[SKIN] 53rd TFS BITBURG F-15A, 1984, AF76-0015 - BETA

[SOLIDKREATE]

BETA SKIN TEST, 36th FW, 53rd TFS
F-15A-15-MC (SIMULATED)

AF76-0015

 

DOWNLOAD: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1x-QRMaYiqpWgwoS_s9ca9geWAzB8fb4y/view?usp=sharing

Files go in: C:\Users\yourusername\Saved Games\DCS\Liveries\F-15C\

 

 

This aircraft has all new paint, Service, Caution and Warning markings. The Serial Number & Block board is also present and correct per the serial number.

 

*Note: I know about the marking for the RWR Reciever (Port Vert. Stab). It will be fixed.

 

 

Let me know you're thoughts and suggestions.   @EricJ @streakeagle

 

- Enjoy

Edited Sunday at 09:43 PM by SOLIDKREATE

[SOLIDKREATE]

Updated title

[EricJ]

Nice, I'll look at it later on though, in the middle of dinner, but from the screenshot looks good.

[EricJ]

Looks nice man, definitely is believable as a skin.

[NRG-Vampire]

On 6/8/2025 at 1:31 PM, SOLIDKREATE said:

Let me know you're thoughts and suggestions.

I like this skin.

However, please remove the excessive ambient occlusion, weathering and dirt on the inner side of the vertical stabs and on the wing/center pylons with the fake shadows on the external tanks.

I repeating myself but I don't like the fake ambient-occlusion-shadows on the 10 years old texture template. (that time the shaders/shadows of the sim wasn't advanced, so I guess the model/texture developer added those exorbitant ambient-occlusion-shadows to fill this gap/deficiency.)
Some dirt is ok on the bottom but the overall amount of dirt of the template on the tails, pylons, fuel tanks is looks bad/unrealistic IMHO.

Seems the metal (shinny) engine-cover-parts at the bottom/top, front of the nozzles should be more reflective and less brownish especially if it represents a new/freshly painted aircraft. (needs changes on roughmet texture: mainly blue channel)
One more things to consider: canopy: double-red rails at the opening (dark-red rail on the rear edge of the fix-part-windshield and on the front edge under/behind of the rain-blower-vent )

Thanks a lot

 

delivery ceremony? : all got "double" red canopy rails

USAF insignia a bit too high on the nose: pull a few pixel lower (height of the stripe approx): lower edge of lower white stripes/bars should sit on hinges of the side doors

metal parts reflectivity is ok but too dirty/brownish here:

it's a C variant but this looks right underneath:

clean pylons and tails:

canopy dark-red double rails:

 

Edited 14 hours ago by NRG-Vampire

[SOLIDKREATE]

12 hours ago, EricJ said:

Looks nice man, definitely is believable as a skin.

 

@NRG-Vampire

 

My reference photos don't have double red canopy rails. The AO maps, if removed, really make it look wierd. I'll make one without that so you can see. 

I have a lot of others too that show all their canopys like this plane below. Due to the ridiculously tiny amount of kb (947.7kb) this forum gives us, I cannot show you that plane, or the other one's. I will try it out though. I'll have to look at the roughmets if this plane has them for the engine panels.

Edited 18 hours ago by SOLIDKREATE

[EricJ]

1 hour ago, SOLIDKREATE said:

 

@NRG-Vampire

 

My reference photos don't have double red canopy rails. The AO maps, if removed, really make it look wierd. I'll make one without that so you can see. 

I have a lot of others too that show all their canopys like this plane below. Due to the ridiculously tiny amount of kb (947.7kb) this forum gives us, I cannot show you that plane, or the other one's. I will try it out though. I'll have to look at the roughmets if this plane has them for the engine panels.

 

It's on the nose texture, the rails are like in the area between the fuselage and such, roughly in the middle of the template. I just simply painted there than messing with a roughmet since I don't know how to mess with them that much. i know diffuse, but not roughmet yet.

[NRG-Vampire]

3 hours ago, SOLIDKREATE said:

 

@NRG-Vampire

 

My reference photos don't have double red canopy rails.

Gotcha, but there can be variations:

https://airfighters.com/photosearch.php?key=76-0015
If you look closely both pic shows double red rails: https://www.airhistory.net/registration/76-0015

This 1 also: ( note: red dot/circle ? old army air corps roundel ?, mini-red-star in the middle of the insignia ? - & looks dirty bottom)
https://www.jetphotos.com/registration/76-0015

I think this photo could have been taken later: (single canopy rail and "red dot" insignia again ? )

Edited 14 hours ago by NRG-Vampire

[NRG-Vampire]

Some test/comparison  screenshots with fully removed AO, shadows, dirt (2020-december: old shaders - no AO and reflection on/off options: DCS uses specular map textures for F-15C





Comparison: In the foreground the official default skin (darker inner side of tails), in the background some variant fully-without occlusion, shadows, dirt (2020-december)

2023-June: new DCS shaders, built-in AO and reflections by options, F-15C uses roughmet maps instead of specular maps (textures without AO, dirt, shadows - look too light, need to be darker or changes on roughmet textures.
Decals /decol/ (LN) and numbers (additional layers above base-diffuse textures) need some work too: On sunny-side too light, on the shadowed side too dark: probably decal and number textures need added roughmet files - changes mainly on red channel. (ED still did not make new roughmet textures for decals and numbers)

Edited 10 hours ago by NRG-Vampire

[streakeagle]

@NRG-Vampire and @SOLIDKREATE , I see a unique opportunity to showcase the minor and major variations in paint scheme of F-15A 76-0015.

The AirHistory.net photo NRG-Vampire posted of 76-0015 with the nosewheel retracting is noted as being from a NATO Tiger Meet on 23 June 1978. This is an interesting variation: note the partial yellow stripe at the top of the stabilizer. Also, the gun port looks like it is dirty from recent use. Unsurprisingly, it still has the "turkey feathers" on the exhaust nozzles and double red canopy frame.

Aircraft Photo of 76-0015 / AF76-015 | McDonnell Douglas F-15A Eagle | USA - Air Force | AirHistory.net #777476

The JetPhotos.com photo of 76-0015 posted by NRG-Vampire is also noted as being from the same NATO Tiger Meet on 23 June 1978. So, the red dot appears to have been used in 1978. Notice the full-length yellow stripe at the top of the left stabilizer.

76-0015 | McDonnell Douglas F-15A Eagle | United States - US Air Force (USAF) | Walter Van Bel | JetPhotos

The other AirHistory.net photo of 76-0015 posted by NRG-Vampire is noted as being from Tactical Air Meet (TAM) from May to June 1984. So, 6 years later it still has the "turkey feathers" and double red canopy frame.

Aircraft Photo of 76-0015 / AF76-015 | McDonnell Douglas F-15A Eagle | USA - Air Force | AirHistory.net #382609

The live.staticflickr.com photo does not have a date. It retains the red dot on the national insignia but has a full-length yellow stripe of the top of the right stabilizer in addition to no longer having the double red canopy frame. I cannot say for sure, but it appears to still have the "turkey feathers.

This is photo of 76-0015 repainted for Eglin in at Red Flag in June 1983. While it isn't obvious from this photo, the other photos of F-15As in the unit at this event clearly did not have the double red canopy rail and were gray across the front.

Red Flag 83-4: 60th Tac Fighter Squadron - Aviation Photography - Britmodeller.com

 

Here is another photo with the partial yellow tail-stripe.

This is June 1984, still in the Eglin scheme, but presumably about to be repainted back to its yellow-tail BT 53rd TFS scheme.

[streakeagle]

The time frames for the 1983-84 Red Flag EG scheme and the 1984 TAM BT scheme seem to overlap. I am not sure how to resolve the conflict.

The airfighters.com red tailed EG photo is captioned as June 21, 1984, 60TFS/33TFW paying a visit to Soesterberg AB while on deployment to Bremgarten AB in Germany.

The AirHistory.net TAM 1984 is dated May 1984 to June 1984 in the Netherlands

Was 76-0015 with the 60th TFS in Nevada Red Flag from 1983-84, then deployed to Soesterberg AB where it was repainted/reassigned to the 53rd TFS? I think the AirHistory.net photo has the wrong date and might even be from the 1978 Tiger Meet or anywhere else up to the time the aircraft transferred to the 60th TFS. Correction: I am certain it is mislabeled because of the "turkey feathers". The EG photos show the aircraft circa 1983-84 with no "turkey feathers". The AirHistory.net photo claims 1984, but has "turkey feathers". To the best of my knowledge, once they were removed or the engines were replaced with ones that didn't have "turkey feathers", they never reverted back.

All I know is that I would love to see 76-0015 in all of the above schemes. It would be amazing to have the complete history of paint schemes from delivery to destruction of any given airframe.

Edited 2 hours ago by streakeagle

[streakeagle]

It appears the end of the double red frame may have started with F-15C production: aircraft delivered from the factory with only the red along the sides, not over the bow or in front of the windscreen. This is F-15C No.1 78-0468 with only the side red frames on the front windscreen.

 

Edited 2 hours ago by streakeagle

[streakeagle]

@SOLIDKREATE I forgot to comment on the new skin: excellent! Keep 'em coming. Can't beat matching historical photos with such high detail and color accuracy.