A few questions about BFM, Cougar profiles, etc…
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I’ve been getting back into flying F4 just recently, via BMS. I finally got around to repairing my Cougar (Noisy pots in the joystick, now replaced) and have spent some time every day just flying and getting my skills back.
I can’t tell you how long my “break” was from flying, but I know I hadn’t loaded up F4 since a few months after Allied Force came out.
I’m pretty much starting over from scratch.
So, a couple of questions:
1: What’s the most “accurate” Cougar profile today? Accurate to the real F-16, that is. (Using Foxy, of course.)
2: I’ve been getting my skills back mostly in dogfights. I’m usually going up against SU-27s which can really be a challenge IF they get behind me and get a good tail lock. It SEEMS to me that my only advantage in this scenario is that I can get the nose around faster than the 27 if I can survive long enough to get to the top of the corner airspeed range, around 440 knots or so, and then I can swing my nose around fast enough to outpace the Flanker’s turn rate and get a lock on him. But more often than not, I’ll lose that encounter and have so far had no luck turning that sort of a situation into a two circle fight.
Granted, it’s probably nutty to START practicing against a Flanker, but I’ve chosen to do that.
So, with that in mind, what would you (the experienced dogfighter, well acquainted with how to kill Flankers) suggest if you find yourself set up with a Flanker locked on behind you?And I confess, I’ve never achieved proficiency with the radar. (Accurate simulation mode)
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I’ve been getting back into flying F4 just recently, via BMS. I finally got around to repairing my Cougar (Noisy pots in the joystick, now replaced) and have spent some time every day just flying and getting my skills back.
I can’t tell you how long my “break” was from flying, but I know I hadn’t loaded up F4 since a few months after Allied Force came out.
I’m pretty much starting over from scratch.
So, a couple of questions:
1: What’s the most “accurate” Cougar profile today? Accurate to the real F-16, that is. (Using Foxy, of course.)
2: I’ve been getting my skills back mostly in dogfights. I’m usually going up against SU-27s which can really be a challenge IF they get behind me and get a good tail lock. It SEEMS to me that my only advantage in this scenario is that I can get the nose around faster than the 27 if I can survive long enough to get to the top of the corner airspeed range, around 440 knots or so, and then I can swing my nose around fast enough to outpace the Flanker’s turn rate and get a lock on him. But more often than not, I’ll lose that encounter and have so far had no luck turning that sort of a situation into a two circle fight.
Granted, it’s probably nutty to START practicing against a Flanker, but I’ve chosen to do that.
So, with that in mind, what would you (the experienced dogfighter, well acquainted with how to kill Flankers) suggest if you find yourself set up with a Flanker locked on behind you?And I confess, I’ve never achieved proficiency with the radar. (Accurate simulation mode)
Why using Foxy? If you want the stick setup the same as the real jet, just put the stick in the non programmed mode and load one of kolbes keyfiles.
As far as dogfighting the AI, they aren’t very bright. That said if you are defensive against one then you rely on that. Ive had the best luck against single AI jets by using a break and extend strategy to get my energy up, then going to constant rate once I have airspeed. It really doesnt matter too much what the AI does. Now, if only human opponents were so easily foxed…
You say you haven’t achieved proficiency with the radar. Do you have familiarity with the radar? What problems do you have with using it effectively?
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You can load up a built in profile, duncs i believe is the cougars and i use it. I have no real need for extra things, everything i click with the mouse, except landing gear i use the g key.
Look on youtube for the Art of the Kill video. It was made for falcon and is taught by an f16 instructor. Teaches the basic fighter maneuvers for dogfights and is really good.
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I say I’m not proficient with the radar, but I’m learning. It’s way more complex than the simplified model found in a video game. So many modes to work with and learn which works best for which task. And, how to interpret the display so if the radar gives an indication of an enemy plane in a specific location, knowing where to look for it in 3D space, is something I’m working on.
I have found some success in extending (Fly away real fast!) and then breaking back toward the Flanker and throwing a missile at him. That sometimes works. I’m slowly increasing the AI level, as my kill ratio increases. I can say that it’s never a good thing to be in a pure pursuit situation (with you being pursued) and low on energy. That tends to end badly.
I’m using Foxy because I know it. I’ve always used it. So, why not? I like to customize profiles although I’m still in the process of relearning what I used to know by heart about it. I lost my preferred profile from the BMS 2 days, which had it set up very much like the real F-16, but with a few changes added for convenience. (Hat switch to change out-the-window views, same plus pinky switch held down to trim, pinky switch plus right side button to turn NWS on and off, etc.) I really want to minimize any possible need to take my hands off the stick or throttle during flight. Isn’t that whole point of the HOTAS concept?
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II lost my preferred profile from the BMS 2 days, which had it set up very much like the real F-16, but with a few changes added for convenience. (Hat switch to change out-the-window views, same plus pinky switch held down to trim, pinky switch plus right side button to turn NWS on and off, etc.) I really want to minimize any possible need to take my hands off the stick or throttle during flight. Isn’t that whole point of the HOTAS concept?
Ex-Foxy user here, too, I started fresh with the kolbe keyfile (full version) and only use a text editor for modifying / assigning new functions. Works great and removes a layer of complexity that foxy introduces to the mix once you grasp the DX input concept.
Cheers, Uwe
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I say I’m not proficient with the radar, but I’m learning. It’s way more complex than the simplified model found in a video game. So many modes to work with and learn which works best for which task. And, how to interpret the display so if the radar gives an indication of an enemy plane in a specific location, knowing where to look for it in 3D space, is something I’m working on.
I have found some success in extending (Fly away real fast!) and then breaking back toward the Flanker and throwing a missile at him. That sometimes works. I’m slowly increasing the AI level, as my kill ratio increases. I can say that it’s never a good thing to be in a pure pursuit situation (with you being pursued) and low on energy. That tends to end badly.
I’m using Foxy because I know it. I’ve always used it. So, why not? I like to customize profiles although I’m still in the process of relearning what I used to know by heart about it. I lost my preferred profile from the BMS 2 days, which had it set up very much like the real F-16, but with a few changes added for convenience. (Hat switch to change out-the-window views, same plus pinky switch held down to trim, pinky switch plus right side button to turn NWS on and off, etc.) I really want to minimize any possible need to take my hands off the stick or throttle during flight. Isn’t that whole point of the HOTAS concept?
Well…. I would say that the radar in BMS is a simplified model found in a video game… One thing that might help in this regard, is using the HMS - if you bug a contact you will get a TLL in the HMS that you can ‘follow’ to find the contact. The operation of a B scope is not so complex, really. If contacts move vertically up or down the scope, they are on a collision course with you - you being the entire bottom of the scope. If you draw a line vertically down the middle of the scope, that represents directly ahead of you. Vertical lines drawn at the edges of the scope represent lines heading directly away from you, offset 60 degrees from your heading. Small vertical tick marks in the bottom of the FCR exist to indicate increments of 10 degrees, to let you gauge how far off the nose contacts are. Getting an idea of where to look in azimuth is thus pretty easy. You can get a head start on this by learning ‘canopy codes’ and noting where 10 degrees off the nose is, where 20 degrees off the nose is, relative to the canopy.
Getting an idea of where to look in elevation depends on your relative altitudes and ranges. This is something I just guesstimate - though if someone has a good ROT feel free to chip in. If you are co altitude with the contact, then its pretty easy - look at the horizon, and slightly above and below. If you are close, increase how far around you are looking in elevation - small differences in altitude translate to large relative elevations of view.
most of the time, the mode I use depends on what I am trying to achieve. In navigation over friendly territory, and with air superiority assumed, I am typically in TWS. This tends to give better SA IMO, although at the cost of not displaying contacts as quickly. After I fence in, if the radar is on at all, its probably in RWS. Depending on the stage of the mission, if tasked A-A, I may cycle between TWS and RWS - long range shots or shooting at MUSIC, then RWS. Short range shots, or CAPPING, then TWS or RWS. As soon as Im WVR, its on to the ACM modes - deal with the nearby threat first before worrying about BVR. If I have to react defensive its first and foremost fly best defensive BFM - usually that means the radar is snoozed unless and until I transition offensive. When that happens, its usually going to ACM-60 - as the SLEW mode does not work correctly in BMS.
WRT the flanker scenario, it probably wouldnt hurt to practice getting gun kills on the AI. Id agree that its never a good thing to be low on energy, particularly when you are under someone elses HUD.
As far as Foxy goes, if you want to customise things to your liking, then Foxy is certainly the most configurable way to set things. Im pretty sure that eventually Ill have to transition to using it, as I want to rotate the axes of my stick by 12 degrees. If you want to set the button layout the same as the real jet, Kolbes keyfiles for BMS are included in your install folder. If you want a layout different to the real jet, or with convenience features added, then Foxy is probably the way to go.
Purely out of interest - why not have just the ‘right side button’ to turn NWS on and off? Why pinky switch plus that button?
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Thanks for the tips. I’ll apply them, although to be honest I’m not quite yet back up to speed on some of the abbreviations you used. TLL, for example. Don’t know that one. The rest, I know…or think I do.
I want NWS to be a “shift plus button” type function so that don’t engage it accidentally. Same for trim adjustments. Simply assigning trim directly to the hat switch may be “correct” to the F-16, but I’ve found that it’s the first button I touch and trimming can be finicky business, so it makes sense that it should be a control I use only by a deliberate effort. I’ve accidentally trimmed myself into the ground in the past.
BMS 4.32 seemed so new and different to me at first that I was thinking that the original Falcon 4.0 manual was now close to useless. Now I’m thinking that isn’t really the case so I have the manual back out and just plan to walk my way through every TE, one at a time, to as large an extent as they are applicable. And then review the BMS documentation to pick up the rest.
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TLL is a Target Locator Line. If you bug a target on the FCR, and that target falls within the HUD, a TD (Taget Designator) box is drawn around it. If it does not fall within the HUD, then a line is drawn in the HUD, pointing from the gun cross to the position of the target, and with the number of degrees from the HUD the target is. Target Locator Lines can be drawn from a number of sources, but I believe in BMS the only two that are implemented are the FCR contact TLL, and the TGP TLL.
The benefit of the HMS in this is that TLLs are also drawn in the HMS. If the HMS is enabled then looking away from the HUD with a contact bugged will result in either a TD box being drawn on the HMS around the target (if the target is within the HMS FOV) or a TLL being drawn on the HMS from the center of the FOV to the position of the target (if the target falls outside the HMS FOV).
With the TLL displayed in the HMS then, you get a big line in your FOV that points towards your target, until its in the sight - at which point a big box is drawn over it. Makes getting a visual that much easier.
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This got me to wondering….are there any plans on the part of the BMS development team to create a functional HMCS model? Which, as I understand it, would be a full field of view HUD, more or less?
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This got me to wondering….are there any plans on the part of the BMS development team to create a functional HMCS model? Which, as I understand it, would be a full field of view HUD, more or less?
The HMCS -is- functional. Turn it on with the knob on the HMCS panel. Hold DMS to toggle the display on and off.
The full field of view display you are thinking of is closer to the F-35’s DAS display in the JHMCS.
Where the existing implementation needs work, is in the missing functionality is presently has - such as the air to ground modes in its entirety.
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I did not know that. There is so much in BMS that I’ve never seen before, it’s going to take a while to find it all.
What version(s) of F-16 do I need to select in order to use the JHMCS? Block 52 Plus?
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I did not know that. There is so much in BMS that I’ve never seen before, it’s going to take a while to find it all.
Opinions vary as to the best (and also the quickest) way to learn it. I am personally of the opinion that one learns best with a couple of tutors, to go over the breadth of BMS’ capabilities, as well as the jets operation and employment. This usually means finding a good VFW to join, which is a task in itself.
Id recommend starting with the BMS manual included in your install - http://falcon.blu3wolf.com/Docs/BMS-Manual.pdf. Whilst by no means a complete guide to the sim, it does cover a large number of the new additions to the sim, and is a good starting spot. Mowers AF to BMS conversion guide is also worth perusal - http://falcon.blu3wolf.com/Docs/AF%20to%20FBMS%20Guide%20v1.37.pdf.
You are probably also going to want kolbes keyfile manual, in your install. No link for that one. Try C:\Falcon BMS 4.32\User\Joystick\Generic\Kolbe though.
With learning BMS, Im reminded of something my flight instructor once told me. When a student pilot has a few hours experience, they realise how much there is to learn - that they effectively know nothing. By 50 hours experience, they usually think they know everything there is to know. By 200 hours under their belt, they know that they know everything. It is usually only after a few thousand hours flying, that the average pilot realises that they will -never- know everything there is to know.
Keeping to an attitude of wanting to learn, is probably one of the better attitudes to have, when it comes to this sim (and this hobby in general).
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I agree with that! The more you learn, the more you realize that there is still to be learned.
I try to learn something new in BMS every day.
I’ll be learning for hundreds, maybe thousands, of days if I continue. -
What version(s) of F-16 do I need to select in order to use the JHMCS? Block 52 Plus?
Blocks 30/32 definitely cannot use the HMCS. IIRC, blocks 40/42 can. 50/52/52+ all definitely can.
I agree with that! The more you learn, the more you realize that there is still to be learned.
I try to learn something new in BMS every day.
I’ll be learning for hundreds, maybe thousands, of days if I continue.Good for you! Keep it up, and soon you’ll be telling me what you know, instead of vice versa!
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I must be stupid. I have not yet found any versions of the F-16 that have the control panel in the cockpit for the HMCS. Would you please give me some specific directions to any examples that does?
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All F-16s in BMS use the same cockpit. The controls are:
1. Brightness knob at the left aux panel near the CMDS.
2. DMS Down Long to toggle on and off
3. Various options set through the ICP-DED.In the models without HMCS the controls will simply be nonop.
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Interesting. All the F-16 cockpitz should have the panel in BMS - its the functionality that varies.
The panel is found below the CMDS panel, which is in turn under the GEAR panel.
Block 50 and 52 aircraft definitely have a working panel. All of them have the panel. Its a simple panel with a single knob to control the strength of the symbology.
Edit: ninja’d!
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Is it possible that I’m not seeing the right cockpit due to a possible issue with the BMS installation?
I did a fresh install of Falcon 4.0 from the original CD.
I then immediately installed BMS 4.32 using the default settings.
I haven’t changed anything of note in the configuration.I’m not seeing the HMCS panel. I’m going to call it Dave. Because Dave’s not here, man!
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Is it possible that I’m not seeing the right cockpit due to a possible issue with the BMS installation?
I did a fresh install of Falcon 4.0 from the original CD.
I then immediately installed BMS 4.32 using the default settings.
I haven’t changed anything of note in the configuration.I’m not seeing the HMCS panel. I’m going to call it Dave. Because Dave’s not here, man!
You didn’t need to install Falcon 4.0 at all - you just point the BMS installer to the exe - thats it.
Do you have a screen shot of the pit?
If you choose a Block 30 say you can turn the JHCMS knob but wont get the helmet display.
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Ah, got it. I was looking for the HMCS panel in the wrong location! Can’t even figure out why I didn’t see it earlier!
Since I’m using a PC that I’ve never previously used for any gaming, I did a full fresh install like it was a new machine. It went smoothly.
I at least found the HMCS panel and how to access it via the DED, but haven’t yet had a chance to really play with it.
My curiosity got me into some experimental edits to the aircraft models in the data directories. Boosting the thrust multiplier to 3.0 made for some interesting effects. Like…supercruise. Top speeds over 1250 knots. Topping out at over 85,000 feet. Definitely not realistic, but fun. Over 1100 knots, there’s a mild pitch oscillation that can be damped out by control inputs.