Hello darkness, my old friend…
Little bit of fun on a night SEAD mission with the A-4E. This worked originally as a hot start on the carrier, but every time I tried to run it since, DCS would lock up, so had to switch it to an air start. There’s not much to see but little dots here and there, with only the needle on the compass to guide you. The objective is to destroy the Tube Arm acquisition radar, with a secondary of destroying any launchers or support vehicles. Great!
Packing a pair of Shrikes, couple pods of 2.75", and three Mk82 slicks.
It’s a lonely place in here. You can make out some of the coastline, but that’s it.
Wide angle shot, closer to the coast.
You can’t see it real well, but my target is at the bottom of the gunsight.
See the four dots? Maybe not. They don’t seem to know I’m comin’ for 'em yet!
Spotted! SA-11 launched and inbound! Starting evasive and kicking out chaff.
Now the party’s goin’ down! I dodge several missiles until my companion starts drawing their attention, giving me a chance to engage.
Magnum! I fire both because I really don’t want to miss!
This Tube Arm is going to take a direct hit. That’s the best Shrike shot so far!
Amazingly enough, the other Shrike reacquires a different radar, probably a search radar. Blew it up! My primary objective complete, I select my bombs and try to destroy what remains. Unfortunately, I don’t score any hits, but the other A-4 pins a perfect hit on his first try. Magic AI. No, I’m not salty.
Not at all.
If all else fails, just pickle the entire load of rockets at them! Makes for a pretty show, but no hits.
All that work and only three targets destroyed. Bummer!
Heading back to the boat, I’m a bit shocked to find that my fuel is now down to 2000lbs! Good thing the Scooter is an efficient little bird.
The mighty compass once again shows its power. Took some looking in the distance but eventually I spotted the boat and headed in.
No radio = no lights = you better have sharp eyes for the meatball.
Way close! Landed with 700lbs of fuel to spare.
#1 wire.
All in all, radar(s) destroyed, a launcher destroyed, and a few rattled SAM crews. Not too bad for a low-tech night!