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New SEAD Mission


Zeno~SPARTA~
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My favourite mission in DCS is SEAD. The toughest missile system in the game is the SA10 with its massive reach and speed. This could be defeated with the HARM missile from standoff range, but not so easy with any other weapon. However in one of the updates the land based SA10 will shoot at and destroy HARMs. I experimented with an attack on the standard SA10 template which has 6 vehicles with 4 launchers each (ie 24 missiles). Using my F18 and the terrain, I attracted fire from the SA10 then dove down into a valley. It took a bit of time and patience (not to mention fuel awareness) but I managed to deplete the site of missiles and then kill the RADARs. 

 

I am pretty sure I can devise a devilish AA defence system, but I want a challenging defence, not an impossible one. So in this mission the objective is to destroy a specific warehouse. It will be defended by a layered defence potentially consisting of :-

 

Manpads SA18 Igla 

Min Alt 0

Max Alt 12000

Range NM 2.5

Guidance IR

RWR None

 

Gaskin SA 9 Strella

Min Alt 100

Max Alt 12000

Range NM 2.5

Guidance IR

RWR None

 

Osa SA 8

Min Alt 50

Max Alt 21000

Range NM 7.5

Guidance RADAR

RWR 8

 

BUK SA 11

Min Alt 450

Max Alt 45000

Range NM 19.2

Guidance RADAR

RWR 11,SD

 

 

TOR SA 15

Min Alt 60

Max Alt 25000

Range NM 6.5

Guidance RADAR

RWR 15

 

The exact location of the warehouse is unknown, only the approximate area. We do know that there is a large radio/TV mast nearby.  It will be in the vicinity of the three airfields.  Note the 2 TACAN channels 25 and 22 which will help navigate to the area

 

20210223185108_1.jpg

 

Note lining up with the eastern tip of the lake will put you on course for the airfields. The lake is in a depression, there is a small wooded area and buildings allowing you to get close with cover. The target is to the right of the radio/TV mast which is tall and will be a visible landmark to align onto when you cross the lake.

 

20210223185307_1.jpg

 

There is no enemy air cover.

 

We will not have access to long range stand off weapons to hit the warehouse, nor will we have any HARMS or their Russian equivalents. Ideally this will be a mission where any fast plane with dumb bombs and rockets can participate 

 

We will have to recon the area to find the warehouse, but the recon will be hot.

 

I built this mission for myself to practice low level flying, SAM evasion and bombing, if anyone wants to join in I will add the plane of your choice.

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I tried this mission in an F18 (the plane with which I am the most familiar) using 8 Mk 82 Y bombs.

 

The Mk 82 Y (AKA the Mk 82 Air) has a retarding mechanism in the tail called a Ballute which slows the bombs much more than the Snake eye. With this bomb you don't have to climb before release. I approached at 500 knots and <100 feet. I manually dropped the 8 bombs together, but missed by 100 meters or so. 10 anti air missiles were fired at me in the process, 1 Igla, 4 Tors and 5 Grumbles. Since the ingress and egress were very low I evaded by executing sharp 45 degree turns as well as chaffing and flaring.

 

I was able to land undamaged at Kutaisi. I will have to figure out a visual cue to release at low level.

 

The following planes have the Mk 82 Y/Air or its equivalent

 

F18

F16

A10

Harrier

 

Viggen

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SA 10 (S300 Grumble) can reach 100,000ft. I had to add an SA10 to the mission to force a low level penetration, otherwise it would have been more logical to use high altitude bombers like the B1b or B52,which could also be a fun mission in a covering role. The newer S400 is even more deadly, but fortunately is not in the game. Something I did not add was the acquisition time for the AA systems which range from 3 seconds to 26 seconds depending on the  AA system. I have tried this run in the F5 and F18 and observed on my RWR that the AA radars were losing me and reacquiring me, but presumably the clock starts again each time. Iglas have a fast acquisition time and if I set the manpads skill to excellent you may get an Igla in the face, even on the deck and very fast.

 

Sadly the F5 only has Snake eyes, so I was destroyed by my own bombs, as they simply dont have time to slow down before hitting the target at sub 100ft.I have to check fusing but I dont think there is a high degree of interaction with the bomb, Just some switches and dials, to indicate which bombs to drop, the interval of the drop and I think tail or nose fuse. Its a shame because I enjoy flying the F5. 

 

It's a challenge, a bit like playing chess against yourself, and it keeps me from getting too rusty.

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Ok, it's not a SEAD mission anymore. I can't achieve the mission primary objective of destroying the warehouse if I try to suppress/destroy all AA/AAA. So now I go straight for the warehouse.

 

In this attempt I used the A10a (from the Flaming Cliffs 3 module) with 12 x Mk82Air bombs

 

20210225185753_1.jpg

 

I approached over the lake at low level (200-300  feet), found the mast and lined up to the right of it. I couldnt figure out how to drop all the bombs so I released manually (10), incredibly I destroyed the warehouse. In the shot below I was doing 330 knots at 1719 feet, but the height above ground was 220 feet. On the way in I received some ineffective 23mm AAA fire, but my RWR was very active after I cleared the buildings beyond the lake.

 

20210225190150_1.jpg

 

In all 5 Iglas and 6 SA 15 Gauntlets were fired at me. One or two Iglas took out one elevator/rudder assembly but I could still fly, but not low enough to evade, then an SA15 hit me and it was game over.

 

20210225190340_1.jpg

 

I was still alive but this was unrecoverable, so it was time to punch out.

 

20210225190418_1.jpg

 

Still I was happy that I could penetrate the defences and kill the primary target. The problem with the A10 is 330 knots was on full throttle and that isnt very fast when trying to evade. Maybe the A10c II is faster but I would have to learn how to master that plane.

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