Rick50

Soooo... 10 minutes by Pagani on Autostrada ?

I "THINK" i saw a yellow orange black paint for the Littlebird just like TC used to fly around in, getting Magnum into trouble! But I might be wrong, might have been for a different sim possibly? Vietnam paints based on the OH-6 Cayuse, but using this Littlebird mod: https://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/files/3314815/

Now would be a good time to dive and extend...

But then that would require dialogue exposition... the public doesn't understand what Fox3 means. They don't understand much about radars, and chaff is unknown to most. Flares don't need that explanation because everyone knows about "heat seeking missiles" so dumping flares becomes self-explanatory.... and just looks super cool!! Another point is that these days, one new trend in missiles is to give additional seekers, so that you have two methods of terminal guidance, so that one decoy type doesn't ditch your million dollar missile, so the radar guideds get thermal seekers too. This is all early days, and there are significant packaging concerns, but that's the future trend, thus, flares and chaff at the same time is just now starting to make more sense.

Hehehe! Ok that was fun!

Well, I guess you get one point for partial originality! I say partial, because Xplane has Mars to fly around!! Not sure how you'll gain altitude with such small stubby wings of DCS modules though... remember, Mars only has 3% the atmosphere of Earth... True, but I think even ED is very much unsure when too!

Ah, cool !! Well done for making a mod for another game! Well, I don't have DCS modding experience either, I did do a modest amount in FS2004, but nothing of deep significance. Basically I improved the way some freeware planes flew, closer to what I thought the real planes were capable of, when their start point was well away from the probable performance. I'd also look to see if there were features not included that I could add in myself. Basically learned by trial and error, along with examining and comparing the raw data sheets, what they called aircraft.cfg files, and tried to notice where some lines of code were excessively simple, or very detailed, or missing, or were default code lines from another aircraft that had little in common with the type being represented in this file folder (meaning, why does so much code feature EXACTLY the same as a B-747-400 GE, when the plane represented is a C-130 Hercules? Stuff like that. Nice screens and pics btw!

In truth, there was many things that would be "low probability of survival" in that movie! WARNING: don't open the spoiler bar below, it contains SPOILERS!! But for a fun "rollercoaster movie" it wins!!

Eh... Apache can do a few moves, but it can't dance like the Bo-105 can!!! And the Longbow D is more freight train than ballet dancer... the Bo-105 is more Cirque du Soleil performer, defying gravity as if doing so it's entire life!

LOL!! That all sounds about right!! I think you are correct about the numbers the movie will produce... but I think you are wildly overestimating what Paramount will offer the family... I mean, 3% would be HUGE money for people not entitled to any of it, IMO. I'd expect Paramount to offer them $100k and a fancy SUV and "shut up about this and go away or we'll counter-sue you out of existence!". I bet Paramount was more likely to give that 3 million to Wounded Warriors or something, the PR benefit and showing that it's not about their own greed, but the principle of the situation! Look it would be different if the writer had produced a story and characters that really were like in the movie, sometimes studios have been horrible to writers, sometimes even outright stealing entire scripts and not paying a penny... requiring real lawsuits and real outcomes... but this? This is the guy who "trip and fall" on the sidewalk outside your store and demands cash money "or I'll SUE!!"... you give him $500 cash because it's WAY cheaper than calling your own attorney, even though you would win for sure. Call it a "Nuisance fee" or whatever!!!

This isn't just the question... this is also the true answer to all your post's questions: it IS and was intended to be "unfinished" and "barebone". It was not meant to be a hardcore true representative of a specific Littlebird variant. It was intended to be a guide, a "blueprint" to be able for mod makers to make their own, and modify their own helis for DCS without modifying payware helis. I don't claim to know why the AH-6 was chosen, it might have been "just because cool and simple" (which is awesome in my book!) This was meant not to be hyper realistic to specific Littlebird airframes, but as an education tool and a fun mod to enjoy! Sure... the original mod maker, Nibbylot, might himself not have known a great deal about the real Littlebird details about it's fire control system... few people usually DO know such things unless they found the original systems manuals, or actually worked on or flew these aircraft. I don't know. But... just because it's done SOMETIMES in videos, doesn't mean it's ALWAYS done that way. It's quite likely that specific pilots and squadrons have different preferences, especially since smaller birds like this one carry so few actual rockets. And some pilots/squadrons will choose the firepower of double double!! Maybe that's historic, maybe it was just done that way for quickly completing the mod for us to enjoy. Maybe it never occured to Nibby that those two gatlings would ever be mounted to one airframe AT THE SAME TIME. Because honestly, to me it seems like a very poor choice to put both on at the same time: if you need one of those calibers, you don't need the other on the same flight. Put both on, and you are incurring a very heavy weight penalty by adding the extra gatlings, which are HEAVY. Then there is the ammo belts: with both carried in flight on a mission, you will inevitably have more of the wrong caliber when you wished you just carried more belts of one size! I suspect that photos of Littlebirds carrying the '134 and GAU-19 at the same time, are more for showing off at Defense conventions what kind of capabilities are available to customers, rather than a specific configuration that would actually be used for real operations. What I mean is, I'd know from previous operations and the upcomming mission profile, as to whether I'd need 7.62 or .50cal, or one rocket pod, or two. I'd know if it was better to carry Hellfires, or maybe APKWS. I'd do mission fuel calculations, and then figure out if I would have to compromise on ammo loadout... just ammo belts can, in some cases, have a DRASTIC effect on aircraft weight in combat! Also, remember that there are differences in models: an MD-530 is probably a different product from the Littlebird of SOAR 160. And the Boeing Littlebird of today being marketed, is a much upgraded unit from the Littlebirds of the past decades. Indeed the most modern versions don't even need pilots in them at all, able to be flown like a drone. That and SOAR 160's Littlebirds might have started as MD-500D's and/or OH-6 LOACH (maybe in the earliest days maybe?), but are VERY likely to have received a great many incremental upgrades over the last several decades of service. That said, this mod... is a mod. And was presented as a learning opportunity. So, if you are brave and adventurous, make a backup copy folder of the mod, and then start messing with the values in the mod, to see if you can get it to meet your own expectations! No one's stopping you, indeed I bet Nibbylot would approve!

uh... did a quick reading of this... I'm no lawyer, or movie maker, or article writer... but a first glance seems to have a very weak foundation for a lawsuit to me. An article from 1983, that inspired the first movie? Somehow has legal IP for a movie a few years later, and then decades later?! Ehh... I mean, for a quick buck to settle out of court, sure, but beyond that, I'm certain that Paramount would send in all lawyers, pure firepower, to deny them a win. Next we'll learn that Fast an Furious, along with CARS are both being sued by the estate of Manuel Fangio, because car go vroom!!

but not all E's can use the D, only SOME "E's"...

It's not "DCS realistic"... not even close. BUT... there was many instances that had MORE realism and "real world" than I expected from a hollywood rollercoster movie... just like the first one. And while it was cheezy at times, overall I enjoyed it for what it was, a recognition of the original and it's cultural impact, and just a fun ride after a sea of doom/gloom movies the last two years. In the end, I had more fun with it than I expected, was better than I expected! That said, leave your NATOPS manual at the door!

So I was just thinking a bit about the notion of a map for Yugoslavia (Bosnia, Croatia and so on). When I was there in the mid-90's, a lot of people had run away, understandable considering the uncivil war an all... but also, I remember there didn't seem to be very many roads in the area I was in, and many of them were gravel roads not paved. Yet... from recent photos from visitors of the same area, and GoogleMaps picture imagery, it's become completely transformed with a LOT more fancy paved high speed highways, seemingly more built up areas... there seems to be a great deal "more" to the region, or at least parts of it. Why do I mention it? Because... well, the place has changed visually and practically, since that was a conflict area. What does everyone want out of such a map? Do you want to recreate the 1990's ? Or is a present day map what you all want? It's maybe not the most pressing question, but I do think it's important to ask, so that customers don't have a backlash to a poor dev team!

So apparently the US Army has one "Iron Dome" system, and is deploying it to Guam right now... not sure about how many or few they might be buying. But deploying one already, probably shortly after the purchase/training period probably says something!

https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/germany-to-deliver-iris-t-slm-advanced-air-defense-system-to-ukraine

Not exactly strictly on topic, but the people of Lithuania collect €5 million, crowdfunding a Bayraktar TB2 drone for Ukraine... I guess this relates somewhat considering that drones and SAM will be at odds against each other for the forseable future, drone networking Vs EW jamming, and energy beams such as laser defenses. So on the one hand, such defenses could make drone operations grounded due to very high losses of drone from comms dropout, leading to the need for manned aircraft to continue the fight. But on the other hand, manned systems would themselves be very vulnerable to comms and networking dropout too, but additionally putting the aircrew at higher risk. Limited voice radio, poor situational awareness page due to incomplete datalink, along with other effects, would severely compromise the effectiveness of an operation. As well as the massively greater cost of the manned fighter aircraft as compared to even fancy UCAV drones... One thing doesn't appear to happen in the near future though, I feel that airforces will want to keep a "man in the loop" for deciding to fire missiles at other aircraft. This may involve firing a BVR shot that is launched from say a "Loyal Wingman", but the launch decision, with all the relevant data, would come from the Viper/Raptor pilot or "GIB". As enemy EW jamming increases, then the pilot would have to only use onboard ordnance, and the Loyal Wingmen would just orbit on station until reaching Bingo, and then RTB by GPS waypoints, otherwise neutered for the mission.

Hmm, might do this conversion myself...

It's kinda shocking how even just a tiny difference in training coverage and content, can drastically affect the outcomes of operations !!

Oooh, nice, that's that larger Turkish UCAV, seems to use two turboprops on it... exotic looking bird!!!

Ok can we just appreciate just how awesome this picture is... of an awesome jet with awesome burners?!?! A new F-15C module... yep, that should be a new goal !!

This DOES look cool!!! And not to knock the mod or anything, but it just makes me want a full fidellity Eagle-C even more!!!

"ordinary mortals deal"... when they are seriously fatigued, when parts and systems start to fail on you, when you lose orientation in heavy cloud or bad visibility... when you come back to land after hours of flight and fighting, then survival... or when you need to pull lead pursuit, but are wary of the departure characteristics... I've concluded that when the USN selected the legacy Hornet for the future of naval aviation, the predictability, the safe easy flying characteristics were major factors for it's selection... allowing the pilots to concentrate more on the mission, the tasks, the weapons and systems management, and not be always worried every 5 seconds that your aluminum bird was always moments away from trying to kill you! Contrast that with more difficult and sketchy fighters like the F-104 Starfighter... which turned fighter pilots into test pilots more often than airforces would like to admit! Test piloting in air combat just seems like a losing proposition to me. Speaking of Corsair hype... ... have you guys SEEN the movie trailer that just came out?!?!?!? A "MUST WATCH" for everyone in this subforum... actually for everyone on this site!!! "Devotion" go to this thread to watch and comment:

I hadn't realised that, but it makes perfect sense to me!! Training and experience doing, count for SOOO much for CAS, and makes sense that the Marines would focus so much on doing so... I mean, it's not like Marines in WW2 had anyplace to retreat to... "well, we COULD run back to the beach, but then what?". Bring on the arty, bring on the CAS, bring on the ship bombardments, the only option is to take the whole island. Reminds me of some things I recently read about the Vietnam air war, apparently the USAF's fighter pilots were not especially well prepared for accurate AG bombing, CAS and such, at the beggining of the conflict, because pre-war training was focused so much on bomber intercept and offensive nuclear strike using the fighters as bombers... dogfighting, CAS whatz all that? No, i'm not suggesting poor piloting, but rather that when priorities are assigned by the top leadership, training focuses on the priorities assigned, and so sometimes other skills might fall out of regular intense training curiculum... and while people imagine that in hard times they'll rise to the occasions, the reality is that usually they'll fall back to the level of their training... and if they hadn't been trained for that particular situation... well things start to get dicey indeed! Or as the Brits like to say "it all went a bit pear shaped"! I'll bet the tough as nails radial engine, made the Corsair much tougher during CAS straffing runs than say a beautiful sleek Sabrejet... More I think of this trailer, the more I look forward to it! I'm reminded of the recent movie "Midway" from 2019 (not the 1976)... not sure of the historical accuracy but on the surface it seemed decent to me (I'm no Pacific war expert, not even close). The action was pretty good, many good actors doing decent work, and some of the graphics were pretty good... but at certain times it stumbled a bit here and there, and then it did something great, and then it stumbled a bit, and another great scene. This "Devotion" movie, at least the trailer anyway, seems to have no stumbling... everything to me points to a great movie that will make you forget you are watching people "pretending" to be, and just draw you into the conflict of so long ago. Do you remember the title?