Default head position and HUD location

I noticed something while flying the F-15 in VR and it's really bugging me.

The default head position is directly, horizontally behind the HUD. Sounds OK? Until you look around and see that the seat cushion is where your chest should be, and the headrest on the seat is way above you. Your head position is way too low in the cockpit.

Looking at external shots of the real thing, the seating position on an F-15 is very high. If the pilot looks straight ahead he's staring at the windscreen frame. To see "through" the HUD he needs to look down along the nose of the plane.

In game, you can adjust this position to a realistic level, that's trivial... but then you can't see the HUD, because it renders way too high in your field of view, outside its own screen.

Is there a way around this? A way to move the default position (height) of the HUD picture?

If it was that bad (that low) how would you still see the runway about 10m from the nose? Look at the perceived yellow line vs red one. Scale is in inches.

I see your point but your drawing exagerrates a litte. In game, the default position is horizontally behind the centre of the HUD glass/picture. Sure you can still see downwards a bit over the nose, not like you're squinting at the top of the instrument panel, but if you look around, down and behind, the seat is not in a natural position, and it's really obvious in VR.

Have a look at these guys:

https://c8.alamy.com/comp/MXR4WW/us-air-force-captain-patrick-odell-56th-operations-group-detachment-2-climbs-into-the-cockpit-of-an-f-15-eagle-in-preparation-for-a-training-mission-at-kingsley-field-in-klamath-falls-oregon-december-2-2016-the-56th-operations-group-detachment-2-is-an-active-duty-detachment-that-is-fully-integrated-with-the-oregon-air-national-guards-173rd-fighter-wing-the-home-to-the-sole-f-15c-training-base-for-the-united-states-air-force-us-air-national-guard-photo-by-master-sgt-jennifer-shirar-MXR4WW.jpg

https://media.defense.gov/2017/Sep/29/2001819997/-1/-1/0/170927-F-IN679-037.JPG

They're almost waist-high out of the cockpit. Their eye level is in line with the windscreen frame. It's above the top of the HUD glass. They need to look down a good 10 degrees to be seeing through the centre of the HUD picture. If you move the head position in game to match this, the HUD renders above the glass and you can't see it.

I have also spent some time trying to get a view in game in the different aircraft that feels realistic. I use Track IR though and dont like the fisheye view in many DCS Youtube videos. However I suspect that the real pilots lower their seatbucket and that the angle of attack makes you sit more leaned back so that you can look through the HUD. Because the ones in the picture cant see much though the HUD.

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Let's take this particular situation. I'm really close to another Eagle:

This is what I see through HUD. It's clear that the pilot looks way down (15 degrees) and I can even see the nosewheel. The horizon is exactly where it should be and coincide with the eye level in the other 15C.

Now when I look back my eyes are exatly where they should be, not at the seat belts/harness:

The external view pilot's eyes are placed exactly at the default viewpoint. Looks quite good comparing to real life photos. Remember in DCS the pilot is always same height while you can have different pilots IRL. Afaik the HUD doesn't get corrected if you're tall - it's rather the seat you move lower.

If you have it different than this in VR then we have a problem.

OK, on your screenshots it looks fine but there's something odd about it in VR. It's really hard to get screenshots that actually show it but I took some to try to illustrate.

This is me with a comfortable upright head position.

First shot looking forward. Horizon is where it should be and at eye level of the other F-15. I can see 15 degrees down, but the heading tape is above the top of the glass.

Second picture looking behind, eye level is almost at the buckles (screenshot doesn't show it how I see it in the headset). I'm actively cranking my head up to see the headrest, which should be directly behind me.

Last picture looking down, it feels like the seat cushion is where my thighs should be. This may just be a mental dissonance because I'm quite tall (6'2") and I have an expectation of where my body should be in VR even though I can't see it. Maybe pilot body in cockpit would help but it doesn't seem to work.

I'm willing to handwave this as an issue with VR and my height, but then if the real plane had an adjustable seat, that would help a lot in game to get proper immersion.

I'm willing to handwave this as an issue with VR and my height, but then if the real plane had an adjustable seat, that would help a lot in game to get proper immersion.

Like you said it can look different in VR due to FOV but the angles are the same and are correct. How about the feeling in other modules?

Like you said it can look different in VR due to FOV but the angles are the same and are correct. How about the feeling in other modules?

All of them have this to an extent, well, the ones I own (Flankers, Fulcrum, Fishbed, Tomcat). But the F-15 is the worst by far, hence the only one I've gone out of my way to try to find a solution for. The others I think have bigger HUD glass areas, or the stuff rendered on the HUD doesn't go to the edges by default so you have some wiggle to move your head up and not lose it.

Raising an old post, but you might want to move forwards a bit. I usually have to sit up and move back a little when I press the VR view reset button, then when I slouch and sit forwards, my head is a little forwards. Sorry, no pictures, but if you then turn around, the headrest should be 6 inches or more away. That way your eyes are closer to the HUD and it takes up more of your FOV, and you can see all the symbology that way.

It does seem that the VR view reset button is the only way to move your seat position. You just have to move in the opposite direction you want, press it, then move back to your normal position.