Jane's F-15 Preview Part II

• AMD K6 233 with 1 meg cache
• 4 gig Cheetah SCSI 3 Hard Disk
• 64 meg of SDRam and 32 meg cache
• 12x Plextor CD Rom
• Matrox Millenium 4 meg
• Canopus Pure 3d 6 meg
• TB Daytona PCI Sound Board
• 17" MAG monitor
• TM gear, CH Pedals
• Quickshot Masterpilot

After a few more days with F15 I want to talk about control systems and give you a feel for the gameplay. F15 is another incredible entry into the genre by Janes and is as far beyond Strike Eagle III as Janes Longbow was beyond DI's HIND or 688I was beyond SeaWolf. In virtually every way this sim rocks!

First, lets talk HOTAS... hands on stick and throttle. WIth a complete HOTAS setup you never have to touch the keyboard. The only problem is that with a sim of this calibre you have to program about one hundred commands to a twin stick setup. This means that you have up to six commands per switch on the F22 Pro, and you have to refer to a command sheet printout to remember the less used ones. How do you get around this?

I want to address that question, but first I want to note my rediscovery of the mouse button on the Thrustmaster TQS (thanks to Bill Wilson). While not quite perfect, I'm getting the hang of this thing and in a clickable cockpit where every switch actually works, its VERY handy to have mouse access without removing your hand from your stick. Bill has actually attached ANOTHER mouse device to the base of his TQS with velcro: a tiny Logitech 3 Button trackball, the type used for laptops. With this gadget you have more accurate control and a very effective HOTAS. (Note: the Saitek system also has a built in mouse feature).

So, how do you effectively offload the programming of your HOTAS, while maintaining quick command access and eliminating that large keyboard? Enter the Quickshot Masterpilot! I have a complete COMMS system for F15 programmed to my MPilot console, neatly divided into WING, ELEMENT, DIVISION, FLIGHT and AWACS menus. Since you can also customize the labels on the pad, you can see at a glance what commands are accessed by which buttons. It sits between my throttle and stick and makes this HOTAS, along with my CH pedals, very complete.

I've been experimenting with both single missions and campaign missions, and haven't yet had time to venture into the Mission Builder. On about my third foray into the campaign I came up with a scramble mission. Being scrambled means there are in-bound bandits headed for either your own location or another critical site. The idea is to get armed and get into the air right away.

This is where F15s custom armament feature really shines. You can set this up in advance by editting one of the supplied loadouts, and I had already designed a special loadout for a scramble mission. My SCRAM loadout consists of one centerline fuel tank, four AMRAAM, and four AIM9L. I armed both my own wing and the two ship element with this loadout and away we went with four F15Cs in tow for good measure. (I also flew a later scramble where I was assigned two F16s as team mates).

A moment later I found myself in the cockpit with engines warmed up. A female voice from the Tower gave me clearance and noted the contact name for the AWACS: Crystal Tower. She then updated me on the vector to the incoming bandits and noted their distance as one hundred miles. I heard myself call "Run em up!" to my squadron mates and away we flew. About halfway down the runway the Tower warned of some friendly air traffic ten miles ahead of me.

As we gained altitude the F15Cs radioed that they were now on my wing. Under full afterburner we climbed swiftly to 18,000 feet. I switched to A2A master mode and then jettisoned my center tank and switched to main tanks. A moment before my wing had advised me that we were now sixty miles from the bandits. I switched my radar to RWSH mode (Range While Search High is best at detecting high-closure contacts). Immediately I had contacts and called on the two ship element to BRACKET RIGHT. Three and Four responded and moved off and I pulled five degrees on the nose to gain some additional altitude.

I called for an AWACS update and was informed that there were Tu22 bombers in the rear of the group. I failed to notice the F15Cs during this time, primarily because I am still learning the systems and there is a lot to do at high levels of realism. (You don't do anything to get your escort to engage, they will do it automatically for bandits detected within 120nm. They will also limit their response to the necessary numbers to handle the threat, unless bandits get within 30nm of the remaining escorts. If you have a flight of four escorting you, only two guys will be vectored to intercept 2 bandits).

We were now at thirty miles and closing, and I called my wing to LINE ABREAST and LOOSE formation. I was considering ordering a DRAG LEFT manouver but instead ordered the two ship to ENGAGE to see how the enemy flight would react.

At thirty miles the enemy flight appeared to consist of three distinct groups. Closure rate was about 950 knots, not all that fast. When the two ship responded with ENGAGING it was only seconds later that they launched. I ordered music on and switched on my own jammers. My TEWS (Tactical Early Warning System) began to light up like a Christmas tree as the enemy element split into two distinct groups, engaging both of my elements.

Somewhere in all this the F15C flight also began to engage. I was around 22,000 feet but I believe that they were higher and off to my left. But there was a great deal happening and I wasn't keeping close tabs. About this time AWACS chimed in with some additional information about another group of fast movers at 100 miles. But with the two ship of my flight sorting and engaging and my wing engaging it started to become a bit confusing. (I am also making the transition from a the very streamlined management system on the F22 to a much more involved system where there are many more decisions to be made).

Anyway, with lock warning tones, my WSO calling out my target and warning me of incoming, my wingman and two ship element engaged, missiles, smoke and fire, things were getting a bit tense! The growl of the sidewinder is very impressive. The flare and smoke when launching are also beautifully done (this was a night mission). I managed to get two AMRAAMs off before pulling hard left and calling my wing to DRAG LEFT. I was hoping the bandits would follow him while I closed on their tails with my AIM9Ls.

From the manual...
Warning tones from the TEWS are provided in the form of different-pitched tones and warbles. A short, relatively low-pitched "beep" indicates a new radar spike has appeared on the display. A brief warble, alternating five times between a lower and higher pitch, indicates that something has a lock on you. This warble will be repeated every 30 sec for the duration of the lock. When a threat is launching a missile at you, another, faster warble alternating much between a lower and higher tone will repeat continuously until the threat is gone or you're dead.

When things get hot you will hear a lot of calls that you've never heard before, unless you've actually flown in a real air to air engagement! (Check out this Glossary if "ENGAGED DEFENSIVE" or "FOX 2" puts you in knots). For example, when THREE took a hit he let me know that he was out of the action. A moment later he called that he was ejecting, and FOUR then called in his location to AWACS with a request for SAR (search and rescue).

Targetting, weapons and radar systems are all highly authentic. Not only will you choose between three different chaff and flare loadouts, you will also choose between three different methods of employing countermeasures. If you choose AUTO mode you will use up stores more quickly, but if you don't expect a prolonged engagement its useful to be in AUTO mode. When it comes time to engage you have to manage the APG-70 radar system, but you can also choose from four A/A auto acquisition modes. Choosing a particular mode instructs the radar to acquire a target using the parameters set by the individual mode.

For example, hitting the "6" key places you in ACQ_BST, or Boresight mode. Boresight slaves the radar to the boresight line, which is cued to the position of the waterline on your HUD. In boresight or long-range boresight ("7" key) the radar locks up the first target within 10nm to pass inside the 4 degree sized circle (long range extends that to 40 nm).

Hitting the "5" key chooses ACQ_SS, or Super Search mode. SS is similar to boresight mode except that the circle is 20 degrees in diameter. The first target that passes within 10 nm of that large circle is locked automatically.

Hitting the "8" key chooses ACQ_VTS, or vertical scan acquisition mode. In this ode the radar searches for its target from 5 to 55 degrees above the radar boresight line (RBL), but only 7.5 degrees in azimuth (that's 3.75 degrees to the left and right of your ships nose). The 10 nm limit also applies in this automatic mode. This mode is commonly used to acquire a target in a turning fight, and a vertical line appears on the HUD from the watermark toward the locked target indicating the direction you need to pull.

If you are used to flying the simplified systems of the F22, you will have some learning to do. If you are used to flying with only one wingman or flying essentially on your own, you will have some learning to do. Air to air combat is not a one man show, and you will be dead very quickly until you begin to gain some tactical knowledge. I'm doing some reading in Shaws' Fighter Combat myself and will post a review soon. We are also working on a sales connection with a large model and book store and you will be able to order books like this, or Smallwoods work on the F15, in Canadian dollars and even get a discount through Combat Simulations membership program.

F15 is shaping up to be one TON of fun, and may even come out as the best trainer for LAN and NET play yet invented. On the other hand, it wouldn't be bad as a trainer for the real thing either, including actual group tactics! While the F15 E isn't primarily a dogfighter, using wingman tactics and managing radar modes under an extremely realistic flight model is a fantastic experience and there isn't anything else like it. The Skunkworks crew are going to give us a great air combat spring! Next article I'll look at the padlock, views, and an overview of the mission and campaign structure.