Best Heli

[Ghostmaker]

Im a jet guy but fancy a heli, whats the best heli with the most realistic flight, noise, for VR? I like realism like the heatblur phantom, it has the used feeling in cockpit

 

Let me hear your thoughts

[sirrah]

32 minutes ago, Ghostmaker said:

Im a jet guy but fancy a heli, whats the best heli with the most realistic flight, noise, for VR? I like realism like the heatblur phantom, it has the used feeling in cockpit

 

Let me hear your thoughts

All very much personal preferences of course (there is no right or wrong here) and it depends on what you're looking for: pew pew, or transporting beer.

 

While I own and love all DCS helo modules, the Apache is (by far) my personal favorite.

It is nimble, there's lots of stuff to learn (I see that as a plus) and it's weapon systems are extremely effective.

The cockpit view is awesome, textures are spot on and the pilot body makes it very immersive.

Also, using the gun in the Apache (especially in VR), might just be the best thing to experience in all that DCS has to offer (again, my opinion ).

 

If you want more of a mix, (slingload) cargo and firepower, you might want to go for the Hind.

[Ghostmaker]

Yeah i keep looking at the Apache, then i looked at the kiowa however its spelt lol. And then thought the chinock but thata ao new is it any good. 

I bought alot of jets and generally fly just the fa18 as ive got more time in it than any other. I may buy more than 1 helo but i think the Apache stands out the most

[MAXsenna]

Get the Mi-8. It will teach you to fly.

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[Ghostmaker]

6 minutes ago, MAXsenna said:

Get the Mi-8. It will teach you to fly.

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Only going feom images on google. Tbe mi 8 doeant loom vety realiatic cockpit wise.. ?? Am i correct compared to other helis?

[Slippa]

Get the OH-6A, that, really will teach you to fly . It’ll snigger at you as you try to learn and you’ll only love it more.

For an official spin, the apache is good, the Gazelle’s quick and a lotta fun too. Can you go without the Huey though? 

[Plokkum]

Definitely the OH-6A. Makes all the other helicopters feel like space ships. She'll teach you how to fly

Here's a video I created to help beginners fly helicopters, featuring the OH-6A.
 

 

[Raven (Elysian Angel)]

Assuming the initial request is about modules, not mods, there are a gazillion threads already about this very topic.

That being said, since you asked for a realistic flight model you should probably ignore the AH-64 for now, and look at the OH-58 instead if you want something recent.

Otherwise, the more established helicopters (Huey, Mi-8) have had a lot more time in the oven so to speak, so one could assume their FM is pretty much finished. They are still not using the technologies that were introduced with DCS 2.5 however so if you want eye-candy, better look elsewhere.

[Ghostmaker]

Ok so the sales on and i decided to purchase the Apache. Ill try and down load it tomorrow and have a look so the next few weeks ill be trying to figure it out as i fly jets. Im assuming i can fly it with my hotas lol.

Edited November 23, 2024 by Ghostmaker

[Slippa]

You’ll be able to fly it with your HOTAS. Rudder pedals are a good idea. 

 

[Ghostmaker]

Yeah i have rudder pedals as well. Do you have the Apache? Never tried a heli on a sim so my maxed out setings should make everything look pretty aswell lol

[Slippa]

I do have the Apache yeah. I’ll never admit to having looped or rolled it though, much. 

When I started buying modules Mrs Slippa nudged me into buying it saying “I’d have a go”. I think she had a quick air start once that lasted about five minutes before she ducked out. It was hangared for a while as I went learning to fly my other bits.

I grabbed the Huey and the Gazelle at the same time and since then I’ve bought the Kiowa and Chinook too. I flew nothing but my props for over a year learning to fly em all even though I had jets and helis hangared and ready to learn as well.

ED changed the flight modelling on the Huey when I was converting to it and it put me off helis for a bit. Tobi & Eightball released the OH-6A one day and I had to learn to fly it. I spent hours in it. I felt like I was breaking a horse but with a bit of whispering and gentle persuasion she finally started to let me fly her . I never knew helis would be so much fun. Before long I was ‘flying’ the rest of my helis and when the Kiowa came out I more or less jumped straight in and flew it easily.

I don’t think I’ve flown a mission or used any helis in anger though. Most of my flying is for pleasure (or punishment) depending on what I get up to. I fly almost everything I own now, I still have to learn a few properly but I spend almost as much time flying helis as I do anything else. They’re a lot of fun to chuck around as well as trying to be more precise with. Very addictive. 

Like a lot of things they take patience to learn but once you start getting somewhere they’re a blast. Well worth the trouble. I’m threatening to get myself another HOTAS at some point but I fly everything with a Warthog and pedals for now, no bothers.

Get yourself a swearbox and strap in . Enjoy.

[Ghostmaker]

 Haha yeah ive bought most the Maps, fa18, f15, f4 phantom, f16, apache, and spend most my time when on dcs in the f18. Only becauae i have more time in it. Juat need to fly with someone as i always fly casually on missions ive created for dropping bombs. Never done a campagne or had anyobe to fly with really. So just get board after a while. I was dropping mk82s the other day via ccip, and GBU12 laser guided bombs but sometimes struggle to guide them properly odviously doing something wrong. But now i have a heli i need to set all the controls up and figure it out 

[Dangerzone]

I'm late to this thread, but my advise is try first. You've got a 2 week trial on most of the helicopters there (except for the Chinook) - give them all a go for yourself, and decide which one scratches your itch the best. You don't need to take the 2 weeks to make up your mind, but it'd make a lot of sense to at least try a few first before committing to one. 

...Unless of course, the temptation to buy 2 or 3 or 4 after trying a few different ones might be there. 

Edited November 25, 2024 by Dangerzone

[Ghostmaker]

abit late now Bud haha already have the Apache, just used the chucks guide to set the Hotas up, what have i done wrong? when i gently add power it just wants to spin, like there no Gyro.

 

ive set rudder pedals as rudder but is there something else i need to add? haha 5 attempts and 5 crashed rotor damage lol

 

[Tiger-II]

Mi-8 or Ka-50.

Apache is great (I have all the rotorcraft) but I started out with Ka-50 back when it was the stand-alone Blackshark 1 and you can't beat co-axial rotors.

The Mi-8 is the best handling conventional helicopter of them all. Several RW Mi-8/Mi-17 drivers say it has all the quirks of the real thing, as well as accurate behaviors and handling. The sounds are next-level. It brings firepower, cargo, and sling loading.

In order, my faves are:

1a) Mi-8 1b) Ka-50
2) Apache
3) Huey
4) Mi-24P (still issues with this one that are preventing me buying it - some panels are not as functional as they should be, and the audio is severely lacking compared to Mi-8 despite them having the same engines, APU, and gearbox).

I can't recommend Polychop. I have the Gazelle, and I'm still waiting for them to update the flight model.

I'm currently debating the CH-47F.

This is what Mi-24 should sound like:

 

Edited January 3 by Tiger-II

[Beirut]

1 hour ago, Tiger-II said:

In order, my faves are:

1a) Mi-8 1b) Ka-50

 

 

What he said. 

[Mr_sukebe]

To fly, the Mi8.

Just so characterful.  It’s a genuine handful to learn and will try to kill you in VRS, but it’s so much fun.

[WeirdIncluded]

Quite late to this, but seeing noone speak in favor of the hind hit me in a sensitive spot...

The Mi24 is not nice. It won't forgive mistakes and you gotta play by its rules, but once you learn how to fly it, all the other heli's will feel too easy.
It's heavy, restrictive, but playing with that will really fine tune your skills. Despite all of that, it's the fastest heli out there, and it can do everything. With VERY capable weaponry, decent range, tough armor and the capability to transport troops and cargo (useful for dynamic campaigns) it's the choice I recommend. The F18 of helis, if you will- though maybe a little more rustic. Hey- It even has autopilot* !

It might not be the best choice for a starter, it will be frustrating but personally, whenever I'm not sure what mission I'm going to fly, I pick the Hind and it always gets the job done. You can even kill f14's with that thing (tried and tested!) and the Petrovitch AI is competent enough.
In the long term, it's the one you'll love the most, and thanks to its well designed trim system and stability assists you can let it fly itself at max speed for a while, you don't need to baby it (like the Apache) if you're trying to reach max velocity.

It ain't the easiest heli, but the most fun and challenging one, according to myself. So maybe not the best to learn... but if you were to get only one heli, I'd recommend it, still. (To be honest they're all pretty great, quite unique... Huey textures are a bit old as of today, Gazelle as well... but they all hold up)


*Autopilot, but it's kind of more like a half assed auto-hover mode that  only engages when it feels like it... Hey, at least you'll spend more time flying the thing!