David Hingtgen

Dual triple-ejector racks. That's 6 bombs per rack, per wing. I don't THINK A-6's can carry 2 of those per wing, though maybe--I know A-7's can. (I'm really not that up on A-6 stuff, I really need to re-read my stuff about them a bunch of times before AC5 comes out) Though, F-8's are restricted to 250lb bombs when carrying twelve of them, it can only carry 8 500lb bombs. A-6's can carry 12 500lb bombs. (But in AC games, number is more important than size)

I'm still waiting for the game (besides UN Squadron/Area 88) that lets you have an F-8 Crusader... 4 guns, better agility than the F-4, fast(er) as an F-18 (depends on exact variant), AIM-9, rockets, as many dumb bombs as an A-6, AGM-12. What more do you need for the first couple of missions? And it'd be the best for AC2's "shoot the cruise missile" mission. And you know, the F-8 (including VF-111 I think) was stationed in Japan for a while. The F-14 and F-18 are so popular in Japan (kits, games, etc) because that's what's currently there at Atsugi. It's not coincidence Hasegawa releases the Black Knights and Dam Busters more than every other squadron combined.

That's the Italeri YF-23 kit. Missile bay is totally wrong. And also lacks the "curve" between the engine nozzles and ruddervators. (The YF-23's tail does not make a nice 50 degree angle with the fuselage--it is curved/blended)

I do not have all S in Ace mode (only in Expert mode, for Ace mode I have 2 A's and all the other S), and I bought the white X-02, have it, and fly it. Actually, for me the last thing to open up was Yellow 13. I swear I had all 3 X-02's available and purchased before it let me have Yellow 13. Question: the white X-02 has unique markings. "EASA". Anyone recognize/know it? Most all other "3rd" colors are "FEAF", which I presume to be the Free Erusian Air Force or something. And I don't think I ever got what "the bad guys" go by. ESAF? Though that's a little TOO similar to ISAF. Or maybe they are the EASA.

I bought all 3 X-02's, I do think it cost 4 play-throughs for them alone... $2 million for the white one I think... (I actually sold some other planes to help pay for it, and have now bought them back---mostly Mirages and F-117's) I checked, I do not have S on Ace level for Emancipation nor Whiskey Corridor. Have S for all other missions and difficulty levels. I think you only need all S's on Expert for the white X-02, possibly combined with shooting down the ace pilots while getting those S's. As in, you can't kill all the aces, then get all S's--you must have killed the ace and gotten the S in the same flight. (Which makes it hard, since aces often are WAY out there, and you waste 5 mins chasing them down) Seriously, I just can't blow up any more stuff in the time limit. I have multiple Ace top scores that are within 50-100 pts of each other on those missions, but it's still not worth an S.

Instead of an X-02, a nice YF-23 would be nice. I wonder if the YF-23 becomes really popular, if Hase will make a kit... (or at least have Italeri re-issue theirs, it's becoming harder to find--and include parts to make the GE powered on) Played through AC4 again last night. You know, I STILL don't have every plane. They just cost too much. Even getting S on every mission only gives enough cash to buy like 1 or 2 of the high-end planes. The white S-37, and the black and white X-02's, are just insanely expensive. Bought the black F-22 and black/grey Su-35. I hope AC5's a bit cheaper, or lets you get the extra paint colors free, once you have unlocked them.

You know I'm trying to avoid spoilers, and I'd like for a FEW planes to be "nice surprises". Anyways---AFAIK, canards can only help a plane. Yes, you can screw up and design a canard-only plane with horrible stall characteristics (not that anybody has screwed up for a very long time), but adding canards to a design that already has a tail can only help it. I doubt you will ever see another delta without canards. And if the US ever gets a clue, all our future planes should have them. The F-16CCV could do some pretty insane moves. But of course they never did anything more than test them. Just like the F-15ACTIVE: massive performance improvement for low cost? No way they'll put it into production! I've been looking up Flanker missiles lately, trying to determing what I saw recently, I thought it just looked really cool--- "Within the last week" I saw a photo of a Flanker (from below) and it had LOOOOONG missiles under the intakes. Reminded me of AA-10s, but even longer than the longest boosted AA-10. Seemed to go all the way from the intake lip to the exhaust nozzle. Might be the AA-12. If I could find the photo again it'd probably be easy to figure out...

I would presume canards would help carrier landings, by adding lift. More lift=slower approaches. Remember, using the tail to keep the nose up adds downforce. Using canards to keep the nose up unloads the wing and tail. Shin--the XFA-27 is what I was thinking about---X-form tail. Some submarines have controls like that, so it does work. (Subs move in all 3 dimensions, in fluid, via propellers and rudders etc---there's often a lot that subs and planes share in how they move--center of gravity, lifting surfaces, effectiveness of controls in the wake/downwash, etc) Swing canards? Rare, and usually subtle. Only use I know for them is to compensate for large pitch/trim changes due to lowering flaps or deploying airbrakes, etc. The Beech Starship can swing its canards a bit. BTW, the Viggen isn't really considered to have *canards*. More like a double-delta, or even 2 independent delta wings, each with a full set of elevons, etc. A unique and neat plane. (I love most all SAAB planes, I really hope the Gripen is in AC5--best of the Eurocanards IMHO)

I love canards, but only in addition to a regular tail. Use them to enhance pitch/roll control, not replace the traditional ones (like most deltas do). The ultimate plane would have FSW, h.stabs, and canards. Hey, that's the Su-47 or F-15ACTIVE... (Well, I'd MOST like a YF-23 style tail, along with large movable ventral fins at a 45 degree angle---an all-flying cruciform configuration) And I'd love to hear more about FSW, canards, and stealth. Get as technical as necessary.

Nooooooooooooooooooooooo! http://www.news.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=15422

That was kind of my point-----I couldn't care less about fakey bridge-lighting on the CG warships, so long as the AIRPLANES look good. I do hope they totally re-do the Shornet's speed-brake application, compared to the demo. Currently the most-wrong thing. (I think they confused the bleed air doors and the speed brakes)

Semi-OT rant: I hate AI controlling "the other members of my party". In both RPG's (REALLY hate it there), and any game where you're in control of a small group. AC5 lacks the wingman option I really want: "go fly off really far away from me, and stop stealing my kills". Was trying to test Sparrow vs AMRAAM differences, and thought I'd found a damage difference on the cargo planes, but it turned out my wingmen had all damaged that group already... How are you supposed to get lots of kills and money to "evolve" your plane when there's 3x as many wingmen as you, and they're out getting all the kills?

Now where's Red Wolf?

I'll see what I can about flight models. There's just so many things, that even 1 thing can completely "blow" an otherwise realistic flight model---you can't just have "some" aerodynamic effects disappear when they're all related. Still, my "ideal" game would have a 100% accurate flight model, just "sped up" (faster acceleration and turn rates, but still all proportional to other planes and real life), and lots of missiles. Basically, give me a "fast" Jane's sim, with lots of missiles. Music---the Operation Skyscraper music was the only track I liked in AFDS. Having played AC2 again, I get the same impression I did the first time I replayed it----you only really remember the good tracks when you think back and reminisce. But if you actually go through again and listen to the entire soundtrack, a lot of it is "meh". Yes, there's a few tracks that are just awesome and some of the best game music ever, but there's a whole of "average" stuff. Simply having a metal guitar or fast pace isn't enough. IMHO, there's about 3 insanely awesome rock tracks, 2 or 3 good more "emotional" tracks, and a dozen tracks that are all distinctive but don't really stand out as being really good. AC3--dont' remember, but remember I didn't like it. AC4---best by far, IMHO. I like most every track, love quite a few. I actually want an AC4 style track, not AC2 (like they say it is), for AC5. We'll see how it is--I doubt it'll be hard synth rock for every mission. (I *love* choirs, btw, which is the main reason I replay AC4's final mission a LOT)

I've got ALL the Flankers in AFDS. Nothing else to buy except the Chinese fighters now... Off to go play the trial missions in AC4. (Which I actually totally neglected until like the 5th time through) Whoops, forgot XFA-27, despite using it last night. Still one of my all-time favorite fake planes. Interesting---Comona Island is the ENEMY space facility in AC2, but in AC4 you're defending YOUR space facility there...

My new stance: Su-30MKI vs Anything: Su-30MKI http://vayu-sena.tripod.com/info-su30mki.html

ADF-01 can't be used. Red top half, black bottom half. Very futuristic/fantasy. Definitely along the lines of Delphinus etc in AC3. Forward-swept wings. Rearward-firing missile. Take out every ace in hard mode, and it'll show up in the model viewer. (As well as the final mission, assuming you took out all other aces before getting to it--otherwise he'll fly an F-15S I think) PS---having recently read the latest stuff about the Su-30MKI, I'm fully convinced it is by far the most bad-ass plane flying at the moment. Blows away the Su-37. http://vayu-sena.tripod.com/info-su30mki.html

A third weapon would be great. If I was a programmer, I'd give every plane a permanent "special" weapon, then the player gets to choose the third weapon. Like, F-15E's would have Sidewinders like every plane in the game gets, then because it's an F-15 it gets AMRAAMs as the 'special' weapon, then the player gets to buy/choose the bombs. (Basically, most fighters would get AMRAAMs and most bombers get Mavericks or Paveways, then the player can pick a specialzed weapon like the Harpoon, HARM, or JSOW) Mainly, because no plane should be limited to Sidewinders and 1 other special---AMRAAMs shouldn't count as a 'special' weapon, etc. I mean, your every day F-16C B.50/52 load is 2x AIM-9, 2xAIM-120, 2xAGM-88. Similar loads for Hornets. Other things: I don't recall getting the F-108 in AFDS, though I thought I got all the "regular" planes except Jamie's. Super-plane in AC2 is the ADF-01. Mission 8 in AC4 is over Comona Island, I think that's the site of a mission in AC2 as well. Going to play more AC4 and AC5demo tonight. I really need to get used to the slightly different controls in AC5. I keep getting weapon/view changes mixed up. PS---if you go to the music player in AC4 (which I do a lot), there's 2 tracks after the final mission tracks--"North Point" and Mega-something I think. Unused mission tracks? They both rock IMHO. I hope that AC5 actually starts you off with really old planes. Gimme an F3H and a F-100... I do like to EARN planes GRADUALLY, not get the F-16 2 missions in, then the F-22 half-way through, then use it until the end of the game...

Think I'll play AFDS tonight. (I've been reading about control schemes lately, mainly V-tail and tailless deltas). Still can't find a good, basic explanation of how delta-wing planes control pitch without totally messing up their trim/lift. An elevon is more than just a fancy elevator on a delta, it's the wing's trailing edge---if you move it up and down for pitch, it should have a severe, opposite effect on lift, unless it's instantly countered by the change in lift caused by the change in alpha... And then I want a 'reflex' delta airfoil explained...

I don't know if it is a spoiler or not, since I'm not going to click on the link to read the discussion. Basically--if it's not in the instruction book, it's a spoiler, IMHO. (Unless it's a featured picture at Namco's site or something) And "good guesses from over-analyzing snippets of trailer footage" counts too. Since you can get 90% of a movie's plot that way.

I consider that a spoiler too...

The Osprey Crusader book is GREAT. F-4 books are just as good (I have 2, need to get the rest). Anyways---just picked up another issue of Air Forces Monthly. Very interesting Israeli F-15I pic---had CFT's like an F-15E, loaded with training bombs. I didn't know the F-15I had the full weapons-carrying capability of the F-15E.

I don't think any ADV Tornados got desert camo. There is a special recon Tornado, the GR1A. The 13th Squadron (best markings of all Tornado squadrons IMHO) has them, maybe others. The guns are removed to make room for the cameras, etc. And just FYI there's also the GR1B, modified to carry Sea Eagle ASM's. Still, I want GR4's now, to carry Storm Shadow missiles.

First, here's the Iranian F-14 book review: http://misc.kitreview.com/bookreviews/iran...kreviewkb_1.htm Secondly---the main reason US planes don't have canards is simply because most US designers don't like them, for reasons unknown. Most famously they're not on the F-16, because the chief designer said something along the lines of "The best location for a canard is on somebody else's plane". An F-16 with canards would be insanely agile, since they generally allow a plane to be even more unstable. Canards are much more useful/effective on delta-wing planes (which Europe loves), but as the F-15ACTIVE and Super Flanker show, they can still make a "normal" plane a lot more agile. Can't think of any inherent stealth problems, or the Eurofighter wouldn't have them. And if you add them to a YF-23, it'd still only 4 stabs total, same as an F-22.

I don't have the Iranian F-14 book (yet), but I found a review of it somewhere, those were some highlights.