[2.9.20.15384] F-4E can refuel at a rate of up to 4800 lbs/min

[Stickler]

The game manual (confirmed by the RL flight manual) states that during AAR, fuel can be delivered to the Phantom at a rate of up to 3900 lbs per minute.

The attached track recorded on a standard day in a reference aircraft and the corresponding chart below show that the in-game F-4E can be refuelled with up to 4800 lbs per minute.

Specifically, this is the case when refuelling either

1. a clean F-4E (shown in track),
2. an F-4E with external tanks and the ALL TANKS/INT ONLY switch set to INT ONLY (not shown in track),
3. an F-4E with a centerline tank and the ALL TANKS/INT ONLY switch either set to INT ONLY or to ALL TANKS (not shown in track).

In these cases, refuel rate will be 4800 lbs per minute until the fuel totalizer indicates approximately 5000 lbs.

In cases 1 and 2, refuel rate subsequently drops to 4150 lbs per minute until the fuel totalizer indicates approximately 8500 lbs, then to about 830 lbs per minute until the end of AAR.

In case 3, refuel rate subsequently drops to about 3900 lbs per minute until the fuel totalizer indicates approximately 8500 lbs, then to about 830 lbs per minute until the end of AAR.

AAR_fast.trk

Edited yesterday at 02:42 PM by Stickler

[Zabuzard]

What the manual states is the ideal refuel rate but in practice refueling is highly dynamic as it depends on the pipe layout. For example if you are down to only the left/right ext tanks it will take much much longer as they share the pipe. Similar for other tanks that are "behind" each other pipe-wise. Especially bad if you refuel the internal wing tanks and external tanks as they all share the pipe. Careful with doing math based on the fuel totalizer instead of the EFB fuel page (next F4 update), as it doesnt include the ext tanks.

That said, we cannot change the refuel rate of the tanker itself, its constant in DCS.

Edited yesterday at 03:05 PM by Zabuzard