Banzaiib

Yank that stick back below 300 kts and she'll eventually depart... especially if you try to roll in the process. It's very easy to get into a flat spin, IMO.

Ironically, much work was put into the AIM-7 in 2018 to reduce oscillations that reduced performance, but they never really completed the work. There are so many low hanging fruits regarding weapon performance... they just refuse to prioritize development tasks based on how fricken easy the solution is (adjusting lua files to match real world data). MP missile guidance is a mess too, and maybe they have a new system they're working on, or just kicking it down the road... who knows I've killed players in DDCS with the AIM-7 fired at 23 miles... they just flew right into it (probably didn't turn on their RWR)... but the motor burn time is way off from real data, and the drag coefficients are too high as well across the board on almost all missiles. Wags could fix this, it's so simple. It's all just tables contained in the missile and weapons lua files that can EASILY be adjusted. I have no idea why they don't address this...

The RWS / TWS doppler filter filters out things moving +/- 120 kts relative to the nose of your aircraft, not +/- 1200. The F-15 radar has this modeled as well, but the range is smaller... about +/- 70 kts. Have not tested on the F-18, but it should be very close to the F-15's range

Use ACM modes inside 20 miles... At 20 miles you can start to pick them up with PAL mode (forward, 40 degree, 4 bar pattern)... then inside 5-10 miles, you can use VSL (vert scan)

You say that pulse reduces range, but in my MP experience, the AIM-54 rips 45 degrees AOA when it goes active, bleeds all of its energy, then never hits anything... so I'm just going to fire them all in pulse STT when possible to avoid this... I know you guys (HB) have little if any control over missile guidance in MP... and I know there was just an update to it (4/1/2019), so I'll test it more...

oh... derp... :)

2 words: doppler filter It's modeled in the DCS F-18 and F-15, but the F-14's AWG-9 has a much larger doppler blind spot than the other two (+/- 100 kts). If a bandit turns cold, it'll disappear off RWS, not just in the notch, but also if it's extending at less than 100 kts faster or slower than you... you can essentially run right over them and not see them in RWS, or you'll forget about them, then when they turn hot again, they'll appear out of "nowhere".

I don't get it.

Just going to throw this out there... the missile code in multiplayer is complete garbage, so comparing BVR fights and aircraft capaiblities is pretty pointless. Also, the F-14 is about 100x more difficult to fight with than the F-18 and F-15, so yeah, you're going to get discrepancies early on. Does this mean it's less capable? I don't think so. There are so many variables in the equation that you can't just categorically say, F-15 is better or F-18 is better.

MP missiles are completely borked in DCS. SAM behavior is completely different in SP than in MP. It's really ridiculous.

I've noticed large thrust reduction below 5,000 ft to the deck. Haven't really tried playing with different altittudes, but 90% of my turn fights have been below 5000 ft, since I go for the deck because ground clutter is not your friend. 100% of my time is spent on MP servers, also, if that matters.

They specifically stated that the thrust at altitude was changed, i wonder if there was an unintended consequence at lower altitutudes. After 15+ hours turning and burning on the just dogfight server in the last 10 days, any change to thrust is very noticeable... and i'm getting waaaaay out turned by 18's now. This was not the case pre-hotfix EDIT: Looks like they adjusted it again in the 3/27 patch notes (today)... will test more :)

ED has said they will address this... there are several posts in the 18 bug forum stating the spread is like 30 mil when it should be closer to 8 - 10 mil, which is what you see in the tomcat (both have the m61)

I spent more than 15 hours on the just dogfight server in the last week turning with F-18's... hugely out turned now... they mentioned thrust changed at higher altitudes.. i wonder if that affected lower altitude performance as well

I can't believe no one else feels the difference. I used to struggle to keep her under 380 kts in a turn fight, now she bleeds speed like a stuck pig.

IMO, the idle howl of the engines is too high pitched. Source: I lived 3 miles from Oceana NAS in the 90's. Just listen to a modern block 50 F-16 at idle. That's what it should sound like in a F-14.

thrust feels drastically reduced after last patch (hotfix)

I think it's just a typo.

Where's the ground stabilized command for Jester? It sure would help with SA to see what's around me on D/L from time to time. Also, agree, Jester is a terrible RIO in combat. Don't get me wrong. The F-14 is a magnificent simulation, and an absolute dream to fly, but fighting with it is very frustrating without a human RIO... and part of me wishes I could just control the radar myself. (I know I know, against their design philosophy... i read the HB response...)

Good luck. The 54 can catch up to you at 15 miles+, and the 14 is much faster...

If you set the scan area to be less than 140 degrees, i imagine this allows you to change the scan azimuth by moving the tdc.

That's a great shot, man, you should be a photographer.

Yank on the stick at .9 mach and let me know what happens... then, after you respawn, let me know what happens when you yank on the stick at 250 kts... your feedback is welcomed, as I am at work.

I switch back to sidewinders and use one of the ACM modes... then switch back to guns. I wonder if you're supposed to be able to use ACM radar modes with the gun selected?

They're adding the option to hide the stick in the next OB patch.