Wednesday, March 6, 2013

T-45C Version 2.40 limited introduction, F-14D draft manual, and facebook



The latest modifications I have made to the T-45C dynamics have been a bit controversial - and I have to admit that some of them were a bit rushed and not properly tested. In the past few weeks, while I was fine-tuning the F-14, I've made a number of changes to T-45 which will hopefully make it a better trainer.

So here is a link to the TEST version 2.40 - I will not upload it to Avsim or Flightsim until more testing has been performed - which you are welcome to do if you have some time.  IMHO even if dynamics are less responsive now, they are more suitable to the training purposes of the T-45C.

VERSION 2.40

- Completely redone flight dynamics. All input values to match NATOPS as close as possible with some corrections when needed.
- Changed all MOIs using Roskam methods and changed many Mach tables, resulting dynamics are less responsive at low speeds, but  also much less prone to uncontrollable departures.
- Roll rate dependency on Mach no should be more accurate, also rudder authority vs. Mach and roll moment due to rudder deflection should be more accurate (rudder effectiveness decreases significantly above Mach 0.80 and A/C will roll in the opposite direction above Mach 0.85)
- Added speedbrake blowback feature (as in the real thing, extending the speedbrake above 340kts may result in partial extension only).
- Fixed AoA needle bug, failing to report actual AoA
- Fixed Reference HTML documents
- Fixed main landing gear "wobble"
- Fixed several typos in the VNATOPs manual


Download link by clicking HERE.

As for the Tomcat, it is almost cleared for takeoff. The only outstanding item is to clean some bugs minor in the cockpit and write the Caution/Advisory lights code (most of which is missing).

Here is a preview of the F-14D VNATOPs manal - download by clicking HERE

Last, the very first days of IndiaFoxtEcho on facebook were quite positive and I think it is a very quick method of keeping in touch. I'll probably use it more - using the blog for main updates/news only.

16 comments:

Carss said...

Well Dino that is amazing news, I would however like to ask how much time approximately will it take to complete the S-3B Viking?? And will it contain droppable ordnance and mid-air refueling capabilities?? And when will the final Tomcat be released, will it have additional paints, or colors??

Unknown said...

S-3 will not take less than 6 months, but I am always wrong with such estimates as they depend on too many factors.

F-14 will be out as soon as it is done - I believe it requires another 2/3 hours of debugging and coding. But I already have a build that is good to go. It will come with 8 different liveries.

Anonymous said...

As always amazing work sir, thank you

Carss said...

Awesome work man, and also about the S-3B, will it contain any droppable bombs or mid-air refuelling line??

Unknown said...

@Varun

Droppable objecta are not planned at the moment - but this may change.
S-3 will be able to deploy the refueling hose...but will be cosmetic only.

Unknown said...

Hi Dino, I tried your T-45 V2.40, I like the flight dynamics better on this one, the previous version was very trikky to handle after a cat lauch and in "tight" turns. I also look foward to trying your final F-14D, I love this aircraft.
I also have a question, when the VRS Tacpack SDK will come out, do you plan on developping a Tacpack version of the F-35 and F-14D ?
Anyway, keep up the good work and continue making us dream.

Unknown said...

@Rafale Mirage

That will depend on the time required. I'd like to make my planes compatible with VRS Tacpack... I believe it would be relatively easy at least for the F-14D, but I simply do not have much time it will depend on how complex and long the process is.

Carss said...

Hey Dino, what do you mean by cosmetic??

Anonymous said...

It means the hose will reel out but won't work as a refueling point as it does in real life

Unknown said...

Correct.

Back to the T-45, it seems that feedback on the changes is quite positive - very good!
While applying the latest additions to the Tomcat, I think I improve the T-45 a little in the cockpit area... so probably v2.40 will become v2.41 or so for a wider release.

Anonymous said...

The changes you've made to the T-45 MOI, aileron and elevator effectiveness at version 2.40 are a great improvement, Dino. Thank you.

Regarding speedbrake blowback, is it possible to have the brakes progressively move to full extension on their own, once the aircraft slows sufficiently? As it now sits, they remain partially extended regardless of how low the airspeed drops. Full extension can only be seen if the brakes are toggled in then out again. This is a very small point - I'm just curious as to what's possible!

blue six

Andy Muno said...

Dino,
thank you for continuing to improve on your awesome models. I really like the flight model of the T-45 v2.40. To me the plane handles very nicely. Keep up the great work. I can hardly wait for the final release of the Tomcat. ;-)

David said...

Thanks Dino your work is outstanding. I guess the only thing I would like to see is the TACAn show in HUD but i assume that would need recoding of default. Nice thought anyway.

Thanks again

David said...

Thanks Dino your work is outstanding. I guess the only thing I would like to see is the TACAn show in HUD but i assume that would need recoding of default. Nice thought anyway.

Thanks again

Growler Joe said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

Thanx man:)))