I’ve been flying the DCS: CH-47F throughout the weekend and after a bit of time learning about the helicopter I’ve got a sense of what we’re in for with the module as it develops through the early access period. There’s a mix of features and considerations to keep in mind if you’re considering a purchase. Let’s have a look!
Its early access
I’m not even sure if we can call it an elephant in the room. CH-47F is early access and that means that Eagle Dynamics is not yet done with the helicopter. If past projects are any indication, it will take a couple of years to completely build out the helicopter and its associated systems.
DCS early access releases have come in all kinds of different configurations. While some early access modules are surprisingly complete, others are are in a bit of a rougher state. Eagle Dynamics has had a mixed history too with their early access releases with some, like the Mi-24, coming out in pretty good shape from day one while others, like the F-16, being a rushed release. I fear the CH-47F is a little closer to the F-16C than the Mi-24 though we are talking about apples and oranges in some ways. Let’s dig into the details.
Visuals and sounds
Eagle Dynamic’s 3D modelers and artists once again prove themselves to be among the best in the industry. CH-47F is stunning to look at in every respect. The shine on the textures, the subtle wear and tear, the fine grating around the CH-47’s engines and exhausts, the flare dispensers, right down to the seat and the floor panels are all stunning.
I don’t think this pushes any further ahead than their previous releases which were all similarly impressive but the level of detail hasn’t fallen back either. It’s certainly among the best in the industry.
The cockpit texture work in particular is very sharp but also very readable for the most part. The few analogue displays are sharp and contrasty and thus easy to read. I found the digital panels a bit harder to see but that’s more to do with positioning, size and scale. On my 4K display its not too bad but I can see folks with VR needing to lean in to read the fine print. When you do get there, however, they are quite sharp all the same so I’m not sure what could be done there.
The lighting at night is also very good both inside and out. Various lighting configurations can be enabled with a night vision goggles friendly green as one of them.
There are a bunch of animations on the helicopter that are worth calling out too. The rotors and associated blades, always impressively complex to me, look great! So do the various steps of opening and closing of the main cargo door. That looks really good!
There are, however, just two liveries included at this point. More are promised later but the showing of just two is a little thin. One is an olive drab and one is a lighter desert scheme. They are sufficient to get us started but I would have loved to have seen more.
The sounds on the CH-47F are a bit of a mixed bag. First the good where we have elements such as the engine start-up (including the start of the APU) and the various engine noises which are satisfying. There are some cool little sounds too like the warning buzzer for troops in the back (together with an associated warning light colour). Love little details like that.
What’s present is very good but there seems to be a bunch of sounds that are absent at the moment too. I noticed pretty early on that the ramp moving noise is just not there. You can open and close it but there are no associated sound effects. Moving on from that, I’m really feeling the absence of blade slapping and other “helicoptery” sounds. I’ve heard Chinooks fly around at airshows and over my head on a few occasions and they really can create that blade slapping sound you expect from a helicopter. I don’t hear it here. There’s also not really any wind or cabin noise pitch changes to help communicate that the helicopter is doing something different (or bad) either. Other DCS helicopters have been good at giving us that effect by comparison.
There also doesn’t appear to be any vortex ring state sound effects. To be fair, I don’t know what to fully expect from the CH-47 in this regard but flight sims often do best when they are communicating some of the “feel” of the aircraft through sound. Other DCS helicopters have been good at this in the past so it just seems to be something missing here.
Systems and features
To get the CH-47F to where it is means that a lot of core systems are functioning. That includes all of the basics of the engine simulation (stuff that happens behind the scenes for the most part) as well as many of the avionics.
On the multi-functional displays (MFDs) there’s the VSD page, the HSD page, engine and powertrain pages, fuel page, and flight plan summary. These can be displayed in half or full screen so you can have multiple elements on one screen. The MFDs are interchangeable so you can put whatever display you want wherever you want. You’ve also got radio (with integrated voice), night vision goggles, a RWR and pilot controlled countermeasure system.
The integration of logistics into the module and into DCS World is pretty key here and there are some encouraging features here. The new warhouse system can let you move cargo from one location to another including airbases, FARPs, and aircraft carriers and that cargo will have persistence as its moved. You can also load and unload the CH-47 using a modified armament panel. It will load nearby cargo into the helicopter and the cargo will appear in the hold. There are no animations, something that people have asked for, but which I think would be excessively complicated to do. Still, what I see I like on this. I need more time with it and more time seeing how it has an online impact to really see.
Eagle Dynamics have put up this cargo guide and the guide does show a good amount of knowledge that the multiplayer environment has, for years, has their own cargo systems and scripts which this seems to do its best at not interfering with. So one way or another, you can move virtual cargo around and see the cargo move from place to place.
There is an AI assistant called “Bob” which is listed as a feature but has no presence in the manual. I don’t know what Bob is doing. Maybe grilling the burger of the day? I don’t know! But I’d like to learn more about that by the time I do a more fulsome review. The AI can be setup for operating the machine guns too which are currently limited to the M60 light machine gun but I haven’t used them yet.
More features are intended to be added later including a missile warning system, a heads up display, EAPS (engine particle separator) which currently shows a failure no matter what you do, a more sophisticated trim and force trim system pilot and co-pilot visibility (currently they are invisible) and multi point sling loading.
The helicopter does have a visual damage model as evidence by the times that I’ve banged the helicopter up or had it shot at. The visual damage effect does include sheared off propeller blades when you crash the helicopter, however, they will clip into the ground for a while before breaking which is a DCS World problem. There’s not too much else here and the Chinook will reportedly eat enemy fire and keep on going so it doesn’t have a deep failure model yet.
Flying and flight model
I have complex feelings about the CH-47 right now. I’ve seen two different schools of thought emerge from around the community. One group feels like the helicopter flies really well and they really like it. Others think that the flight model is not fully developed and that the helicopter has some serious flight model issues. I… fall somewhere in between.
One of the things that I heard from people is that the CH-47 was twitchy but I don’t find that to be the case. It is a responsive helicopter and quite capable but its not overly twitchy. The only element that I find to be a bit on the twitchy side is the balancing of the helicopter where setting the helicopter for cruise is a bit difficult. A slight move forward and the helicopter gains speed and tilts further forward. Slightly back and the helicopter climbs and loses speed rapidly. There’s almost no happy in between cruise spot which makes it a bit hard to fly sometimes. The additional trim and flight control systems will likely sort this out when those features are implemented.
There is the odd experience with this helicopter. With no collective added, you can push the stick forward and watch as the CH-47 flops forward onto its nose. Having that much authority and lift-off potential without any collective added seems odd to me though I have nothing else to go on there so maybe that is a real danger to the aircraft.
I’ve also crashed the CH-47 in vortex ring state (VRS) several times now and I’m a bit frustrated because I seem to get into VRS without having any warning of it coming up. I just lose lift and crash. Other helicopters like the Mi-8 and UH-1 communicate with shaking and sound effects to let me know that I’m getting myself into some trouble. The Chinook needs some work here… and so does the virtual pilot who needs to stop getting into VRS in the first place.
Other elements of flying the CH-47 are quite easy. The helicopter feels big but responsive, it flies differently when loaded with cargo and then suddenly needs a different balance once unloaded. It can easily hover in place without too much effort and it flies fast and confidently when it needs to. Turn hard and get onto the anti-torque pedals and you can really kill off some speed too which I’ve read is quite characteristic of the Chinook. Fun!
Gameplay opportunities
One of the things that will be critical for this module is what gameplay opportunities are opened up by it. I think in some ways Eagle Dynamics jumped onto doing this module after the announcement of an official third party C-130J was announced. Both of these logistics focused aircraft are going to need core DCS World support to make them successful so the CH-47 is leading the way and hopefully will lay groundwork for the C-130 and other logistics aircraft when they arrive.
There are a decent amount of gameplay opportunities available right now. Most maps support instant action missions for the CH-47, some which include objective based gameplay such as a delivery run on the Marianas Islands map or delivering supplies to a mountain area on Caucasus. Online I’ve already noted that the Rotorheads server has got the CH-47 up and running with folks on there using the CH-47 for cargo runs to forward areas and for conducting search and rescue. Combat potential is certainly there with the threat from missiles, AA fire, and from AI piloted helicopters.
Other servers that haven’t yet implemented the helicopter but have had helicopter borne logistics scripts running for years now will probably take quickly to this as well. It is encouraging then that the CH-47 already has things to do.
Final thoughts
Despite the early access nature of the CH-47, there is quite a lot to like here. The visuals are incredible, it flies reasonably well, what is implemented is implemented well and flying a big powerful helicopter like the Chinook is quite a lot of fun in my books.
I do think, however, that CH-47 is going to be a tough sell for a couple of reasons. More combat oriented sim flyers will probably not gravitate towards this helicopter and that’s ok. The CH-47 isn’t going out into the world of DCS to drop weapons on targets. Its intended to fulfill other parts of the combat experience dropping troops, artillery and supplies into hot zones. The CH-47 can still be immersive even if you own other modules as I think we’ll see quite a bit more of the helicopter in mixed multiplayer scenarios. Having the Chinook fly alongside the Apache and Kiowa in various scenarios, all player controlled, has lots of potential for gameplay.
The other challenges are of course that the logistics elements in DCS World are still in a nascent state. That potential looks set to grow thanks to the new logistics/warehouse system which means that there is a good positive direction to go in here but this is the first iteration and its just getting underway. The CH-47 as a result is going to be heavily reliant on that and good scenario creation to really get the most out of the module.
CH-47 is quite early into its early access right now and, as with prior early access modules, is just missing a lot of features. Enhancing the logistics system, enhancing the damage system, adding addition features such as missile warning system, multi-point sling loading and other features are all still to come so if you wanted those systems right off the bat you’ll just have to wait for them.
There’s quite a bit to like with the CH-47 but at the same time it does feel a little rough and raw between features, performance, some quirks with the flight model, and missing sounds/effects. I’m very glad to see the Chinook is here and I’m hopeful about what it can be but those are things in the future. If you’re willing to be part of that growing process, the $20 discount is not a bad thing to take advantage of, but if you want to wait and see I think that’s also a prudent thing to do.
DCS: CH-47F is available for purchase on both Steam and on the DCS World e-Shop for a promotional $55.99 USD.
Screenshots
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