Post Stall Maneuver
A Post Stall Maneuver[1] (ポストストールマニューバ) is any advanced maneuver that a pilot can only perform by forcing the aircraft to stall. These maneuvers can be used to evade enemy fire and re-position the pilot behind another tailing aircraft.
Post Stall Maneuvers have been featured in a limited degree throughout the Ace Combat series. Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown is the first game in the series to give the player true control over inducing these maneuvers.[1]
Maneuvers
The following real-life maneuvers can be performed in Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown.
Pugachev's Cobra
Pugachev's Cobra (or just Cobra) is a maneuver in which a plane raises its nose to vertical level (perpendicular to the ground), even slightly beyond, and then drops back down to level flight. The maneuver allows the plane to evade a target that is directly behind them, then return to level flight behind the target, leaving said target open for a counterattack.
Kulbit
The Kulbit is a maneuver in which a plane performs an extremely tight loop. Alternatively, 'Kulbit' refers to an instance of a plane actually pivoting along a horizontal axis in midair - an extension of Pugachev's Cobra, since it completes the extreme pitching maneuver that the Cobra seems to begin.
Knife-Edge Slide
The Knife-Edge Slide is a maneuver in which a plane pivots along the y-axis (i.e. performing an extremely tight turn or yaw) while still more or less maintaining velocity. Though a knife-edge slide produced by a <90° yaw operates on the same principles as Pugachev's Cobra and anything more likewise is essentially a sideways Kulbit, it is much more difficult to perform due to the demanding situational requirements, which cannot traditionally be fulfilled with Ace Combat's controls.
Pre-AC7 History
PSM's have had a sporadic history prior to their full appearance in Ace Combat 7.
Ace Combat 2
In Ace Combat 2, Su-37 Terminator enemy pilots make extensive use of knife-edge slides and kulbits, though they are the only normal enemies to be able to do so - ZOE is the only other enemy that can maneuver post-stall, and only in the F-15S and ADF-01 FALKEN. However, the player cannot use these maneuvers.
Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere
PSM is possible to a limited degree while using high-mobility planes such as the Su-37 Super Flanker and Su-43 Berkut. However, it cannot be fully performed.
Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies
The Yellow Squadron and Megalith defense squadron in Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies are notable for their over-reliance on Pugachev's Cobra.
Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation
The High-G Turn mechanic introduced in this game allows post-stall maneuvering to a degree, though proper Cobras and Kulbits cannot be performed. Among the enemies, Ilya Pasternak, while flying the CFA-44 Nosferatu during The Liberation of Gracemeria, notably makes extensive use of actual post-stall maneuvering to make himself hard to hit. His UAV-45's are also capable of PSM.
Ace Combat: Assault Horizon
Players can perform Post Stall Maneuvers through quick time events, namely Dog Fight Mode and Attack Maneuvers, respectively. The specific maneuver(s) performed depend on the player's aircraft and if they are moving the plane in a certain direction. Enemy pilots of the NRF also extensively use these maneuvers to avoid the player.
Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy
Exactly the same as in Assault Horizon, with the removal of needing to move the plane in a certain direction. Enemy pilots also make extensive use of these maneuvers, including ZOE's F-15 S/MTD and ADF-01 FALKEN, as they did in the original AC2.
Ace Combat 7
Ace Combat 7 is the first game in the series that gives the player the ability to do post-stall maneuvers without using quick-time events, as well as the ability to perform the Knife-Edge Slide. While post-stall maneuvers can allow the player to get behind an enemy and turn faster, it also causes the player to bleed a lot of energy. This makes them an easy target, so maneuvers must be used with care.
Post Stall Maneuvers can be initiated by slowing the aircraft down to around 450 km/h (240 knots) or lower, releasing all inputs on the left controller stick, followed by holding the throttle and brake buttons at the same time, then finally pulling the aircraft into the desired maneuver. Not all aircraft can perform Post Stall Maneuvers. Compatible aircraft are listed below.
Aircraft
- Full PSM Capability (Cobra, Kulbit and Knife-Edge Slice)
- F-22A Raptor
- Su-30SM
- Su-35S Flanker-E
- Su-37 Terminator
- Su-47 Berkut
- Su-57
- X-02S Strike Wyvern
- ADF-11F Raven
- ADF-01 FALKEN
- ASF-X Shinden II
- XFA-27
- CFA-44 Nosferatu
- F-15 S/MTD
- FB-22 Strike Raptor
- F/A-18E | TGM
- 5th Gen Fighter | TGM
- Partial PSM Capability (Cobra Only)
Gallery
Andrei Markov evades William Bishop's F-22A Raptor by performing a Cobra in his Su-35
Trivia
- Pugachev's Cobra was named after Soviet test pilot Viktor Pugachyov (romanized as Pugachev), who performed the maneuver during the 1989 Paris Air Show.
- The following aircraft were the only ones capable of performing Pugachev's Cobra in Assault Horizon: