Hello, i'm looking to increase my knowledge with DCS World

Hello, I've been quite new to DCS and started playing it about a month ago. I've already invested into flying the A-10C and the Mirage 2000C. They're very fun to fly and I have a lot of fun learning

how to fly them. I have numerous questions about it however.

I've been wanting to do SRS radio communication, but I have no clue about military communicating and it's a bit different than communication I've learned for Vatsim flying. I would like to know if there's a guide for that!

I notice AWACS gives out a certain readback after you request bogey dope. For example "150 for 60 at 15,000" if I remember. My question is, what is 150 for 60? I don't remember the exact number but I think it was in xxx for xx. 150 sounds like a heading, but then what is 60? Please correct me if i'm wrong, the more information I inquire then the more information I can use to perfect my flying skills and knowledge!

For the IFF, which I believe is what is used to scan for enemies and friendlies and more.. How can you identify on your radar if whatever it picked up is an enemy or friendly? I've been flying the M2000C a lot, and just got it a few days ago and i'm still learning it. I fly around for a while, and I get multiple readings on the IFF like SWF (If I remember), M2K, M21 and such as. I wanna lock onto one of those aircraft but I don't wanna shoot at friendly.

For my last question, is there a way you can plan routes in your M2000? I login to Multiplayer servers and notice that I only have 2 destinations while in my A-10C I have multiple destinations. Like, for example waypoint 3 is hard target practice destination while on the M2000 I don't get that. I wonder if there's a way you can manually load in a flight plan.

Thank you for reading, and I hope that this is not too many questions. I love learning about aircraft and i'm a huge Aviation fan. (I'm also new to this site). Thank you. ^.^

Welcome Uclipse!! You've taken, in my opinion, the most important step in the DCS experience - Engaging the DCS community. You'll find that the community here is second to none; true enthusiasts who share your love of aviation and simulation. Try looking around the forums here and do some searches for questions you might have. There are respective sub-forums for both the A-10C and the M2K. If you can't find what you're looking for - ask. Everyone here started in the same place with many of the same questions and frustrations.

I've been wanting to do SRS radio communication, but I have no clue about military communicating and it's a bit different than communication I've learned for Vatsim flying. I would like to know if there's a guide for that!

I think what you're asking for is called Brevity - Brevity Codes are used to relay complex information quickly over the radio. Like, "JINX 91 is WINCHESTER, RTB". Means I'm completely out of ordinance and returning to base.

Here's a link for some more commonly found in game:

http://www.mediafire.com/file/gis87wq922gnqax/104th+Brevity+Codes.pdf

I notice AWACS gives out a certain readback after you request bogey dope. For example "150 for 60 at 15,000" if I remember. My question is, what is 150 for 60? I don't remember the exact number but I think it was in xxx for xx. 150 sounds like a heading, but then what is 60? Please correct me if i'm wrong, the more information I inquire then the more information I can use to perfect my flying skills and knowledge!

What your hearing is BRAA (Brevity :thumbup: ) - BRAA = Bearing, Range, Altitude, Aspect

150 for 60 at 15000 = bearing 150 (you could then turn your aircraft to heading 150 and be pointed at the contact); the contact is at or about 60nm (nautical miles); flying at an altitude of 15,000; AWACS will then say one of three aspects. Hot, cold, or flanking. Hot = contact flying head on with you; cold = contact is outbound flying away from your position; flanking = flying perpendicular from your position.

The BRAA 150 for 60 at 15,000, HOT is an ok situation as you have time to prepare and determine is you should engage or not. A BRAA of 270 for 8 at 10000, HOT is much more concerning and demands immediate attention. Also you'll hear AWACS say, "JINX 91 - Merged." This means that the contact is so close to you (usually within 2nm) that AWACS cannot tell the difference between your radar signature or that of the bandit.

Thank you for reading, and I hope that this is not too many questions. I love learning about aircraft and i'm a huge Aviation fan. (I'm also new to this site). Thank you. ^.^

I hope you enjoy your time here. For your questions concerning the M2K; I do not fly the Mirage at the moment. But I can help you with some training videos I found.

Bunyap Sims produces great content, here's video #1 you can navigate to the others if you want:

Thank you so much! These are very helpful answers. I wanted to engage into the community after enjoying DCS for so long haha! I find it really nice to be in a community where people share similar interests and love for what you're into, especially of that being aviation.

I will look into the forums and do some searching like you said! Thank you for your reply, it all makes a lot of sense now and now i'll know what AWACS is telling me haha. I think I've heard BRAA somewhere in the sim before and started questions to myself what that actually meant. I'll use that for the next time I fly again, many thanks! I'll also look into Brevity.

I'm already liking the community! I can see getting a bit frustrated. There's a lot of complex systems you have to learn in order to actually fly and hit something, I've had that same experience with the A-10.

For the M2K, i'll go around searching for information regarding it. Thanks for the video, will check it out!

Having learned brevity codes in real life, I'll add to what Jinx said. The purpose of brevity codes is to communicate (i.e. have your message understood) quickly in a way that is unambiguous over the radio. If you don't know the brevity code, don't delay the communication trying to remember it. Just say what you mean (communicate) and worry about sounding cool later. You'll also find that the more you use them, the more they become second nature. The brevity codes that are the most common are conversational by most people (e.g. BRAA, angels, Fox), and the less common ones aren't as well known (Arizona, Bruiser), so there's no shame in asking the question.

My previous flights went well thanks to your guy's info/guides! Thank you. =) I researched more and studied Brevity from A-Z. I studied the manual for the M2K and found out one of the previous problems I had with the HSI gauge not working. I figured out I had to create a waypoint for it to work in navigation mode.

I figured out how to turn on the communication/radio panel, and know how to set altitudes for autopilot and shoot mag missiles now!

The only problem I have trouble with I suppose is the IFF radar still. I researched the manual and double-checked and read the page about the symbols that appear on the IFF. I understand about the symbols that are airborne, and aircraft that are locked onto you and an incoming missile. I just can't seem to identify whether or not what I'm shooting at is an enemy or foe.

Let's say a Mig-21 popped up on my IFF radar. In my M2K, there's a radar down below the hud where you can slew and select targets. Let's say there's about 5. How do I know which one is the Mig-21 or not? I don't even know if it's a enemy haha. I may have accidentally shot a teammate down by accident, and then after that I stopped dogfighting for a bit after huge confusion on how it works. I'm a bit better at Air-to-Ground targets than air targets since i'm having a bit time deciding whether or not if they are enemies I can engage.

I'll continue studying, and I think I should ask this in the M2K section to see if that helps or keep trotting around the forums to see if I found a solution. I know you can identify enemy aircraft in the F-15, but I can't seem to identify any in the M2K; unless enemy contacts only show up on the IFF but then there's the problem of having 5 contacts down below my hud radar. :)

The only problem I have trouble with I suppose is the IFF radar still.

I'm not an expert on the M-2000C, but it seems like a bit of a clarification is in order. ;)

First, if you haven't done that yet, grab a copy of Chuck's guide for the M-2000C, his guides are just all around excellent. :thumbup:

It sounds like you might be mixing up two independent systems: RWR and radar.

The RWR (radar warning receiver) display is located on the right side of the front panel. It displays all radar emitters that your aircraft's systems can identify, with their relative position. The RWR can't tell whether an emitter is friend or foe. Let's say both factions have MiG-21 available, then you can't tell if a 21 that shows up on your RWR is friendly or hostile. Of course, if you're on blue coalition and blue doesn't have any 21s, it's a safe bet that guy is an enemy. ;)

The radar screen, centered low on the front panel, displays all radar contacts that your own radar can see. Once again, the radar can't tell (yet) whether a contact is friend or foe. Luckily, since that problem exists since WWII, fighter radars have an IFF interrogator and pretty much all military and civilian aircraft have IFF responders. Civvies should always respond, while military aircraft may or may not respond - you wouldn't want to give yourself away to the enemy, while you definitely want to respond to friendly IFF requests. To my knowledge, how it really works is classified, and IFF in DCS isn't anywhere close to real world IFF.

In any case, the nosewheel steering button on your M-2000C control stick acts as IFF interrogator and the symbol of an interrogated contact will change accordingly. Here's an older thread about it, maybe someone else has more recent info:

radar IFF

Actually finding the bad guys while protecting the good ones is an art form that requires a pretty good understanding of the situation. Use all information sources available to you - briefing, list of aircraft per faction, chat, TeamSpeak, Simple Radio, and in time you'll know who to shoot and who to avoid.

But like I said, I'm not an expert on the M-2000C, I'm more of a ground pounder myself, so if you have any A-10C related questions, I can probably get into more detail. :thumbup: