Aircraft of New Switzerland as of 1918

[Desertfox]

The size of the company is not dependant on how many planes it churns out, and the planes in the Swiss OOB are not all the planes that have been constructed, its just the planes that are in service with the Air Force at the moment. The Wright coorporation poduces fighters, bombers, seaplanes, and aero engines. It hasn't built more planes cause I wanted to keep the numbers reasonable for the time period.

[Walter]

The size of the company is not dependant on how many planes it churns out

Of course it is! The bigger the company, the more planes and engines it can churn out. Seems quite obvious. :)

[Guinness]

You apparently aren't accounting for the number of bicycles Wright must be producing. Every man woman and child in NS likely has a Wright a bicycle by now.

[Desertfox]

Two actually, one for the weekends, and one for the work week...

That said, aircraft numbers around N-verse are getting quite ridiculous. France (largest AF at end of WWI) had 4,500 aircraft. Japan and China are already getting close to that without any wars to spark production numbers.

[Guinness]

Well, they may have purchased that many, but how many of those that they've purchased can we reasonably expect to still be in service? Many WW1 era types had something upwards of a 50% annual accident rate.

When running the CSA, I assumed that any new aircraft purchased could only be expected to be in service 3 years.

[Walter]

Bicycles?? Considering that we are talking about New Switzerland, it surprises me that you did not say motorcycles. ;D

Japan and China are already getting close to that without any wars to spark production numbers.

Of course there were *points finger at New Switzerland* It's all your fault. It's always the fault of the Swiss. :)

... and recently there have been numerous wars rather close to the Empire... too close... and it is not always the fault of the Swiss. *points finger at Netherlands and RRC* :D

[Logi]

Hey I've been producing 1000 airplanes every other year, not a "production number" they've just all been in recent years. It's just been building up; not like I produced them all at once.

Besides airplanes cost a good deal less and less to maintain than say one corp of 5/3 infantry.

An another thing to note; try comparing the land area of France and the RRC, that should say something. I need more to cover my space than say France would have needed.

[Desertfox]

Of course there were *points finger at New Switzerland* It's all your fault. It's always the fault of the Swiss.

Actually, I have to agree with you. It is my fault, and its also my fault regarding zeppelins, submarines, heavy destroyers, cruisers, fast battleships, torpedo boats, aircraft carriers, radar, and half the rules and techs.

Besides airplanes cost a good deal less and less to maintain than say one corp of 5/3 infantry.

That is not a valid reason to build planes like crazy.

Hmm... 1 Corp = 6,000 airplanes + 1.5 BPs, 9 soldiers ~ 1 Pilot. Also 700 planes = 1 Zeppelin.

An another thing to note; try comparing the land area of France and the RRC, that should say something. I need more to cover my space than say France would have needed.

France had THE largest AF at the time, after 4 years of bloody warfare, where airplanes had been shown to be very useful. Right now in N-verse airplanes are still little more than glorified toys with very little practical aplications, we have not had the type of war where planes have been effective. New Switzerland has had the most experience with aircraft in warfare to date, and I still thought that 500 planes was too much.

[Logi]

France had THE largest AF at the time, after 4 years of bloody warfare, where airplanes had been shown to be very useful. Right now in N-verse airplanes are still little more than glorified toys with very little practical applications, we have not had the type of war where planes have been effective. New Switzerland has had the most experience with aircraft in warfare to date, and I still thought that 500 planes was too much.

Really because the wars of the late, I've used airplanes extensively. In my wars the plane has proven effective.

That is not a valid reason to build planes like crazy.

Hmm... 1 Corp = 6,000 airplanes + 1.5 BPs, 9 soldiers ~ 1 Pilot. Also 700 planes = 1 Zeppelin.

Sorry Zeppelins are unable to perform the missions I have assigned my aircrafts. Furthermore, you may be able to throw 1.5 BPs away whenever you want to, but I don't have that much to spend.

I would rather not put all my eggs in one basket.

[ctwaterman]

*shakes head Sadly*

The Airforce of the Italia Empire numbers 850 combat aircraft and roughly 400 dated aircraft used extensively for pilot training.   I chose 850 as the number I would need because I need to cover a large geographic area, Italy, North Africa, and East Africa is simply huge.   All told it ammounts to roughly 40 combat aircraft per Corp/Legion the empire fields.

Now Pilot training is something to be seriously considered I have bought my aircraft in batches of 100 or 200 except for one year when I replaced all my dated 1910: Historical 1914 Aircraft with the new planes and moved all the old aircraft to the roles of primary trainers.  I was shocked when Orange at the start of our war ordered and built over 1000 Aircraft.   The ability to build that many aircraft was never in doubt where did all the pilots come from I would have to ask however.   What the Empire Pilot training program is designed to do is to keep a steady flow of pilots into my airforce.  And to avoid in the event of a real war the problem of throwing people with 8 or 10 hours flight time into a plane and letting DARWINs theory weed out the survivors.  :o

So have fun with the planes but here are some numbers to consider
Durring WW1 France built  67,987 Aircraft and lost due to combat, crashes, or damaged 52,640 aircraft with a peak Combat Aircraft Strength of 4,000 Aircraft. 
The most numericaly produced aircraft were not supprisingly TRAINERS.

[TexanCowboy]

The CSA has 780 aircraft, with more planned as soon as the airfields are up.

[Desertfox]

Really because the wars of the late, I've used airplanes extensively. In my wars the plane has proven effective.

Couple week long wars, against zero aerial opposition, in the worst possible terrain, with zero infrastructure? What you should have learned, is not to operate flimsy stick and fabric planes in those types of condition ever again.

Sorry Zeppelins are unable to perform the missions I have assigned my aircrafts. Furthermore, you may be able to throw 1.5 BPs away whenever you want to, but I don't have that much to spend.

Not telling you to go that way, just comparing costs. Either zeppelins are too expensive or planes too cheap or both. Gotta say, compared to an infantry corp, planes do seem quite cheap.

[TexanCowboy]

Well, they may have purchased that many, but how many of those that they've purchased can we reasonably expect to still be in service? Many WW1 era types had something upwards of a 50% annual accident rate.

When running the CSA, I assumed that any new aircraft purchased could only be expected to be in service 3 years.

It says 6 in the rules, 3 in war, so that's what I've been going by. Of course, I am selling off most of my light forces to Rohan, so that does help.

[Logi]

Couple week long wars, against zero aerial opposition, in the worst possible terrain, with zero infrastructure? What you should have learned, is not to operate flimsy stick and fabric planes in those types of condition ever again.

Except they worked well for the mission I gave them. And I highly doubt it was zero infrastructure conditions.

[Desertfox]

I don't see any airfields near the battlezones, and the terrain there is awful (mountains and jungles). So either you constructed temporary fields in advanced (both wars were planned and aggresive in nature) or else you operated those planes under the worst possible conditions, flying out of extremely bad clearings.