The game doesn't seem to send all of its "response" planes out at one time, unless you are a submarine that's been detected, then you will see a large group come after you, but even still, it's almost like they are spawned with first one plane, then a bit later, two planes. I have had nothing but PBY respond a few times. Other times, only B-25. Others, just the worthless Buffalo "USFighter". While it depends upon the AirBase cfg and its squadrons, the AirBase does not send all of its airplanes out at once. However, they will keep sending them out until the "threat" is eliminated, though a cycle through the AirStrike cfg file might "miss" with a round or two.
You of course, can "clone" the AirBases also, and have them "specialize" in what you want, which is the way we did some of the bases around Japan. We were having too many airplanes crash into the mountains along the ocean because of having to fly from Nagasaki or Tokyo for a response to a sub detected off of Bungo Suido, or Kii Suido. We would get a plane response, but only a very few would make it. So we cloned the Small AirBase, and put 2-plane AirGroups of a given fighter in them, with the occasional patrol plane base, and it keeps players "honest" to a point, yet doesn't deluge them with too many planes, or planes crashing into land masses, causing system resource overload while the game tracks crashed planes and "survivors"...
You wouldn't necessarily have to make the AirGroups "historically numbered", with say 24 airplanes in its AirGroup, because the game will use all 24 of them. You would only need maybe six maximum, to get an appropriate response, unless you want to make the AirGroups the size of an average squadron response. One set of pilots would be resting, another patrolling, and a third on standby. Plus, there would be planes waiting on parts for necessary repairs...
By cloning AirBases to have different squadrons, you can then eliminate the inappropriate airplanes in the other squadrons, and then you won't have Hellcats and Mitchells coming in when you should have Beauforts & Mosquitoes... with rockets... and Leigh lights... and radar...
