Helicopters loitering effects?

[donnieitaly]

Does anyone know if Helicopters stooging around an area for two or three minutes keeps those pesky RPG chaps down at the botom of their trenches?

[Apocal]

Not that I've noticed. Although if you get two of them about 45-60 secs apart as the suppression from one run wears off, the next is starting.

[SlapHappy]

Helicopters don't really seem to loiter to me. In fact they get treated very much like strike aircraft in the game. They "come around". I'm sure they can be used like that, but I can see how it would be useful if they had a longer term presence in an area instead of just an "in and out" maneuver. Otherwise the substantive difference between the jets and the copters is simply that the jets pack bigger bombs (OK, that's a fairly big difference when you've got 2000 pounders to play with). Think of the target of opportunity possibilities with that capability.

[theFightingSeabee]

I'd like the helos to respond much faster after they arrive on-scene. And they shoud be able to see otherwise unspotted enemies as well.

[Apocal]

Helicopters don't really seem to loiter to me. In fact they get treated very much like strike aircraft in the game. They "come around". I'm sure they can be used like that, but I can see how it would be useful if they had a longer term presence in an area instead of just an "in and out" maneuver.

As a rule, in areas of possible/probable anti-aircraft fires, you get in, do your business and get out. You see a lot of vids of helos loitering because they no longer have 23mm and MANPADS dotting the countryside.

Otherwise the substantive difference between the jets and the copters is simply that the jets pack bigger bombs (OK, that's a fairly big difference when you've got 2000 pounders to play with). Think of the target of opportunity possibilities with that capability.

Eh, an attack helo loaded for anti-armor work has more "stowed kills" onboard. Eight Hellfires = 7 or 8 dead tanks. Four JDAMs = four very dead tanks. I'm guessing on the loadouts by the way, I haven't sat down and figured out wtf they are beyond the very basic guidelines.

The exception to this is the A-10. I've seen a single A-10 kill 13-17 AFVs in one scenario. That's some straight-up Rudel right there.

[Starlight]

I would like to see the ability to call it a Helo gunship support and it appear as an individual vehicle operating at just above the terrain (either a few meters above for terrain hugging or a series of fixed altitudes 10m, 15m, 20m above for a more overwatch capability). It could then spot with its height advantage or even radar and become the equivalent of an overwatch unit which is prone to AA fire, etc.

It would be a rather cool additional element to the modern game with an Apache prowling the actual map in support, with its rockets, hellfire and guns.

I suspect that this is outside the scope of the game as there is no AA fire modelled in the game at the moment but I do not see a particular difficulty in the basic movement model for a helicopter? just have it operate at either a fixed height above the terrain or at a fixed altitude with a very simple low speed movement model, simple rudder turn, minor tilt forward and then forward movement without any altitude change would be fine plus the ability to sidestep across a city hunting vehicles and infantry in city streets.

ooo I think I got myself a little overexcited there

[hcrof]

Very cool but you would need 10x10km maps to even begin thinking about hunting tanks with helos. (Of course if CMSF:2 offers 10x10km playable maps I will be one happy customer )

[Combatintman]

AH would be less effective at acquiring personnel targets though due to the limited FOV on the gunner's sight.