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Sky Duels #9: Over Normandy

From November 8th 15:00 GMT to November 11th 06:00 GMT (from November 8th 8:00 PDT to November 10th 23:00 PDT)

20% special discount for qualifications 20% special discount for qualifications P-51D-5 Mustang, P-51D-30 Mustang Fw.190A-5, Fw.190A-5/U2, Fw.190 F-8, Fw.190D-12

Achievements:

While flying P-51D-5 Mustang, P-51D-30 Mustang, Fw.190A-5, Fw.190A-5/U2, Fw.190 F-8, Fw.190D-12

destroy 10 and 70 enemy aircraft in Arcade Battles

destroy 7 and 25 enemy aircraft in History Battles

destroy 10 aircraft in Full-Real Battles

You may earn up to 150 000 Silver Lions

(You can check your progress in your game profile — achievements)

Don't forget to participate in the Golden Victory event

100 Golden Eagles for the first victory from November 9th 20:00 (13:00 PDT) to November 10th 20:00 (13:00 PDT)!



From 1942 to 1945 the Allied command relied heavily on strategic bombing of German industrial centres and communications. Air fleets of hundreds of heavy bombers like the B-17, the B-24 and the Avro Lancaster needed protection from German interceptors. The most effective aircraft to play the escort part was the P-51 Mustang, used by both American and British air forces. Light and powerful, these planes had strong armament and cutting-edge radio-electronic equipment. Their range of up to 1650 miles allowed these fighters to guide the bombers to targets far behind enemy lines. When the Allied troops landed in Normandy, the Mustang proved to be an effective ground-attack aircraft, dealing heavy damage to German ground forces. Overall, the P-51 was a real ‘workhorse’ of allied air forces during the last 3 years of the war.



The first Focke-Wulf Fw 190 entered service in II./JG 26 Schlageter German fighters squadron based in northern France in the summer of 1941. The first air victory was gained by a Focke-Wulf pilot over a Spitfire Mk V on the 14th of August. By the end of 1941 the new fighters had regained air superiority over Normandy and La-Manche for the Luftwaffe. Surprisingly fast and armed with redoubtable 20 mm cannons, the Fw 190 excelled in many roles, from night fighter to light bomber and surpassed its main rival, the British Spitfire Mk V, in everything except turn time.



To retake air superiority, RAF command began using P-51 Mustangs for assignments in northern France in 1942. On the 27th of July the new fighters first clashed and the Fw 190 ended up victorious, shooting down a Mustang over the Dieppe town in Upper Normandy. A few weeks later the Allies performed a landing operation in Dieppe, using a number of P-51s for air support. The Mustangs suffered heavy losses, only destroying two enemy planes.



However the situation changed when the pilots familiarized themselves with P-51 and the American engineers adopted the Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, the Mustang losses in fights against Focke-Wulfs decreased significantly. The new fighters’ capabilities had equalized by the time of the Allies landing in Normandy in 1944.

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