I shut down the engine and threw myself on the controls, praying, praying and praying. Miraculously it somehow worked (for the first time out of 10+), see in the debrief! So I don't complain.
Dirk.
#3892085 - 01/08/1410:57 PMRe: Combat accident over St.Mihiel
[Re: Dirk98]
Do your missions always load that fast from the briefing screen? I usually hear the "CONTACT" and engine starting all the way through before the mission loads... like up to a minute.
Also, I think the Nieuports, being sesquiplanes, had stability issues with the lower wings and the V strut. They would tend to twist and break if stressed enough.
Last edited by Glubber; 01/08/1411:01 PM.
#3892100 - 01/08/1411:16 PMRe: Combat accident over St.Mihiel
[Re: Dirk98]
Glubber, I edited the video here and there. At some point the speed hit ~210 km/h shortly. Was it really enough to create too much load on the lower wing? However in reality, of course, more WWI pilots died to all kinds of technical failures than in combat.
Thanks, Dirk.
#3892107 - 01/08/1411:34 PMRe: Combat accident over St.Mihiel
[Re: Dirk98]
Actually, a dive or two before the break you hit 250. Not sure if the game models weakening over time since there was no obvious indication until it snapped.
Actually, a dive or two before the break you hit 250. Not sure if the game models weakening over time since there was no obvious indication until it snapped.
Glubber, no, it was less than 220km/h! See the dial again.
Dirk.
#3892140 - 01/09/1412:22 AMRe: Combat accident over St.Mihiel
[Re: Dirk98]
I mean around 15-20 seconds before the break at 15:29. I'm curious if any stress damage could have occurred then, or if the game actually models that. I don't actually know what a safe max speed would be for a Nieuport 24 in a dive.
Last edited by Glubber; 01/09/1412:23 AM.
#3892184 - 01/09/1402:09 AMRe: Combat accident over St.Mihiel
[Re: Dirk98]
I haven't lost a Nieuport pilot to enemy fire yet. It's always the damn wings ripping off, especially with the later versions which can actually go fast. Saying the aircraft is fragile is an understatement.
I haven't lost a Nieuport pilot to enemy fire yet. It's always the damn wings ripping off, especially with the later versions which can actually go fast. Saying the aircraft is fragile is an understatement.
No kidding. My problem is that I just want to get in and fight, but I've finally started to actually go on free flights just so I can try maneuvers in the planes and see what they can do without any frenzy. I guess there's a reason pilots actually trained before taking to the air, because it's really helping me to take time with individual planes.
#3892303 - 01/09/1405:59 AMRe: Combat accident over St.Mihiel
[Re: Dirk98]
I haven't lost a Nieuport pilot to enemy fire yet. It's always the damn wings ripping off, especially with the later versions which can actually go fast. Saying the aircraft is fragile is an understatement.
You can't keep the nose very far down for long in a Nieuport of any kind, even with the engine blipped. I generally use a diving turn at idle when trying to stay on those AI pilots who constantly use Split-S maneuvers to get away from you. It's still risky as hell. Seems like if I get near 150mph (I don't bother switching Imperial/Metric back & forth at the moment) then they'll easily snap with anything more than light elevator movement.
The Nieuport 28 is especially nasty since it's a good deal faster than the earlier ones, but seems to have the same threshold before you start hearing the wing fabric ripping. I had been under the impression that the N28's regular-sized lower wing got rid of the wing twisting issue of the earlier Nieups but it would also shed it's top wing fabric somewhere before 200mph in a sustained dive (as related by Rickenbacker) however still be vaguely flyable enough to make an emergency landing in some cases.
I'm not sure exactly what their limits are in WOFF.. maybe we should go break some in QBs? You can get the feel for it once you've done it a couple times but that doesn't help those poor pilots, huh ?
My first wing-stress loss of a Nieup was an N17 or N23/24 and that happened in a nearly flat turn while pulling during an extended double-circle turn fight. Snapped right off when I was trying to squeeze as much as I could out of the groaning little beast to get a head-on shot. Pop! The whole thing buckled fairly quickly and my pilot ended up at -6 feet in the end.
I haven't lost a Nieuport pilot to enemy fire yet. It's always the damn wings ripping off, especially with the later versions which can actually go fast. Saying the aircraft is fragile is an understatement.
You can't keep the nose very far down for long in a Nieuport of any kind, even with the engine blipped. I generally use a diving turn at idle when trying to stay on those AI pilots who constantly use Split-S maneuvers to get away from you. It's still risky as hell. Seems like if I get near 150mph (I don't bother switching Imperial/Metric back & forth at the moment) then they'll easily snap with anything more than light elevator movement.
The Nieuport 28 is especially nasty since it's a good deal faster than the earlier ones, but seems to have the same threshold before you start hearing the wing fabric ripping. I had been under the impression that the N28's regular-sized lower wing got rid of the wing twisting issue of the earlier Nieups but it would also shed it's top wing fabric somewhere before 200mph in a sustained dive (as related by Rickenbacker) however still be vaguely flyable enough to make an emergency landing in some cases.
I'm not sure exactly what their limits are in WOFF.. maybe we should go break some in QBs? You can get the feel for it once you've done it a couple times but that doesn't help those poor pilots, huh ?
My first wing-stress loss of a Nieup was an N17 or N23/24 and that happened in a nearly flat turn while pulling during an extended double-circle turn fight. Snapped right off when I was trying to squeeze as much as I could out of the groaning little beast to get a head-on shot. Pop! The whole thing buckled fairly quickly and my pilot ended up at -6 feet in the end.
Yeah, but it's so hard to resist not following anything through the shortest of dives. The "smart" thing to do when the enemy does a split-s away is to go into a climbing turn in the same direction, then with hard rudder over to point back down. If the enemy keeps diving away, don't follow. If he tries to climb back up after his dive, you now have the energy advantage. But that takes a lot of discipline, especially when you know that even though the wings rip off easily, you can still probably make it if you're careful and feel like taking a chance.\
My current Nieuport pilot is flying an 11 and racking up the kills on those Eindeckers in 1916, so hopefully he will live a while before I have the opportunity to become reckless and try to follow opponents in dives again.
Last edited by andqui; 01/09/1403:51 PM.
#3892578 - 01/09/1406:39 PMRe: Combat accident over St.Mihiel
[Re: Dirk98]
10) New Feature: Implementation of Injury Visual effects and Over G Visual effects, and associated settings in workshops!
Thanks, Dirk.
Nice!
I thought we already had an OverG text indicator under the TAC. Although sometimes the onset was so fast, or the dogfight so intense, you may not notice.
I take it back- once you learn how to fly it safely, and how to turn sharply without pulling the wings off, the N24 is a fantastic aircraft, at least in late 1917 compared to the Pfalz and Albatros versions you are up against. Great rate of climb, good acceleration. As long as you don't rely on the rudder you can outturn any opponent- simply put the wings vertical, pull hard, watch for the stall, only using the rudder for small corrections. If you're stalling and loosing speed, simply roll inverted and pull hard for a split S to get your energy back, and the opponent has difficulty following you through the tight vertical turn. If you've stalled into a spin, do the same. It's fine to do short dives like this, and maybe essential for energy management- but whatever you do, never point the nose straight down for more than a few seconds. Let the enemy dive away from you and get them if they try to slowly climb back up. When in a shallower dive, just watch the airspeed indicator and ease off before the needle pegs the gauge.
