Beaufighter: why isn't the rear observer position usable?

[Polybius]

The beau has absolutely no rearward visibility. To remedy this there is a rear observer sat in a little bubble at the back of the plane however it is not usable by the player. We can see him sat there in third person but can't swap seats from within the plane to have a look around. Not having any rear view is somewhat crippling and being able to control the observer would go a long way towards making the beau more viable and realistic on closed pit difficulty.

Is there any particular reason why we can't use the seat or is it just an oversight?

[Katkatman]

No weapons on this seat in the original game, then this one is useless...
On the other hand if the DT goes to model the radar on IL2, this seat should be usable (that was radar operator who's seating on this).

[Furio]

Originally Posted by Katkatman

No weapons on this seat in the original game, then this one is useless...
On the other hand if the DT goes to model the radar on IL2, this seat should be usable (that was radar operator who's seating on this).

Rear gun was added only on late model strike “Torbeaus”.

[Flying Pencil]

The primary duty of the rear was to change the ammo drums for the 4 cannons.
Likely did radio operator work as well, navigation, etc.

I do see versions where he had a BB gun with limited arc to shoot with, but that was removed.

[_RAAF_Firestorm]

The Australian contingent of this community would greatly appreciate the modelling and inclusion of the rear observer's seat on the Beau. The blind spot which it currently suffers is not realistic considering the observer would have warned of incoming threats.

I believe that within this sim, the actual tasks of the observer are secondary to that of his providing realistic situational awareness.

This request has been made to TD in the appropriate thread above a long time ago but we haven't heard anything since. We'd like to think it's on the long list of things still pending.

[TinyTim]

Quiet guy, no doubt. A squadron of Bf 109s could be stalking you yet he'd simply keep his mouth shut. I can live with no cockpit switch, just teach him how to use the damn intercom.

[Skoshi Tiger]

[QUOTE=_RAAF_Firestorm;210799]The Australian contingent of this community would greatly appreciate the modelling and inclusion of the rear observer's seat on the Beau. The blind spot which it currently suffers is not realistic considering the observer would have warned of incoming threats.
QUOTE]
+1

Originally Posted by TinyTim

Quiet guy, no doubt. A squadron of Bf 109s could be stalking you yet he'd simply keep his mouth shut. I can live with no cockpit switch, just teach him how to use the damn intercom.

I assumed he had just bailed out at the first sign of a 109!!!!!!

Cheers

[Avimimus]

Originally Posted by _RAAF_Firestorm

The Australian contingent of this community would greatly appreciate the modelling and inclusion of the rear observer's seat on the Beau. The blind spot which it currently suffers is not realistic considering the observer would have warned of incoming threats.

I believe that within this sim, the actual tasks of the observer are secondary to that of his providing realistic situational awareness.

This request has been made to TD in the appropriate thread above a long time ago but we haven't heard anything since. We'd like to think it's on the long list of things still pending.

+1

It isn't about a 0.303 guys, it is about something more important.

I wonder how much of the cockpit can be seen from the bubble? It might be possible to model the view from the bubble without having to model much else.

[Igo kyu]

Originally Posted by Avimimus

It isn't about a 0.303 guys, it is about something more important.

I'd like a 0.303 please.

[_RAAF_Firestorm]

I'm pretty sure that the DAP Bristol Beaufighter Mk21 did not have a .303 in the observer's bubble. Again, I think the gun itself is not the priority here, the improvement to situational awareness is critical.

In essence, The Beau Mk21 is the only AC I know of in this excellent Sim that was released substantially incomplete. I believe that it would be great to finally plug this gap.