Hi there, can anybody explain step by step how to lock this missile on a ground target or point to a good tutorial? I can lock air to air missiles but not the ATG missiles.
Thanks in advance! For SB please!
spam the launch button
when I hit the launch button the missil launches but it is not locked on target.
Just google for War Thunder Maverick Tutorial and you will find tons of videos.
i guess you are usamain…
try to launch under 8km
launch when the target is clear
wait the lock in the agm view
dont try the lock when the target camping too near any wreck
dont try the lock when the target behind any tree, house, or rock etc…
Ok, here a little essay on how I do it (mostly Sim EC, mostly A-10, a bit A-7, setup with joystick/throttle/pedals/mouse and a VR headset)…
Note: I have mapped the lock button to a different button than the pickle/launch button. This allows me to lock a target, or unlock it if the lock is not on what I wanted (especially usefull in situations where ground targets are close together). I advise against locking and launching solely with the pickle button, as this doesn’t allow to unlock a “unwanted” target.
A big disadvantage and danger is the fact that you can only control the missile and lock it in the missile seeker view: Some 3D cockpits have a TV screen for the Maverick (A-7, A-10), and you can see what the seeker sees and/or has locked, but you can not control the seeker or lock the missile from the 3D cockpit. This means that you need to go “head down” (= switch to the missile seeker view) to look for, aim for and lock targets, while you are prone to lawn-dart and crash, if you’re not careful…
As to the Maverick types, I find the “Scene Mag” variant AGM-65B the easiest to use, as its 3x zoom TV seeker gives a clear picture of the target, allowing you to easily even identify the target type - especially important if you want to take out those nasty SPAAG’s aiming for you. The disadvantage however is that that variant is not all weather capable and struggles with low light conditions and of course night.
This is where the IIR variant AGM-65D comes in, as its imaging infra red seeker allows to see the heat signature of the targets even in bad weather and at night - and even allows to find those otherwise hard to pinpoint convoys in Sim EC matches. The 65D has however also a big drawback, which is the low resolution/magnification of the IIR seeker. This means that it only impossible to identify a target at very short distances - often too close to be able to distinguish SPAAG from “normal” tanks, meaning you often end up in deadly range of air defense, before you are able to see which target s are the dangerous ones…
As for attack envelopes, the Mavericks tend to be more reliable if launched from altitude, but that’s of course not where a Warthog or SLUFF wants to be, as this makes detection by enemy fighters much more probable and dangerous.
Luckily however, the Maverick’s autopilot has received an upgrade a few patches ago, and now “lofts” towards a target if possible and necessary, so attacks from low level are working better now. Still, any obstacle, especially trees, can affect the success of a Maverick shot. Therefore it’s often necessary to position oneself optimally, especially on maps with a lot of vegetation and diverse landscape.
Another challenge are other targets nearby: Often tanks are clustered and then the Mavericks have trouble hitting the one target that you aimed for, so also here it’s better to go for targets that stand alone in the field, or if not possible, to position yourself so that the nearby obstacle are less prone to interfere with your lock. Remember: the seeker goes for contrast, so if the image it sees is a blob consisting of two tanks next to each other, it will not be locking onto an individual tank!
Finally, the lock and launch itself: Aim the crosshair with the mouse onto your desired target, then hit the “lock” button: You will now see that the “open” cross of the crosshair" turns into a “full” cross, indicating the Maverick has succeeded on locking the target. Then, if distance is good, you can launch the missile with the pickle button.
As for distance, I usually launch below 5km, even closer, when I approach low. In situations where a high approach is feasible, the distance can be larger, but I never fire from farther than 6-7 km. For me with the A-10, best is between 3-4 km.
Important when engaging SPAAG’s in Sim EC: Fire outside their effective range AND BREAK OFF IMMEDIATELY. Maybe you can engage 2 targets in one run if you’re quick, but getting greedy will kill you. Better turn around, evade any SPAAG fire, set up carefully again for the next run. This also allows you to wait for the missile to travel to the target and kill it, or if it doesn’t, by the time you set up again you know you have to try for that target again, or, if all went well that this has been taken care of. Also use this time to scan the air: bloodshed on the ground may attract the sharks in the air…
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Thank you so much, I finally figured it out!