"The Cold Blue" Server - Escort vs Interceptor High Altitude Action

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we'll be featuring the three Battle of Normandy missions for our weekly flyout.  The US 9th AF variant features P-47s and P-38s tasked with knocking out bridges, marshaling yards, trains and road traffic matched up against the 190A and 109G.  The RAF variant features Spitfires and Typhoons (with a few Mustang IIIs) targeting trains and road traffic against the 190A and 109G (with some limited MW50).  The US 8th AF variant focuses on P-38s, P-47s and P-51s tasked with bombing and strafing road and rail traffic, marshaling yards, and enemy airfields against the usual 190A/109G combo with some more plentiful MW50. 

 

 

Come fly with us and enjoy these classic Summer 1944 match ups in a low altitude tactical environment, complete with some limited radar that can detect player aircraft.

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up this Thursday at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EDT and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PDT.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

Edited September 10, 2024 by 357th_KW

[357th_KW]

This week marks the 80th anniversary of Operation Market-Garden.  This Thursday we'll be rolling out two brand new Market-Garden themed missions focusing on air battles over Arnhem taking place on September the 19th and the 21st between the USAAF and the Luftwaffe.  Bad weather and the rapid Allied advance had greatly limited the ability of the RAF to cover the airborne assault, and US airpower was brought in to support the operation.  The 19th saw a large scale battle between Mustangs of the 8th AF and German fighters over the battle zone.  The weather grew even worse and on the 21st only two groups of 8th Air Force Thunderbolts were able to get airborne to offer fighter support, resulting in a large battle with the Focke-Wulfs of JG26.  Come join us for some late war battles over the drop zones this Thursday! 

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up this Thursday at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EDT and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PDT.  See you guys there!

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

 

[357th_KW]

This Thursday we're going to be running two new Operation Market-Garden missions featuring the RAF vs the Luftwaffe.  Both set in late September 1944, these missions focus on the tactical battles that took place over the Allied salient after the failure to capture Arnhem.  These will feature the classic Spitfire/Typhoon vs 109G/190A matchup.  Additionally, these missions highlight the 2nd Tactical Air Force's withdrawal of the Mustang III and introduction of the Hawker Tempest.  To round out the playlist, we'll also be running RAF missions from Normandy and Western Europe 1945.  Come join us for some late war battles with a British flavor!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up this Thursday at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EDT and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PDT.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

[357th_KW]

This Thursday we'll be running a series of high altitude strategic bombing missions from The Mighty 8th and The Forgotten 15th campaigns.  All the missions in this playlist have been updated to the latest standard - bomber gunners are less lethal and Axis AI is more challenging, escorts can strafe enemy airfields for added scoring in the Mighty 8th varieties, and Axis players have airspawns throughout the mission so there's no requirement to climb all the way up to the bombers.

 

 

Come join us for some classic high altitude late war battles!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up this Thursday at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EDT and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PDT.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

[357th_KW]

This Thursday we'll be running a Channel Front themed playlist. Missions range from 1941 through 1943 and feature battles between the RAF and Luftwaffe over the English Channel. Come take part in some classic 'Circus' raids, see the early stages of the 8th Air Force bomber campaign take wing, and take part in some early Typhoon ops! These mid-war matchups are a nice change of pace from the late war stuff we usually see in IL-2 these days.

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up this Thursday at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EDT and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PDT.  See you guys there!

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

 

[357th_KW]

This Thursday we are returning to the MTO with The Forgotten 15th! I've added two new missions, one is another high altitude escort scenario. The other focuses on a June 10th, 1944 P-38 dive bomber raid that resulted in a heavy clash with Romanian IAR-80s and Bf109s.

 

 

These missions have a nice mix of the classic 109s and Mustangs, but with a heavy dose of P-38, IAR-80 and MC202. Come join us for some MTO action!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up this Thursday at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EDT and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PDT.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday the server will be trying out a new format thanks to user suggestions. The Thursday night playlist will lead into a week long playlist of the same campaign. This week, we'll be focusing on Mid War, 1941-43! The playlist will feature a mix of Channel Front, Siege of Malta, and North Africa missions ranging from early 1941 to mid 1943. Looking to take a break from the super props? Dust off your Bf109F, Macchi 202, Hurricane and Spitfire Mk. V! Even the P-40 will get an appearance in the North Africa mission. Come join us for some Mid War action, starting this Thursday!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up this Thursday at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EDT and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PDT.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we're going to be focusing on the mighty Hawker Tempest. Missions will range from its deployment on the continent at the tail end of Operation Market-Garden, through the Battle of the Bulge, and into the final spring time battles over Western Europe. Come check out the new update for this super-prop and fly it along with other legends like the Spitfire Mk XIV, Bf109K-4, Fw190D-9 and even the Ta-152H!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up this Thursday at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

Edited November 19, 2024 by 357th_KW

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we've got a fall 1944 playlist featuring the USAAF battling the Luftwaffe over the skies of western Europe! 80 years ago this month, a series of enormous battles were fought in the skies over Germany as a rebuilt Reich's Defense Force took on the Mighty 8th Air Force. This week's playlist features two of these November 1944 8th AF raids, along with a September raid and two USAAF Market-Garden missions. Come join us for some classic battles featuring the Mustang and Thunderbolt against the 109 and 190. These November battles mark some of the first appearances of the 109K-4 and 190D-9 in combat.

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up this Thursday at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

[357th_KW]

This Thursday we're going to take a break from the late war focus with a playlist I'm calling: The Turning Point!  This playlist will have a mix of missions from Western Europe, the Mediterranean and the Eastern Front in 1942 and 1943.  Many of these feature the Axis forces as the escorts.  Take to the skies as the Allies attempt to swing the balance back in their favor!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up this Thursday at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we'll head south for the winter with The Forgotten 15th.  Come enjoy a mix of high altitude escort and tactical missions featuring battles between the US 15th Air Force and German, Italian and Romanian forces in the MTO.  Expect to see lots of P-38 Lightnings, as well as some of the more unusual Axis fighters like the Macchi 202 and IAR-80.

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up this Thursday at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

[357th_KW]

 

This week marks the 80th anniversary of The Battle of the Bulge. In commemoration of this massive battle, we will be running a mix of new Battle of the Bulge missions, along with some high altitude bomber escort missions from The Mighty 8th campaign.

 

We'll be switching over to this playlist for the Thursday night event, and run them through the end of the year. Additional Battle of the Bulge missions will get added to the playlist as they are completed. Come join us for some exciting late war battles ranging from high altitude bombers down to tank hunting at treetop height!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up this Thursday at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

[357th_KW]

Happy Holidays!  I hope everyone is enjoying time with family and friends.  This week we're continuing our commemoration of the Battle of the Bulge.  A new mission, set on December 23rd, 1944 has been added to the playlist.  It features 9th Air Force medium bombers striking targets behind the front lines and offers lots of medium altitude action! 

 

 

Come join us for some classic USAAF vs Luftwaffe action over the Bulge this Thursday!  For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

[357th_KW]

 

Happy New Year!  This Thursday, we'll be running another Battle of the Bulge themed flyout to wrap up our Holiday Bulge extravaganza.  I've just added a new mission set on January 14th, 1945 - this proved to be one of the largest air battles of the late war period.  This new mission is set up with two boxes of bombers (24!) along with larger waves of interceptors attacking the bombers and player flown Me262s!

 

 

Come join us on the 80th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge, and take to the skies in your favorite late war fighters!  For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we're going to break away from the Ardennes and wind back the clock with The Channel Front!  These missions are spread from 1941 through 1943, featuring RAF Circus and Ramrod raids on targets in France.  The Hurricane Mk II, Spitfire Mk V, Bf109F/G and Fw190A all figure heavily in these missions.

 

 

Come join us for some classic battles over the English Channel!  For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

[Knarley-Bob]

Seem to have forgotten what your sights name implies...

[357th_KW]

9 hours ago, Knarley-Bob said:

Seem to have forgotten what your sights name implies...

 

Not a fan of the Channel Front missions?  Or sticking to one campaign for a week at a time?  Sorry, I'm just trying to understand your feedback.

[Knarley-Bob]

Your site is the only site with those high-altitude missions. It's different and quite refreshing. Not trying to complain, but sometimes "different" is more fun. Its hard to explain, but all the other sites are well, just like the other sites. But yours being different was like a breath of fresh air.

 

It is your site, you do what you like, I'm just trying to encourage more contrail battles. I know you have to please IL-2 so perhaps your hands are tied. Intercepting bombers before getting to England would be a possibility if permitted.

I will continue to fly your site when in the contrails.....

 

KB

[357th_KW]

On 1/11/2025 at 9:51 AM, Knarley-Bob said:

Your site is the only site with those high-altitude missions. It's different and quite refreshing. Not trying to complain, but sometimes "different" is more fun. Its hard to explain, but all the other sites are well, just like the other sites. But yours being different was like a breath of fresh air.

 

It is your site, you do what you like, I'm just trying to encourage more contrail battles. I know you have to please IL-2 so perhaps your hands are tied. Intercepting bombers before getting to England would be a possibility if permitted.

I will continue to fly your site when in the contrails.....

 

KB

Don’t worry, I’ll still have a heavy emphasis on higher altitude stuff.  These channel front missions actually have quite a lot of higher altitude engagements, as well as one mission with RAF fighters escorting an American heavy bomber formation in late 1942.

 

The 3 weeks of Battle of the Bulge over the holidays was probably too much, but I wanted to get some new missions for it rolled out for the 80th anniversary.  Eventually that campaign will have a couple additional high altitude escort missions as part of it, focusing on 8th AF attacks on Rhine bridges and German airfields behind the bulge, but I just didn’t get them built in time.

 

I think this next week maybe we’ll take a break from doing one campaign all week, and just use the Thursday fly out for focusing on one campaign, and then try blocks of two related missions in rotation through the week. Hopefully that will provide a better balance of getting to fly the themed missions for that week, but keeping the classics in rotation all the time.

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we're climbing back to high altitude with The Mighty 8th! We'll be running a mix of seven missions from 1944 and 1945 featuring classic high altitude USAAF vs Luftwaffe match-ups. Come take to the skies and tackle boxes of heavy bombers in the Bf109, Fw190 and even the Me262! Fly top cover over majestic formations of heavies in the legendary Lightning, Thunderbolt and Mustang!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

This week we're going to change things up a bit and after the Thursday flyout, we will revert to a mix of missions from different campaigns. This time we'll run two missions from the same campaign back to back, so that players aren't getting into a rut flying the same campaign all week.

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

[C6_Geooorges_VR]

Greetings 357th_KW

 

Tried out your server with a buddy new to Il 2 last night after his training course, to show him the magnificence of high alt interceptions and its graphical magic.

 

Great work, really. The choice of air spawns for both sides, the approximate position of bombers stream given at times leaves just enough spotting time to feel the thrill of the hunt.

 

The pair of us had some great time dealing with AI escorts too, and coming down home with a damaged aircraft in search of a backup airfield is a greatly immersive part of each mission.

 

I really feel like softening the resistance of the bombers just a tad would be a good tweak. We don't need to have bombers parts raining all over like in Masters of the Air, but a hit from a 30mm should be enough to light up a motor or rip apart a tail section/wing.

 

Will be coming back for other missions from you.

 

S!

[357th_KW]

On 1/17/2025 at 2:56 AM, C6_Geooorges_VR said:

Greetings 357th_KW

 

Tried out your server with a buddy new to Il 2 last night after his training course, to show him the magnificence of high alt interceptions and its graphical magic.

 

Great work, really. The choice of air spawns for both sides, the approximate position of bombers stream given at times leaves just enough spotting time to feel the thrill of the hunt.

 

The pair of us had some great time dealing with AI escorts too, and coming down home with a damaged aircraft in search of a backup airfield is a greatly immersive part of each mission.

 

I really feel like softening the resistance of the bombers just a tad would be a good tweak. We don't need to have bombers parts raining all over like in Masters of the Air, but a hit from a 30mm should be enough to light up a motor or rip apart a tail section/wing.

 

Will be coming back for other missions from you.

 

S!

 

Glad to hear you guys enjoyed it!  I hope you get a chance to check out some of the other variety of missions that I've got.  Hopefully I'll get a chance to fly with you guys at some point.

 

In regard to the toughness of the bombers, DM stuff is always controversial, and there are lots of opinions.  I do really appreciate the feedback, and please don't take this response negatively.  I'm happy to discuss this stuff.  I'll try to share with you how I ended up where we're at right now on the server.

 

The only large scale study I've been able to find regarding this stuff is this document.  This was part of an "Optimum Caliber" study initiated by the USAAF after WW2 attempting to determine what the best choices for weapons would be going forward, and involved the destruction of over 280 surplus B-25s, P-47s and P-38s with a few other types and engine varieties mixed in.  One of the weapons tested in the study was the German Mk108 30mm cannon.  In Part II of the paper, they go into detail about their calculated probabilities of a single hit producing a kill on a P-47 and then a B-25.  They breakdown kills as "A kills" which would bring down the target within 5 minutes, or "B kills" which would prevent the target from returning from it's mission (fuel leaks, oil leaks etc).  The probability they come up with - again, this is from shooting many actual aircraft and studying the results - for the Mk108 is about 28%/42% for A and B kills respectively against the P-47 (firing from low 12 o'clock - essentially a flak engagement).  Against the B-25 (fire from the rear at 500m - an interceptor shot), the results were roughly 6%/11% for A and B kills.  They then calculate the probability of an A kill from 10 random hits against the B-25 as roughly 70% (and B kill just under 100%).  And a B-17 or B-24 is of course much bigger, has twice as many engines, more redundancy etc.

 

One of the other things I've looked at is German gun camera film.  A lot of what's out there is very relevant, involving attacks on B-17s and B-24s, often coming from Fw190s, but there is also some film from Me163s and Bf110's.  Any of the 190 film showing Sturmgruppe or Sturm in the unit name likely involves an aircraft with the 2x Mk108s in the wings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Watching all these, it's almost impossible to know the fate of the targets (although that first video has some information regarding some of the film in the description).  In most cases we'll never know if that particular target went down or not, nor do we know if other aircraft also attacked it, had it taken flak damage etc.  But what I see in all of these films is B-17s and B-24s taking a LOT of cannon hits, generally without bursting into flames or falling apart.  In some cases you see that, but most of these films don't show any catastrophic damage.  This seems to be largely in agreement with the findings of that study I posted earlier - it was REALLY hard to shoot these bombers down.

 

The leading Luftwaffe experten against heavy bombers had scores in the low 30's (as compared to the top overall experten having scores in the 200-300+ range) in spite of having encountered these aircraft from 1942-1945 in large numbers, and it's quite likely that many of their victories were heavily assisted by other fighters and flak given the nature of these battles.  If we look at the Schweinfurt raids, where escorts fighters were largely absent for most of the battle, the August 43 raid scored 60 total bombers shot down (including any lost to flak) for 441 fighter sorties that made contact with the bombers.   Looking at the October 43 raid, again 60 heavy bombers are lost from 672 Luftwaffe fighters making contact that day.

 

So from a historical standpoint, I think it should be pretty hard to down a "B-17" - which is what I'm trying to simulate with the tweaked B-25s in these missions.

 

Now of course this is a game, and we want it to be enjoyable, otherwise no one would play.  These are very asymmetrical missions - the two teams often have wildly different plane sets, and their goals are completely different.  The mission scoring is setup to reflect this as well.  The Allies score points for shooting down German fighters, as well as strafing aircraft on the airfields (and trains in some newer variants) to incentivize the extensive strafing done by the 8th AF.  On the Axis side, points are scored for killing bombers (significantly higher value then a fighter), damaging bombers to the point they break formation and turn back or ditch, and to much lesser extent killing escort fighters.  The various point totals are setup so that the mission isn't judged on "Did you kill every bomber?" or "Did you protect every bomber?", but rather how efficient were you?  For example the Axis side could shoot down every bomber, but if they lost an air force worth of fighters doing it, they could still lose the mission.  And likewise the Allies could protect most of the bombers, but if they don't actually damage the Luftwaffe and shoot anything down (which was their historical goal in these time frames) they can still lose the mission.

 

In game, I find that I can usually get 1 bomber, but sometimes I'll strike out and sometimes I'll get 2 or 3.  I'm seeing Axis wins pretty regularly, so it feels like things are in a pretty good place on these missions.  That said, I'm happy to chat about all this stuff and I really appreciate getting feedback.  Over the past year and a half, the missions have changed substantially, including changes to the toughness of the bombers, changes to the gunner skill, formation layouts, numbers of escorts and interceptors, scoring etc.  So if something is broken, wrong, or just not fun etc. I'm definitely open to making changes.  Hopefully this didn't bore you to tears and answers your concerns - see you online!

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we'll be highlighting the Battle of Normandy and Operation Market-Garden.  This will be a mix of RAF and USAAF focused missions in June and September 1944.  The RAF missions heavily feature the Spitfire Mk IX and Typhoon, matched up against the Bf109G and Fw190A.  The USAAF missions feature the P-38, P-47 and P-51, and a couple of the missions are Lightning and Thunderbolt exclusive to give these underappreciated birds a chance to spread their wings.

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

Edited January 21 by 357th_KW
Updating flyout times.

[Winkelmann]

Is there a parser anywhere to check out the stats? Love the server by the way!

[357th_KW]

This Thursday we're featuring The Forgotten 15th! Come join us for high altitude escort missions featuring the Lightning, Mustang and Thunderbolt matched against the 109 and 190 along with a few Macchi 202s and IAR-80s. There's also a dive-bombing mission inspired by the US fighter raid on Ploesti in June 1944.

 

 

The often ignored "southern front" of the US strategic bomber offensive has some notable differences to the battles of the Mighty 8th in Western Europe. Far more P-38s and fewer P-47s saw action in the MTO, and updates and modifications to American fighters were far more limited. Additionally, Axis pilots from Romania, Italy, Hungary, and Croatia all played a roll in combating the US bombers at varying points. It all adds up to an interesting and different experience!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we're flying on The Channel Front!  This playlist will include six missions ranging from 1941 to 1943.  Jump in the cockpit of a Hurricane, Spitfire or Typhoon and take part in Circus and Ramrod raids!  Take to the skies in a Bf109 or Fw190 and sweep the skies over France!  Most of these mission feature high altitude battles and give players a great opportunity to experience these mid war fighters up above 20,000ft.

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we're headed back to the Mediterranean for some early and mid war action! These missions give the Axis pilots the opportunity to experience the escort role in the Macchi 202, 109 and 110 as they cover bombers striking Malta and shepherd Ju52s to North Africa. They also give Allied pilots a chance at trying the interceptor role in early and mid war work-horses like the Hurricane Mk II, Spitfire Mk V, and P-40E. 

 

 

The three Siege of Malta missions have received some big updates like dynamic radar, scored strafing targets, and AI load shedding which allows larger numbers of AI aircraft throughout the mission for more action. Come join us for these improved missions, set in a theater you rarely get to experience in IL-2!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we're flying high with The Mighty 8th! We'll be running a mix of five high altitude bomber escort missions from 1944 and 1945, along with a couple 8th AF themed tactical missions from The Battle of Normandy and Operation Market-Garden. Come take to the skies and tackle boxes of heavy bombers in the Bf109, Fw190, zerstorers like the Bf110G, Me410 and Ju88C, and even the Me262! Fly top cover over majestic formations of heavies in the legendary Lightning, Thunderbolt and Mustang!

 

These Mighty 8th missions have received a number of recent updates. In addition to formations of 18-24 bomber, these missions will now often see large groups of escorts and interceptors. If you like big swirling dogfights with contrails filling the sky, these mission are for you! There are now also trains to strafe in addition to enemy airfields, which can become targets of opportunity for escorts to engage while returning to base. Strafing these kinds of targets was a very common practice for the escort fighters of the 8th Air Force, and you'll see them in all the updated missions - just watch out for the flak!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we'll be revisiting the winter of 1944/45 with The Battle of the Bulge and The Mighty 8th!  These missions will range from November of 1944 through January of 1945, and feature of mix of high altitude escorts and lower altitude tactical battles between the Western Allies and the Luftwaffe.  Experience high altitude battles over waves of Allied bombers.  Take to the skies over the snowy Ardennes during the Battle of the Bulge.

 

 

These missions will feature a lot of late war favorites like the Bf109K, Fw190D, Spitfire Mk XIV, Tempest Mk V, P-51D and small numbers of the German jets.  Besides high altitude escort and intercept missions, you'll see low altitude fighter bomber and tactical recon action over the front lines, and sweep or cover Luftwaffe jet airfields behind the front lines.  Come join us for some late war fun!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

[357th_KW]

This Thursday we're focusing on US Strategic bombing missions with a mix of The Mighty 8th and The Forgotten 15th.  We'll be flying a mix of missions ranging from May through September 1944.

 

 

These missions will feature a mix of Normandy and Bodenplatte aircraft.  This period sees the transition from using the twin engine Zerstorers towards large formations of up-gunned Fw190s.  All of these missions feature the latest updates with larger numbers of AI fighters on both sides for more intense action around the bombers!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

 

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we're flying on The Channel Front! We'll be running a mix of six missions focused around the battles between the RAF and Luftwaffe over the English Channel from 1941-43. This include RAF "Circus" raids, with small groups of bombers acting as bait to draw the Luftwaffe in battle over France. There are also "Ramrod" raids where more powerful forces of bombers seek to strike targets. You'll get a chance to fly classics like the Spitfire, Hurricane and Typhoon against Bf109s and Fw190s.

 

I've starting working on adding updates to these missions similar to those seen in The Mighty 8th like AI load shedding allowing for more AI. I've also raised the altitude of many of the spawns and AI fighters to better match historical combat reports from the period. Come check out the new updates in the June 1941 and December 1942 missions!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EST and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PST.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

[JMax]

😎Sounds great. Too early in the war for the D9 Dora? I like the FW 190 variants and am curious which models would be available. Thanks.

[357th_KW]

23 hours ago, JMax said:

😎Sounds great. Too early in the war for the D9 Dora? I like the FW 190 variants and am curious which models would be available. Thanks.

Yeah, these missions are set from 1941-43, so it’s a lot of early 109s (E7, F2, F4) in 1941, with the switch to 190A3 for the channel Geschwader coming in 1942, and a handful of earlier 109Gs sneaking into those 42-43 missions.  The RAF is primarily equipped with Hurricanes and Spit Vs, and gradually adding some Spit IXs in summer 42 and some Typhoons in 1943.

[JMax]

Ok thanks. I will be in the  FW190- A3.😎

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we're taking to the skies over Germany again with The Mighty 8th!  Experience the excitement of massive high altitude battles over large formations of bombers.  These missions feature 1944-45 matchups between the USAAF and the Luftwaffe - Thunderbolts, Lightnings and Mustangs arrayed against 109s, 190s, twin engine Zerstorers and even the mighty Me-262.

 

 

I've been updating all these missions with improvements allowing for more AI, and more variety in AI behavior.  These updates have also freed up more resources allowing for additional strafing targets for the escort fighters.  If you haven't flown on the server in a while, you should come check out these updated missions!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EDT and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PDT.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

Edited March 18 by 357th_KW

[357th_KW]

Spring is here in the Pacific Northwest and I've got a series of trips coming up over the next month.  As a result, I'm not planning any flyout events until May.  The server will still be up and running, I'll still be flying when I can, and I'll try to keep rotating a new playlist every week as well.  If you would like to see specific missions or host an event yourself, just reach out to me on Discord and I can make that happen as long as I've got a bit of lead time.  The list of all available missions is on the Discord in the #master-mission-list.

 

 

I've been working on getting all the Mighty 8th and Forgotten 15th missions (15 missions!) updated to the latest standard, and finally finished this process a week ago.  All these missions now have significantly increased AI counts and it's not uncommon to see 10-12 AI escorts and interceptors mixing it up around the bombers.  There are also more strafing targets available for escorts with trains in addition to airfields, and smoke columns have been added to all active airfields to ease navigation challenge for players.

 

 

I've also started updating the Channel Front missions with these same upgrades.  Using AI load shedding has freed up a lot of resources to add more fighters into the missions.  So far the June 1941 and December 1942 missions have been updated, and hopefully I'll get the rest of these updated in the near future.  After that, I plan to work on getting the Siege of Malta updated to the standard of the USAAF and the Channel Front missions - more variety in missions and bomber routes, more AI etc.

 

 

I'm now starting to work on building some new missions.  The server is currently at 40, but I feel like there is still a lot of room to expand some of the current campaigns, and explore some new areas we haven't really done much with yet.  There are also some exciting developments coming for IL-2:GB including new maps and new aircraft, which I hope to use.  I'm aiming to have some of these new missions up and running in the next two months.

Edited March 26 by 357th_KW

[357th_KW]

This Thursday we're resuming our flyout events on The Cold Blue!  This week marks the 80th anniversary of V-E Day, and we'll be celebrating with a 1945 themed playlist.  In honor of the Allies victory in Europe we'll have a mix of high altitude bombing and low altitude tactical missions set in Spring 1945.

 

 

Take to the skies over the crumbling Reich in your favorite late war monsters like the Hawker Tempest, Spitfire Mk XIV, P-51D Mustang, Bf109K, Fw190D, Me262 and even some Ta-152's!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EDT and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PDT.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we're heading to Southern Europe with The Forgotten 15th!  These missions feature the Lightning, Thunderbolt and Mustang fighters of the 15th Air Force escorting heavy bomber raids out of Italy.  Arrayed against them are not just the Luftwaffe, but also Axis pilots from Italy, Romania, Hungary and Croatia.

 

 

These missions are an interesting departure from the Mighty 8th missions most are more familiar with.  American fighters received few if any upgrades in this theater, while the Axis employed a number of less common types like the Mc202 and IAR-80 and the Zerstorer's stayed in combat longer.  Come check out this little known theater of World War II!

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EDT and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PDT.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

Edited May 14 by 357th_KW

[357th_KW]

 

This Thursday we're flying The Channel Front! Take to the war torn skies over the English Channel in 1941-43, where the Luftwaffe and the RAF are battling for air superiority. Enjoy classic matchups of Hurricanes, Spitfires, Bf109s and Fw190s as the RAF "drags its coat tails across France". 

 

 

Both 1941 missions, along with the December 1942 mission have now been updated with AI load shedding, allowing for more AI. Additionally the AI has been tweaked to add more variation and nuance to their behavior. These missions feel more active and "alive" now - hopefully the rest of the Channel Front missions will get the same updates in the next month or two.

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EDT and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PDT.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG

[357th_KW]

This Thursday we're running a series of missions focused on the battles over Europe between the Luftwaffe and the USAAF.  Many of these will be high altitude escort missions from The Mighty 8th campaign, with a couple tactical missions mixed in from The Battle of Normandy, Operation Market-Garden, and The Battle of the Bulge.

 

 

Come join us and experience high altitude combat as large bomber formations drone across the Reich!  Aircraft will include the P-38, P-47, and P-51 vs the Bf109 and Fw190 along with some twin engine heavy fighters.

 

 

 

For our Euro crowd we'll meet up at 6:00 PM GMT, and for the US crowd we'll start at 9:00 PM EDT and then have a late night flight at 10:00 PM PDT.  See you guys there!

 

 

Server discord: https://discord.gg/mA58nP6YjG