No TACAN to tanker

[Tomcatter87]

If I use Jester to locate the tanker via TACAN, I can see bearing and range for some seconds, but both vanish after some time. It was working before - is that a bug or is there a workaround?

[Callsign JoNay]

Currently in DCS Open Beta you have to use T/R for tankers. A/A only works for fighter to fighter.

Not sure if this is a bug or feature.

Edit: OH wait you're using Jester to do it? Hmm I dunno then. Maybe he didn't get the memo to use T/R mode. I haven't tested it via Jester yet.

Edited May 10, 2022 by Callsign JoNay

[Dentedend10]

I think something similar is happening with the carrier as well in Instant Action recovery missions. TACAN works as I approach the carrier, and then after the break bearing and range information disappear. It was working well before. I am using the stable version

[sLYFa]

There's two ways you can set up a Tacan for a unit (ship or tanker). Either via waypoint actions or via triggered actions. The latter seems to be bugged sometimes so try using a waypoint action at waypoint 0.

[Nealius]

  On 5/10/2022 at 6:26 PM, Callsign JoNay said:

Currently in DCS Open Beta you have to use T/R for tankers. A/A only works for fighter to fighter.

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Is this only for the Tomcat? A/A works in the Hornet for tankers, or at least partially. T/R is sour for me.

[Callsign JoNay]

  On 5/11/2022 at 10:28 AM, Nealius said:

Is this only for the Tomcat? A/A works in the Hornet for tankers, or at least partially. T/R is sour for me.

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Really? Very weird. I just made a miz to test it. I made a client slot for a F-14B and an F-18. I made three tankers, an S-3 (3Y), a 130 (2Y), and a 135MPRS (1Y). In the F-18 I don't get TACAN information on any of them if I have the : next to A/A. I only get sweet TACAN if I remove the :.

In the Tomcat I'm getting a sweet TACAN on both A/A and T/R, so that's inconsistent with what my understanding of the current TACAN modelling is. (My fault for replying to things before properly testing myself). All I know is some of the guys in my wing have reported broken tanker TACANs in some of our F-14 training miz files, and they were able to fix it by switching to T/R. But yeah...both of the modes seem to work on my end.

[Matze81]

I don’t know if it’s properly implemented in DCS, but try the following:

Set the Tanker Tacan to 92y. Set 29y A/A Tacan in your own jet and see if it works. That’s how it’s often done in real life. 
Btw, it doesn’t have to be the 92/29 combination. Any two numbers that are 63 apart works. 92/29 is just easy to remember. 

[Callsign JoNay]

  On 5/12/2022 at 12:05 PM, Matze81 said:

I don’t know if it’s properly implemented in DCS, but try the following:

Set the Tanker Tacan to 92y. Set 29y A/A Tacan in your own jet and see if it works. That’s how it’s often done in real life. 
Btw, it doesn’t have to be the 92/29 combination. Any two numbers that are 63 apart works. 92/29 is just easy to remember. 

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It doesn't work that way in the mission editor. When creating a tanker you assign it a TACAN value that the clients are supposed to use. Just like the various ground TACAN stations around the map.

Edited May 12, 2022 by Callsign JoNay

[Nealius]

I've been using channels like 63Y. Tune to 63Y, A/A, I get DME but no bearing. My understanding is the DME part is realistic, but like Matze said I should be required to set my TACAN 63 away. Currently that part doesn't work. Occasionally I get channels that don't work at all, like 28Y. No permutation of T/R, A/A, X/Y, or even 63 away will work. 

Edited May 13, 2022 by Nealius

[Callsign JoNay]

Oh wait, I'm dumb. I forgot to respect this TACAN chart when i was testing the Hornet. 

That's probably why I wasn't getting anything with A/A set. Interesting how regulsr T/R gave me perfect range and bearing to 1, 2, and 3 Y.

 

 

[Hoirtel]

  On 5/13/2022 at 5:56 AM, Callsign JoNay said:

Oh wait, I'm dumb. I forgot to respect this TACAN chart when i was testing the Hornet. 

That's probably why I wasn't getting anything with A/A set. Interesting how regulsr T/R gave me perfect range and bearing to 1, 2, and 3 Y.

 

 

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I've not seen that chart before? Is that tracking the bug or is that realistic. Are we not supposed to use those channels? 

[Nealius]

That chart doesn't seem to be completely implemented in DCS. I often use 29Y for tankers and it works fine in the Hornet and Tomcat despite supposedly being unavailable.

Edited May 13, 2022 by Nealius

[QuiGon]

  On 5/13/2022 at 7:55 AM, Nealius said:

That chart doesn't seem to be completely implemented in DCS. I often use 29Y for tankers and it works fine in the Hornet and Tomcat despite supposedly being unavailable.

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With Link16/MIDS DL active at the same time?

Edited May 13, 2022 by QuiGon

[Callsign JoNay]

  On 5/13/2022 at 6:27 AM, Hoirtel said:

I've not seen that chart before? Is that tracking the bug or is that realistic. Are we not supposed to use those channels? 

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No, I believe it's a feature/realistic. But I think it's F-18 only.

[Dograw75]

So the F14 IA Aerial refueling practice mission gives 33y as the Tanker Tacan.  it does not work now but it used to.  and that's DCS choosing the channel

[Nealius]

  On 5/13/2022 at 9:21 AM, QuiGon said:

With Link16/MIDS DL active at the same time?

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In the Hornet I assume so, since TACAN ON automatically activates those as well. Those channels also worked on the Viper and Hog in the past, but I haven't flown either of those in roughly a year. 

[Callsign JoNay]

I did a little bit more testing with the Tomcat TACAN this morning. On one of my older missions I see some weird behavior. There's a CVN-72 (72X) and a nearby S-3 (1Y).There's also a few other things in the miz, but nothing with competing TACANs. On entry into the cockpit via parking/hot it auto selects the TACAN to 1Y A/A, but I get a sour signal. I only get a sweet TACAN on 1X T/R mode which doesn't make a lot of sense.

I created a brand new miz with only the CVN-72 and S-3, both same TACAN settings as the old miz. On the new miz the 1Y A/A settings works perfectly and gives me bearing and range to the S-3, as does the 72X T/R for the boat.

Very weird. The only difference between the two miz files aside from less stuff, is on the older miz I set the CVN TACAN via trigger rules and on the new miz I set the TACAN via the regular advanced waypoint actions method. So I wonder if there is a conflict with that, or maybe missions created on a much older version of the OB have TACAN problems. It's a mystery. 

[Guest]

I've got the same problem. Appeared in the last couple of weeks. 

TACAN is on and works perfectly in T/R mode to carrier, but I can't find any tankers.

To navigate to tanker my procedure is as follows:
1: Set TACAN to A/A
2: Set TACAN chn. as on kneeboard

I'm playing with VR, so the screenshot is not optimal, but hopefully you can see my kneeboard, Arco (S-3B) in front of me, and the TACAN setting. And the fact that the TACAN can't find anything.
Can anyone see anything I might be doing wrong? If not this is definitely a bug.

[Comes]

Having the same Problem, Carrier works fine.

Tanker works for a short time in the Reforger  Campaign Mission 2, but after a few seconds it's gone. 

Tanker does not work in the Caucasus Refuling Quick Mission in a/a mode at all but does seem to work in the t/r mode. 

Tried all in the F14B.

[Kovacs]

Hi, 

Same problem for me. 

[tuxsmouf]

Hello there. 

I have a similar problem on the mirage. When I'm uisng A/A for the tanker, I have the course but not the range. I thought it was supposed to be this way and I didn't complain. 

After reading this topic yesterday, I tried with T/R and it works fine. I have the course + the range.

 

[IronMike]

Thank you all, we're looking into it. This might be a DCS bug though, tanker tacans should ofc work with A/A and not with T/R.

[Northstar98]

Interesting, in my own missions when set to A/A I get bearing (even though bearing is disabled in the mission editor for the TACAN) and range - like I would in TR to a ground station. Doesn't matter if I do it or Jester does it either.

[Dentedend10]

I was playing the LANTIRN training day mission in the F14. At some point I had to rejoin the tanker, and the TACAN did not work neither in A/A nor T/R, or neither when I set it myself nor through Jester. TACAN back to carrier was working fine. Am using the stable version of DCS

Edited July 15, 2022 by Dentedend10

[draconus]

  On 7/15/2022 at 4:26 AM, Dentedend10 said:

Am using the stable version of DCS

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Workaround was implemented already in latest beta, at least for Jester.