News
July 10, 2013
Two new Yaks are coming to Aces High in the upcoming version, the Yak-3 and the Yak-7B. The Yak-3 was a small light fighter very popular with its pilots. Entering service in 1944, it proved to be a handful to the Luftwaffe.
Despite the larger number in the designation than the Yak-3, the Yak-7B was an earlier Yak variant converted from a 2-seat trainer. It was simple, rugged, and reliable and will be a welcome addition to special events.
Greebo again did a great job makiing these skins. He describes the history of the paint schemes as follows. This is the Yak-3 of Robert Marchi who flew with the French Normandie-Niemen regiment on the Eastern Front from late 1944. He scored 13 kills and survived the war only to die in a flying accident in 1946. The Normandie-Niemen regiment was set up in 1943 with free French pilots, Soviet ground crew and with Yak fighters. By the end of the war in Europe its pilots had flown 5240 sorties, claimed 273 kills for the loss of 87 aircraft and 42 pilots killed. Four of its pilots were awarded Hero of the Soviet Union and Stalin personally ordered the "Niemen" part of its name to be added for its performance in that campaign. At the end of the war a grateful Soviet Union gave the French pilots the 37 Yak-3 fighters they ended the war with. They flew these back to France to a hero's welcome.
This Yak-7B was flown by Andrei Vasil'evich Chirkov, who flew with 29 GIAP on the Leningrad front in 1943. Chirkov first saw action in the Winter War against the Finns where he was shot down by ground fire. In WW2 he served in several squadrons on the Leningrad front flying the I-16, Yak 1 and 7, the P-40, and later the Airacobra. In the latter aircraft in June 1944 he survived being shot down by the Finns' top ace Hans Wind. By the end of the war he had scored 29 kills plus 9 more shared and had been awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union.
Click on the thumbnails for a larger image.
July 2, 2013
Kudos to the top pilots of Tour 161. Tour 162 is currently underway.
----->Late War
Top Overall Ranking – Bruv119, runner-up 1skott
Top Fighter Ranking – TonyJoey, runner-up Delirium
Top Bomber Ranking – Bruv119, runner-up Fuzion
Top Attack Ranking – Bruv119, runner-up 1skott
Top Vehicle Ranking – flk4, runner-up 1skott
----->Mid War
Top Overall Ranking – Zombee, runner-up NKL5
Top Fighter Ranking – Shuffler, runner-up Zippy
Top Bomber Ranking – Bul1dog2, runner-up teufl
Top Attack Ranking – Biggamer, runner-up MrBillyb
Top Vehicle Ranking – HellsAce, runner-up Nisr
----->Early War
Top Overall Ranking – Zombee, runner-up cujo
Top Fighter Ranking – Fester, runner-up Zombee
Top Bomber Ranking – Rigby, runner-up Zombee
Top Attack Ranking – Death, runner-up cujo
Top Vehicle Ranking – Zombee, runner-up cujo
June 7, 2013
Kudos to the top pilots of Tour 160. Tour 161 is currently underway.
----->Late War
Top Overall Ranking – Doda, runner-up Bruv119
Top Fighter Ranking – Wmaker, runner-up Delirium
Top Bomber Ranking – Bombero , runner-up Doda
Top Attack Ranking – Bruv119, runner-up Doda
Top Vehicle Ranking – Doda, runner-up EZPkns
----->Mid War
Top Overall Ranking – Zombee, runner-up Fester
Top Fighter Ranking – Shuffler, runner-up Fester
Top Bomber Ranking – Bul1dog2, runner-up teufl
Top Attack Ranking – Fuzion, runner-up Biggamer
Top Vehicle Ranking – Tigercat, runner-up FlatIron
----->Early War
Top Overall Ranking – cujo, runner-up Ishkish
Top Fighter Ranking – Ltklutz, runner-up Black70
Top Bomber Ranking – Rigby, runner-up kimchee
Top Attack Ranking – Death, runner-up Rigby
Top Vehicle Ranking – cujo, runner-up FlatIron
June 27, 2013
On the menu for the next version is Jagdpanzer three ways. The Jagdpanzer concept of tank destroyers took the chassis of an existing tank design and modified it to a turretless design carrying a heavier main gun directly in the superstructure. The result combined a low profile with decent frontal protection and heavy armament with the obvious tradeoff of the lack of a turret. First is the Jagdpanzer 38(t) a.k.a. Hetzer. This has the main gun of the Panzer IV Ausf H in a very small package. The second is the Jagdpanzer IV/70(V) which has the main gun of a Panther V on the chassis of a Panzer IV. The third is the Jagdpanther which has the main gun of a Tiger II on the chassis of a Panther.
The skins for all three of these were made by Greebo. He describes them as follows: The Hetzer is from StuG Abteilung 1708, part of 708 Volks-Grenadier Division. In November 1944 it was deployed to the French town of Halloville near the German border where it was destroyed by a hit to its right side from an M10 tank destroyer.
The Jadgpanzer IV is based on the vehicle of Hstuf. Otto Holst, who was CO of SS-Pz.Jg.Abt., part of Kampfgruppe Hansen during the Battle of the Bulge. On 21st December 1944 Holst was ordered to head north and reinforce Kampfgruppe Peiper across the Ambleve river. However the only bridge left across the river was too weak to hold the weight of Holst's vehicle and it collapsed, cutting Peiper off. Holst's Jagdpanzer was abandoned where it lay in the river as the Germans retreated.
The Jagdpanther skin is from II./Pz.Lehr-Rgt.130. In April 1945 this unit picked up 35 brand new Jagdpanthers direct from the factory and deployed them in the Haemelerwald forest west of Braunschweig. Here they clashed with the advancing US 5th Armoured Division and destroyed a number of Shermans before retreating. However their path East was cut off as all the bridges capable of supporting their vehicles had been blown. So with the war obviously lost, the crews disabled their vehicles and began walking home.
Click on the thumbnails for a larger image.
May 6, 2013
Kudos to the top pilots of Tour 159. Tour 160 is currently underway.
----->Late War
Top Overall Ranking – Bruv119, runner-up Baba
Top Fighter Ranking – Karma, runner-up Delirium
Top Bomber Ranking – EXIT , runner-up Cane
Top Attack Ranking – Bruv119, runner-up Snailman
Top Vehicle Ranking – flk4, runner-up Triton1
----->Mid War
Top Overall Ranking – NKL5, runner-up Zombee
Top Fighter Ranking – Fester, runner-up CLONE155
Top Bomber Ranking – Bul1dog2, runner-up Zombee
Top Attack Ranking – Fester, runner-up DemonFox
Top Vehicle Ranking – Zombee, runner-up NKL5
----->Early War
Top Overall Ranking – cujo, runner-up Fester
Top Fighter Ranking – Shadow, runner-up Stuckey
Top Bomber Ranking – kluster2, runner-up kimchee
Top Attack Ranking – lyric1, runner-up Muttman
Top Vehicle Ranking – Fester, runner-up FLOOB
