TMS: The Musketeers Squadron

TRAINING

The Dojo

Step into The Musketeers Squadron Dojo! It’s one of my beliefs that the study and practice of air combat maneuvering (ACM), as was practiced in Air Warrior, and now in Aces High, Fighter Ace, Warbirds, World War II Online and similar online multiplayer combat games, is rooted in the same basic intellectual, emotional and philosophical foundations as those of any traditional martial art. I explore this concept further in Air Combat: A Martial Art?.

However, our “dojo”, or martial arts school, is merely a conceptual device to help students grasp this approach to ACM. I believe that the mental image of a martial arts school invokes the proper attitude for combat success. Our current curricula follows below; learn well, Grasshoppers!

Note: “Sensei” Rapier’s contributed articles were originally written for the Fighter Ace Combat Manual. Other articles were for the late, great Air Warrior. As such, they often make reference to those games. However, students should be at ease, as most of the air combat maneuvers and techniques discussed are directly applicable to any air combat game that accurately models real flight dynamics. (Rapier’s articles appear by permission of the author and Microsoft Corporation.)

Novice Class: The Basics…

• Suggested Reading List
• Air Combat: A Martial Art? — Sensei: Wraith
• Air Combat Maneuvering — Sensei: Rapier
• The Classic Dilemma — Sensei: Rapier
• Fighter Gunnery — Sensei: Rapier
• Lead Turns — Contributed Article, Sensei: Rapier
• Pursuit Curves — Contributed Article, Sensei: Rapier
• Guns Defense — Contributed Article, Sensei: Rapier

Intermediate Class: What you don’t know can kill you…

• Angles Fighting — Contributed Article, Sensei: Rapier
• Energy Fighting — Contributed Article, Sensei: Rapier
• The Split Esse and Immelman — Contributed Article, Sensei: Rapier
• The High Yo-Yo — Contributed Article, Sensei: Rapier
• The Low Yo-Yo — Contributed Article, Sensei: Rapier
• The Defensive Spiral — Contributed Article, Sensei: Rapier
• The Flat Scissors — Contributed Article, Sensei: Rapier
• The Rolling Scissors — Contributed Article, Sensei: Rapier
• Transitioning to Full Realism ACM — Contributed Article, Sensei: Rapier

Master Class: There is no “Try.” There is only “DO!”

• One v. One Air Combat — Contributed Article, Sensei: Rapier
• One v. Two Air Combat — Contributed Article, Sensei: Rapier
• Flying the F4U Corsair — Sensei: Fletchman
• Flying and Fighting the P-38 Lighting — Sensei: Vortex
• The P-47 Thunderbolt: Flight and Combat Ops — Sensei: Vortex