EAW is a sweeping simulation of WWII Fighter Combat, and a worthy successor to Microprose earlier work, Pacific Air War. One of the surprises for me was finding on the CD an Air Combat School.

Air Combat School Index

In order to access the school you need only have a web browser installed. The School is divided into ten sections, some of them quite lengthy. Here is a sample from the first section:

There are certain universal qualities shared by the best fighter pilots in history, regardless of the era in which they flew. Your first step to becoming an Ace in the air force of your choosing, or in all of them if you wish, is to understand what these qualities are and begin to emulate them in everything you do. First, and above all else, you must be aggressive....

In the absence of the other characteristics of a top-notch fighter pilot, however, naked aggression virtually ensures a short career that ends violently. The primary counterbalance to aggression is situational awareness. Situational awareness is far more than just being alert and aware of the enemy's presence. It can also be thought of as keeping the "big picture" of the engagement in your head in three dimensions. If you can't do this, you won't be able to make the best tactical choices in each situation.

Most of the that comprise good situational awareness can be taught. In fact, the biggest challange you face is to simply become habitual in their use. Take observational discipline for instance. Good pilots keep their heads moving at all times, scanning the skies for the presence of the enemy. Whether you are using the keyboard controlled static views or the virtual cockpit view via your joystick, you must develop a similar discipline.

Pan through all your views at least once every 15-20 seconds and practice doing it until the keystrokes or other commands become instinctual and ingrained. Learning to detect the enemy as early in the engagement as possible is only the first step though; next you must learn how to evaluate your observations....

Section Nine covers Command and Control and discusses your response to orders or your actions as a squadron leader. Here is some of that discussion:

Keep in mind that under the RAF you have two wingmen, which also makes up your entire section, so Wingman orders under the Radio Command menu will be the same as section orders to your section (use either in the Radio Command menu, if you are in the RAF). In the USAAF and Luftwaffe, however, commands to your wingman will only apply to your one official wingman, and not to the rest of the flight or schwarm.

In most cases, you don't need to issue any orders to your wingman at all. The default is for the wingman to cover you, generally staying in formation (or following you around in combat) and breaking off to drive away enemy fighters that may try to attack you.

The wingman won't chase them too far, only long enough for them to break off of their attack on you (unless he is particularly good and can quickly shoot them down, of course). The wingman will then return to your side (or as close as possible if you are maneuvering excessively) to cover you some more, until you order otherwise.

You have the ability, however, to use your wingman more aggressively—the best defensive sometimes is a good offense--and order him to attack specific aircraft, or to attack whatever you attack, in tandem. Or, if resistance is light, you might decide to send him off on his own to attack or protect as he sees fit.

Click to continue . . .

The "Engage" command sends your wingman (or both wingmen in the RAF) off on his own, at his discretion. If there are no good targets in sight, he may stay in formation with you, or between attacks may join up with you, but as long as his standing order is to engage, he may break off, target and attack at will.

If you select a specific target (with the T key - default), then tell your wingman to "Attack My Target," he will go after that selected target and pursue it until it is destroyed (or you call him back), leaving you free to target and attack others. Once the original target is destroyed, your wingman will notify you, then will return to the default "Cover Me" command...

Another possibility is to have your wingman attack whatever you are currently targeting, so the two of you might attack one aircraft in tandem, then move on to the next, and the next, with him attacking whatever you target automatically...

Air Combat School: Luftwaffe Aircraft

This html based reference section includes a Glossary and Target Recon Data also. For example, under Aachen:

A German city located close to the Dutch and Belgian borders. The actual location of the city is 50 47N and 6 05E. An important railway line ran through this city. Aachen was bombed heavily during the RAF 'Battle of the Ruhr,' as it was known to Bomber Command, during a five-month period in the middle of 1943. Their targets inside the city included munitions plants, oil refineries and a large railroad marshaling yard.

Aachen was also a geographical reference point that Allied bomber pilots anticipated on their return trips from missions deep in Germany in 1943, because it marked the outer arc of the P-47 Thunderbolt's effective escort range. Once the P-51 Mustangs became widely deployed, this ceased to be significant. Aachen fell to the Allies on the 21st of October of 1944.

And from the Aircraft and Armament Section:

One of the political consequences of the Treaty of Versailles, which ended the First World War, was the imposition of severe restrictions on Germany's military/industrial complex. As a result, much of the research and development that went into the He111 was conducted under the guise of civilian aviation.

The project began at the behest of the Air Ministry well before the existence of the Luftwaffe was ever officially admitted. The He111 was theoretically developed as a fast commercial transport, but eventually it became one of the mainstays of the German bomber force early in the war.

The He111 adopted the Junkers Jumo engine in 1939 and fully 400 of the early variants of this airframe were in service in time for the invasion of Poland. The Heinkel is certainly not as famous as the Ju87 Stuka dive bomber from this campaign, but it caused considerable damage nonetheless.

The He111 played a significant role in the conquest of France as well, but in each instance the bomber operated in an environment of almost complete German air superiority. This would not be the case in the Battle of Britain, and the shortcomings of the He111 soon became painfully apparent against RAF Hurricanes and Spitfires.

This represents about half the text for the He111. My only disappointment in the Air Combat School is that there are no diagrams or screen shots to illustrate the manouver or the relevant subject. But at the bottom of the section a graphic shows you the gun coverage zones for the aircraft in question:

Heinkel 111: Gun Coverage

More EAW Screen Shots