makes it easier to spot other aircraft against the background of the landscape when the distance from the observer to the target is much less than the distance from the observer to the landscape behind the target. This can be used when designing multiplayer missions for game servers;
    9. Distant levels of detail (LODs) of the aircraft now have the same surface material setting as closer and more detailed LODs, making the lighting of distant aircraft much more realistic and enabling reflections and glints when the relative position of a contact, an observer and the light source(s) is right;
    10. In a multiplayer game, a tooltip has been added to the list of game servers when hovering the mouse cursor over the difficulty preset icon. This tooltip displays all the difficulty settings of this multiplayer server;
    11. This information is also available in the multiplayer server lobby (“About the server” section);

    AI improvements
    12. AI wingmen keep the optimal climb speed when the wing leader is far and higher;
    13. AI aircraft now use combat and emergency engine modes for a fastest possible climb when following the terrain;
    14. AI fighters now more actively attack maneuvering targets at lower speeds;
    Player controllable tanks improvements
    15. New control mode allows aiming a tank gun using a joystick (or buttons);
    16. Aiming the tank guns and machine guns with the mouse is more convenient;
    17. Fixed cameras added to tank visors and other observation devices. Loader viewing devices are, most often, can be used from the gunner’s station. You can cycle the views using LShift + V keys;
    18. The target marking cursor when giving orders as a tank commander is visible at any settings;
    19. The current sight or observation device is indicated;
    20. In multiplayer, a connected player in someone else’s tank will correctly see the messages from the loader and see the ammo information in the HUD;
    21. The time required for repairing the tank systems outside the service areas is doubled;
    22. The projectiles correctly penetrate the armor if they hit certain extremely thin areas of the object’s surface (a rare issue);
    23. Ferdinand: the inverted direction of inclination of the panoramic viewing devices has been fixed;
    24. An SPG AI gunner correctly fires at an invisible target by the order of the SPG commander (using the direction and range);
    25. Fixed the issue where the AI gunner did not follow the commander’s instructions to choose the ammo type in certain situations;
    26. Pz-III-M: the KFF 2 binocular periscope is functional (when using the camera selected by LShift + V);
    27. SU-152 commander can’t use the panoramic sight when unbuttoned;
    Other changes
    28. Fixed an issue with parts of the canopy and cockpit instruments that could not be restored after repair;
    29. Flare gun and sidearm ammo can be replenished in the reload zones just like other ammo;
    30. SdKfZ 251 and similar vehicles and tanks can function as supply vehicles if set this way in the Mission Editor;
    31. The dawn/dusk fog level has been corrected on Moscow, Stalingrad, Prokhorovka, Velikiye Luki, Lapino and Novosokolniki maps, it appears in the lowlands;
    32. Due to the introduction of the atmospheric haze option, the issue of the dawn/dusk fog blinking near the horizon has been minimized;
    33. The difference in the density of atmospheric haze is minimal when using the minimum (40 km) and maximum (150 km) visibility range options;
    34. For a tank crewmember to recover from the loss of consciousness in the event of powder gases poisoning it is required for the air to become noticeably cleaner (now the loss of consciousness will last longer);
    35. Fixed a graphical artifact at the base of the La-5FN headlamp switch;
    36. Fixed the lack of sound when releasing or retracting the landing gear on I-16 and Ju-88;

    1. Added the Spitfire IX invasion paint scheme.


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    Patrick

  15. #140
    Attention All Pilots and Tankers!
    We are excited to announce the newest additions to IL-2 Sturmovik: Great Battles line-up – the Sd.Kfz. 10/5 Flak 38 and GAZ-MM 72-K vehicle mounted anti-aircraft guns!
    These two unique and deadly vehicles are our first Collector Vehicles and they will bring a new type of gameplay to the Great Battles series. Now your airfield or supply column can be protected by actual humans driving or manning these rapid fire and deadly AAA batteries!
    Our awesome partners at DigitalForms, the same team who built our amazing tanks for Tank Crew, are once again lending their considerable modeling talents to the GAZ-MM 72-K and Sd.Kfz. 10/5 Flak 38. When completed this will no doubt be must-haves for your IL-2 collection!
    Pre-Sales of these vehicles are NOW AVAILABLE in the IL-2 Official Webstore . Regular price is $24.99, but pre-orders are available for just $19.99! The GAZ-MM 72-K is tentatively scheduled for release by the end of the year and the Sd.Kfz. 10/5 Flak 38 by Q2 2021.
    GAZ-MM 72-K (25mm) Vehicle Mounted Anti-Aircraft Gun



    The GAZ-MM was a double-axle 1.5-ton truck used for both general purpose and specialized purposes by the Soviet Union during WWII. It was a licensed copy of the American built Ford-AA truck, albeit a simpler version with a more powerful motor than the original GAZ-AA truck. At the outbreak of WWII the Soviet Union had over 150,000 vehicles in use and by the end of it’s production run there were nearly 1 million vehicles built. During the war, several different versions of the GAZ-MM appeared, some with no doors, bumpers and some with no front brakes and only one headlight. These changes were made to keep production costs and time as simple as possible. It was a rugged truck and served the Soviet Union well during the war.
    The Soviet 25mm automatic air-defense gun M1940 or 72-K as it was known was designed for protecting infantry units from air attack. It was normally mounted on a four-wheeled carriage that could be towed by a truck or other vehicle. It had a slant range of up to 2.4km and could hit aerial targets up to 2km in altitude. The gun could also be used against ground targets and light vehicles if necessary. It was manned by a six-person crew and was an automatic weapon with rounds loaded from the top via a feeding mechanism. The 72-K saw extensive use by the Soviet Union’s armed forces for many years only being finally phased out in the 1960s.
    When loaded into the bed of a GAZ-MM truck it becomes a mobile AAA battery allowing you to protect an armored column, supply convoy, infantry unit or a stationary target like an airbase with accurate and deadly fire.
    Our GAZ-MM 72-K can be used in both single-player and multiplayer scenarios and it will include several custom-made missions to demonstrate its ability at knocking down enemy planes!
    Sd.Kfz. 10/5 Flak 38 (20mm) Vehicle Mounted Anti-Aircraft Gun

    *Development pictures not yet available.
    The Sd.Kfz. 10 or Sonderkraftfahrzeug (special motorized vehicle) was a German half-track that saw action throughout World War II and on all fronts in Europe and North Africa. Its main role was as a prime mover for small towed guns or liquid agents and it could also carry eight troops. Different models could be specialized for a wide range of duties.
    It was powered by a Maybach 6-cylinder water-cooled gasoline engine. It had a semi-automatic Maybach Variorex-transmission with seven forward and three reverse gears. It could attain 65 km/h (40 mph), while the cruising speed was 45 km/h (28 mph). Steering was performed by both the front wheels and caterpillar threads. Shallow turns were done using the front wheels and sharper turns were done using the treads with one braking like a tank would.
    Sd.Kfz. 10 /5 carried the Flak 38 anti-aircraft gun in its rear bed and fired a 20mm projectile. The Flak 38 was an improvement over the older Flak 30 design and it had a rate of fire of 220 rounds per minute and weighed 420 Kilograms. Its use was ubiquitous throughout the war in all German theaters of operation and was the most produced artillery piece of the war by the Germans. Later designs mounted four Flak 38 cannons together for an added punch. The Flak 38 could also be towed by trucks or other vehicles when not mounted on Sd.Kfz. 10 half-tracks. In the right hands this gun was deadly to low flying Allied fighters.
    Our Sd.Kfz. 10 /5 Flak 38 can be used in both single-player and multiplayer scenarios and it will include several custom-made missions to showcase its ability to protect its airspace!
    We hope you will like these new vehicles!
    The Sturmovik Team

    Patrick

  16. #141
    262

    Dear friends,

    Today we'll continue to show you the progress of the aircraft currently in development. The hero of the day is two-seater this time, twin-engine fighter/bomber De Havilland Mosquito F.B.Mk.VI Series II we're making for Battle of Normandy. This famous and popular WWII British RAF plane had an unusual and distinct look (well, the same can be said about most British aircraft). But it's interesting not only because of its appearance - it reached high speeds in its class despite being partly wooden. Moreover, it kept its high-speed capability even when carrying bombs thanks to the internal bomb bay.

    2000 pounds of bombs, four 20mm guns and four 7.69mm MGs the Mosquito carried made him a dangerous adversary for the enemy. In our sim, there will be additional weapon modifications available - eight RP-3 unguided rockets and 57mm anti-tank gun (!). Here are the first 3D renders of this bird of prey at its current development stage:






    The recently announced player controllable mobile AA guns are also showing good progress. Along with the work on their visual models, we're improving the realistic physics model of the wheeled ground vehicles movement even more. And don't forget about their crews as well:






    Patrick

  17. #142
    Dear Friends,

    It's the middle of Autumn already and the work on the project progresses well. For instance, the AI-controlled transport plane C-47A Skytrain (Dakota) for Battle of Normandy is almost ready and you'll get it in the next update. This WWII veteran served in air forces and civilian air fleets of many countries for several decades - one of the iconic symbols of the piston era of aviation. These aircraft played a tremendous role in the Battle of Normandy, dropping paratroopers, supplies and towing assault gliders. This legend will be finally reconstructed in our project, even if it is an AI only aircraft for now. Later on, when we complete another stage of the Career mode improvements, it will be used in this mode for transporting cargo loads, airdropping paratroopers and parachute supply containers for the troops on the front-lines. At the moment the new paratrooper model and its integration in the Career mode are not yet ready for Early Access, so this aircraft will be available in QMB and community-created custom missions as an ally or enemy loaded with cargo or parachute supply containers.




    Patrick

  18. #143
    The second hero of the day is the upcoming Collector Plane - the British Hawker Hurricane Mk.II fighter. This legendary early war aircraft saw much action in the Battle of Britain and later on the Eastern Front with the Red Army Air Force via the lend-lease program. This fighter actively participated in the Battle of Moscow and Battle of Stalingrad and the owners of this Collector Plane will be able to use it in the Battle of Moscow and Battle of Stalingrad careers in the coming update. There were many different modifications of this plane, the most interesting ones will be available in our sim:

    • Hurricane Mk.IIa - default model with eight Browning .303 MGs;
    • Hurricane Mk.IIb - modification with twelve (!) Browning .303 MGs;
    • Hurricane Mk.IIc - modification with four 20mm Hispano Mk.II guns;
    • Hurricane Mk.IId - two assault modifications with two Browning .303 MGs and two 40mm Vickers S Class guns, with or without additional armor plates;
    • Hurricane Mk.II Soviet - modification armed with Soviet bombs, unguided rockets, two 12.7mm UBK MGs and two 20mm ShVAK cannons;
    • In addition, either of the modifications listed above can be equipped with a Merlin engine with an additional boost, air cleaner for dusty conditions and rear-view mirror.






    Patrick

  19. #144
    The work on Tank Crew is continuing as well. The coming update will include very important changes for ground vehicle AI, both detailed and simpler modeled vehicles, making the AI gunner actions more realistic. To hit a target at a distance, they will usually bracket a target with gunfire as they find the proper range. Spotting a target to the side of the current aiming line will require more time the more distant it is. Both of these actions will depend on the AI proficiency level set in the mission. The AI gunner will also behave more naturally when the target is destroyed or no longer visible - it won't rotate the turret to the default position immediately, but will wait for some time, looking for more targets in the same general direction. Many smaller improvements and changes will be added as well, as we prepare Tank Crew for its official release.


    Patrick

  20. #145
    On this chilly Autumn day, we’re releasing a large update to IL-2 Sturmovik - update 4.502 is here! The star of this update is the new Hurricane Mk.II Collector Plane. This plane has the most modifications in our sim and with a wide range of weapon loadouts available this makes it 5 aircraft in 1. You get several variants including the IIa, IIb, IIc, IId and the one with the Soviet armament. The famous Dust Filter and Merlin XX engine with +14lb boost are also available. On top of all that, you can use the new bird in the Career mode right away - we added it to the Battle of Moscow and the Battle of Stalingrad careers. In addition to the Hurricane we have added the legendary С-47А "Skytrain" transport plane for the Battle of Normandy. The C-47 is AI only, but adds a new dimension to our missions and variety of Allied aircraft you will encounter in the sky. It is also great for mission makers who want to make supply runs an integral part of their battle. And finally, Battle of Moscow players receive new 4K quality skins for the Bf-110 E-2 thanks to our talented friend Martin =ICDP= Catney.






    Patrick

  21. #146
    On the technical front we have added a new and more realistic G-load physiology modeling system. This work was described in great detail in our Developer Diary #263. Additionally, a lot of work was done on all the aspects of the ground battles, significantly improving the quality and realism of Tank Crew engagements. There are many improvements to the pilot AI as well in this update. And finally, long-awaited Career mode improvements are finally starting to arrive.






    Patrick

  22. #147
    Main Features
    1. The Hurricane Mk.II Collector Plane is now available to its owners;
    2. The C-47A transport aircraft is now available in the sim as an AI enemy or ally in the Quick Mission mode. It can also be used in the custom missions as an AI transport aircraft;
    3. Female crews got female voices in the radio messages;
    4. Pilot physiology modeling has been improved significantly. This is described in detail in the Developers Diary #263;
    5. The zoom function now works correctly on VR devices with canted displays (Pimax) without using the performance-intensive Parallel Projection mode;
    6. New multiplayer scenarios, including Cooperative ones, are added for Tank Crew (you can create a server directly from the game by selecting a scenario or scenarios from the Multiplayer\Cooperative\TankCrew or Multiplayer\Dogfight\TankCrew folders);
    7. 4K external textures for Bf 110E heavy fighter (Battle of Moscow) are added thanks to Martin =ICDP= Catney;
    8. A-20 and B-25 bombers got new paint schemes with invasion stripes for different timeframes;


    Tank Crew Improvements
    9. Several missions of the Soviet tank campaign "Breaking point" were improved;
    10. Both tank campaigns are now available in Simplified Chinese, German and French;
    11. KV-1s got an additional paint scheme;
    12. It is now possible to use binoculars or personal weapons after pressing the "T" button (except for the M4A2 tank, where binoculars and personal weapons cannot be used simultaneously with a machine gun);
    13. It is now possible to designate a waypoint on the ground in a command mode while using binoculars;
    14. The enemy spawn point in Tank duel quick mission is correctly randomized after the destruction of a previous one if the player did not leave its spawn point;
    15. It is now possible to designate a target in a command mode while using binoculars;
    16. Fixed the issue that prevented the tank commander from using binoculars or personal weapons after pressing the "T" key if he does not have a machine gun to operate;
    17. Trying to fire the M4A2 machine gun while using binoculars or personal weapons won’t work;
    18. AI gunners use bracketing the target with fire when engaging the ground targets both for the range and (if the target is moving or there is a wind) the azimuth error. The size of the initial aiming error depends on the AI level, distance, target speed and wind;
    19. Ground AI gunners now have a certain delay in detecting and starting aiming at a new target depending on the AI level, distance and density of the group of enemy targets;
    20. Ground AI vehicles return the turret and/or gun to the traveling position only after a considerable time after the destruction or disappearance of the last enemy target from the field of view;
    21. Fixed an issue where detailed AI tanks (and especially self-propelled guns) could not hit the target at minimum distances (they were firing above the target);
    22. SU-152 will correctly stop for a shot and won’t drive towards the target without firing;
    23. The extra (maximum) AI level parameter has been removed from the Quick Mission, it caused errors in the AI functioning;
    24. Fixed a bug due to which the AI controlled tanks did not attack obviously visible targets in some rare circumstances;
    25. A bug has been fixed due to which there was no difference between aircraft or ground vehicle gunners with different AI levels;
    26. The enemies and allies have correct marker colors in tank Coop missions;
    27. Detailed damage buildings on Prokhorovka map are correctly displayed at far distances (the inner side of the walls was invisible far away);


    Airplanes physics, systems and damage model improvements
    28. 13mm German and 12.7mm Italian machine guns are no longer loaded with HE ammo only due to a bug;
    29. USAAF pilots wear G-suits only when piloting P-47D-22, P-51D-15 and P-38J-25 in September 1944 or later;
    30. A circular limit of the movable aiming mark of the Mk IID and K-14A gyro reticles has been implemented. The mark also bounces and stops at the working range boundary when the gyro mirror reaches its stop;
    31. The characteristic whistle of P-51 machine guns ports during active maneuvering that disappeared before due to an error is back now;
    32. P-51 and P-38 fighters won’t be pulled into a dive when their tail section is damaged;
    33. Ju-52 / 3m g4e cargo containers drop animation has been corrected;
    34. The mixture control of al aircraft with M-105 PF engine became standard (similar to Yak-7/9);
    35. According to the historical data found, Ju-87D ammo counters are disabled when the BK 37 outboard guns are fitted;
    36. Fixed an issue due to which hit effects weren’t visible on certain parts of the P-51 fuselage;
    37. Bf 109F-2 cockpit canopy correctly jettisons;
    38. All Fw 190 aircraft are less stable after rudder loss;
    39. Tail combat damage causes less shaking;
    40. Closed landing gear doors on P-51D-15 won’t be torn off at high speeds;
    41. The top gunner of the He-111H-6 and the bottom gunner of the A-20B won’t always hold their machine guns and its hatches won’t be always open;
    42. The turret hatch on certain aircraft turrets won’t start to close before the machine gun is returned to the stowed position;
    43. U-2VS shooter's leg won’t clip through the fuselage;
    44. Incorrect (missing) armor value of the armored glass visor and headrest has been fixed for La-5FN;
    45. TIncorrect (missing) armor value of the armored headrest has been fixed for P-38J;


    Visual aircraft improvements
    46. Yak-9 s. 2, Yak-9T s.2, Fw 190 D-9, P-47D-22, P-38J-25, P-51D-15: jettisoned cockpit canopy has all the details;
    47. Fixes for Bf 109 G-6 4K textures from Martin = ICDP = Catney (Barkhorn and Hartman planes);
    48. The A-20B tail lamp no longer visibly detaches from the aircraft at a significant distance from the observer;
    49. Fixed an issue where some of the glass fragments could be visible next to torn P-51D elements;
    50. When moving the camera away from Yak-9 aircraft its effects won’t disappear;
    51. In the upper MG turret of He 111 H-6 bomber some elements won’t visually jitter;
    52. Damaged Pe-2 series 35 cockpit windows have a correct color;
    53. Some of the Fokker D.VII airplane debris pieces won’t have extra engines visually attached to them;


    Aircraft AI corrections
    54. An AI issue that could cause a fighter AI to be unable to engage a slowly moving target flying in a circle has been fixed;
    55. An AI issue that could cause excessive error in aiming the forward firing armament at ground and air targets (especially in a frontal aerial attack) has been eliminated;
    56. Heavy aircraft will use the differential brakes after landing correctly to turn to a taxiway, preventing unintentional turns;
    57. An AI issue that could make the bombers unable to start a bombing run after a failed first bombing run has been fixed;
    58. U-2VS AI pilot can fire unguided rockets at the ground targets;
    59. AI pilots attacking a ground target from a high altitude will reduce the altitude in a downward spiral first;
    60. AI pilots now try to reduce the G-load they experience in order to prevent loss of consciousness if their condition is deteriorated due to fatigue or other factors;


    Career mode improvements
    61. An AI in Career mode won’t stuck at the first route waypoint after takeoff if its assigned target is very near (less than 5500 meters);
    62. A random issue that could cause the bombers to stuck in a circle above the target area after dropping their bombs has been fixed;
    63. Several typos in the Battle of the Rhine cutscenes were corrected;
    64. Hurricane Mk.II fighters have been added to the Battle of Moscow Career mode, they are available in 5 squadrons: 1st GIAP (former 29th IAP), 67th IAP PVO, 157th IAP, 287th IAP, 736th IAP PVO;
    65. Hurricane Mk.II fighters have been added to the Battle of Stalingrad Career mode, they are available in 2 squadrons: 651st IAP PVO and 629th IAP PVO;
    66. There are now 13 additional subphases in the Rheinland Career frontline (18 different frontline positions according to the current career date in total);
    67. Three American squadrons were added to the Rheinland Career, one of them is available for the player to join - 412th Fighter Squadron, 373rd FG (P-47s) and two are AI squadrons 410th Fighter Squadron, 373rd FG and 411th Fighter Squadron, 373rd FG;
    68. 18 new target locations added for the following mission types in Rheinland Career: Ground troops cover, Enemy Troops Concentration Attack, Enemy Troops Concentration Bombing Strike, Railway Junction Attack and Railway Junction Bombing Strike.


    Patrick

  23. #148
    Dear Friends,

    We know that the Battle of Normandy pre-order customers are eagerly waiting for its planes to arrive. It's understandable, but in spite of our team keeping the development rate at a very high level, creating an aircraft with the fidelity worthy of our simulation from scratch is very time consuming and labor intensive. The main bulk of the Normandy planes list will arrive next year. However, some of the planes that are based on the previous ones will arrive sooner.

    We have already released the P-47D-22 'Razorback' and as soon as next week another one will arrive - the German Bf 109 G-6 Late fighter with an enlarged tail and additional modifications which are characteristic for the year 1944. This includes the MW-50 water-methanol injection system and an improved cockpit canopy - the 'Erla Haube'. Being part of the 109 family, this fighter also has very good flying characteristics and powerful weaponry. The MW-50 allows increasing the power near the deck from 1480 to 1800 HP, increasing the maximum speed from 528 to 573 km/h. Of course, the engine power increase also improves the turn radius and climb rate which are invaluable in a dogfight. This late G-6 variant could also carry the WGR.21 heavy unguided rockets in jettisonable underwing launchers.





    Patrick

  24. #149

  25. #150
    267
    Hello everybody,
    Many of you ask us how is the development of the recently announced mobile AAA is going. The physical model of a wheeled vehicle is nearly complete while the visual model of the Soviet GAZ-MM with 72-K AA gun being developed by our partners at Digital Forms has made good progress. You can see the attention to detail on these screenshots, it’s really a labor of love:



    You may wonder how fast the German half-track chassis can be developed since it is partly wheeled and partly tracked, but in our engine, the player controllable vehicles have a sophisticated module structure where a combination of various propulsion types is possible. We plan to start the implementation of the German AAA half truck soon. On the other hand, the AA gunsights are a new thing, but we hope to make them as functional as Tank Crew artillery sights.
    Meanwhile, we’re working on updating all the existing aircraft in the sim with the new visual models of the crew. All the fighters were given the new pilot models where it was possible to do in a universal way previously, and now we’re adding the new models to the planes where unique adjustments are required. In the coming update, you’ll get the new pilot model for P-39L-1. More detailed pilot appearance aside, this also means that an American or British pilot will be displayed if a P-39 is set to one of the countries in the mission file. Also, our friend Martin =ICDP= Catney have created an additional RAF skin for this airplane.

    Patrick

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