Flying Circus Future

[SqueakyS]

The Italians had some beautiful planes, especially float planes like the Macchi M5 and some... err... 'unique' designs like the Caproni Ca3. Would love to see a mudle set on the Italian front.

Edited March 25, 2022 by SqueakyS

[JGr2/J5_Klugermann]

I would like to see a gondola.

[J2_Bidu]

1 hour ago, J5_Klugermann said:

I would like to see a gondola.

 

Like in Venice, or like in Zeppelin?

[Zooropa_Fly]

Player-puntable Gondola's.

I'd buy one.

Be better than tanks.

[JGr2/J5_Klugermann]

22 hours ago, J2_Bidu said:

 

Like in Venice, or like in Zeppelin?

 

Definitely Venetian.....If you complete the recon Sizzlor can place 3 around the Barge to protect it.

[J2_Trupobaw]

Zeppelin staaken. But technically it's "engine nacelle", not "gondola".

[Jackfraser24]

What are ten planes that you would like to see for FC3 AND FC4?

[Todt_Von_Oben]

29 minutes ago, Jackfraser24 said:

What are ten planes that you would like to see for FC3 AND FC4?

 

1. Boeing's F-15EX Eagle II
2. Boeing's F/A-18E/F Super Hornet
3. Lockheed Martn's F-16V Fighting Falcon Block 70
4. Lockheed Martin's F-35 Lightning II JSF
5. Dassault Rafale
6. Eurofighter Typhoon
7. Saab's JAS 39 Gripen E/F
8. Sukhoi Su-35 Flanker
9. MiG-35 Fulcrum
10. Chengdu's J-20 Mighty Dragon

 

Or basically, anything that stands a chance against 2D bushwhackers flying SPADS and coordinating on Comm that didn't exist in WW1.  ? 

Edited April 6, 2022 by Todt_Von_Oben

[RNAS10_Mitchell]

N17, N24 , alb 2, alb 3 , morane bullet, eindecker would be great imo

 

And the float planes from RoF

 

Plus snipe , and Sopwith Tripe (already slated as far as I know).

[Jackfraser24]

53 minutes ago, Todt_Von_Oben said:

 

1. Boeing's F-15EX Eagle II
2. Boeing's F/A-18E/F Super Hornet
3. Lockheed Martn's F-16V Fighting Falcon Block 70
4. Lockheed Martin's F-35 Lightning II JSF
5. Dassault Rafale
6. Eurofighter Typhoon
7. Saab's JAS 39 Gripen E/F
8. Sukhoi Su-35 Flanker
9. MiG-35 Fulcrum
10. Chengdu's J-20 Mighty Dragon

 

Or basically, anything that stands a chance against 2D bushwhackers flying SPADS and coordinating on Comm that didn't exist in WW1.  ? 

Good one! Seriously though...

Edited April 6, 2022 by Jackfraser24

[Rodwonder]

Hmm... DH 2, N 17, Sop Pup and 1/2 Strutter, Alb CIII, Roland C II, Caudron, Alb D II and D III, Fe 2b and Re 8... Collector planes Be 2, Fokker E III and D III and Nieuport 11. Or any combination there of ? 

Edited April 12, 2022 by Rodwonder

[J2_Trupobaw]

Strutter/B(itch)

Hanriot

R.E.8

Pup (done right)

N.11

N.17/N.17GB

Albatros C.V

Albatros D.II / D.III

Halberstadt D.II

Roland C.II

 

[Rodwonder]

And let's not forget The Halberstadt D II... 

[Jackfraser24]

What WW1 collector planes could be included? 

 

[Jackfraser24]

For the German unarmed reconnaissance planes like the

• AEG B series
• Albatros B series
• Aviatik B series
• DFW B series
• Euler B series
• Fokker A series
• Gotha LD series
• Halberstadt B series
• LGV B series
• Pfalz A series
• Rumpler B series

Or Armed ones like the

• AEG C series
• Albatros C series
• Aviatik C series
• Other DFW C series (already have the DFW C.V)
• Fokker C.II
• Halberstadt C series
• LGF Roland C series
• LGV C series
• Rumpler C series

Edited April 25, 2022 by Jackfraser24

[Jackfraser24]

Would anyone like to see the 

• AEG G.IV
• Friedrichshafen G.III
• Or the Handley Paige O/100?

[Voyager]

Once they've got the majority of the Western Front set up, I could see them doing, essentially, campaign packs that would fill out rosters of specific air forces for specific periods. 

 

So a US Expositionary force, that added Liberty DH.4/DH.9 and Salmsons and filled out the campaigns on the various fronts they fought on, and so-on

 

On FC3, my understanding is its going to focus mostly on the early part of the air war, in the Fokker Scourge period. So, we've got the Somme in FC1, Verdun with FC2, and sort of the early period in FC3.

[=IRFC=Gascan]

16 hours ago, Jackfraser24 said:

Would anyone like to see more new planes

Yes. Yes I would. Who in their right mind would say they don't want more planes?

The HP O/100 might not be too hard to add. It used the same airframe with different engine nacelles so it couldn't carry as much bomb load. The same wings, same airframe, swap the engines out, and adjust the bomb load, and voila, a new plane to play with. The AEG and Friedrichshafen would have to be built from scratch, although it might not be too hard to make a Gotha G.IV from the Gotha G.V. It looks very similar: different engine nacelles, fuel tanks in the engine nacelles instead of the fuselage, and changes to the cockpit and bomb bay.

All of the WW1 planes so far were originally made for RoF. This means we've got a pretty good idea what is coming next for FC-3 (and I'm excited for it). The only exception are the Siemens-Shuckert and the Sopwith Snipe. They mean that new planes are possible, I just won't get my hopes up too much, and will enjoy what they give us.

 

Here is a list of the planes in RoF that have not been ported over yet.

Central planes:

Fokker E.III

Halberstadt D.II

Albatros D.II

Albatros D.III

Roland CIIa (2-seater)

Brandeburg W12 (2-seat float plane)

Entente planes:

Airco DH.2

Nieuport 11

Nieuport 17.C1 (including French, British, and Russian variants)

Hanriot HD.1

Sopwith Pup

Sopwith 1-1/2 strutter (including single seat B variant)

FE.2b (2-seater, also suitable as late war night bomber)

RE-8 (2-seater)

Felixstowe F.2A (twin engine flying boat)

Sikorsky S-16

Ilya Muromets (four engine)

 

The Felixstowe and Brandenburg seem like a low probability since they are seaplanes and were meant for the Channel Map. The Ilya Muromets and Sikorsky S-16 also seem pretty low probability since they were for the Eastern Front. The Muromets especially has four engines, which they haven't seemed willing to do despite requests from the WW2 guys for B-17's and B-24's.  Otherwise, there's a pretty good selection to flesh out 1917 and provide a very sparse 1916/1915. Some of the planes were used up until the end of the war, like the FE.2b (and the FE.2d with a larger engine, fingers crossed for engine variants) which was used as night bombers, and the RE-8 which was the principle British artillery spotting plane right through 1918.

The Airco DH-4 already exists in FC2, it's one of my favorite planes for photo recon missions on the FlugPark. The DH-9 would fill the same role in game, and would require a lot of developer work for little additional utility in terms of mission design, since the DH-4 did all the same missions as the DH-9. As nice as it would be to see, I'd rather something that covers time periods that aren't covered very well, like the BE2c and a similar German plane for 1915 and later.

Edited May 27, 2022 by gascan

[Jackfraser24]

8 hours ago, gascan said:

Yes. Yes I would. Who in their right mind would say they don't want more planes?

The HP O/100 might not be too hard to add. It used the same airframe with different engine nacelles so it couldn't carry as much bomb load. The same wings, same airframe, swap the engines out, and adjust the bomb load, and voila, a new plane to play with. The AEG and Friedrichshafen would have to be built from scratch, although it might not be too hard to make a Gotha G.IV from the Gotha G.V. It looks very similar: different engine nacelles, fuel tanks in the engine nacelles instead of the fuselage, and changes to the cockpit and bomb bay.

All of the WW1 planes so far were originally made for RoF. This means we've got a pretty good idea what is coming next for FC-3 (and I'm excited for it). The only exception are the Siemens-Shuckert and the Sopwith Snipe. They mean that new planes are possible, I just won't get my hopes up too much, and will enjoy what they give us.

 

Here is a list of the planes in RoF that have not been ported over yet.

Central planes:

Fokker E.III

Halberstadt D.II

Albatros D.II

Albatros D.III

Roland CIIa (2-seater)

Brandeburg W12 (2-seat float plane)

Entente planes:

Airco DH.2

Nieuport 11

Nieuport 17.C1 (including French, British, and Russian variants)

Hanriot HD.1

Sopwith Pup

Sopwith 1-1/2 strutter (including single seat B variant)

FE.2b (2-seater, also suitable as late war night bomber)

RE-8 (2-seater)

Felixstowe F.2A (twin engine flying boat)

Sikorsky S-16

Ilya Muromets (four engine)

 

The Felixstowe and Brandenburg seem like a low probability since they are seaplanes and were meant for the Channel Map. The Ilya Muromets and Sikorsky S-16 also seem pretty low probability since they were for the Eastern Front. The Muromets especially has four engines, which they haven't seemed willing to do despite requests from the WW2 guys for B-17's and B-24's.  Otherwise, there's a pretty good selection to flesh out 1917 and provide a very sparse 1916/1915. Some of the planes were used up until the end of the war, like the FE.2b (and the FE.2d with a larger engine, fingers crossed for engine variants) which was used as night bombers, and the RE-8 which was the principle British artillery spotting plane right through 1918.

The Airco DH-4 already exists in FC2, it's one of my favorite planes for photo recon missions on the FlugPark. The DH-9 would fill the same role in game, and would require a lot of developer work for little additional utility in terms of mission design, since the DH-4 did all the same missions as the DH-9. As nice as it would be to see, I'd rather something that covers time periods that aren't covered very well, like the BE2c and a similar German plane for 1915 and later.

I’d like to see some indigenous or licence built planes from Austria Hungary in Flying Circus once they get to the Eastern Front, i.e. Tarnopol or the Brusilov offensive. Like the 

 

Austria Hungarian Aircraft List

• Aviatik D.I (700 built)
• Hansa-Brandenburg B.I (50 built)
• Hansa-Brandenburg C.I (1,318 built)
• Hansa-Brandenburg D.I (122 built)
• Lloyd C.II (190 built)
• Lohner B.VII (73 built)
• Phonix C.I (110 built)
• Ufag C.I (166 built)

Edited May 28, 2022 by Jackfraser24

[BlitzPig_EL]

I'm still hoping against hope for the Macchi M5, and action over the Adriatic against Austro-Hungarian Hansa-Brandenburgs...

 

[ST_Catchov]

Drop tanks first. And then we shall see ....

 

But while we fantasize, I wouldn't mind going way back to the Spring/Summer of 1915 where the first true fighter aircraft were being developed ....

 

[Jackfraser24]

2 hours ago, ST_Catchov said:

Drop tanks first. And then we shall see ....

 

But while we fantasize, I wouldn't mind going way back to the Spring/Summer of 1915 where the first true fighter aircraft were being developed ....

 

There should be an Italian Front . Italy vs Austria Hungary. No combat flight sim has done that yet...

[Jackfraser24]

And what about the Macedonian Front? Air warfare has been greatly overlooked as opposed to the Western and to a degree the Eastern Fronts.  A lot of aircraft were shot down from both sides on a regular basis. Balloons were involved to shoot down enemy aircraft. It was a dangerous environment to fly in because some would fly over mountains by the Aegean Sea. This meant flying is unpredictable and perilous weather and the mountains were heavily forested so there was no safe place to land in, like there was in France on the Western Front. Still, airmen from opposite sides tried to maintain a sporting attitude towards air combat.

[Avimimus]

On 5/27/2022 at 10:00 PM, Jackfraser24 said:

I’d like to see some indigenous or licence built planes from Austria Hungary in Flying Circus once they get to the Eastern Front, i.e. Tarnopol or the Brusilov offensive. Like the 

 

Austria Hungarian Aircraft List

• Aviatik D.I (700 built)
• Hansa-Brandenburg B.I (50 built)
• Hansa-Brandenburg C.I (1,318 built)
• Hansa-Brandenburg D.I (122 built)
• Lloyd C.II (190 built)
• Lohner B.VII (73 built)
• Phonix C.I (110 built)
• Ufag C.I (166 built)

 

Ah, but for a ten aircraft module one can realistically only have about five planes per side. I think this means that two seaters can't be as comprehensively modelled as you are suggesting. That said, I do really think that early-mid war two-seaters are the highest priority.

 

My current theory-crafting list:

 

Austro-Hungarian fighters:

• Aviatik (Berg) D.I
• Albatros (Oeffag) D.III series 153
• Hansa Brandenburg CC (or W.18)

 

Italian fighters:

• Ansaldo S.V.A.5
• Italian versions of the Nieuports (possibly a Nieuport 27), Hanriot HD.I etc.
• Macchi M.5

 

Two seaters and multi-seat:

• Hansa-Brandenburg C.I (one of the Phönix built, Hiero 6 equipped series)
• Pomilio PD/PE

 

Multi-seat bombers:

• Caproni Ca.3 bomber
• Typ K (licensed produced Hansa Brandenburg FB or W.13) seaplane bombers

 

I'd be very interesting if people have feedback on these choices.

 

 

Some notes:

 

- In reality I think people would want an Albatros Series 253 as well and the Hansa-Brandenburg D.I would be desired (even if it had poor flight characteristics). This could be balanced against Italy having so many variants of French aircraft, however it would bring the total number of aircraft up from 10 to 15 if counted that way... maybe release as three half-modules of five aircraft each?

 

- It would also be highly desirable to have a slower/earlier Italian two seater already released for France (Caudron G.4 or Voisin III) and the Morane Saulnier L / Pfalz A.II for Russia and for the famous trans-alpine raid by Germany would also be useful. I'd hope that at least one of these aircraft would already have been added to the sim (and thus wouldn't need to take up a slot). A Nieuport 12 two-seater might also be useful.

 

- There are some other missed opportunities in this list. For instance, the Caproni Ca.4 bomber (much less numerous than the Ca.3) and the Oeffag G large seaplane with its 66mm howitzer broadside armament...

 

- All of the listed aircraft are well enough documented to be modelled (many of them have surviving examples). With probably the Hansa-Brandenburg CC/W.18 seaplane fighters being the least well documented.

 

 

 

  

On 5/30/2022 at 1:50 AM, ST_Catchov said:

Drop tanks first. And then we shall see ....

 

But while we fantasize, I wouldn't mind going way back to the Spring/Summer of 1915 where the first true fighter aircraft were being developed ....

 

Well, a start could be a 1916 two-seater which isn't too fast but is still very interesting (Voisin VIII, Caudron G.4 would be my picks, maybe a B.e.2c). A Morane-Saulnier L / Pfalz A.II/E.III would be pretty ideal though... as it'd provide a bit of 1915-1916 for both sides in both single seat and two-seat varieties... so if we could only have one, it'd be a tempting choice.

Edited June 16, 2022 by Avimimus

[352ndOscar]

Avimimus, @Avimimus

 

Ok, reference our other conversation; I’ll meet you halfway.  I’ll support all your pre-1916 suggestions, ALL of them - but you gotta support my call for the Salmson 2A2.  With the Verdun-Metz part of the map coming down the line, USAS Squadrons are going to come into the forefront.  We have the SPAD XIII, the Airco DH4, and the Breguet 14.  We have to have the Salmson….. PLEASE!!!

Edited June 5, 2022 by 352ndOscar

[[F.Circus]MoerasGrizzly]

I'm always up for more salmon.

[=IRFC=Gascan]

Not getting enough salmon, there?

 

 

[Avimimus]

4 hours ago, 352ndOscar said:

Avimimus, @Avimimus

 

Ok, reference our other conversation; I’ll meet you halfway.  I’ll support all your pre-1916 suggestions, ALL of them - but you gotta support my call for the Salmson 2A2.  With the Verdun-Metz part of the map coming down the line, USAS Squadrons are going to come into the forefront.  We have the SPAD XIII, the Airco DH4, and the Breguet 14.  We have to have the Salmson….. PLEASE!!!

 

Oh definitely! With ~3200 examples produced, and with France lacking a second two-seater... it shouldn't even have to be argued.

 

 

 

  

3 hours ago, [F.Circus]MoerasGrizzly said:

I'm always up for more salmon.

 

Since you said it... well, you've doomed us: Salmson-Moineau SM.1 (airwar.ru)

 

France built ~750 three seat multipurpose aircraft - ones with both frontal gunners and rear gunners. Of these, on of the less successful types was the Salmson-Moineau S.M.1, with a single engine sideways mounted engine driving two propellers. Nevertheless 155 examples were ordered and it served throughout 1917 in spite of its reliability issues. For some inexplicable reason I find it fascinating. May it haunt your dreams as it has haunted mine.

 

Edited June 6, 2022 by Avimimus

[352ndOscar]

Definitely a strange one.  Interesting idea for the engine mounting.  Those radiators need some armor plating though - too easy a target.  Kill the cooling and bring the plane down.

[Jackfraser24]

The Ottomans didn't have much of an air force in WWI, and they certainly had no aircraft industry. However, Germany did transfer up to 460 planes to the Ottoman Empire with 260 of them being supplied to the Ottoman Aviation Squadrons, while the rest remained in German units. Not much probably happened since I can't find anything relevant to what I'm looking for, but would there still be any point in having a module set in the Middle East? Or the Caucasus? I've probably asked a similar question before, but I'd like to point out that those places not been covered yet, well not by WWI combat flight simulators.

Edited June 9, 2022 by Jackfraser24

[[F.Circus]MoerasGrizzly]

On 6/6/2022 at 5:09 AM, Avimimus said:

France built ~750 three seat multipurpose aircraft - ones with both frontal gunners and rear gunners. Of these, on of the less successful types was the Salmson-Moineau S.M.1, with a single engine sideways mounted engine driving two propellers. Nevertheless 155 examples were ordered and it served throughout 1917 in spite of its reliability issues. For some inexplicable reason I find it fascinating. May it haunt your dreams as it has haunted mine.

I mean, one engine driving multiple axles is not that weird, you get the same with any 4WD car. I'm geussing it's one of those "too ahead of its time" things.

[Avimimus]

4 hours ago, [F.Circus]MoerasGrizzly said:

I mean, one engine driving multiple axles is not that weird, you get the same with any 4WD car. I'm geussing it's one of those "too ahead of its time" things.

 

From the 1910s (WWI) through to the 1940s many different designers tried moving the propeller away from the engine. The increased weight of the drive system would be counteracted by reduced frontal cross-section, improvements to center of mass, shorter fuel lines, and an ability to service the engines in flight (something important for some early long-ranged aircraft). However, almost all of these designs failed due to vibration issues, hence why we don't think of them. The S.M.1 is one of the few designs to see serial production. I agree that it seems like a reasonable layout though, and one could widen the fuselage and double the number of engines... so it'd seem easy to scale up.

[352ndOscar]

How wide?  Can we get a PW 4360 in there?

 

 

[Hien-0_1*]

On 5/27/2022 at 5:18 PM, Voyager said:

Once they've got the majority of the Western Front set up, I could see them doing, essentially, campaign packs that would fill out rosters of specific air forces for specific periods. 

 

So a US Expositionary force, that added Liberty DH.4/DH.9 and Salmsons and filled out the campaigns on the various fronts they fought on, and so-on

 

On FC3, my understanding is its going to focus mostly on the early part of the air war, in the Fokker Scourge period. So, we've got the Somme in FC1, Verdun with FC2, and sort of the early period in FC3.

I can gladly do without the "early period" in FC.

I would rather have more aircraft for the "last" period (1918: rare aircraft but also missing main types).

 

In any case, I wish:

 

Airco DH 9A

Hanriot HD.1

RAF RE-8

Salmson SAL.2 A2

SPAD S.XII

SPAD S.XVII

Sopwith 1-1/2 Strutter

Sopwith TF.2 Salamander

LFG Roland D VIb

Junkers D I (J9)

... and several german two-seaters!!!

 

[baevans]

I’m just waiting for theFC2 map…..

[No.23_Starling]

On 4/6/2022 at 3:36 AM, Todt_Von_Oben said:

 

1. Boeing's F-15EX Eagle II
2. Boeing's F/A-18E/F Super Hornet
3. Lockheed Martn's F-16V Fighting Falcon Block 70
4. Lockheed Martin's F-35 Lightning II JSF
5. Dassault Rafale
6. Eurofighter Typhoon
7. Saab's JAS 39 Gripen E/F
8. Sukhoi Su-35 Flanker
9. MiG-35 Fulcrum
10. Chengdu's J-20 Mighty Dragon

 

Or basically, anything that stands a chance against 2D bushwhackers flying SPADS and coordinating on Comm that didn't exist in WW1.  ? 

You need some pepper with that salt?

[Jackfraser24]

Now that I think of it, when it comes to WWI scenarios, developers find themselves in a far more restrictive when it comes to where they want to go. They only have four fronts to choose from:

• Western Front
• Chanel Front
• Eastern Front
• Macedonian Front
• Italian Front

Europe was the only place where the war in the air was significant.

 

Where as in WWII, there is the:

• Western Front
• Eastern Front
• Italy
• North Africa - will never happen unless there is a change in agreements (and that probably won't happen)
• Finland
• The Atlantic - if there is enough interest
• The Pacific
• China - if there is enough interest
• Southeast Asia - if there is enough interest
• Manchuria
• Strategic bombing over Germany by the British and Americans - maybe one day

Since WWII air battles were fought on a worldwide scale. 
 

Sorry if I have pointed out the obvious.

Edited June 16, 2022 by Jackfraser24

[RNAS10_Mitchell]

I sure hope the drop tanks are done by then....

[ST_Catchov]

In accordance with Mitchy's plea, please, please me Mr Williams and give us the drop tanks. I'm not thinking of myself. I don't even like selfies. Or influencers for that matter. Nay Sir, it's for all the stout chaps out there who have waited for years. Patiently, with good will and virtue. And paid their shekels in good faith. Sure, they can be a rowdy bunch at times. But their hearts are with you. Release the drop tanks and allow Han to get on with the real business.

[Avimimus]

On 5/26/2022 at 10:20 PM, Jackfraser24 said:

Would anyone like to see the 

• AEG G.IV
• Friedrichshafen G.III
• Or the Handley Paige O/100?

 

AEG G.IV / G.IVN would probably be the most appealing to most players. It was relatively easy to fly, could go 165 km/h (making it one of the fastest bombers and able to reach Albatros D.II/Pfalz D.III speeds), there is a surviving example preserved, and the 'N' variant consists of an increased wingspan allowing a much heavier bomb-load (rivalling the Gotha and even the Friederichschafen).

 

If you like that sort of aircraft I'd suggest looking up the Zeppelin-Staaken R.VI! and the Caproni Ca.4.

 

The Oeffag G might also be of interest (only ten were produced though). I know some original drawings exist.