Set all ILS stations to always on

[Yurgon]

As far as I know, airfields in DCS will only turn on their ILS with a sufficiently strong headwind for an ILS-equipped runway. This has broken many missions, including some of the tutorials that come with DCS, over the years. It also keeps prompting new pilots to post problems with ILS in specific aircraft when, in fact, the ILS in the aircraft and module works perfectly fine - it's just not powered on for the runway they're trying to approach.

 

I suggest to turn on all airfield's ILS, always, unless there are unwanted side-effects.

 

At some point in the future, it would be nice to be able to control ILS via the Mission Editor and via Combined Arms. But for the time being, I see no downside in the glideslope and localizer signals being transmitted all the time.

 

Or am I missing some problems when a runway has ILS in both directions that would interfere with each other?

[Northstar98]

+1 very sensible idea.

 

As for the ILS emitting in both directions, it would be better if the ATC system just picked an active runway (and make it as consistent map wide) and stuck with it so only one ILS system is in use at any one time.

[Borin]

+1

[drPhibes]

IRL all CAT III (and most CAT I/II) runways where you have ILS for both directions will be equipped with an interlock which prevents the ILS for reciprocal runways from radiating at the same time. There are several good reasons for this, both technical and safety related. Radiating in both directions can cause intermodulation between the signals, and depending on the monitor frontend selectivity, it can cause interfere with the monitoring systems. Some runways use the same frequency for both runway directions (e.g. Heathrow RWY 09R/27L = 109.5MHz and 09L/27R = 110.3MHz), and in these cases there is no way for the monitoring system to differentiate between radiated and received signals. And from an operational point of view you don't want to encourage use of both runway directions at the same time by having the ILS switched on.

[zoom8282]

+1

[Yurgon]

13 minutes ago, drPhibes said:

IRL all CAT III (and most CAT I/II) runways where you have ILS for both directions will be equipped with an interlock which prevents the ILS for reciprocal runways from radiating at the same time.

 

Great info, thanks a lot!

 

As it stands, right now many airfields probably won't activate any ILS at all unless there is sufficient wind.

 

So if a runway has ILS in both directions, I'd be perfectly fine if only one of them is active at any given time. This should also be the same runway that the in-game ATC advises to use in the initial call. But the runways with only one ILS should have it on at all times.

[StingrayMM20]

+1

[Mars Exulte]

''Both ways'' shouldn't really be an issue, only one will be active at any time and that's the only one that should be transmitting. Basically it SHOULD use the same triggers used to determine the active.

Edited December 28, 2020 by zhukov032186

[Northstar98]

54 minutes ago, zhukov032186 said:

''Both ways'' shouldn't really be an issue, only one will be active at any time and that's the only one that should be transmitting. Basically it SHOULD use the same triggers used to determine the active.

 

 

Exactly.

[Tippis]

+1

 

If you want to create realistic or doctrinal constraints on usage, there should be script APIs and/or ME controls for that, but if you don't they should just be 100% on. As it is opaque built-in, fragile, counter-intuitive, non-doctrine triggering only ever breaks things and causes confusion for zero benefit to anyone.

 

Oh, and while we're at it, we now have working portable TACAN. Where's the portable RSNB / ИСКРА? That and things like AWLS and ICLS is stuff that should be under the mission-makers control rather than something the module-maker has to fudge in for every new map, often taking ages to make it work, and often limited only to some imagined scenario the module maker might have in mind that does not match what the mission-maker wants.

Edited December 28, 2020 by Tippis

[Dondy]

+1!

[Northstar98]

On 12/28/2020 at 9:02 PM, Tippis said:

Oh, and while we're at it, we now have working portable TACAN. Where's the portable RSNB / ИСКРА? That and things like AWLS and ICLS is stuff that should be under the mission-makers control rather than something the module-maker has to fudge in for every new map, often taking ages to make it work, and often limited only to some imagined scenario the module maker might have in mind that does not match what the mission-maker wants.

 

Absolutely!

Edited December 31, 2020 by Northstar98