Aerial Vehicles Guide - How to Fly Jets in Battlefield 6 and REDSEC

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

• YOUR BATTLEFIELD FLIGHT MANUAL
• REMINDER: BASIC CONTROLS
  • INTRODUCING SIMPLIFIED JET CONTROLS
  • ADDITIONAL CONTROLS FOR WSO SEAT
• KNOW YOUR JETS
  • GENERAL COMBAT AVIATION STRATEGY
  • F-74A SEACAT 
  • F/A-81F SUPER SPECTRE
  • ATTACK JET (F-61V / F39-E)
  • FIGHTER JET(F-97 KESTREL / SU-57)
  • A NOTE ON THRUST VECTORING, THROTTLE SPLITTING
• TOP FIVE TIPS AND TRICKS

YOUR BATTLEFIELD FLIGHT MANUAL

Victory in all-out warfare requires conquering your opponent on land, sea… and air.

Since Battlefield 1942, aerial combat is a critical component for Only in Battlefield moments; without jets, there is no “peek-a-boo” or launch day strafing runs to brag about. 

While helicopters are another aerial combat aspect, this flight manual focuses strictly on jets, including the two new jets introduced in Season 4 (Update 1.4.2.0) of Battlefield 6 and REDSEC. Our community also created some incredible in-depth materials since launch, and you can always spin up a discussion with expert pilots in our official Discord here. 

With all that said, if you’re ready to take flight and don’t know where to begin, then consider this part of your final systems check:

REMINDER: BASIC CONTROLS

Alongside the Jets 101 tutorial video above, the following table is a “cheat sheet” on how to fly based on default controls. Remember that these controls can be remapped based on your preference, and our PC Community especially found success in changing these keybinds.

For example, some players prefer inverted Pitch Controls, so that holding the Down Arrow (or moving the Mouse Down) points the jet up, and the Up Arrow (or moving the Mouse Up) points the jet down.

Don’t forget to check your Settings even if you do not plan to change these default controls. This menu also includes options like Sensitivity sliders for more - or less - movement from your inputs.

INTRODUCING SIMPLIFIED JET CONTROLS

As of the Season 4 Update 1.4.2.0, there’s a new way to fly:

Simplified Jet Controls are similar to the Simplified Helicopter Controls from launch, in that it is an alternative and “simpler” method to control jets. Essentially, instead of manually adjusting the pitch, roll, and yaw in order to fly, you only need to look in the direction you wish to fly, and the jet will align relative to where you look. 

If you decide to use Simplified Jet Controls, ignore the Pitch, Yaw, and Roll instructions above and just stick to these four commands for staying airborne:

STREAMLINED CONTROLS FOR WSO SEAT (F-74A Seacat and F/A-81F Super Spectre)

The two new jets, the F-74A Seacat and F/A-81F Super Spectre, have a secondary seat for a WSO (Weapons Systems Officer) who can fire weapons from the aircraft’s sides and rear. A WSO can also freely look around without altering flight.

KNOW YOUR JETS

As of Season 4 Update 1.4.2.0, there are four jet planes to pilot. Some specialize in air-to-ground combat while others are best for air-to-air skirmishes, and the two newer jets have an additional seat for a squadmate to provide additional support as a WSO. 

Before knowing each of these jets strengths and weaknesses, however, there are a few best practices to follow regardless of what you fly.

GENERAL COMBAT AVIATION STRATEGY

Regardless if you prefer learning to fly in a controlled environment or “on the fly” in combat, your first accomplishment is keeping your jet airborne. In fact, that’s why some of the first Challenges in Battlefield 6 are to simply travel thousands of meters as a jet pilot.

A good rule of thumb is to stay a couple hundred meters above the ground and away from hard surfaces. Be mindful of your jet’s orientation and position relative to fighting on the ground and the map’s boundaries. Quick reactions are helpful for avoiding enemy fire, but overcontrolling is a recipe for disaster, so opt for more subtle movements. Again, this is where there is no shame in Simplified Jet Controls, which are designed to reduce jet crashes. 

And of course, be sure to avoid the enemy Headquarters: that is a no-fly zone due to automatic, AI-controlled air-guns that can rip through a jet in seconds. On the other hand, flying over your own headquarters at a low enough altitude grants back a chunk of lost health.

Once you get comfortable flying, the next step is to ease in camera controls. Only sticking to third-person may make it hard to target enemies, and while the first-person cockpit view is great for immersion, it does limit visibility. Switching to the third-person chase camera, especially while not in active combat, allows you to spot incoming threats. Meanwhile, when engaged with a target, swap to first-person view (or simply “Zoom” while in third-person) to get a closer look at where your weapons will be fired towards.

Now that you can stay airborne and see clearly, there are two more basic flight techniques: breaking enemy lock-on and strafing runs.

Enemy aircraft and ground units have the ability to lock onto your jet. The easiest counter is to pop your flares, although this is a limited resource. The second option is to fly low: although flying high and away from objects prevents crashing, enemy systems cannot lock onto your jet if you drop below 30 meters to the ground. Otherwise, note your surroundings and where the threat is coming from, since a building, mountain, or another solid structure can become a hard interception solution. 

Lastly, newer pilots may want to focus on air-to-air combat, but ultimately, air-to-ground makes a massive impact on the battlefield. When attacking ground targets, fly high to line up your target, then dive into a fast, controlled descent. Note how your weapons fire and adjust your targeting accordingly; most are a point-and-shoot variety, but certain bombs drop out the bottom of the aircraft.

With the above in mind, you’re ready to learn why you should fly each of the four jets at your faction’s disposal.

As a reminder for Battlefield REDSEC, only the F-74A Seacat and F/A-81F Super Spectre are available in a limited-time mode.

F-74A SEACAT

This fleet defense fighter specializes in air-to-air combat with limited air-to-ground capability.

The F-74A Seacat is a cooperative vehicle with two seats - one for the pilot and the other for the WSO - and a unique variable-sweep wing design.

The pilot has access to a 20mm Rotary Cannon that’s effective against fellow aircraft, helicopters, light vehicles and infantry, as well as fire-and-forget lock-on missile for a secondary weapon. In addition to the standard flares, the pilot also has access to switch the variable-sweep wings, which is a toggle in the second equipment slot between high-speed and high-maneuverability modes.

WSOs get to sit behind the pilot and fire two types of anti-air missiles. The primary missile actively scans for and attempts target lock-on while in-flight, then chases the locked-on target until it hits or is thrown off course by flares. The secondary missile, which can be fired to the sides and behind the aircraft, functions similar to the missiles in the Engineer’s 9K38 IGLA Launcher, in that it can reacquire targets mid-flight if tracking is lost or countermeasures are deployed.

F/A-81F SUPER SPECTRE

A multirole fighter aircraft capable of aerial dogfights and ground troop support.

The other cooperative vehicle introduced in Season 4, the F/A-81F Super Spectre mixes air-to-air and air-to-ground capabilities to become a jack-of-all-trades threat, especially with the availability of alternative weapons and equipment.

Pilots of the F/A-81F Super Spectre have their standard rotary cannon Primary Weapon, or can replace the normal 20mm ammo with armor piercing shells with greater impact against heavy vehicles at the cost of lower muzzle velocity. The Secondary Weapon is a choice between a standard lock-on missile or a special anti-radiation missile that seeks and disrupts A-A vehicles or infantry using lock-on launchers. For equipment outside of standard flares, this jet can be equipped either with rockets similar to the ones used on Attack Helicopters or a “dumb” bomb that drops bomblets before hitting the ground, providing considerable area of effect damage.

Meanwhile, the WSO in the backseat will primarily fire either the same IGLA-style anti-air missiles that are optional for the F-74A Seacat, or have access to a jammer that can lock-onto a target and prevent their targeting capabilities while also disabling enemy air radar. Their Secondary Weapon is either a precision penetration bomb where, upon selecting an area on the map, guides itself to the target and explodes, or a manually-guided remote-controlled missile.

ATTACK JET (F-61V / F39-E)

A fast multirole attack aircraft specialized in engaging all ground targets, including vehicles and infantry.

One of two jets available at launch, the Attack Jet - known as the F61V for NATO and F39-E for Pax Armata - is the primary air-to-ground single-seat aircraft.

Seating one pilot only, the Attack Jet primarily deals damage using its rotary cannon, great against aerial targets, light ground vehicles, and groups of infantry. Often, this weapon will be used as an active defense mechanism against other aerial vehicles, let alone for strafing runs against ground targets. Its Secondary Weapon are lock-guided air-to-ground missiles, capable of taking out chunks of even the most heavily armored vehicles.

This jet’s non-flare equipment is a high drag bomb that, while slow when dropped from underneath, deals a devastating payload to targets below. Great for dropping onto a tank or an objective with enemy infantry clusters, it may take a few tries to nail the release timing down for accuracy.

FIGHTER JET (F-97 KESTREL / SU-57)

A stealth fighter that specializes in combating other air vehicles, with limited air-to-ground combat capabilities.

The main single-pilot air-to-air vehicle, Fighter Jets pairs its generally effective rotary cannon with lock-guided anti-air missiles. Mixing the two together is a quick way to bring enemy aircraft out of the sky in short order. With the help of a squadmate using a Laser Designator or Tracer Dart, these lock-guided missiles will acquire their targets at a faster rate, which could shave crucial milliseconds off in an intense dogfight.

Like the Attack Jet, the Fighter Jet also has flares and a bomb, albeit with a lesser payload. This can lead to some decent strafing runs in a pinch along with the rotary cannon.

A NOTE ON THRUST VECTORING, THROTTLE SPLITTING

The Fighter Jet also has access to the unique “thrust vectoring” technique for evasive maneuvers. Simply put - because again, flight can get complicated quickly - it’s possible for this jet to change direction solely from the afterburners rather than traditional throttle controls.

The easiest way to get into these maneuvers is bringing the throttle down, holding the afterburners, then using the pitch and yaw controls (or looking around, for Simplified Jet Controls users) to continue moving the jet.

While it takes considerable practice to master this technique, here’s a few tricks the community has found since launch, most of which are actual maneuvers ace aviators are taught:

• J-Turn or Herbst Maneuver - A direction reversal move; throttle down, pitch up, then tap or pulse the afterburner to maintain altitude until you are pointed in your intended direction, then use the afterburners and throttle up to level out.
• Cobra Maneuver - A hard “air brake” maneuver using the jet’s weight to help slow or stall movement. After reaching a high speed, pull back on the throttle and pitch up at the same time. Then, use the afterburners and pitch controls to level back out.
• Falling Leaf - Another evasive technique that, when done correctly, makes your jet look like a leaf off a tree. Pitch up into a steep vertical climb, then kill the throttle. As the jet falls downward, yaw left and right to shift its position while vertically stalled. Then, once the threat is clear, push the throttle forward, activate afterburners, and pitch down to regain speed and stay airborne.

To an extent, the F-74A Seacat and F/A-81F Super Spectre has a version of this with throttle splitting (for real aviators: we’re once again simplifying this explanation). While applying yaw left or right, throttling down and applying the afterburner will activate throttle splitting, which shifts power between engines to help with additional acrobatic and evasive maneuvers. 

TOP FIVE TIPS AND TRICKS

1. KISS: KEEP IT SIMPLE SOLDIER. If you struggle with manual pitch and yaw, enable Simplified Jet Controls to align the jet automatically with where you look.
2. TAKE A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE. Use the third-person view for spotting threats while flying, but switch to the first-person cockpit view to improve weapon accuracy during combat.
3. WORK WITH YOUR WSO. On two-seater jets, a pilot should communicate evasive maneuvers clearly, as sharp turns can disrupt the Weapons Systems Officer's ability to maintain targeting and lock-on.
4. MANAGE YOUR FLARES. Avoid using flares prematurely; wait until a projectile is incoming to ensure you successfully throw off enemy targeting and stay alive. Alternatively, fly low to throw off targeting or around buildings and natural obstacles to block missiles.
5. BE PATIENT. Flight can be daunting at first, but with enough practice - both live fire and in jet only experiences like in Portal - you will be an aviator.

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