New long mission: Bulbasket Retribution

[DD_Fenrir]

Hi chaps/chapettes,

I have completed the building of a WW2 mission for the Mosquito based upon the real life operation outlined here: 

https://www.docdroid.net/9wEZRXq/the-bombs-of-retribution-britainatwar201108-pdf

It is an evening mission, taking about 2 hours from engines on to landing, involves some long range flying, and in the latter half some night ops!

There’s room for pilots and navigators and even an option for some Mustang drivers if required.

Tried to find a good balance between authenticity and playability so whilst not dirt simple, it’s not a varsity grade mission either. You’ll be able to see your aircraft icon on the map as well as your mission track and waypoints and our usual labels will be on to assist spotting.

Night ops shouldn’t cause a heart attack either; I will provide instructions as to the necessary switches to operate to get the cockpit lit to a useful level and your landing strip has been provided with some Heath-Robinson illumination!

Please let me know if you’re up for this so I can make necessary adjustments and we’ll try to arrange a date where no one will miss out.

Fen

 

ROSTER

140 Wing Command Flight

1. EG-X NS840 - Pilot: Fenrir, Navigator: (Bob?)

2. YH-M HX920 - 

464 (RAAF) Squadron Red Section

1. SB-F NS944 - Pilot: Sheriff, Navigator:

2. SB-S HR187 - Pilot: Wingflyr, Navigator:

3. SB-G NS926 - Pilot: Zukker, Navigator: 

4. SB-P HX919 - 

21 Squadron Red Section

1. YH-V NT174 - Pilot: BluBear, Navigator: 

2. YH-X NT174 - Pilot: Papabear, Navigator: 

3. YH- B LR291 -  Pilot: FT, Navigator:

4. YH-F NT124 -

487 (RNZAF) Squadron Red Section

1. EG-T HP294 - Pilot: Bremspropeller, Navigator: 

2. EG-U HP933 - Pilot: Fruitbat, Navigator: 

3. EG-R LR333 - Pilot: Bob, Navigator:

4. EG-P NT184 -

[FoolTrottel]

Not sure if I can handle the two full hours, but for sure willing to give it a go!

I'd like to pilot a Mossie, with the option of switching to a navigator position on a different Mossie, should mine run into some kind of engine or radio troubles

 

 

[Bob]

Count me in, navigator or pilot.

[fruitbat]

I'm in

[BluBear]

Yes please!

I'm sure I can strong arm @PapaBear into joining too

[wingflyr]

Very interested in piloting a Mosquito with the same thinking as FT, switching to Navigator if and when necessary.

[DD_Fenrir]

Thanks all for your responses. 

A taster of what is to come:

 

 

[Zukker]

Count me in! I can fly the mossie. However, due to my father's situation I will need to know the date when you able to schedule it. Sounds like fun.

[DD_Fenrir]

How does this coming Thursday the 27th suit everyone? 2030GMT bums on seats in cockpit.

[FoolTrottel]

4 minutes ago, DD_Fenrir said:

How does this coming Thursday the 27th suit everyone? 2030GMT bums on seats in cockpit.

Suits me fine.

 

[wingflyr]

Yes 

[fruitbat]

In anticipation for this, I've finally decided to follow the advice of a lot of people regarding elevator trim, and have added two new controls to my control bindings, which are a quarter of the trim inputs, and allows for much finer elevator trim control. Much much easier to achieve hands of flying now, well worth it imo.

Its actually very easy, first navigate to here,

Open the 'default' LUA file, and copy in the lines (use something like Notepad++).

Quote

{cockpit_device_id = devices.CONTROLS, down = device_commands.Button_16, up = device_commands.Button_16, value_down = -0.25, value_up = 0.0, name = _("Trim Elevator Nose Up Slow"),   category = _("Flight Control")},
{cockpit_device_id = devices.CONTROLS, down = device_commands.Button_16, up = device_commands.Button_16, value_down = 0.25,  value_up = 0.0, name = _("Trim Elevator Nose Down Slow"), category = _("Flight Control")},

to here, the --Tail Trim Wheel--  section lines 525,526 in my screenshot.

Save and open the game, now you will have 2 new commands you can map,

Trim Elevator Nose Down Slow

Trim Elevator Nose Up Slow

I've still got the original commands mapped for fast adjustment, but on my HOTAS the new ones. Well worth doing I think.

 

[Bremspropeller]

I'll take EG-T 😎

[PapaBear]

Will give it a go 

[DD_Sheriff]

Hi Fenn,

 

Been shang- hyed .. by Wingflyer etal. Yes would love a spot (only understand pilot)... will be on about 7am my friday .,.. all good .. cheers

[BluBear]

22 hours ago, fruitbat said:

In anticipation for this, I've finally decided to follow the advice of a lot of people regarding elevator trim, and have added two new controls to my control bindings, which are a quarter of the trim inputs, and allows for much finer elevator trim control. Much much easier to achieve hands of flying now, well worth it imo.

Its actually very easy, first navigate to here,

Open the 'default' LUA file, and copy in the lines (use something like Notepad++).

to here, the --Tail Trim Wheel--  section lines 525,526 in my screenshot.

Save and open the game, now you will have 2 new commands you can map,

Trim Elevator Nose Down Slow

Trim Elevator Nose Up Slow

I've still got the original commands mapped for fast adjustment, but on my HOTAS the new ones. Well worth doing I think.

 

Brilliant thanks Kev, I'll give this a go!

[DD_Fenrir]

RAF Thorney Island, 14th July 1944, 1600hrs

Air Vice Marshal Basil Embry, Commander of 2 Group, stands and addresses the assembled aircrew.

"Good afternoon gentlemen.

"A change to your usual solo night intruder and interdiction duties. This evening you are to strike an SS and Gestapo encampment in Bonneuil-Matours."

The curtain behind the AVM is drawn aside and a large briefing map is revealed...

 

Embry continues:

"The camp is located in the grounds of the Château de Marieville, which itself is being used by the Gestapo as a headquarters to direct the hunt against local Maquis and their assisting Allied Special Operations Team. These teams have been tasked with harassing the enemy deep in the rear echelons, hampering reinforcements and delaying their progress to the Normandy beachhead.

"Indeed, a mission flown by this wing a little over a month ago to bomb a train carrying fuel reserves for the 2nd SS Panzer Division came as a direct result of intelligence passed on from this very team.

"Alas, it seems the team in this area was betrayed; their camp location was identified to the Nazis and they surrounded and assaulted the place with heavy casualties to both the Allied Special Operations Team and the Maquis. Only a handful escaped death or capture. Even those who surrendered were given short shrift. One of the few escapees witnessed the Nazi's brutality being administered; they bashed somebody’s head in with a rifle butt as he lay wounded and unarmed. There is also ominous silence about the status of any of the other wounded or those taken prisoner. It seems that they too, may have been murdered.

"As if this was not enough, there are rumours that this same SS Division is responsible for the razing of an entire French town a few days after D-Day, and the massacre of every last civilian - men, women and children - therein.

"So you're going to pay the Nazis a visit and dole out a healthy dose of retribution for their crimes.

"The operation is timed to reach the target just before dusk. This is thought to be when the Nazis will be assembled for their evening meal, thereby catching the maximum number of soldiers in the buildings.

"We have no reconnaissance photos for you, however a good description of the target layout has been provided.

"The target is to the south of the town on the south bank of the river. It is on the north facing slope of a hill. The chateau is the southern most, tall, grey building, with a further seven wooden barrack block located some 100 yards closer to the river.

"We'll attack from the south. There is a water tower and pumping station on the road about 5 miles south of the target. That is your IP.

"Flatten the lot. Show no quarter. If time, fuel and enemy defences permit, repeat your attacks with guns. Let the bastards burn.

"Flak at the target is expected to be light but keep your wits about you. Otherwise, the route chosen to and from the target has been selected to avoid the worst known concentrations, but as ever, Jerry does like to keep us on our toes so be wary; there maybe some we don't know about.

"Air escort is provided by Mustangs of 65 Squadron, they will rendezvous with you in the Bay of St Michael and escort you as far as they can whilst daylight permits, though they will likely have to break off early to make sure they can land before the light fails.

"Finally, gentlemen, before you leave, a word of warning: should you get shot-down and be taken prisoner yourselves, don’t shoot your mouth off about retaliation. You can’t out-piss a skunk and we do not want to set off a series of potentially disastrous tit-for-tat responses that could have consequences for the local population. Should you be pressed, it is Bastille Day, so make some excuse that it was thought that coming on such a symbolic day would help boost the morale of the French.

"That is all, gentlemen. Best of luck."

 

[Bob]

Good to go, happy to take navigation role, think will be more use overall.

[DD_Fenrir]

Mission map in main briefing updated.

Ran a test tonight and was obliged to make some minor changes to the route to make things work better.

Note: the mission route, with advisory headings and AAA threat areas will be available on the F10 map in mission, so getting lost should prove quite difficult! Just imagine it's like having the worlds best nav in the seat beside you constantly updating your position...

[Bob]

3 hours ago, DD_Fenrir said:

Mission map in main briefing updated.

Ran a test tonight and was obliged to make some minor changes to the route to make things work better.

Note: the mission route, with advisory headings and AAA threat areas will be available on the F10 map in mission, so getting lost should prove quite difficult! Just imagine it's like having the worlds best nav in the seat beside you constantly updating your position...

Ooooh, I know that system, believe it was known as the Brilliant Observation Backup System. Pilots swear it was so good they called it BOB the invisible copilot.

[DD_Fenrir]

For reference a layout of the airfield we will be operating from, where your aircraft will be located on it, and the directions for take-off and landing.

This will be available as a page on the in mission briefing screen.

For information, this is RAF Funtington; whilst in reality 140 Wing was based at RAF Thorney Island, this is unavailable on the DCS Normandy map. However, as Funtington is only some 3 miles away, it seemed like the logical choice to stand-in for the real thing.

 

[DD_Fenrir]

Gents, just an advisory, DCS Open Beta was updated today to 2.7.10.18996; in the interest of not obliging everyone to update prior to mission start and in case the new Open Beta version introduces new bugs that may affect the mission, I will be running this on the Stable Release server, version 2.7.9.18080.

So, if you were going to use the OpenBeta version to join tonight's mission DO NOT UPDATE.

[fruitbat]

Also, if you want the new fixes for the mossie, which negate my post from before (elevator trim fidelity and brake response rate), all you need to do is copy the updated beta 'default.lua' file into your stable version.

[FoolTrottel]

Great mission ... thanks Fenrir!

 

Had some issues with trim, meaning, the way I have it setup right now is not good, fighting it all the way.. Updating the beta right now... should be better then, I hope.

And there's the graphics, in the dark ... I took these screenshots...

First one is with Gamma at 3.5 

After I bailed out (well, you can see that flying on made no sense ) set Gamma back to 1.8 and it all looked like this:

 

 

 

Great to fly with that many mossies though, and everything went okay - until it got dark over  here ... really really really dark 

 

 

[Zukker]

Thanks Fen!

 

It was a fun and enlightening or should I say "darkening" mission. 

 

Sorry that I lost my orientation after the flight and did not get a chance to bomb target.

 

So how many mossies actually made it home?

I appreciate all the effort you put into this mission. I can't wait for another one, if you have the energy to create one.

 

Cheers