Help a fixed wing pilot choose his first helicopter

Thanks for the insight!

 

I have been torn over the Gazelle actually. It's a helicopter I'd really like, but I've read and watched conflicting stuff about it.

 

I suppose it is on sale though, what does anyone think of the Gazelle?

I read in your signature that you played the huey a lot. The huey flight model is top notch. To me that Gazellep flight model felt arcadish. I was not impressed at all.

But their creator said it would ge improved in 2019.

Thanks for the insight!

 

I have been torn over the Gazelle actually. It's a helicopter I'd really like, but I've read and watched conflicting stuff about it.

 

I suppose it is on sale though, what does anyone think of the Gazelle?

I'll say this I like all the Helis but the Gazelle is the most fun she is also a hard taskmaster who will kill you if you so much as blink at the wrong time but rewarding when you do fly it.

Even this morning there were 3 of us on an acrobatics server this morning and had a blast. :thumbup:

It will tax your setup a lot, I have cyclic collective and pedals (soon my own Mk 1 pedals will be ready) and seat (sim pit WIP) also flying one helps with the others so for me they all build on each other.

Once you get how the Gaz works (right wrong or indifferent as to FM and don't be put off by the FM arguments) it really is good I'd recommend getting it whilst it's on sale systems probably easier or at least on par with the Huey although if pressed I'd suggest starting with the Huey to get a feel or if you have proper controls (you will soon after coming over to the light side :D) then maybe the Gazelle first.

But good controls are a must for helicopters.

I've done a lot of testing for controls and such for the Gaz so if you need help only to happy to help.

PS you can do rolls and loops in the Gaz too,.. ;)

Birka, I too took the Helicopter plunge with this sale. I didn't get the Mi-8 but grabbed the others. My experience level is nowhere near these other gentlemen but I'll throw it out just in case. If I could only keep one, it absolutely would be the Gazelle. The others are neat but, for me, the Gaze is a blast! I logged 8.75 hours in it today alone and have enjoyed every minute.

 

Granted the first two hours I was digging ditches with my rotor blades and spent more time clicking the "fly again" button than actually flying. However once we came to an agreement that I would stop smacking into everything within sight and she would stop coming apart when I did so, it became a true love story.

 

Just 2 cents worth of input from an irrelevant old man :)

Sage advice sir. :thumbup:

Although I still break one or two now and again. :D

Frag and FragBum are you different people? :D

I've made do so far with my HOTAS but pedals are something I'm looking in to for when I've moved house and I've got space for a bigger setup.

If the FM is at least a close approximation of the real thing, then it only really matters to me that it's fun to fly and has plenty of toys to play with.

I've got a few question about the Gazelle I'll post in the Gazelle forum, but thanks everyone!

You fly the Huey without pedals, I could only maybe fly the KA-50 without pedals. You'll need pedals for the Gaz. Nah I say pedals for all of em. :D

Oh and yes different people but I think we have the same passion. :)

As one of the 3 FragBum mentioned on the aerobatics server, the Gaz is a blast to fly (was the first time I'd tried the minigun version), trying to out fly each other or cause your pursuer to crash into trees.

I'm a Yak guy myself and this is the only Heli I have (so just love flying and am not into the weapons side of things), but am tempted by the Mi8 at some point.

Where's that BO-105.....

the autopilot is not really a cheat when you have a co pilot who sits there and refuses to help :)

I have very bad experience using the autopilot option.

It used to just for no reason make a hard brake and do some moves that resulted in a mast bump.

So i dont use it out of fear :-))

but scrolling through the ADF up its range can take forever with a mouse.

Hold Shift while you scroll to make it scroll fast (it works in other modules as well)

Could be the Huey for both - but each helicopter has its on personality and its own role. I have the most hours in a gazelle and ka-50.

The gazelle is the most exciting to fly. (Unless you somehow think something which weighs less than 10% of almost anything else in the game shouldn't be able to pull off crazy stuff.) It's actually quite multi-role since you have several variants. The only option for light helicopter action, it's a great scout and if well used (or if you fly the gazelle mistral) the enemy will be shitting his pants. Light weaponry can be seen as an extra challenge for experienced pilots.

Ka-50 is like the A-10 of helicopters. The most complicated electronics and the most powerful weaponry, hands down. The Vihkr takes skill to use but can be very devastating. The coaxial setup makes it the odd bird in the bunch.

Mi-8 is the most dedicated transport helicopter. It does have multiple weapons platforms but is not really intimidating compared to the other helicopters. Flying it effectively is a very different joy from most other platforms in the game, and it could be the best pick if you are looking for a really authentic helicopter experience in DCS.

Huey is a bit more of a multirole. Some effective weapons especially for easier threat environments and it's also a transport helicopter by its soul. You need to learn a few tricks to cold start it reliably.

I don't think any of the helicopters is hard to fly. Each of them has some unique challenge for new pilots, and some unique quirks or special tricks you can't pull off with anything else.

Late to the party (you've already have plenty of advices) but I'll throw my 2 cents: I have every RW except for the Huey and definitely the module I recommend is the Ka-50. Extremely easy to fly, very simple yet quite advanced avionics (you can easily play as JTAC). Try to master the trimmer and the APs - it won't take more than a couple weeks - then you're going to have in your hands a very capable attack helicopter. It's only problem? Pilot workload: handling radios, scanning for targets and threats while also flying can become a bit stressful in some situations.

The Mi-8 is quite neat as well. Less capable but a lot of fun anyway both as transport and as S-8 boat. Unfortunately rockets are underwelming due to the old as known issues..

It has one of the beast FM in DCS and it will give you the best RW experience.

SA-342. Lots of people complain about the FM, some others love it. Whatever you do, it's a good addition to the Ka-50 imo since it provides what the Shark lacks: RWR and FLIR.

I personally don't like it much it doesn't offer as much as the Mi-8 or the Ka-50.

So, back to your questions: the Mi-8 definitely satisfies both but the Ka-50 is much more newbie-friendly. If I were you, I'd go for one of these two.

- Huey for beginners (but excellent FM nonetheless)

- Mi-8 is a super Huey with more complex systems (and excellent FM)

- Ka 50, easy to fly but complex to master

- Gazelle: super agile small helicopter, tons of fun to fly, IR system (great for night combat mission), interresting navigation system too. FM, well subject to a lot of discussions. But I like it.