I recently noticed the differences between the Finnish and American F-18 in War Thunder, and I wanted to share my suggestion with you. Currently, both variants have the same BR of 14.0, but I believe this balance needs to be reconsidered due to some significant differences in their targeting systems.
Why is this important?
The American F-18 is equipped with the JHMCS (Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System), which allows pilots to quickly and accurately lock on both radar and heat-seeking missile targets. This is a huge advantage in combat, as it enables pilots to target more effectively and faster.
On the other hand, the Finnish F-18 lacks this system, which makes its performance noticeably weaker in similar scenarios when compared to the American model.
My suggestion:
Since both aircraft share the same airframe and maneuverability, but only one is equipped with the advanced JHMCS targeting system, I suggest lowering the BR of the Finnish F-18 to 13.7 to better reflect this important difference in operational capability.
How you can help:
If you’ve also felt the impact of this difference and think this suggestion is reasonable, please share your thoughts and join the discussion! I’d love to hear whether you agree with this difference and whether the Finnish F-18’s BR should be adjusted.
HMS won’t impact its performance.
It’s 14.0 because it deserves to be that BR.
It has 6 - 10 BVR missiles that will never require HMS.
TWS is faster to get locks than HMS, as HMS requires spam clicking while TWS does not.
As much as I’ve heard many people claim HMS matters, there has been little evidence outside the thrust vectoring weapon systems of consistent usefulness.
This right here is the Bingo. HMS matters when you have missiles that can fire off the rails and turn 180 degrees. Stuff like Aim-9Ms or Aim-120s which have a second or two before they really begin maneuvering don’t really benefit, at all, from HMD. If someone is close enough where using HMD is required, these missiles themselves are practically useless. Just my opinion though, and I know not an incredibly popular one.
Poll exist and so far the people that want it moved to 13.7 haven’t arguesd about the BR if they disagree in the comments but this is just to help stop forming repeat forum posts.
If HMS and JHMCS don’t make a significant difference, why does the American F-18, which has these systems, have the same BR as the Finnish version? Does this mean advanced targeting systems have no impact on gameplay?
HMS isn’t just useful for missiles that can turn 180° off the rail. Even small off-boresight angles provide a real advantage by allowing faster target acquisition without having to reposition the entire aircraft.
In Realistic Battles, this makes locking AIM-9M or AIM-120B faster and more efficient, even if they aren’t extreme off-boresight missiles.
In Simulator Battles, the lack of HMS is an even bigger disadvantage since pilots rely solely on cockpit view. If the US F-18 has HMS but the Finnish one doesn’t, shouldn’t that be reflected in its BR?
The F-16AM and F-16C are the same BR.
The F-16ADF and Mig-29 are the same BR.
Mirage 4000 and Mig-29G are the same BR.
HMD is a dogfight tool, and outside of dogfights unless it gives you on-screen information, it’s not that useful.
IRL pilots move their heads a lot, so having HUD data on the HMD is good. In-game that’s less tangible because we’re not forced in cockpit and we rarely move our heads around in sim.
So the only tangible benefit of HMDs in air arcade and air RB is dogfights with thrust vectoring missiles.
Yeah, it’s cool to pass my nose over an enemy without a missile warmed up, pre-leading the missile, but I can just warm up the missile before hand and it’ll be locked on. And if they’re preflaring I just dip my nose back on them.
HMD has done maybe 1 interesting thing since their introduction: I was in my F-16C, still stock so had AIM-9Ms equipped. I was aiming toward an enemy jet, but instead of launching on that jet, I aimed my HMD at the jet off to the side and launched an AIM-9M at them.
That’s it, that’s the only time HMD has done anything that no other system could do for non-thrust vectoring missiles.
TWS is faster for radar.
And proper flight management is as-good as HMD, especially for an amazing flight model like F-18.
Oh, and F-18A will be 12.7 soon enough, alongside Mig-29.