An ambitious project.

[Panzerlang]

Just spit-balling at this point. Who knows how many of us old jocks from back in the day are left, how many newer folk have become interested and involved in flight combat simming and etc. Used to be more allied and axis units than you could shake a stick at (ah, the good old days of HyperLobby and multiple servers).

Anyway, I have the moolah for multiple servers and lots of bandwidth, with an air-cooled room to put them in. No idea what Korea will offer in the way of MP malarkey of course but there were always work-arounds (3rd-party software mainly).

So, my basic idea, to provide a role-playing environment (DiD of course) in which pilots can join units and slug it out from June 1950 until the end, July 1953 (three years). According to Chat-GPT, IL2 can provide around 50 humans per server IF some AI is desired as well (and it would be, there has to be some rookie potato to go with the human meat). I assume that Korea will be in the same ball-park. I don't know if Korea MP will be able to provide a persistent 'session' and AI-generate subsequent missions on the fly (and remember its place when a server needs to re-boot) or if 3rd-party software would be able to fill the gaps. Two-odd decades ago I ran a 200-member war and did everything manually, which lasted for just over a year until my marbles left the reservation. This time around a lot of help would be needed.

All the server boxes would be top-notch (9800X3D etc). Yeah, wouldn't it be awesome if 500 players could fit onto one but "computer says nooo". Lol.

A forum would be provided as a 'home' for each unit. Each unit would be entirely responsible for its own shenanigans (hosted on a separate box).

The interest to make any of this happen can only come from my fellow FCS junkies and a decent number of them too.

Chat-GPT is very helpful...

 

United Nations / South Korea side

United States Air Force (USAF)

• F-86 Sabre (fighter / air superiority)

  • Units:

    • 4th Fighter-Interceptor Wing (334th, 335th, 336th FIS)

    • 51st Fighter-Interceptor Wing (16th, 25th, 39th FIS)

• F-80 Shooting Star (fighter-bomber, early jet)

  • Units:

    • 8th Fighter-Bomber Wing (35th, 36th, 80th FBS)

    • 49th Fighter-Bomber Wing (7th, 8th, 9th FBS)

• F-84 Thunderjet (fighter-bomber, escort)

  • Units:

    • 27th Fighter-Escort Wing

    • 136th Fighter-Bomber Wing (111th, 154th, 182nd FBS)

• F-51 Mustang (fighter-bomber, prop-driven)

  • Units:

    • 18th Fighter-Bomber Wing (12th, 67th, 39th FBS, plus attached ANG squadrons)

---

U.S. Navy & Marine Corps

• F4U Corsair (fighter-bomber)

  • Units:

    • USN carrier air groups (e.g. VF-32, VF-53, VF-113, etc.)

    • USMC squadrons (VMF-214 “Black Sheep”, VMF-323, VMF-312, etc.)

• F9F Panther (jet fighter-bomber)

  • Units:

    • Carrier-based Navy squadrons (VF-51, VF-111, VF-191, etc.)

    • USMC Panthers (VMF-311, VMF-115)

• AD Skyraider was single-pilot too, but mostly used in bombing roles (Navy/Marine squadrons).

---

South Korean Air Force (ROKAF)

• F-51 Mustang

  • 10th Fighter Wing (multiple squadrons, supplied initially by USAF)

• Later received F-86 Sabres (1953, toward end of war).

---

Communist Side

North Korean Air Force (KPAF)

• Yak-9 (fighter-bomber)

• La-9 / La-11 (prop fighters)

• MiG-15 (jet fighter) — after Soviet/Chinese reinforcement

  • North Korean MiG-15 units were more limited, often integrated with Chinese/Soviet units.

Chinese People’s Volunteer Air Force (CPVAF)

• MiG-15

  • Units:

    • 3rd, 4th, 12th, 15th, and 17th Fighter Divisions

    • Each division had multiple regiments flying MiG-15s.

Soviet Air Force (“volunteers”)

• MiG-15

  • Units (under 64th Fighter Aviation Corps, secretly deployed):

    • 324th IAD (Fighter Aviation Division) – Guards ace Ivan Kozhedub commanded at times.

    • 303rd IAD

    • 97th IAD

    • Numerous regiments rotated in and out (e.g. 18th GvIAP, 523rd IAP).

---

Quick Notes

• Jets vs props: Early on, USAF used F-80s, but quickly realized MiG-15 outclassed them → Sabres deployed. Mustangs & Corsairs handled ground attack.

• Unit scale: USAF “Wing” ~ 3 squadrons; Soviet/Chinese “Division” ~ 3 regiments, each ~ 30 aircraft.

• Geography: “MiG Alley” (NW Korea, near Yalu River) was where Sabres and MiGs clashed.
  
  And...
  
   

  Korean War – Single-Seat Combat Aircraft Units

  Side	Aircraft	Unit(s) / Squadron(s)	Role	Notes
  USAF	F-86 Sabre	4th FIW (334th, 335th, 336th FIS); 51st FIW (16th, 25th, 39th FIS)	Air superiority	Dominant UN jet, countered MiG-15 in “MiG Alley”
  	F-80 Shooting Star	8th FBW (35th, 36th, 80th FBS); 49th FBW (7th, 8th, 9th FBS)	Fighter-bomber	First USAF jets in war, later ground attack
  	F-84 Thunderjet	27th FEW; 136th FBW (111th, 154th, 182nd FBS)	Escort, fighter-bomber	Used for deep strike, bomber escort
  	F-51 Mustang	18th FBW (12th, 67th, 39th FBS + ANG units)	Fighter-bomber	Rugged, effective in ground attack
  USN	F4U Corsair	Carrier Air Groups (VF-32, VF-53, VF-113, etc.)	Fighter-bomber	Carrier mainstay, close air support
  	F9F Panther	Navy VF squadrons (VF-51, VF-111, VF-191, etc.)	Jet fighter-bomber	Early carrier jet, less capable vs MiG-15
  	AD Skyraider	Navy squadrons (VA-75, etc.)	Attack	Single-pilot attack aircraft, heavy payload
  USMC	F4U Corsair	VMF-214 “Black Sheep”, VMF-323, VMF-312	Fighter-bomber	Close air support for Marines
  	F9F Panther	VMF-311, VMF-115	Fighter-bomber	Land and carrier-based
  ROKAF	F-51 Mustang	10th Fighter Wing (several squadrons)	Fighter-bomber	Operated under USAF control early war
  	F-86 Sabre	Acquired late war	Fighter	Limited deployment, 1953 onward
  KPAF (North Korea)	Yak-9	Early-war squadrons	Fighter-bomber	Quickly outclassed by UN aircraft
  	La-9 / La-11	Early-war squadrons	Fighter	Limited impact, defensive use
  	MiG-15	Limited NK units, supported by CPVAF/Soviets	Jet fighter	Operated mostly with Soviet/Chinese pilots
  CPVAF (China)	MiG-15	3rd, 4th, 12th, 15th, 17th Fighter Divisions	Jet fighter	Massed formations, fought Sabres
  Soviet AF (“Volunteers”)	MiG-15	64th IAK (324th, 303rd, 97th IAD + rotating regiments)	Jet fighter	Provided elite pilots, concealed identity

  ---

  ⚡ Key points:

• Jets vs. Props: UN jets (Sabres, Panthers, F-80s) vs Communist MiG-15s; Mustangs, Corsairs, and Skyraiders did most close support.

• Air superiority battle: Essentially F-86 Sabre vs MiG-15, with Soviet pilots providing the stiffest resistance.

• Ground attack: UN relied heavily on prop fighters (F-51, F4U, AD) for CAS and interdiction.
  
  So, no shortage of materiale.
  
  Anyway, thanks for reading and please feel free to have your say, shoot it down and etc. And anyone who can volunteer expertise in whatever (software, adminning, you know...).

Edited August 17 by Panzerlang

[Panzerlang]

The Chat-GPT version. 😁

 

Proposal: A Living Korean War Flight Combat Environment

Just tossing some ideas around here — feel free to roast them or build on them.

Who knows how many of us old-school jocks are still around, or how many fresh recruits have gotten hooked on flight combat sims? Back in the day, there were more Allied and Axis units than you could shake a stick at — HyperLobby and multiple servers were a chaotic, glorious mess. Ah, the good old days.

Here’s my vision: I’ve got the resources — multiple servers, fat bandwidth, and a dedicated air-cooled room to house it all. I don’t yet know what Korea MP will bring in terms of multiplayer functionality, but there have always been workarounds — mainly via third-party software — and I’m sure we can navigate whatever limitations exist.

The Concept:
A role-playing, “DiD” (Dead is Dead) environment where pilots can join units and fight from June 1950 through July 1953 — three full years of immersive, historically inspired air combat.

• According to ChatGPT, IL-2 can handle around 50 humans per server if we also sprinkle in AI (and there has to be some rookies, right?). I expect Korea MP to be similar.

• Ideally, the server would persist missions and maintain AI-generated content even through reboots. If not, third-party tools can fill in the gaps.

• Two decades ago, I ran a 200-member war manually — it lasted a little over a year before my marbles wandered off. This time, we’ll need a dedicated team for software, administration, and ops.

The Tech:

• Each server box will be top-tier (think 9800X3D etc).

• Sure, having 500 players on one server would be amazing — but alas, the computers might say “Nooo!”

The Community:

• Each unit gets a forum “home” to organize, train, and plot their shenanigans — hosted separately for autonomy.

• Units run themselves, but the overarching framework keeps everyone in the loop and the world coherent.

The Bottom Line:

• Interest will come from flight combat sim junkies, and there’s plenty of material to fuel it.

• Anyone with software, server, or admin expertise is welcome to volunteer.

• I’m happy to lead the charge, but this will need a small army of helpers to pull off properly.

If this sparks your interest, speak up, tear it apart, or throw ideas in the mix. Let’s see if we can turn this old-school dream into a modern, living Korean War flight sim universe.

For the record, I'm in Japan. I can connect to a lot of US servers with good ping and some EU ones with decent ping but it IS a limitation.

Edited August 17 by Panzerlang

[=MERCS=JenkemJunkie]

You lost me at role-playing, but since the game could be out in a few months it would be really helpful for 1C to let people know what they will have to work with in multiplayer. 

[BlitzPig_EL]

13 minutes ago, =MERCS=JenkemJunkie said:

You lost me at role-playing,

Yup.  While in theory it sounds cool, it will end in tears with some guy yelling at you on coms for being 2 meters out of place in formation, or not funneling him enough kills.

If I could do it with my friends/flying buddies, flying the planes we want to fly, doing missions we want to undertake, on our own coms channel, without some pseudo theater commander telling us what and when to do it, maybe.

 

I hope you can pull it off though, as I am sure that there are folks that would like this.

[=MERCS=JenkemJunkie]

I just think it's dorky and limits gameplay options, so even if it "worked" I still wouldn't want it.

[[CPT]Crunch]

We'll also have to see exactly what we're getting for a map, some of the battlefield will be missing.  May not be possible to do the war from start to finish, especially the start.

 

Still a bit early to set plans.

[Panzerlang]

I guess I should clarify the role-play bit, because it's not what you think. Nothing more than the player adopting his Korea War alter-ego and flying missions until he dies (DiD), under the command of his unit leader (who may or may not be present on the server at any given time).

Crunch, I was under the impression there will be one map, encompassing the entirety of the peninsula. That's not going to be the case?

 

"If I could do it with my friends/flying buddies, flying the planes we want to fly, doing missions we want to undertake, on our own coms channel, without some pseudo theater commander telling us what and when to do it, maybe."

That's exactly what it would be.

Edited August 18 by Panzerlang

[BlitzPig_EL]

Oh, well that helps.  I admit I do miss regular flying on a mission based server.  My merry band of Blitz Pigs is dwindling year by year, so you won't see us in numbers on servers anymore, like the old days.  I miss the days of Zekes vs. Wildcats especially, trying to win the mission, rather than just endless jousting for kills.

[Panzerlang]

I call it The Purpose Parameter. Lol. Forget that the entirety of existence is essentially futile, I'm playing this game and I want it to have some kind of purpose beyond its most basic function (blowing sht up). Call it The Collective Goal (win the battle, win the war, win the medal, win the kudos of one's fellow combatants, etc).

There's a pyramid of purpose and 'blowing sht up' is the foundational level (the base). After that there are various levels of providing purpose. For me, SP play, it's winning the medals. In MP it might also be helping to achieve a common goal beyond the personal achievement of baubles. Fast Food servers vs Persistent Campaign ones, obvious example.

The question is, how many of us are left from The Old Days and how many newcomers might even be into it? No idea but hence the thread, I'd like to get one.

Edited August 18 by Panzerlang

[LukeFF]

2 hours ago, Panzerlang said:

Crunch, I was under the impression there will be one map, encompassing the entirety of the peninsula. That's not going to be the case?

 

Yes, one map, depicting most of the peninsula but not all the southern bits. It's already quite big as is. 🙂

 

[Panzerlang]

Thanks Luke. No real point in modelling the parts where nothing happened, so it's perfect as shown.

[=MERCS=JenkemJunkie]

I like your goal in the purpose parameter, but I wouldn't want to try to find it in a big mega server. I find when things get too big, all the pews and booms are just tears in the rain.

[Panzerlang]

1 hour ago, =MERCS=JenkemJunkie said:

I like your goal in the purpose parameter, but I wouldn't want to try to find it in a big mega server. I find when things get too big, all the pews and booms are just tears in the rain.

Unfortunately I think it would be lucky to find enough to fill one server (50 pilots). The golden era of age + financial resources + interest in old combat aviation has waned. Most younger people, if they are interested, are struggling to pay their rent; the cost of good simming hardware is quite far beyond reach.

[=MERCS=JenkemJunkie]

The good stuff yeah, but 1Cs aiming to make xbox controllers viable, and add wheel menu controls, and people can buy cheap apps that turn their phone into trackir, so the cost of hardware should be less of an issue than it is now, at the entry level at least.