Human-Flyable Recon, Supply and Paratroop Flights

As of SEDCS v3.1.15, SEOW includes an optional setting (under Campaign Modes tab) to allow human-flyable recon, supply drop and paratrooper assault flights. With this option checked, human pilots will be able to fly designated supply drop, recon and paratrooper assault flights. The method is as follows:

Recon Flight

1. Use the MP to plan a recon flight, as usual.

2. Commence hosting the coop.

3. Occupy the recon flight seat. Read the mission brief to determine how many photos you can take, e.g. N photos.

4. Take off and fly wherever you like (ignore the planned Recon points). When you find something worth photographing, fly over it and tap your wing smoke ON. Tapping smoke ON triggers the photo. Tapping smoke OFF has no effect.

5. You can tap smoke ON as often as you like, but only the first N photos are stored. If you are using the stock game or TD mod pack, then an altitude of 2500 m is assumed for all human recon photos. If you are using HSFXv5, then your altitude at the time of taking photo is recorded in the logfile and used by SEOW.

6. Run like crazy for home and land safely. Unless you make it back safely with your aircraft intact, your photos will count for nothing.

• Here is a spreadsheet built by 4Shades showing how recon effect increases as you fly higher, then decreases again as you go too high : [1]

Supply Drop Flight

1. Use the MP to plan a supply drop flight, as usual.

2. Commence hosting the coop.

3. Occupy the supply drop flight seat.

4. Take off and fly wherever you like. When you find something worth dropping supply to, fly over it and tap your wing smoke ON. Tapping smoke ON triggers the supply drop location. Tapping smoke OFF has no effect. In some aircraft you may also be given a cargo loadout. Feel free to release these at the same time using your normal bomb key. AI-flown transports will drop the cargo loadout if it is available.

5. You can tap smoke ON as often as you like, but only the first location is registered.

6. Once you have dropped your supply, no-one can stop it landing. Even if you explode 1 second after you drop supply, you have completed your mission!

Allied and Axis supply drop icons.

Paratrooper Assault Flight

1. Use the MP to plan a paratrooper assault (use the "A" key to set the assault waypoint).

2. Commence hosting the coop.

3. Occupy the pilot seat of the paratrooper assault transport aircraft.

4. Take off and fly wherever you like. When you are over the right place to release your paratroopers, tap your wing smoke ON. Tapping smoke ON triggers the drop location. Tapping smoke OFF has no effect. In some aircraft you may also be given a paratrooper loadout. Feel free to release these at the same time using your normal bomb key. AI-flown transports will drop the paratrooper loadout if it is available.

5. You can tap smoke ON as often as you like, but only the first drop location is registered.

6. Once you have dropped your paratroopers, they can only be stopped by strafing parachutes on the way down (if a paratrooper loadout release was used) by aircraft or ground/naval fire. Otherwise the paratroopers are deemed to have survived. Even if you explode 1 second after you drop the paratroopers, you have completed your mission!

Some general information:

• Any aircraft can be designated as a transport by giving it a non-zero Transport_Capacity value in Object_Specifications. By default, Ju-52, C-47, Li-2, L2D are enabled as transports.

• Any ground unit can be designated as a paratroop unit by giving it a non-zero Paratroop value in Object_Specifications. By default a few MG units and spies are listed as paratroop units. Only paratroop units can be used in paratrooper assault missions. Paratroop units have "(paratroop)" in their tooltips.

• Losses of the parachutes from enemy strafing/flak will subtract from the strength of the paratroop unit on the ground in the next mission. Some parachutes will be counted as supplies, some as soldiers, so not all destroyed parachutes will count as destroyed soldiers. If all parachutes are destroyed, then the assault fails and the paratroop unit is annihilated.

SEDCS v6.0.3 Update for Paratrooper Assaults As of SEDCS v6.0.3, bounds have been placed on the altitudes allowed for paratrooper deployment (jump). Jumps taking place lower than 300 m or higher than 1500 m are deemed to be invalid and ALL paratroop units in the jump will be destroyed by SEOW, counted as KIA. This change affects flights piloted by humans as well as flights piloted by AI. Commanders are responsible to ensure that AI paratrooper assault flights release their paratroopers at an appropriate altitude above sea level. Human pilots must also pay attention to their own altitude when they push the paratroopers out the door!