IL-2 Sturmovik Battle of Stalingrad – Tante Ju!
With the recent release of the Ju 52/3m g4e for IL-2 Sturmovik Battle of Stalingrad, 1C Game Studios and 777 Studios have given digital pilots the chance to fly an iconic, yet rarely simulated German workhorse from the Second World War. Now, pilots can fly Falschirmjagers over drop zones, carry critical cargo to and from the front lines, and participate in a handful of other mission types that are a pleasant break from the usual intercept, patrol and close air support missions that all of the other aircraft presently in game were designed to tackle. Recently, our beloved forum denizen, Jarhead0331, joined the Luftwaffe and somehow managed to live to tell us about his first flight in a Ju 52 over the Eastern Front.
Take a look at the following series of screenshots and find out if Jarhead was able to keep his plane in one piece.
Craig H. Handler, 30 December 2016
There she is…the Ju 52. Although she is surrounded by so many other iconic German aircraft from the war, the Ju 52 really stands out.
The Ju 52 flew over the Eastern Front with many different pain schemes. All of them are appealing.
Our mission will have us flying deep in enemy held territory in order to drop paratroopers behind the axis of the 4th Panzer Army’s advance.
Mission briefings and specifications are very detailed and really immerse the player in the operation.
We are airborne and all systems are in the green.
Certainly not the fastest aircraft in the fleet, but she still gives a pleasant sensation of speed.
Climbing to cruise altitude. The occasional chatter of the Falschirmjagers betrays their nervousness.
The office.
Port side doorway will be the paratroopers’ exit to oblivion.
Already across the front lines, we still have some distance to travel.
Not even half way to the drop zone and we get bounced by two Russian Lagg-3 fighters.
Fortunately, our two escorts move to intercept.
Tracers race across the sky behind us as the evenly matched fighters start a deadly corkscrew.
Our German brothers draw first blood as in the distance, a Lagg-3 crashes to the ground in a fiery ball of flame.
Over the Drop Zone! JUMP, JUMP, JUMP!
Without hesitation, they go.
It will seem like an eternity, but all twelve troopers will be out in seconds.
I crane my neck to check for good chutes. One, two, three…I count and pray.
Even as the paras rush to exit the plane, the remaining Russian pilot tries desperately to bring us down.
Despite the sounds of bullets racing passed my cockpit window, I will my hands to hold the plane steady until all of the brace paratroopers have made their way into the sky.
Just another few seconds and a final prayer.
Finally, all twelve troopers have safely exited the plane and are making their way to the ground.
Quickly, we turn for home and I notice for the first time bullet holes on the port wing.
We make it back to our airfield and are greeted by flares to help us navigate back to the ground, back to safety.
Back on the ground, our engines are turned off. Mission success!
The only loss on the mission was the Russian pilot of a Lagg-3. Even though he tried to bring us down, he was just doing his duty, as we do our. We pray for his soul, and for ours.
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