Cytarabine

Well given that we are not getting the B61.... I mean come on why should the red team get all the low yield tactical nuke fun! (Or a B83 if you just want to wipe out a chunk of the map!)

Yeah some of the AI maneuvering is a bit insane. The Mig-21 seems the worst culprit in my experience carrying out some impossible maneuvers. I make them eat a sparrow/AMRAAM at distance rather than getting in a turn fight wherever possible.

Would be awesome. A nice fit with Middle Eastern maps as well (the MiG-25). Would be an instant buy of such an iconic aircraft. (Having said that I can’t wait for the Flogger either, I have a strange love for that ugly bird).

Maybe just have a complete module (or one close enough to it) to go to and just jump in the hornet from time to time until it is complete. I have the Mirage and jump in that (have completed the included campaign and am halfway through Red Flag) when for some reason the Hornet or Tomcat frustrates me. Already with the included features the Hornet is night and day more capable than the Mirage. Personally I am enjoying learning a subset of features as each arrives. Went back tonight doing the SEAD mission in the Caucuses. With the HARM TOO mode and the SA page it played very differently (even though the same air defences went active) and I had a blast taking out the threatening SAM sites while skirting their range and then engaging two bandits before trapping on the carrier (a one wire but hey nobodies perfect). The SA page in particular is a game changer. I look forward to JDAMS, a TDP and TWS, and I can’t wait, but I know I have to.

Would be a shame if they didn’t model that. Could lead to some interesting encounters with Iranian F-5’s, F-4’s and F-14’s on the Persian Gulf map. Or a German Mig-29.

The ACM mode locks sometimes seem a bit too good, holding locks when the target is behind me or so far off boresite that it should not be able to track. But yes, Jester really struggles with STT.

Mirage F1?

Yep they carry the Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-6-23, same gun as a Mig-31.

Could you not comfortably set WP1 as you get to cruise post take off then WP2 perhaps at feet dry, WP IP pre strike, WP ground target at your target, fixed point for egress then WP3 on the way home until home plate for the carrier. Not sure how it was really done, but 7 waypoints seems plenty :)

I launch mostly in TWS. Kind of made some of the missions (like the PG mission with the flight of Mig-29s) a bit of a joke as I feel off a series of Phoenixes then slow down to guide them in until they go Pitbull and splash all four before they even get within range. I reserve PD-STT lock for when things get closer and it is Sparrow time.

Hey Victory - would appreciate your input given you have actually flown this thing for real. I have been practicing a lot (my wife would say too much) in BFM against the F-5, Mig-29 and Su-27 and have taken to dropping the flaps, keeping my speed where possible in the 325ish knots range, going for light buffet at a maximum (and trying not to rip my flaps or slats apart). With that I can reel in these planes quite consistently and get on their 6 for a guns kill but was wondering is that ‘doing it wrong’, am I developing a crutch which is in the long run going to hamper how I perform in the plane? Particularly if the aerodynamic trade off with the flaps is worth it? Jumped back in the Hornet a couple of times and it feels like it is ‘on the rails’ in comparison (pull hard, get site over target, wait for shoot cue) and is easier particularly slow at high AoA and certainly not as much challenging as trying to reign in the Tomcat!

Really like the short sharp format. Appreciate your work helping us understand this beast.

You mean it takes practice to get good at BFM?

+1 for the Aardvark. Perhaps the C model ;)

It seems to me the instrument cluster is just reflective of era. Yes you can’t use the HUD as your primary flight instrument but the instruments are close to the line of sight, and on my 1440p ultra wide display it is quite legible. As for the RWR it is miles easier than the Russian version, the AN/ALR-67 of course is a later development than what was originally in the Tomcat (the AN/ALR-45). I expect we will see the AN/ALR-45 when we get the F-14A.

Really enjoyed that video from Grumman (sure it was cheesy 70’s stuff but it was educational and reminded me of what the strengths of the Tomcat are). I have now taken to keeping my energy up, getting my opponent to bleed theirs and getting a firing position that way. Anyway still learning this bird (and loving it, such a different beast to the Hornet or Mirage).

Yep the Tomcat is an absolute monster in BVR with the Phoenix. Lock up ripple off, await explosions. I love the Persian gulf Alert 5 mission splashing two before they even realise what is going on, stepping down to Sparrows at 10-15nm to kill most of what’s left with a couple of sidewinders to mop up if needs be.

Well my first go at the tanker was not great, was able to hold speed and position with the tanker despite the lack of a really functional HUD but was just ‘teasing the basket’ as Jester kept reminding me. Still was a first go. The prop wash added to the challenge though to be honest once you are close enough to be cleared for contact it isn’t much of an issue.

Yep I have ripped the wings off a few times in BFM, but my god the performance on this thing makes the F-18 feel positively anaemic. Getting used to Jester - need to create a voice attack profile for some of the more common commands particularly in combat I think. Overall, I think I am in love.

Midnight where :) (not that I would mind if we did midnight in each Timezone as I am currently in GMT+10 (+1 for DST so +11)).

Don’t get me wrong I love my Hornet, but she’s no looker and has a distinct lack of personality, but she sure as heck is versatile. Find myself more in the Mirage nowadays, can’t do as much but she’s a looker and has some personality. Still the FBW system does make me feel that this is what it would look like if an A320 was turned into a fighter jet. (I spend a lot of time in autopilot flying her with the trim hat) The Tomcat strikes a cord. She’s a looker and that mix of powerful avionics with pre auto everything charm just drew me in. Can’t wait to put her in a flat spin. Next step has to be a Phantom right ;)

My head says that in a knife fight I would rather be in a Hornet, but I will be damned if my heart (as a kid in the 80’s who loved the story of a short volleyball player who killed his best friend, picked up a woman and became a fighter pilot) doesn’t tell me the Tomcat. Then my head says if the Hornet gets past my big arse radar, my RIO and my Phoenix missiles (particularly as this is a legacy hornet without the AIM-120D the Super Hornets can carry) then I deserve a sidewinder up the tailpipe.

Nice to see how he sets up the X56 (as a fellow X56 user). The hype is real!

It is just anecdotal but it seems to me that when I fire an AIM-7 it is a crapshoot whether it hits, while with the 530D if one is flying off the rail there is more than likely going to be a kill.

Damn you, I was being good, I told myself I have the Mirage, I have the F/A-18, I have FC3 including some Russian jets I have never even flow , I will wait out early access... and then this and I relented. Bring on Wednesday.