Flying at 100% power puts you pretty close to redlining the temperature. Fly at a lower throttle setting (and adjust prop pitch if possible) to keep the engine "cool". Open radiators as needed when cruising, just understand that opening the radiator costs you speed because it causes more drag.
When you are getting close to combat, things change. You probably need to close up the radiator to be faster, throttle goes forward to gain speed, and prop pitch needs to be adjusted as you climb, dive and change altitudes and throttle settings.
Read some documentation on super charger settings and when to kick them in for the specific aircraft (if so equipped). Kicking in super chargers at too low of an altitude will COST you power. Fly without it at high altitudes and it will cost you power.
To help matters a bit, try flying the 109 for a while because it adjusts prop pitch automatically (or you can turn that off and do it manually).
Get close to save ammo. Hit specific spots on planes, all have their individual weaknesses. When in doubt, hit the engine, cockpit, or wing roots (where they attach to the fuselage). 7.7mm machine guns are not very effective unless you have a bunch of them on your plane (same for anything smaller than .50 cal or 12.7mm). I use them to slow down the enemy plane or chip away at their flight controls and then get in close to use cannons. Of course, one 7.7mm or .303 bullet can take out the enemy pilot....
Use combat flaps to gain maneuverability, but you will lose speed. I am constantly adjusting them in combat, up and down. Remember also that you can go too fast (usually in a dive) and gain enough speed to damage (usually jam) the combat flaps if they are deployed. At that point, you are going to be sloooowwww for the rest of the fight which make you vulnerable.
Practice deflection shooting. Bring your prop pitch down in a dive to gain speed faster. Also, if the plane does not control prop pitch automatically and if you have prop pitch close to 100% in a dive at high speed, it can "over rev" the engine and cause a fast heat build up. This is not as catostrophic in IL-2 as it should be.
Trim. Learn how to use it. If you are having to keep constant back pressure on the stick to stay level, trim the elevators up a bit. If your plane wants to roll, adjust the aileron trim. You can also adjust rubber trim. Note that not all planes have all trim capabilities (109's can only adjust elevator trim and will constantly try to roll left). You know you are trimmed up correctly in level flight if the plane is flying straight and the little "bubble" is centered (it looks like a smiley face on your instrument panel).
It sounds complicated, but it really is not. Learn to cruise efficiently with no combat pressure. There you can learn all the little procedures to make your plane slick and efficient.
Once you get to combat, keep things simple at first. Learn to adjust throttle first. then learn when to lower combat flaps. Then prop pitch, etc., etc.
It's really not that hard but it takes some time to learn. Then when you learn it, there is always something else to learn or a different aircraft to master. Learn to fly first including take off, cruise, and landing (you will forget to drop the gear before landing at least once lol). Then learn combat....lots of reading about the game helps.
Splitter
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