On this page
Unfamiliar word? Select a dotted-underlined term for its meaning.
What does recovery mean?
In these aircraft guides, recovery means bringing an aircraft back to a suitable airfield to land. It is the flying and landing part, not repairing a damaged aircraft. Refuelling and replacing used weapons happen as part of preparing it for another mission after landing.
Bring the aircraft back
- Find the aircraft by its callsign and check what it is doing.
- If RTB is offered for that aircraft, right-click its track and select RTB. For an active fighter, you can also use RTB on its row in ACTIVE OPS.
- Read the response in ASMA and check the aircraft’s return task in ACTIVE OPS.
- Watch it return and land. Then check the aircraft available at that base. An RTB message does not mean the aircraft is already on the ground or ready to fly again.
Hercules and Chinook RDP flights
The RTB controls on this page do not recall an accepted Hercules or Chinook RDP flight. Follow the transport’s progress and arrival reports instead. Check the base where it becomes available before planning another move.
A fighter order can bring the group back
For fighters, RTB can also bring back the other eligible aircraft in the group launched together. Fighters still taking off, parked at a base or on a redeployment flight are excluded. Check every member’s current task and movement before expecting one to stay on its task. RTB is an aircraft order; it is not a way to close a menu or undo an unfinished selection.
Need to land somewhere else?
If DIVERT is available for that aircraft, use it to choose a different landing airfield. RDP is a separate action for moving an aircraft to another base.
If the aircraft does not turn immediately
For a fighter, an RTB order during take-off can be refused rather than saved for later. Wait until take-off has finished, give RTB again, then check its task in ACTIVE OPS and follow its movement. RTB ORDERED alone does not prove that the fighter accepted the order. A redeployment flight is also excluded from this fighter RTB command.
For tankers, AWACS and Nimrod, follow the support-aircraft return guide because their waiting and take-off behaviour differs. If a fighter still fails to return after a valid order, keep its callsign, task, last order and messages for a problem report.
Why might my fighter go to a tanker before returning?
In v0.8.16.0, a fighter may seek fuel when starting its return to base. This can happen even after your RTB order if the game calculates that it does not have enough fuel to reach the base. A fighter already close to its landing airfield may continue its approach instead. Refuelling is not guaranteed to be available.
Check the fighter’s F, task and destination in ACTIVE OPS, and read the latest ASMA messages. A fuel-diversion message is not proof that fuel has arrived. Use the transfer checks if it heads to a tanker, then watch what it does after leaving. Follow each fighter until it lands; do not treat the first RTB response as a completed return.
Check it is ready for another mission
Check the aircraft available and the supplies at its base before ordering another launch. Use SUP to deliver supplies if the base needs fuel or weapons.
If the right-click menu is disabled
Select the aircraft, open AC Control and choose ENABLE RIGHT CLICK MENU. AC Control also has the main task buttons.
Bring the aircraft home and use it again
For tankers, AWACS and Nimrod, use the support-aircraft return guide. It covers the fuel and coverage checks, waiting departures and what disappears from the map after landing.
FUEL DIVERT: an automatic change of landing base
FUEL DIVERT means the fighter has been redirected to another military airfield because its original base is beyond its calculated reach even with full tanks. Read the destination in the report, then check each affected fighter’s fuel, task and progress in ACTIVE OPS. A diversion report confirms a changed destination, not a completed landing. Repeatedly ordering another top-up will not make an out-of-range home base reachable. An alternative airfield is not always available; keep monitoring the aircraft. This automatic action is separate from choosing DIVERT yourself.