DD_Fenrir

Fen's booked Holiday Inn for Friday night only, attending the practise day Friday and Legends proper on Saturday and RTB that eve. Papa-Fen will be my wingman. ?

Not at all Arjen. First we need to fix the schedule, work out what the most popular night is and what the most popular sim is. It makes sense to put that sim on that night, then work down the pecking order. That way when we go to the wider community to recruit we can say authoritatively "we play X on this night, Y on this night and Z on that night" and they can decide if it's something they want to get involved in. As for dropping 46 or CloD from our flying schedule? There is still room in the week for both the older sims - there are 7 days after all chaps, and only 4 sims - and there are people here, some of whom have no interest in DCS - understandably - and some whom have not yet been converted to the delights of GBS or are not keen of - potentially - spending a lot of $$$ to be able to play it. Some of these members are solid (if not crucial) supporters of the squad so by default they deserve to have the option of voting to keep their favourite supported. Either that or we risk alienating - or even elbowing out of the squad - old friends.

We need to start moving on making a decision on when we fly what. This being the DangerDogz, I believe it should be a democratic process. To do so, I propose a series of votes/scoring templates to in order to establish : a) what prioritization to assign the various sims we have available. b) what days people prefer to fly. If you could please put the four sims in order of your personal preference, with 1. being most favoured. Then do the same and for the days you would most like to fly on. Here are mine as both submittal and example: 1. DCS 2. GBS (BoX) 3. CloD 4. Il-2:1946 1. Thursday 2. Sunday 3. Monday 4. Tuesday 5. Wednesday 6. Friday 7. Saturday I will collate the results in spreadsheet which I will make available to all members on request and we can make decisions thereon.

Re: CloD. It's got a bit stagnant lately, low numbers, and a bit of a "same old, same old" aura creeping in; however, it is still: 1) a flight sim 2) a good number of us own it 3) we have a strong presence in the CloD Community because of it (therefore could be a door to recruitment, which we need to work on) 4) there is an expansion out soon to bring a new terrain and many new a/c. Plus, and from a personal standpoint, just because I don't fly it weekly does not necessarily mean I don't wish to fly it all! The server can be fun, particularly if you team to achieve an objective rather than just operate a collection of lone wolves. For these reasons, keeping a toe in the water with CloD could be prudent. It seems to me that GBS and DCS have the most numbers attending. These then I suggest should move to the Sunday (GBS), Tuesday (GBS), Thursday (DCS) slots. Perhaps have CloD Wednesday, and Il-2:1946 Monday or vice versa. There's still Friday/Saturday also. Are we leaving these unassigned?

Good call Mick. If the current allocation of particular sims to specific evenings is causing you to miss out regularly then perhaps a re-organisation is in order. I myself can only really fly two evenings a week; as the squad DCS flagwaver, I've been concentrating on providing support for DCS users on these nights and joining other sim nights when I can.

The Big boy tripling heading with UPs other vintage steamer the #844 Northern & a diesel - impressive stuff!

No joke - the Ishak/Rata is now in DCS! I knew this was in progress but it apparently launched today into the Open Beta. ? The fanfare has been somewhat subdued..lol! https://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=240529&highlight=I-16

Dave, forgot to add the "nose wheel kneel" to the Take-off section - only valid for the carrier, naturally, but still as you've elaborated, your VR adds complications for keyboard/clickable-pit usage!

Start-up: I just use the clickable cockpit buttons as mapping these would be a waste of something more usefully at your fingertips in combat or wanted in a hurry, i.e. during landing or refuelling (and there's a great deal of those...!) Taxying: having the "Nosewheel Steering" button handy seems a good idea, particularly for airbase ops with their concurrent takeoff/landing rolls but on the boat I find using the default keyboard bind fine as it's generally on and I leave it there. Takeoff: "Wing Sweep Auto", "Full Flaps", "Master Reset Button [for the CADC]" would be my go to choices here. You might able to bind the "Manual Sweep Override Lever" but I find it fine - and satisfying - to use the clickable cockpit. Having all your Trims to your HOTAS mapped is a must, as in all flight regimes you'll be tickling them regularly, particularly pitch. "Launch catapult" is a potential but as you'll only ever need it in that specific situation on one or two occasions in a given mission, why not leave it on the keyboard? most of us have moved it to the Spacebar however, as with a joystick, the default binding for that button to "Trigger" makes it moot and it's a darn sight easier to access than the "LShift+U" combination that the launch command is on by default. "Retract Gear" for once airbourne also recommended, but again, if buttons at a premium, you should only need that on two occasions during an entire mission, so... Landing: The usual run of commands to get your a/c in dirty config for landing, ("Gear Down", Flaps Down", etc). "Hook", sure, but again, it's nicely accessible clickably in 'pit, and you should be getting it down well before you commence the pattern so it shouldn't be coming at a moment of task saturation (unless you forgot it!) and you'll only use it once, so is it worth a HOTAS button? Your call. What I will say is "Speedbrake In/Out" is essential on your HOTAS, and if you have the buttons, "Activate DLC" and the associated "DLC Thumbwheel Up/Down" would also stand you in very good stead. Weapon systems.. now there's a can o' worms. I'll elaborate more on those later....

For which I still have not forgiven him....

Is that speculation/wish on your part Nick or have you a source....?

Personally if you'd budgeted for £120 I'd go for the 32, as DCS can and wil use it - plus you'll have future proofed your RAM requirements for a while.

In the near future the Dedicated Server will have all maps available - as clients you'll individually have to own it to be able to connect if the server is running a payware map when you wish to connect. We would have to open up the decision to a vote as those without a given payware map would be unable to join the Dedicated Server at those times that those missions using payware maps are in rotation and thus we risk excluding certain members from using the Server at certain times.

Hello chaps/chappesses, Think it's safe to upgrade our Skyhawk installations to v1.3 now, not sure about compatibility with host, so if we all smile sweetly at FT and batter our eyelashes, maybe he could install it to the Dedicated Server... Available here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1sbeGMJ209PwhOIkW8tF9y0q_gvjdoOz2 A-4E-C v1.3.zip is the file you need. If we could all have this by Monday 22/4/19 eve chaps could help pre-empt any potential issues joining the server.

Victory205, an ex-real Tomcat driver posting over at the ED forums has covered everything you need to know about getting Tomcat aboard the Carrier in his post here: https://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=235301 There is a PDF attached. Read it! As an adjunct, he details the functionality of the flaps, slats and spoilers here: https://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=235701 The functionality of the Tomcats hanging-outy bits can seem a bit disingenuous so again, read the attached PDF to familiarise yourself with how, why and when these bits work or don't.

Evening all! "What is SRS and why should we care?!" I hear you cry. SRS stands for Simple Radio Standalone. It was originally developed as a plug-in for TeamSpeak but now runs completely separate - hence the name. Imagine TeamSpeak tied directly to the virtual radio systems in your DCS aircraft. You select a specific channel, on a specific radio and you will only be able to communicate with others on that specific frequency. Change the channel in you virtual cockpit and you change who you can communicate with. Clever, eh? Add to this moves towards making comms sound more realistic, and the ability to simulate various real-world limitations such as line-of-sight only function for certain types, degradation of signal strength over distance, and you can see it's an impressive and immersive little package. Why should you care? Well, for our run-of-the-mill nights it'd be overkill, sure, however as we get a bit more cosy in our various a/c I'd like to move towards some slightly more realistic co-op style missions, with multiple mission types occurring at once - in these cases having everyone on a single comms channel could well prove a bit overwhelming and the ability to at a key juncture be able to filter out some irrelevant chatter about a dogfight 80 miles away could save your ass when your wingman's SAM launch warning isn't squashed by some loud bugger yelling about the bandit he just splashed! Add to this the increasing number of interesting dynamic-theatre based servers other than our own that are out there that almost all use SRS, having it installed and being familiar with how to use it will allow us as a group to descend en-masse into a server other than our own for some away action, or for you yourself to investigate and participate a little more fully on these servers if you fancy moonlighting on your own if no other Dog is around. By no means is this mandatory, and will not replace our Teamspeak comms but I recommend you at least check it out. https://github.com/ciribob/DCS-SimpleRadioStandalone/wiki If you get far enough to set-up your own favourites list, our SRS is running on: 148.251.42.207 I would recommend getting familiar with the in virtual cockpit mic switch button bindings for your particular rides, and have a spare key/button binding to make TeamSpeak Push-to-Talk activated, else it kinda negates the point!

2. Pulse Dopplar Many thanks to Mudspike for putting up the article here: https://www.mudspike.com/dcs-f-15c-combat-guide-for-beginners/ Of which I copy the relevant part below as it sums up what pulse dopplar is all about far better than I could hope to emulate.I recommend dropping in to Mudspike regularly during your internet sojourns to see what other nuggets of info they can furnish you with.

1. Antenna, Scan Areas and Range Lets start with the basic misconception. I have a honking great radar on the front of my awesome supersonic fighter jet, so it can detect any plane too far for me to acquire visually in front of my aircraft, and display it on a nice fat radar screen which upon which can easily see them all and determine friend from foe, and each their altitude, heading and airspeed. THIS IS WRONG. This is the more accurate version: I have a honking great radar on the front of my awesome supersonic fighter jet, that - if I manipulate it correctly - might detect some planes too far for me to acquire visually in a very narrow slice of the sky somewhere in a horizontal 120° arc in front of my aircraft, and display it on a small confusing radar screen that - if I manipulate it correctly - might let me determine friend from foe, and if I'm lucky their altitude, heading and airspeed. Adjust your expectations accordingly... So, lets start at what the antenna can actually see... The main lobe is what we use to do the detecting - in the F-14Bs AN/AWG-9 this is kicking out the bulk of the 10.2 kilowatts (!!!!) of radar energy and sending it down range, relying on the sensitive receiver antennae to pick up the faint reflected returns of anything that got in it's way. Now for the surprise. This main lobe is effectively only 6° wide total. "Hang on a minute, Fen!" I hear you cry, "you said that we can see in a horizontal 120° arc in front of the aircraft! How on earth can a beam only 6° wide see a full 120° arc???" Well, simply it can't and neither can you. Much like walking through an unknown and very dark building with a flashlight, you would naturally scan your beam of light left to right to make sure you're not about to bump into anything nasty. So it is with your radar antenna. It is sweeping left and right to the limits 60° either side of the bore-sight line of your aircraft. At any given snapshot you cannot see the entire 120° arc - any contacts displayed are always shown at the last position they were detected when the antenna last swept over that location. This azimuth sweep is automatic, and commences the moment the radar is turned on and in a search mode (there are modes on which it does not sweep but more of these later) and the speed of the sweep depends on a variety of factors. However the typical time to sweep one half cycle (i.e. From left most to right most limit) is generally around 1-2 seconds depending on the radar. In most of the radar equipped aircraft in DCS that are flyable this is represented on the radar display in some form: as a line on the F/A-18 radar page, similarly on the F-14 DDI and as a carat on the bottom edge of the F-15 radar display are examples. It should be noted that 120 is not the only option for your scan width; there will be times when it is advisable or even mandatory to select a narrower azimuth range to be scanning but more of that later. To be expanded - awaiting still more typing from Fen.....

Gonna start a series of mini-lecture threads to give you guys something to reference to hopefully dispel some misconceptions you may have and increase your understanding of how some of the systems in real-life work and how they are emulated in DCS. We'll start with Radar, as this is not quite the magic, invisible, omniscient eye that some may (thanks to generations of earlier jet-sims with massively over-simplified representations of radar and its capabilities) think it is.

Didn't you know that DCS stands for Disingenuously Contrary Software? ? All part of belonging to the rich tapestry of befuddlement that is DCS old bean!

Lovely little(!) railway there Mark, my Dad's just gotten into US G gauge 1:32 scale (or was it 1:29...?) and is threatening to make a start on the permanent way this summmer. That's alongside the shed he built for his o gauge layout! Seems you can't have enough railways....

Some resources specific to getting lock on dem pesky MiGs in the Cat: Long range for AIM-54 Phoenix: The RIO has full control of the radar in this mode. The RIO should be in TWS mode (Track While Scan). Jester will be in 'TWS Auto' as a default. Make sure as pilot your "MSL PREP" switch is ON, and has been for 2 MIN before attempting to launch. Ensure your Horizontal Situation Display Indicator (HSD) [lower of your two TV screens] is set to TID - use the square topped switch on your right vertical panel by your right virtual knee; it needs to be in the middle position. This offers no control of the radar; it is simply repeating the Radar display that your RIO/Jester is currently manipulating. Hide your Control Stick to get better visibility of the TID. Default keybinding is 'Backspace'. Select your Phoenix missiles by pressing your "Weapon Select UP" switch till you see Sparrow (SP) in your HUD. Then press "Weapon Select PRESS" - note, NOT "Weapon Select DOWN". You should then see see Phoenix (PH) in your HUD and a number below indicating how many of them you have loaded currently. Flick the Master Arm Safety cover up (right click the red-white switch cover on the right hand side of the ACM panel immediately below the HUD) then switch the Master Arm Switch itself to "ON" with a right-click. Jester will call any bogeys/bandits/friendlies detected in the field of view of the radar. He will also try to identify unknowns via IFF. Range is indicated by the dashed lines. Each represents 20 nm, as do the gaps between. Friendlies will have a ̑ symbol above the contact dot. Unknowns will have a ͆ symbol above the contact dot. Hostiles will have a ˆsymbol above the contact dot. Numeral to the left of the contact dot indicates altitude: 0 = 0 - 4,999ft 1 = 5,000 - 14,999ft 2 = 15,000 - 24,999ft 3 = 25,000 - 34,999ft .. and so on. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO LOCK ANYTHING AT THIS STAGE. The Weapon Control System (WCS) will automatically start assigning target priority numbers to unknown or hostile contacts. These will appear to the right of the contact dot. They will number as many Phoenixes as you have aboard the aircraft. These targets are all being tracked and are, for want of a better word, soft locked. You do not have to enter any further key inputs. As soon as the target is within maximum theoretical range it will start to flash and you will see a "HOT TRIGGER" light lit on the ACM panel immediately below the HUD. DO NOT FIRE AT THIS POINT. Unless your going 1000mph at 40,000ft and your target is a huge lumbering bomber/transport that can't manoeuvre a damn, you'll be wasting a shot. Let the target(s) get under 40nm (25-30 is best) and then press the trigger - NOT the pickle button - for 1 second to release the first AIM-54 at the first priority target. IT WILL TAKE 2-3 SECONDS TO COME AWAY AS THERE'S A LOTTA SHIT GOING ON! The "HOT TRIGGER" light will extinguish. The priority one target symbol on the TID will change from number 1 to a countdown indicating the missiles Time of Flight. Wait a mo and the "HOT TRIGGER" light will re-light letting you know that Phoenix 2 is ready to fire and will be assigned to the no. 2 prioritised target. Press the trigger for 1 second to release it. Again it will take a few seconds before the missile leaves the aircraft. Rinse repeat until all your Phoenixes are gone. Select your Sparrow missiles with "Weapon Select PRESS" (SP in your HUD) and get ready to pick up any stragglers with PAL lock... see below. Under 20 nautical miles: And some specific Sidewinder modes:

Hey Crash. You have two altimeters to the left hand side of the central green tv screen, one is radar altimeter the other a traditional barometric. These what you're referencing?