Greetings,
I would like to bring attention to a bug I recently encountered. While reading about the Desert Storm operation on Wikipedia, I came across an interesting excerpt:
“On 14 February, an F-15E scored its only air-to-air kill of the war: a Mil Mi-24 helicopter. While responding to a request for help by US Special Forces, five Iraqi helicopters were spotted. The lead F-15E of two, via its FLIR, acquired a helicopter in the process of unloading Iraqi soldiers and released a GBU-10 bomb. The F-15E crew thought the bomb had missed its target and were preparing to use a Sidewinder when the helicopter was destroyed. The Special Forces team estimated that the Hind was roughly 800 feet (240 m) over the ground when the 2,000 lb (910 kg) bomb hit its target.”
This event sparked my interest in replicating a similar scenario in-game. I loaded into a Tank RB session, equipped with laser-guided bombs, and began searching for helicopters. In my first attempt, I encountered favorable conditions: no anti-aircraft presence, clear weather, and a Ka-50 in the distance. After locking onto the target and releasing the bomb, I pulled up, expecting impact within seconds. However, the bomb failed to register any interaction with the helicopter.
Assuming a one-off glitch, I repeated the process in subsequent matches, only to observe the same outcome. After extensive testing, I concluded that GBU laser-guided bombs, irrespective of their type or weight, do not interact with helicopters.
It is worth noting that TV-guided bombs, such as the KAB-500, can destroy helicopters purely through impact force, even without detonating. This behavior persists regardless of fuse settings (assault, 0-second delay, 1-second delay), making it unlikely to be user error.
While it is possible that this issue is related to the unique coaxial rotor design of helicopters like the Ka-50/52, further testing with other models is challenging due to their rarity at this BR.
This bug has a significant impact on gameplay and may require further investigation. I urge others who have encountered similar issues to support my bug report to facilitate resolution.
Bug report link: Community Bug Reporting System