Ace Combat 7 Mission 01 Charge Assault is your first sortie as Trigger, and your first outing as Trigger, and it’s a good lesson in choosing the right targets. Erusean bombers are attacking Fort Grays Island, and your job is to bring down every aircraft marked TGT. Escort fighters are not required for the clear, so don’t get dragged into a long dogfight while the actual bombers keep flying.
The bombers arrive in waves, which is where a lot of first attempts go wrong. Clear the current marked bombers, watch your radar for the next group, and turn towards them immediately. Below is the route through the waves, including what to do with the escorts, when the optional named ace appears and what matters for an S rank.
Ace Combat 7 Mission 01 Charge Assault: bomber target order
Start by following the mission’s takeoff prompts, then head towards the first Tu-95 bomber. Wait for the missile lock before firing. It sounds obvious, but launching during a hard turn is an easy way to waste a shot. You are not racing a separate score gate here: the mission ends when the red TGT bombers have all been destroyed.
- First wave: intercept the single Tu-95. This is the introduction to targeting and air-to-air missiles.
- Second wave: another Tu-95 arrives with two MiG-21 escorts. Take out the marked bomber first, then decide whether you have time to deal with the fighters.
- Third wave: two Tu-95 bombers appear with two more MiG-21s. A multi-target air-to-air special weapon is especially useful here, provided the targets are within range and your locks are clean.
- Fourth wave: hunt down one more Tu-95, accompanied by a MiG-21. Be ready for another radar update rather than assuming the mission is finished.
- Final wave: one Tu-160 arrives to the southeast, while four Tu-95s approach from the southwest. Destroy all five marked bombers to finish. The final group appears around 40 seconds after the fourth wave arrives, so keep moving and checking the map.
The final wave is where time disappears. If you focus on the fighters around one bomber group, you can end up making a long flight across the map to mop up the other group. Use the radar zoom to see the wider picture before committing to your next interception.
Best aircraft and weapons for the first mission
The starting F-16C is perfectly capable of clearing the sortie. You do not need to buy a new plane or grind for upgrades. Standard missiles are enough for the mandatory bombers, but the F-16C’s 4AAM can attack several aircraft at once when they’re in a useful formation.
Two habits make this much easier: come in from behind or nearly head-on, and wait for a stable lock before spending special weapon ammunition. You can switch between your standard missiles and special weapon, so don’t waste a multi-target shot on a bomber that is already seconds from going down to regular missiles.
Remember that clouds can interfere with missile performance in this game. If an attack fails, reset your angle and close the distance rather than repeatedly launching from a bad position. A clear approach usually saves more time than chasing a perfect cinematic shot.
Ace Combat 7 Mission 01 Charge Assault: PYRO ace location
PYRO is an optional MiG-21 that can appear in Ace Combat 7 Mission 01 Charge Assault, but it is not part of the normal first-run objective. The named aircraft requires a replay after you have already finished the mission, on Normal difficulty or higher.
To trigger PYRO, destroy the third wave’s two Tu-95 bombers using multi-target air-to-air missiles, such as 4AAM, 6AAM, 8AAM or ADMM. The MiG-21 escorts do not need to be destroyed for this condition. PYRO appears to the northwest alongside the fourth wave. Look northwest for the new MiG-21 contact before returning to the mandatory bombers. He’s easy to overlook if you’re rushing between waves.
It’s worth treating the named ace as a separate run from your first completion. Keeping track of bomber waves is far more useful to a new player than trying to combine tutorial objectives, a fast time and a special spawn condition all at once.
Ace Combat 7 Mission 01 Charge Assault S-rank tips
Ace Combat 7 Mission 01 Charge Assault uses both destruction points and a time bonus for its final rank. A useful benchmark for an S-rank attempt is to finish in 4 minutes 50 seconds or less with at least 10,300 destruction points. The bombers themselves total 10,200 points, which means you need to shoot down at least one escort fighter as well.
There’s no need to destroy every MiG-21 if it costs you too much time. Get your extra points on a fighter that sits conveniently beside your bomber route, keep the speed up between waves, and use multi-target weapons to shorten the busier engagements. A slower clear can still score well if you’ve collected enough extra points, but it gives you much less room for error.
Why Ace Combat 7 Mission 01 Charge Assault isn’t ending
If you’ve been flying around with no obvious targets, the most likely explanation is that there is still a marked bomber somewhere off your current radar view, or the final wave has not fully appeared. Zoom the radar out and scan for TGT, not just any enemy symbol. Shoot down those marked aircraft to complete Ace Combat 7 Mission 01 Charge Assault.
If missiles keep missing, try an approach from a cleaner angle and avoid fighting inside heavy cloud. If you’re out of special weapon ammunition, switch to ordinary missiles; special weapons help with efficiency, but they aren’t necessary to finish this mission.
For more information about Ace Combat 7 Mission 01 Charge Assault and the game’s aircraft, visit Bandai Namco’s Ace Combat 7 page.
