DCS A-10C QUESTIONS

I've never used the F10 map before, and I don't really use the TAD that much for nav either since I don't usually fly with preset waypoints. TACAN/ILS for IFR, eyeballs for VFR.

 

And no, you shouldn't eventually stop using the F10 map. You should stop using it now. If you avoid bad habits in the beginning, it will pay dividends in the long run :)

So you just fly around till you randomly find targets? If you never look at a map then you don’t really know where you’re going. Tacan and VOR are fine for navigating to known points, but don’t get you to that field in the middle of nowhere where the enemy is. Unless you happen to be from the region you’re flying in, you need to see a map. Also, unless you have some charts somewhere else how do you even know the ILS or tacan frequencies unless they are in a briefing. The TAD is a realistic instrument for navigating and the F10 map is really just a bigger view of what you see on the TAD. Only if you allow missions to see the enemy does it become “cheaty”.

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So you just fly around till you randomly find targets?

No, I mission plan and brief all phases of flight before I even "step" to the jet. Then I know where I need to go, how to get there, what I need to do once I'm there, and how to get back home. I personally fly with real kneeboards on my legs that have checklists, EPs, plates, and a fully filled mission briefing card.

If you never look at a map then you don’t really know where you’re going. Tacan and VOR are fine for navigating to known points, but don’t get you to that field in the middle of nowhere where the enemy is. Unless you happen to be from the region you’re flying in, you need to see a map.

I'm not saying never to look at the TAD, I'm saying it shouldn't be what you're constantly staring at to get around. The A-10 isn't really a strike platform anyway, so you're not typically going out to bomb bad guys in some random field. For your prototypical CAS mission you'll be on the radio with the FAC/JTAC/TACP on the ground who is going to give you what you need to get to their position and who will talk you on to your target. In the off chance that you are dropping bombs in some field you can either drop a waypoint there in the mission planner before you step, or punch known coordinates into the CDU once you're in the jet.

Also, unless you have some charts somewhere else how do you even know the ILS or tacan frequencies unless they are in a briefing.

You can pull up airfield info on the CDU and it has all the info you need.

sorry to be always spamming this thread w/ questions but:

 

ive been flying the hog for about 6 months now (however i studied how to fly it and use its systems for about a year before i actually bought it) and was wondering if veteran DCS:A-10C pilots are able to navigate without using the F10 map and only the TAD.

 

Should I also eventually stop using the F10 map and only use the TAD?

In a similar vein to what's been posted above... I can't remember the last time I used the F10 map other than mission editing/testing. There are lots of JPG/PNG files of both the NTTR and Georgia maps available online which you can put in your kneeboard (either the sim one or a separate device like a laptop or tablet). I find that much quicker to look at and easier to use compared to F10 which obviously stops you looking outside!

My question would be - what do you use the F10 map for at the moment?

If you've planned the flight to any degree at all one would hope you have waypoints in the CDU that will tell you where to go, as well as knowing (on a map) where you are going.

I agree with the others. At some point I switched my F10 map to show no units at all, not even my own aircraft. This way, I can use the F10 map in a way that's not too far from what pilots would do on the jet, without having to actually print it out. I think it's fair to get TACAN/ILS channels from it, though the CDU does indeed hold all of this as well. And a proper flight plan should also include all of this information, plus freqs and divert airports and so on.

The TAD map is great to enhance SA. I try to treat it as though it might be off by a few miles, though. In DCS it never is, and with proper GPS it shouldn't be IRL either. But it's always good to make full use of all the navigation equipment in case some of it fails, or is actually giving bad info (TACAN sometimes does, though I've never figured out when or why it's going to happen. Needless to say I've had some bad and dangerous approaches because I failed to cross-check my nav instruments and relied solely on TACAN during those approaches).

Then again, it depends on the mission. I tend not to fly missions that say "go to waypoint XYZ, destroy a myriad of targets, mission success!" without even a pointer of where to land. Good missions will have useful waypoints, and really good missions will have the player deviate from the pre-planned route and react to stuff as it happens, and react to the situation on the ground as it develops.

Flying out of the same airport during a campaign or just for training purposes also helps; after a while TACAN and ILS channels and field elevation are stored in the brain and will be punched in during start-up without even thinking about it. Plus, the whole of Georgia has very remarkable features. Navigating there is like riding a bike through my hometown - I might need a map every now and then, but I feel kinda at home. ;)

Plus, the whole of Georgia has very remarkable features. Navigating there is like riding a bike through my hometown - I might need a map every now and then, but I feel kinda at home. ;)

Damn, does that come with time? How long you been playing in the Caucasus terrain?

To be honest, I really use the F10 map for just two things.

1. Zooming into the airfield I spawned at, so I can see what turns to make in order to get onto the runway

2. Getting a vector to an airfield (or bullseye if I'm on the 104th)

I can easily do #2 in the Hog with just the TAD and CDU, don't know how to get around #1 though

Damn, does that come with time? How long you been playing in the Caucasus terrain?

Started down low with the Ka-50, and A-10C ever since it came out. So yeah, that comes with time. ;)

Campaigns like the UN-Pilot campaign for UH-1H and The Enemy Within for A-10C also really help, because they focus on a specific part of the map. In the Batumi/Kobuleti/Kutaisi area I could probably navigate blind-folded. ;)

Then eastward there's Kashuri, then a river running east past Gori and leading all the way to Tbilisi, where there's also a lot of action taking place in many missions.

1. Zooming into the airfield I spawned at, so I can see what turns to make in order to get onto the runway

Good point! Unlike us sim pilots, I guess real pilots usually have an idea where they actually are once they've strapped in. Would be nice to get an automated briefing image for the ramp position or something like that. I actually use the F2 map (if available) for this purpose, and it's usually the only time I ever do unless I'm taking some nice screenshots.

Anyway, once you know where you are on the airfield, you could use the airport charts from the DCS docs folder (C:\Program Files\Eagle Dynamics\DCS World\Doc\Charts) to figure out how to get to the assigned runway.

It might even be a good idea to talk to your screen (I know it feels stupid) and tell it something like "Kutaisi, Hawg 1-1 at Ramp North, taxiing runway 08 via November, Alpha" in order to focus on your planned taxi-route.

2. Getting a vector to an airfield (or bullseye if I'm on the 104th)

 

I can easily do #2 in the Hog with just the TAD and CDU, don't know how to get around #1 though

Agreed, getting vectors should work fine without the F10 map.

It only feels stupid the first few times you do it. After a while it feels stupid not to talk while flying. It offers a huge increase in immersion IMO. Then before you know it you'll be buying an O2 mask and wiring a mic up and then the immersion REALLY kicks up a notch! ;)

Then before you know it you'll be buying an O2 mask and wiring a mic up and then the immersion REALLY kicks up a notch! ;)

LOL I'm not there yet, but definitely sounds tempting :D

Hey, just want to make something clear as I have no acces to my PC and I don't remember ever epxeriencing this

So, after aligning the Maverick, it has a 30minute life before it degrades/overheats ?

And if you decide to shut it down, to cool-off you have to wait 30 minutes ?

Is this correct ? Is it simulated ? Don't see anything about it in the manual and just 1 forum thread that I found from the beta days

I've always alignmed my Mavs prior to take-off and don't remember ever having issues. Maybe, because it is the first stand-off weapons you use when you get to a TO

You do not "align" Mavericks, although you do turn them on. IIRC it's something about the head's cooling, and yes it normally lasts around 30m before they shut off. I normally turn them as part of the FENCE IN checks, and sometimes not even then.

I normally turn them as part of the FENCE IN checks, and sometimes not even then.

I hardly ever run into that problem because I frigging always forget to turn the damn things on even during fence in. :D

Hahaha, who FENCE INs? I always keep my mavs hot, Master Arm, and PAC on, lol

Hahaha, who FENCE INs? I always keep my mavs hot, Master Arm, and PAC on, lol

Especially when most battlefields are within a few minutes of takeoff anyways

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They last for 1:00 hr after switching on. If they go over 1 hr, you only need switch them off for a second or two, and then back on. Seems a bit of a cheat, although they do then take another 3minutes of cooling before they can be used.

Our beloved Betty's voice can get a bit loud at times, so I usually turn the HELMET slider down to about 20%. However, I'm playing FOB Vekta, and I can get a bit hard to hear some of the dialogue. But I can't turn up the volume without Betty bursting my eardrums :)

Any way to get around this issue, other than turning down the volume in the intercom panel?

(I don't want to do that because it also turns down other noises that I'd rather hear, I just want to tune down Betty's voice)

Our beloved Betty's voice can get a bit loud at times, so I usually turn the HELMET slider down to about 20%. However, I'm playing FOB Vekta, and I can get a bit hard to hear some of the dialogue. But I can't turn up the volume without Betty bursting my eardrums :)

Any way to get around this issue, other than turning down the volume in the intercom panel?

(I don't want to do that because it also turns down other noises that I'd rather hear, I just want to tune down Betty's voice)

Are you molesting her ? Maybe that is the reasons she is screaming so much ? If she doesn't give you consent at first, try fiddling with her first, make her comfortable.... i.e adjust the altitude warning settings ^.^

What are you doing that's triggering the alarms?

What are you doing that's triggering the alarms?

"Pull up pull up" and "autopilot" when I break out of autopilot

Wish there was a way to turn down Bettys voice and only Bettys voice

Just to make clear

(RL wise)

UHF is used to contact TWR for inbound and outbound, used to communicate with AWACS/TANKER and the general flight frequencies for call-outs.

VHF AM is used for in flight management between your flight members

VHF FM is used for troop contact/JTAC

Had a weird failure occur and can't figure out why or if it was just a glitch/bug. I did nothing out of the ordinary and was preparing to use a gbu12 but when I selected it this warning popped up, I lost my HUD, and a few things appeared on system failure display.

IFFCC AV3 NOT READY

LASTE GCAS EAC lit up on failure display

Looking at acronym list in manual I see that one is a fire control system and another altitude control but at 14,000ft and no reason for fire I don't get it. Anyone else see this or know what it means?

Did you get hit or damaged? Was your probe heat on?

Your IFFCC switch is off in your second photo...

Your IFFCC switch is off in your second photo...

OK. Turning that switch off is what caused this. I don't recall touching it but I guess this will go down as operator error. Thanks.

Just to make clear

 

(RL wise)

 

UHF is used to contact TWR for inbound and outbound, used to communicate with AWACS/TANKER and the general flight frequencies for call-outs.

 

VHF AM is used for in flight management between your flight members

 

VHF FM is used for troop contact/JTAC

In the 476th (where we try and emulate RL as much as it makes sense) AM is for package comms, UHF for control/AWACS/tower etc. and FM for flight comms.

True but that’s mostly through habit because more often than not we don’t operate with a JTAC. But VHF/AM is the normal radio for flight comms so the post you quoted is spot on.