Czar66

Good news. Anyone of those is the right one as long as it is updated to the latest version. DCS 2.9.15.9599.1
https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/news/changelog/release/2.9.15.9599.1/
You probably updated from old builds before the Open Beta & Stable merge.
You can wipe those old shortcuts and make new ones to the executable in the 'bin' folder.
There is no Open Beta anymore.
 

Words from community managers are in this thread + others talking about it.

There is also an object list through one of the left hand side buttons menu that you can filter units for selection without having to click the icons on the map.
Yeah, the thing of controllable aircraft on top of each other on the carrier is a pain. If you get used to using the list, the issue might get less noticeable while the ME doesn't get an overhaul.

Page 142 from the manual got you covered.
MAIN PWR switch – BATT. Verify light on ELEC Control Panel: ACFT BATT “FLCS RLY” – On.  FLCS PWR TEST switch – TEST and hold. FLCS PWR TEST switch – Release. MAIN PWR switch – MAIN PWR. JFS switch – START 2. Throttle – Advance to IDLE at 20% RPM minimum. More in depth in the manual, of course. After this, just turn everything that you need to on. MIDS to ON only after INS is fully aligned and in NAV.

No way that's a valid CCIP cue given your velocity vector is not giving out a heavy cross wind component.
Align your INS properly.

Remove any overclock made on the GPU if done so. For a good measure, also on the CPU. Bring everything back to factory clocks and see if it goes better. If other games are also wacky, it is a sign of something broader.
With DDU? Try with a complete driver wipe with DDU software if you haven't done so. (easy google)
Well... if that's DCS: See if deleting the 'fxo' and 'metashaders2' inside the 'DCS' folder at 'Saved Games' fixes it. Do that regardless when you have time.
Usual path for that DCS folder: C:\Users\<your user ID in windows>\Saved Games\DCS
 

Hi grlmsgt, the command is called Nose Gear Steering / Auto Acquisition Button. You've got to keep it pressed to steer like on the Sabre.

Try dimming the backlights so the characters gets sharper. Never use full brightness at night on the Tomcat.

The radar doesn't and shouldn't operate with weight on wheels (on the ground).
Edit: Seems about right. Bellow, source.
https://wiki.hoggitworld.com/view/F/A-18C
Air-to-Air Radar
The F/A-18C Hornet is equipped with the AN/APG-73 pulse-Doppler Radar which provides multiple modes of operation for air-to-air (A/A) target detection, acquisition, and engagement. The Hornet's A/A avionics suite allows for efficient single crew manipulation of the Radar in both beyond visual range (BVR) battle and within visual range (WVR) dogfight environments.
The A/A systems integrate onboard Radar and offboard Datalink information to provide the pilot a sensor-fuzed Multi-Source Integration (MSI) picture. The MSI picture as well as the manipulation of the Radar as a sensor is provided on the primary three A/A formats:
Radar/Attack Format - The Attack format is a top-down, B-scope view of the attack region, which is the 140° area in front of the aircraft reachable by the Radar gimbal limits. The Attack format allows for manipulation of all Radar functions such as operating modes and scan settings. Furthermore, it is the only format that displays the raw returns of the Radar ("hits") instead of only MSI trackfiles. The Attack format also provides A/A weapon cuing, allowing the pilot to stay "heads down" in a beyond visual range engagement. Azimuth/Elevation (Az/El) Format - The Az/El format provides a forward-looking boresight projection of MSI trackfiles. It covers the attack region in azimuth (±70°) and up to ±70° in elevation. Radar scan centering and acquisition is available from the Az/El format. The Az/El is also the primary interface for cuing the Combined Interrogator/Transponder (CIT) to do IFF interrogations. Furthermore, the FLIR can be pointed via the Az/El format and be slaved to any trackfile. Situation Awareness (SA) Format - The SA format provides a top-down display of MSI trackfiles around the aircraft. In particular, this allows the pilot to see MSI Datalink trackfiles behind the aircraft the view of the Attack and Az/El formats. It doubles as a navigation display with many of the same options as the HSI format. The SA displays expanded trackfile information, though is not a direct interface with any Radar functions. The Radar itself is controlled by a knob on the right console. This is the only Radar control not done through the avionic system. It has 4 positions:
OFF: The Radar is powered off. STBY: The Radar is powered on but not scanning. OPR: The Radar is powered on and scanning, and will power off in the event of a failsafe being triggered. PULL EMERG: The Radar is powered on and scanning, and will not power off for any reason except physical failure. When there is weight on wheels (WoW), the Radar will not scan, regardless of knob position.<<<<<
Air-to-Ground Radar
The Hornet's AN/APG-73 Radar system provides the ability to paint a picture of the ground in various processing modes, make ground designations, and can also initiate a track (a traditional 'lock') on a surface hit. This section will cover the air-to-ground capabilities of the Radar. The A/G Radar is accessed via the Radar/Attack (RDR ATTK) in the NAV and A/G master modes with the SURF (Surface) option. Entering A/G master mode automatically brings up the Attack format in Surface (A/G) mode. A/G is the default mode when invoking the Attack format in NAV or A/G, although the A/A Radar can still be selected. In A/A master mode, the A/G Radar is unavailable.
The Radar itself is controlled by a knob on the right console. It has 4 positions:
OFF: The Radar is powered off. STBY: The Radar is powered on but not scanning. OPR: The Radar is powered on and scanning, and will power off in the event of a failsafe being triggered. PULL EMERG: The Radar is powered on and scanning, and will not power off for any reason except physical failure. When there is weight on wheels (WoW), the Radar will not scan, regardless of knob position.<<<<
Please, don't fry the ground crew. 😊

@VampireNZ I had this. I fixed it with deleting the FXO and METASHADERS2 folders inside 'Saved games/DCS'.
<OS drive>:\Users\<your username in your machine>\Saved Games\DCS
The issue never returned.

My F-4 is activated at this moment. No issues.
1-Make an exception on the whole DCS root folder on your anti virus(es), including windows defender. Authorization files are being wrongly flagged as threats for a good while. (issue not exclusive to DCS).
2-verify/repair DCS (fast method).

This was a while back and it is possible to do slower and better. It was really sloppy too on my part.
Yaw and Roll to the same direction while pulling on the stick. Mess around with the F3 view zoomed in on a safe altitude and play with the plane like you're controlling a RC plane and you'll get the point.

Can you confirm the correct country was selected? Either China or Red Coalition Forces. I'm currently downloading a map and I'll confirm asap and post here.

If it is not listed, means the country is incorrect or the mission date if 'historical setting' is enabled rather than not able to control it. If it is a problem if it is grey on the list.

Check for the Afterburner Detent in special tab for 'Always ON' or 'Always OFF' and in your control bindings for its toggle activation key/switch.
Set for 'Always OFF' to start the missions with it turned off. If you toggle it on the throttle will go up to Mil. Toggle it off for unrestricted throttle control.

Edit: Main Menu>Options>Special>Select F-16C on the left list

Probably you know this, but I'll point it out because it was not disclosed: Is the tanker the KC-135 MPRS? MPRS tankers do not communicate nor interface with boom based aircraft (F-15E, F-16, F-15C, A-10C etc...) due to a DCS limitation. The tanker should be the KC-135 (non-mprs).

It is still as designed. TWS will always auto lock/designate the highest priority target.

In the end, the auto lock/designation is handy. You will want it. You can cycle contacts with 'undesignate' button. If you just want to scan, just leave at RWS.

I was very used to live with the bug where TWS wouldn't auto lock/designate and when they fixed it to the real life behavior, it was weird. But today, I would keep it 100%.

Want to lock/designate something ahead? Cursor to its vicinity> TDC pressed> TWS and soft lock will happen without losing time of fine scrolling the cursor onto a target> Hard lock it with AACQ instantly if needed.
If you have two contacts, the highest priority will soft lock while the second is scanned, cycle between both with 'undesignate'. If you want to soft lock/designate both it will relieve you the first TDC press onto the first bandit.

It is better/more efficient this way. It is also accurate to the real thing.

Are you playing in the unsupported 'game mode' by any chance?

Options menu > Gameplay > Difficulties section

Uncheck "Game Flight Mode".

The Patch 2.8.4.38947 Open Beta released on April 13th fixed the issue on Single Threaded performance degradation on Super Carriers for me.