First of all let me say as a buff driver I can't wait for 1.04 and the Lancaster and the Ju-88.
Right now buffing has just become stale with only 2 options. Bringing in the Lancaster will let the RAF Boys have their legendary bomber, and the Ju-88 will finally give the LW pilots a way to move larger amounts of mud.
But there still needs to be more variety in buffs. So, without further Ado, some other great WWII Buffs from all countries which would bring in more rides for the buffers, more targets for the fighters, and more planes for historical scenerios.
Buffs listed in alphabetical order, not order of importance.
Boeing B-29C Superfortress (USAAF 1944)
Max speed 357mph, Ceiling 37,000 bomb load 20,000 lbs. Please don't give me the "But the B-29 should be a perk plane" routine, Notice I'm asking for the C Model. Sure I'd love the B as a perk Plane, as the B has 8 .50's in 4 automatic turrets and 2 .50's and a 20mm in the tail. But the C is stripped of all the armaments except the guns in the tail. This gives the buffer the fun option. Does he take the 29, and have as his only option to run if the going gets tough? or take the 17 and blast his way through. (I'd even be willing to take a porked max ceiling on this bird so the fighters had a chance. I've just always wanted to see it matched against the LW planes.)
Consolidated B-24 Liberator (USAAF 1941) Max Speed 290 armed with 10 .50's in turrets that varied on maufacturer (would be a fun thing to choose at the loadout page) and a max bombload of 8000lbs. Basically this is very similar to the 17, no surprise there, but variety is nice, and so is the respect to the airmen who served in this bird which seems to get forgotten in the 17's shadow.
Consolidated B-32 Dominator. (USAAF 1945 PERK PLANE, if the TA-152 enters service, us Buff Pilots want this, or the B-29B
Max Speed 365 Ceiling 35,000 ft 20,000 Armed with 10 .50's this is basically an overgrown liberator with one massive tail instead of the liberator's distinctive twin tails. Sure this is a plane that we'll never see, but something to keep in mind, more of these planes (115) saw action than Ta-152's (67, excluding development aircraft)
DeHavilland 98 Mosquito Mk. VI (RAF 1943)
Max Speed 425mph Ceiling 40,000ft, 4x .303 in the nose 2000lb bomb load. I don't think I need to say anymore about the Mossie. Though there are a few other varients that would be fun, such as the XVIII armed with 4x .303 and a lovely 57mm cannon and 8 60lb rockets
Dornier Do 217E-2 (LW 1940)
Max Speed 320mph Ceiling 24,610ft 1 fixed 15mm mg in nose, 1 13mm mg in dorsal turret, 1 MG 131 in lower turret, 3 7.92mm flexible in nose. 4000kg bombload (8818lbs) The Do-217 is probably best known in the J and N varients as night fighters, while the Do-17 is best known as a bomber. But the Do-217E-2 flown as a bomber which is what it's design originally intended would give the LW pilots a plane to best match 17 in bombload, though they never did match armament and range.
Handley Page Hallifax MK III (RAF 1940)
Max Speed 312, Ceiling 24000ft 2 .303 Vickers in the nose turret, and 4x .303 in dorsal and tail turrets 8000lb bomb load. Sure we don't have the Lancaster yet, but just as the B-24 faithfully served in the B-17's shadow, the Hallifax served in the Lancaster's shadow, but truely an excellent plane in it's own right.
Heinkel He-111H-3 (LW 1939)
Max Speed 258mph Ceiling 25,590ft 5 flexible MG15's plus 20mm cannon in nose turret. Fixed MG 17 in nose, and fixed 20mm cannon in tail (anyone getting a kill with this is a dang fine pilot that's for sure) 2000kg bombload (4410 lb) Sure we don't have the Ju-88 yet, but this would be yet another bomber to recreate the Battle of Brittian with (assuming the fighter boys can get some Hurricane II's to shoot it down with) but it would also be a fun plane if the special add-ons ever got modeled, such as the 2 1,686 lb torpedoes, BV246 Glide Missiles, Fritz X Radio Controlled Glide Bombs
or 1 V-1 Cruise Missile.
Junkers Ju87D (LW 1940
Maximum Speed 242mph, ceiling 24,000ft, Armament in all 2mg 81's in rear turret, optional 2mg 17's, or 37mm Flak cannon, or 2 underwing WB81 Weapon Canisters each housing 6 MG 81 machine guns. 3968lb bombload. I don't think there is any debate necessary, this plane is needed yes it is a sitting duck for most fighters, but due to the shear historical significance of this plane it can not be ommited.
Ilyushin Il-4 (USSR 1937)
Max Speed 255 Ceiling 32,808, 3 12.7mm MG, 1000kg bombload (2205lb). The so called "Flying Tank" for it's legendary armoring, and it's ability to deal with German armor in close support role would fit in perfectly in the AH planeset.
Mitsubishi G4M3 (IJN 1942)
Max Speed 283 Ceiling 30,000, 3 7.7mm MG and 2 20mm cannon in turrets. 1000kg Bombload (2205lbs) While not overly great at any one task (especially at staying alive thanks to poor armoring) The G4M is nonetheless important due to it's historical significance, and can take it's toll on enemy fighters with those cannons.
PZL P.37 LOS (Poland 1938)
Max Speed 273mph, Ceiling 19,685ft, 3 7.7mm MG, 5,688lb bombload. Though it saw little service due to the quickness of the blitzkrieg, it was perhaps the most advanced bomber of it's day. It would be a fun addition, and great to have some Polish steel to add to the mix.
Tupolev TB-3 Type 1936 (USSR 1936)
Top Speed 179mph, Ceiling 25,365, 4 7.62mg, Probably the Brewster Buffalo for us buff pilots the TB-3 is probably more fameous in it's pre 1936 open cockpit version (from the famous footage of Russian paratroopers walking out on the wings and bailing off.) Nonetheless it does have one major attraction, the ability to carry 12,790 pounds of bombs. This could make the TB3 an interesting choice for those 3:00am HQ raids
Tupolev Tu-2 (USSR 1942)
Max Speed 342, Ceiling 31,168, 3 flexable 12.7mm MG, 2 fixed 20 or 23mm cannon. 6,615lb bomb load. Great Medium bomber, relatively dourable, and able to deliver a large bombload.
Tupolov Tu-4 (USSR 1945)
Max speed 357mph, Ceiling 37,000 bomb load 20,000 lbs. For those that say we can't have the B-29, give us the Tu-4
The Tu-4 is a copy of the B-29 made when one made an emegrency landing in Russia, just seeing if you are still awake
Wow, if you made it here I congratulate you. I didn't myself expect to write so much, but it is evident that there is a lot of potential out there for much more variety in bombers. Will the B-17 still be taken most often? probably, but those of us who drive the 17 day after day, would like a little more spice in our lives, and these are the planes to do it. Besides, it adds a bit more spice to the lives of the fighters too, Which way again do you attack a G4M to avoid those cannon? I know this is a long wish list, and I know there even isn't any naval attack planes on it (we need the naval units first) but hopefully we'll get a few more toys for us to play with.
SFRT-Skraut
