+----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ + ACE COMBAT 05: THE UNSUNG WAR + +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ FAQ/WALKTHROUGH VERSION 1.45 LAST UPDATE : 17/07/06 BY MICHAEL RADFORD +----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ When history witnesses a great change, Razgriz reveals itself, First as a dark demon, As a demon it uses its power to reign death upon the land; and then it dies. However, after a period of slumber, Razgriz returns. This time as a great hero... ============================================================================== Introduction ================================================================= ============================================================================== Welcome to my AC05 walkthrough for PS2. Some of you with unnecessarily good memories may remember my guide to AC04, that was my first ever FAQ and this is the first one I have done in a long time. So, buckle up your harness, arm your ejection seat and, if you are reading this part after you have read the rest of the guide cut off your oxygen supply, for shame! Although this FAQ is taken from the PAL game, I decided to put the subtitle as the Unsung War instead of Squadron Leader for a number of reasons, one being that the JAP / US title is much better then the European one and also because it makes slightly more sense in game if you take the title The Unsung War. With that said, there is almost no difference between the two, so you can easily use this guide for which ever version you have. ============================================================================== ============================================================================== TABLE OF CONTENTS ============================================================ ============================================================================== TITLE ------------------------------------------------------------> CODE 1. UNNECESSARY SELF PROMOTION ------------------------------------> IN01 1a. About the Author ------------------------------------------> IN02 1b. About the Guide -------------------------------------------> IN03 1c. Disclaimer ------------------------------------------------> IN04 1d. Version History -------------------------------------------> IN05 1e. Contact Information ---------------------------------------> IN06 1f. Blurb -----------------------------------------------------> IN07 2. THE BASICS ----------------------------------------------------> BC01 2a. Aircraft Terms --------------------------------------------> BC02 2b. Aircraft Basics -------------------------------------------> BC03 2c. Combat Training -------------------------------------------> BC04 2d. Wingman Control -------------------------------------------> BC05 3. CHARACTERS ----------------------------------------------------> CH01 3a. Kei Nagase (Edge) -----------------------------------------> CH02 3b. Alvin Davernport (Chopper) --------------------------------> CH03 3c. Hans Grimm (Archer) ---------------------------------------> CH04 3d. Jack Bartlett (Heartbreak 1) ------------------------------> CH05 3e. Blaze -----------------------------------------------------> CH06 3f. Marcus Snow (Swordsman) -----------------------------------> CH07 3g. Hamilton --------------------------------------------------> CH08 3h. Orson Perrault --------------------------------------------> CH09 3i. Peter N. Beagle (Pops) ------------------------------------> CH10 3j. AWACS (Thunderhead) ---------------------------------------> CH11 3k. AWACS (Oka Nieba) -----------------------------------------> CH12 3l. Capt. Anderson --------------------------------------------> CH13 3m. President Vincent Harling ---------------------------------> CH14 3n. Prime Minister Seryozha Viktrovich Nikanor ---------------> CH15 3o. Major Natashya --------------------------------------------> CH16 3p. Genette ---------------------------------------------------> CH17 3q. Kirk ------------------------------------------------------> CH18 4. THE STORY SO FAR ----------------------------------------------> SY01 4a. The Background --------------------------------------------> SY02 4b. Osea and Yuktobania ---------------------------------------> SY03 4c. Belka -----------------------------------------------------> SY04 5. THE AIRCRAFT --------------------------------------------------> AR01 5p1. The Weapons of the Game -----------------------------------> AR02 5p2. The Aircraft of the Game ----------------------------------> AR03 5a. F-5 Family ------------------------------------------------> AR04 5a1. F-5e Tiger II ----------------------------------------> AR05 5a2. F-20a Tigershark -------------------------------------> AR06 5a3. X-29a ------------------------------------------------> AR07 5b. F-4 Family ------------------------------------------------> AR08 5b1. F-4e Phantom II --------------------------------------> AR09 5b2. F-4g Wild Weasel -------------------------------------> AR10 5b3. F-4x -------------------------------------------------> AR11 5c. MIG-21 Family ---------------------------------------------> AR12 5c1. MIG-21bis Fishbed ------------------------------------> AR13 5c2. MIG-21 -----------------------------------------------> AR14 5d. A-6 Family ------------------------------------------------> AR15 5d1. A-6e Intruder ----------------------------------------> AR16 5d2. EA-6B Prowler ----------------------------------------> AR17 5e. F-16 Family -----------------------------------------------> AR18 5e1. F-16c Fighting Falcon --------------------------------> AR19 5e2. F-16 Block60 Fighting Falcon -------------------------> AR20 5e3. F-16XL -----------------------------------------------> AR21 5e4. F-2a -------------------------------------------------> AR22 5f. F/A-18 Family ---------------------------------------------> AR23 5f1. F/A-18c Hornet ---------------------------------------> AR24 5f2. F/A-18e Super Hornet ---------------------------------> AR25 5f3. EA-18g Growler ---------------------------------------> AR26 5g. Mirage 2000 Family ----------------------------------------> AR27 5g1. Mirage 2000 ------------------------------------------> AR28 5g2. Mirage 2000d -----------------------------------------> AR29 5h. MiG-29 Family ---------------------------------------------> AR30 5h1. MiG-29a Fulcrum --------------------------------------> AR31 5i. A-10 Family -----------------------------------------------> AR32 5i1. A-10a Thunderbolt II ---------------------------------> AR33 5i2. YA-10b -----------------------------------------------> AR34 5j. F-14 Family -----------------------------------------------> AR35 5j1. F-14a Tomcat -----------------------------------------> AR36 5j2. F-14b Bobcat -----------------------------------------> AR37 5j3. F-14d Super Tomcat -----------------------------------> AR38 5k. Tornado Family --------------------------------------------> AR39 5k1. Tornado GR.1 -----------------------------------------> AR40 5k2. Tornado GR.4 -----------------------------------------> AR41 5k3. Tornado F-3 ------------------------------------------> AR42 5k4. Tornado ECR ------------------------------------------> AR43 5l. MiG-31 Family ---------------------------------------------> AR44 5l1. MiG-31 Foxhound --------------------------------------> AR45 5l2. MiG-31m ----------------------------------------------> AR46 5m. F-15 Family -----------------------------------------------> AR47 5m1. F-15c Eagle ------------------------------------------> AR48 5m2. F-15e Strike Eagle -----------------------------------> AR49 5m3. F-15s/MTD --------------------------------------------> AR50 5n. Su-27 Family ----------------------------------------------> AR51 5n1. Su-27 Flanker ----------------------------------------> AR52 5n2. Su-32 Strike Flanker ---------------------------------> AR53 5n3. Su-35 Super Flanker ----------------------------------> AR54 5n4. Su-37 Terminator -------------------------------------> AR55 5o. F-117 Family ----------------------------------------------> AR56 5o1. F-117a Nighthawk -------------------------------------> AR57 5p. JAS-39 Family ---------------------------------------------> AR58 5p1. JAS-39c Gripen ---------------------------------------> AR59 5q. Typhoon Family --------------------------------------------> AR60 5q1. Typhoon ----------------------------------------------> AR61 5r. Rafale Family ---------------------------------------------> AR62 5r1. Rafale M ---------------------------------------------> AR63 5r2. Rafale B ---------------------------------------------> AR64 5s. F-35 Family -----------------------------------------------> AR65 5s1. F-35c ------------------------------------------------> AR66 5t. YF-23 Family ----------------------------------------------> AR67 5t1. YF-23a Black Widow II --------------------------------> AR68 5u. F-22 Family -----------------------------------------------> AR69 5u1. F-22 Raptor ------------------------------------------> AR70 5u2. FB-22 Concept ----------------------------------------> AR71 5v. Su-47 Family ----------------------------------------------> AR72 5v1. Su-47 Berkut -----------------------------------------> AR73 5v2. S-32 -------------------------------------------------> AR74 5w. MiG 1.44 Family -------------------------------------------> AR75 5w1. Mig 1.44 ---------------------------------------------> AR76 5x. Hawk Family -----------------------------------------------> AR77 5x1. Hawk -------------------------------------------------> AR78 5y. X-02 Family -----------------------------------------------> AR79 5y1. X-02 Wyvern ------------------------------------------> AR80 5z. FALKEN Family ---------------------------------------------> AR81 5z1. Falken -----------------------------------------------> AR82 6. THE WALKTHROUGH -----------------------------------------------> AC00 6a. 01. Shorebirds --------------------------------------------> AC01 6b. 02. Open War ----------------------------------------------> AC02 6c. 03. Narrow Margin -----------------------------------------> AC03 6d. 04. First Flight ------------------------------------------> AC04 6e. 05. Rendezvous --------------------------------------------> AC05 6f. 06. White Bird pt.i ---------------------------------------> AC06 6g. 07. Front Line --------------------------------------------> AC07 6h. 08. Handful of Hope ---------------------------------------> AC08 6i. 09. Lit Fuse ----------------------------------------------> AC09 6j. 10. Blind Spot --------------------------------------------> AC10 6k. 11a.Chain Reation -----------------------------------------> AC11 6l. 11b.Reprisal ----------------------------------------------> AC12 6m. 12a.Powder Keg --------------------------------------------> AC13 6n. 12b.Four Horsemen -----------------------------------------> AC14 6o. 13. Demons of Razgriz -------------------------------------> AC15 6p. 14. Ice Cage ----------------------------------------------> AC16 6q. 15. White Noise -------------------------------------------> AC17 6r. 16a.Desert Arrow ------------------------------------------> AC18 6s. 16b.Desert Thunder ----------------------------------------> AC19 6t. 17. Journey Home ------------------------------------------> AC20 6u. 18. Fortress ----------------------------------------------> AC21 6v. 18+. 8492 -------------------------------------------------> AC22 6w. 19. Final Option ------------------------------------------> AC23 6x. 20. Ancient Walls -----------------------------------------> AC24 6y. 21. Solitaire ---------------------------------------------> AC25 6z. 22. Closure -----------------------------------------------> AC26 6aa. 23. Ghosts of Razgriz -------------------------------------> AC27 6ab. 24. White Bird pt.ii --------------------------------------> AC28 6ac. 25. Heartbreak One ----------------------------------------> AC29 6ad. 26. Sea of Chaos ------------------------------------------> AC30 6ae. 27. Aces --------------------------------------------------> AC31 6af. 27+. The Unsung War ---------------------------------------> AC32 7. ARCADE MODE ---------------------------------------------------> AD01 8. ADVANCED ------------------------------------------------------> AV01 8a. Free Mission ----------------------------------------------> AV02 8b. Hard and Ace modes ----------------------------------------> AV03 8c. Advanced Manoeuvres ---------------------------------------> AV04 8d. More Planes -----------------------------------------------> AV05 8e. Medals ----------------------------------------------------> AV06 8f. Personal Records ------------------------------------------> AV07 8g. Time Line -------------------------------------------------> AV08 8h. Music / Lyrics --------------------------------------------> AV09 8i. Movie Transcripts -----------------------------------------> AV10 i. Prologue ("Their Nameless War") ---------------------> AV11 ii. Shorebirds #1 ---------------------------------------> AV12 iii. Shorebirds #2 ---------------------------------------> AV13 iv. Narrow margin ---------------------------------------> AV14 v. First Flight #1 -------------------------------------> AV15 vi. First Flight #2 -------------------------------------> AV16 vii. White Bird (Part 1) #1 ------------------------------> AV17 viii. White Bird (part 1) #2 ------------------------------> AV18 ix. Front Line (no dialogue) ----------------------------> AV19 x. Handful of Hope -------------------------------------> AV20 xi. Blind Spot ------------------------------------------> AV21 xii. Demons of Razgriz #1 --------------------------------> AV22 xiii. Demons of Razgriz #2 --------------------------------> AV23 xiv. Ice Cage --------------------------------------------> AV24 xv. White Noise -----------------------------------------> AV25 xvi. Fortress #1 -----------------------------------------> AV26 xvii. Fortress #2 -----------------------------------------> AV27 xviii. 8492 -----------------------------------------------> AV28 xix. Fortress #3 -----------------------------------------> AV29 xx. Ancient Walls #1 ------------------------------------> AV30 xxi. Ancient Walls #2 ------------------------------------> AV31 xxii. Heartbreak One #1 -----------------------------------> AV32 xxiii. Heartbreak One #2 ----------------------------------> AV33 xxiv. Sea of Chaos ----------------------------------------> AV34 xxv. Aces #1 ---------------------------------------------> AV35 xxvi. Aces #2 ---------------------------------------------> AV36 xxvii. Dead Ahead (no dialogue) ---------------------------> AV37 xxviii. The Unsung War ------------------------------------> AV38 xxix. Epilogue --------------------------------------------> AV39 8j. Unlockable extras -----------------------------------------> AV40 8k. Gliches ---------------------------------------------------> AV41 9. DYK / FAQ -----------------------------------------------------> FQ01 9a. DYK -------------------------------------------------------> FQ02 9b. FAQ -------------------------------------------------------> FQ03 10. ENDING NOTES -------------------------------------------------> EN01 10a. Thanks and Credit ----------------------------------------> EN02 =============================================================================== =============================================================================== ============================================================================== 1. UNNECESSARY SELF PROMOTION ------------------------------------------- IN01 ============================================================================== ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --- 1a. About the Author ---------------------------------------------- IN02 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ My name is Michael Radford, at the time of writing I am 19 years old and am currently sorting out finance to start my aviation training, in the hope of becoming a commercial pilot. Since Ace Combat 2 wayyyy back on the old Playstation, I have been a big fan of the series. In my opinion, each one has got better and better. I have written numerous FAQs in the past for games such as Ace Combat 04, Metal Gear Solid 2, Sega GT 2002 etc. I specialise in writing guides specifically for the PAL market, although the games are generally so similar it makes no difference which format you play on. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --- 1b. About the Guide ----------------------------------------------- IN03 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This guide is your 'basic no-holds-bared announced spoilers, and read at your peril' class guide. Basically meaning, if you see: !!SPOILERS!! then (for the slower one in the audience) there are spoilers. These are relatively few and far between though and normally if you are following the guide then that part of the story would have already happened and you're okay to read on. As a last note, if you see anything that you would like to see elaborated, moved, improved, removed or any other kind of 'oved the please contact me, contact information supplied below. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --- 1c. Disclaimer ---------------------------------------------------- IN04 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This guide is protected under copyright law, reproduction of any kind apart from personal use is strictly prohibited. No money is allowed to be made through this guide, and it is not to be shown on any sites except the following: http://www.gamefaqs.com --------------------------------------- GameFAQS http://www.gamespot.com --------------------------------------- Gamespot http://faqs.ign. --------------------------------------- IGN http://www.cheatcc.com --------------------------------------- Code Central http://www.neoseeker.com --------------------------------------- Neoseeker http://www.supercheats.com --------------------------------------- Supercheats http://www.1up.com --------------------------------------- 1up Publication in any other form INCLUDING online is not permitted, if you see this guide anywhere where it shouldn't be then please contact me on mike8580@googlemail.com , putting the subject as something with the words Ace Combat 5, or something similar. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --- 1d. Version History ----------------------------------------------- IN05 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ This section indexes the history of this guide, stating: version number, file size and any amendments, credits and other information. === Version 1.43 - MOVES AND HOSTING === Size: 381KB / Date: 30/03/06 === Updates this time include a new manoeuvre and 1up on the approved sites list. === Version 1.43 - REFUELING INFO === Size: 380KB / Date: 17/03/06 === thanks goes to Ryan for his information about the refuelling terms, also a few more DYKs about the maps and planes have been added. You know, I've had this game since the PAL release, completed it more times then I care to remember but only a few days ago did I find there was a quick select on the plane select screen O.O; that's been added to as well as some incorrect info about Belka. === Version 1.42 - CORRECTIONS AND STUFF === Size: 379KB / Date: 13/03/06 === Today we have several updates for named pilots, advanced manoeuvres and other good stuff. Thanks to every who made suggestions / improvements. === Version 1.41 - NEW EMAIL === Size: 368KB / Date: 25/01/06 === Since I managed to get a Gmail invite, my new email address will be: mike8580@googlemail.com - Sorry to the few people who emailed me over the last few days that I couldn't get back to because of the change, I'll do my best to reply to all future mails. === Version 1.40 - GAHH, MY EYES! === Size: 368KB / Date: 13/12/05 === Ah ha! hahaha the proof reading is done! There are probably a few mistakes but they have been reduced. I told you the size would go up a lot. In addition to the guide's now semi-coherent nature there is now a section in the missions walkthrough detailing exactly where to find the named pilots and the best way to get the S ranks. Now a certain individual has no excuse to do his: 'wayyh the guides are more interested in telling us how tall Chopper is and not how to get the S licences' anymore :p That arcade section my come, of course the Belkan War will probably be out by then (o_o); === Version 1.33 - CUM HISTORIA... === Size: 339KB / Date: 07/09/05 === There are Final Fantasy guides not updated as often as this you know! Extras this time include and are limited to :( the rough translation of the song The Demon of Razgriz. And not surprisingly it is just a repetitive version of the poem The Demon of Razgriz. Oh well, back to the proof reading. === Version 1.32 - INTRESTING THINGS! === Size: 332KB / Date: 05/09/05 === Today with have scores, some tips on certain missions and an interesting fact regarding Oka Neiba. Despite the game has been out for a while now, the guide still is racking up over 140 hits per day and just under 25000 a year. So thanks for everyone who has found or is finding this guide interesting. === Version 1.31 - A SMALLER UPDATE === Size: 331KB / Date 17/08/05 === Two updates in two days? Not too much added this time, at the bottom of the guide there is the captions that appear on the epilogue, I think they make a good way to end the guide. Also added the Pacman ghost to the DYK section and Neoseeker to the permissions list, like not having their name on it would stop them hahaha. === Version 1.30 - A LARGE UPDATE === Size: 330KB / Date 16/08/05 === Hurrah! I finally got around to doing an entire description of every plane in the game. There's a lot more stuff then ever as you may have noticed from the size of the file. So what is there? Well, there is as mentioned before all of the planes available, a transcript of all the CG movies, more scores and some finishing touches. What's that? Arcade section? hahahah. I really, really will do it when I get a controller with all working buttons. Right now I've been reduced to playing without the ability to accelerate, yaw, fire missiles or change targets. === Version 1.24 - LOTS OF GOOD THINGS === Size: 176KB / Date 01/07/05 === Don't you love it when Gamespot keeps you informed? Me too, this guide has been up on gamespot for a while and I never saw it *smacks self*. I'd also like to apologise for not replying to the several emails I got, anyways everything is up to date now as far as I know. So what's new, well... We have a new advance manoeuvre, more scores, a poem, release updates, more damn spelling mistakes. === VERSION 1.23 - SCORE, SCORE, SCORES === Size: 174KB / Date: 10/06/05 === Yep, more scores for the hall of fame, keep 'em coming! I also added the lyrics to the song Blurry, as well as a few new FAQs. === VERSION 1.22 - MORE SCORES === Size: 173KB / Date: 17/05/05 === I have added some scores that people have submitted and I'll update my own soon :D === VERSION 1.21 - MORE ADDTIONS === Size: 172KB / Date: 17/03/05 === I will get the plane and arcade part of the guide done, honest. For now though there have been a few more corrections made, thanks to Robert Morgan and Neil for spotting them. === VERSION 1.1 - SMALL CORRECTIONS === Size: 169KB / Date: 16/03/05 === A couple of typos and mistakes have been corrected. The mission 8492 is now accurate (thanks to Kaj-Nrig Thao for spotting it), also cheat central has been added to the listed sites. === VERSION 1.0 - MOST OF THE GUIDE NOW UP === Size: 168KB / Date: 15/03/05 === All of the mission data is now up as is the rest of the guide. Only the plane and arcade database, as well as a few odds and ends until the guide is complete. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --- 1e. Contact Information ------------------------------------------- IN06 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ If you have ever written a FAQ before, then you will know that this is the part most of us dread. If you are writing for a game that is extremely popular like GTA: SA then you will literally get hundreds of emails from people who haven't read the guide, and instead go straight to the contact info. They also normally post the exact same question on the forums. It is only a minority but as you can imagine it is extremely annoying to have your work undermined by people who point blank, refuse to read what you have put for their benefit. So please check that your question is not answered anywhere in the guide, thanks. On the other hand, if you want to ask a question about the game that I have not put in the guide, then I will be more than happy to help and put credit in when I do an update. Also if you wish to add you scores to the hall of fame, or have constructive criticism then please write in. Email: mike8580@googlemail.com Subject: Ace Combat 05 Guide ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --- 1f. Blurb --------------------------------------------------------- IN07 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ For those of you unfamiliar with the concept of blurbs, it is a small section of the guide that is changed with every updated and is designed basically for me to rant about stuff regarding AC, guides, people and just about anything else. Or in other words: Like a Blog only not like a Blog. --------- 13/03/06 - We will survive Galm One! --------- Woo, the new Ace Combat is a'comin' soon, although a release date or seemingly necessary subtitle change for the PAL version has still not been forthcoming. Other news, I've been looking forward to getting Fahrenheit and an Xbox 360 over the next few days. But it's good to see good old AC05 still attracting interest so long after it's release. :D ============================================================================== 2. THE BASICS ----------------------------------------------------------- BC01 ============================================================================== ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --- 2a. Aircraft Terms ------------------------------------------------ BC02 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Chances are that a lot of people know something of aviation already and know a lot of this. However it is extremely frustrating for someone to come into the game and have no idea what people are rattling on about. And hey, everyone's got to learn some time. So here's a list of all the things you will hear, and what to make of them. ALLITUDE - You height relative to the ground, normally measured in feet. ATTITUDE - What your plane is doing, pointing up or down, or in a roll etc. PITCH - This tells you the angle that you have your nose raised or lowered. A pitch of 10 degrees means that you are pointing up 10 degrees, whereas negative 10 would be pointing down 10 degrees etc. ROLL - How flat your aircraft is in relation to the ground. No roll would be you flying with the wings level. You roll the wings when you want to turn (or miss two objects that are very close together O_o) SHACK ON THE TARGET - Missile impact on an aircraft. Fox 1: A missile with semi-active radar guidance, like the AIM-7 Sparrow. (SAAM) Calling this out on the radio communicates that you have fired one. Fox 2: A missile with infrared guidance (heat seeker) like the AIM-9 Sidewinder. The generic missile in the game I guess is analagous to the Sidewinder since it's short range and fire-and-forget, but in real life the Sidewinder cannot be used against ground targets. Fox 3: A missile with active radar guidance, like the AIM-120 AMRAAM (XMAA) or AIM-54 Phoenix (XLAA) -- Thanks to Ryan for the info PICKLE - It just means bombs away! TRASHED - Missile was evaded. BAIL OUT - To eject from a plane FLASH CODE / SIGNAL LIGHT - A form of Morse code only using light not sound, it's used by the military to communicate with each other when radios are not an option. CALLSIGN - Every aircraft, ground unit and sea vessel has their own unique call sign. This makes identifying people and yourself possible over a busy radio channel. It was either that or call people by the first names and you can see where that's going. Normally Callsigns are grouped for instance Rapier 1 and Rapier 2 are two separate units within the Rapier Callgroup and are probably working together. Your call sign in the campaign mode is Blaze. Your fellow pilots are known as Chopper, Edge, Heartbreak 1 and Archer or (which is rarely used Wardog 1, Wardog 2, Wardog 3 and Wardog 4). BOGEY / BANDIT - A bogey is the general callgroup for an enemy aircraft. Basically, these are the guys you shoot at. FRIENDLY - Abbreviated to FRND in the HUD these people are on your side and are not to be shot at. Unless you're a fan of Court Marshals and firing squads, if so blast away! WINGMAN - The other plane / planes flying with you. They will help you attack enemy aircraft as well as keep them off your back and help out around the battle field, the wingman however are not nearly as good as a human player and they will rarely mark up more then three kills per mission. WHISKY MARK - A small W shape in the centre of your HUD, this is telling you which way the nose is pointing. HUD - (Heads up Display), just as in a real fighter, you have a heads up display that projects your instrument readouts onto the cockpit front window. This gives all vital information including: airspeed, altitude, attitude, weapon status and a map of the local combat area. NUGGET - Term for a rookie pilot, instructors tend to keep calling them this even after they become fully certified fighter pilots. BEARING - Imagine a compass, it has 360 degrees on it. 090 would be ninety degrees and would mean that what ever is been pointed out to you is east. Other points you should memorise are 180 - south, 270 - West and 000 or 360 - north. O'CLOCK - If something is marked as an o'clock bearing, imagine a clock face, it works in the same principles as the bearing above but it isn't relative to the ground, for example: "Bandit closing at 3 O'clock" would tell you that an enemy aircraft is approaching to your left (not necessarily east.) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 2b. Aircraft Basics ------------------------------------------------- BC03 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you are a seasoned player of Ace Combat, nothing drastic has changed with the basic controls, however the R3 button now changes the camera and the directional buttons give wingman orders and replies. I suggest looking at the wingman control section (BC05 in find) and if you want to look at some of the advanced techniques or to send in your own then you should head over to that section (AV08 in find). If you are going to get anywhere in Ace Combat, it would help if you knew how to fly the planes you are in, so here's the basic controls to all the planes in the game for anyone not already on the know. Left analogue stick up -------- Pitch down / turn left (easy only) Left analogue stick down ------ Pitch up Left analogue stick left ------ Roll left Left analogue stick right ----- Roll right / turn right (easy only) Right analogue stick up ------- Look up Right analogue stick down ----- Look down (not in cockpit view) Right analogue stick left ----- Look left Right analogue stick right ---- Look right SELECT button ----------------- Change between missiles and special weapons START button ------------------ Pause game Directional button up --------- Wingmen order attack Directional button down ------- Wingmen order cover Directional button left ------- Wingmen order disperse Reply 'yes' in a question Directional button right ------ Wingman order allow / disallow special weapons Reply 'no' in a question Cross button ------------------ Fire cannon Circle button ----------------- Fire missile / special weapon Square button ----------------- Display local area map Triangle button --------------- Change missile lock targets L1 ---------------------------- Decrease thrust L2 ---------------------------- Yaw left L3 ---------------------------- N/A R1 ---------------------------- Increase thrust (hold for afterburner) R2 ---------------------------- Yaw right R3 ---------------------------- Change view L2 and R2 --------------------- Autopilot (gets you straight and level) When you start the game, you may, or may not think something along the lines of: GAH, WHAT'S ALL THIS ON MY SCREEN!?! Well if you do here's what all of those crazy lines mean. Cue ASCII art! NE E SE | | | | | | | | | | | | | | <- Compass, this SCORE 090 TIME tells you what 0000 20'00'00 direction you are flying in. = 15___ ___15 |= - |- = |= - 10___ ___10<-----|--Attitude indicator. = |= this tells you your - |- pitch angle. Solid = 5 ___ ___ 5 |= means up, broken means - |- down. = SPEED ALT |= - 3500 W 500 |- <-Altitude indicator. = |= This tells you how high - -5 --- --- -5 |- you are, don't let it = |= hit zero. - |- = -10 --- --- -10 |= - <--------------------------------------|--Airspeed. This tells = |= you your speed - -15 --- --- -15 |- surprisingly. +------------------+ +------+ | \ | / | | GUN | ..... <- Gun ammo, | \ | / | +------+ normally infinite. | \ | / | | MSSL | ..70 <- Missile ammo. | \ | / | +------+ | \ | / | SAAM ..10 <- Special weapon | \ | / | +------+ ammo |_______\|/________| | DMG | ..0% <- Damage indicator | | | +------+ +------------------+ /\ ^ | || | < Visual representation See 'Map' below | / \ | of damage and missiles. / \ --||-- There are several other things that you will see in the HUD. Here is a list of all of the information: BLUE FRND BOX - This is an allied plane GREEN BOX WITH EDGE, CHOPPER, ARCHER OR HK BREAK ONE - One of your wingman EMPTY GREEN BOX - Enemy non-target, you also have to lock on to fire missiles at it, to lock on press triangle. However, there is a wee glitch in the game that sometimes means that the game looks over a target and doesn't lock. Get around it by flying off, coming back and trying again. GREEN BOX WITH NUMBERS AND AN IDENTIFIER - This is the target you have locked onto and when you get in range will missile lock if you have your regular missiles armed. Switch with the triangle button missiles will lock when you get to 2500 meters. RED BOX WITH A SOLID TONE - This is a target that you have in missile lock. Press circle to fire and it will try to hit it, if the enemy is doing some Fancy flying you missile may not turn enough to compensate and in turn miss. MAP - This map shows the combat area immediately in front of you. There are several shapes that appear there that you should recognise: WHITE TRIANGLE - Enemy aircraft, the longer sides of the triangle indicate which way it is pointing, however it does not give altitude, the aircraft has taken no damage. CIRCLED WHITE TRIANGLE - If it has a circle around it then it is a target and must be shot down to complete the mission, or go a way to completing it. YELLOW TRIANGLE - This is an aircraft that has been damaged and is anywhere between about 20-89% health. If it is in a circle then it is a target. RED TRIANGLE - That's right, it's an enemy aircraft on it's last legs. A couple of rounds from the old Vulcan cannon will be all it takes to finish it off. As normal, if it is in a circle then it needs to be shot down, probably had it coming anyway. WHITE, YELLOW OR RED CIRCLE - Same as a enemy aircraft only this is a ground target. A larger circle means that it has to die. RED LINE - A red line indicated a missile. Use the display to gauge where it is and the best way of avoiding it, these are sometimes quite difficult to see. All of this is very nice if you want to fly in a straight line, but if you Have thoughts of completing the game you are going to have to know some Techniques of Flight. Although there is a tutorial in the game, you can never know too much, right? Right! Straight and level flight - Does exactly what it says on the tin, make you go straight forward at the same altitude. All you have to do is aim the whisky mark in the middle of the screen with the wings level. Or hit autopilot to get the game to do it for you. Turns - First, roll the wings left or right until you get to about 45 degrees, then pull the nose back to increase the angle of attack and the plane turns in that direction. To alter the rate in which you turn, try different bank angles and the rate you pull back. You can also turn by using the rudder. Press and hold L2 for left or R2 for right to move the rudder position. This is known as yaw and is not suitable of large turns, only small changes to direction. To turn tighter also try to slow down, for fast wide-angle turns speed up. Stalls - This is something that you are better off avoiding normally, if you slow down too much then your wings no longer generate lift and your aircraft becomes a very aerodynamic rock. Speed up and pull up to get yourself out of one, although that won't help too much if you are close to the ground. LANDINGS, TAKEOFFS AND AIR-TO-AIR REFUELLING There are several points in the game where you will have to take off before a mission, land after one and refuel on the way to or back from engagements. These are all relatively simple and once you know how to do them they will be done in no time. LAND TAKEOFF: A takeoff from land rather then some sort of touch and go. To takeoff from any ground base, simply power up the throttles, get the speed up to about 85-100MPH depending on the type of plane you're flying and pull the nose up. When you get to around 2000 feet the takeoff is complete. DIFFICULTY: 1/5 CARRIER TAKEOFF: Just as simple as a ground takeoff, only faster. Hit the afterburner and wait for the catapult to blast you forwards. When you are off the end, pull up to climb and get above 2000 feet to complete the takeoff successfully. DIFFICULTY: 1/5 LAND LANDING: To land is the correct position you must get those crosses lined up in the centre. Do not roll to turn, instead use the rudder (the to back shoulder buttons) get the vertical line in the middle of the screen and your heading in the right direction. Then pitch down slightly to align the horizontal line in the centre. Then slow the plane down to about 100 keeping the plane on the correct decent path. When you get to the runway guide the plane to the ground. **NOTE- you cannot flare the aircraft so you just have to hit the ground. DIFFICULTY: 2/5 TIPS ON S RANK - To get the 'Needles Eye' medal you have to get the 'perfect' dialogue on the Land Landing, Carrier Landing and AA Refueling. To get the S rank you have to hit the afterburners. Line up with the runway then when you are close hit L1 to break and head down. You have to stop using as little runway as possible (ie still being on the threshold or 'those arrow things' as it's sometimes called.) To make sure you got the best score, look at the debriefing screen, if you have scored anything less then 1000/1000 on the Landing Bonus then you will have to redo it. CARRIER LANDING: Exactly the same as a land landing only this time the runway's slowly moving. Hit the carrier as early as possible to avoid rolling off the end. DIFFICULTY: 3/5 To get the S Rank on the carrier landing, all you have to do is accelerate all the way to the carrier, wait until you get to around 200 feet and slow rapidly, hit the carrier and keep trying until you stop in time. AIR-TO-AIR REFUELING This works in a similar way to landings. There are two squares, a smaller one inside a larger one. As you get closer to the refuelling craft, the inner square gets bigger. The idea is to get both squares to the same size and touching each other perfectly. When you do this, the game takes over and the plane refuels. After it is completed the refuelling is over. DIFFICULTY: 2/5 It's very simple to get the S rank on this one, as with the rest it involves charging at the target and decelerating, wait until you are 200 meters away and hit L1, try to slow to the same speed of the target in front of the stalk or pipe out of the back. When the game takes over, the refuel is complete. Missions: #4 - Ground Landing #13 - AA Refueling #16a - Ground Landing #16b - Ground Landing #18 - AA Refueling #20 - Carrier Landing #21 - Ground Landing #26 - Carrier Landing (Thanks goes to Jason Horsley for the above list) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 2c. Combat Training ------------------------------------------------- BC04 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Now it's time to put what you know to the test. Here are the basics of dog fighting. AGHH, THEY'RE SHOOTING!!! There are many ways in which those evil bandits can try to take you out of the sky, so here's what you should expect to see: WARNING: If you see the word 'WARNING' flash up on the top centre of your HUD, don't panic. This used to mean that the enemy had a missile lock on you, however, sometimes in this game you can get this sign, even when it would be impossible for them to lock on, for instance when you are a long way away or flying through a tunnel. So it just means that there are enemies present in your location, or they have a lock on one of your wingman (who incidentally cannot be shot down, although can be hit). MISSILE ALERT: This one should be taken slightly more seriously. Someone has decided you're in his view of the sky and would like to remove you. If you are going to get shot down in the game, this is more often then not, how it's going to happen. DAMAGE: This is what happens if something hits you, try to avoid it ya? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - There are of course ways of avoiding being blown to smithereens. Here are all of the normal ways. If you feel more adventurous, or want to contribute some of your own, head to the advance techniques lower down (Hit find and type in AV08). THE COWARD'S WAY - That's right, check the map and if there is no enemy plane (a triangle) or missile (a very small dot) in very close range hit the afterburner and run away, well fly away! MOST EFFECTIVE AT: LONG RANGE LOOP DE LOOP - Point the nose to the sky and when you get about a third of the way through the loop, hit the power. Missiles have a very poor ability to turn (around 90 degrees sharp in any direction are their limit). As long as it doesn't get you on the way up then it will never hit. Also mind the ground at the other side. MOST EFFECTIVE AT: ANY RANGE SHARP TURNS - Roll the plane a whole 90 degrees and hit L1 to slow down. The slower you go the shaper the plane turns, so you are well out of the way by the time it gets to you. Don't try this when the missile is too far away as it will still hit you. MOST EFFECTIVE AT: SHORT RANGE DIVE OR CLIMB - Not always guaranteed to work, but if you turn 90 degrees in any direction and put on some power, the missile (as long as it is not right behind you), should miss. MOST EFFECTIVE AT: MID RANGE AA FIRE There are other things that can shoot you down, some only in specific missions and are explained more in the walkthrough section. The other most common form of fire is AA weapons. These are similar to your cannon and, like missiles, have a very limited range. If you are being targeted from the ground, then, you can for most difficulty settings ignore it as it does minimal damage and rarely hits. If you want to avoid them however, fly far enough in any direction and it will stop firing, that or insert a missile into it, that works well too! If the target is firing from the air, then just use missile dodging techniques to escape, after all, it could be worse, if you are in gun range then you are also in missile range. One last point about ground AA guns, the higher you are the less accurate they get. Simple maths/physics, if you are flying low to the ground you present a bigger target and less distance, thus your aircraft becomes Swiss cheese, when there are a lot of AA weapons, try to stay above 1000 feet to avoid being hit. FLAK FIRE Flak guns were designed in WWII to shoot down enemy aircraft (mostly bombers). They work by firing like a shotgun, hurling small bombs into the air which detonate at a certain height, spraying shrapnel. In the game you don't have to worry about the splash effect from the explosions (the bits that fly out and cut you plane into small parts), but the explosions can damage you, and quite a bit too! The solution, fly underneath or over the top. Flak guns pose their biggest threat as mentioned before, when attacking any bombers you may be escorting. In this case it is far easier just to take out the offending gun itself. Of course, these blinding levels of violence and human carnage is not all one way. So what's the best way of shooting down other planes and destroying ground targets? MISSILE LOCK: The normal way of destroying the enemy is through your standard heat seekers, and the way to get them to hit is to achieve a missile lock. If there are numerous targets in front of you, the game automatically selects one. This is not always the sensible one such as a TGT, press triangle to switch through available targets. **NOTE- The game has a slight bug that sometimes makes it impossible to target the thing you want, you could keep pressing triangle forever and it would not select, even if it is the only target on screen and is perfectly legal with your active weapon. To get around this, either simply ignore it and come back later, or circle around, come back and have another shot, the last option is to get up close and give it a damn good gunning. You will know when you have a missile lock as the target will turn red and a rhombus appears in it's box. Hit the circle button to fire a missile (**NOTE- it normally takes two missiles to destroy a enemy plane and anything from one to three missiles to destroy your average ground facility. Missiles come in range at about 5200 feet (one mile). GUN RANGE: Unlike the missiles, your gun is unguided. Get within about 2600 feet and a small circle with a dot in it's centre will appear. Get the enemy plane inside this dot and hold down X to fire. This way takes longer, but it also has infinite bullets providing you are not playing on Expert or Ace. There are also some medals you can get for destroying enemies just by using your guns. (Thanks to Ryan for the more accurate distances) SPECIAL WEAPONS RANGE: There are several special weapons, each with a different way to deploy them and are covered in their relative sections in the walkthrough. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - So that's the basics of destroying enemies, but if you want to try something more adventurous then heading for their six and shooting then read on! BIDE YOUR TIME: The second a bogy comes in missile range doesn't mean you have to fire at it you know, follow its movement, turning in the same arc and stay behind it (don't try to overtake GT fans!). Eventually the enemy plane will level out use this opportunity to launch a few heat-seekers his way, or blast him with your guns. INTERCEPTION: Sometimes you will see a plane flying straight for you, capitalise on this and match their altitude. When they come in range of your missiles let rip and turn away at an angle to avoid the wreckage. DUMMY SHOTS: If your enemy is red on the radar you probably only need to lightly spray bullets his way to have him ejecting in fear. However, for some reason you can't get him in your gun range. Fire a missile at him to make him evade it a steep turn, follow his bend and fire your gun to bring him down, (fire at the wings remember, you don't want to kill him do you?) **NOTE- Don't do this trick on long missions where you need all the missile you can get. ATTACK: One pilot being evil and not letting you kill him? The remedy, switch to attack mode and instead of one plane after him, he has four, laugh wildly at his expense as he crashes to earth in a blazing ball of death. Then remember the children you just robbed of a parent, you monster! WHIRLY BIRDS: Helicopters as you are no doubt aware have the annoying ability to hover, sometimes if you are going fast or there's a group of them you can fly right past them without firing a shot. Instead switch to your XLAAs and take the group out at once. From Ryan: 6) I came up with a rather interesting strategy that, for people who are truly the ace of aces, could be slightly rewarding for Mission 13: Demons of Razgriz. Select the MiG-31M for your plane (simply because it has more regular missiles), and after the mid-air refueling, fly towards the sub at approximately heading 305. It should be noted now that for this to work, you MUST stay on the Afterburner the entire time until you shoot the Hrimfaxi the first time. After destroying the first picket sub, fly north and get the next picket sub, and then get the next two picket subs that lie counterclockwise from there (all-in-all, you should get 4 picket subs before heading for the Hrimfaxi). After the fourth picket sub, fly straight towards the Hrimfaxi, and when you approach it, line up the target so that you can hit it with guns while still flying at full speed. If done right, you should be able to fire 2 missiles and strafe with guns to "kill" the Hrimfaxi with 1-2 seconds to spare. Also, once you start attacking the Hrimfaxi when it fires back, you can use the XLAA's to attack it, just make sure there are no UAVs within lock-on sight, put the Whisky Mark dead center on the Hrimfaxi, and fire the XLAA's at the sub, 4 at a time. It should do moderate damage with a little luck. What makes this strategy a challenge is now you've only got regular missiles and guns to deal with the SAMs and AA Guns on the Hrimfaxi. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - There are a lot of ground targets in the game, the most efficient way to destroy them is to use missiles, still there are a large amount of special weapons that can be used to get rid of either large groups of ground enemies, or single ones from a distance. These are all explained in the aircraft section. However do you know how to bomb targets? If no then welcome to the bombing master class! The first thing to do is make sure you are using a plane that carries bombs, not air to surface or air to air missiles. The code for an unguided bomb falls into three categories: UGB - Your standard unguided bomb these will destroy any targets underneath or in the immediate area. UGBL - You guessed it, a big bomb for big damage, anything near it is destroyed. PGB - Precision guided bomb, the piper locks onto a target, acts a bit like a air-to-surface missile only without the range. But how do you use bombs? That's the easy bit, hit select to use your special weapon, a small dotted line with a large circle and a dot appear. The line is the bombs decent path, make sure that there are no obstructions along any of it. The small dot in the middle of the larger circle is where the bomb is estimated to land, the big circle itself is the splash zone (or the area that is affected by the bomb). When using them, try to aim for groups of enemies for the best effect. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 2d. Wingman Control ------------------------------------------------- BC05 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- One of the major changes from previous Ace Combat games, is that this one allows you to have wingmen instead of you being just a lone fighter. This all may seem unnecessary and there are hundreds of ways they could have got this wrong, but Namco have pulled it off perfectly. At the start of the game you are not the leader of your squadron and are playing wingman to your commanding officer Capt. Bartlett with the callsign Heart Break One. You cannot give any orders at that point, but fairly soon into the game you get promoted and have full control over the squadron. Your wingmen are all far superior to the other AI aircraft and cannot be damaged. They are also very good at taking down the odd fighter and although by the game's end you should have a kill rate in the hundreds and they will be lucky to get past twenty they are still very useful and shouldn't be neglected. There are several orders you can give to your wingmen these are given by pressing any direction on the D pad, then pressing the order you wish to give. **NOTE- These orders with the exception of SPW can only be used one at a time. ATK (Attack) - Press any D pad button and then up, you wingmen will now become aggressive and attack any planes in front of you or them, then continue to attack other targets. DSP (Disperse) - Used when there is a large combat area, your team stop covering each others backs and move off to separate parts of the map and destroy stuff. Activate this command by hitting left on the order menu. Remember that this can leave you with no one shooting down aircraft behind you and as a result you get more missiles thrown at you (just). CVR (Cover) - Handy for battles against small amounts of fighters and the opposite of attack. Your team will engage any targets that get a missile lock on you. This is very much over looked in the game put can be an extremely effective way of luring planes away from something you are escorting and then have your wingmen pick them off as they follow you. SPW (Special Weapons) - This can be used at anytime with any other formation order. Activating this allows your wingmen to attack with either bombs, air-to- ground missiles or whatever other special weapon their aircraft carries. Some people are not fond of using there wingmen and often leave them on cover or disperse since they only manage about one kill each per mission. This is fine and there are no negative effects for not using them. =============================================================================== 3. CHARACTERS ------------------------------------------------------------- CH01 =============================================================================== The first AC game to actually have interesting characters* (one of the things definitely lacking in previous instalments), and pulls it off extremely well. Here's a short synopsis of each of the main characters and even their mysterious first names (if they have them then I'll find them eventually) * - This statement is true only if you didn't get to play the JPN AC03. For reasons best known to themselves Namco saw fit to remove the story from the other releases. Thanks Namco :? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3a. Kei Nagase (Edge) ----------------------------------------------- CH02 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Osean Age: 23 Height: 167cm Weight: 47kg Hair Colour: Black Eye Colour: Brown Blood Type: A One of your wingmen for the game, Edge is an extremely skilled fighter pilot and was the only trainee to survive the surprise attack on Sand Island. Kei blames herself for the downing (and possible death) of her Captain, and refuses to take a promotion to squadron leader in favour of staying the number 2 plane (the guard for the number 1) to prove to others and herself that she can guard her wingmen. She has a love of peace and a strong supporter of President Harling's anti-war policies, which is presumably why she joined the airforce :? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3b. Alvin H. Davernport (Chopper) ----------------------------------- CH03 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Osean Age: 29 Height: 185cm Weight: 89kg Hair Colour: Black Eye Colour: Blue Blood Type: B The number 3 wingman, Alvin H Davernport is set in to rock and roll (hence 'Chopper'). He looked up to Captain Bartlett a lot as a 'bad mouthed, good- natured leader'. He seems to like Blaze, but not respect him as Captain of the Squadron. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3c. Hans Grimm (Archer) --------------------------------------------- CH04 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Osean Age: 19 Height: 163cm Weight: 52kg Hair Colour: Brown Eye Colour: Green Blood Type: AB Only a trainee pilot in reserve at the start, Grimm becomes a member of the squadron early in the game. His is the youngest survivor in the squadron (although he was on the ground at the time of the attack), Grimm has an older brother in the army which was his cause for signing up. Grimm is a shy and his in flight emotions seem to range from mild panic to absolute trauma. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3d. Jack Bartlett (Heartbreak 1) (obsolete - Kid) ------------------- CH05 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Osean (fine, he's Osean, happy!) Age: 42 Height: 178cm Weight: 70kg Hair Colour: Black / Grey Eye Colour: Brown Blood Type: O One of the OADF's (Osean Air Defence Force) most notorious pilots. He made his name as one of Osea's top aces in the Belkan war 15 years ago, where he quickly rose to the rank of captain. Now firmly set into his ways, Bartlett has never been promoted, and fifteen years after the war ended, Bartlett is more notorious for his lack of respect for the chain of command, and his inability to follow orders. At the end of the Belkan War, Bartlett was shot down by a mysterious Belkan pilot named Ashley, along with another Belkan aircraft. He and the Belkan defector, known by his callsign 'Hukbien' made it back to the allied front. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3e. Blaze ----------------------------------------------------------- CH06 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Osean Our mysterious pilot, all we know about Blaze it that we almost defiantly see him in the crew quarters at the start of the game, there is a shot of the entire room with every surviving trainee and a few trainers with Bartlett. Blaze has to be one of these. We never hear him talk in the game, although judging by the answers that your wingmen give you, Blaze seems to reply more then the generic 'Yes' or 'No' that we pick out. Blaze is the Squadron Leader for most of the game. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3f. Marcus Snow (Swordsman) ----------------------------------------- CH07 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Osean Age: 34 Height: 190cm Weight: 85kg Hair Colour: Black Eye Colour: Brown Blood Type: A From a squadron of the Naval Air Force, Snow now flies alone after the slow destruction of his team-mates. Snow is an extremely talented pilot who is loyal to his commanding officer, but will not blindly follow orders and is not afraid to answer back if he doesn't agree. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3g. Allen C Hamilton ------------------------------------------------ CH08 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Belkan Age: 28 Height: 178cm Weight: 65kg Hair Colour: Blond Eye Colour: Green Blood Type: AB After the first war between Belka, and the rest of the continant, Hamilton was recruited by Osea into a secret squadron of Belkan Aces to strengthen their Air Force. The Squadron, named the 8492nd never officially existed and when the ruling of the country changed hands, the knowledge of the squadron went with it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3h. Orson Perrault -------------------------------------------------- CH09 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Osean Age: 48 Height: 180cm Weight: 106kg Hair Colour: Brown Eye Colour: Green Blood Type: O Chubby, rash and unsubtle, the Base Commander of Sand Island is not well respected and he knows it. He is a warmonger that prefers to have the air force working in combat rather then being there for defence. After the Cirern-Pacific war begins, he tries his best to increase morale. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3i. Peter N. Beagle (Pops) (obsolete -- Hukbien)--------------------- CH10 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Belkan Age: 56 Height: 170.5cm Weight: 73kg Hair Colour: Black Eye Colour: Blue Blood Type: B Formally one of the most skilled pilots in the Belkan Air Force, he refused to drop a nuclear bomb on a civilian city in Belka, for this he was marked as a traitor becoming infamous and hated throughout the Belkan military. Sentenced to death he escaped in a stolen fighter, but was shot down along with Bartlett who was also in the area, by the Pride of Belka, the Grabacr Squadron. Pops is still a brilliant fighter pilot, however spends most of his time as the Sand Island Base Mechanic. He looks after all of his planes dearly, large or small. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3j. AWACS (Thunderhead) --------------------------------------------- CH11 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Osean As head of a battlefield the people inside this AWACs observe, give and relay orders. Most pilots believe them to be slightly incapable and insensitive. He is the type that will always follow the order of the most superior officer, even against his gut feelings. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3k. AWACS (Oka Nieba) ----------------------------------------------- CH12 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Yuktobanian Translated as 'Sky Eye' or 'Eye of Heaven' this aircraft's name is a nod to the AWACs from AC04. From Thomas Kaluzny: "Oka Nieba" is actually a Polish word (yeah I'm Polish) and is really translated to "Eye of Heaven." -- This is interesting, I actually thought Oka Nieba was just made up, it shows how much detail is put into the game. From Neil H: A more likely explanation for the 'Oka Nieba' AWAC is that Yuktobania was part of the ISAF during the war in AC04. Sky Eye's lack of an accent in that game could simply be because he is talking in his own language; after all, we don't know what the spoken language in Usea is. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3l. Capt. Nicholas A. Andersen -------------------------------------- CH13 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Osean Age: 61 Height: 177cm Weight: 72kg Hair Colour: Grey Eye Colour: Blue Blood Type: A The Captain of the OMDF (Osean Martine Defence Force) / OMS (Osean Martine Service) Aircraft Carrier Kestrel. A veteran of the Belkan War, Anderson follows his heart and instinct more then the orders he is given. He is thought of as a skilled captain, and respected by his crew, although disliked by airforce hawks like Perrault who claim he shies out of combat. Also, did anyone else in the UK notice the striking resemblance between himself and the good Captain Birdseye? Just an observation. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3m. President Vincent Harling --------------------------------------- CH14 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Osean The twice-elected president of Osea, Harling has a strong peace plan which reduces the amount spent in defence and uses it to help rebuild a new continent with such projects as the Arkbird* and it's Mass Driver. Harling's views towards peace have made him unpopular with some of his Generals and other leading Osean military figures. * The Arkbird is a peacetime joint-project with Yuktobania based off the plans for the Belkan strike craft the Hresvelgr. Later it's laser is from the Belkan defense platform the Excalibur ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3n. Prime Minister Seryozha Viktrovich Nikanor ---------------- CH15 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Yuktobanian The elected Prime Minister of Yuktobania, he has strong anti-war policies like Harling's. As a figurehead of the Yuktobanian Government, he was one of the main figures involved in keeping the alliance between Osea and Yuktobania strong after the end of the Belkan War. His peace policies, like Harling make him unpopular with his own military. Nikanor appears to have a loose grasp on his countries military and was unable to stop production of huge arms production plants and the advanced Scinfaxi-class underwater attack carriers. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3o. Major Natashya -------------------------------------------------- CH16 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Yuktobanian - - (SPOILERS!) A Recon Major in the Yuktobanian army, she objected to the military government and joined the resistance, after learning of the Yuke forces betrayal of their Prime Minister, she stole several secret files and went renegade. She also has a history with Bartlett as the one who broke his heart 15 years ago. (END SPOILERS!) - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3p. Albert Genette -------------------------------------------------- CH17 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Osean Age: 32 Height: 174cm Weight: 58kg Hair Colour: Brown Eye Colour: Blue Blood Type: O A reporter looking for his big break, he goes to Sand Island in search of the unique Squadron leader there. Later he becomes entangled with the events of the war, publishing 'The Four Wings of Sand Island' and joining the official Osean Press Corps. Genette acts as the narrator of much of the game. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 3q. Kirk ------------------------------------------------------------ CH18 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nationality: Osean Age: 7 Height: 53.5cm Weight: 31kg Hair Colour: Black Eye Colour: Brown Blood Type: 1.1B Pop's loyal companion and known in the Sand Island base, Kirk stays with Pops and the other members of the Squadron through thick and thin. =============================================================================== 4. THE STORY SO FAR ------------------------------------------------------- SY01 =============================================================================== It is important to understand the back story if you want to understand what the game is about. Although the game does it well, here is a little recap about what's happening. Check out iceblue's excellent rundown of the game area http://db.gamefaqs.com/console/ps2/file/ace_combat_5_world.png ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 4a. The Background -------------------------------------------------- SY02 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The year is 1989, in the small northern country known as the Principality of Belka. In an effort to keep the nation afloat politically, a Federal Law Review was enacted, with disastrous results. In the economic panic, the government was ousted, and before another was elected Belka was seized in a Coup by an extremist Right Wing faction, possibly supported by the Belkan crime organisation the Grey Men. Belka began to stabilise and over 6 years reached new levels of growth, most prominently in it's armed force of which it developed both conventional, nuclear and more unorthodox weapons. And late in 1995, Belka began to invade it's bordering nations, beginning a conflict remembered as the Belkan War. After crushing their rivals, the twin super-powers The Osean Federation and the Union of Yuketobanian Republics both pooled their resources, and declared war on Belka. After some hard fought battles, the two countries, with support from rebels in the nations already occupied by Belka began to gain the upper hand, and soon Belka was pushed back. Over the course of the war, Belka developed even more advanced weapons, and often the Allies would lose ground, but over sheer numbers pushed the Belkans back to Stier, close to the Belkan capital of Sundentor. To stop the advance any further, Belka dropped seven nuclear bombs on it's border, destroying the Belakan cities there, and making an impassable barrier. The Belkans head effectively sealed themselves into the northern regions, where in-fighting consumed their cities. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 4b. Osea and Yuktobania --------------------------------------------- SY03 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Osean Federation Captial - Oured Union of Yuktobanian Republics Capital - Cinigrad After the Belkan conflict both Osea and Yuktobania were allies, but also extremely weak. As they both slowly rebuilt their strength, they elected anti-war head of Governments and their armies never had the same strength again. They also, having watched the destruction of seven Belkan cites, dismantled and destroyed their nuclear weapons. In an effort to rebuild their air force after the war, both countries secretly recruited a Squadron of Belkan Aces, before their peaceful governments got into power. All evidence of this was destroyed in both countries and all knowledge of these two mysterious squadrons disappeared. Following the end of the Belkan war, Osea gained the former Belkan region of South Belka and was renamed North Osea. Osea, also gained several Belkan companies (mainly advanced technology companies) such as Grunder Industries, a former Government sponsored research and development company that gave Belka an undeniable edge during the war. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 4c. Belka ----------------------------------------------------------- SY04 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Principality of Belka Capital - Dinsmark After the destruction of their country, the Belkans have a hatred for Osea and Yuktobania. After the unexpected crash of it's economy following a Federal Law review, Belka was caught in a coup d'etat and prepared for war. During the war the Belkans managed to capture a sizable amount of land, however after the superpowers of Osea and Yuktobania joined the battle odds fell out of Belka's favour. As they were pushed back to their central mountain range, they dropped seven nuclear weapons on their own surrounding towns, creating an impassable barrier to the lands to the north. Now Belka is a shell of it's former self, with few population centres and a working government left in the icy north and much of the land in the south in the boundaries of seceded nations and the superpower of Osea, Belka is believed by all but the most patriotic as a thing of the past. =============================================================================== 5. THE AIRCRAFT ----------------------------------------------------------- AR01 =============================================================================== ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 5p2. The Weapons of the Game ------------------------------------------ AR02 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- There are enough weapons in the game to keep even the most trigger happy pilot occupied. Weapons are divided into three categories. Guns, Missiles and Special weapons, the latter of which are activated by pressing select; to make your wingman activate theirs, you must turn on the SPL option by pressing left on the D-pad, they will then use a mix of all three types of weapons available. So, here is a list of every weapon available, remember you cannot choose which weapon you want on your plane this time around, you get what the aircraft comes with. Key for special weapons ======================= Damage - The damage done to targets on impact Hone - The ability that the missile has of honing on the target Blast - The radius of damage the bomb/missile does on impact Number - The number of weapons you get over how effective it is Overall- How useful the weapon is when you consider all its aspects GUNS Vulcan Cannon: The Vulcan cannon is mounted on the front of every aircraft. If you are playing on very easy to hard it will have infinite rounds, if you are on expert or ace then it will have a limit. The cannon is very effective at close range, however hopeless at a distance. It does pay to practice using it though as (surprisingly to some people) it can be just as useful as missiles. For more information on using your guns go to the 'Basic Training Section' (find and BC04) and look at Gun Range. MISSILES Missiles: Damage : 3/5 Hone : 3/5 Number : 5/5 Overall: 4/5 Description: Your missiles are your basic mid range weapon. From a missile lock at around 2500 feet one press of the circle button and the missile will hone in on the target. Missiles can be used for both AA and AG attacks. SPECIALS SAAM: Semi-Active Air-to-Air Missile (SEMI TRACKING) Damage : 4/5 Hone : 3/5 Number : 4/5 Overall: 4/5 Description: A very useful long range weapon, however it needs to be keep within a tracking circle in order to be effective. This can be annoying if you have to make a quick turn to evade a missile. Overall, these make a good compliment to your normal missiles and guns as a long range alternative. However this weapon is overshadowed by the XLAA. Comes with: F-20A, Mirage-2000, F-14A, Mig-31, F-15C, Su-27, Su-47 XLAA: Advanced Long Range Air-to-Air Missile (FIRE AND FORGET) Damage : 4/5 Hone : 4/5 Number : 4/5 Overall: 4/5 Description: The great thing about these missiles is that you can lock on almost as soon as you see these targets, and from the distance it gives the missiles a great chance to line up with the target. However, get too close to the target and your missiles will sail right past them. Comes with: F-14D, Mig-31M, Su-35, Typhoon, X-02 XMAA: Advanced Medium-range Air-to-Air Missile (FIRE AND FORGET) Damage : 4/5 Hone : 3/5 Number : 4/5 Overall: 3/5 Description: A cross breed between the normal and XLAA. Incorporating multi-targeting and and long range attacks. This weapon can be useful from a distance on a formation of planes or helicopters, but as soon as you get in close then it becomes next to useless. Again, this acts as a supplement to your regular missiles and cannons rather then solely depending on it. Comes with: F-4X, F-16C B60, F/A-18E, TND-F3, F-15S/MTD, F/A-22A QAAM: Quick-manoeuvre Air-to-Air Missile (FIRE AND FORGET) Damage : 4/5 Hone : 5/5 Number : 4/5 Overall: 3/5 Description: If you played Ace Combat 4 then you may remember the ferocity of these things. They literally could bring down the entire Yellow Squadron in a matter of minutes. Well they have been scaled down now, so they don't have the turning circle of a fighter and seem to go slightly slower then last time. However, they are still excellent for firing at targets very quickly to track and thin out the number of enemies in a large air battle. Comes with: X-29A, Mig-21-93, Su-37, YF-223A, S-32, Hawk NPB: Napalm Bomb Damage : 1/5 Blast : 1/5 Number : 4/5 Overall: 1/5 Description: A small bomb fitted to fighters you get early in the game. They are just like a small unguided bomb only the damage and explosion radius is less. However you get several of these bombs per plane (and you will need most of them if you want to cause some damage). Comes with: F-4e RCL: Rocket Launcher Damage : 2/5 Blast : 1/5 Number : 3/5 Overall: 2/5 Description: Not the most useful of weapons, these actually function more like missiles. Aim the reticule at what you are shooting at and a volley of unguided rockets are launched. These are useful against armoured ground targets like bunkers and pillboxes, however they are usless against moving targets, especially air targets due to their size and movement. Come with: Mig-21 BIS, JAS-39C UGB: Unguided Bomb (Small) Damage : 2/5 Blast : 2/5 Number : 3/5 Overall: 2/5 Description: One step up from the NPB, it has a larger explosive range as well as more damage handed out, it still however is not good against groups of targets as the range of the blast will not encompass more then a few square metres. The bomb is best used to strike lone stationary, or slow moving ground targets. The useful thing about this bomb is that you get two per wing, this means that if there does happen to be a group of the aforementioned lone stationary or slow moving ground targets, then you can wipe out the lot of them in one run. Comes with: F-5E, F-16C, Mig-29A UGBL: Unguided Bomb (Large) Damage : 4/5 Blast : 4/5 Number : 3/5 Overall: 4/5 Description: The UGBL is without a doubt one of the best bombs in the game, dropping them will cause a large damage area destroying whatever maybe underneath. This weapon will be most useful on missions that concentrate on bombing targets within a close area, for instance on Four Horsemen. The only problem being that you are only given a small number of the bombs so you may find yourself running short mid- mission. Come with: A-6E, Mirage-2000D, MIG-1.44 FAEB: Fuel Air Explosive Bomb Damage : 1-5/5 Blast : 5/5 Number : 2/5 Overall: 3/5 Description: The Fuel Air bomb used to be one of the best weapons in AC4, however it's effectiveness has been drastically reduced thanks to a new system of damage. Instead of doing a set amount of damage in one large area, the damage now changes between each dropping and the area within the blast itself. So you may end up being able to wipe out a bunker with one shot or not even destroy an AA gun. Therefore the weapon is too unpredictable, despite the possibility of a wide damage area. Comes with: YA-10B LASM: Long Range Air to Surface Missile Damage : 3/5 Blast : 1/5 Number : 3/5 Overall: 3/5 Description: Although it can be used to destroy long-range, hardened targets such as pillboxes, the LASM really shines in anti-ship roles. Although the damage done is not huge, it is enough to take out any ship (and it's weapons) in one or two shots depending in the difficulty. Comes with: F-2A, F/A-18C, Rafale M, F-35C LAGM: Long Range Air-to-Ground Missile Damage : 3/5 Blast : 1/5 Number : 2/5 Overall: 2/5 Description: Similar to the LASM, but can attack several targets at once. While this is handy for attacking a large portion of the battlefield, you may find it easier and kinder to your special weapon reserves to use bombs instead. The lack of planes this weapon comes with also means that you may not have much of a choice put to not use it. Comes with: F-4g XAGM: Advanced Air-to-Ground Missile Damage : 3/5 Blast : 2/5 Number : 3/5 Overall: 4/5 Description: The main benefit of this weapon is its trajectory. The missile will fly straight and level until it is a few metres away from the target, then it dives down and impacts this means that it can avoid dangerous terrain and also allows you to stay out of the way of well placed SAMs. The only problem with this weapon is that you will find that after a few full target launches you have run out. Still this remains my favourite air-to-ground weapon, well perhaps... Comes with: F-16XL, A-10, Su-32 GPB: Guided Penetrating Bomb Damage : 5/5 Blast : 2/5 Number : 3/5 Overall: 3/5 Description: If there's one thing this game is not short of, it's bombs, bombs and missiles. This particular one is, as the name suggests one used in penetrating hardened bunkers such as pillboxes. This means that you don't have to fire two missiles at them to get rid of them. They don't have much of a damage radius however so it is another one target kill per bomb weapon. Since it only comes with the F-14b and the F-117a with are both... well, rubbish you may not be using it too much. Comes with: F-14b, F-117a BDSP: Bomblet Dispenser Damage : 3/5 Blast : 1/5 Number : 4/5 Overall: 2/5 Description: If you are going for a long mission with a lot of bombing in it, then you will want something that is going to last, that you get more then just a few shots before you are out. This weapon is ideal for that role, although you have to trade off some damage. The bombletts are dispersed over your flight path, but the only way the weapon is useful is if the targets are in one long straight line, which most of the time they aren't. You also have to fly slowly and quite low to be accurate, and moving off the flight path will waste your shot so it gives a great opportunity for SAMs and AA guns to damage or destroy you. Fortunately it is only for one plane and chances are you will very rarely use it. Comes with: TND-GR1 SFFS: Self-forging Fragment Submunitions Damage : 2/5 Blast : 5/5 Number : 2/5 Overall: 3/5 Description: If somebody told you that self-forging fragment submunitions were about to fall on you, you would be more then a little afraid. Unfortunately it is just a fancy name for a cluster bomb, which is still bad news if it is falling towards you. It works in a similar way to that of a bomblett dispenser, only does less damage. Comes with: F-15E SOD: Stand-Off Dispenser Damage : 2/5 Blast : 5/5 Number : 2/5 Overall: 3/5 Description: There is not much to say about this weapon apart from it is another weapon just like the BDSP only the dispenser is actually released from the plane, this allows you to fire from a distance and not be destroyed by any defences nearby. However, an unpredictable range of damage means that unless you are aiming for a large group of targets, you may miss. This weapon is not suitable to destroy single targets due to the possibility that you may miss what you are aiming for all together. Comes with: TND-GR 4, Rafale B, FB-22 ECMP: Electronic Countermeasures Pod Damage : 0/5 Blast : 0/5 Number : 3/5 Overall: 2/5 Description: This is not an offensive weapon but instead blocks any missile attacks on you for a few seconds. Ooh, that's useful I hear you cry. Actually it isn't. Efforts to try to think about something useful to say about it usually cumulates in a headache. My advice, dodge the missiles yourself. I guess if you are really bad at evading missiles then this may come in handy, perhaps. Comes with: EA-6B, EA-18G, TND-ECR TLS: Tactical Laser Damage : 5/5 Blast : 3/5 Number : 3/5 Overall: 5/5 Description: This is less of a laser and more of a sustained beam of focused death. This only comes attached to the Falken and is the most overpowered weapon in the game. It works in a simmiler way to the vulcan canno surprisingly. When the weapon is fired the shot extends from the aircraft from around 2500 directly ahead and extends to around 10000 feet. Any target that it hits is destroyed as good as instantly, even the gun towers in the mission Aces don't last more then half a second to it. This makes it very good for sweeping a lot of ground targets from a distance. It is harder to aim at an aircraft but not by much. Slightly too overpowered for my tastes and one of the main reasons I personally hardly ever use the Falken. Come with: Falken ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 5p1. The Aircraft of the Game -------------------------------------- AR03 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- There are a total of 53 playable aircraft in the game. On your first playthrough you will get the majority of the of them. When you complete the game, play though the missions you didn't get on Free Mission and volia! You now have all the first branch aircraft. But what are all these other spaces you ask. To unlock the other planes you have to fill up the small bar below it. To do this kills as many things as you can, the best way of doing this is in Free Mission and Ace mode. The following missions are in my opinion the best for advancing the kill bar: Desert Thunder, Journey Home, Sea of Chaos, Aces and The Unsung War. For Reference: -------------------------------------------------------------------- Xx1. NAME OF PLANE ------------------------------------------- XX01 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 1* ANTI-AIR --- 5* STABILITY --- 2* ANTI-GROUND --- 6* MOBILITY --- 3* DEFENCE --- 4* MISSILES --- 7* SPECICAL --- 7* 8* OS: Osean paint scheme RZ: Razgriz paint scheme YK/SP/BK: Yuke, Special or Belkan paint scheme UNLOCK BY --- How to unlock aircraft COST --- How much the aircraft costs OVERALL --- 0/100 1* - The planes effectiveness at high speed, acceleration and top speed rating 2* - How slowly the plane can go before it stalls. Often higher for bombers 3* - The ease in which a plane turns. The higher the value the better it can keep up to and out turn aircraft in dogfights. Normally higher in fighters 4* - How much damage an aircraft can take. For instance an AA round may do 36% damage with an aircraft with a low rating, but only 17% to a high one. once again normally higher for bombers 5* - On average judging by: speed, mobility, missile number and type and number of special weapons how good the aircraft is at handling dog fighting. 6* - On average judging by: speed, stability, defence and number of special weapons how competent an aircraft is at destroying ground targets 7* - Number of missiles available in the aircraft. 8* - Number of special weapons available in the aircraft. **NOTE: The anti-air and anti-ground values have no effect on your aircraft, instead it governs how well your wingmen perform and what they focus on. For instance a wingman in an aircraft with an AA value of 80 will destroy more targets then one with 20. Also, depending on which stat is higher AA or AG will depend what your wingmen do. For instance, on a mission like Operation Footprint, give your crew A-10s and they will bomb ground targets a lot more then if they were in F-14s. **FAQ- How do I unlock the next plane in an aircraft family? - A: Look at the most recent aircraft of that family that you have unlocked. There is a bar underneath called the 'kill-bar', the more targets you destroy the more it advances until it is full and a new aircraft becomes available. After you finish the game play through some of the more enemy heavy missions to progress this bar. The kill bar must be completely full before a new aircraft is unlocked. When this is done, you should get a confirming message, the aircraft is then available to buy from the relevant menu. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 5a. F-5 Family -------------------------------------------------------- AR04 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ============================ F-5e > F-20a > X-29a ============================ The F-5 family is the first aircraft type available to you, for the first few missions you are forced to choose the F-5e. Using it you unlock the next tier (the F-20a) fairly quickly, however I would not recommend buying it until the end of the game. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5a1. F-5e Tiger II ------------------------------------------- AR05 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 62 ANTI-AIR --- 22 STABILITY --- 60 ANTI-GROUND --- 47 MOBILITY --- 32 DEFENCE --- 43 MISSILES --- 52 SPECICAL --- 12 UGB OS: Light/Dark blue camouflage RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Black/Grey camouflage UNLOCK BY --- Available at start COST --- 8100 (4 available from start) OVERALL --- 26/100 The first plane that you will ever fly in Ace Combat 5. It handles as you would imagine the first plane would: slow to turn, low yaw rate and not too fast. It is however better then the alternative you get after mission 3, it also comes with dual cannons and with a small surface area, you will get hit by other planes guns a lot less. This aircraft is surprisingly useful for the first few missions. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5a2. F-20a Tigershark ---------------------------------------- AR06 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 73 ANTI-AIR --- 60 STABILITY --- 60 ANTI-GROUND --- 25 MOBILITY --- 43 DEFENCE --- 46 MISSILES --- 60 SPECICAL --- 10 SAAM OS: Light/Dark blue camouflage RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Dark blue with white tail stripe UNLOCK BY --- Filling F-5e kill bar COST --- 11900 OVERALL --- 30/100 Chances are that you have unlocked this plane by the end of the game but not bought it. The plane combines a good level of speed, stability and damage resistance for an early plane, but it is also overshadowed by what you will already have when you get around to buying it. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5a3. X-29a --------------------------------------------------- AR07 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 73 ANTI-AIR --- 76 STABILITY --- 47 ANTI-GROUND --- 40 MOBILITY --- 71 DEFENCE --- 49 MISSILES --- 60 SPECICAL --- 10 QAAM OS: Light/Dark blue camouflage RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare SP: White body with red and blue stripes UNLOCK BY --- Filling F-20a kill bar COST --- 17100 OVERALL --- 33/100 The problem with all of the lower tier aircraft is that although they are not bad planes they are out matched in later levels by both enemy planes and the planes that you have. Therefore they are best suited to be used in a second playthrough. The aircraft itself is fast and very mobile, its size also lets it dodge AA fire paticully well. This aircraft makes an interesting alternative to the Rafale in the mission Aces. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 5b. F-4 Family -------------------------------------------------------- AR08 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ================================================= F-4e Phantom II > F-4g Wild Weasel > F-4x ================================================= You will recognise this as the plane that Bartlett was flying when he lead the squadron at the start of the game, this family of aircraft is in my opinion a step down from the F-5 family with similar characteristics but far bigger and bulkier. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5b1. F-4e Phantom II ----------------------------------------- AR09 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 63 ANTI-AIR --- 25 STABILITY --- 46 ANTI-GROUND --- 50 MOBILITY --- 32 DEFENCE --- 56 MISSILES --- 62 SPECICAL --- 10 NPB OS: Grey/Light blue cloud-type pattern RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Dark Blue with light blue decoration UNLOCK BY --- Complete Mission 3: Open War COST --- 10500 OVERALL --- 12/100 The only way this aircraft could be considered superior is if it were fighting a squadron of unarmed microlites with large banners saying 'We Surrender' while carrying huge bullseyes on them. Okay it's not that bad, but is it certainly not good. It takes forever to turn, doesn't yaw well, shakes around and cannot follow another plane around a turn more then 90 degrees. It also has the most pathetic bomb ever created, and a tiny amount of them. Avoid. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5b2. F-4g Wild Weasel ---------------------------------------- AR10 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 63 ANTI-AIR --- 17 STABILITY --- 55 ANTI-GROUND --- 68 MOBILITY --- 25 DEFENCE --- 68 MISSILES --- 64 SPECICAL --- 10 LAGM OS: Blue body, green tail flash RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare SP: Flower decoration UNLOCK BY --- Filling the F-4e kill bar COST --- 12800 OVERALL --- 8/100 This one is even worse then the F-4e. The plane has lost even more of it's turning ability, it is huge and gets hit by machine guns a lot, it so slow you can run faster and has the most pathetic Anti Aircraft ability ever seen. The only way it maybe useful is on a bombing mission set your wingmen on Cover and bomb from a height. If you attempt to go low you will get shot by all the AA guns there and find yourself hard pushed to even dodge a normal missile. On the other hand it does come with a hippy special pattern, woo >.> -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5b3. F-4x ---------------------------------------------------- AR11 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 83 ANTI-AIR --- 73 STABILITY --- 61 ANTI-GROUND --- 37 MOBILITY --- 54 DEFENCE --- 60 MISSILES --- 70 SPECICAL --- 10 XMAA OS: Blue body RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Light/Dark blue camouflage UNLOCK BY --- Filling the F-4g kill bar COST --- 16900 OVERALL --- 38/100 The F-4 finally gets the anti-aircraft overhaul is so desperately needed. Although it's still as big as football pitch it does now have a good speed and its mobility allows it to turn and yaw a lot better. It has had a slight lowering in defence, and guns are still going to hit you a lot in this thing, but it is a vast improvement from the last two in it's family. Unfortunalty it is likely that you have stopped caring about this family of aircraft long before you get it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 5c. MIG-21 Family ----------------------------------------------------- AR12 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ================================= MiG-21bis Fishbed > MiG-21-93 ================================= The MiGs in my opinion are too similar to the F-5 to be worth bothering about when you start the game. However they are small, relatively fast and well armoured; but so are the F-5's, and you get those for free. Overall they are not really worth buying until a second playthrough. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5c1. MIG-21bis Fishbed --------------------------------------- AR13 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 73 ANTI-AIR --- 22 STABILITY --- 29 ANTI-GROUND --- 47 MOBILITY --- 35 DEFENCE --- 42 MISSILES --- 56 SPECICAL --- 08 RCL OS: Green camouflage RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Silver body black tail stripe UNLOCK BY --- Complete Mission 3: Open War COST --- 7600 OVERALL --- 23/100 Although this aircraft is very cheap it is also exactly like the F-5 in almost every way. It does have slightly better speed, but is slow to turn and has a poor special weapon. It is not made for dog fighting which is what tends to happen when you get in this aircraft. Superior to the F-5, in terms of ability, but only statistically, chances are you won't feel much difference except your pockets are slightly lighter when you choose the MiG. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5c2. MIG-21 -------------------------------------------------- AR14 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 73 ANTI-AIR --- 82 STABILITY --- 59 ANTI-GROUND --- 46 MOBILITY --- 74 DEFENCE --- 63 MISSILES --- 72 SPECICAL --- 12 QAAM OS: Green/Grey RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Leopard skin decoration UNLOCK BY --- Fill the MiG-21 kill bar COST --- 19200 OVERALL --- 36/100 Although this aircraft is a significant step up from the MiG-21bis, it is manoeuvrable enough to keep up with some of the more agile fighters. Chances are, you won't have used the MiG-21bis enough to have unlocked this -21 yet. This is one of the best AA aircraft of the lower tiers but you may have to play free mission to unlock it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 5d. A-6 Family -------------------------------------------------------- AR15 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ================================= A-6e Intruder > EA-6B Prowler ================================= This family is the first bomber only family unlocked. It is also one of the worst families in the game. Nothing other then it's special weapon stands out as being useful, and is overshadowed by the far superior A-10 unlocked in only a few short missions. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5d1. A-6e Intruder ------------------------------------------- AR16 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 44 ANTI-AIR --- 15 STABILITY --- 51 ANTI-GROUND --- 61 MOBILITY --- 25 DEFENCE --- 68 MISSILES --- 60 SPECICAL --- 10 UGBL OS: Grey RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Light/Dark brown UNLOCK BY --- Complete mission 4: First Flight COST --- 11000 OVERALL --- 14/100 What lets this plane down most of all is it's top speed and mobility. It has a lot of trouble climbing and following enemy planes through turns. This means that you cannot repel enemies after a bombing run and have to rely on you wingmen shooting approaching planes before they reach you. If you are going to use this plane, it helps to have at least two squadron members in the a good anti-aircraft plane in order to balance out the stats. It is just easier in my oppion to use missiles and guns on enemy ground targets then use this. The redeeming feature of the plane however is it's 10 UGBLs. The damage caused by these can be very effective against groups of targets, but I just don't consider the trade-off of actually using it in the first place worth it. Quite expensive too. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5d2. EA-6B Prowler ------------------------------------------- AR17 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 49 ANTI-AIR --- 50 STABILITY --- 60 ANTI-GROUND --- 55 MOBILITY --- 54 DEFENCE --- 60 MISSILES --- 66 SPECICAL --- 05 ECMP OS: Light/Dark brown camouflage RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Light Orange UNLOCK BY --- Fill the A-6 kill bar COST --- 15200 OVERALL --- 34/100 Although much better then the A-6, this aircraft is sill plagued by poor speed, low mobility and has a bad special weapon. It is also a lot more expensive for what still remains a mediocre aircraft, although it has been improved to give it a chance against fighters, I'd still recommend not using this plane, even for a wingman. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 5e. F-16 Family ------------------------------------------------------- AR18 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ========================== > F-16c Block 60 F-16c > F-16xl > F-2a =========================== The F-16 family is easily the best air-to-air fighter in the early game. It is small and very fast. Easily worth the price that you pay for them. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5e1. F-16c Fighting Falcon ----------------------------------- AR19 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 73 ANTI-AIR --- 30 STABILITY --- 46 ANTI-GROUND --- 55 MOBILITY --- 44 DEFENCE --- 46 MISSILES --- 66 SPECICAL --- 14 UGB OS: Silver/Grey RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Green/Grey camouflage UNLOCK BY --- Complete mission 6: White Bird pt.i COST --- 12000 OVERALL --- 40/100 One of the best fighters from the early game. Although it doesn't have the highest anti-air value, it is fast, manoeuvrable, and well armed, although why it is fitted with bombs and not missiles is beyond me. The F-16c is undoubtedly the best of the first aircraft you get for AA missions. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5e2. F-16 Block60 Fighting Falcon ---------------------------- AR20 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 73 ANTI-AIR --- 76 STABILITY --- 60 ANTI-GROUND --- 40 MOBILITY --- 65 DEFENCE --- 49 MISSILES --- 68 SPECICAL --- 12 XMAA OS: Silver/Grey RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Blue camouflage UNLOCK BY --- Fill the F-16c kill bar COST --- 18100 OVERALL --- 49/100 There is not a lot of difference between the -16c and the Block 60. It does however have a better turning circle, good handling at both low and high speeds and a more suitable special weapon. It also comes with a considerably larger price tag. In my opinion, unless you really wan those XMAAs then I'd save the 6000 credits and get the F-16c. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5e3. F-16XL -------------------------------------------------- AR21 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 66 ANTI-AIR --- 34 STABILITY --- 64 ANTI-GROUND --- 80 MOBILITY --- 52 DEFENCE --- 61 MISSILES --- 68 SPECICAL --- 14 XMGM OS: Silver/Grey RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Brown camouflage UNLOCK BY --- Fill the F-16c kill bar COST --- 18300 OVERALL --- 48/100 For around the same price as the Block 60 this is a very good plane for precision strikes on armoured targets. Don't be fooled by the low air-to-air value, this aircraft can hold it's own against any plane in the game when flown well. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5e4. F-2a ---------------------------------------------------- AR22 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 63 ANTI-AIR --- 40 STABILITY --- 70 ANTI-GROUND --- 85 MOBILITY --- 44 DEFENCE --- 57 MISSILES --- 72 SPECICAL --- 12 LASM OS: Silver/Grey RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare SP: Blue with white nose and tail hilight UNLOCK BY --- Fill the F-16c kill bar COST --- 19500 OVERALL --- 76/100 One of the best starting fighters available. But, as is the way with all of the third level aircraft, chances are you won't have it by the end of your first playthrough. It is however relatively cheep for what you get, handles excellently and is very good at ground target attacks. It is damn near unstoppable on Sea of Chaos and Four Horseman. Well worth buying four of when you get the opportunity. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 5f. F/A-18 Family ----------------------------------------------------- AR23 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ================================== F/A-18c > F/A-18e > EA-18g ================================== The F/A-18's are a mix of air-to-air and air-to-ground type aircraft, although their stats lean a bit more towards air-to-ground. Still, they are very useful in the early game, when you really need an entire flight of multi- role aircraft. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5f1. F/A-18c Hornet ------------------------------------------ AR24 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 68 ANTI-AIR --- 27 STABILITY --- 53 ANTI-GROUND --- 62 MOBILITY --- 44 DEFENCE --- 57 MISSILES --- 64 SPECICAL --- 10 LASM OS: Silver/Grey RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare SP: Blue UNLOCK BY --- Completing Mission 6: White Bird pt.i COST --- 13100 OVERALL --- 59/100 A multirole aircraft not too dissimilar to the F-2. It is however unlockable early and is very effective against ground targets, although it needs support from better anti-air aircraft due to low mobility and damage tolerance levels. Overall though, a good aircraft for the multi-role missions, although I'd personally fly them with 2 other F-16's on cover or attack depending on the situation. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5f2. F/A-18e Super Hornet ------------------------------------ AR25 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 78 ANTI-AIR --- 68 STABILITY --- 63 ANTI-GROUND --- 43 MOBILITY --- 58 DEFENCE --- 61 MISSILES --- 68 SPECICAL --- 12 XMAA OS: Silver/Grey RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Grey camouflage UNLOCK BY --- Fill the F/A-18c kill bar COST --- 16900 OVERALL --- 62/100 Another good multirole fighter. It is also fairly fast to unlock as you will be using the F/A-18c in quite a few missions. The F/A-18e is more advanced then the older modal, but still suffers from the same problems. They are however lessened and a special weapon has been changed to an anti aircraft weapon. All round better then the F/A-18c and worth buying in your next playthrough. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5f3. EA-18g Growler ------------------------------------------ AR26 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 78 ANTI-AIR --- 65 STABILITY --- 74 ANTI-GROUND --- 69 MOBILITY --- 75 DEFENCE --- 52 MISSILES --- 74 SPECICAL --- 06 ECMP OS: Silver/Grey RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare SP: Black grey pixel type decoration UNLOCK BY --- Fill the F/A-18e kill bar COST --- 21000 OVERALL --- 67/100 The best of the F/A-18 family, this aircraft is a very good multirole fighter, capable of striking ground targets and still repelling air attacks with no support. This means that it is a good choice for a flight of four planes. On top of this it has a reasonable price tag. The special weapon isn't that bad either, in fact it can be very useful on the Fortress and 8492 mission. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 5g. Mirage 2000 Family ------------------------------------------------ AR27 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ======================== MIR-2000 > MIR-2000d ======================== One of my favourite aircraft families and home to the best bomber of the early game. These planes are also very cheap for what you are getting. The MIR-2000d is one of the best planes in the mid-aircraft section and well worth buying four of. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5g1. Mirage 2000 --------------------------------------------- AR28 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 86 ANTI-AIR --- 59 STABILITY --- 31 ANTI-GROUND --- 23 MOBILITY --- 44 DEFENCE --- 46 MISSILES --- 60 SPECICAL --- 08 SAAM OS: Silver/Grey RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare SP: Brown camouflage UNLOCK BY --- Complete mission 7: Front Line COST --- 12300 OVERALL --- 59/100 One of the best value fighters for dogfights in the game. It has a very fast acceleration and top speed, a decent special weapon and is resilient to damage. It is also quite small so you will avoid AA fire if you find you need to go low. Don't be deceived by the mobility stat, it's one of the most agile aircraft of it's type. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5g2. Mirage 2000d -------------------------------------------- AR29 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 86 ANTI-AIR --- 36 STABILITY --- 38 ANTI-GROUND --- 60 MOBILITY --- 54 DEFENCE --- 59 MISSILES --- 64 SPECICAL --- 14 UGBL OS: Silver/Grey RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare SP: Green camouflage UNLOCK BY --- Fill the MIR-2000 kill bar COST --- 14900 OVERALL --- 70/100 Undoubtedly one of the best bombers in the game. This aircraft has an alarming amount of UGBLs. The aircraft also keeps the speed of the regular MIR-2000 and is better at AA then it too, despite it's AA stat. Once again, very cheap and well worth getting four of for ground missions, although wingmen tend to under perform in AA with it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 5h. MiG-29 Family ---------------------------------------------------- AR30 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ======= MiG-29a ======= The first aircraft family to house only one plane. More details below. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5h1. MiG-29a Fulcrum ----------------------------------------- AR31 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 73 ANTI-AIR --- 30 STABILITY --- 39 ANTI-GROUND --- 55 MOBILITY --- 45 DEFENCE --- 49 MISSILES --- 60 SPECICAL --- 14 UGB OS: Silver/Grey RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare SP: Green camouflage UNLOCK BY --- Complete Mission 7: Front Line COST --- 11200 OVERALL --- 64/100 The one comment that seems to sum up the MiG-29a is 'Jack of all trades, master of none'. While this is not a bad aircraft by a long way, a good multirole plane tries to strike a balance that works between all aspects, whereas this never really comes up to par. Still, it is the best multirole aircraft so far, although you maybe better off with the MIR-2000 and save some credits. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 5i. A-10 Family ----------------------------------------------------- AR32 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ================== A-10a > YA-10b ================== The best ground attack fighter in the world? Maybe.. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5i1. A-10a Thunderbolt II ------------------------------------ AR33 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 39 ANTI-AIR --- 17 STABILITY --- 65 ANTI-GROUND --- 74 MOBILITY --- 34 DEFENCE --- 94 MISSILES --- 64 SPECICAL --- 14 XAGM OS: Tan/silver RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare SP: Green/Dark green camouflage (simmiler to AC04 A-10) UNLOCK BY --- Complete Mission 7: Front Line COST --- 13800 OVERALL --- 66/100 You maybe expecting me to say this is the best AG aircraft of the game. Well unfortunately it isn't, but it is still a great anti-ground striker and the best aircraft that you will have in the mid-game for ground assault. However, I personally think that the lack of a bomb makes gives an automatic disadvantage to this aircraft, as air-to-ground missiles have very little splash damage, and they waste a lot more ammo per target then a bomb would. The aircraft also has a very low speed, low mobility and doesn't stand a chance against some of the more advanced fighters. That said, it can fly very slowly, fire from a long way away, and take massive amounts of damage. I'm not saying this is a bad aircraft, far from it, it is the best AG aircraft of the mid game and especially useful in missions like Operation Footprint. Since it's not too expensive, I would consider putting your wingmen in them to give them the best chance of attacking ground targets. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5i2. YA-10b -------------------------------------------------- AR34 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 39 ANTI-AIR --- 37 STABILITY --- 83 ANTI-GROUND --- 93 MOBILITY --- 59 DEFENCE --- 99 MISSILES --- 71 SPECICAL --- 14 FAEB OS: Tan/silver RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare SP: Green/Dark green camouflage (simmiler to AC04 A-10) UNLOCK BY --- Fill the A-10 kill bar COST --- 20000 OVERALL --- 78/100 The best anti-solid-ground bomber in the game. The top speed of the YA-10b is almost the same as the A-10. It can however, fly at a much slower speed, turn faster and can take even more punishment before being destroyed. Not to mention that the missile count has increased and the plane now has bombs. It's Fuel Air bomb is powerful enough to destroy a large group of tanks or several pillboxes in one drop. It does lack slightly at anti-ship combat since the special weapon cannot lock on, this means you have to fly a lot lower in order to destroy ships, but with the amount of damage it can take, that is no problem. The problem does however lie in enemy fighters. When a fighter gets close to you, you will have to do some extensive acrobatics to get out of being hit since you cannot trust its speed alone. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 5j. F-14 Family ------------------------------------------------------ AR35 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ============================= F-14a > F-14b > F-14d ============================= The modern AC games have both had a plane 'mascot' last time it was the Raptor, this time it is the F-14. Strangely, the stats of the plane all lack, compared to others that are already unlocked. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5j1. F-14a Tomcat -------------------------------------------- AR36 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 68 ANTI-AIR --- 72 STABILITY --- 56 ANTI-GROUND --- 26 MOBILITY --- 54 DEFENCE --- 60 MISSILES --- 70 SPECICAL --- 10 SAAM OS: Silver RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare SP: Green/Brown camouflage UNLOCK BY --- Complete Mission 9: Lit Fuse COST --- 14800 OVERALL --- 58/100 The Tomcat is reasonably fast in the air, but lacks mobility to make it the most powerful fighter aircraft, despite relatively good stats handling always feels too sluggish. The most use you will get out of this aircraft is when you are taking off from a carrier, in this case out of all the mid section aircraft available, this performs the best in both air-to-air and air-to-ground roles. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5j2. F-14b Bobcat -------------------------------------------- AR37 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 78 ANTI-AIR --- 47 STABILITY --- 61 ANTI-GROUND --- 61 MOBILITY --- 54 DEFENCE --- 60 MISSILES --- 70 SPECICAL --- 12 GPB OS: Silver RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare SP: Grey camouflage UNLOCK BY --- Fill F-14a kill bar COST --- 16500 OVERALL --- 56/100 Still suffering from the sluggish handling of the F-14a, the new version takes up bombing as it's major role. Although not as proficient at it as the A-10, it is faster and can better hold it's own against fighters. I would recommend using this as an alternative to the A-10 if there is a primarily bombing mission with the likelihood of there being some fighter activity. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5j3. F-14d Super Tomcat -------------------------------------- AR38 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 87 ANTI-AIR --- 81 STABILITY --- 64 ANTI-GROUND --- 35 MOBILITY --- 58 DEFENCE --- 61 MISSILES --- 72 SPECICAL --- 14 XLAA OS: Silver RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare SP: Purple with a white flower UNLOCK BY --- Fill F-14b kill bar COST --- 17800 OVERALL --- 59/100 Although the last two planes were useful in there own right, by the time you unlock the F-14d you would have probably finished the game, and as such has a lot of better aircraft to choose from. Although it is overshadowed by the time you unlock it, it still makes for an excellent carrier based attacker and air-superiority fighter. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --- 5k. TND Family ------------------------------------------------------ AR39 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ======================== > TND GR.4 TND GR.1 > TND F3 > TND ECR ======================== All the aircraft of the TND family share good defence stats (common to bombers) and still retain a high mobility. What lets them down is their special weapons. Although the F3 comes with XMAAs the rest of them are let down by weapons which are rarely useful. Still if you ignore these faults then you have a good multirole aircraft. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5k1. TND GR.1 ------------------------------------------------ AR40 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 63 ANTI-AIR --- 27 STABILITY --- 63 ANTI-GROUND --- 73 MOBILITY --- 40 DEFENCE --- 90 MISSILES --- 68 SPECICAL --- 10 BDSP OS: Light brown/Tan RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Grey camouflage UNLOCK BY --- Complete Mission 9: Lit Fuse COST --- 15000 OVERALL --- 60/100 A powerful anti-solid ground aircraft, but let down by the special weapon. If you are only using missiles though (which it also lacks) you have a good multirole fighter, with a good defence. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5k2. TND GR.4 ------------------------------------------------ AR41 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 63 ANTI-AIR --- 37 STABILITY --- 71 ANTI-GROUND --- 82 MOBILITY --- 51 DEFENCE --- 92 MISSILES --- 74 SPECICAL --- 10 SOD OS: Green camouflage RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Tan/Dark Orange camouflage UNLOCK BY --- Fill the TND GR.1 kill bar COST --- 18700 OVERALL --- 64/100 With better mobility then it's processor this multipurpose fighter/ bomber can also take more punishment and fight off attacking aircraft much better, it's still let down though by a special weapon that is rarely useful though. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5k3. TND F-3 ------------------------------------------------- AR42 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 73 ANTI-AIR --- 74 STABILITY --- 60 ANTI-GROUND --- 37 MOBILITY --- 59 DEFENCE --- 91 MISSILES --- 68 SPECICAL --- 10 XMAA OS: Silver RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare YK: Grey/Blue camouflage UNLOCK BY --- Fill the TND GR.1 kill bar COST --- 16500 OVERALL --- 70/100 The best aircraft of the TND family. It is the only aircraft to have a useful special weapon as well as even more stability and defence (although sacrifices some of its stability). Since as soon as the GR.1 kill bar is filled you get all of other aircraft of the family it renders both the GR.4 and ECR useless. It's also cheaper then them too :D -------------------------------------------------------------------- 5k4. TND ECR ------------------------------------------------- AR43 -------------------------------------------------------------------- SPEED --- 68 ANTI-AIR --- 59 STABILITY --- 69 ANTI-GROUND --- 63 MOBILITY --- 67 DEFENCE --- 80 MISSILES --- 70 SPECICAL --- 05 ECMP OS: Green/Grey Camouflage RZ: Black with grey nose and red vertical stabiliser flare SP: White/dark blue UNLOCK BY --- Fill the TND GR.1 kill bar COST --- 19000 OVERALL --- 60/100 With only two more missiles then the F-3, lower stats and a higher price the only reason that you may want to buy this aircraft is to try out the ECMP (although prepa