This update is a minor, but important, one which addresses the following:
  • the issue of the Beaufighter aircraft rapidly losing rudder authority above 200 mph IAS has been corrected; the decrease in rudder control increases more gradually with airspeed as expected
  • the damage box naming on the Beaufighter aircraft has been corrected
  • the Beaufighter virtual cockpit texture has been updated
  • the PZL P-24 aircraft windscreen has been made more clear
  • the pylons used by the PZL P-24 for the external bomb loads have been corrected


In addition to these updates, a new PZL P-24 has been added in Bulgarian Air Force markings which will appear in the OXN aircraft menu.

You can find the 1.31 files here

Here is a list of the items addressed, and the new content, that will be included in the 1.30 update (listed in no particular order):

  • Bf 109E altimeter now displays the km index
  • Bristol Beaufighter Mk I aircraft have been added; four flyable liveries are available
  • Cant Z.1007bis flyable model is now selectable in the aircraft menu
  • Fairey Fulmer AI only aircraft is no longer selectable in the aircraft menu
  • Hurricane BG.707 now displays the textures at the wing root correctly
  • two of the Maryland AI aircraft, one appropriate for Malta and one appropriate for the Western Desert, have been made flyable by adding a virtual cockpit; the cockpit is not historically correct but looks appropriate; the flyable Marylands have been added because of the desire to fly them expressed by the community; we just ask the community to remember the Marylands were not meant to be flown in MAW and are therefore of low quality in certain player position views
  • P-40 cockpit eyepoint and orientation corrected
  • P-40 turn and slip indicator corrected
  • custom cutscenes and UI animations have been added for the Royal Navy (britain_faa) and Italian nationalites
  • the Union Jack (b_flagpole_army) has been added for display by some ground unit facilities which would normally be under Army control rather than RAF control
  • new Malta campaigns for 1940 and 1941 have been added
  • an updated version of the North Africa 1941 campaign is included which adds two Fleet Air Arm aircraft (Sea Gladiator, Martlet) and the Beaufighter
  • the "Training" missions tab in the UI has been renamed to "Multi-Player" so the training folder can be used as a convenient place to store your multi-player missions
  • several facility names were updated for better display in the game
  • the air raid siren, included in many facilities, is now functioning correctly
  • a SL (searchlight) facility has been added for easier placement of searchlights in missions
  • other new facilities were added to support the campaign spawns
  • 12 new missions have been added
  • ship service dates were reviewed and some were cloned for better spawning support
  • some ship names were updated for better display in the game
  • ships were organized so stock spawns will use generic names where as in campaign mode spawns will use HMS and RM names as appropriate (there are also a couple of new ship_ spawn control files that will let you use these configurations in missions)
  • a continuously submerged submarine, which fires torpedoes at nearby ships, has been added for creating additional mission complexity
  • the stock UI music has been replaced
  • the remaining custom spawns for the Greece and North Africa campaigns have been added
  • a new set of custom spawns to support the Malta campaigns has been added
  • spawns missing required mission goals for the campaign mode have been corrected
  • the random air spawns for the campaigns have been adjusted for a better balance during game play
  • ship formations spawned in campaign mode now move and shoot at enemy aircraft regardless of where they're spawned in the theatre
  • the Spawning Configuration Utility has been updated to support the Malta campaigns; at the same time, the selections for the Balkans, Greece & Crete have been combined since these regions are all within the existing Greek campaigns
  • all non-MTO related and fictional pilot biographies have been removed
  • all pilot photos have been updated and now display correctly in the UI
  • some pilot biographies have been updated with additional information
  • four new pilot biographies have been added for the Luftwaffe
  • four new pilot biographies have been added for the USAAF
  • new 1.30 splash screens
  • some vehicle names have been updated for improved display in the game
  • the Pzkpfw III-H main gun now fires
  • three new mines have been added for creating additional mission complexity: anti-shipping, anti-tank and anti-vehicle mine "vehicles" have been added which can be placed individuatlly using their corresponding facilities; a fourth facility (land_mines) has also been added to allow you to place a large mix of anti-tank and anti-vehicle mines at once

You can find the 1.30 files here

Version 1.21 is a minor update to the CFS3 Mediterranean Air War (MAW). This interim update is being released to address some issues reported by the community which affect multi-player sessions. We have also decided to include a few of the other updates completed since the 1.20 Update was released. The following is a summary of what's included in the 1.21 Update:

  • Short names for the RAAF and FAFL versions of the Lysander are now unique
  • Low res textures for the Ju87B2 3./STG1 have been added
  • Ju87B-2 A5FL removed ~ it was a duplicate of Ju87B2 3./STG1
  • Disabled spawning of the driveable Willys Jeep
  • Replaced the Bf 109F with the Bf 109E in the Greek 1941 campaign air spawns
  • Removed the Italian Ju 87b from the North Africa 1940 campaign
  • Correct player aircraft now selected in the Gladiator Grand Harbour mission
  • Improved the winter season behavior
  • Multiplayer BDP Zapper utility added
  • Other files affected by these changes updated accordingly


Multiplayer BDP Zapper

Anyone who has played any version of CFS3 online (multiplayer) is likely familiar with the type mismatch error message. It can be frustrating to say the least when a group of friends get together for some online fun only to find one or more people can't join the session because of mismatch errors ~ especially knowing that everyone believes they have installed everything the same way. However, with CFS3 based games such as MAW, even the most carefully followed instructions can still lead to type mismatch errors on occassion.

Fortunately, in many cases the mismatches can be cured by deleting the "BDP" files associated with the aircraft and their weapons then letting CFS3 generate a new set. To that end, a pair of Multiplayer BDP Zapper utilities are included with this update release: one that should work on any CFS3 installation regardless of what aircraft have been added for Windows 2000 or higher & one that is specifically for Win 98/Me users. In it's current version, the Win98/Me version of the zapper will only work with MAW and will only clean up the BDP files for the MAW aircraft released as of the 1.21 update.

To use the Multiplayer BDP Zapper , quite MAW then double click the icon created on your desktop by the 1.21 update installer. It only takes a few seconds to work. The next time you launch MAW it will be a little slower then usual while the new BDP files are built. ( We believe the price of the small delay is well worth it if you're experiencing mismatches while trying to get your online session up and running .)

Windows 98/Me users can run the standard zapper without harm but it won't have any effect either. Instead you'll need to launch the MAW BDP Zapper For 9x from the shortcut in CFS3 Mediterranean Air War folder in the Start Menu.

You can find the 1.21 files here

Version 1.20 is a major update to the CFS3 Mediterranean Air War (MAW). Several issues noted by the CFS3 community have been addressed and there are a few surprises too like the stunning new "office" for the Blenheims. The following is a summary of what's included:

  • updates to improve game stability :

    • updated effects.xml to remove duplicate entries and references to items not inlcuded in MAW

    • updated sounds.xml & preload.xml to provide the minimal set required for MAW **

    • updated uisel.xml to correct the issue of blank selections in the QC menu

    • config & MB launchers recompiled with the latest version of BFC to help eliminate false anti-virus positives

  • updated global layer to improve historical accuracy:

    • El Adem airfield increased to 2 runway type

    • Tobruk airfield renamed to El Gubbi

    • Tobruk seaplane base and second airfield removed

  • updated Tobruk facilities

  • Valetta harbour files reorganized to help with frame rates

  • improved layout of artillery facilities

  • several new cloud and weather types added

  • updated Blenheim exterior textures

  • fully upgraded Blenheim interiors

  • Fiat Cr. 42 ground shake fix

  • Fiat Cr. 32 and G. 50 hires/lores textures no longer reversed

  • Bf 109E compass fix

  • virtual cockpit fixes for the Bf 109E, Cr. 42, Mc. 200, Mc. 202 and Sm. 79

  • Mc. 202 inverted wing insignia (low res) fixed

  • Sm 79 bomber station fixed

  • Transparent Italian torpedo and bombs fixed

  • Sm 79 49a Sq. texture improved

  • Romanian He 111 now associated with Romania nationality

  • a flyable Lyander Mk. I has been added (RAF)

  • three flyable Lysander Mk. IIs have been added (RAF, RAAF, FAFL)

  • Sea Hurricane models have been updated to improve the wing root texture mapping

  • missing textures for several objects now included

    • 6 Pdr A/T gun

    • bivouc tent

    • Breda 20mm

    • Breda 47mm

    • Swordfish gunner

  • desert textures added to some vehicles

    • Bren Carrier

    • Churchill

    • Cromwell

    • Sherman

  • complete review & update of all the cloned ground vehicles:

    • improvements to the types that will appear for a given time period

    • affected facilities and stock spawn files updated accordingly

    • cloned vehicles have been added or removed as required to support the improved set

  • mission selection tabs renamed back to "Historical", "What If" and "Training" in preparation for future chapters

  • new spawning configuration utility

  • a full set of new spawns tailored for specific aircraft, timelines and mission types are included; they are used to support improved immersion and historical accuracy in single missions and in campaigns

  • a new set of fully scripted missions based on the new method of controlling spawns; all of the 1.10 missions have been replaced by these new missions owing to the different and vastly improved way they can now be written

  • all four campaigns updated for improved game play

  • driveable Willys jeep added

  • latest AvHistory weapons pack

With all the improvements to the Mediterranean Air War, we believe as the CFS3 enthusiasts in our community play the all new missions and updated campaigns they will notice an immediate improvement in game play and find it the most immersive release yet.

Using the Spawning Setup Utility

During the installation of the 1.20 update, a shortcut for the MAW Spawning Setup Utility will be created on your desktop and added to the CFS3 Mediterranean Air War directory in the Start Menu. Prior to launching the MAW game, you should setup the spawns according to the mode you'll be playing in. To use the utility, double-click the icon on your desktop or select the icon in the Start Menu to start it. Then, select the appropriate options by clicking on the items you require.

In Legacy Mode and Mission Mode the Alliance, Year and Campaign options are not available and can not be selected. When selecting Campaign Mode, you also need to select the Alliance you're playing for, the year and the campaign. At present, MAW Chapter One only supports tailored spawns for 1940 & 1941 in the Greek and North African campaigns. The other options are grayed out and can not be selected at this time. These options will be enabled as more campaigns are written for future MAW installments.

When you've made all of your choices, click the "Configure Spawns" button in the lower-right corner of the utility. The utility will exit and your spawning configuration will remain in place until the next time you run the utility ~ including in between gaming sessions.

Mission authors will advise you of which mode they want you to select when playing the missions they write. All of the missions included in 1.20 are intended to be played with the Mission Mode selected (i.e. all random spawns disabled). Similarly prior to playing any of the four Chapter One campaigns you should configure spawning to match the campaign your going to play and alliance you're going to fly for.

Mission builders should take a moment to read the Spawning Info document also included with the 1.20 release.

Additional Files

As noted in the list of included updates, to improve stability we reconfigured the sounds.xml file and the preload.xml file to include the minimum required items for MAW. We attributed some of stability issues (i.e. crash to desktop) reported with the release of 1.10 to putting too much strain on the memory and CPUs of some computers. However, for people who have not been experiencing CTDs, we have included updated versions of the same files:

  • sounds.xm_ file that includes all the unique AI sounds for people with good sound cards

  • preload.xm_ file that includes the references to .wav files for people that feel this helps reduce stutters

To use these files, add ".orig" to the end of the sounds.xml file or preload.xml file name then change the "_" character in the extra file's name to "l". 

You can find the 1.20 files here