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Would I like the F14 if I don't like the F18


Gunfreak

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So I have both the 18 and 16.

After trying out the 18 for several weeks, I just don't like it, besides being slow and losing energy if you turn a little. I don't understand it's system. I find the various menus confusing. 

I went back to the 16, and I find it's systems much more logical. 

I can actually select weapons, and actually use them. While with the 18 I'm just sitting there with a confused look.

 

I got the 18 because of the carrier stuff. So I was wondering would I like the F14 more? Would that scratch my carrier ich? But feel better in flight and less confusing systems?

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The F-14 performs more like a fighter than the F-18, so you won't be as bothered by slow speed. However it is a much older plane with more manual/basic systems. The controls aren't like the F-16. It's also 2 seat and the rear AI can be so-so.

 

You can try it free for 2 weeks remember. I suggest doing this first.


Edited by Exorcet
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hmm thats a hard one. honestly my main reson for DCS are Helos, there i startet ( back 2008 with the first DCS) and i always come back to this task.

BUT: i also like flying jets, the fa 18 is a very hard to get used plane 🙂 its mult role makes it very very hard to learn. Im still not in to it and have it since release...... so im feeling you 🙂

have not flown the f 16 so long only about 10 hours or so, but i got your point with the systems 🙂

 

Have the Tomcat also, from all the jets i flown so far, its one of the most enjoyable in my opinnion. its that old shool feeling that it gives you. Not so much systems an relativly easy to come in an fly. Jester can be a bit well......... different 🙂

Its a very basic aircraft wich i really enjoy, i fly it min once in a month 🙂

 

Like Exorcet has written, use the free trail, i think you will like it 🙂

 

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I have been putting a lot of hours into learning the Hornet over the last few months and it has really paid off for me.

Still learning it but I am having a blast now flying single player campaigns off the Super Carrier.

It has been a lot to try and get my arms wrapped around however I am very glad I did. I am having an absolute blast with it now.

 

 

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On 8/2/2021 at 3:44 AM, Gunfreak said:

So I have both the 18 and 16.

After trying out the 18 for several weeks, I just don't like it, besides being slow and losing energy if you turn a little. I don't understand it's system. I find the various menus confusing. 

I went back to the 16, and I find it's systems much more logical. 

I can actually select weapons, and actually use them. While with the 18 I'm just sitting there with a confused look.

 

I got the 18 because of the carrier stuff. So I was wondering would I like the F14 more? Would that scratch my carrier ich? But feel better in flight and less confusing systems?


I love the Hornet perhaps exactly for the reasons that you don’t. It’s complex and not necessarily intuitive like the Viper. It’s difficult to learn and has many traps. I understand that makes it harder but also more rewarding when you get a handle on it. 
 

Having said that, this is also the reason I’m not all that excited by the prospect of biting off a new aircraft like the tomcat. People I know who are flying it though speak very highly of it, I’m sure you’ll love it. 

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9 hours ago, Willie Nelson said:


I love the Hornet perhaps exactly for the reasons that you don’t. It’s complex and not necessarily intuitive like the Viper. It’s difficult to learn and has many traps. I understand that makes it harder but also more rewarding when you get a handle on it. 
 

Having said that, this is also the reason I’m not all that excited by the prospect of biting off a new aircraft like the tomcat. People I know who are flying it though speak very highly of it, I’m sure you’ll love it. 

 

I'm still a beginner, I only have about 6 hours in the game divided between F16,F18,A10,P47 and Spitfire. Plus probably several hours of tinkering in the options and control menu.

So easy is good for me.

But I'm unsure about the complexities of the F14, being a little older means it might be less complex, but older also generally mean less logical controls.

 

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I own both. I don't like hornet and i am in love with the tomcat.

but not for a logical reason. i just love the tomcat

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The Tomcat you have to fly - constantly. A short moment not be concentrated and she is somewhere where she is not supposed to be. You will fly her very often without even peaking out of the window due to the fact that all the instruments are head down 'ish, Jester will drive you crazy and more than once you will eject him, if he doesn't do by himself, you will be swearing because she will go exactly the other way as you want her to go, she will shake rattle and roll your filings out of your teeth (I got a buttkicker and jet seat), you will loose SA all the time because there is no fancy all seeing display, you won't know where the contact from that bullseye call will be because you don't know where the bullseye is and she will try to kill you in the burble. But at the end of the day, you want to take her to bed with you. 

 

I'm in love.... 

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11 hours ago, Gunfreak said:

 

I'm still a beginner, I only have about 6 hours in the game divided between F16,F18,A10,P47 and Spitfire. Plus probably several hours of tinkering in the options and control menu.

So easy is good for me.

But I'm unsure about the complexities of the F14, being a little older means it might be less complex, but older also generally mean less logical controls.

 


Personal opinion only but, none of those seem a good choice if you've just began with DCS (though I fully understand their appeal).
 

If you're just starting and really want something modern, with HUD, Fly-by-Wire system, fast and good air power, I'd seriously consider the Mirage 2000C (a review here).

But, to me, it looks like the F-5E Tiger II has your name written all over it. 😉  IMO, it's the perfect full-fidelity module to learn and have fun in DCS (a review here). 

 


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One more vote for F5E (for me the Mirage is very illogical and complicated instruments-vise, the F5 is much more easier).

Easy to fly, and a bit oldish, but clean, easy to understand systems.

 

Do you fly in VR or on monitor?


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27 minutes ago, St4rgun said:

One more vote for F5E (for me the Mirage is very illogical and complicated instruments-vise, the F5 is much more easier).

Easy to fly, and a bit oldish, but clean, easy to understand systems.

 

Do you fly in VR or on monitor?

 

 

I fly VR.

 

I just completed my first full mission in the F16.

 

I was just about to actually land successfully the F16 for the first time, when I discovered some F15s on the runway, and I had to slalom to avoid them. And ended up sliding into the grass.  But the bird survived and manage to taxi.

 

 

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FC3 is an excellent introduction into DCS for beginners, but for full-fidelity I'd go for the F-5 first.
Personally I skipped FC3 because I've had plenty of previous experience with lower fidelity sims, and went straight to the Mirage 2000C (which was a very different beast back then). In hindsight, I should have gone to the F-5 first.
It's a very fun module that I still take out of my virtual hangar regularly despite owning and flying most full-fidelity modules.

I'm all for building up your experience levels, and starting slowly with less complicated modules.

As far as the original question in the thread, it all depends on what it is you dislike about the F-18. I personally enjoy the F-14 a lot more because I simply enjoy "old-school" more 🙂


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Depends on what you wanna do with it.

If you can’t effectively turn with the easy-to-fly Hornet which is actually performing suspiciously well in that regard , then you maybe won’t have fun in the F-14 in a close in fight.
system-wise it’s somewhat more analogue and hands-on, getting good situational awareness in it requires some mental work, not sure if that appeals to you or not.

 

regards,

 

 Snappy 

 


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I would say the F-14 is everything F/A-18 isn't. If you didn't like the F/A-18 there is a significant chance you will like the F-14.

Anaglog avionics vs Digital avionics

Manual FC vs FBW

Emphasis on flying vs emphasis on system management

Very high flight performance vs medicore flight performance

Cold War vs 2000s

2 seat wit RIO vs single seat

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Think of the Tomcat like an old Dodge Charger or Shelby GT500.  Sleek and powerful and easy on the eyes, with a timeless styling that will still outpace the most contemporary designs...that will also not hesitate to kill you if you don't know what you're doing.  And you won't.  Not until you've learned to negotiate with it over many hours of practice.

 

But, like the muscle cars of yore, the patience required for learning to handle the F-14 will pay you immense dividends in the end.  Heatblur's Tomcat is an excellent module.  No, it doesn't have fancy MFDs or FBW controls that will hold your hand every step of the way.  But what it does have...is panache.  The F-14 can and will do everything that a Hornet or Viper can do, in the air and on the ground, but it will be up to you, not a computer, to wring every ounce of performance out of it.

 

If you're looking for a "hands on" experience with your modules, then the Tomcat is for you.

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8 minutes ago, Nexus-6 said:

Think of the Tomcat like an old Dodge Charger or Shelby GT500.  Sleek and powerful and easy on the eyes, with a timeless styling that will still outpace the most contemporary designs...that will also not hesitate to kill you if you don't know what you're doing.  And you won't.  Not until you've learned to negotiate with it over many hours of practice.

 

But, like the muscle cars of yore, the patience required for learning to handle the F-14 will pay you immense dividends in the end.  Heatblur's Tomcat is an excellent module.  No, it doesn't have fancy MFDs or FBW controls that will hold your hand every step of the way.  But what it does have...is panache.  The F-14 can and will do everything that a Hornet or Viper can do, in the air and on the ground, but it will be up to you, not a computer, to wring every ounce of performance out of it.

 

If you're looking for a "hands on" experience with your modules, then the Tomcat is for you.

Fully agreed. My takeaway from learning the Tomcat, a module that I didn't expect to love so much, is that it has many of the benefits and versatility of a modern fighter with the visceral feel of a warbird. It's a real stick and rudder plane that lacks the sterile feeling of fly-by-wire aircraft. Best of both worlds.

 

Edit - and, speaking of rudder, get used to really kicking the Tomcat around using your pedals during close-in dogfights unless you want to repeatedly recreate the dramatic scene from a certain mid-80s action movie.


Edited by unlikely_spider

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On 8/3/2021 at 4:09 AM, Lt_Jaeger said:

The Tomcat you have to fly - constantly. A short moment not be concentrated and she is somewhere where she is not supposed to be. You will fly her very often without even peaking out of the window due to the fact that all the instruments are head down 'ish, Jester will drive you crazy and more than once you will eject him, if he doesn't do by himself, you will be swearing because she will go exactly the other way as you want her to go, she will shake rattle and roll your filings out of your teeth (I got a buttkicker and jet seat), you will loose SA all the time because there is no fancy all seeing display, you won't know where the contact from that bullseye call will be because you don't know where the bullseye is and she will try to kill you in the burble. But at the end of the day, you want to take her to bed with you. 

 

I'm in love.... 


Just Brilliant.

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03.08.2021 в 13:09, Lt_Jaeger сказал:

The Tomcat you have to fly - constantly. A short moment not be concentrated and she is somewhere where she is not supposed to be. You will fly her very often without even peaking out of the window due to the fact that all the instruments are head down 'ish, Jester will drive you crazy and more than once you will eject him, if he doesn't do by himself, you will be swearing because she will go exactly the other way as you want her to go, she will shake rattle and roll your filings out of your teeth (I got a buttkicker and jet seat), you will loose SA all the time because there is no fancy all seeing display, you won't know where the contact from that bullseye call will be because you don't know where the bullseye is and she will try to kill you in the burble. But at the end of the day, you want to take her to bed with you. 

 

I'm in love.... 

 

24 минуты назад, Nexus-6 сказал:

Think of the Tomcat like an old Dodge Charger or Shelby GT500.  Sleek and powerful and easy on the eyes, with a timeless styling that will still outpace the most contemporary designs...that will also not hesitate to kill you if you don't know what you're doing.  And you won't.  Not until you've learned to negotiate with it over many hours of practice.

 

But, like the muscle cars of yore, the patience required for learning to handle the F-14 will pay you immense dividends in the end.  Heatblur's Tomcat is an excellent module.  No, it doesn't have fancy MFDs or FBW controls that will hold your hand every step of the way.  But what it does have...is panache.  The F-14 can and will do everything that a Hornet or Viper can do, in the air and on the ground, but it will be up to you, not a computer, to wring every ounce of performance out of it.

 

If you're looking for a "hands on" experience with your modules, then the Tomcat is for you.

I guess to fly the Hornet you need a good understanding of aircraft and weapon systems, the procedures of employment of such systems and MFD menu structure while to fly the Tomcat you need a good buddy and just a teeny-tiny bit of...

 

...the right stuff...

 

Good thing is that flying the Tomcat in and of itself is a good way to get both.

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1 hour ago, Nexus-6 said:

The F-14 can and will do everything that a Hornet or Viper can do, in the air and on the ground,

Except launch standoff A-G munitions larger than a Zuni.  Or have a clear TPOD picture outside of 15nm.  Makes anti-ship or SEAD/DEAD an exercise in either dodging missiles until they run out or <50ft ingresses to min range.

 

That said, my first time killing an SA-10 site solo was in a Tomcat.  Zuni to the radar, Mk84s to everything else.


Edited by Spurts
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42 минуты назад, Spurts сказал:

Makes anti-ship or SEAD/DEAD an exercise in either dodging missiles until they run out or <50ft ingresses to min range.

 

That said, my first time killing an SA-10 site solo was in a Tomcat.  Zuni to the radar, Mk84s to everything else.

1. You do realise that you have just made a very compelling argument in favour of the Tomcat, right? :pilotfly:Because...

 

2. I bet that was more spectacular, demanding and, shall I say, involved than designate-pickle-rinse-repeat. I mean, we have three planes capable of doing the latter already (with more on the way), and it's not like there's some big difference between them in that regard. I already own all three of them, and as it is two of them are collecting dust. I guess I would buy the Eurofighter, if only for European weapons and out of my general fondness for deltas, but the F-15 purchase is currently really hard for me to justify.

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The F-14 is about the perfect airplane, it's a wonderful module - just beautiful.

 

You have a greater connection to the aircraft, it rumbles, it shakes, it gives you feedback, it straddles nicely the period between the F-4 and the 4th gen fly-by-wire fighters.

If you're used to flying WWII fighters (like I was) you'll wear it like a glove. If you're used to yanking on FBW aircraft then you'll have to adjust a bit.

 

It IS "visceral" though like Spurts said above...good description. Just like early-war WWII aircraft are more visceral than late war WWII aircraft, (I've often used this term to describe them) so the Tomcat is more visceral than later fighters...HB did a great job with capturing that.

 

Plus it's the only aircraft with Top Gun music playing in your head when you fly it...so there's that.

 

By the way I'm finding the Viper fairly intuitive, easy to pick up...there's no reason to not fly both the Viper and the Tomcat.

Whatever you do though...fly the Tomcat.

 

 

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