I love jets. I hate patches. Why, you ask? Same reason all of us pilots do - the AA now locks on better and hits awfully hard. After playing AF for about 25 hours (I got my ribbon, thank you!), I've discovered a tactic to avoiding AA with a high success rate. This tactic will NOT prevent every missile from hitting you, but it will damn sure prevent 3 from doing so. Here goes.
1. When you hear beeping tone for more than second and ideally before lock is acheived, POP FLARES IMMEDIATELY and DIVE RAPIDLY to the deck. Get under your flares while still gaining distance from the AA launcher. This serves a twofold purpose: a - flares fall rapidly. The longer you're around your flares (ideally below them), the longer the flares screw with the AA lock. b - many AA sites and mobile AA will find themselves located inconveniently around obstructions on the ground. If you defeat the lock until you can get these obstructions in between you and the launcher, or if you can defeat the lock long enough to get out of their range, you're golden.
2. Don't do any dumb shit like barrell rolls or sharp turns. You're only delaying the time in which you stop loitering in the range of the AA. Distance is your friend, and manouvers only prevent you from opening this distance. If the AA acheives lock, you're probably screwed.
I've had great success with this tactic. Please try it, play with it, and come back and let me know if it worked for you, and if you have anything to add to make it better!
With all this being said, here are a few more AA pointers:
1. Don't go into combat with a crippled plane or helo. Self explainatory.
2. When you are being shot at, USE YOUR CAMERA ANGLES to see where the shot came from. On next approach, approach the AA from a high angle (70 degrees or greater) from a different bearing from which you approached and left if last time. Keep 'em guessing.
3. Don't fly aimlessly all over the map. Stay to the edges and only fly over the main battlefield or at low altitude if absolutely necessary.
Now get out there and try it!
1. When you hear beeping tone for more than second and ideally before lock is acheived, POP FLARES IMMEDIATELY and DIVE RAPIDLY to the deck. Get under your flares while still gaining distance from the AA launcher. This serves a twofold purpose: a - flares fall rapidly. The longer you're around your flares (ideally below them), the longer the flares screw with the AA lock. b - many AA sites and mobile AA will find themselves located inconveniently around obstructions on the ground. If you defeat the lock until you can get these obstructions in between you and the launcher, or if you can defeat the lock long enough to get out of their range, you're golden.
2. Don't do any dumb shit like barrell rolls or sharp turns. You're only delaying the time in which you stop loitering in the range of the AA. Distance is your friend, and manouvers only prevent you from opening this distance. If the AA acheives lock, you're probably screwed.
I've had great success with this tactic. Please try it, play with it, and come back and let me know if it worked for you, and if you have anything to add to make it better!
With all this being said, here are a few more AA pointers:
1. Don't go into combat with a crippled plane or helo. Self explainatory.
2. When you are being shot at, USE YOUR CAMERA ANGLES to see where the shot came from. On next approach, approach the AA from a high angle (70 degrees or greater) from a different bearing from which you approached and left if last time. Keep 'em guessing.
3. Don't fly aimlessly all over the map. Stay to the edges and only fly over the main battlefield or at low altitude if absolutely necessary.
Now get out there and try it!
Last edited by Aegis (2006-06-13 19:06:27)