Ghost and Lusche together- here we go
IL2's are certainly capable of defendng themselves, but not in a conventional sense. You see them upping from capped bases w/o fighter hangars all the time, utilizing the F3 view to time wierd neg-G maneuvers, and maneuver as though they could look through the airframe itself.
The point of the F3 view is to enhance SA, and is generally defendable as you have a gunner looking behind you, thus you should have some kind of multiplier as saying something to the tune of "well, Boris is back there, and he's telling me we have 3 guys blah blah blah". What Boris *couldn't* do was turn the IL2 into Wonder Woman's airplane, allowing the pilot to look straight through it.
Let's be practical here. Everybody knows that even the heaviest of AH a/c are capable of some pretty astounding feats not possible in real life. Snap rolling bostons, and outside looping IL2's are just 2 examples of this.
Certainly, the IL2 isn't a zero or a spitfire, damned far from it. But, if you can look through your airframe and as a result of that, maneuver to gain a snapshot (or even a HO attempt) with 23mm or 37mm fire, you have an advantage, and more importantly an ability that can be abused to more or less delay the inevitable.
The desperation of IL2's being caught by 109's as they were fighting off GV's is just that- it's a desperate situation, IL2 pilots often fought for their lives. With those 23mm's, and the extensive armor protection, I myself would move for a HO shot and DARE that 109 to merge.
As Lusche says, it's the fact that the IL2's are being used as fighters that's a big part of the issue, but it's more a sign of MA play, then abuse of the F3 view.
**Edit**- I will admit, shooting down IL2's isn't exactly hard or rocket science. But they shouldn't be doing what they're doing at all. This isn't a rivet-counting grognard realism stick, this is a legitimate gameplay concern.
