Flanker562

I was able to deploy to 'ghan no problem with a laptop (though Vista... not good unless you have a JNN hookup) and most of the time I worked in the Company TOC (FSNCO). Then again FOB Blessing was not that bad off in the first place either. I had a Logitech Extreme 3D pro which if you pack your duffel right around it, can be taken with you. I still played SF1 back then and even managed to work on the Super Hornet before DoD changed the policy of no thumb drives. But yeah... start grabbing stuff just in case though... And a recommendation, start flying the Hog or Strike Eagle (or any ISAF jet for that matter) in the Afghanistan terrain as you'll see what you may be seeing for a year... just sayin

Me: F-31A with 4 x AIM-9M and 6 x AIM-120 and gun Opposition: F/A-18F EPE with 2 x AIM-9X and 8 x AIM-120 and gun. As expected from the shooter point of view the F-31 handled the Fox Super Bug with ease. The only issue was SA problems due to blacking out... seems odd as I have Blackout to normal... in any case as was what I dealt with when I got blasted before happened here. I got tired of the circling and fired my first AIM-9M which at first glance I thought would have missed but tracked right into his tailpipe, blowing some of his missiles and pylons and some of the control surfaces off. He continued to fly on and he leveled off and I shot him again with another AIM-9M. He continued south and I fired my third AIM-9M and he continued on. Getting a bit annoyed I rode a burst into his engine, catching him on fire until the fire suppression systems killed the fire. So I tried to gun him down again, and after finally slowing down I blew him up with a good burst from the gun. Takeaways? Not sure why but the Super Bug always seems to be trucking after a few hits. At first in my Mirage 2KC report I thought it was warhead weight. Maybe the AI gets more armor when he flies it as opposed to me as I tend to get blasted out of the sky with an Aphid... who knows And quite honestly I turned fine with the uprated Super Hornet, it was actually not too difficult once I relaxed a bit on the stick...

Nope and quite frankly its not missed though... I have been hearing "FAC in sight." (don't remember the whole line off the top of my head) which I'm to believe that if the aircraft is FAC capable that call is heard when you have multiple flights attacking the same target. Though I'm not totally sure as of yet to be honest but that's my read.

Looking nice Pure Blue!

No problem

Agreed... can't find the PAK-FA I used either, I think it was from insky (attachment with my edits below). The EPE isn't downloadable yet or may never be depending on real-world or USN sales. I basically got tired of the lemonness and cruising better even though I'm still in the testing phase right now as for an improvement I need some more data that still isn't available to make sure I've got it right. I have no idea on how I put it into a spin to be quite honest with you, I think I pulled too hard and next thing I know I'm like "WTF?"

Me: F-22A Raptor with 2 x AIM-9X and 6 x AIM-120, gun Opposition: PAK-FA with 2 x R-73M2 and 4 x R-77M In a nutshell with the PAK-FA modified with real world (according to Wikipedia anyways) what happens is you get like the KF2 Hammer and the F-31: Equivalent aircraft that can't get an advantage over each other, to a degree. Started off with him right in front of me. He started with a horizontal scissors and I tried for a gun kill but he wasn't cooperating so I flew past him. Had there been a gun he would have gotten me probably. In any case what it boiled to (and if you were working at the Dowey Industrial Center was a show of two of the same aircraft. I'd turn into him, he'd turn into me and we'd pass, both vertically and horizontally. In any case he got to a position of advantage and fired his R-73M2, defeated by maneuvering rather than flares and we continued on circling each other like vultures. Eventually I selected my first 9X and tried a HOBS shot, missing him as the impact point was too far behind him while we continued the circle game (for 7 minutes and some seconds) while we both strove for good Pk kills for our IRMs. For some reason while I came over the top he extended east and I took the shot with my last 9X downing him. When you make the aircraft to what's available online the PAK-FA is a more equal fighter. 12000 and some kilograms is not the appropriate weight for the aircraft. True Wikipedia is not the most reliable source but it's better than nothing.

No problem! But it's not the program, color problems is the operator's fault I've done a few camos and always have to remove the weathering layers so when I use that tool I get the same color as before but sometimes I forget myself...

For the most part Mirage Factory doesn't skimp on the details and the like. This bird had been in development for nearly a century (just kidding but it had been a few years) so for the frame to be "too thick" means that more than likely if I went to AMARC and sat in a cockpit with the canopy down I'd probably say "man they were on the mark.". And the fact that there are plenty of people who probably assisted (former Tomcat pilots) with the cockpit shows that that the time they took was worth it. Just my two cents... But as FC said, you can swap out cockpit models on another version and be happy

http://akvis.com/en/photoshop-tips/eyedropper.php Best tip is try to find an unweathered part so you'll get the best color... As for the line if you want send me the culprit file and I'll see if I can't help.

Me: F-29A Polecat with 4 x AIM-9X and tank, gun Opposition: KF2-Hammer with 8 x IRMs Well I can say that the KF2 is a direct match of the F-29, maybe the same FM but overall... there was no real advantage over us. SInce I started behind him I had to really goad him into committing into something. And this something turned into an energy circle. And in a similar bout, a lot of energy circles. However in this case I decided to go angular, instead of a pure vertical after getting caught in yet another energy circle. Perfect high shot that I had thought I had the drop on him from. Well I did, but in his death throes he sliced me up real nice. Takeaway? Yep you are dealing with two comparable aircraft. He would turn and I would turn with him, and I could get out of whatever he came at me, and for the most part I had the drop on him as he'll try and get out of the fight by weaving, which shows that low FOV missiles will do for you as he'll work for that FOV but can't get it because I'm on his back (oh yeah I was supposed to fix that... guess it was good I didn't). So with Ceasar above taking on the Hammer he may be just as lucky but remember if you're not fighting the Polecat or Hammer in something with high maneuverability, shoot it from afar

My thoughts exactly

There are some Greek phantom skins in the download sections... maybe you can use the dropper tool and get a more subtle shade but looking good

Me: F-29A with 2 x AIM-9M and 2 x AIM-120, gun and tank Opposition: F-14A with 4 x IRIS-T and 4 x AIM-7M (how they got on there who knows...) Hard FM Flying the Polecat requires some patience on Hard FM. First bout I managed to throw myself into a spin just like that, not good. Ended that and restarted the fight. The F-14 came around but I turned into him to force him to go past me without a shot, and he did but I did not know at the time he had off-boresight missiles. Had he been on the ball yeah he would have gotten me but he came low and came up while I tracked him and he stayed low for a little bit then came up missing me I guess for a gun pass or again had he been on the ball he would have gotten me. But he went high and he went low, I stayed high and speared him with an AIM-9M, total time one minute 26 seconds. Takeaways.. On Hard FM the uber cool maneuverability should be taken into consideration as its too much for the game and forces you into an unrecoverable spin. Play it easy but firm and you'll beat the system and also your opponent.

no problem!

3rd bout Same as above The only notation is that the F-29A turned into me realizing I was behind him. His radar was pinging my RWR fierce as he flew by. The best thing to not do is go vertical with this plane as again I went vertical trying to find the bastich (it is very small) and therefore when i went vertical it went vertical. And for this bout I was at 75% fuel. Takeaways. Ceasar may get better results but my impression is that the F-14 is just too old and not as maneuverable and too heavy. It is not a Scooter and not an F-16 which have conventional aerodynamics, the F-29 can turn inside of that too probably (a good idea for a bout). The intent is that the aircraft can turn so well in a knife fight that a guns kill and a 9X, not 9M or earlier kill is difficult but with enough persistence it can be done, maybe. The top screenshot shows where the F-29A was say... ten seconds at the start.

2nd bout Me: F-14B_96 same as above Opposition: F-29A same as above. Not much different other than I managed to evade it for a bit but as you can tell from the screenshots it was waiting for me to make a mistake and yes it found one and shot me down when I was going vertical. The only other particular note is that for less than a minute I had a pure easy shot. Should have taken it but this is to figure out what works and what doesn't.

Bout 1, 2, and 3 Me: F-14B_96 with 4 x AIM-9X Opposition: F-29A with 2 x AIM-9M and 2 x AIM-120 I decided "what the hell" and tried the F-14 on Hard and agreed, it actually flies better than what I was used to on Normal, but doesn't mean I'm going to change. 1st Bout Had 2 x tanks as well as 100% fuel. I started behind him and began maneuvering and we passed each other and I missed a missile launch and before my death I got into a classic Top Gun spin, literally spinning around and around. I applied my old Lock On technique by throttling down and managed to catch the last view of the Polecat as it gunned me from above:

76IAP.Blackbird was working on a KUB but nothing so far about it. But no UB exists in either SF1 or 2.

Me: F/A-18F EPE with 2 x AIM-9X, 8 x AIM-120 and gun Opposition: F-29A with 2 x AIM-9M and 2 x AIM-120 and gun. Unlike the "normal" Super Hornet the EPE F version is better versus the Polecat (over time) than the stock jet. Same situation as before as I started this time full burner which at the start cost me some edge as I was going bout Mach 1.04 or so and blacking out with the hard pull of the stick. Finally throttled down to mil power and regained control of the situation and started on his tail, then his nose, his tail and then his nose. Fact of the matter is that if you go over the top the F-29A it'll reverse into you trying to get a bead on you for a missile or gun kill. Eventually (I would say one minute or so) I felt I had a good shot with a 9X and took it. For some reason instead of staying airborne it decided to attack the Downey Industrial Center than the Polecat. Okay got it had one 9X so pressed for a kill. Again more turning into each other and one turn into me he tried to spike me with a Sidewinder missing without countermeasures (frankly I was thinking about it spiking me, deer in the headlights and all that) and we continued on. And by reviewing the screenshot I had simply gotten lucky by being out of position by a nanofart when it launched. By this time I was at afterburner as previously mentioned the Polecat will drive your energy down while you struggle with your own. Since I only had one 9X (I had thought while turning about an AMRAAM shot, even tried to set one up but ended up going to guns, read on) left I went for a better shot (though honestly I would have had a better chance had I dual fired on the first attempt) spending some more time turning and burning. Once I got to a good position (I felt anyways) I fired my last 9X and I thought it tracked fine but the coast and ground obscured the smoke trail but my gut told me "it's not dead yet Jim" and so as said went for a guns kill. By this time I figgered that I was down 20-25% fuel since I was on burner most of the time and feeling more lighter as I was getting closer and so I waited until it was "just right" and sprayed and prayed with the gun. Well apparently God himself liked me as I got a cockpit shot. I had seen something fly off or thought I did, pausing the game to get the appropriate screenshot since the sequence is out of order and waited to make sure as it landed in LA. Takeaways. Energy and energy management when dealing with the Polecat.

Me: F-29A Polecat with 4 x AIM-9X and 2 x AIM-120, centerline tank and gun. Opposition: F-22A with 2 x AIM-9X and 6 x AIM-120, gun In all honesty the fight took a massive 1 minute and 38 seconds. The F-22 had to be goaded into the fight and once committed he tried to shake me. And from the opposite experience I wasn't surprised that I could maneuver with the F-22, never letting it get behind me. And with the very high maneuverability of the F-29, I decided to just end the fight as there wasn't much of a fight here. Fired my first AIM-9X, hitting the Raptor but it kept on flying. Let it go for a little bit to see if it was dead and shot it down with a second AIM-9X. Takeaway is that the F-29 from the shooter perspective ia as from the AI's perspective. Granted I only went up against the Raptor only the future will hold for future opponents.

Supposedly but since I fly with assymetric loadouts on the Super Bug I don't want to fight the airplane since I need to fight it. Besides I didn't feel any difference during a test so not sure to be quite honest with.

I do fly Normal and quite honestly don't feel any less of a pilot than anybody else here.

Me: F/A-18E Stock with 2 x AIM-9X and 8 x AIM-120,gun Opposition: F-29A Polecat with 2 x AIM-9M, 2 x AIM-120, gun It seems that Ceasar's words of advice hold true for this What If design. Whatever really came out of the X-29 project may never be known but since we're dealing with the "combat" version of this plane... Like the F-31A the F-29A has a lot of energy and the ability to just turn into you whenever possible. Three times prior to this session the F-29A managed to turn into me, and while I was trying evasives easily launch a Sidewinder into me. So I had to edit the mission so I can at least get a fighting chance and not get shot down so quick. The forward swept wings and the canards give the Polecat impressive maneuverability allowing it to turn inside of your turn. Hence the Super Hornet since I felt that was maneuverable enough to handle the Polecat. So for nearly five minutes we managed to not shoot at each other, though the Polecat did manage to get a burst of 20mm at me at some point. Fact of the matter is that even breaking out of the energy circle is difficult as I had it's radar pinging my RWR quite a lot. And I also had to watch my altitude as I was nearly flying into the ground in order to get a confident shot. Even with the 9X it becomes instinctive for a good shot, and quite frankly the Polecat wasn't going to give me one, as I tried going vertical and after he launched his first winder he also tried to gun me in the same breath. His winder struck me and I ejected. Takeaway... well the Polecat isn't a joke in a knife fight as along with the F-31A it's in a class of its own...

And most of us SF2 users (like me) go to the SF1 section, download and convert as we go along too.