Daily News
by Douglas Helmer

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Monday, February 03, 2003





PC Game and Hardware News

Best Tank Platoon $5000 Contest
IENT is running a contest to find the Best Tank Platoon in their community.

IENT will run a series of Saturday competition events starting in March to find the best Tank Platoon. IENT will begin to qualify for the semifinals on these Saturdays. Customers will have multiple chances to qualify on Armored Assault. We will keep winning scores from each month to let folks know they scored enough to be in the Finals.


Three tanks drive past a demolished factory



The big playoff match will occur on the weekend of June 28, 2003. IENT will pick a minimum of 12 teams from each month's qualifying events. IENT will over small prizes including T-Shirts and small cash prizes for winners if these qualifying events.

This match will pit the best 64 teams of four players against each other in double elimination playoffs to find the best three Tank Platoons.

  • First Prize: $1000.00 per man in the Tank Platoon
  • Second Prize: $200.00 per man in the Tank Platoon
  • Third Prize: $100.00 per man in the Tank Platoon


IENT will also offer a $10.00 cash rebate to every purchaser of the Armored Assault Retail product who comes online to play. Each customer gets two months free time when they buy Armored Assault at Retail. When the customer completes his or her online registration, they will be able to ask for their $10.00 rebate to be mailed to them or add one more month to their free online account. This offer will be good until the end of June 2003 for purchasers of Armored Assault at retail. (If the customer cancels his or her account within the first 30 days after registration (during the free period), the $10 rebate will not be honored.) (Each retail box comes with a registration sticker and number, which the player will use to get his or her rebate.)

IENT will produce a Starburst Sticker for each retail box with the Contest and the $10 Rebate offer for placement on the retail boxes.

Full Details: Armored Assault Website
CFS2 & CFS3 Aircraft (8 items)
Okay, FSFreeware.com gets the nod as the most comprehensive download resource for the Flight Simulator and Combat Flight Simulator line of products. We're repeating a few of the items we just listed below at FSPlanet.com simply because you'll probably have better luck downloading them from this site:

Here's all the combat simming-related stuff we found there today:

  • CFS2 Aircraft: Wildcat Weapons Profile
    Weapons Mod for the stock CFS2 Grumman F4F4 Wildcat using stock and FDG weapons. New payloads include heavy bombs, rockets and torpedoes. All payloads 'realistic' in that they could be carried by a wildcat (excluding torpedoes and 2000lb bombs but youll notice that when you try and fly that loaded) .dp file by Mark Walsh. 241 KB.

  • CFS2 Aircraft: Bf 109 Gustav Lucky Six of the German Luftwaffe.
    Bf 109 Gustav Lucky Six of the German Luftwaffe. Model and panel by Microsoft, repaint by Philip Sandman Mehlitz. 879 KB.

  • CFS2 Aircraft: Curtiss P 40m v.2 Soviet Air Force
    1943 G-max model, full animation, 2D-panel, 3D virtual cocpit Reworked version of my P-40M, multi-res, shiny textures, custom drop tank added, little changes, few bugs removed. Created by Krzysztof Malinowski. 4.4 MB.

  • CFS2 Aircraft: Curtiss P 40F 3 Squadron RAF
    Italy 1944 G-max model, full animation, 2D-panel, 3D virtual cocpit multi-res, shiny textures, custom drop tank added Created by Krzysztof Malinowski. 2.11 MB.

  • CFS2 Scenery: Korean Peninsula Replacement Winter Textures
    These textures will cover all of Korea in snow. The textures were originally done by Richard Ludowise as the European textures. All I did was re-number them to show up in Korea. Thanks to Richard for letting me use his textures. By Dean Reilly. 8.7 MB.

  • CFS2 Scenery: RAF Biggin Hill UK
    RAF Biggin Hill UK addon to cfs2 in the European theater By Douglas Todd. 1.17 MB.

  • CFS3 Aircraft: Desert Camo Spitfire IXc Skin
    Fictional CFS3 Texture of a North African Desert Camoflauged Spitfire IXc. Texture Only. Repaint by Marc P. 591 KB.

  • CFS3 Aircraft: Do 335a1 stock repainted textures
    Modified XPD aircraft for CFS3. This plane made it through the war without being damaged and it's realistic in every detail. This plane has flame start up with the smoke and it has smoking bullet casings. Winter textures are included.Peter Dowling. 1.24 MB.

  • FS2002 Aircraft: F 15 Eagle 48th FIS USAF
    This became the first Air Defence unit to fly the F15 when it replaced the Convair F106 Delta Dart in 1982. Includes lights, contrail, smoke and afterburner effects. Gmax aircraft by Kimitaka Nishida. Repaint by Paul Barry. 1.65 MB.

  • FS2002 Aircraft: RAAF McDonnell Douglas F/A 18A
    This package includes eight textures of the R.A.A.F. F/A-18A Hornet and includes a cockpit, new flight dynamics and air wash effects. Aircraft by Dean Reimer and textures by Barry Magann. 10.6 MB.

  • FS2002 Aircraft: McDonnell Douglas CF 18/A Hornet
    CF-18/A Hornet in (4 Wing) 410 Squadron 'Cougars' 50th Anniversary Hornet colors. A Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) air demonstration aircraft, designation CAF 188749. Aircraft model, textures and panel by Dean Reimer. 2.1 MB.

  • FS2002 Aircraft: MIG 29B Fulcrum A version 3
    Mig29B version 3 Gmax Model - Comes with: panel 2D with HUD, virtual cockpit, gears animations, pilot animations, after burner effects, vortex of wings, flaps dynamics effects, Russian and German demnstration textures, night textures. model, textures, panels by Barneybigard, Airfile bu Benoit Dube and Sonny. 3.97 KB.

  • FS2002 Aircraft: Belgian Air Force Alpha Jet
    Gmax model with opening canopies, moving parts, smoke and afterburner effects. This version flies at Mach 1.35 yet is very easy to fly and land. It's very maneuverable for aerobatics at high or low speeds. Ideal for carrier landing; water landable too. Aircraft is fully illuminated at night when lights turned on. Also when lights are on afterburner effects turn on. Panel included. Model by Benoit M. Dube and Sonny. Afterburner effects by Peter Davies. Light effects by Alejandro Villa using the light effects created by Kaveh Payandeh. Panel and flight dynamics by Alejandro Villa. 6,91 MB.

  • FS2002 Utility: Rememberance Screen Shot
    Rememberance Screen Shot for the Seven Members of the Space Shuttle Columbia. By Aaron R. Swindle. 371 KB.


Download: FSFreeware.com
FS2002 Add-ons: F/A-18 Hornet, CF-18/A Hornet, F-15A Eagle
FSPlanet has three new FS2002 air combat jets add-ons plus some video of the SR-71.

  • FS2002 McDonnell Douglas F/A-18A Hornet
    Royal Australian Airforce (Ultimate Package) This Package includes 8 textures of the R.A.A.F. F/A-18A Hornet and includes an all New cockpit with new flight Dynamics and Air wash effects Aircraft by: Dean Reimer and Textures by: Barry Magann

  • FS2002 McDonnell-Douglas/Boeing CF-18/A Hornet
    In (4 Wing) 410 Squadron 'Cougars' 50th Anniversary Hornet colours. This is a Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) Air Demonstration Aircraft, designation CAF #188749, and is an original aircraft model, textures and panel by Dean Reimer

  • FS2002 USAF F-15A Eagle of the 48th FIS, ADTAC at Langley AFB, Virginia in 1986
    This became the first Air Defence unit to fly the F15 when it replaced the Convair F106 Delta Dart in 1982. High-vis markings with lights,contrail,smoke and afterburner effects.
    Gmax aircraft by Kimitaka Nishida Repaint by Paul Barry

  • Videos - Aircraft - Lockheed SR-71 (YF-12C Prototype)
    Lockheed SR-71 (YF-12C Prototype) in 1974 flight test

Website: FSPlanet.com


Strike Fighters Updates (9 items)
Mad Jeff and crew look to be giving the BF1942 community a run for "most active site" honors. Today we find nine Strike Fighter news item updates on the Biohazcentral site and all this before noon!
  • CV-41 on station!
  • Strike Fighters: Radar Rider movie time!
  • New VF-33 Tarsiers Skin Ready!
  • New "Special Effects Pack" Available
  • Carriers in Strike Fighters??
  • New A-1H skins from Volksjager
  • TK's Weapons Editor released!
  • New Ground Attack Pack released
  • Viggen Update

Website: Biohazcentral.com
Forgotten Battles Preview
Looks like IL-2 Center has Part 2 of its exclusive, NDA-breaking preview of Forgotten Battles (Nah, we aren't bitter at all).

Website: IL-2 Center
CFS2 P-38 Triple Play
AVSIM has a new P-38 Lightning by David C. Copley. Here's the description:
CFS2 "P-38 Triple Play" Lockheed P-38F, G & H, ver. 1.0. Three historic P-38s, including the recently-restored 'Glacier Girl.' Full-featured FSDS2 models, dynamic VC, animated parts (control surfaces, Fowler flaps, landing gear, gear suspension, rolling wheels, cooling vents, canopy, yoke, etc.) realistic flight model, damage model. Complete package, including authentic P-38 sounds from the real Glacier Girl. (MR)

Download: P-38 "Triple Play"
Flight Simming Demographic Survey
AVSIM is conducting a survey of flight simmers. They have over 7,000 respondants so far! Lets get in there and try to even out those statistics to reflect how many combat simmers there are in the world.

A snippet from AVSIM's mammoth 32 question survey.


Web Page: AVSIM Survey
Web Page: AVSIM Survey Results
American Conquest Goes Gold
Gamespot is reporting that CDV Software has announced that development on its upcoming historical real-time strategy game set in North America has been completed.

Source: Gamespot
Website: Official American Conquest Site
Battlefield 1942 Updates (6 items)
As per usual, the Battlefield 1942 folks have been busy, busy, busy! We have found six items today, not including this Road to Rome babe pic which we are throwing in gratis.
Can you show us how to use this big, nasty, gun? Tee hee!

  • 3D Gamers has a Road to Rome Movie. The movie runs for two and a half minutes, sporting plenty of action-packed gameplay sequences as well as some cinematics. Check it out here.
  • TSN Broadcast.
  • Smacktard Posters.
  • Clan of the Week
  • Heightmap Editor Update
  • Official EA Announcement
Website: PlanetBattlefield.com
Download: Road to Rome Trailer (3DGamers)
NWS: Warship Combat-WW2 v1.04-v1.05
Chris Dean informs us that they have posted v1.04-v1.05 for their naval simulation NWS: Warship Combat-WW2.

These latest updates include several fixes and improvements. He has also posted an updated v1.05
Preview Pack in the NWS Simulations Forum.

The preview pack includes updated screenshots and a detailed AAR (After Action Report) showing a
random small battle between the British and Italian navies.

Download: Naval Warfare Simulations
Website: Naval Warfare Simulations

Defense & Aerospace News

Astronaut Col. Gordon L. Cooper Speaks About Columbia Tragedy
Our own Jim "Twitch" Tittle attended a Friends of American Fighter Aces symposium yeaterday (Feb. 02, 2003) and a surprise guest was Col. Gordon Cooper who made a very brief comment about the shuttle crash.
Yesterday was a bad day for the space program. We always hate to lose members of our family. What we have to keep in mind is that it's still the safest form of transportation going. What we have to do is get all the data put together, analyze it, find out what went wrong, fix it, and get back into operation again. And we need keep the space shuttle going and service the space station. We need to get back to the moon. We need to get to Mars and a lot of other things that we really should
be doing more diligently.

AIR FORCE EXPERIENCE: Cooper, an Air Force Colonel, received an Army commission after completing three years of schooling at the University of Hawaii. He transferred his commission to the Air Force and was placed on active duty by that service in 1949 and given flight training.

His next assignment was with the 86th Fighter Bomber Group in Munich, Germany, where he flew F-84s and F-86s for four years. While in Munich, he also attended the European Extension of the University of Maryland night school.

He returned to the United States and, after two years of study at AFIT, received his degree. He then reported to the Air Force Experimental Flight Test School at Edwards Air Force Base, California, and, upon graduating in 1957, was assigned as an aeronautical engineer and test pilot in the Performance Engineering Branch of the Flight Test Division at Edwards. His responsibilities there included the flight testing of experimental fighter aircraft.

He has logged more than 7,000 hours flying time—4,000 hours in jet aircraft. He has flown all types of Commercial and General aviation airplane and helicopters.

NASA EXPERIENCE: Colonel Cooper was selected as a Mercury astronaut in April 1959.

On May 15-16, 1963, he piloted the "Faith 7" spacecraft on a 22-orbit mission which concluded the operational phase of Project Mercury. During the 34 hours and 20 minutes of flight, Faith 7 attained an apogee of 166 statue miles and a speed of 17,546 miles per hour and traveled 546,167 statue miles.

Cooper served as command pilot of the 8-day 120-revolution Gemini 5 mission which began on August 21, 1965. It was on this flight that he and pilot Charles Conrad established a new space endurance record by traveling a distance of 3,312,993 miles in an elapsed time of 190 hours and 56 minutes. Cooper also became the first man to make a second orbital flight and thus won for the United States the lead in man-hours in space by accumulating a total of 225 hours and 15 minutes.

He served as backup command pilot for Gemini 12 and as backup commander for Apollo X.

Colonel Cooper has logged 222 hours in space.

He retired from the Air Force and NASA in 1970.
RAF's Last Wessex in Squadron Service Retires
Nearly forty years after entering Royal Air Force service, the last of the Westland Wessex helicopters were retired from 84 Squadron. One of the airframes retiring today is XR588, one of the prototypes of the Wessex HC Mk2, a testament to the types durability and ruggedness.


Retired Wessex helicopter



An enthusiastic crowd of Wessex veterans, including the Commander in Chief of Strike Command, joined 84 Squadron at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus to celebrate the career of the longest serving rotary winged aircraft in RAF history.

More Info: RAF Website
Officials Release F-16 Accident Report
LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. (AFPN) — Air Force investigators determined that pilot error caused the collision of two F-16C Fighting Falcons on Oct. 25 approximately 82 miles southwest of Hill Air Force Base, Utah.

First Lt. Jorma D. Huhtala, of the 4th Fighter Squadron at Hill AFB, died in the crash. Capt. David Roszmann, also from the 4th FS, ejected safely without injury. Both aircraft were destroyed on impact. The cost of the accident is estimated at more than $37 million.
Pilot's failure to properly coordinate caused crash.

According to an Air Combat Command Accident Investigation Board report released Feb. 2, investigators determined the primary cause of the collision was the failure of both pilots to properly coordinate their flight paths during a tactical turn.

The pilots were participating in a training mission when they collided with each other.
CAE Sells Full Flight Simulators Valued at C$35 Million
Toronto — CAE (NYSE: CGT; TSX: CAE) today announced the sale of two Airbus A320 full flight simulators (FFS) - one to Air France, and a second FFS to Shanghai-based China Eastern Airlines. The total value of the equipment sales is approximately C$35 million based on list prices. Fiscal year to date, CAE has received eight of 11 full flight simulator orders in the competed market.

CAE's FFS (Full Flight Simulator)


Air France’s new order is repeat business for CAE; it will however be the first Airbus A320 full flight simulator to be provided to the airline. The simulator will be operational by June 2003 in the Air France training centre at Paris - Charles de Gaulle (CDG) airport, and be delivered to meet both FAA and JAR Level D standards, the highest in full flight simulator equipment. A CAE-built Airbus A330/340 FFS was recently installed in the airline’s training centre at CDG.

Air France operates worldwide scheduled passenger and cargo services to 214 destinations in 91 countries. It cooperates with more than 30 carriers and holds stakes in 15 airlines.

China Eastern’s Airbus A320 simulator order is in addition to the A320 FFS sale announced in December, and will also feature the CAE Tropos™ visual system, meeting the highest standards for full flight simulators. Both simulators will be installed at the airline’s Pudong training centre by the end of 2003, as part of a general upgrade of its A320 simulation training program. CAE has also agreed to install a CAE Tropos™ visual system in the training centre’s existing A300 simulator.

As one of China’s three major airlines, China Eastern Airlines is the primary air carrier serving Shanghai, China’s eastern gateway. China Eastern plans to introduce 20 additional Airbus A320 aircraft by 2005.

CAE is a global leader in providing advanced simulation and controls equipment and integrated training solutions for customers in the civil aviation, military and marine markets. With annual revenues in excess of $1 billion, CAE employs more than 6,000 people in Canada, the United States and around the globe.
Columbia Tragedy


On behalf of COMBATSIM.COM's staff and members we extend our thoughts and prayers to the crew of space shuttle Columbia and to all their families.


Dave Brown, Laurel Clark, Mike Anderson, Ilan Ramon, Rick Husband, Kalpana Chawla, and William McCool

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