Thats awesome, can’t wait to finish my F-14B grind then.
I played the new F-16A in the dev server and it was much better than before. Doesn’t lock up as much anymore. But having a Tomcat missile bus with similar performance will probably be my preferred way still… that is until the F-16C gets AMRAAMs. 😈
I’ve noticed the AIM-9M has a smokeless motor on the dev server. Has anyone checked to see if they finally gave the AIM-54C its smokeless motor?
Also, @spacenavy90 you may wanna add the aircraft tag to this post if possible. I notice it gets filtered out if you hit the aircraft tag.
AIM-54C does not yet have the smokeless motor. There are internal reports on the AIM-54 missiles that are active regarding the motor, and other issues.
Still getting adjusted to this new forum. Also can’t edit posts soon but I’ll try to when I’m able.
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Report using this data already exists
Not sure if you can answer this, buy any reason why its not fixed at this point then? All functions the TCS should perform except maybe the radar slaving already exist ingame, yet none are modelled? The F-14B is literally playing with half its weapons control system currently…
Thank you mod for moving to the proper forum section!
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Anyone more well versed in radar technology care to explain when a radar would be using its highest frequency? The source below indicates the F-14’s AWG-9 operates between the 8-12GHz radar frequency (X band in IEEE standard, straddles high I-band and low J-band in NATO standard).
I would suspect ingame this would be when using PDV but im currently unsure.
@k_stepanovich any idea regarding this?
I don’t think the AIM-54 would use the entire 8 - 12 GHz band. Presumably they read that it used an X band seeker and just converted that to GHz for their document.
In all likelihood it uses a small number of frequencies between 8 GHz and 12 GHz, but the exact frequency would be highly classified so they just list the entire X band in their document.
Yeah I don’t expect it uses the entire frequency band. I am curious about the time when the AWG-9 would use its peak frequency though, I would assume it would be during a track, but unclear if it would be under a pulse track or a PD track.
Its relatively important to know imo with the upcoming RWR rework as some of the NATO radars have the ability to operate in X band and above. This would give an advantage to NATO jets vs soviet jets using something like SPO-15 as it only covers up to mid X-band (I-band in NATO designation and in-game). Getting NATO radars capable of higher frequencies would help offset the dominance of the russian R-27ER, as the R-27ER would still have the kinematic advantage, but the NATO aircrafts would be able to lock them without any RWR indications at all.
Another example of this is the upcoming APG-68 on the F-16C, which operates between 9.86GHz (very limit of I-band) and up to 26GHz (up into K-band), so there should be almost no scenario where the SPO-15 should even detect it. (granted this is wiki so take with a grain of salt)
As for the AIM-54, I have been unable to find an exact frequency, or even a proper mention of its radar band, though from my understanding, its suspected to be in the high X-band (would be J-band in-game)
Unfortunately the exact frequency a radar operates at is often highly classified, as knowing it would let the enemy develop countermeasures for it. For example RAF Eurofighter pilots are told not to radar lock Russian aircraft during peace-time intercepts to stop them from capturing information on how the radar functions during a lock-on.
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Yeah I figured as much, I just figure with some of the known data, like lower and upper limits and some knowledge of when the radar would use a certain frequency the radar bands could be set accordingly in WT.
As it is rn, it seem only the APG-76 is modelled as J band, therefore outside the russian SPO-15 detection. Most/all other radars are modelled as I-band. Another day of gaijins interpretation which seems to benefit the russian vehicles and harm NATO ones I guess…
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To be fair this paragraph from an RAF manual would imply that NATO aircraft mainly use high I band, rather than J band:
The F-4J/S will probably get an improved RWR.
https://community.gaijin.net/issues/p/warthunder/i/PIEbhTVAuvKA
I-J bands are usually specified for those radars which operate in frequencies on both sides of the I/J border, may be just slightly left and right, 9.6-10.2 for example. In the game only one band is assigned to them.
Usually radars of 3-4gen fighters operate in ~ 0.5 GHz wide band.
In the case of the F-14, which operates from 8-12GHz according to that document though, but is only assigned as I band in-game, isnt that an outright nerf? Particularly when dealing with things equipped with SPO-15 which only goes up to 10.3GHz.
If the SPO-15 (for example, its just the one I have off the top of my head) can only detect up to the top end of I band, which is mid-X band in IEEE standard, any X band radar modelled as I band only is being directly held back in favor of the SPO-15.
Its even worse for something like the F-16’s radar which has a minimum frequency of 9.86GHz according to the above posted document, which puts at at mid X band and up (barely sneaks into I bands absolute upper limits) but is modelled as I band ingame?
Wasn’t that part of why the F-14’s were so effective during the Iran-Iraq war, or were their victims mostly equipt with / downgraded to the SPO-10?
8-12GHz is the entirety of X band. In all likelihood the F-14 only uses a small frequency range within that band, and whoever wrote that paper doesn’t know what the exact frequency range is (beyond “X band”) so just specified the entirety of X band.
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Possible sure, but as seen for example with the F-16’s APG-68, lowest freq is around 9.86GHz while highest achieved frequency during testing was up to 26GHz. I dont think its farfetched to think the AWG-9 could operate at multiple different frequencies throughout the X band
most common RWR in soviet equipment there was the SPO-10