Spiceman

It’s not implemented in the F-18 at the moment. But if you search the forums, there was a post where someone posted a modified comm.lua that added the Go To Tanker to the F-18 wingman comm menu. If I find it I’ll come back and edit this post. Found it... https://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=217749&highlight=tanker

The ME only allows reduced visibility in the form of fog, i.e. it can only be 3800’ thick and a few (I think 5) miles visibility. In the real world there is haze. The haze layer exists below the cloud deck, whether it be 3000’ or 10,000’. Real world visibilities on a normal day are 5, 7, 10... maybe up to 20 miles or so typically. The ME could allow this easily by simply increasing the range of the fog sliders.

Kneeboard builder doesn’t support multiple monitors. We’ve all got that problem. Go into viewporthandling.lua and set the position manually. Kneeboard builder is still great to use for the content.

I have found that to be the case as well. The offset feature doesn’t work in the app so it doesn’t set the position properly in a multi monitor setup.

Plan A.... get Kneeboard Builder and do it through there. https://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=129341 Plan B... manually edit DCS World\Scripts\Aircrafts\_Common\Cockpit\ViewportHandling.lua. Then look for the following line: dedicated_viewport = {default_x,default_y,default_width,default_height} Dedicated_viewport is the kneeboard (go figure). Change the values to the location and size of the kneeboard you desire.

Wanted to pass on something I learned yesterday.... as we know, the track file isn't actually a saved track of your flight, it's a recording of user inputs (only), played back, in real time, in the simulation. I have a home cockpit with a lot of real switches and I use Helios. What I realized yesterday is that DCS doesn't record those. So if I activated the autopilot, for example, with a real switch (or in this case touch monitor), DCS doesn't register it. So the airplane, in the track, just meanders off and eventually crashed. I re-did the flight and used all "normal" in-game mouse clicking of switches and the track was fine (aside from the normal issues). I know that tracks are still generally bugged, but I thought I'd pass this along as maybe others are having this Helios issue as well and haven't realized it.

Yep... the CV NATOPS is for the ship’s procedures, which is what you want for marshaling and whatnot. I believe so... the NATOPS doesn’t explicitly say other than the pilot shall plan to arrive at the initial at 3NM... presumably you may exceed the 5NM diameter in order to make that happen. I’m sure the boss would let you know if you weren’t being reasonable in your variances because you’d be screwing up his recovery operation.

From the CV NATOPS... Case I The jet and turboprop port holding pattern is a left-hand pattern tangent to the BRC or expected BRC with the ship in the 3-o’clock position and a maximum diameter of 5 nm. Flights shall be established at their assigned port holding pattern altitude 10 nm prior to entering the pattern. Entry shall be tangential with wings level (can be entered from any direction). Minimum altitude assignment shall be 2,000 feet MSL. A minimum of 1,000 feet vertical separation between holding altitudes shall be maintained. The squadron/ unit recovery order and altitude assignment shall be as promulgated by ship/air wing doctrine. All aircraft shall maintain the prescribed separation and landing order in the port holding pattern and throughout the descent. Departure from the port holding pattern for break entry shall be accomplished aft of the ship’s beam. Descent to the break from the port holding pattern is commenced by the lowest aircraft or flight in time to meet the ramp time. This descent should be planned so as to arrive at the initial (3 miles astern, 800 feet) wings level, paralleling the BRC. The flight leader shall either execute a normal break or spin for all or a portion of his flight, depending upon the number of aircraft in the landing pattern. A spin should normally be initiated at the bow. The spin pattern shall be flown at 1,200 feet within 3 nm of the ship. A maximum of six aircraft shall be in the landing pattern at one time. This number may be modified by the air officer. No aircraft shall break more than 4 miles ahead of the ship. Pilots must exercise caution to avoid departing aircraft and aircraft in the starboard holding pattern. Should a Delta be given after commencing descent from the port holding pattern, but prior to entering the landing pattern, aircraft shall climb or descend as required and enter the spin pattern (1,200 feet) unless specifically directed otherwise. Aircraft in the landing pattern shall continue to maintain proper interval, flying the landing pattern at 600 feet until otherwise directed. Flights directed to spin or reenter the port holding pattern shall climb only on the upwind or crosswind leg ahead of the ship’s beam. Aircraft reentering the break from the spin pattern have priority over aircraft entering from the port holding pattern. Case III The primary TACAN marshal fix is the 180_ radial relative to the expected final bearing (if BRC is due north, you’d be on the 170 FROM/350 TO radial) at a distance of 1 mile for every 1,000 feet of altitude plus 15 miles (So 6000 feet would be 21 miles). The holding pattern is a left-hand, 6-minute racetrack pattern. The inbound leg shall pass over the holding fix. In no case will the base altitude be lower than 6,000 feet. Fixed-wing aircraft will normally have a minimum of 1,000 feet verical separation.Vertical separation may be reduced to 800 feet when inside 12 nm. Helicopters shall be separated by a minimum of 500 feet vertically.

Same here.... you’re not using Capt Zeen’s Helios profile by any chance are you? I am, and it had some other quirky behaviors that I had to sort out. Wondering if this is another one....

It's weird, but it seems to save it in there properly, but still shows up as C: in the application, which would be OK, except that none of my settings are saved, such as the location. I’ve configured the settings to have the kneeboard at the top left (x=0, y=0) and it shows up at the bottom right instead. If I knew where the kneeboard location is stored in DCS I suppose I could edit it manually...

Won't Save DCS Install Location I have DCS installed on my F drive. I point Kneeboard Builder to it, close it, and it shows up as C drive again in Kneeboard builder. I can't get it to save my F drive as the DCS location. Any ideas?

Thank you!

Tacview Not Working All my Tacview files are 1K (empty). Seems like it started a couple weeks ago. The only thing I've done recently is create a new Helios export of my F/A-18C UFC and MPCD from Capt Zeen's new profile. Not exactly sure if it coincides exactly with that or not. Thoughts? dcs.zip

Has anyone reported yet that the HSI symbology (only the non-static symbology) is extremely dim (stuck on night setting?) after a cold start? Works fine during an air start.

Yes, the latest DCS news did say they have been working the night lighting issues.

It does work. It’s not the floods, all night lighting is broken. The lights have almost no luminescent value at all. If you look back you’ll see they’re on, they just have almost no luminescence, just like the taxi lights, runway lights, city lights, and every other light in the sim.

Don't know if it's 2.5 or the campaign itself. Probably 2.5, but second element AI collide, crash and burn in the pattern during the first mission. Formation was extremely close the whole arrival.

Enemy Within, first mission, second element AI seem unaware of each other. Collide and crash in the pattern... they were also attempting to land in the opposite direction given by ATC.

I guess every Air wing had different philosophies, and maybe the Pacific fleet saw things different than the Atlantic fleet. In talking to our crews, they didn't see much of an RoE that would allow them to use the Phoenix as originally intended (shooting down waves of Russian bombers coming over the horizon) and actually valued it much more for its fire-and-forget properties at closer range.

2/2/2 (AIM-7/9/54 respectively) was the standard load out at sea. In the shop, we had ever even heard of anyone trying a 6-Phoenix loadout outside of factory testing. I'm sure it would take a lot of maintenance effort just to get it to work. The Phoenix is liquid cooled by Coolanol. The Coolanol lines out to the wing stations in many cases had never been used in the life of the aircraft, and to try to use them would involve having to flush them out and fix who knows how many leaks you'd come across, given how infrequently they'd been used, if ever. Coolanol was a pain in the ass (it cooled not only the Phoenix but the radar transmitter and high voltage power supplies as well). To get it working for six Phoenix missles would be a daunting task. I had heard while I was in VF-101 (the RAG) that they had tried carrying Phoenix on the wing stations a time or two there, but a sea-going squadron just didn't have the time or wherewithal to play with it. We did not carry Phoenix wing stations on the ship. The next most common loadout was 4/4/0 and was used mainly in training involving lots of ACM if memory serves.

OMG. I feel like one of those Vietnam vets who gets to sit in a Huey for the first time decades later.

On the ground with the canopy open, just CTRL-E, E, E and you'll hop out. You can even walk around with the joystick and use the rudders to turn left or right. Works in the Spitfire.

New info... it happened again. It's an interaction with Kneeboard Builder. I went back to Kneeboard Builder to re-place my kneeboard in the right spot and after I did that, I have the transparent plane again.

That did it... thank you!

All of a sudden my Spitfire is appearing transparent and won't stay running. Any ideas? log.zip