This post is a big long, but bear with me. If you want the TLDR, just scroll to the end. While this takes place in the Battle for Balkans campaign, this is probably relevant for anything, so that’s why I’m posting it here.
So I started up a new BFB campaign and as a first step, made all the F-16 squadrons be fragged by the AI except for my own (that way I didn’t just have a bunch of F-16 on the ground doing nothing). I decided a good first mission for me to frag was a strike on an airbase that has a squadron of Mig-21s, and defended by an SA-2 SAM site. I fragged a 2-ship SEAD Strike mission to go after the air defenses and a 4-ship escort flight for my 4-ship OCA Strike on the airbase. We ingress from the east, and the flight is going pretty well, however I wind up getting shot down by some manpads stationed about 5 miles east of the airbase as I egress. Ok, maybe I should take control of the SEAD strike…
So I try again, flying lead in the SEAD strike mission. Coming in at around 10,000 ft, I order my wingman to attack the tanks and manpads east of the airbase, while I use HARMs (well, technically in this campaign they’re AGM-45 Shrikes) to go after the SA-2 radar station, and plan to finish of the launchers with some CBUs. While ingressing, I notice that my RWR has some naval threats pop up, but surely I’m way of of range of them…right?
Boom! “Warning!” What the? I never heard a launch tone, and I’m way too high for the manpads to be shooting at me. Let’s do this again with the AMCI turned on. I should get in the habit of using this thing.
Ok, take 2 (or is this take 3?) How hard can it be just to take out an airbase? We’re 20 miles out - AMCI ON! Wingan, attack the manpads. RWR shows the naval threats again, no big deal. SA-2 launch! My HARMs are almost in range. Magnum! Break left! “Chaff…Flare”. Dodged one SA-2, and that radar is now out of commission. Let’s go in and take care of those launchers.
BOOM! Seriously? Again? Let’s take a look at this AMCI footage. Ok, so there’s the SA-2 launch, There goes my HARM. What in the world is a SA-N-6? Wait, is that heading for me? I didn’t hear a launch tone. Holy cow those things go far! But why didn’t I hear a launch tone?
Time to do some research. Oh, wow, the SA-N-6 won’t produce a launch tone. This thing is like a pissed off SA-10. We need to take this thing out.
I frag a 4-ship naval strike mission (I can’t remember what the mission type actually is - “TO” something I think). It looks like we’re up against 5 ships, the main one causing us grief is the Kirov. We’re loaded up with some Mavericks and GBUs. I figured we’d use pairs of GBUs to sink the Kirov so we can continue with our airbase strike. We come in low, about 1000’, and my wingmen are itching to blow some stuff up. I issue a “Weapons Free” and I start to hear them say “Rifle”, “Rifle”. So they’re going with Mavericks, that’s ok I guess. Soon we’ll finish them up with GBUs. Then I see my flight start to explode in the air. Oh this is going to be bad. Sure enough, before I’m even close to being on target, BOOM. Man my eject lever is getting worn out…
Ok, let’s just try a pop-up attack with GBUs. I have no idea how to get my wingmen to fly NOE, so I guess I’m alone on this one. (Can you make AI wingmen do pop-up attacks from NOE?) My main target is the Kirov, so if I drop 4 GBU-10s on that guy, that’s 8000 lbs of “You’re not floating anymore” furry. I fly out to the target, set my launch angle to 30°, set it to release in pairs, set my interval to 0’, and set my ripple pulses to 2. That should let them all go at once, all on target for LASER nirvana. I find my target on the radar about 40 miles, and then go silent and NOE. Open up the targeting pod, and about 15 to 20 miles out I pick them up on the pod. I line up with the Kirov, and am awaiting my loft cue. I go ahead and switch to CAT-I so I’ll be able to crank it after I let these bombs go. I get my loft cue, pull up, and BOOM. Well that didn’t work. ACMI shows that not only do they have SA-N-6s, they also have AIM-7s. A few more tries at this shows that flying low pretty much takes the SA-N-6s out of the equation (unless I get too high), and while I can dodge the first AIM-7, the 2nd one pretty much always finds its target. I can’t even get to the point where I can get these bombs off the rail, let alone guide them to the target, before becoming the biggest chaff pod in the world.
Let’s try an “ultra” high altitude attack, say 40,000’. As you can guess, trying to dodge SA-N-6 launches while loaded down with 4 tons of bombs ends with me swimming in the ocean below.
Then I remember that my wingmen were launching their Mavericks. Well, since I don’t have an SR-71, it seems like getting GBUs to the target is going to be an act in futility, so let’s see what I can do with some AMG-65s. The “G” model seems to be the way to go if I want firepower, so let’s load 4 of those bad babies up.
Ok, once again, acquire the target, drop to NOE, go nose cold. Let’s start trying to get the target on the WPN page. At about 15 miles out I can just start to make him out, so I MSL-STP through all 4 of my AGMs and uncover the seeker head, making rapid firing a bit easier. I have the Kirov locked up now, going CAT-I early in preparation of burning out of there. Almost in range…almost. “Rifle, Rifle, Rifle, Rifle”. AIM-7 launch. Break HARD left, beaming the targets. “Chaff…flare”. Do a 180 and drop more countermeasures. I have no idea if I hit the target. But I’m focused on the fact that I still hear the missile launch tone. I roll right, dropping more countermeasures and build up some distance between myself and the target. The missile launch tone goes away, and for the first time I am egressing from the target, having deployed all my munitions. The post mission briefing shows that I really haven’t inflicted much damage to the target, but doing a recon on the area shows that the fleet is at 80%. What do you know, the Kirov went down.
Just to be sure, I decided to actually fly a recon flight over the target. Sure enough, only 4 ships remain, and as I gain altitude during the recon, I find that they’re not really interested in taking me out. Sounds like easy pickings for a future mission.
The Kirov is dead…airbase, here we come.
TLDR - Give your maverick a hug, and then shoot it at something!