Aircraft Missions
Every sortie is a mission — there is no plain move order.
ONE ORDER, THREE TARGETS
Every sortie is a mission — patrol, strike, bombing run — or a ferry order. Patrol, strike, and bombing are the same order type underneath, differing only by target: a patrol point with no other target → Patrol (this is also how recon works — no separate recon order exists); a specific enemy unit → Strike; a bare map location, bomber-only → a coordinate bombing run.
A SEQUENCE, NOT AN INSTANT
Takeoff → climb to cruise altitude → cruise toward target or patrol point → final approach once close → engage or release weapons → automatic turn for home. One pass per strike or bombing run — no loitering to reattack.
ON PATROL
A patrolling flight holds a racetrack orbit — roughly a 20 km loop, ~5 minutes per lap — and auto-intercepts the nearest visible enemy aircraft, but only if it's actually armed for air-to-air. Unarmed recon and early-warning aircraft just circle and watch. A patrolling flight can be redirected or sent to attack without landing first.
| CHOICE | OPTIONS |
|---|---|
| ALTITUDE PROFILE | Low / medium / high — detection tradeoffs covered in Vision & Detection; changeable mid-flight |
| ENGAGEMENT RULE | Default: auto-abort and return when defensive ammo is spent. "Press on": continue regardless |
HOW A MISSION ENDS
A mission ends by completing its pass and auto-returning to rearm and refuel, by manual recall at any point, or by being shot down — in which case the mission simply ends there, aircraft and anyone aboard lost.