Whenever I plan a KC-10 using "Begin Loop" & "End Loop", the tanker flys between these points in a straight line, instead of a loop. This is not what a tanker does. In an air refueling anchor - which is a race track pattern flown with left turns, the tanker maintains air refueling airspeed. As the KC-10 refuels NATO aircraft, there are varying airspeeds needed to fly with each aircraft. The air refueling airspeed is 315KIAS for F-15, F-16 etc, for A-10 it is 220. The refueling speed between the begin & end loop points is always slow- 220. It would be nice if we could either set the speed in the loop so it flys the appropriate planned speed or that the program can detect whether it's refueling an A-10, F-14 or F-15.
Yes I'm sure the range cue should be removed. There is no such thing in the real aircraft, there is no magical laser range finder - radar or some other type of instrument that measures relative position of the air refueling receptacle to the tip of the boom. Radar is off before precontact as required by applicable regulations - for NATO ops anyway - I don't pretend to be knowledgeable about Russian/Soviet ops.
Too bad, just a thought... :(
Just to refresh: you said this in response to:
Increase range/accuracy of AMRAAM. Increase ECCM and decrease spoofing of F-15 radar with jamming and notching.
Hehe, ok that's a very intelligent counter to my statement :D and that argument goes both ways, you prove it shouldn't - but first for the declassified stuff, just go take a look around the "reputable" websites out there which state the range of the slammer as somewhere around 20-30 NM. This is just passive guidance (INS) and accounts for motor burn to effective maneuvering glide distance on a non-maneuvering target. Lets say in a beak-to-beak merge with a closure of somewhere over 900KTAS(conservative), which is 15NM/min, & then lets take into account the speed of the slammer at 40NM/min with a conservative flight time (with missile retaining acceptable maneuveringcapability) of 20 sec which equates to a range of about 12 NM from impact point. This still equates to a firing distance of 17-18NM (still very conservative for an AIM-120B in a cranium-to-cranium pass and completely porked for an AIM-120C).
Here's another experiment: Build a mission with you in an F-15 at 20k, 350KCAS, with Turkish F-16C as aggressor and Russian MiG-29S in 30NM trail, same altitude & airspeed. Launch slammer in middle of RMAX E-pole envelope, about 12NM, you'll hit the F-16 about every time despite his notch maneuver and your radar breaking lock. The MiG, will usually defeat your missile in the same parameters. The APG-69 MSIP doesn't break lock with a simple notch and crank maneuver, especially if the bandit is trying to retain lock on the Eagle, (notch of <90 degrees).
Perhaps you can share some of your hard evidence with me that it shouldn't be that way.:) It appears that you're the expert around here and I'm merely the upstart talking out of some other orifice... ;)
Well, i'm still looking forward to the patch anyway. Hope Beta 10 is successful & it's released soon... perhaps before the 2nd week in Jan?