barrage balloon

[von munchalot]

just a quick question from a reletivly new flyer . when playing with a barrage balloon on the playing field, what is the rule regarding flying into or overlapping a balloon? is it taken thatthe balloon has brought the aircraft down?

[Boney10]

Hi Brian, this is my take, not got my rule book on hand.
To collide with a Balloon you need to be playing using altitude and the aircraft and balloon need to be the same height and then it is treated like a standard collision, both take a C deck damage card ( or 2 A deck)
Also when an aircraft overlaps the base of the balloon it cannot shoot at it, well that's what we play anyway

[von munchalot]

thanks chris for your reply much welcomed

[Oberst Hajj]

That's pretty much how my local group plays it as well.

[Lugburz]

Hi Brian, this is my take, not got my rule book on hand.
To collide with a Balloon you need to be playing using altitude and the aircraft and balloon need to be the same height and then it is treated like a standard collision, both take a C deck damage card ( or 2 A deck)
Also when an aircraft overlaps the base of the balloon it cannot shoot at it, well that's what we play anyway

Ahh, but what constitutes a "near miss" with a "collision" when overlapping with a barrage balloon? For most players, a near miss is when the bases overlap (but the center dot / peg remain safe). Quite a few players here only consider a collision to occur when one base overlaps the center/peg of another plane — we won't go into altitude versus no altitude. Where balloons are concerned, assuming you play with altitude, does a collision occur when the plane base overlaps the balloon base, or when the plane base overlaps the balloon's center/peg?

I should mention that I normally play overlapping bases = "near miss", but overlapping pegs = "collision". In the event of a balloon, I would argue that any overlap would result in a collision, as the sheer mass of the balloon makes it a much larger target. Thoughts?

[Oberst Hajj]

Ahh, but what constitutes a "near miss" with a "collision" when overlapping with a barrage balloon? For most players, a near miss is when the bases overlap (but the center dot / peg remain safe). Quite a few players here only consider a collision to occur when one base overlaps the center/peg of another plane — we won't go into altitude versus no altitude. Where balloons are concerned, assuming you play with altitude, does a collision occur when the plane base overlaps the balloon base, or when the plane base overlaps the balloon's center/peg?

I should mention that I normally play overlapping bases = "near miss", but overlapping pegs = "collision". In the event of a balloon, I would argue that any overlap would result in a collision, as the sheer mass of the balloon makes it a much larger target. Thoughts?

I could go with that.