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Note: I have written this guide to dispel some of the myth and mystique of those “Ace” pilots who never seem to die. I have written it to assist those who are not pilots in evading them and I have written it as a means of internalizing all the information contained therein.

Pilot’s motto:

Feel my Fury; for I am the Wrath of a Vengeful God

In His infinite wisdom, He created Battlefield 1942. He saw that it was good and began to create many things to fill this new world. Tanks, ships, people running around with guns and the like. He saw that all was fair and everything what as it should be. In His final act, He created the box. In this box He placed the most destructive forces imaginable.

One day, a n00b whose name has been lost to time stumbled upon the box. Seeking easy kills without really helping his team, he opened the box and planes were born. Quickly, the n00b flew this new found terror to the enemy spawn, reeking destruction on a scale never before seen.

However, He knew this turn of events would happen, and He also gave certain pilots the ability and the will to seek out and destroy n00bs whenever and wherever they might rear their ugly head.

Retribution upon all who lack the common sense to play in an intelligent manner is gospel to great pilots.

Before we begin, one concept above all else should be at the forefront of your mind while reading. That concept is the “Energy Fight”. Basically, this theory states that aircraft can have kinetic and/or potential energy. Potential energy is altitude. So a plane flying very high would have allot of potential energy. Kinetic energy is airspeed. A plane flying very fast would have a lot of kinetic energy. These two forms of energy are interchangeable; meaning a plane traveling at high speed can rapidly climb, at the expense of speed and vice versa. While this concept might seem simple, many new pilots fail to properly apply this theory and the end result is less than what they had hoped for.

c) The order of the rules is not open to debate; He said and it was so. Deviate from any of the above rules = Death. In His divine wisdom, He decreed deviation not only means retribution upon the offender but upon his entire team. Think camping nightmare and you will have the idea. Seriously, many a time you will encounter a situation where you, as your team’s sole pilot, are all that stands between you and campage of biblical proportions.

d) With the above said, do not be afraid to die. You will die many times, especially as you learn. Luckily, there is a light at the end of the tunnel and that light is experience. As you learn more, you will fly better and be a more valued asset to your team.

i) As a pilot, you will come to have a global understanding of the battlefield that you teammates on the ground will not. They are only aware of what is in their immediate vicinity; whereas you will know what tanks are not on your mini-map (and being operated by enemies) where the front line of the battle is, etc.

ii) Many times your teammates will not understand or agree with your actions. This is normal but they should trust you enough to let you make the call.

iii) From the perspective of flag cappers, a single enemy plane appears to be a major threat. Nothing terrifies tankers as much as enemy planes and they will furiously request your help. They might even be irate with you if you don’t help them. However, there are more important things to do than save a flag or a teammate, such as sinking the enemy Battleship/Carrier. While this is initially counter-productive, with air and/or naval superiority established, they enemy will be much thinner than had you assisted your teammate.

b) As a pilot, you will find that many times you are either too busy to help out our bored. During downtimes, orbit over friendly troops so you can quickly assist them and maintain a gentle climb while scouting for enemy planes.

c) Many newer pilots fly straight for the enemy’s uncapable base. There is nothing more idiotic than blowing up empty vehicles that have thirty second respawn timers, though you will irritate the enemy enough that they will shoot you down.

d) Quickly identify your flag cappers; they are the individuals you should assist in both matches and on public servers. They can be identified as they guys NOT in tanks who have allot of points without allot of kills.

e) When you and you alone determine you need to cap flags, by all means, do so. Do NOT allow ANYONE to make this decision for you. As your team’s pilot, you will find that you ALWAYS know more about the battle than ANYONE on the ground.

f) Many people hate planes and for good reason, they are force multipliers, meaning they magnify any ground forces you already have.

ii) This also can cause an entire team to freeze at decisive moments; paying more attention to air attack than to what they need to be doing. Many times I have joined both public servers and clan matches, taken off and decimated the enemy simply because after I built up my reputation as a pilot the other team was too petrified to act in an intelligent manner. Planes can be avoided and their damage mitigated.

c) Roll: refers to the rotation of the aircraft around its centerline (one wing up and one wing down).

d) Angle of Attack: This basically is the difference, in degrees, between your wing and the horizon. Positive angle of attack means you will climb (and if it continues to increase, a stall will result) whereas a negative angle means a dive, though you can only accumulate so much speed before diminishing returns begin to severely curtail speed accumulation.

e) Angle Off: The difference in your heading to the person you are attempting to kill’s heading. If your opponent is perpendicular to you, his angle off would be 90 degrees.

h) E-Fight: (Energy Fight): What a plane with low intrinsic energy does to defeat a more maneuverable adversary. This is the fight that will assure a Corsair a victory over a Zero and a Me109 a victory over a Spitfire. This theory stipulates that the plane in question will win or lose based on who has more energy and who utilizes their energy more efficiency.

i) A-Fight: (Angle Fight): What a more maneuverable plane does to a less maneuverable plane. This is the fight that will assure a Spitfire a victory over a Me109 and a Zero a victory over a Corsair.

j) Tank Plinking: The act of knocking out tanks. This term came into being during Desert Storm from A-10 pilots who gunned down Iraqi tanks. Plink is the sound shells make on the side of armor.

i) Speed in Battlefield 1942 is relative. There is no direct measurement of speed in MPH or KPH. The only accurate measure is distance traveled from one location to another. This is due to the map being of variable sizes. Each grid square in Midway is several times larger than a square in Berlin.

ii) In any case, planes are much faster than any land vehicle, and if in a shallow dive are many times faster. Use this to your advantage. (Ex. When you have no targets left to bomb, begin a climb to maximum altitude. When you see a flag grey, you will be able to begin a shallow dive to that flag and arrive there before it can be capped)

i) Similar to speed, distance is also relative. Walking from one spawn to another in Kursk is many times faster than if the same could be done on Midway; though both are 64-square maps. Speed is the main reason you will reprioritize your targets while flying, as fast cappers (jeeps and bombers) must be destroyed AT ALL COSTS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!!! The arch-nemesis of the pilot is the fast capper.

(1) Low: You are half-way between the ground (not mountains, but the actual ground they are modeled on) and the cloud layer as observed from the ground. (This is where n00bies fly)

(3) High: You are above the 2^nd layer and unable to see anything in it. Here or slightly lower is where you want to be. This will allow you to dive at enemy planes with enough speed to quickly retreat to the clouds if things do not go your way. In addition, ground targets have an extraordinarily difficult time shooting nearly vertical targets (more will be explained later)

(4) Stupid-High: This is the altitude where your plane begins to stall. You know you’re there when you feel your engine begin to seize and your wings feel like they have lead weights attached to them.

(a) If you bail from this altitude, you can easily cover a full map square, if not two on some of the smaller maps before you open your parachute.

(b) One interesting note about this altitude is that its effects set in very quickly. This means that a plane that is directly below you, close enough to gun you down, will be substantially more maneuverable than you.

(c) If you are not careful, you will find that you are unable to return to the map as it takes a Me109 (with its powerful engine) a full square to turn at this altitude.

i) The quickest way to reference where a plane is relative to another object (per military doctrine) is to use a clock. If you imagine that the front of your plane is twelve o’clock, then your right wing would be three o’clock, your rear six o’clock, and your left wing would be nine o’clock.

ii) In addition to using The Clock system, you also call out targets based on their relative altitude, with high and low being the most common.

(3) These terms are easily understood by all and allow for quick communication between two parties.

i) Chase – Self explanatory, though you can see down as well as ahead so this is nice for flying higher up.

ii) Reverse Chase – Great for seeing what’s behind and below you. I check this allot. While all views are useful, this one is obviously important as you are most likely to be shot down from the rear (at least, once you figure out how to not get shot from above, more on that later) I tend to use my flyby camera more for monitoring for aircraft in pursuit as it presents me with a stationary view much more quickly than the Reverse chase. This view is extremely useful for adjusting bombing accuracy.

iii) Flyby – Someone (BigE) taught me to use this view and it’s wonderful. I use it to check the direction I am turning, I drop it after I bomb an enemy flag to see infantry, and use it for other stuff as well. I think this is the 2^nd most useful view.

(1) One interesting note about this view is it is the anti-turning fight view. When your opponent has turned to evade you, you simply swing around directly behind them and wait for their next move, or a better idea would be to begin firing.

(2) This is the view that really good pilots use to predict your flight path after you have left their immediate six or twelve o’clock position.

b) I have all my views mapped so I can flip between them quickly and efficiently. I was playing around with BulletStopper and I think I gave him a headache when I was talking about these.

a) This is not a subject to be taken lightly. It is incredible that people still believe the most intelligent thing to do is try to point the nose of their aircraft at the tail of their enemy’s aircraft and shoot at him, hoping to take him down. This works against very green pilots, but experienced ones know better and will tear you to shreds. Refer to section 1, Campage subsection for more info.

(a) Turning behind your enemy but not directly so. You maintain the same degree per second turn of your opponent, but he frantically attempts to outturn you and reduces his turn radius to its absolute minimum. In doing so, he is also sacrificing ALLOT of airspeed (kinetic energy) and generally losing altitude to do so (potential energy). If you play your cards right, you will emerge directly behind your opponent with both a potential and kinetic energy advantage over him after he has exhausted his energy reserves.

(a) This is how you shoot people down. You never aim directly at the enemy plane, but where the enemy’s plane will be when your bullets hit it. For example, if your enemy is at max visual range (in BF1942) you need to lead your target by around four or five seconds (and probably not hit him) Lead pursuit, even though not generally thought of as ACM, is indeed a standardized maneuver.

(a) We have all seen many a n00bie try to roll to escape bullets; generally without success. Their implementation was wrong for they simply rolled the plane along its X axis and expected their engine to not take the hits… This is NOT the desired implementation of this maneuver and is NOT effective. Personally, I call this the n00b-roll. It is annoying but not effective.

(b) Both offensive and defensive rolls entail using rudder to roll in a corkscrew manner.

1. Offensive: As an offensive tool, the barrel roll can be used to reduce closure rate on an enemy; provided you maintain adequate rudder control.

2. Defensive: Similar in function to the offensive barrel roll, this maneuver will quickly force an opponent to overtake you, if used properly. Be sure he is close; or you will reduce your own speed just enough to become a very easy target.

(a) As cool as this move sounds, it does not look like a yo-yo. There are two derivatives of this maneuver.

(i) High-Speed Yo-yo: If you have a high closure rate on your target, pull up then turn after him while executing lead or lag pursuit. This will give you precious extra seconds to line him up in your gun sights and allow you to stay behind him, instead of overshooting and becoming the target.

(ii) Low-Speed Yo-Yo: Use this maneuver if your airplane has superior maneuverability. After beginning lag pursuit, begin a dive under your opponent, trading altitude for airspeed. After (if) your opponent rights himself, pull up and you will be in a perfect position to fire on him and he will probably have lost you due to the blind spot beneath his aircraft.

(a) This is what should happen in Battlefield 1942 instead of the endless turning battle that most n00bie pilots prefer. Simply, this is a defensive maneuver designed to force an adversary who has incorrectly judged closure rate.

(iii) When he corrects for your course change, immediately reverse course again.

(b) Keep in mind that the most maneuverable, slowest plane usually wins. Attempt a gentle climb (I use my rudder when I am banking) while performing this maneuver to gain the advantage.

b) In most planes, reducing speed is the quickest way to die. Only in the direst circumstances should a pilot ever reduce speed. If you find that you have to reduce your speed, be ready to select a spawn point.

a) The best pilots in the game play allot of flight sims. They understand the Energy Fight and utilize every available iota of power available to them.

ii) Bullets from all planes are not created equal. If you haven’t noticed, fighter’s bullets cross at about ½ of max view distance. Try to engage targets there with fighters. With dive-bombers, try being VERY close, preferably in a dive so you will have the power to maneuver if your first run doesn’t hit home.

c) I played ALLOT on the =TAW= Battle of Britain server to refine my dog fighting techniques. I like to hide right next to the runway drop-off and pick off planes as they fly over. While this might seem foolish, they don’t get the chance to make it across the channel.

d) Some have said that the plane makes the pilot and other believe that the opposite is true, but in all actuality, both are right and both are wrong. You will be unable to shoot down a more skilled pilot even with a superior aircraft. This leads to the natural conclusion that will be expanded upon later; always leave an avenue of escape open and never have to make a second pass.

e) Aggression is the road to greatness. Your enemy is to be decimated. You should appear immortal; His wrath should flow through you.

i) This is my preferred method for dealing with tanks. While I am working on my dive-bombing, I find that I am more comfortable “skipping” my bombs into the target. I like to attack tanks from the side and slam bombs into their tracks. This is actually pretty easy if you practice bombing the floors of the observation towers in Guadalcanal.

ii) This method of bombing, while being the most difficult (and the most commonly employed by n00bies) is the most effective against experienced players. Dropping bombs in this manner allows you control on a three dimensional plane.

i) Bombing from high altitude. My only real gripe about this is that it takes what feels like eternity for a pilot to get above cloud level with some aircraft. I have also found that bombs dropped in this fashion are more easily avoided by the experienced tanker as they can predict when you will release your bomb and stop their tank or change course accordingly. While they take splash damage, tanks can take two to four hits to destroy in this manner.

ii) This method of bombing is the easiest, yet as it only allows control in two dimensions (as you dive, your potential area to bomb gets rapidly smaller) you will find that it is lacking in some situations.

i) A takeoff on horizontal bombing, this technique is very effective against ships. Fly in a circle next to a ship and whenever you are at your bomb-release point, release your bombs. You can do significant damage to a ship very quickly. Be warned, this does NOT work well against manned ships for obvious reasons.

ii) This method of bombing is relatively easy, though your goal will be to hit either the bridge of the wooden deck of ships, which will take some practice. This technique is useful against UNMANNED ships, especially right after they have spawned as you can usually sink them before the enemy realizes they have respawned. Keep in mind that you are EXTREMELY vulnerable while bombing in this manner.

i) Fly at VERY high altitude in a dive-bomber. Begin your run on a naval asset (this technique is useless against anything but ships) but instead of pulling directly up, initiate a loop. With most bombers, you can make three to five passes before you run out of airspeed. It is important that you position yourself directly over the ship as anti-aircraft fire is least effective there. Also, you want to aim for the deck of the ship, not the superstructure (the buildings) of the ship so you do the maximum amount of damage in the shortest amount of time.

ii) This is the preferred method for sinking manned ships as your plane will be very difficult to hit, just remember to keep your plane moving in three dimensions, as this will add to the difficulty for the gunner.

i) For Dog Fighting, Play on the =TAW= Battle of Britain server. Play as Allies and fight over the channel as this eliminates the possibility of the other player bailing over friendly territory and will garner you quite a following among the other team, usually resulting in multiple targets.

ii) For bombing, play on an empty server running Guadalcanal. Repeatedly bomb the floors of the towers (the part where infantry go). Do not bomb the roof, the base or the supports, only the floor. This is good practice for horizontal bombing. Choose the Corsair as it is the most difficult plane to handle.

(a) Nothing further will be said. Drive around in circles and they crash into the ground. Problem solved.

(a) If you are being dive-bombed, try to drive under the aircraft. Pitching down are what planes do worst, especially at high speeds. Use this to your advantage.

(b) If you are being level-bombed, your best bet is to play the “Wall Game” by jumping on the opposing side of a wall as I make my run

(a) Not much you can do about these guys except turn towards them and hope you survive the first pass; though you usually won’t. When you would normally break to begin the inevitable turning battle, instead nose your plane down, build up airspeed and try to run for it. Do not try this in a Spitfire as you will quickly return to your spawn. A good E-Fight with these guys will bring them down. These guys play when they wake up, play all day long, and can’t sleep at night because they want to play more. They are the guys who only kill infantry with their prop and save their bullets for more important targets.

(b) I fly right at the border of the clouds where you can just make out the ground. This altitude is great for spotting moving armor and such (I generally don’t mess with infantry, they are just too much trouble to chase down) and you have a power advantage over most other players. Being at this altitude gives you enough power to run or fight, depending on the situations

i) Have you ever wondered why the Axis seem to always win on El Alamien or why the Allies always seem to win on Kursk?

ii) While there are many explanations for why, such as the Illysion and Yak being better aircraft than the Stuka or Me109, a much simpler answer is probably the right one.

iii) The answer to this question is who can bring the most force to bear on the enemy at when it’s needed.

iv) All other things being equal, the ‘average’ player has a Kill-To-Death (KDR) of 1:1, meaning for every kill they get, they also die one time. The law of averages states this to be true.

(1) With that said, on most full maps, you will have 16 players versus 16 players. Now, half those players will die before they get their 1^st kill, half will die after; all other things being equal, this will also be true for the other team.

(2) Now, to extrapolate on this further… Whoever gets there 1^st wins the day; there are no points for 2^nd place. This means that while you may be invulnerable in that Tiger tank, you will have to drive it for a long time to reach the eastern outpost, aka, a net loss for your team as you are effectively ‘dead’ while you’re not doing anything productive for your team.

a) Remember, your enemy is somewhere down there in all that mess. You have to find him, identify him (friendly fire isn’t friendly), orient yourself to engage him, and finally, destroy him. All the while, you are making enough noise to be heard for miles.

b) Attack the enemy base only if you wish to fully appreciate how much damage concentrated anti-aircraft guns can do.

c) He’s camouflaged, silent, and sees you. You are the in the big blue (white) sky, loud as hell, and do NOT see him. It’s time to leave.

d) Always think twice before killing an Engineer with your prop. Mines hurt planes too.

e) The captain goes down with the ship and the pilot goes down with the plane. Get shot down? Be a pal and give him the kill. Find out how he did it then go kick his butt. Beats bailing out over Tahiti and walking the rest of the round.

f) Contrary to popular belief, running two fighters into each other will NOT create a two-seater; though the wreckage does damage things on the ground.

i) There is no such thing as a “draw” in a dogfight. Try to call a truce and you won’t be happy with the outcome.

j) Never let bailers escape. Not only is bailing quite rude, but they are always showing up at the worst times.

k) Never EVER mock a good pilot. Good pilots are by nature aggressive and will kick you all over the map.

l) Calling a good pilot a cheater is a wonderful compliment. Not only are you stating that they are so incredibly good that you never hope to equal them; you are totally mystified by their performance. Next time, just tell them to quit using “magic” in game.

m) The buddy system. The military use it and people in game do as well; with devastating effect. While you can be the single best flier ever to grace the air, you are fewd to multiple mediocre ones. Two can be handled, three is almost certain death and four… just choose your spawn now. Keep this in mind. Strafe him once, climb back up, rinse and repeat is the road to victory or conversely, sucker a friend into flying with you as bait…err... a wingman ;)

a) This topic gets its own section because this is the moment that truly separates the good pilots from the great ones. The decision is just as it sounds; a decision.

b) The answer to these questions should be “Attack the mofo” without hesitation or delay. If you do not agree, you need to be in a tank, on foot, in a ship or something; anything but an airplane. A PLANE HAS NO DEFENSIVE ABILITY. Let me say that again. PLANES ARE DEFENSELESS, THEY ARE EXTREMELY VULNERABLE. Planes survive by eliminating opposition before it becomes a threat. If a threat emerges, the plane destroys it.

c) In a plane, there is no place to hide. There is no place to run and you are VERY loud. Enemies hear you LONG before they see you. A good player will have a very good idea where you will emerge form long before you even know he’s there. A good pilot destroys this threat IMMEDIATELY.

d) Before you hop into that new Spitfire or Me109, ask yourself this question: “If I were flying a Stuka and saw a Mustang, would I attack it?” If your answer is “No,” then you need to just pass that plane on to the next guy. Take a tank, you can run away or hide. Take a plane only if you have no fear and believe YOU and YOU ALONE are ordained by God to kill the enemy wherever he rears his ugly head.

e) Once you have committed yourself to the fight, do not attempt to disengage. I see many pilots who attempt to flee only to get flamed as they escape. If you must run, then run, but do not attempt to fight then run.

a) This topic also deserves much consideration due to the mechanics of flight in Battlefield 1942 (and to a lesser degree, Battlefield Vietnam and most other flight simulator games)

b) Normally, you see your opponent, he sees you and you both turn towards each other, guns blazing, playing a game of chicken. The first person to pull out dies if the other is a good shot. If both are good shots or both are brave enough, both get to die. Sound dumb? Well, it is. If you find that you are making a head-to-head pass on your opponent, review the Maneuvering section of this guide because you did something wrong. If you are in his gun sights, you did something wrong. If you manage to shoot him down on a head-to-head pass, again, you did something wrong.

c) The problem here lies in that you are both wrong. Both you of you made a severe miscalculation and now you are both probably going to die. Both of you should review this guide in more detail before flying again. A frontal pass is a no-win situation.

a) Question: Why do I get killed on takeoff by planes that seem to magically appear?

i) Answer: Those pilots are using the mini-map to spot when you hop into your plane. If you haven’t already noticed, whenever you pass into a certain range, vehicle, gun emplacements and the like are shown on your mini-map as tanks, planes, dots, etc. When you get in, the enemy no longer can see your dot, tank, plane, etc. on the map. This is how they are spotting you. Once you hop into your new plane, you must takeoff in a very predictable direction.

(1) One interesting note about this is that being able to spot empty vehicles and guns is truly affected by altitude. Tanks can view unmanned, “mannable” objects farther on their mini-map than pilots can in the clouds. If you fly too high, you will no longer be able to see anything on your mini-map at all, save the terrain itself.

b) Question: I always seem to lose the turning fight. The other pilot seems to see me no matter where I am. What am I doing wrong?

i) Answer: Review section 4, Views. You are not using all of your views correctly. While mouse look is of dubious usefulness, the others are nothing short of essential. Learn to use them constantly. I cycle through my views once every five to ten seconds while I’m not on a bombing run; I will have (being conservative) changed my view roughly 5000 times over the course of an hour.

c) Question: Anti-Aircraft guns (tank guns or APC guns) tear my plane to shreds. How come I always die when I man them yet always die when I bomb them?

i) Answer: You should have noticed this by now; those pilots came straight down OR they gunned you before you saw them. If an anti-aircraft gun is engaging you, the gunner sits directly to the left of where you see the flash. With a tank or APC, they are directly on top of the flash. Gun for there. For bombing them, you want to come straight down. I mean if you are not vertical, prepare to be walking for that is what’s in your future. Take a minute and play around with an AA gun. Try to aim it directly up. Then perform a rotation. If you fire while doing so, you will notice the gun leaves a circle in the sky. Anything inside that circle cannot be hit by the gun. Get your plane inside that circle.

d) Question: I shoot at planes and I see pieces falling off, yet the plane never seems to go down. Why?

i) Answer: You need to aim for the engine of the plane, not the wings, tail, etc. Similar to being on the ground, your goal is to “light up” your crosshairs similar to how they “light up” when you shoot infantry. If you don’t understand what I’m saying, go shoot someone, and then you will.

e) Question: I fly with UberPilot and we go attack the enemy base. Why do I get shot down while he always survives?

i) Answer: There are a few good reasons for this. For starters, he’s probably at a higher altitude than you, so he kills the anti-aircraft guns before they can shoot him. Also, he is using the mini-map to hunt for enemies. When he sees a tank/AA/APC disappear from the mini-map, he destroys it. Finally, he probably knows when to leave.

(1) One of my biggest pet peeves is not antagonizing the enemy at their base. If you like to reminisce about those pictures of the nights over Baghdad, go bomb the enemy base. By your fourth or fifth pass, you can be virtually assured that most of the intelligent players will be shooting everything they have at you. Never doubt that guy on the ground; he’s just as good at what he does as you are at what you do. He will kill you given the opportunity.

(2) Seriously, the enemy base can have enormous amount of coordinated fire. On Gazala, the Allies have three tanks, one APC, and three flak guns. If you make them really mad, you can even through in a few planes to make things more interesting. Do not antagonize the enemy in their base!

i) Buy a joystick and a decent video card. Both are essential for any pilot. Higher resolutions equal greater accuracy. Keep this in mind.

ii) Remember that flying takes allot of practice, don’t be dissuaded when “uber-pilot” flames you a few times. You’ll get there one day.

iii) Learn to tank, play infantry, and man the warships. While this might seem trivial, you will be of much more help to your team if you kill the enemy. The only way to know that the Axis nearly always hide on the north side of the sandbags at the Lumber Mill in Kursk is to actually play infantry.

i) So, now you’re ready. Head to an EMPTY server, preferably one running Kursk or Kharkov. Why, you ask? Well, you are going to learn to fly the Illyusion, that’s why.

ii) The Illyusion is a superior plane for learning. While many find that it lacks power (it does) and that it has poor handling (they are n00bs) this plane will teach you the basics of flight and reinforce them. If you adhere to the rules in this guide, the Illyusion will reward you handsomely. If not, you will die allot.

i) First things first, get some altitude. For the purpose of this exercise, you want to be flying ABOVE the clouds, but not so high your engine starts to stall. Practice the maneuvers listed here, such as the split-S (roll over, pull up hard) and the scissors (quick turn reversals). Learn both of these maneuvers well and you will kill the enemy nearly all the time; or at the very least you won’t die as quickly.

ii) Practice lazy turns, as these will be what you do when you’re not trying to take a shot at the enemy plane.

iii) Practice bombing the tanks at the spawn. A good pilot can take out both tanks with a two-seater in one pass. You need to be that good.

iv) Lastly, once you’ve got down taking out both tanks in one pass, practice taking out the APC with your machine gun on the same pass, as you will do this allot as well; it’s very nice to be able to engage multiple enemies simultaneously.

i) Learn to use your flyby view. Learn to love your flyby view. Learn to control your plane in the flyby view. This is your new favorite view.

iii) Seriously, get used to changing your views constantly. Using the Illyusion as a test plane, practice looking out your right and left windows. This can be accomplished by:

(3) So you want to look out your left window, and then bank your plane in the direction you wish to look. As the flyby cam is stationary, you will find that you are able to look around your entire plane using this method.

(1) The Zero is by far one of the best planes in the game. While it feels somewhat flimsy, this fighter is about as nimble as they come. Having a totally white paint scheme also makes finding it somewhat more difficult than many of the other aircraft.

(a) This plane has a superior roll rate to its only real competition, the Corsair. Turn reversals will win the day against most decent to good pilots.

(b) On maps where this plane is present, ground fire will be your largest problem. Getting shot down by enemy planes will rarely happen; it’s that odd tank hiding under trees that’s your real threat.

(c) Due to this aircraft’s extreme maneuverability, it is easy to get disoriented and find yourself directly over anti-aircraft guns, the bane of this plane. Paying attention to your situation and your mini-map are essential.

(3) This plane is present on 5 maps, Guadalcanal, Iwo Jima, Wake, Coral Sea and Midway. Its only real competition is the Corsair. Against the Corsair, quick turn reversals will win the day. Maneuvers like The Scissors are the key to victory. Do not attempt to follow the Corsair into a dive, as you will quickly be outrun by your opponent and find yourself in the unpleasant predicament of waiting for another plane.

(4) This plane is an Angle Fighter. Do not be afraid to get in close with other planes and engage in a low energy turning battle. Against a Corsair, the Zero will triumph.

(1) Considered by many to be the ugly ducking of Battlefield 1942 fighters, the Corsair is arguably the best fighter in the game.

(a) The main detractor of the Corsair is the aircraft’s odd handling, especially at different speeds. While other planes, such as the Spitfire or the Yak handle in a similar manner regardless of speed, the Corsair does not.

(b) However, nothing can keep pace with a Corsair in an inverted loop or a dive.

(c) The Corsair can also outturn its major rival, the Zero for limited amounts of time. This is tricky but with adequate rudder control and effective energy management, the Corsair is absolutely superior to the Zero.

(2) Never fear, for once you force yourself to fly this aircraft, you will be no less lethal than someone flying a Zero. There are a few things to keep in mind when flying a Corsair:

(b) This aircraft’s wings generate tremendous amounts of lift. This translates into a wonderful vertical flier and an elusive target. Many pilots erroneously believe this plane is not maneuverable due to the fact that this plane cannot quickly reverse a roll.

(c) With this airplane, it is essential that you think a few steps ahead. Maneuvers like the Split S and the Yo-Yo are wonderful. Others, like the scissors, are to be avoided at all costs. If someone attempts to force you into the Scissors, do not attempt to follow them. Counter such maneuvers in a manner suited to your airspeed, which usually means going vertical on them. They will either stall (if they aren’t very good) or break off and try a different approach.

(1) I like this plane. It seems to me to be a nice mix of everything that I am looking for. While not as maneuverable as the Spitfire, Yak or Mustang, this plane can hold its own quite well. Decent bomber, decent fighter, etc. I will never brag about its handling but I never complain about it either.

(2) One of the more subtle advantages of this plane is its engine. Many believe that the spitfire is a superior aircraft and they would not be incorrect, the Spitfire has superior roll and yaw to the Me109, but the Me109 always has the option of climbing out of the fight, whereas the Spitfire does not. The conclusion is never following this airplane along its Z axis, aka, never dive or climb after it. You will find that you have stalled right as the Me109 comes around for a killer pass. A much better method (since you will be flying the more maneuverable Mustang, Yak or Spitfire) is to continue your turn around the Me109. As he returns to normal flight, you will both be back where you started, which is far better than stalling out your less powerful plane in pursuit of the Me109.

(3) For “plinking” tanks, this is my preferred aircraft. While Spitfires fly circles around it, a well-flown Me109 bombs its target and leaves before the enemy knew what hit them.

(4) When in a dive, be ready for this plane to pickup tremendous amounts of airspeed. The engine in this plane really shows its colors in a dive. Your control surfaces will become very responsive very quickly.

(5) A shallow dive with this aircraft is the preferred method of attacking most targets, as a steeper dive will result in severely diminishing returns in terms of airspeed. Keep this in mind when in battle with any enemy plane, as most can outturn you.

(6) Most new pilots really love this aircraft but for the wrong reasons. They simply out climb their adversary which is not always the best solution. The Me109 also has a superior roll rate to the Spitfire. A well-flown Me109 should be attacking an enemy Spitfire from all directions all the time; at least it should appear that way to the Spitfire.

(a) A well-flown Spitfire, while not able to climb quite as quickly, will climb to an altitude where they can do an inverted loop which translates into their having enough energy to perform every combat maneuver. This means that while they will be attacking from below, they will be more maneuverable than the Me109. Many a Me109 pilot has felt they have safely out climbed a Spitfire only to be shot down at the apogee of their climb. Do not let this happen to you.

(1) Never get into a turning battle with one of these. Most players have the false assumption that this plane is less maneuverable than the 109. They are mistaken. This plane, especially at slow speeds, is incredibly maneuverable. I like to linger over a location at just above stall speed and pick off planes.

(2) One thing worth noting about this plane is there is no escape from an enemy if you’re in a Spit. You are slower than everything else in the world, including that girl on skates who just passed your plane. Seriously, this plane does not go fast; only engage targets where victory is assured.

(3) Most people believe the Spitfire to be inferior to the Me109; this could not be farther from the truth. The Spitfire, flown correctly, is more than a match for its nemesis. Never attempt to follow the Me109 vertically, as you will quickly lose any advantage you might have had. Instead, concentrate on what your plane does well which is turning. Only go vertical with this plane in the direst situations and do not expect to win against an experienced pilot.

(1) This plane seems to want to go everywhere. High roll rate but not the same pitch rate as the Mustang gives this plane a substantial advantage over the Me109. I feel like its bombs are slightly off, but this plane quickly swings back around for a second run so it’s not a big deal.

(3) While being more maneuverable than the Spitfire, this plane should not attempt to follow the Me109 vertical unless a kill shot can be assured. When in doubt, circle around and await another opportunity.

(4) This plane is the quintessential angle fighter, much more maneuverable than most other aircraft, even at low energy.

(1) This is everyone’s favorite plane and for good reason. It has insanely sensitive control surfaces which make it difficult to control in a dive but a wonderful dogfighter. The only manner to defeat this plane is to shoot it on takeoff of play the energy fighter game with it.

(1) As most of you are aware, this is my favorite plane. You can drop bombs without really paying attention and they hit something.

(2) This plane, when at speed, also has superior maneuverability to its German counterpart, the Stuka. I love this plane but speed is essential with it. This plane misleads people into a false sense of security. While it handles well at speed and holds speed well, once it has slowed down it’s a sitting duck. Building up airspeed with this plane seems to take an eternity.

(3) This plane is very forgiving. As such, it is a wonderful aircraft to learn on. As long as altitude as energy is maintained, this plane seems to perform the impossible. I have shot down many Me109s and Yaks with this aircraft simply because it is ALMOST fighter at high speed. If you follow a plane into a Split-S and don’t think you have room to pull up, this plane will surprise you more often than not. I highly recommend this aircraft to anyone learning the basics of flight in Battlefield 1942.

(1) Also another favorite of mine, this plane handles well in dives and can turn quickly for a dive-bomber. Just make sure you keep your speed up or be prepared to fly a tank with wings.

(2) Due to the close proximity of its guns, this plane also performs adequately in a knife-fight. While unable to run from any other aircraft (except maybe the Spitfire) this plane can usually hold its own in a dogfight if the pilot maintains his discipline and energy. Envisioning where you will be and how you will proceed next is critical for this aircraft.

(1) Mediocrity at its finest, this plane is about as middle-of-the-road as dive-bombers come. Its bombs fall relatively close to each other; it has decent handling in a dive, etc. If you like it more than I do, more power to you.

(1) The Stuka is probably the most under-appreciated plane in Battlefield 1942 and for good reason. With the Stuka, maintaining energy is nothing short of essential. The problem lies not with the Stuka, but with most pilots’ mentality. The Stuka hates turning. Instead of turning, force its nose down, roll over during the dive and pull up in the opposite direction for better performance.

(2) As far as being nimble, keep in mind that the Stuka will hold power more efficiently than most aircraft.

(3) As a point of reference, two superbly well flown Stukas can decimate a well flown Yak and Illyusion.

(2) While not being as nimble as the Mosquito, this plane maintains it’s energy in a much more efficient manner, giving the pilot the ability to determine when or if there is a fight; a luxury the Mosquito does not have.

(1) Slower though more maneuverable than its rival, the Bf110, this plane must be flown by a superior pilot to emerge victorious.

(2) Maintain your airspeed, keep your altitude up and you can win, though maintaining energy will become the biggest headache for any Mosquito pilot against a Bf110

(1) I love this plane. This is quite possibly the most impressive dive-bomber in the game if used correctly. In the Battle of Britain, it is essential that you get this aircraft high enough in the clouds that you can no longer see unmanned vehicles and gun emplacements, then dive-bomb your target. Done properly, you can deliver six bombs in a very small radius.

(1) Call me unpatriotic, but I don’t care for this plane. While it is wonderful for bombing the enemy’s base it is useless for just about everything else. Taking insane amounts of time to line up properly and totally lacking in maneuverability only detract from this plane’s appeal.

i) Please feel free to contact me with any comments/suggestions you might have

iv) This guide cannot be reproduced without expressed written consent of the author, me.