#12 Schnellbombers
Me-410 Hornisse by Koekoek
User friendliness:
The Me-410 Hornisse requires 4 buttons to start up which is slightly annoying but is more realistic. It is impossible to get onto the wings so getting to the canopy requires the player to get on at the tail and walk across the back. The buttons are easy to access, and the cockpit has pretty good visibility. All the dials and switches used during combat are easy to hit and in the front of the cockpit. There is no light in the cockpit making it impossible to see switches at night. The dials have backlights. There is a lever for yaw trim behind the weapons panel. It's hard to use and is mostly useless because regular trim can be applied more easily. The plane itself is easy to fly. The controls are a bit heavy which is to be expected out of a bomber. Small maneuvers are easy to make. The stabilizer works well. The tail guns are easy to use and don't hit the tail unless the gunner really tries to. Generally, the plane does what you want and isn't annoying while doing so.
7/10
Performance:
The Me-410 has an excellent top speed of 120 m/s. It has a large fuel tank with about 3800 L of fuel good for a range of 400 km and a flight time of about an hour. The turning performance isn't great, so using it as a fighter is very difficult. There's a paralax gunsight which moves with the player's look, meaning the focus is always on the same point. This makes aiming a bit easier because the bullets will always travel at the center of the aiming reticle, regardless of where the pilot is looking. The guns stagger fire and work well on air targets and ground targets. There is a bomb drop timing system where if the pilot sets a time and then holds the bomb release key, a bomb will drop at the set intervals. There's no bombsight but aiming isn't too hard thanks to the good visability. The bombs do plenty of damage and there are 6 of them. Sometimes the bombs get stuck in the bomb bay, but they fall out if the craft turns just a bit, and they never do any damage to the plane. If the engines get hit and set on fire, there is a fire suppression system to prevent that fire from spreading to the rest of the craft. The tail gunner would be useful because of the gun's good firing arc, but the guns only have 50 rounds each, which very quickly disappear. The mouse aim is useful for ground attack with guns and when doing small maneuvers. As a bomber it works pretty well, but as a fighter it doesn't because of the limited maneuverability.
7/10
Design:
The Me-410 is a very good looking plane. It has two big engines that jut out of the wings. The propellers are creatively covered with XML edited transponders. There are XML wedges on the trailing edge of the wings that give it a good shape, but because of the way shading is rendered, the entirety of the trailing edge is one color which looks very unnatural a lot of the time. The fuselage shape is very good, with XML wedges that smoothly transition from 5 wide to a 3 wide fuselage. The paint is green on top with gray on the belly. The paint is well textured making the plane look like it has seen service. There are iron crosses on each wingtip. On the bottom of each wingtip is a somewhat hard to notice miscolored block. The control surfaces, with the exception of the elevators, are hidden inside the plane. When the gear retracts the wheels can be seen sticking out of the fuselage. The plane looks nearly perfect with enough detailing to make it look interesting without looking busy.
9/10
Overall: 7.67/10
Feedback and Suggestions
-Add a ladder or handle to make it easier to get to the cockpit
-Add cockpit lighting
-Add a way to reload tail guns
Boogjagter MA.1.a by Scratch
User friendliness:
Like many other aircraft that Scratch makes, the cockpit is busy, with lots of buttons. The buttons are well sorted which makes using them a breeze. The main breaker and master engine switch need to be flipped before taking off. Getting into the cockpit is much harder though. The only way to get in is by using a handle to lift onto a tiny step which is very annoying to do. The Boogjagter is very easy to fly once it takes off. There is a panel with a set of numbers to set the trim to before takeoff depending on the bomb load. The controls respond well. There is a maneuverability setting function where the pilot can decide how quickly the plane will turn. It's pretty useful and works well. They are sort of twitchy but can be changed to make small changes in direction. All the systems are pretty simple to use. The autopilot is a bit funky but is quickly figured out. The rear seat has access to a bomb sight, map screen, and can arm the bomb bay. The rear seat can also fly the plane, but there's no control swap. The inputs from the rear and front seat are simply added.The plane is generally easy to use and figure out.
7/10
Performance:
The Boogjater is a pretty quick plane with a max speed of 111 m/s in WEP. In WEP the engines will eventually overheat. At 100% throttle the engine won't explode and the plane will do about 92 m/s. It has a good range of about 650 km thanks to its large fuel tank of over 4000 L. The plane comes with a little stand with equipment in it. The rockets are XML edited and are not going to be included in the review. The bombs are quite effective though. They are pretty small, but there are a lot of them. The bombsight only works at a designated altitude and is pretty accurate at that altitude. Because the rear seat can control the aircraft, the survivability is increased because if the front pilot is incapacitated, the plane can still safely land. There are no frontal guns or defensive weaponry on the Boogjater but in true schnellbomber fashion it is faster than most intercepting craft, keeping it safe. Overall it does exactly as a schnellbomber should; go fast, bomb things, run away.
7.5/10
Design:
The MA.1.a has a nice green paint job. There is texturing done in a checkerboard pattern. The belly is a flat bluish gray. Some tasteful details are scattered around the aircraft, like temperature probes for fake exhaust, and military symbology. Some windows stick out of the back of the wing near the root that are presumably steps. The actual shape of the aircraft is good and smooth. The rear of the plane becomes more squarish and looks pretty good. All the control surfaces are hidden inside the plane keeping wings looking smooth but they do sometimes poke out when maneuvering. The engine nacelles are pretty far out on the wing and look unrealistic. Other than that though, the plane looks pretty good.
8/10
Overall: 7.5/10
Feedback and Suggestions
-Use some non XML rockets
-Make getting into the cockpit easier
-Add some fake control surfaces with pivots
PingWorks FB-2 by Ping
User friendliness:
Getting up to the cockpit of the FB-2 is relatively easy, but finding the canopy button is not, and if you don't know what you're looking for, it takes a bit to find it. When you do find the button and enter the cockpit, you're met with a nice-looking and well-labelled but disorganized cockpit. The speedometer is far from the vertical speed and altitude, the radio is in a weird spot, the landing gear is far from tailwheel steering, and the "ON" switch is near the flaps rather than the throttle, among other inconveniences. However, the aircraft contains info on the three fuel tanks seperatly, which allows for better damage evaluation (except there is nothing you can do to correct weight displacement). Once you get into the air, the roll and pitch is responsive and the flaps are helpful, but the yaw has poor influence and deflects quite a bit. The gunner's position is a bit hard to get in to, but the gun is very accurate and moves quickly.
6.5/10
Performance:
The FB-2 has decent speed (~75 M/S) and excelent range without WEP (~800km), and with WEP on, attains enough speed (~94 M/S) to avoid the majority of WWII-era workshop aircraft while keeping the engine cool. That, combined with its uncanny manueverability, would make it a great base for a heavy fighter. The ordnance, however, is a weak spot. The odd pylon system doesn't allow salvos of bombs, and the loss of one bomb--even a small one--causes the aircraft to do a flat turn to one direction. That, paired with the lack of a proper bombsight, makes the aircraft a difficult bomber.
7/10
Design:
Like some of the newer PingWorks combat aircraft, the FB-2 sports weathered-tan paint with a yellow-white underbelly. It's paired with a nice custom roundel and a matching rudder flash alonside gray-and-red detailing. The nacelles are well-designed and each contain a fire extinguisher and welding torch, but maintenance is made awkward by the odd position of the hatch and the blinding spotlight that's turned on when you spawn the build in. All surfaces move, but when the ailerons are in position, it reveals unpainted wing structure and clips into the lower wing. On the nose is the aircraft model name in case you forget what you just loaded into your world; this would be nicely paired with a serial number. The fuel resupply port is marked with a nice fuel tank icon, but the cable port is not, and while a minor detail, it creates a sort of imbalance. And finally, the radio system, the cable wires, and the tailwheel are a nice touch that give the aircraft a rustic look and fit the frame well.
8.5/10
Overall: 7.33/10
Feedback and Suggestions
-If your rudder behaves poorly, and around 4-8 fins that do nothing where your normal rudder should be and add fins in the nose that are controlled by the gyro
-Allow the incorporation of bomb salvos
-Organize cockpit buttons
YMF-1 Airacuda by Sparks
User Friendliness:
The YMF-1 is easy to get into, and has a very simple cockpit while everything is clearly labelled (hotkeys as well!). However, this cockpit lacks RPS gauges and any sort of lighting, so the pilot becomes completely blind at night. The lack of proper heating rules out high-altitude, winter, and Arctic flights. There's also a lack of a bombsight and gunsight, making aiming very difficult. The plane is very easy to fly, and the controls respond with lightning speed. However, the aircraft has a heavy downward pitch, requiring constant trimming.
7.5/10
Performance:
The YMF-1 is pretty much an interceptor with a moderate bomb load strapped to it, which is not a "Schnellbomber". As I said before, there is no gunsight or bombsight, making bombing--even gunnery--difficult. On a side note, the turret mounting the guns are on don't properly follow the mouse and have a very noticeable offset. With that aside, the aircraft can attain a top speed of around 84 M/S with a small maximum range of about 160 KM, allowing it to almost make it to the arctic and come back depending on the airfield. The engine is well-cooled and the engine is efficient. It rolls well, but suffers from a terrible turn circle.
5/10
Design:
The YMF-1 sports a gray body paint with the late-prewar / early-war USAAC roundel and the US-flag identification rudder flash. Alongside this is its serial number, blue detailing, and topside gray ant-glare paint on top of the nacelles. The paint is very bland and has no weathering. The interior is also painfully bland and has no detailing what-so-ever.
6.5/10
Overall: 6.33/10
Feedback and Suggestions
-Weather your paint by adding a lighter paint and darker paint to your build, being 2 RGB values above and below your base color
-Add a bombsight and gunsight, even if it's crude.
-Maybe pick a more challenge-oriented frame.
RAM303 Seravee by ReOns
User Friendliness:
Entering the Seravee is quick, minus the door being on the opposite end of most workbenches. The cockpit instruments are the absolute bare necessities (speed, fuel, altitude, engine, and landing gear), but everything is labelled and does what it should. The hotkeys, which are also clearly labelled, control the bombs and the aircraft's surfaces. However, the lack of a temperature gauge can leave your engines blowing out without warning. The aircraft is easy to handle with responsive controls. The only bad bits about control is the painfully slow roll and that the pitch auto-trim leaves the aircraft at a lower altitude than what your aircraft was at originally after a high-angle climb. The aircraft has a nifty feature where rudder damage done by a gunner is automatically repaired, however, if a fire starts, there is no on-board fire supression and the flames quickly spread the the surface controls. There is a lack of a bombsight, turret gunsight, and turret pitch. Finally, there is no information on the right speed to drop the bomb, which is important since the bomb will hit the bombay wall and knock out most logic wiring. Overall pretty average.
5.5/10
Performance:
The Seravee is fast and fuel efficient. Most workshop fighters struggle to catch up to its 375 KM/H speed with the range and cooling to keep it going for much longer than any pursuing fighter. When in "Acrobatic Mode", the aircraft would be able to put the A6M2 "Zero" to shame if it had the roll rate to go with the insane pitch power. Unfortunatly, the auto-trim also has a tendency to take over in banking turns and could easily cause a crash. The warhead package in each bomb is perfect for busting boats, but the lack of a bombsight and the dangers of dropping ordnance cancel it out. Overall pretty average, but could unlock a lot more potential if the controller was swapped out and the bomb load was made safter to deploy.
6.5/10
Design:
The Seravee has a mainly gray paint with a white underbelly accomponied with the Arcnix logo and a two-letter code. It's large-but-sleek size makes it intimidating, but overall it is a very basic design. The lack of any sort of lighting and almost no aesthetic details add to this. The interior is also very bland and has four extra seats for some reason. Overall just a tad bland.
6.5/10
Overall: 6.16/10
Feedback and Suggestions:
-Swap out your aircraft controller for something like Thales' gyro.
-Add more exterior and interior detail like paint weathering, air intakes, fake hatches, etc.
-With the kinks sorted, this would be a solid bomber!
Scotiacraft SC.50 Scarlet (Prototype) by Nugget
User Friendliness:
Getting into the Scarlet isn't too much of a hastle. The cockpit unlocks and locks, which is a cool feature, but it can't quiet the roar of the engines. The cockpit is very messy, with buttons and dials everywhere and in weird spots. No hotkeys are labelled, which matters since UP/DOWN is the engine throttle. The aircraft controls are very floaty and difficult to control without the stabilizer. The stabilizer isn't without its quirks either, for instance, banking confuses the gyro and causes the aircraft to go into a turn in the opposite direction. The bombsight is very inaccurate and has no details on the optimal speed and altitude, and with the bomb bay open, you hear a horrible buzzer sound. Finally, the recognition lights and the landing gear indicators don't work.
4/10
Performance:
As I said before, the Scarlet's bomb system is inaccurate, making it a difficult bomber. However, the aircraft can reach a top speed of around 320 KM/H with a modest range of over 300km on full throttle while staying cool. Without the stabilizer, the aircraft has great manueverability, but with it being difficult to control, it's recommended to keep the stabilizer off to avoid crashing.
6/10
Design:
The Scarlet is heavily based off of the Mosquito and sports standard RAF bi-color camo, accurate markings, and a yellow underbelly, allowing it to stay true to its prototype status. It has clean nacelles, although the exhaust is akward-looking. The nose is also framed glass and thet tail is nice and round, and when paired with the wings and other surfaces, the design closely matches British heavy fighters. But interior is where the good things end. The cockpit, as I said before, is very cluttered, and there's not a lot of variation in the coloring. The very modern radio is out of place as well.
7/10
Overall: 5.66/10
Feedback and Suggestions
-Use a different gyro (like Thales' gyro) and adjust seat sensitivity to be higher
-Better-organize your cockpit and paint your seats different than your interior color.
-Provide information on proper altitudes and speeds for your bombsight, and/or rework it.
B-26 by Dio
User friendliness:
Entering the B-26 is a bit hard, seeing that the entry door is down at the bottom of the airframe without any markings or a note in the description mentioning its location. The cockpit is disorganized, but all of the buttons and dials do as they should, giving a proper instrument suite. There is an akward monitor that can't do anything at the co-pilot position, and the gunsight is very dim and hard to see. The pilot seat and bombradier is properly labelled, but the co-pilot seat is partially labelled and doesn't share all of the features the pilot has. Controls are responsive, but the yaw is horrible and deflects a ton, and the pitch has a pretty noticeable deflection as well. The roll is way too strong for an aircraft of this type.
5/10
Performance:
The B-26 has a very large bombload and a crude but accurate bombsight. However, the aircraft is plagued by a very bug-prone bomb bay and bomb dropping system; doors jam and bombs go undropped. The bombs themselves may not detonate. This combined with the difficult stabilzer and rudder makes the aircraft a frusturating bomber to use. Even with the heavy bombload and forward armament, it reaches a top speed of 100 M/S at the cost of an extremely stressed 36-cylinder engine that overheats frequently and turns the massive fuel tank into only 500 KM of range. The defensive armament can only be used with "Infinite Ammo", which can end up being a pain in the rear. The roll is very out of place, especially compared to the weak turning circle, which would be fine if the yaw wasn't so bad. Finally, the left landing gear has no electric flow and stays in a lowered position. However, the aircraft wouldn't even be in the air if a major bug wasn't found in the system by another builder.
4/10
Design:
The strength of the B-26 is its looks. It has a very nice and detailed exterior and interior. The paint scheme is a nice green-black-tan mix upper camo with weathering added. Sadly, the two-tone blue underbelly goes without this weathering. There is yellow and red detailing alongside a ton of cool external aesthetics, such as a serial number, squadron detailing, sortie marks, and a moniker. The cockpit windows are also well-shaped and fit the frame well. The aesthetics continue into the interior, giving it a rough and weathered feel.
8/10
Overall: 5.66
Feedback and Suggestions:
-Use a lighter frame for your Schnellbomber, not a medium bomber.
-Dedicate more time, if possible, to quality assurance or have someone else do it for you.
-Keep doing what you're doing with your exteriors! They're great!
Bristol Blenheim by Clickedrecord
User friendliness:
The Bristol Blenheim is a very simple aircraft. It requires one button to start up. All the buttons are seat binds, and there are only 3 readouts. There is speed, altitude, and fuel flow. There is no readout for fuel. There is an attitude hold which holds an attitude that can be adjusted with trim. The plane itself is very easy to fly. The roll is a bit slow, which is to be expected from a bomber, but the pitch and yaw are perfectly capable. The cockpit has very good visibility. A very easy plane to use, partly because of the lack of features.
7/10
Performance:
This plane has a good max speed of 100 m/s. It has a big fuel tank of about 8500 L giving it an excellent range of 1000 km at this 1000m/s with an endurance of about 2 and a half hours. It is maneuverable enough. The cluster bombs all drop at once which is annoying. Each cluster bomb does a significant amount of damage. The medium bomb does a lot of damage and will kill just about any ground target. There is no bomb sight, so aiming must be done by eye. The cockpit does have good visibility making this fairly easy to do. The flight performance is good, but the bombing is just ok. Overall, it's alright.
5/10
Design:
The Bristol Blenheim has a period correct RAF camo. It is primarily yellow-brown with green splotches. There are 2 roundels, one on each wing tip. The shape of the wings is very nice, with wedges on the front and back to make it look more like an actual wing. The fuselage is simple and a tube but is not bad. The control surfaces are hidden inside the plane, so there are none visible on the wings. The underside is green which is a bit odd. The cockpit is very basic and is mostly glass. The landing gear retracts but sticks out a bit. There are a couple miscolored blocks on the bottom. The bomb bays hide very well into the fuselage. Overall pretty basic, but not bad, especially when considering that it's Record's first plane!
5/10
Overall: 5.33/10
Feedback and Suggestions
-Add fuel gauge
-Have each bomb drop separately
-Add a turret on the back
47's Schnellbomber by 475213
User Friendliness:
The Schnellbomber has a poorly organized cockpit. Buttons are strewn everywhere on a flat surface making it hard to differentiate where certain groups of buttons are. The flight characteristics themselves are just ok. It's very heavy and slow and the elevators fluctuate constantly making flight very bumpy. The guns only work with infinite ammo. The dive sight setting button does not work. Most of the buttons and dials do as one would expect. The turn coordinator gives an output when yawing. For some reason, vertical speed is clamped between 6000 and -6000. Overall a bit janky to use, but it'll do what is asked of it.
4/10
Performance:
The Schnellbomber only has some small bombs equipped. It is able to carry other weapons but since they are not provided only the small bombs will be used when evaluating the effectiveness of this plane. The top speed is 109 m/s with superchargers and about 95 m/s without. The engines will explode if superchargers are left on for too long, but this is noted in the workshop description and the temp is able to be seen in the cockpit. It has a large fuel tank of about 7000 L of fuel giving it a range of about 350 km. Neither of the rear guns work without infinite ammo. The bombs are fairly small but can still do a significant amount of damage. Overall alright, but a bit disappointing.
4.5/10
Design:
47's Schnellbomber is a fairly bland looking plane. It has one gray color that covers everything on the plane. It has a unique twin boom design. 4 light autocannons with long barrels poke out on the nose. The gear retraction is clean and the gear hides into the plane well. Overall very little to say about it. It's neither interesting nor ugly. Perfectly okay.
5/10
Overall: 4.5/10
Feedback and Suggestions
-Reduce gain on pitch axis
-Add a stabilizer for longer flights
-Add ammo for weapons and use larger bombs
