A-10 ATTACK! v1.5
Europe VFR Sectional Read Me

The reason this map has just two terrain colors while the Cuba map had full terrain texture (or at least the appearance thereof) is because in Cuba there is little sea level terrain to speak of. In Attack! there is a clear differentiation between sea level (green) and mountainous terrain (brown), and I wanted a black & white printed version of the map to be able to reflect that, especially since the shapes of the sea level areas are ideal VFR references. Note that the textured pattern in the actual mission maps bears no direct correlation to individual terrain features--indeed, the texture patterns remain the same size regardless of map magnification--so you lose nothing by having the colors reduced, save perhaps an aesthetically pleasing perception of terrain. In fact, this reduced color scheme is how the mission maps appear in the game if you de-select "Map Textures" in Simulator Preferences, (I did lighten it a bit so the text would contrast better.) When printed on a b/w ink jet printer, the two shades of gray are easily distinguished. (One other thing. If you're like me and you like to make your printer cartridges last as long as possible, you print everything--and I mean EVERYTHING--in "draft" quality, and that includes "non-essential" stuff like these maps. Do yourself a favor though--if your printer cartridge can spare it, try printing one at "normal" quality. It makes a startling difference.) (Another other thing: with so few colors, the graphic compresses down much farther for quicker downloading.)

All the info in this map and Read Me were directly observed in the game and measured in as precise a way as I could muster: the runway lengths were obtained through pseudo-scientific means and may not be completely accurate, though I'm sure they're at least close. Also imperfect will be the elevations of the mountain peaks and ridges (but again, they should be close, probably within 50'.) Speaking of which, I tried to point out peaks that clearly could be used as a reference, meaning that from any direction, if the terrain was set to "far" the peak would stand out. Doubtless I've missed some notable peaks, but I got the ones that caught my eye.

Except for the four main airports in the game (Stralsund, Rostok, Wesenburg and Hamburg) towns and airports modeled in the game are not identified in either the program or the documentation, though I have attempted to do this using an atlas of moderate detail. For the hell of it I labeled as much of the real life topography as I could find names for and had room for.

GAME TRIVIA

• Translations: 'Bucht' and 'Bodden' mean bay, and 'See' means lake or pond.
  
• About 19 nm North of Eckernforde is a small peninsula with a peak that is 1250' MSL. Nothing special about it, but the peninsula does not appear on the mission maps.
  
• The mission map shows a bridge and road continuing east and NE from Stralsund to Rugen island. In the game itself there is no bridge, and no road on Rugen either.
  
• The mission map shows a city near Ribnitz-Damgarten airport--it appears and dissappears when you click the "city" button on the palette--however there is no city to be found there in the game.
  
• On the game's mission map there are several shades of green denoting sea level terrain. Some of these shades are dark enough that when printed on a b/w printer they blend in with the mountains -- for this sectional I made all sea level terrain the same shade of green.
  
• The fuel tanks 20 nm SE of Wesenburg are present only in the "Prelude To War" mission.
  
• The top of the radio tower just east of Rostok is about 4800' MSL. The tower is 450' tall.
  
• The radar "listening post" and it's attendant radio tower appear (19 nm NE of Stralsund airport) in the "Antonov Armada" mission only.
  
• The ridge south of Hamburg Intl. (on which sits the line of SAM sites in Retaliation) is about 2700' MSL.
  
• The cliffs that encircle the man-made lake east of Rostok rise 350' above the water.
  
• The peak on the island in Greifswalder Bay (east of Stralsund) is 4050' MSL. The peak on the little peninsula 8 nm north of Wismar is 2650'.
  
• The pond NE of Schleswig (it doesn't appear on mission maps) measures about 1000' along its longest side.
  
• The Hamburg dam is 750' tall, 3000' end to end, and 100' thick. The Rostok dam is 150' tall, 6400' end to end, and 60' thick.
  
• The dot in the middle of Mecklenburger Bay is the center of the map, and seems to be where you "emerge" after keying Command-S to begin slewing.
  
• Offshore Oil Rigs. There are about 28 (it varies mission to mission) within 15 nm of Stralsund. Each one is approx. 100' x 140', the top of the drilling tower being about 125' above the water. In the oil rig distribution inset at the top of the sectional you can see that there are five groups of oil rigs. Within these groups location and number will vary from mission to mission, but I've noticed that in the groups where 5 and 10 rigs are indicated, those numbers tend to appear consistently. In areas where I've indicated 4 rigs, however, I've seen 3, 4 and 5 at different times.

AIRPORT INFORMATION

Airfields are generally named after the towns they are near. Exceptions are labeled.

ALL RUNWAYS ARE AT SEA LEVEL. When parked on healthy landing gear the altimeter will read 07' MSL, except at Wesenburg (5600') and Skurup (-50')

ALL RUNWAYS HAVE VISUAL APPROACH SLOPE INDICATOR (VASI.) Most have V2L (VASI in two boxes on the left side of the runway) with two exceptions: Rødby RWY 15, and Landkirchen RWY 23, both of which have VASI V2R.

ALL RUNWAYS HAVE RUNWAY LIGHTING, AND A MODIFIED MEDIUM INTENSITY APPROACH LIGHTING SYSTEM (MALSR) except for Skurup, Sweden, which has no lighting or landing aids of any kind.

Altitudes given here are MSL, read from the chit leader while parked on the runway. Subtract 7' for true altitudes.

All airfields except Skurup have a VOR transmitter within a few hundred feet of the runway. They are the white pylons sticking up out of a red and white checkered box. 30' square, 40' tall....good for target practice. (Though true TACAN functions much like VOR/DME, destroying the VOR beacons has no effect on TACAN waypoints in the game.)

Since five of these runways have no names, compass coordinates are offered for easy reference on the mission map. (For instance, to find Lübeck airport, go into the mission map, place the compass tool over Hamburg Intl. and drag the white line to 41 nm at 60° heading.)

   RWY 09R-27L: 6000x100
   - WATER 700' before approach end RWY 09R

   RWY 09L-27R: 6000x100
   - 350' wide CANAL about half-mile (3100'-3500') before approach end RWY 27R

LANDKIRCHEN   07   (64 nm, 273° from Stralsund Airport)
   RWY 05-23: 5950x100
   - origin of "Assistance Needed" mission
   - field is surrounded by sand, which is tough to taxi through - use caution when venturing off the concrete.
   - caution during long approaches to RWY 23, as the runway centerline extends through the heart of downtown Puttgarden.

LUBECK   07   (41 nm, 60° from Hamburg Intl.)
   - field has large pond between runways.
   - identical to Stralsund airport

   RWY 15-33: 6100x200
   - south end intersects with RWY 18-36
   - grass shoulder 25' wide separates runway from 25-30' drop into water on both sides of pavement. In particular the approach end RWY 15 has 100' wide rectangular pools on the immediate right.
   - Ramp parallels RWY 33 on left side of approach end.
   - grass shoulder 25' wide, at about midfield, separates right side of RWY 18 from 25-30' drop into water.

RIBNITZ-DAMGARTEN   07   (17 nm, 240° from Stralsund Airport)

   RWY 09-27: 5850x100
   - water tower 100' tall at midfield, 275' from south edge of runway.
   - identical to Rostok airport

RØDBY (Den.)   07   (58 nm, 289° from Stralsund Airport)
   RWY 15-33: 6000x100
   - Only runway in Denmark in this game
   - CAUTION: one SAM launcher (Rapier) approx. 3500' NE of midfield, and two ZSU-23-4 AA vehicles (each approx. 4500' SW of each end of runway.) These sites are hot regardless of mission.

ROSTOK   07
   RWY 09-27: 5850x100
   - water tower 100' tall at midfield, 275' from south edge of runway.
   - identical to Ribnitz-Damgarten airport

STRALSUND   07
   - field has large pond between runways.
   - identical to Lubeck airport
   - origin of "Docklands," "Marauding BMPs," and "Antonov Armada" missions.

   RWY 15-33: 6100x200
   - south end intersects with RWY 18-36
   - grass shoulder 25' wide separates runway from 25-30' drop into water on both sides of pavement. In particular the approach end RWY 15 has 100' wide rectangular pools on the immediate right.
   - Ramp parallels RWY 33 on left side of approach end.

   RWY 18-36: 8000x200
   - grass shoulder 25' wide, at about midfield, separates right side of RWY 18 from 25-30' drop into water.

SKURUP (Swe.)   -42'   (75 nm, 12° from Stralsund)
   RWY 9-27: 5000x100
   - Only runway in Sweden in this game
   - NO runway lighting, no approach lighting system
   - Runway is in a culvert about 50' deep, 100' wide at the bottom (the runway itself) and 300' wide at the top.
   - No shoulders - just the walls of the culvert that slope upward from the edges and ends of the runway at an angle of about 27°. (Trigonometry RULES, baby!)
   - Near each end of the runway are short tunnels that intersect the strip at right angles, each turning north into a cavernous hangar. The tunnels are 100' wide and they, along with the hangar itself, have a clearance of 30'.

WESENBURG 5607'
   RWY 09-27: 5000x200
   - origin of "Prelude To War" mission

An Observation On Game Play

Waypoint Tip

When deploying computer-flown friendlies, pay attention to which planes you are deploying in which order.

Case in point: In the "Demolition Crew" mission, I made the mistake of deploying only the "east" F-16 (the one on the right when you "visit" from either plane's chit menu.) When I clicked the TACAN "ON" in "Way Info" the plane started engines and turned immediately left to taxi instead going straight out. Well, the "west" parked F-16, sitting this mission out, was in the way. The "active" F-16 one couldn't do what it was told and, being a dumb computer, just stopped dead with it's thumb squarely up its butt. It took me a long time to figure out this peculiar behavior. Once I did, I tried to get the stuck plane to move by giving it new waypoints, sending it to take off from the other end of the runway** or, being at Hamburg Intl., to a different runway altogether. No dice. That guy wouldn't move unless the F-16 to his left went first.

And also in this mission, be careful about deploying an A-10 at the exact same time as an F-16. Parked in different places, the Hogs taxi north and the 16s taxi west to a common point on the ramp. If they get there at the same time, as happened to me once, they'll both freeze in place, useless for the remainder of the mission.

** Later, to see if it was even possible, I launched "Prelude To War" and tried sending an A-10 to take off from RWY 27 at Wesenburg (the mission sends planes to RWY 9) and fly a simple right pattern. No obstacles, no threats. The plane started up, taxied straight out and turned left, setting up to takeoff from RWY 9. It taxied out onto the runway and turned right into position for take off. It then firewalled its throttles and turned full left simultaneously, skidding across the grass and taking out a VASI box (damaging a main landing gear) before limping airborne. It jumped into the pattern on the downwind leg and flew the rest of the pattern flawlessly. So, based on this experiment, you can get planes to take off in an unorthodox direction, you just can't get them to line up to do so.

A Discussion Of Slewing

You can begin slewing after "visiting" any vehicle that has a chit (plane, tank, boat, SAM, anything), or as is more often the case, after "taking command" of one of the A-10s.

To begin slewing hit Command-S, and after a moment you will find yourself at sea level in the dead center of the terrain area (on the map it's the dot in the middle of Mecklenburger Bay.) If you hit 8 on your keypad you will begin moving directly toward one of the A-10s (though not necessarily the one you're controlling at that moment.) Keep hitting 8 to accelerate, eventually you'll arrive at the A-10. Unless you slow up when you get close, the view will be chaotic until you hit keypad 5 to stop. Tap the letter x to give control to your joystick, and you can yaw (360°), pitch (360 °) and roll (no more than 60° to either side). Use keypad 8, 4, 6, and 2 to control direction in the horizontal plane (relative to you at all times) while 7 and 1 move you up and down respectively (again, relative to you, regardless of your position in space. For instance, if you happen to be facing straight down, 7 and 1 will move you parallel to the ground, and you would use 8 and 2 respectively to move towards and away from the ground.)

Note: If you are slewing with joystick control, you can slew through the full 360° of pitch. Tapping x will re-orient you and lock you onto an A-10, even if it happens to be flying, and if you are slewing while "locked" to an A-10 you will not be able to pitch any farther than directly above the airplane (+90°) or directly below (-90°) This is a good way to get a view directly above the plane, if you're interested, as Chase View (keyboard 3) will raise your line of sight no more than 60° above the horizontal. (Locking back onto an A-10 is also a particularly handy way to get your bearings if you've slewed yourself off into the distance, beyond the sight of land.)

In the course of putting this map and the Cuba map together, I spent a lot of time in slew mode (does it show?) and I began to wonder just how fast one moves when slewing. From what I can tell, each click increases your "speed" by a factor of 1.5, except going from one click to two. One click moves you at 15 kts, two clicks gets you to 30. After that, the x1.5 rule seems to be in effect: three clicks = 45 kts, four = 67.5, and so on. When you get up around 17 clicks you are really hauling, and the frame rate degrades as the oncoming scenery struggles to come into view quickly enough. (On my CPU anyway, a 100mhz 601)

Keypad clicks	speed (kts)
1	15.0
2	30.0
3	45.0
4	67.5
5	101.3
6	151.9
7	227.8
8	341.7
9	512.6
10	768.9
11	1153.3
12	1730.0
13	2594.9
14	3892.4
15	5838.6
16	8757.9
17	13136.8
18	19705.2

When banking fully (remember, 60° of bank is all the roll you get) you yaw through 100°-per-second. This rotation rate applies to pitch as well.

As you might imagine, these speeds and turn rates triple when slewing in 3x mode.

...Tom "Howdy" Curtis for mucho support, and for his two A-10 Attack & Cuba help files, Stupid Hawg Tricks and Cuba Tactics. Indispensable for the virtual Hawg Driver.

...Petteri Sulonen for his excellent A-10 Attack! help file, A-10 Attack FAQ.

...Eugene Pak, et. al. for the comprehensive FAQ on the real A-10, A-10 FAQ (rev 1.2). Special thanks also to Eugene for continued support.

...as always, thanks to the folks at PARSOFT INTERACTIVE especially, for CREATING THESE TERRIFIC SIMULATORS.

This map was born of the whims of a map junkie and confessed A-10 Attack freak, and is intended for other A-10 Attack freaks. That's about as close to an apology as I'll offer for devoting so much time to a computer game! ;)

Let me know what you think!

Steve Russillo
russillosm@gmail.com
April 24, 1997