Lixma 06

I tried a server.lua from earlier in the thread and while it worked it also affected other things that I would prefer left alone. Can anyone highlight the relevant lines I would need to paste into a fresh server.lua so I can have a 'neck' for the P-51 only?

Ahhh...thanks Saburo - it was an air-start so didn't occur to me to even check the breakers.

I don't think the drop tank is carrying any fuel, or maybe the Anton is unable to access it. Here I start a mission with tank fitted. According to procedure I switch fuel selector to AFT to draw from the drop tank. I switch the fuel gauge selector to AFT to monitor levels. What is supposed to happen is when the AFT tank's gauge needle hits 240 litres it will 'freeze' there until the drop tank is empty. When the needle starts to move again you know the drop tank is exhausted. This works with the Dora, but with the Anton the rear fuel gauge behaves as if no tank is attached - it simply drops smoothly from full to empty. A-8 drop tank 2.trk

Just noticed the tool-tip for the Anton's fuel selector lever is incorrect. Should be CLOSE/FORWARD/AFT/BOTH Dora's tool-tip for comparison

Doesn't have to be perfect, just enough to prevent the drunken wallowing and fumbling at mission start.

Air start - engine lasts 80 seconds before failure, MW-50 on, temps fine according to gauges. Didn't touch any radiator controls. I flew the same mission again immediately and everything was fine. D-9 engine failure.trk

To track gunnery accuracy; very helpful for training.

Strange, mine still works as a 'glance while held' command. I mapped mine to N rather than the default RWIN-N (I don't even have a RWIN) but it's working fine. Also, you can use a 'Button_OFF' command in DCS to create any HOLD command you want.

V-sync

Most DCS planes these days have a built in 'neck' so you can look around the seat (or at least get the best view possible) when checking six all in one move. The P-51's pilot, presumably due to the modules age, has no 'neck' and the head simply spins requiring an additional movement to check six. Here's a comparison with the P-47

Quick vid on what I'm seeing. Textures on MED, terrain textures on LOW, 8GB VRAM. Seems to load textures (slowly) at close range, and then 'forget' them once you've flown away.

How many contradictions does it take? What difference does it make if they are de-leading the spark plugs or just burning off fuel for fun? Do you honestly not see the contradiction between the real P-51 sat happily running 61" 3000rpm at 0mph for at least a minute without any prospect of damage, and our P-51 overheating and exploding within 30 seconds under the same conditions?

With respect NineLine - We all know this. Everyone in this thread, and online, knows how to avoid breaking the P-51's engine. There's no mystery, it's common knowledge. But having the knowledge to fly 'around' an issue does not mean there's no longer an issue. Nor does flying around an issue mean you're flying 'properly'. The issue is our P-51 has an engine/cooling system that goes from OK to CHERNOBYL within seconds; behaviour that's contradicted by the aircraft's own manual.

But the actual P-51 manual states it's shouldn't be an issue. If you can harmlessly hold 61" 3000rpm for a minute at zero mph where's the problem with stall-turns? There's nothing special about stall turns, in fact they're a lot less stressful than the above ground test as there's a lot more airflow through the radiator.

Can you honestly not see why the ground test is relevant to the issue? The P-51 manual states it is safe to run the engine for at least a minute at 61" 3000rpm at 0mph. And it does no harm to the engine whatsoever. Our P-51 cannot survive 30 seconds doing this, whether on the ground or in the air.

The P-51 manual states that to de-lead the plugs (or annoy the neighbours, or impress one's girlfriend) the engine should be run up at 61" & 3000rpm for one minute prior to take-off. The unstated, but obvious conclusion, is that the P-51 can safely run at 61" 3000rpm at 0mph for at least 60 seconds without any risk - if it was likely to damage the aircraft they wouldn't recommend it; especially not prior to take-off. In contrast our P-51 overheats and explodes within 30 seconds. Now to slay the 'active pause' demon. If anyone else wants to try this you just need to pull full deflection on the elevator, full brakes, and very gently increase the MAP. I couldn't stop it rotating but it doesn't matter. Result: Exactly the same; in fact the engine was blown before I could reach 61". LOL. I am reminded of Baldrick from Blackadder, who famously solved the problem of his mother's low ceiling by cutting off her head. p-51 ground no ac-pause.trk

Ah, OK.

The switches were in 'Auto' and I wouldn't expect it to make any difference - but just to make sure (Science™) I ran it again with both oil & coolant shutters wide open. No real difference - maybe 5 seconds extra before it blows at 8:01:41 p-51 ground 2.trk

Here I let the temps settle for a minute. At 8:01 I run 61" 3000RPM and hit active-pause (just before the plane tips over). Result: Radiator blown in under 30 seconds (audible at 8:01:31) p-51 ground.trk

Yes...all this happens in the simulation. We know this already. The question remains - is it realistic? If 'our' P-51 was sent into combat there would be a placard in the cockpit that read 'AVOID VERTICAL MANEOEUVRES LIKE THE PLAGUE'. I think if your engine is liable to explode after three seconds of reduced speed during combat you'd want to know about it - and then ask for a transfer to the P-47.

That's what everyone has been doing - but it doesn't mean there's isn't an issue. Thanks for taking a look, though.

Which is a red flag in itself - A brand new P-51 on the edge of exploding after barely thirty seconds of Military power?

@NineLine I think Reflected beat me to it by minutes (curse him and all who sail in him!) but here's a couple of easily replicable examples from an air start. Procedure - 1: Full military for about 30 seconds 2: 60° climb 3: Cut throttle at 150mph and watch the temps - blown radiator every time. p-51 blown 1.trk p-51 blown 2.trk

In the P-51 checking your six requires a turn + lean movement, whereas in most (all?) modern DCS modules the leaning is already built in. Here's a comparison between the P-51 and the P-47. Can we get an 'auto-lean' option, perhaps in the special tab?

Quick vid - I let the needles stabilize then ran it up to approximately 'max continuous' on the ground (couldn't go higher without tipping over). The temps (coolant & oil) both increase, but only gradually. Then I do a few climbs. Near the top I throttle back (certainly less than power than I was using on the ground) but you can see the gauges shoot up vastly quicker than when I was stationary. I pop the radiator on the third one. It's possible I damaged the radiator during the ground test, but the main reason for the video was to show the lightning-fast temperature increases during flight.