VIMANAMAN

Yeah I know what you mean - that thing as you say should help with not getting your head shot off... but when you want to look around, God dammit!!! You using TIR? - if so you just need to keep facing front and move your head to the side & only then turn your head. If not using TIR then I dunno - but I really do know what you mean :)

Hey Recoilfx, Whether the 51 AI is in our good books or our bad books - that sounds fun:D

Yeah I'm with you on the immersion thing - Invulnerability does kind of diminish realism to a pretty large degree - a useful tool though nonetheless. It would be cool to have a unarmed AI target ship as a training option though - less intimidating - more relaxing practise session - still some realism problems with it but not as many as invulnerability certainly. As SiThSpAwN mentions it is odd that the AI without ammo doesn't just 'bug out' though, but you seem to have demonstrated it, so nice one. I'll give it a go if I ever get a mo. V

Yeah I really needed a good old stick and rudder machine when ED announced the Stang - and it's everything I hoped it would be and more... I too enjoyed A10 and Shark immensely but they're just not my 'style' of flying I guess? It seems the 51 is not to everyone's tastes though as you say - it seems people either love it or hate it!!? It really is a complete joy to fly in my opinion. (and as you say it does feel like you're actually flying doesn't it). Anyway glad you're impressions were so good.

Or we could just use the invulnerable setting... that's a good point, I was forgetting about that. (I thought that was supposed to be permanently on anyway:))

Hey Bill, I realised you were flying against Excellent level AI mate, hence rep inbound your pos. I meant for anyone just starting out, in which I don't include you mate, you were here from the start:) - I meant for anyone who wanted to practise manoeuvring, engine / energy management & gunnery - i.e. generally keeping up with the bugger and dishing some out. As we know it's a hell of a learning curve - not blowing the motor, not speed stalling, managing high and low speed flight, keeping it 'clean', etc. This 'dis-armed AI' method (with the skill level 'tuned' appropriately) would be a good training method, so they weren't getting shot down all the time (as at least I was when I started out). I found it difficult to learn with tracers flying over me head, only one gun working and no gun sight :D or dangling from a parachute for that matter :D It's a damn good training idea! I really like your idea of a CEM summary as well - this is missing at the moment and would help us all. I'll help if I can. Sorry I was unclear - V

That's some really nice flying Bill - seeing it on the tacview made me revisit your vid again - nice going :thumbup: So you set the AI up with no ammo - but he still appears more than happy to tangle - an excellent training 'mode' by the looks - did you have to set it to specifically engage your unit, or is this as normal i.e. no specific target set? This method (with lower AI skill set) would help people starting out, as it's only possible to learn defensive moves to start with.:) Anyway really nice flying Dude.

http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=29207 This may (or may not) be a link to one of the Tacview files:) [EDIT - post #37 on that thread - sorry for the trip round the houses - have manflu and never done this b4 - END EDIT]

Hey Bill, Just installed Tacview and been messing with it - it's pretty cool isn't it - I'll post one or two when i can work it out - did a test attachment in the 'testing sigs,etc...' section, and it worked fine, but now I can't re-post them - any ideas? Nice video setup there - you ought to consider having a camera just on the engine settings / T&Ps maybe. What video software is that? That split screen thing is funky!

Tacview-20130130-143729.txt.rar Tacview-20130130-132032.txt.rar Test attachy thing

I'm suffering from ManFlu at the mo so the best i can do at the mo is mess about with tracks and Vegas... Others have done this before... but it was a fun exercise.

Nice one Konrad, Sounds like you're having more than a little success! excellent flying by the sounds :thumbup: Yeah pm if you get a moment - weekends are usually best - see if you can't give me 24hrs notice or something (if pos) no worries if not. V

:lol:

Hey Konrad, I wasn't sure how to take your last post to start with :noexpression:, but I'll go on the assumption your just busting my chops in a friendly way:) Anyway - Nice art work - the Terminator pilot is real nice! I don't know if you know, but the gun sight 'technical failure' one could be confusing, so it's probably worth pointing out to others, that the k-14 sight bug was fixed several updates ago. The K-14 sight works perfectly now!! We really ought to practise A2A together sometime dude, as we're 'globally local' so to speak - 1h dif and all that - I'd really be up for some FRIENDLY competitive sparing. I think I can host, and have TS but might need some tips on using it for the first time - seriously PM me if interested - no worries at all if not mate. V

Hey Bill, Yeah I chuckled out loud as that one came off the keyboard :) Cheers Dude!

No worries at all Konrad. I'm away from home now otherwise i'd post a TRK file. Yeah it'd be good to fly with you sometime but no worries. S!

I said I'd post a tube so... Nothing supernatural going on here - sorry about the skids :( (edit - I can only do something close to this in about 1 in 20 or 30 attempts - otherwise I'd be utterly bored obviously :) Nice new dive away manoeuvre at the end ED! - end edit)

Hey Jim, If you set 2700 RPM and 46' manifold pressure, and climb fairly strictly at, and trimmed for 170 mph, you shouldn't have any problems reaching 20+ K feet, so long as you don't have external stores onboard... I can't recall how quickly the MP (Manifold pressure) changes but you'll probably need to increase the throttle (only) to keep it at 46 MP at various points, as you climb (and as air pressure reduces, obviously) - But when the high blower kicks in your engine will rev and you'll need to reduce it again, to that setting. The RPM setting / prop speed will not change unless the MP falls too low. V

You keep replying while I'm replying...:D Lets do that, that would be excellent fun!! - I hardly do any MP stuff. My Dad's 80th Birthday this weekend so away, but Monday or Tuesday would be cool I'm GMT what are you? Or the following weekend of course... if better for you? Sorry about the confusing sentence it was meant to be funny:D Lets do that! You'll probably roast me alive :) R S! [EDIT Gone flying, will check in later tonight END EDIT]

Hey Konrad - I planned to get some stick time now - Some good points made and I share your passion! - will reply before I hit the sack - V

[EDIT Hey Konrad - you replied while I was replying will read your last and reply ASAP - END EDIT] :) That's fair enough - It's just my opinion. I like the AI FM / behaviour model (as you may have guessed) - it pushes me to find solutions to problems - fighting vertically is challenging - but the AI has it's repetitive moments certainly - BUT it is just AI (as I said) - BUT again... things can always be improved upon! I assume you gentlemen aren't disagreeing / disagreeing squared, with the bit where I didn't disagree, otherwise I most strongly disagree with you disagreement / disagreement squared on grounds of utter confusion, and I'm gonna need to start keeping records and get an Admin assistant :D I just felt the AI FM / behaviour was getting an very unfair and very general bashing when this (taken separately) is 'fit for purpose' IMO, BUT not a perfect virtual human. But that's why we've got MP. The AI is hard and in previous threads it was largely agreed it didn't cheat (& IMO), that means I can learn. The DM is another matter completely. Respect S!

@ Konrad & Merlin I agree the DM is too robust at the moment (and you've done well if you've taken off an aileron without a coming together!) Yeah the DM is in need of some further work - there does need to be at some point a degradation of performance with the AI relative to damage - rather than he's fully operational and will hunt like a terminator UNTIL he switches his lights on and goes for the nearest base - agreed! It would be great if AI flt controls could be shot off and AI guns disabled, Engine stop, bits coming off, AI tries to escape without turning lights on, low level and fast, etc, that would be really realistic. Please ED, when you can?!? I certainly agree that it's unrealistic at the mo that unless you defeat the AI, even if it's full of holes and smoking like a volcano (often from places fuel or smoke has no business emanating from), & then it still hunts you down like a terminator - this does need to change at some point if we want believable realism - again when pos ED, this would make a massive difference. However I do think the AI FM is LOADS better than people give it credit for at the moment - I used to think it 'accelarated like a rocket' away from me, and that the climb to stall was unrealistic, but the more I fly the more I think I need to refine the smoothness of my technique and abilities! Even the higher than player G tolerance I really am beginning to think is my poor flying... Certainly it needs to be remembered that the AI flys perfectly - but I really don't think it cheats. Certainly I'm getting much better at keeping right up with it anyway for prolonged periods and am working out how to overcome these problems. The 'accelarate like a rocket', I'm pretty convinced is a combination of an inefficient turn by me and the phenomena of - he's out of the turn before I am and so he cleans up his ac so he can accelerate (relative to me) usually very fast with power and gravity, whilst I'm still finishing my turn (with all that wing load drag and usually some assymetric drag). The effect is a bit like when you watch two F1 cars go around a hairpin corner close together - the leader always shoots into the distance before the follower can get on the throttle, but at the next 'corner' you catch him up. 'climb to stall' is something I see the AI do fairly rarely but when I've put him under real pressure - this is pretty realistic according to Chuck Yeager! This can be an excellent shooting opportunity, but it can also be a opportunity to burn your engine and end up with him on your tail! But as far as I can tell its real World! ' Turn harder than hard' only yesterday I was bugged by this as i kept losing a wing in a downward vertical scissor that got tighter and tighter and I was thinking the AI must be cheating, but then I realised I was always trying to turn inside him (only slightly) but still inside him - once I realised this I floated my turn to just outside of his and I could match him move for move and no redesign of player ac. The FM even makes some mistakes such as turning into your flight path occasionally so that seems pretty human to me In conclusion I agree whole heartedly that the DM needs to be 'finished'. It would benefit greatly from degradation due to battle damage - including flt surface loss, gun operation loss, power loss / engine failures, less fuel / smoke from last third of wings, debris falling off - we don't want much ED :D BUT the FM is pretty good already considering it is just AI. And in my opinion / experience doesn't cheat. We just need to improve our flying skills to keep up with an excellent adversary.

By saying 'comparatively simple', I mean of course, when compared to ALL modules. A10C & KA50, plus the others they've announced like the F/A18 - i.e. with highly complex Avionics; Shval, TGP, moving map, radar, laser designators, CCRP, CCIP, etc. etc. In my mind that makes all WWII birds (single engine fighters anyway) comparatively simple?!? It's probably a misunderstanding? I'm sure it will be a full study sim and we'll all be amazed by it. S!

The list of aircraft being essentially announced, as 'in development' seem to be widely accepted as flyables by the community as a whole; with no corrections / lowering of the communities expectations from ED. It seems unlikely an AI would be announced this way, alongside other flyables. But as they say round here - everything is subject to change! Although I can't see what show stopping problem might occur developing a comparatively 'simple' WWII module, especially with their recent experience developing the Stang.

Wow!!!, Just Furking Wow!!! - awesome - I love you ED! It seems sometime soon we'll be able to stop practising and start some immersive combat ops between two worthy opponents!! :cheer3nc: