As with any DCS World module, the Heatblur DCS: F-4E takes a bit of time to learn and get into the nuances of operation in order to be effective flying and fighting with the jet. The F-4E comes with the added layer of having an AI assistant (or human in some cases) flying with you in the back seat. Getting to know how all of these systems works takes time and can involve flipping through the virtual manual. However, I know some of you learn like I do and having a visual and narration walk me through some critical pieces helps me to get the most out of how I can be effective. This round-up is focused on tutorials that might help you make the most out of the Phantom.

Learn more about the Phantom with these videos

Right from the start, I’m going to list a bunch of videos that I’m aware of that will help you get to know some specific features of the Phantom. I don’t think we’re yet at a level where you can learn everything there is to know about the jet but you can certainly benefit from these and hopefully it inspires you to do even more searches on YouTube because these aren’t the complete list of tutorials – not by a long shot. So, let’s go through some options!

When it comes to Cold and Dark startups in DCS World, there are a couple of different ways that people do them. One is to sidestep them altogether and use the autostart. No shame in that! But if you do want to start the jet yourself there are two paths you can take – the quick but not fully realistic start-up and the fully realistic start-up.

We start with Reflected Simulations who has done a great real life start-up video that is what you might call a “study level” start-up process with every check item ticked off the list. It’s 23-minutes long so buckle up, get your notebook ready and get to starting the Phantom in the most realistic fashion possible within DCS.

You may also like to start the jet but question who has time for the full set of checks? Different strokes for different folks as they say! That’s where Tricker’s “Learn to Cold Start the DCS F-4 Phantom Quickly!” video comes in. You can be up and running in a little under 6 minutes.

The Phantom can do its own target spotting and lasing with the Pave Spike. It’s a first generation targeting pod and a far cry from the systems that you may be used to on more modern jets. It’s not the easiest to use but RedKite has you covered with a great tutorial.

The Shrike is an interesting weapon to get to know. Just like the Pave Spike, this missile is not anywhere close to the effectiveness that the HARM offers, so getting to know how the missile works is important.

If you want to make things a bit easier with the Shrike you can thanks to a simpler method of engaging with the missile. Check out 104th Maverick’s Direct Attack tutorial.

Another great video from Casmo, is this tutorial on the dive toss method with the Phantom which is so easy to pull off. Get the maximum effect with this tutorial.

Keeping things simple again with another 104th_Maverick. This one talks about the Durandal anti-runway penetration bomb.

Getting the most out of Jester in the DCS: F-4E involves ample use of the context button which really simplifies talking with Jester when you’re in a tense combat situation. Pressing a single button with either a long press or short press depending on context makes things rather easy and we turn to both Tricker and Casmo for some great tutorials on how to do this in air to air engagements.

I hope these help get you started and going with the Phantom! There’s so much more to the jet than just these tutorials and there are so many more tutorials out there for you to watch but these will hopefully help you sort out some key features of DCS World’s latest module. Good luck with your flying!