Rules Only: Any advice on Aircraft Combat Rules in Traveller?

[Timerover51]

Make sure that whatever data you look at breaks it down by country and year the attacks occurred. One reason the Japanese went to suicide attacks was that by 1944, they were loosing up to 90% of their attacking planes, with very few hits to show for it.

 

[kilemall]

Make sure that whatever data you look at breaks it down by country and year the attacks occurred. One reason the Japanese went to suicide attacks was that by 1944, they were loosing up to 90% of their attacking planes, with very few hits to show for it.

Captain Hughes in his classic Fleet Tactics book described the WWII carrier attacks as pulses of ship destruction.

In the early part of the war the carrier pulses were devastating. As the war progressed and tech like radar, AA fusing and beefed up gun batteries came they reduced relatively particularly against the USN.

 

[gchuck]

No matter what 'system' you use, you're going to want to separate the air and ground portions of the combat. As stated earlier, the 'air' is going to move at greatly accelerated rate.
In '91 one of the guys at the LGC made maps of all the airfields and anchorages at Pearl Harbor. Using the 'Air Force' system we 'reenacted' the surprise attack by the Japanese (quite literally an all-day scenario).
Even at that 'scale', there was absolutely NO ground movement!

 

[whartung]

Even at that 'scale', there was absolutely NO ground movement!

Well, the USS Nevada moved during Pearl Harbor. About a dozen planes were crewed, taxied, and took off.

And ships absolutely moved while underway. 20-30 knots is not nothing, evasive action was a real thing. More like clouds, you look up and they seem still. But look away and look up again, and they've moved.

 

[Enoki]

Captain Hughes in his classic Fleet Tactics book described the WWII carrier attacks as pulses of ship destruction.

In the early part of the war the carrier pulses were devastating. As the war progressed and tech like radar, AA fusing and beefed up gun batteries came they reduced relatively particularly against the USN.

That was only true until stand-off weapons appeared like, Fritz X, the Hs 293, or BAT. Then the attacking aircraft regained the advantage. This, in turn, forced the development of guided missiles for ship defense (SAMs).

 

[kilemall]

That was only true until stand-off weapons appeared like, Fritz X, the Hs 293, or BAT. Then the attacking aircraft regained the advantage. This, in turn, forced the development of guided missiles for ship defense (SAMs).

Fortunately for the Allies there were not widespread deployments of that tech, perhaps the resources poured into v weapons would have more profitably gone into a general program of precision air weapons.

For the Germans maybe not even go for major warships, but convoys and CVEs.

Been years since I read it, but IIRC Hughes cited a big scale real example of upending the air defenses- the kamikaze campaign. Serious threat that sank some and damaged dozens including several carrier mission ‘kills’ and truly forced the next gen AA you noted.

 

[Enoki]

Fortunately for the Allies there were not widespread deployments of that tech, perhaps the resources poured into v weapons would have more profitably gone into a general program of precision air weapons.

For the Germans maybe not even go for major warships, but convoys and CVEs.

Been years since I read it, but IIRC Hughes cited a big scale real example of upending the air defenses- the kamikaze campaign. Serious threat that sank some and damaged dozens including several carrier mission ‘kills’ and truly forced the next gen AA you noted.

The Allies recognized the threat, but at the time those weapons weren't super accurate. Yes, they were better than an unguided bomb, but the guidance systems weren't highly reliable or accurate. Against kamikaze attacks, improvements in CAP procedures and operations made those prohibitively expensive for the amount of damage inflicted even if the threat was seen as very serious.

Both the US and British response was to start developing SAMs for naval use.