A 'Primer' for new LW pilots.
Fw190-D9 -
General Strengths- Very good level speed on the deck (at 375 or so on WEP). Very good roll rate at all speeds. Dives extremely well. Sustained climb is good, if not fantastic. Zoom climb is also good.
General Weaknesses- Very poor sustained turning. Some people have trouble with the guns. I personally set my convergence in the Dora to 375 and I fire all guns at the same time.
Against the Spit IX- The Spitfire has a definate advantage in the flat turning department. Sustained climb rates are similar. The Dora has a definate advantage in diving, zoom climbing, and roll rate.
Attacking the Spitfire- Use your advantages. Do NOT try to turn with the Spitfire. Do NOT let your speed drop below 300mph (true, not indicated). Be patient when you are attacking the Spitfire. If you are co-alt or higher than the Spitfire, you are almost certainly at an E-advantage, so you want to keep that. Avoid hard manuevers, make a pass and then extend in a nice, low-G climb to minimize E-loss. Basically, you will be BnZ'ing the hapless Spitfire. Avoid the HO, if he turns into you just climb above him, if you are lucky he will stall out going for the shot, in which case you have just gotten an easy kill.
Defending against the Spitfire- If you got caught low and slow, you are going to have a tough time. If you see the Spit coming in time, punch WEP and do a shallow dive to get your speed up to at least 300 mph (true). If he dives on you, turn into his attack and try to make him angle his nose down even more by flying under him. If he is coming from your level 6, you will probably have a tough time getting away (assuming he is faster). There is a more detailed explanation in the thread "what to do in this situation" (or something like that), with several good evasives to use if someone is coming up your tail. If the Spit is co-alt with you or lower, he can't attack you even if he wanted to. You decide when and if you are going to fight the Spitfire.
The N1K2- Again, the N1K2 has the advantage in flat turning. The Dora holds the advantages in climb rate, diving speed (although the N1K is faster in a dive than the Spit, so beware), and roll rate.
Attacking the N1K2- In general, you will be using the same tactics against the N1K2 that you will use on the Spitfire. Stay fast, avoid turning. You will not be able to 'saddle up' on a N1K2 or a Spitfire in the Dora, so make the most of your shot opportunities. If anything, the Dora has an even greater advantage in the vertical sphere against the N1K than the Spit, because the N1K will stall out sooner.
Defending against the N1K2- As with the Spitfire, if you got caught low and slow you will have a very tough time of it. See the thread mentioned above for help in that situation, and once you get him to overshoot you should probably take advantage of the Doras good acceleration and top speed and leave quickly .
The La-7- This plane holds almost every advantage in a fight with a Dora. The La-7 is faster, accelerates and climbs better, dives faster, and turns better. The Dora has a marginal edge in roll rate.
Attacking the LA-7- Start with an altitude advantage if it is at all possible. I would advise against turning with the La-7, although the turning advantage the La-7 has is nowhere near as pronounced as the turning advantage the N1K and Spit enjoy. I generally try to keep my speed up and hope for the best. Most new pilots will have a very tough time against the La-7.
Defending against the LA-7- Again, the La-7 holds all the cards. If he has initiated the combat, you have very little hope but to try to run as far as you can while screaming for help.
*NOTE- the above holds true below 10k. If you are above 10k, much of the La-7s advantages in climb rate, acceleration, and top speed over the Dora evaporates. However, all the LA-7 has to do to get away is dive back under 10k, where it is at an advantage.
The P-51- The Dora most of the cards in this fight. The P-51 turns a little better, but the Dora accelerates and climbs better. Diving speed is just about equal, the P51 can hold onto the extra speed longer.
Attacking the P51- You can be just about as aggresive as you want here. You CAN in fact 'saddle up' on a P51 in a Dora. The P51s turning advantage is not all that great at speeds above 250 mph, if the turning fight looks like it will slow down below 250, merely break off, climb up, and initiate the fight again at will.
Defending against the P-51- Again, I am more aggresive defensively against the P-51 than against the other 3 popular planes. Try to force an overshoot, and once you do just hang onto his tail. Go for any snapshots you can get, as the P-51 has a radiator that is fairly vulnerable to battle damage (although not quite as frail as the Doras, in my opinon).
Flying the 109G-10- The G10 is a little bit tougher to get kills in than the Dora. You aren't putting out as much lead, so it is tougher to get snapshot kills on the N1K2's and Spits. I don't really have an opinion on the gondolas. Sometimes I use them and sometimes I don't. I will say that the only plane that the G-10 loses its advantages against when it mounts gondolas is the P-51. The La-7 is still vastly superior (even moreso if the G-10 has gondolas), the Spit and N1K are still merely targets.
Against the Spitfire- Offensively and Defensivly, you want to use the same tactics you used in the Dora. You will have a tougher time killing the Spit with the G-10.
Against the N1K2- Again, use the same tactics you used against the N1K2 in the Dora. Again, you will have a tougher time getting kills.
Against the La-7- The La-7 still holds the cards in this fight. The La-7 out-everythings the G-10. Be very careful when flying near La-7s.
Against the P-51- In my opinion, the G-10 holds the cards in this one. The G-10 isnt quite as fast on the deck as the P-51, but it accelerates, climbs, and turns better. The P-51 can dive away from a G-10, which will compress (so you better have elevator trim mapped to your stick ).
Attacking the P-51- It is best to be very aggresive against the P-51. Saddle up, and if he turns you turn right with him. You may have a tough time staying with him if he dives to above 400 mph, in that case use a "lag" pursuit to stay in the same general orientation, then drop back onto his 6 once he pulls out of the dive.
Defending against the P-51- In most cases, I am very aggresive on defense as well. Try to create an overshoot, then stick onto his tail like glue. If you really must get out of a bad situation, dive to about 400 mph, then start a shallow climb away from the Mustang. You should begin to pull away as the excess speed wears off and the contest comes down to sustained climb rates.
Flying the 190A5- The A5 is quite a bit slower than the Dora and the G-10. It still accelerates quite well, and it turns quite a bit better than the Dora does, but not quite as well as the G-10 does. Sustained climb rates are good, if not phenomenal. Roll rate is excellent at all speeds. The A5 can also dive quite well, but it doesnt hold that extra speed as long as the LW thoroughbreds.
Against the Spitfire- The Spitfire still holds a flat turning advantage (duh ). Also, the A5 doesnt have as large a margin of safety speedwise as the G-10 and Dora have. For that reason, you want to be higher than the Spitfire you attack, so you can zoom back up to safety after you make your firing pass. The Spitfire has an edge in sustained climbing, but the A5 can dive and zoom better.
Attacking the Spitfire- Start with an altitude advantage. Stay fast. In general, you are going to be using the same tactics you used before, but the A5s extra firepower means you can get more kills with your snapshots.
Defending against the Spitfire- If you get caught low and slow, you are in serious trouble. If you see him coming in time, just punch WEP and dive, and you can outdistance him.
Against the N1K2- In general, the N1K holds the advantage in a fight. It is only a couple miles per hour slower, it turns and climbs better, and accelerates faster.
Attacking the N1K2- Use the same tactics you used against the Spitfire, but be even more careful not to get sucked into a turning fight.
Defending against the N1K2- In general, don't. If you are put on the defensive and you can get away, just run. You will eventually outdistance the N1K2. If a N1K2 dives on you, you have pretty much had it.
Against the La-7- The La-7 still holds all the cards. Use BnZ to attack, but don't make to many passes or you will eventually reach the stage where your target has more E than you do. On defense you are pretty much dead against the La-7.
Against the P-51- The P-51 is quite a bit faster on the deck. The A5 turns better (at least I think it does, there are others that disagree with me), accelerates better (at least to its top speed), and has much more firepower. Climb rates are roughly equal, with the A5 perhaps having a slight edge. Diving acceleration and speed are roughly equal, with the P-51 holding onto the extra speed much longer.
Attacking the P-51- Be aggresive! Saddle up and take every shot you can, the P-51 can't take much punishment from 20mm cannon.
Defending against the P-51- If the P51 tries to BnZ you, you will have a difficult time. Turn into his attacks and try to force a HO, otherwise you will be killed eventually. If he tries to saddle up, create an overshoot and kick his bellybutton .
