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>Petites explication de IRON MIKE de HEATBLUR:
assez compréhensible aussi avec google trad...
Set the curve to around 5 ish, let us start from there (you have a good stick, so keep it around linear, our fm allows for that). Make sure you have a small deadzone, or let us say, a deadzone large enough to account for your unwanted hand/stick movement, but have none, if this isnt an issue for you.
Now, first thing to train is not fly level, but fly a perceived straight and level line, in a sense, ofc the goal is to get either climb or dive to be minimal, but what I mean is: don't look at your VVI or alitimeter for the time being. Simply look at the horizon and try to fly so, that you keep it center. First: level, then: in a turn, then: in a turn pulling 2, 3 and 4 Gs. I'll explain:
What you will notice now, is that she basically always wants to climb, unless you trim her negative, in which case she will really start pulling down. and it seems like she doesnt know any middle ground. up or down, all the time. I am exaggerating, but especially at cruise speed she was known to have to be retrimmed all the time and to be unstable in level flight.
So, now, what you lack, is the feeling (muscle memory) to constantly counter these "oscillations", and be so atuned to them in your muscle memory that your inputs get as small as possible, but also that you realize her tendencies before they actually happen.
The one thing you have to learn here, in my opinion from the little you told me, is: do not try to fly the aircraft with trim. That is in general a no no in flying. Trim is only being used to ease off stick force. But you have to fly the aircraft with your stick, 100% of the time, especially in the Tomcat. In Sims however, we develop very bad habits, especially when we are used to simulated FBW with even autotrim and such and such. It makes sim flying rather comfortable and easy. It lets you put flying into the back of your conscience, and concentrate on the boom you are about to deliver. But the Tomcat is an aviatior's plane, in real life as in the sim. This means: you need to adjust your mindset. And the mindset is: fly with the stick, trim only to ease off stick force!
One of the oddest things for most sim pilots who fly out of their wrist (desk sticks), is that when you pull up and want to level, it is not enough to let go off the stick, you have to actually push it actively back forward. That can feel weird, have we been used to the "let go and it will level" habit before. Very weird. And we are comfy ppl, all of us, and we do not like leaving our comfort zone. So whenever I fly with folks in the Tomcat, this is one of the prime things I spot. She shows you, no, she screams at you: hey, look! I am climbing! Do something! But the pilot just does not move the stick. At all. Well: she will continue to climb. And this goes on all the time, every single moment, just that when you see someone fly beautifully level and coordinated in his turns, it means that it is going on on such a small level, that it is barely noticeable.
So: start big. Up and down, like a "madman", when you start the level training. Allow yourself to get a feel for your active stick range back and forward, bring it in, pull it back, gradually slowly, see how she climbs, and then push it back down, yes negative G if necessary, stick forward and see how you counter that, but you must always counter it, that is the practice. And then get smaller, and smaller, and smaller, and smaller yet. And keep doing it. It will not come to you overnight, but if you keep at it, it will make "click" soon enough, I can promise you that.
I can assure you, it can be flown nicely with any stick, if you have adopted that mindset. Breathe and have a lose grip on the stick for maximum feel. You should be able to fly a case 1 with 2 fingers, and I assure I can, it wont be just as beautiful and precise, and thats not what you should train for, but that is how light your grip should be. But the most important thing is: you can never let go, never give up to work your throttle and stick at all times. Even if barely, but work it you must. Only AP engaged lets you let go of that, and even then you have to work your throttle.
And what you said about "taking your eyes off", is much like when you start driving a car: remember how often you hear "eyes on the road" in the beginning? Because you do not have developed yet the sense to drive straight without looking at the road. In time, you eat, phone and roll a cigarette while driving 250 on the autobahn, if you catch my drift (srsly, pls dont do that irl). It is much like that in the Tomcat, only that you didnt have a driving teacher so far, and most likely never developed that proper feel for her because of it.
I won't have time before christmas, but after the holidays, sometime in January, I'll fly with you, if you want, and take a look and help you correct bad habits and dial down the input you need to get a good grip of her.
Now, this has been a wall of text, alright. But don't be scared off by it. This wall of text makes it look harder than it is. It just requires the right practice, which in your case I'd "prescribe" as follows:
1. Get a feel for its range of stick movement, while pulling back and pushing forward again, from up to down and back all the way. The only rule here: every up movement has to be countered by a down movement and vice versa. Do it fast, do it slow, do it very slow, do it hard, do it smoothly, in short: get a feel for it.
2. Rinse and repeat and every time you do it, get smaller and smaller, until you get so small, that you basically fly level. (ofc, at one point you won't have to counter, what you do not induce, so your inputs will not only get smaller, but less, and trim will become more helpful, with small, few stick inputs and small re-trims when necessary. this is a heads up, this won't happen for a while...)
3. Now try to fly level, by concentrating on the horizon, dont look at your instruments, just fly more and think about it less and less, keep the horizon level is all, do it until you are happy with it, make it your second nature. Trim to ease off stick force if necessary, but fly with your stick.
4. Now do all that level elegance you just learned in coordinated turns, just level, then with Gs. 2 Gs, 2.5 Gs, 3 Gs, 3.5 Gs, 4Gs, 4.5 Gs if you like up to 6.5, but note: the more Gs you pull, the less you will train your basic stick work, but more advanced energy management. My advice. Go to up to 4.5 for this exercise, not more. And note what she does at each G setting, the rattle, the buffet. Remember it: it will serve you later on as a second G-Meter... Additionally, train coordinated turns at high AOAs (this is the final step though!), and learn to use rudder instead of bank for situations where you want to avoid roll reversal.
5. Once, and only once you feel comfy with all that, start incorporating a cockpit instrument scan, that makes sense to you, look level, look at the altimeter, look level, look at the speed indicator, look level, look at the G meter... etc etc... And then start taking this into your account as well. It is totally fine that you peaked on your instruments in the previous steps, it is good even if you did. But now we look at them with more purpose: you see the altimeter dive, pull back, like you just learned and so on. At the end, putting all this together will make you an extremely aware pilot. And only aware pilots are good pilots.
6. Lastly, "100%-exact-all-the-time-robot-like-AP-like-level-flight" can never be achieved. So don't beat yourself up about it. Rather: set your standard by setting parameters. In the beginning: try staying within +/- 200 feet of your target altitude. (note, after step 4, when you start incorporating gauges into your workflow again), then set your parameters to +/- 100 feet, then 50 feet and eventually 10 feet. Don't get mad if you break them, and give up, and go "aaargh". No. Correct the mistake, bring it back into your parameters. Once you are at 10 feet, depending on the situation, you will break it a lot. No matter how good you are, and that is ok. It is a guideline. And say in a dogfight it matters feck anything anyway, but what will help, is all that stick feeling you will have gained through that training.
Hope it helps! Have fun, as always, the journey is the goal
et te feras prendre de bonnes habitude dans le Tomcat (comme les vrais) en regardant que l’extérieure, l'AoA, la vitesse et de temps en temps l'altitude