With the latest update, the B-66B was introduced as a new bomber. While historically significant, in-game it feels severely underpowered at its current BR of 9.0.
Engines & Performance: The B-66B has weaker engines compared to its peers, resulting in poor climb rate, slow acceleration, and limited ability to disengage. Even when it builds up speed, any evasive maneuver against incoming missiles causes a significant loss of energy. Due to its weak thrust, regaining that speed is extremely difficult, leaving the aircraft effectively helpless once pressured.
Countermeasures & Missile Threats: At 9.0 BR, the B-66B faces opponents armed with radar- and infrared-guided missiles. However, it lacks both flares and chaff, giving it no defensive options against such threats. Combined with its poor acceleration, this makes missile survivability extremely low.
Defensive Armament / Frontal Defense: The B-57B (at BR 8.3) carries fixed, forward-mounted guns in the nose, which provide a clear advantage in head-on situations. The B-66B, by contrast, has no frontal weapons at all—only a rear-mounted turret with limited coverage—leaving it especially vulnerable to frontal intercepts.
Suggested Change:
Adjusting the B-66B’s BR to 8.7 or 8.3 would more accurately represent its performance. At 8.7, the aircraft’s heavy payload (up to 4 × 3000 lb bombs) still makes it valuable for ground strike, while providing a more balanced air-to-air environment. At 8.3, it would be more appropriately matched for survivability.
This adjustment would improve gameplay balance while keeping the B-66B fun and effective in its intended bomber role.
It should be 8.3 without an airspawn, or 8.7 with an airspawn. I said it would be DOA at 9.0, and I was right. There’s no point playing it in air RB.
It’s not that fast, it is food to every single missile in the entire game, and it doesn’t have the acceleration to properly bomb. It doesn’t even have forward guns like some B-57s and the Il-28.
The B-66B can’t move down unless the other bombers at that BR range also go down in BR
The lack of an airspawn could be fixed, but that would require a change of the airspawn rules. As it stands Gaijin just has a cutoff for airspawns at rank 6 (bombers, interceptors and strike aircraft only get airspawns if they are below that rank)
Also, keep in mind that the Canberra/B-57 without guns is at the same BR as the ones with guns, so the lack of forward facing guns is a moot point currently
I understand your point; however, at the moment the B-66B is also affected by a spawning issue. In the majority of matches (around 9 out of 10), aircraft such as the B-57, F84F, and Saab 105 are able to spawn in the air and immediately target bases. In contrast, the B-66B is forced to spawn on the runway, which often leaves it as an exposed target by the middle of the match.
As a result, the B-66B frequently has no meaningful option other than circling the map and waiting for bases to respawn, which significantly reduces its effectiveness compared to its counterparts.
Alternatively they could just give rank 6 bombers airspawns again
Spoiler
and put all of the F-84Fs at the same rank, so either all of them have airspawns, or none of them. Fricking US F-84F having airspawn while the other other F-84Fs don’t…
That has nothing to do with the planes themselves, that’s a flaw in Gaijins decision to remove airspawns from all bombers, interceptors and strike aircraft above rank 5.
Yes, I haven’t played a bomber at this BR for a long time. I returned to try out the B-66B at this level, and I hadn’t noticed this issue before, but it doesn’t really matter. At the very least, Gaijin should take steps to make some adjustments.