Thrustmaster HOTAS WARTHOG: Sticks of Joy

I never considered myself a fan of flight simulators, meticulously studying the virtual cockpit of each plane, then scribbling on the forums about the inconsistency between the two cogs and the font on the lower right autopilot mode switch. But at the same time he was not averse to flying sometimes, for which he used the ancient Lodzhitek joystick. Over the years, the mechanics were worn out, and the “Center” position corresponded to anything, but certainly not neutral, and the button, usually responsible for machine-gun fire, was pressed only when pressed in a special way. Not to say that it upset me so much to go buy a new set - I'm an amateur, not a professional. But here Providence decided everything for me. In a very unusual way, but still, I got a set from the French in my hands - Thrustmaster HOTAS Warthog . After my ancient joystick, it was like transferring from an old broken-down Uazik to a new BMW.

What is it all about?

Let's start with the fact that it is not only a joystick, but a kit, which also includes an engine control knob. Together they form the logic of control of the HOTAS (Hands on “gas pedals” and control knob) actively used by American aircraft designers, in which it is possible to fully control the equipment in combat without removing hands from the handles and, accordingly, without distracting to find the right switches - all at hand. Outwardly, they are an exact copy of similar controls of the legendary attack aircraft of the US Air Force A10C “Thunderbolt” . At what, according to the creators, all buttons, switches and handles require for pressing exactly the same effort that is required by real pilots of this aircraft. And if I confirm the external similarity, then I can only say one thing about clicks - metal switches are felt and clicked exactly as they did in childhood, when I was often on a warship.

Together with the above-mentioned switches, there are only 32 buttons on the block with the throttle, a micro-joystick and an eight-position POV switch. All this looks impressive, which is promoted by green - “as in the present” - the illumination of the toggle switches and the massive foundation, thanks to which in any hot fight the whole unit remains in place, not moving a single millimeter. Also in the right side there is a slider, in the “real” A10 the regulating force necessary to move the engine control knobs. But in the replica for this there is a separate regulator in the upper part, and the slider can be used as an additional control. Magnetic sensors based on the Hall effect are used to control the position of the control knobs. This ensures the registration of 16384 positions (14 bits) and the guarantee that in a couple of years mechanical wear will not affect the positioning accuracy. In the minimum position, the handles move only after a slight pull-up, which does not allow the engines to accidentally turn off the engines and start searching for the catapult handle during the fight.

The joystick itself has only nineteen buttons, but then three four-position switches and one more eight-position POV controller are under the thumb. It helps a lot in the process of searching and capturing a target, allowing you to control several systems at once without removing your hands from the controls and forcing you to search for the necessary buttons on the keyboard. The "machine-gun" button under the index finger has two degrees of depression - like a descent in cameras. In the A10C, a light press activates the recoil compensation system, and a full press already turns on the gun. Taking into account the fact that, for example, a similar 2A42, standing on our Ka-50, when firing literally turns a helicopter, this is far from superfluous.

Similar positioning sensors are responsible for positioning the joystick itself, ensuring an accuracy of 65535 positions on each axis. If at first it seems superfluous, then after the first bombing all claims disappear. And, as in the case of the ORE, the use of a non-mechanical control system ensures that in two years the “Center” position will be the same as now. The wide and massive basis allows not to worry about the safety of the device in any conditions.

There is also an opportunity to replace the current pen with a younger brother - Cougar a decade old, a special option for those who are used to the old, proven hardware. At the same time, the positioning system will remain new, only the pen itself with buttons will be replaced, so this action will not lead to a loss of accuracy.
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How is it at all?

There were no problems with the connection - just put the bundled software and release the two USB ports. Devices are completely independent and can be used both together and separately. In addition to the drivers themselves, there is also a kind of software complex TARGET on the disk - a special software for controlling and configuring the joystick and throttle control. This program allows you to configure and configure almost any device from Thrustmaster, including even the MFD Cougar - a replica of the displays installed in American aircraft with a full set of buttons. You can also create separate macros for any of the control devices. I repent, having understood the local scripting language, I wrote special macros for some routine actions at the touch of a single button - while the list of commands included both keyboard presses and delays.

For example, the chain simply looked like this: turn on the batteries, turn on the fuel gauge, turn on the self-diagnostics system, turn off the hydraulic system alarm, turn on the radio, get permission to start, turn on the fuel pumps, turn on the APU fuel line, start the APU, turn on the system control the left engine, turn on the left engine fuel pump, turn the engine select switch to the left position, press the engine start button, and then remove the engine stop valve. Then repeat the procedure for the right. That is, if desired, you can write almost a separate program for each press. In addition, in fact, the interface between the computer and the joystick, TARGET allows you to instantly update the device firmware with one touch of a button, adjust the backlight, the response to clicks and other nice things to your heart.

We turn to the most delicious - how does it behave in the game. Since I received such a device, it was a sin not to try it out in the perfectly suitable for it simulator “A10C Warthog” from Eagle Dynamics. Yes, it can be considered advertising - but the game was created taking into account the existence of this joystick and in the control settings all the commands are already tied to the corresponding buttons and switches, due to which a minimal reconfiguration is required, only if you are used to other bindings.

Also in the settings there is an item that allows you to synchronize the state of control of the aircraft with the joystick when you start the flight, which allows you to leave, for example, the anti-missile system, and no longer bother with its constant activation. Taking into account the thorough simulation of the aircraft in the game, including the most recent toggle switch for switching on the system for checking the liquid oxygen supply sensor, the use of the Thrustmaster kit in the game adds a real presence effect to the already excellent simulator. James Cameron with their "Avatars" rest. Since all the controls correspond to this particular aircraft, you feel like a real A10 pilot on a combat mission, realizing that somewhere in Afghanistan the pilot-attack aircraft uses exactly the same switches, it also imposes a small lever on the target designator, just the same thumb drops uncontrollable bombs.

The accuracy of control is beyond praise. If earlier ground bombing was for me the most hated act, now it has suddenly become easy and simple. After all, at a speed of 300 kilometers per hour, the slightest deviation from the course ensures a bomb falling tens of meters from the desired point. With this joystick, the plane began to react to the slightest course adjustment, allowing the destruction of unguided bombs and rockets with targets that I had previously hardly hit with guided bombs with laser guidance. After a while, you get so used to switches that all actions are performed intuitively, like a combo in old arcades on the “Szego” - switching to battle mode, choosing a weapon, searching, capturing a target, throwing traps - doesn't waste a second on searching the keyboard .

Total

In general, this is probably the best control device that fell into my hands. His only drawback for me is the overly sensitive micro-joystick on the throttle, which is used to move the aiming frame, and too easily a toggle switch on the left side of the handle. It seems that just about something inside will break loose and start to walk back and forth. Otherwise, both modules look like unbreakable monoliths, the build quality does not cause the slightest criticism. If I had this joystick five years ago, I would definitely fly out of the institute, spending more time in the sky than on the ground. This is probably the last frontier between the "casual" pilot and those flyers who equip in their room an exact copy of the cockpit of their favorite aircraft, lovingly selecting and customizing every detail. Next - just go to flight school.