f-16 / f-18 groundattack

[martial artist]

sometimes i hear my team lasers shit but these planes dont have any weapons that can lock on laser right? machine gun, 2x AA weapons and unguided bombs is the weapons in those jets. or can u lock on with aa rockets?

[Pronck]

Hey Martial,

The F18 has two versions in-game. The most common ones are weaponed with 2 AA Missile types (long range/short range) a cannon and 2 JDAMs (Lazer guided bombs). In case it is lazed the bomb can lock onto the target. The version without the JDAMs but with conventional bombs often have air-to-surface missiles equipped. Their damage radius is less compared to the bombs but the missile seems to be more accurate and less prone to counter-lazes.

[Jacksonez__]

The "machine gun" is cannon which is pretty damn powerful. Just ask what is the lase and strafe towards the lase with cannon! Or you can try practicing dropping "dumb bombs".

[mat552]

Additionally, please keep in mind that the ability to call for fire is based on the GTLD/SOFLAM, not the map. You can beg your team for close air on Assault on Mestia's skirmish layer if you want.

[tankninja1]

The "machine gun" is cannon which is pretty damn powerful. Just ask what is the lase and strafe towards the lase with cannon! Or you can try practicing dropping "dumb bombs".

With Laser guided bombs I think you need a laze, dumb dropping them they don't seem to explode.

[Spook]

They always explode. They dont explode if you drop bombs too low and they cannot arm intime.

[Cassius]

Also placing the marker does not make a laze. Point the GTLD /SOFLAM and left click. A green square will appear. That is the laze. It should be visible from the plane too. If the pilot has a lock he will say so. Release the bomb.

[tankninja1]

They always explode. They dont explode if you drop bombs too low and they cannot arm intime.

I drop them from ~500m and when I look back all I see is a small tan plume, not a big black plume.

[Rhino]

2 JDAMs (Lazer guided bombs)

Just to be picky, JDAMs and LGBs are quite different things and we don't have any JDAMs ingame.

A Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM), is a GPS Guided Bomb, that dose not require a lase to lock onto and only a set of GPS coordinates.

A Laser Guided Bomb (LGB) uses semi-active laser guidance to strike a designated target, either from being leased by a SOFLAM designator, or from the aircraft itself painting the target.

The main NATO LGBs we have ingame are the Paveway series which you can find more info on here: Laser-guided, state-of-the-art! - Project Reality Forums

I drop them from ~500m and when I look back all I see is a small tan plume, not a big black plume.

500m is probably too low for most LGBs to arm, depending if you are diving, level flight or "lobbing" of course since a dive will drastically de-crease the bomb's arming time before it hits the ground. The most common LGB is the GBU-16, 1000lb bomb which you find on most variants of the F-16 and F-18, and has an arming time of 3 seconds. The smaller 500lb LGBs like the GBU-12 only has an arming time of 2secs however so that can be dropped much lower to the ground.

[Cassius]

There should be some kind of audio cue though for a lock. "I have a lock" works fine in english. But in any other language it could be lost on the player.

[Spook]

Its not like the jet is talking to you non-stop. Its the only sound you will hear so its pretty obvious.

[Pronck]

And I believe the Tornado on Silent Eagle also carries a nuke. It can destroy the whole village in one single strike.

[Rhino]

And I believe the Tornado on Silent Eagle also carries a nuke. It can destroy the whole village in one single strike.

That would be the GBU-24, 2000lb LGB, and it carries two of them

[Cassius]

Its not like the jet is talking to you non-stop. Its the only sound you will hear so its pretty obvious.

True but other talk filters through at times like a positive or negative at the other end of the map.