MigBuster

Info is from F-102 Delta Dagger Units (p75 Osprey 2020)

Politics and pettiness have always been part of aircraft and weapon procurement and that wont change....the guys in the field can make the recommendations but if those who hold the budget have other ideas then........... The F-4 setup of AIM-4 was clearly unusable in most typical SEA engagements however F-102A was still set up as a pure interceptor so even they needed to get the missile ready before use. In the one engagement (Feb 68) the guy that did not get shot down apparently fired 3 x AIM-4Ds and all missed.............sounds like it was the start of the engagement and before his wingman was hit......but anyway.

Very good advice and applies to all sims I have ever played Takes effort to train yourself so you might find most casual gamers cant be bothered.

It is a free upgrade so expect many will take it up.

Back in 2012, Thirdwire fans awaited with baited breath the latest release of the Strike Fighters 2 series and what new goodies it would bring to everyone. As it turned out the game was quite a departure from the previous four titles and wasn’t just the old engine with a new terrain and new objects. For most, many of the new features and changes added to the series and bought some hope for the future, whereas some features were less promising. Starting off with the good points then.......... The Setting The game takes place primarily over Iceland with its cold war airbases such as Keflavik NAS and perhaps gives us a bit more options for Cold War scenarios than doing the South Atlantic (Falklands) which some may have thought the obvious choice. The real Keflavik in real Iceland! (Wikipedia) New Terrain New with SF2NA came a bold new attempt at a more modern LOD based terrain engine utilising DX10 instead of the older DX9. The water looked amazing: Iceland's man made shoreline! And the runways are even shaped like the actual ones on Iceland instead of the generic bases from the previous four titles. More on this later…….. Fed up with the hot weather the RAAF decide to holiday in Iceland New music For a fresh new start, new menu music, that wasn’t too bad actually – I never replaced it! Yes I realise that is a post cold war shot! Fleet Defender With this release we got the first F-14A from Thirdwire, although this in itself was not ground breaking because there was a very good Mirage Factory F-14 set available as well. It was the Avionics this brought that was the big plus, including support for Active Radar missiles, and a TWS mode that could support multiple simultaneous shots. On the other hand Soviet bombers now came with a ton of anti-ship cruise missiles, jammers and countermeasures. Catch us if you can! Join the Navy Okay so a load of new ships and weapons in this release………and not just a set of new objects, but new ways they could be used in game: · Carrier groups and support groups in campaigns and single missions · Static aircraft on decks · Ships firing missiles and guns to shoot down cruise missiles and aircraft · More roles for aircraft including AWACs and Naval recon If you liked flying the TW A-4 then the TW F-14 is rather less agile and more difficult to fly in comparison Here is a list of the new objects the games came with: Ships: · CGN-36 California class Cruiser · CVN-68 Nimitz Class Aircraft Carrier · Gearing FRAM IB class Destroyer · Kashin class Destroyer · Kiev class Aircraft Carrier · Knox class Frigate · Krivak I class Frigate · Krivak II class Frigate · LCC-19 Blue Ridge class Amphibious Command Ship · LHA-1 Tarawa class Amphibious Assault Ship · LPD-4 Austin class Amphibious Transport Dock · Oliver Hazard Perry class Frigate · Oliver Hazard Perry (82) class Frigate · Spruance class Destroyer · Spruance (82) class Destroyer Weapons · AIM-54A Phoenix · SA-N-3 Goblet (M-11 Shtorm) SAM · SA-N-1B Goa SAM · SA-N-4 Gecko SAM · RIM-2F Terrier SAM · RIM-7E/H Sea Sparrow SAM · RIM-66B Standard SAM · K10S (AS-2 Kipper) Cruise Missile · KH22 (AS-4 Kitchen) Cruise Missile · KSR5 (AS-6 Kingfish) Cruise Missile Bears with Flares! The Campaign and missions A big change from the previous titles and perhaps more game like in some respects in the way it was essentially fleet verses fleet. The single missions were more limited due to engine changes and lack of relevant land based targets. If you like Naval intercept missions or ones where you attack the Soviet fleet then it should be right up your street. F-4K - More challenging in the intercept role than the F-14 A-4G - Even more challenging! New Aircraft with SF2 NA (Drool) Grumman F-14A Tomcat Grumman F-14A_77 Tomcat Vought A-7E_74 Corsair II Grumman A-6E Intruder (No Pit) Grumman A-6E_79 Intruder (No Pit) Grumman E-2C Hawkeye (No Pit) Grumman EA-6B Prowler (No Pit) Tu-16K-10-26 Badger C (No Pit) Tu-16K-26 Badger G (No Pit) Tu-16K-26_73 Badger G (No Pit) Tu-16P Badger J (No Pit) Tu-16P_72 Badger J (No Pit) Tu-16RM-1 Badger D (No Pit) Tu-22KD Blinder B (No Pit) Tu-22M2 Backfire B (No Pit) Tu-22M3 Backfire C (No Pit) Tu-22PD Blinder E (No Pit) Tu-22RD Blinder C (No Pit) Tu-95RT Bear D (No Pit) Yak-38 Forger A (No Pit Merging Yes the game can still be merged with the other 4 titles, expansion packs and DLCs! You may also find that a lot of my DLCs live in Iceland exclusively. That is a Yak-38 Forger landing on the Kiev don't you know Now lets look at some of the more controversial additions. Mr AWACs controller Rejoice for Red Crown woman has been replaced by Mr AWACs controller guy! I don’t know how many were pleased to see the E-2 AWACs get blown out of the sky on a regular basis (or even shot it down yourselves) – if they were it was probably down to the guys somewhat laid back voice. How exactly Thirdwire managed to find or even consider using this guys voice for this role is known only to them but it was not on any kind of professional level. Luckily there is a set of modded voice files to replace this blight on the series. We really don't care about your situation..... The Terrain Engine Despite DX10 and gorgeous sea there were a few issues with the terrain which you could surmise were due to having to release the game earlier than expected. · The frame rate was considerably worse. · You needed DX10 capability to run it. · The land was a barren wasteland with unrealistic looking terrain and coastlines – not befitting a sim or a game. · The files for modding it were locked away so potentially no more 3rd party terrains. Whether Thirdwire intended to sell us future Terrain DLCs is still an unknown. But the sea was nice. Luckily the game still supported the older terrain format so Gerwin did put out an old format Iceland terrain and Stary put out some enhanced tiles that I use to this day without the new sea. This mod worked in DX9 and had far better frame rates all round. Some related Mods:

Have you seen this new free to play thing?

In late 1972 President Richard Nixon was facing the prospect of having the funding cut for Vietnam by congress, so took one last gamble before they could reconvene to get North and South Vietnam to terms and pull the US out of the war with its POW's. This gamble would involve for the first time large B-52 raids on actual strategic targets in North Vietnam including Hanoi and Haiphong. Now having better relations with the Soviets and Chinese the gloves were off and he duly instructed Strategic Air command ( SAC) to sort it out……. unfortunately it didn’t quite roll down the chain far enough. What ended up as a relatively short eleven-day campaign, started out and was planned for three days and those first days are really the focus of this article due to some rather strange tactics. Surprise attack All B-52 sorties were launched either from the Pacific island of Guam at Anderson AFB or U-Tapao RTAFB (Thailand), with Guam having a very long flight time to target requiring A-A refueling for the B-52Ds. The B-52s were to take off from Guam and fly right over a Soviet spy trawler sitting in international waters of the end of the runway. As the B-52 raid got closer to North Vietnam they would test all their ECM gear handily notifying the SAM operators of the frequencies being used in advance. As they neared the target the F-4 Chaff bombers would fly in front of the raid and drop chaff to provide a protective chaff corridor that the B-52s would fly through giving extra protection. However it seems that not only did the chaff present a big arrow pointing to the intended target on the Vietnamese radar scopes it then promptly blew away in the very high winds providing next to no real protection. On top of that as planned for the first three nights the B-52 waves (three waves per night) were to follow the same route as F-105s had done since 1967 and fly over the targets in level flight (to a determined point) at the same altitudes, speed, heading and times…………with a nice long pause between each wave. General Melchett: Field Marshal Haig has formulated a brilliant new tactical plan to ensure final victory in the field. Captain Blackadder: Ah. Would this brilliant plan involve us climbing out of our trenches, and walking very slowly towards the enemy? Captain Darling: How could you possibly know that Blackadder? It's classified information! Captain Blackadder: It's the same plan that we used last time..........and the seventeen times before that. General Melchett: Exactly! And that is what is so brilliant about it! It will catch the watchful Hun totally off guard! Doing precisely what we've done eighteen times before is exactly the last thing they'll expect us to do this time! There is, however, one small problem. Captain Blackadder: That everyone always gets slaughtered in the first ten seconds. General Melchett: That's right. And Field Marshal Haig is worried this may be depressing the men a tad. So, he's looking for a way to cheer them up. Captain Blackadder: Well, his resignation and suicide seems the obvious choice. General Melchett: Hmm, interesting thought. Make a note of it, Darling. (from Blackadder Goes Forth BBC) Unsurprisingly the B-52 crews, although very pleased to be finally doing something to end the war knew the tactics were dumb with comments including “like Ducks in a shooting Gallery” and “I knew it would be a turkeyshoot….....for those on the ground”. The idea of flying in level flight was to maintain Jamming integrity for the B-52 cells, also because the antenna need to be pointing down to provide the jamming coverage, thus if you turn no more protection. On the first nights some of the B-52 pilots did indeed try to outmanoeuvre upcoming SAM's not completely trusting the Jamming [and a B-52 can certainly turn at 30,000ft]. This lead to some threats of court martial for any pilot that did jeopardize cell integrity by turning (for certain waves). The threat of Court Martial reported by all sources doesn’t seem to account for the contradictory fact that the pilots were ordered to perform a Post Target Turn after dropping the payload. This meant they would turn directly over the worse concentration of SAM sites over Hanoi with no jamming protection and into the Jet Stream winds keeping them in the lethal SAM radius a lot longer. This Post Target Turn was not only unnecessary but was essentially a big cause of some of the losses. B-52s at Anderson AFB Guam December 1972 (USAF) Night One 18/19 December As an example of a raid the first night strike consisted of three waves of 129 B-52s (three waves of 48, 30 and 51). This is a breakdown of Wave One only. The Vietnamese defenders The Vietnamese were not expecting or geared up for a strategic bombing campaign of this scale, they had sent personnel and sites down to South North Vietnam and now had to recall them and everyone else on leave. The main problem was they were short of assembled SA-2B missiles. Each site (Battalion) only held six on launchers and six more on trucks in reserve. Once a truck had loaded one on the launcher it had to go to a depot and collect another, however you now had queues of trucks waiting for missiles – they could only assemble 40 per day. Luckily the pause between waves helped them somewhat. [The only way the USAF could have helped the Vietnamese more by this point was to drop fully assembled SA-2s on parachutes!! ] Even though on night one they had managed to down three B-52s (two others damaged), by Night two they had noticed the obvious use of the same tactics but were not able to capitalize on them straight away. They would launch the SA-2s unguided and when the B-52s did the Post Target Turn they would lock on and the SAM would guide in. This was not as easy as it sounds and needed practice, so they didn’t manage to down any B-52s on night two (only damaging two). From the US point of view, it seems no loss had vindicated SACs tactics, however when the Vietnamese got their tactics worked out on night three six B-52s were shot down (one other damaged) in only two waves (Second wave was cancelled by the head of SAC General Meyer after the losses in the first - but the third Wave was pushed ahead to "save face"). Some US sources seem to indicate they thought the Vietnamese had different SAMs (SA-3) but they only actually had SA-2Bs – the US were just clearly underestimating them if that was the case. B-52 window damaged from SA-2 fragments (USAF) Where did this cunning plan come from? SAC was running the show from their HQ and were very much for centralized planning - unfortunately they were detached from reality and were too arrogant to know it. WW II & Korea fighter Ace General John C Meyer was in charge and had been accused of being hesitant to make decisions by the lower Generals. [Well most would be hesitant if their expertise lay in fighters]: Richard Baughn flew as a fighter pilot in World War II and then went on to command a SAC bomber unit as a brigadier General, and recalled feeling out of place in SAC due to the mindsets driven by different cultures. “You just feel like a third shoe, a third foot” and he believed that “if a SAC guy came to a TAC base, he would probably feel the same way.” From a common base in pilot and navigator training, the major commands imprinted different approaches to their unique missions and aircraft. In the words of Baughn, “Bomber pilots and fighter pilots are two different types. Always have been. They think differently and act differently.” It was these same lower Generals who were responsible for the planning of Linebacker II - in particular General Peter Sianis. With his WW II and Korean War experience of Strategic bombing and no experience of a modern IADS he was definitely the person you wanted in charge of this [NOT]. According to Colonel Frederick J. Miranda, SAC’s logistics representative on the planning staff, General Sianis saw the map prepared by staff officers that showed routes of flight for the operation, with “several different routes leading to Hanoi.” Miranda related what next occurred: General Sianis walked out of his inner office, took a look at the map, and said, “That’s not the way we do it!” Then he removed the colored tape showing the Andersen B-52 routing from the map and rerouted that bomber stream to a route over South Vietnam into Laos and forming up with the U-Tapao bomber stream. He also changed the post-target exit routing to one requiring all aircraft to make a right turn after dropping bombs and stated, “One way in and one way out!” He then instructed his staff to go make those changes and come back with the briefing. I will never forget how the map looked after General Sianis made changes. The colored tape was hanging loosely and the general made a comment, “You guys probably have a lot of tape, don’t you?” This was a significant last-minute change resulting in replanning, additional poststrike refueling, and the now infamous “post-target turn.” He essentially took the planning function away from the majors and lieutenant colonels and straitjacketed them with the “one way in, one way out” directive. No one questioned the SAC DCS/Operations. [Doh!] The Post Target Turn is something required when delivering Nuclear bombs to avoid the blast, its inclusion at a time when Nuclear bombing was low level single ship is not really explained or justified anywhere. B-52G-125-BW (59-2582) awaiting at Anderson AFB Guam to take off on 18 December 1972 (USAF) Jamming The Electronic Warfare experts at SAC were confident that by maintaining cell integrity the B-52s would be fully protected against the SAMs, a cell was supposed to be three B-52s but sometimes a cell would include only two bombers and sometimes the cells would have degraded or failed ECM equipment due to the no abort maximum effort policy. Although SAC at the time thought the unmodified Jammers on the newer B-52Gs were the cause of some of the losses (and stopped Gs flying over Hanoi) it wasn’t the full story because they were also using the wrong type of jamming. North Vietnam was using an SA-2B SAM that was modified by the Soviets [supplied in 1971] to prevent Beacon jamming after analyzing an QRC-160-8 (ALQ-87) ECM pod found in the jungle. In the late 1960s this type of jamming had rendered the SA-2 all but useless by jamming its uplink command guidance. Now fair enough, how were the SAC EW experts to know this?……………..well they could have read reports from the US Seventh Air Force on the matter who had been aware this SAM was in use and had been reporting on it for the past year. Or they could also have tested the B-52 jammers against the modified SA-2B they had captured and was sitting in Eglin AFB! In fact it wasn’t until during Linebacker II and after the losses of the first 4 days they started testing that they confirmed that the Post Target Turn removed all jamming and the beacon jamming was not effective. B-52Ds preparing to take off for another Linebacker II mission (USAF) Aftermath Although no plan is said to survive contact with the enemy it doesn’t help when you have centralized planning and control by people that simply do not know what they are doing from the start. SAC eventually handed the planning down the 8th Air Force and with many other tactical changes things never got anywhere near as bad as Night three had been - by nights 10/11 the resistance from Hanoi had become almost irrelevant to the point they could freely fly over it. Overall Linebacker II ended up achieving Nixons objectives and the gamble paid off for him with the peace treaty being signed in January 1973. However for the B-52 flyers as always it was a very different war and by 1973 some had clearly had enough of Meyers management policies: [note B-52 Arc Light & Bullet Shot operations continued until August 1973] On January 3, those crewmembers not flying assembled in the Arc Light Center briefing room, where they first watched Meyer pin the Air Force Cross on Colonel McCarthy, who had flown two missions during the operation. Meyer then addressed the Airmen in the audience, and his message was blunt. The general elaborated on the need for cell integrity in the missions over North Vietnam, remarking that tight formations provided the greatest chance to thwart the SAM threat by using the combined jamming capability of three bombers to defeat the data-links guiding the missiles. He then stated that aircraft commanders were not to maneuver during the bomb run and repeated the court-martial threat that they had previously received at the start of Linebacker II. At that moment, the briefing room became totally silent—all whispered conversations stopped, the normal coughing that typically comes from any audience halted, and no one moved. Then, suddenly, roughly half the Airmen in attendance stood up and walked out, “like a herd of cattle,” John Allen remembered. Many of those were chagrined that McCarthy had flown only two missions, plus that he had done so from the jump-seat of G model aircraft, though qualified only in D models. Allen described what came next: Of the roughly 200 that remained, 75 to 80 people just went crazy. They picked up whatever was nearby and threw it at the stage—flight computers, briefing books, Coke cans, folding chairs, you name it. It was like if you had ever been to a burlesque house, where they’d throw tomatoes and apples at a bad act, it was just like that. It couldn’t have lasted more than 13 seconds, the assault, but [Meyer] got hit a bunch of times. I saw a Coke can bounce right off his head. I was just frozen in my tracks—I couldn’t do anything—it was mob action. He went down on a knee, and a bevy of colonels picked him up and helped him off stage. Meanwhile, the guys jumped up on stage and physically chased him down to the flight line. There were a bunch of guys running after him, including the guys that were “gone” and the others of us that just wanted to see what would happen. He was in his staff car, heading toward his airplane, a shiny silver and white VC-135. They chased him down to where they now have the B-52 [Arc Light Memorial] up on a pedestal. They ran down and they threw chunks of gravel that were next to the road, just pelting his staff car and the power cart [used to start engines],and continued to pelt him as he went up the ramp. Then off he went and we never heard anything more from CINC [commander in chief] SAC. Crews in briefing at Anderson AFB December 1972 (USAF) Sources and Further Reading To Fly and Fight: The experience of American airmen in Southeast Asia (Andrews WF, 2011) , George Mason University The 11 Days of Christmas (Michel III ML, 2002) Encounter Books Linebacker II: A View from the Rock (McCarthy JR & Rayfield RE, 1976), Office of Air Force History Maxwell AFB War From Above The Clouds (Head WP, 2002) Air Force Press Maxwell AFB Patterns and Predictability: The Soviet evaluation of operation Linebacker II (Drenkowski D & Grau LW ) Fifty Shades of Friction: Combat Climate, B-52 Crews, and the Vietnam War (Clodfelter M, 2016) National Defense University Press F-105 Wild Weasel vs SA-2 “Guideline” SAM Vietnam 1963-73 (Davies.P, 2011) Osprey Publishing The Red SAM: The SA-2 guideline Anti-Aircraft Missile (Zaloga SJ, 2007) Osprey Publishing B-52 Stratofortress units in combat 1955 to 1973 (Lake, J 2004) Osprey Publishing Quote from Blackadder Goes Forth (BBC, 1989) Title photo B-52D-65-BO s/n 55-110 weapons loading (USAF)

The latest iteration of the Billion Soft Falcon 4.0 total conversion modification - Benchmark Sims 4.35 U2 - is available for you to enjoy as of RIGHT NOW! BMS 4.35 U2 requires a legit installation of a Falcon 4.0 (all older and newer versions are accepted alike, i.e. Microprose, Hasbro, GOG, Steam, Retroism). The check is performed both at setup time and every time you start BMS. If no valid installation is found, BMS will exit with a corresponding error message. U2 is an incremental update on top of 4.35 base + U1, so you need to have the BMS 4.35 Full Installer package and Update 1 available on your PC. You can both update your existing 4.35 base + U1 installation as well as perform a fresh 4.35 base + U1 + U2 installation from scratch, as you like. See the installation instructions below for details. This mod may not be used for any commercial purposes. Any such use may constitute a violation of the intellectual property of Billion Soft (Hong Kong) Limited and the non-commercial Terms and Conditions under which Benchmark Sims make this mod available to you. Generic Information & Known issues: =================================== — The build number string in the Falcon UI will read "4.35.2 (x64) Build 23835" after the update. — The shortcuts in the start menu and on your desktop will NOT be renamed to U2, they will still read "Falcon BMS 4.35" after the update, feel free to rename them manually. — The following change log is by no means complete. Its purpose is to give you a quick overview about the highlights. You can expect tons of smaller tweaks and fixes. — If you have any questions or found bugs regarding the change log items please always! reference the revision number, e.g. "(r12345)". — Note: None of the manuals have been updated yet. The 4.35.1 manuals remain valid. File Updates: ============= - Falcon BMS.cfg - IVC Client.ini - RTTClient.ini - RTTServer.ini - Key Files - Note: Please always update the files manually. Don't copy paste! Table of content: ================= 01. CTD fixes 02. Falcon BMS.cfg changes 03. Shared Memory changes 04. Tool updates 05. Key File & Input fixes & updates 06. Multiplayer fixes & improvements 07. ATC fixes & improvements 08. Weather fixes & improvements 09. Various code fixes & improvements 10. Various data fixes & improvements 01. CTD fixes: ============== - Fixed CTDs related to gndai. (r23563) - Fixed CTDs after map erase, iterator is invalided for that position. (r23591) - Avoid dangling pointer after deleting pn->subPartData. (r23592) - CTD fix when pilot nid is above hardcoded 686. (r23637) - Fixed gndai waypoint CTD. (r23646) - CTD fix in the whole ATC state machine, rule out helos from ATC entirely. (r23681) - CTD fix in landme (null ptr check). (r23702) - Locked simloop UpdateATC, since this can be called from campaign thread (race condition CTD). (r23765) - Fixes alpha CTD due to different viewports. (r23432) - Fixes nullptr PAKmap CTD. (r23348) - CTD fix, related to nullptr insertion of GroupDrawLists. (r23356) - Fix for pure virtual CTDs. (r23389) - Tons of other CTD fixes. 02. Falcon BMS.cfg changes: =========================== - Added missing lines in the Falcon BMS.cfg (r14319): * set g_nRespawnTimeforStuckAI (default 6 minutes). ReagTimer and DeagTimer adjusted accordingly. * set g_bHostDisableP2pForDubiousConnections (default 0/false). Should be activated for large MP events. Note: - U2 *does* replace your existing config file. Do *not* make a backup! - Instead, re-configure from scratch based on the new file, otherwise you'll miss new config options. 03. Shared Memory changes ========================= NONE 04. Tool updates ================ - Fixed the BMS Editor 'Model Viewer' (r23421) 05. Key File & Input fixes & updates ==================================== NONE 06. Multiplayer fixes & improvements ==================================== NONE 07. ATC fixes & improvements ============================ - Make sure DigitalBrain rWindex is aligned with the ATC / Airbase in the whole landme function. (r23681) - ATCMsg is missing a break statement. In case of lParked, info can be destroyed and default case will access it. - Fix for ATCBrain::GetOppositeRunway (r23629) - pointer in ATCBrain::ProcessQueue() gets deleted twice. (r23652) - Fix in ATCBrain: Pointer nextTakeoff may become dangling during function. (r23660) 08. Weather fixes & improvements ================================ NONE 09. Various code fixes & improvements: ====================================== Note: The following changes may include data & 3ddb updates as well. - Fixed ground Units not reaggregating and memory corruption as well. (r23506) - Fixed ObjectLOD races -> missing cockpit and model problems. (r23562) - Fixed repairing code in campaign thread. It will now send a message to SimLoop thread and all clients to repair the given feature. (r23564) - Fix Squadron stores ressuply when aircraft are coming back home. (r23580) - Added critical section during ObjectLOD::Unload.This can avoid a leak, in the case of unload/load/unload sequences. (r23593) - Fix for out of bounds access in the O_Output WordWrap function. (r23606) - Prevent accessing the team array out of bounds. (r23607) - Avoid buffer overflow write, which caused memory corrupption in SetAcLoadout. (r23611) - Fixed TGP being blocked after loosing a flight element. (r23611) - When movieClose is called, we can release the surface twice, causing undefined behavior. (r23621) - BaseBrain lastTarget is not referencing the object it points to. As a result, it may become dangling when targetPtr is dereferenced. (r23627) - Fixed UI_UpdateOccupationMap (r23637) - Fixes deadlock due to ArrestorDraw. (r23639) - Fix for SimVehicleClass::Sleep is not nulling death message. (r23661) - Make sure to call ClearTarget on SimBrain destructor, to avoid leaks. (r23664) - Fix for Weapon fire msg is converting helicopter to aircraft. (r23665) - Fixed overruns within the 3D-interpolationfunction (MissileClass::GetRMax, GetRneMax and GetRopt)when it tries to access the assumed 3D-data. (r23692) - Added precondition checks and fixes in 1, 2 and 3D-interpolation function. (r23693) - Fixed bogus values being read outside the data table array. (r23693) - Fixed memory leak in SimWeapon::launcher. (r23718) - Fixed bad cockpit text drawing outside Start and Finish frame. (r23726) - Fixed memory corruption in CameraDrawList. (r23727) - Fixed zero devision in GetRMax. (r23736) - Fix to avoid deleting any waypoint from SimVehicleClass which is shared with gNavigationSys waypoints. (r23737) - Avoid dispatcher races (UI and campaign for example) when leaving campaign or 3d (depending on game type). (r23739) - Added Copy paste functionality in edit box and chat command line. (r23755) - AIM120 fixes: That makes MADDOG shots a defensive of WVR mode as expected. (r23761) * MADDOG : goes active as soon as off the rail and scan with a limited range capability * MADDOG : does not loft anymore since has no information on range when fired * HOJ : HOJ is only capable when the missile went active - Fixed AI reacting to missile too early when missile was in HPRF instead of MPRF. (r23762) - Fixed out of bounds fix in ooutput: when SetText is called on an existing O_Output. (r23770) - Fixed Terrain loading race. (r23774) - Fixed Shadow map was not being cleared after sundown. (r23792) - Fixed race possibilities while exiting campaign/TE. (r23795) - Fixes nan values due to InJetWash computation. (r23435) - Fix Heat Blur positioning and velocity when aircraft is in Idle. (r23401) - Fix heat Blur not oriented correctly with vectoring thrust. (r23401) - And many, many more. 10. Various data fixes & improvements: ====================================== Note: The following changes may include code & 3ddb updates as well. - Updated ambiant light since we have real moon now. (r14084) - Fixed TracersGreen and TracersRed missing alpha channel. (r14141) - Fixed Al-Tariq bomb : mimic the GBU-54 instead of the GBU-12. (r14142) - Fixed F18 series totally out of control while landing. (r14186) - F-16 Cockpits updated. (r14333) * Made flight control stick move (very little) * Fixed seat adjustment switch. Now it has the washer and jam nut on the sidewall to hold the switch. * Added more switches on the 2 seater F-16s for more real life accuracy. * Textures updated. - Fixed JFS Start does not work in all non F-16 cockpits. (r14339) - Fixed Unit Flight's element for ASW, ECM, Recon and Tanker types. (r14340) - Updated American F-16 CCIP pit avionics panel to the more correct panel. (r14347) - Fixed RSAF F-16 IFF panel. Digits were not working. (r14347) - Fixed F-16 Sufa cockpit. Changed from Aux Comm to IFF panel. (r14350) - Cleaned up some texture misalignments on the night lighting and missing backlighting in some areas of some cockpits. (r14360) - Disabled the MAP switch on the PXIII F-16 since it is not used. GPS switch now moves instead of the GPS and MAP switch. Hotspot updated. (r14360) - Fixed Sufa Altimeter (6 digit). Was only showing 1/2 the digits. (r14360) - Fixed ALS for Kimhae RWY 36R that had one element in the middle of the Taxiway A. (r14365) - Updated shaders. (r14370) - All Hotas Basic key files are now available in the UI Controllers Setup "Load Keyboard". (r14375) - Fixed F-16 EAF incorrect AGM65G loadout. (r14377) - Various Texture updates.

As Menrva states.not seeing any change...............Windows 64 bit OSs have been running 32 bit applications in a kind of 64 bit emulation (WoW64) for years so probably nothing to worry about but looks like we might get to try it this year as a free upgrade. The final two sections on this video are useful regarding specs and requiring switching on TPM chips to run....and Win 10 is currently supported to 2025 at least.

11 June 2021 Dear Fighter Pilots, Partners and Friends, It is with great pleasure that we announce 2.7 has moved to DCS World Stable. We would like to thank you for your continued support and detailed bug reports. Today, we are also introducing a new Free to Play program that lets you evaluate all of our modules (aircraft and maps) for 14 days. You can play each module sequentially for 14 days or any number of them at a time. Once you have ‘consumed’ the 14 days, you will be given another 14 day free trial period for all modules six months later. Enjoy the offer and please tell your friends! DCS: F-16C Viper has been receiving some important attention. Recently, the GBU-31 and GBU-38 JDAM bombs have been added, and they are currently in internal testing. We are working at full power to iron out existing Air-to-Air Radar and Navigation System bugs, and these fixes should be released soon to an Open Beta. In April, we conducted preliminary CFD research of R-27 missiles family aerodynamics. The focus of this research was zero-lift drag correction and missile ballistic refinement. Please read our R-27 Missile Family Report. Thank you for your passion and support. Yours sincerely, Eagle Dynamics Team Free Trials 14 Day Access Fly the DCS: F/A-18C Hornet for two weeks and then DCS: F-16C Viper for another two. You can download new terrains at the same time, whatever you fancy. Each module will give you 14 days to evaluate and enjoy them without any limitations or obligations. If you’ve tried a module and aren’t 100% certain about purchasing, you can re-evaluate six months later. Campaigns are excluded. And for all newcomers to DCS, you can benefit from a 50% joining discount on your first purchase, whether you buy one module or the whole library! Spread the news. We truly hope our new free to play system will give you the flexibility you need to enjoy each module and make informed purchase decisions. Thank you! We apologize that this offer cannot also be made available on Steam. Check out Free Trials F-16C Viper Development Roadmap In the next Open Beta, you will receive the GBU-31 and GBU-38 JDAM for the Viper! We are now working on fixing outstanding bugs related to the Air-to-Air Radar and Navigation Systems. Enhancements are also being made to the Flight Model in regards to available G and angle of attack modeling. Once we have addressed the critical issues, we will focus our Viper efforts on completing important Air-to-Air Radar functions: DTT SAM mode, bullseye, intercept steering cue, ACM Slew, and more. The Helmet Mounted Cueing System (HMCS) with the HARM Targeting System (HTS), Link 16, Air-to-Ground Mode, and IFF will also be integrated. The AGM-154 JSOW and the ALQ-131 and ALQ-184 electronic countermeasure pods are also next in line to be added. Supercarrier Deck Crew Development Report DCS: Supercarrier has received a number of notable updates to the deck crew that includes improved meshes and geometry tweaks: Plane director “Shooter” model has been edited to include skinning and geometry corrections. Improved mesh and skinning for the hands and gloves. A completely new and anatomically correct skeleton for the hands. The sailor head model has been replaced with a much more realistic one. The airboss model has been improved with improved hands and removed beer belly. Missing Level Of Details (LOD) have been added for all models. All seated and standing poses have been corrected and improved. Fixed excessive bending animation of the legs while walking. Fixed sliding legs. Fixed the intersection of arms and legs. Several new idle animations have been added for a more natural look. Mesh and skinning have been adjusted at the elbow area to reduce the effect of no mass. All the models have been converted to a new version of the skeleton that will provide more natural movements. R-27 Missile Development Report In April of this year, we conducted preliminary Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) research of the R-27 family of missile aerodynamics. The objective was the correction of zero-lift drag and missile ballistics refinement. As a result of this research, the zero-lift drag coefficient was reduced for all R-27 missile types. Please read our R-27 Missile Family Report. Thank you for your trust, passion and support. You make our dreams come true.

Good question............what is the source for their Gunsight? I don't have any images but it is described as being a centre dot and an outer circle of ten Diamond shaped dots for the C. From an A manual but corresponds to the number of diamonds.

26 March 2021 Dear Fighter Pilots, Partners and Friends, We are delighted to announce that arguably the most iconic helicopter gunship in the world is now available for pre-order with a 30% discount. DCS: Mi-24 Hind takes helicopter gameplay to a new level and sets a new standard for DCS in cockpit look and feel. We hope you will enjoy it. Check out our Hind pre-order video here. Derived from the Mi-8, the Hind airframe is fitted with a streamlined retractable undercarriage and stub-wings that provide lift at high speeds as well as a structure for attaching guided and unguided munitions. This massive machine combines firepower and troop-carrying capabilities, making it a force to be reckoned with. Our new Volumetric Cloud System requires a significant rewrite of our radar, sensor and weapon system code. To integrate the clouds smoothly, the process will be split into stages. The Clouds will initially be released as a purely visual feature, with the possibility to select a wide variety of weather presets from the Mission Editor. After the initial release, we will finalise the work on radar and weapon systems as well as how AI behaves in the new weather conditions. This is particularly relevant for close air combat line-of-sight behaviour. Please note, DCS: F/A-18C Hornet and DCS: The Channel will be released within a short time frame of Open Beta 2.7.0. which we have pushed out to the 7th of April 2021 due to the heavy testing and 3rd party integration requirements. Thank you for your passion and support. Yours sincerely, Eagle Dynamics Team Mi-24 HIND Pre-order now Known for its great exploits by the airborne units of the Soviet Army during the 1980 Soviet–Afghan War, the Hind is tough, durable and packs a heavy punch. DCS: Mi-24P Hind is a simulation of the legendary Mi-24 attack helicopter developed in the USSR and first introduced operationally in 1972. It has seen extensive action over the past 40 years as an effective combat air support helicopter. Fast, reliable and loved by pilots, this incredible machine still serves in more than 50 countries! DCS: Mi-24P is an opportunity to touch history and try yourself as a pilot of the legendary helicopter! Work is progressing steadily and we are excited to announce the list of features planned for Early Access release. Check out the In Development Screenshots. Key Features of DCS: Mi-24P Hind On pre-order/early access: Professional flight dynamics and engine modelling with high precision characteristics of the real aircraft in all ranges of altitude, temperature and speeds for different weights and flight configurations. Two 6DOF highly detailed cockpits (RU and EN versions available). Fully clickable cockpits with interactive control of all onboard systems with mouse. Multi-crew. Second crew member can be another player or “Petrovich” AI (basic AI level during early access phase). Detailed modeling of the entire electrical, fuel, hydraulic, anti-icing, fire protection, SAS, autopilot and radio systems. Full modeling of armament and weapons systems with ability to use 30mm cannon, unguided rockets (S-8, S-13, S-24B) and bombs from both cockpits in addition to the guided ATGM 9M114 operated by forward seated pilot-operator. Standard Russian new and weathered liveries in addition to Iraqi and Syrian schemes. Early Access manual Russian and English versions. Training missions. On release: Cargohold gunner with KORD machine gun. Advanced “Petrovich” AI features for pilot or pilot-operator seats. Addition of ATGM 9M120 (HEAT and HE versions) and R-60M air to air missiles. Sling cargo operations. Advanced damage modeling. Additional liveries and livery template. Manual in Russian and English (full list of languages is TBD). Campaign by Eagle Dynamics. Pre-order DCS: Mi-24 Hind now and save 30%. Click here. The Mi-24P Early Access is planned for release in the 2nd quarter of 2021. We are currently working on new reflections using extended pre-calculated light technology. The Mi-24P cockpit is roomy, pressurized and chemically and biologically filtered, making it a comfortable place to fight and operate in. The multi crew mode will be available from Early Access and will unveil our initial “Petrovich” AI. We look forward to sharing more information closer to the Early Access release in late Q2 2021. One of our top priorities will be the interaction and infrastructure for Commander and Operator AI. DCS: Mi-24 Hind Available for a limited time at only $48.95 Thank you for all your trust, support and enthusiasm. Yours Sincerely, Eagle Dynamics Team

Plenty of very nice videos like this for DCS but true to form a lot of the basic technicalities are wrong.

Wing slats were added to improve high AoA performance so you can fly slower with less buffeting and they may have helped with the adverse Yaw issue. But they did add a bit of weight to the E Block 50 and when they are out there is more drag so climb, & acceleration would go down compared to an earlier E model. It was a bit easier to pull G and exceed airframe limits over earlier Es and it has slightly improved turn performance but really nothing significant just like any of these aircraft where they just added a little strake on here or there. The recommendation was to keep under 25 degrees AoA because above that there is higher speed bleed off compared to the hard wing versions and less lift.

The 4 numbers are on here.........as the rest will be when they happen Go here and advanced Search -> Airforce -> Civilian https://www.f-16.net/aircraft-database/F-16

“Engine 4 is on fire! And I have no rudder control! Let’s put this fire out! Someone head out to the back and see what’s wrong!” “I’m on it!”, you shout, running towards the rear gunner station while you scan the cables. “Damn”, you think “a hole in the fuselage and the cables were cut. That FW-190 did some real damage here”. The good news is: you can fix it. Roll up your sleeves and get to it. Quickly! Did you imagine all this? Well, you won’t just imagine it. You will LIVE it. We are honored to announce to you, our fans, that MicroProse is working on a brand new The Mighty Eight title for Virtual Reality. The Mighty Eighth will be a VR-first project (but also playable with no VR enabled) in which you will be able to play with 9 other friends (or AI crew) as you work together to survive the war and accomplish your missions. Drop those bombs on the right spot, guide your crew through long drawn out day, or the dark, moonless nights, keep your airplane in touch with the rest of the squadron and HQ as you monitor radios and communications. Defend your Flying Fortress by keeping those enemy fighters away from you and your squadron mates. Pilot or co-pilot this beast under a massive amount of stress – and enemy fire, but don’t drop out of formation or you’re a sitting duck. The new Mighty Eighth is not just a game. It’s an experience from a different time where young men grew faster than they should and saw things no man should see. And YOU will be put right in the middle of the action. But wait. There's more. The Mighty Eighth didn’t just use the B-17. They also used the B-24 Liberator! Shouldn’t we be able to fly that bomber as well, then? Well, yes. And you will. The B-24 Liberator will also be added, and you will be able to fly missions in both the legendary bombers, each recreated with meticulous attention to detail. https://www.microprose.com/games/the-mighty-eighth#

Start preparing for take-off. Xbox Game Studios and Asobo Studio are thrilled to announce that Microsoft Flight Simulator launches on August 18, and you can pre-order on Windows 10* or pre-install with Xbox Game Pass for PC (Beta) today. We have been thrilled and humbled by the support and dedication that has fueled the Flight Sim community for the past 38 years. Since the launch of the very first Microsoft Flight Simulator in 1982, we knew it was finally the right time to develop the next-generation version of Microsoft Flight Simulator. We have the right tools, technology, partners, and hardware to release the most realistic and authentic flight simulator to date. Microsoft Flight Simulator features include: Vivid and Detailed Landscapes – Immerse yourself in the vast and beautiful world that is our planet with more than 1.5 billion buildings, 2 trillion trees, mountains, roads, rivers and more. A Living World – Earth is vibrant and ever-changing and so is the world of Microsoft Flight Simulator which includes live traffic, real-time weather and animals. Highly Detailed Aircraft – Hone your pilot skills in a variety of aircraft from light planes to commercial jets with comprehensive flight models. Every aircraft includes highly detailed and accurate cockpits with realistic instrumentation. New Checklist System – From pro to beginner, scale your level from full manual to full assist with interactive and highlighted instrument guidance and checklist. Dynamic Weather – The new weather engine enables users to switch on the live weather mode to experience real-time weather including accurate wind speed and direction, temperature, humidity, rain and more. New Day & Night Engine– Experience flight at any time of day or year allowing for night VFR, visual flight rules, navigation. Aerodynamic Modeling- A state-of-the-art physics engine with over 1,000 control surfaces per plane allows for a truly realistic experience. Three Editions of Microsoft Flight Simulator Explore all of this and more with any of the three editions of Microsoft Flight Simulator. The Microsoft Flight Simulator Standard Edition ($59.99 USD) includes 20 highly detailed planes with unique flight models and 30 hand-crafted airports. The Standard Edition will be available on day one with Xbox Game Pass for PC (Beta). The Deluxe Edition ($89.99 USD) includes everything from Microsoft Flight Simulator’s standard edition plus 5 additional highly accurate planes with unique flight models and 5 additional handcrafted international airports. The Premium Deluxe Edition ($119.99 USD) includes everything from Microsoft Flight Simulator Standard Edition plus 10 additional highly accurate planes with unique flight models and 10 additional handcrafted international airports. In addition to its digital versions, Microsoft Flight Simulator will be available as a retail disc version at European stores via Aerosoft. For more information on these retail disc versions in Europe, please visit the Aerosoft website. Your fleet of planes and detailed airports from whatever edition you choose are all available on launch day as well as access to the ongoing content updates that will continually evolve and expand the flight simulation platform. https://www.flightsimulator.com/microsoft-flight-simulator-set-for-launch-on-august-18-for-pc-also-with-xbox-game-pass-for-pc-beta/ https://www.flightsimulator.com/product-description/ Track IR has now been added https://www.flightsimulator.com/closed-beta-now-available/

Wings Over The Reich is a single player immersive WW2 Combat Simulator for PC, based around an immersive single player experience with OBD's IDCS™ in a living world (IDCS is OBD’s Immersive Dynamic Campaign System™) http://www.wingsoverthereich.com/

Very regular sightings now claimed.

That is from GWAPs GWAPS also has a figure of 88 for expended as in NOT fired at Migs that was used in Promise and Reality: Beyond Visual Range (BVR) Air-To-Air Combat (Lt Col Patrick Higby, USAF) which listed a 27.3% kill ratio however we are only interested in missile attempts at an aircraft. If you go by pilot accounts for engagements you get 50 fired for 23 kills (45%) I seem to have a photo of a document with 62% also but don't have the name of the book! Different authors will of course use what figure suits their agenda. Anyway I am sure you will find more.......

Unless you wish to compare them on size and colour you might be out of luck.....but the ED forums will happily answer this impossible question in their own unique way I suspect Radar missiles that don't have radars you say? The FCR of the supporting aircraft would be a big factor. How well does the missile stand up to ground handling and vibration and environment / weather ?. Pilot tactics/skill. Supporting assets AWACs/GCI. How good is your SIGINT/ELINT to provide operation in an EW environment? ECCM: difficult this really because nobody generally has access to everything the other side does. Does the enemy have the ability to recognise they are being fired at? Probably others................. but looking at lists of kills from 3 totally different environments is probably not going to help anything at all. There were no doubt a number of sub variants of these missiles that likely had improvements over the years. The AIM-7 sold to Iraq recently had a AIM-7M-F1/H designation so hopefully little relation to the 1980s stuff for their sakes! The R-27R and ER were exploited in US programs in the 1990s so give it a few decades and something might come out. The 530D didn't hit Mirage 2000 squadrons till about 1988 and I had always paired the 530F with the AIM-7F which also had about 16 claims in 82 guided by one of the most advanced radars on the planet.

The Nesher being a Mirage 5J put together in kit form comes from various sources but Arab MiGs Vol 4 puts it together convincingly (involved US Rockwell contractors) and there is more than a few things. There is too much detail to summarise it easily. Nice photo they took of a Nesher manufacturer plate that has Aerospatiale of all things stamped on it ............they were one of the subcontractors for the deal. Arab MiGs Vol 6 at the time stated there was no firm evidence of US providing replacement crews but there were 3 known former US officers serving with Israel. The only F-4 pilot Yoel Arnoff joined the IDF in 1969 and was a former US Academy graduate and Vietnam vet.