Noob Fishbed Pilot - Assorted Questions (1.5.8)

[JLX]

Picked up the 21 over the holidays and am really enjoying it so far. This plane has character!

 

Not only am I new to the Fishbed, but I'm also new to air combat, having stuck to helicopters and ground pounding to date.

 

I'm hoping some of you more experienced pilots can save me some research time as I get up to speed (pun intended ;-)

 

1. 
    
   
2. Is there a way to add missing joystick binds for existing key binds? They are currently greyed out and cannot be assigned. I know some can be bound to an axis but I want to use a button. Is a patch incoming? Is there a workaround?
    
   Intercept Angle: I/LAlt+I
   Target Size: S/LAlt+S
   Show Controls Indicator: RCtrl+Enter
   KPP Set Pitch: LCtrl+K/LShift+K
   Toggle Mirror: M
   Toggle Briefing: LAlt+B
   SPO-10 Volume: V/LAlt+V
    
   
3. I see the radar needs alcohol to cool and thus has limited/finite use. When you rearm/refuel is this replenished? Perhaps when you repair? Is there any way to refill this without getting a new plane? Same/Related question with compressed air for landing gear and pneumatic brakes. Any way to top up? I guess the parachute falls into this category too. What if you need it on your second landing?
    
   
4. How do you ensure fuel is taken from tanks in the right order? Wing tanks first, then ventral, then internal. Is this automatic? Do you have to do it manually by turning pumps on/off? Is there a fuel tank selection switch (I couldn't find one)?
    
   
5. Preliminary digging leads me to think The R-60M is the go-to IR missile (over the R-3S) and the R-3R is the go-to SARH missile? Is the R-60M somewhat comparable (if lesser) to an AIM-9L? I'm looking for an optimal air-to-air loadout and am currently trying 4x R-60M and 2x R-3R with a big center tank. What do most of you run with for A2A?
    
   
6. Lastly, any general tips for being effective in the MiG-21?
   

 

Thanks for any help with the above! Cheers.

[Kang]

1. Sadly, I have no idea, Sorry. Perhaps someone else can give you some advice on that.

 

2. Alcohol, air and the drogue chute all get replaced when you refuel and rearm, if I remember correctly. You can check on the air level at least by looking at the gauge on the right panel, or look at the chute mount in external views. If it doesn't work then, it definitely does at repairing.

 

3. That order is automatically applied.

 

4. The R-3R is the only SARH missile at your disposal in the MiG-21 and the R-60M is, for most purposes, the most effective IR missile. Some of the others do have a longer range, but don't track nearly as good.

[-Martin-]

4 and 5. Depends on the situation. But if you fly MP on the ACG cold war server, then I would take at most one R-3R, as most people stay low where you cannot deploy your radar. Occasionally you will find an inexperienced player flying high. I usually take 4 R-60M, 1 R-3R and 1 R-13M1.

 

R-60M is quite different to Aim-9L. It has a much shorter range and you cannot hit with it targets running away. That is why I take one R-13M1 (upgraded R-3S). On the other hand, R-60M turns extremely well as it accelerates faster than R-3S family.

 

In any case, stay low, try to shoot your R-60Ms at the enemy as soon as you are close enough, regardless of aspect, as your missile with take care of turning and you will not be able to keep turning with planes like F5 and A10.

Edited January 7, 2018 by -Martin-
grammar

[Kang]

Since I flew the MiG-21 again today I checked on #2. Rearming is sufficient to top off.

[JLX]

...1. Sadly, I have no idea, Sorry. Perhaps someone else can give you some advice on that.

 

2. Alcohol, air and the drogue chute all get replaced when you refuel and rearm, if I remember correctly. You can check on the air level at least by looking at the gauge on the right panel, or look at the chute mount in external views. If it doesn't work then, it definitely does at repairing.

 

3. That order is automatically applied.

 

4. The R-3R is the only SARH missile at your disposal in the MiG-21 and the R-60M is, for most purposes, the most effective IR missile. Some of the others do have a longer range, but don't track nearly as good.

 

Since I flew the MiG-21 again today I checked on #2. Rearming is sufficient to top off.

 

4 and 5. Depends on the situation. But if you fly MP on the ACG cold war server, then I would take at most one R-3R, as most people stay low where you cannot deploy your radar. Occasionally you will find an inexperienced player flying high. I usually take 4 R-60M, 1 R-3R and 1 R-13M1.

 

R-60M is quite different to Aim-9L. It has a much shorter range and you cannot hit with it targets running away. That is why I take one R-13M1 (upgraded R-3S). On the other hand, R-60M turns extremely well as it accelerates faster than R-3S family.

 

In any case, stay low, try to shoot your R-60Ms at the enemy as soon as you are close enough, regardless of aspect, as your missile with take care of turning and you will not be able to keep turning with planes like F5 and A10.

 

 

Thanks for the input guys!

 

As rearm/fueling tops up coolant, etc. It's not really a big deal. Seems to me there are good odds you'll run out of fuel before you run out of coolant and have to set down anyway.

 

Also happy to know that the fuel tank order is automatic. Thought I must have been missing something. So, I'll just watch for the empty tank lights and jettison as I go.

 

Appreciate the missile tips, too. Both for which types to use and to ripple fire in pairs at first opportunity. I'll try that and see how I do.

 

I haven't looked up stats for the R-13M1 but from your comment Martin, I'm assuming it's faster and/or has longer range to be able to chase. That's interesting. Maybe I will switch to a couple of those and not take any R-3Rs at all.

 

I'm just starting out but as someone who's used to manoeuvring low and slow, being strapped inside rocket is taking some getting used to. My instinct (poor as it may be at this point) is to get into a turn fight rather than extend into an energy fight (as I'm not quite sure how to effectively do that yet). Once an enemy goes even moderately defensive, it seems keeping a radar lock long enough for a SARH to hit home would be tough. Getting a window to snap off a couple of IR seems much more likely. All things in good time. I'll learn.

 

I haven't been on any MP servers yet. I don't mind getting blown to smithereens while learning tactics, but I'd rather not get blown to smithereens while learning systems. Once I get those down a bit better, I'll see about jumping into the Piranha pit!

 

Cheers.

[Kang]

In my experience it's generally best to ignore the R-3R once you have entered into a close engagement. It doesn't turn any better than the R-3S. The advantage of using your SARH missile is pretty much that it can track targets coming at you head-on, onto which you usually don't get a lock with your IR-missiles.

When you are already turning with the target I personally find locking onto them with the R-3R a little cumbersome for no real gain.

[QuiGon]

The MiG-21 is made for high speed and high altitude and doesn't turn very well and bleeds speed pretty quickly due to its delta wing layout.

[Frederf]

1) Look in folders \DCS\Mods\aircraft\MIG-21BIS\Input\MiG-21\joystick or \keyboard for default.lua. There is written the commands which show up in each row for that controller column. If a command has empty entries for that intersection for row and column it is because that command line is missing from the .lua for that controller.

 

E.g. keyboard\default.lua has line

{combos={{key='I'}},pressed=device_commands.ASPinterceptAngle_kb,up=device_commands.ASPinterceptAngle_kb,cockpit_device_id=devices.ASP,value_pressed=0.01,name=_('Intercept Angle +'),category=_('Weapons / ASP')},

 

but joystick\default.lua does not (it has axis)

 

2) Flight consumables (parachute, compressed air, pilot oxygen, radar coolant) are refreshed on rearm procedure. Every refuel always includes a rearm procedure. Repair does not refill.

 

3) External takes are taken in (near) unison with the wing externals being completed slightly before the center external. The internal fuel is nearly or exactly 100% when the last external is consumed. The group 1 internal tank(s) are emptied before the group 3 where it is recommended to switch off the pumps for durability reasons unless running out of fuel entirely is a concern (but has no durability problem in DCS). The dispenser tank and its pump is the final buffer before the engine and allows brief negative G operation.

 

4) R-60 is short range small warhead with very high maneuverability. The R-13M1 is the best of the R-3 lineage but has stricter release conditions compared to the R-60 but with the benefit of a longer range.

 

5) Take fewer missiles! Two missiles allows the use of M1.8 regime of flight. I think it is a mistake to take more than this until repeated success is demonstrated.

[RED]

5) Take fewer missiles! Two missiles allows the use of M1.8 regime of flight. I think it is a mistake to take more than this until repeated success is demonstrated.

 

+1

 

and make sure you don't have to use your keyboard or have any other little things that distracts you (Fence-In Check)

Take one missile (no need to switch weapon selector) type for one sortie, start with r60m, the other missiles are quite heavy and decrease flight performance.

Listen to awacs when available and check unit system.

Don't use the radar! Pops up on all RWRs and you ll find nothing. Keep your eyes out of the cockpit and only check speed or fuel and similar important information.

There are some experienced pilots that can employ r3r against fighters but all others usually only get distracted by radar usage. I rarely used it.