Air Force

Introduction

WWII Online: Battleground Europe is a combined arms simulation, featuring co-operative gameplay between Ground, Air, and Naval units. Of these three, the Airforce is arguably the most potent arm: without air superiority and close air support the Army and the Navy cannot hope to make an impact, and without fighters to pave the way for bombers and paratroop aircraft, very little can be accomplished. Strategic bombers, roaming far beyond the reach of riflemen and patrol boats, have the power to strangle supply and slow down research of new weaponry in the game’s RDP model. Air superiority is a vital concept and during your first few hours in the game world, as you find yourself anxiously looking skyward or ducking under a hail of bombs, you will recognize just how important it is. This guide aims to help you to get airborne, armed and ready to influence the flow of battle.

Air combat IS tough
Be advised that air combat is an incredibly complex field to venture into. Becoming an effective pilot requires long hours in the cockpit and countless fiery deaths. Do not be turned off by the steep learning curve however – once you get the hang of some basic concepts you will be ready to fight it out with the best of them.

WWII Online has a good selection of various types of combat aircraft to choose from, all with their own peculiar traits, benefits and disadvantages. Aside from general similarities and the universal challenge of combat shared by all, each aircraft requires a specific modus operandi to ensure success. Learn by flying them all, offline, through reading and by experimenting, to find the aircraft and the practice that best suits your fighting personality.

First time pilot? Fly offline!
If this is your first attempt at flying, we strongly recommend that you review the basic aircraft controls below and practice extensively offline before venturing out online. This is because aircraft availability online is severely limited, and while your embarrassing crash will not dig a hole in the spawnlist, senseless waste of aircraft is largely frowned upon by your fellow pilots. Once online, do not hesitate to ask for help and advice – you will find many helpful pilots online who are eager to help you along.

If you fancy more in-depth reading, have a look at this decent guide for beginner and intermediate pilots

Note that game download and offline play is free of charge.

Incremental flaps

Learn how to configure "combat flaps" for better turn performance in dogfights

Piloting Quick Start Guide

From n00b to dweeb in 10 minutes flat!

Essential Game Controllers

You simply have to get a joystick or you get to play infantry!

Ten Easy Rules

Getting airborne is easy enough. Surviving is another matter!

General Instruction

Find out all you need to know about cockpit instruments, engine management, gunnery, energy, situational awareness and more!

Basic Flight Maneuvers (BFM)

Take off and landing, turning, diving, barrel-rolling... so much to learn, so little time. Give it a few minutes and you will gain prowess to last you a lifetime (no, not a game lifetime).

Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACM)

Advanced Combat Maneuvers (ACM) is the collective name for all kinds maneuvers that you will need to employ to produce a guns opportunity against enemy aircraft – or to escape from a threatening situation. Learn about the Scissors, the Yo-Yo, the Rope-a-Dope and many more useful maneuvers, right here.

Missions - Have guns, will travel.

Now that you can fly an aircraft, what are you going to do with it?

Learn more about how to succeed in fighter missions such as CAP, CAS and BARCAP; learn how to make the groundpounders miserable with fighter-bombers and attack aircraft; learn how to lay waste to enemy factories through strategic bombing... and more.

Air Force Units

(16 major types, 41 total models in game)

Note: these categories loosely represent comparable or equivalent units, performance difference will vary greatly.

	British	French	American	German
Fighter	Hawker Hurricane Mk I	Curtiss H-75		Messerschmitt Bf 109 E-1
	Supermarine Spitfire Mk Ia	Dewoitine D.520		Messerschmitt Bf 109 E-4
	Hawker Hurricane Mk IIb	Curtiss H-81 A2		Messerschmitt Bf 109 F-2
	Supermarine Spitfire Mk IIb			Messerschmitt Bf 109 F-4
	Supermarine Spitfire Mk Vb	Curtiss H-87 B3		Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6/U-4
	Supermarine Spitfire Mk IXc	Lockheed 322-15 / P-38F Lightning	P-38F Lightning	Focke-Wulf Fw 190 A-4
Heavy Fighter	Bristol Blenheim Mk IF			Messerschmitt Bf 110 C-4
Fighter-Bomber / Close Air Support	Hawker Hurricane Mk IIB F/B	Hawker Hurricane Mk IIB F/B		Messerschmitt Bf 110 F/B
	Hawker Hurricane Mk IIC	Bell Model 14a / P-39 D-1 Airacobra		Messerschmitt Bf 109 E-4B
	Kittyhawk Mk II	Curtiss H-87 B3 (P-40F) Fighter Bomber	P-40F Fighter Bomber	Messerschmitt Bf 109G-2/R1
				Focke-Wulf Fw 190A-3B Jabo
Dive Bomber				Junkers Ju 87B Stuka
Tank Buster	Hurricane Mk IID	Model 26 / P-39N Airacobra	P-39N Airacobra	Junkers Ju 87G2 Stuka
Light Bomber	Bristol Blenheim Mk IV	Bristol Blenheim Mk IV
Medium Bomber				Heinkel He 111H-2
Attack / Multi-Role Bomber	Havoc Mk I	Douglas DB-7	A20C Havoc	Junkers Ju 88A4
Transport	C-47 Dakota	Junkers Ju-52/3M ex-airliner	C-47 skytrain	Junkers Ju-52/3M

Check out Hoof Performance page, insights into the games aircraft.

Aircraft Names

Fighter

British

Short Name	Formal & Specific Name	Alternative Name
Hurricane Mk I	Hawker Hurricane Mk I	Hurri
Hurricane Mk IIb	Hawker Hurricane Mk IIb	Hurri
Spitfire Mk Ia	Supermarine Spitfire Mk Ia	Spit
Spitfire Mk Vb	Supermarine Spitfire Mk Vb	Spit
Spitfire Mk IXc	Supermarine Spitfire Mk IXc	Spit

French

Short Name	Formal & Specific Name	Alternative Name
Hawk 75	Curtiss Hawk H75A-3	P-36A
Hawk 81	Curtiss Hawk H81A-2	P-40C
Hawk 87	Curtiss Hawk H87B-3	P-40F "Warhawk"
D.520	Dewoitine D.520
P-322 Lightning	Lockheed 322-15	P-38 Lightning

German

Short Name	Formal & Specific Name	Alternative Name
Bf 109E-4	Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4	Emil
Bf 109F-4	Messerschmitt Bf 109F-4	Franz
Bf 109G-6/U4	Messerschmitt Bf 109G-6/U-4	Gustav
Fw 190A-4	Focke Wulf Fw 190A-4	Würger
Bf 110C-4	Messerschmitt Bf 110C-4	Zerstörer

Fighter Bomber & Bomber

Short Name	Formal & Specific Name	Alternative Name
Blenheim Mk I	Bristol Blenheim Mk I	Blenburgher
Blenheim Mk IV	Bristol Blenheim Mk IV	Blenburgher
Havoc Mk I	Douglas A-20	Havoc Mk I
Hurricane Mk IIc	Hurricane Mk IIc	Hurribomber
Ju 87 Stuka	Junkers Ju 87B-2	Stuka
He 111	Heinkel He 111H-1	Spade
Bf 110C-4/B	Messerschmitt Bf 110C-4/B	Zerstörer
DB-7	Douglas DB-7
Bell mle 14a	Bell mle 14a (P-39)	Airacobra

Transport

Short Name	Formal & Specific Name	Alternative Name
Ju-52 Transport	Junker Ju 52 M3	Tante Ju
C-47 Dakota	Douglas C-47	Dakota