Rascal Dive Bomber

Rascal Dive Bomber
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Minor Faction	Republic of Vietnam Ranger Forces
Other Faction(s)	Confederate Revolutionaries
Unit Type	Ground Attack Plane
Designation	Anti Ground
Production Building	ARVN Command Tent
Secondary Ability	Drop Bomb File:AbilityARVNRascal.png
Cost	$1400
Production Time	0:15
Heroic Upgrade	Magnesisum Shells • 37mm does Burst damage
Dev. Status	In game

Country of Origin	United Kingdom
Produced by/ Recovered from	Da Nang Airfield, South Vietnam
Key Features	» 37mm autocannon (x2)  » 500 lb. gravity bomb  » Rear .30 cal machine gun turret  » CV Radio (Picks up radio talk show "Good Morning Vietnam")  » Tanya Adams Nose Art

"Look at them run!"

- Rascal Dive Bomber Pilot

Tactical Analysis

• Old, not rusty: The Rascal Dive Bomber is an old but very versatile attack plane that can rule the skies if no fighters engage it. Its primary purpose, as its name suggests, is to dive bomb enemies, strafing it with its autocannons as it goes.

• Out of the blue: While the rear machine gun is ineffective against modern jets, helicopters are much slower and can easily be shot at by the rear gunner, a fact which ensures a short life for (hostile) helicopters operating near the Rascal.

• Warning, single use only!: The Rascal can only carry limited weight, and has limited ammo storage. It can carry only one bomb, and though it can still strafe, it's only able to manage a few seconds of bursts.

Operational History

A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy and limit the exposure of anti-aircraft fire. This type of aircraft was most heavily used before and during World War II; its use fell into decline shortly afterwards. For its day, the Rascal was the most advanced dive bomber in the world. Using it as "aerial artillery" solved a major problem in the concept of how to attack dug in defensive positions.

However, despite their solid construction, Rascals could still be brought down by Flak Cannons, especially in numbers. Depending on how this occurred, the Rascal Dive Bombers might or might not have an opportunity to drop their bombs. Owing to their much smaller range and lesser anti-aircraft power, weapons fired by heavy infantry were generally ineffective by themselves, and would be quickly gunned down by the heavy autocannons.

After the Second World War, the Rascals quickly disappeared. Anti-aircraft warfare had improved as had the speed and effectiveness of fighter aircraft against the vulnerable, slow-flying Rascals. At the same time the quality of various bombsights allowed for much better accuracy from smaller dive angles, and the sights could be fitted to almost any plane, especially fighter aircraft, much improving the effectiveness of ground attack aircraft.

However, something unexpected happened. A squadron of Rascal Dive bombers was sent to the ARVN instead of the Hawker Jumpjets that they were supposed to receive. The ARVN took these outdated bombers and quickly deployed them along the border, before the Allied advisors could figure out what was happening. The Peacekeepers couldn’t bring themselves to take the Rascals away from the overjoyed South Vietnamese pilots, so they then pawned off a large collection of these old prop planes to the ARVN, who had roughly the same reaction as a kid told he could operate the sirens on the local fire truck. Nobody had the heart to tell them they could only use it effectively because the Allies established comprehensive air superiority first.

Just the Stats

Rascal Dive Bomber
Circling, Take-Off Speed(5)
Ground Attack Plane
Cost	1400
Build Time	0:15
Health	500
Speed	160
Armour Type	Thin Skinned

37mm Autocannons (Anti-Surface)
Move and Fire, Spread
Disruptor
Range	100
RPS	8
Damage	6
Suppression	8
DPS	48

Tail Gun (Anti-Air)
Move and Fire
Bullet
Range	250
RPS	3
Damage	10
Suppression	N/A
DPS	30

Bomb
Splash(80), Dumb-Fire, Limited Ammo(1)
Burst
Range	100
RPS	N/A
Damage	175
Suppression	100
DPS	N/A

Experience Levels
Default Kill Reward	800
Veteran	3200
Kill Reward	1600
Elite	6400
Kill Reward	3200
Heroic	12800
Kill Reward	6400