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Thanks for the information about the refuelling probe! That's the first time I've heard of an explanation for the bent probe and I just had to do more research about it.

 

So it seems that all A-4E and A-4F were produced with the straight refuelling probe but were gradually retrofitted with the bent probe after the bent probe was qualified. The primary design of the bent probe is to clear the nose for something called "threat-radar identification and location system" which was also a retrofit. The avoidance of fuel ingestion was a side-benefit. Do you have more information about this? Is this what we know as the IFF system? The only radar I know of in the nose cone is the APG-53 which is the ground mapping radar. I don't believe this is the same radar as these were installed in the production models with the straight probes. Would love to discuss this to figure out if our A-4E should have been retrofitted or not.

 

As for the sidewinders. Our research shows the A-4E was only capable of carrying 2 sidewinders as the outer pylons with not outfitted with the relevant circuits. However, the 4 sidewinder upgrade was common to the M and export models. We would like to keep the module as accurate as possible at the moment.

 

I think the "threat-radar identification and location system" is used to find targets for the AGM-45 Shrike missile. It's not IFF.

 

After more digging I can confirm you are correct on the bent probe and I was wrong. NZ's A-4Ks were delivered with APG-53 radar and straight probes, so the straight probe was not an issue for the APG-53. They got the bent probes latter.

 

My knowledge comes from the A-4K, which is based on the A-4F, so it's probably not correct for the A-4E.


Edited by BeeGeeTee
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I think the "threat-radar identification and location system" is used to find targets for the AGM-45 Shrike missile. It's not IFF.

 

After more digging I can confirm you are correct on the bent probe and I was wrong. NZ's A-4Ks were delivered with APG-53 radar and straight probes, so the straight probe was not an issue for the APG-53. They got the bent probes latter.

 

My knowledge comes from the A-4K, which is based on the A-4F, so it's probably not correct for the A-4E.

Were the A-4K still capable of using Shrikes? I'm curious if you've noticed there's any avionics in the A-4E module that you would be able to comment on. We're constantly looking to improve on the module.

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Community A-4 Dev Diary Q2 2019: Comings and Goings

 

Community A-4 Dev Diary Q2 2019: Comings and Goings

 

 

From Merker:

 

Hello all, I’d like to start this post off by thanking you all for your incredible support over the past 3 years of development. From the day we started, during good times and bad, and through what felt like a very turbulent release; it’s been a hell of a ride. During the first hours of this project, my highest expectation would be that we learn a thing or two and everyone would have some fun in the process. There was never really an expectation of success, though we wanted to give it a shot. Since then, it’s gone beyond what I could have ever imagined.

 

Regrettably, this journey has reached its destination for me personally. As of May 31st, 2019, I will no longer be part of the A-4 Project. There are a number of personal reasons for this, and I’d prefer not to get into them, but the overall reason is that this project is just one short chapter in my life that will need to close for others to open. This project has been a very difficult lift for me personally, as I’ve invested a massive amount of time into it. The past few months since release have been some of the most demanding, and with many other opportunities and responsibilities in life demanding my attention, I feel it is now appropriate for me to move on from this project and DCS modding as a whole. This includes my work on the Oriskany, which is hereby paused indefinitely. Work had slowed greatly in the past months, and I feel that it’s a project I will never be satisfied with personally. Perhaps I’ll find a way for it to live on, but I can make no promises at this time.

 

I announced my resignation last month and we are currently in the transition process for our distribution and communication methods. We’re working to ensure this process is as easy and as seamless as possible. I’d like to thank you all for your patience, and hope that you will continue to support the endeavors of the remaining team. I know you're in good hands. I'd like to thank this community again for an exciting three years, I hope that we’ve met your expectations and made a worthwhile addition to your DCS experience.

 

Sincerely,

Merker

 

--

 

While it is time for Merker to leave, we’re very happy to announce a new member to our team. Heclak, who many of you may know through his various submods and contributions to the official mod, has joined as Coder and 3D Artist. Please give him a warm welcome!

 

Coming up in the next updates, we have a slew of many different planned features and fixes on the horizon. Below is a tentative list of such things:

 

Hydraulic system upgrade (For testing)

Surfaces such as flaps, spoilers, gear are now dependent on the hydraulic system. This upgrade allows for some emergency procedures such as emergency gear release, and emergency landing procedures. Further upgrades are still in the research stages.

 

Tanker version (WIP)

Implementation of buddy tanker model. The model will be player flyable and AI-capable. However, the refueling capability is limited to AI only due to technical limitations. Texturing for pod and drogue is still yet to be completed. There's still an issue with drogue/probe tracking between the AI tanker and receiver. Player version of the A-4E is still not capable of aerial refueling.

 

Check out the picture below of how it looks in our current testing. Remember, everything is subject to change!

QcVqIVO.png

 

 

Fuel control system (WIP)

We're working on some upgrades to the fuel system in the A-4E. We've implemented the emergency fuel cutoff lever and looking into other fuel systems such as fuel cutoff due to inverted flight and negative-g. Fuel dumping is now possible but no visual fuel vapours are possible.

 

Keybindings (In progress)

We're working on adding new keybindings based on community suggestions. We are aware that there are a number of keybindings that are missing. Please feel free to bring to our attention any missing keybindings via the issue tracker or forums. We will try to release a document indicating the new keybindings to assist control mapping. We're also trying to clean up the keybindings of incorrect keybindings. There are a number of incorrect bindings which are only meant for FC3 aircraft that made it into the previous release versions. These keybindings will be removed as we discover them.

 

Visual Damage Model (Status TBD)

While initially this system was teased, Merker’s departure means that this internal project has been shelved in favor of other projects. The visual damage model, which is purely a cosmetic feature within DCS, would display battle damage in-game. Additionally, we will be working to determine what changes are needed to adjust to ED’s new damage models, which were announced earlier this spring. Because we are modders, we have no advanced knowledge of these changes and will be learning alongside you all as they are implemented.

 

Thank you all for making the past few months an exciting process, we look forward to the continued evolution of this mod over the comings months!

Former A-4E-C 3D Artist

 

Logo Credit to Plusnine

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Good luck to you, Merker and thank you for your hard work on the Community A-4E Mod during the past years! Your team has managed to create a truly great mod with which I have spent many nice and interesting hours. :)

A-10A, A-10C, A-10C II, AV-8B, F-5E, F-16C, F/A-18C, F-86F, Yak-52, Nevada, Persian Gulf, Syria, Supercarrier, Combined Arms, FW 190 A-8, FW 190 D-9, Spitfire LF Mk. IX, Normandy + WWII Assets Pack

 

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Indeed, thank you Merker! We appreciate your efforts, plus the transition to heclak! Take comfort in the fact that you've been part of an awesome community effort! Rather, flight sim history.

 

 

 

-Jav

MSI MAG Z790 Carbon, i9-13900k, NH-D15 cooler, 64 GB CL40 6000mhz RAM, MSI RTX4090, Yamaha 5.1 A/V Receiver, 4x 2TB Samsung 980 Pro NVMe, 1x 2TB Samsung 870 EVO SSD, Win 11 Pro, TM Warthog, Virpil WarBRD, MFG Crosswinds, 43" Samsung 4K TV, 21.5 Acer VT touchscreen, TrackIR, Varjo Aero, Wheel Stand Pro Super Warthog, Phanteks Enthoo Pro2 Full Tower Case, Seasonic GX-1200 ATX3 PSU, PointCTRL, Buttkicker 2, K-51 Helicopter Collective Control

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Thx so much Merker!

 

"Animation bugs in multiplayer" what kind are those, are they still present?


Edited by DanielNL
DCS Wishlist: 2K11 Krug SA-4 Ganef SAM, VR-TrackIR icons next to player names in score-chart

PvP: 100+ manual player-kills with Stingers on a well known dynamic campaign server - 100+ VTOL FARP landings & 125+ hours AV-8B, F-14 crew, royal dutch airforce F-16C - PvP campaigns since 2013

DCS server-admins: please adhere to a common sense gaming industry policy as most server admins throughout the industry do. (After all there's enough hostility on the internet already which really doesn't help anyone. Thanks.)

Dell Visor VR headset, Ryzen 5 5600 (6C/12T), RTX 2060 - basic DCS-community rule-of-thumb: Don't believe bad things that a PvP pilot claims about another PvP pilot without having analyzed the existing evidence

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Thank you for all of your work Merker, I wish you best of luck in all of your next challenges!

Welcome to Heclak! And once more big thank you to the whole team behind this amazing mod! You really reachead above all expectations and more!

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Thank you for all of your work Merker, I wish you best of luck in all of your next challenges!

Welcome to Heclak! And once more big thank you to the whole team behind this amazing mod! You really reachead above all expectations and more!

 

+1:thumbup:

 

all has already been said

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All the Best to you Merker and thanks again what you and the team has achieved so far..

Intel I7 - 10700 K @ 3,80GHz / 64 GB DDR3 / RTX 3090 / Win 10 Home 64 bit / Logitech X56 HOTAS / HP Reverb G2  

Running DCS on latest OB version 

 

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Sad to see ya go Merker but best of luck in all your new endeavours. Has anyone got problems with landing on Stennis? Keeps exploding!!! Just recently started doing this. Lands great on runway.

 

 

Cheers

I think you're doing a mid-air start? There's a bug in DCS world where SFM aircraft will have problems with the nose crashing through the ground upon landing when starting mid-air. Try starting from the catapult and you should not have problems

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