(continued)
4. Bombrun
This is why a "bombrun" process is needed. A typical bombrun starts around 8~10 miles before the bomber flies over the target. When your bomber goes into bombrun, you open your bomb bay doors, go to bombardiers position and start the "marking" process.
Since AH2 the nifty E6B function is available, so you can measure your current speed accurately. Watch your speed in the E6B, and when it no longer changes it means you are ready to start calibrating. This is why such a bombrun is required - a certain amount of time is required for the bombers to stabilize speed.
While entering a bombrun it is customary to reduce throttle and travel at a slower speed, because when the bomber is traveling near its top speed, if it loses its speed in the course of maneuvering it will take a lot of time before it recovers.
Stabilizing the speed is much easier when the bomber is travelling at a lower speed, and it is easier to shorten the process of waiting out until the speed stabilizies.
For example, instead of lowering throttle and waiting for it to drop down slowly and naturally, you can set the throttle to idle momentarily, so the speed drops down quickly to around 210~220mph. And then, increase throttle to about 60% of its max rate and "tweak" your speed from there.
If the speed is increasing pull back on the throttle a little bit. If it is falling advance the throttle a little bit. Adjust it bit by bit until the speed remains absolutely constant, with the rate of change less than 1mph per minute. By doing this "tweaking" you can cut down about half of the time required for the speed to stabilize, to start calibration.
A well calibrated sight, in my personal standards, is a sight which allows the bombs to land within 10 yards margin of error(a 5 yard radius circle around the target)
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5. Salvo and Delay
The main strength of large bombers, is that it can spread its bombs out in a large area to maximize the damage. The amount of spread is determined by salvos and delay, which can be set by the dot commands ".salvo xxx" and ".delay xxx"(xxx being the salvo number and delay time respectively).
While it is still possible for people to use multiple releases of bombs with small salvos(for example, dropping the 14x 1000lbs bombs on the Lancaster in a sequence of 4, 4, 4, 2 bombs individually) there are inherent dangers in such bomb drops.
These kind of drops are usually aimed at killing multiple targets at a airbase, which is distanced apart. Because the bombers get lighter everytime bombs are released, its speed during the bomb run increases during the short interval of each bomb drops. The speed can change upto some 3~5 miles during each drop, and this means the accuracy drops each time the bombs are released in a single pass.
This may not be so pronounced when bombing from under 10k, but a small error amplifies to a terrific miss as the bombing altitude gets higher.
Thus, a sensible approach when targets are spaced, is releasing the bombs in "line" which covers the multiple targets. If the targets are spaced too far apart, the first group of targets will be bombed in the initial pass, and the second group will be bombed in during the turn-around and returning pass(which after that you go home).
When bombing a target in the size of the town, a delay setting of 0.6 will cover its full length. Larger targets such as industrial facilities may take 0.7~0.9 delay setting.
When bombing a CV, when the difference between your approach angle and the bearing the CV is travelling is more 45~60 degrees, a delay of 0.4~0.5 is optimum. If the differences are smaller 0.6 is a good setting.
The delay setting may also vary according to what kind of load you are carrying in what bomber. For instance, if you are using a B-26 formation to bomb CVs, the 4x1000lbs settings require absolute precision, which is highly unlikely to happen, esepcially when the CV is in evasive motion.
Thus, I usually carry smaller bombs in larger numbers. But since these bombs are weaker, if the delay setting is too high the disperesed hits may not reach the required damage effect of 8000lbs to kill the CV. So, when using the B-26s for such tasks my delay setting is shorter.
On the contrary, the Lancaster is a more massive, slower, and vulnerable platform, but it carries an impressive 14x1000lbs pounds payload, which in a formation of three bombers, can cover the target area with 42 thousand pounds of pure destruction. So the Lancasters can afford a longer delay setting which covers a wider area - and even small number of hits will be potentially lethal enough to sink the CV.
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6. Final Approach and Release
When the sights are calibrated and ready, you are ready drop. You are free to adjust the bomber's course in the bombardier's position with your stick, when the calibration process is finished and "green".
Some people make the mistake of going back to the pilots seat, or jumping to external view to adjust course - but that is really unnecessary, not to mention that it might throw off your calibration.
When the bombsight is ready and "green", you can move the joystick right of left to adjust course. This simulates "bomber has control" phase. The course adjustments done in the bombardier's position maintain the altitude, and moves the heading of the plane at a slow and steady rate so the speed does not change at all. (even if it changes, it drops down about 1~2 mph, which is quickly recovered after the adjustment - this is why we have throttled the plane down during a bombrun).
When you drop, it is generally good practice to drop a bit short of the target, than exactly on the target itself.
Since it is highly likely that you are dropping large salvos of bombs, even if the inital bombs drop a little bit short the rest of the bombs landing will destroy the target. But if there was a small error while calibrating, and when you miss even a little bit long, then the whole salvo will miss entirely. Better safe than sorry.
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7. Return Flight
Remember - the bomber's best strength is in its altitude. Some people make the mistake of diving the bombers after the bombrun, thinking the faster one gets out of the area the better.
But no matter how fast a bomber dives it will be caught by fighters. Whereas if a bomber stays high, the number of fighters he may face is usually low and isolated - it is a very rare thing to meet organized group of interceptors at high altitudes(unless a really dedicated squadron is at work).
So after bombing, turn around, close doors, push to max throttle - but don't lose your altitude. Stay high. If you don't have enough fuel to maintain full throttle, then it is a better choice to go down to slower cruise settings, rather than diving low, hoping to fly faster.
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Take heed to above 7 steps of bombing, and you'll become a hot-shot buffer in notime - the good breed of true buffers, not the stinkin' divebombing Lanc dweebs.
ps) A little bonus:
When bombing a CV, there are two methods to do so. One is the 'straight' method, and the other is the 'estimated ' method.
In 'straight' method, you first spot a CV, then maneuver your bombers so that it follows the exact course the CV is travelling. It doesn't matter if the bomber is coming from 12oc or 6oc position of the CV, as long as it is straightly aligned.
During the marking process, move the marker over the CV itself, and use the CV for reference point during marking.
And then, when the CV is in the crosshairs - drop your bombs.
Needless to say, this method sucks. It is slow, unsafe, and totally useless if the CV starts evasives.
In the 'estimated' method, you calibrate as you would bomb a ground target - use some point on the water as reference. And then, you drop in front of the CV. For every 10k feet altitude you lead 1 length of the CV.
If the CV starts evasives, concentrate on the 'circle' the CV makes, and drop at a point which you estimate the CV will pass, as it circles around.
This method is much more efficient and successful than the former.
