The GT FAQ 'Must Know Sections' - Flight simulation formulas and tips |
FAQ Tips LIB Masters |
Tools | No other LIB or maker offers such a range of modifications like the pioneering GT LIB, nobody. |
References | links / bookmarks hundreds of sites! |
for most up to date notes check the scrap file | for the most up to date specs examine the latest GT lib / source |
GT Libs are also heavily tested on low end machines: P200 32meg, win9x for maximum compatibility | |
Game Limitations - biggest bug - SCALE of objects | |
Lost your sound? How to get it back | |
Screen capturing | toolkit object type - fighter to bomber etc |
Envelopes | engines / horsepower |
Loaded reductions | AoA relation to G |
Hit bubbles / | Glide and climb bank angles |
SAMs guns | SAM evasive tactics |
Toolkit guides | new textures |
drag coefficient | fuel weight conversions, use |
loaded | |
G vs Stall speeds | Vne max speed |
visual seekers / doppler etc | huds |
lite planes tweak bullet weight bug | |
todo list for next release |
Disclaimer:
"I 'd rather fly, fix ATFG & FA, help others
enjoy it, than build fancy web pages" So please mind the mess and
don't expect JAVA, Active X or Sound files. Hi-fi Realism is my priority.
Designer's Oath:
"Everything is made as accurate as time merits by using
verifiable public data."
Emphasis is on high realism, high quality and 'feel' not on
looks and cosmetics.
Galen Thurber is the Libmaster
This is how much time I have spent on just testing and creating these
libs for you, free: over 1000 hours
I do this because:
'Life is much more interesting than fiction.. and when you cheat and lie you always have to remember too much! Be true. Free thought, free speech, free world'
References:
raw directory for your browsing (colour chips, specs scans..)
Multi playing requires you all to have the same set of lib files.
Addon planes do not show up
Only the most recent lib file data will get used. If you have 2 libs
with both a Mig29M in it only the newest will show up.
Be sure to 'older' date stamp your ATFG or FA lib files so they can
be ignored by newer data if needed.
Lost your sound?
Restart game, if that does not work delete your ea.cfg file
Copy your good ea.cfg
If you lose your sound just overwrite ea.cfg with good copy
Don't keep ATFG or FA running before launching from:
Screen capturing
control shift-alt-V
convert RAW to BMP file
[associate .raw with this app]
convert BMP to PNG
with IVIEW [PNG is very good for Janes screen caps in web pages - better
than GIF or JPG]
Pirated / Burned CD users - you will experience problems if you have stolen either of these games, I won't support you in any way.
You don't have the proper or cool shapes!
Shapes / ICON are really a low priority, my efforts will be placed
on accuracy and feel 1st, eye candy 2nd.
Jane's & Toolkit Limitations / nuances:
I spotted a discussion again about scale being way off in the game. This has been known for some time, my observations have been that only objects are 4 TIMES actual size [except for non carrier ships]. GT libs have always taken this into consideration for hit points, final tracking, hit bubbles. Altitudes, ranges, speeds are precise.
More toolkit tips Psycho's LibFAQ page
Envelope editing tips:
starter's rough guide [do not attempt envelope editing
unless you can afford many hours and many failures]
high speed envelopes:
fly by wire and pure hydraulics controlled planes differ in their
high speed envelopes. FBW will have a 'tight' matching at high speeds
between G+1 and +2 & so on of about 10 units, H controlled are about
20-30 on lower Gs and drop to 40-60 at G+7
low speed envelope: 40-70 units between G is common [lower units -
like game sometimes has - is unrealistic]
AOA [angle of attack] make sure A is greater than B -
this is where you make a high alpha plane = 20-30
RCS [info from Kirk 'Vark ']
'Each aircraft has a *.PT file which is the definition of the
aircraft's capabilities.
Open the PT file for the
aircraft you wish to edit. The first section of the file is the
"General"
section. Lines 25 and 26 of this section are the two numbers you are
interested in. Line 25 is
the aircraft's Infrared cross section. A large IRCS will
create an aircraft that is
easier to track and attack with IR missiles. Line 26 is the
Radar cross section. A
large RCS will create an aircraft that is easier to track
and attack with radar
missiles. Conversely, smaller numbers will make it more
difficult to track and attack the aircraft with a particular missile type.'
low speed sink rate polars % of stall [for swept] 10 for low load gliders 20 low load, ultralights 30 average 40 deltas 50 very high wing load envelope tip crash pitch > low AOA + wheel pitch crashing on takeoff? rough spacing 10-30 per high end of envelopes, why? because of control surface limitiations
guns use theoretical pecentages, as distance doubles hit is 25%
GT 22 finally added gun bubbles [late I know]
I use [per pecentile aka 25%]
96%[close], 48%, 24%, 12%, 6%[at max]
Event removal dictates range [which should match range]
Gun convergance should line up if you did the math corectly.
TRICK Gun global hit bubble reduction: since the AIR objects are 2x as big as they should be, select GUN parameter in toolkit to AIRCRAFT hit reduction of at least 50%
weapon hit points - revised calculations
1999/10/22-11/11
use calculator spreadsheet for generation 7+ mods
if distance doubles then damage =
X^0.4 oblique blast area
X^0.33 3d space
X^0.5 2d space
--- vehicle hit points
for generation 6 mods
sam 80 x 1(two digit yr) eg 80 x 1.86 = 148
aaa 90 x 1(yr)
tank 100 x (1yr) x 1.(armour factor) eg=t-90 factor of 5
Want proper climb and deadstick flight? You got it!
Flight Glide and climb angles [degrees]
climb angle formula [re added]
dive = 1 / tan [L/D] climb = INV [tan [L/d]]
wing loading VS lift over drag
use dry wingloading whenever possible WL LoD tba tba
GT libs have been tested to perform correctly for climb values. 714/257 insist these values are wrong and their top secret formula works.
I have devised these from standard Soaring, From the Ground up, ground school books which are not top secret. My numbers match real references. 714 is full of incorrect climb angles, and their dive angles are pathetic.
climb dive chart dive = 1 / tan [L/D] climb = INV [tan [L/d]] l:d=24 = approx wingloading of 6 LD WL CLIMB DIVE 24 6 12 12 6 24 4 36 3.5 42 3 48 2.7 54 2.4 60 2 72 this is true for all aircraft from gliders to heavies give helios climb of 88 see gt-calc.wps [works spreadsheet]
Bank amount [my bank use to be set for when you lose more than 25% of your lift with your wing loading, it gave false visuals ]
Bank angle is mostly cosmetic it does not adversley affect performance, but it can affect AI behaviour
G vs bank angle [assuming standard aircraft values] revised
2=60
3=69
4=77
5=84
6=89
then subtract
approx
30 for a single tail or bomber
20 single tail delta
10 dual tail
GT libs excel in this area that are overlooked by other lib makers. Many cheater libs often will reduce loaded reductions.
-- load reduction formula
rough
(wing loading MTOW / wing loading empty)INV_TANgent = % load reduction
% load x 255 = toolkit value
A-1 spad is very good example, examine the toolkit
Loaded rudder etc. can be played with, some shapes seem to have built in values [eg A-10]
EA OOPS! Rudder specs in FA are backwards, the more power the more rudder
TK rudder tips:
-- load reduction formula roughly (wing loading MTOW / wing loading empty)INV_TANgent = % load reduction % load x 255 = game value or "ballpark" payload (less fuel) / (Mtow-Mempty) * 255 30,000 Mt 15,000 Me 8,000 fuel 7/15 * 255 = DL = 119 loaded drag = DL * % of payload external and % exposed elevator = DL / 4 roll = DL * size of wingspan % (big wing higher value) eg. B-25 100%, A-4 20% I like to use a ratio e=2:roll=4:rudder=1 ..
Toolkit Rough build SPECS notes: KEY Weights are in lbs, speeds are in MPH (kmph)
MACH - speed of sound mph/kmh
@ sea level= 764/1230
@sea level= 742/1195 @ 0c
@36,000=660/1056
kmph to mph x 0.62 - kmph to knots x 0.55 - mph to kts x 0.89
litres to gallons US [4.0] 6.6 lbs. per gallon. litres to lbs x 1.65
range to fuel = fuel[lb] / consumption * 0.15
[approx]
horsepower to thrust H x 2.8 ~= lb thrust [roughly!] HP reduces as you go higher, so make sure your piston plane envelope is peaked not slanted
Trivia: Fastest at sea level
Aerospace Publishing in 1988
1. McDonnell Douglas F-15E
Mach 1.23
2. Grumman F-14A Tomcat
Mach 1.20
McDonnell Douglas F-15C
Mach 1.20
McDonnell Douglas F-4K/M
Mach 1.20
Lockheed F-104 Starfighter
Mach 1.20
General Dynamics F-111F
Mach 1.20
MiG-29 Fulcrum
Mach 1.20
Sukhoi Su-24 Fencer
Mach 1.20
Panavia Tornado GR.Mk1
Mach 1.20
General Dynamics F-16
Mach 1.20
MiG-23 Flogger B
Mach 1.20
Saab JA37 Viggen
Mach 1.20
Dassault-Breguet Mirage
2000C Mach 1.20
Dassault-Breguet Mirage F1-C
Mach 1.20
3. McDonnell Douglas F-4E
Mach 1.18
4. Dassault-Breguet Mirage 5
Mach 1.13
5. Dassault-Breguet Mirage 4A
Mach 1.10
Dassault-Breguet Mirage F1
Mach 1.10
Dassault-Breguet Mirage III
Mach 1.10
Convair F-106A Delta Dart
Mach 1.10
General Dynamics FB-111A
Mach 1.10
SEPECAT Jaguar GR.Mk1
Mach 1.10
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-27
Flogger D Mach 1.10
Tornado F.Mk2
Mach 1.10
Kfir-C2
Mach 1.10
English Electric Lightning
F.Mk6 Mach 1.10
6. MiG-21 Fishbed-J
Mach 1.06
7. McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet
Mach 1.00
Northrop F-20 Tigershark
Mach 1.00
Saab J35F Draken
Mach 1.00
8. Rockwell B-1B
Mach 0.90
textures mini FAQ
import plane lib into toolkit
goto toolkit project directory make a copy
1. the shape say a7.sh to a7e.sh
2. copy its skin _a7.pic _7e.pic add to item.dat file [text]
"_7e.PIC","_7e.PIC","D","_7e.PIC","","1.0"
"a7e.SH","106.SH","D","a7e.SH","","1.0"
edit a7e.sh shape with hex editor search replace a7.pic with 7e.pic open toolkit edit 7e.pic build and fly is that slick?
huds
www2 yak good for ww2 bombers
bare mig 17
ww2f mig21 bubble
cage f117 but no flaps - ir screen
a7 twin with slanted gun=a7
ast solo
b2 cabin left side
ef2 round with solo tv sim to av8
f104 twin long arc with pent hud sim to tornado
f14 roundish view hole
f16 solo bread loaf
f18 arch with solo pentagon
f22 solo 'long horns'
f29 1/2 circle with solo square
f31 solo pent
f4 twin w horiz mounts for square
f8 spade hole with vert mounted square panther?
mig17 oval hole w square
mig21 solo horseshoe with cleaver
su33 twin full verticals with glass, with gas hose on left
yak141 wide arc viewer, blue beware f22 hud is bogus and creates a
hook not bay unclick it on builds
Color Matching
Get yourself a program like eyedropper, use it to match colors in good photos to the toolkit palette color. Note: your must darker your palette choice by 4 positions
Testor Paints Color Charts
Russia WW2
WWII
Russia modern
Gulf War
WW2 German
France
General, NATO
Realistic
Replacements
If you think
you are hot stuff in Janes Sims ... think again. .. try these mean real
life missles! Some serious surprises!
These items will replace existing ones only if your install
date is older than these libs
Janes / EA sim has many weapon mistakes, most noticeably is
the handicapped 'enemy' weapons & loadouts
Toolkit use km/h as the measure not knots.
Test this yourself compare the Janes 87/88 data specs [km/h] with
toolkit numbers, you'll see them match
Realism & fairness are the goals here. Enough of handicapped
enemies from sim makers!
If you fly with these weapons only use weapons belonging to your
plane's country - no swapping!
Notes:
Replacement Textures &
Roundels
included in main lib file now..
F-104G replaces F-104 - ground attack version [my first texture] - tiger meet tail, Europe
Canada roundel OR Canada low-vis roundel - replaces #6 Belgium [tested & works only with ATFG]
CF18D 410 Cougar Squad Texture [game
capture] - replaces FA18D [includes false canopy and tail graphic]
this has been included in the AA series LIB -May 98
weapon speed secret formula:
Jane's uses km/h as the measure for all weapons
object removal range[nm] x 26000 / velocity [km/h] = event
timing
pre
drag coefficient drag note : use 180-220 [GT default] as drag coeficient [not the too dirty 256 default value] rough most jets 40 + 40 per fan / small 60 per variable 40 per tail gliders up to 60
Su-35 [clean] can pull 15G in high AoA at 1020 kmh
theortical formula devised by using the 'Convertion' calculator for G forces vs speed
AoA per second
G= Vkmh / (AoA/90) * 0.0283
AoA= (G / Vkmh) x 3180
eg. Su27 [clean] at 1000kmh G=15 AoA= G =28 if 90degrees / sec at 1000kmh
loaded loaded drag = mtow/dry * 255 * %of payload that is external AoA values corner speed in km/h value is AoA [approx] use highest value +G g-drag A@900 2x alpha 15 220 59 118 14 200 50 100 13 170 46 98 12 165 42 84 11 150 39 78 10 140 35 70 9 124 31 62 8 116 28 56 7 96 24 48 in practice if an aircraft is high alpha it will 'over pull G's' by 25% scale and its normal AOA can 2x or 4x. 12 - 15 su37 11 - 14 10 - 13 mirage 2000 9 - 11 f15? 8 - 10 kfir7 ? 7 - 9 f18 A is for a typical fighter with med speed turn radius point at 450kt] B is for a high alpha, flight control system relaxed other load factors: don't use set values for loaded control surfaces they must be visually tested and tweaked [trades off between roll rate -see movement]
G Vs Stall G vs speed Vs - stall increase as G increases 1 1 2 1.41 3 1.73 4 2 5 2.24 6 2.45 7 2.64 8 2.83 9 3 10 3.16 11 3.32 12 3.46 13 3.6 14 3.74 15 3.87
fuel ---- litres to gallons US [4.0] 6.6 lbs. per gallon. litres to lbs x 1.65 range to fuel = fuel[lb] / consumption * 0.15 [approx] fuel expend REG = thrust / 10000 AB = reg x 6-12 older the plane higher the AB multiplier I do have another calculation around here somewhere :-)
vne -- max speed - have 0G env go beyond Vne [say by 40kmph], BUT limit speed by controls value = Vne[kts] x 1.15 this gives about 20 seconds past Vne
visual seekers all asp 80 type ww1 low-wing-ww2 high wing low wing-jet low-wing-tv-2seat range 3 3 3 3 7 t-heading 320 320 320 340 20 t-pitch 40 60 90 70 20 object 180 240 300 340 400 seekers cone 20 strike 15 std 10 old vertical yr/2 look down MAY loss all A2G targetting all aspect 30-90 [older are more] rough formula 2050-year doppler affects values below 0 nc 1 loss AG, ships ok 2 loss ships, AG some loss 3 loss ships & loss AG above 0 nc 1 ? 2 ? 3 little change 4 A2A lock is slower
lite planes fix /tweak for lite planes (under 6000 lbs) x them by 10 [this will cause fuel tanks problems] solved by adding required loads of 10 tanks. Be sure to make the load factors from the real values bullet weight bug causes MTOW over bullet weight will over MTOW [solve by reducing empty weight by 80% bullet count] bulllets by default are one pound each
----- plane type Thanks to whomever wrote this out ! Ever wanted to give a plane the ability to provide AWACS data-links, or JSTARS ground data-link, or even both? Scroll down until you find the following section: ;---------------- END OF NPC_TYPE ---------------- ;---------------- START OF PLANE_TYPE ---------------- dword $2005 ; this is the line you are looking for ptr env word -2 word 3 The line "dword $2005" is the one that determines what kind of data-link the plane can provide. As you might guess, $2005 provides AWACS air-radar data only. Here's the settings you can try: $2005 - AWACS (like the E-2 or E-3) $4004 - JSTARS (like the E-6) $6005 - JTIDS (both AWACS & JSTARS from one plane!) $6096 - JTIDS / Vertical Thrust Vectoring (for the F-22) so change the line to $6005 in this case, and save the file. Return to the toolkit, build the lib, and you're set.
Skins Funny, I was just doing that this weekend! The thing you need to bear in mind is that your pictures may only be 128 colours. The game uses the other 128 for things like the pointer, buttons, menus, etc. once you have reduced your image to 128 colours, edit the palette so that the colours you are using are the BOTTOM 128 (ie. leave 0-127 free). Now open up an existing chooseac type screnn (I'm assuming you have the toolkit!), and put that image's top 128 colours into your top 128 colours. So you you should have the original chooseac's top (0-127) colours in your palette, and your pictures colours in the bottom (128-255). Once you have this, you can choose to put in the munebar, button box etc. that the originals bring, or leave them out (I personally find it ugly when they are left out, but some people seem to like it that way). To actually add it to your lib, simply import it into the toolkit as an "other" image, and makesure that the "use image palette" option (or words to that effect) is on. Dave "Sick Puppy" Nunez
todo? todo list for R 46 fix helios check IR radar signatures for props su37 su39 Rafs Viggen Gen 8 Aquila 203 french carrier - from vampire 58? j8ii with ge404 no ab test out flyable subs? jag skins flyable hovercraft jag m loadout = done j22m was iar93a+ = done gen 8 envelopes flankers return high aoa 4x and generation 8 envelopes? missles burn time reduction to 2.4-3s for IR, 6-60 for AR how make file list for uninstall open exploder view small icon, select all, copy open text document, paste in replace directory with DEL turn into gt-uninstall.bat
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