2 replies to this topic

[caligrad]

If I am understanding the results tables correctly, all direct hits and near-misses of either medium or heavy ordnance on an airfield cause identical damage to aircraft on the ground. Is this correct? I know changing it adds layers of complexity, but I'm trying to square a 500# bomb dropped from a Dauntless causing the same damage to parked aircraft as a 1000# bomb from a B-17.

 

Any suggestions, modifications to results, or thoughts in general on the subject are welcome. Thank you.

[Dave Franklin]

caligrad, in reality, B-17s attacking an airfield would likely to be carrying 500 lbrs too.  The difference would be a single B17 would carry more (e.g. 10) than the 1-2 500 lbrs a single SBD would carry when hitting a ground target like an airfield.  Someone like Lonnie can correct me if I'm wrong, but in GQ3, when the rules and Aircraft Capacity tables indicate a single load (per flight), it's abstracting the number of bombs actually carried - also accuracy based on attack profiles and altitude.  All that being said, while I wouldn't change things vs. ships, I could see where you could argue a flight of B-17s dropping many 250-500 lbrs would potentially cause more damage against an area land target than a flight of SBDs.

 

If desired, the first thought that comes to my mind is to leverage off the original GQ rules.  Say an MB flight drops a "stick" of two bombs/loads/attacks and an HB flight drops a "stick" of four bombs/loads/attacks.

 

Dave

[Jim O'Neil]

Well and SBD can carry one heavy bomb, up to 1,600 pound AP IIRC. and with a 1,000 pounder, can also carry two light[100 pounds or less] on the wing stations.  Normally scouting mode was a 500 pound GP for whatever they could find to use it on.

 

The B-17 attacking an airfield canoe loaded to damage the runway and revetments or to destroy aircraft and surrounding AA guns. For runways, 1,000 pound GP with a slight delay is probable. For aircraft and guns, the 250 pound frag is preferable.

The B-17 was capable of carrying a much larger load in a short mission than for a long range mission Long range missions were normally limited to 4,000 pounds of bombs. Short range missions could carry up to 10,000 pounds or so. The other limitation was the bomb racks; a B-17G could hold at most: 2  2,000 pound bombs; 8 1,600 Lb AP; 6 1,000 Lb GP, 10 1,000 lb AP; 12 500 lb GP; 16 250 Lb GP or 24 100 Lb GP. This was limited by strength of the bomb mounts and the physical size of the bombs. The older versions were probably capable of similar weights.

 

Note that the 250 Lb bombs are "the most for the least" AND the 250 Lb GP was far and away the most used bomb weight because the explosive effect decreases about 8 times for a doubling of distance IIRC. I have the official documents buried somewhere. But having 4 250 Lb bombs drop in a Football field sized area was significantly more damaging {blast and fragments] than a single 1,000 pounder.