Fighters-Pilots

TCSTigersClaw

TCSTigersClaw

Greek Special Forces B' Company "Naoussa" 2007-200
Hi again guys! Just wondering.

Is there always a fighter assigned to a pilot??
or he just picks one and flies?

Im confused with the games , the movies etc

What about the squadrons????

:))))))))))))))))))
 
In real life or in the Wing Commander universe?

I know in real life that under specific circumstances a tail (fighter's serial number i.e. an F-15 with SN A9555) will be assigned to a pilot. That's when you see their name under the canopy (also, the dedicated crew chiefs for that tail get their names on it too). Mostly, though, when in peace time and flying mainly to train, they stick any pilot with any tail just to get their certifications & the such.

As for the whole "pick your own fighter," deal, there is none of that. A pilot is trained on a specific MWS (major weapons system) and stays with it their entire career unless they opt to be an instructor, in which they'll fly a trainer or if their MWS is phased out, in which they move to the replacement (which is usually similar i.e. F-15 pilots will fly the F-22 and F-16 pilots will fly the F-35; just as F-111 pilots moved to the F-15 and F-4 pilots moved to the F-16).

Squadrons are assigned a specific MWS and fly their given mission and derive their names from it i.e. A squadron of B-52s flies only B-52s, they bomb stuff and the squadron's name is the 9th Bombardment Squadron. The only way the squadron will be a mixed bag is by having different series of the MWS i.e. F-15Cs and F-15Ds can be in the same squadron.

In WC I know the obvious- CAGs fly whatever they want and all the others fly whatever the CAG assigns them. Also, squadrons are assigned all sorts of different aircraft. It's a little wierd, since it confuses me on aircraft "ownership."

LOAF...?
 
Its probably just a game ploy to keep it interesting. It makes more sense to keep pilots on the same fighter as they get used to flying it and learn the tactics that set that plane apart from others. Probably one of the hardest missions in original WC2 was the first mission in the Epee. It wasn't that there was anything particularly difficult about the mission. The problem was that I was switching out from the relatively slow Rapier that had decent armor and flying the hyper fast Epee with its paper thin armor. It took me a bit to get used to the change. So in the real world, its best to stick with one thing.
In computer games, however, everyone wants to fly everything. Three of the four add-ons for WC1 & 2 featured new fighters for players to fly. Having a large number of fighters for players to use is considered a 'feature', despite the fact that there's little realism involved. In fact, I remember reading one review of Heavy Gear 2 that blasted the game for forcing you to stick with the same gear frame throughout the entire SP campaign (despite the fact that you could basically strip it down and rebuild it between missions).
 
It's an interesting issue.


In Wing Commander, you are generally assigned a fighter (and squadron) which will be yours for a fairly lengthy period of time.

This is to say that your average newly minted 2nd Lt. on the TCS Hornet might be assigned to Hornet 608, part of the Fighting Foxes Squadron of FW-188. He will stay there until he's killed, until he's reassigned, killed or his tour ends.

The Tiger's Claw was unusual (and they make a comment about this in WC1) because Halcyon liked to frequently shift pilots around. Also, because it had several 'mixed squadrons' -- containing several of one type of fighters and a pair of Broadswords (for example).

We were able to fly many fighter types off the Concordia because we weren't *really* part of her complement -- Angel simply assigned us to whatever was free. We never got stuck with a single squadron (or fighter). During the addons, of course, we were Special Ops operatives...

(Quick aside: A carrier carries the same number of fighters as pilots -- which is to say that there were 104 pilots on Midway, 400 on Vesuvius, 252 on Midway, etc. The major exception is Cerberus, which had 30 fighters for 6 CIS operatives.)

In Wing Commander III and IV we could fly whatever fighter we wanted because we were the Wing Commander and/or (in some instances) Captain of the ship.

In Prophecy, as a 2nd Lt., we went back to flying whatever was assigned us. Squadrons in Prophecy were organized a bit differently, though...
 
I know it's just me but I would have loved to see a Wing Commander game where you could make a career of being a Hellcat V pilot :p

O where art thou, Maniac Missions?
 
Originally posted by Col.Dom
I know it's just me but I would have loved to see a Wing Commander game where you could make a career of being a Hellcat V pilot :p

O where art thou, Maniac Missions?
Click to expand...

*groan* Col.Dom, isn't the beginning of WC4 enough for you? As for Maniac's Missions, that was nothing more than a rumor I think.
 
Yeah, 3 and 4 were special cases. Although I must admit, I liked that better. The "mixing" squads or whatever, I can see that happening in drastic circumstances, or based on your WC/CAG's preferance. Although I'd like to see more mobility in the military on the subject, realistically it won't work.

Besides, don't most people who fly a certain type of ship, HATE the idea of flying any other than their own? (After all, you know, after a while, EXACTLY what you can pull out of your machine.)
 
Originally posted by Penguin


*groan* Col.Dom, isn't the beginning of WC4 enough for you? As for Maniac's Missions, that was nothing more than a rumor I think.
Click to expand...

No, it most certainly isn't!!

Yes, Maniac Missions was nothing more than rumor. "Vapor ware," as LOAF put it. I got so revved up for it when I heard the rumors (right before WC4 came out... I read it in some preview long ago....). Alas, I was sad when it never came to be.

Well, as long as I'm around there will always be a "Maniac Mission!"

HAHAHAHAHAAA :p
 
Originally posted by Skyfire
Besides, don't most people who fly a certain type of ship, HATE the idea of flying any other than their own? (After all, you know, after a while, EXACTLY what you can pull out of your machine.)
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YES, they do! You should see how F-15 pilots and F-16 pilots rag on each other when they "play," together!

Of course, it's even better when they join forces to rag on Heavies pilots! HAHA!!
 
Col.Dom: Have you played the WC4 demo? IIRC it was a gauntlet in which you flew the Hellcat V against endless waves of enemies. As for F-15 v F-16 I hear things get really nasty when the Navy comes round ;)
 
Well thanx , that was a real help! :)

But there is something else!
What about the Blair's Career???????/

Is nt it wird that in a less than a year he became a Major??
Maniac is Major in wc3 and wc4! Decades ago!

(note:i really like the way LOAF answers, ill find something difficult for you next time!
:D )
 
In a war where trillions die, a good man can rather quickly rise up the chain of command.

TC
 
Well why then only Blair????

TigersClaw was full of expirienced pilots with talent!

I know that Roberts did that just to become the game more interesting , but in the wc univerce , there is no explanation for that!
 
well Blair wasn't just really good, he was REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY good. As in he had saved humanity a bunch of times... well not in the first one... well... okay.. uhm... let's just pretend it *can* happen :p
 
Originally posted by TCSTigersClaw
Well why then only Blair????
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Who says it was only him? We only saw him get promoted because we were seeing hte world through his eyes. I bet there were millions of others who got promoted fast. They weren't as good as Blair, who is one of the top 11 aces of all time (see WCP Players' Guide), but they were great warriors in their own right, and were rewarded for it. So, Blair wasn't the only person to rise in rank quickly. As the old sawing goes: just because we don't see them, does not necessarily mean they didn't exist.
 
Plus we saw in WC4 that Hawk and Pather were both Colonels in their mid and late twenties respectively. Granted, that was Border Worlds rank rather than Confed, but it was pretty quick all the same.

Best, Raptor
 
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