Trans Heli Squadleading?

[Kill001]

Oftentimes, when becoming a trans helo squadleader pilot, I find myself listening to:

-Passenger chatter
-Squad chatter
-Squadleader chatter
-Heli sounds

I find this to be rather overwhelming, and I find myself ignoring some of the voip chatter as I am unable to tune into multiple simultaneous reports WHILE flying a trans chopper

Yesterday, while being a mobile squadleader fob builder (there was only one trans chinook available, the squadleader initially suggested I take up a squadleading slot with officer kit and I get dropped off and build fobs in key areas), I realized I was getting status reports and enemy reports on squadleader chatter while I was building fobs and the pilot asked me to mark drop zones on the map

After building a fob or two, I then realized that I was able to warn the pilot of any hazards such as reported enemy tanks, IFVs, APCs, AA, etc, all coming from squadleader chatter - and at the same time I was able to mark dropzones on the map upon pilot requests, all while taking it relatively easy and being able to relay information to other squads whenever trans and supplies are available as well as if trans choppers take fire in a weird location or getting AA locked.

I then had to wonder: Is being some sort of air traffic controller in PR a good idea? So far after playing a round or two I've come to realize some advantages and disadvantages:


Advantages:

-Pilot squadlead will not be overloaded because someone dedicated to the role shares some of the workload

-More accurate streamlined information being passed down to pilots (ie: "AA at D5kp2, don't fly there..." "FOB with AA at H12kp5 steer clear...")

-Being able to understand the situation on the map clearly. I spent pretty much an entire game looking at the map and I passed information down to my commander and fellow squadleaders at the time. (ie: "Commander, my chopper pilots report they took AA lock at A7 grid", "CAS squad my chopper took AA lock blahblahblah"). Also I feel this is pretty good when trans choppers spot enemy jets for example.

-'Air Traffic Control' can ask other squadleads directly if they need supplies if pulling out the radio and marking for supplies isn't the best option. I've saved a squad or two before by telling my pilots to make hot LZ supply drops when fellow squadleaders needed crates. (Of course I asked what type of enemies they were engaging which happened to be only infantry)

-Checking periodically if transport choppers are needed and/or letting squadleaders know choppers are standing by

-Checking periodically of enemy positions via squadleader voip. I feel cheking enemy positions periodically is a good habit because it gets information across to other squads. Obviously I only ask when I send a pilot out. I wouldn't ask every five seconds and annoy other squadleaders


Disadvantages:

-Something I noticed is when squadleader chatter gets busy, I often cannot hear my pilots clearly when they want a marker on the map so I've been delayed a few seconds or so, as opposed to if the squadleader was a pilot, he would place it immiediately.

-A little confusion when some squads voip message me directly out of the blue only stating grid positions. I one time had a random squad message me, "G12 please", and didn't realize the guy was already in the chopper ready to go. On the plus side though, he also told the pilot his destination and the message was clarified and I marked the position on the map


Do you seasoned players think this is a good strategy? Or do you think this is a hassle and is unnecessary?

I personally think reducing workload on the squadleader pilot is a good idea, especially key information can be missed which can spell life or death for the pilot and aircraft. What do you guys think?

[Rudd]

There are definitely advantages to having a guy on the ground organising the helicopters, however I think the best man for that is actually the commander, as he can decrease overall radio traffic, see markers from multiple squads, check LZs with UAV etc.

[[R-DEV]​rPoXoTauJIo]

I'm just following my basic rules&requirements while SL&pilot:
1. Lock squad at 4 players, 2-3 pilots+ground dude are enough.
2. Maintain silence in squad on first request by anyone.
3. Report anything like "tank in G9" in squad to squadpilots.
4. Talk with SLs\Commander only on helipad, Yes\No\Wait answers only when in air.
5. Use only SL channel when squad inside. Basic SM's always too retarded to talk

Air traffic controller is pointless for organized team, it's better to have additional medic on ground rather than additional level of bureaucracy.

[OldGoat5]

Atc/forward air controlling is very useful, especially if it is also manning manpads and AA vehicles at the same time. The squad could be spread out over different fobs, creating a network. Guiding CAS is not as easy or as accurate as having someone on the ground dedicated to doing it now that the uav cannot laze. In trans heli squads, its very good to have the team relaying the information to us.

[Kill001]

Interesting imput guys

I definitely believe it's the commander's job to guide squads and heli transport is no exception. However, when taking into the random factor that the level of commander experience may be different, it may or may not be his or her first priority to micromanage trans squad (and it may be his first and utmost priority to support frontline units and maybe even send UAV as the fog of war always shifts in this type of gameplay), which I suspect is the main reason why I played a couple games taking up a role that commander supposedly should be doing. Maybe this is another way to better reduce workload for the commander? You do raise a good point with commander being able to see markers though, and it probably would come in handy for looking at where squads have their eyes set on and it would reduce chatter. Perhaps communicating with the commander often as a 'Forward Air Control' is also important?

I also do believe maintaining strict radio discipline is important: it should reduce the amount of useless chatter and increase performance of said squad; it may be difficult to incorporate into pub squads but I believe players are more than willing to listen. I'll try this if possible. You do mention that it is another level of bureaucracy and is pointless for organized games, and I can see what you mean - acting as this 'forward air control' merely adds another middleman to the whole scheme of things, and information being passed down could be inaccurate/outdated/etc, however, I think that it's really up to the squadleader to man up and become better at micromanaging information and his helis. Alternatively, the squadleader could take up a more minimal role in more organized games and acts as a 'marker bot' or an 'information relay bot'? Who knows - I've never participated in an event level game so my perception and knowledge of "organization" is strictly limited to pub games.

As for the squadleader taking a more active role in frontline duties (which I think was subtly touched upon), I think that is another way to run the squad. There is a clear advantage if he or she runs around and building fobs or participating in more infantry duties, but from my experience that takes up the squadleader's ability to perform certain tasks. For example, with my skill level, I wouldn't be adequately suited to assess the situation on the ground while moving to different points, listening to squadleader chatter, assessing the situation via map, marking the map, and who knows, other things too possibly. I do think it's a good idea to have an extra medic in the squad though, to "see" casualties on the map and/or have him deploy to the frontlines assisting other squads. Perhaps this is something trans squad can do when it gets slow during the middle parts of the game.


Imean, this is PR, so I don't think there's a so-called holy manuscript way of running a squad, which is why I want to hear your guy's imput. There's a lot of factors like a present commander, type of map with helis, and a lot of other things which is why I play this game because it is so dynamic. I'll definitely take your guy's opinions into account and see if running a trans squad this way is efficient or not. I'll experiment more - keep those comments and criticism coming

[matty1053]

Yeah.

Usually when I am trans...

1.Depends what map, if there is like 2 Trans helis, I let 3 people in my squad (including me)

2.I do not allow more then 5 people in a squad. (unless it's a friend)

3.It can get annoying when being Sql as Trans, cause you sometimes have those Sql that NEVER shut up or don't talk directly.



If you have squad mates that talk their pants off, just kick them. I do it constantly honestly. It really does help not having tons of: "WTF MAN I HATE THIS MAP!" or various conversations that I tend to get into.

But I have seen trans squads with 8 players in it... Only one heli is up out of the 3 at main. And the player doesn't know how to lift off of the ground, and only listens to his sql orders.

[Psyrus]

Originally Posted by matty1053

But I have seen trans squads with 8 players in it... Only one heli is up out of the 3 at main. And the player doesn't know how to lift off of the ground, and only listens to his sql orders.

I am happy to run my trans squads with 8 people. I start out flying, and I give basic orders to the squad members. If another squad member who is competent at flying joins the squad, I get them to take over the flying and I lead the rest of the infantry on the ground, and since I'm a big fan of FOB building, the heli pilot is almost never bored.

• It means there's not another bloody <4 man locked squad on the server
• People who join trans squads as inf are generally low on the "teamwork" spectrum, so I try to inject some *real-PR* into their day
• I can go back to flying any time I need to because we're the trans squad
• It improves communication with other SLs if I'm not the one flying, because it's hard to fly and push number-pad keys at the same time.

[PLODDITHANLEY]

Building FOBs is always useful especially if you have the time to put down some assets.