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  • helicopter flying tips?

    ive been playing for about a month now and i see really good pilots out there. right now i can fly around but im having trouble even hovering over a flag and landing for repairs. (im using the basic mouse and keyboard controls with default settings) what are the best controls to use when flying? is default fine? any helicopter flying tips or guides would be useful.

  • #2
    Re: helicopter flying tips?

    I find the default fine....I suggest you practice a lot with the bigger slower transport helicopters before you move to the attack choppers...

    Some people say a joystick is the best but I have yet to buy one...personally I want to get one just cuz its a lil bit more of a simulation with a joystick then a mouse and keyboard....but none the less you can still fly just as good with a keyboard and mouse...

    What I recomend is firing up the game go into a empty server or start a local game...use something with a lot of trees... then what you should do is hop in a helo and just try to go around the map as fast as possible weaving in and out of the trees...once you get good at this you will be amazed at how good at flying you can be...

    Also I recomend starting out not using the in cabin view...look at your chopper from above to learn how it reacts to your movements...the nhop into first person view and try zooming around in the woods...

    Good luck and hope this helped

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: helicopter flying tips?

      Personally I prefer to fly with a joystick. But I do have some general tips.
      1. To engage in a sustained hover, you have to find that sweetspot in the lift you give the chopper. Once you find that sweetspot, counteract the chopper's movement so that it stays still.
      For example: The chopper starts swaying left, make a slight adjustment to the right. Same thing applies when the chopper starts swaying fowards/backwards.

      2. The basic controls are fine when flying with keyboard and mouse.

      3. When turning, do not turn with your mouse unless you absolutely have to. Such as when avoiding stingers or heat seeking missles. Or dogfighting with another chopper.

      4. Master counteracting chopper movements. Once you have that down most problems related to flying a chopper will disappear.

      Hope this helped. And good luck.

      NOTE: Practice flying in singleplayer.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: helicopter flying tips?

        thanks guys i'll give it a whirl in single player.. i tried joystick myself but it was very awkward. i have the wingman and i calibrated it, but the helo kept flipping onto its side hehe.

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: helicopter flying tips?

          I will be the first to say that I am not the best helo pilot. When I first tried it I used my joystick (that I just calibrated) and I was flipping it everywhere. After about an hour, I was moving around the board, but I felt like I was over compinsating for everthing. I then decided to try the default controls with the keyboard and mouse. In my opinion this is the way to go. What I did for my practice was start a local game, set the respawn timer on 1 second, and pick a 64 player map that you know has blackhawks. BHs are much easier to fly in my opinion.
          The larger map will give you a lot more room to move around and you will not have to worry about anyone trying to shoot at you.
          Good luck

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: helicopter flying tips?

            I used to use a joystick to fly Helo's but not any more. It is SOOO much easier to fly a helo using Mouse/Keyboard. It just takes practice. You need to get a feel for what reactions your movements will have on the helo and you have to realize that most actions take a few seconds to occur. The Attack Helo's are much more responsive than the Transports. As someone else mentioned, start of practicing in the big, slow ones.

            I use W/S for the collective(throttle) Up/Down and A/D for Turn Left/Right. The mouse then does the Nose Up/Down and bank/roll Left/Right. You can do some tight turns by turning and banking into the turn ... and depending on airspeed and attitude, you can sometimes turn faster rolling one way while turning the other.

            Basics ... keeping your nose level, W will make you go up, S will make you go down. When you want to move forward, nose down a little and you will begin moving forward. To slow down or stop, just bring your nose back level or a little up then drop it level. The faster you are going, the further up you bring the nose to come to a stop, but again, bring the nose up, then level it out pretty quick. Practice just moving forward and stopping by doing that. You can also move backwards in a helo by nosing up ... or move sideways by banking and maintaining level attitude.

            Hovering just takes practice. It is a matter of keeping everything level. If you are turning, you may need to bank a little in the opposite direction to help maintain the hover.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: helicopter flying tips?

              Originally posted by Major_Rosha
              I used to use a joystick to fly Helo's but not any more. It is SOOO much easier to fly a helo using Mouse/Keyboard. It just takes practice. You need to get a feel for what reactions your movements will have on the helo and you have to realize that most actions take a few seconds to occur. The Attack Helo's are much more responsive than the Transports. As someone else mentioned, start of practicing in the big, slow ones.

              I use W/S for the collective(throttle) Up/Down and A/D for Turn Left/Right. The mouse then does the Nose Up/Down and bank/roll Left/Right. You can do some tight turns by turning and banking into the turn ... and depending on airspeed and attitude, you can sometimes turn faster rolling one way while turning the other.

              Basics ... keeping your nose level, W will make you go up, S will make you go down. When you want to move forward, nose down a little and you will begin moving forward. To slow down or stop, just bring your nose back level or a little up then drop it level. The faster you are going, the further up you bring the nose to come to a stop, but again, bring the nose up, then level it out pretty quick. Practice just moving forward and stopping by doing that. You can also move backwards in a helo by nosing up ... or move sideways by banking and maintaining level attitude.

              Hovering just takes practice. It is a matter of keeping everything level. If you are turning, you may need to bank a little in the opposite direction to help maintain the hover.
              thanks rosha this helps alot! i cant wait to get home now lol

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: helicopter flying tips?

                If you keep rolling the helo when you hop in - make sure your joystick is centered when you get in. With bf2 - at least there is a delay now before your helo takes off - unlike DC where you would insta flip if you left your throttle up and stick turned.

                One thing I learned - turned down the sensativity some when you first start out - makes your movements have to be more deliberate in order to fly where you want to. Subtle movements are key for the hover. Over correcting causes you to crash.

                My biggest tip - practice practice practice - but do that practice on an empty server or single player. The last thing I want to do is be a gunner for a newb pilot. Sure everyone has to learn - but just don't learn on my packed server and steal the combat chopper every time it spawns.

                One real good thing you can do - it be a gunner for a good pilot - spend some time up front - get a feel for how they are flying. That helped me a ton - gives you a chance to see what the chopper is capable of. If you are impressed with the flying - tell them - and even ask if they are using a stick or a Keyboard/Mouse. That way you know what you are up against if you are not using the same.

                I fly with a force-feedback logitech stick, with analog throttle. Getting the throttle down is a big step.

                My problem is - I am used to throttling the chopper - and now flying jets - I tend to stall them out because I go to hover spot on throttle for chopper - lmao. I will stick to the helos and leave the jets for the other guys.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: helicopter flying tips?

                  hey beerstein,

                  my admiration for those pilots that i was gunner for is what makes me want to fly so bad. i give them props all the time! most of the ones i have asked say they use mouse and keyboard as well.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: helicopter flying tips?

                    Come to my server (see sig). It is usually empty :P all day and most of the evening unless I get enough of my friends online and we can get the 10 to start. Anyway, I digress. The initial map loaded is usually Sharqi (although, my server was just updated with the newest BF2CC and I am still at work and haven't had a chance to change the default settings). I am usually online, practicing my flying from 6pm CST till whenever (hoping to get enough people ingame to start the game). I will be happy to let you fly as gunner or as pilot and willing to offer any help I can. Not saying I am the bestest pilot alive or anything, but I do ok.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: helicopter flying tips?

                      Originally posted by Major_Rosha
                      Come to my server (see sig). It is usually empty :P all day and most of the evening unless I get enough of my friends online and we can get the 10 to start. Anyway, I digress. The initial map loaded is usually Sharqi (although, my server was just updated with the newest BF2CC and I am still at work and haven't had a chance to change the default settings). I am usually online, practicing my flying from 6pm CST till whenever (hoping to get enough people ingame to start the game). I will be happy to let you fly as gunner or as pilot and willing to offer any help I can. Not saying I am the bestest pilot alive or anything, but I do ok.
                      hehe thanks man, appreciate the help. i'll add u to my buddy list and look for ya my in game name is LyNX=iYF=

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: helicopter flying tips?

                        2 keys pts I left out for being a good pilot:

                        1 - Know your gunner's FOV (field of view). Do not line them up for a shot they can't take because they cannot aim that low or high. Most importantly - know on your pilot view - what the gunner tv view is. A good gunner can hit anything with the missle - including other aircraft.

                        2 - provide a steady platform for your gunner. try not to make jerky turns - keep it smooth and your scores will prove its worthyness. The only time you need to get crazy in flying is to avoid getting shot down. If you can sneak in undetected and circle or move around - all while keeping the same target view - you can be very lethal. Get a pilot that can circle strafe - and its game over for ground targets.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: helicopter flying tips?

                          beerstein can u provide a general description of how to lineup the helo for the gunner point of view to shoot down another helo with a missle? i guess the tv view is generally on a downward angle correct? but the gunner view is from the tip of the helicopter nose? im confused

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: helicopter flying tips?

                            well - there are many folks here trying to help
                            all with the good intentions
                            yet notice how some contradict each other?
                            well - I did about 10 hours of practice and analysis in local server - I HAD to - I have thousands of hours of real military fighter jet time and some helo time - and was tired of being embarrased in the game

                            the hardest part for me. is that some of the aero models are good (ie realistic) and some are not, so I had to discern the difference

                            now, to answer your question -> there are 2 answers
                            which way is easier? and which way is better (ie make you more effective in the game)

                            FIRST - you have to be able to fly in a NON-combat mode - if you cannot do that, then no sense going to the advanced mode

                            I will not go through all my iterations of research, but just give you the solution -

                            to fly simple stuff - cap flags - JUST keyboard for vehicle attitude (ie pitch and roll) - and the helo has some form of auto hover built in - but it does not always work - you engage it by letting go of the throttle
                            (which is the W/S keys)
                            btw - W/S keys are NOT up and down - they simulate collective (which is a fancy way of saying engaging the pitch on the blades - or even a simpler way - power)

                            It seems like up and down - but that is a matter of the physics of the helo

                            once you have some speed, controlling the pitch with the arrow keys, controls your forward speed

                            now, because the auto hover does not always work
                            I use the throttle on joystick to set my engine rpm
                            each helo is different (range betwen 27% for BH and up to 33% for bigger busses)
                            now when I cap or hover, I do not have to worry about power settings - that is more than 1/2 the battle -

                            to be even more mobile - use the mouse for pitch and roll = but make SMALL movements - till you learn to control to the momentum of the helo - always reseting the center symbol back to the center - this will stabilize all you inputs

                            advanced - maybe someday - the joystick - but that is HARDER - as in center the jopstick does NOT cease command inputs - you have to enter opposite commands to make it stop rolling, etc

                            next you have to learn to set up for your gunners, then learn to avoid missles, then learn to avoid attack helo rockets, then to shoot your own rockets (without crashing) etc etc etc

                            in other words - welcome to avaition!!!!

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: helicopter flying tips?

                              Originally posted by BeerStein
                              2 keys pts I left out for being a good pilot:

                              1 - Know your gunner's FOV (field of view). Do not line them up for a shot they can't take because they cannot aim that low or high. Most importantly - know on your pilot view - what the gunner tv view is. A good gunner can hit anything with the missle - including other aircraft.

                              2 - provide a steady platform for your gunner. try not to make jerky turns - keep it smooth and your scores will prove its worthyness. The only time you need to get crazy in flying is to avoid getting shot down. If you can sneak in undetected and circle or move around - all while keeping the same target view - you can be very lethal. Get a pilot that can circle strafe - and its game over for ground targets.
                              amen amen amen
                              and for you non-believers
                              ditto ditto ditto

                              I probably have less than 20 kills with rockets
                              but over 500 kill assists when flying atack helo
                              we are a mobile killing machine
                              I even HATE to cap flags with attck helo
                              Not our job!!- we are ANTI - ARMOR
                              and we hover out of range of AA and keep an eye out for jets - we own the map -

                              if I ever get in an attack helo with a pilot whose first impulse is to shoot rockets - I type like crazy - USE THE GUNNER in COBRA/HAVOC - if he does not comlpy - I NEVER go back with him again

                              almost same with BH = we do some capping - but as troops are getting better at defending= we just roam the skys like the spectre in Vietnam

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