Quote:
Originally Posted by Flanker1985
Anyway, but it is fun. I have uploaded that mission so everyone can have a try and enjoy the sea battle.
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Flew that one for the fun of it. First try I stuck with my wing leader, he was extending, climbing and coming back high, at which point he dived and killed an A6M, a few moments later he had one on his 6, at which point I dived and killed that one. I then had lost him and went for targets of opportunity, found another distracted A6M and shot it down. Had to dive to the deck and run at some point, but wingmen cleared my 6.
Next try I just went up to mix it, turning around and climb immediately after take off, engaged the leading A6M flight, shot one down. Then I had 6 A6M's on me, so I dived to the deck and kept running. At one point four of them turned away, and I turned around to re-engage the remaining two. I had enough separation for a head on, where I damaged one, and having gone below them, they apparently lost track of me for a moment, which allowed me to easily position for another attack, killing the other one. Then going after the damaged one in a bit of a dogfight, got that one too. Headed back to the carriers, found a bit of a fight still going on, got three more kills, all A6M distracted with engaging other planes in my flight.
In the second run, only 2 A6M and 3 B5N survived the attack, and we lost 3. Pretty good result, I'd say. We lost the carrier, though.
Anyway, my defensive tactics were extremely simple, I usually just dove to the deck and ran away. In the initial part where separation was still small, I banked the plane a little alternating left and right as to not make a too easy target, but I didn't really manoeuvre. It's simple, but it works. Had to defensively stall fight once, when I got bounced and figured a dive wouldn't give me enough separation. I ended that stall fight when he had scissored on a course opposite to mine, at which point I dove away to the deck, as usual.
Note, you're in an F4F-3, which only has 4x0.50 cal. The P-40 (E&M) has 50% more firepower, so you'll have to get used to needing a bit more time on target. But ammo is plenty, so you can fire away more freely than in a P-40.