Tuesday 12th May 2020

[Neil Willis]

Well, too good to be true, but I suspect it may well be next week as the free access offer ends then. Fingers crossed.

[Flyco]

I made some comments on this mission in the Pilot Chat section, sparked by comment there. So please excuse any repetition here.

I though the mission went quite well from the A-10c point of view. Obviously, there were a number of shortages and late starts with the other flights, but at least the A-10s got a reasonable time over the target. Thanks to the Harriers who manfully went for both Maykop and Sochi. Not enough ordnance to eliminate everything there, but a 'damn good show' I thought. At least Springfield fired some of their HARMs at the red SAMs - You know who I am talking about, Gp Capt!

I was please to see the effects of a breakdown in CAP, in that it made things a bit more exciting over the target area (very exciting for some of us). To my mind it is that mutual reliance that makes multi-type missions so variable - if one element fails, the others are affected. I had originally included triggers that reduced the number of red air launched if any blue CAP ac were lost early on, but I took that out - and I think the results were OK.

Certainly it was a bit frustrating that all the A-10s eventually got hammered by the Migs, but that's life. I was shot up as I finished my landing run at Gudauta, less than 1 mile from a blue Hawk battery. Presumably the Hawks ignored me because one of us (and I don't mean to be repetitive here, Gp Capt!), took out one of the Hawks with his HARM very early on - could have been an unintended premature discharge, of course.

[Neil Willis]

The Aim88C that hit the Hawk battery went stupid it seems. I was locked up by a SAM6 when it was launched. I even waited til the SAM has launched, but still the Hawk seemed like a more suitable target - stupid missile!

So, after I had the fragments of F/a-18 and SAM6 removed from my skull and other anatomical features, I got back into the air, and rejoined Jack in SEAD work.

Object lesson - our bases are too close to those of the enemy.

I took out an L-39 and a Mig-29, and not one friendly, so that was an improvement.

[Father Cool]

We were all dead before you had the chance Neil.

[john (scooby)]

We were all dead before you had the chance Neil.

excuse me, i didnt die, dcs ejected me

[Mutley]

We were all dead before you had the chance Neil.

excuse me, i didnt die, dcs ejected me

or was it Shaggy ?mm arhh oohh erh misses