Fictional History

In 1944, several German aircraft manufacturers were designing a replacement for the venerable Ju-87 "Stuka" dive bomber/attacker. Most of them were judged too complicated, too expensive, or simply not good enough. The RLM was looking for a plane that could do more than one job and didn't include too many (potentially bothersome) innovations; it had to go into production quickly, and its entry into service shouldn't require extensive training of pilots and maintenance crews.

A cooperation by the chief designers of respectively Blohm & Voss (Richard Vogt) and Focke-Wulf (Kurt Tank) resulted in the Vt-156 "Lammergeier"; a simple design, sporting a single BMW 802 engine with a takeoff power of some 2500 HP.
The Vt-156 looked quite conservative, and shared obvious design elements with the Stuka it was supposed to replace as well as with earlier Blohm & Voss and Focke-Wulf designs. It would comfortably carry up to three times the payload of a Stuka and could cruise at altitudes that put it out of reach of many fighter planes... and allowed it to break up Allied bomber formations.
An allrounder, it never really excelled in any one role, but acquitted itself well as an attacker, heavy fighter and interceptor.

Armament

The "Lammergeier", though being a conventional tail dragger, is perched on a high landing gear to give it the ground clearance needed to accept virtually any kind of bomb, missile or torpedo in the Luftwaffe arsenal.

Henschel Hs 293 "glide bomb"
The plane is equipped with a single Hs 293 -basically an SC500 general-purpose bomb with wings and a rocket engine, guided down to its target through a radio control link. Though originally designed as an anti-shipping weapon, the Hs 293 can of course be used against any ground target, provided that the WSO has a clear view of that target.
When using the Hs 293, keep in mind it's not a modern missile; it's rather slow and not very manoeuvrable. When used correctly and against the right target it can be more accurate and safer to use than bombs -but always keep in mind that the plane has to fly straight and level to maintain a line of sight, and can't manoeuvre to evade flak or enemy fighters without aborting the attack. Delivering a Hs 293 to a well-defended target can be more tricky than simple dive bombing, and there is no possibility to abort and try again...

R4/Panzerblitz rockets
To cause some extra mayhem, the Vt-156 comes equipped with 16 unguided rockets. The R4M was originally designed for use against Allied bomber formations, but was also available with a somewhat larger shaped charge for use against armored ground targets. These rockets pack a punch, but are not very accurate and should be used from a relatively close distance only.

Guns
The Vt-156 has a total of three guns -or rather, autocannons.
The WSO can fend off attacking fighters using the rearward firing MG-151/20 mm autocannon.
For the offense, the plane is equipped with two wing-mounted MK-108's -suitable to take out ground targets as well as large bombers. These autocannon have a relatively low muzzle velocity and short barrel, but 30 mm shells at a high firing rate do a lot of damage. Just remember to fire in short, controlled bursts... otherwise the 100 available rounds per cannon will be gone in seconds.

Controls

The plane is easy to fly, and controls are few.
AG1 will freeze the plane's controls and engages a gyroscope, allowing the player to switch to the MG-151 gunner position. With AG1 activate, the gun is controlled with pitch/yaw.
AG2 is what you will want to press if the mission has failed and you couldn't deliver the Hs 293 to its target. The plane can't land safely with the Hs 293 still attached -use AG2 to drop it without launching.
AG8 is simply a toggle for the wingtip nav lights... not worth mentioning, but OK.

All other controls are standard; VTOL down for flaps, trim=trim. Dive/air brakes, engine cowl flaps etc. are automatic.

Happy hunting