It was my privledge to fly as gunner with an absolutely brilliant heli pilot fighting as MEC on the Sharqui (SP?) map awhile ago, and I'm sorry to say that I don't recall his username at the moment . . .
While relying on classic "Nap of the earth" and "Pop up" heli tactics to stalk targets and set me up for TV missle shots, he was also adept at loops, barrel rolls, Split-S meneuvers, and prolonged inverted flight; and he regularly flew around and through "congested areas" while
simultaneously maintaining both a conversational and a tactical dialogue (using VoIP
and text) with me and the rest of the team. It was also apparent that we were both relying on our "Camera View" options to track and prioritize our targets and potential threats.
He treated "Enemy (unit) Spotted" messages as task assignments, consistantly remained "on station" until almost all weapons were expended, seldom broke off engagement for repairs / reloads until we were down to 2 or 3 bars of health, and rarely engaged the USMC Cobra until any "pending" ground threats had been dealt with.
We only crashed once during the round, into the crane boom, while evading a Cobra rocket barrage after capping the construction site CP; and thanks to his skill, I know what it's like to
look up at the laundry hanging in the alley on the North side of town as we sneaked into position to put a missle into an M1A shelling the central CP.
He was a smart and considerate team player - he said he was using a ThrustMaster joystick - and he set an outstanding example of the role and attitude that an attack chopper pilot should assume to properly support the team . . .
Last edited by T1mbrW0lf (2005-10-10 06:14:07)