Pilot Management

[CapAndGown]

Ok, so I think I have figured something out about pilot management. But not enough.

I can set up training groups to get pilots up to snuff. Then I can click on the pilot to send it into the group reserve. From there, other groups can then request this pilot through the "request veteran" function.

But I have questions about requesting pilots.
a) When I select the "replacement" option, where are these replacements coming from? Are they graduates of TRACOM?
b)When I request someone from TRACOM, does that mean that I am graduating someone early?
c) And where is the "reserve" pool located? How does one get into the "reserve" pool as opposed to the "group" pool?

Thanks

[Nomad]

press the "Get Veteran" button, that will give you access to all of your reserve pilots. Also to the right of the get pilots button there is a text that defaults to "any", press it a few times and you will cycle through TRACOM, Reserve, and Replacement pools.

[CapAndGown]

ORIGINAL: Nomad

press the "Get Veteran" button, that will give you access to all of your reserve pilots. Also to the right of the get pilots button there is a text that defaults to "any", press it a few times and you will cycle through TRACOM, Reserve, and Replacement pools.

Yes, I figured that out. What I want to know is what these pools are. Where do they come from?

[erstad]

ORIGINAL: cap_and_gown

Then I can click on the pilot to send it into the group reserve.

This is true, but usually you'll also want to click a second time and send into the general reserve. This allows you to pull green pilots into the unit for training while the general reserve guys are waiting for assignment.

ORIGINAL: cap_and_gown
a) When I select the "replacement" option, where are these replacements coming from? Are they graduates of TRACOM?

Depends on what pool is set. If you have "Any", they could come from any pool. I don't know what the priority is for pulling those as I always pull from replacement pool (click the Any until it becomes replacement) or veterans via the get veterans menu.

ORIGINAL: cap_and_gown
b)When I request someone from TRACOM, does that mean that I am graduating someone early?

I think you are actually getting the training command instructors. I don't do htis.

ORIGINAL: cap_and_gownc) And where is the "reserve" pool located? How does one get into the "reserve" pool as opposed to the "group" pool?

On the upper right of the veterans screen is clickable text that allows you to select any pool, group reserve, general reserve, or TRACOM. I pretty much pull from general reserve only.
Note that the general reserve pool is sortable by skill. So you can find guys suited to the airplane type and unit specialization that you want.

[erstad]

ORIGINAL: cap_and_gown

ORIGINAL: Nomad

press the "Get Veteran" button, that will give you access to all of your reserve pilots. Also to the right of the get pilots button there is a text that defaults to "any", press it a few times and you will cycle through TRACOM, Reserve, and Replacement pools.

Yes, I figured that out. What I want to know is what these pools are. Where do they come from?

Replacements are the graduates from your training program.

General reserve are pilots that start in general reserve or which you assign there from an active group. Probably has pilots from disbanded/withdrawn groups as well.

Group is reserve is just that. Excess pilots in groups on the map.

TRACOM are the pilots you sent back to be instructors. I use TRACOM as Japan, not as allies (already have enough pilots). Haven't gotten far enough as japan to decide if I'm doing the right thing or not.

[bruin]

Pilots start off either in a squadron, or in the Replacement pool.  The replacement pool contains pilots who have graduated from the pilot training program.

The general reserve have a few pilots that start off in it, but more often are pilots moved into the general reserve by you.  You can do this by opening up the pilot list, making the pilot inactive, and then clicking on them again and sending them to the general reserve.  Note you must have more pilots than the squadron plane size to do this. 

TRACOM are pilots that you can assign to the training command to speed up the pilot training program, they must be >80 exp.

Seems like the best thing to do as Allies is put a few squadrons as dedicated training squadrons.  Pull in replacement pilots and train them up to the 50s or 60s, then put these pilots back in the General Reserve.  You can then pull pilots from the General Reserve to your active units. 

As Japan, you'd want some of your top pilots in the TRACOM to increase the pool of future replacement pilots, to mitigate the future pilot shortages.

[ckammp]

A) The pilots in the Replacement pool are NEW fully trained pilots who have not been assigned to an unit. They are NOT graduates of TRACOM, but from the off-map training program.
There is also a Trainee Pilot pool consisting of pilots still training in the off-map training program; if your Replacement pool is empty, you may pull pilots from this pool, but their experience level is much lower than pilots from the Replacement pool.
 
B) Pilots in TRACOM are highly experienced (85+) pilots whose function is to excellerate the training of the pilots in the off-map training program. You need a lot of these pilots to have any effect (at least 10), and they don't add experience to the pilots, just train them faster.
 
C) The Reserve pool are named, experienced, fully trained pilots who have either been assigned to the Reserve pool by the player pending another assignment, or are from disbanded units awaiting assignment.
The Group pool consists of named, experienced, fully trained pilots who are assigned to a particular unit, and are awaiting activation. This pool includes pilots who are wounded in action, have a specific activation date, or belong to a unit that is not active.
 
The manual, pages 259-260, has more information about pilot replacements.
 
Hope this helps.

[jetjockey]

I've been toying with this system a bit and have noticed that I have (unintentionally) move a few squadron CO's to other squadrons. Does this effect the squadron(s)?

[CapAndGown]

Thanks all. I didn't realize there was the "click twice" thing to move pilots into the general reserve. I now have a much better understanding of the system.

[Q-Ball]

The toughest part is all the delays; you have to make sure a pilot is down to a delay of 1 before assigning from RESERVE pool; otherwise, you won't necessarily see the pilot on the PILOT screen of the unit. You will see it on the RESERVE list assigned to that air unit.

You have to check the air units to see when a pilot is avialable. If the pilot total looks like 15(2) on the airgroup screen, that means you have 2 pilots that are ready to assign to active duty. You can go the pilot screen and do that.

If you want to keep your CV pilots at high level, you really have to manually do your pilots replacements. It's tough.

If I have a CV that is due for a couple months of yard time due to damage, I have been clearing most of it's pilots out for other CVs, and using those 2 months to field train a new cadre for the carrier.

Pilot management is much improved over WITP, which is to say alot more opportunity for micro-management (and headaches!)

[byron13]

ORIGINAL: ckammp

B) Pilots in TRACOM are highly experienced (85+) pilots whose function is to excellerate the training of the pilots in the off-map training program. You need a lot of these pilots to have any effect (at least 10), and they don't add experience to the pilots, just train them faster.

Unless changed in a recent patch, you don't need at least 10 experienced pilots in TRACOM to get the benefit. I've never had close to 10 instructors in TRACOM and have received the message that TRACOM accelerated the training of some pilots. I'm not saying that more isn't better (I don't know) - just that less than 10 can provide some benefits.

[MarcA]

Do pilots in TRACOM have a chance of accelerating the training of pilots of any nationality or only there own?

[michaelm75au]

Their own nationality only

ORIGINAL: mantill

Do pilots in TRACOM have a chance of accelerating the training of pilots of any nationality or only there own?

[Mark VII]

This is all very interesting and extremly helpfull, thankyou! Been testing on my last turn while waiting for the next turn.

1)Does any kind of expert pilot in TRACOM help excellerate all pilots or do only fighter pilots help fighter trainees and bomber pilots help bomber trainees, etc?

2)What does rotate home for 180 days do? Is this just resting them for the 180 days and are unavailable during that time. I assume they return to their last unit.

[pacificbetta]

1)Does any kind of expert pilot in TRACOM help excellerate all pilots or do only fighter pilots help fighter trainees and bomber pilots help bomber trainees, etc?

The off map pilot trainee program does not differentiate between fighter/bomber/patrol trainees. All come from the same pool. What it differentiate is between the "nationality" such as IJA and IJN. Each "nation" will accelerate by virtue of the TRACOM instructor that is allocated to it.

[erstad]

ORIGINAL: ckammp

B) Pilots in TRACOM are highly experienced (85+) pilots whose function is to excellerate the training of the pilots in the off-map training program.

80+, not 85+. This is always the way it was documented and one of the patches fixed the behavior to match the docs.

[hithere]

how do you make them training groups please? I have clicked to the option "elite 90+" but after that it goes back to "any" I have a 80+ I pulled from "request veteran"-> training

[erstad]

ORIGINAL: hithere

how do you make them training groups please? I have clicked to the option "elite 90+" but after that it goes back to "any" I have a 80+ I pulled from "request veteran"-> training

The ability to make training groups *in an ongoing game, versus via the editor) was only added in a beta version of a patch and was not present in the final version of the patch.

However, any group can be set to train pilots and can pull a small excess of pilots into the group.

[hithere]

thank you....I do think i am going to cry though because I have been trying to figure out what I have been doing wrong for a few hours now. There where alot of post that made me think I could do it.

[Chickenboy]

Good stuff guys. Thanks...