Victory205

The T45C has a very flat landing attitude, if you are fast or flat in close, you’ll bolter in the sim. I like it.

You have a meticulous approach to be sure, but to make it valid, the turns must be flown smoothly and consistently, and the G, altitude and airspeed must be validated by video, all things considered. Not all of them, but there should be a demonstrated ability to fly the profiles at different altitudes within strict, tight parameters, and show how the data was then distilled from those flown maneuvers. Including whether the Ctrl Y correlates to cockpit IAS, Mach and G. Which data display is correct?

Hearing that VT22 at NAS Kingsville had a midair this morning, loss of one aircraft, everyone survived.

I asked for the methodology of your exhaustive flight testing, including a video or three of the actual turn performance and your chart references. Just posting numbers on a spreadsheet isn’t enough. That’s basic analysis. You’ve shown up in multiple forum slots contending that other aircraft performance is inaccurate, it’s your thing. It would help if you’d show us how your are deriving your information, including standards for stabilization and data sources. What referenced post was stating, is that to ascertain individual skill, the engagement should be flown 1v1 similar, with a neutral set up, fight’s on at the pass. Applying dissimilar aircraft in a simulator will end up in a never ending debate without any means to determine what is valid. You want to know how good you are? Fight 1v1 against the same aircraft, guns only, or rear quarter IR missiles. The ability to maneuver to in phase in the rear quarter defines skill. The rest is rubbish.

I don’t think that the basic PMBR on the T45 will allow for simultaneous station drops. The rack itself simply steps through a sequence each time the release is pressed. Make sense given the training mission. Rockets IIRC, can be ripple fired.

Exactly. See how it works? If they bring out the dice, RUN!

Watch your wallet around Naval Aviators. Just sayin’…

Glad you had a good time. Did the recruiter sign you up for OCS and a flight slot? Don’t sign anything until you talk to your lawyer! Did you get some good feedback and images to help tune up the module? What were some of your impressions and surprises?

Yes, it’s called “MOVLAS”. A manually controlled system that mimics the lens. It mounts in front of the mirror and is controlled by the LSO. Smaller and more difficult to see. It is used when the ship’s motion is out of the stabilization limits. We liked it because if you followed the LSO’s inputs, you’d get an OK pass. The onus was on paddles. With a typical shipboard alignment, the landing mode of the HUD jittered and jumped and was useless. The E bracket, the FPM and the VSI were useless for landing. I sort of see leaving the HUD a bit more useful as an offset to the difficulties of flying a desktop sim where the ship, landing area and lens is more difficult to see, seat of the pants is missing, etc. I must be getting genial in my old age… Don’t know what you mean about the “Bleeding Image Effects…” There are things that are inaccurate that can’t be addressed because of DCS limits that you all haven’t noticed and probably never will. It’s humorous to see all of the drama about the train spotting™ Items, while the Spotters simultaneously are oblivious to obvious items because there is no way for them to know it’s there. So why not just enjoy what we do have, since the overall experience is pretty damned amazing?

No VR experience. I have a rig that will run it, just don’t want to add complexity to the mix right now. One part of the focus is on stability interaction in all three axis, as well as thrust response and effects right now. The HUD works far better than it should, it’s way too good. I’ll set up a go fundme where you can bribe me to stop lobbying to make it worse. I’d like to see DCS put an IFOLS setup on land in each map for field FCLPs. It would help you get a feel for the aircraft with some depth perception before heading over water where there is a dearth of references.

Wrong-O my Bumblebee flying friend. There was (is?) a night time Case I derivative done at slower break speeds under certain sneaky conditions to help hide the boat. It was frightening, but workable.

Welcome aboard. I didn’t fly the T45, I did instruct in the TA-4J which used a bridle launch. My question is “why is the launch bar on the T45 put into the retract position after the aircraft is in tension?” Is it to ensure it retracts properly after launch? The F14 used a launch bar arrangement for cat shots, but after the aircraft was in kneel, the launch bar switch was only moved in the event of a suspended cat shot. The T45C module is a good place for sim pilots to experience the Case I pattern before jumping into other modules and flailing. It lands pretty flat, and the slower approach speed dictates a closer abeam distance, but it’s a useful little trainer. It lands pretty flat, as does the real aircraft, so it rewards a flat or fast over the ramp with a bolter, as it should be. Understanding that it is a WIP that will get better, the only thing I don’t like about it at this stage are the pointers on the standby instruments. They are generic, too long (only the “business ends”should be white) and as such, are difficult to read (since the HUD is tough to see right now, the round dials are helpful). It’s also a little too pitch sensitive, especially in the landing configuration at the moment. My guess is that most will apply a curve to the pitch axis.

BTW, because of the limitations of a desktop sim, controllers, refresh rates, etc, all of the DCS modules are probably a little more challenging than they should be to accomplish various tasks. The F14 currently has some quirks in the landing configuration (it’s also too forgiving in some ways). It takes an enormous amount of time to tune the variables, especially in performance. The entire team is working hard to get it right. Be patient, you can still learn a lot about flying the module as it sits today.

Your Callsign is now “Spotter”. Bon appetite! The T45 is a nice little mod for doing CQ patterns. It’s approach speed at max trap is only 125 KIAS, so your pattern will be closer to the ship, around .9 to 1.0 NM. However, the carrier TACAN is a bit flukey as it doesn’t always move with the ship! The cockpit will drive your ADHD into afterburner because the HUD is very difficult to read, so you need to reference the backup instruments, which have long, generic needles which make them difficult to read. Typical ASI’s, VSI’s and Altimeters are painted only on the business end to make the value they represent instantly recognizable. I find the ADI speed and altitude read outs almost unusable. Might want to try putting the HUD repeater on one of the screens. The FM is OK, the aircraft is a little faster than it should be at altitude, and it’s excessively pitch sensitive (only module I’ve needed to put an axis curve in) but fun nonetheless. It lands flat, as does the real jet, so if you are fast or flat over the ramp, you’ll bolter. Oh, and when there is weight on wheels, the gear struts don’t compress. Just thought I’d mention that so it doesn’t bother you… It’s a neat little trainer, have fun SPOTTER!

Exactly. I didn’t know what “Block” aircraft we had, until some RIO mentioned it in passing, and we had a mix. Of course I understand that that “enthusiasts” enjoy different aspects of an avocation, but man, go fly, practice something tactical before you turn into VP pilots complaining about your per diem checks, travel vouchers and airline applications.

Are you boys pilots or Trainspotters™? Load up the sim and go kill something. Your victim won’t care if you had the correct bumps on your fuselage while he’s drifting down in his chute.

Anyone here with time in the real T45C? Including CQ, perchance?

Small change that will return large benefits- Getting the instrument pointers correct on all of the round instruments, including backup and engine gauges, and the backup instrument number fonts readable, will pay dividends in readability and immersion. The pointers are generic at this point, too long and thin, with the entire needle white, which makes the module look artificial and difficult to read, but when they are refined, the cockpit will come alive. While I understand that many DCS players are HUD cripples, the T45 HUD is difficult to read, so the backup instruments need to be referenced. The aircraft handles well. It’s highly recommended and is where future Tomcat and Hornet drivers should start. Who knew that a trainer would be so valuable to train pilots for advanced aircraft? I know it’s a labor of love for you gents, and it shows.

It’s tough getting volunteers to obtain ejection data points.

Quickest way is to use the “DEP”. Takes two seconds to punch a heading or course into the UFD keypad. HDG/CRS> input digits> ENT

Just a note of congratulations. The devs did a great job and are to be commended for their efforts. The T45C is going to be a fantastic little trainer. If you are having difficulty with your carrier pattern and landings, jump into this little guy. Same with ACM. If you want to learn energy management and how to maneuver to an adversary’s six, then grab a buddy and use the AIM9 envelope that Training command uses (~Atoll) or declare guns only. You’ll learn a lot. Really nice job on the mod overall.

Exactly. If you blokes are going to hang on every word and snippet of every embellished sea story told from the vague memory of a fighter hero trying to be dramatic, then I can believe everything I see on a lame streaming Space Soap Opera. At least they opted to portray silence in space, which is about the only thing that is worthwhile in that show. It’s the Astronauts Wive’s Club meets Apollo 13.

Depends on bandwidth of the radar, but back in the day, some ATC controllers would point out primary contacts as “possible birds” from time to time.

I just found a video showing that the AIM54C had capability in space. As in outside the freaking atmosphere. Had to be modified, but it was obviously based on the C model.

There weren’t any examples of F14 RIO’s hanging around to see if they could lock up parachutes after Mig Kills. The radar would easily lock the spreader bar on a towed gunnery banner using VSL or PLM, so perhaps that is a useful reference. I also think I had a RIO lock up a parachute flare for a sidewinder shot, but that’s a metallic object compared to a human pilot under a silk chute. Maybe if he had a lot of low quality dental work?