After you reset the trackfile/brick timeout, when you come out of the DATA submenu on the Attack radar page you'll see a "SET" option on the middle right hand side push button. That'll save your settings for the selected weapon so you won't have to reset it every time. Also saves Azimuth scan and elevation bars too.
This works well, but AFAIK you can only see "SET" in RWS, not TWS. I haven't checked if it keeps brick longevity/data settings in TWS, but I suspect it likely does.
thats awesome to know:) now if i could just figure out why 50% of my AGM-88 harms released in SP mode like to turn 180 and run away from sam sites that are
OMFG this is the most game changing tip video's I've ever seen. I recently abandoned the F-18 due to the pure frustration of constant lock drops. Everything you said was pure gold! Thank you very much for creating this, I really appreciate it!
I lose my tracks a lot and it was frustrating me today, I’m not totally new or well versed on the F/A-18 so I learned something today, all the tips were definitely helpful will need to rewatch in case I forget, thank you
The nice thing about the hsi/sa switch is if you are needed it the map because location is important you can have it on one and not the other. Then by switching you are essentially decluttering the map with your hotas. Also, if it helps, the hsi/sa doesn’t have to be in the lower mfd to do that. If you like it on the left that’s fine too. You are just moving the sensor switch in the direction of whatever screen it’s on to do that.
Thank you for making this video Sir. I have probably 100s of hours in the FA-18 at this point and I didnt know any of this. Although I have not had any real problems locking and tracking targets in TWS, I am sure this will help me a lot though!
Last tip was so useful for me, thank you for sharing it. I knew about it, but never actually though about using it. I was always frustated with the AA aspect of the F-18, not anymore thanks to you.
I ended up learning the AZ/EL and SA from HSI bits from Chuck's guide and trying to learn the damned workflow of the SCS/radar system (coming from the F-16 in falcon BMS it was incredibly unintuitive), but there was some really cool new stuff in here I didn't know about too. It's also worth noting "STEP" in the SA page will step through the contacts, and give you detailed range/heading/speed information on each one, which can be helpful in figuring out how close you are to a contact your radar currently isn't looking at. Super helpful for ID'ing just how dangerous a "pincering" enemy is. A nose-hot enemy at 22mi, M2.2, and 40k ft is a LOT more dangerous than one that's at 26mi, M0.4, and in the weeds. The former is likely already launching on you, the latter is probably defensive if there are additional friendlies in the area. Without STEP, they look *very* similar on the SA readout. This also tells you whether or not you're successfully extending away from an enemy, which is a big deal in something as slow as a Hornet.
Sweet ! Thanks for sharing. Totally agree about the Viper vs Honet Hotas deference’s. Also in TSW in the hornet 2 rt clicks on the sensor control will lock target but just one target.
When you do that, you're entering AACQ (Automatic ACQuisition) mode, which enters an STT lock on 1) whichever track your captain's bars are over 2) your designated L&S track 3) your closest target, in that order of priority (I think. 1&2 might be flipped?). Anyways, it locks the first thing it sees, starting at 1 and working its way down the list. It's important to note that this is NOT a "soft lock" like designating a target in TWS (or with LTWS in RWS). AACQ enters a STT-"hard lock", and your target WILL get a lock warning on their RWR, unlike a soft lock through TWS. Chuck's guide can tell you more about the mode and how it works.
The target aging is based on time, not sweeps. So the setting is literally seconds tracks are in memory. I think the issue with it seems to that it might be too good at what its doing. The track is maintained through an estimation based on what the target was last seen doing for the set amount of seconds. Only so much displacement would be possible over given amount of time knowing the targets speed and last heading.
Also, A TWS launch with an AMRAAM will not provide the enemy aircraft with a radar lock and launch indication. As such, the first warning the enemy pilot will likely get is when the active radar seeker of the AIM-120 missile goes active near the target.
@mandellorian I believe the ARMRAAM communicates with the F-18's radar, not Datalink via AWACS or the link shared to the F-18. Solely Radar, which is why it's a "semi-active radar missile" They are just as efficient without an AWACS as with one.
That first one I need to try. In a recent mission I launched an amraam at a bandit, then immediately lost lock. Missile went pitbull immediately and turned on an f16 at my 2 o'clock close.
can someone tell me, is it possible to have datalink and/or radar contacts displayed in the HUD as they are in the HMD? i can have UN-LOCKED datalink contacts showing up in my HMD, turn the nose so they are covered by the HUD, and they are not there - is there a way to make them be there?
I'm afraid not, though there are bug reports that point towards some potential reworks for the sensor system. I don't think you can show anything other than your L+S or DT2 on the HUD, but future changes may make designating those easier.
you can tell this guy is hardcore into the 16 because he a. has to enter A/A mode before hitting amraam instead of just hitting amraam to enter a/a mode. b. thinks tws mode is the ONLY mode for BVR.
Pretty sure Wags have mentioned all of these actually in his tutorials/showcases.. Especially the radar data options. But keep em coming if you've got more always wanting to learn new stuff!
OK so all of these things I found out entirely by accident, with exception of the DL/Brick timeout...never knew that one. Pretty sure that's something that can be saved per plane (hello cartridges, where are you?)
your radar settings for the amram are wrong u want 4 bar sweep, 40 mils, 40 degrees with a high scan, & for sidewinders u want 6 bar scan, 10 mile range, 20 degrees on medium
Omgggg get a silent keyboard lmao. I know it’s a knit pick, but fuck all I could hear was you clicking what seemed like a thousand times to perform one task 😂😂😂😂
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