Flying along in a SPAD-7, got into a melee and shot down a few planes. Landed. Cut-in scene shows me landing (which means I crashed :) and the plane is considered destroyed). Report indicates I suffered structural failure BEFORE I got into a dogfight with an Alb D-III and shot it down, then flew home. Huh?

PS - on second thought, maybe my luck is changing as this may have been a good thing for my pilot :)

Structural Damage is when you hit an object or over-stress your machine. You may have cracked a few spars before the flight due to a high-G maneuver, and then just did it in during the fight.

Hey, it means a new plane is coming :)

Hey, it means a new plane is coming :)


Yeah, but they replaced it with a Nieu-17.

I do have a crash problem with the SPAD-7; they're so fast relative to the other planes and don't react fast enough to avoid crashes plus the Alb D-IIIs turn so darn quick. Lost my upper wing last time (I got a kill; I wonder if the Alb D-III pilot got one too :) ).

Don't follow the Alb, Boom and zoom it. The SPAD is not a turn fighter. It's asset is speed, come in fast, fire at the target and get out. Once out of danger, turn around and attack again.

Actually, I was doing that - just keep getting too close before turning to avoid rear-ending it.

Don't turn, climb (not to steeply) or dive, in a SPAD turning will eat your energy big time.

Interesting; it would seem that I'd blow right past even and even at the much steeper climb (relative to the Alb D-III) would be giving him a close in tail shot on me. I'll see what happens. What I had been doing (the crash causer) was waiting to see (or guessing) which way the Alb would break then do a slight turn and climb in the opposite direction. Works great (if you don't crash!).

Back in the day (2005 to 2009) there was a pilot in MP who flew the SPAD and was excellent at the boom and zoom in a SPAD. He did not dive from way on high and the climb way back up. He used shallow dives and climbs. He was quite annoying to fight against for he would never turn fight you, always out ran you and only come at you when you were engaged elsewhere. It was the correct tactics for the machine.

By the time he came through the furball firing, he was flat and level, and when he climbed away, it felt he was flying level, but he wasn't. He was quite good at it.