FC3

Introduction

FC3 is the third in a series of reduced complexity, but not reduced realism, modules. This package of aircraft is meant to be a cheap entry way into the DCS world environment. Now don't confuse this lack of clickable and fully modeled systems as a meaning the FM is lacking. The F15's FM in particular is one of the most accurate in the game rivaling the F14's FM. Additionally the Russian aircraft's FM's were made with assistance from the Russian government and each has had a substantial amount of tuning put into it. This makes these aircraft very realistic to fly while still being easy enough to just pick up and fly even for a novice.

NATO Weapons

AIM-7

The Sparrow III is the third major revision of the venerable sparrow design of the early 1950's. It was the frontline BVR A/A missile for the United States Airforce, Marine Core, and Navy until the early to mid 1990's; ultimately being replaced by the AIM-120 series of missiles. The sparrow III, when compared to its predecessors, is a significant improvement in every way, it features a design that was easily upgradable over time. The ultimate version we have in DCS the MH variant features lofting logic and improved CCM performance over previous models.

F

The first Sparrow variant fielded of what could be considered the third and final generation, the F sets the aerodynamics and range for all futures sparrows. Unique to this variant is the ability to home in on either a CW signal or a PD signal. Even though not implemented on western jets, in the future you may be able to choose between the two modes. This in game means all three types of sparrow perform kinematically the same, however the F's chaff resistance is extremely low and can be decoyed with only a few chaff bundles.

• Good maneuverability can be used in WVR ranges with good results.
• Good range at high altitude, suffers at low altitude due to weak sustain motor.
• Ok off boresight capabilities
• If STT is reacquired after a short time missile will continue to track.
• Near Smokeless rocket motor, hard to see to see even at point blank range.
• Very large warhead a guaranteed kill with one hit.
• Very Poor CCM resistance in DCS, has no dedicated mechanisms to filter out chaff.

M

The upgrade to the F-model, the M build irl received a new, and substantially better, monopulse seeker and a choice between two nose cones. One optimized for radar performance the other for aerodynamic performance. The monopulse seeker gives this missiles an inherent resistance to chaff and ECM. However this means it can only home in on a PD signal. In game the only difference from the F is improved chaff resistance.

• Good maneuverability can be used in WVR ranges with good results.
• Good range at high altitude, suffers at low altitude due to weak sustain motor.
• Ok off boresight capabilities
• If STT is reacquired after a short time missile will continue to track.
• Near Smokeless rocket motor, hard to see to see even at point blank range.
• Very large warhead a guaranteed kill with one hit.
• Moderate CCM resistance in DCS, has several different mechanisms to filter out chaff.

MH

The MH variant is the most modern sparrow currently in DCS. This variant uses parts from the AIM-7P to improve its long range performance with lofting and low altitude performance with newer guidance computers. Additionally, the CCM logic was upgraded substantially. In game this makes the MH the most effective variant due to its lofting and CCM performance making chaff have a very low effectiveness against it.

• Good maneuverability can be used in WVR ranges with good results.
• Good range at high altitude, suffers at low altitude due to weak sustain motor.
• Has Lofting extending the range even further.
• Okay off boresight capabilities.
• If STT is reacquired after a short time missile will continue to track.
• Near Smokeless rocket motor, hard to see to see even at point blank range.
• Very large warhead a guaranteed kill with one hit.
• Great CCM resistance in DCS, has several different mechanisms to filter out chaff.

AIM-7F and AIM-7M stats.

AIM-120

The AIM-120 is the premier BVR missile of the Western world, it has seen use in the middle east and Balkans. Proving itself to be the most capable operationally used missile of all time. Over the course of its life it has received numerous upgrades that have all increased its lethality. The AIM-120 achieves this lethality in no small part due to the fact it is an active missile that has been made exceptionally small yet still has a very powerful motor. Being an active missile it has its own radar to hunt down targets allowing the firing aircraft to retreat the moment it launches. The latest variants of the 120 the D model have even added the ability to fire the missile on datalinked targets and at HOBS targets.

B

The B model AMRAAM was the second iteration of the AIM-120 series with an improved guidance section being the only upgrade over the A model. Externally and internally the two are essentially the same missile. As such the B offers a missile with good range, good maneuverability, and the immense advantage of a fire and forget missile.

• Great maneuverability is more maneuverable than a 9M.
• Great range
• Has Lofting extending the range even further
• Good off boresight capabilities
• Datalink allows missile to be fired without alerting the opposing aircraft.
• Active nature of the missile allows fire and leave capabilities.
• Smokeless rocket motor, impossible to see even at point blank range.
• Large warhead (for the missiles size) usually a guaranteed kill with one hit.
• Amazing CCM resistance in DCS, has many different mechanisms to filter out chaff.

C-5

The C-5 is an early 2000's variant of the AMRAAM. It differs from the B in that the fins of the missile were redesigned so they could fit into the weapon bays of the F-22 Raptor. This also has the side effect of offering reduced drag for slight loss in lift. In addition to this over the course of the C's development from C to C-3 to C-4. It has received new warheads, guidance sections, and a more powerful motor.

• Great maneuverability is more maneuverable than a 9M.
• Great range extended due to clipped wings modification and larger motor.
• Has Lofting extending the range even further
• Good off boresight capabilities
• Datalink allows missile to be fired without alerting the opposing aircraft.
• Active nature of the missile allows fire and leave capabilities.
• Smokeless rocket motor, impossible to see even at point blank range.
• Large warhead (for the missiles size) usually a guaranteed kill with one hit.
• Unmatched CCM resistance in DCS, has many different mechanisms to filter out chaff.

AIM-9

The Sidewinder is the longest serving missile series in the world. It has seen massive improvements over the more than 50 years it has been in service. The F16 can currently carry three types the AIM-9L, AIM-9M, and the AIM-9X

L

The '9L' was the first of the "unified" Sidewinder models, as previously the Airforce and Navy had their own unique model, this one was the first to be used by both branches. The L was a major upgrade over all previous sidewinders, heavily based on the AIM-9H the ultimate navy only variant. The L featured a new cooled InSb (Indium Antimonide) FM spin seeker which provides some natural resistance to IR counter measures, a completely new electronics package, increased off boresight capabilities, higher max G, higher launch g (7g's), much longer flight time of 1 minute, New warhead, new and more powerful motor.

• Good maneuverability, limited launch G.
• Good range for an IR missile.
• Off boresight launch range range of 22°'s.
• High smoke rocket motor, easy to see even at medium range
• Moderately sized warhead roughly a 50/50 chance if 1 hit will result in a kill
• Very Poor CCM resistance

M

The '9M' in shape, size, weight, and even appearance is the same missile as the 9L. But on the inside its electronics got completely overhauled. These new electronics could now filter out flares based on a flares energy rise time. And be reprogrammed to keep it up to date with the latest threats. With this programing being the difference between very poor flare rejection and good flare rejection capabilities. If it was poorly programed for the threat it would suffer heavily to flares.

Filtering out flares by energy rise time, from "History of the Electro-Optical Guided Missiles"

In addition these updates almost completely eliminated the effect of background noise on target detection range. In addition to this the 9M got a new smokeless motor that almost completely removed the smoke signature of the missile.

• Great maneuverability only beat out by the archer, IRST, and 9X.
• Good range for an IR missile.
• Off boresight launch range range of 22°'s.
• Smokeless rocket motor, impossible to see even at point blank range.
• Moderately sized warhead roughly a 50/50 chance if 1 hit will result in a kill
• Good CCM resistance, has several mechanisms to filter out flares. Still susceptible if the target is not in AB.

PACT Weapons

AA-8B (R-60M)

The R-60M is a very short range, medium to high maneuverability IR missile. An upgrade to the R-60 (AA-8A) this model provides a significantly improved seeker allowing for all aspect engagements. Having a rudimentary autopilot and a AM seeker the missile both has very poor off boresight range (pulls to hard off the rail and kills its speed) and no ability to filter out IR countermeasures.

• Even though improved seeker over previous missiles lock on range is still poor. Especially in the frontal aspect and if the target is not in AB.
• Off boresight range of 17°'s, which was good for the early 70's but was quickly surpassed.
• 3.5Kg warhead - very rarely will one hit kill an aircraft, often two hits is required.
• Kinematic rage is very poor (very high drag missile) achieving a max aero-range of only 10km above an altitude of 16km. Range at sea level for a head on target, from a high subsonic launch is no more than 2km.
• Very smoky missile easily seen even at long ranges
• Very poor CCM resistance
• High maneuverability, for the time this missile came out it was superior or equivalent to western counterparts.

AA-10A/C (R27R/ER)

The AA-10A/C (R-27R/ER) Alamo series of missiles is a common series of modern SARH missiles meant to equip the Russian fighters of the 1970's. Although due to numerous delays and cost overruns the missile was deployed late. By the time it was deployed an upgraded versions of the Sparrow missile had matched or surpassed the performance of the missile and the amraam was nearing deployment. However despite this the missile was kept in service and improved over time. The A/C variants are the SARH version of the R-27 series with the B/D being the IR variants. The A model is the original SARH missile design. It has a monopulse seeker that homes in on a CWI signal and is supported by a missile datalink. The missile datalink appears allow launches beyond the range the seeker could normally detect a target. Allowing the missile to have extended ranges. The ER or C model was the next in the SARH R-27 series, it provides a much larger Boost-Sustain type motor greatly extending the range of the missile. This missile will be your primary weapon however it will be outperformed by peer western equivalents. The 7M has superior high altitude performance and CCM performance than the 27R. While the AMRAAM's being an active missiles will force you into the situation of you having to maintain closure on the target when they can split S and outrun your missile when you can't do the same to theirs. Ambush tactics and relying on SAM coverage will need to be your primary tactics to have success against western threats.

• A Model has only moderate range and is outperformed by many other missiles. C model has good range and is only outranged by a few missiles.
• Limited AP capabilities missile if fired off boresight will bleed a lot of energy and lacks advanced guidance algorithms to limit energy loss against maneuvering targets.
• ER has good range and outranges most missiles
• Very smoky missile easily seen even at long ranges
• Poor CCM resistance
• Has HOJ capabilities
• Large warhead a hit is almost always a guaranteed kill

AA-10B/D (R27T/ET)

The AA-10B/D (R-27T/ET) Alamo series of missiles was a common series of modern IR missiles meant to equip the Russian fighters of the 1970's. Although due to numerous delays and cost overruns the missile was deployed late. However despite this the missile is still quite capable and was kept in service and steadily improved over time. The B/D variants are the IR version of the R-27 series and offer a unique capability of an extended range IR threat. The T model is based on the original missile, it has an IR sensor mounted with full aspect targeting capabilities. Both its detection and tracking range, especially on a non-afterburning target are not impressive in the front aspect but it provides substantially more range in both head on and tail chase engagements than the R60M and R73. The R-27ET is essentially the same missile as the R-27T but with the substantially enlarged Boost-Sustain motor. These missiles, if underestimated, can be very lethal but their low CCM resistance in DCS and their inability to see through clouds (WIP) will heavily hamper their performance. This isn't helped by their Smokey nature making them easy to spot allowing for targets to initiate defensive tactics sooner. Use of this missile in popup attacks is where they really shine.

• Moderate to good range especially for tail chase engagements with the ET
• Very smoky missile easily seen even at long ranges
• Poor CCM resistance if target is not in AB
• Poor detection and tracking ranges on aircraft not in AB especially head on in comparison to its kinematic range. More useful in tail aspect where significant range advantage over other short range IR missiles is very noticeable.
• Large warhead a hit is almost always a guaranteed kill

AA-11 RMD-1 (R73E)

The R-73 Archer was a world class short range IR missile from its deployment in the mid 80's until the late 90's . To increase upon the maneuverability achieved with the R-60 both a similar design was chosen and a thrust vectoring system was added, the first of its kind in the world. Additionally unlike other Russian missile of the time the missiles autopilot was quite advanced with programs to limit the intensity of the maneuvering when coming off the rail to just what was needed to hit, to maximize off boresight range when compared to all other Russian missiles.

• Incredible maneuverability only surpassed by the AIM-9X, IRST, and other modern western equivalents.
• Substantially more range than the R-60M achieving a sea level RMax ~9 times greater (~17-18km)
• Off boresight launch range range of 45°'s, theoretically higher but limited by helmet sight.
• Super smoky rocket motor, very easy to see even at long range
• Moderately sized warhead roughly a 50/50 chance if 1 hit will result in a kill
• Good CCM resistance if target is in AB

Note at some point it is likely the more modern R-73M will be added, the main difference is a larger motor increasing range and time the missile can thrust vector. But most importantly the introduction of a Dual-Band seeker that would substantially improve flare resistance against older countermeasure systems.

AA-12 (R77)

The R-77 Adder is a medium ranged active homing missile. Developed in the late 1980's it is currently the most advanced Russian missile in the game. A completely new design the R77 is a very unique looking missile, the 4 gridfins on the back give this missile its unique look and some unique traits. It allows for high maneuverability at subsonic and supersonic regimes. However at the cost of higher drag than conventional fins and especially in the transonic regime. The missile is most limited though by its poor fuel/weight ratio. While a high thrust motor it burns for a short time and the missile will quickly begin to slow down. It also lacks features such as a loft that all of its western peers have. This missile should be treated as a short ranged trump card. Its very high maneuverability and good CCM performance will allow very high lethal shots at close range, such as popup attacks, and is arguable superior to the 27ET in this role. However in BVR battles it will be heavily outperformed by its western peers, its only advantage over the 27ER being its active nature.

• Very smoky missile easily seen even at long ranges.
• Poor range when compared to its contemporaries, has a bit more range than the AA-10A (R-27R).
• More advanced autopilot reducing energy loss to maneuvering.
• Good CCM resistance.
• Has HOJ capabilities.
• Very high maneuverability when subsonic (M0 to .8) and at high supersonic (M3+) for its class.
• Large warhead, a hit is almost always a guaranteed kill.
• Carried only on the J-11A and the MIG-29S

Controls

It is recommended to bind as many of these to your HOTAS as you can with keys such as target lock, weapon release, and countermeasures taking priority.

General

• Navigation mode (1)
• BVR mode (2)
• Vertical scan ACM mode (3)
• Boresight Mode (4)
• Flaps Toggle (F)
• Cannon select (C)
• Flare Dispense (Delete)
• Chaff Dispense (Insert)
• Jammer (E)
• Trim (RCtrl + arrow keys) - very important for Russian planes
• External Fuel tanks eject all (LAlt + R) - F15C/MIG-29 only
• Gun Trigger (RAlt + Space)
• Weapon release (Space)
• Target Lock (Enter)
• Return to search (BackSpace)
• Unlock TWS target
• Change weapons (D)
• Radar on (I)
• TWS mode (RAlt + I)
• Change PRF (RShift + I)
• Radar range scale Up/Down (RCtrl + [ ])

Russian specific

• Takeoff thrust (LShift + E) - For SU-33 only, used when taking off from the kunetsov when near max takeoff weight. Provides the extra thrust needed for this but can damage the engines if left on too long.
• Auto-Thrust (J) - SU-33 only
• Level hold autopilot (H) - autopilot will level the jet and fly on the heading you were when it was activated
• Route Following Autopilot (LAlt + A) - Autopilot will follow the direct route set up in the ME
  EO scanner on (O)
• Predicted target range up/down (RCtrl + =/-)
• HMD mode (5)
• ASC direct control(S) - "cobra switch"

Radar Displays

F-15C

The F-15's radar display is very similar to just about every other western radar display. It is a top down view of what the radar sees with the bottom bar representing your aircraft and the top the current max range.

This tool can help you visualize this better: https://tawdcs.org/radar-f15/

• - symbol is for hostile aircraft
• O symbol is for allied aircraft
• Scale for each horizontal bar is current range divided by 4
• Scale for each vertical line is 30°'s
• Elevation is displayed for the position of the TDC cursor.

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Su-27/MIG-29/Su-33/J-11A

On Russian aircraft, starting from the MIG-23, the radar information is displayed on the HUD instead of a separate screen. This philosophy differed from the US, but the way it was displayed was almost identical. As a top down view of what the radar sees. In this case there was also an emphasis on visual cues to help guide the pilots eyes to where the scanning pattern is in 3D space using the horizon and HUD as a reference.

1. PRF
   • "ППС" - Hi PRF, offers great long range detection at the cost of detection range of flanking or retreating targets
   • "ЗПС" - Medium PRF, offers good short to medium range detection and substantially better detection of flanking or retreating targets.
   • "ABT" - interleaved, alternates between Hi and Medium PRF to gain the advantages of both with only an average 25% reduction in max detection range.
2. Range Scale
   • The left vertical bar is your range scale, this is adjusted by adjusting the HSI range scale or automatically if a target is being tracked. The current maximum value of the scale is displayed as a number on the top tick mark. With each tick being this number divided by 5 less than that number, eg 100km range the tick marks are 20km apart. Targets will be displayed on the hud to the right of this and their vertical position represents their horizontal range from you. A target at the top is 50 km away and halfway down is 25km.
3. Radar Modes
   • "ОБЗ" - BVR RWS/IRST Mode
   • "СНП" - BVR TWS Mode
   • "АТК ДВБ" - BVR STT
   • "ВС БВБ" - Vertical Scan ACM Mode
   • "ОПТ БВБ" - Boresight Scan ACM Mode
4. Radar Elevation Cues
   • On the right side there is another vertical bar, this represents the radar's range of possible vertical angular positions. The elevation coverage of the radar bar is calculated from the expected range number set and seen on the bottom of the HUD.
   • The thin horizonal bar to the left of the main vertical line represents the location of the horizon. This is to be used as a visual cue in addition to the next item:
   • The two small horizontal bars on the right side of the vertical bar represent the viewing angle of the HUD. From your view a line drawn from your eyes to the top and bottom of the hud out to infinity, and that angle, is represented by the bracket of these two lines. In the above case we see that the HUD's center is slightly above the horizon and that the top of the hud is much higher above the horizon ten the bottom. This can be used a visual system to quickly get the radar looking at the target in the vertical sense quickly without needing to know the range to the target. Or to get an idea of where the target is and the radar pointing vertically in a visual sense.
   • To the right of this there is a small vertical bar with a number that can be positive or negative. This represents where the radar is pointing in the vertical position. To use this to properly place the scan volume you set the predicted range value (number above radar active text) to the targets range. Then you find the difference in altitude between you and the target in km and move the antenna up or down till the number matches this. For example if your at 10km and your target is at 100km and at an altitude of 5km. You will set the predicted range to 100km then set the number to -5 using the antenna up and down commands. Remembering to set the predicted range value is necessary to get accurate results as such the use of GCI/AWACS with the aircraft is highly recommended.
5. On the HUD the different sized targets is actually due to the radar measuring the approximate RCS of a detected target. The measured RCS is represented by the number of dots seen denoting a target. The more the dots the larger the target.
   • One dot indicates an RCS of 2m^2 or less, stealth aircraft or RCS reduced aircraft.
   • Two dots indicates an RCS of 2-30m^2, this is the range of just about every fighter, attacker, and multirole aircraft we will see in game.
   • Three dots is 30-60m^2 and is usually medium bombers or small tankers
   • Four dots is 60m^2 or larger and these are almost exclusively very large bombers and AWACS aircraft. (One day, if it is ever modeled, it could even be a clue of aspect as RCS increases as you move from the front to sides of an aircraft)

PACT Datalink

An advantage the SU-27 and SU-33 have over the rest of the FC3 aircraft is access to a tactical datalink:

• ^ shapes indicate either hostile or unknown contacts. If the triangle has a base then your radar sees that target.
• O shapes indicate known friendly aircraft on the network.
• The length of the _ on top of each symbol indicates how much higher or lower than you they are
• The length of the direction line indicates airspeed

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