Mr. Lucky

In regards to people posting OFF stuff on other sites, I can't speak for others but as for myself, I only posted or hoped others would because of what was being said there. Specifically that they couldn't wait for ROF or whatever to come out, because there were no other WWI flight sims. OFF had been out for years and it seemed incredible that anyone who espoused such a deep interest in WWI aviation had no knowledge of OFF. So, it would seem helpful to let them know it was out there, if only to give them some WWI atmosphere while they wait for their preferred game to come out. I know that's not the case here, but at least one of us only mentioned our sim to fill a perceived void not to advertise ours on another's forum.

UL's are what prompted me to get my tailwheel endorsement in the first place. I had heart trouble and figured I'd be relegated to ultralights if I wanted to keep flying (this was before sport pilot in the U.S.) and I figured if I had an ultralight, it'd probably be a taildragger, so the training would be useful not to mention the opportunity to fly the classics. I got my endorsement before I got my medical back, so I kept scheduling time with the instructor since I couldn't fly solo. I'd ask him what he wanted to do and he'd reply 'It's up to you, I'm just insurance and a medical'. It all worked out though and I got my medical back, but now I use the sport pilot rating. I too may take up some ultralight flying since I developed a taste for low and slow.

Yes, you may have to travel a bit. Most guys at FBO's are there just to fill their log books so they can move up to the airlines (I said most, not all), so they're not knowledgeable about the more aesthetic aspects of flying. There are still places that do the training. The people you talked to are probably referring to the FBO's wanting to do initial training on tail draggers for the sport pilot rating that have had trouble getting reasonable insurance. You may have to travel a bit because there aren't many, granted. I was fortunate to have one about 30 miles from where I used to live. It is in Waynesville, OH. Talk to aerobatic people. Find out where they got instruction. A lot of places that do tailwheel training give aerobatic training (many aerobatic planes are taildraggers) or glider towing. Also, if you can, get one that's on a grass field. Tail draggers are much easier to handle on grass and there's nothing better. Look for antique aircraft fly ins also. This will get you among a group of people who might have info. There should definitely be lot's of Cubs, Champs, Taylorcrafts, Stinsons, Wacos, etc. and if you're lucky, you might get a ride for free are a couple of bucks.

I'm getting errors to do with my squadron roster. Flying for RFC 60 out of St. Andre aux Bois in 8/1916. 1st mission, before patch 1.31L, friendly balloon defense, during debrief, got error that squadron members could not be updated. Then received normal messages about so and so not returning etc. 2nd mission, after patch 131L, same game day only afternoon, escort BE2D bombers. During debrief got same error as above. Clicked on duty roster to see if I had anything funny looking on the roster and got a runtime error and OFF exited. I haven't gotten this on any other pilot/campaign. Just wanted to report it. More info: The runtime error is 17 - Type mismatch Also, when it exits abnormally after this, the active pilot is not retained. It reverts to my previous active pilot.

Close, very close. I got my tailwheel endorsement in a cub. Really enjoyed flying with the door and window open. Just make sure your chart isn't loose. You know, if any of you are near a grass field, and would like to try your hand, I'll bet for around 30 or 40 bucks you can get an hour of instruction or an orientation flight in a Cub or Champ or other tail draggers. It's about as close as you can get to flying a WWI plane without building a replica. And, the time counts if you want to take lessons later.

Many people use the word 'immersion' too loosely or don't know what it is. We know. I've many a time had to hedge hop or fly down roads between trees to evade one or more tenacious enemies. I hate when your trying to land a crippled machine (anywhere) and the b@$tard$ keep stitching you with lead before you can land safely. One time, I managed to land, but I was too close to the front to feel safe, so I taxied further on, over hill and dale, then I shut down the engine and ended the mission like Olham, a little shaky and loaded with sweat. One time, I was in a DR1 chasing an AI SE5A and he was actually hedge hopping to get away. Surprised me no end. Hairy stuff.

And the guy on the left is thinking 'Now, it's chop..grab..chop..grab. Don't get it backwards!'

I have to wonder what would happen if OBD and neeoqb got together? Line peanut butter and chocolate?

Several ways to stop. After landing, and slowed enough, stick full back. This causes the tail skid to 'dig in'. Also gentle turns on the ground can slow you down. If necessary, when you get close to where you want to stop, shut down your engine. I read a WWI book where they cut the engine just before landing. This is very useful for the lighter birds. But, it leaves you stranded in the middle of the field and the ground crew doesn't like to tow the aircraft all the way to the hangar. You can either use mixture cut off or magneto cut off to shut your engine down in both cases, but it's a one-way ticket. No restart, so if you shut down just before landing, you need to be sure. In OFF , generally not a problem.

So, if I get this right, PW's dm mod is for damage and FortiesBoy's is for damage effects? I can't seem to see the forest for the trees.

Residing in the beautiful state of Georgia (not quite as hot as Florida). German from both sides of family mother's side from Oberhausen.....unless I was lied to and adopted.

The airplane would roll off the treadmill, as the wheels would only be affected by the treadmill and not the airplane itself. As you pointed out, the propulsion of the aircraft is by the propeller into the air, so the wheels are the only component affected by the treadmill. They might squeal when they hit the pavement as they would be turning faster on the treadmill than they would be based on the aircraft's forward motion relative to the ground. Or, if the plane is light enough, could cause it to nose over. As has been pointed out, the lift is strictly generated by airflow over the wing, which can only be achieved by relative motion of the wing to the air, not the wheels to a surface. Using a model airplane was spurious at best as I've seen many with enough of a power to weight ration take off almost instantaneously just by thrust and prop blast on the elevators. I'm sure many have seen the radio controlled version of Snoopy's doghouse flying. The large canvas sheet had a different effect as unlike the treadmill, the ground surface and therefore the aircraft was moved, relative to the wind as well. This had the effect of taking off in a tailwind, which would've increased the takeoff distance. In short, as UK said, it was silly.

There does seem to be some confusion as to which is which. Maybe when this is sorted out there could be a damage version indicator in workshop so we know which we're using. I know I loaded one of them and really enjoy it in campaign. I think it's FB's but now I'm not sure whether it's that or PW's .

I never fly with aids. My latest, best pilot was flying Sop 1 1/2 with RNAS 3 and had about 6hours. Just completed a mission where I spotted a flight of Eindekkers and shot down two. Now, I used to play death on die roll but lately have been using dead is dead. Still not happy with that as comming in to land on that last two kill mission, I bounced on landing and crashed. Killed in action. The mission review said I crashed at 13 mph and alt of 9 feet. Not a very serious crash but I guess the game determined that stringer snapped and went through my heart or the ol' connecting rod in the kidneys. I also don't use warp so I fly maybe 3 or 4 times per week, and it does get tedious, but that's part of the experience I want to have. The boredom as well as the thrill. I've fallen asleep several times to be awakened by the sound of machine guns to find I'd squeezed the trigger when I wen to sleep. that wakes you up in a hurry, believe me. Also, flying a long mission and surviving makes the accomplishment seem that much better if you've got the time. I retract my earlier statement. Due to the dearth of features on the briefing map, I sometimes use the TAC for navigation to a ground target, but I set it on ships only so all I see are the blue nav line and distance to the waypoint. As a result of all this, I never see medals, promotions or aircraft upgrades, as I don't live long enough, but se la guerre. I keep trying though.

Good plan! A lot will depend what time of year you come. Then we can point you where. i,e, unless you mean ice fishing. Also what kind of ranch? Cattle or Emu or Chicken ?

And, if you'll note, Dr. House was our own loveable Lt. George from The Black Adder in WWI.

YES!

Thanks for the wonderful and kind wishes from everyone here on the board. At least here, sometimes, it seems that WWI was the war to end all wars.

Those bastards ripped me a new one a while ago. I was in a camel and he (and his wingman!) were stuck on me like glue!

Never give up, never surrender

I'll put in my two cents here. It wasn't invented yet. But if it helps your enjoyment of the sim, good luck. There are other instruments (not German) that could help as they teach you when learning to fly. Watch your altimeter to guage your attitude. Generally, if it's going up, your nose is up, and vice versa. the airspeed indicator helps in this as will engine noise. Ascending and slowing down, nose is up. Descending and speeding up, nose is down. Also, watch your compass. Generally, if your wings aren't level, then you'll be turning, i.e. your compass will be moving. That's how I fly through clouds. Altitude, airspeed, heading. I still avoid going deep in the big ones due to turbulence and wind shear.

I have no trouble with the Aldis sight. I use it even in deflection shooting. It's just another aim point for me, but you do have to keep it centered if you're using trackir or it'll throw you off. Like Hasse Wind, I too have seen pictures of German fighters with similar sight tubes on them. One aspect of this sim is, in order to play it effectively as in real life, it's best to fly one plane for a long time and get used to it's characteristics, equipment, etc., fly for one squadron, get used to the operational area. It's all part of the immersion of this sim. You'll become proficient just as they did, and if you jump around a lot, you probably won't.

OVS....you're spot on. But if you want the real romance of aviation, I'd say get away from those spam cans and get yourself a nice tube and fabric tail dragger. I flew my Taylorcraft out of a real nice grass field in Ohio where I got my tailwheel endorsement and never had more fun. I kept it at an airport in Cincinnati where I also worked part time as a line handler and all the commercial guys would see my BC-12D and say it sure must be great fun to fly like that. And it is. Of course, with floats, the tailwheel is moot and, you know, for travel, they're not too practical (ragwings I mean) but if you want to get as close to flying these WWI planes as you can without building one (there's another goal for you) you can't go wrong with a nice Cub, or Chief or Tcraft. I moved to Georgia and brought my Tcraft with me. I now live surrounded by two farm fields, one with a long flat approach over a pond dead into the prevailing wind. You can't beat it. It took me 18 years to get my license with three stops and restarts, then shortly thereafter a heart attack and bypass but I got my physical back and my tailwheel endorsement. If you've got a supportive spouse, even better. DO IT!

Visibility range for us pilots can be very tricky. two to three miles should be a good range to see enemy aircraft. But not at all aspects. I was once in a traffic pattern directly behind a Piper Cub and I was only 1/2 mile away but he was almost impossible to see. All I could make out was his fuselage which was like a pencil dot. Then, when he turned base leg, there he was in all his glory. Dead on or aster, he's going to bery hard to spot, but if you can see some wing planform, that changes the picture dramatically. Then throw in the effects of camouflage, weather (haze, fog, mist, precipitation, sunlight, all wonderfully used in OFF), pilot's visual acuity, fatigue, etc. Couple that with the limitatins of monitors and you've got a complex issue. I fly all aids off and I look for clues. IS that far off speck a house? I look for movement against the groud objects to determine if it's a plane, just as I do IRL. In the sky, look for the black specks (need a REALLY clean monitor...I've chased dirt specks before) and I've been able to see a formation before they saw or reacted to me. That's when the real fun and excitement of OFF kicks in. Now, I have the decision whether to commit to battle or run away. I get to decide how to approach (charge straight in or maneuver for advantage) and , of course, I don't know at that point whether they're friendly or enemy, but I can use clues (heading, time of day, altitude, number of aircraft) to make an educated guess, but ultimately won't know til I'm close enough to fire. I've stalked friendly flights before. Camouflage? Can be effective. Many aircraft are very hard to pick out from above. And a N17 against a cloudy sky? Forget it! AI visual abilities? Now, there's a horse of another color. Now that we're on the subject, let me give my biggest gripe about AI, and not just in OFF. I've seen it in IL2 as well. It's not the uber marksman or pilot with radar vision though those are aggravating, but when the AI negates the differences in aircraft. Especially in WWI where the differences in performance ebbed and flowed so dramatically. For example: OFF - I should be able to outrun a N11 in an ALB DII. IL2 - I should be able to outrun a Zero when diving in a Wildcat. I'm not blaming FM at all. It's the advantage given to AI so as not to be too easy. I would like to see what OFF is like with the AI having no advantages and the same limitations as we, using only their AI behavior code. I think, with the work done by OBD, it would be enough to keep things tense.

Urp???? Too many onions? The Earp brothers might call you out on that one. My uncle was a member of the Vigilantes who often re-created the Gunfight at the OK Corral in Tombstone. He was one of the bad guys, but being a gunslinger was his dream and he found a way to do it!