check procedures TWS with datalink ON - TMS RIGHT does not work

[Nedum]

On 1/13/2025 at 6:58 PM, Raptor9 said:

A lot to unpack in this thread, but I'll do my best to explain it in the clearest but briefest of terms. First, when using TWS it takes several moments to build a radar track (large, solid square) from a raw radar return, or "search target" (small solid square). The longer the scan time, the longer it takes to build a radar track. For example, if using a 1-bar scan with a narrow azimuth, the radar track can be built faster since the target aircraft is scanned multiple times in a smaller time frame, allowing the radar to establish the track. This is especially important when building a track against maneuvering targets. In the first image below, several radar tracks have been established.

In the second image below, other aircraft have been detected by the radar enough times to build additional radar tracks, which is an automatic process.

Once a radar track is established, it can then be upgraded to a system track within the system track file. Once a system track is established, it will appear as a large, hollow square if not correlated with any offboard datalink information. If no system tracks have been established from radar tracks, TMS Right will command up to 10 radar tracks to be upgraded to system tracks within the system track file, since a maximum of 10 tracks within the system track file can be derived from radar tracks, and will bug the closest as the highest priority target, or Target Of Interest (TOI) with a circle. (The remaining solid white square on the FCR MFD below was established as a radar track after already upgrading the other 9 to system tracks.)

Once any system track is bugged as TOI, this will also command the radar to a +/-25 degree azimuth scan centered on the TOI, which may cause some existing tracks to be dropped if they remain outside the FCR scan volume for several moments. In the image below, TMS Right was used to step the TOI through several tracks. Several moments of the state shown in the image below will cause the three tracks on the left to be dropped.

When TNDL is incorporated, datalink tracks are contributed from offboard sources and are contained within the F-16's system track file like the radar tracks that have been upgraded to system tracks. However, if a target aircraft is being tracked by the F-16's FCR and is also present within the system track file from an offboard datalink track, the two tracks will be correlated and the track information from the offboard datalink source will be added to the system track sourced from the onboard FCR. Under these conditions, the radar track is essentially upgraded to a system track automatically by the fact it is being correlated with information from an existing system track.

Pressing TMS Right will immediately bug the closest target as the TOI since the radar tracks are already upgraded to system tracks, and since they have inherited the datalink information from the contributing offboard source within the system track file, the target symbol reflects this added information. In the image below, since a target has been bugged, the FCR scan volume is reduced to a +/-25 degree azimuth scan as before, dropping one of the radar tracks, which reverts to a surveillance air track being received from a nearby E-3 AWACS aircraft.

If the pilot wished to bug the far right target for an engagement, it must be one of the 10 system tracks that have been established from a radar track.

Once the cursor is slewed to that datalink track to steer the FCR scan volume to re-detect the target, it will still take a few moments before the target can be bugged as TOI, so that the FCR can establish that track as one of the 10 system tracks based on reliable radar track information. However, as can be seen, other tracks will be dropped to only offboard tracks as they lose their radar track information.

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Now, having said all of that, before the posts start appearing regarding radar tracks that have been correlated with offboard surveillance tracks and leading to differences between the colors and shapes when they become correlated/uncorrelated, it is a known issue that will hopefully be resolved in the near future.

Please, please, PLEASE explain to me why the pilot is not allowed to see which target is a system target when DL is switched on! Why has the army installed a system that prevents the pilot from getting an overview of the situation that he already had without DL on? 
All the funny pictures, and to this day no one can explain to me why the pilot sees less, has less of an overview, cannot see at a glance on the radar display which targets are actually system targets and how many there are? 
What is the reason for expecting the pilot to do more work and increasing the risk, thereby increasing the danger of errors by the pilot?
What is the reason why, with DL on, it is not possible in any situation to see a “hollow” “yellow” square to identify which track is a system track? Which ROE prevents the pilot from seeing which track is a system track with DL switched on?

I really want to understand the system, but no one can explain to me why, with DL switched on, the situational overview is restricted and deteriorates. If possible, explain what I have to do to see which target has become a system target, or isn't a system target anymore. Currently, there is no way to get this and no logic behind all this behavior!

Actual behavior: With DL on, "help" the pilot with disabling parts of the situational awareness and adding some button smashing. Really? I hardly believe DL should work this way!

Edit:

And just as an aside, some of the image descriptions are incorrect!
In the image with DL off or IFF 2 times left, you can clearly see that one target is not a system target (third and fourth images from the top).
There are a total of 10 targets, 9 system targets, one of which is bugged and one is just a tracked target!
However, the next image explains that all 10 targets are system targets.
How exactly can you tell?
Assuming that while DL is on, additional targets are added that are tracked by the radar, how does the pilot now recognize which targets are not yet system targets?
What happens if 3 of the previous system targets are not detected by the radar at the same time, and the targets visible to the pilot on the display are still 10?
If all this happens while the pilot briefly looks at the HUD, how does the pilot recognize this change with DL on?
How can the pilot recognize this important difference when both the tracked and system targets look the same, thick filled yellow squares?

I have the feeling ED is unable to understand the issue!

 

Edited 7 hours ago by Nedum