Gunship Academy
by Richard Sheffield
Tutorial 6: Hellfire Missiles
This time, you're going out loaded for bear. Using the Hellfire Missile is the safest way to engage an enemy target, because it has the longest range and allows you to attack from further away. All of the targets in the area you're headed for are vulnerable to Hellfire Missiles.
Set your INS to match the location on the map marked position 1. Take off and fly toward the INS location at 100 knots and 100 feet.
As you pass over the river, set the INS to position 2, turn toward the INS cursor, and come to a hover at 200 feet. Use the tail rotor to turn right and left to see if any targets in the area are visible. If targets are available fire away with a Hellfire!
If no targets are visible, apply a little forward stick to begin moving ahead slowly. When the targets start to show up, try to locate the ZSU-23-4 AA gun and take it out first since it is the most dangerous piece of equipment in the area.
Once you've removed the zoo, slowly continue on to the north and take out the SA-9 next. Now you can hit the rest of the targets at your leisure with only SA-7s on some of the BTR armored personnel carriers to worry about.
When you get a tank or BTR targeted, use the Next TADS Target key to see if there is another target close by. If there is, you have a ripple-fire opportunity. Fire a Hellfire at the first target, then wait a couple of seconds, and fire a second missile behind it. When the first missile hits and destroys the first target, the TADS will automatically jump to the next target. If you have timed it right, the second missile will turn and hit the second target. By using this technique, you can engage and destroy more targets in less time, giving the enemy less time to react and shoot back.
Take out all of the targets in the area. If a target pops up within 0.7 kilometer, you are probably too close to use a Hellfire, so switch to the gun and lay down some 30 mike-mike!
Once all of the targets are gone, return to the base at 100 feet.
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