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Posted

Hey everyone

I've been working on a full-fidelity Piper Cub mod, specifically the WWII L-4A variant, for quite some time. Now that it's getting close to completion, I figured it was time to share it with you all. I started this project because I wanted to learn about aircraft physics and flight modeling, so I chose the simplest aircraft that came to mind, thinking I would just write the EFM and use a free 3D model as a stand-in. Eventually, I got tired of looking at ugly models and decided I wanted to take a stab at 3D art, so I ended up creating a 3D model, textures, and animations to go along with the EFM.

Currently, the Cub mod features a fully custom EFM that uses a blade-element theory approach to model aerodynamics. This method divides the aircraft's wings, tail, fuselage, propellers, and other surfaces into multiple components and calculates the lift and drag forces acting on each aerodynamic component. These forces are then summed up to produce the total force acting on the aircraft every frame. This approach is really cool because of its simplicity and how it naturally captures complex flight dynamics that occur at high angles of attack, such as spins or snap rolls, without relying on large datasets stored in lookup tables. The EFM also includes a realistic simulation of the Continental A-65 engine and propeller, including effects like p-factor, gyroscopic precession, and propwash.

While my primary focus has been on the flight model, I've also taken some time to make sure the model looks decent and is realistic to the L-4A. I chose this particular variant so it can be used in various WWII scenarios, whether early or late in the war, and it will have skins appropriate for the ETO, PTO, and MTO. Additionally, I've included some M1A1 Bazookas, so it has at least a bit of firepower, and we can recreate the exploits of Bazooka Charlie. Some parts of the 3D model are still WIP, but here are some pics of the current state of the Cub.

 

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Posted

Well that's awesome, well done! Looking forward to this one.

  • Thanks 1

Nah, I've only just met 'er...:pilotfly:

Posted

How far along is the project?

I see one of these quite regularly during the summer, be a laugh trying one out. Keep up the good work 🙂.

Posted
4 hours ago, Cliffhanger31 said:

And here's a stall and spin from the cockpit

Bravo!

  • Thanks 1

Nah, I've only just met 'er...:pilotfly:

Posted
1 hour ago, Slippa said:

How far along is the project?

I see one of these quite regularly during the summer, be a laugh trying one out. Keep up the good work 🙂.

It's functionally complete. I'm pretty much just finishing some textures, playing with the sounds, and fixing bugs that have cropped up over time. Right now, the biggest barrier to release is that I decided to re-architect my flight model codebase for the third time. It won't have any effect on the aircraft itself other than hopefully making the code run a little faster, but it should make it much easier to create other aircraft in the future. 

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Posted

Great stuff. Wish I had the know how and the money for the software.

Look forward to more props knocking about the place.

Posted
14 hours ago, Cliffhanger31 said:

Thanks everybody for the kind words! Here is a clip of the rockets in action. Apologies for the low res, my laptop can't handle any higher graphics settings. 

 

i may be wrong but i believe the rockets could be fired individually from one another, also smoke rockets would be great for marking targets

this is brilliant, ive been wanting more FAC aircraft in DCS for some time

  • Like 1
Posted
3 hours ago, evanf117 said:

i may be wrong but i believe the rockets could be fired individually from one another, also smoke rockets would be great for marking targets

this is brilliant, ive been wanting more FAC aircraft in DCS for some time

You are correct. There’s a switch panel in the cockpit for for arming each tube, which is fully implemented. I just fired all 6 at once in the video so I would actually hit something 😂

  • Like 2
Posted
On 5/8/2025 at 12:56 AM, Cliffhanger31 said:

You are correct. There’s a switch panel in the cockpit for for arming each tube, which is fully implemented. I just fired all 6 at once in the video so I would actually hit something 😂

ah yes i see, if you could implement smoke rockets that would be awesome

  • Like 1
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