Virtual pilots are often considered as those who were not let into real aviation.
But I’m sure than virpils (slang: virtual pilots) are those pilots who were not given aviation and sky due to some reason. All of these reasons simply can’t be listed. They are different and personal in each case. I’ll share mine with you.
I tried a few times to conquer the sky. After graduation from Suvorov military school I had a number of doors open in front of me but only few of them allowed for complete education of career officer. And there was none that could connect me to the sky. I have to admit I never imagined myself in civil aviation. I’ve visited flight schools twice while studying in military school but all efforts were vain. Medical commissions were implacable. School chief and political supervisor were persistantly recommending me general military or political high scools and, probably, I would make a good career in political direction. Now I can only guess what a political supervisor I could be? Not bad. This is for sure. But I became a tankman. Quite suprisingly but no medical commission was objecting to my choice though I was of no “tank height”.
I studied in Turkmenistan Military Region. Hot training ground at foothills, torrid heat, clay made by tracks into fine dust, chilling mountain rivers and aryks with water so blue as if flowing directly from sky. Airfield by the side, busy all day and night with “Afgan business”. Quite often, as students, we were involved into different (un)loading jobs where I could only touch scorching dural of planes.
After graduation I stayed in mountains but now in Tajikistan which ceased to be friendly republic of mighty and immense USSR, as Soviet Union did not exist anymore. Just difficult problems of newly established independent republics stayed on. Real man’s work in rocky mountains, passes and on border. I can’t say that I disliked that all. Tanks were few. There were many SPAs (self-propelled artillery), BMPs, BTRs, convoys, roads, showdowns between clans of new independent country and… helicopters. No border will exist without choppers. Operability, speed, manoeuvre, their skills, our hope and common courage. I had enough flying with them but I would’n object to fly again. Those who are interested about events in “southern republics” at beginning of 1990s might find a lot of information in Internet.
It’s where I got the experience of interaction between aviation and ground forces. But it didn’t last long. Soon my carrier as an officer ended because of damage to “body integrity”.
On civvy street a personal computer came to my life along with avia-simulators. I’ve tried many of them and spent hundreds of hours but impressions after Flanker 1.5, 2.0, Flaming Cliffs and then Black Shark – these are best impressions of my life after real battle drive, sex with beloved woman and communication with kids. Yes, I can confirm that with all my competence.
Having spent a lot of time online and having passed many campaign I concuded the following: simulator flights don’t have certain golden mean. Let’s take DCS: Ka-50 Black Shark as example. This simulator is very good in many ways! Very many ways. Flight and weapon realism to name a few. But not the environment. There is bulk of missions and quite a number of campaigns were one can get a fun but not “do a job”. There are also missions which will make you sweat when you rush about as billiard ball on a table trying to get into all pockets at once! And there was none that would depict real combat job, not fully of course, but to an extent that corresponds to idea and resources of simulator itself.
Prior to BS, flying LockOn with Su-25 and A-10 I was developing missions for myself trying to make them as under real battlefield conditions but in the light of limited reality of LockOn. I’m still preserving those missions. Many missions. This enthusiasm acquainted me with Eagle Dynamics mission editor and Lua script language. Then release of BS made me realize that it’s possible to make more realistic missions than before.
Here, I think, it should be said what is reality in simulator for me. How realistic is Ka-50 simulator itself? Here I rely on opinion of the people who participated in action sitting with stick in helicopter cockpit. Their appraisal is very high. I estimate reality of combat conditions in the following way: I’m recalling real combat situation from my memory, from my experience and if 75-80% of situation can be replicated – I consider it realistic for BS.
After several years of training (in spare time, not too regular) I came to conclusion that it’s quite possible to develop a campaign that would give virtual pilot a chance to realize how is that to be a serving officer in real combat situation. Of course, it would be more authentic to describe that over Tajiskistan mountains which I know better than Caucasus. But it’s possible to adapt and transfer the story to Caucasus summits.
I made a few outlines. As fate willed I came to know real pilots by that time. One is helicopter pilot, another one – plane pilot. We became friends. In spite of age and distance we had common past, common experience and common recollections. I presented draft project to them. That led one of them, equally as me before, to BS and other one to LockON – he got hooked on his favourite Su-25.
We had many disputes about the project which they supported (and are supporting) with agile interest. Subject of disputes had single origin: what should the project reveal? Two of us (me and “helicopter driver” – as he names himself) wanted to show how it was really happening using other mountains, the one guy (Su-25 pilot with Caucasian experience) stood for battles, lots of action etc. But later on he accepted opinion of the majority. Scenario which I wrote and showed to them was approved.
First Vergeev Group version – without voices and specific design was called Mandarine path. Four missions faced certain scepticism first of all due to absence of radiocommunication. And when all radio talks were put down on paper in realistic volume in line with real situations it became clear that project goes beyong domestic conditions. We edited and cut down the talks. Still: first 20 missions of Vergeev Group campaign contain more than 600 phrases!
After 6 missions were done we contacted DCS company. We received a portion of criticism but also piece of useful advice. One of recommendations was to introduce multi-voice communication. That was done and send again for trial by “elder brother”. Feedback was fast: radio communication does not correspond to ICAO standards. We didn’t object and made over. If now we have more than 600 phrases, then totally with all alterations and revisions they are about 1000. Sound was recorded with real actors. Partly these were students of drama school – people who never served (and will not) in the army. The do exellent job with series but there were problems with military slang, distinctness of situations where a man is constantly in stressed situation. Repetitions, repetitions and once more repetitions... Endlessly sometimes. Not everything was done as planned. Vergeev Group pilots have probably noticed that radiocommunication after 10th mission became much more realistic than in the very start.
And tests, tests, endless tests…
I’m assembling the missions. I record my voice for all phrases and send out mission for test. Comments arrive after test. Mistakes are numerous. Majorily due to the fact that this work was done after main job, late evening and night. Tiredness is main reason of many flight accidents. The same with us. I make correction and modifications according to comments. Test again. Alteration once more and test. Then actors’ recorded voice is processed and test with new voices. It’s actually two tests now – English and Russian versions. Then test of all missions when they are ready and, finally, test of campaign as a whole. Timewise you can calculate yourselves. Add 1/3 (test after corrections) on top and you will get the final figure.
Author, translator and consultant – pilots with significant experience in simulator. Consultant possesses real Afgan and Tajik experience. Nevertheless it was necessary to make test with those who will sit in BS for the first time. Thus we engaged one tester (engineer, aircraft designer) with minimal experience in BS who likes BS as much as we do. And one pure beginner. He gains skills and experience flying in missions.
That’s how it all began and finished with first result - 1/10 part of Verggev Group was released.
In next part of the story I’ll write more about realism.(c) The Author of original content R.Leroni, 2010 UA; (c) the Author of translation O.Schtuzer, 2010 UA.
