correct as is The clock in the cockpit is 3 hours early

[Silent Film]

The clock in the cockpit is 3 hours early. For example, when it is 7 PM, the clock shows 4 PM.

[SAB0T]

anyone gunna tell him?

[Galinette]

It's UTC, and you can also adjust the time yourself

[Silent Film]

On 5/11/2025 at 8:52 AM, Galinette said:

It's UTC, and you can also adjust the time yourself

There is no reason whatsoever that the clock in the cockpit should be automatically adjusted to the Greenwich time and not the time in the mission.

[BIGNEWY]

Just now, Silent Film said:

There is no reason whatsoever that the clock in the cockpit should be automatically adjusted to the Greenwich time and not the time in the mission.

Hi, GMT / UTC is also the same as ZULU which is the NATO standard time used for the military. 

[razo+r]

28 minutes ago, Silent Film said:

There is no reason whatsoever that the clock in the cockpit should be automatically adjusted to the Greenwich time and not the time in the mission.

There is no reason to use local time, UTZ/Zulu time is basically the only used time in aviation.

Imagine having to coordinate a package in an area with one or more time zone borders inbetween, that can cause a lot of issues so UTC is used instead.

Edited Monday at 09:35 AM by razo+r

[Dragon1-1]

Sometimes a mission could be briefed with TOTs and such in local time, but as converting between local and Zulu is fairly straightforward, in-cockpit clocks would typically be set to Zulu.

[Silent Film]

On 5/12/2025 at 11:08 AM, BIGNEWY said:

Hi, GMT / UTC is also the same as ZULU which is the NATO standard time used for the military. 

 

On 5/12/2025 at 11:30 AM, razo+r said:

There is no reason to use local time, UTZ/Zulu time is basically the only used time in aviation.

Imagine having to coordinate a package in an area with one or more time zone borders inbetween, that can cause a lot of issues so UTC is used instead.

 

3 hours ago, Dragon1-1 said:

Sometimes a mission could be briefed with TOTs and such in local time, but as converting between local and Zulu is fairly straightforward, in-cockpit clocks would typically be set to Zulu.

 

Of NATO planes that I own and fly: F-15E - uses mission time; F-14B - uses mission time; Mirage F1CE - uses mission time. Not to mention all non-NATO aircraft. Only Mirage 2000C uses "ZULU time". Makes no sense whatsoever, mission time is only what matters in a DCS mission, "ZULU time" is confusing and of no use.

[Dragon1-1]

Non-NATO are a different thing. Viper and Hornet use Zulu, the A-10 does, too. When the clock is part of a complex computer system, you Zulu is the one to use. Notably, there's no daylight savings time, time zones or anything like that in Zulu time. Local time is mostly useful for the pilot to set his alarm clock so that he's awake when he has to step. For anything more involved, you need a consistent reference.

The Tomcat can use whatever because it has a mechanical clock, with no bearing on systems. For the F-15E, it probably should use Zulu. If the RAZBAM situation is ever resolved, that might change. 

[Galinette]

On 5/12/2025 at 11:06 AM, Silent Film said:

There is no reason whatsoever that the clock in the cockpit should be automatically adjusted to the Greenwich time and not the time in the mission.

He is a free man, he can adjust to whatever he likes

[Silent Film]

On 5/14/2025 at 12:06 AM, Dragon1-1 said:

Non-NATO are a different thing. Viper and Hornet use Zulu, the A-10 does, too. When the clock is part of a complex computer system, you Zulu is the one to use. Notably, there's no daylight savings time, time zones or anything like that in Zulu time. Local time is mostly useful for the pilot to set his alarm clock so that he's awake when he has to step. For anything more involved, you need a consistent reference.

The Tomcat can use whatever because it has a mechanical clock, with no bearing on systems. For the F-15E, it probably should use Zulu. If the RAZBAM situation is ever resolved, that might change. 

I couldn't care less what they use in real life, ZULU time is useless in the simulation. I can adjust the clock myself every time, ok, but why would I need that one step more during start up. At least they could make an option in Special Options or in mission creator to choose between the mission time on the clock and whatever the time they use in real life.

[draconus]

23 minutes ago, Silent Film said:

I couldn't care less what they use in real life, ZULU time is useless in the simulation.

The whole point of the simulation is to simulate RL and as you can see ZULU is used IRL.

You are free to use the game however you want and if you want to use non-standard time that's your problem and yes, you'll have to change the clock every mission.

You can also wish for such option in ME here: https://forum.dcs.world/forum/207-dcs-core-wish-list/

Another cool option - use Normandy or Channel map. It won't be a problem there