Landings made easy | DCS F-16C

[@FLYGaffer]

Getting a few comments on the AOA on final in the video, and why is it not in the middle of the bracket? The F-16 is a different animal from the Hornet. The middle of the bracket is 13 degrees AOA and is the proper attitude for touchdown. However you need energy to flare and soften the touchdown at the end. A preferred technique is to fly the approach at 11 degrees AOA (top of the bracket), reduce power, flare and touchdown with the AOA at 13 degrees (middle of the bracket) as I demonstrate. References below! From a 2020 USAF F-16 operations manual. "Final approach normally is flown at 11 degrees AOA. Pilots will compare the computed final approach airspeed with AOA." From the Lockheed Martin Block 50/52 F-16 manual: "One technique is to trim for approximately 11 degrees AOA and to fly that airspeed throughout the final approach. Attitude/glidepath is controlled by the stick, and airspeed/AOA is controlled by the throttle. This technique allows better pitch control, better over-the-nose visibility, and a more stable HUD presentation. In gusty wind conditions, the aircraft wallows less, and during the flare, the sink rate is easier to control."

[@lbowiejr]

Congrats on 1k subs Gaffer - Grits

[@FLYGaffer]

@@lbowiejr thanks bud!

[@radoslawbiernacki]

That's just perfect learning material!

[@Dropbear64]

I don't agree sorry. Whilst it is a different beast if you trim for 11-13 degrees and maintain the aoa in bracket you will land with less speed and on the correct AOA. You can still flair at the last minute and aerobrake till 130kts and because you are a bit slower on touchdown you wont use up as much runway and can get off sooner. Horses for courses, however don't say in a video that you are on AOA when clearly you are nowhere near it. Yes you can land without trim but with trim is better.

[@ReflectedSimulations]

Interesting how it's the opposite of a Navy carrier approach, where you control AoA with the stick and glideslope with the throttle.

[@38blaze1212]

Best Viper landing tutorial I have seen yet! Most people with landing tutorials say put the two and a half degree line at the end of the run way, but don't tell you how to do it. A lot of people never flew before so telling them whether to use stick inputs or throttle inputs helps a bunch. Thank you!

[@FLYGaffer]

Appreciate that. I am trying to throw in a little Private Pilot level instruction along with tips on how to land your F-16. 😂 based on some of the comments I think it’s helped a lot of DCS pilots which is awesome. I was a CFI (flight instructor) for a few years (still am, technically).

[@sedghammer]

I'm new to the F-16s and flying jets in general. This tutorial is awesome and set me up for understanding what AoA is and how to apply it. Great work sir!

[@ZeuSVI]

There is a speed break indicator up front. It's next to the RWR switch on the left side.

[@mikethrower1]

I was going to mention that also, I think its a black square and when the SB is open it has dotted lines in it

[@gdwnet]

brake

[@jamesmcd71]

***** Thanks, Man!!!***** I'm new to DCS. I bought the F16 about 2 weeks ago. I have been doing pretty well reading the manual and doing the training tabs. But I quickly hit a wall with landing. I would land, but the gear would be destroyed, and about half the time, I would slide off, flip, and blow up. I'm not sure why, but it just all made sense after watching this video. In the last 24 hours, I have 7 good landings. Each one gets smoother and more natural.

[@acidicfate]

I've watched so many landing videos on the F16 and I just couldn't get this thing on the ground gracefully. Something about your video, and how you taught it just made everything click for me. My landings have improved drastically, and I keep getting better at them.

[@Swearinbag]

Your landings are THE most smooth ones I've seen anyone do on DCS.

[@BuyWonderBread]

always appreciate it when people try to teach other people stuff that they wanna know. thanks

[@danagor1129]

Oh nice!!! I needed this so bad!!! I've been struggling to land the F-16 for weeks now, this is going to help with that for sure!!! Thanks bud!!!

[@thecircusfreak5364]

Gaffer is wrecking fools in the comments. This is the best video I’ve seen on landing in the F-16 and F-16 content in general. Your SEAD/DEAD videos are epic too. Keep up the content, people will trust what you say the longer you put out quality vids. Excellent work man.

[@Aspire1-1]

Best tutorial for F16 landing I've seen yet. I can land it regularly but it's not reliably smooth; and this really feels like it's helping. Thanks!

[@AlexanderShearn]

Just to chime in, been flying the free trial of this plane to work out if I want to take the plunge from warbirds to jets in the summer sale, and this video was BY FAR the clearest, easiest to follow landing tutorial I've seen! So much better than the in-game training! I love that you have examples of how to bring the 2.5deg line up/down to the threshold, so good to see 'how to fix this mistake' rather than just 'here's a perfect landing'. Thank you!

[@angryginger791]

It's always nice to find out you're doing a formation landing between clearing the fence and touching down. LOL! Great tutorial. I'm new to DCS (started a couple months ago) and I've been bookmarking your videos.

[@YuriHabadakas]

11 DEGREES AOA! THANK YOU! My landings have been a little wonky lately. I keep coming down much too hard, not really knowing when to flare. I was putting my AoA in the green zone, but I've just tried leaving the FPM at the top of the bracket. And like magic, it's now obvious when to flare, and when I do I make a beautiful landing! Perfect!

[@RoJayEmm]

Definitely the best landing tutorial for the f-16. A big thank you to you. I can finally land this plane with ease. Your other videos on speed and AoA have been great in getting me to understand this plane. Bonnie Scotland salutes you, Sir.

[@FLYGaffer]

Thank you!

[@iKiNGiTGK]

All these "professionals" tryna start arguments and he's literally referencing manuals.

[@dfed0530]

If you take video requests I'd love to see you go over ILS landings in zero visibility. There are others out there but I like the way you explain things and think it would be a very informative tutorial!

[@marriott13108]

Concur

[@robertmantell1700]

He did it!

[@FLYGaffer]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/q6fIfWB-dsR0frc

[@mikewebster2761]

I just started DCS, this was immensely helpful. Thank you for all of your time and effort to produce this!

[@FLYGaffer]

No problem! Any chance you are the same Mike Webster who flies a CRJ?

[@mikewebster2761]

@@FLYGaffer No sir but hopefully he is a credit to his name.

[@therocinante3443]

I've done hundreds of F-16 landings in DCS and never knew I was doing it wrong. I've never gone hands off. Now I can put that thing down smooth as ice, but this way will give more consistency!

[@Mightymoose02]

Yet another great tutorial. You have the best no-nonsense DCS F-16 tutorials. Still after flying the module for over a 1 1/2 year, I still learn many things from your vids.

[@FLYGaffer]

Thank you!

[@DcsMaverick]

this is the absolute best tutorial i've seen on this so far. really help full

[@alecisla]

That wingman showing up out of nowhere 😂😂😂 That was hilarious! Nice tutorial man, good explanation and the visual cues def is something that other KZbinrs don't show/talk about!

[@ChainsawDNA]

Excellent job. Best landing tutorial I've seen so far.

[@Octane_au]

Best, and simplest, landing tutorial I've seen. Thanks for this!

[@Corsair8X]

I can say for sure my landing have improved quite a lot now after this video. Very smooth touchdowns routinely now. I imagine it will only improve as I get better at making even more minute changes in throttle.

[@Danielle-s5q]

Awesome video, I always struggled with graceful landings, now I know why.

[@martinlagrange8821]

Excellent ! Brilliantly good technique tutorial, saved as a reference on my F-16 Tutorials list...going to practice it after work today.

[@traazorr]

Thank you!!! Just got into learning DCS and your right, all the other videos just use acronyms or assume you know what they are talking about in the HUD. You made it much easier to understand the basic principle.

[@fabiolean]

I just started flying the viper and have been having a hell of a time getting clean landings. This and your fly-by-wire explainer have helped me so much. Thank you!

[@wanderlustwasted]

love that tutorial! one of my favorite things about the hornet is controlling pitch with power once you get her trimmed up, and looks like you can do the same with the Viper which is awesome! Freaking funny that wingman coming down like that, haha! Ever since hearing those rumors about F-16s entering Ukraine, been itching to learn the Falcon and just picked it up! Thanks for the awesome tutorials! After learning how to land, going to work through the rest!

[@theclassicliberal1915]

Great video. Added some knowledge that I haven’t seen in tutorials.

[@petethagore6975]

WOW This is the best landing tutorial iv watched so far !!!

[@mazztothemax1888]

Man this is an awesome tutorial! This simple clear explanation has made my landings loads better!

[@MaxRank]

There’s a speed brake checker indicator on the lower left console, it does not give you an indication of how much brake you out, it simply tells you the speed break is deployed

[@effsixteenblock50]

The speed brake is either deployed or it's not - the only time it's in an "in between" state is during the opening / closing.

[@bkpickell]

These videos are incredibly helpful. I hope you start making videos again. I prefer the way you lay it out as opposed to the other tutorials out there. I don't leave these videos scratching my head like the other tubers videos.

[@FLYGaffer]

Thanks. It will probably be a few more weeks, but I’ll get back to it. May post an update soon

[@davenottingham3254]

This is the first time I’ve really understood the angle of attack thing on landing! I manage to land most time but there extremely hairy to say the least! Will be trying this out later. Thank you!

[@takeoffwithjakesoft]

Landing is so far the only use I've found for nose trim in the Viper, auto-trim by the FBW system being good enough the rest of the time. It's possible to land without it, but much easier if you use it. Thanks for spreading the word about this lesser-used feature.

[@wayjet1]

Excellent video.

[@walkerdb84]

Great job, thanks for sharing, you have a talent to teach, keep it up as long as you enjoy it!!

[@Sirrah81]

Thanks for these tutorials GafferDCS 👍! Very helpful refreshment for those like me that have to relearn everything after not flying the Viper for over a year 🙈

[@flipphone9748]

Good video man. Lol funny how the AI wingman came outta nowhere during landing

[@zigzagfly1635]

Excellent t job.

[@sageg58]

you have the best dcs tutorials on youtube

[@FLYGaffer]

Thank you!

[@223frankthetank]

thanks a lot my man, getting back into the viper and realizing my landings suck, i was too tomcat and hornet brained and kept smacking down a little too hard XD great tutorial and explaining the 2.5deg GP marker and how it all tied together was golden! I appreciate it

[@Tiyrant]

Great video! Found this very helpful.

[@coaldoubt2879]

Best tutorials on the tubes 👍 Subscribed

[@billcedarheath387]

A solid video with a nice presentation pace and detail. I think there is enough room and need in the DCS F-16 community for an A/A refuel tutorial that I believe you could deliver. Well, done an I hope to see you continue making great content. 👍

[@julianmorrisco]

Excellent. I’ve been doing most of this but I didn’t have the full picture before so it’s really great to have it pulled together. Mostly, I’d mistaken the angle of attack bracket for the 2.5 degree glide marker in descriptions, the bracket is about 2.5 degrees so I assumed that’s what people were talking about. It wasn’t a showstopper, I was hitting a glide slope of between 2 and 4 degrees anyway, but now I know there was a dotted line to use right in front of my face the whole damn time! As an aside, I’ve been given a fright a couple of times by an AI wingman deciding to land right next to me with no warning. It’s particularly dangerous in a warbird as those things can lurch all over the place if you are a knot or two low or high, even if the approach is otherwise textbook. It annoyed me so much when I was learning to fly the Anton I now tell any flight members to hold in place before I hit final, just to get them to eff off. And if they are low on fuel? Tough. Those buggers have left me high and dry plenty of times right in the middle of a fight so when it comes to AI they will have to look after themselves :D.

[@PiSkiS320]

Really nice channel! How can you tell the aircraft actual weight and what’s the max landing weight on the viper? Thanks!

[@Gates54]

Great stuff, very helpful!

[@thetinomen]

Thanks for this video! The only thing I missed was the joystick RCTRL+ENTER display during those actual approaches

[@MrAtleem2002]

Best explanation yet. Now, can I put it to practice . Thanks for the vid. It will be nice if they had an option to show your throttle inputs during the final to put it all together for me. Yes I know I’m a dummy 😅

[@haroldbatteram590]

Great explanation, thanks!

[@dustinsaldana1719]

Left auxiliary console is the speedbrake indicator. Says "closed" when closed. And shows dots when opened 🙂

[@rent2ownnz]

great job. this the best video on this I have seen

[@Try_n_2Tri]

Awesome explanation. Best one I've seen yet. I am transitioning from the Hornet to learning the Viper. Your series is great. Those landings are butter and make sense now. Sub'd.

[@curth2758]

This is the best I’ve seen. Nice job!

[@raikinnen]

Great work, keep going.

[@homoerot03]

THAT LANDING INTRO , SUCH BUTTER XD

[@fabianwho9797]

Coming from the Hornet this helped me greatly in getting the different process down for the viper! What I was confused about, what is the AoA indicator left of the HUD for? I thougt on the desired 11 degress of AoA it should show a green circle or is this information for a different situation?

[@Callsigntitan]

Thank your for this video, helps A LOT.

[@stevo905]

Best tutorial so far,thanks!!

[@mazinkhurshid]

When you are close to the runway (time stamp ~8:00min, do you need to make micro adjustment to the roll to keep the plane straight ( I see a slow drift when I try it, even not touching the flight stick)?

[@CalisthenicsDave34]

Awesome job. 👌

[@albert91tgn]

Awesome stuff! If you want a suggestion for the next video, alignment would be good. How to align after repair etc I end up just doing in flight alignment and it's quicker than waiting when stored heading is unavailable

[@ralphmaamari465]

Just found your channel, and your vids are by far the best tutorials for the viper. Really practical and enjoyable. Would be great if you'd consider making an overhead break tutorial, been really struggling with energy management specially on the base leg turning final, I just can't figure out how to not completely lose energy and exceed 13 AOA while looking for that correct glidepath. Thanks and keep it up!

[@mojopy01]

moving from the hawg to the viper is proving to be a challenge for me, ill practice this landing . i posted some crazy sideways drift landings. this should make it more easy

[@oldmanfunky4909]

This was very help full to me. Thank You!

[@Elios0000]

great video you any chance on video like this on hooking up with the tanker?

[@chaadlosan]

Excellent.

[@GW2Vids1]

Grandios! My landings were always a bit too rough. Id like to see you doing an overhead break.

[@alvinhall26]

Your video has helped me a ton man, thank you! Subbed!

[@mururoa7024]

Thanks! Excellent!

[@kestrel6078]

Awesome videos! Great work and it is explained so good for me personaly. I have one question left, if i am still loaded with external wingtanks and maybe the 3 Fox3 and an Fox2, i often have an light tailstrike if i set the aoa to 13 or 14 while slowing down on the runway. So whats for real the max aoa i should go? Makes that question sense? i hope . Cheers from germany

[@headintclouds3657]

I always learn something new. Thanks!

[@38blaze1212]

Do you use steering select while landing? You stay so steady, I'm all over the place , left and right.

[@kareemabdelhady9955]

Great videos man , can you please demonstrate how to fly a high alpha pass in the f16 - the one they do in airshows, thanks a lot

[@ClassicCallofDuy99]

im in the f16CM bl.50, i think this was the only f16 available for purchase on steam but i cant seem to find where the air brake key is. does the f16cm bl.50 not have an air break? is this the updated version of the plane or are there multiple f16s that can be bought?

[@fieryphoenix586]

I had the old F/A 18 Super Hornet Simulator, and the only thing I did was take off, fly around, and eject when I ran out of gas because I couldn't figure out landing.

Really informative video. Thanks a lot 👍

[@komrad1983]

As a pilot for 15 years, it all goes down to the same thing from C172, B737 or F16 - doesn't matter. And it is - let the plane fly, let it do its thing, don't over-control it, just guide it to the thresh. The key to any flight (and landing is a flight) is pitch and power. The F16 has a tremendously sensitive stick, so when you control it, your brain thinks of turning left and already sends signal to your fingers (3 fingers on the stick) to move to achieve the turn. Oh and throw away any plastic , light, cheap joysticks

[@sam3d]

im considering a return to combat flight sim now that i got me a gaming laptop, whats a good joystick throttle set to use?

[@rokon5003]

Keep up the great work man, thanks a lot.

[@Leadnap]

You know there’s a speed break indicator that tells you if it’s deployed right?

[@bedrosianpeter1]

Awesome videos man, thank you for all of these!

[@kevinmiole]

how did you line up with the runway?

[@bollewillem1]

When you are wings level on final you only look at your AOA, green circle left, FPM in the bracket, FPM on threshold. On final and wings level: AOA green. Runway clear? Check your gear!

[@cruachanx]

Nice... I thought I was always good, but every now and then I blow it with a bad landing, I realize the mistake I was making by not getting that 2.5° lined up. Cheers.

[@cuttheloop]

Speed brake indicator is lower corner of left console.

[@kemikade]

Does it tell you how far they’re extended? Far as I can tell it’ll only show that they’re out but you could tap them and only have them extended a tiny bit. I don’t know if you can tell if they’re fully or partially extended from that instrument.

[@timbowling2240]

I'm hoping you see this question since the video is 2 yrs old. Anyway how are you zooming in on your hud while in cockpit view and do you have any binds setup for that ? Im using the warthog hotas and I would like to be able to zoom in using the throttle base ( a binding to something on the throttle base).

[@FLYGaffer]

Zoom view under axis commands!

[@remingtonsteele3493]

Top Video 🤙🏻 That is exactly what I was looking for 😎 THX a lot 😃

[@kenanpalangic7539]

My Viper always steers to the side if landing with the targetting pod. Is this normal behaviour and how do you guys deal with it?

[@MenapiaCustomGuitars]

Thank you good sir.

[@kylelaravia1407]

You know there is a speedbrake icon right? Just to the left of the RWR panel

[@Theclipsfun]

How do i doing the speedbrakes thing

[@commanderstud2417]

How do you “lock it in”

[@markrogers7304]

Did they change something with the f16 in the latest open beta release? Before release I could land smoothly but since now the 16 seems to wobbly/unstable coming in,not landing smooth now. Also seem to be damaging one of the rear landing gears a lot setting down even on aoa and glide slope. I never did this before in the few months I've been flying it.

[@FLYGaffer]

You are 100% correct, the flight model changed considerably. Looks like they are getting some bug reports on it. Two observations… it has a ton of adverse yaw at low airspeeds with the gear down now (which makes it feel wobbly). And it’s very easy now to overrotate during the aerobrake and scrape the rear end of the airplane

[@markrogers7304]

@@FLYGaffer Thanks. I somehow missed it in the release notes I guess. I didnt play for about a week then playing the day of the release and was doing fine until.... landing. I was wobbly having trouble holding it, came down and bent inwards both rear gears and scraped the tail. I was so confused. Thanks again that cleared that up.

[@effsixteenblock50]

TBH, it's probably more realistic now. I fly BMS, which is known for it's FM and what you guys are describing sounds more like it is in BMS.

[@stuka101]

Isn't the green donut on on speed which is the ideal AoA? unless my training was all wrong? lol

[@avmn6873]

Correct When the E bracket and the ball are aligned to the middle, the donut will be green

[@Wheelman_PCAS]

For touchdown AFTER you flare, yes! But on your stabilized approach it’s supposed to be FPM at top of E bracket

[@FLYGaffer]

@@Wheelman_PCAS This is the way

[@avmn6873]

Sorry guys, my mistake, indeed with the viper 11 AoA

[@BarnacleBi11]

Awsome tnx so much :)

[@shevanel92]

So i've been landing every jet like the Hornet, but after watching this I buttered my second attempt.