Midnightzulu

BDA: Boom-Drouge Adapter. This means the hose and drouge have been attached to the end of the existing boom. Very limited in theater as it restricts the tanker to one receiver type (probe or receptacle) only. MPRS: Multi Point Refueling System. These are the pods you see on the wingtips. This is a modification and only a limited number of KC-135s are equipped. This mod allows the tanker to switch between receiver types and is much preferred to the “iron maiden” (BDA) by receiver pilots due to the soft basket and more forgiving refueling envelope. Former tanker driver here. Happy to elaborate on the tanker side of things for those who have questions or are curious.

33K unrestricted per NATOPS. Approaches above this weight will result in high vvi/sink rate. Might still be able to trap but you are much more likely to damage the aircraft. I also find it much easier to fly a stable approach at 33k or below.

:thumbup: Thank you Wags. You guys have obviously been hard at work. Marvelous job so far!

Remember: Beta

The TDC is the problem right now. No way to bind it to the mini stick that I can see. No issues doing this with other aircraft so I’m really hoping it’s just an oversight by the developers which will be fixed soon. I have no plans to learn the A-10 so the stick isn’t an issue, but if you wanted to swap between aircraft I imagine the warthog would give you more flexibility.

Hi Eaglewings, Looks to me like the T1600 throttle was designed after the F/A-18 quadrant with a few limitations/differences: 1. The unit is a single throttle setup. No issues flying twins with it so far though. 2. No detents for idle/cutoff or afterburner 3. On the far left there is a dial axis that is not there on the real unit. I use this as a radar elevation control. There is no external light switch there as in the real thing. 4. There is a rocker switch where the radar elevation dial is on the real aircraft. This is better used as a speedbrake or for other functions imo. 5. The three switches on the right side of the throttle are all 8 way hats. This actually gives you more potential functions than the real unit. In reality, I think they are essentially 4 way hats as the diagonals are quite hard to hit. Overall I'm happy with the throttle. It is a budget option and is therefore quite lightweight with cheaper plastics. In no way a dealbreaker for me. Some have commented that it can be sticky, making small adjustments difficult. This was the case for me at first, but there is a tension screw at the bottom that can be adjusted. Loosening it a bit did the trick for me. I got the bundle with the T1600 stick as well. I do find the stick a bit lacking with only one hat (trim) and no other multi function switches. I'm planning on taking a look at the TM Hornet stick when it is released or just purchasing the warthog stick only at some point in the future.

I’m using the T1600 throttle. No extra hat switches for me right now, so I’m forced to use the keyboard. There really needs to be an axis assigned since the T1600 “mini stick” is pretty much right where the TDC is on the real unit. Kind of surprised this isn’t an option straight away, but I’m sure it’ll be added as the module gets flushed out.

2!!!

In addition, since the latest patch my ground crew is unresponsive. No re-arming, no refuelling, and most importantly no air for engine start.

Any chance there will be a fictional Georgian AF skin (like the A-10C)? Could make for some interesting alternate history scenarios (ie Georgian AF in the process of taking delivery of second hand Hornets supported by the USN offshore when the Russians moved into South Ossetia.). I realize the real world liveries have priority right now, but I’d love it if someone did one up at some point.

Can anyone in the know comment on what, if any performance impacts the moving map (and the tgp) will have? I currently spend a lot of time in the F-5 with decent, not excellent, framerates. Can I expect a significant hit with the Hornet running multiple sensors?

Holy cow that's some detailed analysis! :) My only point was that the ATC system in DCS is wholly unsuited to detailed (or even realistic) altimetry, especially for "Western" style flying. I will admit, my example might be a bit excessive, but remember there is a mountain range between ONT and VCV, so some pretty significant differences can, and do often exist. I really wish ED would make the sim ATC capable of reporting QNH, but this is a combat oriented sim and the nuances of altimetry are not what its really about. Setting the weather as static and using the briefing QNH works fine for my purposes.

This situation is not unique. SoCal approach works dozens of airports and local altimeter settings can vary by quite a bit despite the relatively close proximity. As an example, it would not be uncommon for one aircraft to be given a QNH of 29.78 at say, Victorville, while another aircraft on the same frequency might be given a QNH of 29.99 for their approach into Ontario. The ATC in DCS is not really set up for something like this which is why I don’t use the dynamic weather option and just set the QNH given in the briefing.

I’ve been a professional pilot for over 15 years. Mil and civ. I’ve flown all over the world. I have never seen or had use for the equation above, nor does it make any sense to me. In the real world, either QNH or QFE is used and QFE is increasingly rare.

So I flew a carrier approach for grins today. Not sure if it’s a 2.5 update or it’s been like this for a while but the hook most definitely WILL catch a (animated) wire and bring you to a stop on the deck. Good fun. Try it.

Hmmm. I’ll have to look a little harder at the interface. I’ll give that a try later this evening when I get back to my computer.

Yep

Forgive me if this has been discussed elsewhere: did a search and didn’t come up with anything. I did a clean install of 2.5 yesterday. The new Caucasus map runs fine for me. But.....I attempted to load a free flight in Nevada and.....crash! Opened the mission planner and only seem to have Caucasus available. Nevada is showing installed in the main menu. So how do I switch between terrains in 2.5? TIA.

F-5 is pretty much a visual fighter. You will generally be able to see your opponent before or at the same time you’re able to acquire with the radar. Think of this plane as offering just a bit more electronic capability than the F-86.

Imacken, try this: Set up against a non maneuvering target. Get behind him with a good sidewinder lock without holding the uncage button. Now move your nose off the target. You’ll find that you loose the lock pretty quickly. Now try it while holding the uncage button. You will maintain the lock for a much greater degree of nose movement. Note that the reticule in your gunsight has nothing to do with where the sidewinder seeker is looking.

I believe it does a and you should get an “in range” annunciation as well when the target is in the weapon’s envelope. Honestly, I’m not paying much attention to the radar display at that point. The gunsight itself provides all of the info you need for an effective wvr engagement. Learning the gunsight symbology is a huge help in employing this jet.

There is also a subtle change in the sidewinder tone when the uncage button is pressed. The tactic I like to use is approach the bandit visually for a shot and engage the dogfight missile mode for an auto lock and ranging information late in the approach.

Agree that the brakes are tough to use properly in the F-5. Even without antiskid, the plane is light enough that stopping shouldn't be an issue. This is the #1 item I'd like to see addressed in any future update.

A typical tacan (non-precision) approach will get you down to about a 500ft ceiling and maybe a mile of vis. Those are some pretty crummy conditions. You can pretty easily find published tacan approaches for Nellis and other NTTR airfields online. Black Sea is a different story, but it wouldn't be too hard to design your own approaches to the TACAN equipped fields. Incidentally, the navy's current legacy hornet fleet is not equipped with ILS either. Not necessarily a big priority for a fighter that was designed to be effective in primarily visual conditions.