II/JG 11 taking off in our winter camoflage Bf 109G-14's.
After-Action Report
II/JG 11
10/13/2007
by Brooke
This was a scenario that ran in the multiplayer on-line air-combat simulation Aces High.
I was in II/JG 11 along with DaPup (the Group Leader), Snivly, Warspawn, Casca, bmathis, roadking, KILLBOXX, SteffK, hub, wnt2, Redge2, and Nyros. We were to fly Bf 109G-14's with gondolas (extra 20 mm cannons) and a drop tank. Our home field was the field at Kaiserslautern (A31). Our overall mission was to protect the FW 190A-8's and, if we get to the enemy bombers, to attack the enemy escort and the enemy bombers.
II/JG 11 taking off in our winter camoflage Bf 109G-14's.
Here, I am joining up with (from left to right), Redge2, Warspawn, and bmathis.
We are assigned to join up with the FW 190A-8's, with orders to congregate safely
inside Germany while scouts and others work to find the enemy bombers.
Joining up with one of the FW 190A-8 groups. At this point, we see an enemy
incursion into the middle of the map. It is assumed to be a fighter sweep and
verified as one a bit later on. First, we go father east to stay out of the
way, then south to stay out of the way, waiting to see if bombers come in on
any southern targets. Eventually, large numbers of enemy aircraft marched east
in two big streams, one toward the Weisbaden/Mainz area and the other toward
the Seigen (or maybe Marburg) area. After a while, B-24's were found in one
of those streams. By the time the streams were in column 11, there still was
no incursion in the south, and the FW 190A-8's and II/JG 11 were ordered north.
We head toward Mainz, keeping west of the FW 190A-8's to protect them from fighter
sweeps at the head of the enemy stream near Mainz.
Contact with enemy P-51D's southeast of Mainz (perhaps near Darmstadt). roadking
and I were closest to the enemy. First we saw bogies. The first one turned out
to be a P-47, then the rest were a squadron of P-51D's. They were co-alt with
us at 32k and came pelting through at very high speed. I turned into them and
threaded my way through them until past the last one, then reversed.
A big fight ensued, with about even numbers of Bf 109's and P-51's. I tried
to stay high, looking for folks who needed clearing and keeping my eye out for
more enemies coming in. I tried to fly around over the battle to drive down
enemies, but they were very good at keeping speed and altitude, and I spent
more of my time evading than being a threat to them. Eventually, in the section
of the fight I was in, there were only a couple of us (bmathis and me, I think)
still above about 25k altitude.
That's when the next squadron of P-51's came in with max altitude and high speed.
Things suddenly were not looking very promising. I turned into the attackers
to thread my way through them.
I spent most of my time evading attacks rather than dishing them out. bmathis
looked like he was doing a better job than I was in pressing attacks.
I take a few bullets as I work to evade a diving attack by one of the P-51D's.
He's doing about 500 mph, so there is no way for him to pull enough angle to
get a good tracking shot. Luckily for me, I take just a spinkling of 50 cal
rounds and nothing is broken on my 109.
I snap into a vertically diving lag barrel roll to get on his tail as he comes
screaming through.
It works fine -- except that (as seen in this view from my cockpit looking back),
before I can even line up, another P-51D is right behind me nearing firing solution
(with another P-51 behind him). I have to evade before I can take the shot.
bmathis is back there firing on a P-51. I have dived through his altitude.
I do another vertically diving lag barrel roll to see if I can get on this guy's
tail for a shot. But the P-51 following him is too close, and again I have to
break off before taking a shot. I end up evading more, diving more, and finally
just trying to get the hell out of the area. I check my map while desperately
diving. I am closest to A16 at this point, so I call out on the radio that I'm
diving for A16.
As I run for A16, bmathis calls out that he's going there, too, but that he's
got a P-51 trying to chase him down. I call out that I'm reversing to try to
clear his tail. I come around to get on the P-51's tail. He's really moving.
I drop in behind him and clear bmathis's tail. But once again, before I can
take the shot . . .
I have to evade shots from guys racing up behind him. I dive hard for the deck
and toward A16, WEP on. I jink and roll and soon have a huge amount of speed
myself. The P-51's pull back up after a bit, choosing not to follow me all the
way to the deck as I race toward A16. I breath a sigh of relief. Those P-51
pilots were very good. They kept their speed and altitude and covered each others
tails remakably well.
I join up with bmathis. We are both getting low on fuel. We can't refuel at
a16, so we climb heading south toward a20. I keep looking back. The squadron
of P-51's didn't want to go down to the deck at a16, but after a little bit,
I see bogies appear behind us and much higher. I know it's them following us.
I hit WEP and go into a shallow dive for speed.
The P-51's are catching up to me, and I go into more of a dive. I'm sweating
it here, as I'm still about 25 miles from A20, and there are many bogies, which
I know are other P-51's, above this one that is following me. bmathis bravely
says that he's going to reverse to come help me, but I ask him to keep going
to A20. I figure that, if the P-51's choose to come down, his coming back will
just mean that we both get killed. Fortunately, I am going quite fast here,
and they choose not to go all the way to the deck in chasing me to A20. Eventually,
they break off.
I refuel at A20. bmathis is on the refueling pad to the left in the picture.
A squadron of beautiful FW 190D-9's takes off after refueling and rearming.
From left to right: 68Bwulf, A8Thumpr, TheMaj, LeitWolf, and Sethbag.
I take off at A20 along with Redge2 and bmathis. At this point, the enemy bombers
have hit their targets and are heading back west. After takeoff we nonetheless
head NW back toward the Mainz area in the slim hope that we will catch any laggards
or engaged enemy fighters. Interestingly, as we approach, radar shows enemies
persisting in the Mainz area. We have a huge number of fighters converging on
the area, as it's the only action many of us can catch. At first, although we
are all over the area, we don't find any enemies. We figure they are low and
have run west. But then radar shows that they ran EAST for a bit, then back
west.
Eventually, a few LW pilots spot them and call out a location. I go toward it,
and spot a P-51 down low. He's heading toward me, in the direction of a horde
of other LW planes behind me, so I overfly him to spot other P-51's. I come
across 2-3 others. Very soon after me, our LW horde shows up and jumps every
P-51 that is seen. I try a couple of passes, but don't get a shot. There are
plenty of LW on the deck, so I stay a bit above the action, looking for any
P-51's getting away that I'll then try to jump.
I spot one making his get away and go for him. He's really moving fast, though,
and the best I can do is to get to 800 yards range. I try some long range shots,
but don't seem to get any hits. I call out on the radio, giving location, hoping
that someone else will come in with enough altitude to reel this guy in.
First Redge2 shows up, but he, too, lacked enough altitude in his Bf 109G-14
to overtake the fleeing P-51. Then Stampf shows up in his FW 190D-9 with enough
smash to close with the enemy. This is a pic of the hapless P-51, followd by
Stampf, Redge2, and me.
Stampf gets him. Poor bastard -- he almost made it. I flew east longer, along
with several other LW fighters, chasing after some radar contacts reported to
be P-51's. But the enemies were reported shot down before I got there. I returned
back to A31 to land.
Me, on final at A31 along with TracerX.
by Brooke P. Anderson
e-mail: brooke@electraforge.com
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