Radar / RWR newb

[Uxi]

I created a Nevada Training mission for the Tomcat with some easy Mig-21 at waypoint 1, some ground targets at Waypoint 2, aerial refueling at Waypoint 3, etc and changed everything out the Cats for the Bug... Outside of being much slower, realized I've haven't been spending enough time in the Hornet. I have about 38 landings on the carrier on the Hornet with only a couple mishaps though chickened out once in the Tomcat and hit the back of the boat the other time, but am clueless with the radar and RWR in the Hornet.

 

I get easy kills with the Phoenix or close in and do it with a Sparrow or even Sidewinder in the Cat, but I didn't see a peep on either TWS or RWS in the Hornet. My wingman for some reason is always running his afterburner and hit bingo fuel just as we were engaging while I had a good 5000 pounds left (might need to shorter the waypoints in the Hornet missions) before I noticed tracers going over my head lol. Ends in a turning fight where I missed with both sidewinders and got a gun kill on the one MiG and in the turning fight the other one runs out of fuel like my wingman but yeah, I'll need some help identifying these guys. I was able to get a lock in one of the turns but lost it before getting behind him (went as low as 150 knots in the course of it, as well, but that's neither here nor there).

 

 

Even without relying on Jester, I see these guys from way off in the Tomcat through the HSD repeater of the TID (probably still thanks to Jester now that I think of it). Going to RTFM and watch some vids but any pointers would be appreciated. The left MFD always switches to stores with the various selections and have the radar going in the right, so I take it when I enter a fight I should change the AMPCD to the EW page or what's the optimal setup for the various configurable screens?

[Harker]

Use the SA page, put in on the AMPCD. If you have an AWACS or other friendly airborne fighters (namely F-16, F-15, F-18 - they're capable of transmitting on the Link 16 datalink), you can use the SA page to get an overview of the area and see any airborne targets that their radars are picking up. If you set TDC priority to it, you can slew the TDC over a contact and get mach, altitude, BRA and Bulls info and possibly type. The symbol will indicate if it's friendly, hostile or unknown. You can also see SAM zones, countermeasure data and your flight plan, along with other friendly aircraft around you. That's a basic overview though, read up on the full info.

You can then use that info to tune your radar (elevation and azimuth) in order to pick up the desired contacts. You should also learn the HOTAS shortcuts for A2A radar operation, it'll make it easier.

I usually fly A2A with Radar on the RDDI, SA page on a AMPCD and EW or Stores or AZ/EL page (later) on the LDDI. Don't put the SA page on the LDDI, since the ADV- line will hide some info. Don't forget that you can display RWR info on your HUD as well, so you don't have to rely on the EW page.

You have to do everything yourself in the Hornet, so you need to give yourself time to detect and sort targets before you commit. You can't rely on Jester to help, so you need to familiarize yourself with all the systems, functions and relevant controls.

As for the wingman, either go slower so he won't run his AB all the time or add an option to Restrict Afterburner from the Advanced Waypoint actions, in the Mission Editor. He's not smart by himself, period.

So, like you said, you need to RTFM. Read the manual and/or Chuck's guide, watch Wags' videos and Redkite's if you want. And if you have any questions after that, don't hesitate to ask.