War Thunder News

Playing at the lower tiers is always fun, with frequent comical moments! Thank you for sharing your screenshots with us last week- they looked great! The three most popular and three selected by us will get 300 GE. See the winners down below!

[h2]Let’s begin the 98th edition of our competition![/h2]

Create a stunning screenshot and submit it on the War Thunder Steam Community Hub with the tag #WTscreen98. You have time until the 22nd of December to submit your screenshot.

After that date, 6 winners will be selected (3 of which will be the highest rated by the community and 3 selected by our judges), each of which receive a reward of 300GE.

[h3]Terms:[/h3]

Your screenshot must include a vehicle or map introduced in the latest major update, Air Superiority. A complete changelog can be found here.
You must add the #WTscreen98 tag (title cannot have any other text in it).
• Screenshots need to be compliant with the War Thunder rules.
  
• You need to be the author of the screenshot.
  
• Screenshot needs to be new. You cannot use those which have previously been published or used in other competitions.
  
• We will only accept raw screenshots from the game. You cannot use any editing software nor any other visual enhancements (like Nvidia Ansel filters).
  
• You can use filters and settings built into War Thunder.
  
• You can use the replay functionality built into War Thunder.
  
• Rewards will be delivered to the author's account within 14 working days.
  

[h2]And now, time for the winners of the competition’s 97th edition - A Fresh Start![/h2]

[h3]Winners selected via community votes:[/h3]
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3111228953
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3111185471
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3109673316

[h3]Winners selected by our judges:[/h3]
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3111049665
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3109369842
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3111087809

Each winner will get 300GE! Congratulations and see you next week!

You’ll be able to get the J9 in the Winter Extreme event! This aircraft is a modified export variant of the American P-35 single-seat fighter operated by the Swedish Air Force throughout WWII.

[h2]J9: A Premium Fighter for Sweden at Rank II [/h2]

Features:

• Good flight characteristics.
  
• Heavy machine gun arsenal.
  
• Premium bonuses!
  

[h2]Meet the J9 Early![/h2]

The J9 is a unique new aircraft joining the early ranks of the Swedish aircraft tree and is one of the prizes of the Winter Extreme event. Possessing balanced all-round characteristics, the J9 will make for a fantastic early fighter aircraft for rookie fighter pilots to spread their wings with. Keep on reading to find out more!



Despite its stubby visual appearance, the J9 has a lot of very good qualities to offer which will be highly appreciated if you’re just starting out in the Swedish aircraft tree. Among the more important aspects of the J9 is that it’s powered by a powerful and very durable 1050 HP Pratt & Whitney radial engine, allowing this aircraft to reach speeds of up to 470 km/h. As such, the J9 can comfortably compete with most other fighters at its rank being capable of at least outmaneuvering its opposition if it can’t outright catch them!

[h3]Interesting: While the P-35 in American service was quickly replaced by more advanced fighter designs, the J9 remained in service with the Swedish air force up until the early ‘50s![/h3]

Being a dedicated fighter also means that the J9 received respectable armament to make sure it can complete its mission. Namely, the Swedish modification in particular features an upgraded arsenal consisting of a pair of 8 mm nose-mounted machine guns complemented by an additional pair of 13.2 mm wing-mounted heavy machine guns. As a result, the J9 can easily slice through the fragile airframes of early fighter aircraft and even strafe some lighter ground targets if unopposed by enemy aircraft. However, the absence of hardpoints make it impossible to equip the J9 with suspended ordnance, thus limiting its versatility in ground battles.



The addition of the J9 makes it an excellent fighter for the starting ranks of the Swedish aircraft tree, allowing you to hone your skills and quickly progress onto the higher ranks. Take part in the Winter Extreme event, complete the tasks and obtain the J9 to expand your in-game collection of unique aircraft. Good luck and until then, clear skies!

[h3]Ground Vehicles[/h3]

• A bug that caused ammunition on some ground vehicles to instantly replenish at capture points has been fixed. (Report)
  
• A bug that caused the counting of APFSDS shells in tasks has been fixed. This bug caused these shells to be counted as shells with a caliber of less than 35 mm, which affected the completion of achievements in the game.
  

[h3]Aircraft[/h3]

• F-15A, F-15J — the angular speed of a steady turn has been adjusted: at medium speeds — reduced by 1-2°/s, at speeds M 0.7...1.0 — increased by 1-2°/s.
  
• Excessive illumination of cockpits from the flashes of shots in some aircraft has been fixed.
  
• Ka-52 — the visual absence of a co-pilot from the gunner’s position has been fixed.
  

[h3]Naval Vessels[/h3]

• A bug that caused ship decorations at high angles to flip to a vertical position making them unable to be used has been fixed. (Report)
  

The current provided changelog reflects the major changes within the game as part of this Update. Some updates, additions and fixes may not be listed in the provided notes. War Thunder is constantly improving and specific fixes may be implemented without the client being updated.

[h3]Aircraft[/h3]

• AMX — lack of thermal imaging mode in the targeting pod camera when installing the NVG modification has been fixed.
  
• JAS39 (all variants) — the gun’s ammunition has been changed to 120 rounds. (Report)
  
• Litening II — a bug that caused an incorrect resolution in the sight has been fixed. It is now 800x600 in IR range.
  
• A bug that caused high-explosive shells from aircraft cannons to not cause damage to the fuselage section they hit if there was a module behind it has been fixed.
  

[h3]Naval Vehicles[/h3]

• USS Mississippi — the main caliber guns have been changed from 356 mm\45 mk.12 to 356 mm\50 mk.11. The parameters of the shells have been adjusted.
  
• Novorossiysk — the auxiliary caliber gun has been changed from 135 mm/45 to 120 mm/50 OTO mod.1933.
  

[h3]Graphics [/h3]

• A bug where putting decals on some ground vehicles (for example, the Comet I, T-34 (1942) and some others) with Two sided mode caused the decal to appear on three sides at once has been fixed. (Report)
  
• A bug that caused decals applied to a corner to only appear on one surface side has been fixed.
  
• A bug that could cause the water color to display incorrectly when using a VR device has been fixed.
  
• A bug that caused an incorrect texture display when using the Vulkan API renderer has been fixed.
  
• A bug that caused some objects to visually shake when using TAA, DLSS or XeSS has been fixed.
  

[h3]PlayStation and Xbox[/h3]

• A bug that led to the appearance of artifacts on water has been fixed.
  

[h3]Other[/h3]

• An issue that could cause problems with launching the game on Windows 7 has been fixed.
  

The current provided changelog reflects the major changes within the game as part of this Update. Some updates, additions and fixes may not be listed in the provided notes. War Thunder is constantly improving and specific fixes may be implemented without the client being updated.

One of the world’s best jet fighters, the Su-27 has arrived to War Thunder in the Air Superiority major update for the USSR and China, and today we’ll be explaining it all.

[h2]Su-27 and J-11: A Jet Fighter for the USSR and China at Rank VIII[/h2]

Features:

• Excellent maneuverability.
  
• High top speed.
  
• 10 weapon hardpoints.
  
• Advanced air-to-air missiles.
  
• No guided weapons against ground targets.
  

[h2]Meet the Su-27![/h2]

In the Air Superiority major update, the USSR and Chinese aircraft tree have received this new top-end jet fighter, the Su-27! What type of aircraft this is, what features it has and how it differs from other Rank VIII is explained below, so let’s take a look.

[h3]Interesting: The Su-27 is more commonly known through its NATO reporting name of “Flanker”, with this identification mostly used. [/h3]

The Su-27 is one of the main top-tier jet aircraft that does the update name “Air Superiority” justice! Let’s start with its flight characteristics. This aircraft itself is quite large and heavy, but its powerplant, consisting of the powerful Saturn AL-31F engines accelerate the Su-27 at altitudes to speeds close to 2500 km/h. Combined with an integrated airframe design with a lifting fuselage, this turns the Su-27 into a true aerial acrobat — it’s not for nothing that maneuverability is rightly considered the calling card of a fighter aircraft!

You’re going to appreciate the Su-27’s large payload of varied weapons, where it’s worth noting right away that this aircraft has as many as 10 weapon hardpoints, most of which can be allocated with air-to-air missiles. The main armament of the Su-27 in the dogfighting role is the maneuverable R-73 for close combat, the all-aspect R-27T and the R-27ET that has an infrared seeker, as well as the radar R-27R and R-27ER for medium distances. The combination of these missiles allows you to fine-tune the Su-27 for any style of combat situation, from long-range launches to short-range ones. There’s no additional countermeasure pods on this aircraft, but 96 large-caliber countermeasures do their job and are usually enough for medium-range engagements in battle.

[h3]Did you know? In 1987, Su-27 pilot Vasily Tsymbal struck a Norwegian P-3 Orion. The Su-27 was at an extremely low speed directly under the Norwegian aircraft, and ended up knocking the Su-27 against the propeller of one of the P-3’s engines, causing it to collapse, hit the airframe and depressurize the aircraft. Thankfully, there were no casualties.[/h3]

To engage with ground targets in ground battles, the Su-27 can only operate with regular bombs: it doesn’t have any laser-guided ground weaponry. This aircraft can carry a large mass of bombs in general, ranging from free-fall, incendiary or regular. There’s also rockets, ranging from the small S-8 and medium S-130F to the large S-250. Naturally for top-tier aircraft, the launch of rockets and bombs is backed up by a ballistic computer, ensuring you don’t miss.

In your matches by Mike, Official WT Streamer & Marketing Manager: “Despite its large size, the Su-27/J-11 excels as a dedicated air superiority fighter. A full fuel tank will heavily affect your flight performance, so it's best to avoid close-range dogfights in the initial stages of the match and rely on your excellent R-27ER and R-27ET missiles for long-range splashes. Once you’ve lost some weight, closing the range and using the thrust vectoring R-73 missiles in combination with HMD aiming, are sure to make you feel like an Ace. Don’t get tunnel vision however, or you’ll quickly find that a slow Su-27/J-11 invites lurking enemies to put several holes in all of your wings.”

The Su-27 has arrived to the USSR’s and China’s aircraft tree with the release of the major update, Air Superiority. China’s J-11 is an export model, and both the Su-27 and J-11 characteristics and weapons are identical. Enjoy and see you soon!