European Air War 1
Game: European Air War
Player: SamF7
Mission: Bomber Escort
About a year ago in EAW, my flight of P47's were escorting some "big
friends". We were several miles ahead of the B17's when we engaged a gaggle
of FW-190's.
Usually I try to stay "in control" of my flight, but there were just too
many of them, so I gave a quick "ENGAGE ENEMY" command and waded in with my
boys. I plinked a few, got myself plinked a bit....we seemed to be giving
as good as we were getting. A few smoke trails and parachutes indicated the
handful of losers in the big furball.
I had one 190 smoking when he threw his nose down and headed towards the
dirt. P47's might not turn too tight, but it's NEVER a good idea to try
outdive one. I popped him with a few more rounds before we both pulled up
on the deck. He squirmed, he twisted, but I managed to stay with him
without overshooting before I FINALLY finished this bad boy off. Watching
his wreckage auger in was when I first noticed I "had a problem" - tracer
fire lashed right over my cockpit.
A quick looked behind me revealed the ugly mug of a 190 spitting fire in my
direction. He must have followed ME down as I followed his bud down. I was
low, I was slow...and this is NOT a good situation to be in when flying a
plane called "The Jug". Doom on Sam time.
We were in the middle of a pretty big city. I pulled every trick I could
think of to shake him. No luck. I could hear his shots hitting my plane :
Tink - Tink - Tink - BLAM (those cannon rounds HURT). I actually sat in my
chair trying to scrunch myself smaller behind my imaginary armor plating - I
was sweating. My plane was starting to smoke by then, and I was plenty
worried. I was in the wrong plane, at the wrong time, and quickly running
out of options. I started using the BUILDINGS for cover. Fly down a
street, and quickly turn left/right at an intersection to put a building
between me and his 20mm's. I used the squadron command to SCREAM FOR HELP
from my wingmates (isn't it USUALLY the AI screaming for help?) - hehe.
They were all probably still up at 15,000 feet where I wished I was!
After another quick slash around a two story building, I had to level out a
bit to build up some more speed for another "building dodge". While looking
up the street for my "next" building to dodge behind, machine gun bullets
laced the city streets in parallel lines in front of me ... just like in
the movies. It was almost too cool. I sure wish I was the plane in BACK,
though! At this point I noticed a plane directly at my 12 o'clock high
position closing in fast in a shallow dive.
"Great", I thought, now the Germans are probably arguing over who gets the
honors of splattering me all over the French countryside. It was just then
that the radio chatter barked: "BREAK LEFT!".
THE PLANE IN FRONT WAS ONE OF MY P-47 SQUADRONMATES COME TO THE RESUCE !
Before I knew what was happening the jug in front fired all 8 50 cals
directly over my head as he zoomed over me doing what must have been over
400MPH - scared the sheyat out of me !!!
Silence....my beat and battered and smoking '47 droned on.........silence
behind me.....The FW190 was gone. My AI wingie, the ones we always seem to
complain about in flight sims, had just saved my Bacon with quite an
impressive head on shot (missing me in the process....making it an even MORE
impressive shot).
I managed to coax my beat up Jug home to end the mission. THIS would have
been a cool mission to have had a flight recorder for. Nothing but a cool
memory, now.