By SWAGER, I./JG2

HELMUT WICK was Scheumann's successor as Kommodore of JG 2 Richthofen, and became one of the first great German fighter aces of the Second World War. He combined all the qualities that make a successful fighter pilot: he enjoyed the excitement of combat; was a good shot; he was extremely aggressive; and possessed superb coolness under difficult combat conditions.

Born in Mannheim on August 5, 1915, Wick was one of three children of Carl Wick, a construction engineer. In November, 1938 Wick was commissioned a Leutnant in his county's new Air Force, The Luffwaffe. During advanced training, his instructor had been Werner Molders, and the two became close friends. Wick's first unit was II/JG 134. under Oberst Max Ibel. with which he flew the Arado 68 biplane. Soon transferred to I/JG 53, Wick first flew the Messerschmitt 109 in January, 1939 and, during the following March, Molders became his Staffelkapitan. In September, Helmut was again transferred, this time to I/IG 2. During this month, the Polish campaign was underway, but JG 2 was assigned to protect Berlin and saw no action. On May 10, 1940, Kommodore von Biilow led JG 2 in the attack on France. However, Helmut Wick was again deprived of action for the first several days because the engine in his Messerschmitt needed extensive repairs. Although his crew chief, Uffz. Sauerbrei. worked his mechanics day and night, it was not until the 21st that Wick could have his fighter. Flying with five others, his role was to escort a Henschel 126 on a reconnaissance mission. Despite the fact that several French Morane fighters flew close to investigate the Henschel, sorely tempting the impatient German to tangle with them, Wick remained on station because his job was to escort and protect, not to Freie Jagd. It was a bitterly disappointed Helmut Wick who landed on the I/JG 2 airfield after that mission.

On May 22, Wick's Staffel came upon 24 French bombers and fighters. The Messerschmitts bounced the unsuspecting French pilots and shot down eight, with Wick scoring two. Later in the month while separated from his Staffel over Calais, Wick spottedtwo British Fairey Swordfish torpedo planes. Without hesitation, the Jagdflieger made a firing pass, but noticed that the gunner in the rear cockpit was waving a white cloth. He took this as a signal of surrender. As the British pilot brought the craft down in preparation for a landing, Wick followed, but the gunner opened fire thinking Wick did not intend to accept the surrender. After a short roll. the Swordfish overturned on the rough field. Wick quickly sped after the other torpedo plane and shot it down in flames. Neither of these victories was confirmed, because there were no accountable witnesses and the wreckage fell on Allied territory. Helmut Wick, like many of the great aces, was a slow starter, but he was soon to begin his meteoric climb to fame.

Wick shot down four Bloch 152 fighters on June 5, 1940. and two more on the next day. By June 9, he had attained his 12th victory and became the most successful pilot in the Richthofen Geschwader as he destroyed a Bristol Blenheim. At this time, he was awarded the Eiserne Kreuz I or Iron Cross FirstClass, and was promoted to Staffelkapitan of 3/JG 2.

As the Battle of Britain entered its first stages, Wick's eagerness to conquer the enemy increased. On July 17,1940, he went out of his way to the Isle of Wight, contrary to orders, to bag another Blenheim bomber. Instead, he found 14 Spitfires, who were surprised to find a Messerschmitt in the area. He bounced the "tail-end Charlie," who became Wick's 14th victory, and sped away to rejoin his unit. By scoring two victories, his 20th and 21st, Wick brought the JG 2 total to 250 victories on August 27. Also on this date, the Ritterkreuz, or Knight's Cross, was presented to the intrepid pilot.

On September 9, 1940, Wick was promoted to the rank of Hauptmarm and Gruppen-kommandeur of I/JG 2. Shortly after his promotion, Wick's Gruppe was inspected by Feldmarschall Sperrle. Upon completion of his inspection. Sperrle complained about the general untidiness of the ground personnel. The impetuous Wick did not let this criticism go by; instead, he erupted in anger at the commander of Luftflotte 3. The Hauptmann recounted the many tasks and long hours the ground crews had to work to keep the Messerschmitts flying, and had no time to get "a damned haircut," Sperrle's monocle dropped and his mouth opened in astonishment. He knew, however, that Helmut Wick was correct and said no more.

The scoring of a double victory of Spitfires on October 2, and shooting down 5 more British fighters three days later brought Wick's score to 41. He also received the Eichenlaub, or Oak Leaves, to his Ritterkreuz on this day.

On October 19. Wick was promoted to Major, at 25 the youngest in the Luftwaffe. He was also selected to succeed Schellmann as Kommodore of the Richthofen Geschwader at this time. For his personal victory record he notched his Kommodore's Geschwaderstock, or walking cane, much like an American cowboy would notch his gun handle. His personal insignia became the word Horrido on a red pennant emblazoned with a broad sword. Wick had this insignia painted on the nose of his Messer-schmitt.

Wick's victories continued to mount, scoring mostly against Spitfires and Hurricanes. He downed three on November 5, and five in 13 minutes over Southampton and the Isle of Wight on the following day.

During an early morning mission on November 28, 1940, the young Kommodore shot down his 55th victory over the Channel. This made Wick the top fighter pilot of the war at that time, surpassing Molders' 54 and Galland's 52 victories. Late in the afternoon, the Geschwaderstab Schwarm took off on a Freie Jagd over the Channel. The flight included some of the top Experten of the Battle of Britain: Hptm.Rudolf Pflanz, Geschwader technical officer; Oblt. Erich Leie, Geschwader Adjutant; and Lt- Fiby. As the Schwarm approached the Isle of Wight, it spotted a formation of Spitfires flying towards Bournemouth. The Germans attacked at once, and it was not long before Wick scored his 56th victory, while Pflanz and Leie failed in their attack on two other Spitfires. During this fight, Wick became separated from his Schwarm, and before Leie, Fiby. and Pflanz could begin to search, they were attacked from above by another Spitfire unit. They barely escaped from this superior force. Running short of fuel, Leie and Fiby headed for the Continent. Hptm. Pflanz came out of the engagement at about 10,000 feet and, scanning the area, sighted two planes a few miles away heading towards France. Assuming they were Fiby and Leie. Pflanz started a long sweep, intending to search for his leader, when he saw the trailing aircraft fire at the leading aircraft. The Hauptmann sped to the scene where he identified the attacker as a Spitfire, and the pursued aircraft as a Messerschmitt. The Briton scored well and. as the Me 109E dived towards the foreboding waters of the Channel, the German pilot bailed out. Pflanz then recognized the markings on the plunging 109 as those of his leader, Helmut Wick. As the plane plunged into the Channel, Rudi Pflanz slammed into the Spitfire. With a single burst, he sent it crashing into the waters very close to its re cent victim. Rudi circled the area several times but failed to detect any sign of life. He then called for help on his radio,cleverly announcing that a Spitfire was shot down so the British would also send out a rescue party. Pflanz continued to circle the site until his fuel tank was almost empty, and then headed across the Channel. His fuel gave out at landfall,, and he forced-landed in a meadow. Major Wick was never found and the last entry by his name in'' the Geschwader log book read: "28.11.40, one Spitfire shot down over Bournemouth 5.13 P.M." The pilot who shot down the young Kommodore was Flight Lieutenant John "Dogs" Dundas, a Battle of Britain ace from 609 Squadron who made Wick his 13th and final victory.

Hptm. Karl-Heinz Greisert was named the acting Kommodore until February 16, 1941, when Wilhelm Balthasar was selected as Kommodore to replace Helmut Wick.

Helmut Wick's philosophy was that of a true fighter and patriot: "As long as I can shoot down the enemy, adding to the honor of the Richthofen Geschwader and the success of the Fatherland, I will be a happy man. I want to fight and die fighting, taking with me as many of the enemy as possible";and Helmut Wick did die fighting.

Aces High gets TANKED!!

ACES'S HIGH INTRODUCES MOVING FODDER

Aces High as most know have recently introduced tanks and half-tracks into the simulation. This elevates strategy to a new level never seen before in an online sim. JG2 has had many gut-wrenching tanks battles, with half tracks giving air support. The new twist is fun for all sides.Some of the known bugs in the game are things such as, putting the vehicle into nuetral when going down a slope to attain speeds 4 to 5 times greater than the vehicle is capable in real life. (HT said this will not be changed, as it is in balance to the methodically slow up hill climbs one has to encounter) Another bug is the lack of a coaxial gunner position in the tank.. and a few others. Aside from the bugs, one can still enjoy battle with the confines of a turret, and there is no shortage of targets.

In one event, JG2 tank commanders drove the the Bishop city and leveled it flat. In another event, 4 JG2 members in heavy fighters and 1 tank totally destroyed the Rook HQ and all of its surrounding buildings.

Driving tanks can be a nice change from the rum-drum of flying, especially if you find your gunnery going south for a bit. It is highly suggested to "team up" with another tanker or M16 when doing some cross-country travel. There are many JG2 pilots willing to help you learn the ins and outs of tanking, Udie, Weazel, Ripsnort, just to name a few. If you have an interest in doing some training, contact one of these fellows and they'll be more than glad to assist.HTC has recently released a patch that has beefed up the armour to make the tank a tougher opponent.

The following facts have been fed to JG2 through intelligence experienced first hand on the battle field.

(AP=Armour piercing HE=High Explosive)

• It takes 20 rounds of HE to destroy a hangar of any size at airfields.
• It takes 20 rounds of HE to destroy Vehicle Depots.
• It takes 70-80 rounds of HE to destroy a HQ.
• It takes 2 rounds to destroy Factories and buildings.
• It takes 2 rounds to destroy a radar dish.
• A good tactic for attacking an airfield is to get just outside of ack range, when ack is firing at you, but not hitting you. You are then approximately 3000 yards away from target. Fire 1 shot, and mark hit, if it is short, then add 500 yards to the next shot. Mark the 2nd shot and adjust the 3rd shot between the 1st and 2nd "dust plume" marks. It is highly suggested that you have alittle elevation to help you evaluate your marks.

JG2 reduces to 2 squadrons

Due to a number of members leaving JG2, it was decided by the high command to reduce back to 2 squadrons. Numbers is a good thing generally, but in this case, it did not work. JG2 works better as a smaller cohesive unit than it does overwhelming the opponents with numbers. Currently, I./JG2 had 29 members and II./JG2 has 21 members. Having a separate Euro squadron has assisted those who fly a GMT schedule. The two squads co-exist as one JG2 squadron, but are truly 2 separate squads due to time constraints.

Mission day for I./JG2 (U.S.) is Friday night at 10:00pm EST and for II./JG2 mission time is on Sunday at 8:00pm GMT.

Training nights will be soon announced. Udie has taken on the responsibility of official Trainer for I./JG2. He will be responsible for a training doctrine that will help us prepare for upcoming scenarios.

One thing is for certain, JG2 members treat each other like family members, this is both apparent on the field, as well as within the community itself. We are certainly one of the best squadrons in Aces High.

by "Ripsnort I./JG2

The Panzer IV, conceived by General Guderian himself as a heavy support tank for Panzer IIIs, was the workhorse of the Panzer Divisionen. Although it was slow to come into production, the Panzer IV soon revealed its fine balance between protection, firepower, and mobility. When production ceased in 1945, more than 8,000 hed been built (all 75 mm versions, short or long-barrelled ones). It also provided the basis for many other combat vehicles, including : Jagdpanzer IV tank-hunter, Nashorn and Hummel self-propelled guns, and the Flakpanzer IV anti-aircraft tank.

At a meeting of Department Heads at the Army Weapons Department on Jan 11, 1934 the eminent decisions regarding Panzer divisions were clarified. Since the medium "tractor" (Pz Kw III) development contracts had already been issued in 1934, the plan was to fit the other machine (Pz Kw IV) with a large caliber gun along with turret and hull machine guns. Thus it would be able to support lighter tanks such as the "ZW" (the medium tractor). The caliber chosen was 7.5 cm, total weight was to be 24 tons. Both would be alike in layout and superficially in appearance. The crew would be a total of five men. Rheinmetall-Borsig undertook the main development and produced a wooden model of the VK 2001 (Rh) by the end of the year. The first prototypes were built that year and the following with testing in kummersdorf. Suspension consisted of eight paired bogies and three track return rollers. The new VK 2001 (Rh) weighed 18 tons, the engine horse power of 320 produced a maximum speed of 30 kph. Armor was 5 - 14.5 mm think. The tank was able to climb gradients of 30° and cross trenches 2.2 meters wide. One hundred forty main gun rounds and 3,000 MG rounds could be stored.

The design study for the BW machine made during 1935 by MAN (VK 2002/MAN) provided for an interleaved suspension. Krupps design (VK 2001/K) which was not built, instead saw that they took over development of the turret, and all subsequent models with few exceptions (e.g. Panther) till the conclusion of the war. Krupp using experienced gained through the Pz Kw II built prototypes and thoroughly tested them in 1935 - '36. As a result, Krupp was selected as main developer and manufacturer for complete construction of the BW design. 

• May 1st, 1945:Radio Hamburg announces that Hitler is dead.
• May 3rd, 1945: Okinawa-Jap General Ushijima asks tokyo to step up kamikaze attacks on US ships in support of Japanese land offensive
• May 6th, 1941:First flight of XP-47B Thunderbolt prototype.
• May 9th, 1945: Pres. Truman declares VE day. Hostilities officially end at 1 minute past midnight.
• May 22nd, 1943: Adolph Galland flies the ME262 Prototype, and declares its the answer to Germany's defensive problems.
• May 29th, 1940: First flight of Chance Vought Corsair XF4U-1 Prototype.

Some tweaks for you guys

Achieve LAN performance with your dial-up modems! Smartalec Smartplay optimizes your computer and internet settings to provide the best online gaming experience a modem user can achieve. Through special optimizations and tweaks, Smartplay can lower latency and improve internet online gaming experience by up to 40% to allow the user to achieve higher scores and lower pings. Small and compact and easy to use. The optimization process is only a 1-click affair. Smartalec Smartplay supports all standard modems as well as specific support for Rockwell and USR/3com chipsets as well as cable modems.

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With AGP Info you can access BIOS options without exiting Windows. You can also change many previously unavailable options Very useful if you want to do some fine tuning on an overclocked system. Limitations: For the Intel 440BX and ZX chipsets only.

http://www.tweakfiles.com/cgi-bin/dl-ftp.cgi?ftp.cdrom.com/pub/3dfiles/tweakfiles/video/agp_info.zip

There are many more good tweak files at: http://www.tweakfiles.com/