DCS

[BOO]

7 minutes ago, dburne said:

 

Lol yeah that one got me as I was learning. And I am sure it will again.

 

I think its just so suspiciously easy and logical, my Harrier brain cant compute it. The "Sdby" notification got me too. All the mavs seem to lock easier at distance in the Hornet than I remember in the A10. Perhaps they do in the A10 now as well.  Just a shame I can only take 4. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[unlikely_spider]

7 minutes ago, BOO said:

I think its just so suspiciously easy and logical, my Harrier brain cant compute it. The "Sdby" notification got me too. All the mavs seem to lock easier at distance in the Hornet than I remember in the A10. Perhaps they do in the A10 now as well.  Just a shame I can only take 4. 

 

"All the mavs seem to lock easier at distance in the Hornet than I remember in the A10"

Well that's good, being that you have like 4x the amount of time before you get over the target in the A-10 than in the Hornet ?

But yes, locking Mavs has been tough for me in the A-10 and to a lesser extent the Harrier. But even if the systems are more logically laid out, I'm still a bit intimidated by the number of them present in the F-18. So many campaigns for the Hornet now though, it may push me over the edge. Though I'd still rather have that many available for the Harrier.

[dburne]

28 minutes ago, BOO said:

I think its just so suspiciously easy and logical, my Harrier brain cant compute it. The "Sdby" notification got me too. All the mavs seem to lock easier at distance in the Hornet than I remember in the A10. Perhaps they do in the A10 now as well.  Just a shame I can only take 4. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Personally I really like it when Jtac is available, now that is really easy.

[BOO]

14 minutes ago, dburne said:

 

Personally I really like it when Jtac is available, now that is really easy.

The big advantage of making your own missions. I bus em in the night before. Give em some fizzy pop and sandwiches and there are as happy as larry. 

33 minutes ago, unlikely_spider said:

"All the mavs seem to lock easier at distance in the Hornet than I remember in the A10"

Well that's good, being that you have like 4x the amount of time before you get over the target in the A-10 than in the Hornet ?

But yes, locking Mavs has been tough for me in the A-10 and to a lesser extent the Harrier. But even if the systems are more logically laid out, I'm still a bit intimidated by the number of them present in the F-18. So many campaigns for the Hornet now though, it may push me over the edge. Though I'd still rather have that many available for the Harrier.

Im finding the Hornet very easy to come to terms with. A lot easier that the A10 for sure. 

[dburne]

Oh my - just tried air to air refueling for the first time.

Wow, this is going to take some work.

[DD_fruitbat]

Having used Mav's in the Viper, Hornet and the A10, the Hornets mav F's certainly do lock up further away than the other IR mavs, but the Viper has different types, can't remember if the A10 has F's, don't think it does iirc.

 

Anyway, time for a gratuitous TOMCAT shot,

 

 

 

[BOO]

5 minutes ago, dburne said:

Oh my - just tried air to air refueling for the first time.

Wow, this is going to take some work.

Ive done it a few times. Trouble was it was in the same top up!  

 

The only tip i can give you apart from the oft repeated "trim,Trim. trim" is take to a little run up to the basket to get the thing flying stable beforehand at a small closing speed. The KC130 is probably the easiest to start with. The S3 is a 'mare. 

[DD_fruitbat]

8 minutes ago, BOO said:

Im finding the Hornet very easy to come to terms with. A lot easier that the A10 for sure. 

 

For sure the A10 is harder workflow than the Hornet, for me goes,

 

Viper < Hornet < A10.

[BOO]

6 minutes ago, DD_fruitbat said:

Having used Mav's in the Viper, Hornet and the A10, the Hornets mav F's certainly do lock up further away than the other IR mavs, but the Viper has different types, can't remember if the A10 has F's, don't think it does iirc.

 

Anyway, time for a gratuitous TOMCAT shot,

 

 

 

Have you ever gotten the "74" to light up?  It used to on the old Stennis i think. 

[unlikely_spider]

Hmm, good to know about the A-10 vs Hornet. Last year I got pretty familiar with the A-10 systems and did a bit of campaigns. It did help that I have a Warthog throttle and the button layout on the CH stick matches the A-10's, so the mapping was one-to-one and was great for immersion.

But if the Hornet is easier than the A-10 systems, I am more tempted to jump in.

[DD_fruitbat]

20 minutes ago, unlikely_spider said:

Hmm, good to know about the A-10 vs Hornet. Last year I got pretty familiar with the A-10 systems and did a bit of campaigns. It did help that I have a Warthog throttle and the button layout on the CH stick matches the A-10's, so the mapping was one-to-one and was great for immersion.

But if the Hornet is easier than the A-10 systems, I am more tempted to jump in.

 

That's only my personal opinion, take that for what its worth, your mileage may vary!

 

One thing about the A10, is it has so many shortcuts and different ways to do the same thing and requires many more mappings, so that can add and confuse the process sometimes, but may in the long term with in depth use prove easier. Maybe.

 

The Hornet imo appears pretty daunting at first, but its at least a fairly consistent workflow across weapon systems and as you go through them makes more and more sense.

 

Whoever designed the Viper's workflow, deserved a large bonus and possibly a medal ......

 

Again, this is all just my own experience, and personal feelings, doesn't make it true for someone else.

 

 

Re mavericks, I just checked, only the Hornet has the type F, the A10 and Viper have the same options, probably a navy air force thing. All I can find on it is on wiki, so.....

 

Quote

• Maverick F, designed specially for United States Navy, it uses a modified Maverick D infrared guidance system optimized for tracking ships fitted onto a Maverick-E body and warhead.

 

22 minutes ago, BOO said:

Have you ever gotten the "74" to light up?  It used to on the old Stennis i think. 

 

Can't honestly answer that yes or no!

Edited February 2, 2021 by DD_fruitbat

[Lusekofte]

2 hours ago, BOO said:

You Da Man!!

 

Thank you. 

 

So much for all of the vaunted illumini's videos. Good ole Grim Reapers.

I am not teaching you to suck eggs but have you switched on the breakers and the master arm above your head in the Mi8?

I have  even in instant action where everything is ready it do not work

[Chief_Mouser]

21 hours ago, DD_Arthur said:

 

You must be having one of those 'Henry Treece' moments. 

 

Across the road the homesick Romans made
The ground-mist thickens to a milky shroud;
Through flat, damp fields call sheep, mourning their dead
In cracked and timeless voices, unutterably sad,
Suffering for all the world, in Lincolnshire.

And I wonder how the Romans liked it here;
Flat fields, no sun, the muddy misty dawn,
And always, above all, the mad rain dripping down,
Rusting sword and helmet, wetting the feet
And soaking to the bone, down to the very heart . . .

 

Those poor Romans....and they went on to build all those Fiats too

 

Good grief. Glad I'd not heard of him before.

[DD_fruitbat]

29 minutes ago, 216th_Cat said:

 

Good grief. Glad I'd not heard of him before.

 

Poor old Lincolnshire, I've read more uplifting World War One poetry!

[Gambit21]

2 hours ago, unlikely_spider said:

So many campaigns for the Hornet now though, it may push me over the edge. 

 

A trend likely to continue for a bit I’m guessing. 

 

[Feathered_IV]

2 hours ago, 216th_Cat said:

 

Good grief. Glad I'd not heard of him before.

Oh I don’t know.  Would make better lyrics than the trash produced by bands like Iron Maiden and Sabaton though. 

[Bremspropeller]

An evening with mixed results. First we had a field day against MiG-15s (!), which ate a full Phoenix-volley. Then, some AI MiG-15 pulled down our pants and stuck it to us.

Then we flew as a two-ship. Me and Jester managed to kill a MiG-29, while Pyro and Pancake in the leading Kitty weren't as lucky. The Fulcrum then managd to fox us both. Spotting in DCS really is a challenge without any helpers. Plus the big ole radar is a good deal harder to use and especially the F-14A isn't really the best fighter in-close. The B is much better.

 

After that, Pyro's game crashed and Pancake and me decided to try a PvP server for a change.

 

Wee, so many contacts!

As it turned out, the server was a contest of who could better hide in the mountains, pop up and shoot somebody in the face.

Not really an arena to shine for the complex Tomcat either.

We got killed by a Viper in the weeds in the first mission and got foxed after a megalag on the scond hop.

Needless to say, all the Phoenixes missed.

 

/rant

Edited February 2, 2021 by Bremspropeller

[Rjel]

Those top two screen shots look very realistic Bremspropeller. A casual observer would be fooled I think.

[dburne]

I am finding the air to air refueling in the Hornet to be really tough to get - much harder than carrier traps I think.

I have got to get this as I am pretty sure some of the campaigns I want to do will require it. And I am getting closer to the point I will be able to fly some campaigns.

I hope it is one of those things where once you get it, you got it. 

 

Also need to get my arms wrapped around both Jdam and Jsow GPS guided bombs. Plenty to do today but not enough time so I am sure it will go into tomorrow as well.

Edited February 3, 2021 by dburne

[DD_fruitbat]

Jdams are the hardest thing to deploy, If you have two on the same pylon, it gets quite complicated. I suggest starting to learn them with only one on a pylon first. However, you can do some pretty impressive boom boom when you get it right, 8 different targets in one attack run,

 

 

When I learn new things, I normally make a few notes as I watch a video, nothing much, just key pointers to get me going. I had a whole page, to do the above!

Edited February 3, 2021 by DD_fruitbat

[dburne]

Ah should be interesting then.

 

I am thinking this SP campaign for the Hornet may be the first one for me once I get a little more learning under my belt.

 

 

The Rising Squall campaign is driven by an intricate storyline and represents an intense fantasy conflict. This campaign has a smooth learning curve for beginners with missions that progressively become more difficult. It also includes professional voice-actors.

Edited February 3, 2021 by dburne

[unlikely_spider]

2 hours ago, dburne said:

I am finding the air to air refueling in the Hornet to be really tough to get - much harder than carrier traps I think.

I have got to get this as I am pretty sure some of the campaigns I want to do will require it. And I am getting closer to the point I will be able to fly some campaigns.

I hope it is one of those things where once you get it, you got it. 

 

Also need to get my arms wrapped around both Jdam and Jsow GPS guided bombs. Plenty to do today but not enough time so I am sure it will go into tomorrow as well.

I'm no expert at AAR, but one thing that helped me is that when you're close, small corrections should be immediately reversed, since the margins are so small. For example, if you need to pitch down, the stick goes up for an instant, then immediately back down. Or, if you are falling behind, throttle up a little, then back down to where you were. Because holding any change in vector or speed will compound itself quickly in relation to your position with the other craft. So make the tiny adjustment then bring back to where you were. The tinyest little "bump" in attitude or thrust, like little movements away from center then immediately back again, is what I was told a while ago.

 

I hope that makes sense. It's different than normal flight maneuvers where you hold the stick or throttle or rudder until your desired heading or speed is met.

Edited February 3, 2021 by unlikely_spider

[dburne]

46 minutes ago, unlikely_spider said:

I'm no expert at AAR, but one thing that helped me is that when you're close, small corrections should be immediately reversed, since the margins are so small. For example, if you need to pitch down, the stick goes up for an instant, then immediately back down. Or, if you are falling behind, throttle up a little, then back down to where you were. Because holding any change in vector or speed will compound itself quickly in relation to your position with the other craft. So make the tiny adjustment then bring back to where you were. The tinyest little "bump" in attitude or thrust, like little movements away from center then immediately back again, is what I was told a while ago.

 

I hope that makes sense. It's different than normal flight maneuvers where you hold the stick or throttle or rudder until your desired heading or speed is met.

 

Thanks - still working at it have come close a couple of times but no cigar yet. I always manage to screw it up at the very last instant it seems.

[DD_Fenrir]

1 hour ago, dburne said:

 

Thanks - still working at it have come close a couple of times but no cigar yet. I always manage to screw it up at the very last instant it seems.

 

That's often the way... the best way I find is to make many tiny pulses instead of one large - and I mean sub-millimetric (not kidding!). 

 

And because the sooner you recognise the need to make a correction the smaller that correction will need to be, you should be constantly making a series of these tiny pulses - on the run up to the basket my right hand is moving like I'm speed handwriting a microscopic letter!

 

Another thing to try is to break down your stick corrections into pitch or  roll - I make one plane of motion correction at a time; I'm either making a pitch correction or a lineup correction, never both at once. Coming in at a nice slow 1-2 knots closure helps in this regard.

Edited February 3, 2021 by DD_Fenrir

[dburne]

4 minutes ago, DD_Fenrir said:

 

That's often the way... the best way I find is too make many tiny pulses instead of one large - and I mean sub-millimetric (not kidding!). 

 

And because the sooner you recognise the need to make a correction the smaller that correction will need to be, you should be constantly making a series of these tiny pulses - on the run up to the basket my right hand is moving like I'm speed handwriting a microscopic letter!

 

Another thing to try is to break down your stick corrections into pitch or  roll - I make one plane of motion correction at a time; I'm either making a pitch correction or a lineup correction, never both at once. Coming in at a nice slow 1-2 knots closure helps in this regard.

 

Thanks will try and keep that  in mind for my next attempts.

Much appreciated.

[Tektolnes]

You can also walk the throttle a little bit to get the smallest increases in thrust which I believe is the procedure they follow in real life i.e. they move just the right throttle up a hair and if they find they need a bit more then move the left throttle up. Overall I find the Hornet the easiest for AAR, then the Tomcat and I can't do the Hog to save my life.

[dburne]

4 minutes ago, Tektolnes said:

You can also walk the throttle a little bit to get the smallest increases in thrust which I believe is the procedure they follow in real life i.e. they move just the right throttle up a hair and if they find they need a bit more then move the left throttle up. Overall I find the Hornet the easiest for AAR, then the Tomcat and I can't do the Hog to save my life.

 

Thanks - yeah that part I have been doing. And I am lined up pretty well, just those last few feet things go to crap on me.

 

[DD_Fenrir]

Just now, dburne said:

 

Thanks - yeah that part I have been doing. And I am lined up pretty well, just those last few feet things go to crap on me.

 

 

Well you're on the right track, the plugging is the penultimate hurdle, keep at it and you'll get it.

 

What's the ultimate hurdle? Staying in!

[dburne]

4 minutes ago, DD_Fenrir said:

 

Well you're on the right track, the plugging is the penultimate hurdle, keep at it and you'll get it.

 

What's the ultimate hurdle? Staying in!

 

LOL yeah that is what I am anticipating, being able to stay in when I finally make it.

[Bremspropeller]

Funny how everybody rates each aircraft differently in terms of plugging in ?

 

Staying in may be both easy or hard - it's all about not getting into a PIO from an initial overcorrection...

[Lusekofte]

Yessss

Fixed myproblem with instant action MI 8 cannot fire any weapon issue  

Added another panel and a new stick made some controls renamed  so when starting a mission the master arm switch turns off

Now why I cannot fire minigun in the huey is more a misery. But I guess I find a reason 

[BOO]

bugger - just starting to get into pressy button flying and the cougar MFDs take a dump!

 

If its not one thing its yer mother.

Edited February 3, 2021 by BOO

[Bremspropeller]

Has anybody else ever had an issue with getting hypoxia with an open canopy on the ground in the Jeff?

Haven't re-tried with the newest update (of today's vintage), but it surely brught some chuckles. Garbled, hypoxic chuckles.

The guy in the sunroof-tent next to me had the same issue, but he found the emergency oxygen-switch in due time...

 

Seemed to me, the hypoxia-effect was linked to the cabin-pressure warning-light.

[Guest deleted@83466]

Closed canopy on the ground, yes, but not just sitting there with an open canopy.  Sounds like a newer bug.  JF is another one of those planes that I went all in on, learned it to a level I felt pretty good with, then haven't touched it in nearly a year...a familiar story with DCS for me.  I think I'll have to start over with the cold start tutorial!

Edited February 3, 2021 by SeaSerpent

[Bremspropeller]

First mission of the new "Zone 5" campaign under the belt.

[dburne]

This air to air refueling in the Hornet - not sure I am going to get this one.

I managed to get the nozzle in one time today and that was for all  of about 2 seconds LOL.

Carrier traps are a heck of a lot easier than this.

 

[Guest deleted@83466]

I think these are the kinds of things where joystick extensions really have helped me.  I couldn't hover helicopters worth a damn until I got a 75mm stick extension.  When it came to AAR, I still didn't feel I had the fine control I needed.  So I went to a 100mm, and still retain a 10 to 15% curve for both pitch and roll.  Tomcat seems easier for me because (at least it seems to me) that I can make the power changes I need with less dramatic movements of the thrust levers, and also because it isn't FBW.  FBW messes with me a bit both when it comes to AAR and also getting on speed on the downwind for landing.  TBH, I've never fully grasped the proper way to utilize the Trim in a plane that is FBW.

 

 

[dburne]

I am using a 200mm extension.

Going to add a little curve into my pitch and see if that helps some.

Probably going to be Friday before I can resume.

[DD_fruitbat]

Nice relaxing landing, in heavy cloud, rain and at night on a carrier,

 

 

[Bremspropeller]