AI ATC for SP and MP

[OmasRachE]

In my opinion there is one thing, that would really enhance the whole DCS experience by far. An AI ATC that replaces the Voices of ATC Controllers like AWACS, Tanker, Tower etc with AI generated random human like voices. This combined with a responsive system that captures the players voice and interpretes his calls in commands like "request bogey dope", "request landing" or "ready precontact" would just change the immersion dramaticly. Imagine you could actually speak to the ATC controllers and get a seemingly human reaction. 

 

There are programms like voice attack or even things like beyond ATC which show, that it is possible. I would be willing to buy it as a module or even consider paying for some kind of season pass to get this feature if neccesary.

 

So ED, are you planning to do something like this or have even discussed it? Is there anybody else who would love such an ATC improvement? 

[Silver_Dragon]

IA ATC has planned by ED and take time.

[OmasRachE]

Cool I did not notice that. Do you have any sources for me? Would be really interested in how they plan to implement this. A little update from NineLine or BIGNEWIE would be appreceated too.

Edited 10 hours ago by OmasRachE

[skywalker22]

Here it is all explained.

 

[Silver_Dragon]

The Supercarrier ATC IA has a first steep to add more plausible ATC to bases on a future, that has separated by the old "common" ATC. About Improments, Wags has talk about them on the January 2025 Q&A (21:20 to 22:38)

 

[SharpeXB]

Stuff like BeyondATC is very cool indeed. You’ll notice they are paid add-ons though or even require subscriptions. I don’t think the user base in DCS is sufficient to fund something like this. We can dream though. 

[OmasRachE]

Thank you guys. Good to see that something is in the making.

All I know is that when we have a human ATC which knows what he is doing even the most boring practice sessions feel so much better and also more challenging due to the fact that you have to spend more attention on the communication while following your task and flying the plane. So if there would be an affordable fee to pay for our MP Servers, I´m pretty sure we would spend some money for this.

[Northstar98]

5 hours ago, skywalker22 said:

Here it is all explained.

Hardly - they spoke very little of the ATC system itself - they only specifically mentioned "voice generation" and "interface" while omitting any details about what this new system is supposed to achieve and what capabilities and fidelity will it have - they've left an absolute tonne of potential questions unanswered.

Questions like:

1. Will it support multiple approach types? For example:
   • Visual straight-in (the only type it supports now).
   • Overhead
   • Instrument (and there are various types here, it should support at least one kind of instrument approach though I'd also at least include PAR given how many of our aerodromes are depicted with PAR equipment).
   • Unrestricted (i.e. only report on final).
2. Will it provide taxi instructions? Both to the active runway and to the designated parking spot upon landing? And will the ATC tell us to hold short, line up and wait/position and hold and takeoff?
3. Will it attempt to manage traffic around the aerodrome? Currently aircraft are all put into the same orbit, which they fly at the same altitude but at different speeds, leading to the kind of chaos one might expect.
4. Will AI aircraft interact with it and obey its instructions? And will the AI be smart enough to not talk over each other?
5. Will it support parallel runways?
6. Will it provide vectors where applicable? Preferably following real-world approach plates if available. Even if it meant vectoring you to at least an initial approach fix, getting you there heading the right direction, at the right speed and altitude? Currently ATC will only provide bearing and range to a point along the extended runway centreline.
7. Will we be able to declare an emergency and have the ATC prioritise that aircraft to land?
8. Will it support touch and goes?
9. Will the ground controller follow a schedule? For instance to try and get aircraft to takeoff at designated times (important not only for spacing, but to aid in getting aircraft to reach their time-on-target at the right time).
10. Will we have ATIS where applicable?
11. Will we be able to request QFE and QNH?
12. Will we be able to say "say again" if we miss a transmission?
13. Will the different agencies be separated where applicable, as per IRL? (ground, tower, approach/departure).
14. Will there be any departure instructions? Perhaps following a real-life departure procedure (or a made up one) or at minimum depart heading [bearing to first waypoint], resume own navigation. Right now all it does is clear you up FL 300 for seemingly no reason.
15. Will we have multiple pilot voices and will there be multiple voices for each agency?
16. Will it be intelligent enough to not direct aircraft to taxi, takeoff and land onto runways, runway access points and taxiways that are unserviceable (for instance from debris from aircraft crashes or from damage by OCA strikes).
17. Will it support heliports and rotary-wing operations in general?
18. Will we be able to override what runway is active?
19. Will we be able to designate aerodromes as closed? Meaning that ATC isn't present, lighting doesn't come on, associated NAVAIDS become inoperative etc.
20. Will we be able to override what NAVAIDS are operational or not and whether the lighting is on or not? The last one we can do with aircraft carriers.
21. Will it have realistic detection and identification capability? For example not being able to vector aircraft it cannot detect or identify (when multiple aircraft are present in the vicinity)?

I'm sure there are other's as well (like I could've thrown in - will we get PAR units (there's already an RSP-7 in the files) and will we get aerodrome beacons and identification beacons for aerodromes that should have them? Even better if we could get these as a placeable ground unit.

But these are the kind of questions that remain unanswered as far as a new ATC system go and IMO most of these are essential and some are downright basic - apart from #8 and the 2nd part of #14, 1-15 (at least) is what the ATC system in the other F-16-orientated sim already does and does pretty damn well in my experience - I would hope a new ATC system for DCS would at least try and match its functionality.

1-7 are what I'd describe as bare minimum for what an ATC system needs to be able to do.

 

And they spoke about the interface - well the other sim also recently added a new interface, but some (me included) weren't really a fan of it, so the previous interface was also kept as an option - can we expect something similar? Giving us the option keeps both sides happy.

 

Even the supercarrier ATC (which you technically have to pay for) has plenty of shortcomings (and this also isn't exhaustive):

• It only supports carrier qualifications (CQ) operations and not ziplip, but does not support touch and goes nor bolters (even generally).
• The AI doesn't interact with it at all, meaning it's not only far less immersive and doesn't feel as alive as it could be, but you also don't have the same situational awareness you should have.
• There's communications missing (particular related to departure and CASE III waveoff/bolter procedures).
• It doesn't have the agencies frequency separated (making switch approach/switch tower callouts meaningless).
• It doesn't support callsigns for the Forrestal.
• LSO speed callouts only reference the Hornet's AoA range and not the state of the AoA indexer repeater lights (so you get incorrect speed awareness and spoeed gradings for anything that's not a Hornet).
• There's only a single pilot voice (which sounds drastically different when talking to everybody else) and there's only 1 tower, marshal and LSO voice.
• It doesn't have realistic detection and identification capability.

Edited 3 hours ago by Northstar98
Added departure instructions