IN PURSUIT A Pilot’s Guide to Online Air Combat JOHAN KYLANDER For Barry “Carrot” Hayes Copyright © Johan Kylander 2005 2 JUNE 12: TRIPLE TRIP I step into my personal P40-B at Cambrai, strap in, slide the canopy back and go through the pre-launch routine: tailwheel locked, trim wheel fully back, RPM set at maximum, listen and scan for intruders. None around. It's 13:45 local time and the hound dogs are too lazy to even yap in the blistering French afternoon. I fire the engine and slam the throttle full forward, clearing the south hangers with feet to spare. I ess and quarter-roll all the way up to 4 km where I reduce to normal pitch and cruise east over the battlefield, still quarter-rolling and weaving gently. I check my six every 2 seconds. There’s nothing to be seen at the Meuse apart from a grand vista at 4,5 km. No enemy formations, not even a single recon plane. Oh well. I cut to fine pitch, anticipating a boring lonely wait over Bertrix-Acremont. I’m doing about 340 IAS as I come in from southwest of the field. Hey, there’s a bogey diving in west at about 4 km – probably friendly. I lose him in the clouds as I swing left to take up orbit. 2 seconds later I spot a 109 arcing in on my six from the west, co-alt. Well well, who’d a thunk! Someone else must have been here to stoke the waffles not long ago. I go to max revs and waver a second while assessing his energy. Co-E, or nearly so. Not yet in guns range, not even close. I swing into him to left and cross over for a lead turn to right. We’re canopy to canopy by then, so I lag him a bit and let him do the hauling. We’re in a rolling scissor for a little while and then he goes vertical, sort of. Damn those Fokkers are fast, but not fast enough to draw out of .50 range. I reach out and touch him, drawing a fine trail of fluids. The fight goes downward to about 3 km. I get a few snapshots, some of them connect briefly. He struggles and hauls for all he’s worth, blowing energy in chunks. I slowly reel him in, stitch him a little more. He tries to go vertical again and right there I have him. I give him a long nice burst and watch him disappear – just as I catch a glimpse of another 109 nearby. This guy appears to have engaged from below and is quite out of steam. I reel him in too and punch his lights out. We’re now uncomfortably close to the field and it’s time to say goodbye! I scoot out north and disengage entirely to the east before starting a slow climb back to altitude. I visit Wiltz – no trade – and debate whether to turn back. No, Verviers- Aachen it is. Verviers looks empty as does the surrounding lanes to west and northwest. I carry on to Aachen. Upon arrival, I spy a single-engine job rotate and head out westerly. I circle astern, let down and roll into a gentle dive. 109. He’s in a hurry. He’s not checking six. I hold the shot for too long and only strike him half-heartedly at about 70 meters range. I see my MG splash both his wings then I have to duck violently to avoid the collision. I come to and spiral, tally the bandit at my long low six in a flat circle on the deck, obviously distressed. I go in again, twice, but he’s awake now. We’re pretty low, much too close to Aachen for comfort. I rope-a-dope him. The slimy bastard refuses to stall out but lifts his nose for a head-on shot. Fokker. I’m as surprised as I’m disgusted. I see my hits splash all over his engine and forward fuselage. I have the energy to decide though against this Emil, and disengage. He follows. I drag him along for a while, heading south. I’ve had enough near Eupen and chandelle around to have another go at him. Again he comes head-on. Forcrissakes! I press the tit in rage and give him a long good burst, skidding slightly. Die! And so he does. I’ve had enough of the likes of him and return to base, booking three confirmed kills. BMBM, 56th FG(v) 3 INTRODUCTION Greetings to all Virtual Fighter Pilots and those “want-to-be” Pilots. This Work-of-Art “In Pursuit” by Johan Kylander is a MUST READ. In Pursuit is a thorough analogy of all facets of the life of a fighter pilot. In Pursuit covers, in detail, all of the positives and negatives, the things to do and the things not to do in order to become a “Top Gun” as a fighter pilot. Johan Kylander has given a lot of time and thought into developing a complete and easy to read compilation of all phases of tactical flying. When I was assigned to the 56th Fighter Group, 61st Fighter Squadron. I was introduced to Flight Leader “Mike” Gladych (PAF) and assigned to him as his wingman. Many things he taught me still remain in memory. One of the most important was this: if you know your machine better then your opponent knows his, you can always defeat him. The next best was this: fly your position (on his wing) where I tell you to and I will always bring you home. (Correct positioning of all the elements in the formation is the best protection you can give to each other). I flew fiftyseven missions over Europe during WW II and I feel like I remember a little of what I was taught. I’ve learned a lot of things from reading Johan Kylander’s book “In Pursuit” that I wish I had known way back then. I would have been a much more successful fighter pilot. Russell S. Kyler Captain USAAF (1945) 4 PREFACE Walter Mitty exists. Every guy or gal who has ever sat down in front of the computer to wreak havoc in the virtual skies of Air Warrior, WarBirds, Aces High or World War II Online, embodies the spirit of Walter, that paragon of daydreaming indulgence in personalities and situations that he never had the opportunity of experiencing himself. Much like Walter, we virtual pilots suspend reality and engross ourselves in the fantasy of being Sierra Hotel fighter pilots, flying and fighting over war-torn Europe, seat-of-the-pants style. Some of us do. Others, to the utter scorn of the historically versed grognards, are just as happy whiling away a few hours without a thought of role-playing, yanking and banking to get an adrenaline rush in what might just as well be another video game. Either is fine. We’re all warriors. Yet, whether one seeks the thrill of the moment or strives to recreate an environment approximating history, one trait is common: the will to succeed and to excel. And that is what this book is about – to help neophyte and intermediate virtual pilots surpass the thresholds to acedom. Learning how to play a computer game should be an easy matter. Most games ARE easy to master once you’ve figured out what makes them tick, but the massively multiplayer online air combat game is a striking exception because it isn’t predictable. There are simply too many factors to consider at any turn: beyond certain automated functions the action is totally unscripted, unregulated and unpredictable because every action or piece of the environment is that of another human being - and it all happens in real time. Fact is, the difference between fiction and reality has a tendency to narrow to such an extent that some would argue that the game IS reality. In certain respects that is entirely true. Real-world performance, tactics, psychology and physics apply to this virtual world, to extents varying with the creators’ vision and programming acumen. When it comes to engagements, that which works – or doesn’t work – in real life, also works or doesn’t work in the game. Thus, knowing a thing or two about these matters significantly increases the virtual pilot’s likelihood of excelling. Other games allow its players to cheat or use shortcuts to attain their goals. There are no shortcuts or power-ups in the virtual sky. You can’t fake acedom. Air combat seems so easy... all you need to do is to point your aircraft at another and gun him down, right? Not! It is no coincidence that aerial combat skills are most difficult to acquire - we're talking four dimensions here, where the input is constantly changing. He who is not able to arrive at the correct solution at every juncture will soon find himself involuntarily decorating the landscape. Some are born fighter pilots. If you fail to return to base on a regular basis, take it as a hint that you're not one of them. You need to practice and practice and practice yet more to reduce your errors to a survivable level, and even so there's still the odd chance that you'll meet the Red Baron on your next mission – so be prepared! I decided to write this book more or less on a whim. Over the years of online combat I’ve authored countless pilot FAQ’s, training manuals, squadron directives and forum posts dealing with this or that tactical problem.