air to ground, choice of ac/weapon

[Otso]

What are the basic techniques (in AH) and choice of ac/weapon for air-to-ground fighting? That is, how to 'uncork' the flakpanzer?

[funked]

Get a tank.  

Against a good gunner, it doesn't matter what plane you fly or how you fly it.  The only way you are going to beat a good Ostwind gunner is to overwhelm him with numbers or drop from high altitude.

[Otso]

BTW, Didn't LW have a huge transport for ferrying vehicles around? Picture it: drive a panzer into the transport and just fly it to the enemy. You could have dust strips here and there on the terrain for the transport plane  

[Dowding]

A tiffie dropping from 6k with 2x500 llbs bombs is very hard to hit - takes practise, though.

[Westy]

 Dive on the Ostwind from a high angle, straffe the center of it. That usually knocks out the turret.
 M16 can be straffed by machine gun and cannon fire as well as rocketed.  Panzer will need a bomb or two - or an F4U-1C.

 -Westy

[Graywolf]

I use two basic techniques.

Typhoon.

I tend to start off by dropping 2*1000lbers on the first available from 5-6000 ft at 70-80 degrees of dive angle, takes a bit of practice, but produces a very satisfying result. When out of bombs I use a similarly high engle of approach combined with a barrel roll on the way in, open up with all canno at about 1.3k. Don't spend more than half a second with your guns on target as you're a sitting duck while you do that. Make sure you chop the throttle all the way back as you enter the dives and pull out nice and high, 700+ ydsand egress at full power while jinking and rolling. Repeat as required rearming and refulling as required.

Also make sure you don't have too much fuel. the Typhooon's handling changes quite impressively as it gets lighter.


Panzer

This is the other approach park yourself at the edge of the base and pick off 6 or 7 incommers, then get paranoid looking for M3s and miss an incomming panzer that kills you from 2k =)

Don't bother tryng to shoot while moving, you aren't accurate enough.

[Replicant]

Yep, just about what everyone else said.

M16s/M3 - any aircraft can kill these, just start firing as soon as possible at a range of approximately 2k away or in other words before the Icon range marker pops up at 1.4k.  I find .50s as good as cannons against these vehicles.

Pnzr - any fighter with bombs can pick these off with a 500lb bomb.  Alternatively a hispano equiped plane (Spitfire, F4U-1C, Typhoon) can make easy work of the Pnzr.  Dive at Pnzr from rear or in excess of 45 degrees to avoid Pnzr roof top MG damaging/killing your plane.  Again, start firing from about 2k+ away and by the time you're very close the tank should be dead in one pass.

Flakpnzr.  I tend to attack from directly above, i.e. the vertical attack.  It's very hard for the Flak to defend unless the Flak is stationary whereas it can pick you off easier than a fast 60 degree dive.  Again, on the vertical it's a lot easier to drop your bombs (I usually use 2x1000lbs).  Rockets are also very effective and 4 accurate hits from rockets can kill a Flak easy.  With cannons I fire as soon as it's in the crosshair from the vertical as you're diving pretty quickly.  Other aircraft can disable the Flakcannon but you often need several passes and other aircraft to keep it occupied.

Sorry if I've repeated stuff, easy for me just to write whole lot!

Regards

Nexx

[This message has been edited by Replicant (edited 10-20-2000).]

[Rickenbacker]

I prefer the P-38 for ground attack, mainly because the lack of torque effects makes it easier to line up, and it carries 10 rockets, 2 1000lb bombs and has a cannon.

In theory, the best approach is a 90 degree dive, firing/dropping straight onto the weak top armor of the vehicle. In practice, though, try to get behind the vehicle (if strafing a flakpanzer, have someone make a fake attack, breaking off as soon as he's fired on, while the real attack comes from the opposite direction). Fire before you see the range markers, and break off in time to avoid hitting the ground and/or overshoo the vehicle, giving him an easy kill. Fly away on full throttle and WEP, jinking and twisting until you're out of range. Repeat if necessary.



------------------
        Rickenbacker (Ricken)

                -ISAF-
the Independent Swedish Air Force

[Otso]

Based on a few hours experience, Tiffy with 2*1000lb seems to be very effective. I started the dives from 6-7 k with closed throttle and made the drop from close to 90 deg dive below 1k distance. Haul back on the stick and hit full throttle - the Tiffy takes the pull out well (very effective elevator at that speed and tough construction). Scored two kills in a row (osties) without being hit myself. In A8 and chog I just got killed. Ok, I tried Tiffy last (my aiming getting better  ) and maybe I timed my attacks better but those 1000lb'ers seemed to do the trick.

[Replicant]

Yep, the Typhoon is good but the F4U-1C has the advantage on having rockets which can kill a Pnzr/flak if they all hit and also nearly double the ammo the Typhoon has.  Again, the vertical dive whilst firing your cannon can often either kill the Flak, disable the Flak or heavily weaken it.  Against Pnzrs it just turns it into mincemeat.

Nexx

BTW Best Anti-Flak/Pnzr is a Pnzr!

[Ghosth]

Speaking from the Ostwind's viewpoint here.

A high tiffy with bombs is #1 to be feared.

B High F4u #2

C level bomber above 2k is #3

D P38 runs a close 4th.

But a panzer with ap rounds is the real osty killer!