Wingman Command

"Captain, do you know how to give your commands?"

― Chopper

Wingman Command is a gameplay element that allows the player to control their squadron at will. By pressing any button on the D-pad, the player can assign orders to the AI wingmen, from how they fight to whether they use special weapons or not.

Commands

• Pressing Down orders the wingmen to cover the player. This is set by default at the start of the mission. The wingmen will attack any enemy unit that attempts to attack the player.
• Pressing Left orders the wingmen to disperse. This allows them to attack any enemy unit, at their discretion, in the player's vicinity.
• Pressing Up orders the wingmen to attack enemies directly in front of the player.
• Pressing Right toggles whether or not the wingmen can use special weapons. By default, this is set to off. This is independent of the other three commands.

Games

No two games in the Ace Combat series feature the Wingman Command system in the same way.

Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War

Ace Combat 5 was the first game to feature the system. As such, the Commands section above is based on Ace Combat 5.

The system was disabled in the missions Shorebirds, Open War, and Final Option, because the player wasn't leading the squadron, and Solitaire, because the player was alone.

Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War

Ace Combat Zero expanded on the system, allowing the player to press the Left button repeatedly to order their wingman to disperse to specific types of enemies. The player can disperse their wingman to all enemy units, exclusively ground units, or exclusively air units.

The system was disabled in the mission Zero, due to the player not having a wingman.

Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation

Rather than expanding on the system, Ace Combat 6 removed certain functions. The player could no longer order their wingman to Disperse or restrict their ability to use special weapons. The player's wingman, Shamrock, is free to use special weapons at all times and can only be ordered to cover (default as usual) or attack. However, the system was augmented by the Allied Support feature, which allows the player to call for the same cover and attack but from the entire Republic of Emmeria Air Force, Navy and Army.