Today we have several pieces of news for you at once. Firstl, patch 5.103 has just been published - its changelog is not very long, but contains some important points:
Fixed Animation Operator objects animations in multiplayer for the upcoming in-game event;
SSW D.IV stall behavior has been corrected (now the aircraft stalls without warning shaking);
Fixed the virtual camera position on the SSW D.IV wing;
A new type of task has been added to the Battle of Normandy career - escorting transport aircraft with various cargoes, including ambulance ones;
Fixed the continuation of the career of a German pilot from Jasta 24 on the Western Front after August 25, 1918;
When attacking enemy balloons, enemy AI pilots will engage the player and his group as it should be;
Scenarios for Gota G.V and Handley Page O/100 WWI bombers added;
Fixed a bug in the operation of the bombsight instruments when the interface is hidden;
Hidden GUI state will no longer persist across game restarts;
Fixed a bug in the Bodenplatte Career mode that resulted in an error message in some missions that included the new Bf 109 G-6AS;
Against the Tide campaign updated;
Campaigns "Against the Tide" and "Wild Mustangs" are translated into Spanish.
The new historical campaign Sky Nomads now is already available on our website and on Steam. It continues the story of the Soviet fighter pilot you may know from the Blazing Steppe campaign. After having fought in the Stalingrad battle in 1942, in 1943 he found himself in a midst of a hectic battle of Kuban - the campaign title reflects a bit the nomad life of the 43rd IAP which had to constantly change airfields and endure several Luftwaffe strikes on its positions. There is more information about the campaign in our Dev Blog #344.
New missions in the Career mode are photo reconnaissance, artillery spotting, and the escort of the transport aircraft on airdrop missions. The photo recon missions are now available with the Arado Ar. 234 of Sonderkommando Götz in Normandy (in the next update it will be also added to Spitfire XIVe). Artillery spotting missions are given to RAF squadrons No. 26 and No. 63 in Normandy which had the Spitfire MK.Vb and were specially trained for this task. The transport escort missions happen in the historical timeframes of the Normandy, Market Garden, Bastogne, and Varsity airborne operations - you can them in any Allied fighter squadron. Do your best to keep them safe on their way to the drop zone and back home!
5.104
New historical campaign Sky Nomads (Yak-7b pilot in the battle of Kuban). There is detailed info about it in our Dev Blog #344;
New Career mode missions: Photo Recon on jet Arado Ar. 234 in Normandy (Sonderkommando Götz);
New Career mode missions: Artillery Spotting on Spitfire Mk.Vb in Normandy (No. 26 and No. 63 Squadrons RAF that were specially trained for this task);
New Career mode missions: Transport Aircraft Escort of C-47s on their way to their drop zones during Normandy, Market Garden, Bastogne, and Varsity airborne operations timeframes;
Tank campaigns Last Chance and Breaking Point are updated (added tactical numbers to aircraft involved, added new vehicles to some of the engagements);
Many award descriptions updated;
Ju 87D-3: the additional armor plate now moves together with the canopy as it should;
Bf 109 G-6/AS: rockets correctly disappear when jettisoning their containers.
Another update, 5.105, is available now. Today we have released the first two Flying Circus Vol.III aircraft - the Halberstadt D.II and Nieuport 11 early Great War fighters.
The emergence of the Nieuport 11 at the front finally put an end to the devastating superiority of the Fokker monoplanes, which for a time had become known as the "Fokker Scourge." During the Battle of Verdun in February 1916, Nieuport 11s inflicted heavy damage on the enemy's air forces, which forced the German High Command to review the tactics of combat aircraft. Many famous aces of WWI (including Georges Guynemer) had their first major successes flying the Bébé.
Most of the pilots were impressed by Halberstadt D.II's better performance compared to the older Fokker monoplanes, especially its better climb and speed and very quick, easy, and responsive controls which gave it good maneuverability in the hands of experienced German pilots.
Our friends LuftManu and Avimimus have teamed up to prepare interesting videos of these birds that give a nice overview.
The release of this update commences the Early Access program for Flying Circus Vol.III - if you consider acquiring it eventually, these new aircraft are only a few mouse clicks away right now.
Of course, there are other improvements and fixes in the update change log:
5.105
Halberstadt D.II is available via the Flying Circus Vol. III Early Access program;
Nieuport 11 is available via the Flying Circus Vol. III Early Access program;
Photo recon missions on the Arado Ar 234 jet are added to Bodenplatte Career mode timeframe (Sonderkommando Sperling);
Fw 190 A-3, A-5, A-6, and A-8 external textures and paint schemes improved (Martin =ICDP= Catney);
Certain Spitfire Mk.IXe, P-47D-22, and P-47D-28 paint schemes corrected (Martin =ICDP= Catney);
Sky Nomads campaign updated: difficulty level is lowered a bit in the first mission, the text is corrected, Spanish and French translations added thanks to enthusiasts E69_Cananas and DN308;
Issues with a line drawing order on the map that could result in a wrong-looking mission route on the map have been corrected;
Original ShVAK gun sounds are restored due to popular demand - the new sounds will be reworked to better fit in the overall acoustic concept;
A couple of bugs in Normandy and Rhineland Career missions that could result in the player flight not traveling to the next waypoint have been found and fixed;
Issues in the transport aircraft missions that could prevent them from meeting their escorts have been found and fixed;
AI pilots will more efficiently wait for their lagging-behind wingmen and pursue enemy aircraft while being far from the rest of the flight.
Update 5.106 has been released! It brings three new aircraft, many improvements to the career mode and several historical campaigns, and other changes. In addition, two of the campaigns that were previously only available on our website are now available on Steam.
The three new planes are the armed sibling of the C-47, the Lisunov Li-2 Collector Plane, and two new additions to Flying Circus Vol.III Early Access - the German Albatros D.II and the French Nieuport 17 fighter.
The Lisunov Li-2 was a Soviet version of the DC-3 built under license. Although it looked similar, it was quite different from the original because it was adapted for Soviet production - all measurements were converted to metric, it had different instruments, cargo doors, landing gear, even the engines. This Soviet C-47 sibling was like a gunship wannabe - in addition to being able to carry bombs, it had turrets AND a forward-firing machine gun. Normally, going the "jack of all trades" route means sacrificing something in each trade, but the USSR needed versatile aircraft. While the Western Allies had plenty of long-range fighters to cover their bombers and unarmed transports during the war and enjoyed air superiority most of the time, the Soviet VVS usually did not have that luxury.
The D.II was the first in the pantheon of legendary Albatros fighters. It became the symbol and icon of the fighter plane in the Great War. The rapid mass production of Albatros fighters allowed Germany to maintain air superiority until April 1917. "Bloody April" has become synonymous with the heavy losses of British aircraft in 1917. Its pilots noted the good power of its twin machine guns, good forward and upward visibility, responsive handling, high speed, and impressive rate of climb. The fighter took part in battles all along the Western Front.
The Nieuport 17 was intended to be a further development of the Nieuport 11 fighter. Compared to its predecessor, it had a larger wingspan and surface area, a more powerful engine, a Vickers machine gun, and metal aileron control wires. The plane was initially built in several French factories, but licenses were soon purchased by other countries: Great Britain, Russia, Italy, Finland and Japan.
Pilots noted its good climb rate and visibility, as well as its excellent maneuverability. The plane's powerful engine and high dive speed exposed the main drawback of the "one and a half wing" design - a weak lower wing due to only one spar. There are two known occasions when pilots made successful landings after losing their lower wings.
As you can see from the change list below, there are many improvements to Career Mode that we hope you like. More are on the way!
If you prefer to make your purchases on Steam, there are a lot of new things that are being released there today at the same time as the update. Two campaigns that were previously only available on our website have been updated and released there: Ten Days of Autumn and Hell Hawks Over the Bulge. In addition, several new bundles have been released - Steam Bundles allow you to purchase multiple aircraft and campaigns, along with the corresponding modules, at a discounted price. While they are mostly aimed at new players to make it clearer which aircraft or campaign belongs to which module (for example, they all include the Battle of Stalingrad for newcomers), they can also be beneficial for seasoned players - the content you already own on Steam is excluded from the total price, so it may be cheaper to buy a bundle even if you own all but one of its contents.
Battle of Moscow Deluxe
Battle of Stalingrad Deluxe
Battle of Kuban Deluxe
Battle of Normandy Deluxe
Late War Bundle
Soviet Aircraft
Western Aircraft
5.106
Soviet Li-2 Collector Plane capable of carrying cargo, paratroopers, bombs, defensive and forward-firing armament, has been released;
Albatros D.2 airplane is available in Early Access for all owners of "Flying Circus Vol. III";
Nieuport 17 airplane is available in Early Access for all owners of "Flying Circus Vol. III";
Ten Days of Autumn campaign is updated and is now available on Steam as well (tactical numbers and correct camo, the aircraft quantity in the air is increased by one third, the number of convoys and artillery batteries is doubled, numerous edits to briefings, illustrations redesigned, all missions finalized and retested);
Hell Hawks Over the Bulge campaign is updated and is now available on Steam as well (script triggers, aircraft tactical numbers, generic and unique paint schemes for three participating squadrons, faster mission loading);
Sky Nomads campaign is updated (slightly reduced the difficulty of the 10th mission and changed the briefing of the 15th mission);
Normandy and Rheinland Career mode: new mission type - Intruder;
Moscow, Stalingrad, Kuban Career mode: added Artillery Spotting missions for USSR (IL-2 and U-2) and Germany (Bf 109 E, Ju-87);
Rheinland Career: added photo reconnaissance missions on Spitfire XIVe;
Career: updated free hunt missions, added patrol area marks the map and updated mission score logic;
Career: enemy night fighters can be encountered near the front line during night combat patrol missions;
Career: fighter cover has been added, enemy free hunters removed from transport missions in all career timeframes;
Career: trains appear in combat reconnaissance missions correctly;
Stalingrad Career mode: Ju 52 transport mission have fighter escort;
Rheinland Career mode: in the transport escort missions during the Market Garden and Varsity operations the transport aircraft have mixed loadouts;
Western Front WWI Career: BoSta 13 during the first phase (1917) and SchuSta 27b after 29.09.1917 careers progress correctly;
Western Front WWI careers: potential career progression issues to Phase 2 corrected for French Escadrille SPA 26, British squadrons No.1, No.2 AFC, No.11, No.18, No.19, No.20, No.23, No.43, No.46, No.48, No.56, and No.79, and German Jasta Boelcke, Jasta 4, 6, 7, 8, 11, 14, 35b, and 40s.
Kuban Career mode: fixed German ground attack aircraft not having bombs in escort missions;
Career mode: corrected taxiing at Tangmere airfield in Normandy and Bolshaya Rossoshka near Stalingrad (previously the lead aircraft could crash into another planes on the runway);
Normandy Career mode for USA and UK: in all escort missions the escort flight comes from the UK side;
ShVAK gun internal firing sounds updated;
Fuel gauge switch control has been implemented on Ju-88, Bf 110, Me 410, Fw 190D9, A-20, C-47, Li-2, Hurricane and Typhoon aircraft. The switch no longer activates "automatically" from time to time, there is a new command for this (RShift + I by default);
Spitfire Mk.V, Spitfire Mk.IX, and P-38 aircraft have the fuel gauge button control implemented (P-38 has a remaining fuel reserve control button). The button is no longer pressed "automatically" from time to time, you have to press and hold the button to operate the fuel gauge (RShift + I by default);
Ground spotters correctly give targeting info to AI pilots;
Fixed a problem with AI pilots climbing as a flight while carrying a heavy bomb load;
Corrected airframe strength of Nieuport 11 and Halberstadt D.II (slightly increased) and Siemens-Schuckert D.IV (slightly decreased);
Nieuport 11: RPM indicator now gives correct readings;
Nieuport 11: corrected engine thermal model, overcooling tendency is decreased;
Nieuport 11, Halberstadt D.II: corrected visual flight stick position and fuel gauge bulb in the cockpit;
Hs 129: corrected typos and errors in cockpit textures (Oyster_KAI);
Halberstadt D.II and Mosquito F.B. Mk.VI series.2 are visible at long distances (more than 10 km) correctly;
Ju 88A-4: lower gunner uniform matches the time of year and timeframe.
Update 5.107 has been released! It brings something for everyone - from two additional aircraft of the Great War to a Soviet fighter of 1943 and a historical campaign set in Normandy in 1944.
Let's briefly go through the other important changes first - there are improvements in many parts of the sim. The number of German fighters has been reduced to be more historically accurate in Normandy and Rheinland scenarios and the night bombing and transport missions have been updated in all theaters of war: this includes searchlight beacons, friend-or-foe identification, night fighters, and pathfinder aircraft which fly ahead of the bomber formation and carry out the initial strike to mark the target. In multiplayer dogfight mode, the coalition selection (and therefore the penalty in case of a coalition change) applies immediately when selecting a spawn point, not after the first flight to make spying on the other team's actions harder. The commander menu for player-controllable tanks has a new option for selecting ammunition depending on the target type. Force Feedback users: Flight stick movement affected by control surface weight has been fixed on the Nieuport 11, Nieuport 17, Albatros D.2, Sopwith Triplane, and Halberstadt aircraft. You can view the full change list below.
Now, onto the new content!
Your role in the Overlord campaign (also available on Steam) begins as a replacement pilot arriving with the 354th Fighter Group on D-Day and assigned to the 356th “Red Ass” Squadron under the command of Major Richard Turner. In mid-June 1944 the Pioneer Mustangs flew strike missions across the English Channel from ALG Lashenden during the first V-1 rocket attacks on London and were directly in the path of the “Doodlebugs” as they headed towards their intended targets. They moved to ALG-2 at Criqueville in late June where they flew ground attack, search and rescue, fighter-bomber escort, and fighter sweep missions during all the major battles of Operation Overlord. After the Allied breakout at Saint-Lô, the 354th FG was reassigned to the new XIX Tactical Air Command and moved east with Patton’s 3rd US Army through Paris and eventually into Germany. Due to the hectic flight schedule and squadron reorganization, you will move up from wingman to element leader and finish the campaign as a flight leader.
In terms of tactical characteristics, the La-5F (also available on Steam) was an evolutionary improvement of the La-5 on the way to the La-5FN. There weren't enough FN engines to power all the fighters produced until 1944, so mass production of the La-5F was inevitable through 1943 with continued improvements here and there. As working conditions and resources improved, production standards gradually rose, resulting in, among other things, better aircraft: La-5s produced in summer-autumn 1943 were about 150 kg lighter.
The biggest improvement from the pilot's point of view was the new bubble top canopy with emergency jettison (even our La-5FN series didn't yet have emergency jettison). This eliminated one of their biggest fears, not being able to bail out of a burning aircraft, which caused many to fly with open cockpits, which severely limited the speed of their aircraft. Now they could put that fear to rest and enjoy the improved field of vision - the main reason why bubble top variants became the norm in all air forces later in the war, despite the increased drag they had compared to older canopy designs.
To sum up, the La-5F in the sim is a bit more agile than the older La-5, turns a bit better than even the FN, offers a better field of view, and is slower than the FN in level flight and climb because of the more powerful engine of the latter. With a cockpit modeled for today's standards, it is a nice addition for the second half of the 1943 timeframe.
At first, the Hanriot HD.1 was meant to replace the older Nieuport 11 and 17 planes, but the new Spad 7s were already in use on the front lines and had accumulated positive feedback from pilots for their inline engines. Meanwhile, Nieuport squadrons still used Le Rhone rotary engines. As a result, the French Air Force (Aviation Militaire) decided not to switch to HDs as it wasn't cost-effective, and the acquisition was canceled.
However, the Entente allies found this plane attractive - it was stronger, maneuverable, and slightly better than the Nieuport in general. The Italian Air Force (Aviazione Militaire) had received 831 Hanriots by the end of the war while Aeronautique Militaire Belge bought 125 and used them effectively, especially the Belgian aces like Coppens, de Meulemeester, and Olieslagers.
When the Nieuport 17 arrived on the battlefield in March 1916, it swiftly replaced the Nieuport 11. By the end of 1916, every scout squadron in the French Aviation Militaire had Nieuport 17s. Its superiority over any British plane led to its adoption by the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Naval Air Service. The Nieuport 17 GBR was customized for British service with an overwing Lewis MG replacing the Vickers in the nose and Imperial system instruments instead of metric. Many top Allied pilots flew Nieuport fighters, like Albert Ball and Canadian ace W.A. Bishop. Captain William Avery Bishop, of 60 Squadron RFC, scored 28 of his 72 kills in a Nieuport 17, B1566 between April 20th and July 20th, 1917. He also conducted an air raid on a German airfield on June 2nd in this aircraft, earning him the Victoria Cross.
Both airplanes are available right now via the Flying Circus Vol.III Early Access program.
We hope you'll enjoy the new update! See you in the skies!
5.107 Changelist
Hanriot HD.1 airplane is available in Early Access for all owners of "Flying Circus Vol. III";
Nieuport 17 GBR (British) airplane is available in Early Access for all owners of "Flying Circus Vol. III";
Soviet Collector Plane La-5F series 38 has been released;
A new historical campaign "Overlord" has been released (American fighter pilot of the 354th Group flying a P-51B Mustang in June-August 1944);
Normandy and Rheinland Career Mode: the number of German fighters has been reduced to be more historically accurate;
Career Mode: updated templates for night bombing and transport missions, added searchlight beacons, friend-or-foe identification, night fighters, and pathfinder aircraft;
Normandy Career Mode: in phases 1 to 3 Allied escort fighters will appear over the airfield when starting a mission on the ground and a kilometer behind the player when starting the mission in the air;
Eastern Front Career Mode: new mission types Support the Attack and Support the Defense (they will be added to other theaters of war later);
Tank Crew: the commander menu of the player-controllable tanks has a new option for selecting the ammo depending on the target type;
AQMB: British C-47 missions added;
Force Feedback: the effect of flight stick movement by the weight of the control surfaces has been added to Nieuport 11, Nieuport 17, Albatros D.2, Sopwith Triplane, and Halberstadt;
Dogfight: to make spying on the other team's actions harder, the coalition selection (and therefore the penalty in case of a coalition change) applies immediately when selecting a spawn point, not after the first flight;
Multiplayer: fixed a problem with the incorrect color of selected tactical code symbols;
Rheinland: fixed incorrect water reflections of trees growing on steep slopes;
Nieuport 11 and Nieuport 17: fixed a problem with the engine overcooling too fast;
La-5 ser.8 FM updated based on La-5FN and La-5F research;
La-5 ser.8 and LaGG-3: bomb release is set to two at a time (previously it was one at a time), bomb release safety lever corrected (it is set to "ПО" position with no bombs and "ПЗ" position when carrying bombs), bomb release button sound added;
Li-2: compass and autopilot direction indicator have been corrected to eliminate a small deviation in readings;
Li-2: fluorescent instrument illumination has been adjusted;
Li-2: pilot's death and capture after bailing out over enemy territory are counted correctly;
Li-2: RPK radio compass shows relative radio station bearing correctly;
Albatros D.2: the look of the bolts on the machine gun sights improved;
Spitfire Mk.IXe: Mid-1944 skin rondels reflect the light correctly;
Stalingrad Career Mode: armored gunboats now move in the artillery spotting missions;
Career Mode: fixed taxiing at Mozhaisk airfield in Moscow region and Winkton airfield in Normandy;
A memory leak bug that might have caused the mission editor to crash randomly when using high-resolution monitors (2K-4K) has been found and fixed.
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