How high to spot a column of tanks?

[Crunchy]

At what altitude can you spot a column of tanks in a real A10C? I've been practicing in the desert map with some tanks, but I'm sure I would be able to spot tanks higher up then I can in DCS. Does this sim accurately implement spotting tanks at the correct altitude or not? And at what altitude would you be able to spot such vehicles? Thanks!

Edited February 28, 2016 by Crunchy

[Mortifa]

Go to an airport that has skydivers and you will get a very good idea.

 

Up here the local airport uses two types of planes, maybe more but I will stick with the two.

 

One is a Cessna 182(?) which is about the size of a Buick and it gets really hard to see above 7500 feet, at about jump height you can just barely see it.

 

The other is a twin engine plane about the size of a semi with trailer and even that one is tough to see when they are at altitude.

 

Spend an afternoon watching the planes and watch the traffic pattern. Take binoculars with you and you will see that the planes are pretty hard to see from a distance, now think of a tank on the ground, in camo, and suddenly the spotting is pretty realistic.

[Crunchy]

@Mortifa -Very good point, but are you saying the tanks will not be visible from an altitude of 7500 ft? I'm just trying to gauge what altitude they would be visible at in real life, so that I can test it in DCS and also get a better understanding of what it's like in real life. I also mentioned a column of tanks not just one. It interests me to know these facts and what they see in real life, but I can't find any pics that depict this.

[Stonehouse]

Probably the answer is depends. I can remember reading a book written by the RN pilot shot down in Bosnia doing low multiple passes in his Harrier as he had trouble visually acquiring tanks even with help from an SAS FAC. He got hit by a manpad so had to be much lower than he should have been and from memory he did two or three (which he admits himself was a bad idea but the friendlies needed the tanks removed quite urgently and he had a systems issue preventing a radar lock on the target) flyovers before seeing them and then got hit while running in.

[Gliptal]

All said and done, model visibility is a main issue in DCS at the moment.

[WildBillKelsoe]

Yours truly

 

http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=160720

 

I think it depends on a number of factors:

 

1- contrast (in desert, you can spot anything black).

2- angle of incidence of sun and reflections

3- altitude

4- camo

5- eyesight (in dcs, at default zoom, in the mission weaps training, you can spot a column from as high as 10000, as small dots). in real life, pilots use gyro stabilised binoculars and even those play tricks with all the vibrations in the plane (imagine your eyeballs bouncing inside your orbits)..

6- time of day (clearly morning is better than night)

7- smoke markers are your best friend.

 

 

 

unfortunate incidents

 

 

dangerous times

 

[Mortifa]

@Mortifa -Very good point, but are you saying the tanks will not be visible from an altitude of 7500 ft? I'm just trying to gauge what altitude they would be visible at in real life, so that I can test it in DCS and also get a better understanding of what it's like in real life. I also mentioned a column of tanks not just one. It interests me to know these facts and what they see in real life, but I can't find any pics that depict this.

 

Well with the 7500 Ft marker that is just over a mile away so you should be able to spot it, but as someone else pointed out there are other factors. But I think, from my experience, it would be harder to spot.

 

I sometimes go sit at the end of the runway at the local airport. I have read the charts and know the traffic pattern. I know the planes are at 3000 feet and about 25K when they turn into their final and yet they are hard to see and I know where to look, the lights may give them away, and even then they can be tough to see. These are not the little planes either this is a major airport with all sizes of jets coming in. I can see the landmarks, but the planes are tough and I know where to look.

 

So trying to see a tank from 7500 feet with a possible location.. :)

[Mortifa]

Came across this thread on the forum and I would say it is pretty accurate.

 

So you should be able to see a tank at about 2500 meters after that it gets a little touchy.

 

http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=119885

[3WA]

Unfortunate incidents - Glad both pilots were cleared. Total lack of communication between the ground and the air. But it does appear the pilots did suspect friendlies and they should have flown low to confirm or broken off the attack completely.