Updating old pilot models/helmets?

[Texac]

I know it is a very little, nitpicking wishlist item but I thought about the pilot helmet or their models in general.

 

I'm not sure how old they are but at least two years and I'd really like to see an update for their helmets as the current and only US pilot helmet model looks a bit out of shape and is being used on pretty much all the US aircraft modules. There also is the MBU-14 oxygen mask variant.

 

Again I'll admit it is a very nitpicking wish but I thought why not at some point? Also worth mentioning might be that the F/A-18C will receive the JHMCS and a fitting pilot model or helmet is already in the works.

 

Next to that other aircraft modules also receive their own fitting pilot helmet such as the M-2000C, AJS-37, F-14 and more.

 

Here we see the HGU-55 helmet with the MBU-20 oxygen mask also present on the current DCS pilot model which has its wrong shapes or sizes.

 

 

 

 

As you can see the current pilot model is also missing its reflections on the helmet visor for some aircraft.

 

 

And here we have the MBU-14 oxygen mask.

 

Edited December 2, 2017 by Texac

[Texac]

Edited the text and added the correct designations for the helmet and oxygen masks. Hopefully some of you would also like to see an update with a bit more detail to the current modern pilot model in the future.

[rrohde]

Yeah, that would be nice to have down the line. Another nitpick if mine is that the visors should be made more shiny and reflective looking. Compare, for example, the pilot's visor of the L-39 to that of the M2000C.

 

So, +1 from me. :)

[Kippy]

+1

 

It's the small things like this that make simulators all the more enjoyable

[Pteradon]

A bit offtopic, but i have to ask.

I found a HGU-55/P of USN squadron VF-111 "Sundowners" with a MBU14 mask for sale.

I see some standard grey HGU-55 for sale with a pricetag around 650 euro's. (about $800 usd)

 

What would be a normal pricetag for this kind of helmet?

[Kippy]

New HGU-55/Ps are not cheap. I believe GENTEX sells them new at ≈1000$ for a Fiberglass shell and ≈1100 for a Kevlar shell.

 

Brand new, unissued MBU-14s go for ≈ 800$ as well.

[Texac]

I need to nitpick again.

 

With the inclusion of the JHMCS for the Hornet the 3d model of the pilot needs to be adjusted.

 

While taking into account that the 3d model of the Hornet is still WIP, I wanted to mention a few areas of the helmet that would need a little bit of polishing to make it realistic.

 

I've attached a few images showing the real helmet from the side and front as well as the DCS JHMCS.

 

 

One error that is still present is the lower part of the helmet when viewing from the front. It is too thin and shaped into the wrong direction, the size doesn't seem to be on point as stated in the first post, due to that the clip attachment for the oxygen mask is placed incorrect as well. According to Wiki, the JHMCS can be attached to HGU-68/P & HGU-55/P helmets. Although the placement of this clip looks fairly right for the normal HGU-55/P, it looks off with the DCS JHMCS variant.

 

Secondly it also seems that the upper shape of the JHMCS is too curved.

 

In addition to that I also noticed that the so called visor buffers colored in gray leather next to the visor haven't been removed yet, though I'm not sure about this it seems that most helmets equipped with the JHMCS don't have these gray colored visor buffers.

 

Some helmets also own four clips for it but it appears that there are helmet variants with only two clips.

 

 

 

 

Also another thing that caught my eye is the placement of the JHMCS, the positioning seems to be slightly too low and to far to the front.

 

 

 

Edited May 16, 2018 by Texac

[Home Fries]

No problem with nit-picking at all; I'm in the same boat about the devil being in the details. Not to hijack, but while we're on the subject of details, I would like to have the flightsuit default to green or tan based on the theater in question.

 

Also, since we're on the topic, USN and USMC aviators don't put square velcro on their shoulders like the USAF. Rather, the velcro is sized to the patch, so you nominally don't see the velcro. I would like some updated generic flightsuit textures without the square velcro to factor this for the Hornet, Harrier, and Tomcat. Additionally Marines don't wear rank on flightsuits, and Navy uses white and orange for rank insignia instead of the blue and subdued orange of the USAF.

Edited May 16, 2018 by Home Fries

[Texac]

Another thing I would also like to see is a new helmet model, the HGU-55G for the german MiG-29G.

 

The standard NATO pilot model with a HGU-55G should actually be enough. Currently it comes with the russian pilot model which doesn't fit at all.