A-10 Tips

[Shein]

What are some of the best things you've learned, seen, been told, read, or figured out about flying the hog? 
Everyone knows what a mark point is and how to auto lase, I'm talking things not in the flight manual. Tips. Techniques. Tricks. Share it here! 

[Steel Jaw]

With no FBW and under powered engines, good energy management is crucial lest the Beast depart.

[jaylw314]

Use mark points on the TAD to triangulate ground radar on the RWR:

1. Drop an overhead mark point
2. On the TAD, make a mark point in the direction of the RWR threat (3 or 9 o'clock works best)
3. Fly a few minutes, then repeat 1 and 2
4. On the TAD, each pair of markpoints will be on a line.  Where those lines would intersect is where the threat is.  Drop a markpoint there on the TAD and slave your TGP there

When you're given a mission to attack a target from a heading, use the HSI and CRS arrow to keep your position SA.  Make sure you have a steerpoint near the target.  If instructed "final attack heading 300", twist the CRS to 300.  Now if you fly southeast of the target, when the CDI needle centers, you know to turn towards the target.  If you follow the CDI needle in, you'll be tracking into the target on a heading of 300.  If you get the instruction to "offset right", you just keep the CDI to the left.

On CDU, from the WP menu, select the ANCHOR PT submenu.  Press the LSK next to "HUD OFF" and it'll change to "HUD ON".  now you have a persistent data block for your bullseye bearing and range in the upper right corner of the HUD.

To get to the Inventory Store page to change a weapon's laser code, on the DSMS, simply press INV->select weapon pylon->INV STAT.  The INV STAT OSB takes you directly to the Inventory Store page where you can change the laser code.  Change it, then press LOAD or LOAD SYM to save the change.

Edited February 17, 2022 by jaylw314

[jaylw314]

During startup, turn on the CDU and EGI.  When that completes, go to the SYS menu -> INS submenu -> ALT ALIGN submenu and press the button next to FAST.  This starts the "cocked" or scramble alignment that completes in 90 seconds, simulating the ground crew starting up the EGI and aligning it before you got there.  It's supposed to be less accurate, but that's not modeled in DCS.  Note you only have 25 seconds to do this after the startup BIT page completes on the CDU (if you're too slow, it skips the FAST align and starts the default GROUND alignment).  Once the INS NAV RDY block flashes, press the NAV button per usual (I think the alignment data reads "1.6.x.x")

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If you're trying to intercept an aircraft with A/A TACAN, use the HSI:

1. Tune TACAN to the appropriate channel and press the TCN button on the NMSP
2. Dial the CRS arrow until it points at bearing pointer #1 (the skinny doghouse), which is the TACAN bearing.  The CDI should center.
3. Fly the heading on the CRS arrow and watch the CDI.  It will drift left or right. 
4. Turn in that direction to stop the drift, 45 degrees if it's drifting fast, 10 degrees if it's slow. 
5. Recenter the CDI needle by turning the CRS arrow.
6. Repeat #3-5 until the CDI needle stops moving.  You are now flying the intercept course

This works better than watching the bearing pointer, because it's easier to see rate of movement on the more sensitive CDI

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The default head position can make it difficult to see the top of the colored telescoping section of the boom in AA refueling.  Lean forward a bit or lower the seat so you can see it, since it's your distance cue.

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Use the HMCS symbology to judge distance.  The HMCS boresight cross is about 20 mils across, which means a fighter-sized aircraft that is the same span is about half a mile away.  If that aircraft takes up half the cross, it's about a mile away.  A vehicle-sized target is about a quarter and a half mile away, respectively, using the same references.  While there are a number of other mil size references in the HUD and airframe, the HMCS symbology has the advantage of being nearly everywhere you look.

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If you're in a flight, hook your wingman's datalink symbol on the HMCS using TMS up short while HMSC is SOI.  You will now always have a yellow line pointing in his direction, which will help with SA.  Note that this does not affect or interfere with the other functions of HMCS cueing.  Likewise, you can hook a different target on the TAD, so it does not interfere with that function, either (IRL, it seems you may only be able to have one hooked target between both, though).

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With laser-guided weapons launched at maximum range in a medium-threat environment, it can be difficult to keep the target in the laser FOV while staying out of enemy firing range, since keeping the target near the 3 or 9 o'clock position involves turning towards the target and masking the laser.  Being above 15,000-20,000' AGL can make this turn possible.  Alternatively, a 10 degree climb can also make this possible, since the geometry of the climb allows for a slight bank into the target without masking.

Edited February 18, 2022 by jaylw314

[Yurgon]

Here's a bunch of items I find handy.

• When flying with human wingmen, I like to set an engine setting (ITT) rather than a fixed speed. This way I can focus on the task at hand and don't have to check how fast I'm going vs. how fast I had planned to go (unless I have to meet a specific TOT, that is). My wingmen then also know roughly what kind of performance they'll need to stay in place ("One's ITT 700"). The Interstage Turbine Temperature (ITT) in the top left engine monitoring instruments is well suited for this, especially in DCS where my engines and those of my wingman have identical performance.
  Some rough numbers (all in ° C):
  • ITT 500 or 550: Going really slow, well suited for loitering and searching for targets while conserving fuel; terrible for wingmen to maintain formation
  • ITT 600: Moderate speed
  • ITT 700: Fast cruise
  • ITT 750: Very fast cruise (If I set ITT above 750, it's pretty much guaranteed that wingmen can't keep up, so 750 should be max for the flight lead)
• Toggling FOV on the TAD
  Toggling the Field of View on the TAD with China Hat Forward Short orients the TAD to the north. During cruise, I like the ownship symbol centered on the TAD (default FOV), but in the AO, the expanded and north-oriented TAD boosts my SA tenfold, and it allows to move the map with the cursor, which is also a huge bonus.
• Adding points of interest to the flight plan
  When I receive coordinates for a point of interest from flight members or a JTAC, I like to add that to my current flight plan to enhance SA. The flight plan should already include IPs, suspected target sites, range or AO borders and so on. Instead of going to the MISSION setting on the CDU STEER PT dial and losing SA, like many guides suggest, I find it's almost as quick to add the waypoint to the flight plan. This is especially true in CAS. Requires a bit of familiarity with the CDU, but is totally worth it.
• UFC keymapping
  The CDU, as mentioned above, is an incredibly mighty tool in the A-10C's toolbox. When we have to go heads down in the AO and click those small buttons with the mouse, it's a recipe for disaster. The CDU's major functions can be accessed by the UFC. For example, the flight plan menu is UFC Func Key + UFC 5. I've map the UFC Func key to LCTL+f, and I've mapped the UFC number keys to both my normal number keys and the keypad. So, accessing the flight plan menu is just LCTL+f, followed by the 5 key.
  Likewise, it's really simple to toggle between the MISSION, MARK and FLT PLAN databases with LCTL+f and 9, 8 and 7 respectively. Same for the other major functions, obviously.
• CDU keymapping
  It's possible to set a modifier key as a toggle, which is called "switch" in DCS:
  
  This way I've mapped the entire A to Z keyboard to the CDU keys with CAPS LOCK as my toggle modifier. Word of caution, when DCS loses focus, it forgets about CAPS LOCK, so the state of the CAPS LOCK indicator on the keyboard doesn't always reflect whether DCS sees it as on or not. Still, the ability to type with my actual keyboard is worth the trade-off.
• Setting weapons ahead of time
  Someone I know (totally not me!) may, on occasion, have borked an attack run because it turned out that the desired weapon was not selected and the HUD symbology was all wrong and unexpected, leading to confusion, task saturation, a loss of general SA and an aborted attack. To avoid that, I try to set the desired weapon profile as I set up for the attack, and double check before rolling in on the final attack.
• HSI as SA-enhancer
  With the TAD, the CDU and the HMCS we have a bunch of fantastic, high-tech tools to help us gain and maintain SA. In many cases though I find that the HSI will give me a quick boost in SA regarding the cardinal direction I'm going, or of an object that I've just spotted. Combined with the heading bug and the course knob, the HSI can be tremendously helpful in setting up good attack runs, like was already alluded to above.
• Know your basics
  There are videos from really good virtual A-10 pilots who know all the combat stuff inside and out. And then on an ILS approach they overspeed the landing gear by 50 knots, and when they finally drop below 190 or so knots, the jet balloons up as the flaps come down and they're suddenly well above glideslope. Before engaging in combat, it pays off to do some low level takeoff, navigation and landing exercises with the HUD and the TAD switched off, and to repeat these every know and again to maintain proficiency in basic flight.

[ex81]

Very informativ ! But how long does it take to typ such replys ?

[jaylw314]

4 hours ago, ex81 said:

Very informativ ! But how long does it take to typ such replys ?

Pretty quick, unless you don't use a spell checker