From the satisfying bump of the slats to the outstanding & beautiful knee-pad this FREE mod is so good it hurts. Now back to practice that nose wheel steering!
Yyyyyeah, I'm a pilot IRL, and using diff braking to turn a tricycle gear plane, esp with that much weight forward of the mains is incredibly bizarre and difficult. I've driven off the side of the carrier many times when I realized I was stuck. Lol
This is easily the most detailed and professional made mod for DCS. There is not much difference between this awesome free mod and paid modules. The sound is incredible, and do is the clickable cockpit. And the flight model feels very realistic... Great job!!!
Ahhh yes. The Tinker Toy. I've actually sat in more than a few, back in the day when they let brat dependents like us hang out on "T-Line." Phantoms, Tomcats, Intruders, Corsair II's Skyhawks and the odd T-37's and T-38's you could count on something every weekend. My fav was the Marine Corps OA-4M variant. Side note: God bless every one of those airmen that were more than gracious giving us punks the dime tour when they'd rather be off getting some quarters, chow or whatnot.
Very excited! I've been watching your videos on the A-4E for some time now and recently downloaded the aircraft. Therefore I'm new to DCS and a complete rookie in the A-4E! I'm looking forward to your tutorials and will be anxiously awaiting for the next chapter in my DCS A-4E sim life! Well done.
I live close to our main Air force base here in New Zealand. Remember vividly seeing these things ripping around the sky, watched the first ever coupled air refueling while caring out a barrel roll at an airshow here once. cool planes. Love the video. I have just begun to play with this jet in war thunder...don't hate for that.
I flew 1960 fighters in the 1970s and I absolutely love this module. I discovered it late, I have flown just about every pay module, yet this is the one with perhaps the most character. My present favorite. Being an aeronautical engineer as well, I love the true-to-time systems. Tube tech system warmup times, flaky system performance if not treated right, the click sounds when changing settings, everything is there. Doppler corrected dead reckoning navigation. Love it, never flown it before. An analog radar with all it's needed tuning, the early APR-25 RWR, with tone only, great (I wonder if the APR-27 command link receiver is modeled, have to put in some SA-2s and check). The Autopilot is a gem, CSS (normally called Control Wheel Steering in other jets that have it) with breakout force is just so well implemented. That the A4E AFCS had it is advanced for the time, many modern autopilots don't have it. There is just so much to discover and awe about. Fantastic work by the team! Edit: The APR-27 works, howls as the SA-2 puts on the missile uplink, beware, missile soon inbound!
Having watched and played this module from the early day's till now, I can't help but feel like we watched a child be born and grow up and graduate college. Well done to all those involved in the development.
Excellent overview Iain, many thanks. You covered many points that I also appreciated when I spent a few hours on the V2 on its release. It's a faithfully detailed period aircraft with everything that goes with that, it needs to be learned (and I take great pleasure and satisfaction from that learning process) so I am very much looking forward to the release of your subsequent videos (I've hit the bell 🙂). I also really appreciate the kneeboard (and supporting PDF) it is truly outstanding, finally, one area of personalisation that made me smile was the ability to customize the 'family photo', it's just a small touch that for me epitomizes the love and attention that the development team has put into the simulation. Thanks again for the video, and MANY THANKS to the module development team for an outstanding product that is going to bring many members of the DCS community many many hours of pleasure!
Agreed and thanks for your detailed comments. I have mentioned to the developers that they are getting a lot of great comments here. If you want to contact them directly they have a discord server at: discord.gg/Qrt62rkGQx
Great Review of a great module! Cheers and thanks to the volunteer developers and contributors! I tuned down the roll axis saturation to 50% to be able to fly it halfway decent! :-)
@@Sidekick65 Absolutely! Only problem - it adds to the general DCS problem. Too many wonderful modules too little time. ;-) But the scooter is amongst the gems, no doubt!
Iain, what a find, your channel! Thanks for the excellence; I'm finally taking a swing at this beast. I grew up a short walk to and on the grounds of the US Naval Academy; my father was one of the lucky few stationed there for his full 20 years. In the early 60's I attended the Naval Academy Primary School. My bus stop was in front of the Naval Academy Chapel, where an A-4 and F-4 sat on display. We'd climb inside the engine cavities, hoping for some way up to the cockpits :) I've yet to see any sim of an F-4, but upon first view of the A-4 cockpit, it was like being able to get into the seat of that display model. I gotta say in terms of DENSITY, this cockpit is jam-packed. I also enjoyed---from the Severn River upon which the Academy is situated--- the years of the A-4 and F-4's service with the Blue Angels. The latter's earth-shaking effect as the entire team climbed to the fleur-de-lis and such "they can't top THAT!!" routines..... just under 60 years ago, I recall something to the effect of "man, I'm lucky" going through my awestruck mind. In the A-4's years, the nimbleness of flight was the star of that show. The annual Blue Angels appearance was second only to Christmas for us natives of Annapolis :) Much ahead to learn...... you're definitely the "sensei" of this somewhat underappreciated machine.
Unfortunately my PC has had a major crash & burn $$$$$. So I won’t be able to try the new Scooter for a while. But it looks fantastic & going off your excitement it must be THE BEST FREE mod out there for DCS & absolutely in the top 5 best modules in DCS. A massive thanks to the devs for all the excellent work & not giving up on what is not easy to accomplish. & Thank you sir Love ya work mate. Thanks for sharing 👍🏻👍🏻🙃🙃
What a beautiful module! And it’s free! I just had my first flight in her and I’m in love. Thank you so much for this excellent review, and thanks to the devs of this beautiful aircraft.
Thanks. Really glad you found it helpful and that you are now a Scooter-fan! If you'd like to tell the devs themselves you can drop by their Discord server. I know they would love to hear from you.
Thanks for the great overview video Iain. Downloaded it and flew the A-4 all weekend. Absolutely loving it. Look forward to seeing your tutorial series.
When I get home I will definitely download that module. As I spend most of my time on the 109 and other WWII tail draggers I think dealing with differential braking and slow responses should come somewhat easily. Thanks for the vid.
I wasn't that enthusiastic about the version of this I downloaded from early last year. But I've been playing around with this update for the last few days, and this thing is awesome. It's a great module. The only thing it really needs is a visual damage model. I ripped a wing off pulling out of a dive earlier today. It would have been great to see my wing drifting down behind me. But damn the flight model feels good. And it looks really really good. If I didn't know better I would never guess it was a free mod. This team has done amazing work. I do wish that they would become a true third party studio.
Excellent review. I fully agree with everything you said about this free module. Its my all time favorite DCS aircraft and I have most of them including all the WW2 piston fighters. I love trying for that OK pass 3 wire at the boat which I can now get about half the time, and air refuel is another challenging but fun mission. Its a dream to fly doing closed pattern circuits at an airfield and guns only dogfights against other A4s is a blast. As an older guy I really appreciate and love the analog easy to understand nature of this jet. ED take notice, this is how its done. Many thanks.
Since the Argentine forces only had the simpler B/C/Q variants, in order to simulate their combat actions, you need to turn off the radar, RWR, jammer, not carry chaff or flares, and release bombs using only the gunsight. Have fun!
Great video - thanks for re-kindling my interest! The devs have done some truly amazing work on this module, considering it's unofficial and unsupported by ED. All the more impressive, then!
This will be fun to try, I re-enlisted in the backseat of A4 flying out of NAS Barbers Point, HI. Flying with the CO of VC1. One of the best experiences I ever had!
Great review man! It offers depth to the matter and that is just incredible. I've been looking into this mod. I have a few other ones for DCS but i'm not a very active player. I am a sucker for nostalgia though and the A-4 fits in that category easily. When you mentioned the manual at the kneeboard example, i was happily surprised.
Fab video and such a wonderful module...one of my personal favourites too...AND you can pit your own pic in the cockpit...shame that wasn't mentioned...but anyone reading this...yes, the pic of your 'significant other' or cat...whatever can now adorn your cockpit...this is a stroke of genius and shows the devs commitment to detail ( and sense of humour!)...
When I heard version 2 was released I was sure we would see a Sidekick video on it. It sounds like you're really enjoying it. You're enthusiasm for the module really comes across in this video. I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts on it in future videos.
I didnt care for it in its old version... But now that they have done all of this work I may get it again. I love this era of fighters, from the MiG-21 to the Mirage F1.. So much fun, and require REAL skill to be accurate with the weapons.
I already love the A4, it’s probably close to being my favourite jet. The teen jets are great and everything, but the planes without FBW and loaded with steam gauges just feel more like flying to me. And the A4 is an almost perfect balance of technology and feel. I’m excited for the Phantom but it has a strong competitor in this free A4.
It's my first DCS module and today was my first day. What an absolute gem of an entry mod this a total DCS noob ! Only gripe is the damage model in the air seems to be broken...airframe over g stress clearly brakes a wing off but visually it's still there and flipping it on the ground displays no damage but it'll still explode when I slam into the ground by accident 😅
Oh yeah those guys did a formidable jib with the a4 it´s truely fun to fly although it could be a bit frustrating to get iron bomb on the targe precisely.....you have to fly it well to hit good
Thanks for the passionate review, would never have noticed all the changes without you pointing them out. I'm exclusively VR, and I really can't do without a pilot body, it adds so much to the immersion imho. I wonder if the devs have any plans for a pilot?
Very well said Iain. Especially your observations about the low speed handling. I was thinking that perhaps the speed brakes have a bit too much drag, but I forgot about the slats. Also, get behind the engine and you will most likely not do it again, at least not in that virtual life :). Looking forward to the revised tutorials. I think that the A-4E will be a very good onramp to the F-4 as far as the same era of avionics and weapon systems. Did I see switches for Walleye?
I will put it on the list. There are some older videos with SEAD missions, but a lot has changed in the game since then and I am not sure they are realistic anymore.
What blows my mind about this mod isn't how great it is... It is that the paid mods in large don't come close to the A-4E quality of life, ease of use, textures, model etc... That's truly shocking :D
It is, frankly. Maybe it says something about what can be achieved when all you care about is producing something you love. Rather than having to make the business model work.
Honestly, I do not like the "whole manual in the kneeboard", unless it is in training missions. I use the kneeboard a lot and yes, a checklist, maybe the emergency procedures charts, but more than that and it gets in the way of the mission related stuff, like MDC, frequency list, target info, recon pics, etc. What should be gold standard for modules is to offer a kneeboard ready version of the manual and/or putting it into the training missions. If I want/need it in every mission, I can put it into my saved games kneeboard folder, as required. Just my two cents, and yes, the A-4E is definitely the best free community mod out there at the moment, with the Hercules and Goshawk being close on its tail... but then again, the Skyhawk has this unique hands on experience and seat-of-your pants flying, pretty much what the Huey is for helicopters in DCS. Cudos to the team for such great work. 🥰
That roll rate has caused me to "black out" more than once today, which resulted in a rather unfortunate incident. I really have to learn to not load it up so much.
Its a fantastic Mod. I just really feel like the seating position is entirely to low. I understand you sit pretty low in the cockpit but the canopy rails shouldn't be eye level. If you adjust yourself to sit higher, you lost the majority of the sight glass.
Great video as always on an awesome modul! thanks a lot for your passionate work! I'm looking forward to the "how to" videos and maybe some new missions of yours, which I really like so much! greetings out of switzerland Loopan aka Thomi
This mod broke my mission editor. When I added this plane and saved the mission it would only open in map view, the F1 key stopped working. This continued when I tried to create another mission with another plane. I ended up having to dump my user/me/savedgames/dcs folder. Did work in my DCS beta install.
Well, I can honestly say that I have never had that kind of trouble. Frustrating. If you drop by the A-4 Discord server they might be able to help you out.
i already installed new version, so Now it is time for new guides for 2.0 version. I would love to see for start hotas mapping (hopefully my Hotas X will be nuff lol), startup, navigation, radar, A/A, A/G, SEAD...full storry. I love this video and I subbed. ;)
@@Sidekick65 Just tried to taxi for my first time. ANd as someone who loves to fly L-39 ZA, who also have differential braking, I must say that this is plain nightmare. Unless I am doing doing something very wrong, I am out of this plane. I must note that I do use that simple option but it is of no use
@@BrljoMrljo Sorry to hear that you are having troubles. It is a challenge, I admit. I do have a video in work to discuss the ground handling, hopefully that will help at least a little. It should be out by the weekend.
Awesome plane, and very cool review video, thanks! Just curious, Do you think there would be a G version (without the dorsal hump)? Do you think there will be more modern ordnance version options, thinking for self defence A2A, if using the aircraft in more modern settings? I’m very keen to fly an Australian Navy version. Cheers. Steve.
After flying the Tomcat so much on Forrestal this video is giving me the itch to revisit the Skyhawk. I've been trying to find more resources on the "A-4E-C" (years, squadrons, etc.) but cannot find anything on a "-C" variant. Did it go by a different official name?
It is a pretty amazing module.i have made a few more tutorials on the A4 - specifically about air to ground attack. Feel free to drop by the Discord if you have suggestions for other content you would like to see.
There are a bunch of good instant action missions in the package and I made some videos to accompany them a while back. Check the play lists in the description.
Got a question I had the original A4 Skyhawk the previous version installed the new one deleted the old one for whatever reason I can only do instant missions only I cannot create my own mission with the A4 Skyhawk. The A4 Skyhawk will not drop down the drop-down box for aircraft to select and all my other mods are in there except for the A4
I'd say your best bet is to head over to the A-4E Discord site and get some help there. If anyone can help you, they will be hanging out there. Here's the link: discord.gg/Qrt62rkGQx
@@Sidekick65 its improbable, I'm pretty sure the MB-339 is going official but I think it'll be a paid module and and a4 community (rightly so) won't have that.
Well done, this is a great review and I've got to get it installed, I have the last one loaded and I've already DL'ed the V2.0. Now, the big question - When will it be declared a high fidelity module, not just another mod? What does it take?
I think 8 is good for carrier launch. 6 is probably better for runways. But you have to be ready to apply forward pressure as soon as you are up off the ground.
You can find it here: github.com/heclak/community-a4e-c/releases/tag/v2.0.0 . I just released another video on how to install it as well: th-cam.com/video/yt9iu7wKWrg/w-d-xo.html
From the satisfying bump of the slats to the outstanding & beautiful knee-pad this FREE mod is so good it hurts. Now back to practice that nose wheel steering!
Yup!
Yyyyyeah, I'm a pilot IRL, and using diff braking to turn a tricycle gear plane, esp with that much weight forward of the mains is incredibly bizarre and difficult. I've driven off the side of the carrier many times when I realized I was stuck. Lol
This is easily the most detailed and professional made mod for DCS.
There is not much difference between this awesome free mod and paid modules.
The sound is incredible, and do is the clickable cockpit. And the flight model feels very realistic...
Great job!!!
Ahhh yes. The Tinker Toy.
I've actually sat in more than a few, back in the day when they let brat dependents like us hang out on "T-Line." Phantoms, Tomcats, Intruders, Corsair II's Skyhawks and the odd T-37's and T-38's you could count on something every weekend.
My fav was the Marine Corps OA-4M variant.
Side note: God bless every one of those airmen that were more than gracious giving us punks the dime tour when they'd rather be off getting some quarters, chow or whatnot.
Great memories. Thanks for sharing them.
This is by far my most favorite module. Nicely done video Sidekick, but that isn’t really surprising…lol
You are too kind. Glad you enjoyed it.
Very excited! I've been watching your videos on the A-4E for some time now and recently downloaded the aircraft. Therefore I'm new to DCS and a complete rookie in the A-4E! I'm looking forward to your tutorials and will be anxiously awaiting for the next chapter in my DCS A-4E sim life! Well done.
Outstanding! Feel free to drop by the Discord if you have any questions.
Well, this has convinced me. I'm going to give it a go! Looking forward to getting dug in with the systems, and to your upcoming videos!
Excellent. Drop by the Discord and let us know how you make out
I live close to our main Air force base here in New Zealand. Remember vividly seeing these things ripping around the sky, watched the first ever coupled air refueling while caring out a barrel roll at an airshow here once. cool planes. Love the video. I have just begun to play with this jet in war thunder...don't hate for that.
A story telling review like no other. Delightful to watch and hear. Thank you for posting. Really enjoyed it.
Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for letting me know.
I flew 1960 fighters in the 1970s and I absolutely love this module. I discovered it late, I have flown just about every pay module, yet this is the one with perhaps the most character. My present favorite. Being an aeronautical engineer as well, I love the true-to-time systems. Tube tech system warmup times, flaky system performance if not treated right, the click sounds when changing settings, everything is there. Doppler corrected dead reckoning navigation. Love it, never flown it before. An analog radar with all it's needed tuning, the early APR-25 RWR, with tone only, great (I wonder if the APR-27 command link receiver is modeled, have to put in some SA-2s and check). The Autopilot is a gem, CSS (normally called Control Wheel Steering in other jets that have it) with breakout force is just so well implemented. That the A4E AFCS had it is advanced for the time, many modern autopilots don't have it. There is just so much to discover and awe about. Fantastic work by the team! Edit: The APR-27 works, howls as the SA-2 puts on the missile uplink, beware, missile soon inbound!
Absolutely. I am sure that they would love to hear from you. You should stop by their Discord server.
Having watched and played this module from the early day's till now, I can't help but feel like we watched a child be born and grow up and graduate college. Well done to all those involved in the development.
It is certainly a much more mature product than it was. A ton of work has gone into it.
Excellent overview Iain, many thanks. You covered many points that I also appreciated when I spent a few hours on the V2 on its release. It's a faithfully detailed period aircraft with everything that goes with that, it needs to be learned (and I take great pleasure and satisfaction from that learning process) so I am very much looking forward to the release of your subsequent videos (I've hit the bell 🙂). I also really appreciate the kneeboard (and supporting PDF) it is truly outstanding, finally, one area of personalisation that made me smile was the ability to customize the 'family photo', it's just a small touch that for me epitomizes the love and attention that the development team has put into the simulation. Thanks again for the video, and MANY THANKS to the module development team for an outstanding product that is going to bring many members of the DCS community many many hours of pleasure!
Agreed and thanks for your detailed comments. I have mentioned to the developers that they are getting a lot of great comments here. If you want to contact them directly they have a discord server at: discord.gg/Qrt62rkGQx
Great Review of a great module! Cheers and thanks to the volunteer developers and contributors! I tuned down the roll axis saturation to 50% to be able to fly it halfway decent! :-)
Yes. That sounds about right! Glad you are enjoying it.
@@Sidekick65 Absolutely! Only problem - it adds to the general DCS problem. Too many wonderful modules too little time. ;-) But the scooter is amongst the gems, no doubt!
Iain, what a find, your channel! Thanks for the excellence; I'm finally taking a swing at this beast. I grew up a short walk to and on the grounds of the US Naval Academy; my father was one of the lucky few stationed there for his full 20 years. In the early 60's I attended the Naval Academy Primary School. My bus stop was in front of the Naval Academy Chapel, where an A-4 and F-4 sat on display. We'd climb inside the engine cavities, hoping for some way up to the cockpits :) I've yet to see any sim of an F-4, but upon first view of the A-4 cockpit, it was like being able to get into the seat of that display model. I gotta say in terms of DENSITY, this cockpit is jam-packed.
I also enjoyed---from the Severn River upon which the Academy is situated--- the years of the A-4 and F-4's service with the Blue Angels. The latter's earth-shaking effect as the entire team climbed to the fleur-de-lis and such "they can't top THAT!!" routines..... just under 60 years ago, I recall something to the effect of "man, I'm lucky" going through my awestruck mind. In the A-4's years, the nimbleness of flight was the star of that show. The annual Blue Angels appearance was second only to Christmas for us natives of Annapolis :)
Much ahead to learn...... you're definitely the "sensei" of this somewhat underappreciated machine.
Thank you sir! Hope you find lots to love and learn. Drop by the Discord if there is anything you need.
Unfortunately my PC has had a major crash & burn $$$$$.
So I won’t be able to try the new Scooter for a while. But it looks fantastic & going off your excitement it must be THE BEST FREE mod out there for DCS & absolutely in the top 5 best modules in DCS. A massive thanks to the devs for all the excellent work & not giving up on what is not easy to accomplish. & Thank you sir Love ya work mate. Thanks for sharing 👍🏻👍🏻🙃🙃
So sorry to hear about your loss! Hope to hear that you are back up an running soon.
What a beautiful module! And it’s free! I just had my first flight in her and I’m in love. Thank you so much for this excellent review, and thanks to the devs of this beautiful aircraft.
Thanks. Really glad you found it helpful and that you are now a Scooter-fan! If you'd like to tell the devs themselves you can drop by their Discord server. I know they would love to hear from you.
@@Sidekick65 I’ve joined the Discord and done just that. I’ll be checking out the rest of you videos. Cheers.
Thanks for the great overview video Iain. Downloaded it and flew the A-4 all weekend. Absolutely loving it. Look forward to seeing your tutorial series.
Outstanding! Glad you're enjoying it.
When I get home I will definitely download that module. As I spend most of my time on the 109 and other WWII tail draggers I think dealing with differential braking and slow responses should come somewhat easily.
Thanks for the vid.
I wasn't that enthusiastic about the version of this I downloaded from early last year. But I've been playing around with this update for the last few days, and this thing is awesome. It's a great module. The only thing it really needs is a visual damage model. I ripped a wing off pulling out of a dive earlier today. It would have been great to see my wing drifting down behind me. But damn the flight model feels good. And it looks really really good. If I didn't know better I would never guess it was a free mod. This team has done amazing work. I do wish that they would become a true third party studio.
Excellent review. I fully agree with everything you said about this free module. Its my all time favorite DCS aircraft and I have most of them including all the WW2 piston fighters. I love trying for that OK pass 3 wire at the boat which I can now get about half the time, and air refuel is another challenging but fun mission. Its a dream to fly doing closed pattern circuits at an airfield and guns only dogfights against other A4s is a blast. As an older guy I really appreciate and love the analog easy to understand nature of this jet. ED take notice, this is how its done. Many thanks.
Excellent. Thanks for commenting
What a nice and elegant way to develop a topic! Very good taste for videomaking! 😎👍🏼
Thank you so much for the kind words. I appreciate it.
Since the Argentine forces only had the simpler B/C/Q variants, in order to simulate their combat actions, you need to turn off the radar, RWR, jammer, not carry chaff or flares, and release bombs using only the gunsight. Have fun!
Great video - thanks for re-kindling my interest! The devs have done some truly amazing work on this module, considering it's unofficial and unsupported by ED. All the more impressive, then!
It is impressive. As is the team that has done the work.
Nice review, the official page recommended your videos for learning this beauty and that's what i'm gonna do!
Enjoy! Drop by the Discord if you have questions.
This will be fun to try, I re-enlisted in the backseat of A4 flying out of NAS Barbers Point, HI. Flying with the CO of VC1. One of the best experiences I ever had!
Be interested to see what you think of it!
Great review man! It offers depth to the matter and that is just incredible.
I've been looking into this mod. I have a few other ones for DCS but i'm not a very active player.
I am a sucker for nostalgia though and the A-4 fits in that category easily.
When you mentioned the manual at the kneeboard example, i was happily surprised.
The keyboard really is a thing of utilitarian beauty. It will definitely lower your learning curve.
fantastic review I really enjoyed this. Now I will go enjoy the skyhawk
What a great idea you had !!!👌👍🏼 All the brothers together for the beginning of the new year !!! 🍾🎄🌟Long live the Skyhawks !!!🧉✈🧿✈🙋🏼♂️
Thanks.
@@Sidekick65 👌
Just wow!!! VERY impressed indead.
TOTALLY agree with the manual. This is the benchmark against which PAID modules should be compared.
Yup!
I have COVID right now and your video perked me up. I am going to give it a go. Thank you for the great video as always!
Get well soon!
Very informative video, excellent work!
Thank you!
Fab video and such a wonderful module...one of my personal favourites too...AND you can pit your own pic in the cockpit...shame that wasn't mentioned...but anyone reading this...yes, the pic of your 'significant other' or cat...whatever can now adorn your cockpit...this is a stroke of genius and shows the devs commitment to detail ( and sense of humour!)...
Good point. I missed mentioned that. I will make sure to cover it in a future video. Thanks!
I gotta hand it to your presentation and love for this module. Def. gonna learn this beast from scratch.
Glad to hear it! Drop by the Discord and let us know how you do.
When I heard version 2 was released I was sure we would see a Sidekick video on it. It sounds like you're really enjoying it. You're enthusiasm for the module really comes across in this video. I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts on it in future videos.
Thanks, Mike. Nice to hear from you!
Excelente explicación, gracias por la descripción de la totalidad de este modulo. Saludos desde Argentina
Thanks for continuing to cover and provide quality instruction for the A-4E-C!
My pleasure. 😊 for continuing to support the channel
I didnt care for it in its old version... But now that they have done all of this work I may get it again. I love this era of fighters, from the MiG-21 to the Mirage F1.. So much fun, and require REAL skill to be accurate with the weapons.
Excellent. Hope you give it a try. Let us know how it goes.
I already love the A4, it’s probably close to being my favourite jet. The teen jets are great and everything, but the planes without FBW and loaded with steam gauges just feel more like flying to me. And the A4 is an almost perfect balance of technology and feel. I’m excited for the Phantom but it has a strong competitor in this free A4.
Definitely!
Yeah that's why the cold war jets are my favorite too. The F14 is my favorite but it's inbetween the F-4 and F18.
It's my first DCS module and today was my first day. What an absolute gem of an entry mod this a total DCS noob ! Only gripe is the damage model in the air seems to be broken...airframe over g stress clearly brakes a wing off but visually it's still there and flipping it on the ground displays no damage but it'll still explode when I slam into the ground by accident 😅
Glad to hear it. If you have concerns the deva are usually quite accessible on their Discord. discord.gg/Qrt62rkGQx
Great review. Detailed and really helpful. Thank you.
Thanks. Glad you enjoyed it.
Oh yeah those guys did a formidable jib with the a4 it´s truely fun to fly although it could be a bit frustrating to get iron bomb on the targe precisely.....you have to fly it well to hit good
Good video. I see the centerline has found its way under the nosewheel.
Been a while since I flew this thing, can't wait to go back. Great review.
Thank you. Enjoy!
Tutorial videos? EXCELLENT! I'll be watching this very closely
Hope you find it useful.
Thanks for the passionate review, would never have noticed all the changes without you pointing them out. I'm exclusively VR, and I really can't do without a pilot body, it adds so much to the immersion imho. I wonder if the devs have any plans for a pilot?
Not sure. You could always drop by their Doscord channel and ask.
Thank you for the great video. Happy new year, best wishes to you and all your family.
Thank you and the same to you.
Very well said Iain. Especially your observations about the low speed handling. I was thinking that perhaps the speed brakes have a bit too much drag, but I forgot about the slats. Also, get behind the engine and you will most likely not do it again, at least not in that virtual life :). Looking forward to the revised tutorials. I think that the A-4E will be a very good onramp to the F-4 as far as the same era of avionics and weapon systems. Did I see switches for Walleye?
The switch is there but I don't think the functionality is. You can always check with the guys on the A4 Discord server for more info.
Amazing review thanks! Would be interesting to watch a demo on SEAD/ECM on your channel with the A4!
I will put it on the list. There are some older videos with SEAD missions, but a lot has changed in the game since then and I am not sure they are realistic anymore.
What blows my mind about this mod isn't how great it is... It is that the paid mods in large don't come close to the A-4E quality of life, ease of use, textures, model etc... That's truly shocking :D
It is, frankly. Maybe it says something about what can be achieved when all you care about is producing something you love. Rather than having to make the business model work.
Honestly, I do not like the "whole manual in the kneeboard", unless it is in training missions. I use the kneeboard a lot and yes, a checklist, maybe the emergency procedures charts, but more than that and it gets in the way of the mission related stuff, like MDC, frequency list, target info, recon pics, etc.
What should be gold standard for modules is to offer a kneeboard ready version of the manual and/or putting it into the training missions. If I want/need it in every mission, I can put it into my saved games kneeboard folder, as required.
Just my two cents, and yes, the A-4E is definitely the best free community mod out there at the moment, with the Hercules and Goshawk being close on its tail... but then again, the Skyhawk has this unique hands on experience and seat-of-your pants flying, pretty much what the Huey is for helicopters in DCS.
Cudos to the team for such great work. 🥰
Thanks for your thoughts.
That roll rate has caused me to "black out" more than once today, which resulted in a rather unfortunate incident. I really have to learn to not load it up so much.
You are not alone in that, I am sure!
@@Sidekick65 Now to really learn the bomb sight. Looking forward to your new vids.
Thanks. I'm looking forward to getting to work on them.
This thing is simple amazing when decked out with gun pods…even feels more satisfying than te A10 on gun runs.
"And all of this is fantastic!" No sir, you are fantastic.
Ok the plane is too.
Thanks for the kind words. I appreciate it.
Its a fantastic Mod. I just really feel like the seating position is entirely to low. I understand you sit pretty low in the cockpit but the canopy rails shouldn't be eye level. If you adjust yourself to sit higher, you lost the majority of the sight glass.
Great video as always on an awesome modul!
thanks a lot for your passionate work! I'm looking forward to the "how to" videos and maybe some new missions of yours, which I really like so much!
greetings out of switzerland
Loopan aka Thomi
Thank you for your kind words. New videos will be coming as soon as soon as I can make them.
You sound a little pleased…. :) Such a great plane…
Fantastic review of a fantastic aircraft! Skyhawks forever!
Scooter, scooter, scooter!
This mod broke my mission editor. When I added this plane and saved the mission it would only open in map view, the F1 key stopped working. This continued when I tried to create another mission with another plane. I ended up having to dump my user/me/savedgames/dcs folder. Did work in my DCS beta install.
Well, I can honestly say that I have never had that kind of trouble. Frustrating. If you drop by the A-4 Discord server they might be able to help you out.
If you can taxi on the Melbourne you can taxi anywhere.
I have not tried yet. I will look forward to it! :-)
i already installed new version, so Now it is time for new guides for 2.0 version. I would love to see for start hotas mapping (hopefully my Hotas X will be nuff lol), startup, navigation, radar, A/A, A/G, SEAD...full storry. I love this video and I subbed. ;)
Noted! New videos coming soon.
@@Sidekick65 Thank you!
@@Sidekick65 Just tried to taxi for my first time. ANd as someone who loves to fly L-39 ZA, who also have differential braking, I must say that this is plain nightmare. Unless I am doing doing something very wrong, I am out of this plane. I must note that I do use that simple option but it is of no use
@@BrljoMrljo Sorry to hear that you are having troubles. It is a challenge, I admit. I do have a video in work to discuss the ground handling, hopefully that will help at least a little. It should be out by the weekend.
@@Sidekick65 No worries. Ill watch and try later. It is confusing plane ad it does require time to get used to.
Awesome plane, and very cool review video, thanks!
Just curious,
Do you think there would be a G version (without the dorsal hump)?
Do you think there will be more modern ordnance version options, thinking for self defence A2A, if using the aircraft in more modern settings?
I’m very keen to fly an Australian Navy version.
Cheers.
Steve.
Glad you enjoyed it. There is an A-4 Discord server where you can go and ask those questions. The developers are still very active there.
There´s 1 reason that gives it enough reason to fly despite it being awesome anyway "IT HAS FUCKING NAPALM"
Love the A4
After flying the Tomcat so much on Forrestal this video is giving me the itch to revisit the Skyhawk. I've been trying to find more resources on the "A-4E-C" (years, squadrons, etc.) but cannot find anything on a "-C" variant. Did it go by a different official name?
A-4 mod? That is freaking awesome!
Yes. It is!
Impressive review! Thanks!
Your welcome. Glad you enjoyed it.
The only thing that I would add is some undercarriage compression on landing...it is just too stiff.
So good but I wish they would do a no hump version.
I swear that the vapor effects on the A4 are better than any other module...
Very True!
out of context "we really have to talk about the sound"
It is hard to understand that this is a free module. The module is amazing. You should do a full tutorial on the A4 Skyhawk.
It is a pretty amazing module.i have made a few more tutorials on the A4 - specifically about air to ground attack. Feel free to drop by the Discord if you have suggestions for other content you would like to see.
Great vid!
Thank You. Glad you enjoyed it.
Now if I can only learn to land without ruining the front wheel!
It's the best cockpit in DCS in VR
Agreed
I'm trying to bind the (Q) key for countermeasures, but is not possible in this new version for my Hotas :(
Would love to see some training missions for this outstanding high quality mod.
There are a bunch of good instant action missions in the package and I made some videos to accompany them a while back. Check the play lists in the description.
Got a question I had the original A4 Skyhawk the previous version installed the new one deleted the old one for whatever reason I can only do instant missions only I cannot create my own mission with the A4 Skyhawk. The A4 Skyhawk will not drop down the drop-down box for aircraft to select and all my other mods are in there except for the A4
I'd say your best bet is to head over to the A-4E Discord site and get some help there. If anyone can help you, they will be hanging out there. Here's the link: discord.gg/Qrt62rkGQx
Man I wish this was allowed on Enigmas CW server.
The nosewheel and steering is a deal breaker for this sim.
The A-4E Skyhawk is better than some paid modules.
Agreed
I wonder if ED will at some point allow the A-4 to be official and free (like the TF-51 or su-25t)
Well, I guess we can dream...
@@Sidekick65 its improbable, I'm pretty sure the MB-339 is going official but I think it'll be a paid module and and a4 community (rightly so) won't have that.
Gracias, gracias, gracias.
I need to down load this one. Wish it was a regular download like the other planes.
Well, it's a labour of love by some talented folks. They just happen to believe the module should be enjoyed free of charge by the community.
Well done, this is a great review and I've got to get it installed, I have the last one loaded and I've already DL'ed the V2.0. Now, the big question - When will it be declared a high fidelity module, not just another mod? What does it take?
Glad to hear you are enjoying it.
Go Scooter!
Thanks for the great video sir, May I ask what is details of your rig please ?
Sure. Ryzen 7 5800, with an AMD RX 6800 GPU.
Curious what trim you use for takeoff? Kneeboards say 8, but that's wayyyy too high in my experience
I think 8 is good for carrier launch. 6 is probably better for runways. But you have to be ready to apply forward pressure as soon as you are up off the ground.
the link to the discord-chanel didn't work. please wich is the right one
The link seems to work for me, but try this one instead - discord.gg/DB4CQcc92u
How do you download this free mod? I can't find it on the DCS website. Thanks for any help.
You can find it here: github.com/heclak/community-a4e-c/releases/tag/v2.0.0 . I just released another video on how to install it as well: th-cam.com/video/yt9iu7wKWrg/w-d-xo.html
That manual!
I know, right?
Is there a multiplayer server where i can fly this plane ??
You can try looking for the "Early Cold War Servers". They have a discord channel, but I don't have a link
Does it have napalm?
3D textures need some work, inside and outside. Otherwise great mod. Thx
#crazyrussianpilot :- > Top СУПЕР👍👍👍👍👍👍👍 👍👍
It is a half module because it is not among official and it is not on the popular public servers. That's sad!
So far, that has not stopped me from enjoying flying it.
Anybody knows why would a team of developers work so hard to build such a magnificent plane just to distribute it for free? What’s the purpose?
Why I'm getting AUTHORIZATION FAILD?
Because you installed wrong re read the installation instructions
@J. Nelson True, I was supposed to install it on the saved games folder.
A4 forever