Airstrikes/Plane Sounds - What do they mean?

[MisterMark]

I haven't played very many scenarios where there is air cover... I'm just a bit confused by the various sounds that you hear as a plane is covering the map. 

Has anyone been able to notice any patterns or use the sounds as an indicator as to what will happen next and how soon or later or for how long?

Also, if you don't have any AA assets deployed what are some things you can do to foil an air strike or minimize it's effects?  Obviously getting infantry into a building is a great start but what else?   

Thank you,

-Mark

 

 

 

[Michael Emrys]

42 minutes ago, MisterMark said:

Also, if you don't have any AA assets deployed what are some things you can do to foil an air strike or minimize it's effects?

I haven't tried this, so don't take it as a recommendation, but I wonder if laying a smoke screen on your positions would work. Creating and sustaining it would be tricky and it would limit your ability to shoot from inside it, but as a last ditch desperate defense against air attack, it might do some good.

Michael

[General Liederkranz]

15 minutes ago, Michael Emrys said:

I haven't tried this, so don't take it as a recommendation, but I wonder if laying a smoke screen on your positions would work. Creating and sustaining it would be tricky and it would limit your ability to shoot from inside it, but as a last ditch desperate defense against air attack, it might do some good.

Michael

I've done this in CMBS by popping vehicular smoke and then driving into it, and it helps. Getting under trees helps too. And with vehicles, if you park them right next to buildings you'll be protected if the plane approaches from that direction--but you never know which way the plane will come from.

[MOS:96B2P]

11 hours ago, General Liederkranz said:

I've done this in CMBS by popping vehicular smoke and then driving into it, and it helps.  <Snip> 

Interesting.

[user1000]

Anything in the open is easy pickings for the planes. Stay away from plowed open fields and open roads while moving your troops or light vehicles. Look at the field manuals for WW2.

https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USA/ref/FM/

*	FM 5-20	Camouflage, Basic Principles
*	FM 5-20A	Camouflage of Individuals and Infantry Weapons
*	FM 5-20B	Camouflage of Vehicles
*	FM 5-20C	Camouflage of Bivouacs, Command Posts, Supply Points, and Medical Installations
*	FM 5-20D	Camouflage of Field Artillery

[Bulletpoint]

For infantry, I think you can use the HIDE command. Especially if your troops are in vegetation such as forest tiles, weeds, etc.

[MisterMark]

All good suggestions... but does anyone know what the various plane sounds mean?  Just because you hear a plane fly by on a particular turn, does it always mean a strafe or bomb drop coming on the next turn?  Also, can you tell when the plane is leaving and/or not coming back?

 

[Michael Emrys]

1 hour ago, MisterMark said:

Just because you hear a plane fly by on a particular turn, does it always mean a strafe or bomb drop coming on the next turn?

Not necessarily. The sound means that the plane is in the area and is looking for a target. But it might not spot one and fly away...or bomb its own side.

1 hour ago, MisterMark said:

Also, can you tell when the plane is leaving and/or not coming back?

I usually can, but it's an intuitive thing for me and I can't define what it is that makes it work. But one strong clue is if it has already gone on at least one bombing/strafing run and has expended its ordnance. But it might simply have not been able to locate a target and, running low on fuel, returned to base.

Michael

[Warts 'n' all]

A gentle drone of the engine = In the area looking for a target.

A roar of the engine = Coming in to attack. This will soon be followed by the sounds of machine guns, rockets, or a bomb.

You might be lucky and only get attacked once. But that is something that only your human opponent, or the AI knows.

[MikeyD]

As an aside, when I was a kid up in rural Maine one year they brought in converted WWII Avenger torpedo bombers as pest control spray planes. OMG you would not believe how LOUD those big engines were! They would literally be rattling the windowpanes while taxiing for takeoff miles away on the far side of the valley.

[Bulletpoint]

15 minutes ago, MikeyD said:

Avenger torpedo bombers as pest control spray planes. OMG you would not believe how LOUD those big engines were!

So much for "Silent Spring"...

[Michael Emrys]

1 hour ago, MikeyD said:

As an aside, when I was a kid up in rural Maine one year they brought in converted WWII Avenger torpedo bombers as pest control spray planes. OMG you would not believe how LOUD those big engines were! They would literally be rattling the windowpanes while taxiing for takeoff miles away on the far side of the valley.

I can believe it. In the summertime I was often up at sunrise, and about three times a week I would hear this C-47/DC3 start up its engines, take off, and slowly fly away. The local airport was maybe five miles away, so that tells you something about how the sound carried. BTW, the Gooney is a very slow bird and would take several minutes to pass out of earshot.

Michael

[LongLeftFlank]

They say you never hear the one with your name on it.... 

[Michael Emrys]

4 hours ago, LongLeftFlank said:

They say you never hear the one with your name on it.... 

Surprise! Boom!

Michael