DEFENDERTHEF-14TOMCATSIMULATION

GAMEPLAY & INSTRUCTION MANUAL

The Ridge, Chipping Sodbury, Bristol BS17 6AY, UK Tel: 0454 329510 Copyright © 1994 MicroProse Limited This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by mimeograph or photocopy or other means without permission, with the exception of quoting brief passages for the purpose of reviews. Made in the UK MP1XX176MA1R CREDITS

Producer : Scott Spanburg Quality Assurance: Michael Craighead Programming Design : Vaughn Thomas David Ginsburg Scott Spanburg Quentin Chaney Mike McDonald Walter Carter Scott Elson Russell Clark Ned Way Andy Mazurek Christopher Clark Matt Showalter George Wargo Destin Strader Detmar Peterke Mike Wise Technical Consultant : Scott Zlotak Charlie Andaloro Lt. Col. George Bob Abe P. Wargo USAF (ret.) Packaging Design: Sarah Warburton Chris Martin Manual Illustrations: Keith Brightwell Michael Dell Mike Reis Lead Artist: Terrence Hodge Manual Graphics: Mike Reis Joe Morel Artists: Mike Reis George Gill Murray Taylor Manual Design & Layout: 3D Artist: Max Remington Sarah Kerr Historian/Writer: Lawrence T. Russell Managing Editor: Alkis Alkiviades Marketing Representative: Editor: Kristian Ramsay- Jones Carl Knoch Photographs courtesy of: Music Composition: Michael Bross Mr Chuck Porter, Naval Imaging Centre, Sound Department: Ken Lagace Washington DC Jim McConkey Mr "Zip" Rausa, Wings of Gold Magazine Roland Rizzo Mr Chris Martin, Naval Air Warfare Jack Miller Centre Mark Reis (VF-33 "Starfighters") TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgements II. SIMULATION CONTROLS Start-Up Instructions Flight Controls Keys Primary Flight Controls INTRODUCTION Secondary Flight Controls About the F-14 Tomcat Miscellaneous Flight Controls Historical Background Radar Controls The Fleet Defense Mission Weapon/ECM Controls About Fleet Defender Head-Up Display (HUD) ...... Controls Simulation Views I. GETTING STARTED Pilot/RIO View Controls Start-up Screens The Main Menu Screen Hardware Controls The Scramble Screen Joystick Configurations The Campaign Screen Thrustmaster FCS™v The Campaign Status Screen FCS-Mark II WCS The Mission Briefing Screen Virtual Pilot™ The Difficulty Screen Flightstick Pro™ The Arming Screen Foot Pedals The Squadron Roster Scramble Missions III. HOW TO FLY Flight Dynamics Campaign Missions Beginning a Campaign The "Big Four" Basic Concepts Your Career G Forces (Gravity) Beginning a Career Career Progression (Promotions) Flying the F-14 Tomcat Awards and Decorations Fuel Management Ending Your Career Navigation Damage Eject...Eject...Eject! (Bailing Out) Carrier Operations Radar Intercept Officer (Rear Seat) The Carrier Air Wing Cockpit Flight Rules Standard Mode Detail Data Carrier Take-offs (Cat-Shots) Display (DDD) Returning to the Carrier Moderate/Authentic Mode ...... Carrier Landing Patterns Detailed Data Display (DDD) Missed Approach Procedures Standard Mode Tactical ...... Your Wing-Man Information Wing-Man Control Keys Display (TID) Section Formations Moderate/Authentic Mode ...... Tactical Information Display (TID) IV. F-14 COCKPITS & AVIONICS Right Console Pilot (Front Seat) Cockpit Left Console9 Head-Up Display (HUD) Vertical Display Indicator (VDI) The AWG-9 Radar Horizontal Situation Display ...... Standard Mode Radar (HSD) Moderate Mode Radar Tactical Electronic Warfare Authentic Mode Radar System (TEWS) Display Campaign Maps Right Instrumentation Panel North Cape Theatre Left Instrumentation Panel Mediterranean Theatre Right Console Oceana Training Theatre Left Console

The U.S.S. America (CV-66) performing a gentle turn to starboard for the camera. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

As you may have guessed from the During the 1991 Persian Gulf war, VF-103 was preceding credits, it takes many people assigned to the U.S.S working long hours to produce a flight Saratoga (CV-60), a simulation. There’s an adage among pilots Forrestal-class aircraft which goes, “Never fly an aircraft designed carrier, on station in the Red Sea. The Sluggers by committee.” Well, in the case of conducted front-line computer simulations, especially ours, this operations over Iraq and saying simply isn’t true. No one person Kuwait with distinction could possibly hope to excel in all the throughout the war. different disciplines needed to complete spend much time at the one of these projects. Flight simulations beach though. Instead, the team was are a collective effort and FLEET treated to a week of direct hands-on DEFENDER is no exception. experience with the F-14 and its systems courtesy of VF-103, better known as the Those of you familiar with MicroProse “Sluggers.” products will undoubtedly recognize some of the names from past flight simulations. We are deeply indebted to the men and That’s because the same core group of women of VF-103 who welcomed us and men and women who designed F-15 made us feel right at home. Unfortunately, Strike Eagle III banded together once space does not allow us to mention again to produce FLEET DEFENDER. everyone who assisted because just about Their mission was to integrate a flight the entire squadron would make the list. simulation based on the F-14B Tomcat The “Sluggers” are just a superb bunch. with a comprehensive air-sea campaign Having said that, there were a few environment. individuals deserving of special recognition for making the trip such a worthwhile Improving on F-15 Strike Eagle III wasn’t venture. First, our thanks goes out to Lt. going to be easy. That simulation pushes Sam “Splatt” Platt of VF-101 “Grim the edge of the envelope as far as Reapers” for orches-trating the tour at recreating air-to-ground attack action is Oceana and Lt. Eric “Opus” Higgins and concerned. But the designers put together his RIO Lt. J G Paul “Skippy” McHenry of a list of features that players most wanted VF-103 “Sluggers” for demonstrating their to see in our next sim. These included F-14 and guiding us through an F-14 seamless play, state-of-the-art graphics, a simulator. realistic F-14 flight model, and improved AI. The design team set out to implement While at Oceana the team was also able to a dream sheet of features and in the “run wild” on the USS America (CV-66) process, create a flight simulator that’s not courtesy of the America’s Commanding too hard to learn, yet fun to play. Officer, CPT W W Copeland. We would also like to thank our escorts; Ensign C J Before all the programmers, artists, and Jenkins and Journalist First Class Albert J game designers got started, the principle McGilvray. Each of these gentlemen team members took a field trip to Oceana contributed to making FLEET DEFENDER Naval Air Station, Virginia. Oceana NAS is a realistic and accurate simulation and we the readiness and training site for east are sincerely grateful for their assistance. coast F-14 squadrons and is located within the city limits of Virginia Beach. They didn’t START-UP INSTRUCTIONS

CONTENTS 1. Place disk A in your floppy drive A or B Your complete FLEET DEFENDER F-14 2. Type A: or B: Now press the Enter Key simulation should contain, in addition to this 3. Type Install, Press the Enter Key again. instruction manual, a Campaign Notes & Follow the on-screen prompts Commentary Manual, 4 x 1.44 MB 3.5” disks, a Reference Card and a registration card. The installation program checks your system for a number of conditions, and MINIMUM SYSTEM advises you as to the status if your REQUIREMENTS system does not meet the conditions. It decompresses and copies the simulation FLEET DEFENDER requires the files from the distribution disks onto your following minimum system components hard drive. and memory: The install program also auto-detects • Computer: IBM, or fully compatible, your computer’s configuration and 80386 33 MHz (a 80486 33 MHz is provides recommendations for sound, recommended) speech, control device (joystick, • System Memory: 4MB of RAM, with keyboard, etc.). 2208K EMS free • Hard Drive: with at least 14 MB INSTALLATION CONDITION available CHECKS • Conventional Memory: at least 566K free 1. If your hard drive has less than 14 MB • Graphics: VGA graphics card and available, the installation program VGA monitor terminates and immediately advises you • Floppy Drive: one 1.44MB 3 1/2” that adequate hard drive space is not (required only for installation) available. • DOS: MS-DOS 5.0 or higher 2. If your system has less than 566K of free conventional memory, the installation INSTALLATION program continues, but advises you that INSTALLATION AND adequate conventional memory is not LOADING INSTRUCTIONS available. 3. If your system has less than 2208 K of FLEET DEFENDER includes an free EMS, the installation program installation program that transfers the continues, but advises you that adequate software data from the original EMS memory is not available. EMS (distribution) disks onto your hard drive. memory is required for loading. You must utilize the install program provided to transfer this data. You cannot LOADING just copy the distribution disks onto your hard drive; if you do, FLEET DEFENDER In order to load FLEET DEFENDER you will not load. must have first installed the program. If not, return to the section on installation To run the Install Program, turn on your and follow the instructions found there. computer, and then: 1. To load FLEET DEFENDER change over to the drive that contains the To Make A Boot Disk simulation directory. For example, if you 1. Insert a blank, formatted disk into your installed the program to your C drive, computer’s A drive. (You must use your change your system by typing C:. Now computer’s A drive, since it cannot boot press the Enter Key. from the B drive.) 2. Once you have accessed the proper 2. Change your drive over to the directory drive, change over to the proper directory. containing the If you selected the default MPS/F14 simulation files. directory, you can change to that directory by typing cd MPS/F14. Now press the 3. Type bootdisk and press the Enter Key. Enter Key. 4. If you have a ProAudio Spectrum 3. Type F14. Press the Enter Key to begin sound card installed, type bootdisk pas the simulation. and press the Enter Key. HARD DRIVE REQUIREMENTS The boot disk utility accesses your existing AUTOEXEC.BAT and Before installing FLEET DEFENDER , CONFIG.SYS files for various pieces of make sure that you have at least 14 MB information. It also searches your hard of available space on your hard drive. You drive for required information not found in can determine the amount of available those two files. If it is unable to find any hard drive space through the use of the part of the required information, it MS-DOS utility chkdsk. Run this utility prompts you to supply the information. according to the instructions found in your MS-DOS manual. The fifth line of the For example, suppose you renamed the display indicates the amount of hard drive directory in which your mouse driver space available. resides to MY_MOUSE and moved it to the E drive. The boot disk utility would not MAKING A BOOT DISK know to look in that location for your If you feel uncomfortable about modifying mouse driver. You must supply this your AUTOEXEC.BAT or CONFIG.SYS information when prompted. In this files, or you are unable to free up example, the response would be: adequate conventional memory, your best e:\my_mouse\mouse.com bet is to utilize a boot disk. A boot disk Using the Boot Disk creates a temporary configuration for your computer that is compatible with FLEET After making the boot disk, place it in DEFENDER . drive A and reboot your computer. The boot disk configures your system for Use the boot disk to start your system FLEET DEFENDER , and automatically whenever FLEET DEFENDER is to be starts the program. loaded. That way, your normal system configuration is unaffected. Restarting your System You must first install FLEET DEFENDER When you are finished with FLEET on to your computer before running the DEFENDER , remove the boot disk from boot disk utility. Return to the “Installation” your computer’s A drive, and reboot your section and follow the instructions found system. Your system will restart with your there. normal configuration. Configuration As part of the installation process, you are required to designate selections for music, sound, digitized speech, and input controller. Fortunately, the install program auto-detects the majority of the possible options. This configuration process is also utilized to change your selections if you add, delete or modify system equipment or just decide to change the selections. INTRODUCTION ABOUT THE F-14 TOMCAT

fought in the halls of Congress and on HISTORICAL BACKGROUND Capitol Hill over which branch of service would receive the most defense dollars. THE AIRCRAFT CARRIER AND CHANGING NAVAL DOCTRINE Constructing and maintaining even a dozen modern aircraft carriers was going Following the successful conclusion of to cost plenty. The start-up cost alone World War II, the United States was sold would be enormous and that was just the on the concept of naval aviation. The beginning. By the time fuel costs, training island-hopping campaign in the Pacific and personnel costs were factored in a against Japan would have been single carrier would ultimately require impossible without it. World War II billions in defense outlays. Of course one changed naval strategy forever, not just in must not forget to add in the air wing the US but throughout the world. Air consisting of eighty to ninety aircraft and power (and the aircraft carrier) had the cost of training a new generation of replaced the big guns of the battleship. naval aviators every twenty years or so. No longer would opposing fleets simply line up in parallel columns and hammer Big carriers meant the Navy Department away at each other. could ask for big money from Congress and get it. This is not to suggest that the Starting with Coral Sea in 1942, naval Navy pursued carrier development out of battles could begin when the two sides a desire to increase their share of the were still hundreds of miles apart. Aircraft nation’s defense budget. Let’s just say carriers lent mobility to air power, freeing that things have a way of perpetuating it from the restrictions imposed by themselves and that big budgets added stationary land bases. Taranto and Pearl to the Navy’s prestige when dealing with Harbour demonstrated the effectiveness the other services. of the surprise carrier strike. The Soviet Union, on the other hand, A fleet could run from battle but it couldn’t lacked the United States’ industrial hide. Ships could now be tracked down and resources and practical experience in destroyed in their own bases. The aircraft carrier warfare. What it did not lack was a carrier, on the other hand, proved its commitment to become the pre-eminent resiliency by withstanding wave after wave military power on the planet. When WW II of Japanese pilots intent of committing ended, the Soviets found themselves in suicide. The legendary Kamikaze (“Divine possession of eastern Europe. Holding Wind” in Japanese) proved to be the onto this expanse of territory would ultimate challenge. require land armies and their component Clearly, naval strategy in future wars was air support. going to be dictated by the development For many years the Soviet Union had no of naval aviation, at least as far as the real need to project its naval strength United States was concerned. The Navy outside of Europe. Air and naval power had over a hundred aircraft carriers left was used to complement a European over at the end of World War II and a ground war only. So while the Army and vested interest in promoting both the Air force had lavish resources heaped effectiveness and survivability of its upon them, the Soviet navy consisted of carrier groups. With the war now over, the a few coastal patrol craft and surplus Navy had to start thinking about winning destroyers obtained from the US during the peace. The next battles would be the war. Each nation entered the Cold War with with a powerful radar and complement of different strategic objectives. The United long range air-to-air missiles. This solution States recognised that it could never had the advantage of increasing the return to semi-isolationism and that combat radius of the aircraft without containing the spread of Communism increasing its fuel load. The aircraft could was going to require global involvement. take up a patrol station closer to the To back this commitment, the US had to carrier and let its missiles reach out and create a naval force able to respond perform the mission. Unfortunately, this quickly to potential trouble spots. Such a concept meant the fighter would be force would have to be self-contained and burdened by the weight of its own radar provide for its own air defense. system and missiles, losing much of its The Soviet Union took a much more dogfighting capability in the process. defensive stance. Its biggest concern was The ability to dogfight was not supposed keeping US warships out of Soviet to matter. Under these design waters. While the United States built up specifications the aircraft would be a its fleet of aircraft carriers, the Soviets platform for launching missiles, and jumped ahead in missile technology. The nothing more. Once it had expended all Soviets planned to make the vaunted US its missiles it would immediately return to super-carriers vulnerable to low cost the carrier. Labelled an interceptor, this missile attacks. aircraft was never meant to engage the In the 1950s, the US Navy recognised enemy up close and personal. After all, that Soviet progress in missile technology didn’t the Navy leave the guns off their would one day pose a serious threat to its Phantom II design? They wouldn’t have carrier battlegroups. Naval tacticians done that if they thought for a moment could envision having to fend off waves of that their pilots would be dogfighting with attacking long-range bombers or nuclear enemy pilots. cruise missiles. It was assumed that GENESIS OF THE F-14 sometime within the next decade the Soviets would manage to arm their In late 1957, the Navy won a contract to strategic bombers with stand-off cruise begin developing the XAAM-M-10 Eagle, missiles. Once this happened, US a two-stage, solid fuel, radar-guided air- carriers could be hunted down and to-air missile with a range in excess of destroyed before they sailed within 100 nm. The Douglas F6D Missileer was striking distance. the aircraft selected to carry the Eagle. The Missileer design called for the To deal with this eventuality, the Navy inclusion of a track-while-scan pulse wanted to develop a carrier-based fighter able to engage Soviet bombers at ranges in excess of the stand-off range of their missiles. Engineers were quick to point out that the Navy’s mission requirements were at odds with the weight restrictions normally associated with carrier aircraft. A fighter conforming to this set of requirements, would have to be large enough to store tons of additional fuel yet remain light enough for carrier operations, an impossible task. The Navy’s answer was to design a fighter A carrier battlegroup at sea. Doppler radar with the ability to target, “one fighter for all occasions” idea. Chief launch and control six Eagle missiles. among the complaints was the aircraft’s This combination of aircraft and missile weight, at 70,000 lbs., the aircraft was too was intended to perform the Fleet Air heavy to operate safely from an aircraft Defense role through the 1970s. Three carrier. Take-offs were risky, landings years later, in late 1960, the entire were worse. Catapults and arrestor program was scrapped. Enter the cables in service at the time were not Kennedy administration and a new stressed to handle this load. On final Secretary of Defense Robert S approach, the aircraft had to be flown at McNamara. such a high angle of attack that the pilot McNamara was a business man, moving could no longer see the carrier deck. from a successful business career in the As a result of the F-111B set backs, private sector to head up the Defense Grumman proposed to rework the aircraft Dept. It was his contention that the using light weight titanium alloys. This military could save billions of dollars in reengineered design became known as procurement by collective purchasing. the VFX. In early 1967, the Navy That is, buying equipment in bulk. Instead commissioned a study comparing the two of allowing each branch of service to buy design proposals. Grumman’s VFX different items to do the same job, project won hands down. Using the same McNamara stressed commonality. He engines as the F-111B, the VFX turned in wanted all the services to buy the exact a consistently superior performance and same items to contain costs, including Congress cancelled funds for the F-111B everything from tools to tanks, frying pans in 1968. to fighters. This cancellation proved to be the turning As it happens, both the Air Force and point in the F-14’s development. The way Navy were shopping around for a new was cleared for the Navy to make a RFP fighter aircraft. The Navy was looking for (Request for Proposals) outlining specifics a replacement for its cancelled Missileer for a separate aircraft, apart from the Air while the Air Force wanted a high speed, Force’s F-111A. Some of the design tactical strike fighter (the TFX program) to features mentioned were tandem seating replace the aging F-105 Thunderchief. for a two man crew, twin engines, a track- McNamara saw this as an opportunity to while-scan radar with multi-targeting save money. He wanted the defense capability, and carrier suitability. industry to build a single aircraft to suit the needs of both services. THE F-14A In 1962, after much prodding by Grumman was one of five aerospace McNamara, the two services finally companies which initially bid on the VFX arrived at a compromise design. General (F-14) contract. Because of its past Dynamics was awarded the Air Force’s association with the Navy and experience TFX contract. Grumman was given the with swing-wing technology, it was contract to begin work on the Navy’s awarded the contract in 1969. Out of version of the same aircraft. Both hundreds of different designs, prototype variants, the Air Force’s F-111A and the 303E was the one chosen for initial test Navy’s F-111B, were designed with production. The first of 12 developmental maximum commonality in mind. aircraft was flying two years later (21 December 1970). Operational F-14s were The first F-111Bs were flying by 1965. delivered to the Navy (VF-1, VF-2) in From the very beginning pilots had October 1972. These two squadrons were serious reservations about McNamara’s slightly heavier than the 412A and produced the same thrust, it was more reliable and used less fuel. Its biggest drawback was that it produced smoky exhaust making the aircraft easy to spot in combat. (The F-4 suffered from the same problem.) Realising that the 414 was still only an interim solution, the Navy directed that work continue on finding a more powerful replacement. The USAF announced in 1984 that it was accepting a new engine, the F110-GE- “Hey, buddy! Get the heck outta’ the way.” A 100, for its F-16s. Several months later, turkey-feathered F-14 prepares to take-off. Secretary of the Navy John Lehman told subsequently deployed aboard the USS a Congressional Appropriations Enterprise (CV-65) in 1974. subcommittee that the F-14 and TF series engine represented “probably the The F-14 took over the role of Fleet Air worst engine/airframe mismatch we have Defense from the venerable F-4 in the had in many years. The TF30 is just a mid 1970s. The Phantom had done an terrible engine and has accounted for admirable job in its day but the Vietnam 28.2% of all F-14 crashes.” His testimony War never seriously tested its ability as a paved the way for the Navy to begin Fleet Defender. US aircraft carriers were purchasing these engines along with the never threatened as they would be in a USAF. future war by Soviet bombers. As more capable fighters entered service THE F-14B in Third World air forces it became clear Shortly afterward, Grumman was that a number of modifications to the awarded a $984 million contract to basic F-14 design were needed. For upgrade the F-14’s avionics and engines. example, early model F-14s were issued The upgraded F-14As, known as the F- with the TF30 - P-412A turbofan engine. 14A(Plus), were given advanced avionics. The TF30 - P-412A consumed far too Impressed with the much fuel for the amount of power it USAF’s produced. It was problematic and prone F-110-GE-100s, the to compressor stall. The engine Navy redesignated generated only 12,350 lbs of thrust these engines F110- (20,900 lbs. with afterburner). Clearly, GE-400 and placed even with two of these engines, the them on the F-14A N power produced was inadequate to the (Plus). F-14s could task of pushing a 70,000 lb. fighter finally make a catapult The Fightin’ around. The 412A was, however, the only assisted take-off 143, better engine available for use without an without their known as the extensive delay period. afterburner engaged. “Pukin’ Dogs“ The Navy decided to go ahead with the (The 400 produces 412A until a successor could be found. 14,000 lbs. of dry Starting in 1982, however, as F-14s came thrust, 23,100 lbs. of wet or afterburning in for program maintenance and overhaul thrust.) they were fitted with the new TF-30-P- The F-14A(Plus) was first flown in 1986 and 414 turbojet engine. Though the 414 was delivered to VF 101 “Grim Reapers” at Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia in 1988. Since then, F-14A(Plus) aircraft have also been delivered to VF-24 “Renegades,” VF-74 “Bedevilers,” VF-103 “Sluggers,” VF-142 “Ghostriders,” VF-143 “Pukin’ Dogs,” and VF- 211 “Fighting Checkmates.” On May 1st, 1991, the CNO (Chief of Naval Operations) ordered that all F-14A(Plus) models be redesignated F-14B. To avoid confusion, all F-14s in FLEET DEFENDER retain the B designation even in those scenarios prior to 1991. An F-14 belonging to VF-33 "Starfighters", at Keep in mind, even when playing those rest. pre-1988 Mediterranean campaign games, you are given a more powerful version of the F-14 that did not aircraft which after taking off, could orbit a historically exist at the time. All F-14s significant distance away from the carrier, flown in FLEET DEFENDER are for an extended period of time. From this assumed to be F-14B model aircraft patrol station, the Missileer would fire its regardless of the scenario being played. long range missiles at any enemy aircraft venturing near. Once all its missiles were It should be noted that the MicroProse gone it would return to the carrier and design team tested a flight model using another aircraft would take its place. the original TF-30-P-412A engines installed in F-14As. The result was a Despite the program’s cancellation, this particularly narrow flight envelope. The concept of fleet defense remained. The aircraft was very unforgiving if one failed Navy was still in need of an aircraft able to stay within these parameters. More to contend with Soviet advances in cruise often than not, inattentive pilots found missile technology. The US Navy was themselves spinning in before ever forced to consider the state of carrier engaging the enemy. In short, it wasn’t vulnerability 5-10 years down the road. To much fun. For purposes of a commercial meet this future threat, any fighter chosen flight simulator, the F-14B with its to perform Fleet Air Defense would have improved turbofan engines, was a much to be equipped with a powerful track- better choice. while-scan radar able to target multiple aircraft. The fighter would also have to be armed with active radar missiles so that it THE FLEET DEFENSE MISSION could have several of them in the air at one time. Both the F-14 and the F-111 were originally thought of as mere platforms, The mission, Fleet Air Defense, exposes built to facilitate the delivery of specialised both the aircraft and crew to a very ordnance. In the case of the F-111, the special set of stressful situations. After USAF saw this aircraft as a strategic launch, an F-14 must fly a CAP hundreds bomber capable of low level, high speed of miles away, loiter at slow speed for penetration of enemy airspace. The F-14, several hours, then return to make a successor to the Missileer concept, was carrier landing under all types of weather intended to be a platform for launching conditions or at night. No wonder Navy AAMs at incoming bombers. flyers prefer to be known as aviators rather than pilots. Being a naval aviator The Missileer program envisioned an puts them in a class all their own. Flying an F-14 requires a certain mind- automatically (although there is a manual set. You are literally charged with override) when you’re feeling the need for protecting the lives of thousands of speed. When the aircraft is in need of service men and women. A single lapse energy (or additional lift to maintain an in judgment could be enough to allow an AOA) the wings come forward. Think of enemy bomber or missile to get through. the wings as reaching forward as if Luckily there are safeguards and grasping for more air. overlapping areas of responsibility built in to a carrier’s air defense coverage. Even so, failure can lead to horrific destruction. Keep in mind that the F-14 is a strategic interceptor and not a pure fighter. Although this distinction is somewhat subtle it’s more than just a matter of semantics. There are profound differences in the way in which interceptors operate as compared to fighter aircraft. To fulfil the Fleet Air Defense role on a strategic level, a long range air-to-air- missile is necessary. Under the original 1950’s concept, this missile was to have been the Eagle. With its cancellation, work on the AIM-54 Phoenix was begun. (It is said to have risen from the ashes of the earlier program.) This combination of AWG-9 radar and Phoenix missile allows the F-14 to be such an effective aircraft. One problem with the Phoenix is that there are never enough of them. The Tomcat can only carry six. When they are gone, what’s next? As long as the F-14 has these missiles remaining it can act as a launching platform, firing at targets many tens of miles away. Once all six are expended, however, the F-14 has to close in and tangle with enemy aircraft. Despite its size the F-14 manoeuvres quite well at slower speeds. It certainly doesn’t handle like a nimble F-16 but it can hold its own in a dogfight. The fact that the F-14 can make this role transformation is a credit to its swing wing technology. Swing wings allow the F-14 to operate in more than one combat environment. With its wings swept back it is configured for high speed (supersonic) dash profiles. The wings go back ABOUT FLEET DEFENDER

FLEET DEFENDER is a combat flight simulation based upon the United States Navy’s principle carrier-based interceptor, the F-14B Tomcat. Since its deployment in 1972, the F-14 has been entrusted with the defense of the United States Navy’s aircraft carrier battlegroups, its most valued military possession. More importantly, however, this aircraft is charged with protecting the lives of 8,000-10,000 servicemen and women that serve aboard the ships of an average battlegroup (CVBG). They are the Navy’s The Cat Officer (in the foreground) is seconds shield. From Admiral to Ensign, Chief Petty from sending this F-14 on its way. Officer to Recruit, the F-14 is truly our fleet defender. go. With a deafening roar, your F-14 is Those of you already familiar with thrust into the sky trailing a superheated MicroProse’s F-15 Strike Eagle III should column of air. There’s no turning back feel free to jump right in with a single now.... you’re airborne, you’re committed. sortie. Notice that many of the control You’ve become a FLEET DEFENDER. keys and features are common to both The rest is up to you. simulations. The programmers and game FLEET DEFENDER is specifically designers made a conscious effort to limit designed to recreate carrier take-offs and the functional differences between the landings (TOLs) in realistic detail. In fact, two so that you could get started playing carrier landings are such a challenge that right away. But, if this is your first they can easily become a game within a MicroProse flight simulation get ready for game. How many landings can you make the ride of your life. before getting your first wave-off? The Picture yourself on the deck of a modern stress of so many carrier approaches can aircraft carrier suspended 70 ft. off the get to be too much, especially at night. surface of the water. You and your RIO In order to relieve the tension, this (Radar Intercept Officer) are strapped into simulation combines carrier operations your F-14 with over 30,000 lbs. of thrust with air combat in two all-new theatres of spooling up behind you. “Greenshirts” war. Each theatre of war contains three swarm around your aircraft making sure distinct campaign scenarios for you to everything performs as advertised. participate in. If you’re not ready for Underneath your aircraft, a steam catapult combat and just want to practice flying the is building up pressure, it has to get your Tomcat, there is an entire theatre devoted 30 ton “Tomcat” airborne in less than 300 solely to training. feet. That doesn’t leave a big margin for Each of the campaign scenarios exposes error. The blast deflectors are raised, your carrier and its escorts to savage signifying that the moment of take-off is attacks. Enemy aircraft probe your fast approaching. You are about to be defenses and test your CAPs. Cruise thrown off the flight deck with only one missiles suddenly pop-up seemingly out chance to get it right. of nowhere. Yes- there are numerous After the obligatory “thumb’s up” challenges which await you, from exchange with the Cat Officer, it’s time to intercepting bomber formations at high altitudes to wave-hopping dogfights with the most stressful part of a mission, even supersonic fighters. All in all, you’ll find more stressful than dogfighting or braving yourself tangling with more than thirty triple-A. different aircraft and helicopters. For a naval aviator a good landing means You assume the role of flight leader on catching the “three-wire” for a full stop. each mission and as the flight leader, you This type of landing is known as a trap. are placed in command of a section of Miss all three wires and you had better be two F-14s. A two-ship is a collective prepared to go to full throttle for a “go effort. You and your wing-man must work around.” This is known as a bolter. If a together as a team in order to get the job bolter doesn’t get your heart racing done. As the flight leader, you exercise a maybe you shouldn’t be flying jets for the great deal of tactical control over your Navy. wing-man, keep him with you to cover If you find yourself having difficulty your “six” or send him off to perform on making carrier landings, don’t get his own. Use him but don’t lose him. Too discouraged. One of the F-14s involved in many players think of their wing-man as the downing of two Libyan Su-22s in 1981 cannon fodder. That’s a habit you’ll want took three trys to get back on deck. Yo u to get out of because in FLEET should expect to have your share of DEFENDER your wing-man, as well as bolters before carrier landings get easier other members of your squadron, to you. But while they may eventually get improve their skills with each mission they easier, they will never get routine. Just fly. The more experienced your wing-man remember that everyone has their off- becomes the better he’ll perform so it’s in days, that’s why extensive instructions on your best interest to look after him. making carrier landings are included in With only twenty Tomcats on-board your this manual. carrier at the start of each campaign, you Even if you don’t get the hang of it right can’t afford to lose a single one away, don’t give up. Points are deducted unnecessarily. If your squadron is from your score if you end the mission handled roughly by the enemy early on, without successfully landing back aboard later missions may prove difficult if not the carrier, so stick with it. You will never impossible to complete. Remember that get full credit for completing a mission in each of the campaigns defense of the until you can return safely to the carrier. carrier is paramount. Lose the carrier- To help you along, a complete stateside lose the campaign. training theatre has been included. The FLEET DEFENDER features an assortment of friendly aircraft ready to help you out in a dogfight or deliver a shattering counter-blow. When you’re not out intercepting bandits, you may be required to escort strike packages. Luckily, your two-ship is not alone out there. Assisting you are additional two- ship CAPs and the full weight of a modern aircraft carrier battlegroup. Unless you are forced to eject due to battle damage, you will be returning to your carrier. Even undamaged, landing Comin’ in for a perfect three-wire trap. This back aboard your carrier will probably be aviator has returned home in one piece. Training theatre revolves around Oceana undoubtedly be saying Naval Air Station (NAS) located outside of to yourselves; Hey- if Norfolk, Virginia. It extends as far north the F-14B didn’t enter as southern Pennsylvania and as far service until the late south as the Bahamas. While in training 1980s how come at Oceana you’ll be assigned to VF-101 some of the “Grim Reapers”, the east coast Fleet - campaigns take place Readiness Squadron (FRS). As a Grim before then? That’s a Reaper, you’ll be given an opportunity to VF-101 “Grim fair question. sharpen your flying skills before entering Reapers” The design team into combat. Go ahead and practice all squadron emblem choose to model the F- those fancy manoeuvres you see in the 14B because it movies. Just remember that once in represents a marked combat this game is for real. You just improvement over the F-14A. The under- might want to discard all that hot-doggin’ powered Tomcat-A wouldn’t have for some common sense ACM. performed up to everyone’s expectations The majority of the training takes place unless we toyed with the data some and over water. Somewhere out there is an produced an unrealistic flight model. We aircraft carrier, provided it hasn’t been wanted to recreate actual campaigns but swallowed up by the Bermuda triangle. given our choice of time periods and This carrier is devoted to conducting theatres, this would have forced us to training exercises with rookie aviators model the F-14A. It would not have been before classifying them as mission ready. fun to fly. Now is the time to practice take-offs and As players, we all get a greater sense of landings (TOLs). If you’re going to make involvement when the simulation is mistakes it’s best to make them during patterned after historical events. There’s training and not during combat. a greater emotional attachment to one’s FLEET DEFENDER does not require you character (and one’s aircraft for that to spend time in training, however. You matter) when you can equate game may choose to ignore this theatre situations to “real life.” So with this in mind altogether. Air combat can be very the design team decided to keep the unforgiving to rookie pilots. It’s life and historical flavour yet allow the player to fly death out there with no such thing as the F-14B. second best. You don’t score any points If you believe this gives you too much of for being a good loser. Chivalry in sky an edge, you can always limit yourself to was tried in WW I. The idea that air a maximum power setting of 80%. We’ve combat was a gentlemanly joust between taken care of play balance problems by knights in the sky didn’t last long once allowing the Soviets to deploy some of men started dying by the thousands. their contemporary fighters in these early Therefore a little advance training prior to scenarios. Enjoy! Don’t slow down for combat can pay off big-time. If nothing turns and may you always catch a three- else, it’ll help you get a jump on the wire on your way back home. competition. Those of you died-in-the-wool flight fanatics with an eye for detail will I. GETTING STARTED If you’re a pilot with a lot of flight sim time and begin flying with minimal preparation. under your belt, this chapter is designed Although there is a standard default to allow you to begin play almost mission, SCRAMBLE also gives you the immediately. On the other hand, if you’re ability to create your own mini-combat new to flight simulations, bear with it. situations from scratch. This is the Flight isn’t an easy thing to explain to preferred way to get familiar with the game newcomers. before you embark on a full campaign. Undoubtedly, you’ll come across many Turn to the section entitled SCRAMBLE for terms and concepts that will be foreign to more information on these missions. you. FLEET DEFENDER, like the F-14 it The second method of play is portrays, isn’t always user-friendly CAMPAIGN. A campaign is a series of (especially the portions dealing with inter-connected missions which take radar). Don’t become frustrated, though, place over an extended period of time. we’re sure you’ll get the hang of it in no These missions differ from single sorties time. Just remember, the Navy spends in that there is a lot going on behind the years teaching its naval aviators the scenes. You won’t always see it, but it’s same information that FLEET there. DEFENDER tries to teach in hours (and During testing, a furious battle erupted days). between a pair of Swedish Viggens and a By the way, if this is your first flight group of MiG-23s that had wandered off simulator, we think you’ve picked a great course and crossed in Swedish (neutral) one to start off your flying career. The F-14 airspace. It was fascinating to watch. The is one of this country’s classic fighter Viggens had the Floggers for breakfast aircraft. It combines just the right amount and prevented a major Soviet airstrike of high-tech wizardry with old fashioned from reaching its target in Norway. stick-and-rudder work. In a campaign, you (and other members Ideally, you should have the game of your squadron) are promoted based on running in front of you while you study your performance in combat. How well this instruction manual. This way, you can you do on one mission directly affects refer back and forth from game to your likelihood of success on the next. manual, and vice versa. The combination For example, if your squadron was to of play and study should help you learn experience heavy losses on a particular even the most difficult parts of this game mission, it may not have enough aircraft with minimal confusion. If, after all this, leftover to carry out future assignments. you’re still stuck, feel free to call one of Campaigns give you access to greater our technical experts in the MPS numbers of friendly aircraft but with this Customer Service Dept. greater force comes greater There are two different ways to play responsibilities. There are two F-14 FLEET DEFENDER : SCRAMBLE and fighter squadrons normally assigned to a CAMPAIGN. The SCRAMBLE method is carrier. These twenty aircraft are all that a one shot affair, you take-off, engage in stands between the enemy and your combat, then return to the carrier. ships. If these precious twenty airframes Because these missions represent only a are ever bent, burnt, or lost at sea, they’re single sortie, you are spared having to gone for good. Chances are you’ll need worry about the “big picture” events of a every one of these aircraft if you intend to full campaign. last through to the end of a campaign. These missions allow you to jump right in Each campaign is made up of a variety of air defense and escort missions. Not only PAUSE OPTION are you tasked with protecting friendly You may halt this simulation at any time strike groups sent to attack enemy simply by pressing the Pause (alt P key). targets, you are also charged with Because the Pause feature is a luxury defending your own ships from enemy air not available to pilots in the real world, attack. If your aircraft carrier is ever sunk, hard core “purists” are sometimes the game is over. It doesn’t matter how reluctant to use it. By not pausing the well you do as an individual pilot. The simulation, however, you are giving your raison d’être for the F-14 is to protect the opponents an unfair advantage. They carrier, everything else is secondary. Turn continue to sneak up while you flip to the section entitled CAMPAIGN for a through the manual. more detailed explanation of these Feel free to use the Pause feature any missions. time you need to refer to a section of REFERENCE CARD instructions. It’s not considered cheating! No matter which method of play you select, continually flipping through this instruction manual detracts from the overall simulation. For the first couple of missions you should keep the Reference Card next to your computer. This will enable to you to continue flying (and fighting) without having to pause each time you need to look up a particular command. The Reference Card contains a summary of all the keyboard key commands you need to play this simulation. The commands are arranged according to An F-14 in a high energy state with wings swept their function so that after a few missions, back for speed. you’ll find yourself remembering commands without having to refer to the card any longer. TERMINOLOGY Keyboard Keys: When a keyboard key is referred to in this manual, its name appears in italics followed by the key stroke (shown in uppercase and set in parentheses). For example, the key used to turn the radar system On and Off is noted as follows; Radar On/Off Toggle (R key). Selector: refers to the mouse, joystick button, or key controls. Selector #1 refers to either the left mouse button or Enter Key, Selector #2 refers to either the right mouse button or Spacebar Key. START-UP SCREENS

THE MAIN MENU SCREEN TOP TEN [T] You may also access the FLEET To begin playing FLEET DEFENDER , DEFENDER Hall of Fame from the Main you must select one of the two play Menu screen by pressing the TOP TEN options found on the Main Menu Screen; [T] Key. The Top Ten roster shows the SCRAMBLE or CAMPAIGN. top ten highest scores (what else) your pilots have achieved. If you are good SCRAMBLE [S] enough you may just find yourself at the Press the SCRAMBLE [S] Key to begin a top of this list. SCRAMBLE mission. The SCRAMBLE option is more than just a way to get QUIT [Q] flying in a hurry, it’s a mission generator Change your mind? Pressing QUIT [Q] as well. After selecting this option, you Key ends this session and exits you to are given an opportunity to create your DOS. own scenario and then go fly it. As an alternative to using the keyboard, you may use your mouse cursor to CAMPAIGN [C] depress any particular button. Press the CAMPAIGN [C] Key to access a full CAMPAIGN. The campaign option puts you in the middle of an entire Air/Sea battle environment. In addition to flying combat missions, there are literally hundreds of decisions you’re required to make. Your hands will be full from the very start.

The Main Menu screen showing the two The Hall of Fame screen shows the top ten principle play options; SCRAMBLE and naval aviators along with their callsigns and top CAMPAIGN. scores. THE SCRAMBLE SCREEN Mission Generation buttons The blue lower case buttons on this SCRAMBLE missions are single sorties screen are known as Mission Generation that you generate yourself. With the buttons. They give you the ability to exception of the 1981 Libyan default construct your own scenarios “on the fly”. option, there are no canned SCRAMBLE Consult the SCRAMBLE section below missions. for full details on how to generate these missions. MAIN MENU [M] Pressing the Main Menu button [M] Key returns you to the Main Menu Screen. DIFFICULTY [D] Pressing the DIFFICULTY [D] Key takes you immediately to the Difficulty Screen. This screen is explained in more detail below. The same Difficulty screen is used for both SCRAMBLE and CAMPAIGN missions. ARMING [A] Pressing the ARMING [A] Key takes you immediately to the Arming Screen. This The SCRAMBLE Screen. These are quick and screen is explained in more detail below. easy missions that make for excellent The same Arming screen is used for both tournament challenges. SCRAMBLE and CAMPAIGN missions. TAKE OFF [T] Pressing the TAKE OFF [T] Key puts you in the cockpit. At this point you’re ready to go. You begin your mission either on the carrier deck or already in flight. If you start on the carrier deck, you must press the Afterburner Engage [A] Key to begin. Once your engine has “spooled up” to full RPMs, the catapult will fire. Your F-14 is hurled down the flight deck. In just seconds, you’ll be airborne, so be ready for it. THE CAMPAIGN SCREEN mouse cursor and press OK to return to the CAMPAIGN Screen. A CAMPAIGN takes a little longer to set up than a SCRAMBLE mission as you Medals [E] might imagine, but they are well worth the Pressing the MEDALS [E] Key grants extra effort. Campaign missions are the access to your personal collection of most challenging way to play FLEET awards and decorations. A Phoenix DEFENDER. symbol marks the number of times you’ve had to resurrect yourself. (This feature has been added so that your friends can check up on you when you begin to tell war stories). Press the Enter key or use the mouse cursor and press OK to return to the CAMPAIGN Screen. MAIN MENU [M] Pressing the MAIN MENU [M] Key returns you to the Main Menu Screen. DIFFICULTY [D] Pressing the DIFFICULTY [D] Key takes The Campaign Screen. Campaigns allows you you immediately to the Difficulty Screen. to undertake missions within a full air/sea environment. This screen is explained in more detail below. The same Difficulty screen is used The CAMPAIGN Screen shows you the for both SCRAMBLE and CAMPAIGN current status of any on-going campaign missions. your squadron may be involved in. Included in this information are notes BEGIN [B] concerning your current theatre, current Pressing the BEGIN [B] Key takes you to campaign scenario, your pilot name and the Campaign Status screen. that of your RIO. You are also given a summary of the number of missions already flown, your individual point score, your current campaign score and difficulty level. Finally, this screen indicates whether or not you are flying missions in Training mode. (Don’t confuse this mode with missions flown in the Oceana Training theatre). Squadron [S] Pressing the SQUADRON [S] Key calls up the Squadron Roster board. This roster shows the available squadrons plus information about squadrons with campaigns in progress. Consult the Squadron Roster section below for more details. Press the Enter key or use the THE CAMPAIGN STATUS SCREEN Pilot Log [P] Press the Pilot Log [P] Key to access a As the name implies, this screen gives complete log of all the missions you have you information about the current status flown thus far in this campaign. The Pilot of your on-going campaign. Inside the log summarises each mission so you can status box is the number of the next tell at a glance; mission to be flown as well as a short mission briefing. To see how well this 1.whether the mission succeeded or campaign is going, press the blue lower failed, case buttons to access first a mission log 2. how many F-14 aircraft/aircrews were and then an individual pilot log. lost by your squadron, 3.how many enemy aircraft you were Mission Log [M] able to shoot down, Press the Mission Log [M] Key to 4. your LSO rating (how well you landed access a complete log of all the missions back aboard the carrier), flown so far in this campaign. The 5. and finally, the point score you received mission log summarises each mission so for completing this mission. you can tell at a glance; Pressing the Status [T] Key returns you 1.whether the mission succeeded or to the Campaign Status screen. failed, 2. how many F-14 aircraft/aircrews were SQUADRON [S] lost by your squadron, Pressing the SQUADRON [S] KEY 3. how many enemy aircraft were shot returns you to the Campaign Screen. down by members of your squadron, 4. and finally, your squadron’s combined BRIEFING [B] point score for this mission. Pressing the Briefing [B] Key takes you to the Mission Briefing screen. THE MISSION BRIEFING SCREEN scores, so rotating your Wing-men is advisable. Since there is always a chance The Mission Briefing Screen contains a that crews will be lost during a mission, text briefing which outlines the nature of building up a single crew at the expense the mission along with the conditions for of the others is risky. victory. VF-alt [V] In addition to your own squadron, you STATUS [S] may check on the status of your sister Pressing the STATUS [S] Key returns you fighter squadron (VF alternate) by to the Campaign Status screen. pressing VF-alt [V] Key. This roster is presented for informational purposes WINGMAN [W] only. You may not select a wing-man from Pressing the WINGMAN [W] Key gives this squadron. you access to the Squadron Assignment Board. ARMING [A] The Squadron Assignment Board contains Pressing the ARMING [A] Key takes you a list of all F-14 crews (Pilot/RIO immediately to the Arming Screen. This combinations) in your squadron. It also screen is explained in more detail below. lists, among other things, their current The same Arming screen is used for both assignments for this particular mission. SCRAMBLE and CAMPAIGN missions. These assignments include CAP (Combat TAKE OFF [T] Air Patrol), Ready 5, and Standby. Pressing the TAKE OFF [T] Key puts you Crews assigned to CAP missions will in the cockpit. At this point you’re ready to patrol predetermined areas around the go. You begin some missions on the carrier according to the carrier’s standard carrier deck awaiting your turn to take-off. air defense plan. You have no control Other missions start with your aircraft over their placement. Crews assigned to already inflight and positioned at its CAP Ready 5 positions are held in reserve on station. your carrier’s flight deck until needed. If you get in trouble, these are the guys that’ll If you start a mission on the carrier be sent to help bail you out. Finally, air deck, you must press the Afterburner crews that are not needed for this mission Engage (A Key) to begin. are placed on Standby. These guys, in effect, have the day off. Should you choose to, you may spoil their day off by requesting that a Standby crew be reassigned to fly this mission as your Wing-man. New Wing-man crews must be selected from the ranks of those crews on Standby. You cannot reassign crews that are already participating in this mission. To change Wing-man, use your mouse pointer and press the left mouse button over the desired crew. Your old wing-man is now put on Standby. Crews gain experience as they fly more The Mission Briefing screen contains a brief missions and accumulate higher point overview of the up-coming mission. THE DIFFICULTY SCREEN map. Now press the blue button marked Move [M] Key. You are now able to position your mouse pointer anywhere on the map you wish to go. Press the right mouse button and your F-14 is instantly teleported to this spot on the map. No fuel is used in this move. As much fun as Training mode is, it does have one drawback. You are never given a score for Training missions. Even if you switch to Training mode for only part of the mission, you are given a score of zero (0). All points scored on a mission are lost if you switch to Training mode while The Difficulty screen is a handy way of setting the mission is in progress. up a mission according to your individual tastes. LEVEL 1 - 4 The Difficulty Screen allows you to set the FLEET DEFENDER missions can be difficulty levels of ten or more game flown in various degrees of difficulty. features. The three difficulty levels are There are four different levels; Level 1 referred to as play Modes. They are (easiest) to Level 4 (Impossible). As you Standard Mode (the easiest of the three), might imagine, more points are awarded Moderate Mode (more complex than for missions flown at the higher difficulty Standard Mode), and finally the ultimate levels. You determine the difficulty level of in realism, Authentic Mode (the most each mission by setting the mission challenging of the three difficulty levels). options to one of the following modes of play; Standard, Moderate, and Authentic. Difficulty Levels STANDARD MODE is the easiest of the TRAINING: Select this mode and you’ll three modes of play. It is very forgiving of never have to say you’re sorry. You can pilot error. Aircraft systems are simplified “get away” with mistakes in Training mode and abstracted for the player who just that would end a regular mission. Training wants to fly and shoot without being mode turns your F-14 into an invincible overly concerned with realism. fighting machine. Enemy missiles (SAMs MODERATE MODE is an intermediate and AAMs) and gunfire cannot harm your difficulty level. It combines some of the aircraft but your weapons retain their easier aspects of Standard Mode play lethality. Training mode also allows you to with the more realistic features of continually resupply your aircraft (and Authentic Mode. Many of the things that your wing-man’s aircraft) with fuel and were performed automatically before weapons. Given time, you can clear the must now be performed manually. The skies of enemy aircraft. biggest change, however, comes in the Training mode also gives you the ability to operation of the radar and its component “teleport” your F-14 (along with your wing- systems. man) to any point on the map with a click of AUTHENTIC MODE represents the your mouse button. Press the Map View (/ highest level of difficulty in FLEET Key) to access the campaign DEFENDER. It is also the level at which players score the most points. Of the three, Authentic Mode places the greatest work load on the player. Aircraft avionics equipped with a terrain-following feature and weapons perform just as their to keep you hitting the ground by counterparts do in real life. accident. As more mission options are set to MODERATE MODE: Unlike Standard harder modes of play, the overall level of Mode, this flight model incorporates the difficulty goes up accordingly. You can effect of air density (altitude) on watch this happen by changing the performance. In addition, you may mission options back and forth. damage the aircraft by exposing it to Difficulty Options stress resulting from high G forces. There are ten difficulty options that need Roll inertia has been removed from the to be set prior to the initiation of any flight model in this mode as well and the campaign. Consider these options proper amount of trim is input for you. carefully. Once a mission begins it’s too The Automatic pilot is equipped with a late to change your mind. terrain-following feature to keep you hitting the ground by accident. WEAPON EFFECTIVENESS AUTHENTIC MODE: This flight model STANDARD MODE: Your missiles are incorporates the effect of air density always 100% effective. They always hit (altitude) on performance. You may damage and they always kill. It’s hardly a the aircraft by exposing it to stress resulting challenge really, just aim and shoot. from high G forces. (The G force tolerance MODERATE MODE: Your missiles still of the aircraft has been reduced from that in destroy a target when they hit it but hitting Moderate Mode.) a target has been made more difficult. Flight controls may seem a bit sluggish. Enemy aircraft can now avoid your This is because roll inertia has been missiles by using electronic counter- added. You are also required to trim the measures (ECM) or by out manoeuvring aircraft frequently to maximise its them, if given a chance. performance. (Unless you are an AUTHENTIC MODE: The lethality of absolute fanatic for realism, trimming the each missile is determined using aircraft can get to be annoying. If you find information drawn from a carefully the trim feature bothersome, press the constructed data-base. Over thirty unique Auto Trim Bypass (shift ] Key). The characteristics are taken into account to terrain-following feature of the Automatic ensure that each missile performs in pilot has been removed. It only keeps FLEET DEFENDER just as it does in your aircraft flying straight and level. real-life. This mode accurately models the differences between individual air-to-air F-14 DAMAGE missiles. STANDARD MODE: Your F-14 can take an unbelievable amount of damage and FLIGHT MODEL continue to fly. STANDARD MODE: Your F-14 almost MODERATE MODE: You can still take a flies itself in this mode, it’s very hard to good deal of damage but missiles should make a mistake. The aircraft performs the not be ignored. Several hits are enough same regardless of altitude. Roll inertia to bring you down. Avionics and other has been removed from the flight model critical areas are assessed individually. in this mode. Adverse G effects have also AUTHENTIC MODE: Damage is been taken out. The aircraft automatically assessed realistically according to the calculates and inputs the proper amount type of hit your aircraft receives. For of trim for you. The Automatic pilot is example, radar-guided missiles generally The RIO automatically locks the nearest cause more damage than heat-seeking enemy aircraft for you. Sometimes this missiles because of their larger helps out and sometimes it doesn’t. As a warheads. Missile hits usually (but not pilot, you must be the final arbitrator. Your always) cause catastrophic failure to one RIO also alerts you to “bandits” (enemy or more systems. Bursts of gunfire cause aircraft) in the area by calling out their less damage per direct hit than missiles. clock position. For example, if your RIO As a rule, it takes many bursts of gunfire calls out “Bandit- 6 o’clock”, this indicates to bring down your aircraft. that an enemy is on your tail. In addition, your RIO is also responsible CARRIER LANDINGS for deploying electronic counter- STANDARD MODE: The Landing Signals measures (ECM) when necessary. Even Officer (LSO) is very lenient in this mode. so, as the pilot, you might want to keep You can mess up an approach and still your finger near the Chaff/Flare switches receive a good rating. Your F-14 is also yourself, just in case. eager to forgive mistakes. Any landing you Finally, your RIO is responsible for calling can walk away from is a good landing and out damage to your aircraft. this mode lets you walk away from most of them. The traffic pattern is filled with MODERATE MODE: In this mode, your landing gates which float in mid-air and back seater is a little more casual about help guide your aircraft through the his duties. He’s more than willing to let approach pattern. you take over some of the responsibilities. Your RIO still reports on MODERATE MODE: Landings are bandits in the area, deploys somewhat more difficult. Your airspeed, countermeasures, and calls out damage, angle, and rate of descent must all be but you have to lock-up your own targets. within critical tolerances in order to land safely. The LSO is more critical of your AUTHENTIC MODE: In this mode, your landings than before but unless you put RIO is really just along for the ride. Oh the nose of the aircraft through the deck, sure, your RIO will still spot bandits and you should do okay. report on damage, but other than that, you’re on your own. AUTHENTIC MODE: The LSO is a SOB. He demands perfection and can’t wait to BACKSEAT CONTROLS give you a bad rating. You must stay in STANDARD MODE: You may fly the complete control of the aircraft throughout aircraft from the back seat as you would if your approach or you’ll receive a wave-off. you were seated in the front. You just In this mode, it is better to go around than have to peer over the DDD to do it, that’s risk a bad landing. Bad landings are all. usually fatal. Authentic Mode approaches require a high degree of piloting skill. If MODERATE MODE: You cannot fly the you are not sweating these landings then aircraft from the back-seat. The aircraft you just don’t understand the problem. maintains the stick position (pitch, yaw, and roll input) it was in when you exited RIO ASSISTANCE the front seat. STANDARD MODE: Your Radar Intercept AUTHENTIC MODE: You cannot fly the Officer (RIO) gives you a great deal of aircraft from the back-seat. The aircraft assistance which allows you to will follow its natural tendency to level concentrate on flying, your primary itself, if possible. concern as a pilot. GUN CAMERA CARRIER CLASS: Select one of three STANDARD MODE: The Vertical Display different classes of aircraft carriers Indicator (VDI) shows the camera image represented in the game; Forrestal, Kitty in colour and labels the primary targets Hawk, or the giant nuclear-powered for you. The camera itself can pan 3600. Nimitz class. The differences between the MODERATE MODE: The VDI shows the three carriers are largely cosmetic, camera image in monochrome (green) and however, the longer length of the Nimitz labels the primary targets for you. As in class flight deck makes landings a little Standard Mode, the camera can pan 3600. easier. AUTHENTIC MODE: The VDI shows the Joystick [J] camera image in monochrome (green). It Pressing the blue Joystick [J] Key does not label the primary targets for you. brings up an additional panel labelled The camera has forward looking gimbal CONTROL. This panel allows you to set limits of 200 left and right of centre and 0 up the simulation according to the 20 above and below the horizon. availability of your own hardware. RADAR JOYSTICK: Use your mouse pointer to The three Radar difficulty modes are make a choice of controller devices (or covered in the AWG-9 radar section of combination of devices). Note that you Chapter 4. may choose not to use a joystick at all and use keyboard controls instead. GROUND CRASH MODE FLEET DEFENDER also allows for STANDARD: The aircraft can hit ground specialised equipment such as throttle objects and terrain without being affected controllers or foot pedals as well. (i.e. you can crash into the ground and KEYBOARD SENSITIVITY: You may still keep flying). Your aircraft is not adjust the sensitivity of your keyboard damaged in any way by contact with the between High, Medium, and Low. The ground. Exception: If your aircraft has more sensitive you make the keyboard, been previously damaged by enemy the more control input is generated each action, any contact with the ground ends time you press a particular key. your mission (and your career). ROLL RATE: Select one of two different MODERATE AND AUTHENTIC: Any roll rates: Standard or Authentic. contact with a ground object other than a Selecting Standard gives you a very fast carrier flight deck results in the immediate roll which is unaffected by altitude or destruction of your aircraft. If you happen airspeed. An Authentic roll rate is more to be inside the aircraft when this realistic and takes into account all the occurs... see yah! aerodynamic factors which affect your ENEMY SKILL: Enemy pilots are rated flight performance. as follows; (1) Trainee, (2) Cadet, (3) Difficulty [D] Regular, (4) Veteran and (5) Ace. Press this key to return to the previous Choosing the higher levels just makes Difficulty panel. your job all the more difficult. Highly Recalibrate [R] skilled pilots are simply able to fly and Press the Recalibrate [R] Key to fight better than lesser trained pilots. recalibrate your joystick or controller Veteran pilots combine experience with between flights. Follow the on-screen training to produce superior performance. instructions. When finished, press An Ace is a veteran pilot with exceptional Escape/Menu Options (Esc Key). instincts and superb judgment. Sound Off [S] Fleet Defense BRAVO This key is a toggle which turns the 6 (AIM-54 Phoenix) + 2 (AIM-9 sound On and Off. Since the [S] Key is Sidewinder) used for this toggle, to press the This load-out best illustrates the Navy’s SQUADRON button you must use your Missileer launch platform concept. The mouse pointer. six Phoenix missiles allow you to sit back Music [M] safely out of range and shoot down the This key is a toggle which turns the enemy with impunity. You pay a high background music On and Off. Game price for this seeming invincibility, though. sound is unaffected. Note your top speed at sea level and don’t even think about getting into a THE ARMING SCREEN dogfight. Fleet Defense CHARLIE There are six different weapon 2 (AIM-54 Phoenix) + 1 (AIM-7 Sparrow) configurations for you to choose from on + 4 (AIM-9 Sidewinder) the Arming Screen. Each mission has its Like the FD Alpha load-out, this mix of own peculiar set of ordnance radar and heat-seeking missiles is great requirements so get to know them. Once for multi-mission tasking. The two AIM- in the air, it’s too late to change weapons 54s could be used against non- if you find you’ve made a bad selection. manoeuvring targets like reconnaissance or ASW aircraft. The four “heaters” gives Fleet Defense ALPHA you plenty of ammunition in case of a 4 (AIM-54 Phoenix) + 2 (AIM-7 Sparrow) BFM engagement. + 2 (AIM-9 Sidewinder) MiG CAP ALPHA 4 (AIM-7 Sparrow) + 4 (AIM-9 Sidewinder) This load-out is ideal for escort missions. The four Sparrows give you a medium- range capability while the Sidewinders allow you to break formation to dogfight with interceptors. Your speed is such that keeping up with a strike package is not a problem. MiG CAP BRAVO 6 (AIM-7 Sparrow) + 2 (AIM-9 The Arming Screen Sidewinder) Every now and then you get lucky and This load-out represents a good mix of come across a flight of enemy helicopters radar and heat-seeking missiles. Use this or better yet, troop transports. When this load-out when going up against a group happens there are never enough missiles of strike-fighters. The four AIM-54s around. The six Sparrows allow you to should be used to pick off a few bandits “turkey-shoot” a half dozen or so. These at long range. The remaining missiles are medium-range missiles let you stay out good for proximity dogfighting with the danger while you pick the enemy off one- survivors. by-one. MiG CAP CHARLIE THE SQUADRON ROSTER 4 (AIM-54 Phoenix) + 4 (AIM-9 Sidewinder) This load-out combines long-range capability with speed. The four AIM-54s are perfect for taking out reconnaissance aircraft or tactical co-ordination platforms. Once the Phoenix missiles are gone, you’re left with a dramatic speed advantage and a full complement of “fire and forget” missiles. STANDARD ARMAMENT: In addition to the missiles, your F-14 always begins a mission with one 20 mm M61A1 gun (675 rounds) and two drop tanks of fuel each The Squadron Roster Board. There are no containing 267 gallons. entrance exams to pass or initiations to endure Detail [D] before joining. Press the Detail [D] Key for a close-up Before you fly any mission, you must first inspection of your weapon configuration. be assigned to particular F-14 equipped fighter squadron. FLEET DEFENDER features ten (10) F-14 squadrons normally associated with the US east coast naval commands. By pressing the SQUADRON [S] Key, you are given access to these squadrons and their current campaign status. Pick any one of the squadrons you desire. EDIT PILOT [E] Press the EDIT PILOT [E] Key to assign yourself to the squadron you’ve selected. A name plate labelled Pilot Name Shown here, a F-14 loaded down with a full appears. Use the non-key pad arrow compliment of six Phoenix missiles keys and backspace key to enter your first name (top line), callsign (middle line) and last name (bottom line). For example, your entry might look like; Edward “Killer” Crawford Once you have finished entering or editing your name, you must now do the same for your RIO. Use your mouse cursor to press EDIT RIO button. When you are satisfied, press the Enter key or use the mouse cursor and press OK to return to the Squadron Roster Board. RESET [R] The RESET [R] Key takes you back to the very beginning and allows you to start the campaign over. Any points you may have scored during the course of the campaign are lost when you start over again. CAMPAIGN [C] Press the CAMPAIGN [C] Key to make theatre and scenario selections. There are three theatres to choose from; two are combat theatres (North Cape and Mediterranean). The third theatre is the Oceana NAS theatre featuring training operations off the east coast of the United States. Use the non-key pad arrow keys to select any one of the three. Your selection is highlighted in yellow. Your choice of scenario depends entirely upon your choice of theatre. Each of the combat theatres has three different scenarios to choose from. Use the non- key pad arrow keys to elect any one of the three. Your selection is again highlighted in yellow. The Oceana theatre features six different training options. You may select any one of the six. STATUS [S] Press the STATUS [S] Key to access a more detailed summary of your campaign’s current status. OK [O] Press the OK [O] Key when you are satisfied with the information on the Squadron Roster board. This key returns you to the CAMPAIGN Screen. As you can see, the CAMPAIGN Screen now reflects any changes you may have entered. CANCEL [A] The CANCEL [A] Key negates any configuration changes you may have made to the current campaign. If you make a set-up mistake, this key lets you correct it by starting over. SCRAMBLE MISSIONS For those of you who just want to get in Trainee, Cadet, Regular, Veteran and one last mission before heading off to Ace. At the higher skill levels, enemy work, school, etc, the SCRAMBLE play pilots are able to use their radar better, option allows you to fly quick and easy fire missiles faster, and generally fly a single sortie missions. little smarter. An Ace is a real challenge, Rather than present you with a host of even in a Yak-38. Trainees are little better stock missions, this play option features a than sitting ducks, but even they get lucky mini-mission generator. By combining the from time to time. SCRAMBLE mission generator with a little imagination, you are able to create a Number [N] variety of aerial encounters. Select the number of friendly and enemy aircraft you wish to take part in this SCRAMBLE MISSION GENERATOR mission. You may choose up to six (6) Use your mouse pointer or press the enemy and six (6) friendly aircraft. corresponding highlighted letters to select Warning: each additional aircraft you put SCRAMBLE mission options. in the sky practically doubles your work load. Imagine having to fight your way out of a furball consisting of twelve aircraft. Formation [F] Select the type of enemy formation. There are four different formations; Box, Wall, Ladder, or Cruise. A three- dimensional representation of each formation appears to the right of your selection. Consult the Oceana training section for more details concerning enemy formations. Enemy Alt [E] The SCRAMBLE screen displays all your Select your enemy’s starting altitude mission options. You can create all new missions or accept the default setting. using the keyboard arrow keys. An altimeter appears to the right allowing you to view your selection. You may place the Type [Y] enemy anywhere from 1000 ft. up to the By pressing this button, you are given SCRAMBLE ceiling of 40,000 feet. access to the list of all available aircraft. Note that you are only allowed to select Your Alt [O] one aircraft type per mission. Use your Select your own starting altitude using the mouse pointer and press the left mouse keyboard arrow keys. An altimeter button to make your selection. appears to the right allowing you to view your selection. You may begin anywhere Skill [S] from 1000 ft. up to the SCRAMBLE Select the enemy skill level. Press this ceiling of 40,000 feet. button and the skill level selections appear to the right. Choose from between Position [P] Select your starting position vis-a-vis the enemy formation. You may choose one of three starting positions; Offensive (Advantaged), Neutral (Head-to-Head), or Defensive (Disadvantaged). Time [I] Select the time using the keyboard arrow keys. A clock appears to the allowing you to view your selection. The Day-to-Night (Dusk) transition begins at 1800 hrs and ends at 2000 hrs. The Night-to-Day (Dawn) transition begins at 0500 hrs and ends at 0700 hrs. Weather [W] Choose between three different types of weather conditions; Stormy, Clear, and Overcast. Stormy conditions are more severe than mere overcast, the cloud layer is thicker and the cloud ceiling is lower to the ground. Squadron [Q] You may choose to fly as a member of one of eight (8) different F-14 squadrons. The squadron’s patch appears to the right as you cycle through your selections.

Default Option: If you’re in a real hurry don’t bother setting the mission options, just press TAKE OFF [T] and accept the SCRAMBLE mode default. This setting allows you to recreate the Tomcat’s 1981 encounter with two Libyan Su-22s. Historically, both the “Fitters” were shot down by a pair of F-14s belonging to VF- 41 “Black Aces.” This was the famous Navy; 2, Libya; 0 incident. CAMPAIGN MISSIONS Rather than limit players to individual and planes determined to stop your SCRAMBLE sorties, FLEET DEFENDER carrier group and this is where you come allows you to take part in an entire in. naval/air campaign. A single campaign You (and your RIO) represent one of has the potential to last anywhere from twenty-two F-14 aircrews that make up several days to several weeks. Your role the two fighter squadrons onboard the will be to fly missions in support of your carrier. Two of these crews are actually carrier and its strike operations. Since replacements. There are only twenty F- you have only one carrier per campaign 14s onboard, and although this may scenario you must protect it. If it is ever sound like a lot, combat attrition will take sunk or so severely damaged that it can its toll. You can’t afford to press the no longer perform air operations, the envelope too often. campaign is over. In order to begin a campaign, three In addition to CAP (Combat Air Patrol) things are necessary. You must; missions, you are also tasked with 1. choose one of the two combat escorting friendly strike packages while theatres (either North Cape or en-route to their targets. On these Mediterranean) missions you are not accountable for how well the strike package performs. As a 2. choose one of the three campaign fighter “jock”, you don’t care if any of scenarios, and these aircraft hit their targets just as long 3. be assigned to an active squadron. as they all make it back home. Therefore, Once you have accomplished these three your performance is judged on the things, you are ready to begin your first number of friendly aircraft that survive the campaign mission. mission and not the level of destruction inflicted on the target. Flying a Mission Campaign missions have been created Now, it’s time to prepare for your first based on actual air/sea tactics used by mission. Actually, individual campaign the Soviet Union. They have not been missions are no different than the single intentionally play balanced beforehand to sortie missions flown in SCRAMBLE make them easy or even fair, for that option. However, with all the many matter. You’ll find that some missions are decisions that need to be made before milk runs, while others will be downright take-off, it’s probably a good idea to impossible. check everything once again. 1. From the CAMPAIGN screen, check BEGINNING A CAMPAIGN the Squadron Roster Board to make sure you have the right squadron and the You begin each campaign aboard a right campaign. Now, press the single aircraft carrier being escorted by DIFFICULTY button [D] Key. several Cruisers, Guided-missile 2. From the DIFFICULTY screen, set the Destroyers and Frigates. Onboard the difficulty options on the panel as desired. carrier are approximately 90 combat You may also recalibrate your joystick at aircraft and helicopters. Their striking this point if needed. Now, press the power is awesome but it is mitigated to a CAMPAIGN button [C] Key to return degree by the enemy’s formidable air briefly to the CAMPAIGN screen. defenses. The enemy has a host of ships 3. From the CAMPAIGN screen, press the BEGIN button [B] Key. This takes you access the Control Options screen. Now, directly to the pre-Mission briefing. press the ABORT button [A] Key located 4. From the BRIEFING screen, press the at the bottom of this screen. Ending a BRIEFING button [B] Key to get your mission in this manner causes you to lose mission briefing. Read the briefing text credit for any points you may have scored carefully, it contains important operational on this mission. You are taken to the information and the mission conditions for mission debrief. victory. Now that you have an idea what is expected of you, press the ARMING EXIT TO DOS [X] button [A] Key. Rather than aborting a mission, you may 5. From the ARMING screen, make your also leave the simulation altogether from ordnance selections based upon the up- the Control Option screen. Press the EXIT coming mission requirements. Now, press TO DOS [X] Key. This key has the same the WINGMAN [W] Key. affect as pressing the Quit (alt Q) Key. 6. From the WINGMAN screen, you may Mission Debriefing assign yourself a new wing-man, if you so You receive a debriefing at the conclusion desire. Take a minute to check the other of each mission, whether you personally crew assignments so you are familiar with survive it or not. This debrief consists of a the crews participating in this mission. replay of the entire mission summarising Once you are satisfied with the crew the major events and placing them in assignments, there is only one thing left chronological order. A summary of your to do; press the TAKE OFF button [T] point score is also displayed along with Key and... take-off! any medals or awards you are to receive. Ending a Mission Ending a Campaign Hopefully, each of your missions will end Your carrier group will continue its with you returning safely to an operations until it achieves its objectives undamaged aircraft carrier. Ideally, this is unless the campaign ends prematurely. the way every mission should end. Sadly, There are two principle ways for a the fortunes of war will dictate otherwise campaign to end prematurely, if your pilot on occasion. is Killed In Action (KIA), or if your aircraft carrier is sunk or severely damaged. BECOMING A CASUALTY At the end of each campaign, your overall There is always a chance you will not performance is rated according to the survive a mission. If this happens, the number of successful missions you have mission is over at the point of your flown. You can lose a few missions and demise. See Resurrection below. still have a decent campaign record. In Baseball, a .500 percentage will get you EJECTING in the World Series, so too, in FLEET Bailing out of a crippled aircraft is another DEFENDER. Win over half of the way to end the mission. If you survive the missions and you should feel pretty good, ejection and are picked up, you are taken win 75% of them and you’re doing great. directly to the mission debriefing. ABORT [A] You may abort a mission in progress at any time. To abort a mission, press the Escape/Menu Options (Esc Key) to YOUR CAREER FLEET DEFENDER allows you to noticeably successfully, you are personalise your pilot and RIO by giving recommended for various awards and them names of your own choosing. Most decorations. players tend to name the pilot after themselves and name the RIO after their CAREER PROGRESSION (PROMOTIONS) best friend. There’s no requirement to do this, however. You may give the pilot and Your ultimate career goal is to get RIO any names you wish. promoted up the ladder until you reach Assuming you name the pilot after the rank of Commodore. It won’t be easy. yourself, we can also assume that you You will only attain this lofty grade after now have a vested interest in doing well flying many missions, in many and surviving. In this respect, you are no campaigns. After you attain this rank, you different than any other naval aviator that are retired. Enjoy your break from flies the Tomcat in real life. He has his combat, you earned it. career to worry about, now you have yours. Mission Scoring You receive a point score depending BEGINNING A CAREER upon how well you performed as an individual. You also receive points as a Your career as a member of the squadron for participating naval aviator in a successful mission. These two sums begins the are totalled to produce your final mission moment you give score. a name to your Failure to accomplish your mission pilot. From this garners less points for you as an moment on, your individual and makes a campaign more career is simply difficult to ultimately win. For example, the sum total of you may be given a mission to prevent all the points enemy reconnaissance aircraft from scored during all finding your carrier group. If the enemy is the missions you allowed to locate your carrier, the next have flown using mission may have you desperately trying this persona. to shoot down a salvo of cruise missiles. (You may have a different pilot Promotions Feeling that need for name for each Promotions are based upon your speed? This F-14 is active squadron.) accumulated point totals. They are not showing its stuff on a low Your personal easy to get, but they do come in time. level pass. objective is to Every naval aviator starts the game as a survive the Lieutenant JG (Junior Grade) with a point campaign, all other considerations should score of zero (0). In order to attain the be secondary. Along the way, however, next highest rank, you only need to you will accumulate points for accumulate the prerequisite number of accomplishing certain tasks and points. The higher the rank, the more destroying enemy aircraft. If you are points you must accumulate to attain it. Regardless of the number of points you Multiple awards of the same decoration receive, you are never promoted more are noted by the addition of a Gold Star. than one rank after any one mission. If You receive points toward promotion for you do really well on a particular mission, each award. For example, if you currently you must fly another so that your have two (2) Air Medals you would promotions can catch up with your receive 5,000 (2 x 2500) bonus points accumulated point score. toward promotion. The following chart outlines the rank structure in FLEET DEFENDER and the point scores needed to attain them; MEDAL AW ARDED PROMOTION BONUS CMOH 7,000 RANK POINTS NEEDED Navy Cross 5,500 Silver Star 4,500 Lieutenant JG At Start Distinguished Flying Cross 3,500 Lieutenant 6,000 Air Medal 2,500 Lt. Commander 18,000 Navy Commendation Medal 1,500 Commander 40,000 Purple Heart None Captain 70,000 National Defense Service Medal None Commodore 110,000

Your Wing-man can never be more than one rank above you. Any higher than that and he’d be considered the flight leader. Likewise, your RIO is always kept at least one rank lower than you. Sorry back- seaters, but that’s just the way it is in this sim.

AWARDS AND DECORATIONS

In addition to promotions, you may also receive various awards and decorations for outstanding performance. Like your point score, these stay with the pilot who The Awards Screen earns them. They are not transferable. Besides giving you something nice to wear on your uniform, awards and decorations also help you get promoted. Each award is assigned a specific point value. If you receive a decoration, its point value is subtracted from the total number of points you need to attain the next highest rank. In effect, your Commanding Officer has recognised your sterling performance and recommends you for early promotion. ENDING YOUR CAREER Fly Over [F] The Fly Over option is essentially the Retirement same as resurrection except that the pilot The most pleasant way to end a service must start the same mission again. Press career is through retirement after having the Fly Over [F] Key to try again. achieved a chest full of medals. As soon as you reach the rank of Commodore, The Phoenix you are retired. Once you achieve the A Phoenix, a mythological bird which rank of Commodore your flying days are rises from the ashes of its own over. The Navy can’t have its senior destruction, is used to symbolise officers out tooling around in fighters, now resurrection. One of these icons is placed can it? with your medals each time your pilot is resurrected. There is no limit to the Roll of the Honoured Dead number of times a pilot may be brought The other way to end a career is not so back. pleasant. Every time you take to the sky there’s a chance you may not return. At the conclusion of each mission, a list of those who won’t be returning is published. This list is termed the Roll of the Honoured Dead. If your pilot’s name is on it, your career is over. Resurrect [R] All is not lost. Because being a fleet defender is such a hazardous occupation, the designers have included a universal safeguard against premature retirement. If you are ever KIA for any reason, you are given a second chance. To resurrect yourself, press the Resurrect [R] Key. If The Roll of the Honoured Dead. only it was this easy in real life! Resurrected pilots are immediately returned to active service and allowed to keep the points they scored prior to their demise. The drawback to resurrection is that you are considered to have failed the mission. All things considered, it’s a small price to pay. Perish [P] If you are unwilling to toy with destiny, press the Perish [P] Key. The pilot is irrevocably gone and the campaign is ended. II. SIMULATION CONTROLS Because of the complexity of the F-14’s weapon and flight control systems there ZOOM COMMANDS: These are well over a hundred different key commands expand or retract various commands. Each command performs a fields of view as noted in the key unique function and is activated by the summaries. They also increase or touch of a certain key or combination of decrease the range of your radar, TCS, keys on your keyboard. or other systems which have telescoping areas of coverage. Originally, the game designers considered including an overlay template Zoom In (Z Key): This view moves your showing all the distinct key combinations. perspective/range inward (closer) to the Quickly we realised it would be unusable object or area. due to the overwhelming number of Zoom Out (X Key): This view moves commands. So instead, a complete list of your view perspective outward (farther all the key commands used in FLEET away) from the object or area. DEFENDER is provided on the Reference Card included with your game. Keep the card handy for use during flight. This chapter is intended to provide you with a detailed summary of all the various command functions used during the normal course of play. Each function is referred to by its name as it appears on the Reference Card followed by the actual keystroke in parenthesises. The keys have been grouped into appropriate sections for quick reference. These include primary and secondary flight controls, simulation views, radar, weapons, and general simulation controls, etc. There is an additional list of Wing-man controls which appear on the Reference Card but do not appear in this chapter. Details concerning wing-man control keys can be found in the Wing-man section of Chapter Four. FLIGHT CONTROL KEYS

PRIMARY FLIGHT CONTROLS Afterburner Engage (A Key): Pressing this key kicks in the afterburner. Your Primary flight controls are usually non- afterburner boosts your thrust well over combat related keys deemed most 100% but consumes fuel at a prohibitive important to your ability to fly the aircraft. rate. Use the afterburner sparingly. They represent keys that are frequently Note that this key is not a toggle. You used during the course of a mission. As cannot use it to turn off the afterburner. such they are easily remembered after a To turn off the afterburner, press the few sorties. Throttle Back (- Key) once. Front/Back Seat Toggle (‘ Key): This Automatic Pilot (P Key): By toggling this toggle allows you to instantly move key, you may engage and disengage your between the front (pilot) seat and back aircraft’s Automatic Pilot. When the (RIO) seat. Your view perspective defaults Automatic Pilot is engaged, it maintains to a Look Ahead view as a result of this your heading and altitude. You are able to move. make minor course corrections without Accelerate (= Key): Pressing this key disengaging the Automatic Pilot. increases the throttle setting of your Automatic Pilot is most useful when you aircraft in increments of 10%. You are are busy attending to other chores (like able to watch this incremental increase in working the radar systems in the back power on the RpM gauge located directly seat). under the pilot’s altimeter. Notice a Stick Trim Up ([ Key): Each press of this significant increase in fuel consumption key adjusts (trims) the pitch of the aircraft as well. upward without putting back pressure on Full Military Power (shift= Key): the joystick. Pressing this key immediately increases Stick Trim Down (] Key): Each press of your throttle to 100% RpMs (Full Military this key adjusts (trims) the pitch of the Power). aircraft downward without putting forward Throttle Back (- Key): Pressing this key pressure on the joystick. decreases the throttle setting of your Auto Trim (shift ] Key): Pressing this key aircraft in increments of 10%. Notice how automatically adjusts (trims) your your fuel flow rate decreases as you aircraft’s pitch for you. throttle back. Rudder Left (, Key): Pressing this key Cut Throttle (shift- Key): Pressing this causes the aircraft to yaw (turn w/o key immediately shuts down both engines banking the wings) to the left. completely. You’d better have a landing spot already picked out. Gliding is not one Rudder Right (. Key): Pressing this key of the F-14’s strong-points. causes the aircraft to yaw (turn w/o banking the wings) to the right. Speed Brake Toggle (B Key): If your aircraft is on the deck, toggling this key Directional Controls (Arrow Keys): The turns your wheelbrakes On and Off while keyboard arrow keys act as the Controller you taxi. If your aircraft is airborne, this when the simulation is not being played key toggles between the speedbrake’s with a joystick. These four keys are able two positions, retracted (in) and extended to manoeuvre the aircraft, up, down, left (out). Extending your speedbrakes in and right, just as if you were using a flight is known as “popping the boards”. joystick. External Lights Toggle (shift L Key): This key toggles your external formation lights (including landing lights) On and Off. External lights are only important for identification purposes or close formation flying at night. Otherwise, turn them off or they assist the enemy in spotting your aircraft. Jettison External Tanks (shift J Key): Press this key to jettison external fuel tanks. Since external fuel is used up first, it is a good idea to jettison your tanks once you have used up the first 3,600 lbs. Vampire... Vampire... Vampire..! A Sea-Sparrow missile is launched at in-coming anti-ship (or when your fuel state goes below missiles just over the horizon. 16,000 lbs). Even empty fuel tanks add weight to the aircraft. Eject (shift E Key): When your aircraft is Landing Gear Toggle (G Key): This damaged by enemy fire and is no longer toggle raises and lowers your landing airworthy, it’s time to bail out. Press Eject gear UP and DOWN. This should be the (shift E Key) to bail out but remember, first key you press after leaving the flight there are no second chances. If you deck on take-off. Flying with your landing “punch Elvis” (hit the Eject key) by gear extended risks damaging the mistake, you are not given an opportunity aircraft. It also creates an unbelievable to take it back. IMPORTANT SAFETY amount of drag resistance and slows you TIP- You cannot successfully eject if your down. You cannot lower the landing gear aircraft is inverted or travelling over 350 if you are travelling faster than 300 knots. knots, so avoid premature ejections. Use the speed brake to slow to 300 knots NAV mode (5 Key): This key causes the or less before lowering the landing gear. HUD to begin displaying navigation aids 0 Landing Hook Toggle (H Key): This such as a velocity vector and 5 toggle raises and lowers your aircraft’s incremental pitch ladder. A Course landing hook. Arrestor cables on deck Deviation Indicator appears on the cannot stop your aircraft unless the Vertical Display Indicator to assist you in landing hook is lowered. Trying to land lining up for a carrier approach. with the hook raised means an automatic Waypoint Toggle (S Key): This key bolter. toggles through all your assigned Hawkeye Picture (shift P Key): Press waypoint locations for the current mission. this key to request that the E-2C Hawkeye A brief description of the waypoint update you with tactical information appears along the bottom edge of the (bogey-dope). The Hawkeye is your screen as you cycle through the settings. aircraft carrier’s seeing-eye dog, so to The waypoint’s relative bearing is also speak. Consult the section on the E-2C displayed on the HUD by means of a Hawkeye in Chapter 3 for complete heading caret on your heading indicator. information. HSD/TID Toggle (shift R Key): Toggling SECONDARY FLIGHT CONTROLS this key alternates the HSD monitor between displaying standard HSD Secondary flight controls are also navigational information and TID repeater important though they are less often used data. A TID repeater is just a way for the than those previously described. These pilot to view on his HSD (in the front seat) controls are usually associated with non- what the RIO is seeing on his TID (in the critical tasks. back seat). Consult the HSD and TID any points you may have scored prior to sections in Chapter 4 for more leaving. You may as well have pulled the information. plug. Like cutting the power, this option VDI/TCS Toggle (V Key): Pressing this may be exercised at any time during play. toggle allows you to alternate the Vertical Pause (alt P Key): Press this key to halt Display Indicator monitor between the simulation in its tracks. The game is standard VDI information and images frozen indefinitely until you resume play. produced by the Television Camera This feature is perfect in case the phone System (TCS). Consult the VDI and TCS rings or your Boss should happen to walk sections in Chapter 4 for more in during a frantic “furball”. Play is information. resumed by pressing any key. Request Landing Clearance (alt L Accelerate Time (shift T Key): Key): Press this key to request landing Accelerated time is useful when flying instructions from the Air Boss when long distances and the chance of returning to your carrier after a mission. encountering hostile aircraft is low. There You must be within 20 nm of your carrier are eight (8x) levels of accelerated time. before the Air Boss will acknowledge your Your current time acceleration multiplier request. Consult the section on Carrier (if greater than 1x) is displayed in the landings for more complete details. upper left corner of the pilot’s forward TOMCAT Ball (alt B Key): Press this key view screen. You are immediately kicked in response to a “Call the Ball” query out of accelerated time if any enemy from the LSO. By pressing this key you action takes place, otherwise press the are acknowledging that you have a visual Normal Time (T Key) to exit Accelerated contact with the “meatball”- a landing time mode. device on the port side of the carrier Normal Time (T Key): Normal Time deck. Consult the section on Carrier returns the simulation to a non- landings for complete instructions. accelerated time rate (1x). These controls represent miscellaneous Training Mode (alt T Key): Training keys that are occasionally used during Mode means never having to say you’re flight. sorry. While in Training Mode, you are immediately rendered invulnerable, enemy gunfire and missiles cannot hurt MISCELLANEOUS FLIGHT CONTROLS you and contact with the ground does not end your mission. You are also eligible to Escape/Menu Selection (Escape Key): perform other “cheat” options like Pressing this key while in flight gives you Resupply. immediate access to a number of Training mode may be toggled On or Off simulation control options. These options as many times as you like during the include changing your joystick/hardware course of a mission. However, if any configurations, keyboard sensitivity, sound portion of your mission is flown in Training options, messages and detail levels. You mode (even if it’s only for a couple of may also recalibrate your joystick from this seconds) you will not receive any points menu if necessary. The simulation is for completing the mission. paused while you make your selections. Resupply (alt R Key): Each time you tap Quit (alt Q Key): Pressing this key Resupply, your fuel tank is filled and your immediately ends the simulation and ordnance stores (missiles and gun returns you to DOS. It does not save ammo) are replenished. Resupply also information to disk. Quitting a mission in automatically repairs all damage to your this manner does not give you credit for aircraft at the same time. You may use this key only in conjunction with Training the radar is keyed to a particular mode. Mode. These cases are noted by asterisks (*). Clock Advance (alt = Key): Each time Radar On/Off Toggle (R Key): This key this key is pressed, game time is toggles your AWG-9 radar ON and OFF. advanced by five minutes. This feature A message appears at the bottom of your can only be used in conjunction with screen indicating whether the radar is Training Mode. Active or Inactive when you toggle this Clock Reverse (alt - Key): Each time this key. Consult the section on the AWG-9 for key is pressed, game time is reversed by more details. five minutes. This feature can only be Change Radar Mode (Delete Key): This used in conjunction with Training Mode. key allows you to cycle through all the various radar search and attack modes that are available; PDSRCH, TWS-A, TWS-M, and RWS. Your current mode is indicated to the right of the DDD located in the back (RIO) seat. You can watch the radar mode indicator lights change as you cycle through the modes. Identification; Friend or Foe, IFF (I Key): Before you shoot at a target it is a good idea to determine its identity. You may destroy a friendly, neutral, or civilian aircraft by mistake and lose big-time points in the Flight leader and wing-man returning home from process. Special electronic systems are an uneventful CAP. used to “interrogate” a target to determine its nature. Press the IFF (I Key) to Landing Cheat Toggle (E Key): This key interrogate a locked target (IFF is only allows you to automatically advance your effective with a locked target). Consult the aircraft through the various stages of an section detailing the AWG-9 radar for more approach pattern. By toggling this key information concerning the IFF function. repeatedly, you are able to move your Lock/Cycle Targets (Backspace Key): aircraft through the entire landing Press this key to lock a target when the procedure right down to the deck. This radar is in SEARCH mode. The radar key is only functional while in Training instantly changes to PDSTT when the mode or when your carrier landing target is locked. By repeatedly pressing difficulty level is set to Standard. this key you are able to cycle through all eligible targets appearing on your radar RADAR CONTROLS display. (Standard Mode radar only) Break Lock (K Key): This key Learning how to use the radar properly immediately breaks any radar “lock” you will be the most challenging aspect of currently have on a target. Note that your FLEET DEFENDER . There are three (3) RIO may immediately re-“lock” the target different radar difficulty levels; (Standard, under certain circumstances. Moderate, and Authentic Modes). Within Boresight/VSL Toggle (End Key): This each difficulty level there are three (3) key toggles your radar between Boresight search modes (SEARCH, PDSRCH, and mode and Vertical Scan Lock-On. (Used RWS) and three (3) attack modes in Moderate and Authentic Mode difficulty (PDSTT, TWS-A, TWS-M). Certain key levels) commands are only applicable when playing at certain difficulty levels or when Beam Elevation Up 20(Pageup Key): Each time this key is pressed, the radar in-coming missiles by deceiving their beam elevation is raised 20. The elevation infrared seekers or clouding their radar setting can be checked on the indicator returns. located to the left of the DDD. (Used in Master Arm Switch Toggle (M Key): Moderate and Authentic Mode difficulty This key toggles your Master Arm switch levels) On and Off. The Master Arm switch acts Beam Elevation Down 20(Pagedown as a safety device. You can not launch Key): Each time this key is pressed, the missiles or fire your guns unless the radar beam elevation is lowered 20. The Master Arm switch is On. The Master elevation setting can be checked on the Arm switch indicator illuminates when the indicator located to the left of the DDD. switch is On. When the switch is Off, an X (Used in Moderate and Authentic Mode symbol is superimposed over your HUD difficulty levels) weapon indicator. Adjust Bars (Home Key): This key Guns (1 Key): Pressing this key places changes the number of bars currently your 20 mm Vulcan M61A1 gun into being scanned by the radar. As more bars priority. A floating gunsight pipper are selected the vertical area covered by appears in the centre of your HUD. The your beam is increased. See the AWG-9 HUD weapon indicator reads G along radar section for more information on bar with the number of rounds remaining on- settings. (Used in Authentic Mode board. difficulty level only) Sidewinder Missile (2 Key): Pressing Adjust Azimuth (Insert Key): This key this key puts a short range, heat-seeking changes the width (azimuth) of your radar AIM-9 missile in priority. The HUD beam. The greater the azimuth setting, weapon indicator reads SW along with the greater the horizontal coverage of the number of missiles remaining on- your radar beam. This key is only used in board. Moderate and Authentic Modes. In Sparrow Missile (3 Key): Pressing this Moderate Mode, this key toggles between key puts a medium range, radar-guided Wide, Medium, and Narrow settings. In AIM-7M missile in priority. The HUD Authentic Mode, the settings are weapon indicator reads SP along with the measured in degrees. See the AWG-9 number of missiles remaining on-board. radar section for more information on azimuth settings. Phoenix Missile (4 Key): Pressing this key puts a long range, “fire and forget” AIM-54 missile in priority. The HUD WEAPON/ECM CONTROLS weapon indicator reads PH along with the number of missiles remaining on-board. Next to your primary and secondary flight Fire Guns (Enter Key): Each time this controls, your weapon commands are the key is pressed one burst of most important keys to remember. It’s too 20 mm rounds is fired from your M61A1 late, once you’re in a dogfight, to begin gun. Tracers rounds are visible so that fumbling around trying to select the you are able to accurately track your fire. proper missile. Get to know the weapon Pickle Button (Spacebar Key): One commands ahead of time, this way missile of the type currently in priority is cockpit confusion won’t lead to a panic fired each time this key is pressed. The situation. number of missiles currently on-board is These keys allow you to call up three noted on your HUD. Each time is key is different missiles or place your 20 mm pressed, this number is reduced gun in priority for real close-in work. Your accordingly. ECM controls allow you to escape from TEWS Jammer Toggle (J Key): Press HUD Declutter Toggle (D Key): Press this key to toggle the TEWS Jammer On this toggle when the amount of HUD and Off. Although the TEWS jammer symbology begins to clutter (overcrowd) automatically activates when it detects the display. With the HUD Declutter enemy radars, it must first be turned On activated only your heading symbology by toggling this key. The word JAMMER remains. appears across the TEWS display when the jammer is turned On. When active, the word JAMMER flashes on the TEWS SIMULATION VIEWS display. Release Chaff (C Key): Pressing this key One aspect of FLEET DEFENDER that releases a bundle of radar-distorting chaff. we’re most proud of is the art work and You are initially given twenty-four (24) detailed 3-D modeling that went into bundles. When this key is pressed a creating the aircraft you encounter. Many message appears on the HUD indicating of these aircraft have never before been that you have released a bundle of chaff seen in a commercial flight simulator. The and how many you have remaining. In following key controls give you access to certain modes, your RIO is authorised to a wide range of simulation views. These automatically deploy chaff bundles for you. perspectives allow you to enjoy all our Release Flare (F Key): Pressing this key hard work (right before you blow it up!) releases a flare designed to decoy Forward View (F1 Key): This perspective incoming heat-seeking missiles. You are gives you a forward (inside the cockpit) initially given twelve (12) flares. When this view. It can be used from both front and key is pressed a message appears on the rear cockpits. The front cockpit forward HUD indicating that you have released a view gives you visual access to the HUD flare and how many you have remaining. and all front seat instrumentation. The In certain modes, your RIO is authorised rear cockpit forward view gives you the to automatically deploy flares for you. RIO’s perspective and visual access to the DDD and TID. Full Front View (F2 Key): This HEAD-UP DISPLAY (HUD) CONTROLS perspective gives you an unobstructed view out the front of the aircraft (outside Most of your cockpit time is spent looking the cockpit). This view is accessible from through the Head-Up Display (or HUD). both front and rear seats. The following commands allow you to LSO View (F3 Key): This perspective is tailor the HUD to suit your particular viewed from the Landing Signals Officer’s needs. (LSO) station on board the carrier. It is a Increase HUD Brightness (ctrl H Key): reverse angle view from the carrier used This key gradually increases the to judge your landing approaches. Your brightness of your HUD symbology each aircraft automatically remains centered in time it is pressed. the LSO’s field of vision as you move. Decrease HUD Brightness (shift H Air Boss View (F4 Key): This Key): This key gradually decreases the perspective is viewed from the control brightness of your HUD symbology each tower above the carrier deck and is time it is pressed. known as the Air Boss view. Your aircraft HUD Glare Filter Toggle (alt H Key): automatically remains centered in the Air Press this toggle to raise and lower the Boss’ field of vision as you move. HUD glare filter. The symbology on the Remote View (F5 Key): This is an HUD changes to an orange hue when the external perspective which initially glare filter is raised. defaults to a rear view of your aircraft. Tactical View (F9 Key): This view positions your perspective so that you are looking past your aircraft at a target. It automatically rotates to keep the target centered in your field of view. You are able to PTZ (pan, tilt, zoom) this perspective. It is invaluable when dogfighting by letting you “see” your manoeuvres in relation to those of your enemy’s. Multiple presses of this key cycles through eligible aircraft. Imagine the spectacular view this pilot must have Reverse Tactical View (F10 Key): This as he soars high above the clouds. view is the same as the Tactical View (F9 Key) except that you are seeing the You are able to PTZ (pan, tilt, zoom) this situation from the enemy’s perspective. It view. It automatically keeps your aircraft automatically rotates to keep your aircraft centered in your field of vision. centered in the field of view. You may use Full Motion Pilot View (F6 Key): This Zoom In/Out commands in conjunction view gives you the perspective from the with this view. Multiple presses of this key pilot’s field of vision. It is called full motion cycles through eligible aircraft. because it can moved wherever a pilot is Map View (/ Key): This key brings up a normally able to swivel his head and look. large scale theatre map which gives you To move this view, use the key pad the ability to spot the location of various numbers; 2- down, 4- left, 6- right, and 8- friendly objects (i.e. your F-14, your wing- up. Pressing the 5 Key (in the middle of man, other F-14s, your carrier, etc.) The the Keypad) automatically brings the view location of your mission waypoints are back to a straight ahead perspective. also noted on the map. You are also able Missile View (F7 Key): This view to review your mission briefing in case positions your perspective directly behind you’ve forgotten. a missile as it flies to its target. If more In the Training Mode the Map view allows than one missile is in flight, you are you to “move” the position of your aircraft positioned behind the one most recently to any position on the map launched. If no ordnance is in flight, you instantaneously. Press the Move button are positioned behind your aircraft. [M Key] and follow the on-screen Multiple presses of this key cycles you instructions. through all in-flight ordnance including enemy ordnance launched at your aircraft. You are able to PTZ (pan, tilt, PILOT/RIO VIEW CONTROLS zoom) this perspective. It automatically keeps the missile centered in your field of view. In addition to the normal simulation views, FLEET DEFENDER gives you quick and Padlock View (F8 Key): This view is uncomplicated access to a variety of pilot similar to the Full Motion Pilot View with and RIO perspectives. These keys allow one exception, this view does all the work you to change your field of vision in order for you. Padlock view automatically to better operate and monitor your “locks” on a specific air target and keeps aircraft’s avionics. You can also sight-see it centered in your field of view. Multiple outside the aircraft as well. Occasional key presses allows you to cycle through glances outside do wonders for your all aircraft, both friendly and enemy, that situational awareness. you would normally be able to see. All numeric keys used in changing these The keypad numeric keys are used to / change your view perspective. Use the 789 Front Seat/Back Seat Toggle (‘ Key) in 456+conjunction with these keys to get both pilot and RIO fields of 0123. vision. This Tomcat, flying slow with wings out-stretched for the camera, belongs to the famous VF-143 view perspectives are found on the “Pukin’ Dogs.” Actually the emblem is not a dog keypad. Each of these perspectives may at all, but rather a mythological beast known as be used by both the pilot and RIO. a Griffin. Look Ahead (5 Key): Press this key to access a forward (straight ahead) view. Look Up (8 Key): Press this key to return to a normal forward per-spective from a Look Down view. Look Down (2 Key): Certain cockpit instrumentation may only be accessed by looking down. Press this key to look down. Look Left (4 Key): Press this key to look left. Look Right (6 Key): Press this key to look right. Look Rear Left (1 Key): Press this key to look behind the aircraft.0 The view perspective is oriented at 225 . Look Rear Right (3 Key): Press this key to look behind the aircraft. The view perspective is oriented at 1350. HARDWARE CONTROLS

Due to the immediacy of modern air The uppermost button (Selector #1) combat, it is worth the time to familiarise emulates the Pickle Button (Spacebar yourself with the cockpit and controls Key). It is used to fire missiles. The lower before you take to the air. A good airplane button (Selector #2) emulates the Fire can never compensate for a poor pilot. Guns (Enter Key). So, before you attempt to master the art of combat, you must first master your TWO aircraft. Flying a supersonic aircraft is difficult enough without having to worry If one was good, two ought to be better, about being detected and shot down. right! FLEET DEFENDER can be played using two standard joysticks. The second To configure your hardware, press the joystick emulates the throttle control keys Escape/Menu Options (Esc Key). A found on your keyboard. Pushing forward Control Options menu appears with your has the affect of increasing your thrust hardware configurations. (Accelerate Key). Pulling back has the opposite affect (Throttle Back Key). JOYSTICK CONFIGURATIONS W/Throttle If your joystick includes a separate throttle FLEET DEFENDER is control, select the W/THROTTLE option. entirely compatible with The software automatically knows to look any standard joystick interface. for this control on your joystick.

NONE Even if you do not possess a joystick, you can still play FLEET DEFENDER using keyboard control keys. Select NONE. (We recommend, however, that you play this simulation with at least one joystick.) ONE If you intend to play the simulation with only one joystick (in conjunction with keyboard controls), use your mouse pointer and left mouse button to select ONE. The joystick simulates the actual control stick in the aircraft. Pull back to go UP, push forward to go DOWN. Banking the aircraft left and right is done by moving the joystick to the LEFT and RIGHT. The degree of joystick input controls the extent to which the aircraft responds. THRUSTMASTER FCSTM

BTN HU Wcs II Rocker Switch UIp - BTN UB Padlock View - F8 Pickle Button Wcs II Rocker Switch Middle - - Spacebar Padlock View - F8 Wcs II Rocker Switch Down - Padlock View - 8 BTN HR Right View - 1st Press 6 Right Rear View - 2nd Press 3 BTN HL Left View - 1st Press 4 Left Rear View - 2nd Press 1 BTN HO Wcs II Rocker Switch Up - Lower View - 1st Press 2 Wcs II Rocker Switch Middle - Lower View - 1st Press 2Cockpit View - 2nd Press 5 BTN TG Wcs II Rocker Switch Down - Fire Guns - Enter Lower View - 2

BTN MB Lock/Cycle Targets - Backspace

BTN LB Wcs II Rocker Switch Up - Break View - K Wcs II Rocker Switch Middle - Break View - K Wcs II Rocker Switch Down - IFF - I

The THRUSTMASTER Flight Control SystemTM is compatible with FLEET DEFENDER. It consists of three main components, a pistol- grip flight stick, a four-position hat controller, and four control buttons. These controls (or combination of control buttons) emulate keyboard functions as shown in the diagram. FCS-MARK II WCS

BTN 4 BTN 3 Wcs II Rocker Switch Up - - Wcs II Rocker Switch Up - Radar Zoom In - Z Change Radar Search Mode - Wcs II Rocker Switch Middle - Delete Radar Zoom Out - X - Wcs II Rocker Switch Middle Wcs II Rocker Switch Down - - Change Radar Search Mode - Elevate Radar Beam - PGUP Delete - Wcs II Rocker Switch Down - Boresight and VSL Mode toggle BTN 5 - End - Wcs II Rocker Switch Up -Change Radar Bar Setting - HOME BTN 2 - Wcs II Rocker Switch - Wcs II Rocker Switch Up - Middle - Change Radar Select Phoenix - 1st Press 4, Azimuth - INS Sparrow - 2nd Press 3 - Wcs II Rocker Switch - Wcs II Rocker Switch Down -Lower Radar Middle - Select Sidewinder - Beam - PGDN 1st Press 2, Guns - 2nd Press 1

RKR UP No Function RKR UP No Function BTN 1 - Wcs II Rocker Switch Up - RKR UP Chaff and Flare - C/F No Function - Wcs II Rocker Switch Middle Chaff and Flare - C/F - Wcs II Rocker Switch Down - BTN 6 Extend Landing Gear - - Wcs II Rocker Switch Up - Speed Brake - B GTailhook - HGo to Nav/ILS - Wcs II Rocker Switch Middle - Speed Brake - B Hud - S - Wcs II Rocker Switch Down - Back Seat - "

The FCS Mark II WCS can be used as an analog throttle control. Set the top switch to ANALOG and set the hat controller switch to DIGITAL. WCS Mark II drivers are included in a FLEET DEFENDER sub- directory. If you wish to devise your own control settings, you may download this code for yourself VIRTUAL PILOTTM FLIGHTSTICK PROTM

Up Left Right Down Throttle Fire View Controls Missiles Pickle Fire Missile - Break Spacebar Lock - K

Fire Guns - Throttle - -/+ Fire Enter Guns

View Controls

Up Lock/Cycle Left Right Targets - Down Backspace

VIRTUAL PILOT™ FLIGHTSTICK PRO™

TM TM VIRTUAL PILOT consists of four main FLIGHTSTICK PRO consists of four components; a steering wheel device, a main components; a standard pistol grip four-position hat controller, a bar throttle joystick, a four-position hat controller, a control and four control buttons/switches. wheel type throttle control and four The control functions emulate FLEET control buttons/switches. DEFENDER control keys according to the The control functions emulate FLEET above diagram. DEFENDER control keys according to the above diagram. FOOT PEDALS

The THRUSTMASTER RCS™ (Rudder Control System)

THRUSTMASTER RCS (Rudder Control System) TM The THRUSTMASTER RCS (Rudder Control System) consists of two linked foot pedals which operate the aircraft’s rudders. Moving the foot pedals, forward and back, emulates the Rudder Left (, Key) and Rudder Right (. Key) III. HOW TO FLY FLIGHT DYNAMICS

The most intensely scrutinised portion of The Four Forces any commercial flight simulator is its flight model. Comparing flight models seems to THE be an industry pastime these days. Whenever a new sim is released the first topic of discussion is inevitably- its flight model. What’s a flight model, you ask? A flight model is simply the set of mathematical formulae that your computer uses to approximate the performance of a real aircraft. Flight models vary according to the aircraft being simulated. As you can see by the above diagram the laws While flight models can get close to the of physics act and counter-act upon an aircraft. real thing, (and this is entirely subjective) Controlled flight is merely the art of juggling nothing you can do on a computer sitting these four forces. at home can compare to the sensation of actual flight. There’s nothing like it. Flight is the hardest thing in the world to Aerodynamic Lift describe to people who have never AER experienced it. Let the game designers and programmers argue amongst themselves, you and I will just have fun. There are plenty of bandits to hunt down and there’s always another bad weather approach waiting to give you “white knuckles”. The following section shows you how to make the flight model work for you. It’ll also teach you the finer points of controlling your aircraft while in flight Lift is created by the greater pressure exerted on the bottom of a wing surface by virtue of the because you can’t be expected to max slower moving air. perform your aircraft without first being familiar with how an aircraft operates. Flight Dynamics covers the art of flying in these universal forces in order to travel its most general (and useful) terms. through the air and reach a desired destination safely. The same forces which act upon a football to determine how far it THE “BIG FOUR” travels also affect huge civilian airliners with hundreds of people aboard. There are four basic forces which affect each and every object as it moves Lift through the air; Lift, Thrust, Drag, and Lift is perhaps the most misunderstood of Gravity. We call these forces; the Big all the four forces. When an aircraft is in Four. flight, air strikes the leading (forward) Controlled flight is the art of managing edge of its wing surface. As air strikes this edge, its flow is disrupted and re- being exerted, the object will be drawn routed to go over, under, and around the toward the ground, eventually ending the wing surface. Deflected air changes flight. So, while we all must appreciate the speed as it is forced past the wing. Air beneficial effects of gravity, it sure moving over top of a wing surface moves presents problems for those of us who at a greater speed than the air moving want to fly. below. Since slow moving air has a higher See the section on G Forces for more air pressure, the higher pressure under information on the affects of gravity. the wing surface pushes on the bottom of the surface causing it to rise. This, in a Thrust nutshell, is the basic secret to heavier- than-air flight. Modern fighters have fantastic performance envelopes due to the Forward motion is very important in tremendous amount of power their jet producing Lift. The faster a wing surface engines can produce. This power is moves, the greater the volume of air that known as Thrust. forced past it. As the volume of air increases, the volume of air being Thrust is the aerodynamic force which deflected downward increases as well. propels an object through the air. It This results in a greater pressure makes no difference if the object is pulled differential between the air above and the through air by a propeller or pushed from air below the wing. behind by a jet engine. The purpose of Thrust is to force air across the aircraft’s Confused yet? Let’s simplify matters and wing surface in order to create Lift. As state that Lift is the force which directly long as the aircraft maintains a level flight counter-acts an aircraft’s weight during attitude increasing the amount of Thrust flight. For example, if your F-14 weighs results in a corresponding increase in Lift. 80,000 lbs. then your wings must produce exactly 80,000 lbs. of Lift to maintain level flight, not 79,999 or 80,001. Any Lift produced above or below this number will cause the aircraft to change altitude. Gravity (Weight) “Whatever goes up, must come down.” All objects (animal, vegetable, and mineral) fall toward the centre of this planet at a constant rate of roughly 32 ft. /second2. As a practical matter, gravity holds things down and keeps them from flying off into space. In fact if it wasn’t for gravity, life as we know it wouldn’t exist. Gravity works at cross purposes to Lift. It must constantly be overcome by Lift in order for anything to remain airborne for G-Forces when banking. As you can see the very long. In level flight, Lift forces our flight attitude (bank angle) that an aircraft aircraft away from the Earth’s surface just assumes while turning has a direct relationship as gravity pulls it downward. If the force of to the number of G s inflicted on the aircraft Gravity becomes greater than the Lift and pilot. Pilots often discuss the relative merits of aircraft (in simple terms). Increasing their aircraft in terms of thrust-to-weight Thrust does not overcome the effect of ratios. A Thrust-to-weight (T/W) ratio is a Drag. numerical calculation which compares the Drag is a function of a particular aircraft’s amount of Thrust being produced versus size and shape (design). All aircraft the weight of the aircraft. create a certain amount of Drag no Ideally, aeronautical design engineers matter how aerodynamically well would like to build every aircraft with a constructed they may be. For example, an T/W ratio greater than 1:1. Such aircraft aircraft which exposes a large frontal area would then produce more thrust than their to the direction of flight creates a lot of weight and allow them to maintain vertical Drag. This type of Drag is known as climbs almost indefinitely. Unfortunately, Parasitic. It can be reduced by greater thrust requires larger engines aerodynamic streamlining such as which drives the weight of the aircraft up minimising the exposed frontal area of the which then requires more thrust—well, aircraft. you get the idea. Parasitic Drag is a major concern to Many players have expressed the aircraft designers. The size of an aircraft misconception that the Tomcat’s twin jet is usually dictated by the avionics carried, engines should allow it to make the size of the radar, and the amount of accelerated vertical climbs. Sorry to say payload (including crew members) but there aren’t any front line fighter required. These factors cannot be aircraft that can perform such a climb changed to any great degree once an outside of Hollywood. This type of climb is aircraft is in flight. Therefore, the amount reserved for ICBMs and the national debt. of Parasitic Drag is generally fixed. Each of the F-14B’s two General Electric Some aircraft, like the F-14, are capable F110-GE-400 turbofans are able to of changing the sweep of their wings from produce approximately 16,100 lbs. of dry 90 degrees to something almost flush thrust or 27,000 lbs. of wet (afterburning) with the fuselage. These variable- thrust each. That is a huge amount of geometry fighters are able to cut down on power being generated but given the the effects of Parasitic Drag by adjusting Tomcat’s combat weight of almost 80,000 their wings thereby exposing less critical lbs. it’s not nearly enough to sustain a surface to the direction of flight. As a vertical climb. Nuff said! general rule, variable sweep wings are extended forward for low energy Drag manoeuvrability and retracted for speed. Aerodynamic resistance to the forward movement of the aircraft is known as BASIC CONCEPTS Drag. Just as Lift and Weight counteract each other in the vertical plane, Thrust and Drag counteract each other in the Airspeed horizontal plane. Your airspeed is given in knots or nautical To grasp the concept, it is first necessary miles per hour. Since a nautical mile is to separate Drag from the idea of weight. 2,000 yards in length (longer than a regular Weight is only an impediment to the extent mile), an aircraft travelling at a speed of that it counteracts Lift. Therefore, weight is 200 knots is going considerably faster than counter-acted by increasing Lift while one going 200 miles per hour. Keep this in Drag can be counter-acted by altering the mind when you are flying, especially at slow speeds. Think in terms of knots and not mph. ALTITUDE KIAS AT MACH 1 Airspeed is the velocity of an aircraft at 0 ft: 661 KIAS relative to the surrounding air mass. It is at 10,000 ft: 548 KIAS not an absolute indication of the aircraft’s at 20,000 ft: 450 KIAS speed over ground. A reading of 450 at 30,000 ft: 360 KIAS knots does not necessarily mean that the at 40,000 ft: 312 KIAS aircraft is travelling 450 nautical miles an at 50,000 ft: 251 KIAS hour between points on the ground. at 60,000 ft: 198 KIAS Your speed is displayed in KIAS (Knots Indicated Air Speed). The primary by 10. This is the approximate distance difference between IAS (indicated your aircraft is travelling in nautical miles airspeed) and TAS (true airspeed) is air per minute. For example, at mach 1 the density. Pilots use indicated airspeed aircraft is travelling 1 x 10 or 10 nautical because it is a constant as opposed to miles per minute. At mach 2, this distance true airspeed which is affected by both would be doubled (2 x 10= 20). ambient temperature and altitude Angle of Attack (AOA) variations. Because air density at higher altitudes is less than that found at sea Angle of Attack is one of those concepts level, an aircraft’s indicated airspeed will that flight instructors can describe, define, decrease as altitude increases. and demonstrate for hours. But a student Therefore, an aircraft flying at 30,000 feet pilot will either grasp the concept within with an indicated airspeed of 350 knots is the first few minutes or he won’t get it no travelling much faster than an aircraft at matter how long his instructor raves. The 5,000 feet with the same indicated definition of Angle of Attack in its most airspeed. simplistic form is: the angle (measured in degrees) at which the wing surface of an A mach number is the speed of your aircraft cuts into the relative wind. That’s aircraft in relation to the speed of sound. all there is to it and yet it is one of the An aircraft flying at the speed of sound is most difficult concepts for novice pilots to said to be travelling at mach 1. The same understand. aircraft flying at twice the speed of sound would be travelling at mach 2. Above Basically, AOA is the difference between 30,000 feet, pilots manoeuvre their aircraft the aircraft’s flight path and the “chord using mach numbers instead of indicated line” of the wing. In level flight, the “chord airspeed. line” of the wing is facing directly into the airflow. When climbing, the “chord line” of As you can see by the following chart, the the wing is pitched upward relative to the indicated airspeed of an aircraft travelling airflow. With its nose and wing pitched up, at mach 1 varies considerably due to the aircraft is said to have increased its altitude. An aircraft flying at sea level has angle of attack. The reverse is true when to be doing 661 KIAS to break the sound diving. barrier. The same aircraft at 60,000 feet, however, would only show an indicated Angle of Attack is not the same thing as airspeed of 198 KIAS. pointing the nose at a certain tick mark on the climb ladder and it has nothing to do You can also use the mach number to get with the position of the horizon. (Pointing a rough idea of your aircraft’s ground the nose of the aircraft up or down is speed. Simply multiply the mach number called aircraft attitude.) Aircraft attitude and Angle of Attack are two different depending on the aircraft. Some aircraft things. For instance, let’s say you are simply assume a mild nose-down attitude performing a Zoom climb in order to until returning to level flight. Other aircraft shake a bandit off your tail. Your aircraft may enter a sudden and potentially would have a very nose-high attitude dangerous spin. On low level missions a (pointed straight up) and yet have a very pilot may not have time to recover before low Angle of Attack. striking the ground. This is especially true if one wing stalls before the other. Stalling the Aircraft In FLEET DEFENDER the most likely It is a common misconception among the time for stall condition to occur is non-flying public that stalling means immediately after take-off or while trying trouble with the engines. They instantly to land. Despite having a catapult to picture a stall in terms rooted in their literally throw you into the air, you are ground based existence; a sputtering, initially flying at just above stall speed. coughing motor in the family car. Actually, Therefore, on take-off, avoid sharp climbs use of the word stall in the context of until you are certain not to stall. flying has nothing to do with the engines. Certain aircraft, specifically gliders, fly Long slow-flight landing approaches bring very well without any engines at all. And your airspeed down to dangerous levels. while these aircraft are certainly subject You must constantly be on guard. In to stalls, the lack of an engine is not to trying to land you will be flying at near- blame. stall speed for an extended period of time. If you stall somewhere in the A stall is caused by an actual separation landing pattern, you will not have enough of the air flow from the upper surface of altitude to affect a recovery before hitting the wing. The air flow over the top of the the water. wing surface ends in an area of disturbed air extending forward from the trailing edge. This condition causes the aircraft to G FORCES (GRAVITY) “depart from controlled flight” or stall. Note that this condition may occur with Gravity is measured in Gs (i.e. one G the engines going full tilt. Speed has little equals the normal force of gravity, 3 Gs to do with the onset of a stall. Stalls occur would be a force equal to three times the when the aircraft’s AOA is too great to normal force of gravity). The pilot and produce the necessary amount of Lift to aircraft experience 1 G in straight and keep it flying. Trying to fly the aircraft at level flight. If that same pilot pulls a hard too great an Angle of Attack is the one turn, centrifugal force will “load” additional sure way to cause a stall. gravity on his wings. It is important to note that speed, pitch Modern fighter aircraft are constructed to attitude, and bank inclination are all withstand many times the force of gravity. factors in determining whether a plane is It is actually the pilot that places limits on about to stall. An aircraft in level flight the manoeuvrability of an aircraft. Aircraft may stall if it attempts too sharp a turn are quite capable of performing without increasing its speed. This is due manoeuvres that would instantly to insufficient lift being generated by the incapacitate any pilot that tried them. wing in direct opposition to gravity’s effect on the aircraft. Gravity governs every move we make on this planet. We are so used to the effect The effects of a stall are different of gravity that we are usually not even conscious of it as a matter of course. With blood leaves the upper extremities, a pilot few exceptions, human beings experience will lose consciousness because his brain a constant 1 G (the force of normal is starved for oxygen. This loss of gravity) on a daily basis. We take for consciousness is known as a G-induced granted that our leg muscles will black-out. Pilots just call it “taking a nap.” overcome this force. We also take for granted that if we place this instruction Positive Gs and Black-Outs manual next to our computer, gravity will A pilot subjects himself to positive Gs keep it there until the next time we need whenever he pulls back on the stick. As it. you might imagine, this happens fairly Think for a moment if the force of gravity frequently. Even when inverted, once that was suddenly multiplied several times. stick comes back positive G forces are Walking would become quite a chore. At the result. Smart pilots will keep their eye 2 Gs our bodies would weigh twice what on the G count. When the G forces reach they weighed at 1 G. If the force of gravity around 8 Gs, it’s time to consider continued to increase eventually it would unloading the aircraft. Expose yourself to exceed our muscle’s ability to raise our anything over 8 Gs and you run the risk of feet. going to sleep. Pilots routinely expose their aircraft (and When a black-out does occur the screen themselves) to repeated periods of fades to black. It remains entirely black severe G-induced stress. During combat, for the duration of the event. As you these periods of stress can be quite recover from the black-out, the screen prolonged. Sometimes it’s the ability of a fades back in. The length of time that the pilot to withstand that extra G which screen stays black is entirely a function of makes all the difference in combat. For the amount of Gs you experience over example, when flying high performance how long a period of time. aircraft, a 200 lb. pilot can easily be made While the screen is black, the simulation to weigh over half a ton. continues at its regular pace. (The world A normal human head weighs does not stop just because you’re approximately 25 to 30 lbs. but when asleep.) In fact, by blacking-out you have subjected to a relatively mild 5 G turn, it become a perfect 1 G strafe target, would now weigh 125 to 150 lbs. Imagine perfectly helpless. Any enemy pilot in the having to support such a load. That kind vicinity has an open invitation to make of weight places a tremendous strain on a sure your nap is permanent. pilot’s neck. The pilot can’t just brace this weight against the back of his seat, he Negative Gs and Red-outs has to be constantly turning his head Negative G forces, like positive Gs, act on about looking for bandits. Operating an a pilot and aircraft as well. aircraft under these conditions is Understandably, it may be confusing at extremely difficult. Every action becomes first to think in terms of negative Gs. In a major test of strength and endurance. our earlier example, positive gravity is Aside from making pilots weigh a great what kept this manual resting firmly next deal, gravity has certain other to our computer. Negative gravity would physiological affects. When the human cause the manual to be pulled from the body is subjected to high positive Gs, table. blood is forced away from the brain and Negative Gs are caused when a pilot begins pooling in the feet. When too much pushes the stick forward (away from himself). In normal flight the aircraft would respond to this control input by dropping the nose or diving. If the aircraft was inverted, pushing the stick forward would cause the nose to rise. In either case, negative Gs are created which, like positive Gs, have certain physiological effects. Instead of pooling in the feet, blood is pulled from the lower extremities and into the head. The arterial network of the This pilot is pulling some heavy G’s in this 900 brain is swelled by the force of this left bank. With his wings swept full aft, you can additional fluid. In particular, the small get some indication of his energy state. blood vessels within the eyes (capillaries) are stretched and sometimes burst. This condition causes what is known as Red- out. The effects of Red-out are very pronounced and can lead to a pilot being temporarily blinded. Negative G forces greater than 3.0 cause the onset of Red-out. When this happens the screen will fade to red. The effects of Red-out are somewhat different than that of Black-outs. Instead of losing consciousness, a player is temporarily blinded. The screen remains red (indicating a Red-out condition) until such time as the negative G stress is removed. There is a simple way around Red-outs. Rather than push the nose of your aircraft down and create negative Gs, roll 180 degrees inverted. Now that you are inverted you can pull back on the stick to drop your nose. You are now creating positive Gs which are much easier to deal with. Once you have reached the desired nose down attitude just roll 1800 again. Now you are right side up and in the proper dive angle. Remember, negative Gs are easy to avoid by rolling inverted and creating positive Gs in their place. FLYING THE F-14 TOMCAT

Your success in FLEET DEFENDER Dry Thrust depends almost entirely upon your ability (Normal, non-afterburning operation) to fly the F-14 Tomcat. All the high tech Dry Thrust is the nickname given to gadgetry in the world can’t save you if power produced by the engines without you can’t fly the plane. In fact, it’s the skill engaging the afterburner. The highest you display at manoeuvring your aircraft throttle setting (100%) using Dry Thrust is that ultimately decides the majority of known as Full Military Power. At lower your battles. power settings you consume less fuel. This section covers some of the finer You fly slower but your endurance time is points of becoming a Tomcat driver. raised significantly. Obviously, this manual can’t cover Practising fuel economy while in-flight is an everything. There are certain things you important part of your mission. Fuel is must find out for yourself. power, but it is also weight. The heavier an aircraft is, the more fuel is burned up FUEL MANAGEMENT pushing it around. You arrive at the break- even point very quickly. During the course Fuel Load of normal patrol operations, use Dry Thrust except in case of emergencies. It saves In addition to enemy action or inadvertent gas. contact with the ground, the only thing that can force an early end to a mission is Wet Thrust (The Afterburner) running out of fuel. An empty fuel tank will Afterburning engines give the pilot access stop your mission with the same finality to enormous additional power. This power as an enemy missile. Therefore, it is is known as wet thrust because raw liquid important that you remain cognisant of fuel is literally dumped directly into the your fuel state at all times. engine’s flaming exhaust. When you’re Rather than being measured in gallons, feeling the need for speed, kicking in the aviation fuel is measured in thousands of afterburner will do the trick but all this pounds (lbs.). One gallon of JP 4 (fuel) extra power comes at a heavy price in weighs approximately 6.5 lbs. Fully fuel. fuelled, your F-14 carries almost 20,000 There are really only two times that you lbs. of fuel. This figure reflects internal should engage the afterburner, on take- tanks containing 16,200 lbs. plus two off and when conducting BFM. external tanks with an additional 3,600 lbs. The need to use the afterburner when taking-off is obvious. Getting safely off the The F-14 fuel gauge, located to the right deck takes precedence over fuel of the HSD (Horizontal Situation Display) conservation. states the total amount of fuel remaining onboard. Your total fuel load, indicated at BFM engagements put your aircraft the top of the gauge, is divided into equal through its paces. They often require you portions, signifying the fuel available to to fight with the afterburner engaged just each engine. A reading of 5600 would to sustain the rapid energy consumption indicate that five thousand six hundred that occurs. A few minutes of afterburner pounds of fuel remain onboard. is all it takes to drain a tank, so watch it. There’s no sense using all your fuel up in The Navy’s launching platform concept combat just to be forced into ejecting later doesn’t require speed, it requires on. A plane down is a plane down. It endurance. Complete each mission even doesn’t matter whether you are shot if it means flying at 240 knots to and from down or crash after running out of gas. the target. Fuel Conservation Make no mistake about it, when the fuel is gone- it’s game over. You had better The F-14 was meant to be a strategic have a landing spot in mind ‘cause the F- interceptor able to cover long distances. 14B has a glide path like a brick. You can’t fulfil this role very well if you’re always having to return home on Bingo NAVIGATION fuel. The secret to being a strategic interceptor is letting your radar and missiles do the work for you. Getting lost has always been a problem for pilots as far back as the Wright brothers. Fortunately, the F-14 has sophisticated navigation equipment onboard to help you to find your way home. In fact, your NAV gear enables you to fly back to the carrier in any low visibility weather condition, including pitch darkness. Waypoints Your F-14 has a navigation computer which contains a pre-programmed set of This thirsty “Cat” takes a drink from a KA-6 co-ordinates known as Waypoints. These Refueling tanker. points help you navigate by inserting reference carets on the HUD Magnetic Heading Indicator. The AWG-9 radar is very powerful. Use it to check out areas that are far away Each mission you fly has its own unique rather than wasting fuel flying over to waypoints. Examples of waypoints for a them. particular mission might be: your carrier, your mission objective, a CAP location, The Phoenix missile gives you the ability to and even the strike package your reach out and touch someone nearly 100 nm supposed to being escorting. Waypoints away. Sure beats having to travel that 100 are not necessarily fixed points in space. miles just to pop off a Sidewinder, doesn’t it? In the case of your carrier or strike Think of the fuel you’re saving. package, the waypoint moves as they do. Setting your engines to cruising speed Once in flight, press the Waypoint (80% RpM) gives your aircraft its best mix Toggle (S Key) to toggle through this of power versus fuel consumption. This mission’s list of waypoints. A brief setting should be used when you are description of the waypoint appears along flying long distances. Avoid using high the bottom of the screen. For each power settings, especially the afterburner, waypoint there is a corresponding bearing except in emergencies. caret. This caret is located on the HUD You should remain at cruise speed for Magnetic Heading Indicator which runs most of each flight. What’s your hurry? across the top of the HUD. To reach a particular waypoint, along you bounce off your aircraft’s fuselage). As need do is toggle the Waypoint Toggle the level of difficulty is increased, the (S Key) until you have selected this point. amount of damage you can withstand With that accomplished, turn the aircraft before being shot down is decreased. At so that you are flying directly toward the Authentic Mode, any hit is a potential bearing caret. (It will be positioned in the show stopper. centre of the HUD Magnetic Heading Indicator). Non-specific Structural Damage Each time your aircraft is hit by enemy RIO Campaign Map fire, either missile or gunfire, it is liable to Another means of navigation is having suffer two different types of damage. The your RIO pull out his campaign map. The first type is non-specific structural campaign map shows a wealth of damage. This is general damage information including your present resulting from shell hits (or near-miss location and that of your carrier. The map missile detonations) which puncture the is oriented so that the top edge is north fuselage but fail to hit vital areas. A (or 3600). Use the map in conjunction with running total of this sort of damage is the front cockpit magnetic compass kept throughout your mission. When the (located directly to the right of the VDI). accumulative effect of damage in this The RIO map also allows you to pinpoint “pool” reaches a certain level, it can force the location of other friendly aircraft as an early end to your flight. well. Press the blue buttons to make your Critical Systems Damage selection. The second type of damage is known as Horizontal Situation Display critical systems damage. While you are The HSD provides you with your most less likely to sustain this type of damage, efficient means of navigation. This display the result is far more serious. Critical contains a NAV compass which indicates damage is not cumulative, its effect is your current heading. A bearing indicator assessed against you immediately. on the NAV compass ring shows how to You are able to determine the extent of reach your next waypoint. Distance this damage by looking at the Master information concerning that waypoint is Caution-Advisory Panel on both the pilot also displayed. Finally, you are given and RIO’s right hand console. Use the airspeed data in both TAS and GS Look Right (6 Key) from either seat. The formats. See the section on the HSD in areas of your F-14 affected by critical Chapter 4. systems damage are; GEAR: Damage to the landing gear DAMAGE prevents it from being extended or retracted. If your landing gear cannot This section deals with a subject that no be extended (for landing purposes) you one wishes to talk about- damage. may as well return to the carrier group, Unless you spend your entire career in slow down to 200 knots, and “punch Training mode, no matter how good you Elvis” next to an escort vessel. are, at some point your F-14 will suffer HOOK: Once your arrestor hook is shot battle damage. away or damaged, you cannot use it to In Standard Mode, you can withstand land safely. You are said to suffer from numerous hits (missiles seem to just PBS (permanent bolter syndrome). You may as well return to the carrier group, being fed into your targeting system. slow down to 200 knots, and “punch Data-linked information is no longer Elvis” next to an escort vessel. shown on your TID. BINGO: While not actual damage, the AWG-9: Damage to the AWG-9 knocks Bingo fuel lamp illuminates when you on your radar. You are no longer able to have reached a critical fuel state. Your search or use your radar to fire aircraft only has enough fuel onboard missiles. Note however, that this does to return home. If you don’t turn back not prevent you from using heat- immediately, you are almost seeking Sidewinder missiles. guaranteed to go for a swim. AWG-15: This is your aircraft’s fire control BRAKES: Damage to your centre. Damage to the AWG-15 prevents speedbrakes prevents you from using you from launching any missiles or firing them in flight. Your wheel-brakes will your guns. still function. This type of damage isn’t NAV: Damage to your NAV system too bad, unless you have to slow down prevents you from using waypoint in a hurry. information to navigate. HYDRAULIC PRESSURE: If you lose hydraulic pressure, the aircraft becomes very difficult to fly. All of your EJECT... EJECT... EJECT! (BAILING OUT) flight controls are liable to give out on you at any moment. You are an Since the last section talked about accident waiting to happen, so RTB damage, perhaps now is a good time to right away before you are forced to discuss ejecting (i.e. bailing out). “punch Elvis”. Both pilot and RIO are equipped with LEFT/RIGHT ENGINES: Engine hits rocket-assisted GRU-7A Martin-Baker are very serious. While the Tomcat can Zero-zero Ejection seats. The zero-zero fly on only one engine, it wasn’t meant rating means that the seat is designed to to. You lose half your thrust and half perform at zero knots and at zero altitude your fuel when an engine is hit. Of (standing still on the ground). Hey, if it course, if both engines are hit... ever fails, you can always take it back to LEFT/RIGHT FUEL LOW: When your the manufacturer. fuel state is within several thousand When your aircraft suffers a fatal hit, it will pounds of reaching Bingo, these lamps nose over and go into what’s known as a will illuminate. Fuel tanks are always “graveyard spiral”. The aircraft is vulnerable to being pierced by shell essentially uncontrollable at this point. fragments. If your aircraft suffers from You cannot recover from this downhill this type of hit, leakage will cause you spin so don’t waste time trying. You have to lose much of your fuel supply. only one task left and that is to get out WING SWEEP: Critical damage to the before the aircraft hits something hard. In wings keeps them from being able to other words, it’s time to “punch Elvis” (i.e.- sweep forward and back. They become yank the ejection handles). jammed in their current position. You In order to bail out of a crippled Tomcat, are therefore restricted to only certain press the Eject (shift E Key). There are portions of your flight envelope. two things which have an effect on DATA LINK: Damage to your Data Link whether or not you get out safely. The first system prevents outside data from is airspeed. Punching out at too high a in.” Both the view and the aircraft reach the ground simultaneously. The mission ends and your final score for the mission is tabulated.

“Green Shirts” getting the next aircraft ready for take-off. It’s not a glamourous job, but these are the guys that make it happen on the flight deck. speed is fatal. In fact, anything over 350 knots is a show stopper. Stay in the aircraft until your airspeed drops below this number. Patience is a virtue. You may have to “ride it in” for awhile. Unfortunately, once your aircraft begins its terminal dive it tends to pick up airspeed, not lose it. If you’re going to get out it’s sometimes best to decide early. The second thing which affects bailing out is attitude. We’re not talking about your attitude here- we’re talking about the aircraft’s. You cannot eject while the aircraft is inverted (i.e. upside down). Again, timing is everything. Once the aircraft begins spiralling down you must wait until it’s right-side up before ejecting. If you eject downward, chances are you will not survive. Once you have ejected, your mission is over. There’s nothing left to do but wait for the rescue helicopters to come and fish you out of the water. Although the view instantly changes to a descending exterior perspective upon ejection, this is not meant to be a parachute view. If it was, you’d be spending a good deal of computer time floating to the ground. As it is, the exterior view follows your aircraft until it “augers CARRIER OPERATIONS

In a way, FLEET DEFENDER is as much THE CARRIER AIR WING a simulation about air/sea combat as it is about air-to-air dogfighting. The centre E-2C “HAWKEYE” piece of this campaign environment is the aircraft carrier. It is in your best interest to Next to the F-14, the E-2C “Hawkeye” is help protect the carrier because after perhaps the most important aircraft each mission, you are required to return aboard ship. It is an Airborne Early to the ship and land, whether you win, Warning (AEW) aircraft, distinguishable lose, or draw. by a large radome which houses a powerful radar used to scan the sky. It FLEET DEFENDER revolves around your this respect it is much like its land-based ability to successfully operate off an cousin- the AWACS. Despite its aircraft carrier at sea. You can be the top importance, there are only a few of these gun in your squadron, averaging three or aircraft on board a carrier. They are four kills per sortie. You can be the best jealously guarded by at least one CAP at aviator aboard ship, always catching a all times. “three-wire”. None of that matters if your carrier is sunk. It doesn’t matter how good you are, nobody really cares. If a multi-billion dollar ship is destroyed taking thousands of servicemen to the bottom in the process, don’t expect people to shed tears over your career coming to an end. Fortunately, every precaution is taken to ensure the carrier remains in one piece. Your and your wing-man are just one part of these precautions. A minimum of six F- 14s are stationed around the carrier at all The E-2C Hawkeye is the Navy’s principle eye-in- times. Known as CAPs (Combat Air the-sky. Patrols), pairs of F-14s are positioned around the carrier so that they are able to intercept enemy aircraft approaching from THE HAWKEYE “PICTURE” any direction. In FLEET DEFENDER, the E-2C An additional pair of Tomcats is kept on Hawkeye orbits the carrier keeping a the deck of the carrier in case a CAP constant close watch on anything moving would need immediate assistance. within 200 miles. It sends out frequent Known as the Ready-Five, these aircraft tactical reports to the various F-14 CAPs are ready and waiting to go. They can be so that nothing sneaks up on the carrier. launched in well under five minutes These reports are known as Hawkeye should the need arise. In addition to F- “pictures”. You may request a Hawkeye 14s, all manner of friendly aircraft are “picture” at any time during a mission by continuously taking-off and landing. pressing the Hawkeye Picture (shift P Key). The Hawkeye controller responds by reporting on the enemy aircraft nearest to you that it has detected. Its response from missions. Their ordnance ranges always follows the same pattern of from standard depth charges to sono- information. buoys and homing torpedoes. If enemy aircraft are detected, the Search and Rescue (SAR) Helicopters Hawkeye reports; CONTACTS- (the bearing from your aircraft) and (the range Finally, SAR (Search and Rescue) from your aircraft). helicopters are always on alert status should somebody go down. Whenever a If no enemy aircraft have been detected, friendly aircraft is hit and forced to ditch at the Hawkeye reports; CLEAN. sea, these helos are immediately dispatched to pick up survivors. There HAWKEYE DATA-LINK may be times when you are called upon In addition to providing you with a verbal to escort these angels of mercy. “picture”, the Hawkeye is able to send you tactical information direct via a data-link system. You are able to actually target and engage enemy aircraft that the Hawkeye “sees” but your radar does not. Data-linked targeting information is displayed (where else) on your RIO’s Tactical Information Display (TID). See the section in Chapter 4 concerning the TID for more information on the data-link feature. This SH-2 Seasprite is on route to another STRIKE AIRCRAFT pickup. The response time on these missions is critical. Not all of a carrier’s aircraft are devoted to defense. A modern carrier packs an awesome offensive punch. After all, it’s the reason your carrier is at sea in the FLIGHT RULES first place. Accordingly, strike packages are continually being assembled, readied, Just like the flow of automobile traffic is and launched with clockwork precision. regulated to keep cars from crashing into Because FLEET DEFENDER contains one another, so too is air traffic. In fact, scenarios which cover a period of 20+ it’s even more important for pilots to follow years, strike aircraft can range from certain established flight rules. If aircraft venerable A-7 Corsairs to A-6 Intruder are involved in a mid-air collision the and F/A-18 Hornets. These aircraft carry pilots just can’t get out an exchange a wide variety of bombs, rockets, anti-ship licenses. Certain flight regulations are in missiles, and even mines. effect during the entire time you are airborne, but by far the most critical time Anti-Submarine Warfare Aircraft for traffic control is during take-offs and While the “Hawkeye” watches above the landings (TOLs). waves, ASW (Anti-submarine warfare) There’s one man on board a carrier like the S-3 Viking keep watch below. whose job it is to enforce the rules. This These aircraft, along with LAMPS man is known as the Air Boss. You can helicopters, are constantly rotating to and access his view perspective by pressing the Air Boss (F4 Key). Break even the communication is conducted visually smallest regulation and he’ll take a through a series of intricate gestures. personal interest in seeing that you stay These often comedic-looking signals below deck for the rest of the time you’re must be understood by everyone with at sea. If you don’t want to end up “flying” access to the flight deck. Any a desk, play by the rules! misinterpretation could cause a The Air Boss is responsible for potentially fatal accident or loss of an choreographing all aircraft movement aircraft. both on the flight deck and in the air. His word is law when it comes to traffic CARRIER TAKE-OFFS (CAT-SHOTS) control. Nothing moves above deck or below without his express approval. Air Traffic Controllers (ATCs) work directly for Carrier take-offs are pretty straight- the Air Boss. They are on duty at all times forward (no pun intended- well maybe just to assist pilots and help the Air Boss a little one) but they are also somewhat ensure that nobody breaks the rules. dangerous. Loaded with fuel and Even with all these safeguards weapons, your aircraft is the heaviest it momentary lapses can occur and the will ever get during the mission at take-off. result can be disaster. All take-offs from the carrier are assisted FLEET DEFENDER makes things a little by a steam-powered catapult. You won’t easier for you by always having the see it, but it’s there. With the catapult’s carrier turn to a heading of 3600 (directly assistance your 80,000 lb. aircraft will be north) when someone is landing or hurled into the air in less than 400 ft. taking-off. This makes lining up on the Even with the help of the catapult, your carrier so much easier, especially during aircraft will be flying just above stall bad weather or night OPs. To make speed. It will also be travelling extremely everyone’s job easier, particularly the close to the ground with no reserve LSO’s, read the following section on momentum or energy to call upon if carrier flight operations. needed. You are unable to trade altitude for airspeed in case of a stall so don’t play The Carrier Flight Deck around. The flight deck of a modern aircraft Although use of the aircraft’s afterburner carrier is a busy place to say the least. Air is not mandatory for take-offs, we operations are maintained 24 hours a recommend that you use it. Your aircraft day, seven days a week. It’s a place should begin every take-off at Full where even small mistakes can have a Military Power (shift= Key) as a big impact. This frantic pace must be minimum. But to be on the safe side, maintained in order to get aircraft into the press the Afterburner Engage (A key) to air in a timely fashion. With all four of its begin the mission. It’ll take several catapults in operation, a modern carrier seconds for your engines to “spool up” to can launch one aircraft every twenty full RpMs. Once they reach the necessary seconds. There’s not an airport in the thrust, the catapult will fire and your F-14 world that even comes close to this will start down the flight deck. By the time sustained level of activity on a daily basis. you reach the end of the flight deck, you Because the flight deck is such a will have gathered up enough airspeed deafening place to work, hearing (hopefully) to get airborne. protection is mandatory. Most From the moment the aircraft begins danger of stalling the aircraft. Play around with the Remote View (F5 Key) in order to get familiar with take-offs. Continue your initial climb to an altitude of 2000 ft. and then level off. At this point, it is probably safe to shut down the afterburner. Press the Throttle Back (- Key) once. The less fuel you consume on take-off, the longer you can remain at your patrol station. Another heart-pounding, adrenaline pumping Now that you are clear of the traffic cat-shot off the deck for this lucky naval aviator. pattern you can relax for a moment. Press the Automatic Pilot (P Key). With rolling, you had better be on your toes. the Auto Pilot engaged, take this time to Take-offs can be very unforgiving if you look about the two cockpits (yours and are not 100% in control. Striking an object the RIO’s). on the deck or careening off the side of Repeat this Take-Off checklist before the carrier and into the water can be fatal. proceeding with the mission; If you see that this is going to happen, by all means, hit the Eject (shift E Key). Take-Off Checklist As soon as you are clear of the carrier, 1.Check the position of your landing raise your landing gear by pressing the gear to insure that it has been retracted Landing Gear (G Key). Notice your (raised). Landing Gear Toggle (G airspeed jump up as the drag created by Key) having your gear extended disappears. Keep the nose of the aircraft pointed 2.Make sure the Afterburner is slightly above the horizon while your disengaged. Throttle Back (- Key). airspeed continues to build. Extra speed 3.Turn the Master Arm Switch to On (energy) will be necessary when you pull position. Master Arm Switch Toggle back on the stick to gain altitude. (M Key). One thing you don’t want to do while 4.Activate the AWG-9 radar. Radar taking-off is lose either energy or On/Off Toggle (R Key). airspeed. A stall at low altitude is usually 5.Set your NAV equipment to your first fatal. There just isn’t time to regain control waypoint. Waypoint Toggle (S Key) before hitting the ground. Examples of energy-losing manoeuvres would be high 5.Contact your Wing-man. Direct him to G turns (i.e. wings banked at 90 degrees) begin flying in formation with you. or sharp increases in your aircraft Formation (alt F3 Key) attitude. Avoid anything that might cost 6.Turn to the proper waypoint heading you forward airspeed when you’re this (you may have to disengage the close to the ground. Automatic Pilot) and begin your If the aircraft is moving fast enough, it will mission. start to climb. Try to maintain a 50 to 100 Congratulations. You’ve survived your angle of attack but keep an eye on your first “cat-shot”. Now you and your RIO are airspeed. As you climb your airspeed will about to take on your very first mission. drop. If it dips below 150 knots you are in But don’t get too smug. Now that you’re up there, sooner or later you’ve got to get meaning that you missed the wires and had back down. to go around and try again. It’s probably best You’ve only got about 2-3 hours worth of not to think about the third alternative, fuel on board. That’s just enough time to namely- crashing. Crashing into the flight let the butterflies loose in your stomach deck, or any other part of the ship for that and read this next section on how to land. matter, is fatal. Game over. Good luck! Being able to make safe carrier landings is crucial to your success in this RETURNING TO THE CARRIER simulation. If you can’t master carrier landings, break out F-15 Strike Eagle III If there’s one thing which separates naval and play that for awhile. We’re confident aviators from regular pilots, it’s the fact however, that given time, you will be able that they have to shoot a carrier landing to perfect your landing techniques. in order to get home. All F-14 pilots must Therefore, the following section is be qualified to land aboard a carrier at devoted entirely to helping you get back sea before they’re any good to the Navy. down safely. Next to actual combat, carrier landings or The Air Boss and Air Traffic Control “traps” as they are called, are the most Your missions do not take place in a frightening part of a mission. You can be vacuum. The airspace around your carrier the “Top Gun” of your squadron, even fly is very likely to be crowded with other rings around MiG-29s, but it all means aircraft, taking-off or returning home just nothing unless you can get back down like you. This is the reason for having an safely. Air Boss and air traffic controllers. It’s their Carrier landings are extremely job to make sure everything runs smoothly complicated affairs. They are the most and that everyone stays between the individually challenging aspect of lines. becoming a naval aviator. Ask any Navy The whole point of air traffic control is flyer and he’ll tell you that coming home making sure that aircraft don’t bump into to a carrier is worse than air combat, each other while in flight (or on the especially at night or in bad weather. ground either!). This is often easier said Landing on a carrier deck requires total than done. There are no paved roadways concentration, a bit of luck, and a whole in the sky with nicely painted lane lot of skill. You can’t fake an approach. markers to keep pilots from straying into You’re either “on the ball” or you will the other guy’s flight path. receive a wave-off from the LSO. If you There is, however, an invisible oval get a wave-off, count on going around (racetrack) shaped traffic pattern which again and starting your approach over. A surrounds the carrier and regulates all air carrier cannot afford to have a missed movement in the vicinity. All pilots are approach result in a crash on deck. There required to stay within the flow of this are just too many people and too much traffic pattern unless given an express equipment aboard to allow that to directive not to do so by the Air Boss or happen. ATCs. Every approach will end one of three ways. As aircraft return from their missions, the You will either score a “trap” meaning that Air Boss directs them into pre-determined you caught an arrestor cable and landed routes so that he knows where they are at successfully or you will score a “bolter” all times. His ATCs keep the aircraft at safe separation distances so that they Toggle the Vertical Direction Indicator don’t run into each other. More (VDI) to VDI mode by pressing the importantly, however, aircraft are spaced VDI/TCS (V Key) if the monitor is so that only one aircraft tries land on the showing TCS imagery. Pick up the deck at a time. Course Deviation Indicator (CDI) on the Certain aircraft will have landing priority VDI and manoeuvre your aircraft so that it over others. Aircraft that are low on fuel is centred. You are now on a direct need to get down in a hurry. They are course toward the carrier, though not obviously given top priority. The rest of the necessarily lined up properly with the aircraft in a package are brought down flight deck. next. Continue to fly down this heading until Damaged aircraft often have to wait until you are approximately ten (10) nm from last. Why? Because damaged aircraft run the carrier. Check your distance from the the risk of fouling the deck should their waypoint (your carrier) on the HSD. At approach go poorly. Of course if there are this time, you must begin your transition wounded crew members aboard a into the traffic pattern. damaged aircraft the priority may change Because the carrier will be pointing north according to the severity of the wound. and into the wind, you want to be No one is allowed to approach the carrier approaching it from the south. All carrier traffic pattern unless given clearance to do landings are conducted from the rear of so. This is why each returning pilot, the ship. If you are approaching the including you, must request landing carrier from astern, the CDI should be instructions from the control tower. centred on the VDI while you fly a magnetic heading near 3600. Landing Instructions Although the TOWER has given you Each time you attempt to land back clearance to land, there still may be others aboard the carrier, you are required to ahead of you in the pattern. Caution must request landing instructions before be exercised when entering the traffic proceeding. In FLEET DEFENDER, this pattern. You should stay 2-3 nm away from is done by pressing the Request any traffic ahead of you. This gives them Landing Clearance (alt L Key) when time to land safely and get clear of the you have reached a point within twenty runway before you start your final (20) nm of the carrier. approach. The ATCs in the “control tower” will either MARSHAL POINTS: Sometimes it is give you clearance to land immediately or necessary for the TOWER to delay your delay your landing by redirecting you to landing. This can be due to a number of some marshal point away from the different reasons such as; too many carrier. aircraft already in the pattern, down equipment, or even a “fouled deck” CLEARANCE TO LAND: If the flight deck situation. is clear and the traffic pattern is not too congested, the TOWER will give you In these cases, your request for landing immediate clearance to land. You should instructions is met with a directive already have the HUD in Navigation ordering you to go to a holding area (NAV) mode at this time, if not, switch the known as a “MARSHAL POINT”. A HUD over to NAV Mode by pressing the Marshal Point is nothing more than a pre- NAV mode (5 Key). set location in space where the ATCs can To assist you in locating the Marshal Marshal Points Point, your waypoint navigation system is Daytime automatically updated. Simply toggle the Approaches Waypoint (S Key) until the message bar reads “Marshal Point”. Use the HSD to fly a racetrack pattern around the Marshal Point until the TOWER gives you clearance to land. This 10 NM usually takes several minutes, so cut your throttle back to 50% RpM to conserve fuel while waiting. When the pattern clears, the TOWER will 10 NM 10 NM send you a message indicating that it’s your turn to land. You do not need to keep requesting landing instructions. The Air 10 NM A C Boss knows you’re out there. B CARRIER LANDING PATTERNS

When your landing is delayed the ATC will send you to a holding area known as a Marshal Point. There are two basic landing patterns you are expected to recognise and adhere to; good weather patterns and low visibility send you while they wait for the traffic (bad weather or nighttime) patterns. situation to clear. If you receive a Marshal Point directive, Good Weather (Daytime) Approaches the TOWER will also assign you a certain The standard good weather (daytime) attitude. You must stay at this altitude or approach requires that the pilot fly a risk running into other aircraft. The ATCs prescribed racetrack pattern consisting of may have “stacked” a number of aircraft four distinct “legs.” As you can see by the at this Marshal point, each one holding at Good Weather (Daytime) Approach a different altitude. diagram, your initial entry into the traffic During Good Weather (Daytime) pattern begins astern of (behind) the operations, a carrier will have three carrier. This is called the Upwind Leg Marshal Points labelled A, B, and C. because here you are flying directly into These three holding areas are located as the wind. depicted in the diagram, some 10-20 nm UPWIND LEG: As you fly the Upwind astern of the carrier. You will be sent to Leg, maintain a separation distance of one of the three until it’s your turn to land. approximately one mile from the carrier. During periods of low visibility (bad Your speed should be dropping to 350 weather or night), only the Marshal Point knots. Use the Automatic Pilot (P Key) located directly behind the carrier (B) is to hold your altitude steady at no less ever used. This allows the pilots to than 800 ft. You want excess energy and transition from the Marshal Point to a airspeed to “bleed” off so keep the nose straight approach with minimal course of your aircraft pointed level with, or corrections. slightly above, the horizon. It’s a good idea to lower your landing hook while flying the Upwind leg. Press the Landing Landing Pattern Hook Toggle (H Key). Good Weather (Daytime) Approach When you reach a point approximately one mile in front of the carrier, it’s time to turn into the second leg of the approach- Crosswind Leg 300 KIAS 600ft alt the Crosswind Leg. Turn into the 0 0 Takeoff WIND Crosswind Leg at a 45 to 60 left bank Bolter angle. Pattern CROSSWIND LEG: The Crosswind leg is full throttle so named because you are now flying Downwind with the wind at a perpendicular angle. Leg Carrier Upwind Level off from the turn and extend your Group Leg 250-200 "Final" speed brake briefly by pressing the maintain 400-350 KIAS s course 135 Brake Toggle (B Key). Keep it on long 500ft alt KIAS KIAS "into the 800 ft alt enough to bring your airspeed down to wind" 360- just below 300 knots. At the same time, Gear 300 lowered ft alt Hook you should be gradually descending to lowered 600 ft. altitude. Hold at 600 ft. using the Automatic Pilot (P Key). Call the "Ball" When you reach a point approximately Base Leg 200-150 KIAS one mile west of the carrier, it’s time to 450-400 ft alt turn into the third leg of the approach- the Downwind Leg. In good weather (daytime) approaches, pilots DOWNWIND LEG: The Downwind Leg is are required to follow a racetrack approach so named because you are now flying pattern consisting of four basic “legs”. Each leg gradually has you flying just a little bit lower and with the wind at your back (down the wind a little bit slower. direction). Level off from the turn and lower your landing gear by pressing the 400 ft. You must hold this altitude yourself Landing Gear (G Key). because the Automatic Pilot has difficulty being precise below 500 ft. Your airspeed will immediately drop as soon as the drag effects of having your Once you are satisfied that you have the wheels down takes hold of the aircraft. aircraft under proper control, steal a quick Add power as necessary to maintain an glance out the left side. Look for the airspeed of at least 225 knots. Continue carrier. When you see that it is lined up descending to an altitude of no less than directly perpendicular to your flight path, 500 ft. it’s time to turn on final. Upon reaching a point approximately 3/4 FINAL APPROACH: From this point on, to 1 nm astern of (behind) the carrier until your wheels touch on the deck, make a 900 left turn onto the Base Leg of nothing you do will seem fast enough. the landing pattern. You’ll always be playing “catch-up”, one step behind the pace of events. BASE LEG: The Base Leg is your last chance to make corrections before You’ll intercept the glideslope turning “on final”. Your airspeed should approximately 3/4 of a mile from the continue to gradually bleed off to 160 carrier. At this point you should be flying knots with your landing gear extended. at no more than 145 knots and no higher Your altitude should be no greater than than 360 ft. Line up your general approach with the If you are too low in the glidepath, the vertical stripe painted on the stern of the ball will appear as a dull reddish carrier. It corresponds with the centreline coloured light. of the flight deck. When you are this close If you are too high in the glidepath, the to the carrier- never bank your ball will appear as a bright yellow wings. You want to touch down with your coloured light. wings level. Therefore, always use the rudder keys, Rudder Left (, Key) and If you are maintaining the proper 30 Rudder Right (. Key) to make minor glideslope, the ball will appear as green course adjustments. coloured light. This indicates that you are on slope. “CALLING THE BALL”: The “meatball” is a tiny light array located on the port (left) APPROACH INDEXERS: In addition to side of the carrier, approximately halfway the “meatball”, your F-14 is equipped with down the flight deck. It is difficult to make a tiny square light located on the left HUD out with all the other lights lining the deck. brace (just below the Stall Warning You generally cannot see the “ball” if you indicator) This light is known as the are more than a mile from the ship. Do Approach Indexer. It is designed to help not mistake the red light atop the “island you maintain the proper airspeed while mast” (to the right of the deck) with the flying down the final glideslope approach. ball. If you are flying too fast, the indexer As soon as you level off from the Base to lamp turns a bright yellow colour. Final Leg turn, the Landing Signals If you are flying too slow, the indexer Officer (LSO) takes over. The first thing lamp turns a dull reddish colour. he will ask you, if you are on the proper glideslope, is to “CALL THE BALL”. Your If you are in the glideslope and response will either be “TOMCAT- BALL”, proceeding at the proper speed, the if you see it or “CLARA”, if you don’t. indexer lamp turns a bright green colour. This indicates that you are on If you have visual contact with the ball, speed. press the TOMCAT- Ball (alt B Key). This lets the LSO know that you are THE LANDING SIGNALS OFFICER receiving visual reference cues from (LSO): Every take-off and landing is the ball. carefully scrutinised by the Air Traffic controllers in the Tower and a Landing Signals Officer (LSO) stationed on the flight deck. It is the LSO’s job to talk you through each and every landing. As you proceed down the final approach glide path, the LSO asks you to CALL THE BALL. Your response lets him know whether or not you are able to see the “meatball”. Either way, his responsibility is to get you down in one piece. He will give you landing guidance such as ADD POWER, The “meatball” is a visual landing aid which COME LEFT, or WAVE OFF. Do not helps pilots assume the proper 30 glideslope during the final approach leg of the traffic ignore his instructions. He is actually in a pattern. better position to judge your approach than you are. wire (second from the LSO RATING: Once you have been last arrestor cable) successfully brought back aboard ship, Wasn’t that easy! Good weather and the LSO must rate your approach. He is daytime landings are a snap. Now let’s try looking at things like approach speed, a few Low Visibility approaches - landings proper descent rate, AOA, and wing that take place during periods of bad position on touchdown. weather or total darkness. He will give each one of your landings a Low Visibility Approaches score between one (1) and four (4). A score of (1) means you have some Not every mission you are assigned is serious work to do on your landings. A flown in good weather. Sometimes it can four (4) rating means you could probably get downright nasty out there, especially land on the back of a postage stamp. in the North Cape. Marginal weather conditions make just flying rather dicey, The Carrier Landing difficulty setting never mind trying to shoot a good (Standard, Moderate, or Authentic Mode) landing. There are times when the carrier has a lot to do with how severely your will be socked-in by low lying clouds that landings are critiqued. obscure the flight deck. “TRAPPING A WIRE”: The end result of When low visibility conditions exist, the this highly regulated approach pattern is normal approach pattern is not used. to have your wheels touch down on the Instead, pilots are given clearance to deck right where you (and the LSO) want make straight in approaches. Rather than them to. If you follow the prescribed fly a racetrack pattern around the carrier, glideslope, your landing hook will catch pilots line up with the stern of the carrier the third arrestor cable (second to last and are brought down immediately. wire). This is known as “catchin’ a 3-wire”. It signifies a perfect landing. Because you won’t have the luxury of being able to see the carrier, these Trapping the first or second wire means approaches require you to place an your aircraft was a little low in the inordinate amount of trust in your glidepath and hit the deck early. Trapping instruments. Without visual cues to guide the 4-wire means you waited a little too yourself, you will be at the mercy of your long to touch down. Even so, hooking the HSD and VDI‘s Course Deviation 4-wire is better than a bolter (missing the Indicator. wires altogether). LOW VISIBILITY MARSHAL POINT: OPTIMUM LANDING CONDITION: To Things take longer during periods of low receive the best possible LSO rating, you visibility because aircraft are moved should attempt to achieve the following around more cautiously. The Air Boss and optimum landing conditions; ATCs demand greater separation 1. Wings Level distances between aircraft for safety 2. Airspeed: 135 knots maximum on purposes. Therefore, poor visibility touch down increases the likelihood that you will be 0 sent to a Marshal point prior to landing. 3. Glideslope: 3 descent on final approach Marshal Point B, the holding area directly behind the ship, is the only one of the 4. Nose-high Flare: rear wheels should three points used during low visibility OPs. make contact first It is positioned at least 15 nm behind the 5. Landing Hook: should snag the #3 ship. An additional mile is added for 1,000 ft. of altitude look at is located inside the cockpit. Why Low Visibility Approach Bad Weather (Nighttime) you are not have it all in front of you at one time? Approach assigned. For Having both the VDI and HSD monitors at example, if you your disposal allows you to shoot your are told to go to approach much more precisely. WIND Angels 5 (5,000 STRAIGHT IN APPROACH PATTERN: ft.), the centre The farther away you are from the carrier of the Marshal when you begin lining up the more time Point will be you have to assume the proper glide- positioned 20 slope. This is why low visibility Marshal 1 Mile nm from the Points are placed far away from the ship. 135 KIAS ship. 460 FT ALT Assuming you have remained within your The reason for holding area, turn to a heading of 3600. 3 Mile only using the You are now heading on a northerly Commence central Marshal course toward the stern of the carrier. glide slope Point during Perfect! 200 knots periods of low visibility is The Course Deviation Indicator (CDI) bar simple. This should be centred on the Vertical Display 10 Mile procedure Indicator (VDI). If it is not, put your aircraft 250 KIAS allows you to on a heading that centres the bar. 1200 ft alt transition from Because the CDI bar only points in the the holding direction of the carrier, you want to fly a B area directly heading that also lines you up with the into the landing flight deck. approach by Since the carrier’s flight deck always runs simply flying a heading of 3600. directly north-south (3600-1800), you want Once you are given clearance to land to fly a heading aimed at the carrier as from the TOWER, you will be flying a close to 3600 as possible. The closer you “straight in” approach aimed at the stern are to a heading of 3600, the fewer course of the carrier. You can fly this approach corrections you will have to make later on. looking through the HUD, but we Press the Automatic Pilot (P Key) to recommend that you change your view keep you on the proper heading. From perspective. Press the Look Down View this point on you are required to trust your (2 Key) so that you’re able to see both the instrumentation and “fly the needles.” VDI and HSD on the screen at the same time. Now it’s time to check your approximate distance from the flight deck. Look at the Now that you have both of these monitors Horizontal Situation Display (HSD) to get in front of you, your view to the outside your waypoint distance (WPD). Your world is limited. It’s unsettling, isn’t it- kind waypoint should remain toggled to of gives you the willies. Welcome to the CARRIER throughout your approach. real world of low visibility flight. You should be getting some appreciation of Toggle off the Automatic Pilot (P Key) what the real pilots must go through. and begin a gentle descent. At a distance of ten (10) nm, you should be flying level There’s a reason for having you do this, at an altitude no greater than 1,200 ft. however. In the first place, there’s nothing Maintain an airspeed of 350 knots and to see outside, everything you need to stay at this altitude until you reach a point three (3) nm want to touch down with your wings level. Straight in Approach from the Therefore, always use the rudder keys, carrier. Low Rudder Left (, Key) and Rudder Right (. visibility Key) to make minor course adjustments. operations are Okay- great job! If you followed these inherently instructions to the letter you should catch more risky so the #3 wire without any trouble. you should Whooops! Nowhere in these instructions keep your did it say anything about lowering your speed a little Landing Hook (H Key). You went to all higher than that trouble just to bolter. usual in case of emergency. Don’t panic. By sheer coincidence, the An extra 10 following section covers exactly what you knots of should do in case of a bolter or missed airspeed approach. 10 NM should do the trick. At three miles, MISSED APPROACH PROCEDURES tap the Brake B (B Key) so that A “missed approach” is a landing attempt your airspeed that for whatever reason, has gone Marshal Point B drops below wrong. Missed approaches can occur as 300 knots. a result of excess landing speed, straying Extend your from the glideslope, even forgetting to put The Straight In approach is Landing Gear down your landing gear. But just because used during periods of Low (G Key). Don’t you miss an approach doesn’t mean (or No) Visibility because it forget to retract you’re a bad pilot. It happens all the time. places less strain on the your airbrakes. You must expect a few missed attempts. pilot. During the next The point is that a pilot should know how two miles, to recover quickly and safely from a gradually descend so that at one (1) mile botched landing. from the carrier your altitude falls to 460 ft The key to recovery is recognising a and slow your approach to 180 knots. missed approach for what it is early on. At one mile you’re are considered to be It’s no sin to have to go around for on final approach. Continue slowing down another try. Just think of it as additional until you are flying at approximately 150 practice. Many pilots will continue to fight knots. Begin your final descent. The flight a bad landing past the point of no return. deck should become visible at this point. The problem is that in trying to correct a Peg the Vertical Velocity Indicator (VVI) at bad approach you are likely to over a spot on the flight deck and keep it there. compensate. Small problems rapidly As you get nearer to the carrier, you can become big ones the closer you get to the fine tune this aiming point. Throttle Back carrier. (- Key) so that you are flying just a few Rule #1: Never waste time trying to knots above stall speed (135 knots). correct a good approach gone bad. Once again, when you are this close to the carrier- never bank your wings. You The LSO Wave-Off other aircraft shouldn’t be trying to land. If you fail to heed Rule #1 and continue a This situation is known as a fouled-deck. bad approach, the Landing Signal Officer In fact, any time the flight deck is (LSO) will signal a wave-off. A wave-off is obstructed, it is considered fouled and your cue to forget about this landing and landing operations are suspended. If the go around for another try. As soon as you deck is fouled prior to you entering the get a wave-off call from the LSO, you traffic pattern, you are sent to a Marshal should immediately begin following your Point holding area until the situation is “missed approach” procedures as cleared. described below. If the deck is fouled while you are at any If you ignore the wave-off and land point in the pattern, including final anyway prepare to see your mission approach, you are to implement the score reduced. This is the Air Boss’ way “missed approach” procedure. of chewing you out. Disregarding a wave- BOLTER: Whenever your aircraft touches off is a very serious offense and will be down but fails to hook any of the wires, it dealt with accordingly. Unless you are is known as a “bolter.” For example, an flying on vapours, it’s not worth ignoring a aircraft which attempts to land at too high wave-off. a speed may “float” and touch down beyond the last of the wires. Pilot error is another reason for bolters. In the excitement of the moment a novice may forget to lower his hook. Don’t laugh, it’s happened to me. If you experience a bolter, don’t panic. Treat a bolter the same way you would any missed approach and refer to the missed approach procedures described below. MISSED APPROACH PROCEDURES: The LSO station. These guys are responsible for Missed Approaches are extremely hard to bringing you home safely. They also score each recover from. Why? Because in one of your landing attempts and post them for all to see. attempting to land you have configured your aircraft to descend until it touches down on something solid. Your wings, Rule # 2: Unless you are low on fuel, and flaps, trim vanes, spoilers and everything then only if you are down to fumes, never else are positioned to set the aircraft disregard a wave-off. down. Now all of a sudden, you are required to move the aircraft in a different FOULED DECK: Just as your F-14 is not direction -up! It takes time to reconfigure, the only aircraft in the sky, it’s also not the time you don’t have when flying low and only aircraft on the flight deck. Aircraft are slow. shuffled between the hangar deck and flight deck as quickly as possible but Obviously, the earlier you identify a sometimes this just isn’t fast enough. It missed approach, the easier it will be for can take up to five minutes to taxi an you to recover from. The closer you are to aircraft, prep it for launch, then cat-shoot the flight deck the more difficult your it free of the flight deck. When the flight recovery will be. You’ll be flying a near deck is full of aircraft waiting to take-off, stall speed with a considerable downward velocity. Halting the downward motion is going to consume energy (airspeed) and potentially push you below your minimum stall speed. The following Missed Approach checklist of procedures should be followed whenever a missed approach is declared or wave-off received; 1. Power Up- immediately go to afterburner by pressing the Afterburner Engage (A Key). You are Flight leader and wing-man being prepared for going need an immediate burst of their mission. power to arrest your descent and then climb out in order to re-enter the traffic pattern. 2. Gear Up: Retract your landing gear by pressing the Landing Gear (G Key). Do this second. If you are not quick enough to halt your descent you may touch down on the flight deck anyway. With your wheels down you still have a chance to take-off again. If your wheels are up, contact with the flight deck usually results in a fatal crash. 3. Nose Up: keep the nose of the aircraft pointed no more than 100 above the horizon. Nurse the aircraft back into the sky. An abrupt pitch change will kill your forward airspeed and cause a stall. 4. Wings Level: Keep your wings level. Perform a straight forward climb out. Do not bank your wings or you will kill off any excess Lift being produced. The object of these missed approach procedures is to reconfigure your aircraft for normal flight as quickly as possible. We recommend that you climb out to a minimum of 1500 ft. and then rejoin the traffic pattern at a 450 angle to the crosswind leg. Having to go around a second (or even third) time sure beats having a crash landing end a promising career. YOUR WING-MAN

As if flying the F-14 in combat wasn’t pilot/RIO skill level improves, hostile enough, FLEET DEFENDER gives you targets are located on radar faster. In the opportunity (responsibility) to control addition, it takes less and less time for the actions of another F-14, that of your your wing-man to sort and lock targets. wing-man’s. While this means added WEAPON EMPLOYMENT: Your wing- work for you, it also allows for an almost man’s ability to use his weapons once a endless list of tactical possibilities. target is found is judged according to his Usually, the minimum number of F-14s skill level. sent on any one particular mission is two INITIATIVE: Each time your wing-man (2). Known in the Navy as a section, a engages an enemy aircraft his AI routine formation of two aircraft consists of a attempts to gain a position of advantage. flight leader and wing-man. On each The more initiative a wing-man takes the mission you (as the active player) better able he is to achieve this position. assume the role of flight leader. As a If however, your wing-man is forced to flight leader, it will be your job to take up a defensive posture, he will call coordinate the actions of both aircraft. “ENGAGED DEFENSIVE”. ENGAGED This is not easy. It will either double your DEFENSIVE is the equivalent of you effectiveness in combat or half it through pressing the alt F5 Key to request miscommunication and poor coordination. assistance from your wing-man. Although you are able to direct your wing- man’s responses in combat, if left alone, his own artificial intelligence will take WING-MAN CONTROL KEYS over. Otherwise, your wing-man will always be right where you put him. You’ll The addition of a second F-14 never have to worry about him leaving a significantly increases the combat power fight early just to save himself at your at your disposal and gives you the ability expense. to perform multiple tasks simultaneously. But, having a wing-man along is only a In fact, when controlled by the computer, positive thing if your are able to use him your wing-man is every bit as capable as wisely, otherwise he’s something else to you, sometimes, even more so. worry about and get in the way. The more missions your wing-man has Your wing-man has the ability to make under his belt, the more skilled he reasoned decisions if left alone. (FLEET becomes. Actually, FLEET DEFENDER DEFENDER features stunningly keeps track of four separate areas of competent AI routines.) However, you (as wing-man development: general flying flight leader) are able to exercise a great skill, use of the radar, weapon degree of control. The following keys employment and initiative. allow you to direct the actions of your GENERAL FLYING ABILITY: Your wing- wing-man; man’s expertise at performing ACM is Go Tactical (alt F1 Key): Pressing this based upon his general ability to handle key releases your wing-man to attack the aircraft. This rating improves as he targets independently. His response to gains experience. you is either; "Roger" (indicating he is RADAR USE: As your wing-man’s after a specific target) or “No Joy”, indicating he has no bogeys in sight. In number of contacts he has sighted, their any case, by pressing this key you are range, and finally their altitude. releasing him to go find targets. If none Sort (alt F7 Key): Directs your wing-man are to be found, he will reform on your to report on the target he currently has wing. locked-up. His response is either: Sorted Target Directive (alt F2 Key): This None, Sorted Lead, Sorted Trail, Sorted command directs your wing-man to attack Left, Sorted Right or Unknown. A report the target that you currently have locked of UNKNOWN indicates that your wing- on your radar. This key must be pressed man is not sure of target’s location within after your wing-man has received the Go the formation. It does not mean to imply a Tactical (alt F1 Key) command. His response to an IFF check. response to you will be BOGEY Alibi (alt F8 Key): Directs your wing- TARGETED when he has achieved a man to report his current damage and radar lock on your target. You are free to weapon status. choose a new target at this time. Rejoin (alt F9 Key): Directs your wing- Formation (alt F3 Key): Directs your man to rejoin with you. Watch for him to wingman to assume one of three specific appear and saddle up along side your formations. Your options are: (1) Parade, aircraft. (2) Cruise, or (3) Combat Spread. Press the appropriate number key. Your wing- Return to Base (alt F10 Key): Directs man responds by acknowledging your your wing-man to return to the carrier formation selection. Only Combat Spread (base). His response, “RTB”, allows your wing-man to independently acknowledges your command. target and engage enemy aircraft. Delouse (shift F1 Key): Sends a Bracket (alt F4 Key): Directs your wing- message to your E-2C controller (or man to perform a bracket in conjunction carrier) to send an F-14 two-ship to your with your aircraft. The options are: (1) location. This two-ship will either come Bracket Left, (2) Bracket Right, (3) High, (4) from the carrier (the Ready 5 aircraft) or it Low, and (5) Straight. Press the will be drawn from another CAP station appropriate number key to select an option. nearby. Your wing-man responds by acknowledging the selected option. If you select either (3) High or (4) Low, you must then select an SECTION FORMATIONS altitude differential of up to 10,000 ft. In order for your section to function Engaged Defensive (alt F5 Key): Directs properly, flight leader and wing-man must your wing-man to come to your fly and fight as a team. If you are only immediate assistance. He will drop interested in becoming a “Top Gun” you whatever he happens to be doing at the can forget about forming an effective two- time to come to your aid. Such loyalty ship. In fact, if you don’t know how to deserves repayment in kind. cooperate with your wing-man you might Sanitise (alt F6 Key): Directs your wing- as well leave him back on the deck. man to perform a radar sweep in the One good thing you don’t have to worry direction selected. Your options are: (1) about is mid-air collisions, either with your Left, (2) Right, (3) Front, and (4) Back. If wing-man or the enemy. This allows for your wing-man makes contact with an some really tight formations as you may object in the area he responds with the well imagine. It also keeps pilots from playing bumper cars or attempting to ram The Cruise the enemy as a final gesture before going Cruise Formation down. Nobody does this intentionally- nobody. Even if unintentional, the chances of a mid-air collision with an CR enemy aircraft are very small indeed. Ramming is just not a viable tactic anymore. Formations (alt F3 Key): There are three basic formations that you and your F-1 wing-man can assume; Parade, Cruise, and Combat Spread. You can change your formation at any time, just by OVERHEAD VIEW pressing the Formation (alt F3 Key). OV Press the appropriate number key to make your selection. COMBAT SPREAD FORMATION: PARADE FORMATION: When flying in When flying in a Combat Spread parade formation, your wing-man takes formation your wing-man takes up a up a position behind you, less than 100 ft lateral (line abreast) position off your away. While flying in parade formation wing. From this position he may target your wing-man is unable to target or fire and fire upon enemy targets of upon enemy aircraft. He is essentially opportunity without your prior approval. under a “weapons hold” restriction until you free him by pressing the Go Tactical (F1 Key) or by putting him into a Combat Combat The Combat Spread (3 Key) formation. Spread formation. The parade COTS Parade PARformation

BRACKET FORMATION (alt F4 Key): OVERHEAD VIEW The Bracket is more of a section tactic than a travelling formation. It is labelled a OV formation and included here only because CRUISE FORMATION: When flying in it deals with the tactical positioning of cruise formation, your wing-man takes up your wing-man. a position behind you, less than 200 ft away. While flying in cruise formation your You may order your wing-man into wing-man is unable to target or fire upon assuming a Bracket formation at any time enemy aircraft unless you release as by pressing Bracket (alt F4 Key). previously described. Pressing this key causes a secondary from the committed fighter. If the enemy Bracket Left/Right does disengage, he has lost any initiative BRAChe might have had and now faces a 1 v. 2 situation.

OVERHEAD VIEW

Your wing-man assumes the various bracket positions as shown here. menu to appear which lists your Bracket options. Press the corresponding numeric key to assign your wing-man one of the following Bracket options: (1) Bracket Left, (2) Bracket Right, (3) High, (4) Low, and (5) Straight. Note that your own F-14 becomes the off- setting pivot point for the Bracket. The offset distance for a Bracket Left, Bracket Right, or Bracket Straight is 5 nm. When ordering a High or Low, you are required to select an altitude differential using the numeric keys from one(1 ) to ten (0) thousand feet. Tactically, the Bracket attack resembles a pincer movement, if conducted properly, enemy aircraft are sandwiched between you and your wing-man. The enemy is approached until he is forced to commit on either you or your wing-man. Once this commitment becomes apparent, the uncommitted (unengaged) friendly aircraft is then considered the “free” fighter. The free fighter should immediately assume an offensive posture and convert on the enemy’s “six.” The committed fighter should break in a manner which facilitates the free fighter’s attack. If performed correctly the two-ship will have caught the enemy between them. The enemy is vulnerable to the free fighter’s attack unless he disengages IV. F-14 COCKPITS AND AVIONICS We recommend that first time flyers take the time to read this chapter and do some practicing in the Oceana Training theatre. This way newcomers can get the hang of things and not have to face hostile aircraft right away. Eventually all this “pilot stuff” will become second nature but for now let’s concentrate on the F-14’s flight instrumentation. Each functioning gauge, dial, and indicator is described in detail so that you Smiling under all that headgear, this “Tomcat” can tell at a glance just how well your driver has just returned from a successful aircraft is doing. It is divided up into the mission. major instrumentation of both the front and back seat cockpits. In addition, instrumentation on the pilot/RIO’s side panels and console is also covered in separate sections. PILOT (FRONT SEAT) COCKPIT

Because you portray a F-14 pilot in this THE MAGNETIC HEADING simulation, most of your time will be spent INDICATOR in the front seat cockpit. All the necessary Stretching across the very top of the HUD flight controls are located here. While you is the Magnetic Heading Indicator. This occupy the front seat you are in indicator is divided into 100 compass command of the aircraft, you make the heading increments which are then decisions. The following section further sub-divided into 20 increments. describes the various displays and instrumentation you have at your Your course is equal to the compass disposal. heading which occupies the centre position of the indicator (directly above the tiny cross). You can check the HEAD-UP DISPLAY (HUD) accuracy of the Magnetic Heading Indicator with the analog compass located to the right of the Vertical Display Indicator (VDI).

Waypoint Weapon Waypoint Caret Caret Priority Indicator Located underneath of the Magnetic Heading Indicator is a waypoint reference cue known as a caret (pronounced carrot). The caret resembles an inverted The basic Head-Up Display V and is positioned on the heading (HUD) showing pitch ladder indicator according to the waypoint you and Phoenix missiles in have selected. priority. The Head-Up Display is actually a Aircraft Reticle transparent pane of “plexi-glass” situated The aircraft reticle depicts the position of directly in front of your field of vision. your aircraft’s wings (chord line). It When you look directly forward, you are appears on the HUD as two L shaped actually looking through the Head-Up characters that have been knocked over Display (HUD). As the name implies, the on their sides. This line indicates where reason for a HUD is simple. Flight and the nose of the aircraft is pointing, relative weapon symbology is superimposed on to the horizon. The position of the aircraft the “glass” so that you do not have to look reticle on the pitch ladder indicates your down to read instruments. This allows you aircraft’s relative pitch angle. to keep your head upright when involved in combat so you don’t lose sight of a Pitch Ladder bandit at an inopportune moment. The pitch (up/down reference) angle of STANDARD HUD INFORMATION your aircraft is displayed by means of a pitch ladder. The pitch ladder is the set of Much of the symbology on the HUD is horizontal pitch lines in the centre of the standard information which shows up HUD which are arranged like the rungs of regardless of the weaponry or mode a ladder. selected. The pitch lines of the ladder are divided into 100 increments, from 00 (level) to 800. Magnetic Heading The greater the pitch angle, the more Indicator your aircraft will be pointing up or down. Solid pitch lines indicate your aircraft is pointed upward. A small circle indicates Pitch that your aircraft is pointing straight Vertical Ladder Velocity upward in a sheer vertical climb. Dashed Indicator pitch lines indicate your aircraft is pointed downward. A small circle with a X inside indicates that your aircraft is pointing The pilot is able to use straight down. information shown on the HUD to assist in navigation and Weapon Priority Indicator precision landings. The HUD shown here in NAV mode, is Centred at the bottom of the HUD is helping this pilot return home. symbology indicating which weapon system is currently in priority. (Being in priority means which type of missile would be launched if you were to fire a Pitch Ladder missile right now. Even though the The pitch ladder has been changed from M61A1 gun is always ready to fire, there 100 pitch increments to increments of 50. is a separate HUD mode for the gun This allows you to fly the finer pitch system which displays a floating angles required for precision navigation. gunsight.) The letter codes which appear on the Vertical Velocity Indicator (VVI) HUD are PH (Phoenix), SP (Sparrow), A Vertical Velocity Indicator is placed on SW (Sidewinder) and G (Gun). the HUD to assist you in visually Underneath the letter code is displayed a determining your sink rate when landing. number which equals the number of The VVI is the tiny circle with three tick those missiles left onboard. If a zero (0) marks protruding from it. It is usually appears, none of that type of missile located under the aircraft reticle. remains. The VVI is normally used when making If the Master Arm Switch is in the Off carrier approaches. It is an indication of position, an X is superimposed over the where your aircraft is actually going. Note Weapon Priority Indicator. that this is sometimes different from the aircraft reticle, which only shows where HUD NAVIGATION MODE your aircraft is pointing. For example, in a SYMBOLOGY carrier approach, the nose of the aircraft is kept pointed slightly above the horizon to When you press the NAV Mode (5 Key), maintain a glide-slope flare. The VVI, special navigation symbology appears on however, is located below the horizon the HUD to assist you. Notice that the indicating that the aircraft is descending Weapon Priority Indicator is removed. It is (even though the nose angle indicates a assumed that you will not be engaging in climb). combat while flying in Navigation mode. On final approach, keep the VVI aimed at the spot on the carrier deck where you wish to land. Use it as an aiming stake. If you keep the VVI on the deck, you can glide the aircraft down for perfect landings the range scale. The upper tick mark every time. represents the weapon’s Rmax, the maximum effective range of the weapon in COMBAT MODE SYMBOLOGY priority. The bottom tick mark represents the weapon’s Rmin, the minimum effective Except for take-offs and landings (when range of the weapon in priority. the HUD should be placed in NAV mode), the majority of time your HUD should be Closure Scale set to display Combat mode symbology. A Combat mode is one in which a weapon When placed in a Combat mode, the system has been put in priority (Gun or vertical scale on the left side of the HUD missile). Basically, the HUD is in Combat shows the relative rate of closure mode if it is not in Nav mode. between your aircraft and the target. A caret (a V-shaped symbol tilted to one side) is positioned on the right side of the STANDARD COMBAT MODE vertical scale. This caret indicates your SYMBOLOGY rate of closure. This scale registers Some Combat mode symbology is closure rates of between -200 knots (at standard on the HUD regardless of what the bottom of the scale) and +1000 knots weapon is placed in priority. (at the top). A positive value means you are closing in on the target at the indicated speed. A negative value means Target that the distance between the two aircraft Diamond Closure is increasing by the indicated amount. Scale A negative closure rate indicates that the Range target is actually pulling away from you. Scale Target Designator Diamond When a target has been radar-locked or The Head-Up Display (HUD) designated, a Target Diamond appears with a target locked and AIM-7 Sparrows in priority. on the HUD corresponding to the actual position of the target. If the target goes off Target Range Scale the HUD, the diamond is pegged along the side nearest its point of exit. When the HUD is placed in a Combat mode, a vertical Target Range Scale Shoot Cues appears on the right side of the display. When a target is brought within the Rmax The bottom of the scale always reflects a and Rmin of the weapon system in range of zero. The upper end of the scale priority, HUD symbology begins to flash. varies according to the range of the This flashing symbology is your shoot cue target. telling you it’s time to fire the weapon. In order for a target to appear on this scale, it must either be radar-locked (in Break X PDSTT) or designated (in a TWS mode). When a target is within the Rmin range of A range caret (the V-shaped symbol lying the weapon system in priority, a large X on its side) is located on the left side of symbol appears in the centre of the HUD. the scale. As the name implies, this caret This X is known as the Break X indicating indicates the range of the principle target. that you need to back off and increase Two tick marks extend from the right side of the range between you and the target. Note that the M61A1 gun has no Rmin. float about the HUD until it acquires a target. Once a target is acquired, the GUN PRIORITY SYMBOLOGY reticle is superimposed on the Target Diamond Designator. The symbology will By pressing the Guns (1 Key), the HUD flash, your shoot-cue to fire. symbology is changed to reflect that your M61A1 has been placed in priority. Note that the Sidewinder missile does not require radar to engage a target. You can When the M61A1 gun is in priority, a even turn off the radar and acquire the floating gunsight reticle appears on the target solely through the missile’s seeker- HUD. This gunsight automatically head. computes the amount of lead angle needed to score a hit on a particular target. When firing the gun, you must AIM-7 SPARROW PRIORITY manoeuvre the aircraft so that the floating SYMBOLOGY gunsight is placed on your intended By pressing the Sparrow (3 Key), the target. HUD symbology is changed to reflect that your AIM-7 medium-ranged, radar- AIM-9 SIDEWINDER PRIORITY guided, Sparrow missiles have been SYMBOLOGY placed in priority. Sparrow HUD symbology is exactly the same as that of the Sidewinder with the Floating exception that there is no floating seeker- Seeker Target Location Diamond head. The Sparrow missile requires the aircraft’s radar to engage a target and does not have a internal seeker like the Sidewinder.

AIM-54 PHOENIX PRIORITY The Head-Up Display (HUD) SYMBOLOGY with the floating AIM-9 Sidewinder seeker-head By pressing the Phoenix (4 Key), the looking for a target. HUD symbology is changed to reflect that your AIM-54 long-ranged, radar-guided, Phoenix missiles have been placed in By pressing the Sidewinder (2 Key), the priority. HUD symbology is changed to reflect that Phoenix HUD symbology is exactly the your AIM-9 heat-seeking Sidewinder same as that of the Sparrow missile. The missiles have been placed in priority. upper range limit (Rmax) of the Phoenix When your Sidewinder missiles are in missile is considerably greater than that priority, a floating seeker-head reticle of the Sparrow, however. This is reflected appears on the HUD. This reticle floats on the vertical range scale. about the HUD looking for a heat source to lock-on to (acquire). The seeker-head detection range is approximately 6 nm, therefore, the Sidewinder will not acquire a target on its own unless the target is within this distance. The seeker-head reticle will continue to VERTICAL DISPLAY INDICATOR (VDI) reticle on the pitch ladder indicates your aircraft’s relative pitch angle. The Vertical Display Indicator (VDI) is Ground Texture located in the front seat cockpit directly underneath the HUD. In its primary role, Ground texture appears on the VDI as a the VDI acts as a HUD repeater (a back- pair of light tone patches that appear to be up) in case the real HUD is ever continually revolving. (They look like the damaged in combat. In addition to acting dashed lines on a highway as you are as a substitute HUD, the VDI monitor can driving past.) These patches remain in also be toggled to display images motion even if your aircraft is stopped. produced by the Television Camera They merely aid in making the visual System (TCS). distinction between above and below the horizon. Press the VDI/TCS Mode Toggle (V Key) to alternate between the two modes. Course Deviation Indicator The Course Deviation Indicator (CDI) is a vertical bar which moves left or right across your VDI. The purpose of the CDI is to assist you in getting a more exact bearing on your aircraft carrier. It is not part of an Instrument Landing System and should not be used for precision approaches. The CDI functions in the same manner as the waypoint caret on the HUD’s Magnetic Heading Indicator. It is a visual cue that you The Vertical Display Indicator (VDI) are heading toward your carrier. Although in NAV mode showing the CDI. you are aimed at your carrier, it does not mean that you are properly lined up with the flight deck. You could be flying directly at the carrier and still be perpendicular to the flight VDI NAVIGATION MODE deck. In this instance, the CDI would still be SYMBOLOGY centred on the VDI. Pitch Ladder VDI COMBAT MODE SYMBOLOGY The pitch ladder on the VDI is a duplicate of the pitch ladder on the HUD. Solid pitch Azimuth Range Bar lines indicate your aircraft is pointed The vertical bar positioned on the left side above the horizon (i.e. upward). Dashed of the VDI is known as the Azimuth pitch lines indicate your aircraft is pointed Range Bar. This bar is used to determine below the horizon (i.e. downward). whether or not a target is within range of the weapon system currently in priority. It Aircraft Reticle does not give you the exact range to The VDI aircraft reticle functions exactly target, however. You must estimate target as the aircraft reticle on the HUD. The two distance for yourself. L shaped characters indicate where the Estimating target distance is done by nose of the aircraft is pointing relative to noting the scale of the bar and the the horizon. The position of the aircraft position of the Target Range Mark. The TELEVISION CAMERA SYSTEM (TCS) The F-14 has an onboard television Range camera system which is slaved to the Bar Steering AWG-9 radar. The camera automatically Tee focuses on locked targets and continues to track them as long as the target remains within the gimbal limits of the The Vertical Display Indicator TCS. The camera image is broadcast on (VDI) in combat mode showing a locked target and target range the VDI and can be magnified up to 20 bar. times. number located on the VDI beneath the Azimuth Range bar represents it’s maximum range (in nm). Zoom Camera If a target is currently locked on radar, a Magnifi Image tick mark (known as the Target Range cation Mark) appears on the left side of the bar. Note its location, (i.e. 1/3rd of the way up the bar, half the way up etc.) on the bar The VDI can also be used to view and compare this to the maximum range targets by way of the Television of the bar as indicated. A Target Range Camera System (TCS). Mark located halfway up a 100 nm bar would indicate that the target is approximately 50 nm away. The TCS functions differently according On the right side of the bar are two other to the difficulty level setting. For details, tick marks. These are known as Rmax consult the difficulty level section of and Rmin indicators. If the Target Range Chapter 1. Mark falls between these two tick marks, the target is within range.Rather than HORIZONTAL SITUATION DISPLAY (HSD) having a Target Diamond Designator appear on the VDI, this display uses a symbol known as a steering tee. The The Horizontal Situation Display (HSD) steering tee is an inverted T-shaped consists of a rotating compass dial with symbol and functions exactly as a Target three lines of navigational text information Diamond Designator does on the HUD. inserted in the centre. Like the VDI, it is multi-functional. This monitor can Allowable Steering Error (ASE) Circle alternate between showing standard HSD The dashed line circle in the middle of the navigational information and being a VDI is known as the Allowable Steering Target Information Display (TID) repeater. Error (ASE) circle. For best results, it is To alternate between the displays, press recommended that you manoeuvre the the HSD/TID Toggle (shift R Key). aircraft so that the steering tee is inside the ASE circle before you fire a missile. This is HSD NAVIGATION INFORMATION not a requirement, though. It just means that Compass Heading the enemy will have a more difficult time avoiding your missile because you have Your direction of flight is indicated by the made the effort to line up a cleaner shot. Command Course bar located at the top TARGET INFORMATION DISPLAY (TID) REPEATER Heading Indicator By pressing the HSD/TID Toggle (shift R Waypoint Key) the HSD monitor is turned into a TID Distance repeater. This way, you can see all the information currently showing up on the RIO’s TID. The range (in nm) of the display is shown in the upper right hand The Horizontal Situation corner of the monitor. Display (HSD) is your primary means of gathering navigational information. Display Range of the dial (12 o’clock position). Your aircraft’s heading is indicated by the Y our compass reading which appears under Aircraft the Command Course bar at any given moment. Waypoint Indicator The Horizontal Situation Display (HSD) can also act as An small tick mark is placed on the a TID repeater. This lets compass heading indicating the direction paranoid pilots see exactly of the waypoint you’ve selected. what their RIO is doing while their back is turned. Waypoint Distance (WPD) The top line of text located in the centre of the compass dial gives your current TACTICAL ELECTRONIC WARFARE distance (in nm) from the selected SYSTEM (TEWS) DISPLAY waypoint. True Airspeed (TAS) The Tactical Electronic Warfare System (pronounced “Tooz”) is an integral part of The middle line of text gives your true your aircraft’s self-defense capability. It airspeed (in knots). Since your airspeed consists of an array of sophisticated indicator is calibrated to reflect your sensors and receivers located throughout airspeed at sea level, your actual the aircraft. The TEWS gives you the airspeed at higher altitudes will vary. True ability to locate enemy aircraft by the airspeed (TAS) takes this variance into energy their radars emit. It also allows account. To get a estimate of your true you to pinpoint the location of ground airspeed through the air, increase your based tracking radars. In fact, any radar KIAS reading by 2% per thousand feet of that is emitting energy, whether it be altitude. friend or foe, is detectable. Ground Speed (GS) The TEWS display appears on your console as a series of four concentric circles centred The bottom line of text gives your actual on a pair of horizontal and vertical lines. Your over land ground speed (in knots). Note aircraft is located at the intersection of the x that for the purposes of FLEET and y-axis lines (in the centre of the screen). DEFENDER, it is the same reading as The display itself is oriented so that the top of your Indicated Air Speed (KIAS). the screen always represents 12 o’clock (in AIRCRAFT RADARS (DIAMOND ICONS) SAM SAM Enemy aircraft radars appear on the Site TEWS only after they have “Locked-On” to your aircraft. A diamond-shaped icon is SAM placed at the appropriate range and bearing. These icons do not flash when a missile is launched, just count one being The Tactical Electronic fired anyway. (Just think how quickly you Warfare System (TEWS) fire a missile once you achieve a “lock.” is part of your overall self-preservation effort. Enemy pilots are just as eager to shoot at you). front of your aircraft). The bottom of the Inside each of these icons is a number display is your aircraft’s 6 o’clock position (the from 1-9 which signifies the type of radar rear of your aircraft). emissions being detected by the TEWS. The maximum display range of the TEWS The numbers correspond to a particular is 40 nm. Each of the concentric circles type of radar as listed below; represents a radius increase of 10 nm. Targets that are detected beyond 40 nm Ground-based Radar Indicators are pegged along the edge of the TEWS (square icons) display. They could be located anywhere 1. Continuous wave Long-range SAM from 41 nm to as far away as 200 nm. radars SA-2, SA-3, SA-N-3A, SA-N-3B GROUND-BASED RADARS 2. Pulse-Doppler Long-range SAM radars (SQUARE ICONS) SA-5, HAWK, Crotale When a ground-based radar is Searching 3. Continuous wave Short-range SAM for your aircraft the audio warning will radars “beep” or “hit” each time the radar’s SA-6, SA-N-7, SA-N-9 energy passes over you. No icon appears on the screen, however. You receive 4. Pulse-Doppler Short-range SAM radars audio warnings only. SA-8, CADS-N-1 When an enemy ground-based radar is 8. AAA Acquisition and Tracking radar Tracking your aircraft, a square icon with a Triple-A batteries number inside from 1-9 appears on the 9. Long-range Search radars screen at the appropriate range and Ground Control Intercept (GCI) bearing. You also receive an audio alert Stations cue. Aircraft Radar Indicators (diamond When an enemy ground-based radar has icons) “Locked-and launched” the square icon begins flashing. A smaller square icon 1. Pulse-Doppler Multi-target Search and appears over top of the flashing icon. This Track radar is a surface-to-air missile which the SAM F-14, F/A-18, Su-27, MiG-29, MiG-31 radar is directing toward your aircraft. In 2. Pulse-Doppler Single-target Search short, it means trouble. and Track radar F-4, F-16, Viggen, Tornado MK.3 3. Multi-mode Search and Track radar MiG-23, MiG-25, Mirage F-1 RIGHT INSTRUMENTATION PANEL 4. Single-mode Search and Track radar MiG-21, Su-17, Su-22, F-5E 5. Range-only radar Artificial MiG-27, Su-24 Horizon 9. Airborne Early Warning radar (AWACS) E-2C, Tu-126 Vertical TEWS Velocity Indicator SAM AND AAM DETECTION

Radar missiles, both ground and air The Pilot’s right instrument launched, appear on the TEWS as tiny panel. unnumbered squares. If a SAM installation or enemy aircraft launches a radar-guided missile, you can see it begin to head toward your aircraft. This should WING-SWEEP INDICATOR give you plenty of time to deploy counter- The F-14 has a computer-controlled measures or manoeuvre to defeat it. variable wing sweep which allows the Heat-seeking missiles, because they aircraft to take advantage of swept and don’t emit radar energy, never appear on straight wing characteristics. Swept wings the TEWS. reduce drag and produce good linear performance, straight wings give the aircraft TEWS JAMMER a superior manoeuvring ability. In addition to detecting enemy radars, the This indicator lets you know at a glance TEWS actively attempts to distort, or the degree at which your wings are swept otherwise jam their signal. The TEWS (00 to 700). FLEET DEFENDER does not jammer interferes with the ability of allow you to manually adjust your wing enemy radars to first; detect you, or configuration. having failed at that, lock you in their beam. RIGHT ENGINE FIRE LAMP You may turn the Jammer ON or OFF by This light illuminates when your right toggling the TEWS Jammer Toggle (J engine has been damaged and is on fire. Key),what else! When the Jammer is ON, the word “JAMMER” appears across the STANDBY ATTITUDE INDICATOR TEWS display screen. If turned off, the (ARTIFICIAL HORIZON) word is removed. This gauge functions as an artificial When actively jamming an enemy radar, horizon indicator. Use this gauge only in the word ”JAMMER” flashes. This emergencies. Although the pitch lines are indicates that the jammer is blanketing legible, you would not want to use it for the sky with “white noise”. While this judging a landing approach. makes you hard to hit with a missile, all that “noise” you are making makes you easy to detect. If stealth is more HEADING INDICATOR important to you than missile avoidance, This gauge is a magnetic heading turn the Jammer off. compass. It is useful as a back-up NAV device if your HUD is damaged. G METER ANGLE-OF-ATTACK INDICATOR This window displays a digital indication (AOA) of the G forces currently being placed on This gauge displays your current angle- the aircraft (and pilot). of-attack in degrees of AOA.

FUEL QUANTITY INDICATOR VERTICAL VELOCITY INDICATOR The Fuel Quantity Indicator can be the This gauge indicates your rate of climb or most important instrument onboard the descent. The numbers represent 1000s of aircraft at times, especially when it’s dark ft./ minute. For example if the needle was and you’re a long way from home. pointed at the number 2, this indicates you are climbing (or diving) at a rate of Total Fuel State Indicator 2,000 feet per minute. The top five-digit window states the total amount of fuel currently onboard the AIR SPEED INDICATOR aircraft. This figure represents your fuel Your air speed indicator displays your state as measured in pounds (not current speed in KIAS. Notice that as you gallons). increase in altitude, these numbers make Bingo Fuel Indicator it appear that you are going slower. This is not the case. Check your airspeed The number directly below your total fuel indicated here with your true airspeed state indicator is your Bingo Fuel mark. (TAS) displayed on the Horizontal This number represents the minimum Situation Display (HSD). amount of fuel needed your you to return safely to the carrier. When you reach this RADAR ALTIMETER number during the course of mission, it’s time to turn around and head home- This gauge is a radar altimeter which immediately! displays your Above-Ground-Level (AGL) altitude. Note the subtle difference Left/Right Engine Fuel Indicators between AGL and ASL (Above-Sea- Your total fuel state figure is divided up Level). If you can’t grasp the concept, between your two engines. The fuel is not don’t fly over mountains in the dark. This transferable between engines should one altimeter is connected to a Terrain get knocked out. Following Radar (TFR) and will register AGL readings as high as 3000 feet.

LEFT INSTRUMENTATION PANEL ALTIMETER Unlike the radar altimeter, your standard altimeter measures Above-Sea-Level Air Vertical Speed (ASL) readings in hundreds and Velocity Indicator thousands of feet. The large number (at Indicator the nine o’clock position on the dial) is your current altitude in thousands of feet. Radar The smaller numbers (at all points on the Altimetre Altimetre clock) represent altitude in hundreds of feet. The Pilot’s left instrument panel. ENGINE INSTRUMENT GROUP Arrestor Hook Lever The Engine Instrument Group consists of The lever to raise and lower your Arrestor three main gauges; the RpM (revolutions Hook (H Key) is located to the far left of per minute) indicator, the EGT (Engine this screen. temperature) indicator and the FF (Rate of Fuel Flow) indicator. LEFT CONSOLE These three instruments are collectively known as the Engine Instrument Group. You can access the pilot’s left hand They are used for monitoring purposes console by pressing the Look Left (4 only. Key). You must first occupy a front seat position (view). RIGHT CONSOLE

You can access the pilot’s right hand console by pressing the Look Right (6 Key). You must first occupy a front seat view. This screen is informational only. There are no “hot” buttons or interactive keys available on this screen. The RIO has a duplicate advisory panel available to him.

The Pilot’s left hand console. The throttle is the prominent feature on this particular view.

THROTTLE LEVER The main item on this screen is the throttle. You can watch the throttle advance and retreat as you press the throttle (- and = Keys).

LANDING GEAR LEVER The Pilot’s right hand console. In foreground is the Positioned directly above the throttle column of lights known as Master Caution- Advisory panel. When these lights are On, you handle is the Landing Gear lever. You can know you’ve got problems. watch the lever move as you toggle the Landing Gear (G Key). MASTER CAUTION-ADVISORY PANEL The main item on this screen is the column of red warning lights. These lights are collectively referred to as the Master Caution-Advisory Panel. When a vital aircraft system is damaged, its corresponding lamp will illuminate. RADAR INTERCEPT OFFICER (REAR SEAT) COCKPIT

The F-14 is far too complex a machine to 9 o’clock and the right edge, therefore, is ever be operated by a single human, no 3 o’clock. Your aircraft is centred along matter how well trained. Therefore, in the bottom edge of the monitor. In fact, addition to a pilot, the F-14 features a think of your aircraft as being the central Radar Intercept Officer or RIO. This tick mark on this line. individual provides the pilot with a second The two vertical bars in the centre of the pair of hands and a second pair of eyes. It monitor (each has 4 horizontal tick marks) is the RIO’s responsibility to anticipate, are positioned at a 300 to your line of rather than react to events. flight. Radar blips outside these bars, The RIO is given the task of operating the therefore, represent aircraft that are 300 or radar and weapon systems. Although the more to your left or right. The full display pilot has the ultimate say in when to pull width equals 1300. Note the tiny tick the trigger, it’s the RIO’s job to find the marks along the bottom edge. There is a bad guys and make it easy for his front- 100 azimuth width between each one. seater to shoot ‘em down. The radar range of the display is 200 nm The two main displays he must operate in Standard Mode. You can use Zoom are: the Detailed Data Display (DDD) and In/Out (Z and X Keys) to make the range the Tactical Information Display (TID). numbers change above the display, but These displays represent the heart of the this has no real effect on the radar range. F-14’s radar system and allow the RIO to Even if the display is set to 5 nm, it is still locate and engage targets out to 200 nm detecting targets out to 200 nm. Range away. settings have no effect while playing with The back-seater has one major drawback the radar set to Standard Mode. though- he cannot fly the aircraft should Because of the display’s orientation, the the pilot become incapacitated. The nearer target blips are to the bottom Grumman design team that put together edge, the closer they are to your aircraft the F-14 evidently chose to leave flight in actuality. This is only true in Standard controls out of the RIO’s reach. Mode. Blip positions in Moderate/ Authentic mean something entirely different. STANDARD MODE DETAIL DATA DISPLAY (DDD) DETAILED DATA DISPLAY In Standard Mode, the Detailed Data (DDD) MODES Display (DDD) monitor is your radar When the radar is set to a Standard Mode screen. It is positioned (in the back seat) difficulty level, the DDD has only two at eye level, directly in front of the Radar operational modes of operation; SEARCH Intercept Officer (RIO). Because it has a and TRACK. Your current operating mode monochrome green background, it is shown underneath the DDD monitor. reminds you of a football field when The radar mode buttons located to the viewed from above. right of the display are used in The DDD is oriented so that the top edge Moderate/Authentic Mode only. You can of the monitor is 12 o’clock (ahead of your ignore these buttons while playing in flight path), the left edge of the monitor is Standard Mode. horizontal lines known as Acquisition bars or “Ack bars”. Position these bars above and below the desired target blip (so that the blip is straddled). Now press the left mouse button to lock the target. TRACK Mode

The Standard Mode Detailed Data Display (DDD) in SEARCH mode displays targets like a conventional radar screen.

SEARCH Mode Search mode is the radar’s normal mode of operation. You will spend 95% of the mission flying around, looking for the The Standard Mode Detailed Data Display (DDD) enemy with your radar set to SEARCH. In tracks single targets by focusing the radar beam. Standard Mode (difficulty level), targets in Note that you lose sight of the other targets while front of you are automatically detected you are in TRACK mode. when your radar is set to SEARCH mode. TRACK Mode is the DDD’s second mode When your radar is active (turned On) of operation. This mode is used when a and set to SEARCH mode, a vertical bar target has been locked on radar. The moves back and forth across the display. radar switches from Search to Track This motion shows the position of your automatically. The word TRACK appears radar beam as it sweeps the sky. In underneath the DDD monitor when the Standard Mode, your radar sweeps a full radar has been switched to TRACK 1800 arc in front of your aircraft. When it Mode. comes in contact with an enemy aircraft, The symbology on the DDD also changes a tiny, square radar “blip” is created. This when the radar is in TRACK mode. blip is then placed on the display in its Because the radar beam is now focused proper relationship to your aircraft. (locked) on one particular target, only that Once you have detected a target, the next target’s blip appears. The radar beam thing you’ll want to do is “lock” it on radar. stops its sweeping motion and remains In Standard Mode, you can lock-up a fixated on the locked target. target in one of two ways. The first way is In addition, a horizon line and Allowable by pressing the Lock/Cycle Target Steering Error (ASE) circle are displayed. (Backspace Key). This immediately The horizon line allows you to orient locks-up the nearest target blip (friendly, yourself in relation to your pitch angle. enemy or neutral). This is particularly important when flying The second way of locking targets is done at low altitudes and occupying the directly on the DDD monitor itself. Move backseat. Ideally, the target blip should be your mouse pointer onto the DDD screen. inside the ASE circle before launching a Once the pointer moves across the missile. This is not a strict requirement, monochrome display, it changes into two however. MODERATE/AUTHENTIC MODE While the Standard Mode DDD worked just DETAILED DATA DISPLAY (DDD) like a radar screen, in Moderate/Authentic Mode, the DDD functions very differently. The Moderate/Authentic Mode Detailed Actually, putting the word “Detailed” in this Data Display (DDD) works very differently display’s name is a mistake. When you get than it does in Standard Mode. Physically, right down to it, this display does not give however, it looks much the same. you much detail at all. Most of the time you Once again, the DDD is oriented so that will be jumping back and forth between the the two vertical bars (each with 4 DDD and TID to get the complete target horizontal tick marks) are positioned at a picture. 300 to your line of flight. Radar blips outside these bars, therefore, represent DISPLAY INFORMATION AND aircraft that are 300 or more to your left or SYMBOLOGY right. Like the Standard Mode DDD, the 0 The full display width equals 130 . Moderate/Authenti In this mode, the position of the target c Mode Detailed blips on the display has nothing to do with Data Display range. We repeat; the position of the (DDD) displays the target blips on the display has nothing to horizontal azimuth do with range. The DDD, in this mode, and rate of closure, shows azimuth (the horizontal location of not range! the target in relation to your aircraft) and target closure. Although the symbology displayed on the Moderate/Authentic Mode DDD is fairly Target closure is displayed on the DDD similar to Standard Mode, the display vertically. The nearer to the top of the itself is set up differently. Instead of giving screen a target blip is located, the faster it you range and azimuth like a normal is moving toward you. Note that running radar, the Moderate/Authentic Mode DDD down both sides of the display are five tick gives you azimuth and closure rate. marks. (The tick marks are directly underneath the tiny T symbols in upper Changing Radar Modes corners). The uppermost tick mark (directly under the T symbol) represents a The buttons directly to the right of the DDD closure rate of 1200 knots. The next tick change you radar mode. Use your mouse down represents a closure rate of 600 pointer to press the desired button or knots. The centre tick mark indicates no change radar mode by toggling the closure, both of you are travelling at nearly Change Radar Mode (Delete Key). Your the same speed. current radar mode is displayed in the text window underneath the DDD. Target blips located below the centre tick mark are actually moving away from you. You may also change the azimuth (width) of A target located parallel to the bottom tick the radar beam by toggling the Azimuth mark is moving away from you at 1200 Setting (Insert Key). Depending upon your knots. mode, you have three choices, Narrow, Medium, and Wide. Your current azimuth The range of the DDD is adjustable. You setting is also displayed in the text window can use Zoom In/Out (Z and X Keys) to underneath the DDD. change the maximum range setting. The range numbers change above the display to indicate the current maximum range. STANDARD MODE TACTICAL MODERATE/AUTHENTIC MODE INFORMATION DISPLAY (TID) TACTICAL INFORMATION DISPLAY (TID)

Display The TID no longer displays pretty Range coloured icons for you in Moderate/Authentic Mode. In this mode, Your the TID resembles a baseball diamond, Aircraft with your aircraft positioned at home plate. Instead of icons, targets are depicted on screen as symbols representing friendly, enemy, neutral, or The Tactical Information unknown targets. Display (TID). In Standard Mode, the TID gives you an unfair advantage over the - UNKNOWN competition. - ENEMY The RIO’s Tactical Information Display (TID) is located underneath the Detailed - FRIENDLY Data Display. Some players have referred - LOCKED/DESIGNATED to it as the “crystal ball”, others are reminded of peering down into a fishbowl. TARGET In either case, the TID is a large circular - DATA-LINK UNKNOWN display and is accessed by using the Look Down (2 Key) while occupying Moderate/Authentic Mode target icons. back seat. Unlike the DDD, your aircraft is located in TID TARGET ICONS the centre of the Tactical Information There are icons to represent friendly, Display. This gives you a 3600 “God’s eye” enemy, or neutral aircraft. There is even view of the tactical situation surrounding an icon to represent targets which are your aircraft. The TID can also be range passed to you via data-link. scaled between 10 nm and 200 nm. PULSE-DOPPLER SEARCH DISPLAY ICONS AND SYMBOLOGY (PDSRCH) Your aircraft, as well as other friendly The Tactical Information Display is aircraft icons are displayed in blue. inoperative when your radar is in Enemy and neutral icons are displayed in PDSRCH mode. When the radar is in red. The icons themselves are easily PDSRCH, the TID screen remains blank. distinguishable. Appearing on the display are fighter, bomber, ship and SAM radar PULSE-DOPPLER SINGLE TARGET icons. TRACK (PDSTT) When you lock a target on radar, a white When the radar is toggled to PDSTT, the box appears around its icon. This makes TID provides you with targeting it easy to see your target it the midst of a information specific to the target you have crowd. locked-up. The target’s range (RA) is displayed at Your assigned waypoints also appear on the top left side of the monitor. The range this display as green triangles. is given in nautical miles (nm). Aspect Angle multiple bogeys simultaneously. H With the radar in a Track-While-Scan mode, you can look over the entire 13LTarget 13 battlefield, inspecting many aircraft Your F-14 12L instead of having to lock them up one at a 9L 9 time. Highlighting Targets [HT] 4L4RIn Standard Mode, you had to lock-up a T target before you could IFF check it. The Aspect Angle is the angle at which you advanced modes allow you to highlight a are looking at the target (i.e. the side of target instead of locking it up. This lets the target facing you). The angle can be you IFF check an enemy aircraft without either a single or double digit value. (For example, an angle of 800 would be setting off his radar warning receivers. displayed as 8, an angle of 1200 would be To highlight a target, simply use the displayed as 12- the last zero is always mouse pointer to press the HT (Highlight dropped.) Target) button located at the bottom of the TID. Now move the mouse pointer over The target’s altitude (ALT) is displayed the target icon you wish to designate. directly underneath the target’s range Press the left mouse button. The target indication. The altitude is given in icon is now highlighted. Press the IFF (I thousands of feet. Key) to identify this target. The target’s aspect angle (TA) is displayed directly to the right of the Designating Targets [DT] target’s RA indication (see the diagram In TWS mode, you are able to aim your below). Phoenix missiles at more than one target The target’s closure rate (displayed in at a time. This is done by designating knots) is centred halfway down the right targets in a particular sequence or firing hand side of the screen. The greater the order (i.e. direct the order in which closure rate number, the faster the target missiles are fired at specific targets. is approaching and the less time you’ll To designate a target, use your mouse have to deal with it. pointer to press the DT (Designate Finally, located in the lower right hand Target) button located underneath the side of the display is the Weapon Priority TID. The letters on the button will Indicator along with the number of illuminate when the button is pressed. missiles you have remaining. This symbol Once this has been done, simply choose the is repeated on the HUD. targets you wish to designate (add to the firing order). Move your mouse pointer over TRACK-WHILE-SCAN the target icon and press the left mouse (TWS-M, TWS-A) button. As each target is designated, a firing order sequence number is placed to the The TID is most effective when toggled to right of the target icon. You can only do this if one the Track-While-Scan modes you have Phoenix missiles remaining on- (Manual or Automatic.) You do not receive board. the same level of information about specific targets that you get with PDSTT, Clearing Targets [CT] but you are able to target and engage If you change your mind about a particular firing sequence, use the mouse illuminate. pointer to press the CT (Clear Targets) This screen is informational only and button. The CT button is located under duplicates the pilot’s panel in the front the TID monitor. When this button is seat. There are no “hot” buttons or pressed, all stored information, such as interactive keys available on this screen. target ID, firing order, etc., is erased.

RANGE-WHILE-SEARCH (RWS) The TID displays only target icons when toggled to this radar mode. Data link information still appears however. Master Caution DATA LINK TARGETING Advisory Panel

The RIO’s right hand console.

The E-2C Hawkeye allows you to fire on LEFT CONSOLE targets based on information it provides you via data-link. The RIO’s left console contains a control panel with actual buttons and knobs needed to change the azimuth and bars Your F-14 has the ability to engage of the AWG-9 radar. targets based on information provided to you via a data-link with the E-2C Hawkeye. To display data-linked targets, use your mouse pointer and press the DL (Data-Link) button located at the bottom of the TID. Once these targets appear on the TID, they are treated as any other target. You may fire on them at your leisure, even if you radar is turned off.

RIGHT CONSOLE The RIO’s left hand console.

You can access the RIO’s right hand console by pressing the Look Right (6 Key). You must first occupy a backseat view. The main item on this screen is the column of red warning lights. These lights are collectively referred to as the Master Caution-Advisory panel. When a system is damaged, its corresponding lamp will THE AWG-9 RADAR

The radar system on the F-14 Tomcat is the operative functions of the radar. It is AWG-9 (Air Weapons Group-9) radar. It is important not to confuse these “modes” an integrated radar/weapon system able to with the different levels of difficulty; track up to 24 different targets at one time. Standard, Moderate, and Authentic Mode. Six of these targets can be attacked Difficulty levels and operative modes are simultaneously using the AIM-54 Phoenix two entirely different concepts. Therefore, missile. The system can also use targeting the term “mode” is always used information provided by other aircraft uppercase when referring to levels of through a data link. difficulty and lowercase when describing The AWG-9 does have certain radar functions drawbacks, though. This radar and its component systems represent 1960s STANDARD MODE RADAR technology, long before the term “user friendly” was ever heard of. It shows. There is nothing friendly about the AWG- MODES OF OPERATION 9 radar. The complexity of the AWG-9’s Standard Mode radar has two basic displays requires a second set of eyes- methods of operation, known as operative and hands. Luckily, FLEET DEFENDER modes; Search and Track. Your radar gives you the option of turning over spends the majority of its time in Search certain radar duties to your RIO by setting mode. That is, the radar beam just the level of RIO assistance. sweeps back and forth looking for targets, If this is your first time in an F-14 cockpit, sending out energy. This is the radar’s you can avoid a great deal of confusion by normal mode of operation. learning how to operate the radar in When your radar is operating in Search Standard Mode first. This mode is the least mode, it is detectable. In most cases it difficult level of operation. It represents a does not cause the enemy pilots to react streamlined version of the more advanced with undue alarm. They are only aware modes. Only after you are completely that a radar is operating in their vicinity. comfortable with using the radar in Once a target enters a piece of sky being Standard Mode should you begin to covered by your radar, the target is experiment with the more realistic (and detected. Detected targets appear on the complex) modes. DDD as tiny green squares (radar blips). Moderate Mode radar represents a big step The radar’s other operative mode is up from Standard Mode but it is still only an known as Track mode. This mode is used intermediate level of difficulty. The ultimate when you wish to concentrate your radar challenge in FLEET DEFENDER is to play beam on a particular target. Concentrating the simulation with the radar set to your radar beam (locking-up a target) is a Authentic Mode. Authentic Mode is - well, necessary prerequisite for using radar- authentic. Don’t say we didn’t warn you. guided missiles. The radar switches from Next to carrier landings, becoming proficient Search mode to Track mode when a with the radar system is admittedly the most target is locked. Enemy aircraft react to difficult part of FLEET DEFENDER. being locked-up. Don’t you? Therefore, it The term “mode” is used frequently in the is in your best interest to remain in Search following text to describe the various mode for as long as possible. Note that Track mode is the abbreviated automatically detects any targets in front form of the phrase Single-Target-Track the 3/9 axis of your aircraft. As long as mode (STT). The STT indicator light, the target is even one foot in front of your located to the right of the DDD, aircraft, it is detected regardless of its illuminates when Single-Target-Track altitude. Targets appear on the rear mode is in operation (i.e. when a target is cockpit Detailed Data Display (DDD) as locked). tiny green squares (or radar “blips”). Notice that your radar beam continues to OPERATING THE STANDARD sweep back and forth across the DDD, so MODE RADAR information concerning the targets is continually updated. Read the DDD Step 1: Turn the radar On (activate the section in this chapter for details on DDD radar). symbology. Press the Radar On/Off toggle (R Key). Step 5: Select your weapon. From the rear seat cockpit you can also turn on the radar by clicking the left The F-14 has the capability to carry three mouse button on the cockpit switch different types of AAMs and is also marked RDR. A text message appears equipped with a multi-barrelled 20 mm letting you know that the radar has been cannon. To select a weapon, press either activated. The cockpit switch labelled Guns (1 Key), AIM-9 Sidewinder (2 RDR illuminates when the radar is on. Key), AIM-7 Sparrow (3 Key), or AIM-54 Note that in Standard Mode, the radar is Phoenix (4 Key). Your weapon selection already switched on for you. appears on the bottom of the HUD, along with the number of missiles (or rounds) Step 2: Be sure the Master Arm switch you have remaining. If your Master Arm is On. switch is off, an X symbol is placed over Press the Master Arm Switch toggle (M your weapon selection indication. Key) or move your mouse pointer over the Master Arm switch and press the left Step 6: Obtain a radar lock. mouse button. When the Master Arm To lock-up the desired target, press the switch is activated the Master Arm light Lock/Cycle Targets (Backspace Key). illuminates. Note that in Standard Mode, In Standard Mode, each additional press the Master Arm switch is already turned of this key cycles through all eligible on for you. targets. Step 3: Adjust the display range of You can also lock-up a target directly your radar beam. from the DDD by moving your mouse At the higher difficulty settings, you would pointer over the DDD screen. As the normally adjust range of your radar here. mouse pointer moves over the DDD In Standard Mode, your radar’s display screen it changes into an Acquisition range is unimportant. Your radar beam symbol. The Acquisition or “Ack” symbol always searches out to a maximum range appears as two horizontal bars. Move the of 200 nm. You can change the range bars so that they straddle (above and setting but this has no real effect on your below) the target blip and press the left beam. This step is only used in the more mouse button. difficult modes. Your radar stops sweeping after you lock a target. It changes mode from Search to Step 4: Target detection. Track. It centers on the target aircraft you In Standard Mode, your radar have locked and remains stationary. Step 7: Perform an Identification, Friend or Foe (IFF) check. Before you fire at a target, it is a good idea to conduct an Identification, Friend or Foe (IFF) check. You are severely penalised for shooting down friendlies and neutrals. In order to IFF check a target, the target must be locked. Press the IFF (I Key) or Fox-2. A missile launch on a locked use your mouse pointer to press the IFF target. button in the rear cockpit. If the target is friendly, you’ll hear a solid tone sound. If weapon are displayed as tick marks on the target is an enemy or neutral aircraft the HUD range bar. The uppermost tick you do not hear the tone. mark is the maximum range of your When an IFF check is made on a friendly weapon, the lower tick mark is the target, two horizontal lines appear on the minimum range of the weapon. DDD which bisect the target’s blip. When The target itself is shown as a caret neutral targets are checked a single line positioned on the left side of the range bisects the blip. When an IFF check is bar. When this caret moves between the made on an enemy target, no lines appear maximum and minimum range of your on the DDD. weapon, the HUD symbology begins to With your radar set to a Standard Mode flash. This is a shoot cue indicating that level of difficulty you can always check your target is in range, and that you are the TID screen to see if the target is blue ready to fire. (meaning friendly) or red (meaning neutral or enemy). Step 10: Fire the weapon. Once you receive a shoot cue you can Step 8: Return to the front seat fire your selected weapon. To fire a cockpit. weapon press the Pickle Button In the F-14, the pilot has the ultimate (Spacebar Key) or push Joystick button responsibility for launching all ordnance, #2. After a brief delay, a missile leaps off the RIO’s job is done once a target is the rail and heads toward your target. locked. Your vision is momentarily obscured by Return to the front cockpit to view the the missile’s smoke trail. Note that your Head-Up Display (HUD). All the targeting inventory of that weapon, as indicated on information you need appears on the the HUD, is reduced accordingly. HUD when a target is locked. For Quick note: If the missile is an AIM-7 example, a target diamond is Sparrow you must keep the target locked superimposed over the locked target on on your radar until the missile actually the HUD screen. Read the HUD section hits. You can only have one of these in this chapter for details on HUD missiles in the air at a time. symbology. HOW TO HANDLE MULTIPLE Step 9: Receive a “Shoot cue”. (STANDARD MODE) TARGETS Wait until the target is within range of your Note that the detect, lock, and shoot weapon. The maximum (Rmax) and procedure can be repeated very quickly if minimum (Rmin) ranges of the selected multiple targets are detected on the DDD. more bars a radar beam scans, the larger Simply cycle through all the eligible the area of vertical coverage. More bars targets using the Lock/Cycle Targets means a greater difference between the (Backspace Key) and fire a missile at upper and lower limits of the radar beam. each one. Repeat this cycle of lock-shoot, The horizontal size (azimuth) of your lock-shoot until you have fired on all the radar beam is measured in degrees. targets or have run out of missiles. Moderate Mode also forces you to take Be sure that you have selected either the target’s radar cross-signature into Sidewinder or Phoenix missiles when account. In Standard Mode, your radar firing on multiple targets. Sparrow was able to detect all targets out to a missiles require that your radar remain maximum range of 200 nautical miles, locked on a single target until the missile regardless of their size. This has now actually hits. been changed to reflect a more realistic relationship between the size of the target and the distance at which it can be MODERATE MODE RADAR detected. One of the biggest differences between Radar cross-signatures are described in Standard Mode and Moderate Mode is the radar training portion of the Oceana the addition of several new radar training theatre section. operative modes. In Standard Mode, the Your radar mode also plays an important radar was simplified and easy to use, you role in determining how far away it can only had to worry about two operative detect targets. For example, Pulse modes: Search and Track. Now that you Doppler Search mode (PDSRCH) is able have graduated to the Moderate level of to spot large-sized targets, like four difficulty, the Search mode function has engined bombers, out to a range of 200 been divided into a number of new nm. Track-While-Scan mode, because it modes. has to monitor many radar returns, has a In addition to introducing new modes of much shorter range (approximately 145 operation, your radar no longer detects nm). targets just because they happen to be in front of your aircraft. Moderate Mode MODES OF OPERATION gives your radar beam shape (an area of coverage). Targets must fly into this area Pulse Doppler Search (PDSRCH) mode of coverage (the radar’s scan pattern) in Pulse Doppler Search mode (PDSRCH) order for you to detect them. is the normal operating state of your radar In Standard Mode, the horizontal in Moderate Mode. It functions much the coverage (azimuth) of your radar beam same as Search mode did at the was fixed at a full 1800. The entire area in Standard Mode level of difficulty, but there front of your aircraft was covered both are some important differences. vertically (from ground level on up) and In Moderate Mode, the size of the horizontally. Moderate Mode introduces PDSRCH scan pattern is adjustable. It the concept of radar scan patterns (the can be set to one of three patterns: Wide conical area covered by the radar’s (2 bar/650), Medium (4 bar/400), or Narrow energy). Your radar now has both vertical (8 bar/200). The current width setting is and horizontal limitations which vary recorded underneath the Detailed Data according to the radar’s mode of Display (DDD). operation.The vertical size of your radar Read the TID section of this chapter for scan pattern is measured in bars. The details on Target Information Display (TID) symbology. PDSRCH provides you with rudimentary target information only. It alerts you to the presence of other aircraft but does little to aid your situational awareness. For example, PDSRCH never provides target range information. Targets appearing on the DDD could be 100 nm away or as little as 10 nm. As long as you remain in PDSRCH mode, you’ll never know. The Moderate/Authentic Mode TID Therefore, once a target is detected, it is showing targets displayed in Range- recommended that you quickly switch to While-Search Mode. another radar mode. The Target Information Display (TID) Pulse Doppler Single-Target-Track does not function while the radar is in (PDSTT) mode Pulse Doppler Search (PDSRCH) mode. Pulse Doppler Single-Target-Track mode (PDSTT) functions much the same as Range While Search (RWS) mode Track mode did at the Standard Mode Range-While-Search (RWS) mode level of difficulty. When a target is functions exactly as PDSRCH with one detected in Pulse Doppler Search exception, target icons show up on your (PDSRCH) or Range-While-Search RIO’s Target Information Display (TID). (RWS) modes, it can be locked-up by Not only does the TID give you a top changing the radar mode to Pulse down view of the tactical situation, it also Doppler Single-Target-Track mode allows you to determine a target’s (PDSTT). approximate range. To change the radar mode from PDSRCH The TID can be range-scaled from a to PDSTT, press the Lock/Cycle Targets maximum range of 200 nm to 10 nm by (Backspace Key). Alternatively, you can pressing the Zoom In/Out (Z and X move the mouse pointer to the STT Keys). Target range is determined by button (located to the right of the DDD) comparing the position of the target within and press the left mouse button. the display. If a target is near the middle PDSTT gives you away, however. of the display and the display is set to a Locking-up a target using PDSTT causes range of 100 nm, the target is the enemy pilot’s radar detector to start approximately 50 nm away from your sounding-off in his headset (just like aircraft. yours does when an enemy pilot locks Range-While-Search mode (RWS) allows you up!) For this reason you may not want you to check on the range of targets to use this mode unless its absolutely without having to lock them on radar. Like necessary. PDSRCH, RWS has three variable scan Once you have locked a target using pattern widths: Wide (650), Medium (400), 0 PDSTT, your TID provides you with or Narrow (20 ). The current width setting specific details concerning this target. is recorded underneath the DDD. Check the TID for range, altitude, and Read the TID section in this chapter for closure information. details on Target Information Display (TID) symbology. PDSTT only allows you to track and by your beam must be smaller than usual so engage one target at a time. Although you that it can be scanned more quickly. can fire any of your missiles using this Accordingly, TWS-A allows for beam widths mode, PDSTT is best used to fire AIM-7 of medium and narrow size only. Sparrow missiles. AIM-7s are semi-active To select Track-While-Scan-Automatic radar-guided missiles which require the mode, press the Change Radar mode full attention of the radar. You can only (Delete Key). Alternatively, you can move have one of these missiles in the air at a the mouse pointer to the TWSA button time, anyway. (located to the right of the DDD) and Track-While-Scan-Automatic (TWS-A) press the left mouse button. Once mode selected, TWS-A is indicated, along with the current beam width setting underneath the DDD. Locking-up targets defeats the purpose of TWS-A. The main benefit of this mode is the ability to engage multiple targets without them being aware that you are looking at them. The key to using TWS-A is the Target Information Display (TID). Be sure that you are familiar with the symbology on the TID especially the information dealing with target A F-14 lets an AIM-54 Phoenix go. Even sequences. travelling mach 5, with such a long range, it’ll be In TWS-Automatic mode, targets are several minutes before it hits its target. automatically assigned a position on the launch sequence. That is to say, the radar Track-While-Scan-Automatic mode (TWS- determines which targets pose the A) is the AWG-9’s raison d’être. The greatest danger (those closest to your combination of Track-While-Scan and aircraft) and directs your missiles Phoenix missile is what makes the F-14 accordingly. Targets nearest to your so deadly. aircraft are usually fired upon first. Track-While-Scan is pronounced “Twiz” by The firing order is displayed on the TID by those in the know. placing a number directly to the right of the TWS-A allows you to fire AIM-54 missiles target’s icon. Numbers to the left of target at up to six (6) different targets at a time. icons indicate the target’s altitude. A target Note that unlike PDSTT, you do not lock- with the #1 next to it is fired upon first, the #2 up individual targets using this mode, so target is fired upon next, up to a maximum of the enemy is not alerted. Therefore, you six, equally the maximum number of can fire on targets in TWS-A mode and Phoenix missiles carried by the F-14. they may not even see it coming. This As you fire your Phoenix missiles, targets makes TWS-A the radar mode of choice move up in the firing order and are when launching missiles at BVR (beyond renumbered. The #3 target becomes the visual range) targets. #2 target , the #2 target becomes the #1 In order to keep track of so many targets at target, and so on. You can never have once, the AWG-9 radar needs to be updated more targets occupying positions in the with fresh targeting information every two firing order than you have AIM-54 Phoenix seconds. This means that the area covered missiles. Track-While-Scan-Manual (TWS-M) allows you to instantly get a radar lock on mode any target that is directly in front of your Track-While-Scan-Manual mode functions aircraft. exactly the same as Track-While-Scan- Automatic, with one important difference. Whereas TWS-A designated targets for you and assigned them a position in the firing sequence, Track-While-Scan- Manual mode makes you responsible for prioritising the targets, hence the term “manual”. Track-While-Scan-Manual mode (TWS-M) allows you (forces you) to decide which targets you will fire on and in what order. The Moderate/Authentic Mode HUD To designate targets in TWS-M mode, showing the Boresight circle. simply move your mouse pointer to the button marked DT (Designate Target). The DT button is located beneath the To change the radar to Boresight mode circular TID screen. Press the left mouse (BRST), press the Boresight/VSL button when the pointer is resting on the Toggle (End Key). As you may guess, DT button. The DT button turns red this key toggles between Boresight mode signifying that you are in the process of and Vertical Scan Lock-On mode (VSL). designated targets. Continue to press the toggle until the letters BRST appears in the window Once you have pressed the DT button, beneath the DDD. move the mouse pointer over to the target icon on the TID you wish to designate. Boresight mode focuses your radar beam Press the left mouse button again. The along the heading of your aircraft. When target you have designated is assigned a your radar is in Boresight mode, a circular number indicating its place in the firing boresight indicator appears in the centre order. If this is the first target you have of your HUD. In addition to the circular designated, a number one (1) appears to HUD boresight, the Boresight indicator in the right of the target icon. the pilot’s cockpit illuminates. You may continue to designate targets up Any aircraft (friendly or enemy) that to the number of AIM -54 Phoenix ventures into or is manoeuvred inside this missiles you have remaining. TWS modes circle is automatically locked-up on your (Automatic and Manual) are only relevant radar. You do not have to press a key. when you are carrying AIM-54 Phoenix The BRST circle automatically changes missiles. to a target diamond when the target is locked. However, the maximum range of Boresight (BRST) mode Boresight mode is 5 nautical miles. That is to say, a target must be within 5 nm of Boresight mode (BRST) is designed your aircraft and within the BRST circle in specifically to aid the pilot in the fast- order to be locked-up. paced environment of modern air combat. Boresight mode allows you to lock-up an This mode is also very useful in picking a enemy without going through normal specific target out of a group of aircraft. If step-by-step radar procedures. It is a more than one aircraft is located inside close-quarter dogfighting mode that the BRST circle, the target aircraft nearest your own is the one that is locked. on either side is great. Again, like Boresight mode, VSL is range restricted Vertical Scan Lock-On (VSL) mode to 5 nm or less. Note that you cannot further elevate the beam by pressing keys normally used to raise or lower the beam. VSL limits the vertical scan parameters to -150 and +550.

OPERATING THE MODERATE MODE RADAR Step 1: Turn the radar on. Press the Radar On/Off Toggle (R Key). From the rear seat cockpit screen you The Moderate/Authentic Mode HUD can turn on the radar by clicking the left showing the Vertical Scan Lock-on (VSL) mouse button on the cockpit switch diamond. marked RDR. A text message appears letting you know that the radar has been activated. The cockpit switch labelled Like BRST, Vertical Scan Lock-On mode RDR illuminates when the radar is on and (VSL) is another radar mode used almost the beam can be seen sweeping back exclusively in the tight turning confines of and forth on the DDD. a high G dogfight. VSL causes the radar to sweep in an up and down motion rather Step 2: Be sure the Master Arm switch than in the normal left to right fashion. is on. The gimbal limits of your radar in VSL are 0 0 Press the Master Arm Switch toggle (M -15 down and +55 up. In a turning Key) or move your mouse pointer over dogfight, with your aircraft in a high G 0 the Master Arm switch and press the left bank, being able to sweep at +55 almost mouse button. When the Master Arm gives your aircraft the ability to see switch is activated the Master Arm light around corners. illuminates. To change the radar to VSL, press the Boresight/VSL Toggle (End Key). This Step 3: Adjust the maximum display key toggles between Boresight mode range of your radar beam. (BRST) and Vertical Scan Lock-On mode To adjust your radar’s maximum display (VSL). Continue to press this key until the range, you must be seated in the RIO’s letters VSL appears in the window cockpit (back seat). Press the Zoom Out beneath the DDD. (X Key) to increase the range or press the A diamond-shaped icon sweeps up and Zoom In (Z Key) to decrease the range. down on your HUD. This is not an actual You can select a radar range of either 5 target performing high speed loops, it is nm, 10 nm, 20 nm, 50 nm, 100 nm, and only an indication that your radar is in 200 nm. The current range of the radar VSL mode. Like Boresight mode, when beam is illuminated on the panel above VSL sweeps across an eligible target, it the DDD. It is also shown in the tiny automatically “locks” that target for you. display window. No muss, no fuss. The only drawback to VSL mode is that the beam width is very Step 4: Adjust the radar beam narrow and the risk of overlooking targets elevation. Your radar projects a conical beam 1. the PDSTT mode for locking-up and directly ahead of your aircraft. If a target attacking single targets, or is above or below this cone (i.e. outside 2.the TWS-A mode for attacking the limits of the beam) your radar cannot multiple targets with Phoenix detect it. missiles, or In Moderate Mode you can adjust the 3.the TWS-M mode for manually beam’s elevation by pressing Beam 0 designating multiple targets to Elevation Up 2 (Pageup Key) or Beam be attacked with Phoenix missiles, or Elevation Down 20 (Pagedown Key). You can inspect the radar beam’s current 4. the BRST mode for point-blank elevation setting on the vertical gauge dogfighting (the proverbial knife directly to the left of the DDD. The fight in a phone booth), or numbers 00, 200, 400, and 600 refer to 5.the VSL mode for hard turning degree of beam elevation or depression. (banking) fights emphasising Hint: Adjusting your beam elevation has vertical coverage over horizontal tactical benefits. One is to fly very low coverage. (wave-hop) with your radar beam pointed upwards. This makes it hard for enemy Step 6: Target detection. aircraft to detect you (you’ll be below their Regardless of the radar mode you radar coverage!). Meanwhile, you’ll be able choose, a target must be physically to spot them just fine. located within the area covered by the scan pattern of your radar beam in order Step 5: Select a radar mode. to be detected. This is why bar and This decision was made for you in azimuth settings are important. They Standard Mode. There were only two delineate how big an area your radar is operative modes: Search mode to find covering. Beam elevation is also targets and Track mode to attack ‘em. In important because it determines where Moderate Mode, however, there are your radar is pointing. several search modes and several Not only must a target be inside your “attack” modes. As you will come to radar scan pattern, it must also be large understand, there are pros and cons to enough to reflect the radar energy back to using each radar mode. your aircraft. Large targets have big radar You have two search modes to choose signatures and are detected at greater from. They are; ranges than small targets. For example, cruise missiles like the Exocet or Kingfish, 1.the PDSRCH mode for general long have very small radar signatures. range, wide area coverage, and When targets are detected they appear on the RIO’s Detailed Data Display (DDD) 2. the RWS mode which functions as tiny green squares (or radar “blips”). exactly like the PDSRCH with As long as you do not lock-up a target, the added benefit of range information your radar beam continues to sweep back on the TID. and forth across the DDD, continually After locating a target (or targets), it is a updating target information. good idea to switch over to one of the Always allow several seconds for target several attack modes now available to information to settle on the display. you. These are as follows; Step 7: Perform an Identification, bottom of the TID. Press the left mouse Friend or Foe (IFF) check. button. The HT button turns red indicating Before you fire at a target (or group of you can now highlight target icons on the targets), it is a good idea to conduct an TID screen. Move your mouse pointer Identification, Friend or Foe (IFF) check. over the desired target icon and press the You are severely penalised for shooting left mouse button. The icon changes to a down friendlies and neutrals. To IFF lighter shade indicating that it has been check a target, the target must be highlighted. “highlighted” on the TID (if your radar is in You can now perform an IFF check on a Track-While-Scan mode) or locked (if this target by pressing the IFF (I Key). your radar is in Pulse Doppler Search The target icon changes its shape to mode). indicate its friendly, enemy, or neutral If your radar is in PDSRCH or RWS, lock status. the desired target directly from the DDD For multiple targets, simply move the by moving your mouse pointer over the mouse pointer to a new target icon and DDD screen. Once the mouse pointer press the IFF (I Key). Repeat this moves over the screen, it changes into an procedure as many times as there are Acquisition “Ack” symbol. (The “Ack” unidentified targets present on the TID. symbol appears as two horizontal bars). Move the “Ack” bars so that they straddle Step 8: Select the appropriate weapon. (above and below) the desired target and Having found a target (or group of click the left mouse button. The target is targets), you must decide which type of now locked. Note that your radar weapon to use. The F-14 has the automatically changes to PDSTT when a capability to carry three different types of single target is locked. AAMs and is also equipped with a multi- In order to IFF check a target, the target barrelled 20 mm cannon. must be locked. Press the IFF (I Key) or To select a weapon, press either Guns (1 use your mouse pointer to press the IFF Key), AIM-9 Sidewinder (2 Key), AIM-7 button in the rear cockpit. If the target is Sparrow (3 Key), or AIM-54 Phoenix (4 friendly, you’ll hear a solid tone sound. If Key). Your weapon selection appears on the target is an enemy or neutral aircraft the bottom of the HUD along with the you do not hear the tone. number of missiles (or rounds) you have When an IFF check is made on a friendly remaining. If your Master Arm switch is target, two horizontal lines appear on the off, an X symbol is placed over your DDD which bisect the target’s blip. When weapon selection indication. neutral targets are checked a single line bisects the blip. When an IFF check is Step 9: Conduct the attack. made on an enemy target, no lines appear In Standard Mode, all the hard decisions on the DDD. were made for you. All you had to do was If your radar is in TWS-A or TWS-M you switch the radar to Track mode, thereby can IFF check multiple targets on the TID “locking-up” the target. Once the target by highlighting individual target icons. On was locked, you simply waited for it to get the TID, different target icons distinguish within range of your selected weapon. friendly, enemy, and neutral targets. See In Moderate Mode, your method of attack the TID section in Chapter 3. differs greatly from that used previously in To highlight a target, move your mouse Standard Mode. Now, you must consider pointer over the button marked HT at the your tactical situation (including choice of weapon) and select a radar mode designating your targets, you are ready to accordingly. You have a choice of the fire. As with TWS-A, all you need do is following radar attack modes; PDSTT, ensure that the targets are within range TWS-A, TWS-M, BRST, and VSL. before firing. If you are carrying Phoenix missiles (the recommended load-out) you Pulse Doppler Single-Target-Track can ripple fire your missiles. They mode automatically guide themselves to the In PDSTT, the target is locked (as in targets you have designated. Standard Mode) so all you need do is wait until the target is within range, then Step 10: Receive a “Shoot cue”. fire the weapon. Tactically however, it is Obviously, you must wait until the target is unwise to use PDSTT if other enemy within range of your weapon if you expect aircraft are in the area. Your radar it to hit the target. In PDSTT, the remains focused on the single, locked maximum (Rmax) and minimum (Rmin) target and loses track of all other potential ranges of the selected weapon are threats. displayed as tick marks on the HUD All three missiles (Sidewinder, Sparrow, and range bar. The uppermost tick mark is the Phoenix) can be fired using PDSTT for maximum range of your weapon, the guidance. Since the AIM-9 Sidewinder and lower tick mark is the minimum range of AIM-54 Phoenix are “fire and forget” the weapon. missiles, you can immediately break your The target itself is shown as a range caret lock after firing them by pressing the Break positioned on the left side of the range Lock (K Key) if you desire. These missiles bar. When this caret moves between the are self-guiding after launch. Only the AIM- maximum and minimum range of your 7 Sparrow requires further radar guidance, weapon, the HUD symbology begins to you must keep the radar focused on the flash. This is a “shoot cue” indicating target until the Sparrow actually hits (or is that your target is in range, and that you deemed a miss). are ready to fire. Track-While-Scan (Automatic and In the Track-While-Scan modes, because Manual) mode you are able to fire on more than one target, it is possible that some of your Track-While-Scan mode gives you the targets will be in range while others will not. ability to target and engage several In these modes, you must pay close targets at a time. Targets are designated attention to the target icons displayed on on the TID and given a numerical position the TID to ensure that the targets are in within the firing sequence. All you need range. If targets are in range of your do is ensure that the targets are all within selected weapon, their icons flash. range before firing. If you are carrying Phoenix missiles (the recommended Step 11: Fire the weapon. load-out), you can ripple fire your Once you receive a “shoot cue” you can missiles. They automatically guide fire your selected weapon. To fire a themselves to their individual targets. weapon press the Pickle Button TWS-M is a little more difficult. You must (Spacebar Key) or push Joystick button individually select and designate your #2. After a brief delay, a missile leaps off targets on the TID using the mouse pointer. the rail and heads toward your target. The order in which you designate targets Your vision will be momentarily obscured becomes the order in which they appear in by the missile’s smoke trail. Note that the firing sequence. Once you have finished your inventory of that weapon, as indicated on the HUD, is reduced (number of bars) and width (azimuth) accordingly. settings of your radar beam are adjustable. This allows you to tailor your HOW TO HANDLE MULTIPLE scan pattern (within certain limits) to suit (MODERATE MODE) TARGETS your own tastes. In Standard Mode, multiple targets were At the Moderate Mode level of difficulty, handled easily just by switching to Track you were allowed to alternate between mode and cycling through all the eligible three radar scan patterns: Wide (2 targets using the Lock/Cycle Targets bar/650), Medium (4 bar/400), or Narrow (8 (Backspace Key). bar/200) when your radar was toggled to PDSRCH or RWS modes. When your In Moderate Mode, you cannot cycle radar was toggled to a Track-While-Scan through targets. The best way to handle mode, you were allowed to alternate multiple targets in this mode is by between Medium (2 bar/400) and Narrow switching to a Track-While-Scan mode (4 bar/200) patterns only. (either Automatic or Manual) and by making sure you have plenty of AIM-54 At the Authentic Mode level of difficulty, Phoenix missiles along. TWS modes you are no longer able to select pre-set allow you to target and engage more than wide, medium, or narrow scan patterns. one aircraft at a time. Using PDSTT when You are responsible for shaping the multiple bandits are present is not parameters of your radar beam. In case recommended. you forget, however, the Authentic Mode radar defaults to a radar scan setting of (2 0 DATA-LINKED TARGETING bar/40 ). Moderate and Authentic Modes give you Selecting a radar pattern is not an easy the ability to engage targets using decision. For example, you could conceivably create a radar beam with an information fed to you from other aircraft 0 via data-link. A data-linked target is one azimuth of 65 and 8 bar vertical that has been detected by a friendly radar coverage. A scan pattern of this size other than your own. That radar would cover a tremendous amount of sky. information is then passed to your The drawback to a beam of this size is aircraft. Data-linked targeting allows you the length of time the radar would need to to launch missiles at enemy aircraft that sweep the area. It might take up to half a you do not detect. (You can even have minute to completely sweep such a large your radar turned off, to avoid giving pattern. An enemy aircraft can travel quite yourself away, and fire at targets which a way in that amount of time. are data-linked to your aircraft.) Likewise, you could create a scan pattern 0 Because data-linked targeting is primarily with an azimuth of 10 and 1 bar vertical a function of tracking targets on the coverage. Such a beam could sweep this Target Information Display, refer to the small patch of sky like a laser, updating TID section in this chapter for more your radar almost instantaneously. The details. drawback is, of course, you’re not likely to find any targets this way. AUTHENTIC MODE RADAR Adjust the vertical coverage (bar setting) of your radar beam. Authentic Mode is virtually identical to To adjust the bar setting press the Adjust Moderate Mode, with one exception. In Bar Scan (Home Key). You can choose Authentic Mode, the vertical coverage a bar setting of either 1 bar (the shortest), 2 bar, 4 bar, or 8 bar (the tallest). Note that the only way you are able to distinguish your current bar setting is by looking at the EL bar indicator located on the RIO’s left control panel. You can view this indicator on the RIO’s left side by pressing the Left View (4 Key).

Adjust the horizontal coverage 0 (azimuth) of your radar beam. 4 Bar/40 To adjust the azimuth of your radar beam press the Adjust Azimuth (Insert Key). You can choose between 100 (the narrowest), 200, 400, or 650 (the widest) scan widths. You can see the width of your radar beam change on the DDD. You can also view the current azimuth setting on the AZ Scan indicator located on the RIO’s left side by pressing the Left View 8 Bar/100 (4 Key). Note: Track-While-Scan modes function only if the scan pattern is changed to (2 bar/400) or (4 bar/200). Check the AZ and EL scan indicators to be sure that you are in compliance 2 Bar/650 with this requirement.

This diagram shows three commonly used azimuth and bar settings. In Authentic Mode, you can change the scan pattern of your radar any way you like. CAMPAIGN MAPS

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