I can't believe there is not a sticky saying do not install Windows 8 if you want to keep playing IL2 COD. Has one of the developers even commented on this issue in the forums?
The .NET Framework 4.5 is a highly compatible, in-place update to the .NET Framework 4. By using the .NET Framework 4.5 together with the C#, Visual Basic, or F# programming language, you can write Windows apps. The .NET Framework 4.5 includes significant language and framework enhancements for C#, Visual Basic, and F# (so that you can more easily write asynchronous code), the blending of control flow in synchronous code, a responsive UI, and web app scalability . The .NET Framework 4.5 adds substantial improvements to other functional areas such as ASP.NET, Managed Extensibility Framework, Windows Communication Foundation, Windows Workflow Foundation, and Windows Identity Foundation. The .NET Framework 4.5 delivers better performance, reliability, and security.
I found this on redirecting assembly versions
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/7wd6ex19.aspx