Should Jabo flights be escorted?

[migmadmarine]

It has long struck me as odd, that when playing a fighter squadron career (Germans) you'll get missions to escort Jabos (FW-190s, Bf-109E, etc), but if you start a career with a dedicated Jabo squadron flying any of those aircraft, your own flights go unescorted. Is this correct, or should it be one way or the other? 

[DickDong]

Preference right? I try to get dedicated strikes mixed with jabo as escort in formation, with dedicated fighters above the.  Layered appch. Escorting Jabos as the primary bombers will help them from prematurely dumping ordnance.

[Bremspropeller]

4 hours ago, thenorm said:

Is this correct, or should it be one way or the other? 

 

Jabos should have escorts. At least there should be a fighter sweep somewhere in the general area most of the time. Now, I'm getting contact with russian fighters way too oftern with my pants down and my blank butt shining like a full moon on a crisp and clear winters night.

Jabos also shouldn't cross the frontline at 1000m AGL(or less). A front-crossing at 2500-3000m is more realistic.

 

 

[migmadmarine]

Whoops, I must have been tired when I wrote this, as I meant to put it in the Career support/feedback section, not general discussion. Could a mod move this? 

[EAF19_Marsh]

Yes when on my side, not if they are the opposition.

[Finkeren]

In the ideal world, the very idea of a fighter-bomber is, that it really shouldn't need a whole lot of protection from other fighters. 

 

In reality, that was seldom how it actually played out. Generally speaking, large attacks made by fighter-bombers would be covered either by a fighter sweep ahead of the formation or by top-cover escort fighters - if any such were available. 

 

Smaller intruder flights going in to attack targets of opportunity normally wouldn't have cover.

[RedKestrel]

Generally speaking, in the career, if I'm flight leader I lead my flight in at higher altitude and with a weather eye on the sky. If I spot an enemy fighter, or someone else in the flight calls one out, I immediately jettison my ordnance and go offensive against the enemy.

On attacking the target, I do a single pass, drop all my ordnance, and then start a combat climb and cover my flight from about 3-4k while they continue the attack. If I don't do this and we're attacked its generally a butcher's bill to be paid.

[Gambit21]

1 hour ago, Finkeren said:

In the ideal world, the very idea of a fighter-bomber is, that it really shouldn't need a whole lot of protection from other fighters. 

 

In reality, that was seldom how it actually played out. Generally speaking, large attacks made by fighter-bombers would be covered either by a fighter sweep ahead of the formation or by top-cover escort fighters - if any such were available. 

 

Smaller intruder flights going in to attack targets of opportunity normally wouldn't have cover.

 

I remember reading in Liepfert's book (JG 53/52 109 pilot) about them escorting 190 Jabo's, but soon realized that the 190's were faster than the  109.

From that point forward, at least in that theater, with that unit, escorts became less common if not stopping altogether.

Again, this doesn't preclude sweeps etc.

 

9th Air Force Jugs were never escorted.

[migmadmarine]

On a Fw-190 flight (I was not flight lead, I prefer not to be) I ran into a fair bit of trouble with Yaks as I had not caught up with my flight and we were un escorted. With the extra armor an fuel load, I am not a good enough pilot to beat a Yak 1 who has the advantage in an A5 one on one. Would have quite appreciated escort in that moment. Especially as far as I can tell my flight ignored the fighters while they were still in the area.

[Godspeed]

Yes because AI does not play Jabo flight like they should.

They sometimes act like being heavier bomber or something funny and getting killed.

After bomb drop they ignore enemy fighters so they can still focus ground targets by shooting them killing them themselves in the process.

 

Worst experience is being either Jabo or 110 in sp career it just does not work.

 

Its almost broken.

 

 

[migmadmarine]

Quite amusingly, I've had two "escort ground attack aircraft" missions in my 109 Stalingrad career, where the "ground attack aircraft" have been HE-111s. Thinking this is a bug, but watching Heinkels Arc-Light Soviet arty with SC-1000s is pretty amazing.