[The A-10 Attack! FAQ] Version 1.6 Compiled by Petteri Sulonen psulonen@helsinki.fi Home page: http://www.cs.hut.fi/~psu Copyright Notice (c) Petteri Sulonen, 1995,1996. You may freely upload this FAQ in its original form to BBS's, ftp sites and other online services, give it to your friends, or include it in shareware/freeware collections. However, please don't distribute any modified versions you may make of it. (A "modified version" is one where the body text has been changed; conversions to different file formats don't count.) You may not charge money for it, other than nominal fees covering material/copying costs. For further information, contact the author. All trademarks mentioned in this document are property of their respective owners; any use here is for an editorial purpose and does not constitute an infringement. Table of Contents * Introduction o Release history * Section I: About A-10 Attack! o What is A-10 Attack!? o System requirements o Demos o Speed tips + All systems + Power Macintosh only o Bugs + Crashes + The amazing self-repairing runways + Non-centered rudder with Thrustmaster system + Missing serial numbers + Altitude limit + The bad spelling and grammar o Announced but as yet unimplemented features + Save Mission + Networking * Section II: Control, Waypoints, and AI o Taking control of a plane o Waypoints and battle plans + Assigning new waypoints + Changing your mind + Tips about placing waypoints o How the AI flies * Section III: Flight and Combat o Wind, and how to live with it + Navigating + Landing + Targeting o Bombing + Bombing with the CCIP + FAR (Feels About Right) bombing + Dive bombing + Ripple bombing o The tools of the trade + The GAU-8/A Avenger gun + Free-fall bombs + The CBU-15 Durandal + Laser-guided bombs and missiles + Hyper-velocity rockets (HVR's) + The AGM-88A HARM + The Maverick (AGM-65B, AGM-65D) + The AIM-9L Sidewinder + Fuel tanks o Managing loadouts + "Cheat" + Use Post-Its on the function keys + Standardize your loadouts + Ripples o Surviving on the battlefield * Section IV:The Missions o Prelude to War o Retaliation o Docklands o Marauding BMP's o Antinov [sic] Armada" o Demolition Crew o Assistance Needed o Old Man River * Section V: Where to get background info? o The Aircraft in A-10 Attack! o Internet resources o Documents ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Introduction This FAQ is meant to help solve some of the problems the beginner Hog driver is liable to run into. It is a compilation of stuff I've discovered myself, stuff that's been posted at comp.sys.mac.games.flight-sim, and stuff from certain WWW sites. Some major sources are Tom Morrison, Scott Cherkofsky, Tim van der Leeuw, and Art Day. They've provided invaluable background information on the game, the plane, and many related topics, and made it available on various Internet services. This FAQ will not include any of this rich background info - if you decide you like A-10 Attack!, it's strongly suggested that you check it out yourself. There are pointers in Section V of the FAQ. One more thing: this document is anything but definitive. Suggestions, tips, questions, answers, comments, resources etc. are welcome - mail them to me (psulonen@helsinki.fi), and I'll include them in the next update to this FAQ. Release history Important note: Starting from version 1.3.6, I will be maintaining two HTML versions of this document. In addition to the standard HTML 2.0 compatible, Netscape enhanced version I will support an "F" or "framed" version of the document. To view it, you will need a frames capable WWW browser, such as Netscape 2.0b1.(If you're reading this, you obviously have one.) I'll do my best to keep the versions identical, but this looks like a hopeless task. Because of the sheer amount of work involved, I won't be putting as many hyperlinks in the "standard" version as in the "framed" version. Sorry. If you notice any incompatibilities between the various versions of this FAQ, please let me know. 1.0 Initial release 1.1 Added section on wind and the problems with it Added questions list before each section 1.1.1"Fully functional" HTML version; minor stylistic changes 1.1.2Added illustrations. 1.2 Added section on mission tactics Added description of AGM-65 Split Section II into several parts 1.2.1Added description of Rockeye cluster bomb 1.2.2Added some links, corrected some inaccuracies; minor stylistic changes 1.2.3Added SpeedDoubler to Speed tips section; minor corrections 1.3 Expanded descriptions of weapons systems Split "Speed tips" into "Power Macintosh" and "All systems" sections 1.3.1Added Andre Molyneux's mission strategies to Section IV Added bug report on non-centered rudder 1.3.2Added mention of missing serial numbers 1.3.3Added description of version 1.1 and updated some info accordingly 1.3.4Minor corrections. 1.3.5Added note about laser designation, Rockeyes, fuel tanks, and maximum altitude (from Dieder Bylsma). 1.3.6Minor changes. Birth of version 1.3.6F, viewable with frames compatible WWW browsers. 1.4 Added note on the different demos available. Added Web Dove's more elaborate AppleScript for quitting other applications. Added section on aircraft and other objects appearing in the game. 1.4.1Expanded description of C-5. Edited description of CCIP. 1.5 Added description of AI behavior (from Tony Swash. Expanded description of An-124 (from William Miniscalco). Modified description of CCIP (again; I wish the authorities would make up their minds!). Edited description of electro-optical Mavericks. Plus a few minor corrections. 1.6 Went through entire document, making corrections and additions on the way. Most mission strategies enhanced, new section about surviving the battlefield threats, corrections and updates to the weapons section etc. Section I: About A-10 Attack! "What is this game anyway?" "Will it run on my machine?" "What's this VBE thingy?" "A-10 crawls on my PowerMac. What gives?" "A-10 crashed again. What am I doing wrong?" "I just bombed a runway into a potato field, but the enemy planes land like nothing's the matter. What's the problem?" "Hey, where are the Save Mission commands they describe in the manual?" "My Network button won't work!" [Image] What is A-10 Attack!? A-10 Attack! is a game by Parsoft Publishing International that combines a combat flight simulator with a tactical game. It features the best flight modelling currently available on the Macintosh (or, many argue, on any microcomputer), a wide variety of ordnance, many different kinds of vehicles, and a "virtual battlefield environment". The latter means that it is easily expandable with plug-in type modules. Parsoft has announced its intention to release VBE modules with more missions, more maps, more aircraft to fly, etc. System requirements A-10 Attack! requires System 7.0 or newer, 4 MB of free memory, a 640 x 480 pixel or bigger 256-color (or grayscale) monitor, and a 68030 or faster. It fully supports larger and multiple monitors. It is partly Power Macintosh optimized. It performs well on all Power Macintoshes (especially after implementing the speed tips below) and 68(LC)040 based Macintoshes. Maximum performance is achieved on the Quadra 840AV and the new PowerPC 604-based Power Macintoshes, or Power Macintoshes running Connectix Speed Doubler. Demos Two demos of A-10 Attack! have been released: A-10 Attack! demo 1.1.1, and A-10 Cuba demo. The original one, A-10 Attack! demo 1.1.1,, is not Power Macintosh native and has a good deal of beta code in it (among other things, the CCIP does not work correctly). It runs very well on 68(LC)040-based Macs, and sluggishly on Power Macs. It consists of the Quick Start missions also included in the game; "Fly A-10" and "Attack!". The former has no enemies, the latter pits you against MiGs, tanks, AAA, and hydrofoils, armed with your gun, AIM-9's and Mk82's. The original demo, as released, has a stupid five-minute time limit. Luckily a Parsoft-approved patch to remove this exists and his highly recommended - five minutes is barely enough to get you in the air. The new demo, A-10 Cuba, is fully Power Macintosh native. Performance on Power Macs is very good, the level of detail is extremely high, and there's a lot going on all the time. Unfortunately, it runs rather slowly even on the Quadra 840AV. Like the first one, this demo has two missions: "Heavy Metal" and "Smoke 'em". Both are combat missions. In the first one, you'll have to destroy two MiG-29's, and in the second one you're sent against a group of tanks, with two F-16's providing air cover and another A-10 helping you. No time limit here, thank goodness. The Cuba demo is available from Morrison's Mac flight sim site. The original demo may still be available at major Mac ftp sites, such as Sumex, Umich and mirrors. Versions Currently, there are two versions of A-10 Attack! around: version 1.0 (initial release) and version 1.1. Despite the "large" increase in the version number, 1.1 is a minor update, providing mostly bug fixes and only a few new features. This is what the Readme has to say about it: Bug fixes * Pilots list. Pilots were sometimes disappearing. Scores not consistent. * Wayinfo Dialog. Velocity, altitude sometimes garbled. * System crash when switching from simulator back to map mode. * C5b gear damaged after takeoff. * System crash when dropping multiple Rockeye cluster bombs. * Black mask drawn when CMD-I to hide instruments performed on 19 and 21 inch screens * System crash when double clicking on VBE or mission icons from finder. * "Sound Effects" system prefs non-functional * VBE Icons disappearing from finder * A10 sometimes displayed behind mountains. New features * HUD brightness can now be controlled by holding down PageUp/PageDown or Y/U keys. * Bomb craters last longer now and cause more damage when encountered. The only "most wanted" fix that made it into this update was the pilot list fix. The bomb craters still vanish rather fast, and performing certain missions by hitting at a runway takes very good timing (or the craters will vanish before anyone tries to use the runway). Speed tips (These are from Tom Morrison's flight sim page.) All systems * Re-boot with all inits/cdevs off, except your joystick software and software required for the game. * Switch to 256 colors. * Close all Finder windows (like Launcher, Monitors) and quit all background applications. * Trash your A-10 prefs file (don't trash your pilot file if you want them), re-boot, rebuild desktop and re-enter your serial number. * Quit the Finder using an AppleScript, a dedicated program such as NoFinder or Peek-a-boo (available at ftp://ftp.hawaii.edu//mirrors/info-mac/cfg/peek-a-boo-11.hqx), or with a system modification program that adds a "Quit" to the Finder's file menu. An appropriate AppleScript would be: tell application "Finder" quit end tell Here's another AppleScript, from Web Dove (dove@spcot.sanders.com). It quits not only the Finder, but all other open applications. However, you need the "processes" scripting extension in order to run it, and it needs some customization (regarding the path to the A-10 application), so it's recommended only if you're somewhat familiar with AppleScript. tell application "Finder" set procs to get processes -- This does not include the finder end tell -- Quit them repeat with proc in procs tell proc to quit end repeat -- Start the desired solitary process using finder -- So the Thrustmaster extension notices. tell application "Finder" open file å "A-10 Attack! 1.1" of folder å "A-10 Attack!" of folder å "Entertain A-Dn" of startup disk end tell -- Quit the finder tell application "Finder" to quit * If you have over 16 MB RAM, make a 9 MB RAM disk, copy the game onto it, and play from there. This won't help the frame rate, but will stop the occasional halts when A-10 has to access the disk during flight. N.b.: if you give the application more memory, it'll have to access the disk less. Normally, halts caused by disk access shouldn't be a major problem. Power Macintosh only * Move the "PowerPC Only" VBE file into the same level (folder) as the A-10 Attack! game. * Install the native sound manager (or don't use sound manager for sound.) It is available at: ftp://ftp.info.apple.com/Apple.Support.Area/Apple.Software.Updates/USMacin tosh/System/Other_System/Sound_Manager_3.1.sea.hqx * Buy and install Connectix SpeedDoubler. To enjoy major performance increases in A-10 Attack! with it, quit the Finder and terminate all processes except A-10 Attack!, using one of the programs mentioned above in the "all systems" section. N.b.: A-10 Attack! may even slow down with SpeedDoubler if all other processes are not terminated. N.b.: Some users (including me!) have reported an incompatibility with Speed Access (a Speed Doubler module). With Speed Access in the Extensions folder, A-10 Attack! has been known to crash inexplicably (but reproducibly). If this happens to you, drag Speed Access out of the Extensions folder and reboot to disable it. Speed Emulator and Speed Copy can be left on, and provide all their benefits. Bugs A-10 Attack! 1.1 is still something of a rough diamond. There are many documented bugs and some rather inexplicable ones. Here are some: Crashes Several people have reported crashes especially when switching from tactical view to simulator view and back and when firing large ripples of HVR's. Some of these crashes have the very nasty side-effect of mangling your pilot roster. There seems to be no easy fix for this. The game is somewhat sensitive to INIT conflicts and low memory situations, so it is advisable to give the game as much memory as possible and to play with minimum extensions. Also, the presence of a preferences file that's from the demo can mess up the game. Trash your preferences file, re-boot, rebuild desktop, and re-enter your serial number, and see if the problems disappear. Many of these crashes were reported fixed in version 1.1. The amazing self-repairing runways Runway damage is not handled correctly. Bomb craters in runways disappear in less than a minute. This is very annoying, as one very nicely modeled weapon, the Durandal, becomes next to useless. Also, this makes it impossible to try alternate approaches to certain missions. The fix in version 1.1 makes things a bit better, but they still disappear within minutes, making timing very critical when hitting runways in e.g. Antonov Armada. Non-centered rudder with Thrustmaster system With a Thrustmaster FCS and WCS (but no rudder pedals), it has been reported that if you "take command" of an A-10 on the ground (rather than letting it take off under TACAN), the aircraft has right rudder applied. To rectify this, remember to center the rudder, or else get a nasty surprise once your airspeed exceeds 50 knots on takeoff. Missing serial numbers Several people have reported that their copy of the game doesn't have the stickers with the serial number, making it impossible to install and play the game. Needless to say, this is exceedingly annoying. The only way to go is to contact Parsoft about it. Please don't post on the Usenet asking for serial numbers, as there's no way to tell a legitimate post apart from a pirate's, and in any case it's illegal to "share" serial numbers. Altitude limit In "Retaliation," send the F16's up the 32+k feet. Funny things happen after that magical number of 32768 feet is reached. The bad spelling and grammar The mission briefings are abysmally badly written, with spelling and grammar errors galore. Obviously this doesn't affect actual flight much, but it is annoying. Announced but as yet unimplemented features Save Mission The manual (page 3-15) states that the File menu includes commands for saving and reloading missions. This is not true, more's the pity. The commands in question are to be implemented in a future update. Networking One of the most hyped-about things about A-10 Attack! (before release!) was networking. This did not make it into version 1.1, but Parsoft has promised a free update for it. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Section II: Control, Waypoints, and Pilot AI "I select Return to Cockpit and nothing happens. What gives?" "How do I set these #%&@!! waypoints?" "How do I get planes to take off and fight under computer control?" "My computer-controlled plane is just ignoring targets!" "My computer-controlled planes fly into the ground!" [Image] Taking control of a plane To make it possible to take control of a Hog, drag a pilot from your pilot roster to it. The pilot with the red check mark next to it is the one that the Return to Cockpit command will return to. You can move the check mark by clicking next to a pilot. You can take command of any plane with a pilot in it by selecting Take Command from the chit pop-up menu. If there's no pilot in the plane, this command will be disabled. However, you don't have to have a pilot in the plane to have the computer fly it in combat. Note that taking command of a plane disables the battle AI of the plane - after that, the autopilot will just fly the plane from waypoint to waypoint. Waypoints and battle plans The most confusing part about A-10 Attack! is the waypoint system. It's badly documented and the user interface isn't too good either. However, once you get the hang of it, it isn't so bad. Much of the enjoyment in the game comes from being able to make your own battle plans and implement them; therefore it's worth the trouble to figure out the system. To begin with, in most missions one A-10 has pre-set waypoints. It's represented by a chit with the waypoint symbol (sort of like crosshairs) in the corner. Chits that don't have that symbol don't have assigned waypoints. There is no way to copy a set of waypoints from one plane to another; you have to place each waypoint separately. Assigning new waypoints 1. Select the waypoint tool from the palette. 2. Select the plane you want to give waypoints. To do this, select New Waypoints from the chit pop-up menu (hold down the mouse button on the little arrow in the appropriate chit to see the menu). If the plane already has waypoints, select Way Info. You'll notice that a waypoint marked IN (initial) will turn red. 3. Add the first waypoint. Hold down the option key. The cursor will change to a boxed "+". Click wherever you want to place the waypoint. 4. Add the other waypoints. Repeat step 3 for all other waypoints. 5. Move the waypoints. If you like, you can move around the waypoints with the waypoint tool. 6. Add waypoints in the middle. If you like you can add waypoints in the middle of the path by holding down the option key and clicking on a line between two waypoints. Useful for rounding out tight turns. If you just want to use the waypoints as navigational aids for the plane you're going to fly, this is enough. However, if you want to "program" the autopilot of the computer-controlled planes, read on: 7. Assign attributes to waypoints. Waypoints can be assigned different kinds of attributes, including targets, airspeed, and altitude. Note that the attributes only take effect once your plane arrives at the waypoint. a. Altitude and airspeed In the waypoint window, click on the line representing a waypoint. To the left are two fields. Enter the desired airspeed in the Set Vel: field, and the desired altitude in the Set Alt: field. Check the TFR box if you want the Hog to use its terrain following radar instead of barometric altitude. b. Targets You can set the Hog to search for targets. Select the desired target type(s) from the pop-up menu labeled Targets:. This will cause the Hog to start looking for targets at the waypoint in question; i.e., if you put the waypoint directly on top of a target the plane will be past it before it sees it. (See below for tips about placing waypoints.) c. Actions The Hog knows how to take two actions: Take Off and Land. If you want the Hog to take off by itself, you must give the initial waypoint the Take Off command (with the check box). If the Hog is on the airfield, it will take off. If you put a waypoint lined up with a runway (not on the runway!) and give it the Land command, the Hog will land. If it can't manage to do this, it'll abort the landing procedure and fly the pattern for another approach. The AI isn't quite flawless here -- especially, it can't manage landings with damaged landing gear. Once it skids off the runway, it'll increase power and try to pull up, possibly killing itself in the process. 8. Switch on the TACAN with the On button in the waypoint window. Off he goes! Changing your mind If you want to change the attributes for a waypoint, note that the commands only take effect if the altered waypoint is after the current waypoint. To make sure, you should use the Next button to scroll once through the waypoint list - this updates all the commands. Tips about placing waypoints Targets Do NOT place a waypoint with a Targets: command directly on top (or even very close to!) a target. Instead, place the waypoints so that the flight path of the plane goes over the targets, and have the plane look for targets well in advance. This gives the pilot time to deploy his weapons. Also, note that hills block line of sight - if you're having your pilot sneak on a SAM site from behind a hill, he might not see it until it's too late to shoot it. [Image] [Image] Like this!Not like this! Note that if you take command of a plane, it stops performing attack actions thereafter; instead, it just flies from one WP to another. Tight turns If the Hog is damaged or heavily loaded (or if you're assigning waypoints to C-5's), the poor pilot might fly his plane into the ground when trying to pull a tight turn close to the ground. Most commonly this happens when you have the initial waypoint at one end of the runway and waypoint 1 "behind" the plane - the pilot will start a tight turn immediately after take-off and may crash. To avoid this, either drag the initial waypoint to the right end of the runway or use more waypoints to round out the curve. [Image] [Image] [Image] Not like this! Like this, ...or like this. Flying into hills If a heavily loaded and/or damaged Hog flies low and slow and runs into a hill, it might not have enough power to clear it, and you might lose a perfectly good pilot and plane for nothing. Make sure your damaged Hogs get to limp home safely by giving them enough altitude in the waypoints! Threats If enemy chits (especially radar!) appear under your flight paths, take some action - otherwise your planes are liable to be cut to shreds by SAMs. Either take out the SAM site or move the waypoints so that the planes will steer clear of the site. Landing It's a good idea to use two waypoints to set up for landing - one placed some way back from the end of the runway, with the Land command, and another before it so that the flight path of the plane is parallel to the runway. Otherwise damaged or heavily laden planes might find the maneuvering a bit too tough. Besides, it makes lining up easier for you, the human pilot, as well. [Image] How the AI flies This section contributed by Tony Swash. After many months spent (or mis-spent?) playing A10 I have tried to summarise what I think I have leaned about the way in which Artificial Intelligence pilots in A10 use the various weapons systems available. Any contributions from other Hog pilots are more than welcome. To save time, every time I write pilots I mean AI pilots in A10. The most important point about the use of weapons by pilots is that there is, like everything else in A10, a degree of unpredictability. Every mission is slightly different from every other and, what's more important, this variation occurs within limits which make it reasonably realistic. For example, on a regular basis the AI fighter pilots don't fly their planes into the ground, but every so often a pilot will get carried away and do so. This seems to me a very good simulation of human behaviour. I am making these points because everything I am going to say about AI pilots use of weapons includes the proviso that it describes average behaviour. Individual pilots on individual missions will behave in specific ways, but this individual behaviour will not vary hugely from the average. The AI in A10 seems to be modelled to mimic human behaviour. This means that it requires time for a pilot to visually acquire a target and configure the necessary weapons systems in order to effectively deploy a given type of weapon. It's no good to expect a pilot to fly over a hill at 200 ft, see a group of targets a few seconds in front of the plane, pick out an individual target, and configure the plane's systems for weapons release. When setting waypoints it's important that target categories be selected at waypoints well in advance of the actual target and that the plane is given the right approach altitude for a given type of weapon. For example, don't tell the pilot to fly at 200 ft and drop 2000lb gravity bombs. The pilot will climb to the right altitude, but in the process lose time and accuracy. Another important point about waypoints is that the pattern of approach to and movement away from a target is important and can effect the effectiveness of the AI. Once a plane arrives at a target, it will make an attack run (dictated by choice of weapon; a run using a cannon is different from a run dropping a bomb), and then fly away along the path set by the waypoint positions. If the target is not completely destroyed, the pilot will almost always turn back and attack the target again and again, each time ending the attack run by flying away along the path set by the waypoints. Occasionally the pilot seems to lose interest even if targets remain intact, and it simply flies away along the path set by the waypoints. I have stressed this point about setting waypoints because it can really affect the way the pilot uses a given weapon. For example, I was running the first mission, "Prelude to War," and I had loaded the A10 with HVR's (four pods), Hellfires (two pods), and a couple of Mk84's. I also added Radar and AA to the Target list. When the AI piloted plane arrived over the target it kept trying to use the HVR but was flying very awkwardly so that the surrounding hills kept blocking its path and wouldn't let it adopt the proper approach path for a good shot with the HVR's. Occasionally it would let off a couple of the Hellfires aimed at the laser illuminated fuel tanks. I was getting very frustrated about the AI pilot's inability to line up for a proper attack run when I realised what was happening. After each attack run (or aborted attack run) the AI pilot was swinging back around onto the flight path dictated by the waypoints before swinging back for an attack run. Because the route dictated by the waypoints led out of the valley and over the mountains to the south east the high terrain was preventing a proper attack approach! While the mission was still running, I switched to the Map window and pulled all the waypoints to the north away from the mountains. I switched back to the View window and the AI pilot immediately changed his flight path so that after each attack run he swung back over the adjusted flight path. This meant he had plenty of room and altitude to get a good approach going and he quickly took out the remaining fuel tanks and SAM site with HVR's. Pilots seem to have a preferences as to which weapons to use. Some weapons will be used immediately, with enthusiasm and in a useful and accurate way: other weapons will be used less often, with less enthusiasm and less well. In order of preference the weapons used by pilots are: 1. Mavericks (optical and infrared) 2. AIM9's 3. HVR's 4. Gravity Bombs (but not clusters or laser guided) 5. Hellfire 6. HARM's 7. Cluster bombs 8. Laser Guided Bombs Mavericks (optical and infrared) seem to be the weapon of choice for pilots. They always seem to be deployed very quickly and effectively. I have seen pilots fly very complex aerobatic flight paths involving loops and then to fire an accurate Maverick the split second they come out of the loop. If I could put Mavericks on all the pylons of A10's flown by AI pilots I would. Optical and Infrared Mavericks seems to work equally well. Laser guided Mavericks also work very well but there are just not enough laser designated targets in the current mission set to warrant loading them. (It would be neat if you could programme in the dropping of Special Forces behind enemy lines (like in Flying Nightmares) to laser designate targets.) Pilots also seem very keen to use AIM9's, often firing them as soon as possible from maximum range. HVR's seem to be the next weapon of choice (this means that if an AI piloted plane is only loaded with mavericks and HVR's it will use the Mavericks first and then switch to HVR's). The problem with the pilots use of HVR's is that they seem very inaccurate, certainly compared to Mavericks. Whereas AI fired Mavericks seem to be on target nine times out of ten the HVR's only seem to be on target about one in five times they are fired. Gravity Bombs are used quite well by A10 pilots. They seem happy to use any size bomb up to and including 2000lb Mk84's. They drop them with reasonable accuracy and always seem to settle into a flight path at about 1500ft as they approach the target. AI pilots will ripple the delivery of gravity bombs but the choice of ripple setting seems fairly arbitrary. Because the accuracy of gravity bombs is not terrific, I find that AI pilots get better results using larger bombs. Big 2000lb bombs seem to miss by the same margin as 500lb bombs, but because of their much greater kill radius they actually are much more successful at destroying targets. This arbitrary use of ripple and the insistence on an altitude of 1500ft means that the AI use of gravity bombs is not as effective as it could be. In Demolition Crew for example, a reasonable successful approach is to load the AI piloted wingman with six Mk84's and designate only Tanks in the target selection box. I then set a flight path for the wingman that continuously crosses and re-crosses the path of the tanks as they approach Hamburg. I fly the other plane and concentrate on SEAD [Suppression of Enemy Air Defences. -Ed.], attacking the AA on the boats and helping to mop up the tanks with Mavericks. This works OK but would be much more effective if the AI wingmen would carpet bomb the tanks from a safe altitude (out of range of the AA) with rippled Mk84's. Incidentally, if you try this approach, don't give your wingman any Mavericks, or he will use these first before switching to the Mk84's. One oddity about the pilots' use of gravity bombs is that they don't seem to use the CCIP system, although they seem to be able to accurately drop their bombs. If you hop into the cockpit of a plane that has been dropping gravity bombs the CCIP in the HUD is not selected and the altitude system is not set to Barometric as it should be. AI pilots will use Hellfires but as there so few laser designated targets there seems little point in carrying them. AI pilots don't seem to use Hellfires if there are no laser designated targets available. HARM missiles are not used well by AI pilots. When confronted with a suitable target for a HARM missile the pilots just as often seem to prefer to use their cannon in dangerous low level attack runs. I have on a number of occasions loaded all three A10's in the Old Man River mission exclusively with HARMs (seven apiece) and only selected AA and Radar targets in the Waypoint Info window. On every occasion the A10's seem to fire one HARM each from a relatively long range and then switch to using their cannon. I have never seen an AI pilot use a Rockeye cluster bomb. I gave an AI pilot only cluster bombs and sent him to attack tanks in the Marauding BMP's mission and he only used his cannon. When I dropped into his cockpit after several cannon attacks I found that the Redeye's had not even been armed. Laser guided bombs are used by AI pilots but I have the strong impression that they deployed in the same way as ordinary gravity bomb, that is the laser guidance system is not used. AI pilots don't use Durandal anti-runway bombs, if you load them the AI pilot just ignores them. In general I load AI planes with Mavericks and large gravity bombs for most missions. Occasionally I only load gravity bombs (most often Mk84's) so as to force the AI pilot into a particular attack method. A persistent rumor at comp.sys.mac.games.flight-sim is that the AI "learns" with experience; i.e., that pilots with combat experience and high scores fly better than rookies. Fairly extensive tests failed to show any such connection; pilots seem to perform more or less equally well, regardless of "experience". Section III: Flight and Combat "My plane won't fly straight. What's wrong?" "I can't land without making a mess of my plane." "My wheels scream every time I land on a runway." "What's a Rockeye?" "My Mavericks won't track moving targets!" "I can't hit anything with the CCIP!" "I get myself killed while diddling with ripple settings." "I always get confused when trying to select ordnance in combat. What should I do?" [Image] Wind, and how to live with it A-10 Attack! is the only Mac combat flight sim that realistically simulates wind. You can turn it off, though, but it makes things more interesting by giving some challenges of its own. Gusts of wind will cause the Hog to yaw or pitch and the wind will carry you "diagonally" relative to the ground. It's also worth noticing that unlike many other sims, you often have to maintain stick pressure (or use the trim tabs) to keep the Hog in level flight. This is not a bug; it's realism: when your airspeed increases, you generate more lift and the plane starts to climb; when it decreases the opposite happens. You have to use the elevators to counter the effect. Navigating The Total Velocity Vector (TVV) is the little circle with three lines from it in the HUD. It indicates where the plane is heading relative to the ground. Use it rather than the gun cross to navigate - for example, if you're heading at a waypoint but have crosswind, you'll drift in the wrong direction if you point the gun cross at the waypoint. Note that when you're flying from one place to another, there's no point in trying to correct the heading with the rudders - it will just increase drag. Landing The TVV is an invaluable aid when lining up on a runway in crosswind. By keeping the TVV on the near end of the runway while lined up, you'll land in the right place. However, unless you correct your heading relative to the ground, you're liable to start slewing around with wheels screaming once you touch down. To do this, you're going to have to create a sideslip opposite to the wind direction - the A-10 will be flying straight relative to the ground, but diagonally relative to the wind. This takes a little practice, and requires coordinated use of the rudder and the ailerons. If you have a flightstick (as is highly recommended!) you can do this with the normal controls; if not, you're going to have to use the trim controls. [Image] [Image] [Image] This could break your gear. Recipe for disaster! Correct approach. To introduce a sideslip, simply apply rudder in the direction of the TVV, and correct the resulting roll with opposite aileron (flightstick pressure or trim tabs). For example, if the TVV is to the right of the centerline, apply right rudder and left stick pressure. (An alternative way to think about it is "aileron into wind, correct with rudder"; use whichever is easier for you as it comes down to the same thing.) Targeting Wind can also be a problem while targeting, especially with the CCIP. The trick is again to keep the plane lined up with the selected target. The symbols on the CCIP are somewhat confusing when bombing in a crosswind - technically, flying level in the correct direction should work, but it might be easier to introduce a sideslip and fly straight relative to the ground. The critical thing is to keep the line going through the diamond. Practice helps! Bombing There are three bombing methods: CCIP, FAR, and dive-bombing. CCIP ("continuously calculated impact point") bombing is best used for high-altitude bombing runs in calm situations to carpet bomb large targets or drop single big bombs on smaller targets such as ships. Another technique is to do a fast (350+ kts) low-level (<1500 feet) CCIP run at a target. It can also be used with retarded bombs in low-altitude runs on the battlefield. The checklists before each description are not definitive, but serve as reminders of the things you should take into account. For example, it is quite possible to dive-bomb ripples. Bombing with the CCIP Checklist: HUD mode Set to CCIP HUD Barometric modeON Weapons stations Selected Release mode Set accordingly Ripple count Set accordingly (if any RIP mode) Ripple interval Set accordingly (if any RIP mode) The CCIP (Continuously Calculated Impact Point) system helps target free-fall bombs. It's far from foolproof, and is best used in "calm" situations, when nobody's shooting at you, and you can get a nice, safe, straight approach to the target. It's often used for carpet bombing large targets such as runways or airfields, or for releasing single big bombs at a safe altitude. To bomb with the CCIP, locate the target, point your gun cross at it, and press the release button to pickle it. Then fly straight and level (or at a dive of no more than -5 degrees) towards the target, keeping the vertical line going through the diamond. The bombs will be released at the appropriate moment. On the battlefield, the Mk82HD can be used with CCIP in fast, low-altitude attack runs very effectively. In such a case you're very close to the target when the bombs are released, and you don't need to fly as accurately. Pickle somewhat ahead of the target, as the retarding fins will cause the bomb to fall slightly behind the calculated impact point. For higher-altitude attack runs you have to be very precise, as even small deviations in flight path and attitude can mean that your bombs miss. When doing high-altitude bombing runs on "long" targets like ships or runways, it's better to fly lengthwise to the target. The most effective but somewhat dangerous CCIP run is with Mk84's. You can do a low-level run at only a couple of hundred feet if you have enough airspeed -- at 350 kts or so, the bombs will be released well ahead of the target, and you can pull up immediately. You'll be at a safe altitude when the bombs hit. Note that trying to break here is a waste of time; just pull up. The A-10 CCIP is not as sophisticated as in some newer aircraft. Furthermore, wind increases the difficulty of bombing, as you might be flying somewhat diagonally relative to the ground. Practice makes perfect, though - fly the Air to Ground training mission and practice CCIP bombing. You should be flying level or at most at a 5 degree angle of descent and 1 G when the bombs are released. Important: Don't forget to switch your altimeter to barometric mode before bombing with CCIP. There's been a good deal of controversy regarding the "realism" of the A-10 Attack! CCIP. At this writing, it seems that the operating parameters of the game's CCIP are somewhat tighter than those of the real thing. However, within these parameters (level flight or slight dive, about 1 G) it works correctly. To correct an error in previous versions of this FAQ, the pre-LASTE A-10 has no CCIP whatsoever. FAR (Feels About Right) bombing Checklist: HUD mode NAV or PAVE Weapons stationsSelected Release mode Single The FAR (Feels About Right) method is very effective but hard to explain. Basically, you find a target, fly at it level or in a shallow dive, and release the bombs when it Feels About Right. With practice, you can get quite accurate at this. Most of the bombing in battlefield situations is done with this method. Dive bombing is a somewhat more disciplined version of this. Dive bombing Checklist: HUD mode NAV or PAVE Weapons stationsSelected Release mode Single The idea with dive-bombing is that you increase the downward velocity of the bomb by diving prior to release. This means that the bomb will take less time to hit the target and it'll fly in a straighter line, making aiming easier. Usually dive-bombing is used against small, hard targets such as buildings, ships, or vehicles (tanks etc.). Therefore, ripples are not often used. Ideally, you'd want to dive-bomb from at least 3500 feet. Locate the target, line up on it, and go into a steep dive (at least 45 degrees). Control your airspeed with the brakes. Point your gun cross somewhat ahead of the target and release the bomb at around 1500 feet, then pull up. After a little practice, you'll be able to estimate the right moment and position for bomb release. You can also dive-bomb from different altitudes and different dive angles. If you start really high, you can fly almost or completely vertically for maximum accuracy, but you'll have to pull up much earlier. Similarly, in a battlefield situation you might have to bomb from a much lower altitude, and will have to do with a shallower dive. Be especially careful with Mk84's -- you don't want to get caught in the blast. Note that you're going to have take into account your weight (the heavier you are, the longer it'll take to pull out of the dive), the kind of bomb you use (it's very dangerous for your health to get too close to the blast from a Mk84), and wind. Long hours at the practice range are highly recommended! Ripple bombing (This section contributed by Tony Swash.) A-10 Attack! provides different ways to release pieces of ordnance. This gives you very good control over the kind of destruction you want to wreak -- sinking a cruiser calls for one, big strike but wiping out groups of tanks needs destruction spread over a larger area. The release modes available are RMS (single) RMP (pairs), RMRS (ripple single) and RMRP (ripple pairs). Release Mode Pairs is a fairly straightforward option, its used when you want to deliver a payload larger than one weapon onto a single target. For example you can drop two Mk84 2000lb bombs onto the soviet cruiser the Krasina in the Docklands mission to destroy her in one pass. Or you can fire two HARM simultaneously at the SAM site on top of the office block in Old Man River which means the double HARM strike will take out the Radar van and both SAM launchers in one hit. Using Release Mode Ripple Single is a more complex option where the aim is to release a string of single weapons across a target spreading destruction over an area as wide as possible. This mode is used most often with gravity bombs, the Mk84, Mk83 and Mk82. Using the Ripple Single Mode one can drop a string of bombs, the effectiveness and kill radius of this groups of bombs will be determined by how far apart they fall. Spread out too far apart and the target(s) might slip through the middle between impacts unscathed. Too close together and you are reducing the overall area of the kill radius and wasting ordinance. What determines the distance between impacts (assuming level flight during the release period) is the time delay between releases and the speed you are travelling at. This interval between bomb releases is measured in hundredths of a second and is shown in the ripple interval counter. Altitude makes no difference its only your speed relative to the ground that makes any difference. For any given interval between bomb releases the higher your speed the further apart the impacts. The setting which means that the bombs will impact with their kill radius just touching and therefore cause maximum destruction over the largest area will depend on the size of bomb and your airspeed. This is not an exact science but the list below shows the optimum ripple interval (in hundredths of a second as displayed in the Ripple Interval Counter) for different sizes of bombs at different airspeeds during level flight. Mk84 2000lbs Speed Interval 200 mph70 300 mph45 400 mph35 Mk83 1000lbs Speed Interval 200 mph40 300 mph30 400 mph20 Mk82 500lbs Speed Interval 200 mph30 300 mph20 400 mph15 Using Ripple with Cluster bombs (Rockeyes) is more complex. The Rockeye releases a cloud of small bomblets shortly after release, this cloud spreads and thins as it falls. The greater the height of release the larger the cluster will be when it hits the ground but the thinner the density of bomblets. Getting the right balance between a large spread (i.e. hitting more targets) and the right density (i.e. enough individual bomblets actually hit the target so as to destroy it) is difficult. There is no simple formula, just lots of practice on the training range. The complication in the current A10 mission set is that the right sort of targets for cluster bombs (infantry and soft skinned vehicles such as trucks) don't feature. Using the Rockeye against hardened targets such as tanks means getting the release pattern just right. The Rockeye is only effective when released between certain heights: above 1.3 km and the cloud of bomblets is so thin that there is no damage to the target, below 175m and the bomblets don't have time to release from their canister. In fact Rockeyes released near their upper and lower height limits are very ineffective. The ideal height seems to be between 850 and 700 metres. When the cluster strikes the ground it hits with a distinct oval footprint, its footprint of destruction. The impact point indicated by the CCIP lies off centre towards the nearest edge of the oval so getting the impact pickle in the CCIP dead on the target should mean you will rain a circle of destruction onto it. Using the Ripple Mode you can drop a series of Rockeyes which will release their bomblets in a single unbroken path of destruction. If you set the ripple mode to Release Mode Ripple Single and set the interval to 60 you should get this unbroken path. Speed has less impact on the ripple interval than with conventional bombs so the indicated interval of 60 should be about right for speeds between 275 and 400mph. The tools of the trade In this section are practical tips about using the different kinds of weaponry available in A-10 Attack!. The checklists aren't "rules", instead they remind of the things that should be taken into account and describe typical uses for each weapon. Which weapon to use on which target? Target Weapons Tank, artillery The gun, Maverick, Hellfire, HVR's, Rockeye, Mk82HD, Mk82 Paveway AAA Maverick, HVR's , the gun SAM site HARM, Maverick, HVR's, the gun Oil tank Maverick, HVR's, the gun, Mk 82, 83, 84 Boat Maverick, HVR's, the gun Ship HARM (radar), Maverick (other defences), Mk 82, 83, 84 Fighter AIM-9, HVR's, the gun, HARM Bomber, transportAIM-9, HVR's, the gun The GAU-8/A Avenger gun The gun carried by the A-10 is one of its deadliest weapons. It can be used with devastating effect against all kinds of targets up to small buildings and medium-sized boats. Use the "low" fire rate against tanks and small buildings as one or two hits are enough to destroy the target. Against
aircraft, boats, AAA defences etc. use the "high" fire rate, as they take
more damage to destroy or are important to destroy at extreme range. (The
"low" fire rate tends to spread the bullets too widely at extreme range.)

Free-fall bombs

See above (Bombing section) for descriptions of the different ways to use
free-fall ordnance.

Free-fall bombs are bombs that have no guidance system of their own. They're
simply dropped on the target. When a free-fall bomb is released from a
plane, it continues in the direction the plane was going at the moment of
release, and starts to fall downwards. This means that if a plane is flying
straight and level and keeps going after the bomb is released, it will be
very nearly above the bomb when it impacts. At low altitudes this can be a
problem, as the blast radius of the bigger bombs is considerable. In other
words, keep enough altitude, and pull up after releasing the bombs.

(Drag will slow down the bomb slightly, but at low altitudes not enough to
significantly affect the impact point, except with the Mk82HD).

The Mk82, the Mk83, and the Mk84 general purpose bombs

These are basically iron shells filled with a high explosive and equipped
with a fuse that causes them to explode upon impact. The Mk82 weighs about
500 lbs, the Mk 83, 1000 lbs, and the Mk84, 2000 lbs. About 25% of the
weight is explosives; the rest is mostly shell designed to fragment upon
detonation. They are very effective against all kinds of ground targets,
provided you can score a hit. ("Remember: big dumb bombs kill just as dead
as small smart bombs.")

The CCIP is very helpful with free-fall bombs, if you're not being fired
upon and can get a good, steady approach. In combat situations, dive-bombing
or the FAR (Feels About Right) method often work better. See above for
descriptions of the different bombing methods.

The Mk82HD

The Mk82HD ("high-drag") bomb is a variant of the standard Mk82 500 lb bomb.
It is not strictly free-fall, as it pops retarding fins after being
released. This means that the bombs "fall back" from the plane after
release, and the plane has time to fly out of the blast radius before the
bomb impacts. They're meant to be used in battlefield situations at low
altitude.

The CCIP is useful with them, too, if you use them at an altitude of ca. 200
feet. At higher altitudes, the slow-down caused by the retarding fins
renders the CCIP useless. They're not well suited for dive bombing, as the
retarding fins make it difficult to judge the point of impact.

A typical way to use Mk82HD's is to get a tank or group of tanks in your gun
cross, pickle slightly ahead of the target with the CCIP, and pull to level
flight. When the bombs release, pull up. With a little practice, you'll find
that you can score accurate hits this way or even without the CCIP, by
estimating the right moment for release - you're quite close to the target
anyway.

The Mk20 Rockeye cluster bomb

These bombs are particularly badly documented: they're not even mentioned in
the printed manual. The Rockeye cluster bomb is a special-purpose weapon
designed to destroy large numbers of small targets, such as small buildings,
tanks, or personnel. When it is released, it falls some distance, then
bursts, releasing a cloud of bomblets, each of which produces its own small
explosion. A single Rockeye can cover a fair amount of terrain, and destroy
several targets at a go.

Rockeyes are used much like ordinary free-fall bombs. They can be targeted
with the CCIP or used in dive bombing. Only the targets are different (small
targets as opposed to big, hard ones).

Rockeyes are most effective if released from an altitude of a few hundred
feet: this gives the bomblets time to spread, and enables them to cover a
larger area.

A problem with Rockeyes in A-10 Attack! is that they're so accurately
modeled. Each bomblet is individually tracked and produces its own
explosion. This means that some slow-down (read: jerkiness) is guaranteed on
all but the most powerful Macs. Also, several people have reported system
crashes when using multiple Rockeyes. For this reason, in version 1.1 the
maximum number of Rockeyes used simultaneously was hard-coded to 4.

The CBU-15 Durandal

Checklist:

 HUD mode        NAV or PAVE
 Weapons stationsSelected
 Release mode    Set accordingly
 Ripple count    Set accordingly (if any RIP mode)
 Ripple interval Set accordingly (if any RIP mode)

The CBU-15 Durandal is an anti-runway bomb. A drag chute pops up, slowing
down the bomb and pointing it downwards. Then it fires the warhead straight
down, which pierces the concrete of the runway and explodes. This makes a
crater and causes a "bulge" around it - not even an ATV can drive around in
it, let alone an aircraft. (In A-10 Attack! the bulge is modeled as a
crater.)

As stated in the Bugs section, Durandals are next to useless as the runway
damage is repaired very quickly. They're also a beast to target, as the CCIP
is useless with them because they're not free-fall bombs. A good technique
is to fly fast over the runway as if you're landing but at a couple of
hundred feet and ripple lots of them on the runway with a ripple interval of
50 to 99. But for the bug, this would really mess up a runway.

Laser-guided bombs and missiles (Mk 82, 83, 84 Paveway, AGM-114A, AGM-65E)

Checklist

 HUD mode                   PAVE
 Weapons stations           Selected
 Target designation from HUDSelected (Tab key)
 Release mode               Single

Laser-guided bombs are very easy to use, and hit almost every time. The only
limitation is that a target has to be painted with laser light by other
forces - either ground units or aircraft specially equipped for the task.
(In A-10 Attack! it's always ground units.) Such targets show up on the HUD
as little diamonds, when PAVE mode is set.

The laser designation is chosen by the computer and can vary on the
computer's whim. Typically it is 'chosen' by the computer on mission
startup, but it is within the computer's code to choose different targets
while the mission progresses. So if a designated target flickers out, then
it isn't a computer bug, but a real feature designed into the software.

To use laser guided bombs, select a target from the HUD with the Tab key,
and when the text "release" appears on the HUD, release the bomb.

LGB's have little fins which correct their flight path. They don't really
glide, though, which means that you have to have sufficient altitude for the
bomb to reach its target. A few hundred feet is enough, and the "release"
sign won't light until you're within range.

Laser guided missiles work just like the bombs, except that they have
smaller warheads and greater range. The AGM-114A Hellfire comes in pods of
four, which would be useful if there were more laser-designated targets in
the game. It carries a fairly small warhead and has limited range. The
AGM-65E is a "miracle weapon" with excellent range, pinpoint accuracy, and a
considerable warhead, but the scarcity of laser-designated targets seriously
reduces its usefulness.

Prelude to War, Docklands, and Old Man River all contain laser-designated
targets.

Hyper-velocity rockets (HVR's)

Checklist:

 HUD mode        NAV or PAVE
 Weapons stationsSelected
 Release mode    Ripple Single (RMRS)
 Ripple count    06
 Ripple interval 01

HVR's work like a kind of "long-range cannon". They're so fast they don't
need much leading and they do a lot of damage. A ripple count 04 with an
interval of 01 tears up pretty much anything up to small boats. They're
rather devastating against other aircraft, too. They're simple to use: just
get whatever you want to hit under the gun cross, and release a ripple. For
fast-moving targets such as aircraft, you might have to lead a little (shoot
ahead of its flight path).

HVR's are particularly useful against AAA sites, because of their superior
range and velocity.

The AGM-88A HARM

Checklist:

 HUD mode                   NAV or PAVE
 Weapons stations           Selected
 Hand-off selection from RWRSelected (H key)
 Release mode               Single (RMS)

The HARM is used against SAM and AAA sites. Note that in A-10 Attack! the
ground-based radar is fairly smart: it doesn't just sit there and wait to be
hit. Instead, it only switches on the radar when it is needed - this means
that HARMs are often usable only at close range.

To use a HARM, select the radar source from the RWR with the H key, point
your nose level or slightly down towards the target, then release the
missile. An altitude of 1000 to 4000 feet (depending on range) is
recommended.

The HARM is useful not only against ground-based radar sources, but also
against radar-emitting aircraft (such as the MiG-29). I don't know if this
would work in real life, though. It carries a much bigger warhead than the
AIM-9L, but it turns slower. This means that it doesn't hit as often, but
does more damage if it does hit. If fired straight from behind and the
target aircraft isn't maneuvering, it hits every time.

The HARM in A-10 Attack! is nothing like the real thing. The real HARM is a
very sophisticated, long-range weapon. It can be fired very far off towards
known hostile radar. Then it climbs to cruising altitude, cruises to its
target area, and waits for a radar to light, after which it dives at the
radar and destroys it. If the radar switches off before the HARM impacts,
the missile will still stay on course and hit very accurately. If no radars
light up by the time the missile is running out of fuel, it dives in the
general target area.

The Parsoft HARM is a short-range, battlefield weapon. If it loses guidance
(the radar switches off while the missile is in the air or the missile was
fired without a good lock in the first place) it'll probably fall short.
It's not as fancy as the real thing, but still an invaluable aid in most
missions.

The Maverick (AGM-65B, AGM-65D)

Checklist:

 HUD mode        Any (see below for CCIP)
 Weapons stationsSelected
 Release mode    Single (RMS)

The Maverick is possibly the most useful weapon the A-10 can carry. It has
fairly good range and is effective against all kinds of targets, from AA
defenses to tanks to boats to buildings. It homes on stationary targets and
it tracks moving ones. It comes in three flavors, the AGM-65B, D, and E. The
AGM-65B is the standard, TV-guided version; the D has an infra-red camera
for use in low-light situations, and the E is laser-guided (and discussed
above with the other laser-guided ordnance).

To use a Maverick, center the crosshairs in the TV display on the target,
then press to release.

The CCIP mode can also be used to release Mavericks. With it, the first
press of the release button pickles the target. The diamond marking the
target can be seen on the HUD. A second press releases the missile. This
helps avoid false locks -Êin real life, it's not at all uncommon to have
Mavericks lock onto bushes etc. instead of the intended target.

In windy conditions it can be quite difficult to get a good lock, what with
your Hog bumping around all over the place. You might think you have a lock,
only to have the Maverick fly straight and miss the moving target you're
aiming for. There's no easy way around this, but practice helps. Rest
assured that the weapon works correctly.

AGM-65D's work just like AGM-65B's, except that they can see in the dark. In
the Gulf war, Hog drivers used the infra-red camera on the AGM-65D to look
for targets. In A-10 Attack! this is made even easier, as the infra-red
image is projected onto the HUD.

Mavericks can only be installed at stations 3 and 9. There has been some
discussion as to how things are in real life. The consensus seems to be that
only these stations are wired for TV electronics. A technician working with
A-10's has assured me that Mavericks could in theory be attached to other
hardpoints, but couldn't be fired from them, even using the gun cross for
targeting.

The AIM-9L Sidewinder

Checklist:

 HUD mode        NAV or PAVE
 Weapons stationsSelected
 Release mode    Single (RMS)

The AIM-9L Sidewinder is a heat-seeking A/A missile. When it's picking up a
heat source, you hear a growl. When the source is stronger, the growl is
louder. Release when the growl is loud. If there are several heat sources in
the area, the Sidewinder will track the strongest one near the gun cross.
Ideally, the Sidewinder should be fired from behind the target, but it is an
"all aspect" weapon and works from other directions as well.

Fuel tanks

Fuel tanks aren't exactly weapons, but they too can be loaded at certain
hardpoints. The internal tanks are more than big enough to hold all the fuel
you'll need (and more!) for all the missions in A-10 Attack!, so they're
something of an extra. The only use for them that I've managed to invent is
exploring the flight model - you can make a Hog really heavy with them.

Note that you can't jettison a centerline (station 6) fuel tank.

Managing loadouts

The variety of ordnance and the large number of hardpoints pose a problem:
in the heat of battle, it can be tough to select the right weapon and
release mode. Three solutions have been proposed.

"Cheat"

Hit Command-P to pause the game, then select the ordnance at leisure, then
return to game. Of course, this isn't exactly fair - and probably won't work
with networked games once they become available.

Use Post-Its on the function keys

Paste a Post-It (or similar) next to each function key, specifying which
weapon is at which hardpoint. Helps a lot!

Standardize your loadouts

In other words, decide which hardpoints to use for which weapons and
memorize them. The "general-purpose" mix I use has Mavericks at points 3 and
9, Mk 82's at points 4 and 8, HVR pods at 2 and 10 and an ECM pod at 1. For
specialized missions use loadouts with fewer different kinds of weapons -
for radar-busting, say, load up with an ECM at pod 1, Mavericks at 3 and 9,
and HARMs in all the other hardpoints. For a carpet-bombing mission, just
load up with free-fall ordnance at every hardpoint. Once you decide on a
"system" to use, you'll find that it's easy to find the right weapon at the
right time.

Ripples

Rippling ordnance is especially useful for two things: free-fall bombs
(carpet bombing) and HVRs. If you're carrying enough bombs for carpet
bombing, you probably won't be carrying HVRs, and vice versa. This means
that you can "pre-set" your ripple to match your mission - for example,
ripple count 6 and interval 1 for HVR's, and ripple count 4 and interval 8
for carpet bombing. Set these before you actually get into battle. When
you're in combat, all you have to do is switch between RMS (single) and RMRS
(ripple). (If you want something in between, use RMP and RMRP instead of
diddling with the actual ripple setting.)

For a detailed treatise on ripple bombing, see the Ripples section.

Of course, some sort of programmable weapons system controller (the
Thrustmaster WCS, a game pad or the as yet unreleased CH Products Pro
Throttle) helps a lot here - you can just program one button for RMS and
another for RMRS.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Surviving in a threat-filled battlefield

The battlefields in A-10 Attack! are busy places. Lots of things are out to
get you. Your main enemies are AAA, SAMs, MiGs. Ships (the Krasina and
Huchuans) are also dangerous, but they do have their weak spots.

Anti-aircraft artillery

Anti-aircraft artillery, aka Archie, aka aka flak, aka aka ack-ack. "The
beloved child has many names," as an old Finnish saw has it. This is either
radar- or manually guided artillery that fires either heavy machine-gun type
bullets or explosive cannon-type shells. Both kinds are nasty.

AAA has one major weakness. It takes time to reach its target. If you're
flying straight, or (God forbid) at the AAA unit, you're in great danger of
being hit. By jinking (zig-zagging both horizontally and vertically) you can
make things a lot more difficult for the AAA.

A major danger with AAA is that it can hit missiles fired its way. In other
words, when you target an AAA unit, fire off the missile fast and break hard
immediately (turn sharply and change your heading). Otherwise the piece
could be hit and blow up in your face for good measure.

In A-10 Attack! Archie is always radar-guided. This means that it can be
foiled by ECM or chaff. Also, if you manage to shut down its radar, you shut
down the flak. In other words, HARMs are your best friends. Know where the
AAA is, fly at it, wait for it to spike you, fire off a HARM, and break hard
to prevent the flak from destroying the missile (and hitting you, too).

Your Hog is one tough airplane. It can take a few hits from AAA without
noticing. However, don't get cocky -- a lucky hit can kill or cripple you,
and it's pure suicide to fly straight at an AAA unit firing at you.

Surface-to-air missiles

I really don't understand why everybody is so spooked about SAMs. In A-10
Attack! at least, they're rather easy to beat. "Retaliation" is a good
mission to practise SEAD (Suppression of Enemy Air Defences). The heavier
SAM sites in Docklands, Assistance Needed, and Old Man River take some more
work, but aren't at all impossible.

The light SAM sites are easy, if you have HARMs. As soon as you're spiked,
turn towards the SAM site and fire a HARM. If you get a lock warning (or,
better still, see a SAM arcing towards you), pop some chaff and break about
45 degrees. The SAM is guaranteed to miss. If you don't have any HARMs left,
use your cannon or Mavericks, using the same technique for avoidance. The
main thing is to remember to duck; if you just fly straight, you're dead.

Heavy SAM sites take some more doing. You're unlikely to manage to kill all
of the launchers before they manage to get some actively-homing SAMs flying
your way. However, these SAMs are also easily spoofed by chaff -- just watch
the site, and when you're locked onto and/or see the SAM coming at you, pop
chaff and break. Again, they miss every time. It's really cool to see the
spikes sweep past you on the RWR.

The biggest danger with heavy SAM sites is that you might fly over one
before it's out of missiles. In such a case you're liable to get a missile
up your keister, although popping chaff and turning helps here too. In other
words, stay in front of the site until it's out of missiles -- once a
missile misses, circle back for another approach. Once the site is out of
missiles, it's a piece of cake to kill.

MiG-29 Fulcrums

Ouch. These folks are nasty. If they don't carry missiles (as in Quick Start
2 or the Cuba demo), they're quite possible to beat in a dogfight. Try to
get them head-on; they'll shoot at you too but your gun is bigger and your
plane more heavily armored. If you miss, you'll get into a furball. Just fly
low and slow (at under 150 kts), turn as hard as you can, and eventually
they'll stumble in front of your gun or crash. In real life, they'd probably
just make high-speed slashing attacks, in which case you'd be in a lot more
trouble.

However, in Antonov Armada and Old Man River, they carry lots of
heat-seeking missiles. A/A missiles are very tough to avoid -- flares and
hard maneuvering help, but usually not enough. (For me, at least.)

In Antonov Armada, the MiG's are easiest to kill by sneaking behind them and
firing a HARM at them from straight behind and slightly above. The usually
go down at a hit, and HARMs never miss that way. You can try the same
technique with AIM-9's, but it's a lot more difficult.

In both of the missions, the MiGs are best left for the fighters (Falcon in
Antonov Armada, Eagle in Old Man River). Those guys are also equipped with
missiles, and have a much better chance at MiG-hunting.

Killing ships

The Huchuans have a very nasty chaingun they keep firing at you. The Krasina
has explosive AAA and two Phalanx-style chainguns. The Krasina's defences
can be shut down by firing enough HARMs at it, or Mavericks towards the
mid-section between the superstructures (that's where the chainguns are). If
you're flying solo, you probably won't have enough missiles, however.

Both kinds of ship have one major weakness -- the superstructure on them
blocks the guns' line of fire towards the back. In other words, both are
very vulnerable to a low-level attack run from behind. Huchuans go down with
a second or two's worth of depleted-uranium bullets; the Krasina needs two
hits with 2000-pounders.

My favorite tactic with the Krasina is to circle behind it a good way off,
do a CCIP run with Mk84(LG's) at 1500 feet and 350+ kts, release mode PRS
(RMP), and go for it, keeping the gun cross between the 0 and -5 lines. The
chaingun won't be able to fire at you and the explosive AAA won't hit you
unless you're very, very unlucky. Once the bombs release, Immelmann out of
there. Good-night Krasina.

Section IV: The missions

"I'm stuck with mission X. Help!"

A-10 Attack! being the dynamic beast that it is, and giving the player lots
of freedom in selecting the way he/she approaches the missions,
"walkthroughs" in the traditional sense can't really be written. Instead,
this section covers some tips in dealing with the challenges each mission
poses. Different approaches are possible, and indeed are a large part of the
fun.

My appeal for mission strategies has been answered: Andre Molyneux sent me
descriptions of his solutions to several of the missions. Here's what he has
to say about them:

     Obviously, I've found that a few 2000 pound bombs will go a long
     way. In some cases it may be more fun to go after targets
     individually with the gun, but when you need to take out multiple
     targets fast there's nothing like Mk84's to do the job. With the
     exception of "Old Man River", I've found that the right weapons
     load-out will allow me to complete the mission with a single Hog
     (although I will use the F-15 and F-16's where available to take
     out enemy planes).

Editor's note: Make sure you have enough altitude when using 2000-pounders.
The blast radius is big, and a Hog carrying multiple Mk84's handles much
more heavily than a more lightly laden one.

There are still plenty of missions looking for a strategy, and other
approaches are appreciated. Mail me if you want to have your strategies
included in this section!

                                   [Image]

Prelude to War

This is an easy mission. There's nothing particularly deadly around - even
the SAMs are quite light and most often don't do any serious damage to the
Hog. The most straightforward method is just to fly in, shoot everything and
fly back out. This is a good mission to practice A/G attack skills - there
are stationary targets, radar-emitting targets, laser-designated targets,
and moving targets, some of which even shoot back. If you use Mavericks,
make sure to get some altitude, as otherwise they tend to hit the lip of the
tin mining pit in which the fuel dump is.

Retaliation

This is a bit more difficult: the Wildcat batteries are nasty, if you get
within range. One method is to plot a course avoiding them, sink the ferry
with Mavericks and the gun, and get back home. Another method is to find the
Wildcats, hit them with the Mavericks or HARMs before you're in their range,
and then go for the ferry. This can be tough, as time is a factor here -
spend too long playing with the Wildcats, and you're liable to "miss the
boat". (Incidentally, letting the ferry blow up the dam is good for laughs;
try it once...)

Andre's strategy:

"The quickest way to take out the boat is to take off, fly at a heading of
120-125 degrees, and stay close to the ground once you've reached the first
set of hills. The SAM batteries (not mentioned in the mission briefing, but
shown on the map) will take potshots at you and the F-16's, so staying low
keeps them (and the anti-aircraft batteries) from hitting you. Once you're
over the hill, skim the water and head straight for the boat. With the
firing rate on "high", a single pass is usually enough to take out the boat
with the cannon, at which point you can just circle around and land. On the
other hand, you can go up with HARMs and take out the AA and SAMs for more
points."

Docklands

This is basically another "target practice" mission. The tanks don't shoot
back. The only major danger is the SAM battery (where the "radar" chit shows
up). Don't use the default waypoints: instead, plot a course avoiding the
radar on the way back. Otherwise all your Hogs might get shot up on their
way back.

Sinking the cruiser is a bit more difficult. One method that works is to
send one A-10 to knock out its defences with HARMs and Mavericks. A HARM or
two will knock out its main radar, and Mavericks sprayed from stem to stern
will destroy the chaingun. Then have another A-10 loaded up to the armpits
with free-fall bombs do a couple of nice, safe, high-level bombing runs at
it (once you've mastered the CCIP). It takes two direct hits from Mk84's to
sink the ship.

Daredevil strategy: Loadout: Stations 1 and 11: Mk82; 2 and 10: Mk83; 3, 4,
5, 7, 8, and 9: Mk84LG. Fly to the area along the waypoints, but turn
towards the the dock as soon as you clear the hill to your left. If the
tanks are laser-designated, drop Mk84LG's on them; if they aren't, do the
same thing with CCIP. Once they're dead, circle behind the Krasina, build
speed up to 350+ kts, select RMP, and do a CCIP run at around 1500 feet and
a shallow (<5 degrees) dive. Good-night, Krasina. Then circle back, drop
remaining bombs on the tankers. Once you're out of bombs, continue on the
pre-set waypoints. Tease the SAM site until it's out of missiles (remember
to duck). Once it's out, kill it with the gun. Fly home for about 15k
points.

Andre's strategy:

"Load up with five Mk84 LGB's, three infra-red Mavericks, two Mk83's, and
two HARMs. Follow the pre-set waypoints on the way in. Of the three groups
of parked tanks, at least two will have one or more tanks that are being
"painted" by a laser. Set the HUD to PAVE as you approach. Select one of the
painted tanks in the first group (the one in the center if multiple tanks
are painted) using the tab key, and release a Mk 84 LGB once "RELEASE" is
indicated in the HUD. Press the tab key until you have selected a tank in
another group, and do the same. One bomb will take out all three tanks in a
group, so if every group has a tank painted by a laser, you can easily knock
out all tanks in one easy run.

"Use the HARMs on the cruiser (they'll take out the main radar and one of
the others). Fire the infra-red Mavericks at the central portion of the ship
to take out the chain guns. At this point it's fairly safe to make a CCIP
pass (dead on from the bow or stern is best) and use two of the Mk84's to
take out the ship (the LGB's can be dropped as normal bombs if you run out
of lased targets). With whatever ordnance you have left, take out one or
both of the tankers/transports/whatever they are.

"With judicious use of ordnance, a single Hog can take out every enemy in
this mission except the SAM battery. That hillside SAM site is vicious, and
is best avoided altogether."

Marauding BMP's

This mission is a bit tougher than the first two, as there are threats
approaching from several directions. One working strategy is to have one Hog
fly straight to the artillery pieces shelling your airfield and knock them
out, another (targeting anti-aircraft on the first pass, tanks on the
second) to harass the BMP's. Once the first Hog is done with the artillery,
he can come back to kill the BMP's with all he's got. Mavericks, HVR's,
Mk82HD's, and the gun work well here.

It's very important to get the AAA tanks knocked out fast - otherwise
they'll smoke you while you circle around after the others. Try to pick them
out from the crowd from a safe distance, and kill them with HARMs or
Mavericks. When you're getting closer, use HVR's - they're a lot faster than
the cannon rounds and have better range. And if they're still not dead at
cannon range, shoot hard.

Andre's strategy

"Load up with six Mk 84's and two HARMs. Take off and nail the artillery
battery (there may be two) with the gun, then swing back around and head for
the groups of BMP's. For each of the two main groups, select a HARM as you
approach. If you get painted by the AA radar before you're really close,
fire a HARM at the radar source and turn away (it'll be firing at you, and
the HARM may get hit on the way in. If you change your heading it won't be
firing in the HARM's direction.) If you don't get painted by the radar until
you're really close, or you've already taken it out, select 3 Mk84's, go to
CCIP, set release mode ripple single and ripple count 03 (helps to have
buttons programmed to do this quickly). Pickle a point a bit ahead of the
BMP's (they're moving forward, so give them a fair lead), then fly level and
wait for the bombs to release. Make a hard break to one side or the other,
you don't want to be above the Mk84's when they go off. As long as your
salvo of three big bombs hits close-by, you'll wipe out the entire group.

"Use the same strategy for the second group, and if there are any BMP's to
the SW of you base (occasionally two or three will be approaching from that
direction with no AA support) take them out with the gun. With this strategy
I've been able to take out each group with a single pass with just one
plane."

Antinov [sic] Armada

Actually, it's Antonov with an "o", whatever Parsoft says.

There's only one challenge with this mission: the MiG-29's escorting the
Antonovs. One good strategy is to have the F-16 fly above and behind the
enemy planes (this takes some careful tweaking of waypoints) and have him
try to take out the MiGs. After they're down, killing the Antonovs is easy
and fun.

For the ones who like a tough dogfight, it can be fun to try to kill the
MiGs yourself. This is not easy, though - first you'll have to dodge their
Atolls, and then you'll have to outfly them. Not an easy task, considering
that the MiG-29 is one of the best fighters around. However, if you fly low
(below 150 feet) and slow (below 150 kts), you'll be able to out-turn them
and give them the Warthog Stomp with the gun, or they might stall their
planes and auger in, trying to follow your maneuvering. (In real life, the
MiGs would probably just take off with full afterburners and come back for
high-speed slashing attacks; you'd be in a lot more trouble then.)

The easiest way to kill the MiGs is with HARMs. Sneak behind them by turning
right, flying along the coastline towards the hill on the right side of the
pass out of which the planes will fly, then use your RWR to determine the
position of the MiGs. Once you're above and behind them, give each one HARM.
They never miss, and kill at a hit.

Of course, whatever you send against the MiGs will slow them down, enabling
another Hog to sneak up on the unprotected Antonovs, again toasting them.

An entirely different approach to this mission involves destroying the
runway at the planes' destination base. However, this is currently very
difficult because of the Amazing Self-Repairing Runway bug.

Demolition Crew

This is a quite a difficult mission. There are lots of targets, many of
which shoot back, and time is definitely a factor. The tanks are the nub of
the mission - if you get them destroyed on time, the rest is easy.

Mud Mover's Strategy

Loadouts Hog 1 (flown by you)
 Station    Piece
 1      ECM
 2      HARM
 3      Maverick x 3
 4 to 8 Mk84
 9      Maverick x 3
 10     HARM
 11     Nil
Hog 2 (flown by AI)
 Station    Piece
 1      ECM
 2      Nil
 3      Maverick x 3
 4 to 8 Mk84
 9      Maverick x 3
 10     Nil
 11     Nil

Waypoints

F-16's: Towards valley at 600 kts, 1500 feet, target: airplane.

Hog 2: Towards Huchuans at 350 kts, 500 feet, target: ship. Then towards
tanks, 250 kts, 1500 feet, target: tank, anti-aircraft.

Your strategy

Take off immediately and fly to the tanks at top speed, 3000 feet. Once you
get close to them, slow down to about 300 kts. Spot and FAR bomb the biggest
group of tanks. Make sure to pull up and away to get out of the blast. Climb
back to 1500...2000 feet, circle back and bomb the next group. Climb, circle
back, and mop up what's left. Be sure to clean out the road. The other Hog
will keep the Huchuans out of your hair somewhat, but if you're locked onto,
pop some chaff. Don't pay attention to the flak; the Huchuans are too far to
get a good shot at you, and your Hog can easily take one or two lucky hits.

Once you've finished off the tanks, go for the Huchuans (if there are any
left). Mission accomplished!

The biggest danger is bombing yourself with the Mk84's -- the tanks are
small targets, and you don't have much time to line up on them properly. Be
careful, and keep enough altitude. And if you're going after the tanks,
ignore the flak from the Huchuans; drop some chaff if you must, but remember
that they won't hit you if you keep enough speed and maneuver (as you must
while bombing). And even if they do hit, one or two rounds of AAA will make
nary a dent in the piece of armor you're flying.

Col. Mike has pointed out that the Su-25's are non-essential to the success
of the mission. You can take them out yourself after you've wasted the other
targets (for extra points). It doesn't matter if they manage to drop their
bombs. Also, he's discovered that Huchuans are best approached low and from
the rear -- their gun can't fire in that direction.

Andre's strategy

"Similar strategy to Marauding BMP's. Head straight for the tanks, taking
them out with a few well-placed Mk84's. Nailing the tanks right away is
paramount - once they're gone you can take your time. Carry a few harms as
well, to help reduce the amount of fire coming from the boats. Use the gun
to take out the boats, then mop up any AA pieces left behind. Oh, and don't
forget to vector your F-16's up that valley to the north to catch the
Su-25's well before they can start bombing."

Assistance Needed

Two good strategies have been suggested. The first one is to do what the
mission briefing says: load up one Hog with HARMs, Mavericks, and an ECM pod
and send it against the SAM site, and the others against the airbase, loaded
with bombs and Mavs. Note that each SAM launcher has its own short-range
radar: destroying the radar truck isn't enough to knock the site out, you
have to get each launcher too (or have it launch all its missiles).

Fly along the preset waypoints at around 3000 ... 4000 feet, until you see
the spike corresponding to the main radar of the site. Kill it with a HARM,
and keep your trigger finger ready when closing in. When you're quite close,
the launchers will target you. Now's the time to hit them with the HARMs,
duck any missiles coming your way, and get in close. If some are still up,
you can get them with Mavericks or your gun - the SAMs seem to be
intermediate range and can't lock onto you if you stay very close to them.

An easier way to complete this mission is to tell the generals to go fish,
disobey your order to destroy the SAM site, and program the Tornados to
avoid the site altogether and fly straight to the enemy base at top speed.
Have your Hogs (loaded up with Mavs and Mk82HD's) fly to the same
destination. After your visit, the enemy airbase will look much like a
potato field.

If you like a bit of sport, go bomb the field first, and the get the SAM
site with nothing but your gun. It's a bitch, but can be done. Especially
with the lousy weather causing your Hog to bounce all over the place and
making it really difficult to see the launchers in the first place.

Old Man River

This mission has a variable database, making it really interesting. There
are approximately four possible scenarios, two of which are winnable with
only one Hog, and the third and fourth ones need a little help from the
F-15. Unfortunately, there's no way of knowing which it is to be until you
get there.

Scenario 1: No enemy air support, or Scenario 2: 1 or 2 Su-25's. This is
pretty easy. Load up with HARMs and Mk84LG's. Take off, round the hill, and
fly towards the spike on the RWR. Once you get close to the lake, fire a
HARM at it. Then fire HARMs at whatever spikes you.

If the S-2's are laser designated (they're on the right-hand edge of the
garrison), drop a Mk84LG at them as soon as the RELEASE sign lights.
Otherwise, fly straight for them and kill them with the gun.

Once the S-2's are out of the game, concentrate on the BMP's with the AAA
vehicle. If one of them is laser-designated, just drop a Mk84LG at them (you
could have done this earlier, if it was possible). If not, FAR bomb or HARM
them. Get out fast, popping chaff to avoid the flak. And watch out in case
you've missed a SAM site.

Now, look around to see if any Su-25's have shown up to spoil the party.
Check the Wildcat batteries; if they're firing, one's in the air. If you see
a Su or two, go get 'em before they bomb your M-1's into scrap iron.

Finally, mop up the T-62's with the cannon or Mk84LG's (if you have any
left). And do check to see if one SAM launcher survived on top of the white
building. Easy points, as it's out of missiles by this time.

Once you're out of targets, you can head home. Put in some waypoints and
"visit" an M-1 -- the inexorable advance of the column is quite fun.

Scenario 3: 1 or 2 MiG-29's or 1 MiG-29 and 1 Su-25.If you've set out to
conquer Old Man River without top cover and MiG-29's show up, you're in real
trouble. Your best bet is to lob a HARM at it/them, and hope for the best --
if you get caught in a dogfight, you'll be too late to do anything about the
M-1's even if you survive. However, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound
of cure, and you have an F-15 Eagle at your disposal.

The Eagle is very good at MiG-killing. However, it's rather vulnerable to
SAMs. The critical thing with using it is timing -- you have to get at the
SAMs before they get to the Eagle, but you have to get the Eagle to the
scene before the MiG(s) go after you.

Pause the game immediately as it starts (unless you consider this cheating
and are very fast with your fingers). Program waypoints for the F-15 so that
it flies straight over the hills and around the lake; on your side of it
it'll stay in the hills, then come out on the planes. Finally, it'll fly
back through the pass and land.

At the initial waypoint, target Aircraft, set an altitude of 3000 and a
speed of 1500 kts. Once it gets over the hills, slow down to 500 kts and
drop to 2000 feet. Finally, once it's out of the battle area, set velocity
to 250 kts and altitude to 1000 feet, and land at the final WP.

Once you've finished with the waypoints, un-pause the game, complete your
loadout as above, and take off. Use the nearest taxiway to the runway. You
can monitor the F-15's progress on your RWR; the spike should lengthen at
about the time you're flying over the group of buildings. Now, if a Fulcrum
should be waiting for you around the corner, the Eagle and it will go at
each others throats, and you'll get to the SAMs first, before they threaten
the Eagle. If a Su-25 shows up on the enemy side of the lake, the Eagle will
be there on time to intercept it (if it survived the dogfight, that is). If
not, well, it's another 1600 points... In any case, your tactics will be
just like if there were no MiGs around.

It's also possible to complete this mission without flying the planes
yourself: you'll just have to program the waypoints with appropriate targets
(no more than two different kinds at a time; one recommended), move them,
and change the programming as the situation progresses.

Section V: Where to get background info?

"What's a C-5?"

"Are there any WWW pages about A-10 Attack!?"

"Where can I find out more about the plane/the gun/the ordnance/the flight
model/the missions..."

                                   [Image]

The Aircraft in A-10 Attack!

There's a large number of different objects in the game. Here's a very
brief, rudimentary description of the most important ones, aircraft. If you
want more info, a trip to the local library ("militaria" section) is highly
advisable.

If someone would like to help me by providing more info, as well as stuff
about the other objects in the game (tanks, Wildcat batteries, SAM sites,
boats...) I'd be very happy about it! And please let me know if you find any
errors in the descriptions.

[Image]

The Fairchild-Republic A-10A Thunderbolt II

This is what you're flying. The manual contains a history and a complete
description of the aircraft. Read through it for detailed info. Briefly, the
A-10 is a plane built to fly low and slow, turn on a dime, loiter over the
battlefield for a long time (combat endurance of about an hour), carry lots
of ordnance, and be able to take about as much punishment as a tank. It also
carries the biggest gun ever put into an airplane. It has been in active
service since 1977, but despite its excellent performance in the Gulf War,
it is scheduled to be replaced by an attack version of the F-16 (see below).

[Image]

The General Dynamics F-16C Fighting Falcon

One of the most successful and widely deployed fighters in the world, the
F-16 is a small, light, agile, multirole fighter with a very high
thrust-to-weight ratio that comes in several variants. It's used by NATO and
other US-allied countries around the world, and was first put into service
in 1979. The most important versions are the F-16A and the F-16C. The main
difference is that the latter is equipped witha more powerful A/A radar and
(in its newest versions) a more powerful engine to compensate for the
increase in weight.

The F-16C is capable of performing strike as well as A/A missions, although
it is not quite as versatile in this respect as the somewhat larger F/A-18
Hornet. Its top speed (current version) is 1390 MPH at 36,000 feet, and it
can carry up to 6 air-to-air missiles. Its largest problem is a limited
range and a combat endurance of only a little more than a half an hour.

[Image]

The McDonnell-Douglas F-15C Eagle

The F-15 Eagle heavy interceptor is regarded by many to be the best fighter
in service anywhere. It is rather large and heavy, but has an astounding
thrust-to-weight ratio of approximately 1.4, enabling it to accelerate
straight up. Its combat endurance is very high for a figher - about 1 hour.
It carries the powerful Hughes APG-70 radar system, and can carry up to 8
air-to-air missiles. The most important variants are the F-15A (original
version), F-15C (improved avionics, radar, and engine), and F-15E (longer
operating range, strike-optimized).

The Eagle was put into service in 1972, and was designed to be a "Foxbat
killer", countering the new Soviet MiG-25. Its top speed of 1750 MPH doesn't
quite match the Foxbat's, but its avionics and dogfighting capabilities are
considerably superior. Its greatest fault is that it is very expensive and
has high operating costs.

[Image]

The Panavia Tornado IDS

The Tornado is a product of European collaboration: Panavia was founded by
British Aerospace (Great Britain), Aeritalia (Italy), and MBB (Germany). It
is considered by many to be the best all-weather long-range low-level
interdiction aircraft in service. It is capable of carrying practically any
NATO-operated tactical weapon, has advanced avionics including fly-by-wire,
artificial stability, and TFR, a dash speed of 920 MPH at sea level, is
exceptionally gust-resistant and, thanks to its small and fuel-efficient but
powerful engines and swing-wing, has a combat endurance of nearly an hour.

[Image]

The Lockheed C-5 Galaxy

For a long time, the C-5 was the largest aircraft in operation. It is a huge
transport, designed to ferry troops and materiel to operating theatres. Its
maximum wartime takeoff weight is 840,000 pounds (378,000 kg), its four
turbofan engines develop a combined thrust of over 160,000 pounds (nearly
74,000 kg), and it has a crew of six. It can carry a payload of over 290,000
pounds (130,000 kg) thousands of miles (maximum range empty is over 5000
nautical miles). The Galaxy has a top speed of 541 mph and a ceiling of
about 34,000 feet. It was first deployed in December, 1969, and is no longer
in production, the last C-5B having been delivered in April, 1989.

[Image]

The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-29 Fulcrum

Along with the very similar Sukhoi Su-27 Flanker, the MiG-29 is the best
Soviet-built fighter. It has an astounding thrust-to-weight ratio of 1.5, is
highly maneuverable in a very wide flight envelope (its stall speed is not
much higher than that of the A-10, while its top speed is a whopping 1545
MPH!), has very good avionics including a passive infra-red detection system
(although not up to par with the best Western fighters), and can carry a
large variety of ordnance. A strike-optimized model has also been developed,
but has not been produced in significant numbers.

The Fulcrum first saw service in 1984. After the collapse of the Warsaw
pact, it has been widely seen in air shows around the world and has been
sold to several foreign clients. The MiG-29 is a very nasty opponent in a
dogfight. Its greatest failing is a combat endurance of less than a half an
hour.

[Image]

The Sukhoi Su-25 Frogfoot

This is the Soviet Union's answer to the A-10. It resembles the Northrop
YA-9 in many respects. Compared to the Hog, the Frogfoot is smaller, less
heavily armored, carries a smaller cannon, lighter ordnance load, and has
shorter range and loiter capability, but it is more maneuverable and faster.
It has been operational since 1983.

[Image]

The Antonov An-124 "Condor"

The largest aircraft in the world until the An-225 appeared, the An-124 is
in many respects similar to the C-5 Galaxy. Among other things, it has been
used to "piggy-back" the Russian "Buran" space shuttle. It has a crew of
six. Its four Lotarev D-18T engines give this mammoth a combined thrust of
nearly 94,000 kg, enabling a top speed of 865 km/h, a load of 150 metric
tons, and a maximum range of 16,500 km. It was put into service in 1985.

Internet resources

   * The comp.sys.mac.games.flight-sim newsgroup. This is where most of the
     A-10 related discussion is.

   * Tom Morrison's flight sim home page:
     http://www.xmission.com/~morrison/MFS/home.html

     The best archive of Mac flight-sim related stuff, with links to many
     other pages.

   * Scott Cherkofsky's flight sim home page:
     http://www.shirenet.com/~crusader/html/Flight_Simulators.html

     Another archive of stuff related to Mac flight sims. Notably, the
     Things to do, Places to see list can be found here.

   * Tim van der Leeuw's A-10 Attack! home page:
     http://www.cs.vu.nl/~tnleeuw/A10/

   * Todd Hartmann's home page: http://www.metronet.com/~toddh/.

   * The Rosebooms' A-10 page: http://www.rahul.net:80/roseboom/a10/
     Tips on the missions, easter eggs, and more.

   * The home of this document: http://www.seittipaja.fi/A10FAQ/

The documents below can be found at these sites.

Documents

"A-10 Flying Qualities" by Art Day
     A very detailed and enjoyable tour of the A-10 Attack! flight model.
     Taught me that "Dutch roll" isn't some kind of pastry...

"An A-10 Attack! primer" by Petteri Sulonen
     A document intended for the beginning Hog driver or flight simmer. It
     consists of exercises covering the basic topics of flight simming, from
     take-off and landing to basic combat maneuvers, such as high-G turns
     and CCIP bombing.

"A-10 FAQ*Rev 1.1"
     This is an FAQ about A-10 the plane, not A-10 the game. It contains
     lots of info about the Hog, the Avenger gun, and related topics.
     Definitely worth a read!

"A-10 Attack! demo help" by Michael Hutchens
     A how-to guide for the A-10 Attack! demo. A bit dated now that the
     actual game is out, but worth a look.