WW1 FSO Dogfight Scenario

[AKKuya]

The WW1 arenas are open now.  Will there be a FSO event just strictly for a FSO Dogfight setup?   

[Saxman]

I think it was floated when the WWI arenas were announced, but I don't think the response was overwhelmingly enthusiastic.

[ghostdancer]

Not sure how to structure an FSO event for WWI.

Basically all you have is sweep and engagement missions. No bomber escort, no defense of ground forces, bases, etc. No way to simulate Fighters trying to prevent other fighters from scouting, spotting for ground forces, etc.

I would like to try it out but simply don't have an idea yet how to construct any objectives for it that could carry on over multiple frames outside of you force A go to sector B, force B go to sector B and fight (sweep).

Will have to give it thought.

[Spikes]

It'd be cool, might be a better idea for daddog's Combat Challenge thing.

[ghostdancer]

Sort of have an idea of how to do it now.

Basically I would need to assign screen missions and strafing missions.

A screen mission would be a simple go to this area and clear of it enemies. I believe Stoney has done similiar missions with success in several of h is designs.

A strafing mission would be to task a force to strafe some sort of facility. Basically I would ratch down the AA lethality to be survivable for the WW I planes. Then I would ratched down what it took to say destroy all the AA guns and say Fuel Bunkers, Ammo Bunkers, barracks at a field so that WW I have a chance of destroying them with their guns (not the hangars though).

Then a force would be tasked with going to a field / base / facility and gunning down all of the AA or maybe the AA and fuel bunkers or some combination of that. This would simulate the WW I planes being used to hit things behind enemy lines (even though we don't have hand bombs or anything). By doing this I might be able to still be able to construct attack missions and escort missions in addition to pure sweep missions.

Have to give it a bit more thought.

Again maybe something for a snapshot at first or on a night FSO is not running (during the break for a Combat Challenge).

[Saxman]

We need Zepplins.

[ghostdancer]

I would love to have Zepplins and balloons. Hell even give us WW I buffs and only have then enabled in the SEA or AvA. Or give us hand bombs .. that would work to. Fly over a target, stretch out your hand and drop a bomb.

Ah, well will see if something can be done with what we have and if there is interest.

Hmm, also reminds me that would need to create a special Western Front terrain for AH WW I type action.

[daddog]

Oh ya we could do that in time.  Maybe a Snapshot or two first.

We also need a WWI terrain first and finally I would like to see the WWI plane set thicken some before we tried it as an FSO.

[ghostdancer]

I will see about working a WWI version of France into CM Terrain Team's schedule.

[AKKuya]

Sounds good gentlemen.

I was asking on the behalf of some returning ol' time AK's when they found out about the WW1 arena.  They haven't been around for several years and been flying with us for a couple of weeks.

[Squire]

Don't know what we would do with Zeppelins, they played almost no role at all in the daytime air war over the front in WW1. Balloons? yes, of course they were deployed by the 1000s.

I hope they spend the time with WW1 a/c bomber/attack models, like the DH4 and the Roland CII, not Zepps.

[Bino]

Balloons ought to be easy to model: all they do is float, and get pushed around their mooring by the wind.

Observation balloons that spotted for artillery were a very common target for WWI "scouts".  (see also: Willy Coppens)

[ghostdancer]

Yep, I have asked a few questions of the CM Terrain team builders who are into building custom objects if it would be possible to build balloons and make the destructible with the current object editor software. They would be stationary and not move (I would assume ones that HTC could build in the future would be affected by wind and could more, etc.) but I don't see that as a draw back.

[Saxman]

Weren't specialized incendiary rounds used for balloon busting? Or was that just the zepplins?

[ghostdancer]

From what I read Observations balloons were highly flammable and the two men manning them were given parachutes because they tended to go up in flames also.

In addition balloon busting was considered so important they credit pilots with an air to air for killing a balloon just as if they shot down another plane. The attempt to take out enemy observations balloons is credit by some for the whole creation of air superiority where you had planes designed to kill balloons, then planes designed to defend the balloons by killing those attacking the balloons, and so on basically sparking the whole fighter plane evolution (planes to kill attackers and planes to defender the attackers from planes trying to kill them).