Mission Number 5: Da planes! Da planes!

[Rain Man]

The last of the "easy" missions. Good luck to you.

[Rain Man]

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B-17 #11 – Commando Chief

Pilot JOhn (4)
Copilot Bob_Damned_Dole (4)
Bombardier bkkcoh (4)
Navigator WilliamTheIrish (4)
Engineer Dartgod (4)
Radio Op. ck_IN (4)
Tail Gunner grandllama (4)
Ball Turret Gunner CASHMAN (4)
Right Waist Gunner Slim_Shady (4)
Left Waist Gunner penchief (4)

Target: Lille
Mid-formation horizontally and vertically (low vulnerability)

Zone 1 Out: Britain

No enemy

Zone 2 Out: English Channel

No enemy

Zone 3 Out: France (Entering Target Zone)

1 Fw190, 2 Me109s attack – 1 Me 109 driven away by fighters

williamtheirish fires, misses
bkkcoh fires, misses
dartgod fires, misses
grandllama fires, misses

Fw misses, breaks off attack

Me scores 2 hits
-superficial damage to port wing
-port wing – outboard fuel tank. Uh-oh, a fire starts.

John waggles the wings, but the fire grows. BobDamnedDole attempts a fuel dump and turns off the #1 engine, but it’s no use. The fire grows quickly and it’s only going to get worse. John reluctantly puts the plane straight and level and gives the bailout order.

Pilot JOhn (4) and Navigator WilliamTheIrish (4) bail out easily, land and hit the ground running. However, they had the misfortune of landing near a German base, so it’s just a matter of time. 20 hours later, they’re discovered in a cellar munching on potatoes and are marched off to Germany.

Copilot Bob_Damned_Dole (4) bails out fine, and can’t find anybody once he hits the ground. He enters a French farmhouse and trades his flight jacket for 3 bottles of wine and a train ticket to the coast. After a pleasant but cold train ride, he approaches a French fisherman and trades his service revolver for a ride across the Channel. Less than 24 hours later, BobDamnedDole is asleep in his own bed.
Bombardier bkkcoh (4), Engineer Dartgod (4), and Right Waist Gunner Slim_Shady (4) bail out fine and meet up when they land. However, the Germans are already on their trail and they evade capture for only three hours.

Tail Gunner grandllama (4) bails out fine but lands right in the midst of the German base. He surrenders immediately.

Ball Turret Gunner CASHMAN (4) has a bit of a rough parachute trip because he was the last one out of the plane, as the fire was engulfing the wing. His parachute smoldered and caught fire, but managed to avoid burning through until he was almost on the ground. A tree ensured that he only broke his left ankle. He met up with Radio Op. ck_IN (4), who had bailed out fine and was already toting Left Waist Gunner penchief (4). Penchief had struck the tail upon bailout and broken his left leg badly. The two injured crew members have no realistic chance of escape, and ck_In stays with them and helps them into the German truck upon their capture.

No bomb run

Aftereffects

None. Commando Chief will not be resurrected. Farewell, warrior.

Eligible for next mission

Pilot Bob_Damned_Dole (4) (if position is available)

It was recorded in the annals that Bob_Damned_Dole went on a rant during his debriefing about the fire extinguishing system aboard Commando Chief.

[Rain Man]

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B-17 #12 – Yard Dart

Pilot Taco John (4)
Copilot Mile High Mania (4)
Bombardier Joe Seahawk (4)
Navigator BigChiefFan (4)
Engineer ZachKC (4)
Radio Op. Archie F. Swin (4)
Tail Gunner oleman47 (4)
Ball Turret Gunner RJ (4)
Right Waist Gunner KC2003 (4)
Left Waist Gunner Zebedee DuBois

Target: Cherbourg
Mid-formation horizontally, high vertically (moderate vulnerability)

Zone 1 Out: Britain

No enemy

Zone 2 Out: English Channel

3 Fw190s driven away by fighters

Zone 3 Out: France (Entering Target Zone)

4 Me109s attack – 3 are driven away by fighters

joe seahawk fires, misses

Me misses, breaks off attack

1 Me109 attacks

archie f swin fires, damages Me109

Me misses, breaks off attack

Entering Bomb Zone
Good Weather
No Flak
All conditions are perfect, and Joe Seahawk pinpoints the target – 60% score!

Zone 3 Back: France (Leaving Target Zone)

3 Me109s attack – 2 are driven away by fighters

bigchieffan fires, misses

Me misses, breaks off attack

Zone 2: English Channel

No enemy

Zone 1: England

Good weather
Good landing

Aftereffects

None

Eligible for next mission

Pilot Taco John (4)
Copilot Mile High Mania (4)
Bombardier Joe Seahawk (4)
Navigator BigChiefFan (4)
Engineer ZachKC (4)
Radio Op. Archie F. Swin (4)
Tail Gunner oleman47 (4)
Ball Turret Gunner RJ (4)
Right Waist Gunner KC2003 (4)
Left Waist Gunner Zebedee DuBois

The crew raises a toast to a highly successful mission.

[Garcia Bronco]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

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B-17 #1 – Tequila Rose

Pilot Rausch (4)
Copilot donger (3)
Bombardier milkman (4)
Navigator FloridaChief (4)
Engineer DanT (4)
Radio Op. FringeNC (4)
Tail Gunner Valiant (4)
Ball Turret Gunner jettio (4)
Right Waist Gunner kcnut (3)
Left Waist Gunner Slayer Diablo (3)

Target: Abbeville
Mid-formation horizontally, low vertically (high vulnerability)

Zone 1 Out: Britain

No enemy

Zone 2 Out: English Channel

3 Fw190s attack – 1 is driven away by fighters

milkman fires, hits Fw190
dant fires, misses
valiant fires, misses

2 Fws miss, break off attack

Zone 3 Out: France (Entering Target Zone)

2 Me110s are driven off by fighters

2 Me109s are driven off by fighters

2 Me109s attack – 1 is driven off by fighters

milkman fires, misses
floridachief fires, misses
slayer Diablo fires, misses
dant fires, misses

Me misses, breaks off attack

Entering Bomb Zone
Good Weather
Medium Flak – 2 hits
-superficial damage to nose

The second flak hit is a bad one. Remember Deep Red?

The 88-mm flak shell scores a direct hit on the tail of the plane and explodes. Valiant is KIA instantly, blown to bits in the huge explosion. The horizontal stabilizers of Tequila Rose are blown off, which causes the airplane to instantly nose up and stall. Turning a backwards somersault, the plane dives straight toward the ground, levels out instantly, then turns another backwards somersault and repeats the process. The g forces pin the crew into place, and only luck will let them escape.

Pilot Rausch (4) is thrown out of the plane at 14,000 feet and somehow gets his parachute deployed. Dazed and semi-conscious, he hits the ground hard and lies there until the German observers come and pick him up. Rausch finally gets to visit his homeland.

Copilot donger (3) is conscious, but is trapped in the plane and rides it to the ground and a KIA.

Bombardier milkman (4) is thrown from the plane conscious at 3,000 feet as the plane breaks up, but his parachute is damaged. He dies on ground impact.

Navigator FloridaChief (4) is thrown from the plane at 2,000 feet as the plane breaks up, but is unconscious at the time. He never gets to deploy his chute.

Engineer DanT (4) is thrown from the plane at 9,000 feet, but is unconscious at the time. He never gets to deploy his chute.

Radio Op. FringeNC (4) is conscious, but is trapped in the plane and rides it to the ground and a KIA

Tail Gunner Valiant (4) was KIA in the initial hit.

Ball Turret Gunner jettio (4) is thrown from the plane at 25,000 feet, but didn’t have a parachute. He hits the ground and is KIA immediately.

Right Waist Gunner kcnut (3) is seriously injured in the initial explosion, and rides the plane down unconscious. Another KIA.

Left Waist Gunner Slayer Diablo (3) is seriously injured in the initial explosion, and rides the plane down unconscious. Yet another KIA.


No bomb run

Aftereffects

None – The Tequila Rose enters the realm of history.

Eligible for next mission

None.

RIP to the noble crew of Tequila Rose.

OML!

[Rain Man]

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B-17 #13 – Throw Bomba from the Plane

Pilot DaWolf (4)
Copilot LVNHACK (4)
Bombardier the Talking Can (4)
Navigator Ugly Duck (4)
Engineer Eric Draven (4)
Radio Op. Shakesthecat (4)
Tail Gunner Simplex3 (4)
Ball Turret Gunner mikey23545 (4)
Right Waist Gunner theultimatekcchiefsfan (4)
Left Waist Gunner Bunnytrdr (4)

Target: Amiens
Mid-formation horizontally and vertically (low vulnerability)

Zone 1 Out: Britain

No enemy

Zone 2 Out: English Channel

1 Me110 driven away by fighters

Zone 3 Out: France (Entering Target Zone)

2 Fw190s, 1 Me109, 1 Me110 attack – 1 Fw190 driven away by fighters

simplex3 fires, damaged Me109
Eric Draven fires, misses
Shakesthecat fires, damages Me109, which kills it after the earlier hit
Ugly duck fires, misses
simplex3 fires, kills Me110

Damaged Me scores 2 hits
-superficial damage to starboard wing
-port wing – outboard fuel tank hit – no fire or explosion, but it’s losing fuel slowly. The engine should have enough fuel to return to England, though.

Fw scores 1 hit
-superficial damage to port aileron

Fw circles, attacks again

Eric Draven fires, misses
Ugly duck fires, misses

Me misses, breaks off attack

Entering Bomb Zone
Good Weather
No Flak
Bomb run off target – 0% score

Zone 3 Back: France (Leaving Target Zone)

5 Fw190s attack – 2 are driven off by fighters

The Talking Can fires, misses
Eric Draven fires, damages Fw190
Mikey23545 fires, misses
Bunnytrdr fires, misses

1 Fw misses, breaks off attack

Fw scores 2 hits
-bomb bay – control cables are damaged
-nose – ugly duck loses most of his right leg in a direct hit – serious wound

Fw scores 5 hits
-bomb bay – doors are jammed and won’t open
-superficial damage to port wing
-pilot compartment – dawolf takes a serious wound through the left eye.
-pilot compartment – LVNHACK is seriously wounded in the right side of the face and the left leg
-starboard wing - #3 engine takes superficial damage but keeps running

2 Fws circle, attack again

With both pilot and copilot suffering serious head wounds and unconscious, the plane drifts down and to the right. The nearest crew member, Eric Draven, leaps forward to the controls and takes over.

simplex3 fires, misses
Shakesthecat fires, misses

2 Fws miss, break off attack

Eric Draven manages to level out the plane, but it is out of formation and he doesn’t know enough about it to get back in formation. He alerts the rest of the crew to the situation. Bunnytrdr jumps up from his waist gunner position to the top turret, in order to help defend the front of the aircraft.

Zone 2: English Channel

No enemy
Eric Draven nervously keeps control of the lone aircraft while everyone else mans the guns.

Zone 1: England

shakesthecat radios the air controllers for help. The plane is in reasonable shape other than the fuel leak in the port wing and some shaky control cables, but there are three seriously wounded, unconscious men aboard and two of those are the pilot and the copilot. No one on the plane knows how to land, though Eric Draven is the best candidate as the plane’s engineer.

Air control passes along orders from central command. Every crew member who can should bail out. Are the wounded men capable of being parachuted out? The answer is no, unfortunately. All three are too seriously wounded to survive a parachute fall. Central command then orders everyone to bail out, and lets Eric Draven know that he too can bail out. Draven refuses. He will attempt to land the plane.

As the B-17 circles, the talking can and shakesthecat work with Eric Draven to relay training in landing from ground control. Under direct orders, bunnytrdr, theultimatekcchiefsfan, mikey23545, and simplex3 all bail out over the English countryside. bunnytrdr, theultimatekcchiefsfan, and simplex3 land in open fields without incident. Mikey23545 lands in a small hamlet, bouncing off a roof on the way down. He is uninjured, though, and all four are safe in England as they fold up their chutes and say silent prayers for their crewmates.

The Talking Can and shakesthecat stay until the landing gear are safely down and the flaps are deployed, slowing the plane down. They reluctantly pat Eric Draven on the shoulder and wish him luck, then put on their own parachutes. Within a few moments, they both bail out, coming down safely in the countryside a few miles from the airport. They both look toward the airport, hoping to not see smoke or an explosion.

It’s now just Draven and the three injured, unconscious crew members, dawolf, LVNHACK, and ugly duck. The landing needs to occur quickly to save the injured men. The runways are cleared, and Draven lines up for his landing in beautiful clear weather. As instructed, he lines up parallel, then descends, descends, descends. The damaged control cables make the approach wobbly and fuel is still leaking from the port wing. 200 feet, 100 feet, 50 feet…

He touches the ground a bit too hard and bounces back up a bit too high and a bit too fast. After a stomach-lurching trajectory, Throw Bomba comes down again, hard and crooked with the right wing down. It bounces back up with even less control, and Draven has a bad feeling. When it comes down again, the right wing is way too low and scrapes the ground.

That’s all it takes. The B-17 jerks hard to the right and the nose slams into the ground. The plane cartwheels at 100 miles per hour, disintegrating and lighting up in a huge ball of flame. Four cartwheels later the remains of the plane end up upside down, a massive fire raging and the sound of fire engines drawing near. All aboard are KIA.

Aftereffects

Since more than half the crew survived, Throw Bomba From the Train II will fly next week.

Eligible for next mission

Pilot XXX
Copilot the Talking Can (4)
Bombardier XXX
Navigator XXX
Engineer Shakesthecat (4)
Radio Op. Simplex3 (4)
Tail Gunner mikey23545 (4)
Ball Turret Gunner theultimatekcchiefsfan (4)
Right Waist Gunner Bunnytrdr (4)
Left Waist Gunner XXX

Tough deal there.

[alanm]

You know Kevin, That's already 3 planes gone this mission. And your only about 1/2 thru this mission. No way any of the original planes(I think there's only about 11-12 left.) are going to make 10 missions much less 25.

[tk13]

Wow! Some vicious stuff going on here.... I don't see how anybody is going to survive 10 missions without something bad happening...

That last run was freaking brutal...

On second glance I see alanm stole my thoughts...

[Logical]

Ball Turret Gunner jettio (4) is thrown from the plane at 25,000 feet, but didn’t have a parachute. He hits the ground and is KIA immediately.

Did the fall break any bones?

[tk13]

Oh, and how bout some props for my impromptu piloting skills...

[Logical]

It’s now just Draven and the three injured, unconscious crew members, dawolf, LVNHACK, and ugly duck. The landing needs to occur quickly to save the injured men. The runways are cleared, and Draven lines up for his landing in beautiful clear weather. As instructed, he lines up parallel, then descends, descends, descends. The damaged control cables make the approach wobbly and fuel is still leaking from the port wing. 200 feet, 100 feet, 50 feet…

He touches the ground a bit too hard and bounces back up a bit too high and a bit too fast. After a stomach-lurching trajectory, Throw Bomba comes down again, hard and crooked with the right wing down. It bounces back up with even less control, and Draven has a bad feeling. When it comes down again, the right wing is way too low and scrapes the ground.

That’s all it takes. The B-17 jerks hard to the right and the nose slams into the ground. The plane cartwheels at 100 miles per hour, disintegrating and lighting up in a huge ball of flame. Four cartwheels later the remains of the plane end up upside down, a massive fire raging and the sound of fire engines drawing near. All aboard are KIA.

Evidently he forgot to use the force.

[Cntrygal]

Originally Posted by Hoover

I'd like to tell everone on the crew to "Fu@k Off" I told you it was the weather.

Good Job!

[Cntrygal]

As far as everything one else goes....... DAMN!

RIP

[Mile High Mania]

Some of you guys just can't fly planes...

[JimNasium]

Originally Posted by Logical

Evidently he forgot to use the force.

[Talisman]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

talisman fires, kills Fw190

Who da man? Talis da man.

I guess I'll keep wearing these glasses, although I think they make me look stupid.

[Skip Towne]

Originally Posted by Talisman

Who da man? Talis da man.

I guess I'll keep wearing these glasses, although I think they make me look stupid.

It doesn't take much to make you look stupid.