ETO Battle of Britain campaign Mark III

[33lima]

I switch places to the dorsal turret and wait impatiently for the AI pilot to settle down. He starts a climb, but I'm not bothered - staying low hasn't done us much good.



Despite vigorous return fire from the others, the two Blenheims which have been hit have obviously got the chop. It's a miracle that some of the crews have managed to get out, despite being so low.



My AI pilot levels out at a couple of thousand feet, giving me a good view of the action. There's no shortage of potential targets.



The next attack comes from out of sight, below and behind, and clobbers another bomber.



The victorious Hun stays out of my field of fire. All I can do is watch another burning Blenheim slide out of formation.



Only five left out of eight, already!

...to be continued!

[33lima]

Next second, it's my turn! Rounds whack into my aircraft and fragments fly.



My first thought is that it's the Hun under my tail that's got me. But no, I've fallen victim to an attack from low on the port beam, expertly delivered by a Hun I didn't even see coming.



I switch back to the pilot's seat but it's way too late. The Hun's shooting is good and the effect of his fire, catastrophic.



The doomed Blenheim's nose drops and down we go.



Back goes the roof hatch and out I pop, like a cork from a bottle. At least the aircraft isn't spinning - apparently successful bail-outs from spinning Blenheims were rare, as the crew usually went through the airscrews.



To the right, another Messerschmitt is shooting at another Blenheim. There'll be nobody left in a minute!

...to be continued!

[33lima]

The squadron isn't going down without a fight - as I tumble through space, you can see that the Blenheim on the right is striking back with it's solitary wing-mounted forward-firing machine gun.



Above, a burning bomber struggles to keep going, while my own aircraft's severed tailplane whirls past.



The unscathed Blenheim flies past as I continue to tumble earthwards...



...in the wake of my own aircraft, which is now going down vertically. Top left, you can see that someone else has managed to get out.



My 'chute opens just before the Blenheim hits the deck and blows up.



Me110s buzz overhead. I doubt very much if anyone will get away.



Well, I survived again, but needless to say, the trip was rated a complete failure.

At times like this, it's something of a blessing in disguise that CFS3 doesn't give you a detailed post-mission account of the fates of your mission companions!

Next time, if our escort is held up, I'll wait for them, rather than pressing on - it's evidently our only hope!

[Daiwilletti]

Well, I survived again, but needless to say, the trip was rated a complete failure.

At times like this, it's something of a blessing in disguise that CFS3 doesn't give you a detailed post-mission account of the fates of your mission companions!

Next time, if our escort is held up, I'll wait for them, rather than pressing on - it's evidently our only hope!

If your escort gets caught up with enemy a/c, the only sure-fire way to haul them back to top cover is to fly until there are no enemy aircraft visible on the TAC, and hit warp - even if it is only for a second, it will recall your escort to you.

It's interesting how CFS3 seems to go through "themes". By that I mean that all the incoming fighters over your last couple of missions have been Me110s. They must be the worst thing given their unequalled firepower! (for July 1940 anyway).

Hang in there - it may be a while before the SuccessMod entry in your *.cmpstat files turns positive

[33lima]

Thanks for the tip on recalling the escort - it will be a live saver!

[Daiwilletti]

Progress with the campaigns for Pat's BoB is going well. Hopefully the campaigns for fighter and bomber pilots will run a bit better overall. Your posts here are really helping to iron out things

[mongoose]

Palm trees are a bit irritating in the UK! I just have been stripping them out of some of my facilities for the BoB update.

[33lima]

As it seems to be working tolerably well, I decided to take the plunge and have uploaded the modified campaign briefing & debriefing file to the Warbirds Library. Campaigns being the long-drawn-out things they are, there may well be situations I haven't yet come across where the new outcome ('Overview') debriefing doesn't quite match what happened 'in real life'; if reported, these can be refined in a future version: http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforum...0&linkid=26902

[Daiwilletti]

Hi 33Lima, about the ridiculous altitude achieved when warping the Blenheim. This appears to be hard-coded. At least for level_bombers, when you leave warp you are spat out at just over 24,000 feet (7500m?). Not sure about tactical_bombers.

I tried editing the parameters at the bottom of the aircraft xdp file. If only it were that simple! No effect on warp height. The xdp weight parameters have no discernible effect on AI aircraft performance either.

So on to the .cfg file. If you edit weight here, it definitely affects AI aircraft performance. Unfortunately in the aircraft.cfg file, there is only one parameter I can find - "critical altitude" in relation to engines. Here, lowering the value for critical altitude has NO effect on warp altitude of level bombers.

So it seems the bomber's warp altitude is hard-coded and can be put down to another CFS3 quirk.

To get around this, I tend to exit warp 12-15NM before the target, and scrub off as much altitude as I can persuade from the AI wingmen to follow. This is a good way to improve bombing accuracy. At 24,000 feet, no-one seems to be able to hit a ship - hardly surprising given the "hang time" of the bomb and the speed of the ships.

I also tried editing the _mission.xml file. After selecting a campaign mission as a bomber pilot, and going to the runway, I used Alt+tab to go to the desktop, where I have a shortcut to the _mission.xml file, which contains the mission information for the latest campaign mission. I opened the file and edited the altitude of the waypoints, to something lower than the automatically set 24,000 feet.

Then going back into CFS3, the edits had no effect on the warp altitude.

There is only one more thing to test, that is to see if the edits can be made at the previous screen where the campaign mission is being selected, rather than waiting to go to the runway. I have been able to successfully edit the _mission.xml file before. Will report back.

[33lima]

I think that last method is how JJJ65's mission editors for WoFF and WotR are intended to work - modify the mission outside of the sim in between generating it and flying it. Heights are possibly editable under the 'Edit waypoints' button:

https://simhq.com/forum/ubbthreads.p...or#Post4440084

[33lima]

59 Squadron, Newton, evening, 15 July 1940

Determined to attack nearby enemy ground units despite anti-shipping jobs being all that's on offer, I pick one whose route will take us across enemy-held territory.



The front line isn't marked on my own map but the version above shows the enemy are east and south of Peterborough, so that's where I'll be going.



It's as I'm taking off that I notice that a bunch of Heinkels is putting on a nice display of formation flying....and headed our way. Our six escorting Spitfires divert to take them on.



Here come the Heinkels!



In my efforts to keep an eye on them while staying out of their way, I swing hopelessly to the right but still manage to get airborne.



Looking up and rearwards through the roof escape hatch as I climb out, I can see that the airfield defence people have woken up. The Huns haven't bombed yet, so maybe they're just passing through!



Anyway, we all made it off without mishap. For a moment, I thought the mission was going to end right at the start, under a carpet of bombs!

...to be continued!

[33lima]

I begin a turn to the right which will take us away from the action and towards our own unofficial target. The boys begin to slot in behind.



Looking over to my right, I can see that several of the Heinkels are turning back towards our airfield. If we were their target after all, why didn't they bomb on the first pass?



The Spitfires have their measure and one of the bombers goes down steeply, trailing smoke and clearly out of control.



A few seconds later and it's our airfields turn to catch a packet. They seem to be aiming for - or at least, hitting - the few undamaged administrative buildings, rather than the hangars.



No point fretting over all that now. Hopefully the next bombs dropped will be our own, giving the Hun a taste of his own medicine!



...to be continued!

[33lima]

I decide to use Daiwilletti's tip to recall the escort by warping briefly. This gets me a few thousand feet of altitude I don't want, but it also gets me the Spitfires back.



Right - time to get back down onto the deck.



Our escorts follow us down. So far, so good.



This will be Peterborough, then...



...but all I can see is the blue markers of friendly forces, on the ground and in the air.



There must be something I can bomb somewhere down here...but where?



...to be continued!

[33lima]

Our search for something on which to drop our eggs leads us up to, and then over, a friendly airfield. If I didn't know that sim AI friend from foe identification is generally infallible, I'd have thought twice about holding my course.



After a while, I begin to despair of running into ground targets before fuel consumption requires me to turn back. So I decide to resume course for the coast and my original targets, and to divert if I come across enemies on the ground en route. I decide to warp part of the way, which brings me back up to high altitude, reveals we have Bogies to our right rear, and red enemy ground targets below us, at last.



The new arrivals are our old friends, Me110s.



Relying on our colleagues in the Spitfires to sort out these people, I start ordering the enemy ground targets attacked. The nearest one in an airfield, RAF Mildenhall no less, sadly under new ownership.



Having selected the airfield as a target for some of the boys, I look for one of my own, as I spiral down. Meanwhile, the skies are full of mostly-unidentified aircraft



I have the feeling that I had better bomb something while I still have a chance. If you can't fly a mission without warping, this high-altitude default warp is truly a curse!

...to be continued!

[33lima]

There's my target, over on the left...a bridge, I think.



Yes, it's definitely a bridge. If CFS3 needed a new ground object, it's surely something to replace this short, squat four-towered river bridge.



Anyway, this one won't be here much longer. I'll just fly past it, then come around and line it up, via the roadway.



But one of the others gets to it before I do. That's it being blown up, just beyond my raised wingtip.



Nothing else for it - the airfield is a big target so I decide to return to it. No-one else seems to have attacked it yet.



Bomb-bay doors open - here we go!



...to be continued!

[33lima]

As I come in, I respond to intermittent flak by letting fly with my forward-firing MG, in the target's general direction. It won't do much harm, but it does make me feel better.



Perhaps put off by the fact the RAF flag's still flying down there, I'm a little hesitant in starting to drop the bombs.



There they go!



And there goes one of the station's buildings, although I'd have preferred hits on the hangars.



I pull up and away, apparently unscathed. The Huns may be in residence, but it's still a very British scene down there, complete with red GPO telephone booth. All a bit unsettling.



It's definitely in enemy hands, though. I checked. No doubt at all...I hope...



Now, where is everybody? If anybody's left!

...to be continued!

[33lima]

Coming off the target, I drop down to low level again...



...popping up a little as the flak dies away, to get a better look back at the airfield. Which doesn't look much the worse for wear. Nor is anyone else attacking it.



Be that as it may, it's time to go home! Everybody was definitely allocated a target, and they had time to bomb it. I don't want the boys risking life and limb any further just to make strafing attacks, so I call them to order as I race back north.



Now, what's that up ahead? Artillery fire, by the look of it. I decide to steer wide to the right.



That should be wide enough. Rounds are still bursting as I come in.



Something's taking quite a pasting over there - what, I can't tell, but I'm glad I'm up here and it's down there.



What I'm more worried about now is how many of the boys I'll be bringing home, and whether we'll get there without further incident.

...to be continued!

[33lima]

A more measured check of my surroundings indicates we have friendly ground units to our left, so I bank in that direction. Behind, four aircraft are slowly closing up.



Soon, the boys are beginning to close up again.



In all, five of us have got away with it, out of eight. There's no sign of Spitfires or 110s, so I've no idea how that particular party ended up.



Back at base, the mission is regarded as a failure, as we didn't sink any ships. Doing some damage to the enemy on the ground and bringing back most of my force is success enough in my book, however - especially after the disasters we met with, last time out.



My own bombing accuracy was certainly satisfactory...



...and the barracks I hit was hopefully full of invaders, at the time.



The campaign as a whole might be going down the toilet, but if the squadron can keep this up, we'll be able to hold our own heads high...and maybe even survive the war!

[33lima]

59 Squadron, Newton, morning, 16 July 1940

As before, I select a shipping target in the absence of anything else offered, but intending to hit ground targets after we've crossed into enemy-occupied territory...of which, there's rather a lot.



There are showers around as we take off. There's also aircraft around, which I take to be the part of the squadron which has already taken off. Wrongly. As the other aircraft approach, I see they have twin tails. They don't look like Hampdens or Whitleys, so that leaves Dornier 17s...or Messeschmitt 110s.



The relatively good news is that they're Dorniers. The relatively bad news is that they're headed straight for our base.



There's more good news, though, Which is that our Spitfire escort is already getting stuck into the Huns.



As a result, the bombing is a bit erratic. The Dorniers seem to be aiming for our dispersals, around the perimeter track. Most of the bombs are falling into nearby open countryside.



Well, that was an exciting start. But I've no time or need to hang around. I have some bombing of my own to do.

...to be continued!

[33lima]

The Spits are soon making short work of the attackers.



One of them explodes in open country, even as the smoke is beginning to clear from the mostly inaccurate bombing.



To save time and allow my escort to catch up, I put up with warp taking us up to over twenty thousand. Over London, it exits automatically, so I know something is happening.



A check of the situation via the tactical display reveals we have company...



...and it isn't our escorts!



...to be continued!

[33lima]

The Spits are still around, but further away. They turn back after the 109s.



I switch to the turret, just as the first attacks develop from astern. Further back, a bunch of aircraft are mixed up in what looks like a dogfight between attackers and defenders.



The first Blenheim is soon in trouble. The attacker dives hard out of the return fire...



...and escapes.



Meanwhile the damaged bomber falls away vertically, on fire.



The Blenheim at the tail end of the formation is next to go.



This couldn't get much worse!

...to be continued!

[33lima]

By this time we're also drawing flak.



But the good news is that only one of the 109s is still around, and he's wide on our left, as if content to shadow us.



The flak having confirmed that enemies lie below, I decide it's time I did some attacking of my own. Through the intermittent clouds can be seen glimpses of London, with the River Thames meandering across the cityscape.



Right, here we go then!



It's a long way down, but we finally come out below the cloudbase and I check the situation on the ground, looking for vehicles to attack. There are plenty around - friendlies some way off to the right rear, but enemies left, ahead and closer in on the right. This will do! I start ordering in the boys, selecting targets from a tight cluster of vehicles that's just to our right.



This is it!

...to be continued!

[33lima]

I peer out from the cockpit, trying to get a better look at the target as I spiral down, throttled well back. It's just beyond an enemy-occupied airfield.



A quick look through the virtual binoculars reveals that the vehicles in question are inside an impressive factory complex. Of more immediate interest is that it's protected by a battery of 88mm guns! Smoke is rising near some chimneys, indicating that the others have already started attacking.



No point in changing tack now - bomb-bay doors open and in we go!



Bombs away!



Over! I've dropped too late!



How could I miss a target of that size? I seem to have managed it!

...to be continued!

[33lima]

It's some consolation that others have had better luck; fires are blazing at one corner of the factory.



I decide that if I can do nothing else, I'll at least have a go at a bit of flak suppression. A single .303 Browning isn't going to do a whole lot of good...



...but the sight and sound of it firing makes me feel a bit better, despite some pretty fierce and accurate return fire from the flak gunners. I seem to be doing a better job of drawing enemy fire than supressing it!



I come off the target on the deck but without running into anything solid.



That wasn't too bad! I wonder if it's wise to attack an alerted target a third time...



...then decide to do just that.



Here we go again!

...to be continued!

[33lima]

This time, I'm aiming for a group of what looks like storage tanks on the factory perimeter. But for every round I fire at them, it seems I get one back, from the flak.



Finger off trigger, stick smartly back, and over we go!



Now, I just need to avoid the flak...and those odd-looking towers on the other side of the factory complex.



Bang! Suddenly my aircraft is on fire and in pieces, with the fuselage beginning to tumble wildly!



There's no chance to get out, and it all ends in a sad orange-red fireball, next to some trees.



What must be my pilot's ghost lounges by the crates for the last time, to confirmation that we did actually do some damage. Small consolation, but in the end I was lucky to get as far as I did, when so may others had already fallen to the guns of the 109s or 110s.



It's been fun, and eventful thanks to Diawiletti's new campaign spawns. And whoever built the ETO Blenheims did an outstanding job. I miss the company of my observer/bomb aimer and that armour shield doesn't half restrict the air gunner's view, but it's a really outstanding model, inside and out! I'm very glad that RAF bomber campaigns will feature in Diawilletti's campaigns for the upcoming BoB Mod update.