DCS

I actually just got to where I can start it. LOL!

I'm able to go a bit straighter down the runway too. Before, I didn't lock the tail gear into position before takeoff, so it was wobbling all over the place and causing some serious issues.
 
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The mach number is based on speed vs alt.
IIRC A very simplistic look based on imaginary numbers:
Mach .9 at 23000ft maybe 450kts IAS (Indicated Air Speed),
Mach .9 at 45000ft maybe 350kts IAS.

Do note indicated ≠ true.


A Mach number of 1.0 indicates an airspeed equal to the speed of sound in that air. Because the speed of sound increases with air temperature, and air temperature generally decreases with altitude, the true airspeed for a given Mach number generally decreases with altitude.
 
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I understand what the Mach number is. It's the gauge itself I'm seriously struggling with. Here's a closeup of the air speed indicator:

1689621044305.png

That outer edge to the right, upper area is from 0 to 200 knots which is the big, long, white line at the end of that section.

Once you pass 200 knots, you start having to look into the open section on the inside bottom of the guage. This guy is doing about 280 knots on this image.

That carries you up to about 600 knots I think before the outer Mach gauge comes into play. It's almost as if they really didn't care if you knew how fast you were going if you weren't hauling some serious ass.

It's also crowded right next to very similar looking gauges in the cockpit. When you glance down this is what I see:

1689621214065.png

I'm sure it will come with experience, but it is so easy for me to look at the wrong gauge it's laughable. Seriously, all 4 look virtually identical so I wind up having to look 3 or 4 times to figure out my air speed.

One thing I do love a lot about the F14 though, is its ability to literally go ballistic. It has so much power you can hit the afterburners, turn up 80 degrees and go. I can get off the runway to 35,000 feet in a quick hurry.

I can't do that in any of the Russia aircraft and even the F15 struggles to match it in climbing like that.
 
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No. It's actually that it's very hard to maintain around 200 knots when you can't really see 200 knots anywhere on the dial.

That's the speed I'll have to maintain for a carrier landing. So take a look at that dial again and you'll see my problem.

You only have brief milliseconds to keep glancing down at the gauge. What's more, if you drop much below that with flaps down, gears down, wings spread, the Tomcat tends to fall out of the sky like a stone. Much faster than that and you risk damaging the aircraft and/or carrier.

Granted, I'm practicing on runways, but still. It's hard. As hell.
 
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