How do I beat FM2 with LA5?

[bustr]

Last night I took on an FM2 twice below 3k with my LA5. FM2 looked like bear keg with fins, that climbed and turned like a Zeke. If I slowed enough to drop a notch of flaps to enhance my turn rate, I got my rudder blown off. If I kept speed I over ran, if I came back I got HO.

How the heck do you beat the dern thing or ...don't say it: "bustr why don't you fly one and find out?" What is so darned fascinating about that barrel with wings that seduces you guys? I just discovered how really good the LA5 is and some FM2 driver ruined my fantasy;)

-bustr-

[Animal]

Take advantage of your acceleration.

[Urchin]

Instead of turning horizontally, turn vertically.  Do loops, wait at the top for a shot opportunity or if he follows you up you can wait for him to stall.  Keep your plane at 250 mph or so unless you know for sure that he is slower than you and you are going vertically (in which case you want to get straight up, right above him, and wait for him to stall).

[Kweassa]

Just, fly like a sissy.

 I've been in La-5FNs against "Super Brewsters(FM2s)" a LOT!, in the Fin-Rus setups in the CT.

 Well, for anychance if a FM2 is behind you:

* don't dive away
* don't try to rope it without a MASSIVE E advantage
* don't turn
* don't expect to live

 Unless you have at least, initially more than 600 yards distance, you're probably gonna die. If you have that distance, than ram up the throttle and WEP, and slooooowly jink, and pray that those 800yd .50 shots will not seriously damage your plane.

[sax]

FM2 burns its E in a big hurry if you keep forcing it into reversals.

It's biggest down fall in my opinion is cockpit views , especially rear . Half the time you are blind and dependent on the other guy doing what you think he should be.
Big problem with that is the good sticks never do.

It's not as easy to fly as a lot of people would lead you to believe. Just like any plane it's weaknesses equal it's strenghts.

Anybody flying the FM2 with any success is dependent on the bad guys getting low and slow , avoid that situation and I'm sure you'll bag a few.

[BUG_EAF322]

first see that the super turner loses alot speed

when u are sure u have more speed go in the vertical

think fm 2 only does about 320 mph in level flight and the la 5 does a lot more also u can climb better.


just don't turn when u close


i think the la 5 also better rolls so dive roll and leave in another direction when it's coming on ur 6.

i don't drive la5's so others might have better tips.

I see no problems however when u encounter them with a fine P38 in wich i always go in the vertical, wich makes it a "safe" boom and zoom situation.

[Xjazz]

Hi

When you flying FM2, The Super - Brewster (lol!), you must give alot of left feet and/or left rudder trim to keep ball centered.
 Flying ball off centered ruin your aiming and burn your E in biiig time. Practise this in offline mode by turning all over while checking the ball.


If higher La5 engage (1vs1),  you must keep E up. In merge just blow through and look what Lada does.  La holds the cards... for a while.

Try to push Ladas attacks as steep as possible and/or let fast La attack from  your 3/9 a clcok while tighten your turn. La5 have nasty accelerate stall habbits... Unpatient La pilot get sucked to the turn fight prety soon.

Dont try follow if La disengage and extend. Just combat turn 180 and gain some alt.

If La hold its fire and use a lots of vertical moves, you are in truoble.
 
La5 guns have very very bad ballistic vs 0.50cal lasers. Good La pilot likes to get very close (well inside d300) before open the fire.
You can use this for short HOs with great care.

[lazs2]

at first I thought... You gotta be kidding!

but.. I did fly the La5 in the ct against the (lol) Brewster/fm2.   It was harder to get kills on the FM2 than the other planes but easier to not get killed by em.   The ones that killed me were at a 5k or more alt advantage and didn't egage till I was engaged on the dirt or after I had made a kill... not a fun way to fly the FM2 IMO. but effective.

Don't let em get too high above you in an environment that is not crowded.   An early war plane above you is much more dangerous than a late war one.

lazs

[ra]

An FM2 with an energy advantage is one of the most dangerous planes in the game.

[Widewing]

Originally posted by ra
An FM2 with an energy advantage is one of the most dangerous planes in the game.

This is very true.

However, if you're flying the La-5 and have an E or alt advantage, killing the FM-2 only takes patience. Work the vertical, stay close enough to prevent the Wildcat from regaining E. Grind down his energy until his aspect changes little while turning (IE: a tight, slow turn), and then nail him. Sax hit it on the head, and believe me, he knows.

My regards,

Widewing

[Soda]

Widewing and Sax were right on the nose.  With a patient La5 pilot the FM2 shouldn't be a problem unless the FM2 managed to come in with a wack of E and corner the La5.  The La5 is in a totally different class in terms of acceleration, climb, and speed, than the FM2.  The La5 cannons are enough to knock a FM2 pretty hard too, though I wouldn't count on taking one out in a single pass (too many people bet all their marble on one killing pass...).

btw Sax, no kidding on the rear views... spent some time in an F4F the other day and you really can't see anything behind you, like nothing.  You could hide a bus back there and not know.

-Soda
Aces High Trainer Corps
The Assassins.

[jamusta]

I was said FM2. Bustr you did not keep the pressure on me. When you extended I would either do shallow dives to get me speed up or climb to gain alt depending on what you were doing. If memory serves me correctly you came back at me. I did a gentle turn to the right and as you went below me I rolled onto your 6 doing about 275. Once there the only way to get away is to use your speed advantage and start jinking. Unfortunately my aim has gotten better since I turned tracers off. I think the first encounter you tried to turn a little to much and I caught ya.

[jamusta]

Oh yeah and I dont recall  HOing you. I wont take a chance of 4 .50's against 2 20's. I dont win HO's very often. But if you give me any sort of angle on your front end I will use the rudder to get a shot off.

[bustr]

Jamusta I started finding HO against .50's a loosing thing because they could open up earlier and spray longer than I could. So I was handling my merges poorly. Got shy being HO'd by a F6F earlier on a mission. Otherwise You flew the FM2 very great with me trying to merge with equal states. I learned just how much I depend on having more energy in LA5 and7. Gotta work on that so I don't get a shy state of mind down low. No guts no glory....

I hope I gave you more than a boaring quick kill each time. You scared heck outta me always showing up on my 6 when I thought I had you.  Thats why on the third time out I went for the Mossi that entered the area. I figured he was big enough that I might out turn him. You ratteled me a little.

On the other hand for a moment I did remember Manx whipping my tail, he in a low Mossi, me in a high spitV. Embarassed something auwful.....

-bustr-

[jamusta]

Actually I never faced a La5 in a FM2. It was a good fight. I was expecting you to run away but you always came back. Like I said tho you were extending to far which gave me an opportunity to get my E state up a bit. Partially cus I noticed that when we merged you didnt reverse quickly so neither did I. While you were diving I was climbing. If you were climbing I would do just a shallow dive to get my speed up. When you reversed so did I. I would only reverse if (1) You did or (2) I saw that our e state was equal. We finally ended up on the deck some what slow and close in. That's where the FM2 has the advantage.