Anyone seen a blenhiem bombing guide

[Bobb4]

Anyone seen a blenhiem bombing guide. Looking for one

[Redroach]

look a bit harder. maybe starting with only a few threads down

[Bobb4]

All they talk about is flying the thing. I was hoping for a description on how to use the bombsight, especially from someone who has actually hit a target????

[Blackdog_kt]

I was just testing the Lofte in the He-111 and i got some good results, mostly through following my own theoretical advice from the FAQ thread.

I just took the time to fly around in the cross country mission with some bombs loaded and piece together all the little bits that i've experimented with over time to execute a complete bomb run: climbing to altitude and trimming for hands-off flying, setting the gyros and engaging the course autopilot, flying the aircraft via the autopilot, a straight run to calibrate the sight and set the bomb controls, all those little things that i had done individually in the past but was too lazy up till now to do them in their complete sequence

I did miss my intended aim point by a few hundred meters, but it was mostly due to the difference between sea level and ground level (i didn't know the altitude above sea level of the piece of land i was aiming at, so i used my ASL altitude instead of the AGL which is what's needed).


As for the Blenheim, due to its generally quirky nature i haven't given it a go yet in terms of a full level bombing sortie. I know how to cruise the thing around and can wrestle it into the air, but haven't tried putting everything together just yet.

The bombsight in that one is not fully animated: it was possible in the real one to calculate wind drift, true airspeed, ground speed and so on, then use that data to input the correct altitude and speed values.

In the in-game Blenheim we only get altitude and speed values though, so there's no way to correct for wind yet.

I made a sample bombing mission in the FMB that places the player in a position somewhat back in the formation. This allows the player to either drop on the leaders command, or engage autopilot to have the AI fly the plane, move to the bombardier's seat and see what kind of bombsight settings will result in the targeting reticule giving the correct aim point at the time the AI leader gives the command to drop the bombs.

First thing to make sure in experimentation like this is to create some controlled conditions with as little variables as possible.

Since the Blenheim's bombsight is a bit crude in terms of altitude adjustment (it only adjusts in increments of 1000ft and if we throw in the elevation of ground above sea level things get even more complicated), it's best to go in at a relatively low altitude to minimize the impact of sighting errors.
Another important thing is to set zero wind in the FMB.

If we want to be really accurate, it's good to take a free flight over the target area at tree top level and note down the target's elevation above sea level (ASL), then use it when flying the bombing practice mission.

For example, if the target is 500 feet ASL and since the bombsight only adjust to 1000ft,2000ft,3000ft, etc, i would have to go in at 1500ft,2500ft or 3500ft. However, the IAS/TAS conversion chart in the manual only has "whole" values of thousands of feet, so out best bet is to extrapolate between two values and go in low to minimize the impact of errors.

I would normally advise using the bombsight table software that many of us used with IL2:1946 for IAS/TAS conversions, but many users have reported it doesn't work correctly under windows vista/7.

I think the best solution would be to have a customized IAS/TAS conversion info window as part of the sim's interface. I know such a thing can be done thanks to the scripting capabilities in the sim, i just don't know how to do it

In any case, i don't yet have a tried and tested method for bombing in the Blenheim but i'm going to give it a go sometime today or during the weekend and report back.

The most important bits to keep a note of would be the target's elevation ASL and finding a good cruising altitude for the Blenheim's specified power settings (so that it results in a manageable speed that is close to the listed speeds in the sim's manual IAS/TAS conversion charts).

What i currently have is taking off from one of the airfields near Dover, crossing over to Calais (so it's a short hop) and attacking some parked 110s on an airbase. There's also some flak to spice things up, not too much but it can be nasty if you're unlucky because i've placed some lower caliber automatic guns and the Blenheim's come in at 3000ft or so.

I'm thinking of tweaking my mission somewhat to make it more manageable and then uploading here in case anyone wants to practice.

What i'd need to do is make the wingmen idle a bit to give the player a change to warm up (they do circle the field and wait for you though), find out the target's elevation and create a briefing with the relevant data and finally, lighten the fuel load somewhat because it's more than enough and it just makes the take off run longer (which means a higher chance of blowing an engine).

Don't wait with baited breath, but i'll probably come up with something within a couple of days

[Redroach]

so you answer him about the bombsight, but not me, huh? pfffft!

I've gotten good results (within the blen's possibilities) when following the other guy's advice in the thread I mentioned when coming in at 6000ft and lowering the speed adjustment to 100-110mph when actually going 180-190mph. As I said, it's all in the other thread.

[Vengeanze]

I'd love to bomb stuff but the Blenheim is a too easy target to take online in campaigns. Can't make myself learn how to bomb with it cause my guess is I'd never make it close to the dropzone.
Wish we had a heavy bomber with some more gunpods.

[Blackdog_kt]

Originally Posted by Redroach

so you answer him about the bombsight, but not me, huh? pfffft!

I've gotten good results (within the blen's possibilities) when following the other guy's advice in the thread I mentioned when coming in at 6000ft and lowering the speed adjustment to 100-110mph when actually going 180-190mph. As I said, it's all in the other thread.

Hahaha, sorry mate, it's just that there are so many threads and so little time to answer them all. I sometimes make a mental note to try out something to be able to answer another user, then i forget about it if i start reading something else

Originally Posted by Vengeanze

I'd love to bomb stuff but the Blenheim is a too easy target to take online in campaigns. Can't make myself learn how to bomb with it cause my guess is I'd never make it close to the dropzone.
Wish we had a heavy bomber with some more gunpods.

I think the trick is to come in low and fast, having an escort is always welcome too as for all bombers.

It might be under-protected but it can move at a reasonable clip, also thanks to the way the graphics are (camo paint actually works) it might be hard for patrolling enemy fighters to pick you up against the ground until it's too late.

Cruising speeds as low as 130mph were used for maximum range and fuel economy, but i think such mission profiles would be used in long range missions (like the raid on the Cologne power stations). For the short ranges we have on the current map, loading up just 50% fuel (to lessen the weight and help with the take-off) and cruising at 180mph (+0 to +1.5 boost at full coarse prop pitch) is good enough for coastal targets.

[Phazon]

I might be wrong but the Blenheim bombsight might be bugged in that its not "aligned" properly, which might explain why its so hard to get bombs on-target even when the bombsight is dialled in. One of the devs mentioned it on the sukhoi.ru forum.

[JG53Frankyboy]

as long it is not mentioned in a Patch readme "overworked Blenheim CEM and bombhandling" i fly it as a low level bomber - mostly flying one or two antiship skipbombing attacks on ATAG server before i leave.

Btw, i have removed the tracer rounds from my reargunner.... some kind of surprise for attacking interceptors

[Redroach]

yes, the blen's bombsight IS bugged, even visually.
Still, when having no fighter escort, I found it best to not fly directly towards the target, but in a wide (very wide, all over northern france) arc towards it, in order to avoid being spotted and engaged.
A little self-defense is fine, at least as a deterrent, but more 'gunpods' rarely help on bombers.