THUNDERHAWK TIPS `N TACTICS



Basic Tactics

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Remember to fly low, usually between 40 and 100 feet as this keeps you below

most of the Early Warning Radars. If you have to fly above 250 feet, make

sure it's not for long - the more time you spend up there, the easier it is

for radars to spot you and send out fighters to destroy you. For most

missions you should use the the Auto Weapons Selection. The only change that

shoul be necessary is replaccing FFAR's with AGM 214 Firestorms. These are

more accurate, although the Firestorms cannot lock on if your nose optics

get damaged. If you have any missions that require destroying enemy EWR, use

the 122L SMARM missiles. These are 'fire and forget' missiles that home in on

any strong radar source. Just point the helicopter in the general direction

of the target and raise the nose slightly before firing (this gives the SMARM

a better chance of locking onto the strong signal.) This can be achieved at 

long distances, so you dont even have to get within sight of the target to

hit it. Enemy fighters can be a bit if a pain, especially the SU-25 Frogfoot. 

This has a nasty habit of flying very low and firing a large amount of

missiles before switching to its cannon. Use your chaff and flares before

until it runs out of missiles, then use an AIM-11 missile to knock it out of

the sky (remember these are fire and forget missiles and are very difficult

to dodge). If you only have AIM-10 Cobra missiles the technique is different

as it takes two to destroy one of these - and they can also be fooled by

flares. If you have run out of missiles and are taking hits from enemy

fighters, fly around 30-60 feet above the ground as incoming fire is less

effective at low altitudes.



Hide and Seek

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Try to use the terrain as the enemy can't fire thrugh hills and mountains!

They also dampen radar sources, forcing enemy helicopters to fly over hills

to get at you.



Missile Dodging

---------------

Listen out for the missile warning indicator. As soon as you hear it, check

the display to find out whether it's a radar guided or an infra-red missile

(Infra-reds are most common). Launch the appropriate decoy (chaff for

radar-guided and flares for infra-red) and turn away from the missile if it's

in front or behind you. Missiles fly in a straight line to their target,

through anything that gets in their way - including you! The on-board jamming

systems should be used sparingly (usually if you've run out of decoys) as    

prolonged jamming makes you extremely visible to radar.



Jets vs Rotors

--------------

The best time ot shoot at an enemy fighter is when it turns towards you. If a

MiG 29 or a SU-25 is approaching from behind, let it pass, slow down and wait

for it to turn towards you before locking on and firing. Don't forget to

avoid any incoming fire.



Enemy Weapons - Helicopters

---------------------------

There are two types of attack helicopter you'll run into, the KA-136 Hokum

and the Mil-24 Hind. The Hind is the most common and you'll find it is armed

with both missiles and a cannon. It isn't very good at dodging  missiles, so

getting a lock with an AIM-11 will normally seal its fate. The Hokum can

out-turn and out-climb you, so the first thing you need to do when you locate

one is get a missile lock. Again use AIM-11's as the Hokum cannot dodge

these. If you have no missiles left, then you're really in trouble, the only

thing left is to blast it to bits with your cannon, though this isn't as easy

as it sounds. The best technique is to wait for it to stop dodging about

before firing a short burst. The Hokum will climb to avoid your fire so apply

full throttle to keep up with it as soon as you fire.



Enemy Weapons - Ground Units

----------------------------

The best weapons against ground units are AGM-214 Hellfires or FFAR's. If you

are bombing the target, you must always lit it dead centre, a little out and

you'll miss. When using Mk81 bombs fly at least 250 feet above the ground,

otherwise you'll probably be caught in the blast. With Mk82's you need to be

at least 500 feet up.



End.


ADDITIONAL ACTION REPLAY POKES (Source: AR Codelist):
Aim-10b = 00162f