Bombers in a more realistic fashion should fly at high altitudes and drop their bombs accordingly. BUT the paradigm has changed for some of the bombers in favor of low level bombing. When flying solo I always fly the RB-17, the A-26B and the Do 217 M at tree top low altitudes. This way I don't need the bomb site and I can take advantage of decreasing the bomb reload time.
That's a serious problem. Of the three bombers you named, only one was intended for low level raiding, the American A-26, which is why it was designated A-26 and not B-26.
I've dabbled with low flying the Ju 88a and Blenheim IV with mixed results. The Do 17 z is not a good choice for low level bombing. Basically all bombers flying at higher altitudes may suffer a bit (don't stay over the cap too long), although I have not noticed too much of a difference myself.
As a result right now the high flying bombers, especially the tech-line ones, are performing at very poor levels post 2.0.5 due to strengthening of AA, increased aggressive programming of AI heavies, and removal of damage-mitigating equipment as well as the removal of the bombsight prior to specialization. Pardon me, but I think it is absolute bullcrap to have to "specialize" a bomber in order to effectively bomb with her.
But... but.... I don't, can't or won't learn to fly my bombers at low altitude. Hey no one forcing you too, but as this game changes, call it evolution, surviving in the ever changing environment will require adaption. Those who can adapt, will most likely flourish and enjoy the new paradigm. Those who cannot, well that is how some species die out.
Cliche' and Tropes do not make for a strong argument. Particularly when it seems to negatively affect more players than it assists. Yes, you can persist and change to go along with whatever inconsistency that gets tossed into this game. It will do you little good if it drives away most of your fellow players and presents an insurmountable wall to any new recruits. Without change I fear that it will get rather lonely in-game in short order.
But... but... but.... I know what your going to say. Bombers should not be flying like ground attack planes! Sacrilege! Philosophically I agree. But if I want to help my team win and be more efficient, and do as much damage as possible, I need to find the best ways to fly my planes. This game is not about reality, or an extrapolation of reality anymore, it is anything goes! So you learn what works, even if it is not logical or philosophically ideal and you go with it.
Exactly. Which is why I have adapted to fly only my low tier premium aircraft. After the immediate amendment to this deeply flawed patch those are at least playable before specialist status, and the easy wins and consistent salvage income will keep me playing as I upgrade and tweak all of my premiums equipment to Ultimate status before erasing their negatives. I will also provide the public service of showing our rookies what they have to look forward to, both in how it is possible to do the impossible in their planes, and that there are players here who will take joy in stomping all over them in the name of winning.
The AA can be brutal and eroding. The defense planes seem a bit more aggressive. Staying in or over a cap has it's own form of attrition. Bombers now need to get in and get out quickly. Low level flying helps with that.
Low level flying only "helps" with that because the low level AA guns have very bad lines of sight that can be exploited by barnstorming. You should be getting ripped to shreds far more quickly than the high fliers, but you aren't...because reasons.
But don't you get shot down more? Yes, sometimes. But I would gladly trade getting shot down 2 or 3 times in one battle for the 10 to 25 (or more) ground kills and flipping 3-6 caps (or more) per battle. Maybe the end justifies the means.
The only bomber I grinded was the RB-17 because I was going to fly that one a ton anyways. I took a look at the other ones and just paid the tokins. The specialist bomber grinds are tedious and seem to have a higher degree of difficulty than other planes requirements.
I certainly hope that you are in the extreme minority when it comes to unlocking these planes with tokens, because it will just reinforce the poor decision making that lead to this change in the first place. Thankfully public feedback so far indicates that this is true.
Prenzlau