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Jets - All Nations (6.0 - 9.3) - Air RB - Performance Guide:
Jets - All Nations (6.0 - 9.3) - Air RB - Performance Guide - Game Discussion / Realistic Battle - War Thunder — official forum
Air RB - Map Temperature Guide:
Air RB - Map Temperature Guide - Game Discussion / Realistic Battle - War Thunder — official forum
Air RB - Game Mechanics Guide:
Air RB - Game Mechanics Guide - Game Discussion / Realistic Battle - War Thunder — official forum
Manual Engine Control / MEC - Guide:
Manual Engine Control / MEC - Guide - Game Discussion / Realistic Battle - War Thunder — official forum
Air RB Performance Guide - Master Thread:
Air RB Performance Guide - Master Thread: - Game Discussion / Realistic Battle - War Thunder — official forum
*All air speeds are IAS (Indicated Air Speed)
*All speeds and climb times are on AEC with the obvious exception of “MEC Settings” section
*Speeds are recorded after AEC radiators fully settle/stabilize to ensure accuracy/consistency both at 100% and WEP.
*Map used is Berlin (15.1 Celsius) for all speed, climb and performance measurements. Smolensk and Sicily are only used to adjust cooling settings once cooling settings are found the plane performance is measured on Berlin to minimize variables.
AEC: Auto Engine Control
MEC: Manual Engine Control
0Rad: MEC setting to Fully closed radiator (fastest plane can go with 0 radiator Drag)
Max Speed Alert: When red warning alert appears on speedometer.
Control Lock Speed: Where elevator/controls start to lock up.
Min Ideal Turn Speed: Minimum Speed in a flat turn without contrails (no flaps)
Min Stall Speed: The slowest a plane can travel without stalling (no flaps)
Max Temp Oil/Eng: Max temperature oil/ engine can get before turning yellow
Climb Speed: The airspeed that the climb tests were done at.
Max Kph: Shows 100% throttle max speed in level flight at given altitude
Time w/WEP: Shows climb to 1000M with WEP followed by top speed in level flight with AEC
Hp drop: The altitude where a steep drop off in horsepower begins
Notes: Notes are any extra info that applies with the following abbreviations:
(H): Aircraft runs hot
(FS): Aircraft has fuel starvation
(DC): Aircraft has Drogue Chute
(AB): Aircraft has airbrake
Eng Mix: Engine mixture setting %. “-” in chart, means to leave mixture at default setting. If there is a different value, it will be clearly stated as a percentage. (This affects very few aircraft)
Prop Pitch: Prop pitch setting %. Prop pitch will be shown in short hand “Prop100” = (prop pitch 100%) Prop Pitch can also have a color-coded prop pitch setting according to map temperature. Use Color coded Air RB Map Temperature guide to ensure proper settings
Rad Setting Oil/ ENG: Radiator settings will be shown in short hand “Rad100/50” = (Radiator100%oil/50%water). Radiator settings are shown Cold/Moderate/HOT climate. they are color coded accordingly blue/green/Red. Use Color coded Air RB Map Temperature guide to ensure proper settings.
Super Charger 100/WEP: Elevation to shift super gears 100%/WEP while traveling at indicated airspeed. Almost all chart gear shifts are set at 280kph in the chart. Gear shifts dont need to be precise more than within 100M, shifting up too soon is generally worse than shifting up late.
*For some planes like early Spitfires Prop Pitch adjustments are included under Super charger Column . Super Charger gear shift altitudes listed are for the prop pitch listed in the chart. Example: prop pitch adjustments to 100% at 6000M will look like “P100@6000” under super charger column.
MEC/0Rad WEP Top Speed: Shows top speed Using WEP @ 1000M for MEC and 0Rad (0/0 Radiator) This is used to show how much drag effect the radiator has comparatively.
– Typhoon Mk Ia, Ib/L: These planes benefit from MEC over AEC overall. Engine hp drop around 5400M.
– Tempest Mk V: These planes benefit from MEC over AEC overall. Engine hp drop around 5400M.
– Tempest Mk II: These planes benefit from MEC over AEC with better heat management. AEC Radiator management is broken and will kill engine quickly. With MEC, top speed is approx 5kph less but engine stays healthy. Engine hp drop around 4700M.
– Spitfire Mk Ia: This plane benefits from MEC over AEC overall. This plane runs notably hotter than others and prop pitch was lowered to Prop69, making heat manageable at the cost of, approx, (+3/+4) seconds added to every 1000M climb. There is no oil cooling, the only way to cool oil is through Prop Pitch adjustment. Prop69 has same performance as Prop70 but better cooling. Using AEC with throttle set to 96% has worst performance overall including worst climb and top speed. Keeping airspeed above 300kph significantly helps with cooling. Airspeed increases with prop pitch up to Prop85. Prop pitch adjustments are detailed below. Engine hp drop around 5400M.
*Prop85 has better performance than Prop100 under 5500m overall and can be used for short durations extra engine performance is needed, but engine will overheat.
*Increase in prop pitch is limited by heat which is why prop pitch changes happen even after the hp drop off.
Details:
Prop pitch adjustments (only the last prop pitch change is needed for cold maps since it already starts at Prop85):
Prop75 at 4500M (Moderate, Hot)
Prop85 at 5500M (Moderate, Hot)
Prop100 at 6500M (Cold, Moderate, Hot)
– Spitfire Mk IIa, llb: These planes benefit from MEC over AEC overall. This plane runs notably hotter than others and prop pitch was lowered to Prop74, making heat manageable at the cost of, approx +4/4.5) seconds added to every 1000M climb. There is no oil cooling, the only way to cool oil is through Prop Pitch adjustment. Using AEC with throttle set to 97% has worst performance overall including worse climb and top speed. Keeping airspeed above 300kph significantly helps with cooling. Airspeed increases with prop pitch. Engine hp drop around 4900M.
*Prop85 has better performance than Prop100 under 4000M overall and can be used for short durations when extra engine performance is needed, but engine will overheat.
*Increase in prop pitch is limited by heat which is why prop pitch changes happen even after the hp drop off.
Details:
Prop pitch adjustments (only the last prop pitch change is needed for cold maps since it already starts at Prop85):
Prop74 at 3000M (Hot)
Prop85 at 4000M (Moderate, Hot)
Prop100 at 5500M (Cold, Moderate, Hot)
– Spitfire Mk Vb/trop, Spitfire Mk Vb: These planes benefit from MEC over AEC with less drag, lower heat, better climb and higher ceiling. Keeping airspeed above 300kph significantly helps with cooling. AEC is adequate keeping prop pitch at 90, but it doesn’t raise it to 100 when needed to extend ceiling and causes needless heat spikes. Prop90 has about the same performance as Prop100 up to 2000M. Above 2000M Prop90 adds about (0/+3.5) seconds to every 1000M climb. Prop90 can be used to 2000M Then Prop100 should be used. Engine hp drop around 4800M (5400M for MEC).
– Spitfire Mk Vc/trop, Spitfire Mk Vc: These planes benefit from MEC over AEC with less drag, lower heat, better climb and higher ceiling. Keeping airspeed above 300kph significantly helps with cooling. AEC is adequate keeping prop pitch at 90, but it doesn’t raise it to 100 when needed to extend ceiling and causes needless heat spikes. Prop90 has about the same performance as Prop100 up to 2000M. Above 2000M Prop90 adds about (0/+2) seconds to every 1000M climb. Prop90 can be used to 2000M Then Prop100 should be used. Engine hp drop around 3800M (4100M for MEC).
– Spitfire F Mk IX: This plane benefit from MEC over AEC with lower heat. Prop90 has same performance as Prop100 with way less heat under 3500M. Prop90 can be used to 3500M Then Prop100 should be used. Above 3500M Prop90 adds about (+2/+1.5) seconds to every 1000M climb. Keeping airspeed above 300kph significantly helps with cooling. AEC uses Prop90 but doesn’t raise it to Prop100 when needed to extend ceiling. Engine hp drop around 8200M (8700M for MEC).
*Prop100 supercharger gear shifts are used since it is switched at around 3500 from Prop90. It is noted and in the chart. Super charger gear details at the bottom of this description.
Details:
AEC:506/MEC:505/0Rad:519
Prop90 with Rad-/8 @ 1000M = 490/515WEP Kph (Cold)
Prop90 with Rad-/28 @ 1000M = 480/505WEP Kph (Mod)
Prop90 with Rad-/48 @ 1000M = 470/495WEP Kph (Hot)
*Prop90 with Rad-/32 @ 1000M = 476/500WEP Kph (additional cooling option)
*For reference only, Supercharger gear shifts:
Prop90: (2nd gear: 6000M/5200WEP)
Prop100: (2nd gear: 6400M/5700WEP)
– Spitfire F Mk XVI: This plane benefits from MEC over AEC with lower heat. Keeping airspeed above 300kph significantly helps with cooling . Prop90 has same performance as Prop100 when at 100% throttle. Prop90 adds about a (+1) seconds per 1000M climb time when using WEP. PropAuto uses Prop90 for 100% throttle and uses Prop100 when WEPing. This creates a unique situation where the plane gets the best of both settings with no extra management from the pilot, this is evident in the supercharger gear shifts at the bottom of this description. AEC does not raise prop pitch when needed at 7500M. PropAuto can be used to 7500M Then Prop100 should be used. Engine hp drop around 7500 (7800M for MEC.
*PropAuto uses both Prop90 for 100% throttle and Prop100 for WEP, even though it doesn’t show in game.
Details:
AEC:529/MEC:530/0Rad:543
PropAuto with Rad-/8 @ 1000M = 497/538WEP Kph (Cold)
PropAuto with Rad-/24 @ 1000M = 489/530WEP Kph (Mod)
PropAuto with Rad-/48 @ 1000M = 477/517WEP Kph (Hot)
*PropAuto with Rad-/28 @ 1000M = 486/527WEP Kph (additional cooling option)
*PropAuto with Rad-/32 @ 1000M = 484/525WEP Kph (additional cooling option)
*For reference only, Supercharger gear shifts:
Prop90: (2nd gear: 5100M/3600WEP)
Prop100: (2nd gear: 5300M/3900WEP)
– Spitfire LF Mk IX: This plane benefits from MEC over AEC with lower heat. Keeping airspeed above 300kph significantly helps with cooling . Prop90 has same performance as Prop100 when at 100% throttle. Prop90 adds about a (+3) seconds per 1000M climb time when using WEP. PropAuto uses Prop90 for 100% throttle and uses Prop100 when WEPing. This creates a unique situation where the plane gets the best of both settings with no extra management from the pilot, this is evident in the supercharger gear shifts at the bottom of this description. AEC does not raise prop pitch when needed at 6800M. PropAuto can be used to 6800M Then Prop100 should be used. Engine hp drop around 6800 (7300M for MEC.
*PropAuto uses both Prop90 for 100% throttle and Prop100 for WEP, even though it doesn’t show in game.
*This plane seems to recover degradation from overheating better than others.
Details:
AEC:558/MEC:566/0Rad:581
PropAuto with Rad-/8 @ 1000M = 507/576WEP Kph (Cold)
PropAuto with Rad-/24 @ 1000M = 498/566WEP Kph (Mod)
PropAuto with Rad-/48 @ 1000M = 486/554WEP Kph (Hot)
*PropAuto with Rad-/28 @ 1000M = 496/564WEP Kph (additional cooling option)
*PropAuto with Rad-/32 @ 1000M = 494/562WEP Kph (additional cooling option)
*For reference only, Supercharger gear shifts:
Prop90: (2nd gear: 4200M/1200WEP)
Prop100: (2nd gear: 4600M/1800WEP)
– Spitfire F Mk XIVe/F Mk XVIIIe/F Mk 22: These planes benefit from MEC over AEC with lower heat. Prop90 adds about a (+1.5/+1) seconds per 1000M climb time. Keeping airspeed above 300kph significantly helps with cooling. Prop90 allows for prolonged WEP use and much lower temperatures. Prop90 can be used to 8400M Then Prop100 should be used. Engine hp drop around 8700M.
*These planes seem to recover degradation from overheating better than others
Details:
*For reference only, Supercharger gear shifts:
Prop90: (2nd gear: 5400M/3800WEP)
Prop100: (2nd gear: 5700M/4200WEP)
– Spitfire F Mk 24: These planes benefit from MEC over AEC with lower heat. Prop90 adds about a (+1/+1) seconds per 1000M climb time. Keeping airspeed above 300kph significantly helps with cooling. Prop90 allows for prolonged WEP use and much lower temperatures. Prop90 can be used to 8400M Then Prop100 should be used. Engine hp drop around 8700M.
*This plane seems to recover degradation from overheating better than others.
Details:
*For reference only, Supercharger gear shifts:
Prop90: (2nd gear: 5500M/3200WEP)
Prop100: (2nd gear: 5700M/3600WEP)
– Sea Hurricane Mk IC: MEC settings Allow for better use of WEP. AEC sets Rad with absolutely no room for error making WEP instantly making engine yellow. MEC Rad settings allow for short bursts of WEP that improve performance overall. Engine hp drop around 5300M.
– Seafire LF Mk.III: This plane benefits from MEC over AEC with less drag, lower heat, better climb and higher ceiling. This plane is very similar to Spitfire Mk Vc/trop in performance except it does not suffer from fuel starvation. AEC is adequate keeping prop pitch at 90, but it doesn’t raise it to 100 when needed and causes needless heat spikes. Prop90 has about the same performance as Prop100 up to 2000M. Above 2000M Prop90 adds about (+1/+3) seconds to every 1000M climb. Prop90 can be used to 2000M Then Prop100 should be used. Engine hp drop around 3800M (4100M for MEC).
– Seafire F Mk XVII, FR 47: These planes benefit from MEC over AEC with lower heat.
– Seafire F Mk XVII: Engine hp drop around 4500M.
– Seafire FR 47: Engine hp drop around 8700M.
– Sea Fury FB 11: This plane benefits from MEC over AEC with less drag, lower heat. Engine hp drop around 5600M.
– Corsair F Mk II: All of these F4U’s run hot. AEC barely cools them leading to engine death. These planes are unique that they don’t overheat much more with WEP than without, airspeed makes a big difference in cooling. MEC settings let plane WEP mostly without overheating. Keep speed above 300-330kph to prevent overheating. Engine hp drop around 6700M.
Details:
AEC:572/MEC:572/0rad:576.
PropAuto with Rad20/60 @ 1000M = 557/572WEP Kph (Cold and Mod)
PropAuto with Rad25/70 @ 1000M = 555/570WEP Kph (Hot)
– Hellcat Mk II (Same as F6F-5): These planes benefit from MEC overall vs AEC. AEC mismanages the radiator on this plane. (Radiators are set approx 10 deg Celsius too low). Prop90 Had Better Climb, higher top speed and lower temperatures up to 8000M. Performance was unique in that climb rate was same as Prop100 up to 2000M then Prop90 performs better, around -20 seconds for WEP climb to 6000M and -10 seconds for 100% throttle. Prop90 can be used to 8000M Then Prop100 should be used. Engine hp drop around 6800M.
Details:
AEC:532/MEC:540/0rad:545
***Infi-WEP settings (minimum of 300-330kph airspeed for cooling): ***
Prop90 with Rad16/20 @ 1000M = 535/538WEP Kph (Cold) (up to 8000M)
Prop90 with Rad24/28 @ 1000M = 531/535WEP Kph (Mod) (up to 8000M)
Prop90 with Rad36/36 @ 1000M = 528/531WEP Kph (Hot) (up to 8000M)
– Mustang Mk IA: This plane runs hot without MEC and lowering to Prop98, Rad-/100 on normal maps and Prop94, Rad-/100 on hot maps. Engine hp drop around 3800M.
– Whirlwind P.9: This plane benefits from MEC over AEC overall. Lowering Prop pitch slows this plane down, it is recommended to leave at Prop100 in general. Radiator creates a lot of drag if open too much. AEC mismanages Rad when using WEP. Engine hp drop around 4800M.
– Thunderbolt Mk.1: This plane benefits from MEC over AEC overall. Prop80 should be used. Setting to Prop80 allows plane to fly with Rad0/0 settings, increases top speed, and climb. Mixture should be set to Mix82 giving extra horsepower, mixture should be lowered at 10000m to ½ (Mix41) to extend ceiling. Engine hp drop around 7500M/6900WEP.
Details:
*Engine degradation can be an issue; the following radiator settings can be used to offset overheating as needed on hot maps or as needed for Infi-WEP:
Prop80 with Rad4/4 @ 1000M = 514/540WEP Kph (additional cooling option).
Prop80 with Rad8/8 @ 1000M = 511/538WEP Kph (additional cooling option).
Prop80 with Rad16/16 @ 1000M = 509/534WEP Kph (additional cooling option).
– Typhoon Mk Ib: These planes benefit from MEC over AEC overall. Even lowering Rad setting at high speed by 25% of Rad setting will cause yellow overheat. Prop90 causes less of a cooling effect than other planes. Engine hp drop around 5400M.
– Wyvern: There are no radiator settings to adjust on this plane. Temperature adjustments are made through throttle as needed. Engine hp drop 100hp per 500M with a starting hp at 1000M of 3291hp. Engine hp drop is linear with no sudden drop offs. There is a lot of horsepower but climbing to 2500M results in about a 10% drop in hp, at 4000M it becomes about a 20% drop. Given how much horsepower there is and the hp drop is linear, it’s up to the pilot to decide how high they want to fly but generally speaking above 4000M is where performance starts to deteriorate.