In Parts 1 and 2 we looked at the new German, Japanese, Soviet and American aircraft appearing in Wing Leader: Eagles. It’s great to see a mixture of late-war curios and hot-rods finally make it into the game. However, there are two more nations–one a surprise entry in a World War 2 game–that contribute data cards to the new expansion module.

Great Britain

What’s the point of being a game designer if you cannot abuse your privilege? Modules like Eagles are an opportunity for myself and my scenario designers to throw in the kind of unloved and unappreciated aircraft that fought at the margins of the war. These are aircraft that I find at least as interesting, if not more so, as the superstar Spitfires, Mustangs and whatnot.

The Fairey Barracuda is the first of these oddball types. An ungainly-looking carrier ‘plane, it was the product of pre-war Royal Navy doctrine, which reasoned that naval aircraft would not have to operate close to shore and face land-based aircraft. The focus was on the ability of carriers to launch a first strike and survive a counterattack. It was a line of reasoning that led to the development of armoured carriers, but these would be small ships, with limited aircraft capacity. With so few aircraft, it was vital that naval ‘planes be multi-role, and as they would not need to face land-based aircraft, high performance was not a priority.

Barracuda was one of a line of multi-role TBR (Torpedo/Bomber/Reconnaissance) ‘planes that proved inferior to specialist American types like the Dauntless and Avenger. Weakened by the compromises needed to fulfil all its roles, the Barracuda demonstrated some tricky handling characteristics. Despite this, it proved a useful dive bomber, particularly during Operation Tungsten, the raid on the Tirpitz. However, in the humid environment of the Pacific, the underpowered Barracuda’s range was too small and its ceiling too low for strike operations against Indonesia, and it was replaced in the British Pacific Fleet by the Avenger.

The Fairey Firefly was another product of Royal Navy doctrine, based on a belief that long-range navigation was beyond the powers of a fighter pilot, and so a navigator was required. Despite the compromises of an extra seat, the Firefly was, if not a distinguished fighter, certainly a solid all-rounder, finding employment as a fighter-bomber, anti-submarine hunter and even a nightfighter, the second crewman proving useful as a radar operator. It was to have a lengthy post-war career, notably in Korea.

Unlike the Firefly or Barracuda, the third British aircraft is not a footnote in history, but one of the iconic aircraft of the war. However, the de Havilland Mosquito has proven a difficult ‘plane to fit into the game. The problem is in finding actions in which the Mosquito operated in numbers against fighter opposition, which is rarer than you’d think. In the end, histories of Coastal Command’s Banff and Dallachy strike wings, such as Andrew Bird’s A Separate Little War, came to the rescue. Here were actions by Mosquito Mk.VIs and even the big gun Mk.VIII ‘Tsetse’ Mossies up and down the Norwegian coast, shooting up coastal traffic while getting into scrapes with the fighters of Jagdgeshwader 5. This was material I could use to craft cool scenarios.

Sweden

The Swedes may seem an odd choice to put into the game, but this was always in the cards. Some of the reasoning is sentimental. I lived a number of years in Sweden and retain a fondness for the country. After performing a pilgrimage to the Flygvapenmuseum at Linköping, the idea of featuring the WW2-era Swedes in one of my games took root.

I was also considering adding counterfactual scenarios to the game. Though I looked at counterfactuals based around the Luftwaffe’s most advanced aircraft, such as the Ta 152H-1 or Do 335A-1, I thought the Swedes to be far more interesting. Of the various minor nations that tried to wean themselves off of imports and build an aircraft industry, the Swedes got the furthest, thanks to their neutrality. However, their weakness was not in building airframes but in powerplants, and they were reliant on a number of licensed and knockoff versions of early-war engines. By the time this first generation of domestic fighters and bombers deployed, they were two or three years behind the Allies and Germans. Aircraft that would have been competitive in 1940-41 were outclassed in 1945.

However, the Swedes came within days of entering the war. They had committed themselves to the liberation of Denmark when the plug was pulled by the surrender of Germany. It’s not much of a stretch to imagine what that combat might look like had the war dragged on just a week or two longer.

Of the Swedish aircraft the SAAB B 17 was a solid light bomber. Though capable of dive-bombing it had no need to, thanks to the invention of an advanced dive bombing sight that permitted accurate attacks from shallower dive angles. This SAAB-made ‘Wilkenson sight’ became an export success after the war, used by many air forces, including the USAF in Korea. The inclusion of the Swedes means that rules for the sight have been included in the Wing Leader: Victories second edition rules set, so that if the game were ever expanded into the post-war period, we would be covered.

The SAAB B 18 was a twin-engined light bomber in a similar class to the Pe 2 or Mosquito. The wartime variant represented in the game was underpowered and slow, but when re-engined after the war it was a useful and versatile aircraft. Like the B 17 it also benefitted from the Wilkenson dive bombing sight.

The final Swedish aircraft was the FFVS J 22, a lightweight single-engined fighter that was easily in a similar class to the Spitfire Mk.I. However, had it gone up against the Luftwaffe of 1945 vintage, it would have been outclassed in performance and reliant on the skill of its pilots, against the poor quality German fliers of the final months of the war.

This completes our round-up of all the new aircraft in Wing Leader: Eagles. I hope this whets your appetite, and remember that you can order your copy here.

Articles in this Series: Part 1  Part 2  Part 3

Author: Lee Brimmicombe-Wood