Longbow 2 made a lot of people happy in the 90s, I'm sure many of EDs customers would be satisfied with a clickable cockpit AH64 with a similar level of avionics fidelity to LB2.

I'd rather have a decent approximation of some avionics elements than ruling out most combat aircraft since the 1960s.....

I think a two player cockpit would be an amazing enhancement. It should be possible to do it, as much older sims have implemented it - especially DI's Apache and Hind, and more recently the ArmA series and almost anything with tanks. I know DCS is much more complex, but I think it would generate so many sales that it would be worth the effort.

VEAO is doing a Westland Augusta Longbow module.

And I agree, a Ah-64D and a Phantom among others will be top sellers for anyone.

That's an even bigger mystery perhaps ED will do an F-16 after the Hornet.

That's not the reason why, Fms are made by the devs and engines regardless of type can be modelled in DCS. It should support anything, F4 is not that much different from a Mig21 as far as engines (afterburning turbo jet)go. Remember the Mig21 has an afterburning turbo jet as well.

Anyone want to take bets on whether the Hornet or Fighter Ops will be out first?



The Jedi Master

Hornet will be out first. You don't even need a bet.

That's like betting on Benny Hinn or chemotherapy healing a cancer patient first.

Is FighterOps even a thing anymore?

Some people believe it is. I blasted fighter ops on the ED forums as what not to do in customer relations and actually got negative rep from a fanboi calling me a liar!

In an Apache related post, I would have no problems at all with a FC3 level AH-64A until VEAO releases the Westland D model.

There is an active forum somewhere believe it or not.

I know, it's hilarious. That's why when people talk about the Hornet like it's vaporware all I can think is "you have no idea of the true definition of vaporware."




The Jedi Master

It would be cool to have a survey-level craft released alongside its study-level partner.

Or can you already "dumb down" the study-level stuff?

There are currently no survey aircraft using the same model as the hardcore; the closest is the A-10A survey vs. the A-10C hardcore, though they use the same flight model.

When the Hawk (with the PFM) is released it will be the first aircraft to allow both the Simplified Flight Model (SFM) and the Professional Flight Model (PFM) to exist side-by-side on the same airframe; how this will be done with multiplayer and the mission editor remains to be seen. I imagine that the mission creator will be able to specify one FM or the other, or allow both. However it is implemented, that could be a template for what you suggest regarding systems modeling.

Yes, but the survey vs. study part is more about avionics than flight model, IMHO, and as far as I know the Hawk won't be a survey sim in either form.

True, but the die could be cast as a way to manage two systems models for the same aircraft, should there be such a demand.