Joystick Commands ACTION JOYSTICK COMMAND Bank (ailerons)............... Move stick left or right Pitch (elevator)........ Move stick forward or backward Yaw (rudder)........ Twist stick (if feature available) View direction......................... Move hat switch Pan/Snap To view (toggle).................. SCROLL LOCK Fire guns and cannon................ (Trigger) Button 1 Fire cannon................................... Button 2 Release ordnance.............................. Button 3 Cycle ordnance................................ Button 4 Flaps down.................................... Button 5 Flaps up...................................... Button 6 Next target................................... Button 7 Padlock on/off................................ Button 8 Combat Flight Simulator 3 Battle For Europe Microsoft HAT SWITCH 1 2 3 4 TACTICAL AIR POWER IN THE ETO UNC LA FI SSI ED OAN NOT L DO 5 6 7 8 Prepared by THROTTLE ASSISTANT CHIEF OF THE AIR STAFF INTELLIGENCE HISTORICAL DIVISION 1002 Part No. X09-25720 Get the strategy guide from Sybex! Safety Warning About Photosensitive Seizures A very small percentage of people may experience a seizure when exposed to certain visual images, including flashing lights or patterns that may appear in video games. Even people who have no history of seizures or epilepsy may have an undiagnosed condition that can cause these "photosensitive epileptic seizures" while watching video games. These seizures may have a variety of symptoms, including lightheadedness, altered vision, eye or face twitching, jerking or shaking of arms or legs, disorientation, confusion, or momentary loss of awareness. 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Table of Contents The Tactical Air War........................ 3 What's New to This Theater?................. 7 Preparing for Combat........................ 9 Installing Combat Flight Simulator 3 ... 10 Starting Combat Flight Simulator 3 ..... 12 Calibrating your joystick .............. 13 Setting game options ................... 14 Learning to fly and fight .............. 15 The Main Screen: Four Game Modes........... 17 Quick Combat ........................... 17 Missions ............................... 24 Campaign ............................... 25 Multiplayer ............................ 27 On the Fly................................. 29 Tips and Tricks ........................ 30 Additional Resources....................... 33 Handbooks .............................. 33 Online Help ............................ 35 Combat Flight Simulator Web site ....... 36 Technical Support Options .............. 37 -1- Table of Contents Air Force Historical Research Agency Photo The Tactical Air War So you thought you were going to be a "knight of the air," jousting high in the clean blue sky, far above the mud and squalor of the war on the ground. Instead you find yourself in a fighter-bomber, scraping over hostile territory at 200 feet with the terrain rising to meet you. You're flying down the muzzles of antiaircraft guns to attack the enemy. If cannon fire doesn't get you, the blast and debris from your own low-level bombing and strafing can bring you down. In this kind of war, there's more danger and less glory. WELCOME TO THE TACTICAL AIR WAR, PAL! You're going to use planes like the P-47 "Thunderbolt," the Fw 190, and the Hawker Tempest V to stop the enemy's advance by destroying his entire arsenal. If you destroy enough targets, you can change the shape of the front line and even find yourself in the cockpit of a super-secret plane that has not yet entered service. The enemy means to dominate the European Theater of Operations (ETO), and we can't let that happen. There's a lot to do in this war-let's get to it! LET'S GET TO IT! -2-3- The Tactical Air War THE MISSION OF THE TACTICAL AIR FORCE *** THREE CRITICAL FACTORS FOR FIGHTER-BOMBER PILOTS ...strafing passes... bring out three critical factors in a fighter-bomber pilot's war.... One, any misjudgment, target fixation, or too-late attempts at aiming corrections will send the airplane into the target, ground, or nearby trees or other obstructions. Two, if the target is a load of ammunition or other explosives, it can--and very likely will--explode right in the pilot's face, sending up a fireball, truck parts, slabs of highway, still-to-explode ammo, and other debris right into the path of the airplane. Three, if a pilot is seriously hit by flak in [a] low-altitude attack, his chances of ever reaching enough altitude to allow a bailout are slim indeed.... -From Bill Colgan, World War II Fighter-Bomber Pilot MISSIONS.......... THE MISSION OF THE TACTICAL AIR FORCE CONSISTS OF THREE PHASES OF OPERATIONS IN THE FOLLOWING ORDER OF PRIORITY: FIRST PRIORITY....TO GAIN THE NECESSARY DEGREE OF AIR SUPERIORITY. THIS WILL BE ACCOMPLISHED BY ATTACKS AGAINST AIRCRAFT IN THE AIR AND ON THE GROUND, AND AGAINST THOSE ENEMY INSTALLATIONS THAT HE REQUIRES FOR THE APPLICATION OF AIR POWER. SECOND PRIORITY... TO PREVENT THE MOVEMENT OF HOSTILE TROOPS AND SUPPLIES INTO THE THEATER OF OPERATIONS OR WITHIN THE THEATER. THIRD PRIORITY....TO PARTICIPATE IN THE COMBINED EFFORT OF THE AIR AND GROUND FORCES, IN THE BATTLE AREA, TO GAIN OBJECTIVES ON THE IMMEDIATE FRONT OF THE GROUND FORCES. *** -from War Department Field Manual FM 100-20: Command and Employment of Air Power (21 July 1943) the Tactical Air War, a handbook in PDF format found on the Combat Flight Simulator 3 compact disc. B-26 MARAUDERS OVER FRANCE. -4- -5- Air Force Historical Research Agency Photo Read more about the war in Understanding The Tactical Air War Air Force Historical Research Agency Photo What's New to This Theater? Previous versions of Microsoft® Combat Flight Simulator focused mainly on the deadly aerial ballet of dogfighting. This time around, it's you versus the entire ground army: their guns, hardware, and planes. The tactical air war is messy, personal, and very dangerous. To fight this war, you can choose from 18 aircraft (with variants, you get a total of 34 planes). The Aircraft section on page 19 of this manual has more information about planes, as does the Machines of War handbook included on the compact disc. To view this handbook, click the Options tab, click Handbooks, and then click Machines of War. Whether you're a rookie or a veteran, you'll find an appropriate plane for any mission you undertake. You also get to take on new roles, like gunner and bombardier. Some of the bigger ships, like medium bombers, have gun positions and people need to man those guns--people like you. Use the F8 key to hop to the different gunner positions on a plane. Or, use the F7 key to jump into the bombardier's seat. Whatever you do, don't drop bombs on your own troops! Ready? Good! Let's get you in the air! LET 'EM HAVE IT -6-7- What's New to This Theater? Air Force Historical Research Agency Photo Preparing for Combat Getting into the war is easy--follow the steps below to ready your gear and flying skills for battle. 1. Install Combat Flight Simulator 3. 2. Start Combat Flight Simulator 3. 3. Calibrate your joystick. 4. Select or adjust hardware and software settings. 5. Learn how to fly and fight with the handbooks, movies, and missions provided with CFS3. These steps are discussed on the pages that follow. Read on. PILOT BRIEFING IN FRANCE, 1944. WE'RE IN TO WIN -8-9- Air Force Historical Research Agency Photo Preparing for Combat INSTALLING COMBAT FLIGHT SIMULATOR 3 Before you can gun down planes and save your troops from the enemy's advance, you need to get squared away with the latest tools, namely, Combat Flight Simulator 3. Compact or full installation? How big is your pack? Do you want to carry around your entire kit or go light and have just the essentials? You can choose from these installation options: Compact Install: Installs the minimum number of files needed, but yields slower performance. Full Install (default): Installs all of the files for the game and provides faster performance. When setup completes, you will be given the option to customize your video configuration. Normally you will want to keep the default settings, but the configuration utility will warn you if it has detected any incompatibilities with your video card or your current drivers. If you change your computer's video card or experience video problems, you can always re-run the configuration utility from the Start menu: click Start, point to Programs, point to Microsoft Games, point to Combat Flight Simulator 3, and then click CFS3Config. If your computer has automatic install 1. Insert the Combat Flight Simulator 3 compact disc 1 into your CD-ROM drive. 2. Follow the on-screen instructions. If your computer doesn't support automatic install 1. Insert the Combat Flight Simulator 3 compact disc 1 into the CD-ROM drive. 2. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel. (For Microsoft Windows® XP, click Start, and then click Control Panel.) 3. Double-click Add/Remove Programs. 4. In the Add or Remove Programs dialog box, click Add New Programs, and then click the CD or Floppy button. 5. Follow the on-screen instructions. - 10 - - 11 - Preparing for Combat STARTING COMBAT FLIGHT SIMULATOR 3 The war is on, flyboy! It's time to get your butt into a cockpit and start pushing the front line toward the enemy. Double-click the Combat Flight Simulator 3 icon on the desktop and you're good to go. Or, click Start, point to Programs, point to Microsoft Games, point to Combat Flight Simulator 3, and then click Combat Flight Simulator 3. Once you start CFS3, use the Quick Combat, Missions, Campaign, and Multiplayer tabs on the lower left to get in the fight. Or, use the Options tab on the upper right to access the handbooks and online Help or to set various game and hardware settings. CALIBRATING YOUR JOYSTICK You can fly with either a joystick or your keyboard, and you can adjust their settings. If you try flying with a joystick that isn't calibrated, you may find yourself chewing grass at 200 m.p.h. instead of bearing down on a train like you wanted. To calibrate your joystick, click Control Options on the Options tab (on the upper-right corner of the Main screen), and then click Calibrate. After you've calibrated your joystick, jump into the cockpit and enjoy the most realistic and accurate combat flight experience available. - 12 - - 13 - Preparing for Combat SETTING GAME OPTIONS What good is a new plane if you can't see out of your goggles or fly straight-and-level? There's a lot to sort out to make sure you can fight this war effectively. Before you get your wheels rolling, adjust the display, sound, and realism options. Adjust your Display Options and Sound Options from the Options tab (on t ...