Weapon State to use all AAW Weapons/

[TXTBOOK]

I'm playing the Korean Missile Crisis scenario with AAW missions setup, and I have fighter aircraft RTB with AIM 9's still on the aircraft.

My F-16 C Blk 32's have the "A/A: AIM-9P Sidewinder, Heavy 006" load out, and using "inherited loadout setting", I have aircraft RTB with 5 sidewinders left on the rails and showing "RB (Shotgun)".

My F-16CG Blk 40's are RTBing with 2 AIM-9M's left on the rails with the "A/A: AIM-120C AMRAAM, AN/ALQ-184, Heavy 402" loadout, showing "RTB (Shotgun)" and with their doctrine as "All BVR or Stand-Off weapons have been expended. Allow easy targets of opportunity with WVR or strike, with air-to-air guns".

Those 2 aircraft loadouts are on 2 separate missions. Due to the overwhelming enemy numbers, I want the Block 32's to come home with ZERO missiles, and the Blk 40's to come home with ZERO missiles.

How do I achieve this?

Save file attached if needed...

[Cik]

likely what's happening is the loadout setting is some variant of "shotgun: RTB after one engagement with BVR weapons, allow easy targets of opportunity with WVR/guns"

set the mission/aircraft group weapon state setting to "winchester: RTB when all WVR weapons expended. allow easy targets with air-to-air guns"

the problem is the same with both aircraft groups, but the AIM-9P setting is probably using winchester (one engagement) and the blk40 is using shotgun (one engagement). both need to be changed to winchester (all weapons expended) and they will RTB only when they fire the last missile they have remaining.

note: the loadout setting tends to be very conservative. usually some variant of shotgun (one engagement) for BVR platforms. you should make it a point when setting up your initial moves in a scenario to change your loadout / fuel doctrine to something you think will fit the tactical situation.

[TXTBOOK]

I may be simply missing something, but I see no option in the mission doctrine under "Weapon State, Pre-Planned" that is close to "winchester: RTB when all WVR weapons expended. allow easy targets with air-to-air guns" as suggested.

I'm looking for the following:

1. RTB when all BVR and WVR weapons are expended (no guns)
2. RTB when all BVR and WVR weapons are expended (including A2A guns)

[Cik]

winchester implicitly means "use every missile on the plane" then the only choice remaining is whether or not to use A-A guns.

as an example, if you have a block 40 F-16C and it's armed with 4 AIM-120C AMRAAM and 2 AIM-9X, it will behave like this:

if set to shotgun, disengage immediately: it will fire it's AMRAAMs at targets, then it will attempt to disengage once it runs out of them, leaving it's sidewinders as an emergency reserve

if set to shotgun, allow easy WVR targets: it will fire it's AMRAAMs then close to close range to engage only targets that it considers easy prey (so, not modern 4th gen fighters capable of shooting back)

if set to winchester, disengage immediately: it will fire it's AMRAAMs then close to close range to engage any target. once it runs out of missiles it will disengage.

if set to winchester, A-A guns: it will fire it's AMRAAMs then close to close range to engage with sidewinders, then close further to use guns if it considers the target vulnerable to guns. only when it runs out of A-A missiles and targets it considers killable with guns will it RTB.

shotgun means: use BVR weapons then begin withdrawing
winchester means: use all A-A missiles, including WVR weapons even if you have to close with the enemy to do so.

to answer your question more directly, if you want your falcons to fire everything they have (including guns) use winchester: allow A-A guns. if you don't want to use guns use winchester: disengage immediately.