Hello everybody,

 

As you may have already noticed, the huge map of Battle of Kuban comes in three seasons (Spring, Summer and Autumn), so there is no winter one. However there are many existing winter maps in our sim, so we had to update the winter landscape quality to match the new map quality level. In the end, after some experiments, we had to remake the chilly skydome, adjust the color palette and contrast to reflect the winter visibility conditions. The existing lighting wasn't bad, but we have found a way to improve its quality and make it even more realistic to get more contrast, bluish shadows which are characteristic of the chilling weather. The overall color temperature also became colder. All this combined allowed for more 'clean air' and deep visual feel. Of course, it's hard to describe such changes with just words, so please take a look at these comparison screenshots:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now, our engineer Roman =Gavrik= Kovalenko wants to tell you a bit about the A-20B he will finish working on soon:

 

A-20B had good flight characteristics, high fineness (wing/drag) ratio and very good aerodynamics. Its top speed exceeded Pe-2 speed even at nominal power mode, it had a good handling and maneuverability. All control surfaces were equipped with servo tabs to reduce the pilots' load. With bombs dropped, A-20B had comparable to fighters wing loading and two powerful Wright R-2600-11 engines allowed for a good power-to-weight ratio. However, aerobatics were forbidden for its pilots and it was advised to dive shallow and recover gently because of the durability concerns (4g maneuver envelope). Nevertheless, the flight manual included some maneuvers like combat turn.

 

Lend-leased A-20B's were upgraded upon arrival to the USSR: they were refitted to support Soviet bombs, electric bomb dropping gear similar to Pe-2 one was installed, and there were some other minor changes.

 

it was one of the first mass-produced aircraft with the nose landing gear, making taxiing, taking off and landing much easier. There was a special electric blocker that didn't allow to erroneously retract the landing gear while on the ground and alarm siren that warned the pilot about the retracted landing gear during flight at low throttle. At high speeds, flaps retracted automatically. Overall, this aircraft was very comfortable for a pilot with its spacious cockpit and good view. The only inconvenience could be caused by the engines that weren't equipped with automatic governors of the manifold pressure, just like the P-40 engine.

 

A-20B bomb load was formidable - up to 16 FAB-100 bombs in the bomb bay and 4 underwing holders that could carry FAB-100 or FAB-250. It is interesting to note that to ease the formation bombing, two signal lights were installed in the aircraft rear that helped the wingmen to open their bomb bay doors and drop bombs simultaneously with the flight leader. In addition to two forward firing .50 cal machine guns, there were two turrets with .50 cal (top) and .303 cal (bottom) MGs, so A-20B weaponry and flight characteristics allowed the bomber to stand up for itself even if it was engaged in air combat.

 

I hope you'll enjoy the A-20B in the game as much as I enjoyed making it.