Tips for a pilot noob?

[Blade]

I'm somewhat new to PR and have recently become interested in becoming a decent helicopter pilot. While flight is much easier than I expected (I even find it easier than vBF2 O_o) I've only flew in training servers, so haven't had to roll through tons of fire yet. I would at least like to know basic stuff before I get yelled at in a pub, so some general advice is most welcome.

The main problem I have at the moment is landing...

[MrSh@vid]

I made this video guide a little while ago, it's not great, but you may find it handy.

[Rudd]

I spent an hour or so a month in a training server over the course of 6months, finally started flying ingame a week or two ago, all the practice paid off.

[gazzthompson]

when landing, tap S ... do not hold it down.

[Neo_Mapper]

1) Do not flight straight to your landing zone - longer way = safer way (usually)
2) If someone says to drop him right into the action, DONT LISTEN TO HIM. Find a safe lz and let him hop out there
3) landing: low and fast. A good insertation shouldnt take longer than 5 seconds
4) beep, beep, beep ---> not good, deploy flares and GET THE HELL OUT
4) ALT + F4 DOES NOT DEPLOY FAST ROPES!! (also if others say so)


should be the most important things for a "beginner", I can think of now...

[OkitaMakoto]

Going off neomapper, if you get to an LZ and tell them to hop out and they dont... take off and get out of there. Ive seen too many helos sit and type in chat to "Get out!" and then lose control/get shot down. Your safety is number one. If they dont get out and instead complain about the location, take off and get them back to main base and then talk to them/let them get out.

One other thing is when dropping guys off, I try to not touch the ground, this is most important on hilly maps where you can tip easily. Best bet is to get low and let them hop out. If they DO take a bit of damage, they should be in a safe enough spot[since you didnt drop them in the heat] to have their medic top them off.

[Dunehunter]

Some general pointers.

1) Try doing all the crazy stuff on a training server. Flying under bridges, extremely low altitude flying, steep dives where you only pull up at the last second, flying through the streets on Muttrah, etc. You might not need to do it online, and it's probably best if you don't try it right away, but sometimes there's just no other way to escape that pesky AA lock-on, and it's best if you already know what to do.

2) Always make sure that you or someone in your squad communicates with the rest of the team. If there's an APC or AA somewhere, you want to know. A squad asking for a ride somewhere? Check first if they're asking for a hot drop or not, and if you don't feel comfortable going in hot, drop them further away.

3) Flares. You get 30 of them, and you probably won't need all of them. When you are on your final approach to a drop, pop some. You'll be slow and they're likely to know where you are, so this is when you are most vulnerable. Nevermind the embarassment of being shot down just as your passengers drop out. Pop another set as you pull out.

4) The approach: there are other people who know more about this, but make sure that you know what you are about to do, plan ahead. Flying in high, coming to a stop and then slowly descending is going to get you and your passengers killed. Also, keep in mind that as I mentioned in point 3, you are at your most vulnerable now. The times I've flown right into an APC's field of fire with not enough speed to evade...

5) Make sure that your passengers know that you don't have a lot of time to hang around. If they want a crate, they need to let you know beforehand, and they have to be prepared to jump out at a certain altitude. They can always get themselves healed up...kind of tricky to repair a helicopter that went boom. Even when you can touch down, make sure that they know to bail out -right away- and hit the deck. Teamkills as you pull up and swing left or right by accident are annoying, but they can be avoided if they all go prone as soon as they jump out. It'll also help them survive if there's enemies around.

[cyberzomby]

I cannot stress Okimatos point about not waiting for them to get out enough! Just like most of us here Ive seen this happening to often. If they start ranting at you, simly dont respond or dont take them anymore. Its useless to hover arounnd, waiting for the squad or even the last guy to get out. When you feel you waited long enough (just a second or 3) just take off and go back to the airfield or deck.

And ofcourse the training servers for practise before you even try flying in a real server. Transport choppers and choppers in general can make or brake a game. They cost tickets and take 20 minutes to respawn. So be carefull with them

[>para<]

even best pilots have a bad day some times

[Tim270]

A few basic things.

.Obviously when taking off wait until the chopper is fully ready to avoid flipping it on the deck.

.Try to visualise in your mind your flight path(learn the maps) and try to keep in mind at all times where AA/Firebases have been spotted.

.When flying transport Helo your first prioirty is to get troops from A to B alive, so pick a good LZ, not a ninja insertion move that is going to get them raped within 2 secs, but not to far back.

.On Muttrah especially, always use flares as soon as you get on/near land! Do this to pre-empt a AA lock.

[Blade]

Thanks for all of the tips so far, it's telling me a lot.

I searched youtube and whatnot but PR likes to come up as Puerto Rico(haha), and 'Project Reality' didn't yield much.

[EgoTrippin]

what i do personally.. train on empty servers rather then the training servers.

the training servers are good for the very basic training but on those maps you can not train how to land on a small roof, fly low in the cities etc. you should do this on all city maps.. look where good landing spots are on each map and from which direct to approach them and so on

[HunterMed]

If you approach a LZ, for example Outpost on Korengal and you realize it is too difficult for you and your skill - dont try to be a hero but be honest and tell the requester that you can not land there.

Sometimes you have to jump over your own shadow and just safe the heli and the lives of your passengers and not force a landing when you cant 100% do it.

And what the others said.

P.S.
Dont commit suicide when you are frustrated

[molotov everything]

Best advice imo for landing. Is to treat the heli almost like a plane. You want a slight bit of forward momentum , because if you land yourself straight down you will often find yourself to flip over. When on the ground make sure you tap S or descend to stabilize your helicopter. You can use this to land on uneven and sloped terrain with no problem. Again make sure you TAP S accordingly don't hold it down because then you might have too much force and just flip it over. If you DO flip over, then don't give up hope with persistance you can very easily flip it back up, at least with the littlebird. You essentially gotta "wrangle" the heli back up, by holding down or tapping S and moving your mouse in certain directions to gain the momentum to flip it backup right. You have plenty of time to do this trust me. Its funny, actually the looks and responses I get when I flip over the littlebird in korengal valley, (by landing on some godforsaken terrain) and spending the next minute "wrangling" it back upright : P

[Cpl. Mallard]

1) Don't try to show off, ya might get past it, yet you could always screw up. Then everyone will be pissed at you, trace your IP address, burn down your house, etc. etc. And YOU will feel like a complete DUMBASS!

2) Everyone crashes, dont let them tell you different. Every good and great pilot thats passed through PR has done something stupid and crashed (getting shot down is a whole nother story).

3) The BEST way to practice flying in a combat situation on PR is doing it! It's a good thing you've only flown on training servers, dont get me wrong. See i started like many other idiots, in an actual server (MUHAHAHAHAH)! It was Muttrah City, i hopped in a little bird without a pilot kit and before i died from that i managed to flip it over backwards into the ocean. After that it was pretty smooth sailing.

4) You say you have problems landing, only good advice i can give is tap S quickly to go down, if you hold down S, you turn sideways for reasons i don't know.

5) I doubt you use a joystick, but if you do, do yourself a favor and run it over with a handy Craftsman Pro Series Lawn Mower! Keyboards are for MEN (I just cant get used to joysticks)

6) Don't hesitate to tell someone that wants to go to a particularly dangerous area or Hot LZ. My personal favorite saying is, "What the f#$% are you thinking? Pick another spot or your walking!"

Anyways, if you think PR flying is easier than BF2, you sound like a natural, you'll do fine.

If you ever have more questions, feel free to PM me anytime. Good luck!

[TF6049]

Muttrah
-Stay low (under 40 alt is recommended)
-FLARE every 5-10 seconds not behind the mountains and make your runs quick
-NEVER EVER EVER hover dead still - chances are your gunner can still hit the target without you being HAT bait

[Rudd]

Muttrah
-Stay low (under 40 alt is recommended)

unless their APCs are ruling the battle, that will get you deaded

[Blade]

I've noticed funneling is possible in the LB. Viable tactic for CAS or just something that's gonna get me shot down?

[Ragni<RangersPL>]

4) beep, beep, beep ---> not good, deploy flares and GET THE HELL OUT

Actually it's better to deploy flares right before the landing during final approach and during escape after take off.... sometime when you'll hear "beep" it may be already too late

[[A9]Bard]

Listen 2 the squadleaders and commanders and supply them when the need it, pick up squads when they need it not when you feel like it.. and supply squads before snipers.