land based aircraft?...

[Major Adler]

I am wondering about land based aircraft...such as the Stuka and Catalina...

I assume that aircraft assigned to a carrier are destroyed if there is no carrier left for them to land on...

so...

1) - will you have to designate a hex as the airbase for your land based aircraft?...
2) - and can that airbase be destroyed?...

[Diamondback]

3) - Can your carrier planes divert there to land if the flattop's sunk?

I know what common sense would say, but game rules and RL mechanics sometimes contradict each other.

[M4A1 Sherman]

That is bull if WoTC says that your carrier fighters cannot land on land runways. Every aircraft is tested to land on a land runway, and THEN tested, if required, to land on a carrier.

[Diamondback]

Incidentally, the Cat's a flying boat (many were amphibians), so it can land anywhere in RL with a clear straight stretch long enough. Take off again may be a different story, though...

[Richter von Manthofen]

Germanys luftwaffe had a screen out in the Atlantic to prevent UK ships from sneaking near to the land and sometimes to protect their own ships. So land based planes are OK in a naval game.

I'd rather seen the Stuka C, which was constructed for the german Aircraft carrier. Would have fitted the naval theme better, but a flight of B's attacking the ark Royal is a nice possibility...

[Major Adler]

I am thinking that you would be allowed to designate a land hex as an airbase IF you are using land based planes...

so...

if you do not use a land based plane in your fleet (and therefore cannot designate a land hex as an airbase)...and your carrier is sunk...it's planes go bye bye as well...

just a thought...

[Sean-Khan]

Well, as there really is land-based aircraft in the game, we'll see those rules soon :) If we're lucky, maybe in a preview next week!

Btw, how's the timespan in the game, have we heard? How does it work with the flight times of the planes?

I can think of 4 possibilities:
-You can place an air base to a hex, and it costs points.
-Airbase isn't placed on the map, and this is taken into account in unit costs.
-Airbase is placed but doesn't cost, and this is taken into account in unit costs.
-Planes take some time to fly to the area, and aren't available every turn.

It would be interesting possibility, if you could choose if your air base is close or deeper inland.

[Autarch]

Other than limitations placed on sea based planes by CV capacity, I don't think there are going to be any other rules on basing. A&ANM planes will probably work just like A&AM planes. Place them where you want and use them until they are destroyed.

EDIT: After reading today's opening salvo, I'd say the difference between land based planes is that they don't get the additional bonuses of the CVs.