Some Military Traffic...

[okami]

I recently had a little idea, though I guess it might sound a bit stupid...

I was looking around in the folders for some reason or another, when I suddenly realised that between all the AI-models there already are, and one or two that I found somewhere, it's possible to make 'token' Air Forces for almost every country with an Air Force back in the late '50s - early '60s. Between the C-46, C-47, C-54, C-118, C-121, C-130, Bristol Britannia, de Havilland Comet, de Havilland Heron, Canadair North Star, Antonov An-2, Lisunov Li-2, Ilyushin Il-14, and the Antonov An-10 (stand-in An-12) and Vickers Viking (stand-in Vickers Valetta), the models basically cover most military transport types in service with the NATO- and Warsaw-pact countries during the classic era, as well as most neutral countries. Plus I saw these wonderful AI-Hastings and Noratlas models somewhere - and then there's Mike Stone's C-119, of course...

But like I said, it's just a small idea I had (though it would encompass a lot of work). And probably not such a good one as well...

[johnfromoz]

I disagree that it's a stupid idea. But I agree it's a lot of work! ;D And you are spot on with all the great period transports that are around. There have been packs for the Berlin Airlift available for some time which should provide a lot of goodies in one hit (ore at least, six or so hits - there are a few packs).

To me the retro period is delightfully laid back - takes me back to when I read "Eagle" comics at school, which any "Commonwealth" members may recall nostalgically. But at the same time a token representation of military traffic adds depth, just as a bit of GA among the beautiful airliners does.

When the superb retro sceneries came out recently for East Germany and the Berlin airports, my mind went Cold War. I've begun populating East Germany with period military traffic as appropriate as possible to the particular field, and likewise put in West German, RCAF, RAF and USAF in the Western sector. Mostly they do circuits and trips between fields at this stage, with a few moving back to bases in England.

It's enough to add the military texture to my FS in that area so I have continued it into Russia (as far as the Kurils). I was able to quickly cover China, Korea and North Vietnam by simply downloading modern military plans and hauling out what I could use, and replacing with period aircraft. I have a nice pack of RAAF AI for Australia in my regular FS2004 which I am also translating for my retro installation - Mirages instead of FA18s, Neptunes for Orions etc.

I have a little JASDF traffic, and AI Hueys supporting Mel Gibson at LZ X-ray, out of Pleiku in Vietnam, and hope to do more there. I look forward to playing with Israel, Egypt and French Algerian military traffic.

Right now I am working my way through a chain of RAF fields from Gibraltar to Singapore, using AFCAD and Instant Scenery. I've pretty much finished Tengah, and Changi is close to done.

Here's some shots of my latest.

Lincoln taxiing at Tengah. A small service road crosses the runway end. The stop sign is a bit whimsical but I am sure they had something like it!


Viking over Changi WSSS when it was a RAF base with one runway. This is a nice model by Rick Piper - I also have them running as AI - no big load as I only have one or two on any given station. At Changi, the Changi Road ran right through the base. Local schoolboys had fun aircraft spotting. The tower is below the right wing, the Changi Road (default FS position) is under the aircraft and the runway is off to right. And I have to put that traffic on the left of the road, don't know how that slipped by me!


I found a pic of a Nimrod in this spot on the internet. To get to dispersal from the runway, traffic on Changi Road had to stop whilst the aircraft passed. This Valiant is taxiing out. For test purposes I have it flying between Gibraltar, Changi and Darwin, Australia, but in due course I would have V-bombers running from the UK down to Woomera and RAAF Edinburgh, where they were doing things like "Blue Steel" tests.


Valiant leaving Changi. We are of course at the runway facing the tower and dispersal. The tower is compiled from part of the nice RAF buildings series of libraries by Ted Andrews - his old hangars are very useful.


Trouble is these sceneries are "fussy" and I hesitate to release them - I use a few obscure scenery sources in addition to the proper "libraries" - a series of USN airship bases contains some nice period architecture, for instance. I also have "Silver Wings" installed which changes the ground textures and, I suspect, distribution of autogen. They are untested with different mesh. Of course I have autogen set low to simulate a less built up period.

But you are right, there are aircraft out there which, if not specifically made for AI, can be used. Some need a lick of paint (like the Lincoln above). Modern flightplans can be adapted to use them and a little creative copying and editing will give you more.

Apologies for the jaggies - cranky video card and I refuse to rebuild just for a computer game! (Prepares to duck and cover...)

[ozbeowulf]

I think some military AI aircraft are a good idea, especially those military transports that were originally civilian. In early WWII, some of them were the same aircraft with new paint jobs, after all.

When I finally finish and release the 1943 Air Transport Command Southern Atlantic ferry route scenery package, it will include olive drab & USAF gray AI C-47s, C-46s, C-75s, C-54s plus some pure military birds that used the same routing, i.e. B-25, A-20, P-38, B-24, etc. AI flightplans will shuttle most of them back and forth along the Florida to Africa route.

I don't think we should go over into CFS territory, because that's already well covered elsewhere. Still, there were overlaps of military and propliner usage, like the CalClassic-originated MATS package already out there.

Here's a screenshot of Belem, Brazil...




Cheers,

Glenn

[Wolfgang]

Hi,

in some of my backdated sceneries
I have added parking spots for military
traffic.
Darwin, Bangkok, Frankfurt and another place
that is in work
It would be nice to have an package
to get these parking spots to life.
Give it a try and you will make many people happy.

Best Regards

Wolfgang

[johnfromoz]

I'm starting to fill up Darwin, Wolfgang!

Bill Holker has had a nice scenery for Butterworth, Malaysia, out for some time, by the way.

I agree that FS isn't CFS, and as I said the retro setting has a nice atmosphere distant from the Gulf Wars and terrorism of today which I very much enjoy. But people with historical bents (and I also fall into that category) may like to see the French Noratlases in north Africa, Vampires and Canberras in Malaysia and so on, they have atmosphere in themselves. FS is what we each choose to make it and I appreciate some antique military stuff as much as those beautiful airports with no airbridges, just eye candy!

I grew up with those beautiful white V-Bombers passing overhead all the time, sometimes escorted by a pair of Meteors - didn't even think about what they might be doing, they were just so aesthetic!

Ozbeowulf, some of those types saw long service into the sixties, look forward to using some myself. Furthermore, the French were still flying AAC1 "Toucans" in Algeria - the old Ju52 "Tante Ju". (Come to that an Aussie was using them postwar in New Guinea, re-engined with Pratt & Whitneys!) The Cal Classic period has some great overlaps between WW2 and the jet age.

[okami]

... Well, I wasn't thinking CFS at all when I first had the idea...

But, well... if you take, for instance, '62, there was an awful lot more variation in types than is the case nowadays (says the boy who grew up in the F-16-era.)

For instance, you had types as various as the Corsair (in France), all the way through to the straight-winged jets like the F-84G, Vampire and Venom, to the then 'new' F-104, MiG-21 and Lightning. Not that I'm planning on making the whole of the Cold War, though - I hadn't even thought about types like the V-bombers, I have to admit.

But types like the Dakota, Skymaster, Boxcar and Noratlas? Sure! And the Ju-52 too, of course - at the time, Iron Annie still had some years of service ahead of it in Switzerland...

I know it would take some time to make such a package - for instance, a lot of the transport-bases are mere runways (not even taxiways!) in the default FS9, though I'm sure something can be made out of it, similar to the MATS-package.

I have to finish off a little project first, that I'm working on currently (tip: it'll be my first classic scenery), plus finish coding an awfully difficult airline timetable, but as soon as that's all done... I'll first have to learn how to repaint! ^^; (At least I can start off by adapting some basic afcads...)

[Harry]

Hi Nikko,

Do I know that "little" project?

Harry

[okami]

Yes, Harry, I think you might know what I'm talking about... XD

Anyway, I've been thinking: yesterday, I did find out where the Hastings had come from (it was in a 'Berlin' package I downloaded some while ago): it's the D-GHHH one. Looking over at Avsim, I found there already are a large number of textures for it, so I'm thinking, as a first step, to write a TT-file and whip up/ alter some afcads, so there's some RAF Transport Command-traffic between the UK and Germany, the UK and Gibraltar, the line Gibraltar/Malta/Crete/Aden, and from there on to Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia. Though I would need to do some research on the RAF's Transport and Far East Commands, if I were to come up with some accurate (or convincing) stuff...

[Col7777]

If some of you remember the old forum, I did this by using some of the CC aircraft plus I used some aircraft from Combat Flight sim 2, I like the idea of mil aircraft, well they do exsist in the real world so why not.

[noisyspeedbird]

I've started (the very early stages) of an RAF 1960, and am starting to make Flight Plans for the few period AI models I can find. Obviously the Britannia and Comet. Also available as mentioned is the Berlin Airlift Hastings.
But I've started at the beginning with two new Afcads, RAF Little Rissington and RAF South Cerney, and the associated training traffic - AI DH Chipmunks and Jet Provost.
Also apt for this subject is a Cold War package of Vulcans at Waddington 1979. Also available is an AI Meteor. The Chipmunk, Jet Provost, Vulcan pack and Meteor are all available at
www.ukmil.org.uk/
Note tho that the UKMIL site is down at the moment while they move.

[okami]

Looks like I wasn't the only one to have the idea, then... ;D

How about combining the things we already have, and filling in the gaps inbetween, then? Yesterday, I whipped up the beginning for an afcad for RAF Colerne, but there are numerous default bases in FS9 which only need some parking spots and minor adjustments to make them 'flyable' - like RAF Brüggen, for instance. And places for which classic mil afcads already exist, but which are barely 'populated' right now - like RAF Gatow, or Darwin - even Hong Kong!

As soon as I'm back at my own computer, I'll try and look around for such 'skeletton' bases which need only minor work to be 'activated' (in very much the same way as, for instance, Ramstein is in the MATS-package) - I'm sure there are lots of them around the 'world'.

... It sure looks like it's going to be a lot of work, though...

[Harry]

Hi Nikko,

Beware you do not bite off more than you can chew,
you have so many irons in the fire yet!
But I think I'm a bit to selfisch now

Harry

[Col7777]

There is a good one out for Burtonwood the code is S590 in the sim, it has the old hangars plus some vehicles dotted about too, It was used by the US & RAF during WW2.

[Tom/CalClassic]

MATS served Burtonwood until 1958 when they moved to Mildenhall:

commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Burtonwood-mats-1954.jpg

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAF_Burtonwood

[jesse]

For those who may not know; Burtonwood also served as the principal supply depot for the Berlin Airlift. It was commanded at that time by Major General Fred Borum, who was on loan from the Oklahoma City Air Materiel Area.