General Category > Unofficial F/A-18 Acceleration Pack board
vLSO Beta release
Paddles:
Spaz,
Your ability to find exact useful information always amazes me! ;D
So, I guess increasing the limit to, say, 15..17' would be just fine for the simulation (assuming there's no drift).
PhantomTweak,
Don't be afraid to learn carrier pattern. I suggest you start with the 'FCLP Missions pack vol.2' (found at Avsim.com library) - flying through the hoops should help you develop 'the feeling of the pattern' (see the picture).
After that you can practice dusk and night passes, as shown on Spaz's video.
Believe me, once mastered FCLP, landing aboard the ship will be a piece of cake ;D
And vLSO is your friend ;)
PhantomTweak:
Thank you to both of you for the sudden influx of data my poor ol' tired brain now must assimilate :D
Seriously, though, I have DL'd the FCLP pack 2 from AvSim, and will get on it as soon and as hard as my time permits.
My problem isn't the book-learning, it's the actual muscle-memory needed. I can usually quote the right section of the F/A-18C NATOPS from memory, and if not I know where to go look to find what I need. I just need to put that book knowledge into practice. And as Mr. Sinbad said, thank goodness crashes aren't fatal, just grossly annoying.
Having gone through all that explanation, I do have a question regarding the carrier pattern. The NATOPS just says "Approach and pass the carrier close aboard to starboard..." when heading into the break. Ok, great. I know starboard and port, no sweat. Just HOW close is "Close"? Just on the canopy rail as I look out the cockpit? !/2 way down the wing? On the wingtip, so I can see it as the wing goes over it? See what I mean? Where, in reference to MY POV, do I place the boat/FCLP runway? I know the downwind is 1.75-2 NMi to port. Got that. I know the 180 is just where the LSO platform becomes visible, or about 45° abaft the plane. So on and so on, but the initial approach to the break matters as to how tight the bank angle is, etc etc. SO! How close IS close??
I'll wager the answer is in the FCLP pack I just DL'd, I just need to run through the hoops once to see it, I just thought I'd throw the question out there, as it's been on my mind a lot lately...
Thanks to you both again for all the advice and assistance. I understand the LSO is your friend, but I am a very proud man, most Marines are, deservedly or not, and the vLSO ratings I got the first 6 times I used it were just too hard to take for me. I will start using it when I can hit the target spot more than miss it. Till then, I will beat myself up over the mistakes I make, rather than have vLSO do it for me :D
Pat☺
Paddles:
Yeah, muscle memory is something you'll want to develop. The most difficult part (to me at least) is the navy style of rudder/stick operating, which is rather counter-intuitive... Just do a good dozen (or two) of hoops flying and you will definitely grasp the idea, and your skills will be getting better.
As for how close is close... I don't know, just aim at the island or slightly to the right (sorry, starboard)... ;)
SpazSinbad:
'Paddles' I do not know how to answer the question about 'off centre engagements' other than reading the advice given that your current 10 feet limit is good and that deserves a downgrade. After that I would suggest that anything beyond the ten feet is a crash in the making and deserves a no grade/WAVE OFF but how do you get that 'after the fact'?
As for your comment "...The most difficult part (to me at least) is the navy style of rudder/stick operating, which is rather counter-intuitive..." I do not follow. Jets do not need rudder in ordinary circumstances.
FSX is a simulation. Some users like to go to the nth degree to do things by the numbers and to find out what those 'numbers' might be. Being from a different time all we did was by visual means - looking outside at the view to gauge what was required. Look out is always a good thing in a fast jet and the method is/was called 'visual [reference] flying' using the horizon and bits of the cockpit to gauge 'power plus attitude equals performance'. Sure that is not easy or probably even possible in FSX (for many reasons). So users need to rely on 'numbers' to even get close. That is where in this instance as 'Paddles' is saying that FCLP is a deck landers friend. One becomes used to the pattern. The night pattern is 1,000 feet above the runway rather than 600 feet so there is that difference though. However it is possible to do day pattern FCLP at 600 feet to get the 'feel' of the day carrier pattern at the CVN. It is possible to concentrate on the visual aspect of the FCLP pattern to develop your good habits.
There is a thread - if not this one - where SLUDGE has provided a video and a text explanation for the numbers for the CVN pattern in a Hornet. This is great value and I highly recommend it. For most even getting close to these ideal numbers will be difficult. This is where perhaps (I can only guess - I am not you) that 'visual flying' helps a lot to 'fudge' the numbers in the situation you are in - which is never ideal. One has to learn how to adjust the pattern that you find yourself flying - to perhaps salvage it (within reason) or to make it just that much better than the last one or whatever is required.
Pilots making a shithotbreak are not flying numbers as such but adjusting adjusting adjusting all the time. So to answer the question about 'the break'. It is a good idea to have the CVN visible under the port wing so to speak before breaking left. The real world may have a number of aircraft on the downwind so that your break may be delayed until you see the other aircraft downwind however usually the sections of two (mostly) are spaced by ATC beforehand. This is where NOT flying a long groove can help the next section to land without a wave off foul deck because the aircraft(s) in front were 'long in the groove' to disrupt the pattern.
Attempting to explain the carrier landing pattern in words takes a lot of typing and probably does not achieve much. I'll look for the SLUDGE explanation video. I know there is/was an excellent FSXBA video about FCLP/carrier landings - I'm not sure if it is still available. So there is a heap of stuff on this forum about 'carrier landings' and online videos to explain it also. The big deal is to practice practice practice. Real world pilots need to do this - they need to do FCLP to learn / refam themselves with the process. Carrier landings are not easy and they are even more difficult in FSX because of the limitations of the sim and the limits of your computer equipment - especially your screen size/resolution. Be patient - chide yourselves lots to do better next time and NEVER GIVE UP! :-)
Of one of the many good sim carrier landing sites online the graphic from this one to my mind is very good to visualise the method as shown:
http://www.users.on.net/~jase_ash/styled-9/styled-6/index.html
THIS IS AN EXCELLENT FCLP/CARRIER DECK LANDING TUTORIAL VIDEO: http://www.fsxblueangels.com/videoscreen%20ok3.html
Paddles:
--- Quote from: SpazSinbad on July 13, 2015, 12:13:52 am ---"...the navy style of rudder/stick operating, which is rather counter-intuitive..." I do not follow. Jets do not need rudder in ordinary circumstances.
--- End quote ---
Surely I meant 'throttle/stick'. I'm terribly sorry for this mistype :(
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