Looking for help with dogfights

C

CaptainCernick

Guest
Hi,

Il-2 has been a long time project for me, and I never got to enjoy it to the fullest. The main reason for this because I never really got the hang of dogfighting. The AI always finds a way to beat me. As I would really like to fly some offline campaigns, and perhaps sometime try my hand at online dogfighting, I started training myself more thoroughly in the QMB. I chose the P-40 as my first platform because it's supposed to be easy to fly, a stable gunplatform and it's in one of the first campaigns I want to try ('White sun, blue sky' by Chris Blair).
My training plan is to work my way up through my probable Japanese adversaries from the 'Nate' to the 'Zero' in all skill levels (rookie to ace). Right now, after considerable time reading and flying, I am still at square one: fighting rookie Ki-27's. I am no longer dying to seemingly random stalls and spins, but I still seem unable to defeat this inferior opponent in an acceptable time.
This is where you, the more experienced Il-2 dogfighter, come in. I have posted a video of my latest training dogfight on youtube. If you have 10 minutes to spare and would like to help out an Il-2 newbie, I would appreciate it a lot if you watched this and gave me some pointers. I can also mail you the track file if you prefer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkRYhHwRgpM

Thanks,

Jef
 
Hi Jef watching your vid and typing as I go through it, you seem to spend a lot of time flying away from the AI, against a faster opponent that will get you flamed quicker than anything.. Your main goal should be to get on his six i.e. right behind him and close, you missed a great opportunity at 1:25 if you had rolled right and turned hard you could have gotten inside his turn (which was at that point quite gentle) and placed yourself nicely behind him.
High angle deflection shooting like at 1:35 is tough, unless you're a great shot or lucky. Try to save your ammo until you're sure you can't miss i.e. established behind your opponent at close range (If his wingtips appear to touch the sides of the gunsight that's nice and close lol) plus waiting till you're close saves ammo and puts more shots on target = more kills!
Also avoid head-on passes like the plague, they look cool and give you a rush, but any opponent with more than half a brain will shoot as well, at best you will both take damage, at worst he'll flame you, ESPECIALLY ace AI! Just remember, no-one wins in a head-on pass.. But in saying that don't turn away from one if you find yourself in that position, it will give a nice opening for your opponent to get on your tail..

Probably the best advise I can give you is to keep trying, but here are a few thoughts:

-Do not initiate a head-on pass, but don't turn from one if it happens anyway.
-Hold your fire until you are SURE you will hit him.
-Especially while you're learning, the best place to be is behind him, slightly below and close enough that he fills your gunsight, you can't miss!
-To that end here's a tip from formation flying (which is really what you're trying to do until you pull the trigger lol) if you are flying at the same speed, and both turning, if your nose is pointed behind him you are falling behind, if you are pointed AT him you are holding distance, if your nose is pointing in front of him you are gaining! You can use this logic against a faster enemy who is turning to cut the circle and slip in behind for a quick shot.
-If your plane has machine guns and cannon, map them to two buttons on your stick, use the guns to make sure you're hitting him then let rip with the cannon, they have a LOT less ammo but a few well-placed strikes and it's game over!

Hope this helps, and I wish you the best of luck on your next sortie!

BTW What I said about high angle approaches? Use those on bombers. They all have Legolas the Elf as tailgunners, seriously even rookie bombers have uncannily accurate tail gunners, and the Betty has a 20mm cannon back there.. Bad things happen if he gets a bead on you!
 
I would advise you watch your altitude. Being on the deck gives you four directions; straight, left, right and up. If you are on the deck and your enemy is above you, you are likely going to die and quickly. Keep you altitude and in the P-40 that's an issue. The P-40 is not a good high altitude fighter. Indeed, it is at it's best below 15,000 feet, so you already have that limitation.

Head on shots against a fighter are simply a gamble, nothing more. Odds are one in three for wins, losses and draws with head on attacks against fighters. It's best to pick and chose your fights. Chose to fight when you have an advantage, be it altitude, speed or position. If you don't have the advantage then you need to get into a position of advantage before engaging.

With the exception of the P-38, U.S. fighters of WW II were relatively poor climbers, so never get into a climbing fight. U.S. fighters were all good at diving, but there you need that altitude and 3500 feet leaves you on the deck after a short dive. U.S. fighters were pretty poor at turning fights as well, so if you have not scored hits within one whole turn, you are about to lose the fight. Be swift when it comes to turning fights.

Set your 50 calibers to 300m, 30 calibers to 200m, this is pretty close to their real life ranges of maximum effect. Open fire at conversion distance and if you are closer than conversion distance keep in mind that your rounds will be impacting higher due to bullet arc and wing guns will have a wider spread.

Practice deflection shooting. It's hard to get on and stay on someone's six and if you are tangling with a bomber, the tail gunner will slaughter you. High angle deflection shooting allows you to spray the wings and fuselage, a much bigger target than what you get on their six.

Learn the art of the slashing attack. This means starting with an altitude advantage and diving upon your intended target. This gives you a nice view of their cockpit, fuselage and wings. A slashing attack also means you will have a speed advantage on the egress, so you will more easily regain your altitude and have time to turn around, reassess, plan, and reengage.

Don't be hasty. A hasty attack may lead to failure. Make a plan, attack from an advantage, have an exit strategy, live another day.
 
Excellent tips, gentlemen. Thank you. I'll let you know how it goes.
 
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