DD_Fenrir

Mission Date 29/11/44 402nd FS - Rail Target Strike, Bullay 485th FS - Reconnaissance, Nettershiem-Gerolstein 410th BG - Reconnaissance, Gerolstein-Nettersheim Debrief: 370th FG 402nd FS: Weather was poor, we climbed through the cloud cover, clear skies at 8K ft. After spending some limited time over the clouds, it was time to dive back into them, to find our ground targets. Red 2 was out of sight for a bit in the cloud business, but joined us over the target. Did lots of damage North of Bullay, and a few clicks south. Red 3 reported some damage to his a/c, but no real issue flying wise. Went back to home base where we all landed. Red 2 suffered main gear collapse on touch down. He was fine, his P38 was not. All in all the 402nd accounted for 25 ground targets destroyed, an excellent performance in any conditions, let alone the horrendous weather they were obliged to contend with. Excellent work! 485th FS: Capt. Fenton Rea led a six ship reconnaissance patrol in despicable conditions. As we crossed the frontlines near Nettersheim, the Squadron was engaged by light AA fire. Zenith Red Leader determined that the fire was being directed at Red Section and attempted to keep the gun focussed on them dispatching White flight to attack the gun, which they did with remarkable rapidity. On reforming we had a distress call from Snowdrop Leader, declaring that they were being engaged by bandits some 25km SSW of the 485ths current position. Regrouping the squadron, Zenith Leader made for their sector forthwith. Enroute it was determined that Snowdrop had split up and Zenith White section was detached to assist the Snowdrop lead who was further west as Red Flight engaged a single Fw 190 harassing an A-20. Zenith red leader fired a burst at the e/a, causing it to break off it's attack on the A-20 but then overshot and the bandit was picked up by Reds 3 & 4 but they were unable to finish off the 190 before being practically run-over by a flight of P-47s and, in the interests of safety, being obliged to break off. Neither of the Red Flight sections were able to reacquire the e/a in the murk, and he either ran home or was shot down by the Thunderbolts. Meanwhile White Flight had got separated in the awful visibility, though White 2 - 2nd Lt. Stellar Artois - had found the bandits making moves on Snowdrop leader; one of the e/a lost control and spun-in as Artois engaged (this was claimed by the rear gunner on Snowdrop Leaders a/c) at which point White 2 came under fire from a 2nd bandit in the vicinity, casing significant damage to the left boom of the Lieutenants a/c. However Red Flight arrived just in time and Capt. Fenton Rea shot and heavily damaged the e/a. The Fw 190 lost control as Rea overshot and was last seen spinning into the gloom, however, it's destruction could not be confirmed and thus he could only claim a probable. Zenith Leader then instructed White two to RTB with White 1 to support, and headed back in to the recon area over the frontlines to cover the remainder of Snowdrop squadron. Shortly thereafter Snowdrop called they were withdrawing and the 485th attempted to engage some scattered ground targets in the gloom with their guns and few remaining bombs. They managed to account for a few guns before Zenith Leader called it a day All aircraft proceeded back to safe landing at Florennes. All told we claim one e/a probable, one e/a damaged, 5 AAA guns destroyed and 2 artillery guns. Debrief: 410th BG 4 aircraft took off from Eindhoven to carry out a recce in the area north east of Prum. An uneventful flight to the area apart from the fighter escort appearing then disappearing, didn't see them for the rest of the flight duration. On reaching the patrol area and just before turning onto the Northern leg along the lines we were attacked by Fw190s. These were called out by Delta but they attached themselves to us very quickly. Sid picked up damage in their first attack so he turned back over the lines and headed home but was chased by a determined 190. Delta and Crash had a dogfight for a short period until support came in the form of welcome 485th P38s. Crash and Delta were able to break off and begin the northern leg but Delta picked up flak damage soon after. They got rid of bombs on artillery targets and headed back to friendly lines. Delta's damage caused him to head for Aachen to land but didn't get there, he ditched south east of Monchau. Crash headed home. Meanwhile the persistent 190 chasing Sid was damaged by the rear gunner and, when turning to engage a P38 lost control and went in north of Prum. Sid was very badly damaged and decided to head for the airfields on the west of his route back to Eindhoven but had to bail south east of Petit Brogel. Given the weather and fighter activity it was a very interesting mission. Well done boys for surviving.... 370th FG Awards and Promotions: 2nd Lieutenant Patrick Last is promoted to 1st Lieutenant; congratulations Lieutenant! 2nd Lieutenant Luke Rox is promoted to 1st Lieutenant; congratulations Lieutenant! 2nd Lieutenant David Reginald is promoted to 1st Lieutenant; congratulations Lieutenant! Personnel: None. Rosters: 410th BG Awards and Promotions: None. Personnel: None. Roster: Scoreboards:

Debrief post for the mission of the 28th November 1944 updated with scoreboards and rosters:

Thought I'd highlight a few of my fave Third Party skins that are available for the glorious F-14 in case they tickle your pickle also... F-14A: https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/files/3306230/ https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/files/3313936/ https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/files/3313467/ https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/files/3313466/ https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JlrWGM74hAbrWD8kzYE-ZRcq_y72nfTE/view https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/files/3305797/ - Note: made for the DCS F-14B initially, the real squadron only ever flew the 'A' variant. https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/files/3305679/ - Note: made for the DCS F-14B initially, the real squadron only ever flew the 'A' variant. F-14B: https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/files/3307339/ - Note: this download is only the first half of the pack, a further link to a google drive containing the other elements is contained within the download. https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/files/3305925/?sphrase_id=1954009 As a rule, they should go here: F-14A: "X":\Users\"yourusername"\Saved Games\DCS*\Liveries\F-14A-135-GR F-14B: "X":\Users\"yourusername"\Saved Games\DCS*\Liveries\f-14b However, as a general rule, skins are completely interchangeable between the two variants; as a stickler for authenticity I keep mine segregated but there is nothing to stop you from putting an -A skin in the -B folder or vice versa, should you desire. The artists that have done some of the above have further offerings that may intrigue or excite you: Reflected (him again!): LINK 59th_Jack: LINK Vflip: LINK Porcorosso86: LINK flying_isoko: LINK My penchant tends to be for the more tactical schemes; if you prefer the more colourful liveries then be sure to scour the F-14 Skins repository at ED User Files to find some you like: ED User Files F-14 Skins Link And please feel free to post links to any that tickle your pickle. Can never have enough good Tomcat skins!

https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/files/3315123/

What rank Arjen?

Mission Date 28/11/44 402nd FS - Fighter Sweep, Nettersheim-Düren Sector 485th FS - Rail Target Strike, Zulpich 410th BG - Rail Target Strike, Bonn Debrief: 370th FG 402nd FS: It is with a heavy heart that the 402nd report the death of their squadron leader, it is a very sad day in the 402nd, his excellent leadership will be sadly missed, not to mention his laid back presence at the bar in the the mess in the evenings. We were preceding along our patrol route, when we initially spotted 5 enemy aircraft at our low one O'clock, in two elements, a three ship and a two ship. Major Arjen Eftee led the attack and dived on the three ship, whilst the second element started to dive on the second enemy element. During the dive, the second element noticed many more enemy aircraft under the cloud coming into view slightly behind the first aircraft spotted and pulled out of the attack to maintain altitude advantage. Alas this was to late for the lead element, and Major Arjen Eftee's aircraft was seen to impact the ground after the dive down. Captain Kevin Fruitbat as ranking officer, took command of the remaining planes in the flight, with the first priority to extricate 2nd Lt Dennis Falcon out of a very hairy situation. Fortunately he still had plenty of energy, and so was instructed to shallow climb on what ever heading he was currently on, whilst Captain K Fruitbat and 2nd Lt Patrick Last flying as his wing, maneuvered to position themselves to cover his initial escape. It was during this point that the Captain realised his radio was fitted with a faulty radio crystal and was unable to directly talk to the 485th, and so all messages had to be relayed through a ground controller. After this work around was figured out, the 402nd urgently sent position, altitude and bandit number chasing us, requesting a heading for intercept with the 485th to give support. The 485th replied with a heading and that they were 10 miles north of our position but lower. Not long after this, with 13 bandits confirmed in tow we sighted the 485th and quickly ascertained they were still climbing, so the order was given to turn west to give them time to get more altitude. The enemy obviously had not spotted the 485th as they turned to follow the 402nd. This allowed the 485th to latch onto the back, and battle was joined, at this point the 402nd reversed course and entered the fray. At first the 402nd maintained combat formation and flew purely defensive against the more numerous enemy, as it appeared in the confusion they weren't fully aware that the 402nd had been joined by the 485th, until this was no longer tenable, and battle was fully joined. In the ensuing melee, the 402nd claimed 3 confirmed, with one apiece to each pilot, a Fw190D for the Captain, and Bf110's for the Lt's, along with damaging at least 3 other enemy aircraft. During the fight, both Captain K Fruitbat and 2nd Lt D Falcon received damage, but were able to continue. Finally the last of the enemy aircraft was seen to go down, and the call to return to base was given. Shortly after regrouping, Captain K Fruitbat gave command to 2nd P Last, as he decided that his aircraft was too heavily damaged to return and land, and so looked for a area devoid of trees to bail out over. The remaining two ship returned to base, and landed safely. Without the quick assistance given to the 402nd by the 485th, It would almost have certainly been a much bleaker day for the squadron, in what was already a bleak day. 485th FS: Capt. Fenton Rea led a four ship attack on the Rail Station at Zulpich and train targets therein, the flight successfully destroying a train and a number of AAA guns in the vicinity. Heading NW to Düren to see what other ground targets the area might yield, the 485th received an assistance call from the 402nd, initially interpreted as an alert to more ground targets. However it quickly became apparent that the 402nd were engaged with and heavily outnumbered by enemy aircraft. The 402nd reported their altitude as Angels 12; the 485th were at Angels 5. Turning South and clapping on all available sail, climbing as fast as possible, Zenith squadron were passing 7,000ft when they saw 3 P-38s coming north with 13 bandits, a mixed force of Fw 190Ds and Bf 110s, in pursuit. Leakage White 3, Capt. Kevin Fruitbat (now leading Leakage squadron) in an excellent tactical decision, dragged the conga line to the west allowing 485th to tack onto the trailing elements of the bandit group in the climb, with Leakage squadron turning back in to engage as Zenith leader called they were committed. Thereafter proceeded the largest air engagement yet recorded by the 370th FG. There were simply too many e/a to maintain cohesive elements and the fight broke down into a massive furball covering 10 square kilometres, ranging from 10,000ft down to the deck. The 370th FG combined gradually managed to whittle down the odds but not without cost as Zenith Red 4, 2nd Lt. Harrison Hailey, already wrestling with a faulty radio did not return; Zenith Red Leader witnessed a P-38 seen to crash into woodlands after being attacked by an Fw 190D-9 on the frontline west of Zulpich. It is presumed that this was Red 4. It was his first mission. Zenith Red 2, Lt. Rox, after dispatching 2 of the bandits came under fire from yet another and the enemies aim was a little too true; heavily damaged Red 2 managed to disengage from the fight and made for the airfield of Bierset, where we are relieved to say he made a successful safe landing. Despite these setbacks, the 370th acquitted itself magnificently and after about a 10 minute period, the skies were cleared of enemy aircraft. All told, the group managed to account for nearly all the e/a first spotted, our claims totalling 11 of the 13 initially counted. It is assumed that the remainder ran home to lick their wounds. At this point the group returned home in mixed formation, with several aircraft having sustained varying degrees of damage, but no further pilots were lost. On a personal note, the 485th extend our deepest condolences to the 402nd for the loss of Maj. Arjen Efftee who so effectively led their squadron for so long and to great success. He was respected and admired by all of us here in Zenith squadron and we mourn his loss to both you, us and the Group. 410th BG The 410th attacked their assigned target and, despite the strong winds, obliterated it. However, the defensive fire from the ground was some of the strongest yet encountered with ~20 AAA guns in the target vicinity; such a withering rain of flak was going to cause issues and so it proved. That said, despite the damage received by their aircraft, both 2nd Lts. David Crosby and Major Major were able to regain friendly territory, with Major force landing at Venlo, and Crosby just managing to belly land his crippled A-20 across the frontlines. 370th FG Awards and Promotions: None. Personnel: Major Kendall Bozeman has been posted to the 485th Fighter Squadron. 2nd Lieutenant Lou Keyberstad has been posted to the 485th Fighter Squadron Flight officer John Johnson has been posted to the 485th Fighter Squadron Rosters: 410th BG Awards and Promotions: None. Personnel: None. Roster: Scoreboards:

No, Crash, you made it by the skin o' your teeth old bean! Yikes! That sounds like a pretty bowel loosening recipe... despite it you did some damn fine work on the target though. I'll get the debrief proper up when I can.

Sorry to hear that Reggie, I can sympathise as my work has been flat-out of late (though not to the same extent as you it appears). Hope some semblance of sanity returns soon mate, rest assured whenever that is there's always a Lightning here with your name on it...

Scoreboards:

410th BG Awards and Promotions: None. Personnel: 2nd Lt. Major Major has been posted to the 410th Bomb Group. Roster:

370th FG Awards and Promotions: Captain Arjen Efftee is promoted to Major. A long time coming Major, but congratulations, it is well earned. 1st Lieutenant Fenton Rea is promoted to Captain. Captain Kevin Fruitbat is awarded the Bronze Star. 2nd Lieutenant Karl Spartan is awarded the Bronze Star. 2nd Lieutenant Dennis Falcon is awarded the Bronze Star. Personnel: Captain Fenton Rea is transferred to the 485th Fighter Squadron. A new pilot has been posted to the 485th Fighter Squadron - we await confirmation of his identity. Rosters:

Mission Date 25/11/44 402nd FS - Fighter Sweep, The Hague 485th FS - Fighter Sweep, The Hague 410th BG - Attack Rail Targets, Shiedam Debrief: 370th FG 402nd: Taking 2 x 1000lb bombs in case the Luftwaffe refused to play, the 402nd were obliged to jettison their load just crossing the frontline when a flight of Bf 109s deigned to put in an appearance; the e/a engaged 402nd from the Easy with a slight height advantage but the 402nd held together well and mad good work of covering each other and all e/a were dispatched within relatively short order. Continuing on to target the 40nd were then directed by 'Marmite' ground control to bandits in the Breda/Roosendaal sector. Quickly turning southeast the squadron spotted the bandits at low level just as they were crossing the Hollandschdiep, Red flight engaging a group of Fw 190s to the west and White flight another to the east. Quite a furball developed at low altitude, but all e/a were eventually knocked down, with Leakage White Lead, 1st Lt. Rea trailing some further bogies out to the East, his flight and Red in long pursuit. They caught up with the bogeys just east of Tilburg and engaged, though White 2, 2nd Lt. Karl Spartan was hit by flying debris - the entire vertical stabiliser in fact! - when his last victim exploded violently in front of his aircraft, obliging Spartan to try and dodge the wreckage. His port engine inoperable, he bugged out for home base, making a succesful landing. A similar fate befell Red 2, 2nd Lt Dennis Falcon, though fortunately he too made it home under the watchful escort of his squadron mates. All told the 402nd claimed 15 enemy aircraft destroyed, a superlative feat gents, well done indeed. 470th: Major Payne-less' debrief again outlines a tale of unfortunate luck and bad timing regards encountering the Luftwaffe; just a few minutes too far South of assisting in the first engagement and a few kilometers too far North when the call from 'Marmite' control came through request all aircraft assist in the Breda sector; that said the ordnance they elected to carry was put to good use with Capt. Cloister and 2nd Lt. Iden Hoe ruining the day of several AAA gun positions near Schiedam, accounting for 7 guns between them. 410th BG The 410th attacked their assigned target, accounting for a number of transportation targets, though we mourn the loss 2nd Lt. Dave Haggis who lost control of his aircraft at low altitude and spun in; this dedicated, fearless doyen of the group will be much missed.

Scoreboards:

370th FG Awards and Promotions: None. Personnel: A new pilot has been posted to the 402nd Fighter Squadron - we await confirmation of his identity. A new pilot has been posted to the 485th Fighter Squadron - we await confirmation of his identity. Rosters: 410th BG Awards and Promotions: None. Personnel: No changes. Roster:

Mission Date 25/11/44 402nd FS - Attack Transportation Targets, Emmerich 485th FS - Fighter Sweep, Emmerich-Mönchengladbach sector 410th BG - Attack Rail Targets, Krefeld Debrief: 370th FG 402nd: Again in the face of spirited AAA resistance the 402nd remained un-phased and wrought terrible destruction upon the enemy ground forces in the target area. Finding themselves with ammo and ordnance to spare they pushed SE along the front and discovered further opportunities to beat-up on the Krauts in the vicinity of Weeze, breaking off through a combination of low ammo and the instance of Lt. Finknottle receiving damage to his airframe; he elected to make an emergency landing at Ophoven, making it safely but not without incident - his right engine quit on him as he approached the threshold! Nonetheless he seems re markedly unperturbed, though we suspect a few shots of whiskey may have had their medicinal effect! By the time they broke for home the 402nd claimed 37 ground targets destroyed. Another excellent performance chaps, well done! Particular mention goes to 2nd Lt. Patrick Last who claimed 14 targets alone - a most impressive haul we're sure you'll agree. Great work that man! 470th: Major Payne-less' debrief covers the salient points - unfortunate showing gents; looks like we've been too effective hammering the Luftwaffe of late. Regards the flak, there's not much you can do against that 88 stuff; it often seems to creep up as the gunners gradually correct their fire and the only possible recourse is to regularly adjust course and alt if you're in a known 88 area, but they move the guns around so much it's almost impossible to be sure of where you'll encounter it. The major towns and airfields will certainly have some but we're regularly seeing stuff near the front also. Guess we've just got to keep a wary eye out for the bursts. 410th BG The 410th flattened their assigned target, primarily due to the excellent low level bombing skills of 2nd Lt. Dave Haggis who single-handedly took out an entire train consisting of a locomotive and 9 wagons! Great job that man!

Dayum...!

From the various online calculators (which coincide with your GMT+10.5) it appears the start time for you would be 0730. I trust these over the forums calculations - not sure why the forum is so keen to get you up at the crack o'dawn?! If you could be on from 0700/0715 that'd be great.

Hey AOB. Glad you're interested in joining the campaign, our next mission is on Sunday 7th February at 2100GMT which I understand is your Monday morning? If you could join half an hour/15 minutes before hand I will happily include you if you can still make it. One thing that consistently catches out the first timers is getting the engine start procedure running without a hitch; we start engines off at the ramp then taxi to the relevant runway. Due to the specific procedure to engine starts in the Lightning we have often found that it can catch out those unfamiliar with how to do it, people mostly being used to air starts, or on the runway with engines already going, so I would suggest you take some time to get comfortable with getting the motors running, and how to rescue the engine start procedure should you accidentally fluff it! Here's the procedure in case you haven't tried it before: 1. Ensure both engines selected (they are both selected by default when you spawn in). 2. Mixture 100% - Levers fully forward 3. RPM 100% - Levers fully forward 4. Press Engine start key (default 'E') 5. Left Engine will start first, then Right Engine. 6. When both motors running reduce Mixture to 70% 7. When ready to taxi release Parking Brake by pressing your brake input/key once. 8. Should either motor fail to start ensure you switch off that engine by selecting it and pressing 'E' to switch it off prior to trying again.

Well for this F-14 crew, it just got a LOT harder... https://www.f-14association.com/tales/crash-landing-a-crippled-tomcat.html Geez...!

Oh no, Crash. Hoping for a positive outcome mate, really am. Good luck.

Found this gem on the ED forums: https://forums.eagle.ru/topic/260841-engine-bearings-and-how-you-can-keep-them-happy/?tab=comments#comment-4558624

https://uk.pcmag.com/comparison/130136/oculus-quest-2-vs-oculus-rift-s-which-vr-headset-should-you-buy *Doh! Sniped!*

Simple:

Yup, got it in one Nick.