The Fighter Collection and Eagle Dynamics will release their next Digital Combat Simulator (DCS) aircraft in 2012: the legendary P-51D Mustang. The Mustang was among the best and most well-known fighters used by the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II. Possessing excellent range and manoeuvrability, the P-51 operated primarily as a long-range escort fighter and also as a ground attack fighter-bomber with bombs, rockets, and machine guns. The Mustang served in nearly every combat zone during WWII, and later fought in the Korean War.
The DCS: P-51D Mustang will be modelled at the same exacting detail as the existing Ka-50 Black Shark and A-10C Warthog Digital Combat Simulation (DCS) aircraft and it will be online compatible with them. Based on many years of restoring, flying and maintaining Mustangs, The Fighter Collection brings its unique ability to portray this aircraft in its full glory.
The P-51D will be the first aircraft in the Flying Legends series that focuses on historical aircraft that have set benchmarks in combat aviation. This series of simulations demonstrates the broad scope of DCS simulation environment and its ability to introduce aircraft from all eras into a common simulation environment. While the P-51D started as an internal technology demonstration, it has evolved into an independent product that adds an all new dimension to the DCS universe. The development of the P-51D and other Flying Legends series aircraft definitely does not preclude the continued development of modern aircraft.
More details of DCS: P-51D Mustang will be made available closer to product release later this year.
More information, visit:
www.digitalcombatsimulator.com
About The Fighter CollectionThe Fighter Collection, as well as developing software for the entertainment and serious game markets, also operates, rebuilds and maintains Europe's largest collection of airworthy WWII fighters and is based at Duxford Airfield, in the UK. For more information visit our websites:
http://www.fighter-collection.com/
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DCS: P-51D Mustang FAQGENERALQ: What are the system requirements?A: At present it is too early to say. System requirements will be finalized when we get closer to release.
Q: Will DCS: P-51D Mustang be online-compatible with other DCS products?A: Yes, owners of the Mustang will be able to fly online alongside owners of DCS Black Shark and DCS A-10C Warthog, assuming the mission selected for the server is made to accommodate this.
Q: What about future DCS jets?A: We will continue to develop modern aircraft as well.
Q: When will the P-51 be released?A: During 2012.
Q: Will a world war 2 era map be included?A: No, DCS is an open simulation environment, it is not a simulation of a specific time period.
Q: Will units from the world war 2 era exist, like ME-109's and Ju-87's?A: That has yet to be determined. While we understand the desire for WW2 counterpart aircraft, DCS is not intended to be a full WW2 era simulation.
Q: What about feature X?A: A more detailed feature list will be made available later, as the product gets closer to release.
Q: Are there any screenshots released?A: Yes, you can find some screenshots in the announcement.
Q: Why was the P-51 selected?A: The P-51 began as a side project by some of the staff and showed good progress. Rather than put that effort to waste, we decided to flesh it out and release as a new aircraft for DCS.
Q: How is the P-51 supposed to fit into DCS? This makes no sense to me.A: DCS is an open simulation environment, not confined to any one era, level of fidelity, or 1st party development. In the future 1st and 3rd parties may add all sorts of different units ranging from gliders to X-51s.
Q: How is a P-51 supposed to fight in a modern Georgian war against modern aircraft and air defense systems?A: It simply does not need to. It is up to the mission designer to put what units he or she wishes into the mission.
Q: How much will it cost?A: Pricing has yet to be determined.
TECHNICALQ: Will DCS: P-51D Mustang use all cores on my CPU?A: Not fully. It does include the new sound engine which operates in a separate thread.
Q: Will there be a 64-bit version?A: Yes. We highly recommend using 64-bit operating systems with this product.
GAMEPLAYQ: Is the K-14A gunsight modeled?A: Yes.
Q: Will there be missions and a campaign included?A: There will be training missions, an undetermined number of single missions, and a Challenge Campaign with tasks of ever increasing difficulty.
Q: What weapons will be available for the P-51?A: The DCS P-51D will be armed with 6 .50 cal. machine guns, 5 in. HVAR unguided rockets, and 500 lbs general purpose bombs. The guns will fire armor-piercing (AP) and armor-piercing incendiary tracer (APIT) rounds. In addition, two 75 gal. drop tanks will be available.
Q: Will we be able to adjust gun settings, such as ammo and convergence range?A: The DCS P-51D guns are boresighted by default according to standard USAAF guidelines for the Mustang, but adjustment will be possible through a combination of the payload editor and the LUA configuration files.
Q: Does the DCS P-51D include any modern avionics?A: The only modernized element of the DCS P-51D will be the pilot 3D model, which is based on a contemporary pilot's flight suit and head gear.
