Radar (Mechanic)

"Radar" redirects here. For the Radar MFD Page and its functions, see Radar (MFD Page)

Radar is one of several target detection, acquisition, and tracking methods in VTOL VR. It works by sending out pulses and registering the 'echos' they send back to the radar source upon bouncing off of another object. In the context of VTOL VR, most radars are primarily intended for acquiring air targets such as aircraft and missiles.

Two main factors play into radar detection of units in VTOL VR: the radar source's power and the detectable object's Radar Cross-Section (RCS). Every radar source in VTOL VR will have a certain distance at which transmitted radio waves have little to no chance of providing any meaningful returns for the search radar. An object's RCS determines how much of a radar's radio waves are reflected back to the radar source, and is mainly dependent on the relative surface area that the radar in question can see. An object is considered 'detected' by a radar source if two criteria are fulfilled:

1. The object is hit by the propagating radio waves.
2. Enough of the radio waves reflect off the object and back to the searching radar to be registered by the radar system.

For example, a fighter jet flying with its dorsal or ventral aspect facing directly towards a radar will give off a significantly higher RCS than if only its front is facing the radar, making it more visible to the radar from longer ranges.

In general, an aircraft with more flat edges across its frame, such as the F/A-26B, will be much more visible to a radar than other aircraft due to its geometry causing more radio waves to reflect back to the radar source. Conversely, aircraft like the F-45A will reflect fewer radio waves back to a radar source due to its more curved design; as such, it will be harder for radars to detect and track an F-45A from range than something like an F/A-26B.

Advanced

Radar Cross-Section

Externally mounted armaments increase the aircraft's RCS in all directions, but affect stealthy aspects more than others. The RCS increase varies by weapon and rail type. As a rule of thumb, weapons which are bigger and/or have larger fins will increase RCS by a larger amount. Most missiles/bombs individually increase RCS by values between 2.5 to 5.5.^{[Confirmation needed]}

Detection

The detection range of a radar is $\sqrt{rcs\times tx\times rx}$ meters. You can also calculate it by taking the RCS 1 range and multiplying it by $\sqrt{rcs}$

Name	RWR Symbol	RCS 1 range	TX Power	RX Strength
Early Warning	AD / EW	22.59 nm	500,000	3,500
AWACS	E4 / AE	18.70 nm	300,000	4,000
Missile Warning	WR / MW	14.79 nm	15,000	50,000
EF-24G	24 / EF	4.95 nm	140,000	600
MAD-4	4	4.83 nm	160,000	500
F-45A*	45 / FS	4.68 nm	125,000	600
NMSS Long Range	LR	4.68 nm	150,000	500
F/A-26B	26 / FA	4.27 nm	125,000	500
ASF-58	F+	4.09 nm	115,000	500
SAM S/A	E / DS	4.09 nm	115,000	500
ASF-30 / ASF-33	F	3.91 nm	105,000	500
T-55	55 / T	3.87 nm	82,000	625
SL-MRM / Watchman	SL	3.72 nm	95,000	500
Cruiser	DM	3.38 nm	112,000	350
NMSS Vertical	MC	3.05 nm	80,000	400
REDFOR FireCtrl	SR	3.05 nm	80,000	400
BLUFOR FireCtrl	R	2.86 nm	80,000	350

* this data is for players, The AI F45's radar is equivalent to an F/A-26B