Aces High Bulletin Board
Help and Support Forums => Technical Support => Topic started by: nutsdog on February 28, 2002, 07:01:39 AM
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Hey fellas,
I can honestly say if it were not for this forum i would have quit playing on sunday but i got my first kill the other night and it was very exciting. Thanks for all the help
My question today is Ive been learning in the spit 5 its a fantastic plane, im also very interested in flying the hellcat its probably my all time favorite plane in WW2, any advice on this aircraft?
thanks again
for all the valueable lessons and guides
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nutsdog, u should post this in the "Help & Trainning" forum, not in the "Technical Support" one.
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The Hellcat is a great plane! One of my all-time favourites, just behind the Jug and the Hog.
I think Mathman put a Hellcat page up? Can somebody post a link?
Ok, here is the scoop on the Hellcat. First, it has the 6x .50 cal gun set... a very nice gunset. With this armament package you won't win on quick snapshots very much, it needs a bit more sustained fire than the cannons on the Spit. However the ballistics are very good, the .50's have great tajectory and range along with decent hitting power. You'll have to fly for tracking shots or deflection shots with a bit of time on target. A half second burst at close to convergence will do the trick most times.
The Hellcat in terms of flight performance is a pure E fighter. It has decent accelleration, decent speed, and FANTASTIC diving ability. The Hellcat's accelleration in a dive is right up there with the Jug, and it's better in the early part of the dive where the Kitty's better accelleration can come into play. You WILL get kills in this bird by nailing "faster" planes that try to dive away from you. Combined with the great diving ability, the Hellcat handles well at high speed, although not as well as a P-47. The beauty of the Hellcat is that it can out-turn a lot of the planes in AH, and the ones it can't is has a chance to out-run in a dive. Spits are very dangerous to the Hellcat pilot, and you'll need an advantage to tackle them. The Hellcat is one of the better turning planes in the American part of the plane set, but it can't sustained turn like the Spits of Zero. With some E to burn, it can turn very well using it's great initial turn rate. The Hellcat also handles pretty well in the vertical, with good power and good zooming ability.
Fly the Hellcat like a Jug that can climb and turn a bit better. Basically, you really want an E advantage at the start of the fight if you expect to win in the Hellcat. It can be competitive in a furball, but once you are on the deck and slow, you are in deep trouble. Try to keep the Hellcat over 200 Mph at all times and use E fighting techniques like high and low yoyos, lag pursuit, lag displacement rolls, and that sort of thing.
It's a great plane, I enjoy it a lot. It's what I choose for pure furballs or point defense, although you do need to build up some speed/E before you can fight effectively. Oh, and one more thing, the Hellcat is a HUGE plane. The only thing tougher than a Hellcat is a Jug, so it can take a lot of punishment. This is a great feature when you are learning the plane, because you can often make small mistakes and get hit without being shot down every time. :)
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Guys im sorry i didnt notice i was in the tec forum, please forgive me..
sorry
i thought i was in help...
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Here's the link to Mathman's page, it's good some good stuff on it just click on the "Hellcat" link on the left
Mathman's F6F-5 Page (http://people.we.mediaone.net/alemanymathman/index.htm)
Basically I fly the hellcat according to The Book of Mathman, or at least try to (ie he still kicks my bellybutton all the time ;) ) Like Lephturn said it's a Jug that can turn a bit. Speed is the key in the hellcat if you're going furballing, keep your speed above 225mph, at this speed and up to abour 300mph the Hellcat manuevers very well indeed.
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Well, we fly the kitty as our main ride, and one tactic that works well for us is to get in, hit hard and fast, and get out before the enemy can get on you. Use the awesome dive, and definitely use the turning ability of the F6 while lining up a shot, but beware that you don't lose too much speed or you just become a target (lord knows it's happened to me more than a few times, lol). Mathman's advice is great! Do what he says and just experiment a bit to find your own "style" and soon you will be tearing up the sky! Oh, and one thing that helps ANY plane/player do better... numbers! Get yourself a wingie and you will see what I mean. By the way (opportunist that I am, lol), my squad, VF-27, is currently recruiting if you would be interested in flying the hellcat with people who share your liking of this great bird! Just look under the squadron threads and let us know, hope to see you up!