Lead Computing Gun sight

[Vinkman]

I've been wondering why the LCG sight is not active in the game? All of these planes had LCGs in real life.
My item for the wish list is to add a Lead Computing Gun sight option.

[ImADot]

Really?  WWII planes had tracking radar and computers to update the HUD to show where to put the pipper?

[AirFlyer]

I'm 99.9% positive most of these planes didn't have that.

[Saxman]

I think the K-14 sight used by some American fighters late in the war were primitive lead-computing sights. But we're talking maybe 2-3 aircraft, at the VERY end of the war.

[Vinkman]

Not required. They used a G meter and distance setting to calculate the compansation. That's why the Gun sight is a HUD instead of a circle painted on the windscreen. The Circle was a light projected on the screen that floated up and down based on the g's a pilot was pulling. Not as Acurate as the later versions which you describe but very effective.  Check out this entry on Wikipedia:


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gyro_gunsight

[vonKrimm]

The Gyroscopic gunsight is often referred to as a lead computing gunsight and has through such erroneous application become accepted convention. There were "LCGs" available in WWII, the K-14, Feranti Mk-II, and EZ40 come to mind; all of which were actually gyroscopic gunsights.

[Vinkman]

It's not clear if the HUDs were also used on non-LCGs, but I'm not sure why they would bother with a HUD if the sight was fixed. The wiki article says they were in prodictionin 1941, butit's not clear how prevelant or on which models they were used on. It is clear that they were used at some point. I also remember reading about the the introduction of them during the war and how they helped firing acuracy significantly, especially for newer pilots. I'll keep digging...

But my point is that perhaps they could be added to planes that actually had them. I seem to remember Air Warrior planes had them. They were an option you could turn on or off. I seem to remember using them when I got started and then setting the gunsight for 'fixed' when I gained enough experience to judge lead myself.

[Vinkman]

VonKrimm,

Not sure what the difference between Lead computing and Gyroscopic is. Seems like the 'gyro' is a way to calulate the 'lead'. But I admit I may be missing something.

[Saxman]

Vinkman,

It's not a "HUD." It was a reflector sight: Light shining up through the bottom of the sight was reflected on the sight glass. The pattern was created by an insert with a cutout in the desired pattern between the lamp and the sight glass.

[usvi]

I've been wondering why the LCG sight is not active in the game? All of these planes had LCGs in real life.
My item for the wish list is to add a Lead Computing Gun sight option.

[trigger2]

IIRC the "LCG" was modeled at one time (not active in game). I vaguly recall messing around with it in offline mode. The issue I see with having your auto-aimer would be that the already "uber" planes would become more... uber.

Some that did have the gyro gunsight IRL...
Supermarine Spitfire
P-51
P-47
F4u
Tempest
Typhoon
Hurri
Mossy

Now do you REALLY wanna have an auto aiming system on a spixteen? I personally don't...

[Soulyss]

I really wonder exactly how much use they would be in AH.  As I understand it the way they worked is that the pilot had to hold the piper on the target while fiddling with a dial on the throttle that dialed in the width of the targets wingspan into the mechanical computer, from there the gunsight would move the piper to the proper aim location to fire.  This required that the target remain relatively stable and not take any evasive maneuvers from my experience this sounds like the exception to most of my encounters in AH.  Even in a situation in a furball where you catch your target unaware of your presence they are often engaged in some sort of maneuver to attack another plane.  

[Saxman]

I really wonder exactly how much use they would be in AH.  As I understand it the way they worked is that the pilot had to hold the piper on the target while fiddling with a dial on the throttle that dialed in the width of the targets wingspan into the mechanical computer, from there the gunsight would move the piper to the proper aim location to fire.  This required that the target remain relatively stable and not take any evasive maneuvers from my experience this sounds like the exception to most of my encounters in AH.  Even in a situation in a furball where you catch your target unaware of your presence they are often engaged in some sort of maneuver to attack another plane.  

My understanding was most pilots just used the fixed sight and didn't even bother with the gyro sights for that very reason.

As far as the wingspan, I believe some of the sights could be "preset" for the different targets (I know I've seen pictures of the P-51D's K-14 with a selector switch on the sight labeled for 109, 190, Ju-88, etc).

[Anodizer]

I really wonder exactly how much use they would be in AH.  As I understand it the way they worked is that the pilot had to hold the piper on the target while fiddling with a dial on the throttle that dialed in the width of the targets wingspan into the mechanical computer, from there the gunsight would move the piper to the proper aim location to fire.  This required that the target remain relatively stable and not take any evasive maneuvers from my experience this sounds like the exception to most of my encounters in AH.  Even in a situation in a furball where you catch your target unaware of your presence they are often engaged in some sort of maneuver to attack another plane.  

During violent maneuvers, the gun site had to be locked or else it was pretty much toast..  Much like the Apollo space craft's 8 ball, it would get into a sort of gimbal lock..
It only worked well in ideal conditions.... Despite what the show Dogfights leads one to believe, it was useless in a high G engagement.. 

I can see it now..  Spixteen pile-it is stick stirring and forgets to cage the site..lol 

We totally don't need any kind of lead-computing gunsight..  If flying a Spixteen or some other trainer isn't easy enough for you, IL2 has lead computing gunsights, arcade style flight dynamics capability and some guys set up online gameplay servers that allow their use..  It doesn't get any easier than that..  Or, download some of the offline missions and use it in there, or in the TA.. 

[Karnak]

While it is true that some of the aircraft in AH did have gyro sights, it is also true that other examples of those same aircraft did not have them and instead had the older, plain reflector sights.  It is therefor just fine and dandy for AH to not have gyro sights.