Fire and Fall Back [Yak-1 s.69 and LaGG-3 s.29] v1.1

[CzechTexan]

Fire and Fall Back

 

June 8, 2025 Download:  https://www.mediafire.com/file/s3ae950he1n64e8/Fire+and+Fall+Back_v1.1.zip/file

 

Fire and Fall Back is a 30-mission single player scripted campaign in which the Player will fly the Yak-1 series 69 and LaGG-3 series 29 on the Kuban summer map.  Missions are during August 1942 as German Army Group A attacks into the Kuban.  The Russians are in a desperate situation as the Germans overrun all defenses, that is, until they reach the Caucasus mountain range.

 

You will cover the very top of the Kuban map down to Tuapse with lots of interesting places in between!

I populated the map with small towns and villages and added their names.  The last mission has a small airfield tucked in a mountain valley and used by the A/i U-2vs.  You begin as a veteran pilot flying the Yak-1 but these planes eventually wear-out and you're "lucky" to receive one of the new LaGG-3 planes which are built in nearby Tblisi, Georgia.

 

*Notes:  You MUST HAVE BoK for the KUBAN MAP and the Yak-1 and LaGG-3 from BoS.

A mission is successful when the player destroys a target or makes a successful landing.  If target objectives are completed then it is not necessary to make a landing - just hit ESC and move on to the next mission (if you don't want to fly all the way back to base).

Missions start on the runway with engine running.

Mission descriptions are in English-only, sorry.

Books cited:  Black Cross Red Star volume 3 by Bergstrom; The Caucasus and the Oil by Tieke.

 

Enjoy!--created by CzechTexan

 

Edit:  I forgot to mention this MOD that lets you go outside the map's border!

Attention:  if you are experiencing problems with a game freeze (see Elem's post below and my reply on June 8, 2025)...

I have a new updated download v1.1 available.  I'm not sure how this will affect your current campaign, but You can probably replace un-played missions with newer ones in your current folder, so that you don't have to replay the earlier missions.

Download for version v1.1 :   https://www.mediafire.com/file/s3ae950he1n64e8/Fire+and+Fall+Back_v1.1.zip/file

Edited June 9 by CzechTexan
new version v1.1

[Sandmarken]

Wow 30 missions! How do you do it? 😁 😅

Do you plan to do something with the new odessa map?

 

I will try it out after i have completed all the other campaigns iv started latley! 😁 

Edited May 24 by Sandmarken

[sevenless]

Great effort. Highly appreciated!

[CzechTexan]

6 hours ago, sevenless said:

Great effort. Highly appreciated!

Thank you very much!

7 hours ago, Sandmarken said:

Wow 30 missions! How do you do it? 😁 😅

Do you plan to do something with the new odessa map?

 

I will try it out after i have completed all the other campaigns iv started latley! 😁 

I think this is the longest campaign I've made.  The Defend Velikie Luki campaign is 30 but it's in two parts.  Liberate Kuban is 20.  If you noticed, I have not uploaded anything for a while - so this is what has kept me busy.

How do I do it?  I set up an airfield and add the mission route and targets.  Next mission I can just change the waypoints to a different target.  The most time-consuming thing is flight-testing to make sure it all works OK.

 

I think Fire and Fall Back is a perfect title to describe the type of fighting of Operation Blue, in its first phase.  It was a fighting withdrawal and the defenders used every opportunity to fight and retreat in order to live to fight another day.  In this campaign, you will follow the day-by-day action and see how the front line changes.

 

By the way, flying the LaGG, you'll need to retreat somtimes.  It's like the old Gambler saying, "You got to know when to hold'em.  Know when to fold'em.  Know when to walk away.  Know when to run!"

 

The book The Caucasus and the Oil by Wilhelm Tieke has been very inspirational in all my Kuban battles.  I learn about all the smaller battles in obscure places.

All maps have sections that are under-used and I felt like the story of the Battle for Krasnodar has gone untold, until now.  All the territory on the top-eastern-half of the map is utilized - then the action moves south, into the mountains.  

I believe there are many Great Battles pilots who enjoy flying and fighting over the mountains and valleys, so, this campaign is a gift to those sim pilots.

 

Odessa map?  Of course I'd love to do a lot on that map.  (I do accept gifts) 😉

The I-153 is also coming out soon.  This plane was also used a lot in Kuban in '42 so that would make for an interesting campaign.

 

[Sandmarken]

3 minutes ago, CzechTexan said:

think Fire and Fall Back is a perfect title to describe the type of fighting of Operation Blue, in its first phase.  It was a fighting withdrawal and the defenders used every opportunity to fight and retreat in order to live to fight another day.  In this campaign, you will follow the day-by-day action and see how the front line changes.

 

By the way, flying the LaGG, you'll need to retreat somtimes.  It's like the old Gambler saying, "You got to know when to hold'em.  Know when to fold'em.  Know when to walk away.  Know when to run!"

 

The book The Caucasus and the Oil by Wilhelm Tieke has been very inspirational in all my Kuban battles.  I learn about all the smaller battles in obscure places.

All maps have sections that are under-used and I felt like the story of the Battle for Krasnodar has gone untold, until now.  All the territory on the top-eastern-half of the map is utilized - then the action moves south, into the mountains.  

I believe there are many Great Battles pilots who enjoy flying and fighting over the mountains and valleys, so, this campaign is a gift to those sim pilots.

 

Odessa map?  Of course I'd love to do a lot on that map.  (I do accept gifts) 😉

The I-153 is also coming out soon.  This plane was also used a lot in Kuban in '42 so that would make for an interesting campaign.

 

I look forward to trying it. And you are right! This part of the map is very interesting and not really used much. I don't think I've flown there much after the Kuban A-20 campaign!

 

Kuban is a very nice map; I hope Odessa is up to the standard. Last time we got a user-made map, it was Veliki Luki, and that's, in my opinion, the best-looking map! Looking forward to what you will make with it! I'm very interested in the Romanian units and will try to make something featuring one of them. 🙂

[AndreiTomescu]

4 hours ago, CzechTexan said:

You got to know when to hold'em.  Know when to fold'em.  Know when to walk away.  Know when to run!"

🖤🩶🤍 you never count your money (Kills!)/when you're sitting at the table (mission)/ there be time enough for counting/ when the deal is done!

👍🤍🩶🖤

[CzechTexan]

I forgot to mention this MOD that lets you go outside the map's borders!

 

[JUSTPLANECRAZY]

Fantastic work thank you. 

[Marque]

Fantastic work! 
Thank you very much! We are waiting for the campaigns for the defense of Odessa.
================================
https://pastvu.com/p/415887

some information - what if!
===================================================================
 

Скрытый текст

The 69th Air Regiment was formed on September 13, 1939, at the Mokra airfield in Zaporozhye
on the basis of the sixth fighter squadron of the 1st heavy bomber aviation regiment
of the 3rd special purpose aviation army, as well as the flight and technical personnel of three more squadrons of the same army.

Having completed the staffing of squadrons and the formation of services, the regiment received an order to fly to a permanent base in Odessa, to Shkolny airfield No. 1.
On April 10, 1940, the regiment became part of the 43rd fighter aviation brigade of the Air Force of the Odessa Military District.

From June 28 to July 9, 1940, the regiment, as part of the 43rd fighter aviation brigade of the Air Force of the 9th Army of the Southern Front,
took part in the liberation of Bessarabia on I-16 aircraft.
On August 1, 1940, the 43rd Fighter Aviation Brigade was reformed into the 21st Mixed Aviation Division of the Odessa Military District Air Force.

On June 22, 1941, the regiment, as part of the 21st Mixed Aviation Division of the Odessa Military District Air Force (with the beginning of the war, transformed into the Southern Front Air Force),
entered combat operations against Nazi Germany and its allies on I-16 aircraft.

The regiment was armed with 70 I-16 aircraft (including 20 faulty ones), as well as 5 MiG-3 aircraft, for which the pilots were not yet trained.
From June 22, 1941 to July 26, 1941, it participated in border battles in Moldova.

The first known air victory of the regiment in the Patriotic War was achieved on June 24, 1941:
Major Shestakov L. L., piloting an I-16, shot down an enemy bomber Junkers Ju 88 in an air battle near Chisinau.

Since July 1941, the regiment operated as part of the Air Force of the Coastal Army.

From the end of July to October 14, 1941, the regiment participated in the defense of Odessa on I-16 aircraft,
being the only air regiment of the Odessa defensive region.

From the end of August to the beginning of October, a group of seconded pilots of the Black Sea Fleet Air Force operated as part of the regiment on I-16 and Yak-1 aircraft.

During the defense of Odessa, the regiment carried out 6,600 combat sorties, conducted 575 air battles, 3,500 assaults, destroyed 124 enemy aircraft,
not counting the enormous damage that the regiment inflicted on the enemy in manpower and equipment on the ground.

From October 15 to October 29, 1941, the regiment, along with other units of the Primorskaya Army, was in Crimea after the evacuation from Odessa, and did not conduct combat operations.
At the end of October 1941, it was withdrawn to Kirovabad for reorganization into the 11th reserve fighter aviation regiment.
It received LaGG-3 fighters for service. Here, another regiment was separated from the regiment - the 69th "A" fighter aviation regiment.

On February 10, 1942, for exemplary performance of combat missions of the command on the front of the fight against the German invaders and the valor and courage demonstrated in doing so, the regiment was awarded the Order of the Red Banner by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.
-------------------------------
From August 5 to October 16, 1941, during the defense of Odessa, German air units participated in the bombing of the city and assault raids.
The city was subjected to intense air attacks, which continued throughout the entire period of defense.
The Russian Historical Society notes that the bombing of Odessa began on July 22, 1941,
and as a result of the breakthrough of the Soviet defense on the Dniester, the situation in the Odessa direction became complicated. --------------
From August 5 to October 16, 1941, the Germans (Luftwaffe) and Romanians participated in the air battle for Odessa, they bombed the city
====================================
Since the end of August, an air group of seconded pilots of the Black Sea Fleet Air Force also operated as part of the regiment.
This group consisted of 24 I-16 aircraft from the 8th Fighter Aviation Regiment,
7 Yak-1 aircraft from the 32nd Fighter Aviation Regiment,
6 Il-2 aircraft from the 46th Separate Attack Aviation Squadron,
4 I-15bis aircraft from the 94th Separate Fighter Aviation Squadron.

 

Edited May 30 by Marque

[Jaegermeister]

Congratulations on finishing your new campaign! I hope I can get a chance to fly it soon with everything I have going on lately. Thanks for all the work you put into it!

[CzechTexan]

8 hours ago, Marque said:

Fantastic work! 
Thank you very much! We are waiting for the campaigns for the defense of Odessa.
================================
https://pastvu.com/p/415887

some information - what if!
===================================================================

I'm sure there will be some official campaigns for 69 IAP which can be more historically correct than I can do.

I think there was an I-153 group which did ground attacks during the Odessa battle.  I might do something with that.  In my younger days with IL-2 1946 I made a couple campaigns for the MiG-3 and Sturmovik.  I could maybe resurrect those to new life.

[Marque]

Not necessarily the I-153. Frankly, I'm not a fan of this beautiful airplane )) 🙂
I'd like it for the Il-2 and Yak-1, for the Lagg-3 early.
And the second question.
The editor has new tools for working with the surface. Have you tried using them?
To supplement your MOD map with new objects. Forest, village, enlarge the city, add a river or lake. Raise, lower... And so on.
--------------
Can you make a short video tutorial for surface editing?
================
Since the end of August, an air group of seconded pilots of the Black Sea Fleet Air Force also operated as part of the regiment.
This group consisted of 24 I-16 aircraft from the 8th Fighter Aviation Regiment,
7 Yak-1 aircraft from the 32nd Fighter Aviation Regiment,
6 Il-2 aircraft from the 46th Separate Attack Aviation Squadron,
4 I-15bis aircraft from the 94th Separate Fighter Aviation Squadron.
P.S.
yes, i started translating your campaign for the russian user forum.)

Edited May 31 by Marque

[Marque]

P.P.S.
I also add objects where there is empty terrain and the village is marked.
In the first mission (attack on a convoy) I hung 2x50 bombs on a Yak-1 flight))
It's more fun that way.
Would you mind such changes?

Скрытый текст

 

 

9 часов назад, CzechTexan сказал:

In my younger days with IL-2 1946 I made a couple campaigns for the MiG-3 and Sturmovik.

I keep all the disks with the old "IL-2" in a closet, rewound with tape! )))
I really loved the campaigns made by amateurs, fans of "IL-2".
They were even more lively and rich than the campaigns from 1C!

Edited May 31 by Marque

[CzechTexan]

On 8/14/2021 at 12:31 PM, AEthelraedUnraed said:

Hello fellow pilots,

 

Hereby, I release a first the second version of my Surface Editing Manual. It explains all the basics of surface editing inside the Mission Editor, and has step-by-step guides on how to do the following and more:

• Add villages
• Add airfields
• Add roads and railways
• Pack the above with a mission file without using mods

 

Note that it is still a work in progress, and that additional content will likely be added in the future.

 

Also note that the above definitely works on singleplayer. @J5_Matthias-Sch27b has posted a way to make it work in multiplayer as well, see https://forum.il2sturmovik.com/topic/73571-surface-editing-manual/?do=findComment&comment=1216152. Given that I have no experience with running multiplayer servers, however, I cannot confirm his method nor help with any issues there.

 

Many thanks go to @LizLemon, @Hamaha15, @JimTM and many others that I’ve forgotten to mention for their excellent work in researching and describing the Mission Editor. In many ways, this guide is simply a collection of all the info that's already on the forums somewhere, hidden deep within other threads.

 

If you find any errors, if something is unclear or if you would like something else explained, please let me know by posting a message right here or by sending a PM. I will try to respond as soon as I can, but as I’m tied to a busy real-life schedule, I can’t make any promises

 

See the attachment to download a compressed version of the guide (the .pdf is inside the zip file; the forum doesn't allow direcly attaching .pdf files anymore. Alternatively, you can find the original, uncompressed version with higher resolution images, but a *much* larger filesize, behind the following link: https://www.mediafire.com/file/lk5ad27v7u6a379/IL2SurfaceGuide.pdf/file

IL2SurfaceGuide_compressed.zip 207.49 kB · 162 downloads

 

 

9 hours ago, Marque said:

The editor has new tools for working with the surface. Have you tried using them?
To supplement your MOD map with new objects. Forest, village, enlarge the city, add a river or lake. Raise, lower... And so on.
--------------
Can you make a short video tutorial for surface editing?

yes, i started translating your campaign for the russian user forum.)

In the Mission Making forum there is a Surface Editing Manual which is very helpful but I'm just starting to learn it (see the quote above).  I have made three smoothed airfields so far.  I'm not good enough to make a video.

In this particular campaign, near Khadyzhensk, there is supposed to be a train tunnel but the Devs did not include it.  So, I added tunnel entrances.  However, I did not think to erase the railroad tracks on top of the hill - which I probably could have done using the Surface Editor.

 

It's good that you translate the missions.  Thank you for doing that.

I also do not mind if anyone makes changes to missions.

 

Edited May 31 by CzechTexan

[Marque]

Thank you very much for your answer and for your work!) 🙂

[AEthelraedUnraed]

On 5/31/2025 at 4:32 PM, CzechTexan said:

[...] there is supposed to be a train tunnel but the Devs did not include it.  So, I added tunnel entrances.  However, I did not think to erase the railroad tracks on top of the hill - which I probably could have done using the Surface Editor.

Sadly, erasing railway lines is not possible using the Surface Editor. They use a different system, as do the roads, in order to make it possible for vehicles to follow them automatically.

 

You can do the opposite, i.e. create railway lines that are visually indistinguishable from the "real" ones but trains cannot ride on those.

[Elem]

Hi CT. I have been really enjoying this campaign of yours, but unfortunately I have been getting a game freeze in mission 12 Krasnodar. Soon after intercepting the attackers, the screen freezes with the error message below and I have to quit out.

 

Any thoughts?

 

[CzechTexan]

On 6/7/2025 at 3:53 AM, Elem said:

Hi CT. I have been really enjoying this campaign of yours, but unfortunately I have been getting a game freeze in mission 12 Krasnodar. Soon after intercepting the attackers, the screen freezes with the error message below and I have to quit out.

 

Any thoughts?

 

 

Sorry Elem, and to others who may have experienced the same problem.

Since it's a sound problem, I suspect it has something to do with the air raid siren.  I edited all the missions where the enemy is close to the airfield and, hopefully, fixed those missions to perform correctly.  I did notice a conflict with distances close/far for the siren.

 

I have a new download v1.1 available.  I'm not sure how this will affect your current campaign, but You can probably add new missions 12-30 to your current folder to replace the old ones, so that you don't have to replay the earlier missions.

Download for version v1.1 :   https://www.mediafire.com/file/s3ae950he1n64e8/Fire+and+Fall+Back_v1.1.zip/file

[Elem]

14 hours ago, CzechTexan said:

 

Sorry Elem, and to others who may have experienced the same problem.

Since it's a sound problem, I suspect it has something to do with the air raid siren.  I edited all the missions where the enemy is close to the airfield and, hopefully, fixed those missions to perform correctly.  I did notice a conflict with distances close/far for the siren.

 

I have a new download v1.1 available.  I'm not sure how this will affect your current campaign, but You can probably add new missions 12-30 to your current folder to replace the old ones, so that you don't have to replay the earlier missions.

Download for version v1.1 :   https://www.mediafire.com/file/s3ae950he1n64e8/Fire+and+Fall+Back_v1.1.zip/file

Thanks CT. That does appear to have fixed the issue.

 

On a side note. Well done for including the armoured train in the campaign! It almost never crops up in the career mode, and then only as static. I would love to see it as a mobile target.

[CzechTexan]

4 hours ago, Elem said:

Thanks CT. That does appear to have fixed the issue.

 

On a side note. Well done for including the armoured train in the campaign! It almost never crops up in the career mode, and then only as static. I would love to see it as a mobile target.

Actually, the armored train is only static and it cannot move.  I only added a couple howitzers that makes it look as if the train is firing. 

It would be nice if someone could make a carriage that can move turrets and fire guns at a target.  

Armored trains were used a lot, especially early in the war, from what I've read.  I think there should be some type of armored train/vehicle that is functional.

Keep flying!  It's a long campaign but it is an interesting one.