Anyone know what happened to DNR?

I see he hasn't been online for the last 2 weeks. His absence is beginning to worry me.

StiC

Five Spitfire Kills Sorry for the absence gents. Been deep diving into retirement planning the past three weeks now that I'm in my last year of my career.

Also taking a bit of a break from CoD after getting a bit too grumpy after a series of losses at the hands of those pesky 109 jocks. My unofficial win/loss ratio was starting to hit 1 in 8 or 9 and getting hammered every night was increasingly annoying. Had to step away for a bit to tone down the frustration and focus elsewere for a while.

Certainly nothing to do with you guys and I'm looking forward to getting back to regular flights again this Satuday. I figured now was the best time to take a break in the gap before we start our next campaign.

I guess it comes down to having to admit to yourself that you are very average at something and unlikely to get any better. As a professional soldier, losing is not an option and when that mentality starts to slip into a simulation that is designed to contest skills in a fun environment, then it starts to generate negativity toward the sim. If you have ever watched the video from selfelectedapeoftheyear where he talks eloquently about the need to maintain a positive mental attitude and to guard against allowing frustration and anger to enter your gaming mindset, and while he talks he flys around and shoots down five Spitfires so easily it just makes you sick. I'm very happy for the 109 pilots who think the game is well balanced now between Spits and 109s. Othewise, it's a pretty good vid.

So much for my self-analysis. Should be back in the thick of things this week.

StiC, thanks for asking buddy. Really appreciate that demonstration of friendship and I know we all share that among our little community.

Cheers

Doug

Our group has never been about being the 'best' at playing the game. I don't think any of us have the time to put into (or the desire to put the time into) the game to become one of the big aces of the sim. We'll leave that to the younger folk.

It's good you took a break. Part of the reason I took it on to start producing these campaigns that we run on the weekend (hope to get back to those soon!) is that I felt they cater much more to our group's level and as such we can get more out of them in terms of enjoyment. The big online campaigns are exciting, but it's not much fun to spend a week in preparation to get shot down in five seconds.

Glad to hear from you, Dean. I hope the 4.01 patch comes soon and we can kick off the new campaign asap.

Roger that,

You hit the nail on the head so to speak in that I was online practically every night of the week and half the day on most Saturdays in the mistaken belief that I could improved my skills (which I have to a point) and more importantly, in the fear that if I did take a few days off, those split second reflexes would slip away. Practice makes perfect but over-indulgence in even that which you most enjoy will lead to frustration. I mentioned that the negativity was directed toward the sim, but that's not entirely true, the negativity or impatience was directed inward as I seem to have very high expectations of my own abilities that just can't measure up when up against truely talented pilots and superior machines. Ergo, the need for a break just to put all this back into proper perspective, focus on the enjoyable aspects of the game which primarily revolve on our collective flying and stop fixating on the pilot count. It's so much fun to shoot another guy down, yet it's no fun at all to get shot down repeatedly yourself. Not to mention the internet glitches and so on that too often left me lagging behind and again feeling like I was somehow letting my squadron mates down. I know that's not true but that negative way of thinking slips in when you overdo it. All is well, back from leave in Canada and ready to fly again.

If there is anything I can do to contribute to the next series of missions, then let me know. Since I have no scripting ability I stopped producing scenarios, but if you have set scripts and just need the scenario constructed, I can get back to work.

Thanks Skipper

DNR, you are about to enter the world of ROF, not “Rise of Flight” but “Retired Old Farts”. Welcome. The problem with that world is that as you expect to improve with age, practice, experience and cunning, the reality is that your slower reactions (unnoticed by you now, but when you were a young tad you would have noticed it in older people), as well as other age factors, have a negating effect on your performance.

It’s like you see a bogey closing fast from your high five o’clock and as usual your mind says: “Turn slightly right to keep the bogey in sight and force him to increase his right turn as he closes – just before he reaches firing range break hard right – as the bogey overshoots reverse the turn and remain in the bogey’s six” and your body says “Who. Me?” That’s old age creeping on.

When I was one of the world’s greatest fighter pilots in a previous life I noticed that “older” fighter pilots, those in their late 30’s and early 40’s, were starting to lose it (slow down) even though they had the necessary cunning and experience. They did not appear to notice that they were stuffing up a great sortie by flying out of formation and making very wide patterns in the practice gunnery and bombing circuits. When “Sir”, the Officer Commanding the Base, wanted to fly in your squadron because you were doing weapons work, you tried your best to send him to another squadron.

I have a very close friend, also a retired fighter pilot who was once showing his 7 year old grandson how to fly fighters on an early flight simulator. The boy soon got the grasp of it and quickly began shooting down enemy planes, but my friend was having a difficult time making his bullets and the target coincide. In exasperation the young boy said: “Grandpa, are you sure you were a fighter pilot? ‘Cos you’re shit!” My friend has never flown a flight simulator since.

In my case DNR, I realise that my reactions are very slow, my eyesight is poor and I lose my spatial orientation during dogfights so I prefer to fly with a group down the back where I can’t do much harm to the rest of the Squadron (except for the occasional friendly fire which luckily rarely hits), and leave the lead and spotting to the younger pilots. I never fly fighters alone on ATAG (I get slaughtered) so I developed my bomber skills on the Blenheim and when I fly on ATAG I try to avoid fighters by taking a circuitous route to and from the target. That generally works.

Then along came 401 Squadron with their interesting historical campaigns, an absolute joy to fly.

Squiz

Squiz,

I love this part: "When I was one of the world’s greatest fighter pilots..."

It reminds me of a documentary I watched on TV about aircraft carriers. At one point, the reporter asked a group of Navy pilots which one of them is the best pilot. Instantly, they all said "I am". Then they were asked who was second best. Instantly, they each pointed to someone else and said "He is".

I think that if anyone WAS a fighter pilot, they are still one of the best.

badfinger

Squiz,

Come on man, you're scaring me! Today I say goodbye to razor sharp reflects and cat like eye sight and get ready to say hello to Depends and plastic drainage tubes. Boy, where does the time go. ROF eh? Hmmmm, I live in a little community along the beautiful shores of Lake Ontario called Sandhurst Shores, look it up, really. When I first came here the local gents all asked me if I would like to be on the SOFA? On the Sofa I said, hell no I'm a man of action, give me a lawn tractor or boat and ripper 'er up, yeh that's me. Ahhhh, what do you mean by SOFA? Answer: Sandhurst Old Farts Association. So, not too far off your ROF acronym. OK, I accept the fact that the years are slipping by. Remember when 60 described some ancient drooling thing in a rumpled smelly grey suit, Christ boys, I'm minutes away it seems from that very fate.

gotta go stir my rice.............

Looking ahead, my pilot skills might be slowly evaporating, but just think, soon I'll be able to get up at 7 instead of 6 (except for the pee at three) and have a bagel every day of the week rather than just on Saturday and Sunday and no more daily commute for over 80km a day, no more reports or meetings or studies. Yeh, that sounds good. Perspective is a wonderful thing. So I'll proudly take up the mantle of the ROF or SOFA, get a pair of plaid shorts and white belt, fedora hat and those big funky square sunglasses that the Golden Years crowd seem to love and just let life happen.

In the meantime, I'm sure there's an aging Bf109 pilot, who has yet to acknowledge the fuzziness in his eyesight, to crock in his neck and shaking hands trying to hold his stick steady, and as I bounce him from ten feet above (any more and the wings fly off the Spitfire) I too will try to hold my gunsight steady and send him down in a flaming heap of rusted German steel.

I'm back and lovin' it!!! The boys and I kicked up some dust last night and sent a few Bf109s and Ju87s packing, just to show'em that 401 is still on the prowl.

Post script 24/02/14. Maybe "lovin' it" is overstating it. I flew six times this weekend and was shot down six times without ever seeing my attackers or getting a shot off in retaliation. Fun? Not much these days.

A day does not pass that I don't think about my retirement.No sooner do I turn 55 three weeks ago and its off for a colonoscopy,(hope I'm not sharing to much),sudden middle age spread,and I even quit smoking without driving the wife away.