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Some quick data on tactical/CAS bombing

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KyrionMyrthar

KyrionMyrthar

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In my latest game, I'm playing Germany in HPP. Poland was invaded on July 8th, 1939, and surrendered on July 17th.

As soon as it fell, four TAC wings and three CAS wings (three planes each) went west and began pummeling the French along and behind the Maginot (but mostly in their fortresses). I began seeing huge numbers of casualties as a result of this, so ran a test to see how much damage was being dealt out in one week's time.

Remember, this is 12 TAC aircraft and 9 CAS.

From midnight, Sept. 1 1939 until midnight, Sept. 8 1939 a total of sixty five missions were flown.

The allies lost a combined total of 8,638 troops - all French and British, by the looks of it. That's one week.

Aircraft techs are up-to-date, and TAC bombing pilot/crew skills are up-to-date. CAS pilot//crew skills are one cycle behind.

That comes out to more than a division of troops a month. If I was willing to do the Sitzkrieg until Spring 1940 (doubtful) I could easily remove the equivalent of about ten divisions from the Allied OOB just by bombing.

Night-time bombing, for those who haven't paid much attention, is significantly worse, which stands to reason. I'm seeing 300+ casualties from 3 TAC during the day, and 61 at night.

I'm also planning on having hopefully six TAC wings for Russia.
 
Never seen how tactical air war inflicts losses, just organisation hits and overly effective runway cratering. It did strike me how ridiculously potent British strategic bombing is against IC, though. If the AI didn't repeat strike against already knocked out targets, even early war UK could wipe German industry in a couple of months.
 
KyrionMyrthar said:
Night-time bombing, for those who haven't paid much attention, is significantly worse, which stands to reason. I'm seeing 300+ casualties from 3 TAC during the day, and 61 at night.

I'm also planning on having hopefully six TAC wings for Russia.
Click to expand...

Yeah tac bomb/cas during the day and strategic bomb at night. Also, have your ints/fighters as seperate groups and not actually in the bomber squads.
 
Tukachevsky said:
Never seen how tactical air war inflicts losses, just organisation hits and overly effective runway cratering. It did strike me how ridiculously potent British strategic bombing is against IC, though. If the AI didn't repeat strike against already knocked out targets, even early war UK could wipe German industry in a couple of months.
Click to expand...

Have a fighter squadron sitting over Liepzig. ALWAYS.

I also build a level 10 base in Wuppertal and use it to protect Dortmund, et al. Add another fighter over the Helgoland Bight. I usually base something out of Hanover, too, on a wide arc to catch anything coming through.
 
KyrionMyrthar said:
Have a fighter squadron sitting over Liepzig. ALWAYS.

I also build a level 10 base in Wuppertal and use it to protect Dortmund, et al. Add another fighter over the Helgoland Bight. I usually base something out of Hanover, too, on a wide arc to catch anything coming through.
Click to expand...
True, early targets are usually Ruhr, Liepzig and Saarbrucken in my experience. I did build 10 FlaK in Dortmund once and it was never raided.

Along with a FlaK screen along the Dutch and German coast I usually have a couple of 4 unit interceptor groups in north west and they work hard but bombers usually get through and knock out any number of IC points. Is it better to have many small or a few larger groups? Also, is there anyway to see losses in each battle?
 
KyrionMyrthar said:
Have a fighter squadron sitting over Liepzig. ALWAYS.

I also build a level 10 base in Wuppertal and use it to protect Dortmund, et al. Add another fighter over the Helgoland Bight. I usually base something out of Hanover, too, on a wide arc to catch anything coming through.
Click to expand...

I build level 5 airbases (w/radar) at Padderborn (the province south of Emden), Wuppertal, and the province between Leipzig/Dresden. Hannover has to be level 5, too. Base 3 INTs at each and these 4 locations are enough to make sure that even if the AI changed targets more often it is impossible for AI ENG to ever seriously damage German industry. For good measure I also place single radar emplacements across all potential flight paths the bombers might use. If the AI is stupid enough to go deep into Germany I am pretty much guaranteed at least 4 intercepts against UK strats, and this will ground them for repairs for at least a month/bombing mission attempted.

BTW: Prior to the fall of France you need some INTs at Stuttgart to stop this temporary path to German industrial targets.
 
Charles Reeps said:
I build level 5 airbases (w/radar) at Padderborn (the province south of Emden), Wuppertal, and the province between Leipzig/Dresden. Hannover has to be level 5, too. Base 3 INTs at each and these 4 locations are enough to make sure that even if the AI changed targets more often it is impossible for AI ENG to ever seriously damage German industry. For good measure I also place single radar emplacements across all potential flight paths the bombers might use. If the AI is stupid enough to go deep into Germany I am pretty much guaranteed at least 4 intercepts against UK strats, and this will ground them for repairs for at least a month/bombing mission attempted.

BTW: Prior to the fall of France you need some INTs at Stuttgart to stop this temporary path to German industrial targets.
Click to expand...

Absolutely on Stuttgart.

BTW, I said Helgoland Bight before, but I meant the Frisian Coast. British bombers come over that like clockwork.
 
Tukachevsky said:
True, early targets are usually Ruhr, Liepzig and Saarbrucken in my experience. I did build 10 FlaK in Dortmund once and it was never raided.

Along with a FlaK screen along the Dutch and German coast I usually have a couple of 4 unit interceptor groups in north west and they work hard but bombers usually get through and knock out any number of IC points. Is it better to have many small or a few larger groups? Also, is there anyway to see losses in each battle?
Click to expand...

I leave flak alone unless I'm playing the USA and have IC to burn. There's simply too much else I need to make as Germany. This time around in HPP, I did three cycles of 12 IC to start, along with other stuff. Having that extra IC early on was a boon.

I run my Interceptors at four INT per unit. Picking up on naming I learned from misterbean, I call them "Fliegerkorps I", "Fliegerkorps II", etc. Always helps to attach them to an Army group, not a theater, too.
 
Charles Reeps said:
I build level 5 airbases (w/radar) at Padderborn (the province south of Emden), Wuppertal, and the province between Leipzig/Dresden. Hannover has to be level 5, too. Base 3 INTs at each and these 4 locations are enough to make sure that even if the AI changed targets more often it is impossible for AI ENG to ever seriously damage German industry. For good measure I also place single radar emplacements across all potential flight paths the bombers might use. If the AI is stupid enough to go deep into Germany I am pretty much guaranteed at least 4 intercepts against UK strats, and this will ground them for repairs for at least a month/bombing mission attempted.

BTW: Prior to the fall of France you need some INTs at Stuttgart to stop this temporary path to German industrial targets.
Click to expand...

Also, great recommendations on radar - I'm a big fan, myself, of smaller, spread out arrays for interception.

For Russian, I already have a level 10 radar finishing up in Tilsit, and one complete one in eastern Poland where that airbase exists (upgrading that, too, for Barbarossa). It's nice being able to see past Kiev to the Dnepr.
 
KyrionMyrthar said:
Absolutely on Stuttgart.

BTW, I said Helgoland Bight before, but I meant the Frisian Coast. British bombers come over that like clockwork.
Click to expand...

This makes more sense:)

If you can cover from Emden to just east of Hamburg you will do serious damage to the British bombers. The INTs stationed in this area are guaranteed two attack runs against the bombers because of how flight paths are calculated.
 
Is there any point in sending up interceptors without radar against night raids? Also, I haven't reached 1943 yet, when I know there were hundreds around, but does German tech give you the twin engine night fighters, mostly adapted FB and bombers, of history?
 
I often put a level 3 airbase and a radar station in both Dortmund and Leipzig. That gives me nearly guaranteed intercepts at great odds. Placing another air group to intercept at one of the usual inbound waypoints also helps a lot, and I've seen a few raids completely fail to drop bombs as a result.

The Advanced Aircraft section includes radar, which significantly reduces the nighttime penalties for air intercepts in the mid to late war. Earlier, about the only alternative is to put a "Night Fighter" air commander in charge of the group.
 
Tukachevsky said:
Is there any point in sending up interceptors without radar against night raids? Also, I haven't reached 1943 yet, when I know there were hundreds around, but does German tech give you the twin engine night fighters, mostly adapted FB and bombers, of history?
Click to expand...

I can't confirm this, but a pilot with Spotting may be able to - not sure, though. I do okay at night before radar, since the Brits love to night bomb.
 
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