Now, let’s go back through the “DO NOT” list and transform all of that bad communication into good communication with a few reasons and examples:
1)He’s mine! Get-Off him!
- Saying something like this is like pleading with people to shoulder shoot past you or steal your hard fought 1 vs 1 kill just as you were about to go to guns on him out of spite.
- There are no reserved enemy, especially if they are un-engaged. It’s not like calling the front seat of your mom’s SUV when you go to get ice cream.
- If you are having a nice 1 vs. 1 and do not want help simply say, “I’m ok I’ve got this Spit, Thanks…save your E/Alt”, when you notice a friendly nearing your area.
2)GV(s) Inbound
-There are 3 types of Ground Vehicles: Anti-Aircraft, Seaborne (LVTs & PTs) and Tanks. They all need to be handled differently as they pose a serious threat to different things in different ways and are likewise vulnerable in different ways. Be specific.
-The Type and number of GVs is not enough, we also need to know where they are relative to a fixed structure or landmark and their approximate range from it.
3)Bomber(s) inbound
-We need to know what type, is it a single or formation(s), what altitude, what heading or from which direction, and their likely target if you can discern it. Killing bombers while they are “in the pipe” may preclude defensive fire which is always nice so establishing their likely target allows friendlies to be there, in position, ready to strike when they are most vulnerable.
-It’s also nice when it is announced when bombers are turning for another run or appear to be RTB’ing empty. Heavy bombers are a threat, empty bombers are not. Also, slow turning bombers are often easier targets and defensive fire is usually poor or non-existent while they are turning.
4)Fighter(s) inbound
-We need to know several things like type(s), altitude and heading or from which direction.
-Do they appear/act heavy and if so, what is their likely target if you can discern it. As a jabo fighter begins a dive they are extremely vulnerable to attack as they are likely not watching their 6. Being informed gives friendlies a chance to race them to the deck and pick them off either while diving or zoom climbing.
-It’s also good to advise if 2 or more bandits appear to be operating in close mutual support (winging) as they represent a greater threat than they might be if they were operating in tactical isolation.
5)I just blew up 8 town buildings!
- Kudos!, but if I were interested in capturing that town, there’s more important information to provide like, “10 buildings left in NW corner of town” or “Town is half up”, if the buildings are spread out. By doing it this way your are acting as a forward observer for other inbound friendly heavy guys saving them the time and effort of pre-strike recon or a status query on VOX which helps with noise pollution over a busy target area.
6)Help Me!
– If you’re in deep doggie poo, you want to vector your saviors to you as precisely and quickly as possible. We need to know where you are relative to the geography or grid co-ords, especially if you are on the deck under radar. We need your altitude, the plane you’re in, how many are chasing you, and the type of the one you consider your biggest immediate threat so we can take him out first.
7)Zeke is burning, don’t shoot!
– Setting a Zeke on fire is not a kill, if someone shoots a flaming Zeke they aren’t trying to take your kill, flaming zekes can fly around forever killing people. The same holds true of any flamer to a lesser degree, they are still a threat. Many a flaming bomber has dropped the last Fighter hanger at a base…
8 )I got one!
- Super! But instead tell us what plane type you got and if there were more than 1 of that type in the area describe his location, ie: down low, up high, along the beachline, North of town, etc. Then and only then can we safely purge him from our SA memory bank which, as you get older, gets smaller. Never assume because people are nearby they know what you were shooting at.
9)I brought 2 1000lbers, & 8 rockets where do you guys want them?
- This isn’t terrible protocol but you are inviting a conversation, likely with multiple people with different answers which is guaranteed to monopolize the channel for too long. It would be better to simply ask a specific question such as, “Does town need ordnance?”, “Is the VH up?”, “Are their GVs on the field?”, etc. Better still, if time isn’t critical just do your own recon then you get to allocate your own targets.
10)Any racial slurs, sexual innuendo, temper tantrums or intoxicated singing, belching and swearing.
– I’m not going to explain why this is poor VOX Protocol, I’ll leave it up to your imagination. But, any non-combat related chat is always bad play. This includes lengthy diatribes about your personal life and chastising others for not doing your bidding.
Ok, now that we have some examples of good VOX protocol and the reasons for it let’s flesh out our lexicon a little more thoroughly.
Here are some suggestions for the best way to succinctly and accurately relate some other commonly occurring critical combat information in various circumstances:
Reporting an inbound fighter:
“P51 inbound to A1 at 10k from the Northwest”
Incidentally this is the exact same thing as saying…
“P51 inbound to A1 at 10k heading Southeast”
Reporting the location of a task group:
“Enemy task group in sector 13,13 keypad 3 heading South”
Reporting a GV inbound:
“Enemy panzer inbound to A1 about 3,000 yards East-Southeast of the big pad”
Reporting Bombers inbound:
“One formation of B17’s inbound to A1 at 13k from the West heading toward town”
Asking for help while dragging:
“I am dragging three bandits in a P51D on the deck along the beachline just North of A1..."
"...the Fw190 is at 1500 yards and closing”
Reporting a raid inbound:
“Pony raid inbound A1 from the East, Twenty plus bandits apparently heavy at 15k 1/2 a sector out”
I hope this helps. Just remember that no information is better than bad information. If you don’t have all the necessary details say nothing so maybe someone who does have the details needed can be heard. A good vox communicator makes his entire team better, a poor vox communicator hurts his team.
Page 2
