Mi-24 missing features, fixes, updates and Wishlist

[evanf117]

let me start with a few kind words toward the Mi-24, i love the Mi-24 module, i was an early adopter (pre-ordering it) and its probably the aircraft ive flown the most, i know it is the helicopter ive flown the most, Petrovitch is a lovely co-pilot and is quite helpful in combat and with a decent enough selection of weapons it makes the Mi-24 quite effective against most targets . . .   but it could be better, so here are the things that i think are missing and Wishlist of things that should be added

most of the following requires no elaboration, when i feel its needed i will put it in (parentheses), and if something is a joke it will be in italics

first we will start with the fixes
1- Copilot-gunner multicrew jitteriness (when i enable the CPG's body he jitters alot like the animations are broken and when i move the stick his hand doesn't move with it nor does the check watch animation work)
2-external pilot head movement animations sometimes break (some times the pilots head will just be fixed looking down and to the left, i have experienced this while with a MC CPG and i was in the pilots seat)

2nd, onto the missing features (where did they go?)
1- working cargo bay lights (the switch in the cockpit does nothing both in blue and white modes)
2- working helmet visors (when you lower the helmet visor it should have some level of sunglasses effect so you can fly into the sun without it blinding you)
3-Air to ground mode for the R-60M's
4- the ability to "eject", to jump out of the hind
5- full manual (im sure it will come on release, but i am just noteing it here so its not forgotten)

as for the updates, there is one in particular
1- better/more accurate blade tip lights, (IRL they look like one solid circle around the top of the helo, and in photos it is the same, they dont look like 5 individual lights spinning round)

now for my favourite section, the Reasonable Wishlist of features,
(most of these are also on my fellow hind pilots wish lists and most aren't out of the realm of possibility)
1- reduced loadout ATGM's
(having one ATGM per rack on each side, some one who is assumed to be an Mi-24 dev said that they wont waste time on "exotic loadout's" but this is both bad reasoning, and untrue, its not hard to find picture's and videos from Afghanistan and Syria where Mi-24's are carrying only 2 ATGM's one on each side, it is a historic and common loadout and something i have many photos of, the apache has reduced hellfire's, there is no reason the Mi-24 shouldn't)
2- reduced loadout S-8 rockets,
(i have been informed that in certain higher altitude parts of Afghanistan Mi-24's flew with only half filled S-8, pods 10 rockets per side, due to MTOW limitations)
3- ability to rotate the Pilot and CPG fans side-to-side
(the brackets they are mounted on allow for this movement, along with translational movement, and in the front seat when you line up the gunsight with the bore sight the gunsight and cockpit fan physically conflict with one another, the blades clipping though part of the CPG's gunsight, this would also mean it wouldn't get in your way so much)
4- the ability to remove the PZU (PyleZashchitnoe Ustroystvo) dust filters
(i have no idea if this would effect engine performance, intuition tells me it would only slightly, and it would allow the engines to be damaged by dust, the main reason i ask for it is because it looks cool and there are many photos of Mi-24P flying in Russia without PZU even in modern times)
5- PKT/RPK/AK-74 door gunner options with 1985 period correct clothing
(PKT, RPK and AK-74 are all more historically accurate to the Mi-24 than the Kord (time wise the Mi-24P came out in 1981 and the Kord in 1998), as well as the PKT, RPK and AK-74 would allow Hind crews to not only carry more rounds of ammunition for the same weight and space in the cargo bay as well as it would allow Hind crews to have Door gunners on both sides at the same time, meaning the door gunners would be more effective against infantry and light targets (wider angles of fire), also as the PKT, PKM and AK-74 fire off the window mounts it would mean that the crew in the cargo bay would be more protected)
(period correct kits for the older guns would be nice instead of modern 6B Ratnik kit (2013) on the Kord gunner)
6- remove the door gunner payload and artificial angle limitations
(there is no reason i shouldn't be able to load GUV-8700 or Rocket pods on the in-board pylons while having door gunners, just dont shoot at your own weapons and you still have a large angle of fire, around where the pylon mounted weapon is, also the Mi-24's Kord gun mounts get artificially restricted when you load weapons on the wings, it doesn't just stop you from aiming the Kord at the weapons but also at the ground and sky below and above the pylon mounted weapons, effectively stopping you from aiming rearward)
7- Kord PSO scope
(as it seem the Kord isnt going any where, nor should it, i think we should get a PSO scope option as door gunners commonly use PSO's on helo door guns, the mount is already modelled on the Kord in game and it would help on getting those long range shots)
8- P-50T Bomb
(they are a training bomb, pretty useless in combat but can be used to mark targets and train bombing with, i think they would be cool to have and wouldn't be much effort to add.)
 

Now for a few Pics explaining some of the things i mentioned


in the above image we can see the window mounts for the PKV/RPK/AK-74 door guns, it would be lovely to have a door gunner on each side at the same time, also you can see one of the dome lights i mentioned on the roof




the above 2 images are examples of 1 ATGM being carried on each side, the top image is in Syria and the bottom image is in Afghanistan (i have many more images and you can find many more with a simple search, 


in the image above you can see a Mi-24P (i think) with out PZU's, looks lame doesn't it.

in the above image you can see a Mi-8 with the blade tip lights turned on (i couldn't find a pic of the Mi-24 with the incandescent), instead of being short separate 5 lights the lights should be a solid disk



in the above image we can see a Mi-24 armed with P-50T's



in the above image you can see the CPG fan conflicting with the window glass and the gunsight.



in the above images we can see PKV door guns on the hind, these would be a lovely addition especially if we can get one on each side allowing us to fly through afghan valley's and shoot out of booth sides at insurgents at the same time, also it would allow us to carry a larger number of bullets so we would have longer durations of fire from the door guns making them more effective even if the rounds have lower/no explosive mass and less range


in final, i think that is all, i might have forgot something, if you want more evidence of Mi-24's carrying one ATGM each side i have many photos and some videos ill happily provide in comment's, and if any one wants and extra detail about anything ill be happy to help, right, now off to fly the Mi-24 with a friend

(an honourable mention, the L-166V, adlest having an option to show the physical thing with the cover over it for those sweet sweet soviet-afghan and UN screenshots and Missions)

 

Edited December 5, 2024 by evanf117
adding context

[evanf117]

Half-Load ATGM Racks is personally the thing i want the most out of everything on the list

Edited January 17, 2024 by evanf117

[Stratos]

All those are excellent requests, hope they add them, specially the reduced missiles load and the PK machine guns on both doors.

[admiki]

I think problem with inboard weapons is more about its effect on gunner than danger of getting shot by said gunner. Imagine concussion effects of S-8 rockets being fired right beside you.

Even with guns, there is a huge difference in perceived shock depending on which side of the barrel you are standing.

As for tip lights, photos are misleading, due to exposure factor. Here is a bit better view. And consider that even this is at low FPS number compared to human vision.

 

[SmukY]

Another video of tip lights, I think upgraded Hungarian Hinds have even LED in the tips of blades and not looking like a single trailed light is even more prominent, as it is in the game.

 

[ACS_Dev]

We share a lot of features on your reasonable wishlist.
Regarding 1, for anyone reading this, check out this thread:

 It was very common, if not more common than not in Afghan to only bring single ATGMs on the racks.

 

Regarding 5, this would be really cool. I advocated for this in another thread for the Mi-8's nose gun. Basically, a PKT is worse than the Kord in some areas but it is not anachronistic for Afghanistan and is still pretty capable as an AI weapon. The anachronistic kit is also a pretty big deal. If ED were to do anything in this area I would be satisfied if they added the PKT, the ability for it to be used on both sides, and made an Afghan-era gunner kit.

 

Regarding 6, perhaps they could release a version of the Kord that has no limitations and is labeled as Multi-Crew only. You could choose between Kord for AI and Kord for Multicrew.

 

Less Reasonable:
1: This would be nice, just in case you weren't already aware the pilots can use zoom view/vr zoom to spot, and the front seater can use his ATGM sight. In the likely event we don't get binocs you can do functionally the same thing with these view options.

3: Definitely want this.

[evanf117]

On 1/21/2024 at 2:39 AM, admiki said:

I think problem with inboard weapons is more about its effect on gunner than danger of getting shot by said gunner. Imagine concussion effects of S-8 rockets being fired right beside you.

Even with guns, there is a huge difference in perceived shock depending on which side of the barrel you are standing.

As for tip lights, photos are misleading, due to exposure factor. Here is a bit better view. And consider that even this is at low FPS number compared to human vision.

 

as for inward pylon limitations, this is not the case for adlest the S-8 and GUV gun pods, Neall Ellis ran such weapons with door gunners in Africa and even if it were the case, the crew could dismount their guns and close the windows and in such case there would be no more effect on the cargo cabin crew than the pilot and P/G

as for tip lights, that video is entirely inaccurate for our Hind a Hip, those are LED lights, you can tell by how when you pause the video they look like a dashed line.
our HIP in DCS has accurate blade tip lights, though they are too dim, especially at distance they become invisible. the incandescent lights should form a solid disk according to alphaonesix (Mi-8)(in the ED discord) and im sure the LED lights should too. the reason they look broken on video is due to fast shutter speed. spin something really fast and it looks like a disk, its the same for the lights

On 1/24/2024 at 7:21 PM, SmukY said:

Another video of tip lights, I think upgraded Hungarian Hinds have even LED in the tips of blades and not looking like a single trailed light is even more prominent, as it is in the game.

 

as mentioned in my above comment, this is not how the human eye works, our eyes, in a way, have motion blur, one sees a solid disk, there are actually lots of computer monitors that instead of decreasing the brightness of the LED's they just blink them really fast, and yet our eyes dont see them flicker, though in some it does cause motion sickness as the eye can perceive the change but it isnt rendered in your mind

[evanf117]

On 2/2/2024 at 2:53 AM, ACS_Dev said:

We share a lot of features on your reasonable wishlist.
Regarding 1, for anyone reading this, check out this thread:

 It was very common, if not more common than not in Afghan to only bring single ATGMs on the racks.

 

Regarding 5, this would be really cool. I advocated for this in another thread for the Mi-8's nose gun. Basically, a PKT is worse than the Kord in some areas but it is not anachronistic for Afghanistan and is still pretty capable as an AI weapon. The anachronistic kit is also a pretty big deal. If ED were to do anything in this area I would be satisfied if they added the PKT, the ability for it to be used on both sides, and made an Afghan-era gunner kit.

 

Regarding 6, perhaps they could release a version of the Kord that has no limitations and is labeled as Multi-Crew only. You could choose between Kord for AI and Kord for Multicrew.

 

Less Reasonable:
1: This would be nice, just in case you weren't already aware the pilots can use zoom view/vr zoom to spot, and the front seater can use his ATGM sight. In the likely event we don't get binocs you can do functionally the same thing with these view options.

3: Definitely want this.

awesome threads, thanks for linking them, and the idea regarding 6 sounds neat, hopefully ED will listen

[AeriaGloria]

1 hour ago, evanf117 said:

as for inward pylon limitations, this is not the case for adlest the S-8 and GUV gun pods, Neall Ellis ran such weapons with door gunners in Africa and even if it were the case, the crew could dismount their guns and close the windows and in such case there would be no more effect on the cargo cabin crew than the pilot and P/G

as for tip lights, that video is entirely inaccurate for our Hind a Hip, those are LED lights, you can tell by how when you pause the video they look like a dashed line.
our HIP in DCS has accurate blade tip lights, though they are too dim, especially at distance they become invisible. the incandescent lights should form a solid disk according to alphaonesix (Mi-8)(in the ED discord) and im sure the LED lights should too. the reason they look broken on video is due to fast shutter speed. spin something really fast and it looks like a disk, its the same for the lights

as mentioned in my above comment, this is not how the human eye works, our eyes, in a way, have motion blur, one sees a solid disk, there are actually lots of computer monitors that instead of decreasing the brightness of the LED's they just blink them really fast, and yet our eyes dont see them flicker, though in some it does cause motion sickness as the eye can perceive the change but it isnt rendered in your mind

Im sure the restrictions for having a door gunner with a gun hanging out of open cargo doors with 1m barrel is different then here where Ellis team is using the window PKT amounts and likely smaller caliber 

[evanf117]

On 2/5/2024 at 6:58 PM, AeriaGloria said:

Im sure the restrictions for having a door gunner with a gun hanging out of open cargo doors with 1m barrel is different then here where Ellis team is using the window PKT amounts and likely smaller caliber 

the shorter barrel and smaller caliber has no relation as to door gunner restrictions, you can always aim the barrel up or down out of the way of any rocket or gun pods firing, the point of the video is to show that any shock wave caused by firing rockets and guns has no effect on the crew in the cargo bay with the windows open, and the doors would be the same

[evanf117]

something to tac onto the end here, the ability to use the "ALT" F-10 map as the Map display, so that the map shown is seamless, accurate and detailed, unlike the real world maps that are currently used which are missing in places and not detailed,