training missions intercepts

[seille]

Please LoBaron, off course i had normal escorts attached. But since the "coordination-patch" i´m not longer so optimistic they´ll fly.
It´s often more a gameble than a safe thing to plan with escorts.
And the 1,5 groups i ordered to escort did not fly. But here i have to admit it was not the same AF as the bombers.

The target contained only a few fighters. The sweeps and escorts i had just in case there is LRCAP from Chittagong (about 140 fighters following recon results).
The LRCAP was planned only as a safety net.
I see i might have choosen wrong altitude settings for sweeps and/or LRCAP. I´ll try to follow the tips here and vary it more next time.

[LoBaron]

When I ask you for a complete strike composition I would expect your response to contain all squadrons assigned to the strike. Which obviously includes information about escorts. By providing inaccurate information you get inaccurate comments.

Anyways, 1.5 squadrons fighters for 4 squadrons of bombers is marginal at best, so do not expect perfect coverage there, even IF you achieve coordination. Different base lowers escort chances further, the factor depends on the location of the fighter base in relation to the bomber base and target. The other coordination factors are unknown, so it is difficult to assess them. Only one more factor I notice is heavy rain over target, which could mean bad weather over the area. Bad for coordination.

As a rule of thumb, if there are fighters at a base I attack I provide escorts - in the best way possible - or accept the risk and live with the results. The possible exception are Allied 4eng bombers, where the combination of sweeps and unescorted attacks often suffices in face of light opposition.

[seille]

Next time i´ll add more escorts and set the LRCAP lower.

[LoBaron]

Depending on the distance to target I wonder if it makes sense to add LRCAP at all. I know many players swear on its use, but LRCAP does not per default protect a bomber formation. Also, you lose one squadron which could provide additional strenght to escort.

Coordination - as many things in the WitP - is a game with chance. All you can do is improve chances. By increasing the number of escorting squadrons you increase chances that sufficient escort will be provided.

FWIIW I don´t question your decision. There is no single correct way to handle things, only different options with different potential consequences.

[seille]

As i wrote above the LRCAp was my (planned) safety net. I think it could have worked with altitude of 15-18k instead of 25k.
Here i know i´ll have own fighters over the target. Imho for escorts the chances are too small overall even you maximize it. And i did not want to set ally my fighters in this area to escort
since i need strong CAP over my bases, especially for Magwe.
Next time i´ll be more careful with setup and will always keep in mind there could be a "trainings-CAP".
Thank you guys for the help. Even if i don´t always fully agree i appreciate the comments [:)]