text: מאמר על קרבות BVR - אנגלית - פורומים - פריפלייט שם משתמש:סיסמא: באתר 29 גולשים: 29 אורחים ו-0 חברים! פורום סימולטורים פריפלייט פורום טייסות לארכיון הפורום חוקי הפורום חיפוש קבוצות משתמשים התחבר מאמר על קרבות BVR - אנגלית עמוד ראשי -> בית ספר לטיסה סדרת DCS -> מאמר על קרבות BVR - אנגלית צפה בנושא הקודם :: צפה בנושא הבא מחבר הודעה IAF_Phantomמדריך בית ספר לטיסההצטרף בתאריך: Mar 13, 2006הודעות: 2662מיקום: בית ספר לטיסה נשלח: 12:17 ,8 נובמבר 2014, שבת כותרת הודעה: מאמר על קרבות BVR - אנגלית http://www.benchmarksims.org/forum/showthread.php?11588-Jammer-Tactics-when-using-it-and-when-not-using-it-!&p=201267&viewfull=1#post201267 Some terminology. The concepts are essential in defining BVR tactics. A-Pole - Distance from launching aircraft to target when a missile begins active guidance. F-Pole - Distance from launching aircraft to target when a missile endgames/impacts. E-Pole - Distance from a threat aircraft that evasive maneovers can be expected to kinamatically defeat any missile the bandit is launching or could have launched. DR or D-RNG(Decision Range) - Minimum range at which a flight member can execute a briefed notch to beam, assess spike status and execute an abort (extend) while remaining outside the threats stern weapons employment zone (WEZ). This will be some distance greater then E-Pole to allow time for the notch and assess status. In order to defeat a threat and survive, we're aiming to get to Pitbull (A-Pole) while still outside the E-Pole. The problem is that both these distances change radically with course variations by yourself and the bandit. They are not static. A-Pole is at it's greatest distance when you are fast and nose on (dot shot) and the target is hot to you. E-Pole is at it's greatest under exactly the same circumstances. This is why we sprint, shoot, decelerate and crank. Sprint and shoot maximises your A-Pole. Decelerate and crank minimises your E-Pole. Against many threat aircraft, the F16 has a much greater A-Pole and as long as you sort, target and fire, you will win under most circumstances. Sprint, shoot, decelerate and crank is always a smart thing to do and against Mig 21's and Mig 23's will usually be sufficient to defeat the bandits at no risk. You easily remain outside D-RNG when your missile goes active. Practise this tactic until it's routine. The Su 27 / AA 12 combo has a greater A-Pole potential than you do in a straight head to head shoot out. You'll never get to pitbull before you enter D-RNG. Charging straight in will never work in these circumstances. Even if you crank after launch to minimise E-Pole, if the Su does the same, he has a larger radar gimbal limit than you. The geometry means he can therefore reduce the E-Pole more than you can and you'll never reach him. However, D-RNG and E-Pole (Rmax2) is somewhat shorter than Rmax1 firing distance. The object of the BVR joust, BVR manoevering and brackets/drags is to get to pitbull while remaining outside D-RNG or at worst E-Pole. It can be done, but you have to be much smarter. The anology here is very similar to two boxers pawing at each other at the limits of their reach (A-Pole). The boxer with the longest reach has a clear advantage. The boxer with the shortest arms sees he has an opening and goes for the biggy, a knockout punch. But to get to this distance, he exposes himself to the counter punch. He has effectively stepped inside the E-Pole! He might get away with it, but then again he may not. In BVR we're using our jab while avoiding the uppercut! _________________ The jammer works very well in AA combat as it does against older SAM's, but only if used correctly. Here's what it can do for you in a simple example. A good human pilot with a jammer facing a good human pilot without as jammer will have the ability to deny first lock first launch capability if his opponent is in a similar platform (f16 vs f16 both with slammers). Whilst this doesn't guarantee first kill, it is a distinct advantage. If I fire a missile at 22 miles before the other guy gets a lock and can fire a missile at me, he is immediately at a disadvantage and has some choices to make rather quickly. He can continue to charge straight at me in hopes of getting to burn through and getting a shot off, while at the same time running the risk of being killed by my early launched slammer, or he can choose to defend against the incoming shot, which will then more than likely miss, but thus allow me the opportunity to close for a much higher Pk follow up shot which will be more difficult to defeat. Either way he dies! Jammer works best from head on or tail aspect and within a certain altitude difference. It is pretty ineffective in the beam (RP5 manual explains it well). To test if jammer works and how it works, go BVR with a human opponent (both of you in F16's to make everything equal) first with and then without a jammer. Fly straight at each other. Without jammer, you'll get a first radar contact at about 50 miles. Before this you'll see nothing. The contact, once it appears, stays on your scope without jumping around. You can't get a bug at this range, but you can get an altitude by putting the radar cursors over it. With jammer, you'll see a jamming contact from perhaps 80 miles, but you cannot bug it and cannot get an altitude readout from the cursors. The contact will "strobe" or jump around the B scope. You'll have no idea what range he's at until he gets closer. You can bug or lock from 40 miles of more if your opponent is without jammer. With jammer, this drops to about 20 miles, known as "burn through". Use of jammer outside 20 miles will deny a bug or lock and deny a missile launch unless you wish to fire maddog, which outside of 20 miles has a very low Pk. The slammer has a HOJ capability, but it needs to know where your target is in order to go HOJ. This means you must bug a target first by getting to burn through range. If your opponent is foolish enough to keep his jammer on once inside burn through distance, he's no longer denying first lock, first launch, but instead he's acting as a slammer homing beacon. This is all modelled very effectively in the sim. The use of jammer adds to the aerial chess game that is BVR combat. Using it too soon will give the enemy an early indication that you are out there. He'll get a bearing on you from much further away than he could normally do. If he's a team player with wingmen, this allows him to set up a bracket or a posthole or try some other BVR tactic much earlier than he would otherwise be able to do. Used at the correct time, you won't give away your position too soon, but you'll be able to deny a radar lock or bug and missile launch until much closer than you would without a jammer. Once inside burn through distance the jammer is actually a slammer or AA12 homing beacon. You just have to know when to use it and when to turn it off and understand what it is you are trying to achieve at any given range by using it. The guy who understands how his jammer works, how his radar works and how his missiles work will have the advantage over the guy who doesn't. Read as much as you can and get up there and practise! Read up on A pole, F pole and E pole, what they are and how to use them. When you get tired of defeating the AI in an F16, try humans or try doing the same BVR thing with disimilar aircraft (say a Su 27 against a F16). Without jammer you can lock a Su 27 from 40+ miles. With a jammer, you can't get a lock until he's inside of about 18 miles. His jammer is quite powerful. He also has a very powerful radar and he'll burn through your jammer long before you'll burn through his. This means you must turn off your jammer to deny the HOJ shot as you close the range. You'll find yourself in the uncomfortable position of him being able to lock you and shoot before you can do the same to him. Leads to many interesting tactical considerations depending upon your opposition and his use of jammer. This also gives you differences in A pole and E pole which you can exploit. Differences in missile speeds and autonomous ranges gives you M pole combinations too. Confused? Read up and it. SP3 is a good enough sim to use real world tactics. SP3 has some pretty fancy AI combinations in BVR tactics, but is no challenge at all compared to a good human pilot. The AI can be duped into using ECM by going to STT on him. He'll turn on jammer and give you a HOJ shot every time. Humans won't do this. They tend to use their jammers in a more unpredictable fashion. They'll blink and strobe, beam and disappear with altitude variations and generally be very annoying and unco-operative in BVR combat! If I'm going BVR, I'll take two wing tanks, but I'll always take a jammer. I want to be unpredictable too! Does a HOJ or a normal shot have a higher Pk? Not a simple answer to this question for slammers or AA12's. Missile firing range and closure has a bigger impact on Pk than guidence. A missile fired at 10 miles head on has a high Pk, while fired from the rear in a tail chase has a low Pk, regardless of it's guidence method. A missile fired at close range will go pitbull off the rail and is very hard to defeat. Likewise, a missile that goes HOJ at close range will be hard to defeat as well. At longer ranges (especially outside E pole), the Pk will be low regardless of guidence method. The main advantage of getting a HOJ shot is that the missile goes autonomous earlier and needs no futher help from you. This means you are free to break lock and bug out or engage another target and do not have to support the missile through it's data link phase until autonomous. A HOJ shot is effectively extending your A pole. If your A pole is bigger than his, you have an advantage. Against SARH such as AA10's or AIM 7's, all you need to do is break the launch platforms STT lock at any time during the missiles flight and you will defeat the missile. How you do this (jammer, chaff or beaming) doesn't matter. The missile looses guidence and will usually go ballistic or self detonate without guidence. ARH missiles don't. If there's one in the air, it's dangerous to friend and foe alike. Without guidence, they'll head towards the last computed intercept point and switch on their radars and look for a target. First one they see, they'll try and intercept, so defeating the launch platforms radar isn't always enough. You have to get out of the missiles field of view or escape the missile kinematically. With ARH missiles, it's a sensible precaution to make sure there are no friendlies close to your intended target. If the bad guy breaks your bug/lock before the missile goes pitbull, the missile will simply arrive at a point in space and turn on it's radar and look for the first available target. If your wingman is between you and the target you fired on, it might well be him. P76 of the SP3 manual explains the EWS panel and the Mode switch. It can be OFF (self explanatory), STBY which allows the chaff/flare sequence to be reprogrammed through the ICP, MAN, which is manual chaff and flare deployment and manual jammer deployment, SEMI, where betty will call out "jammer" thus warning you to turn jammer on when you are spiked, but still requiring you to manually turn on the jammer, while at the same time automatically deploying the selected chaff and flare programme when a missile launch is detected, and AUTO, where the jammer will be turned on automatically when a spike is detected, while at the same time automatically deploying the selected chaff/flare programme when a missile launch is detected. The key for selecting AUTO is ALT Z in the standard keyboard mapping. In BVR combat against platforms equipped with AA12's or slammers, the missile can be launched without STT lock, therefore no missile launch warning will be generated and chaff/flares will not be automatically released regardless of the EWS mode being in SEMI or AUTO. The jammer will be switched on when a spike is detected if you are in AUTO, but you may not wish to do this since a spike may indicate a missile in the air and able to go HOJ if the jammer goes on. I usually fly with the EWS mode in SEMI to prevent the jammer coming on unless I turn it on, but I also have to release chaff/flares manually against a BVR opponent with AA12's or slammers fired in TWS or RWS mode as opposed to STT. I'll use programme 1 for BVR which is just chaff, but I'll switch to programme 2 (chaff and flares) if it looks like I'm going to the merge and the enemy has AIM 9's, AA 11's or other heater combinations as well. _________________ In BVR combat, I'm using my radar, RWR and HSD for SA on the bandits. I'm using ECM as necessary to deny him first lock capability. Let me clear up some misconceptions. Running silent with no ecm or radar does not make you invisable to the bandits radar. He'll pick you up on his radar scope just as easily whether you have your radar on or off. What does make it more difficult for him to detect you is to get down to a low altitude where his radar is in "look down" mode and this degrades his ability to detect you with his radar. If you can drop down to a sufficient altitude difference that you drop below his bar scan range (easier at closer ranges than at longer ranges because the cone of his search pattern is smaller), you will not be detected on his radar. So let's assume he no longer sees you on radar because you've been smart. Now you have radar on and start to look for him. When your radar paints him, he'll get a spike on his RWR. This will let him know someone is out there and looking at him, even though he doesn't see you on his radar. So running with your radar off in these circumstances will avoid him getting spiked on his RWR. The downside is that you will also not be able to see him, unless you are working with a wingman who is painting him and then you can see him on your HSD data link. In this case, your wingman may be guiding you via voice comms to a silent intercept. He'll position you such that you know where the bandit is, switch on your radar, immediately aquire and fire, then shut down again as soon as your missile gets anywhere close to autonomous. The bandit will see a RWR spike from an unexpected direction and then nothing until he gets the dreaded M symbol in his RWR. Hopefully by then it's too late. The jammer will prevent a radar from locking on to a target for a certain length of time, but eventually as the range closes, the attacking radar will "burn through" the jamming and aquire a lock. The distance it does this is dependant on the power of your jammer and the power of his radar, together with any variables such as aspect and altitude difference that effects the performance of the attacking radar. The RP5 manual has a table with all these values in it for all aircraft, jammers and radars in the sim. Use this knowledge to plan your tactics. The jammer does only work in a cone out the front and out the back as has been stated by others here. It also only works within a certain altitude. You are not protected from the sides, but if you are being painted from the side, you are probably close to the doppler notch or doppler gate and can notch to the beam anyway. The jammer is an active emmission that can be seen on your radar scope. Using it advertises your presence from much longer ranges that you could normally hope to detect a target. You will see a jamming target even with your radar in standby. You don't need to emmit a signal intended to bounce back from him. Your radar can detect the signal he's emmiting all by itself. A radar signal is nothing more than a noise ping which has a frequency and a wavelength. A jammer trys to match the frequency and wavelength but at 180 degrees phase thus cancelling out the signal, but the jammer signal itself is a perfect source for your radar to detect. You may not wish to use your jammer at long ranges because of this factor, but you'll probably wish to use it once you are sure that he knows you're there. You'll want to do this BEFORE he spikes or locks you. I disagree that a jammer should be used only when you are hard spiked. By then it's often too late. If he spikes or bugs you, he's got altitude, range, bearing, aspect and course on you and can use this information to his advantage. He may have already fired a missile. Once the radar has locked on to you and all the power of the attack radar is focused on you, it's harder for the jammer to break the lock than it is for the jammer to prevent the lock in the first place. Very often, once locked, turning the jammer on will not break the lock, but again it depends on range, aspect and other variables which you'll have to be flexible in assessing when to use your jammer. Let me outline a simple scenario. I don't always do it this way as there are some neat tricks and games you can play, especially if you have a human wingman, but lets assume a standrad sort of engagement. In most cases, I'll be jammer off until I reach about 35/40 miles. Once I'm at this range, I can be pretty sure that the bandit knows I'm there. He'll be seeing my paint on his RWR and he'll also be able to see me on his radar so I'm not too worried at this stage about reavealing that I'm there. At this point I'll put my jammer on and leave it on (for now). What I'm trying to do now is deny him the ability to lock or bug me with his radar and deny him an early missile shot until I can close the range a bit to either get a bug/lock on him or get a higher Pk shot. If he allows me to bug him at 30 miles, I migh pop off an early slammer anyway, just to see if I can force a response from him. The Pk might be low but he may make a mistake that I can exploit when he sees theres a slammer inbound. Once I get close to the range I know that his radar will be able to burn through my jamming, I'll turn jammer off and leave it off. What I'm doing now is to prevent him from being able to fire a slammer or AA12 at me that will immediately go HOJ. If he gets a HOJ shot, he can turn and run away. I might not even get a shot at him, while I'm forced to deal with his missile. I'd rather do that to him than have it done to me! HOJ is modelled in the sim. One thing I've noticed is that if you leave jammer on a bit too late and get fired at HOJ, turning your jammer off at this point seem to have little effect on the inbound missile. I'm not sure this is true to life, but in the sim, a slammer or AA12 fired HOJ has a higher Pk, even if the jammer is subsequently turned off. I therefore prefer to play safe and turn the jammer off before I get fired on. There are many other considerations such as E-pole, D-Range, cranking after firing, notching to the beam, use of chaff, etc etc, but that sums up the use of the jammer "in a nutshell" - not much of a nutshell since it's quite complex! Use of two jammers will give a very slight increase in the jammer coverage, but otherwise no real advantage, I don't think. I can't say that I've really noticed this and I'm usually too busy to notice by the time it makes any difference! _________________ There are many reason why a radar lock will be broken. Firstly an STT lock is the hardest to break since the radar is focused on purely on the specified target. TWS focuses less energy on a single contact because it has to keep tabs on any other contacts. It's the radar mode of choice in BVR however because unlike STT, it doesn't give a hard spike on the bandits RWR, keeps track of multiple bandits who may all be trying to kill you and works well with the TMS hat right press to lock next target. If you have a bugged target and it suddenly breaks the bug, it's more than likely he's notched to the beam and entered the doppler gate. He may disappear completely for a time, but you should pick him up again if you also make a course change. Watch out for him making a radical altitude change when he enters the doppler gate. If he gets outside your bar scan window, you'll loose track of him completely. Use your RWR to check for him painting you after he's disappeared. It's not nice being painted by a bandit you don't see on radar. Search for him by tilting your radar cone up or down. Change altitude yourself. Sometimes a bugged target at say 30 miles will use ECM and break the bug/lock that way, but then the engagement will play out something like the scenario outlined above. You just wait until burn through, bug him again and fire a slammer that will go HOJ if he keeps his jammer on. "Flashing" your jammer as suggested by Belgian Tiger may do the same thing to break a bug/lock. A jamming target will not disappear from radar. You'll still be able to see a contact, but might not be able to bug or lock it. If he's dropped off your scope altogether, even though he was bugged, then he's beaming. If you didn't have him bugged, he'll also drop off if he goes above or below your scan pattern. If he is bugged, your radar will follow his altitude change in this situation. One thing that isn't causing him to disappear from your radar is him turning his radar off. This will have no bearing on whether you still see him on your radar. It will make the paint on your RWR disappear, but you'll still be able to track him on your radar. _________________ How do you know if the enemy flight is engaging you or headed for someone else unless you lock them up or bug them to get aspect and course information? Doing this will tip them off that you're looking at them, so you might not want to do that. You'll probably start the combat in RWS radar mode as this is the best mode for initial detection, covering a wide volume of sky at the expense of slower updates. You get a contact at 50 miles or so and you and your wingman decide to engage him. Set up your bracket immediately. Leave your radar in RWS mode and do not bug the target at all. If you bracket left (wingman brackets right), take the contact out to radar gimbal limits on the B scope - about 60 degrees offset - which for you will be the right hand side of your B scope. Note your heading at this offset and stay on this heading. Your wingman should do the same on the opposite side. Note that you'll be flying apart at a rapid rate of knots doing this so be prepared to offset back into each other (or shackle) so you don't get too far apart, but you can establish who the bandit is looking at quite quickly. Hold course with the contact on gimbal. If the contact continues down the gimbal limit of your B scope without dropping off the edge, and you are flying a constant heading, he's coming at YOU. This visual cue may be accompanied by an RWR spike as he paints you with his radar. You can now maneuver the jet accordingly. If the radar contact continually drops off the edge of your B scope and you have to keep making check turns back into him to maintain radar conatct, then he's looking at your wingman. You might remain "naked" on RWR as confirmation of this. Establish this geometry with your wingman as soon as it's identified. The fighter who is being engaged is "defensive" and should prepare to defend against a possible missile shot. The fighter who is not being engaged should assume the offensive role and press for his own missile shot while the bandit is distracted by your wingman. Engaged/support contact in operation against a single bandit or against a welded wing formation is VERY effective. _________________ The scenario I'm looking at here is a both 2 vs 2 and 4 vs 4 BVR against Su 27's with AA12's. Your flight has detected and engaged the Su's at 40 + miles and has initiated a bracket. We're now observing the Su's response and rapidly getting inside firing parameters for their AA12's. We're not quite in parameters for a slammer shot yet, but one side of your bracket is going for a shot, while the other arm is about to be forced defensive. Depending on the geometry of the bracket and the reactive tactics of the Su's, a defensive drag may actually give the offensive arm of the bracket a tougher time to get within range for his own shot. To fire as early as possible, he needs the Su's to be inside the bracket so he can close the range as quickly as possible. He does not really want the Su's to be chasing down the dragging F16 in the opposite direction. It's important for him to recognize that he's the offensive fighter and to get into missile range as soon as he can. This means full burner, CATA intercept (collision antenna train angle – the course you need to fly to intercept in the minimum distance – calculated for you by the fire control computer and displayed as a little circle or dot in the HUD towards which you must fly). Any delay in firing will give the Su's that bit more time and room to "switch". If the Su's are given enough space to "switch" with an inside out move after their missiles are autonomous (they start inside the bracket of the F16's, but having forced one arm defensive, they can turn "inside to out" and engage the other arm from inside the bracket which will carry them ultimately outside the bracket), the dragging F16 may not be in a position to reengage and get a missile off before the Su's can engage his wingman, especially if the Su's themselves attempt a split. Whilst it is possible to maintain SA while dragging, it won't always help if you end up 25 miles away from the fight and your wingman is on his own against some angry Su's he's been trying to close the range on. When the dragging F16 turns to reengage, the worst-case scenario is that he is faced with 3 contacts at 25 miles, one of which he knows is his wingman. Having said that, there are many variations on the theme and every situation is slightly different. With practice and co-ordination, various tactics are effective and I don't suggest it isn't useful or effective, just that my experience is that reengaging after the drag requires a quick rebuild of the SA and a rapid closure of the range before you become effective in support again. It's a real bummer when you watch your wingman go down just before you get in range to fire. Generally, the AI will attempt to stay together (at least in pairs), but a four ship may split into two elements. Here again, the tactics differ online and off. The more sophisticated BVR tactics can generally be expected only from human opponents. In SP3 you will meet a variety of AI tactics with variations in initial formations, beaming, dragging, brackets and splits and various use of the jammer. Sometimes they have it on and switch it off. Sometimes they keep it on or off throughout. I've even seen them get use of the jammer about face and start with it off and switch it on as they close to missile range. You can sometimes get them to put their jammer on by going STT on them. This might help your wingman get a freebee HOJ shot if he's closer than you. It's also quite distracting for the bandit who's being locked and your supporting wingman lost in the reaction the bandit makes, thus allowing him to close unobserved. I'll call this technique "baiting". Use of the jammer is interesting and can make or break success. The AMRAAM and the AA12 will use the jammer to home on (HOJ) if you keep it on inside missile range. If the Su's keep it on as they close the range, you can exploit this mistake. You will still need to reach radar burn through and achieve at least a TWS lock to fire the slammer, even with jammers in use. When you fire, you'll notice HOJ comes up in the HUD, which means the slammer is autonomous and needs no further support from you. This is different to the time to active and time to impact countdown values you'll see in the HUD when the missile is in flight and requires you to support until active. The slammer is normally fired at a point in space where the contact is expected to be when the slammer turns on it's own radar. This would generally be a low Pk (probability of a kill) shot against fast moving targets like fighters. To increase the Pk before it goes autonomous, the slammer requires course corrections via microwave data link while in flight. Against the Su's, the slammer will generally miss if fired and not supported until active. You can break lock at about A23 with reasonable Pk, but not before. Slammers will go active at T15. Similarly with a mad dog shot (a missile released without a lock will go active immediately and lock onto the first thing it sees – like a mad dog), the ranges that initial firing takes place are outside the range of the missiles own on board radar and consequently the missile tends to not find a target. I have not had much success in forcing the bandits defensive when I've simply lobbed a missile in their general direction from 30 miles because I couldn't get a lock. Nor in my experience will a missile fired without lock go HOJ and hit something. It needs to know where to look to obtain a HOJ. If the Su's continue to jam inside 20 miles and you have survived to this point, you should now have a decided advantage. You can burn through, lock 'em up, fire and disengage, which makes this the tactic of choice under these circumstances. Your missile goes autonomous immediately, leaving you free to beam, drag or do whatever you need to do, while the Su must still support his missile (always assuming that you have remembered to turn your jammer off). At present in SP3, SARH missiles are ineffective since there is a bug that breaks radar lock momentarily when you release chaff. (You may have noticed this in dogfight when using ACM radar. The bandit releases chaff and you get a persistent and repeated "lock, lock, lock" call from betty as the radar breaks and regains lock) This causes SARH missiles to go ballistic. Jim G has released a fix for this and it will be incorporated into SP4. This will add a new dimension to BVR, since the AA10 A/A missile can be launched at 40 miles or more, but requires the shooter to keep an STT lock until impact. This should lead to some interesting A pole/F pole tactics and some sweaty palm BVR jousts in this new twist to the game of aerial chess. I can't wait. _________________ If you start a bracket early (say 40 miles, or even further out on jamming contacts) you'll rapidly get a big seperation between you and your wingman or element. Let it go to 10 miles or so (use the HSD to keep tabs on each other), but anything over this and you can't really support with a slammer shot at any bandits closing on him. At this point, if you're making little nibbles into the Su 27's A pole advantage by notching to the beam and then closing a little more, you should try and notch to the beam in the direction of your wingman to close down the seperation on a bracket that gets too wide. If the Su's initiate a bracket of their own or split their formation when you bracket, try a shackle, where you and your wingman notch to the beam by turning into each other and then continue towards one other and cross over. This sometime collapses the bandits bracket or at the very least confuses them. You never want to be inside the arms of an opposing bracket when the shooting starts and should always attempt to avoid this. If their bracket collapses when you shackle, simply keep going and start another bracket having swapped sides. If you are beaten off the mark by an opposing bracket, try a single side offset. Check turn away from the most distant arm of the bracket and attempt to get outside the nearest arm of the opposing bracket. Take your wing and element with you. You should be aiming to get all your flight into firing parameters against half of theirs before the farthest arm of their bracket can intervene. Go defensive individually or as elements as necessary, but you should outnumber their split formation and some of your flight will arrive in parameters untargeted. Keep tabs on the other arm of the bracket and either bug out or pump and re-engage as prudent. Flight leads and elemnt leads, don't forget to assign high and low scan responsibilities to your wingmen. At these ranges, it's easy for an opposing flight, particularly that singleton with snoozed radar, to get above or below the radar scan unless you split responsibilities. Once a bandit is through the cone at the end of your radar scan, as he gets closer, it's easier to stay above or below the radar cone. Watch out for the baiting tactics described, where a distant contact either locks you up or uses ECM to attract your attention, while all the while his mates are sneaking up on you. The AI won't do this but humans will. The AI also won't "blink", but humans will. Alternate aircraft switch their jammer on and off and radar lock you on and off from different directions. Very unnerving. Altitude splits make it difficult for an enemy flight to target all of your flight unless they are good at sorting, but make sure your altitude seperation is sufficient or it won't be effective. You're aiming ideally for a vertical bracket. Don't leave your element too low to the fight as they will be the most vulnerable if the Su's are coming in at mach 2 and 40,000 ft. The low flight's slammers won't reach and they're already outranged by the Su's radar and missiles. When going for a slammer shot, get high and fast to impart as much energy to your slammer as possible, but once fired, slow down and crank to slow the relative closure. Let your missile close the gap, not you. If you go defensive get low. You're more manoeverable lower down due to the denser air and the enemy missile has more drag and shorter range down low. Beaming low and forcing the missile to come down after you and then climbing back to altitude can beat a long range shot. Another useful tip. I have the RWR available in the place of the SMS page in the HUD when I'm in Missile Override mode and in D/F mode. I can then cycle between HSD and RWR as necessary. Why the RWR in the MFD? Well, active missiles show up as an M in the RWR and they can be defeated by a break turn at the very last moment. This "moment" is when the M hits the inner ring on the RWR. The RWR in the upper left of the cockpit is too small to judge this distance. I pull up the RWR on the right MFD to do this. Various techniques have been presented by various folks and barrel rolls or a double break seem to work the best with judicious use of chaff. Get the missile on your 10 o clock or 2 o clock position and break into it 90 degrees followed by a break turn the other way. The first break turn forces a radical course correction from the missile which is effectively in lead pursuit. You'll loose the lock momentarily as you notch, but the missile will pick you up again if you don't make the second break. What the second break does is take advantage of the missiles correction one way and causes an overshoot as you break back the other way. Barrel rolling around the missile forces the same radical course corrections but in this case they are continuous corrections. The missile cannot correct fast enough as the range closes and it misses. Watch your ping times here between host and client. A slow connection (bloody dial up!) can mean sufficient latency and delayed positional updates, that the break turn is mistimed. Ever wonder why in a 2 vs 2, the host dodges all the missiles while you as the client gets blatted! Check your ping times. _________________ Whatever formation you choose (and combat spread is simple and effective under most A/A situations), don't make it too tight. You and your wingman should be at least a turn radius apart which is 3000 to 6000 ft. This is quite loose and allows the wingman to use his sensors to double your SA. If he's concentrating on airshow type formations right on your wing, he'll not contribute much. Use the HSD to keep uup SA and remain in mutual support. Let the element and his wing drift out a bit further in a loose 4 ship (unless you want to try some of the more sophisticated baiting, sneaky singleton or other tactics like the grinder). When you decide that now is the right time to press and fire, if you're a 4 ship and you have your wingman with you and the element is bracketing (as opposed to a 2 ship where your wingman is bracketing and might be several miles away), try to get on line together and fire together. You're very vulnerable if you are too staggered. One of you might end up double targeted, followed soon after by the other guy in the same situation. Two slammers inbound have a much better probability of doing damage than a single slammer followed at some distance by another, or not followed at all. Whilst all this sounds easy, things happen very quickly once you get started. Poor formations at the initial detection usually just get worse as you progress toward the WEZ and the whole thing falls apart very quickly. Mutual support is essential in multiship engagements. React quickly to a defensive posture by the bandit formation. If they start to drag, press and be ready to follow up with a second slammer volley. Do not allow the bandits to pump, reform and re engage unless you intend to bug out in the other direction. Watch your fuel at all times as there's often lots of burner involved in BVR. Pointless winning the air battle if you run out of fuel on the way home. _________________ I don't go radar off at 60 miles since I want to know where he is asap and you'll actually have a hard time detecting an F16 at this range anyway unless he's jamming. If you go LRS, you'll get a contact at 40-50 miles, RWS you'll get a contact at 40 miles. If he's in an F16, he'll see you at about the same time. I won't lock him or even bug him at this point, because he might not yet have a good idea of where I am. I might go for an offset right now (take him out to gimbals) to work out his course without bugging him. I'll hold 450-500 knots and use AB as necessary depending on how radical my jinks get. As the range closes from 40 miles or so, you're trying to deny a lock and first shot against a similar adversary, so jammer on at this point. He knows you're there. You can try notching to the beam and rapid changes in altitude while turning jammer off to try and make life difficult for him to keep track of you. You don't want him to get a good geometrical solution to the forthcoming shoot out by being predictable. Notch to the beam in alternate directions and patiently "worm" your way to burn through distance. Once you get to burn through, which will happen at around 18 miles for an F16 against an F16, then you need to go jammer off to deny the HOJ shot. No point in giving him a homing beacon at this point. You can also try unpredictable use of the jammer. Use it or not, blink it or keep it on. You may want to invite him to shoot early by allowing him a TWS lock, knowing that you can defeat his early missile. If you stay fast, say 450 knots , it gives any incoming missiles a greater lead pursuit offset when you notch one way and then notch back the other. This alone is often enough to defeat a missile fired at longer ranges. Unfortunately, you're still outside of E-Pole at burn through distance. A missile fired at 18 miles is easily defeated kinematically (running away or dragging). What you're trying to do now is get inside his E-Pole and fire at a distance you can't miss. Anything inside of 10 miles is getting pretty tough for him to beat. Pretty tough for you to beat as well if he fires on you. It's now that you need that altitude and airspeed. If you were low and slow, you'll not make up the difference now, so try and arrive at shooting distance high and fast. Full burner for shooting to extend your A-Pole. Question1: When I lock the bogey say at 30NM do I go str8 away towards him or I have to keep him in the gimbal limits?(single side offset) Generally, you'll want to point directly at the intercept point (CATA) when you shoot (maximising your A pole), but other than that brief moment, your nose will not be pointing directly at the bandit (reducing his A pole). If he comes right at you, let him. Minimise his A pole by taking an offset. When you are ready to shoot, maximise your own A-pole by turning into him, shoot and take an offset, immediately reducing his A-pole again. This is often enough to defeat a similar bandit. In multiship engagements, you might want to close for a shot as soon as possible, as when you're the offensive arm of a bracket, in which case, you'll be full burner and CATA. Question2: Marlin described excellent the bracketing but what about the vertical one? Suppose i go high and my wingman low. when i lock the bogey to I keep him in the upper gimbaling limits, then dive towards him or go str8 away towards him? A posthole is exactly what you describe - a vertical bracket. The principles are the same, but the low guy is vulnerable if he's targeted. When you shoot, go CATA, otherwise take an offset. A vertical bracket can take the split outside of the bar scan limits of the bandits easier than a horizontal bracket can take the split outside the azimuth limits of the bandits radar, particularly as the range closes. Once one of your pair drops off the vertical scan pattern of the bandits radar, they can no longer effectively sort. Assess this with a spike status as you approach the bandits and adjust your tactics as necessary. Question3: When I fire the slammer and brake to reduce the closure do i keep him at the gimbaling limits with the nose up or down? It makes sense to keep it up to reduce the closure but also makes sense in keeping the nose down to drag immediately if i have to. If he's below you when you fire and crank, stay above him until you see that he's fired, then go low. Make him shoot uphill. Give him range and geometry problems that minimise his A pole and maximise yours. Make sure that you don't crank and drop him off the bar scan. _________________ Objective: deny bandit lock and shot opportunity as long as possible (reduce the A-Pole). Disadvantage: Early detection if used too early Disadvantage: HOJ opportunity if used too late Music On +/- 40 miles Music Off by 25 miles A HOJ shot still needs a bug/lock to be fired, but will go HOJ immediately on a jamming contact. Burn through Distance (when your radar can bug/lock a jamming contact) becomes the DLZ and it's closer than a "normal" Rmax1. While you can reduce the Su's Rmax1 to +/- 25 miles if you use your jammer (and hence reduce his A-Pole), if he uses jammer, he'll reduce your Rmax1 to +/- 18 miles. He still has an advantage. Don't forget to turn your jammer off!!!!! It's easy to forget in the heat of the moment. Leave it on and you'll attract AA12's like wasps at a picnic. Note that first shot opportunities all well outside E-Pole for both fighters, but with jammer use by the Su27, the A-Pole and E-Pole are much closer together and for the F16 it's getting a bit tight. For the F16 against the Su27/AA12, your first shot opportunity is getting pretty close to D-RNG (15 miles). This is OK if he keeps his jammer on as you'll get a HOJ, but if he's smart, he'll turn it off when he reaches your burn through distance, thus denying HOJ. If you fire and crank, A-Pole (separation from the bandit when your missile goes pitbull) is also very close to D-RNG. Hairy stuff! E-Pole is about 10 miles for the AA12 depending upon airspeed and geometry at the time you commence dragging. _________________ Pumping Dragging and Grinding Not sure if we need a distinction here between pumping and dragging. A pump is prebriefed and is in response to the bandits. When you run away from a missile, this is dragging. You can also attempt to drag the bandits, as in "drag and bag", but in this case we're talking about drawing out a missile. When dragging, you control the missile by making it follow you. You are attempting to give it the longest possible distance it has to travel to intercept. Not only should you fly away from it, but also you should dive as well to increase the straight-line distance the missile has to fly. Get it down into thicker air where the drag is higher and it's energy depletes faster. This is useful at longer ranges when the missile is loosing kinetic energy. The intent is to simply make it run out of steam. Unfortunately, if we take our Su 27's with AA 12's as our worse case scenario, they will get first lock, first shot and if your missile defense is dragging, you'll be doing quite a bit of this. This is fine if it allows your element to get into parameters for a shot themselves, but if the AA 12 has gone autonomous, you'll still be dragging while the Su's have turned their attention to your wing or element in a switch. This is why it's important that you and your wing or element on the other side of the bracket is about the same distance away from the bandits. In order to engage one arm of your bracket, the Su's must expose themselves to the other arm. Easy to say, more difficult to execute. Unlike dragging, when you beam a missile, you are attempting to give the missile intercept problems through a high LOS rate. The closer it gets, the higher the LOS rate and the further the missile has to lead you. A last minute break should leave the missile no chance to correct. This is useful when the missile is fired from closer in and it still has high energy. Dragging isn't going to work if the missile has enough legs to reach you regardless of what you do (Rmax2). This is what happens to your bracket if the Su's get an early shot on the other arm of the bracket and have sufficient time to switch back into you. You messed up and they'll be shooting at you from much closer range. You can still beat the missile, but not by dragging. Your AMRAAM is a good missile. It flies a flatter trajectory and flies faster that the AA12 and goes active at a longer range. These differences are significant if you can get close enough to shoot. Be patient and do not simply go charging in head to head. This is aerial chess. Grinder. We're getting very specific to very specific tactical situations here. Other circumstances will dictate a different response. I'm assuming an enemy four ship here. Su 27's with AA12's. They will get first lock and first shot under any circumstances. I want pairs (all be it loose pairs - as in an A/A situation) in order to bring on line 2 slammers. A single slammer fired at 4 Su's may not have quite the desired effect. They'll split into pairs with one pair remaining offensive. I wanted two slammers going downrange to add a little more incentive to a decisive defensive response. The first pair in the grinder will almost certainly get fired on. They need to open a window of opportunity for the second pair _________________ Lets define some relative distances and terminology as the basis for further tactical considerations. FBR (Factor Bandit Range) - FBR is the minimum range between threat groups that allows the offensive fighter to achieve F-Pole on the closest group and still maintain first launch opportunity on all groups outside this range. Other considerations are D-RNG and E-Pole (defined in the BVR thread). ALL groups inside the FBR must be targeted. Groups outside the FBR can be engaged/avoided as necessary. Groups outside the FBR should not be targeted to maximise firepower on the groups inside FBR. FBR is determined by threat weapons capability, your own weapons capability, closure speeds and of course, proficiency in execution of the tactics to follow. Achieve F-Pole while maintaining first launch capability on remaining groups means that you fire on group one and your missile impacts before the second group can fire on you. This is an essential concept for survivability. Without defining FBR you're gambling. In most cases, the distance we need to be concerned with is A-Pole, since we'll be using slammers and they go autonomous, leaving us free to notch or extend. F-Pole is of concern if we or the bandits have SARH missiles which must be supported to impact. A-Pole is the distance between your aircraft and the target at the time the ARH missile goes active. It's important because this will be the closest distance you need to approach to get your kill. It will also be the minimum distance that the enemy has to get a killing shot off on you. You will actually have fired the missile some time and distance earlier (RMax1 and RMax2). In this context, RMax2 constitutes the E-Pole for the target. Again in the case of the Su27, with his phenomenal acceleration potential, this distance may be quite short if we're in a stern chase situation. WEZ on a retreating Su27 is less than 10 miles and you won't be able to close the gap if you're outside this when he turns and runs. The F16 can't catch him. Head on at Mach 1.0 +, you might be well inside the DLZ for a shot at 30+ miles. This gives both you and the Su's a 20 mile window in which to establish superiority through tactics before arriving at D-RNG when you have to notch and possibly extend. This 20 mile window is a very short time indeed! Note that use of the jammer (ecm) by the target and the HOJ capability of the slammer effectively increases your A-Pole by a huge distance. A HOJ shot is effectively autonomous immediately and you no longer need to support your missile. The Su27/AA12 combo has this capability too. Another term we'll need is MELD. This is the pre briefed range where radars come out of their primary search responsibility in order to find their primary target/sort responsibility. When you do this, you'll loose coverage and are vulnerable. This is why defining the FBR is important. This is where it gets complicated! Tactical Range = 35 miles. Lets call this FBR in our examples although it might vary. Anything hostile inside 35 miles becomes a target vs monitor. Assume we're a 2 ship and the threats may be equivalent in capability. We've looked at the mechanics of BVR in the BVR thread, so don't forget these principles in Multiple Groups. If the bandits are a single group, meld into the group. If the bandits are a heavy group (more than 2), we'll meld into the group and fire if possible but abort our targeting/sort and out at D-RNG on the group. We can only target 2 of the group so it's better to retire when outnumbered. In the following cases, we have 2 groups of 2 bandit aircraft. In one they are split in range, in the other split in azimuth. Note that when one of the groups is outside the FBR, we have two separate BVR engagements and can flow group to group. If both groups are inside the FBR, we can only engage one group and will make no attempt to engage the far group. Minimum range criteria must be observed to deny the second group a shot from inside E-Pole. It therefore follows the flow of a BVR engagement against a single group but with much more stringent minimum range criteria. You must extend at these minimum ranges or the far group will shoot you even if you defeat the near group. Split range formations 2 Groups range greater than FBR, flow from group to group, target the near group, GCI/AWAC's monitor the far group. 2 Groups range less than FBR +/- 25 miles apart; we're not in immediate danger of being killed by the second group, but we will not have first shot opportunity on the second group. We can afford to be somewhat aggressive on the first group. Target the first group, aggressively crank (with respect to the second group as well if it can be managed). Monitor target status and RWR "spike" status. Press on the first group if necessary, but minimum range criteria out at E-Pole to the FAR group. 2 Groups range less than FBR +/- 10 miles apart; This one is difficult. We can still engage the first group, but must be much more conservative. Not only will we not have first shot opportunity on the second group, if we press the first group, we're inside E-Pole on the second group. Therefore minimum range criteria out at D-RNG on the NEAR group. Do not press. Split azimuth formations 2 groups +/- 25 miles apart = 25 degree spread at 60 miles = 50 degree spread at 30 miles, less than 30 miles and we're gimbaled on one group. Offset at 30-40 miles (choose one side or the other and don't get bracketed), 45 to 55 degrees offset, target the near group, shoot and crank. Monitor target status and RWR "spike" status. Press on the first group if necessary. Unlike the first example of +/- 25 miles, you should not be in danger of entering the E-Pole on the second group. There is a possible option of flowing from group to group. 2 groups +/- 10 miles apart = E-Pole on the second group. Out at D-RNG on the first group. Do not press. _________________ You turn off ECM when it's no longer effectively preventing a radar bug or lock. Read the RP5 manual for the exact distances which depend on a few factors. The power of the jammer and the power of the radar being the two important ones. A Su 27 will burn through your F16 jammer at about 22 miles, so turn it off at 22 miles. Leaving it on at less than this invites a HOJ shot. You'll burn through his jammer at about 18 miles, so he needs to turn his off at 18 miles. And you're right, things are moving very fast at this point so don't forget to turn it off and do it sooner rather than later - before he fires at you. Remember the principles of what you are trying to achieve with use of the jammer. The jammer is reducing his A-Pole. Once he has aquired you, it's actually doing the opposite and increasing the distance he'll get an autonomous shot at you. Turn it off at the distance it no longer is reducing A-pole.watch your six, i'm behind you חזור למעלה הצג הודעות קודמות: כל ההודעותיום אחדשבעה ימיםשבועייםחודש אחדשלושה חודשיםחצי שנהשנה ישנות קודםחדשות קודם עמוד ראשי -> בית ספר לטיסה סדרת DCS כל הזמנים הם שעון ישראל (GMT + שעתיים) עמוד 1 מתוך 1 עבור: בחר פורום כללי----------------תעופה וביטחוןהצעות לשיפור / הערות ומתן פידבקמועדון הטייסיםקנה ומכורסקינריםחומרה/חומרה ביתיתמתגייסים מטוסי סילון----------------פאלקון 4.0DCS Worldמשחקים / נוסטלגיה מטוסי בוכנה----------------אי אל 2Rise of FlightWar Thunder מטוסי אזרחים----------------פלייט סימולטורX-plane טיסה בשמי הארץ----------------תעופה קלהטיסנים בית ספר לטיסה----------------בית ספר לטיסה אי אל 2בית ספר לטיסה פאלקוןבית ספר לטיסה סדרת DCS מדמי לוחמה קרבית----------------ארמא 3רד אורקסטרה טייסות----------------טייסת 69 הפטישיםטייסת 101 הקרב הראשונה טייסת 105 העקרבטייסת 106 חוד החניתטייסת 107 אבירי הזנב הכתוםטייסת 108 העיליתטייסת 110 אבירי הצפוןטייסת 116 הכנף המעופפתטייסת 135 מלכי האווירטייסת 147 האיל הנוגחטייסת 191 אבירי השחקיםטייסת 201 האחתטייסת 253 הנגבVirtual Israeli DogFightersמשותף 108-119 ארכיון----------------פאלקון אלייד פורסטייסת 101 הקרב הראשונה - הטייסת נסגרהטייסת 110 אבירי הצפון - הטייסת נסגרהטייסת הלהב הכחול - הטייסת נסגרה קמפיין הים התיכוןטייסת מגיני הדרום - הטייסת נסגרהקמפיין מלחמת העצמאות 1948 אתה לא יכול לשלוח הודעות בפורום זהאתה לא יכול להגיב להודעות בפורום זהאתה לא יכול לערוך את הודעותיך בפורום זהאתה לא יכול למחוק את הודעותיך בפורום זהאתה לא יכול להצביע למשאלים בפורום זה ניווט מהיר דף הביתפורומיםגלריית התמונותגלריית הסרטוניםהורדותמדריך טיסהטייסותמשחקי אונלייןסיפורי טייסים חנות קהילתיתעשרת הגדוליםדירוג ההורדותסקרים באתראינדקס אתריםזיכרון והנצחההודעות פרטיותהחשבון שלי פורום סימולטורים תעופה וביטחוןהצעות לשיפורמועדון הטייסיםקנה ומכורסקינריםחומרה / חומרה ביתיתמתגייסיםפאלקון 4.0פאלקון אלייד פורס לומאק / בלק שארקאחר / נוסטלגיהאי אל 2בית ספר לטיסהפלייט סימולטורתעופה קלהטיסניםארמד אסולטרד אורקסטרה סימולטורים מרכזיים פלייט סימולטורפאלקון אלייד פורספאלקון 4.0סטרייק פייטרסלומאקכוכב כחולחיל האוויר האמריקניחומרה ביתיתבלק שארק ארמד אסולטאי אל 2 צור קשר ומידע נוסף צור קשרהמלץ עלינורשימת חבריםקשר אלינונושאים באתרמפת האתרחיפושRSS 2.0 פרסם באתרתרומה לאתר סימולטורג'ויסטיקמשחקים חדשיםספוטינגEnglish © כל הזכויות שמורות לאתר פריפלייט - אתר הסימולטורים מספר 1 בישראל! ©זמן טעינת הדף: 0.13 שניות


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I mean, a seriously great pet? Do you have the most amazing, wonderful, beautiful soul of a pet in the world?
If you do, take a deeper look at yourself.
Great pets don't hang out with just anyone. There is a reason they picked you. This deep and beautiful relationship is there partly to help you recognize your role in it.
Your pet is not only here to be with you in a partnership of creating and experiencing a wonderful, loving relationship, they also extend an invitation to go deeper within yourself to experience and bring out more of these wonderful qualities in you and in your life.
All too often, we just keep the greatness felt contained to the relationship or attribute it all to the pet. We do not explore further our roll and our greatness in it, what we bring to the relationship.
As humans, we limit our experience of our own divinity; we carry negativity, guilt, heavy emotions. This can weigh us down tremendously and prevent us from realizing our true value and core being.
Our pets can help us in ways that other humans can't. This is partly because the pet relationship does not carry the complexity that human relationships can carry.
There can be a deep love experienced without introducing the dynamic and difficulties of family relationships or romantic love. These complicating factors can include jealousy, rejection, fear, uncertainty, insecurity, dependency, resentment, etc. In our love with our pets, these dynamics are not introduced and we can simply enjoy the love and true heartfelt connection.
Our pets touch our soul differently, deeply and simply.
Also, because animals don't use a spoken language, we rely on simpler, more direct means of communicating with them. This is mostly through looks, glances, feelings, etc. There is purity in this without us really being aware of it.
Our communication with our pets often turns into a 'just knowing'.
For us, we can look at them and just know. In doing so, it touches a deeper part of us and the communication and knowing become a part of us. The more we understand this, the more we can open up to it and explore greater communication and a deeper relationship with them.
We can also learn to acknowledge and feel more of our own greatness as part of the relationship. Anytime we can explore and understand this, it can help us to expand and grow it. We can use this as a way to become more aligned with our divine nature and higher self.
Here is an exercise to try:
Connecting with Pet Love Exercise
When you look at your pet, see that they are truly looking at you with love. Take a moment to see the love in their eyes for you and go a little deeper.
Just take a moment to be with it. Allow yourself to feel it.
Take a moment to truly see the love. See and feel what they see.
They are seeing and connecting with your soul, your higher self, your divine self. They do this whether we do it for ourselves or not.
They see the deep part of you that is radiating love. They see your greatness. Go into it.
Sometimes, in the deeper pet and human relationships, pets even see the beauty and love in past experiences with you, many times of lives together.
The next time your pet looks at you, take a moment to look at and feel deeper what you are experiencing in that moment.
Allow that in. Allow that possibility to exist. Just spend some time in it. Allow, just slightly the possibility that you are divine and have this great part of you.
Start to feel this and open up to it, and as you do you can expand and develop this so that you feel more and more of it every day and it becomes more of who you are. Know that feeling this deep love within yourself is your solid core being.
Allow this feeling to expand into every aspect of your life and every relationship.
In addition to just sharing love and sharing life, the truest gift of a great pet and a great pet relationship is the mirroring our inner self back to us, guiding us home.
They help remind us of ourselves and what it is like to experience divine love. They help us access our divine self and inner love.
They keep us connected to nature, reminding us all the while that we are part of nature, we are all connected and there is great love within.
Play around with it, have fun with it.
Explore a deeper knowing and communication with it.
Thank your pet for being a loving, reminding presence in your life.
Thank yourself for the love you give, the love you are and for reaching deeper.
-L. Leigh Meriweather
Copyright © Bright Star Studio

subset: commoncrawl


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Greetings Readers!
And a warm welcome back to you all, first of all I would just like to extend a massive thank you to everyone for your incredible and overwhelming support in light of my recent blog I wrote about my past battle with Anorexia. It meant a great deal to me that you were all so supportive about something that for so long has been a very sensitive topic. I know I say it a lot, but I feel incredibly privileged to have such a lovely group of people following and supporting my work.
Anyway before things get any more slushy that we cannot even wade through it, today I wanted to write a blog on a new tag that has been created. I am utterly overjoyed to see so many visually impaired bloggers and bloggers doing their thing and having their say. When I first started my blog 4 years ago there wasn't hardly any people blogging and now there is a thriving community of visually impaired bloggers. The tag that I am doing today was created by two lovely bloggers by the name of My Blurred World and Just Your Average Blind Girl. Its called The Visually Impaired Daily Living Tag and the tag was created to shed light on some of the difficulties that can occur through having a visual impairment and performing tasks in our everyday life like shopping, mobility and technology.
Both girls very kindly tagged me to do this tag, so here I am at my laptop!
I do love a good tag after all.
So, without further adieu…
Beauty and Fashion
1. When preparing an outfit, do you have your clothes set out in a specific way so that it makes it easier for you to choose an outfit yourself?
I organise my clothing in my wardrobe in order of the colour spectrum and in particular groups, so all my red dresses are in one part of my wardrobe and so on. This just makes it easier for me to know roughly where certain garments will be located.
2. When you want to buy new clothes, do you:
• Do online shopping on your own.
• Go shopping with someone.
In all honesty, I do a mixture of both, it very much depends on what I want and what time of the year it is. If I'm looking for a particular item, but I want to shop somewhere where everything isn't online like Primark I would usually go with my friends or my mother. But, as a lot of online stores make it easier to return things if they are not suitable, I do tend todo a lot of my shopping online and then get someone to critique my choice once the items arrive.
4. When you go shopping with friends/family is there anything that you ask them to do for you to help choose clothes/makeup you might like?
Where clothing is concerned, I do need assistance with finding the right size for me as I can't always clearly read the clothing labels. But, I also occasionally need someone to observe whether the garment suits my shape and does not expose my underwear and that it just generally suits me. In the makeup department, I usually tend to require help with colour watching to ensure that I am purchasing the right colour to match my skin tone.
5. Do you find it difficult to pick out an outfit due to your visual impairment?
I do find it difficult to pick out an outfit, buts thats because I have far too many clothes! But, hey don't judge I'm a fashion blogger, its an occupational hazard. But, my sight loss doesn't inhibit my ability to select an outfit. As I can still see colour and pattern provided that the light is good and the colour contrast is reasonably good.
6. Do you find online shopping accessible?
It very much does depend on whether the website in question is accessible. I prefer websites that have a clear layout, detailed garment descriptions and an image which can be easily enlarged to allow me to see it in more detail. Where this is not possible I tend to shop for an item in person with someone instead.
7. Does your visual impairment stop you from applying makeup? If so, why?
Not any more. When I was a lot younger, applying makeup was a daunting task for me. But, after years of refining my technique and having my mother to teach me (who was a makeup artist for Clinque for 8 years might I add). I was able to hone in my skills and now I have no problems with applying makeup. Accept liquid eyeliner due to having Nystagmus, but I think everyone finds liquid eyeliner a fiddly business sight or no sight.
8. How do you organise your clothing/beauty products?
To organise my clothing I have different compartments for all my items, I have a basket for all my scarves, a big Ottoman for my bags, four drawers to organise my shoes and boots, a jewellery organiser and boxes to store my hats and other items. For my makeup I store it in my dressing table comprised with two sets of the Ikea 5 Alex drawers, which are a staple for many beauty bloggers because they are so deep and therefore you can fit a lot in. I have separate drawers for certain items like lipsticks, eyeshadows, palettes, hair products, blush and highlighters and so on. I store my makeup in drawer organisers and dividers which you can buy from Ikea, T K Max and Tiger. I use lipstick divers to store my lipsticks and organise them in order of colour and brand. I do like to be organised as it helps me retain control over my daily life.
1. Do you have any kind of mobility aid? If so, what is it?
I have a beautiful, fluffy little guide dog by the name of Unity who is my mobility aid and my partner in crime. I used to use a cane (which I customised with Swarovski Crystals and coloured plastic) and I distill use them from time to time.
2. Do you prefer using this or to be sighted guided?
I much prefer using my guide dog, she's my independence and I'm a very independent person, I prefer to fly solo. So, having her makes me feel more confident and I do enjoy being able to do things myself. But, if I'm somewhere with my close friends like at a Theme Park, I don't mind being guided by them so much. But, on the whole my guide dog is my one true sighted guide.
3. If you use a cane, do you feel self-conscious whilst using it?
When I used it, I did. It got easier once I customised it and added my touch of bling. But, even then I still felt self-concious in the way I walked and carried myself. I personally found it much easier to get used to a guide dog.
4. When it comes to transport, do you go on the bus, train etc by yourself?
Yes, I do most things on public transport by myself unless I'm going to a certain place with a group of my fiends. But, I'm a bit of a lone star when it comes to this and after all I'm not ever really alone as I always have a bright eyed, bushy tailed guide dog at my feet.
5, How do you feel about travelling independently?
I love it, I feel very gratified to know that I can get out and about confidently on my own. I think because I have a visual impairment, going on public transport is a little bit more of a challenge and thus its an adventure.
1 Do/did you attend a mainstream or specialist school?
Mainstream, although at secondary school there was a visual impairment unit in the school although it was still technically mainstream.
2. If you had a choice, which one would you prefer to go to?
Mainstream, for me personally I felt that even though it was tough it prepared me for everyday life and gave me a lot of life experience which I can now relay into my writing.
3. Overall, was your experience of education as a visually impaired person mostly positive or negative? How could it have been improved?
It was a real mix, I saw the best and the worst that it had to offer. At primary school my experience was awful, the teachers mostly were no unsupportive (all barring a few) and I did not receive the support I needed. I was bullied due to my disability and I didn't get any moral support from the heads of the school when this occurred. But, at secondary school and sixth form, I had the best support and they really helped me to excel and go on to achieve excellent GCSE'S and A Levels.
4. Did you carry on into further/higher education? If so, how did you feel about this transition? If not, why?
I did indeed, I went all the way through education and graduated with a Degree in English Literature and am now studying a Masters Degree in Children's Literature.
Assistive technology
1 What is your opinion on assistive technology for blind and visually impaired people, do you think it is vital?
I am extremely pro technology, I grew up with it, I learned to touch type, my whole life revolves around it. Technology got me through my degree and helps me to blog, I rely on it as someone with severe vision loss. Without it I wouldn't be able to do half of the things I do. I think that technology can open so many doors for people with sight loss and can make your life that whole lot easier, if you explore what it has to offer.
2. Do you use assistive technology?
I do.
3. What assistive technology/specialist apps could you not live without?
I use a whole host of assistive technology, I use my Apple iPhone and Macbook on a daily basis which have been customised to suit my access needs with Speak Selection, Text Dictation and Zoom. I also use an electronic magnifier to read books, magazines, menus and other various things. I also use a C Pen Scanner to scan text from a book onto my computer which proves very useful. I use a program called Claro Read which enables me to scan documents and read documents on my computer, its honestly my live saver and best friend.
Another App I simply love is Overdrive, its an app that the RNIB use to host their talking book service. I use it to access audiobooks and its a wonderful app to flick through the latest titles and releases. Its one of my most used apps.
An app that I sue to help me plan outfits is called My Outfit and its a virtual closet app that allows me to add clothing, plan outfits and match garments. Its great if you have difficulty finding clothes or planning an outfit.
I also use an App called RefMe which can be made accessible with VoiceOver, its an app for University students which formats the references for you in whatever style you need. Any visually impaired University students, or indeed just students in general, this app proved to be my salvation throughout my degree.
I live and breath technology and it has proven to get me through some very difficult times in my life both on a personal and academic capacity.
4. If you could recommend one piece of technology for a blind or visually impaired person what would it be and why?
An iPhone, there are so many amazing free apps that you can easily download and it honestly makes life so much easier. All the accessibility features are built in and you can easily make the iPhone fit your accessabilit needs.
5. What's one piece of assistive technology that you'd really like?
Nothing currently stands out to me, I have a lot of technology that I find useful to me and my needs.
1 Do you mainly have sighted friends or blind/visually impaired friends?
I have a mix of both, most of my university friends who I see on a regular basis area fully sighted. But, I have a lot of friends I know external to university who are visually impaired and disabled.
2. If you have blind/visually impaired friends, how did you meet them?
Most of them I met online and through my blog and work as a speaker, I met them during events or we after they discovered my blog.
3. Do sighted peers understand your disability and try to help you?
My university friends are incredibly empathetic and understanding and often make sure to very subtly include me in their activities whether thats by describing things when we are at a theatre production or the cinema or offering to carry my drinks when we go out for coffee. Its the little things they do that help, but they are such a wonderfully understanding group of people and they never make me feel as if I'm a burden.
4. What's one thing you wish your friends understood about your disability?
Although my friends are incredibly understanding, sometimes I wish they could experience what its like to be a University student with a visual impairment who has to write a 5,000 word essay with research, footnotes and citations. Because, I know its hard for anyone being a university student, but being visually impaired and having to format a footnote…its a different ball game. And if they could write just one essay with bad eye sight, I'm sure they'd realise why I gripe so much.
5. Who do you tag to do this TAG next?
So, that concludes my blog for today again thank you to both bloggers for tagging me to do this.
Do feel free to take part in this tag yourself and share it on social media as I'm sure they would love to see it as would I.
Until next time.


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When you attend a training conference, or go to a Chamber of Commerce meeting, or join a business discussion group – you expect your colleagues to act and look "businesslike" and professional. The conference attendees may be from all over the country; the Chamber may include familiar faces; the discussion group may be close peers.
You want to create a positive, professional impression. You may want to make contact with experienced professionals in your field; you may want to promote new business; you may want to further increase a business friendship. You extend your hand and introduce yourself to those you don't know. You smile and greet those you know. You may exchange a story with someone you know very well.
You read people – react to their nonverbal cues. You assess people: their appearance, their diction, their conversations. Your first impressions. And, in turn, you are read and assessed by others. (Did you know you have 11 seconds to make a good first impression!)
WRITING IMPRESSIONS When your customer, client, peer, or manager receives your email or letter, they expect that you will provide clear, concise communication. Your opening line is your business handshake.
The words you select covey a tone – serious, friendly, concerned, as well as pompous or stuffy. The appearance and organization of your document add or subtract to your professional image. In the time it takes for someone to read your opening line and scan the email, letter, document, your professional image has been assessed!
What kind of first impression do you make? Serious or pompous? Competent or Incompetent? Smart or Smart-alecky? Unctuous or Friendly?


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Nexbank is categorized among the most influential banks in the world as it contains various subsidiaries which contribute to support of performance of multiple activities such as products and services in financial and banking aspect. Moreover, the bank focuses on offering services such as broker-dealer and commercial banking.
Nexbank was founded in the year 1922 in Dallas Texas where it grew gradually since most individuals had to be educated on the importance of keeping in banks as the quality services have attracted more customers to participate in the bank. Shareholders are also impressed by the performance of the bank since profit maximised. The bank frequently announces achievements to attract more customers as recently a pronunciation of completion of a debt offering of fifty-four million dollars was successful. The proceeds of the offering are intended for general corporate purposes; moreover, they are exposed to gain maturity after five years at the bearing of 6.375% interest rate for the period.
Operations of NexBank
Senior unsecured notes prices have increased since to seventy-five million dollars since it represents twenty million increase from the offer of the previous year. The growth of the subsidiaries is the main aim because the management is focused on collecting high amounts of proceeds.
The bank also engages in sponsorship programmes such as supporting the Dallas women's foundation 32nd annually luncheon through a gift of a hundred thousand dollars to enhance the women's economic security and leadership. The company's assets amount to 6.4 billion dollars as the client's satisfaction needs are accomplished through the providence of institutional services.
Long-term relations with partners is also a focus of the bank since the professionals provide personalized solutions that serve each client through development programmes that empower the businesses. A comprehensive collection of funding solutions in the mortgage plan as appropriate information is provided by attendants of the company when clients make inquiries. The money market of the private firm is three times the national average as it has an A rating. The management is thorough in the work as all aspects of the finance are appropriately curbed as clients are offered appropriate services.


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Making the decision to get certifiedAs some of you know I have been a Salesforce Admin/BA for nearly 10 years, but I was never certified. It's not that I didn't want to, it's just that I never made time for it. A few community friends of mine, as well as post from Button Click Admin, convinced me I should do it for a whole myriad of reasons. I started on this venture because I honestly got sick of people saying, "You're so good I can't believe you're not certified, just do it you'll pass."
When I made my decision that I was going to get certified, I set a goal to be certified by July 31, 2014. I highly recommend putting a goal with an actual date around it otherwise you'll never take the plunge. You'll just keep saying next month or next year, which is basically what I did. I honestly made the decision because I was sick of people nagging me.
Studying and Practicing for the CertificationOnce my mind was made up that I was going to do this, the first thing I did was google "Salesforce Practice Certification Test." Oh boy where do I start? There is some bad information out there. I remember taking one practice test and the first question on the test was clearly wrong. It only got worse as the test went on.
Here is an example of that:
I gave up on finding a good practice site and joined the "NYC Cert Club" which was members of the NYC User Group working together to get certified. Unfortunately my work schedule sometimes got so crazy I wasn't able to make these sessions. Even though the sessions were recorded it wasn't the same and I enjoyed the discussion and interaction I had with others. It's a great tool if you can make time for it, unfortunately I ended up having a mandatory meeting at the same time as this each week so it didn't work out for me. I do highly encourage those who can carve out the time during their day to attend these. There are also certification groups on the community you can join here (please keep in mind you will need to meet their qualifications mentioned on their page).
I started to take a different strategy. I signed up for a new developer org solely for the purpose of practicing for the admin exam. When I first started on this venture, I was using a configuration only sandbox tied to my org. Shortly after starting to study some out of the box features, I realized this was not the best approach since my org is so highly customized. Once I setup a free developer org, I found that it was even more beneficial for me, because I was able to see what Salesforce comes with out of the box.
I wasn't prepared for what was going to happen next...An interesting thing started to happen that I was completely unprepared for. It was an unexpected surprise. I was learning not only for the certification, but for the benefit of my company and well, my career. After I spent about 4 hours on a Sunday afternoon reading the help section and playing around in my developer org, I sent an email to my team highlighting some best practices and even about some features we could be using. I started to see the benefit of the certification right away. It wasn't that I just needed this cool little icon on my Twitter picture, it's that I was learning about features that I wouldn't normally look at. Features I didn't necessarily have requirements for, but I started to figure out ways our business users could use them.
As I mentioned above when I first started this venture it was more about getting people off my back about getting certified rather than all of the benefit that could possibly come with getting certified. I think this was because I never really saw what the big deal was about being certified. My studying became more about how I could help better our implementation rather than a status thing or proving my knowledge to someone, which is what I prefer anyway and part of what drove me to keep doing this every Sunday. I was building my own knowledge as well as building our backlog.
Finally a Great practice resourceIt was about a month ago when I came across a site called Certified on Demand. I was blown away. They offer free content as well as paid content. They have their site broken out into sections of the test. I decided to pay for a membership of $40.00. The first thing I did after paying for a membership is start taking the quizzes for each section without reading through the sections to see how well I did and what I needed to work on. Turns out on most of the quizzes I was scoring 90-100%. There were a few in areas where I hadn't used or studied yet that I needed to work on.
When I was taking the quizzes and I got something wrong I would write down the topic(s) on a piece of paper near my desk and keep a running list. Every Sunday, I would dedicate at least one hour to knocking a few of these items off of my list. What I would do is open up my dev org, and the help, section and learn about the topic/feature and start to play with it in my dev org. I personally find that I learn better by actually setting up a feature rather than just reading or memorizing something from the help section.
Jumping in with both feetI looked at my calendar and June was halfway over. I decided to register for my exam, I figured if I had an exact date then I would push myself harder to spend more time studying. After I knocked all of my topics of my list and went through each one in my dev org it was the weekend before my certification. I decided to take the full practice test on Certified on Demand. You know what, all of the hard work paid off, first time around I got all but two correct! I looked at the two questions I got wrong and studied up and took it again Monday evening and got all but one correct. I started to google for more practice tests to cram the night before. I found some answers to practice questions on Shell Black's website and got all of the questions correct! I finally felt ready. I was going to do this. I was going to pass my certification with flying colors on my first try.
Answering the original questionI am happy to say that as of July 1, 2014 I'm officially a certified salesforce.com admin. I don't know if it makes me any better at my job, but I definitely learned a lot through this experience. So, do experienced or veteran admins need a certification? Absolutely. You may know everything about your org/implementation but there maybe features that you haven't touched that could be helpful to your organization. It's not just about your org it's about the platform as a whole. When you become certified you become more than just an expert at your company, but an expert on the overall platform. I used to never see the big deal, now I do. I know there are probably about a dozen people reading this rolling their eyes, yelling, "We told you so!" So to those dozen people, thank you for nagging me.
I would like to end this post by encouraging all "veteran admins" who haven't been certified yet to do so. I guarantee that you will increase your knowledge about Salesforce beyond your org. Go for it. I did and don't regret it one single bit.
As always, thanks for reading.
PS - If you think Salesforce should come out with a good practice test with questions and answers vote for my idea here.


text: Stunning grand family room with two story stone fireplace & Palladian windows - Tons of natural light. Expansive kitchen with granite & center island - Open layout. $50k in upgrades & designer finishes. Master bedroom suite. Basement recreation room & guest room. Premium lot on quite street, fenced yard, backs to trees. Emerg Gen. Great location, convenient to Wegmans, Fort Belvoir, Quantico, Pentagon & DC.


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Modest Mouse Frontman Isaac Brock Falls Asleep at the Wheel, Causes Car Accident
Isaac Brock, the lead singer of Modest Mouse could have lost his life after falling asleep at the wheel of his car, but somehow he survived and only caused minor damage to other vehicles.
According to police (via the Oregonian), Brock "hit the rear of a City of Portland Parks pick-up truck, which hit a Subaru, which hit another Subaru, which likely hit a fifth car that left the scene (perhaps not knowing it had been tapped)."
The singer admitted to police that suffering from sleep deprivation, he had nodded off while driving.
After concluding that Brock didn't seem impaired or intoxicated, he was given a careless driving citation and sent on his way.


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Dear Ramana, Look at these three statements:1. The Ghost is unreal.2. There is only a Post.3. The Ghost is nothing but the Post.What do you understand from these ? Now apply the same to the world1. The world is unreal.2. There is only Brahman.3. The world is nothing but the Brahman.Another example:1. The snake is unreal.2. there is only a rope.3. The snake is nothing but the rope.The world is seen, its unreal. Like a dream. one sees the dream and one sees all the differences ... but there are none of them in reality. what ever is seen is unreal. Its an appearance. A projection of the mind.
When we say snake is unreal, what do we mean?it continues to seem like, due to optical illusion, thats fine.still u will say "snake is unreal"what will that mean ?
so do u mean to say the snake existed or not ?
It's enough to have faith in one aspect of God. You have faith in God without form. That is very good. But never get into your head that your faith alone is true and every other is false. Know for certain that God without form is real and that God with form is also real. Then hold fast to whichever faith appeals to you.
Dear Ramana,When it is said that the world is unreal, it only means it is seemingly real or unreal, mithya. It is not totally unreal or real.The world is mithya till Knowledge dawns - that it is the superimposition on the Self. The rope only is there. But it appears as a snake in dim light. It only means that the snake is only seemingly real, till the Knowledge dawns. When the Knowledge dawns we come to know that what is really is only the rope and the snake was superimposed on it. There is no separate snake and separate rope. Till one attains Jnana, he sees the world as mithya, then when Jnana is attained, one sees it as Brahma Swarupam. Arunachala Siva.
He who is called Brahman by the jnanis is known as Atman by the yogis and as Bhagavan by the bhaktas. The same brahmin is called priest, when worshipping in the temple, and cook, when preparing a meal in the kitchen. The jnani, following the path of knowledge, always reason about the Reality saying, "not this, not this." Brahman is neither "this" nor "that"; It is neither the universe nor its living beings. Reasoning in this way, the mind becomes steady. Finally it disappears and the aspirant goes into samadhi. This is the Knowledge of Brahman. It is the unwavering conviction of the jnani that Brahman alone is real and the world is illusory. All these names and forms are illusory, like a dream. What Brahman is cannot be described. One cannot even say that Brahman is a Person. This is the opinion of the jnanis, the followers of Vedanta. But the bhaktas accept all the states of consciousness. They take the waking state to be real also. They don't think the world to be illusory, like a dream. They say that the universe is a manifestation of the God's power and glory. God has created all these — sky, stars, moon, sun, mountains, ocean, men, animals. They constitute His glory. He is within us, in our hearts. Again, He is outside. The most advanced devotees say that He Himself has become all this — the 24 cosmic principles, the universe, and all living beings. The devotee of God wants to eat sugar, and not become sugar. (All laugh.) Do you know how a lover of God feels? His attitude is: "O God, Thou art the Master, and I am Thy servant. Thou art the Mother, and I Thy child." Or again: "Thou art my Father and Mother. Thou art the Whole, and I am a part." He does not like to say, "I am Brahman." They yogi seeks to realize the Paramatman, the Supreme Soul. His ideal is the union of the embodied soul and the Supreme Soul. He withdraws his mind from sense objects and tries to concentrate on the Paramatman. Therefore, during the first stage of his spiritual discipline, he retires into solitude and with undivided attention practices meditation in a fixed posture.But the reality is one and the same; the difference is only in name. He who is Brahman is verily Atman, and again, He is the Bhagavan. He is Brahman to the followers of the path of knowledge, Paramatman to the yogis, and Bhagavan to the lovers of God.
What is the mind? What is the Self? If the thoughless mind is the Self then where do the thoughts come from? Why the Self projects the mind deluding Itself of Its Being? If this chain is true world --> body --> senses --> mind --> thoughts --> the Self then every one of them ultimately derives from the Self, then why should we call them unreal? Yes, they are not the Self (considering them as not-Self) but they are real realizing they are the Self. Rope is a rope, it is not a snake but it doesn't mean that the rope doesn't continue to seem like a snake in the dark, I just know now it is a rope. Sun and its rays are not different. It is unreal and untrue if we say that the rays are something different from the Sun. But it is true if we say "They are from the Sun. They are the Sun. I know it now for sure".
The idea that the Self projects the mind deluding itself of its being is incorrect. The Self is never deluded.
You are yourself the Rope and Snake as well. Even though it is a beautiful jewelry with amazing craft, it is just Gold. Gold in the manifestation of a jewelry. Now what is ignorance in this context is forgetfulness of the Gold and knowing the piece as a ring or a necklace. This is all to it. So, if you know that the mind, thoughts, to be just the manifestation of the Self, then the delusion is no more. You know thought, mind like a jewelry, but you are aware that it is Gold, in the end.
QuoteThe idea that the Self projects the mind deluding itself of its being is incorrect. The Self is never deluded. These are just words. Even Bhagavan Ramana has expressed Himself this way - how jiva is the Self trying to liberate Itself. I share your opinion - the Self cannot be deluded or illuminated or whatever.
QuoteYou are yourself the Rope and Snake as well. Even though it is a beautiful jewelry with amazing craft, it is just Gold. Gold in the manifestation of a jewelry. Now what is ignorance in this context is forgetfulness of the Gold and knowing the piece as a ring or a necklace. This is all to it. So, if you know that the mind, thoughts, to be just the manifestation of the Self, then the delusion is no more. You know thought, mind like a jewelry, but you are aware that it is Gold, in the end.Yes, but the jewelry exists as the Self. That's my point. You are the Gold but you are the jewelry also.


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Excerpts: Doctors have stomped the streets protesting the proposed legislation...
I don't know why doctors are on the streets. We are trying to regulate the activities of private medical establishments, and not aiming at doctors. In fact, representatives of private hospitals association met me on Wednesday and chief minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday, and discussed their views on the bill. Yet, they took out a protest march in the city.
What happened after private hospital managements met the CM?
We agreed to reduce the quantum of punishment for operating a medical establishment without registration to six months instead of the proposed three years; we agreed to make the charter of patients applicable to government hospitals and revise the penalties for various lapses offences. But we did not heed to their demands of dropping `private' from the title of the bill, doing away with rate-fixation and removing the grievance-redressal committee.
But private hospital managements want government hospitals to be brought under the legislation
Government hospitals, being a part of the government, neither get registered nor de-registered. But private ones have to be registered and regulated.
Private hospitals have threa tened not to provide treatment under government schemes if government goes ahead with the bill
The threat is not new. In January this year, they decided to stop treating below poverty line (BPL) families, stating that the government hadn't cleared dues running into crores of rupees. We cross checked and found that the dues payable were a little over Rs 100 crore, and the amount was paid. In fact, the government spends around Rs 1,072 crore per annum on various health schemes. Assuming that 80% of this money is reimbursed to private hospitals, it adds to over Rs 3,000 crore in the last four years. This being the situation, should the government have no say in private hospitals when it is paying hundreds of crores of rupees of public money?
But private hospitals argue they provide better service and quality comes at a price
But is the treatment cost affordable? We have received complaints about private medical establishments indulging in unethical practices, violating government packages and harassing people. I don't say all these complaints are true, but isn't it the government's duty to ascertain facts.


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UK 'must help release detainee' in Afghanistan, High Court told
Lawyers for a man held in Afghanistan are demanding he is freed under one of the England's most ancient laws.
Yunus Rahmatullah was seized by British soldiers in Iraq in 2004 as a suspected insurgent and then secretly taken by US forces to Bagram Air Base.
His lawyers want the High Court to issue a writ of "habeas corpus", forcing the government to ask Washington to release Mr Rahmatullah.
Government lawyers say the UK has no control over the prisoner's fate.
Mr Rahmatullah's case emerged in 2009 after ministers admitted that two detainees formerly held by British forces in Iraq had been transferred by the Americans to Afghanistan, a process dubbed extraordinary rendition.
The 28-year-old Pakistani man was seized by British forces in February 2004 during an operation against insurgents in Iraq.
The soldiers handed him over to their US counterparts under a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) covering how prisoners would be managed. Within weeks he was at Bagram and was held incommunicado until his family were permitted to speak to him on the telephone last year.
Mr Rahmatullah told US commanders he was the victim of brainwashing and regretted ever joining the jihad in Iraq. In June 2010, a detention review board accepted his pleas and authorised his release, saying he posed "no enduring security threat". Since then nothing has happened.
Deal with US
Nathalie Lieven QC, for Mr Rahmatullah, told the High Court that the UK's foreign and defence secretaries had a legal obligation to demand her client's release because they had been the detaining authority, not the Americans.
She said that the MOU between the US and UK specified that London had the power to request the prisoner's return at any time.
This agreement meant the High Court should issue a writ of habeas corpus, an 800-year-old English judicial order, which requires ministers to bring to court someone who has been unlawfully detained.
The power was originally designed to prevent monarchs from detaining their enemies without fair trial, often in prisons beyond England's borders. It is rarely used today, but sometimes features in cases where an individual has been detained under the Mental Health Act.
Ms Lieven told the High Court: "The detaining authority has the right to request the man back," she said. "The US is obliged under the MOU to hand him back."
But James Eadie QC, for the government, said the court could not issue the writ.
"The short and complete answer to the application for habeas corpus is that [Mr Rahmatullah] is not in the custody, power or control of [the British Government]. He is in the power, custody and control of the US," he said.
Documents released
The case comes after new details emerged of the arrangements between the UK and US over the handling of prisoners during the Iraq war.
Key documents relating to Mr Rahmatullah's case were released under Freedom of Information to Conservative MP Andrew Tyrie, chairman of the all-party parliamentary group on extraordinary rendition.
The papers show that when Mr Rahmatullah was detained, the UK was not monitoring what was happening to detainees handed over to the US.
Mr Tyrie called on a forthcoming inquiry into detainees and rendition to look at cases like Mr Rahmatullah's.
"More than three years after I first requested information on rendition from the Ministry of Defence it has finally been required to disclose much of it," said Mr Tyrie.
"It reveals a catalogue of MOD mishaps and failures, including a failure to track detainees handed over to the US, a weakening of protections for those handed over and a failure to keep proper records.
"The detainee inquiry's position, that 'military detention operations should not be one of the key themes for the inquiry', now looks unsustainable.
"Without a comprehensive examination of rendition, the drip-drip of allegations will continue. This is why it is essential that the Gibson Inquiry into rendition covers detainee transfers in theatre."


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The simple example is when you need to combine a file path with a filename. Should the path end with a backslash or not? Did the user enter the path with an ending backslash or not in e.g. the parameters for the job?
You end up either ignoring one scenario or adding code to figure both out. This could eventual be a method where you decide it always returns the path with the ending backslash.
Well, in .NET there's a static method, System.IO.Path.Combine, taking care of all this. You just pass it a number of paths and it ensures that backslashes are in the proper places in the returned string.
Here's a small example in X++:
static void PathCombine(Args _args) { str path1 = @"C:\TestDir"; str path2 = @"C:\TestDir\"; str path3 = "MyFolder"; str combination; combination = System.IO.Path::Combine(path1, path3); info (strFmt("Combinig '%1' with '%2' gives '%3'", path1, path3, combination)); combination = System.IO.Path::Combine(path2, path3); info (strFmt("Combinig '%1' with '%2' gives '%3'", path2, path3, combination)); }