I-16 fun but anyone got an air kill

[TP_Jacko]

I was online over the weekend flying an I-16 and got bounced a few times I tried to turn in to one attacker that overshot me but he came back to me in a sharper turn and caught me with some gun fire. Apart from my rubbish flying I wondered if anyone in an I-16 has downed an enemy fighter. or any FW/109 drivers wanting to admit they got nailed by an I-16.

 

 

[Freycinet]

Happens all the time Jacko: check the stats. And keep at it! - You'll soon down enemies left and right.

[Elem]

^{Makes no difference what I fly. I always get my ass handed to me on a plate, but I love the Ishak and when I'm shot down in that, it's a small consolation that it's an "inferior" aircraft to match my "inferior" combat flying!}

[TWC_Ace]

Funny, I thought I16 would do well in BOS MP since mostly ppl are flyin low turnfights on servers. However, in coops or in squad vs squad mission would be different story, since there is less "casual" style of play.

Edited August 3, 2015 by blackram_

[arno_nym]

... I wondered if anyone in an I-16 has downed an enemy fighter. or any FW/109 drivers wanting to admit they got nailed by an I-16.

Yes, I admit.... I've been shot down by I-16 both in 190 and 109 - several times. But I must also confess: It was all my fault... Playing low and slow in the german birds will kill you eventually.

Actually the rata is more a PIA than a real threat. If you don't turn, keep your speed up and have enough SA you can dictate the fight and be safe. That actually applies to all encounters but against an Rata the margin is greater.

[BeastyBaiter]

I've had a lot of success in the I-16 vs 109's and 190's in both expert and normal servers. I don't seem to be the only one as I see plenty of other I-16's scoring kills too. It isn't fast enough to catch anyone in level flight or diving away, but it's good at blasting 109's who decide to turn fight (which is most of them) and those who are focused on B&Zing a single target and aren't watching for higher attackers.

[Reflected]

I was shot down by a Rata yesterday. Mind u, I was flying a Heinkel, while Jürgen, the dorsal gunner was too busy looking at nude photographs of his fiancé Brünhilde. 

[Finkeren]

On the 'casual' servers I've been able to keep a pretty decent K/D score with the I-16. Plenty of 109 jockeys willing to throw their lives away in a low level furball.

 

On the expert servers, you're pretty much screwed, because people generally fly faster and with more tactical sense, and most kills come through ambushes, which the I-16 is terrible at, because of its slow speed.

[TWC_Ace]

On the 'casual' servers I've been able to keep a pretty decent K/D score with the I-16. Plenty of 109 jockeys willing to throw their lives away in a low level furball.

 

Yeah. This is soemthig which would never (or almost never  ) happen in RL. As you already said, in full real servers or in coops, seows, squad battles its gonna be a rarity also. The problem is...most players play fast food dogfights...

but hey....enough ppl will play  other way around so no worries...

[Y-29.Silky]

Take it up to 5000m and dive on them, that's what I do!

[Finkeren]

Take it up to 5000m and dive on them, that's what I do!

It works somewhat, but it still doesn't change the fact, that the Bf 109 and Fw 190 can fly level at a speed where the I-16 begins to fall apart. Even if you dive at an enemy at maximum speed (around 625 km/h seems to be the safe limit) a skilled German pilot will be able to erode your energy advantage in a matter of seconds if he refuses to turnfight you.

 

Of course you might still get that one good shot and kill him outright or at least damage him enough to put him out of the fight, but that really goes for any aircraft with a large enough energy advantage diving at an opponent, and says nothing about the qualities of the I-16.

 

In the end, the I-16 is a great little fighter with marvelous handling and great maneuverability and surprisingly good performance for its age. But against some of the best fighters in the world anno 1942 it's just too damn slow to do anything useful.

Edited August 3, 2015 by Finkeren

[Blakhart]

Looks like you guys never saw a CCCP COMAO force during raid on a panzer column .

 

Plus at now we are still waiting for new planes and new maps. I-16 is a good match for 109 E not F/G version nor FW190 as well. 

[Finkeren]

Propably not a 'good' match, but certainly less lopsided.

[TP_Jacko]

 

 

CCCP COMAO f

  not sure I understand this 

[Jade_Monkey]

Has anyone done any significant damage without the cannons?

I feel like you have to unload all 4 mgs to see some smoke

[TWC_Ace]

Propably not a 'good' match, but certainly less lopsided.

I was going to say this...then again, thinking about Emils wing cannons and the fact it was a better low speed turner and lighter than later 109s...

Edited August 4, 2015 by blackram_

[Finkeren]

I was going to say this...then again, thinking about Emils wing cannons and the fact it was a better low speed turner than later 109s...

That will just force the Emil to play the I-16s game and offer it an open chance. The E-7 is much inferior in exactly the two areas where the BoS 109s absolute dominate the Ishak: Top speed and climb rate.

[TP_Jacko]

Has anyone done any significant damage without the cannons?

I feel like you have to unload all 4 mgs to see some smoke

I might do a test tonight in QMB but I am sure like the old .303 rounds in a Hurricane you do need to keep a good number of hits on target to bring an aircraft down and aim if you can for the pilot and not chew the tail unit to shreds

[TWC_Ace]

That will just force the Emil to play the I-16s game and offer it an open chance. The E-7 is much inferior in exactly the two areas where the BoS 109s absolute dominate the Ishak: Top speed and climb rate.

Still, Emil should be considerable faster (spec at alt) and a bit better climber  . But I agree, it would be (mostly) down to a pilot and ofcourse, we would see more historical matches.

[Brano]

  not sure I understand this 

COMAO = combined air operation

CCCP = Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

Ishak is waiting for 1939/40 FAF and 1941 FARR portfolio of simillar oponents.

[Blakhart]

 Brano explained shortcut 

 

typical virtual CCCP  COMAO 41-42 yr

 

1st line - 0-3 km - freelancers on I-16/I-153 - they are engaging Luftvaffels and usually can survive 1st B&Z attacks on high speed, rest of the COMAO escort fighters know where are enemies and can use it to generate energy advantage before the attack

2 nd line -0-2 km- flying tanks IL-2 - they are killing AAA, ground targets & helping I-16, in BoS IL-2 pilots can still use a lot of negative G like in IL-2 1946 to avoid B&Z attacks on high speed, so they usually can survive more than 1-3 attacks

3 rd line - 1-3 km - close escort -  Yak-1 - flexible beasts

4th line - 2-5 km - B&Z escort - La5 / Lagg 3 - with good firepower, for fast finishing smokers/agressive/engaged Bf`s

5 th line - 5 - 9 km - B&Z boyz - MiG3 - high alt superior, which force luftwaffe "wannabie experten" to dive away or stay high and waste time on creating plenty of trails above 7km when rest of the happy company is slaughtering ground forces 

 

It works as hell. 

 

Those who flew in IL-2 online virtual wars should know what I`m talking about.

[TP_Jacko]

Thanks for the CCCP COMAO information a bit like the RAF Circus missions over France

[Xenunjeon88]

One... I've must have gotten killed in that thing over a dozen times but only managed to kill a fw190 that was making sc500 snow angels and snuck up behind him and hit him with cannons at point blank range.

 

It's a fun little death trap. It's kryptonite is vertical maneuvers, which is practically in every German pilot's to do list.

[Xenunjeon88]

Managed to kill 2 109 and an 190 this morning, chased a high flying 109 back to his base while I hid at treetop lvl then killed him point blank as he was landing, then a 109 from the front as he was retracting his gears and then a returning 190 that almost got me a few times but I got lucky knocking out his oil when he got frustrated and started dog fighting me at low alt. He stalled out and crashed, giving me the score. Of course on the way back the 190 I shot down respawned, caught me halfway and tore me apart in the first pass. Kudos to that guy I was making a real effort keeping me eye on my six and he barreled in at light speed and still managed to get most if not all guns on target.

 

Guess you have to play dirty to be an effective fighter.

[[CPT]milopugdog]

Managed to kill 2 109 and an 190 this morning, chased a high flying 109 back to his base while I hid at treetop lvl then killed him point blank as he was landing, then a 109 from the front as he was retracting his gears and then a returning 190 that almost got me a few times but I got lucky knocking out his oil when he got frustrated and started dog fighting me at low alt. He stalled out and crashed, giving me the score. Of course on the way back the 190 I shot down respawned, caught me halfway and tore me apart in the first pass. Kudos to that guy I was making a real effort keeping me eye on my six and he barreled in at light speed and still managed to get most if not all guns on target.

 

Guess you have to play dirty to be an effective fighter.

I wouldn't count the landing 109 as a kill. Maybe it's just me, but I think shooting planes that are landing, landed, or taking off as a scum bag move. Many people have replied "War is Hell". But this is a video game.

[Xenunjeon88]

I wouldn't count the landing 109 as a kill. Maybe it's just me, but I think shooting planes that are landing, landed, or taking off as a scum bag move. Many people have replied "War is Hell". But this is a video game.

Hense the "play dirty" I've stated as. I'm not giving the impression that I performed some sort of "leet" dogfighting skills shooting them down, but it seems like the element of surprise is your only real weapon for victories against much better aircraft. I snuck up behind him, just as I would in a yak or a la at 3000m.

 

I'm not proud of it but I'm not ashamed of it, nobody actually died.

Edited August 9, 2015 by Xenunjeon88

[FTC_Etherlight]

I think the I-16 does one thing best: Punishing mistakes. The Yak is certainly also proficient at punishing a 109 that outstays it's welcome in a turnfight, but the Ishak's ability to come in and surprise enemies with a quick reversal of a dogfight's tide is unreal. In a German fighter I fear nothing more than the sight of that shorttailed little bugger when I am in an engagement, cutting it close in terms of energy advantage over an opponent. I definitely think the I-16 has it's place in a BoS environment, and most certainly in a BoM environment.

[BeastyBaiter]

That's how I get kills in it, scored 3 official + 3 maneuver kills just last night on wings of liberty over the course of about an hour and a half. All of them were against 109's and 190's that burned their energy fighting someone else or misjudged energy states in a fight with me. Yes I can get them in a Yak like that too, but I find it easier in the I-16. The reason is the Yak has only the slightest agility advantage while being substantially inferior in all other ways. The I-16's agility advantage is decisive and in that kind of situation, the rest doesn't really matter. From a defensive standpoint, it's pretty easy to dodge a single opponent until they get tired or make a mistake. More than one can be a problem though.

Edited August 10, 2015 by King_Hrothgar

[FTC_Etherlight]

That's how I get kills in it, scored 3 official + 3 maneuver kills just last night on wings of liberty over the course of about an hour and a half. All of them were against 109's and 190's that burned their energy fighting someone else or misjudged energy states in a fight with me. Yes I can get them in a Yak like that too, but I find it easier in the I-16. The reason is the Yak has only the slightest agility advantage while being substantially inferior in all other ways. The I-16's agility advantage is decisive and in that kind of situation, the rest doesn't really matter. From a defensive standpoint, it's pretty easy to dodge a single opponent until they get tired or make a mistake. More than one can be a problem though.

 

The last point is especally true and I almost forgot it. When I fly Germans I'll mostly be in a 190 and there is nothing more frustrating than trying to get a solid firing solution on an I-16 that is aware of your presence and knows when and how to break. Agile little bastards. ^^

[Alkyan]

I did not fly the I16 yet but can't a 109 in trouble in a equal energy state just easily disengage by diving? At least in a yack you can more or less keep up (by diving at a shallower angle and therefore be more energy efficient).

[TP_Jacko]

I did not fly the I16 yet but can't a 109 in trouble in a equal energy state just easily disengage by diving?

Naturally this is true but when the red mist comes down and you are the 109 pilot who is annoyed he missed the I-16 and stays too long its asking for trouble if not from the I-16 but his mate who has swept in on you 6.