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05 September 2025 Dear Fighter Pilots, Partners and Friends, We are excited to announce that the pre-purchase for DCS: MiG-29A Fulcrum is now live for the DCS Steam Edition. Get ready to slip into the cockpit of the classic 9.12A version of the MiG-29 and experience an authentic, early Fulcrum with look down shoot down radar, IRST, helmet mounted sight cueing for R-73 “Archer”, and the GSh-30-1 cannon. Pre-purchase is now on Steam and on our Shop. We are delighted to share progress on an upcoming update for the DCS: South Atlantic map that adds greater detail, realism, and optimization. To provide the best, default experience, the Mission Editor default date will be set to southern hemisphere summer. The release of this update will also mark the end of the early access period for this map. However, support for this map will not end. Please see screenshots of this fantastic map update and read the details below. This week we spotlight the Chinese Jianqiao Virtual Flight Group unveiling their Tactical Response Challenge, a team-based PvE event. Registration is open, with the event running from the 3rd of October to the 15th of November, 2025. We invite you to rally your crews, refine your tactics, and be part of this ambitious showcase of skill and teamwork. Thank you for your passion and support. Yours sincerely, Eagle Dynamics MiG-29A Fulcrum Pre-purchase on Steam Secure your DCS: MiG-29A Fulcrum Steam copy today with a 30% off discount. Your Fulcrum on Steam will be available at launch, and it will work seamlessly in multiplayer. Pre-purchase now to be among the first to fly. Please note that the price will increase to $63.99 USD, 20% off, at launch. South Atlantic Development Report An update to the DCS: South Atlantic map is in development and planned for inclusion in an upcoming DCS update. Every airfield is receiving an optimization pass to lower video memory usage. Texture fidelity is being improved significantly, with airfield textures quadrupling and building materials doubling. Vegetation across the map will now use a new distribution algorithm for denser and more natural coverage. Snow distribution and tiling issues are also being corrected. Normal maps are getting upgraded and integrated across the Argentina and Chile landmass to improve surface relief and lighting response. Airfield lighting and visual systems will receive a complete refresh. All lighting will use new tech, and airfield lighting will react to takeoffs and landings. Ushuaia PAPI lights are getting properly leveled too. Specter Studios is adding animated airfield radar units where appropriate and replacing all wind turbines with map specific animated models, as well introducing a variety of new airfield objects. A large set of airfields and points of interest are being revamped, including: Port Stanley, Ushuaia, Ushuaia Helo Port, Mount Pleasant, Punta Arenas, Puerto Natales, Mare Harbour, Rio Gallegos, Rio Grande, Provenir, Franco Bianco, O Higgins, Almirante Schroeders, San Julian, Comandante Luis Piedrabuena, and Pampa Guanaco. Mission planning quality of life is also being improved. The F10 map will show country borders and helicopter locations along with additional visual refinements. The Mission Editor default date is now the 1st of October, 2024 so summer textures are selected by default for new missions. Once this update is released the map will be feature complete and exit early access. However, improvements and bug fixes will continue. Please remember that you can purchase now whilst the 20% early access discount is still available. Specter Studios has a DCS Forum Page to discuss their projects. 2025 Green Balmoral Cup Tactical Aviation Simulation Competition Organized by Jianqiao Virtual Flight Group (JQvFG), a member of the DCS China community, this event will be the first simulated flight competition that centers on comprehensive tactical response of aviation forces in multi-factor, complex battlefield environments. We encourage all our Chinese speaking members to check out this fascinating event. The event presents participants with all-encompassing challenges: validating fundamental flight skills to handling adverse weather conditions, mastering individual combat techniques, executing team tactical coordination, adapting to battlefield variables caused by intelligence errors, and restructuring the OODA (Observe-Orient-Decide-Act) decision-making cycle. All these skills will be integrated into mission scenarios such as: • Offensive/Defensive Counterair (OCA & DCA) • Battlefield Air Interdiction (BAI) • Close Air Support (CAS) • Reconnaissance & Surveillance (R&S) • Air-to-Air Refueling (AAR) The competition will be held from the 3rd of October to the 15th of November, 2025 in a team-based PvE format. For more details please follow JQvFG’s official Bilibili account. Stay tuned for full coverage and live broadcasts of the competition. Generous prizes await the winners, and we look forward to welcoming individuals and organizations who are eager to engage in a clash of intellect and courage! Thank you again for your passion and support, Yours sincerely,

9/04/2025 - Updated to version 2.0 - 3 NEW cirrus cloud textures - Improved several other cirrus cloud textures - Improved cirrus cloud shadows - Various cirrus shader improvements - Increased fog visibility cap in the mission editor. - Fixed artifacts in Scattered Shower 5 cloud preset Low Resolution and legacy versions available here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1jEVEdgFXQAVfvUsUMLnOiC4RaUGxEaA5?usp=sharing

I plan to release v2.0 later today. I tried to get Tempest's wind mod working but it appears ED has locked that down because nothing I tried will decouple the ground wind layer from 1600ft wind layer. His mod will decouple the layers in the mission editor but it doesn't have any effect in game. 20 knots ground wind still results in 40 knots at 1600ft. That being said, I did make some nice improvements to this latest generation of cirrus clouds. I replaced a few textures with new ones and made some improvements to others. Shadows are looking much better now also. Overall I think these are the best looking cirrus yet. I also increased the fog visibility range in the mission editor. You can use that to create a nice hazy atmosphere look.

Again, this should have had been with the Core...

Thanks guys! I really appreciate compliments. I think I'm finally satisfied with the way the cirrus look . I'd really like to continue to develop more advanced features for the weather simulation but we really need ED to update some of the legacy code for the weather engine. Yes, the 4K version uses more VRAM specifically. I had to pack in all of my textures into a dds texture array because the game engine only allows 4 texture files for cirrus. That results in much larger texture files being loaded into memory. This was only way for me to increase the number of cirrus variations above 4.

The C-130 in some ways is a giant flight planning machine, so to use a tool like that would be missing out on alot of the experience. But, yes, it should work by default with it.

They not the same team but some of the same individuals. They did the SA map on their own time. And then did the Kola map as part of their day job i.e. working for Orbx.

South Atlantic update looks great!

The man doing it again. Stunning Bandit, splendid.

I guess I have to ask why? The generic reflective material is pretty ugly. If the performance is not great with mirrors for you, then you just fold them up, and they do not render. (Try not to judge too much by the dev video, I see much better frames than this). 2) We will have resolution settings for mirrors coming; you will be able to pick the resolution you want, much like cockpit resolutions. We will also have a render option as well, either sequential or not.

WOW!!! Bandit you've done it yet again!! This mod of yours is truly a "must have" for all DCS pilots and mission makers alike. I'm sure I speak for everybody that uses your awesome mod when I say THANK YOU FOR ALL THE PREVIUOS RELEASES AND ALL YOUR HARD WORK.

Looks outstanding. Thank you.

BO-105 Pilot 3D- Model fun. When the gauge is low but the ego is high

Instead of relisting every argument written in the dozen similar previous topics, have you at least read one of them yourself before opening up this one?

Brave topic for a first post.

Friday newsletter

South Atlantic is one of my favourites. Shame it doesn't get more uptake, feels like a lot of people can't get past the 80s and can't use it due to lack module X or y. It's so large it should be one of the best for BVR scenarios, even air quake if that's your thing. I would like to see more modern day campaigns and missions for it.

NTTR is one of my favorite maps ever. Why? Because it's where Airforce and Navy train... And I.

Hey, thank you so much, I appreciate the kind words. I hope you’ll enjoy the rest of the campaign just as much

Hi Reflected, I just wanted to say how much I’m enjoying MIG KILLER. The campaign is not only very well put together, but also highly educational. The level of detail and the flow of the missions kept me fully immersed from the very beginning. I’m currently on mission 4, having just completed the intense 2 vs 1 engagement, and I can’t wait to continue and see what’s coming next. Being a long-time F-4 fan, this campaign feels like a perfect fit for me. On top of that, the documentation you included is outstanding—clear, well-structured, and of the highest quality. It really adds depth to the whole experience and makes the campaign feel both authentic and accessible. Thanks for all the effort and passion you put into your work. Looking forward to your next projects!

From Mirage F1 Flight Manual page 96: "When the button is pressed, the sight changes to cannon air-to-air mode with radar guidance, the outer missiles are selected and a green light on the side of the sight mount turns on. Further short presses of the button release the current radar lock and command a radar search in front of the current target. A long press of the button commands the restart of the search pattern from the initial position." If you want to re-lock the same target you should long press C+M button.

Just keeps getting better and better . . .

Try…

Heatblur only is required to support other ED official Modules, not User mods no matter how cool they are. The A4 mod team needs to either figure out what’s up, or figure out how to write their AI to not use cat3. Take it up with them.

UPDATE v1.1 Hello guys, new update is up. The cockpit model was redone — most parts rebuilt from the ground up and retextured. The exterior also got some fixes: corrected damage model (no more parts showing when they shouldn’t after damage), added bort number on the front landing gear, boarding ladder, and intake covers for parked/static aircraft.Flight model was adjusted to remove the unrealistic supercruise. Smaller tweaks include engine sound update. Unfortunately for now fabric cover doesn't work as it should on parked (not static) aircraft with open canopy clipping through it, so it was removed until it could be added properly in the future.

Would be nice if specter studios team introduces itself.

Some screens from the illumination stages of Enterprise '66, following the example of CV-59 Forrestal: Only IFLOLS on: AC Launch: AC recovery:

Actually the low resolution version looks surprisingly good in my testing. If your flying in VR and are worried about VRAM utilization then I recommend using the low res version. Legacy versions I don't really recommend running. For one, I think the cirrus look better then ever in 2.0. You can maybe go back a few versions and still be OK but the latest version is what is compatible with the current version of DCS.

It's fair to say that the map is looking better and better. I'd even go so far as to say that it currently looks even better than Kola in terms of textures, vegetation, and buildings. And with the latest update, the map will be even better. Ultimately, although it took a long time, it turns out that while it may not be as popular a region, it's a very good map.

Happy to see the SA map is still being developed and getting some much needed TLC. Used it as a Scandinavia stand-in before Kola. However, the SA has an own unique flavor to it. Sadly enough highly underrated as not supported by many MP servers and Campaign developers, for known reasons that are not unique to SA map. Probably a pipe-dream, but still hoping for an official FRS.1 Sea Harrier module and a Falkland campaign.

It has no official campaigns, but the MB-339 has an unofficial free campaign set there: If you don't like to create your own missions, maybe the Kola Map would be a better fit for you, it has some resemblance since it's made by the same map developer. I own both maps and have enjoyed them a lot, but Kola seems much more popular and therefore has more content available (including a couple of official Campaigns).

Thanks for continuing to update this Bandit! Re the LOW res version and VR specifically, is this solely for performance reasons as I never noticed any degradation previously?

Quick patch v1.1.1 that wasn't included in yesterday's update by mistake. Includes fix to one wrongly exported model and addition of better cockpit lights.

Maybe Black Diamonds Aerobatic Team. In DCS we have L-39C from Black Diamonds, so Lim-6 from this team can looks nice

A few more shots, been having some fun doing short field landing practice at RAF Hawkinge in the FAA Corsair

@Calvin.Pimax I don't understand - why is this Pimax Play version still available and also the only version available on Pimax homepage? This Swirls issue seems like a big problem. I am still on version 1.40 for Pimax Play and still use Crystal Super firmware 1.07 because it seems like every new version causes an issue. Now, for DCS I am happy with this "old" combo - Pimax Play 1.40 and firmware 1.07 for Crystal Super because it I don't have tracking issues with my headset, the sound is OK/good, I don't use hand controllers, I don't use the Pimax Play Quadviews but rather mbucchias "external" Quad views - along with Tally Mouse Quadviews companion app so I get to fine adjust my quadviews settings anyway. And this gives me very good image quality and performance i DCS. DCS... Now, here's the thing - I would like to upgrade, the new upscale and sharpening tool in Pimax Play sounds nice for games that don't support Quadviews. But - I really don't want to take the chanche of breaking my DCS performance quality wise - and frames/sec wise.

Hi, we will pass on the feedback to the team, but this is not a bug. thank you

I could only find 1 in the 2024-2025 changelogs: How is it that devs won't even change cfg file to give us better lights/objects visibility over current 5km on NTTR? We know the new maps are priority but there's this feeling the devs have no time at all for older projects while a single % of their time dedicated would be enough. You've just said they can't use Scratch

For as long as I can remember, ED has had a problem displaying contrasts in the shadows of objects, and is unable to show enough gray steps. Anyone familiar with analog camera technology knows that high resolution is not necessary to display even the smallest objects at great distances on small monitors. The “trick” is that contrast and shadows/gray steps give objects a specific shape that the human brain recognizes on a 2D monitor and converts into a three-dimensional object. In all videos and images of the original data, at the same distances and despite the compression artifacts caused by uploading, the objects are clearly recognizable as aircraft and vehicles, even in BHOT Wide mode. In close-up view, details can be seen at a distance of 12 miles. You can even recognize what type of aircraft or vehicle it is. In DCS, nothing at all can be seen at the same distance, no matter how much you play with the brightness and contrast controls. DCS simply does not display shadows on the MFDs as they are constantly seen in the original data. You can see all of this perfectly in your images. All you see are 2D blobs because the gray streps are missing to give the objects the necessary depth so that our brain can generate objects from them. I just don't understand how you can't see that! If you look at how blurry and washed out the original images and videos are because this data has obviously been stretched (clearly visible from the fact that the MFD markers are all completely blurry too, like the whole picture, which would not happen), it becomes even clearer that what we see in DCS is significantly worse than what pilots see when they look at their displays. Let's summarize: DCS is unable to render enough gray steps as they appear in the original and attempts to simulate a lower image resolution with blur, which removes any depth and contour from objects, regardless of distance. Unless you explicitly use the digital amplifier in TV mode, all you see are blobs, unlike you can see in the original vids and pictures. Furthermore, ED is unable to provide a preset for the MFDs that delivers a high-contrast image. It is well known that a pilot has to adjust this image slightly, but the fact that the image of the MFDs delivers an inadequate image, regardless of whether it is a hot start or a cold start, is poor. And you can't make it look like in the vids from the Sniper Pod, no matter what you try, because of the missing gray steps! Together with the virtually non-existent shadows in modes other than TV, the current Sniper Pod from DCS does not even come close to what the original shows, even within the poor-quality videos. I would really like to see at least the image quality of the original videos, reduced by processing artifacts, available in DCS. Anyone who believes this to be the case should please provide the images to prove it! The image above show nothing like I can see in the Vids from the original Sniper Pod. Where are all the shadows and the gray steps from the contrasts? Please guys, look at the missing gray steps and shadows in DCS! Where are they? How will one simulate the same picture quality if there are not enough gray steps and nearly no shadows? Since when is an analog camera unable to deliver shadows like in DCS? Please! Look at the original vids and pictures. It's so obvious, that DCS currently doesn't deliver those things!

This is an important point, all my YouTube videos use the DCS track as a base and I noticed a long time ago that certain modules behave better than others in a track recording. as a broad brush, A2A combat is less certain than A2G, the more units in play the more margin for error, speeding up the track seems to create more errors, better hardware i.e. CPU / GPU / memory all had a positive effect on my track replays but as everyone has said, if you end up in front of a grand jury judge do not rely on your DCS track as evidence to save you!

Actually it is quite normal. Pilots rarely use mirrors in flight. Only used in leading formations or BFM. Then again it all comes down to preference and needs depending on the situation. And if sun is behind, it can blind pilot in certain angles.

Very Impressive show of Military Might Very High level of Sophisticated Hardware and of course the soldiers themselves were the backbone of it all and they were also Impressive

Ein herzliches Willkommen auch von mir. Ich hatte meinen Einstieg ca. 1987 als 9 Jähriger am Atari ST mit dem Flightsimulator in schwarzweiß und war angefixt von den Instrumenten. Danach kamen auf Amiga F-29 und die üblichen Verdächtigen von Microprose wie F-19, F-117, F-15 StrikeEagle... viele andere coole Sachen wie Wings, Wings Of Fury... und zum Schluss raus Gunship 2000 am CD32. Bei meinem Freund am PC kann ich mich noch an EF 2000 erinnern aber dann war ca. 15 Jahre Schluss, bis ich mir selbst um 2008 rum meinen ersten PC gebaut habe. In der PC-Games Zeitschrift war LockOn - Modern Air Combat als Vollversion dabei und ich war begeistert! Es folgte sogleich Flaming Cliffs 2 und Ende 2010 wurde es dann so richtig "professionell" mit dem Release der A-10C und dem dazugehörigen TM Warthog Stick&Throttle. Ab da an war ich viele glückliche Jahre zusammen mit einem Warzenschwein Danach kam vieles... Bleibenden Eindruck hinterliesen die Huey, Mig-15, die F-14 und einige Warbirds, vor allem die Bf-109 und aktuell grad die P-47. Der absolute Gamecanger war im Dez. 2020 als ich auf VR umstieg. Ab da an saß ich zum ersten mal "wirklich" (also meinem Hirn wurde es zumindestens so vorgegauckelt;) im Cockpit und ich war überglücklich, bis heute... wo ich auf ein Upgrade meiner G2 warte... Entweder ne Beyond2 oder ne CrystalSuper, je nachdem was eher kommt und überzeugt. Dir wünsche ich viel Spaß hier im Forum und in den Lüften von DCS

No.

The insinuation that the maps are inadequate isn't a reasonable thing to say. As mentioned, I bought the NTTR map seven-years ago and have enjoyed it very much. I still use it often. Now while it might look dated in comparison to a map that came out this year, you have to remember it's also seven or eight-years old. And it still works as well as the day I bought it. Not everything is all new and shiny, though we might want it to be, but that doesn't mean it's inadequate. It just means it's an older map. I have all the maps and I fly them all and enjoy them all, even if they aren't all of equal "fanciness". And there is such variety and quality in the maps now that no one should feel left out given the offerings. I'd love to see the NTTR map get some serious love, and I'd be happy to pay for it. But in no way do I see the map as inadequate.

Ltterally just finished to play The Kerman Campaign from Ground Pounder and all work good for me, I've a lot of fun

I've learned several meanings of "two weeks". In German it only means 14 days

Flat-pack Tomcat has arrived. Some assembly is required I thought I had made a mistake with the measurements as it is large when flat, but some online measurements of Mumbles sketchup files and I am breathing easier. Let the fun begin.

Right now, the Hornet's radar is in a bad way for any significant air to air employment. In addition to this OP, you can no longer step through TWS priority tracks either. All-reported, but probably serious enough that it should've warranted a no-release for this MSI improvement...or a quick hot fix. They'll get to it.

Meine erste Flugsimulation war ein Combat Flight Simulator für den C64, den Namen kenn ich nicht mehr. Ziemlich unspielbar mit Ladezeiten im Stundenbereich. Das erste mal was Vernünftiges war dann unter Windows 95 Comanche: Operation White Lightning und später F16 Multirole Fighter von Novalogic. Old but Gold!