That's pretty darn good balance for 5 factions with many different mechanics and commanders to confuse things. Can't wait to see how much closer they can get it. One concern about even balance is stale gameplay. Maybe only one commander at high gameplay is ever viable, for instance. The dream would be balance within a couple % points, and multiple viable tactics and commanders that suit play styles.
One thing at a time though.
P.S. Is there somewhere to see the change log now that the official forums are down?
I don't think we should be too worried about call ins being very rare in real life. Not many king Tigers were made or used in combat either but here they are. I like the idea of some sort of flak call in for Luftwaffe, but I would be a little sad if the para drop was lost for flavour reasons. I know they basically never dropped in real life but still, it's cool.
This site is supposed to be up to date and it shows pretty much the same thing that I was saying. Squad G43's are basicly identicle damage to the default K98's at long range ~2.4dps:
Stat.coh2.hu
It seems they are not worth the upgrade if your looking for max ranged damage. They are more accurate than K98's on the move (80% vs 50%) and do about twice the damage at point blank range (~12 vs 6). The lmg42 is the better ranged weapon ~7.6dps.
So if your choices are 2xG43 or lmg42, the G43's are the much more supperior close range weapon. They let you fire on the move when closing in and do triple the damage in close range.