Real F-15 Pilot Dogfights Russian Flankers | Part 1

Real F-15 Pilot Dogfights Russian SU-30 Flankers in dogfight showdown. Head over to maxafterburner.co to support the channel and check out the newest MAX AFTERBURNER merch.
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[@scottcooper4391]

Ground and water has a kill ratio of perfect.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

100 for sure

[@thecommodorevanderbilt]

Sully

[@ssn22]

@@thecommodorevanderbilt that was not a military operation!! 😁😄

[@bigskypylot]

An absolute

[@jasonzacharias2150]

Dude pilot pushed off the plane last second and jumped away before the crash... Ground KD ratio got all messed up, they had to change the black box around and the flight name but it all technically happened, any alternative theory is potentially antiscience and antisemitic and should not be discussed

[@Spartan536]

Here is what I have personally observed. There are a lot of people that are about it being as realistic as possible because that is a close to being a pilot/fighter pilot as they will ever get. The IRL pilots, we see it as "close is good enough" and if its not close and "arcadey" its fine, its for fun. Why? We understand the nuances of real aviation and know that its impossible to perfectly replicate, especially when real lives and real consequences are on the line.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

It's def the pilot

[@ArchOfficial]

A bunch of "IRL pilots" also praised the old Gazelle module as being "just like" the real thing when it didn't correlate even a little bit in any mode. It's not about perfectly replicating, it's about at least being a little bit close. Source: Decade+ in vehicle simulations

[@Lambda420]

Great video Ryan. Putting out bangers as always.

[@Guardian179]

There's all the stuff that we don't have to deal with, that real pilots do. I mean, it seems like experienced pilots are pulling 4-5 G with little effort, but that takes time in the aircraft to get used to. The amount of physical effort to deal with pulling high G is something us sim pilots will never experience. I've got a bit of understanding of getting your shit pushed in from doing boat on boat pursuits, and you'd never really be able to understand just how much it sucks playing it in a sim, even if you had a cool motion rig. So you get as close as you can get, with the understanding that some stuff is classified, and some stuff you just aren't able to replicate on a computer, at least not yet. Those of us that understand this will never make us qualified pilots, but we get a sliver of flying and fighting in these awesome planes, will enjoy it. The snobs and rivet counters, will continue to complain.

[@AdrianOkay]

I feel the same way with racing sims, but the other whole way around, cars IRL are so agile and unstable, you can flip them over on a whim but they also can turn so aggresively, but in sims cars are sluggish bricks of ice glued to the ground, and race drivers will jump into one, say ''Oh look, the graphics look cool, just like the real thing! Look at those water reflections!''

[@betancourtl]

Flanker was refilling flares when he went flew into those clouds.

[@jasonzacharias2150]

Come one dude, Internet comments only... No negative training

[@GamerKRR199]

Greetings Max I didn't know you had a KZbin channel I met you in Tampa Florida at the MacDill Air Force Base in 2016 when you were flying on the USAF Thunderbirds team I have a photo from that time thank you for the great presentation and the kindness of being able to have a photo with you!!

[@Thenonsocial]

Now way bro i also met him in Tampa Florida at the MacDill Air Force Base in 2016 when he were flying on the USAF Thunderbirds team I dont have a photo though but i definately met the man himself, i remember he let me grab his moustache with both hands! It was gnarly!

[@skullhart]

Back at Macdill in 2016 I tried to have a few of the pilots sign my nephews model Thunderbird F16 and the fkn crew chief says to me..."no, because you're gonna sell it" 😂 What a fkn tool he was. So now my nephew has an unsigned F16 hanging from his ceiling.

[@jesusofbullets]

As a prior 2W1 (aircraft armament) for the F-15, it always does my heart good to see pilots loving the jet I bled on repeatedly.

[@vIC_Jo]

Would be amazing to see you and Growling Sidewinder got at one another like they do in Top Gun. Just and idea. Massive respect 🙏

[@xDerHunterHeli]

Like this Guys, i would love to see it bc he already did it with a Real Mirage Pilot

[@D64nz]

@@xDerHunterHeli That mirage guy was amazing. Such an aggressive fighting style too.

[@xDerHunterHeli]

@@D64nz the mirage is WONDERFUL...

[@matthewphoenix6372]

We call his moustache the 'Wings of Liberty'.

[@jasonzacharias2150]

Tampax ultra heavy days

[@SonOfTheChinChin]

wings of democracy

[@misterasterisco5217]

He is not freeing much in the game though lol

[@joem3999]

Wanted to ride it didn't you?

[@warblerblue]

Jed Eckert: How did you get shot down, Colonel? Col. Andy Tanner: It was five to one. I got four.

[@MrScar88]

Red Dawn, nice.

[@thegamingshatt4758]

there's definitely a gunsight on the f15c, in your keybinds look for the modes tab, and also look in the weapons tab, I set mine to the weapon select aft hat on the f16 stick

[@thegamingshatt4758]

yeah in the weapons category it's called cannon or gun, so if you go into closse combat bore sight or vert scan first, then change into gun mode you should have a radar gun sight

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Okay thanks for that!

[@William3000x]

Yep. It made me nervous seeing him shooting his guns with the AMRAAMs selected, instead of the Guns mode. But I blame how the Flaming Cliffs controls were modeled. You don't get the Weapon Select Switch on the throttle, or the Auto Acquisition Switch on the stick modeled for the F-15C, instead you have to press C to select Guns and 3 for the Vertical Scan Mode.

[@Thumper770]

@@William3000x You can map them to whichever key/HOTAS button you want.

[@imaginerc3254]

I tried DCS F18C and F15E, then put on a VR headset. Its like night and day and I cant go back to non-VR. You gotta try it, and best part is, NO getting canopied.

[@einfisch3891]

Imo it's the meanest looking fighter jet around

[@mauryhatcher]

Quest 3 with 2064 x 2208 pixels per eye looks amazing now, you can actually read the small print on well-worn cockpit controls (e.g. the F-14B) finally too! At $500 it's one of the best VR headsets you can get for the price (as opposed to something pro-grade like the Varjo XR-4 at 3840 x 3744 pixels per eye but $3700, or the XTAL 3 at 3840 × 2160 and like $8k)

[@arcrides6841]

@@mauryhatcher it'd be far wiser to save a little bit more and get the crystal light. It's got 2880x2880 pixels per eye.

[@simonc6328]

​@@mauryhatcher no love for the Bigscreen?

[@justotalkalottashit8392]

@@mauryhatcher at 22 bucks for a quest 1 headset + 30-60 for each control, + 16 for a long ass usb cable, the quest one can be had for under a hundred bucks. and you can read the tiniest of text.

[@freshkidjo]

These are the exact close quarters dog fighting tactics that I preach about to another channel. It's not all about turns, getting slow, and all that jazz. in a gun only fight. out power your enemy and use surroundings for concealment

[@jasperzanjani]

I've been waiting for real pilots to play this game for so long

[@krskadave]

I loaded ordinance on A’s B’s and C’s at Holloman back in 88-92. Great real aircraft.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Sweeeet!

[@krskadave]

@@MaxAfterburnerusa 7th AMU. Bunyaps

[@n111254789]

This is absolutely awesome love the content brother!

[@Wallstreet762]

Awesome! I see you still crushing that anti-g straining maneuver lol

[@casey360360]

Dude, you and ATE CHUET absolutely need to make a video dogfighting each other a few times. Dude was a Rafael pilot and is DAMN good. Explains things like you do while fighting. Honestly yall are the match-up I wanna see in 2024.

[@thafunktapus]

dude, this gets a sub. a legit fighter pilot playing the games.

[@beatboxbuggi6884]

This felt so much more real than the usual close-maneuvering fights I’m used to seeing. I’m not sure quite what made it into such a different fight other than the lack of fox-2s but still this was a blast to watch!

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Yo! Glad you enjoyed it!

[@nerdjournal]

That's really cool, dude. I used to love sim dogfights. I remember I bought a game in the early 2000s I can't remember what it was called. But it was awesome. Stupid brain. Thanks for your service, dude.

[@user-jr1wo9ot7e]

Она называлась JFS

[@jediknight4316]

You got head tracking! Nice!

[@user-je5do6jn2f]

Wow, you made that Flanker rage quit into the deck...

[@flymachine]

In short shorts no less, badassery at another level!! Love your work.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

You bet! The shorter the shorts the more badass you are, at least that’s what Marines tell me 😎😂

[@danraz0ralice340]

Sickest thing I see on youtube of all time !! mad respect.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Thanks for checking it out! Glad you’re here 👍

[@KeoniGagnon-qe5gp]

To any one wondering, a su 30 carries a dozen to a few dozen flares, depending on the mission. Cleary, there must have been an unlimited countermeasure option turned on.

[@user-je5do6jn2f]

Aren't dogfights like this why the USAF made AIM-9Xs backwards-compatible for older aircraft? I thought the newer helmets could enable Eagle drivers like you to do off-bore short-range Sidewinder kills?

[@mkatz5988]

Love your perspective! The issue with the afterburner might be that you have to tune your throttle axis, I had a similar problem with mine (couldn’t pull throttle to idle). Also dropping the tanks may also help, I’m not sure what the binding is for that in the C.

[@Gillymonster18]

Doesn’t find out afterburners weren’t working until the end…still manages to keep the flanker at bay. Very nice 😎

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Thanks 👍

[@MurpheeLaw]

Not hearing "OVER GEE! OVER GEE! OVER GEE!!" is kind of scary. lol

[@felipeduarte1997]

Love the video! But i NEVER know where the guns "chrosshair" is on the dash of the plane hahahahaha Nice dogfight

[@Bond.JamesBond00]

"This is off, this is off, no one wants to hang out with that guy." XD

[@slim56100]

Looks like you protected a lot of golf courses there. 😂

[@JG27Korny]

There is funnel (aiming reticle )in the f15C but there is a need to switch to gun mode. If you have a radar lock the lead will be precise, if you do not, the lead is not accurate. In the video somehow the system was not on and the pilot did not use the aiming system. I was also surprised to see the F15 to turn and burn with the fuel tanks ;). Also the AI is very annoying as it does not loose energy in tight turns and keepts its distance as in the video. The AI uses simplified flight model and in some cases it gets OP in dogfight.

[@trpickle7440]

With the f-15c in dcs you have to bind weapon select guns or something on that order

[@ygorgomes5202]

this my friends, shows how bothering an dogfight must be! Excelent video btw.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Glad you enjoyed!

[@unscinfinitydropshippalmer6146]

that other pilot..... went stealthy😂

[@jimechols4347]

The gun funnel on the hud has been in sims since the 90s. Maybe you have to toggle a key on the keyboard to get it to show in this sim. Thanks for your feedback on if the sims are getting close to the real deal.

[@heyviper1238]

any chance you can check out the f-15c in falcon bms? its pretty damn good by my understanding from reading the TOs

[@firetruck988]

It would be nice if you made one video on what's unrealistic / needs improving, just to help the community out. DCS tries pretty hard for realism, so to hear it from someone who flew it might be helpful to them.

[@BillypilgrimII]

Theres a lot of stuff that’s classified.

[@AdurianJ]

There is a "Logitech G Farm Simulator Side Panel" that's great if you want an extra joystick and some buttons without making things complicated. You get 14 extra buttons a joystick and a scroll wheel and it clamps to a desk edge.

[@DCSHacks]

Nice Content! Any plans on bring in Dad to test fly the F4?

[@dawg9]

I appreciate your comment about not being the guy who does nothing but rag on DCS. There are some former pilots in the community who constantly take unnecessary gratuitous digs and jabs against people in the community. Thanks, Max!

[@riphopfer5816]

I know I’ve seen gun funnels in the HUDs of DCS aircraft. I know for sure the F-16 has one; the F-15 should, as well. It must have something to do with the gunsight mode.

[@deadboy9955]

The default keyboard bind is C for cannons. I guess he just didn't have that binding or just didn't know about it.

[@spinningsquare1325]

It doesn't. It is a different thing

[@VarkDriver]

I see they made you take a disadvantage and put the stick on the side. I flew F-111s/F-15Cs/F-117s, all had center stick. At he end I flew Preds and Reapers and the side stick was weird.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Right on. Awesome having you here. Side stick to me is where it’s at but I do hear you!

[@mrhandotnet]

instead of monitor or big curve monitor, did you try vr glasses? you should try, mind blowing

[@DonKlarsson]

What do you use for head movement and tracking?

[@STONERCREEK1]

Linear actuators, transducers, and subwoofers can do wonders for your simulator instead of just sitting in a chair.

[@mettie1982]

Press c to bring up the cannon sight. I have the same hotas and it's the only mode i haven't got mapped. I've just finished the fc campaign for the f15c after 38 hours total in game and what a steep learning curve. Im going to learn the Russian aircraft next

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Awesome thanks! You’re crushing it!

[@cruzhhrr]

There is a gun funnel if you are in gun mode. Im sure you had a missle selected for your A/A. I know that the key bind C on the keyboard will bring that funnel up next time.

[@cruzhhrr]

Out of curiosity, why didn't you jettison your tanks. You'd never go into a dog fight with externals still on.

[@cruzhhrr]

Just what I know from my days on the F-15C/D/E 😊

[@imnotsurelol2737]

Do you have an eye tracker for it? I noticed that the way you were looking in game matched up with your head movements.

[@st_s3lios860]

It s IR tracking. You can see the ir emiter on his left (right for us) side of his headset, and he sould have a receptor at the top of his screen

[@deadboy9955]

There's also AITrack and Opentrack that can use your webcam to track your face. I use it myself and it works surprisingly good for a free open-source tool.

[@titangaming1831]

Question. Why not dump the fuel tanks? Or do they not effect the flight characteristics too severely to offset the damage done by losing the extra fuel?

[@michaelvarney.]

LOL! Taking sips on the turns!

[@SyBernot]

Pull Up, Pull Up, Pull Up, Bitchin Betty is a great interview if you can get her.

[@joeyvw1]

What kind of setup is been used? Type of hotas? And head track device?

[@Monstacheeks]

Gotta play it in VR man!!

[@jowga]

great training

[@attilahun77]

Why he didn't arrange dog fight with true Flanker pilot?

[@crashcrain]

Wow, that pilot totally neglected his six with another plane up.

[@RickyMcGill-qu3gn]

You need to fight Growling Sidewinder.

[@gsmollin2]

This went on forever. I heard dogfights are over in seconds.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

yeah some could be yeah, depends on weapons load outs and rules of engagement. I try to go for guns in most of these which makes them a little longer but not unrealistic if you're a sporting fighter pilot.

[@iamfritz]

BMS' F-15C has more realistic object rendering so it's possible to watch your bandit within 5-10 miles. Jus' sayin'.

[@user-kp8zm1lq3m]

What head unit are you using to view in 3d?

[@QuandaleDingle-vz2ep]

the f15c has a gun view if you get a lock then press the equip cannons button

[@zakisaacson2188]

They've simulated gun-funnel in flight sims since the 90s. Why would it be harder than in real life?? Probably just a setting or optiony you need to find.

[@nobodyjustme7481]

Your simulation video is awesome. If you don't mind, you probably need green screen for your background. Keep doing your great work. ❤

[@alphaomega154]

something i think worth trying when doing a duel with jet fighters, and i dont know if it works in flight simulation too but, you could try entering the zone "flanking", knowing or at least predicting the bogey would enter the zone head on. and then you go very very low at supersonic, very close to the real hard deck, meaning, just over tree tops, and shut off TWS and silence radar in general, ride on GPS and check that you are closing in to the zone's center flanking. and run boresight infra red with your helmet HUD to spot the bogey with infra red. stay very low just over the tree tops. once you spot them turn towards them, stay low, and after you see him within range switch TWS on, radar scan, weap sys armed,and hard pop up towards the bogey at full speed. anticipate to do airbrakes if you see him responded to your sudden approach and pip him. i think this also work against stealth jet.

[@justotalkalottashit8392]

You must already have one if you have your setup like this already, but buy a Head mounted display.

[@justotalkalottashit8392]

ALLl in ....i paid $22 for the meta quest 1Vr headset , $13 for the 16 foot anker USB C cable, and -$39.99 for both of the controllers..i bought 5 "for parts or repair" for $59.99 on ebay, sold 2 of em. ( needed to setup the headset for the first time, there is no way around it). I thought it was going to be super taxing on my system, but even my rx590 doesnt bat an eye when using it.

[@dhooter]

How many flares do they usually carry?

[@mr.knowitall6440]

Falcon 4 had a gun funnel... 25 years ago.

[@sadekgheidan]

Not to be rude in any way, just trynna be helpful to another eagle piolet (i've only flown Cs in this game, never in real life but for many years in this game as it is easily my favorite)... So to get into guns mode, press C on your keyboard (C for Canon). Also, if you want WVR mode (whatever is off your nose WVR gets locked) press 4, if you want vertical-scan press 3. Gonna continue watching now, I can't wait to see what happens next!!! :)

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Hey thanks! I’ll try that

[@sadekgheidan]

@@MaxAfterburnerusa Cool. See you in the next video.

[@williamsekely1476]

A true example of why our pilots will pretty much always come out on top. Superior training and loads more of flight hours. I also like the respect for the investment that we the taxpayers have invested in his equipment and training.

[@gabehartman6832]

Thank you for crossing the BLUE LINE my brother.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

You got it. Thanks for being here brother

[@testplmnb]

No way irl you would have time to dogfight someone for so long i bet you would pick up bvr r73 from his dudes on the back

[@iTube4U]

should have applied for try for the f15-e for better quality and more interactivity

[@bigskypylot]

Notice the drop tanks stayed with ya. At what point would you drop them in the fight, I mean you need gas but what’s the trade-off in a fight (as much as you can speak freely of?) thanks!

[@Colonel_Bat_Guano]

I think this guy doesn't know DCS/the aircraft very well.

[@salaheddinebouteldji2873]

When you see a cockpit as old watches little shop , that mean it is not capable to beat flanker ?!

[@OrionsKelt]

Does a su-27 have like 96 flare dispensers? He had the Hollywood unlimited clip amount.

[@johnallen5371]

Time to Separate the Rock Stars from the Groupies!!!!

[@fortawesome1974]

I don't understand why there is no gun funnel?! Every vid I've seen it has them!

[@thomasdane1781]

Which headtracker is used here??

[@GokantheHusky]

Since you were an F15 pilot. Is the cockpit and sounds true to the real life one?

[@batesestabrooks3774]

Ryan, this is bit off topic, but you will likely be able to answer my question. I'm wondering, can the new F-15EX be flown from the back seat? Are there flight controls back there? Thanks.

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Yes there are! The Air Force keeps controls in all the back seats. I believe it’s only Navy jets that are in the fleet that have them removed. They don’t want WSO’s trying to land on the Boat!

[@batesestabrooks3774]

😂Thanks.

[@jeremybentham7447]

Greetings Max. Calm and awesome, real pro. Please., do you think that the US doctrine regarding energy management affected the decision not to equip many of it's fighters with trust vectoring? Is a pilot more likely to waste kinetic energy if he has TV at his/her disposition? How about if it's in the training and well managed? Would you have rather flown/equip the USA with the F-15 STOL/MTD?

[@Zennitube]

consider dressing up in full pilot costume

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Might do that! Thanks.

[@user-je5do6jn2f]

Man, how many flares did the Flankers have?

[@eeddsdsd]

Yes

[@4hire565]

Most sims have the gun tunnel, I’m surprised this one doesn’t

[@fortdriver]

Depends on what aircraft it is.

[@funkey5901]

it does he just didn't select it for some reason

[@Carlos27thFS]

It does not have a gun funnel. It has a pipper (circle) and a line of flight line.

[@bifff15]

The F15C does not have the funnel gun sight in real life.

[@jussayinmipeece1069]

quick question. Do they put the mustaches on when you join or after you qualify as a pilot?

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Yup mustache comes the Same time as when you get your wings

[@shainemaine1268]

Thought your right wing was giving that tree a trim for sure! So you don't have to answer this, but don't they teach you that regardless of situation if you're actually getting fired on then you're clear to light their ass up? That's basically the way it was explained to me... obviously don't blaze through their restricted airspace trying to provoke an attack but that's pretty much it. Also it always blew my mind that a "normal" aircraft wing can function while true-inverted, not like in a barrel roll but just flying level while inverted - without some kindof fully mission-adaptive control surfaces or something.

[@mauryhatcher]

As I understand it, modern fighters (to include the F-15C) are auto-trimming for you all the time as part of the FCS (flight control system) so when rolling inverted and commanding "level" flight the FCS will auto-trim for that situation to keep the velocity from diverting from pilot commands as much as it can. There's definitely going to be a bit of negative AOA though with trim angling control surfaces to put the nose pointing slightly upwards from the ground / downward from pilot POV, as well as the pilot needing to command some negative AOA as well. So in the end, there's a product of trimmed control surfaces and slight upwards component to the velocity vector that results in a "level" flight.

[@shainemaine1268]

That clears it up quite a bit, basically what I had presumed since I was a youngn'... the elevator doing the bulk of the work to just manhandle the nose "down" with the leading slats depressing to try and make the wings' cross-section/lift-vector quazi-inverted from the usual configuration - at least as much as is possible within their actuating limits. And so I'd imagine there's probably some military aircraft models in which this isn't really possible (and/or practical) for, safely at least! Really hope I'd worded this initial inference (& the question) accurately, took a good moment to figure out a clear way to put that.

[@shainemaine1268]

Thank you! (Like I'd mentioned, this has truly been a brain-twister quite some time for me.)

[@lootbot]

I have a question Mr. Afterburner, did you go through the USAFA to join the Air force?

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

I did AFROTC

[@johnnyenglish583]

Do real fighter jets REALLY have so many flares on board? It seems like he was puking them out for a few minutes non-stop.

[@Raist474]

So when are you gonna dogfight or wingman Growling Sidewinder?

[@jDaniel5721]

Dog fighting in real life looks terrifying. Everyone's hearts are racing, they are all doing their best not to G Loc, while praying they don't get blown up 😮

[@MaxAfterburnerusa]

Yeah think of road rage x1,000,000

[@jDaniel5721]

I get anxious as hell just watching 👀 yikes

[@nasheakins2811]

the rocking the same with the tornadoes

[@Denver-tq3vf]

Bro that breathing was so realistic wow

[@michailleventopoulos2583]

Submarine! He turned into a submarine!

[@DireRaptor22]

LOL was wondering why your jet was handling like a lazy pig and then noticed your full loadout including external tanks! When going against Flankers I like to dump everything and take the fight vertical. Back in the day I played against a real Russian Su-33 pilot and got humbled really quickly every time I tried to fight in the horizontal. I've noticed the F-15 has an edge in sustained turn rate vs high AoA low speed fighting. Great video! Brings back memories for me :)

[@adubs.]

would be cool to see you try out VTOL VR. Its obviously a lot more arcadey, but its just a way more approachable game.

[@M00ZEL]

A real F-15 pilot that is? :)))

[@RowMaen]

How many flares does such an aircraft have? Is this realistic? I'm a bit flabbergasted.

[@ALSPEHEIR]

Jesus, how many flares does that guy has it?

[@user-je5do6jn2f]

The Su-30s weren't using their helmet-mounted IRST-capable Adders or Archers?

[@RogueBeatsARG]

AI doesnt use half of the capability of the plane tbh

[@Brees1986]

Exactly how many flares does that 30 have?