C.205
| World War II aircraft | |
| Macchi C.205 | |
| |
| Variant of | Macchi C.202 |
|---|---|
| Nickname | Veltro |
| Type | Fighter |
| Country of origin | Italy |
| Manufacturer | Macchi |
| Crew | Single-seat |
| how to edit | |
Contents
The C.205 in World War II[edit]
Development[edit]
Unit Deployment[edit]
External Links[edit]
| Aces High II aircraft | |
| C.205 | |
| Crew | One |
|---|---|
| Index | 11 |
| Aces High II loadout options | |
| Package 1 | 2x 12.7mm MG, 370 rounds/gun 2x 20mm cannons, 250 rounds/gun |
| Package 2 | 2x 12.7mm MG, 370 rounds/gun 2x 7.7mm MG, 500 rounds/gun |
| Aces High II Main Arenas | |
| Earliest MA | Mid War |
| Typical perk cost | 0 (Late War) |
| ENY value | 20 (Late War) |
| Available on carrier | no |
| how to edit | |
The C.205 in Aces High II[edit]
The C.205 is a C.202 on steroids and is an improvement in almost every way. Still, the C.205 is a uncommon aircraft to see in the MA and gets a bit of bum rap. I'm really not sure why this is other than that people don't really understand the plane and it is generally pretty poorly flown. Still, the C.205 is by no means outstanding in any fashion, though I think some of the information about it might surprise more than a few people. The C.205 is a fairly uncommon aircraft to bump into in the arena but not quite in the rare category. If anything it has gained in popularity over time as people have begun to become interested in it. Unfortunately, I think the statistics on use are a little misleading because I tend to see a lot of C.205s participating in vulches often for the primary purpose of building up perk points more quickly. That said, the C.205 is a reasonable opponent, not outstanding in any clear way, but probably a bit better than average in most. One of the biggest problems when encountering a C.205 is knowing whether the guy at the controls is an ace, or just another clown, which can give a false impression of the aircrafts abilities.
Engine Power[edit]
The engine in the C.205 is a vast improvement over the C.202 and moves this plane more into the realm of the later war planeset that tends to dominate the arena. Sea-level cruise speed is 321mph (331mph with WEP), still pretty slow considering the average if faster aircraft you will likely encounter. Still, it is an improvement in an area that really hurt the C.202. Speed increases fairly linearly with altitude gains with 345mph (cruise) available at only 6K, and a top cruise speed of 390mph at around 22.5K. Overall, WEP tends to add about 10mph to the top end at most altitudes. Those numbers are not fantastic, but don't clearly drop you out of competition with other aircraft. Above 23K the C.205 starts to fade and is no match for a number of better high altitude aircraft in top speed. Climb rate is outstanding, a little understood aspect of the C.205, beginning at over 4,000ft/minute at sea-level and slowly decreasing to 3,500ft/minute at 15K. That is in the top 5 of non-perked fighters and gives a solid band at low or medium altitudes where your climb rate should be quite effective. Acceleration and vertical performance also tend to be quite good though the plane is pretty light and tends not to hold energy really well. Fuel range is short at only 28 minutes at full power (no WEP) on internal fuel. No provision for droptanks are available so extend this and WEP use can seriously cut into range.
Aces High II Performance Charts[edit]
Firepower[edit]
The C.205 is armed with 2 nose guns and 2 wing guns. The main weapon of choice will be the 20mm cannon option, but you may also choose the 7.7mm machine gun option, if you desire a challenge.
The C.205 has two 12.7mm Breda-SAFAT machine guns in the cowling. These are, in AH values, comparable to a .50 caliber Browning machine gun. They are centrally positioned so horizontal convergence is not an issue with aim. Do not discount these weapons. When within normal firing ranges (less than 350 yards) they are quite effective, and better even closer. They have a decent rate of fire and a solid 2-3 second burst can cause major damage on most fighters. These weapons are listed as having 375 rounds per gun (750 total).
The first wing armaments are two 7.7m Breda-SAFAT machine guns with 500 RPG (1000 total). The 7.7mm guns are ineffective against most targets, causing minor damage. The 7.7mm are comparable to .303 Browning MG rounds. These are the same as found on the C.202. They have a larger ammunition load but also fire faster because they are not synchronized through the propellor. They will almost run out about the same time the cowling guns do. The cowling guns should be considered the main guns in this MG-only configuration. Almost all of the damage done will be from the cowling guns. These guns will only help the cowling guns in rare cases. It is better than only having the two 12.7mm cowl guns, but still not even as good as having three 12.7mm cowl guns.
The second wing armaments are two 20mm MG 151/20 with 250 RPG (500 total). The 20mm are the best option. They weigh more but the firepower is more than helpful in destroying targets with short bursts. The MG 151/20 is the same gun off of the Fw 190 and Bf 109 series. It is not the strongest 20mm gun in the game, nor is it the best. The ballistics drop is worse than American and British 20mm cannons, but it is still much more effective than 7.7mm wing guns. These cannons also have the same ammunition as the Fw 190 series, 250 RPG. This, coupled with the 12.7mm cowling guns, provides a very strong punch. The 20mm and 7.7mm wing guns are subject to horizontal convergence as well as vertical, being mounted outside of the wide-track landing gear in the wings.
When firing the guns, you have the option of firing the cannons only( for various reasons including the ability to know all hits seen are cannon only), and the ability to fire MGs only (for reasons including long range shots), but if fired together, they will both run out at about the same time, avoiding the problem with certain aircraft that run out of heavy rounds but still have thousands of lighter rounds.
The weaponry on the C.205 is superior to many craft in the game, due to its combination of calibers, ammunition loads, and internal configuration (no pods or gondolas to increase drag). Each gun may not be the strongest or best, but the entire package is very respectable.
When firing the guns, if you are not accustomed to the ballistics of the MG 151/20, it may be necessary to increase lead on a target well past what you think you need. These rounds still carry the explosive power of 20mm, but they drop faster than Hispano rounds. You will need to adjust for this if switching from other craft to this one, and back again.
The C.205 carries no underwing stores. The real aircraft was capable of mounting a small bomb under each wing or a drop tank, but these were almost rarely used and are not included in AH. Given the large 20mm ammunition load, it can be an effective attacker, strafing ground targets, shooting vehicles, convoys, trains, barges, and buildings. It will be ineffective against hangars and hardened objects, however.
Maneuverability[edit]
I've at times been a little harsh on the C.205 for maneuverability and I can't say I'm overly impressed, but it does seem pretty decent. The C.205 only weighs in at around 7,500 pounds, an increase of over 1,000 pounds over the C.202 but still somewhat of a medium-light weight as compared to many fighters. The wing area of the C.205 hasn't changed from the C.202 although the planes seem to handle almost the same from what I can tell. The C.205 does feel fairly stable although at lower speeds appears to be a bit less so. The stall is rather abrupt and violent although recovers is easy but simply releasing pressure on the controls and regaining airspeed. The plane does seem a little nose heavy which tends to help get the nose down in stall situations and aid in recovery. A C.205 will reverse almost naturally at the top of a zoom climb when it runs out of airspeed, something few planes can boast. Sustained turn rate is pretty good, especially at higher speeds, but also down to around 200mph. Speeds less than that are really hard to gauge, but it doesn't feel like the C.205 is well suited to slow speed stall fighting. Dive performance is very good, although the transition between full control and almost complete loss of stick response is fairly abrupt. 550mph seems like it should be about the extent of diving speed, though the plane is highly responsive. By 575mph there is serious buffeting and 590mph leads to compression which is likely unrecoverable.
Fighting in the C.205[edit]
The C.205 is a better plane that most people give it credit, though it still isn't what would normally be considered an outstanding performer. The extra firepower, speed, and climb imparted over the C.202 model can all be put to good use and make it quite deadly if it can dictate a fight and stop an enemy from fleeing with greater speed. As a BnZ'r, the plane really shows it's strengths while hiding what might be the only real weakness, a lack of top end speed. The cannons provide the firepower for almost any type of shot and the C.205 is best flown fairly aggressively. Try and arrive at any fight with a slight altitude advantage and convert this into speed for attacking and returning to safety above the defensive enemy. The use of climb rate is somewhat over-rated in AH as most combat tends to be sufficiently short duration than to allow a slow building of advantage through superior climb. WEP is very important, save it for combat and don't waste it on climb or transit. Without WEP you are likely to feel like a weakling and your aircraft will perform significantly worse, while the use of WEP decreases your fuel supply quickly. One additional warning, the C.205 seems (and I think many would agree) to bleed energy quite quickly over some other aircraft. The acceleration and climb will help you replace lost energy, but you really don't want to find yourself bled out against an equal, or superior, turner.
Defensively, the C.205 has far more options than the C.202 did. Your speed and climb may be enough to enable you to escape from enemy aircraft though typically not. Planes like the P-51 and La-7 are just too fast and likely to track you down quickly. Your turn rate is fairly average so you may have the opportunity to maneuver to avoid enemies. Even if you have to dive away you should have the control and acceleration to stay with most of the good divers. Often the C.205 does need the help of other friendly aircraft though so staying near friends is a good manner to maintain a good defense. Roll rate is good, scissors should be pretty effective with your acceleration giving good sprints in-between each reversal. Also, you can look to create overshoot conditions since you have the firepower to quickly capitalize on enemies who overshoot you and end up a close or medium range infront of you. You are also a good zoomer so if you have a speed advantage at lower altitudes you may be able to out-zoom your opponents.
The C.205 really is quite a reasonable plane and I don't think it gets even a portion of the credit that it is due. In the hands of a reasonable pilot a C.205 can make life very difficult for most opponents.
Fighting against the C.205[edit]
The C.205 is pretty average defensively but does have a number of options depending on the conditions of the fight, more than you may think. I don't know why this is but I've seen a lot of C.205 pilots try and fly it like a real TnB'r though and are pretty much lost to that style of defense (which isn't very effective). This is a shame because while the C.205 doesn't stand out in any one way, it sure has a bunch of different characteristics that can show up.
Offensively, keep your energy up and force the C.205 to fight your fight. There is a pretty good chance that you are either faster, or turn better, than the C.205 so figure out which you are and then fight that fight. The C.205 does turn reasonably well over a wide speed range, except at VERY fast, and slow speeds. The C.205 also seems to burn energy rather quickly so if you can keep the pressure on you may find the C.205 trading altitude quickly for speed. Watch the C.205's climb, zoom, roll and acceleration, they can be quick and hard to follow. The C.205 is actually in the top 5 in climb rate under 4K, which is scary, so if you get caught low and the C.205 gets separation long enough to initiate a climb you may not be able to easily catch him. You don't want to Head-On attack a C.205 either, they have too much firepower and will quickly damage you. The cannons are wing mounted though and people tend to set the convergence on them short giving a brief opportunity to attack head on from outside of D800, breaking off quickly before D500. The cowl guns might still hurt you though and you are likely to give up some sort of hits to his 20mm cannons.
Defensively, you need to try and keep your speed up and maneuver to build separation before breaking away. You can't afford to give the C.205 a snapshot opportunity as it has too much firepower and will hit you hard. The C.205 is a good climber so don't get sloppy and simply try to extend level or in a shallow climb. Also, while it is a good diver it does lose the maneuvering edge a bit over 500mph. By 550+mph it starts to become quite unmaneuverable and recovery may not be possible for an inexperienced pilot. The C.205 is weakest near sea-level in top speed (331mph with WEP) so many planes can probably dive away to lower altitudes and have a speed advantage to boot, just make sure the C.205 won't catch you on initial dive acceleration or close up the distance with superior initial speed. WEP time on the C.205 is also only 5 minutes, and once WEP is used up it becomes much worse and barely better than a C.202. Try and drag the C.205 to friendlies if you can to make chasing you unattractive. If you have a good turner at low speeds, get the C.205 into a stall fight where you can drag him out of energy.
You can't afford to treat a C.205 too brazenly, but most of the popular aircraft shouldn't have too much trouble dealing with one.
