P-39L-1 Airacobra.Love it or hate it?

[[-=BP=-]Slegawsky_VR]

P-39L-1 Airacobra sortie on Wings of Liberty server, after several attempts this time did not get shot down instantly. Love it or hate it but "Kobra" is most certainly NOT for beginners. With current engine limitations, Airacobra is outclassed by almost any axis bird.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r96ofld_IaM

 

Edited July 19, 2019 by Slegawsky
link

[Leon_Portier]

Very nice sortie!

I even have trouble to keep track of my wingman with this bird, because of all the metal struts.

Want to love the Aircobra but just cant!

[Ehret]

Notice in the video how hits from the 37mm are ineffective... it's comical.

The M4 wasn't stellar gun but its shells were reliable - one hit was usually enough to down a medium plane and in the PTO M4s from crashed P-39s were reused by PT-boats. Yet, here somehow a small German fighter needs multiple hits.

[56RAF_Roblex]

9 hours ago, [N.O.G.F]Leon_Portier said:

Want to love the Aircobra but just cant!

 

Exactly how I feel.  I really *want* to like it and I keep trying but I just cannot get the hang of making it effective in MP.  I keep telling myself it is just me not knowing how to use its strengths and avoid its weaknesses. I tried getting more experience by doing a P39 career but while I had some success there and enjoyed it, I did not get any better at using it against humans.

 

7 hours ago, Ehret said:

Notice in the video how hits from the 37mm are ineffective... it's comical.

 

That video surprises me because for all my lack of skill at getting the cannon shells on target, and it is hard with that parabola,  I have always found it is a 'one shot killer'.   The one thing the P39 is good at even in the hands of a no-hoper like me is killing bombers in a single pass and if you can get up close behind a fighter you will take its wing off with one shot.    What I do not like is the ease with which an enemy on your 6 can kill your engine. OTOH,  it does make it very rare to be pilot killed ?

Edited July 20, 2019 by 56RAF_Roblex

[[-=BP=-]Slegawsky_VR]

Thanks for comments chaps! Initially wanted to make a P-39 video simply because it suppose to be a soviet ace-maker fighter.

The list of why I hate P-39 goes on and on, its just a shame because she is a nice looking bird.

[Requiem]

I like it if I can keep it fast. The controls just feel too sensitive/unstable in general at low speed. It was surprising to see the Fw still going after copping the 37mm. Maybe because it was from dead astern? If you hit a wing they usually don't have an issue coming off.

[ECV56_Necathor]

On 7/19/2019 at 5:00 PM, Slegawsky said:

, Airacobra is outclassed by almost any axis bird.

That is the fact now, that is a truth.

hope that the new red planes don´t be so disappoint as the P39 

[kramer]

IRL P-39 was capable aircraft of the eastern front, it was liked very much by Soviet pilots. Alexander Pokryshkin, one of the best Soviet ace, refused to change P-39's in his squadron to La-5FNs because of Cobra being reliable, had good armament, sturdy airframe and it actually achieved factory performance contrary to most Soviet built aircrafts.

Other thing is visibility - idk why but in 2d screen P-39 has poor visibility when in VR, which reflects real 3d geometry of the cockpit, visibility is very good.

Edited July 21, 2019 by kramer

[ECV56_Necathor]

Actually Pokrushkin said that the P39 has the best visibility at the moment that P39 arrives

[56RAF_Roblex]

3 hours ago, 666GIAP_Necathor said:

Actually Pokrushkin said that the P39 has the best visibility at the moment that P39 arrives

 

Yes.  As long as your VR or TrackIR allows you to move your head around freely (ie up, down, slide or tilt sideways etc) then you can see more than in most other aircraft.

[kramer]

6 hours ago, 56RAF_Roblex said:

Yes.  As long as your VR or TrackIR allows you to move your head around freely (ie up, down, slide or tilt sideways etc) then you can see more than in most other aircraft.

 

It's something different. Yes 6 DOF even in Track Ir 5 help to some degree but even with Track Ir visibility in P-39 is poor and somewhat restricted. In VR it is lot better, it's hard to describe, i think it's a matter of representing real 3d geometry of the cockpit and having two eyes instead of one in Track Ir. Some planes benefit from that more than others.

[[_FLAPS_]Grim]

I like her quite much. But Im a mud mover and not very good dogfighter. 

 

I think the weapons are good, I got most of my few kills with the .50 cals. 

I hit a 109 dead six with the cannon one time, I thought it only damaged it's steering but after a second the whole tail broke of. 

A 110 took one hit witch killed one engine. With the next pass it got ripped apart. 

 

It handles like a charm and it dives very well so germans escape dive doesn't work very well. 

 

I feel very well protected in it. I didn't got killed in it besides when the pilot is wounded and I got in a flat spin and the pilot wouldnt jump. 

 

Sight and engine management ist ok.

 

What makes it hard to fight with it is its poor energy retention and climb. But I think if you fight with a wingman energy retention is a bit easier because you can control a fight better. 

 

Over all if you fligh high with a buddy it's a very nice bird in it's timeframe. 

 

If you are a mudmover its quite enjoyable to pound AA with it and still be capable to fight back a bit against fighters. 

 

Just my 2cent

[[-=BP=-]Slegawsky_VR]

19 hours ago, 666GIAP_Necathor said:

hope that the new red planes don´t be so disappoint as the P39 

What you see in the video is me hugging the deck at all times and avoiding unnecessary maneuvers.

Tactic that seems to work for P-39 otherwise its a easy prey for any beginner LW pilot.

What Requiem said about controls and engine limits makes trying dogfighting a suicide move.

Based on historical evidence current P-39 in game is questionable to say the least.

[Ehret]

52 minutes ago, Slegawsky said:

What you see in the video is me hugging the deck at all times and avoiding unnecessary maneuvers.

Tactic that seems to work for P-39 otherwise its a easy prey for any beginner LW pilot.

What Requiem said about controls and engine limits makes trying dogfighting a suicide move.

Based on historical evidence current P-39 in game is questionable to say the least.

 

The tactic which I had been using (with good survival odds) is to climb +10K ft, then patrol in a very shallow dive at lowered combat power. Then you can "cruise" a bit faster and don't eat timers too much so you can have something left for engagement.

Once I spotted a target I'd accelerate if possible in dive to (maximum) 450mph indicated. Merge, full WEP and do instantaneous turn on the edge of blackout. Odds are you will gain at least marginal gun solution; do your shots and no matter the result always run straight to a nearest AF.

It works but at huge expense of time per a kill - I could get +4 K/D like this.

But it got very (VERY) boring and for what? - a workaround of some bad game mechanic. I had enough even thought I'd like to continue flying the P-39L.

[[-=BP=-]Slegawsky_VR]

14 minutes ago, Ehret said:

It works but at huge expense of time per a kill - I could get +4 K/D like this.

You are clearly a P-39 expert, doubt anyone clocked more hours. Initially that tactic had failed me over and over again because no matter how high i managed to climb there always was a team of 190s above.

[SCG_Wulfe]

The P39 is truly frustrating as it was so successful in real life for the Russians and used extensively. Yet in game, I feel that its engine performance does not reflect what it was really capable of. 

[Brano]

 

[Ehret]

6 hours ago, Slegawsky said:

You are clearly a P-39 expert, doubt anyone clocked more hours. Initially that tactic had failed me over and over again because no matter how high i managed to climb there always was a team of 190s above.

 

Thank you but that's an exaggeration - do something for long enough and some results will show.

 

If you have altitude equal or higher than the 3000m then 190s shouldn't be too hard too handle or escape from in the P-39L. By some coincidence FWs have a big dip in power about the 3000m mark where the P-39L is at strongest (because it's critical altitude for the L thus the drag and throttling loses are lowest). If higher then just dive to 3000m and stay there.

 

BTW. are you using the so called flush radiator setting for the P-39L? The tech page doesn't tell about that but to get the lowest drag in the P-39L you have to switch the water radiator to 60% and the oil to 45%. Otherwise you won't get any decent speed from her.

Thought the in-wings 30cals aren't useless but it's better (imho) to remove them. The difference in performance is noticeable and compounds with time as you will be able to climb higher which has to be done (mostly) on the poor nominal.

[[_FLAPS_]Grim]

That game... Today i needed 3 Cannon hits beside 0.50 cals to kill a 109 ?‍♂️

[[-=BP=-]Slegawsky_VR]

[AndyJWest]

Just now, Slegawsky said:

 

The poll thread seems to have been set up so nobody can comment. I assume that wasn't deliberate?