The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by Zenn7 »

$iljanus wrote: Sun Oct 13, 2019 5:19 am I really enjoyed doing this and I need to do the calculations for awarding kills. Unfortunately some non-gaming stuff has cropped up so that's been delayed. Also my copy of V-Commandos came in and I want to try it out.

However, I‘d like to get it back on my table and try a 25 mission run, counting this mission as one of the 25. I'll probably play the campaign that takes place at the height of the air war which will have more variety of targets and we get to fly into Germany. On the other hand that was the deadliest time for Allied bomber crews because Germany refined their fighter tactics and with the deeper penetration into Axis territory we have longer periods without fighter cover. So the chances of survival will be be, umm, interesting...

Long story short, I do hope to start this again!
Great! We'll enjoy our few remaining days of life before you return to this saga and we all die in German airspace. :)
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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Pfft. I'm sipping mai tais. Of course, I'm doing it on a troop ship in the middle of the Atlantic, and Frankie distilled them under his bunk, but still.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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I know I really enjoyed the tale.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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dbt1949 wrote: Sun Oct 13, 2019 9:27 pm I know I really enjoyed the tail.
Get out of there, aren't you supposed to be up front helping fly the plane?
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by $iljanus »

So I had V-Commandos all set up on my table but I kept looking over the campaign and target selections for Target for Today and I just had to get that back on the table because the Hellcat Agnes has some unfinished business. I still need to assign kills from the last mission to gunners which is important because once you get 5 kills the gunner is considered an ace and gets a DRM bonus. Because Blackhawk is busy drinking Victory Punch on his trip back to the states (hmmm, I wonder if I should do a quick play of this solo U-Boat game called The Hunters to see if Blackhawk makes it home alive... :think:), your replacement bombardier is gbasden. Let's give him a nice warm welcome as the newest member of the crew!

In the meantime, I did some quick rolls for setting up the campaign. We're starting in May 1943 so the weather should be ok (or there isn't a neg modifier at least), our bomber box position is low and we're bomber #16. I wonder if there's going to be a DRM for flak targeting us in the low box. There was also a dice roll saying that we were bomber cell leader but the rule book said that if we had flown fewer than 5 mission we should roll again which made sense. I kept the last result for the first mission because I just wanted to play it out but I think if I'm doing a full campaign I'll stick to the rule this time around.

I'll have the kill results and a more detailed write up in a few days but our target is in France again. This time it's an airfield in Vannes and we're flying over England for 3 zones so no worries about fighters for a while, just the usual chance of mechanical failure roll...
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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Let er rip when you're ready!
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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Have fun... without me. I'll be... *sniff* fine.

*flags down a u-boat, joins the Luftwaffe out of spite*
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by Zenn7 »

Blackhawk wrote: Tue Oct 15, 2019 12:53 pm Have fun... without me. I'll be... *sniff* fine.

*flags down a u-boat, joins the Luftwaffe out of spite*
We're desperate for bomber crews and had to let you go. Why on earth do you think the Luftwaffe would want you??? They might want your information/knowledge, but probably not you as a flight crew person.

How does flagging down a U-boat work anyway?

<Blackhawk frantically waving at U-boat> "OVER HERE!"

<U-boat crew>
<Periscope man> "There's an American waving, trying to get our attention on that boat."
<Captain> "Eh, most want to die first. Let's help him out, fire torpedo tube 1 at that boat."
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by Blackhawk »

Spite works wonders.

Or maybe it was the bathtub mai tais.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by $iljanus »

Blackhawk wrote:Spite works wonders.

Or maybe it was the bathtub mai tais.
Hey, I didn't shred your leg with shrapnel! (well being the dice roller I guess I did...)
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by $iljanus »

So here are the kill calculations from the first mission. It got a little "mathy" and I'm using an optional table from the rulebook for the kill awards. I needed to refer to BGG a few times to make sure I was doing it right. Gun kills are reviewed by the "Aerial Victory Board" so if you have any complaints bitch to those pencil pushers! :lol: Kills can be a full, partial (from 1/2 to 1/3) or denied. The partial or denial of kill credit could have been due to other bombers firing at the same target. Also if gunners from the same bomber were targeting a fighter, I did the post-mission calculation taking into account all gunners involved in a fighter's destruction because in a pitched fight with tracers fired all over the place tracking kills can be a bit challenging. So if two gunners "contributed" to the downing of a plane and got full credit, each one would get 1/2 a "Victory Credit". Fractional credit would be divided as well among participating gunners. As I said, a little "mathy".

Isgrimnur 2 1/3
TheMix 1/6 (I think historically credit calculations under 1/3 were not counted but for the purposes of the game I'm awarding it)
Raydude 1/2
Hentzau 2
Lawbeefaroni 1/6
LordMortis 1/2

Now some kills were actually denied but again gripe to the pencil pushers (and the dice gods). And of course, planes that were damaged but flew away aren't counted either. Now on to mission two...

July 1, 1943 Station 136, RAF Knettishall, Suffolk

The rule book had optional tables where you could roll for determining what division/wing/group/squadron you belonged to. Instead of using the historical assignment for the Hellcat Agnes I rolled a new history for you. You are proud members of the 3rd Air Division, 45th Bomb Wing, 388th Bomb Group, 562nd Bomb Squadron based out of Station 136, RAF Knettishall in Suffolk, England. The base began combat ops according to Wikipedia on July 17th with a raid on an aircraft factory outside of Amsterdam but since I'm carving out our own history I'm deviating from the historical mission order. I'm including a link to the 388th historical society because as these brave soldiers get older and pass away their story should be available for anyone interested. 388 Bomb Group association

Typical English day where the summers can be clear the one moment but stormy the next. Today's target is the airfield in Vannes, France where we're hoping to put some pressure on the Luftwaffe. We'll have some fighter cover but as you can see from the outside the weather might have a say in that. At least much of the flight will be over England so you shouldn't encounter any opposition on that leg of the mission. Good luck, gentlemen.

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There's 100% cloud cover over the base as the planes wait on the runway. Every so often there's raindrops on the cockpit window but just as you think the mission is scrubbed the signal is given and the Fortresses begin taxing down the runway. On this mission you're the low cell which will make you more vulnerable to flak (actually according to the game tables being in the low cell just increases your chance of encountering multiple waves of fighters in a zone :cry: ) . The crew goes through the pre-flight checklist, prayers and oaths are uttered and eventually it's the Hellcat Agnes' turn to taxi and takeoff. The pilot is quiet as they climb into the thick cloud cover. With little visibility the chances of the mission ending prematurely due to an unfortunate collision is higher as hundreds of planes carry out intricate maneuvers to find their formations. You see the flares from your lead plane and join the other bombers in the sky. All instruments read normal but the weather worsens as you fly over England. Before you reach the coast the TheMix gets a coded message and after verifying it tells Smoove that the mission is scrubbed due to bad weather over the target. The bombers begin turning for home but fortunately for them the weather begins to break and everyone lands safely and lives to fight another day. Unfortunately for the crew, an aborted mission due to weather doesn't count towards their 25 missions so their stay in England is extended for a bit longer.

However, that was a bit of a near thing because there's a substantial penalty I belatedly realized for landing with a full bomb bay which if you think about it makes sense. I should have had the bomber jettison bombs in one of the zones outside the airbase, probably resulting in the death of some poor countryside sheep. When I deducted the penalty from the landing roll the landing didn't result in a fireball. It also helped that the roll for weather over the base for landing was "good". Like I've said, there are many ways to get killed in this game. I started mission 3 and should write that up in the next few days.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by Blackhawk »

$iljanus wrote: Wed Oct 16, 2019 11:50 am Isgrimnur 2 1/3
TheMix 1/6 (I think historically credit calculations under 1/3 were not counted but for the purposes of the game I'm awarding it)
Raydude 1/2
Hentzau 2
Lawbeefaroni 1/6
LordMortis 1/2
Image
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by Isgrimnur »

Almost halfway to being an ace. :horse:
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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Personally I practiced having children during my down time.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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July 3, 1943 Station 136, RAF Knettishall, Suffolk:


The meteorologists have forecasted an improvement in the weather over the northern part of France so operations will resume to take advantage of this opportunity. This time your target will be the Luftwaffe airfield in Orly on the outskirts of Paris. Command is hoping that our bombing efforts against airbases will pay off in less fighters for future missions. At least that's the rationale. In any case, good luck Gentlemen!

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As the group breaks up to make mission preparations you hear in the tumult the name "Abbeville Boys" repeated a few times. You ask what they're talking about and someone from a veteran crew answers, "They're the yellow nosed boogeyman. They hunt in Northern France and eat bomber crews for supper." You laugh nervously but no on else joins in...

A highly trained German fighter unit called Jagdgeschwader 26 (JG 26) was based in Northern France and the Netherlands. Their pilots studied the weaknesses of the B-17 and formulated effective tactics to counter Allied bomber raids. The noses of their fighters were painted yellow and they were referred to as "The Abbeville Boys" or "Abbeville Kids". Missions in their geographical area of operations will have a chance of encountering JG26 pilots and due to their performance and skill they will have certain advantages to reflect their training, such as all pilots being aces, pilots always following up with successive attacks even if a miss result is rolled (normally fighters break off if they miss the bomber) and they ignore the negative modifiers associated with damage. From the Wikipedia page: Jagdgeschwader 26
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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I like this GM.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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I have heard of JG 26. I hope to hell they miss us.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by Smoove_B »

What? Pilots don't get credit for swerving our bird into position to help the gunners? Don't make me turn this thing around!
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by $iljanus »

Smoove_B wrote:What? Pilots don't get credit for swerving our bird into position to help the gunners? Don't make me turn this thing around!
I was actually thinking about this the other day and was wondering about a house rule for some kind of DRM bonus that the pilot and co-pilot can earn after flying a certain number of missions to reflect their level of experience.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by Archinerd »

$iljanus wrote: Thu Oct 17, 2019 8:20 am
Smoove_B wrote:What? Pilots don't get credit for swerving our bird into position to help the gunners? Don't make me turn this thing around!
I was actually thinking about this the other day and was wondering about a house rule for some kind of DRM bonus that the pilot and co-pilot can earn after flying a certain number of missions to reflect their level of experience.
It's abstracted and already baked into the rules. I think if they have 5 or more missions you get a bonus to your landing roll and maybe on a few of the other tables.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by $iljanus »

Archinerd wrote:
$iljanus wrote: Thu Oct 17, 2019 8:20 am
Smoove_B wrote:What? Pilots don't get credit for swerving our bird into position to help the gunners? Don't make me turn this thing around!
I was actually thinking about this the other day and was wondering about a house rule for some kind of DRM bonus that the pilot and co-pilot can earn after flying a certain number of missions to reflect their level of experience.
It's abstracted and already baked into the rules. I think if they have 5 or more missions you get a bonus to your landing roll and maybe on a few of the other tables.
I was looking at the tables but couldn't find it. However I could easily have missed it since a lot of the tables have extensive notes attached to them which cover all sorts of circumstances. Also doesn't help to look at the pdf copy on my phone.

Edit: Found it! +1 landing bonus for Pilot and/or Co-pilot after the 10th mission. Hope they live that long...
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by Archinerd »

There might be something under Evasion rolls too.
And of course, you could still add a few house rules too if you think of something good.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by $iljanus »

Currently having a power outage due to the Nor'easter that hit New England last night so I've tried to get in some playing time before darkness descends. Won't be able to post the pics I've taken until the power comes back but the crew of the Hellcat Agnes is in for some, umm, "fun" times.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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I have installed extra armor on the back of my seat.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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You should have gone with the armored beer fridge.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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It's a warm day as you wait your turn on the runway. The signal is given and you and hundreds of other planes take off and join their assigned formation, thankful that there were no mishaps this early in the mission. As you pass over the hazy Channel the crew checks in and all stations report ready. Not too many little friends are seen but you hope they won't be needed too much. Not much hope of that since you're assigned to the low cell in the formation which has a greater chance of drawing more fighter waves.

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Eventually you cross into France and a wave of fighters pounces on the formation. LordMortis calls out his target, a Me-410 which expertly weaves its way between the formation's tracers. LordMortis fires and fuel streams from the bullet holes but miraculously doesn't catch on fire. The fighter fires but misses, diving away from the bomber. LawBeefaroni and Raydude train their guns on a Me-110 at 9:00. It takes a hit and is shaken up enough to throw off its attack and it also flies away from the bomber. Two more fighters make their way towards the Hellcat Agnes, an Me-110 from 1:30 and a Me-110 climbing from below. Isgrimnur exchanges fire with his Me-110 scoring a hit while the fighter narrowly misses and flies off while Hentzau misses his Me-110 but the fighter misses as well, going off to find another target. Just as quick as it started the fighters fade into the clouds and the attack is over.

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As the bomber flies deeper into France more bandit sightings are called out.

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A pair of Me-110s approach from 1:30, Raydude scoring a hit on his fighter which passes under the plane and LordMortis takes a shot but misses. Isgrimnur and Zenn7 fire at the second Me-110, shredding the flaps on the right wing. The fighter fires back but the loss of control throws off his aim and he flies away. A Me-110 tries to attack from below but Hentzau makes short work of him and obliterates his right wing. Amazingly as the fighter spins away from the bomber the pilot is able to open his canopy and bail out safely.

Then a lone Ju-88 at 3:00 level makes a run at the Agnes. It's a pretty fat target for the gunners as Raydude, Hentzau and Zenn7 rake it with fire and the plane explodes into a fireball.

Enlarge Image
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by hentzau »

Nice shootin’ boys!
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by Isgrimnur »

A third of a shot for all of you when we get back to base!
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by $iljanus »

"Gun's jammed, dammit!" you hear from gbasden and raydude at the same time. The frigid temperatures at 20,000 have frozen their guns and they work frantically to unjam them before the next fighter wave finds the bomber. Gbasden finally manages to clear his gun while raydude is only able to get one of his guns working in his turret which will have to do since waves of fighters have found the formation and begin their attack.

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Raydude and gbasden target a Me-109 heading right for the nose of the plane and the fire from the gunners shatters the cockpit, the pilot slumped over and the fighter diving past the bomber and into the ground. Not much time to celebrate as another Me-109 attacks from 1:30 high but isgrimnur and zenn7 fire and score a solid hit on the fighter's left wing, tearing off the flap. The fighter continues the attack but due to the loss of control misses the bomber and flies off.

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A Fw-190 approaches from 10:30 while a Me-110 attacks from below. Isgrimnur, lawbeefaroni and raydude fires at the Fw-190, hitting the left wing but not causing enough damage to drive it off. The fighter misses however and veers away. Hentzau scores a hit on his target and causes some damage but not enough to prevent the Me-110 from landing some hits of his own as shells pepper the left wing and pilot compartment. But other than some holes and near misses of the flight crew the bomber is no worse for wear as the Me-110 limps away.

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A third wave of fighters finds the Agnes. Gbasden frantically fires at a Fw-190 coming right at him, scoring a hit but the fighter pushes his attack and fires, raking the bomber with shells. Holes appear in the radio room and bomb bay but nothing important was damaged. Lawbeefaroni feels a sharp pain in his thigh and as he looks down finds torn fabric with a little blood on it but nothing major seems to have been hit (for the curious, search for "vastus muscle"). Lordmortis takes a shot at the fighter as it passes under the Agnes but the hits he scores don't do much damage as the fighter swings around to attack again. Zenn7 and hentzau have better luck with their bandit at 3:00 as the bullets tear off the Me-109's wing sending the fighter into the ground. The pilot was able to bail out and counts himself lucky to have escaped with his life. Raydude and isgrimnur trade shots with the Me-109 at 1:30 but both miss and the fighter flies off to pounce on another target.

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The determined fighter ace that scored a hit on the bomber makes another run at the Agnes. Hentzau and lordmortis fire a line of tracers at the Fw-190 causing it severe damage but as a final statement before disappearing in a fireball the ace fires back and shells pepper the Hellcat Agnes. Rounds damage the tail rudder but the plane still holds steady. The radio room, however, takes a severe hit and themix's head is a bloody mess as he slumps over, not dead but not moving very much. The worst part of the attack are the shells that hit the instrument panel in the cockpit which spark and smoke. All of the sudden the oxygen gauges start dropping towards zero and smoove_b immediately dives the plane to 10,000 feet, realizing that the oxygen controls have been destroyed and the only chance for their survival is to lose altitude before they all suffocate.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by TheMix »

Yeah. I was beginning to wonder if I was even in the plane. Apparently my gun only faces one direction (either straight up or straight down). Kinda sucks that I don't ever get to even see an enemy plane, but they hit my area twice.

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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

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"He was just two days from retirement, dammit!"
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by $iljanus »

TheMix wrote: Fri Oct 18, 2019 3:43 pm Yeah. I was beginning to wonder if I was even in the plane. Apparently my gun only faces one direction (either straight up or straight down). Kinda sucks that I don't ever get to even see an enemy plane, but they hit my area twice.
In a B-24J the radio operator could also be a waist gunner so I may choose that plane for a future campaign. The bombardier doesn't man a gun though, instead there's a nose turret that's controlled by the navigator. But the bombardier still gets to drop bombs at least.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by LawBeefaroni »

nothing important was damaged. Lawbeefaroni feels a sharp pain in his thigh
"Ouch, my vastus! At least I'm told it's nothing important."


And Blackhawk thought he'd be missing all the fun.


Oh, and a belated welcome aboard to gbasden! Been nice knowing you.
" Hey OP, listen to my advice alright." -Tha General
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$iljanus
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by $iljanus »

Since humans require certain things to survive like, say, oxygen and there isn't enough of that beyond 10,000 feet, planes operating above that altitude brought their own oxygen. The B-29 was a fully pressurized plane so the crew got to fly without wearing a cumbersome oxygen mask and it was heated enough so they didn't need a bulky flight suit with layers of clothing. B-17 and B-24 crews didn't have that luxury and needed a source of oxygen at all times once they got to their operational altitude which can be between 20-25,000 feet. Condensation formed from the breath of the crew could freeze in the extreme cold, fouling their oxygen lines and cutting off air flow. Bullets and shrapnel can also, in their own destructive way, cut off oxygen to either a section of the plane or in your case to the entire plane when the oxygen controls were taken out by that persistent ace. Since the oxygen supply to the entire plane was disrupted the only way to survive was to fly at 10,000 feet. Now one may ask, why don't we always fly at 10,000 feet? Well, fighters tend to perform well at the lower altitudes and flak is more accurate. This is modeled in the game with an extra fighter in a attacking fighter wave due being out of formation and in each overland zone you fly over there's an attack from random flak emplacements on the ground. If all engines are still functioning you would have the opportunity to rejoin the formation but since you have no oxygen supply it's going to be a long flight home stuck at 10,000 feet. Portable oxygen bottles were used to go from compartment to compartment but it wouldn't have enough of a supply for a multi hour trip. Now on to the bomb run!

Ahh, Paris. You see the famous landmarks but you're paying a visit to the airfield outside the city. Contrails trail the bombers in the formation and there is a haze that is steadily thickening as the lead formations start dropping their bombs. No fighters appear as puffs of flak surround the bombers. The Hellcat Agnes is out of formation and the target is obscured by smoke. Gbasden tries his best at his first bombing run and hunched over the bomb sight he eventually releases the bombs. Flak keeps exploding around the Agnes but leaves her untouched as smoove pushes on the throttle and begins the turn towards home as fast as the bomber can take them. The explosions suddenly stop outside the plane as a pair of fighters are sighted at 10:30 and 3:00.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by dbt1949 »

Told you my extra armor would come in handy.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by raydude »

$iljanus wrote: Fri Oct 18, 2019 4:08 pm
TheMix wrote: Fri Oct 18, 2019 3:43 pm Yeah. I was beginning to wonder if I was even in the plane. Apparently my gun only faces one direction (either straight up or straight down). Kinda sucks that I don't ever get to even see an enemy plane, but they hit my area twice.
In a B-24J the radio operator could also be a waist gunner so I may choose that plane for a future campaign. The bombardier doesn't man a gun though, instead there's a nose turret that's controlled by the navigator. But the bombardier still gets to drop bombs at least.
The radio operator in a B-17 can also be thought of as a relief pitcher. Don't forget, you took over the nose cheek guns while Isgrimnur took over as bombardier. Also, the RO's gun is the only gun that covers that angle, and thus the only one that protects against diving attacks. Top turret can't angle the guns high enough. As I recall from Queen of the Skies, a successful German diving attack can be pretty brutal.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by $iljanus »

From 10:30 high a Fw-190 dives toward the Agnes, weaving its way between the tracers. Lawbeefaroni yells out that his gun is jammed as he struggles to unjam it. Raydude and isgrimnur make short work of the fighter however as it bursts into flames and falls to the earth. Zenn7 and hentzau score multiple hits on the Fw-190 coming in at 3:00, some even hitting the cockpit but somehow missing the pilot. The pilot also misses but probably thinks as he looks at the bullet holes perforating the cockpit window that it's better to fight another day and heads for home.

Enlarge Image

As the Hellcat Agnes makes its way across France for home light flak brackets the plane but no hits so far. The crew notices above them the presence of their little friends. They were sorely missed earlier in the mission but flying out of formation at 10,000 feet they are a welcome sight, especially as lawbeefaroni is unsuccessful in his attempts to unjam his gun. One of the crew notices in the distance a B-17 following them but the markings were strange...

Didn't roll any fighters but got a strange random event involving a captured B-17 shadowing you. Probably calling in your position because when we enter the next zone there's a +1 DRM when rolling for the number of German fighter waves that show up.
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Wise words of warning from Smoove B: Oh, how you all laughed when I warned you about the semen. Well, who's laughing now?
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by $iljanus »

Oh no, I'm sincerely sorry guys... :cry:

The Agnes makes her way closer to home. An anti aircraft battery opens up on her and a shell hits the left wing, exploding and shearing it clean off. Smoove struggles to hit the bailout alarm as the plane goes into an uncontrollable spin. Smoove and dbt try their best to exert some kind of control to give the crew a small chance at bailing out.



On July 3, 1943 while returning from a mission in France, 9 souls from the Hellcat Agnes were lost due to anti-aircraft fire. The tail gunner did manage to bail out and survived. He was captured and sent to a POW camp where he sat out the rest of the war before being liberated by Allied forces in 1945.
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Re: The Flight of the Hellcat Agnes (Target for Today)

Post by Blackhawk »

Well.

That happened.
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