Well, fortunately the A-10 is THE tank killer, because that's what I'm tasked to do for this next mission. Once again, penetrate the enemy front lines and kill a platoon of tanks.
A careful study of the map shows that this target area should be fairly easy to identify since a river runs very near the anticipated target as well as a bridge. Additionally, we will be taking off from the recently captured airbase which will make our flight times even shorter.
My wingman and I roar down the runway anticipating a short few minutes of flying to the target area.
As we approach the target area we get the summary and the notice that the target has been marked with yellow smoke, which we soon see in the HUD.
The IR image from the Maverick makes these targets very easy to spot and ID.
Although we still get hassled slightly by the SA-11 site if we drift too high over the battlfield.
After closing on the target we jig back and forth a few times keeping our standoff range with our Mavericks.
The smoke shows up well on the Maverick IR monitor which makes identifying the targets even easier.
Good night Irene!
Each turn back to the west we pop flares to prevent any IR SAMs from reaching up and smacking us down..
Oddly enough I get a "bogey" call over the radio and immediately wonder if I've triggered a fighter response, but it turns out they are enemy helos just northeast of the target area. I didn't use labels, but I did use the F2 key to cycle through the units to see what was airborne. I know it's a cheat, and I sort of feel bad about it, but it helps with getting screenshots of the "story" <grin>.
Dismissing the helos for now, I concentrate on using my limited Mavericks to strike the correct targets in the area. I don't want to go wasting missiles on tankers or trucks. Fortunately the relatively light SAM/AAA threat allows me to get pretty close for good views of the vehicles on the monitor before firing.
This tank is camouflaged perfectly against the woods. Fortunately the IR Maverick lets the heat of the tank pop out on the monitor.
Another Maverick gets sent on the way...
I get a "Mission Complete" message and head back to base.
But then I get to thinking. Hey..about those enemy helos! Unable to contain myself, I taxi back to the active and takeoff to hunt them down. From the F2 view I know they are still out there, but I consider the fact that they are flying so close to friendly lines to be a "hint", like some unit gave me good intelligence on their whereabouts. That makes me feel better about using the F2 cheat. At least I didn't use labels..(haha..)
The helos are heading into the foothills and the area is clear of enemy ground units so I'm free to pursue without worry.
Finally, after a good bit of searching, I find the two specks against the landscape and pull up my Sidewinder missiles.
Fox Two!
Boom! My first air-to-air kill of the campaign (and likely my only!)..
On the same pass I'm very close to the second chopper but just manage to get a lock and squeeze off the second missile..
I have to be careful not to drive into the mountains as I zip past the helos. The second one takes a hit from my missile, but it must only damage the tailrotor because it starts smoking and spiraling down slowly as if it has lost tailrotor effectiveness.
The helo is only slowly drifting down, so I'm relentless and come back around with my Avenger to finish the job.
Totals for the mission are 3 tanks, 1 SA-9 vehicle, and 2 helos! This was a pretty easy mission in what have been increasingly difficult missions. No doubt I'll pay the price for an easy mission later!
BeachAV8R
