Gunship Academy
by Richard Sheffield
The Enemy
Weapons. The enemy is blessed with enormous firepower for which you must compensate with speed and maneuverability. This firepower will vary greatly depending upon where in the world you are and the quality of the troops you're facing. The following tables list the types of weapons you'll see in various parts of the world depending upon their quality. Although this is the way the troops will be armed most of the time, you may occasionally get a surprise.
Southeast Asia |
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First Line |
Second Line |
Third Line |
SA-7 (depots and HQs) |
SA-7 (depots and HQs) |
SA-7 (depots and HQs) |
S-60 (with radar fire control) |
S-60 (with search radar only) |
S-60 |
ZU-23 |
ZU-23 |
ZU-23 |
Some infantry will have SA-7 |
Infantry won't have SA-7 |
Infantry won't have SA-7 |
Bunkers won't have SA-7 |
Bunkers won't have SA-7 |
Bunkers won't have SA-7 |
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First Line |
Second Line |
Third Line |
SA-7B (all infantry, HQ, depot, bases) |
SA-7 (some infantry, all depots, HQ, bases) |
SA-7 (some infantry, all depots, HQ, bases) |
BMP (a few have SA-7B) |
BMP (a few have SA-7) |
BMP (a few have SA-7) |
ZSU-23-4 |
ZSU-57-2 |
No ZSUs |
SA-9B |
SA-9 |
SA-9 |
S-60 (with radar fire control) |
S-60 (with radar fire control) |
S-60 (with search radar only) |
ZU-23 |
ZU-23 |
ZU-23 |
Bunkers won't have SA-7 |
Bunkers won't have SA-7 |
Bunkers won't have SA-7 |
|
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First Line |
Second Line |
Third Line |
SA-7B (all infantry, depots, HQ, bases) |
SA-7B (all infantry, depots, HQ, bases) |
SA-7 (all infantry, depots, HQ, bases) |
T-74 Tanks |
T-74 Tanks |
T-74 Tanks |
BMP (some with SA-7B) |
BMP (some with SA-7B) |
BMP (some with SA-7) |
SA-8 |
SA-8B |
No SA-8 |
SA-9 |
SA-9B |
SA-9 |
S-60 (with search radar only) |
S-60 (with radar fire control) |
S-60 (with search radar only) |
ZSU-23-4 |
ZSU-23-4M |
ZSU-57-2 |
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First Line |
Second Line |
Third Line |
SA-7 (all infantry, depots, HQ, bases) |
SA-7B (all infantry, depots, HQ, bases) |
SA-14 (all infantry, depots, HQ, bases) |
T-74 Tanks |
T-74 Tanks |
T-74 Tanks |
BMP (some with SA-7) |
BMP (some with SA-7B) |
BMP (some with SA-14) |
SA-11 |
SA-8B |
SA-8 |
SA-13 |
SA-9B |
SA-9 |
S-60 (with search fire only) |
S-60 (with radar fire control) |
S-60 (with radar radar control) |
ZSU-30 |
ZSU-23-4M |
ZSU-23-4 |
What quality of troops you choose to challenge affects not only the weapons you face but the reaction time of the enemy once they see you. Third-line troops react very slowly, while first-line troops react very quickly. Keep that in mind when flying into a heavily defended area.
These enemy troops are not randomly placed on the map. For each mission scenario, the troops were planned and laid out in an orderly and logical pattern, so expect extra AA sites close to bases and HQs. Mobile AA equipment will appear closer to the front. Each map setup has 60-115 targets so there should be no shortage of things to shoot at.
The targets in Southeast Asia and Central America are arranged in clumps since there are, or were, very few distinct lines in actual battles. In these areas, you can easily find yourself in the middle of a heavy concentration of enemy AA, so it is best to proceed slowly. Due to this clumping, however, there are vast areas of the map which contain no enemy troops at all. If you do stumble upon a strong group of enemy troops, you can go around them, if you choose, rather than having to fight your way through.
Hind helicopters. These Soviet helicopters don't just appear out of thin air; they actually take off from a Soviet base. When you get a message saying that a Hind is airborne, one is actually taking off. As soon as they take off, they know where you are and head toward you. You can judge how far away the enemy base is by how long it takes for the Hind to find you. If it's close by, you might be able to find it and put it out of business.
Hinds should be engaged as soon as possible. They won't go away. They tend to wait for you behind hills, but it's best not to go into a tight area looking for them. You'll have better luck if you can wait for them to come out into the open. It's also a good idea to engage them at the greatest range possible. If one is behind a hill right in front of you, it's best to move away (some pilots just hover and back up). You want to avoid a situation where you're already in range of the Hind's guns when it comes over the hill.
It would be best if you could engage the enemy helicopter at about 2.2 kilometers. This would give you a chance to exploit the greater firing range of your Sidewinders. The Hind cannot fire at you until it's about 1 kilometer away. Another reason to stay away from hills with Hinds behind them is that under certain circumstances they can see you and shoot at you right through the hill!
When a Hind is coming at you, it will generally be at a lower altitude than yours, so be prepared. Since the Hinds are faster than you are, you cannot run from them for long. You can, however, cause them to lose sight of you and wander off for a short period by flying low, flying behind a hill, or even landing if the Hind is a good distance away. You should not land, however, if the Hind is close because it can tear you up if you're sitting still on the ground!
Enemy tanks. You should note that while enemy tanks carry no antiaircraft weapons, they also give you the least amount of points when destroyed. With this in mind, it's generally better to save your Hellfire missiles for more dangerous and higher-scoring targets. If you have to destroy tanks, you can come back after the AA is destroyed and rip them up with your 30 mike-mike!
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