by Leonard "Viking1" Hjalmarson

This gave me the opportunity to try the mission again! This time I was better prepared. When we made contact with the enemy I ordered my wingman into a bracket manouver. We too out two aircraft quickly before things started getting hot.

No reason to play the hero, I called for backup and was rewarded with the Alert 5 aircraft off the deck in about sixty seconds! That was a bit surprising, but put it in the context of this response from Matt Wagner of Jane's Combat Simulations:

"You're much more likely to receive fighter and SEAD support in F/A-18 than F15 for two reasons. First, more such flights are in the missions. There is generally at least an alert 5 ready to go. Second, the conflict area is generally smaller than in F-15. The determination of getting support is based on distance, on whether they're tied up, and on weapons/fuel load."

Not only were my squadron mates in the air in record time, but they engaged the enemy within another thirty seconds, taking the load off my flight. We managed to complete the mission as a result, with neither of us taking any damage.

It was quite interesting listening in on the Alert 5 flight as they engaged and interacted with the AWACS flight. It also complicates things considerably, as you begin to receive comms from additional sources. I was getting messages from my wingman, from the carrier, from AWACS, and from the Alert 5 flight. I was also sending some messages during that time. The comms channels really start to hum!

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These two engagements taught me quite a bit about F/A 18. Here are the lessons learned:

• You aren't alone out there! You can usually rely on your squadron for backup.
• You had better know your callsign!
• You will be responsible for calling in SAR.
• Even low levels of enemy AI can be dangerous.
• Standard missile evasion techniques will work as expected.
• Conserving energy even in the Super Hornet is critical.
• Man can this platform mount a lot of missiles!

Incidentally, when you fly in bad weather you will see both forked lightning and sheet lightning. It's quite impressive.

I know that some of you are going to want my Thrustmaster files, so here they are: JANE'S F/A 18 for F22/TQS. This zip file includes a WORD '97 file you can print out.

Go to HARM Training Debrief.