Kursk VVS Campaign Released!

**Deathwind** · April 4th, 2023, 16:29

True Story

During World War II, the Battle of Kursk was fought between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. One particularly fierce aerial battle occurred between a group of Soviet pilots and a German squadron. The Soviet pilots, flying outdated I-16 fighter planes, were vastly outnumbered and outgunned by the German Messerschmitts.
Despite the odds, the Soviet pilots refused to back down and engaged the enemy in a dogfight. One of the Soviet pilots, named Ivan, managed to shoot down a German plane. However, he was then hit by enemy fire and his own plane was badly damaged.
As his plane began to spiral out of control, Ivan knew that his only chance of survival was to bail out. However, the parachute he was wearing failed to open, and he plummeted towards the ground at terrifying speed.
In a moment of incredible bravery, another Soviet pilot named Sergey decided to risk his own life and follow Ivan towards the ground in his own plane. Sergey managed to fly close enough to Ivan to grab hold of him and pull him onto his own plane, despite the danger of being hit by enemy fire.
Sergey then flew both himself and Ivan back to their base, where Ivan received medical attention for his injuries. Thanks to Sergey's heroism, Ivan survived the battle and went on to become a celebrated Soviet pilot.
The story of the two pilots, and Sergey's incredible bravery in risking his own life to save that of his comrade, is still remembered as one of the most inspiring moments of the Battle of Kursk.

**Deathwind** · April 4th, 2023, 16:38

True Story

During the Battle of Kursk in World War II, the Soviet Union had a group of women pilots who flew small biplanes called the Night Witches. These planes were slow and made of canvas and wood, but their female pilots were known for their bravery and skill.
One night, as the battle raged on, a group of Night Witches flew towards an important German position. They were spotted by anti-aircraft guns which opened fire, but the Night Witches twisted and turned in their tiny planes, dodging and spinning around the enemy fire.
Suddenly, one of the planes was hit and its engine burst into flames. The pilot, Yekaterina Ryabova, was unable to extinguish the fire and was forced to bail out. However, she was determined not to let the Germans capture her and her plane, so she landed in a nearby field, grabbed a shovel from her emergency kit, and started digging a hole in the ground.
As the Germans approached, they saw the flaming biplane and began searching for the pilot. But they could not find her, as she was lying in the hole she had dug, covered with dirt and leaves. Yekaterina stayed hidden until the German soldiers had left, then made her way back to her base on foot.
Her bravery and quick thinking saved her from capture, and she continued flying with the Night Witches for the remainder of the war. She earned the title of Hero of the Soviet Union and was one of the most decorated female pilots of the war.

**Deathwind** · April 4th, 2023, 17:23

True Story

t was the summer of 1968, and the Vietnamese War was at its peak. John Rambo, a highly skilled Green Beret, had been sent on a mission deep into the jungle to gather intelligence on the Vietcong. As he crept through the dense foliage, he suddenly heard the sound of gunfire. The Vietcong Red Star Bikini Team had launched a surprise attack, and Rambo quickly found himself trapped in an ambush.
The Red Star team had surrounded Rambo, and he was desperately fighting off their attacks when he suddenly heard a loud roar. To his surprise, a group of South Vietnamese women, all wearing Tiger Stripe bikinis, emerged from the jungle.
They were the Tiger Stripe Bikini Team, a group of highly trained female soldiers who were known for their deadly accuracy and fierce determination. Rambo watched, amazed, as they launched a counter-attack against the Red Star team.
The battle was intense, and Rambo fought side-by-side with the Tiger Stripe Team, using his military training to take down the enemy. Together, they pushed the Red Star team back, finally vanquishing their attackers.
As the smoke cleared and the last shots rang out, the Tiger Stripe team offered Rambo a hand up. Grateful for their assistance, he accepted, amazed at the courage and bravery of these women.
In the end, Rambo successfully completed his mission, thanks to the help of the South Vietnamese Tiger Stripe Bikini Team. From that day forward, he would always remember them as some of the bravest and most capable soldiers he had ever met.

**Shadow Wolf 07** · April 6th, 2023, 01:18

A new entry has been added to Add-Ons Library, category CFS 2 Campaigns Add-Ons

Description: Kursk, an industrial city in central European USSR, was the site of what was probably the largest tank battle in history. In the summer of 1943, the forces of Nazi Germany attempted to finally crush the Red Army and advance on Moscow to end the war in the East. This is as close to an historical campaign as I could create, using the sources available. All the missions have the player flying as a Soviet pilot and are based on actual engagements, as described in my research sources. Each mission’s Background Briefing gives you an historical description for the mission and its place in the overall battle. Airfields used, unit types, element sizes, and strengths are approximated when not specified, but most often based on historical references.

The campaigns are hybrid, i.e., a combination of linear and dynamic set up. Each time you fly a selected campaign, the missions selected for you will often vary, as well as the mission’s dynamics themselves. Some aircraft are not the exact variant called for in history, but I chose those in the SOH CFS2 Warbirds library that most closely match them. And I attempted to keep the number of downloads to a minimum.

Front lines, cities and contact/engagement area locations are as close as I could find using Google Maps and the CFS2 MB on screen map. The sources for historical data for all of these missions are Wikipedia, Google Maps and “Air War Over Kursk – Turning Point in the East” by Dmitriy B. Khazanov.

This package contains 6 separate campaigns: 1. Kursk northern front. July 5th- 12th – opening phase; 2. Kursk northern front Soviet counterattack – July 12th – August 14th; 3. Kursk southern front July 5th – July 12th – opening phase; 4. Kursk southern front, Soviet counterattack – July 12th - August 23rd; 5. Kursk bomber campaign; 6. Kursk fighter campaign.

To check it out, rate it or add comments, visit Kursk Air War (USSR VVS).zip
The comments you make there will appear in the posts below.

**kdriver** · April 6th, 2023, 01:25

Well done Greg! Thanks very much for all the hard work.

**highpockets** · April 6th, 2023, 09:01

Yekaterina Ryabova. Navigator of a PO-2 , not a pilot.

**scoobyman32** · April 6th, 2023, 12:27

Now I have to explain to the wife why I'm off the grid on Easter Sunday!!

Thanks for this Greg, been following your progress reports and eagerly awaiting this release. The amount of effort that has gone in to this is huge. Can't wait to fire this up!

**Deathwind** · April 6th, 2023, 15:40

Thanks, I couldn't find the area where their having the weenie roast so I had to land at McDonald and hopefully later I'll find it.

**Shadow Wolf 07** · April 6th, 2023, 15:52

Originally Posted by scoobyman32

Now I have to explain to the wife why I'm off the grid on Easter Sunday!!

Thanks for this Greg, been following your progress reports and eagerly awaiting this release. The amount of effort that has gone in to this is huge. Can't wait to fire this up!

My pleasure... If you or anyone else has any problems with downloads, missions etc. please let me know the details ad I will work on a fix right away.

I am going to rest up the rest of this weekend and then get started on my next project... I've got to keep busy...

**skylane** · April 6th, 2023, 22:41

Thanks a lot for this huge effort, Shadow Wulf. I followed your progress, and look forward to flying these missions.

**Deathwind** · April 7th, 2023, 03:11

I'm making panels for mine.

https://ibb.co/71nMgN6

**aussie** · April 7th, 2023, 18:20

Great work Greg!

Appreciate the huge effort required to design a masterpiece like this.

Good Job!

Cheers
Aussie

**Shadow Wolf 07** · April 7th, 2023, 19:04

Originally Posted by aussie

Great work Greg!

Appreciate the huge effort required to design a masterpiece like this.

Good Job!

Cheers
Aussie

Thank you, Aussie and all of you for your kudos. I only hope it lives up to everyone's expectations. All the mission come in some way or another from this book:

**stuart277** · April 8th, 2023, 12:55

Hi Shadow Wolf
Thank you very much for all your time and efforts with this big project.
Great work.

Cheers
Stuart

**Captain Kurt** · April 8th, 2023, 12:58

What a huge effort this is. Many kudos to you sir.

**Roxane-21** · April 9th, 2023, 00:54

Thank you for your hard work!!! It is always great to have more detailed campaigns for EFTO!

**Klein** · April 9th, 2023, 01:13

Many thanks for this giant work!

Cheers
Martin

**scoobyman32** · April 9th, 2023, 04:11

Man, these campaigns are for serious pilots! Some very challenging missions so far, will take time to complete such a huge effort.

The missions so far are excellent SW, well thought out objectives, excellent mission briefs with a good deal of historical info, which is one of the reasons I enjoy your campaigns.

I've had no issues so far, other than insufficient pilot skills. This is just a great effort all around. Should keep me busy for some time!

**Shadow Wolf 07** · April 12th, 2023, 19:10

Scoobyman32, I am very familiar with what you describe as "insufficient pilot skills."

It is great to get your feedback and remember, it's not too late to make changes if a mission or two need adjustments. So far, no negative feedback here or in PMs.

Cheers:
SW07

**scoobyman32** · April 13th, 2023, 12:51

Real life has kept me from getting much further, but these are great missions so far.

Will let you know if I find any issues, but so far the 1st campaign is excellent.

**Shadow Wolf 07** · April 13th, 2023, 23:05

UT pointed out to me that the readme for the campaign is missing links for the P-39K. I will fix that, but for those who have already downloaded:

Plane: OH P-39K Airacobra revisions UT.zip by UncleTgt: http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforum...id=52&id=29484

Skin: Soviet P39 Airacobra Skinpack 2 UT.zip by UncleTgt: http://www.sim-outhouse.com/sohforum...id=62&id=29507

Sorry for any inconveniene...

SW07

**Shadow Wolf 07** · April 24th, 2023, 03:22

Also, on the same document, ignore/delete entry #47:

47. Russian Tanks: CFS exploding objects library. By Archive: javascript/openWindow('download-file?file=rusntank.zip&fileId=30838', 800, 600);void(0)