Would you like to play a Spitfire Mk.IXe campaign for the Battle of Bodenplatte project?

[BlackSix]

Hello everyone!

 

I'm close to finishing the Spitfire Mk.IXc campaign for the Normandy map, and I'm considering continuing the story on the Rheinland map during September-December 1944. 

 

But there are two potential problems with such a campaign:

1) it's known that this map is missing some industrial zones, and it also has an insufficient network of roads and settlements in the Bastogne area, but you simply will not be operating in these areas.

2) the missions will essentially repeat what you've already done in the Tempest campaign "Wind of Fury", but you'll be flying a Spitfire Mk.IXe from slightly different airfields))

 

What do you think?

[LuftManu]

As always, your content and missions are top quality, @BlackSix

 

Whether it’s a Spitfire, a 109, or a Yak, what truly matters is everything you build around them, and you do an excellent job at that 😃

So please, choose whatever you’d like to work on next.  I’m sure we’ll all enjoy it a lot!

Kind regards,

[Kubert]

Rejecting any campaign from you would be heresy. With the already existing His Majesty's Griffons campaign and the new one from Normandy, a campaign set in between them would make a very appealing trilogy. So I vote yes.

 

There are always several untouched options, such as: Soviet Hurricane, Soviet P-40, P-39, BF-109 or FW-190 on the Western Front, ME-262, or whatever... But if you have an idea already, do it. There are never enough Spitfires. 

 

I find it impressive that in addition to developing the new S&L module and Korea, you are always making new high-quality campaigns and updating the old ones. So whatever you decide to do, I will definitely support it and play it sooner or later. 

[BlackSix]

2 hours ago, LuftManu said:

As always, your content and missions are top quality, @BlackSix

 

Whether it’s a Spitfire, a 109, or a Yak, what truly matters is everything you build around them, and you do an excellent job at that 😃

So please, choose whatever you’d like to work on next.  I’m sure we’ll all enjoy it a lot!

30 minutes ago, Kubert said:

Rejecting any campaign from you would be heresy. With the already existing His Majesty's Griffons campaign and the new one from Normandy, a campaign set in between them would make a very appealing trilogy. So I vote yes.

 

I find it impressive that in addition to developing the new S&L module and Korea, you are always making new high-quality campaigns and updating the old ones. So whatever you decide to do, I will definitely support it and play it sooner or later. 

Thank you for your trust)

 

31 minutes ago, Kubert said:

There are always several untouched options, such as: Soviet Hurricane, Soviet P-40, P-39, BF-109 or FW-190 on the Western Front, ME-262, or whatever... But if you have an idea already, do it.

I've been considering these options, and the situation is this:

- Soviet Hurricane, P-40 or P-39 campaign is either the Battle of Moscow, for which I don't have any good ready-made templates, or the early period of the Battle of Stalingrad, for which I've already created three campaigns.

- Bf 109, Fw 190 or Me 262 on the Western Front map is completely out of the question because the airfields are located too far from the front lines, especially in Normandy. I don't want to make missions with long flights...

[sevenless]

Spitfire campaign by Blacksix? Sure buy. Bring it on please!

[Kubert]

6 hours ago, BlackSix said:

- Bf 109, Fw 190 or Me 262 on the Western Front map is completely out of the question because the airfields are located too far from the front lines, especially in Normandy. I don't want to make missions with long flights...

Good point. I forgot to take into account the distance of the German airfields and your preference for shorter missions.  Maybe Jaegermeister will take the bait.  

 

6 hours ago, BlackSix said:

- Soviet Hurricane, P-40 or P-39 campaign is either the Battle of Moscow, for which I don't have any good ready-made templates, or the early period of the Battle of Stalingrad, for which I've already created three campaigns.

In this case the last thing that comes to my mind is the P-39 in the fall of 1943 in the Kuban. Something like Juri's Kerch-Eltigen operation, only from a Soviet perspective. The German evacuation from the Kuban, the fighting over the Kerch Strait, maybe the first Soviet landings in the Crimea. This could be an opportunity to let the P-39 shine a little.

 

But that's just some "thinking out loud"....Bodenplatte Spitfire will be good.  

[BlackSix]

15 hours ago, Kubert said:

In this case the last thing that comes to my mind is the P-39 in the fall of 1943 in the Kuban. Something like Juri's Kerch-Eltigen operation, only from a Soviet perspective. The German evacuation from the Kuban, the fighting over the Kerch Strait, maybe the first Soviet landings in the Crimea. This could be an opportunity to let the P-39 shine a little.

I've researched this issue in detail before, and unfortunately, creating such a campaign is impossible. In October and November 1943, the Russians built several additional airfields in Taman, from which the P-39s flew. The career ends on October 10th, and no additional airfields will be created for this map; I asked((

This isn't as critical for Luftwaffe missions, but it's crucial for the Red Army Air Forces. Any P-39 campaigns in the spring or summer of 1943 is also impossible from me, as their airfields were located at least 80 km from the front lines.

[Juri_JS]

On 11/11/2025 at 7:19 AM, BlackSix said:

1) it's known that this map is missing some industrial zones, and it also has an insufficient network of roads and settlements in the Bastogne area, but you simply will not be operating in these areas.

One of the reasons why I never made a campaign for the Bodenplatte map.

 

But have you thought about just adding the roads and settlements you need, like AEthelraedUnraed did it in his Huertgenwald campaign? Of course it's a lot of additional work, so it would probably be necessary to do it in cooperation with someone who can help with the map editing work.

[BlackSix]

I'll just choose missions outside that area to avoid creating problems for myself. This was primarily the responsibility of the U.S. 9th Air Force, and Spitfires had little business there in the fall of 1944, until the German counteroffensive began.

[Humbre79]

Any new Spitfire IX campaign is more than welcomed, thank you. The Spitfire IX is my favorite plane. I think it's a very good idea and I would enjoy to fly it. 

But we also really need some Luftwaffe campaign on the western front, no matter if we have to fly a little longer, the quality and experience would be worth it...

[BlackSix]

9 hours ago, Humbre79 said:

Any new Spitfire IX campaign is more than welcomed, thank you. The Spitfire IX is my favorite plane. I think it's a very good idea and I would enjoy to fly it. 

But we also really need some Luftwaffe campaign on the western front, no matter if we have to fly a little longer, the quality and experience would be worth it...

The Luftwaffe on the Western Front faces two more problems, known as the B-17 and B-24. The existing B-25 and B-26 were not their primary targets, however. To create a campaign without engagements with strategic bombers would require considerable contortion, describing these battles only in briefings and never showing them in missions.

[sevenless]

12 hours ago, BlackSix said:

The Luftwaffe on the Western Front faces two more problems, known as the B-17 and B-24. The existing B-25 and B-26 were not their primary targets, however. To create a campaign without engagements with strategic bombers would require considerable contortion, describing these battles only in briefings and never showing them in missions.

 

True for the Jagdgeschwader, however there were still the ground attack units, called Schlachtgeschwader. Let´s call it "Steelbirds in the West" 😉Anyways, creating a campaign for the Spitfire will be much appreciated.

Edited November 18 by sevenless

[Calos_01]

12 hours ago, BlackSix said:

The Luftwaffe on the Western Front faces two more problems, known as the B-17 and B-24. The existing B-25 and B-26 were not their primary targets, however. To create a campaign without engagements with strategic bombers would require considerable contortion, describing these battles only in briefings and never showing them in missions.

I know we don't have an exact map for it, but 1942 or 1943 campaign would be great. Intercepting  Circuses, Ramrods or Rhunbarbs or a Jabo campaign (although it would be nice to face mk. XII Spitfires and early Typhoons there). 

 

Anyway, I´m looking forward to incoming Spitfire campaign!

 

 

[Kubert]

Week ago, when I mentioned a German campaign on the Western front, I meant low level frontline flights. Not high altitude Defence of the Reich or something outside of current career mode timeframe. 

 

According english Wikipedia page about Johnnie Johnson (Spitfire ace): 

 

Johnson's wing was the first to be stationed on French soil following the invasion. With their radius of action now far extended compared to the squadrons still in Britain, the wing scored heavily through the summer. 

 

..."scored heavily" means there must been enough low/mid level altitude activity from Luftwaffe(?). Because Spitfires didn't fly heavy bombers escorts as far as I know.

 

Another Wikipedia page says about JG26:

 

JG 26 pilots were utilised as close air support units. The wing was known to have flown attacks with rockets in the Saint-Lô area against American tank and motor convoys as well as Avraches on 1 August. II. Jagdkorps had been ordered to keep attacking that sector. Main targets were tanks and motor traffic. On 13 August, all units engaged in rocket-missions were ordered to cease operations. The order did not rescind the close support operations. From 15 August JG 26 still flew strafing missions against US armoured formations between Alencon and Le Mans.

 

Or about JG2:

 

On the morning of the Allied invasion, JG 2 were quick to respond. The new commanding officer led JG 2 in fighter patrols over the invasion area. JG 2 fought in aerial combat, but was also involved in Anti-shipping operations off Gold Beach with WGr 21 rocked-propelled mortars. III. Gruppe flew a low-level interception against the airborne landings near Caen. Two Fw 190 Gruppen had fought nearly to extinction over Normandy.

 

These are just a few examples to clarify my idea. It could apply for Bodenplatte map as well. I think this is an interesting part of the Luftwaffe's history which is completely overshadowed by the Defence of the Reich and by an aces from the eastern front of that time. But if a distance from the frontline is still an issue, that is understandable...no pressure. You're the boss. 

[BlackSix]

12 hours ago, sevenless said:

True for the Jagdgeschwader, however there were still the ground attack units, called Schlachtgeschwader. Let´s call it "Steelbirds in the West" 😉Anyways, creating a campaign for the Spitfire will be much appreciated.

Unfortunately, I won't be making any more "Steelbirds". I received so many complaints about performance in that campaign, and even a series of optimizations led to nothing. Not on this engine, maybe later, in "Korea"... 

 

11 hours ago, Calos_01 said:

I know we don't have an exact map for it, but 1942 or 1943 campaign would be great. Intercepting  Circuses, Ramrods or Rhunbarbs or a Jabo campaign (although it would be nice to face mk. XII Spitfires and early Typhoons there). 

This is completely out of the question for a paid campaign. Players need to have BoN for the map, BoS or BoK for the plane, or a collectible plane, and also purchase the campaign itself. On Steam, you also need the base BoS.

 

10 hours ago, Kubert said:

These are just a few examples to clarify my idea. It could apply for Bodenplatte map as well. I think this is an interesting part of the Luftwaffe's history which is completely overshadowed by the Defence of the Reich and by an aces from the eastern front of that time. But if a distance from the frontline is still an issue, that is understandable...no pressure. You're the boss. 

Huge distances...

 

I apologize for giving only negative answers here but I've already thought about all this...

 

10 hours ago, Kubert said:

According english Wikipedia page about Johnnie Johnson (Spitfire ace): 

Johnson's wing was the first to be stationed on French soil following the invasion. With their radius of action now far extended compared to the squadrons still in Britain, the wing scored heavily through the summer. 

..."scored heavily" means there must been enough low/mid level altitude activity from Luftwaffe(?). Because Spitfires didn't fly heavy bombers escorts as far as I know.

Yes, you're right. Large-scale battles with German fighters began there towards the end of June, and you'll see all of that in the upcoming campaign. True, you won't be flying with No. 144 Wing, which was disbanded in mid-July, but with another Canadian one. I found a very interesting squadron there))

[sevenless]

18 minutes ago, BlackSix said:

Unfortunately, I won't be making any more "Steelbirds". I received so many complaints about performance in that campaign, and even a series of optimizations led to nothing. Not on this engine, maybe later, in "Korea"... 

 

Sorry to hear that. "Steelbirds" and "Wings over Caen" are my all-time favorites. Looking forward what you can come up with in the Korea engine. 👍

[BlackSix]

10 minutes ago, sevenless said:

Sorry to hear that. "Steelbirds" and "Wings over Caen" are my all-time favorites. Looking forward what you can come up with in the Korea engine. 👍

Thanks! 

"Wings over Caen" works well because there are few ground forces fighting among themselves but I chose the missile squadron, which turned out to be the main problem of the campaign((

[Kubert]

1 hour ago, BlackSix said:

Unfortunately, I won't be making any more "Steelbirds". I received so many complaints about performance in that campaign, and even a series of optimizations led to nothing. Not on this engine, maybe later, in "Korea"... 

I like reading that. I prefer a battlefield on a smaller scale and with better performance. Don't get me wrong, the live frontline is great and there was definitely a lot of time and work put into it, but when I compare the Blazing Steppe and Sky Nomads campaigns, I enjoyed Blazing Steppe a little more. In some parts of Sky Nomads, it felt like the engine was being pushed to the edge and in at least one situation, over the edge. This has some impact on the overall feel of the campaign. I definitely support the "less can be more" approach. 

 

Can I ask, why you consider missle squadron in Wings over Caen as problem? 

[BlackSix]

5 hours ago, Kubert said:

Can I ask, why you consider missle squadron in Wings over Caen as problem? 

When using unguided missiles, the AI misses moving targets and can make multiple runs without firing at stationary ones. By the time I discovered this, it was too late to rework the campaign.

[Juri_JS]

On 11/19/2025 at 4:00 PM, BlackSix said:

When using unguided missiles, the AI misses moving targets and can make multiple runs without firing at stationary ones. By the time I discovered this, it was too late to rework the campaign.

Oh, this explains some of the problems I had with rocket equipped Sturmoviks in my campaigns. Any chance to have this fixed by the team?

[BlackSix]

I recommend using only bombs.

[Juri_JS]

1 hour ago, BlackSix said:

I recommend using only bombs.

But is the team aware of the issue? This would cause huge problems in Il-2 Korea.