RIPCORD has released a fix to the .mcf file for Operation Persian Freedom, PHASE 3. The original .mcf has a defect that will lead to a CTD during the mission progression.

Replace the Persian Freedom Phase 3.mcf in your CAMPAIGN folder with the one below:

Download Persian Freedom Phase 3 mcf file (zipped)

Major Dragon (with a little assistance from Ripcord) has released his mini-campaign based on the Robert K. Wilcox book "Black Aces High" detailing the story of the VF-14 Black Aces F-14 Squadron during the conflict in Yugoslavia.

The campaign consists of 10 linked missions re-enacting the missions described in the book as well as some other possible missions flown in that conflict. The campaign requires the TSHV1 Objects 1 and 2 and flyable F-14. You may also wish to use the TSHV1 F14 Cockpit. The campaign is set in the NCAPE theatre, so the Iraq Paq conversion for the Persian Gulf is NOT required. The ctexte.cmp file included contains text files for ALL known F/A-18 campaigns including some that are upcoming from Ripcord. It is still advisable to back up your current ctexte.cmp just in case.

Download the campaign (ca. 5 MB) here: Black Aces Over Kosovo

The readme file is included, but you might want to take a look at it FIRST for Installation instructions:

RIPCORD has been doing some testing to determine the cause and possible fix for the 'Ramp Strike Bug'. This occurs mainly in the Valhalla campaign, and results in your aircraft exploding as you cross the ramp on a seemingly normal approach.

He thinks it may have something to do with a mission design where there are many aircraft in the air, on patrols that never end (e.g. CAP with ending action "Ammo Depleted" who never have to engage, or Tankers on INDEFINITE tanker tracks). He has tweaked one of the Valhalla missions so that he suffers no Ramp Strike Bug. He invites everyone to test it to see if it is just a machine specific thing, or if he has uncovered the cause.

This is a tweaked version of the first Valhalla Mission. If you suffer from the Ramp Strike Bug on that mission, try the tweaked version and see if it has cured the problem. Please report results in the SIMHQ thread: Ramp Strike Bug

Download the tweaked mission here: test_mission.zip

RIPCORD has released Operation Persian Freedom, PHASE 3.

The campaign will still require the TSH V1 Objects 1 and 2, as well as the TSH Iraq Paq.
The ctexte.cmp file included contains the text files for this new phase of the campaign as well as those from the following Janes F/A-18 campaigns:

1. Stock NCAPE campaign
2. Matt Wagner's Valhalla campaign
3. JayP's Karelskaya I
4. JayP's Arctic Duel
5. Harpoon 2004

NC_Creeper has written a mission based on the classic movie "The Final Countdown"

Day of Infamy will have you and your wingman thrown back in time to engage A6M Zeros...or a simulation thereof...

Download Infamy.zip (ca. 3 MB)

RIPCORD has released Operation Persian Freedom, PHASE 2.

The campaign will still require the TSH V1 Objects 1 and 2, as well as the TSH Iraq Paq.
The ctexte.cmp file included contains the text files for this new phase of the campaign as well as those from the following Janes F/A-18 campaigns:

1. Stock NCAPE campaign
2. Matt Wagner's Valhalla campaign
3. JayP's Karelskaya I
4. JayP's Arctic Duel
5. Harpoon 2004

RIPCORD has updated Operation Persian Freedom, PHASE 1 from feedback obtained in the vigorous playtesting of the original release.

Changes to ca. 18 missions include:

• More random bandit groups
• Gradual reduction of SAM defenses
• Better briefing instructions
• More detailed targetting assignments
• More outcomes debriefed in goal settings.
• Speeds adjusted on transits.
• EA-6B/S-3 do not refuel.

The campaign will still require the TSH V1 Objects 1 and 2, as well as the TSH Iraq Paq.
The ctexte.cmp file included contains the text files for the following Janes F/A-18 campaigns:

1. Stock NCAPE campaign
2. Matt Wagner's Valhalla campaign
3. JayP's Karelskaya I
4. JayP's Arctic Duel
5. Harpoon 2004

K@OS updates his "Sink the Tirpitz" Mission set in the NCAPE theatre.

A modern version of the sinking of the German warship Tirpitz by British Lancaster Bombers outside the island of "Håkøy", near the Norwegian city of Tromsø, in December 1944.

In this mission a Russian carrier is anchored, wounded, by the same island, and one VFA-133 "Maurauders" flight is assigned the task of giving her the "Finishing Harpoons"

This version updates previous versions with some slight adjustments and increased activity.

Download Tirpitz V2.6 directly, or see the other versions/mission by K@OS on the main download page

A new campaign set in the TSH Iraq Theatre, but aimed toward IRAN.

RIPCORD brings us Operation Persian Freedom, PHASE 1. 11.9 MB and 37 Missions comprising the first phase of a new fictional campaign against Iran. The campaign will require the TSH V1 Objects 1 and 2, as well as the TSH Iraq Paq.
The ctexte.cmp file included contains the text files for the following Janes F/A-18 campaigns:

1. Stock NCAPE campaign
2. Matt Wagner's Valhalla campaign
3. JayP's Karelskaya I
4. JayP's Arctic Duel

Due to requests on SIMHQ, I have also prepared and included in this .zip, a file: ctexte+Harp2004.cmp which adds the text files from Stefan Caron's Harpoon 2004 mini-campaign. Simply back up your existing ctexte.cmp file (located in the /Campaign/Data folder of your F/A-18 installation) rename this file to ctexte.cmp, place it in the location of the original ctexte.cmp, and you will be compatible with all known F/A-18 campaign texts.
If you already downloaded Operation Persian Freedom from the excellent VFA-105 site, you can download the ctexte+Harp2004.cmp file by itself from the link below.

Download Operation Persian Freedom, Phase 1
LINK NOW POINTS TO UPDATED CAMPAIGN. CONTAINS ONLY COMPLETE CTEXTE.CMP

Download ctexte+Harp2004.cmp

Four Mission set from the VMFA-531 Grey Ghosts

Here is a 4 mission set from the VMFA-531. These are set in the NCAPE theatre, but the Grey Ghosts promise that there will very shortly be a BIG set of missions for the Iraq theatre simulating historical missions flown during Operation Iraqi Freedom

Download The 531st Deployment Set

One hot flay rod's gone out of skew on treadle......

LEAD TURN returns with an 11 Mission Set for the TSHV2.0 IRAQ PAQ.
Operation Avenging Storm is an 11-mission set based on a fictional, current-day conflict involving the United States and Allied Forces against a combined coalition of Iraq and Iran. Your F/A-18E squadron will fly missions against a variety of targets in Iraq and Iran.

This mission-set is intended for coop multiplayer for 2 to 4 players (or more), but will work fine single-player, if you use your AI wingmen wisely!

The mission is also listed on the LeadTurn Mission Section

Several threads on SIMHQ lately have referred to Rudel's Imported Objects, which allow some objects from F-15 to be used in F/A-18 in place of the seldom used Icebergs. With the demise of many F/A-18 Resource sites, this file has been hard to find. I found it on my hard drive and figured it couldn't hurt to post it here.

Christmas day saw the release of TSHV2.0 which will allow you to import the Persian Gulf theatre from Janes F-15

The Download is available from the TSH Web page and also Here

Happy Holidays, and best wishes for a Happy and Healthy New Year from TACOPS!

Oh well... I tried Speech Buddy out with F/A-18 and though it processed the voice commands, the lag between voice command and response was just too high to be useful.

Whew! Its been quiet lately. I found this over at the Frugal's World Falcon 4 forum! A little Freeware/Abandonware Speech Recognition utility that allows you to pass commands to your sims via voice (like Game Commander).

The program itself is very small, and is here for download: Speech Buddy

It also requires a Microsoft Speech package available from this link: (6 mB): actcnc.exe

Read more about it at the Frugalsworld Forum in this thread. Interestingly, in another thread it is stated that it works fine for F/A-18, but NOT for F4 SP3! I could not get it to work in F4 SP3 either, but it worked great in the Sierra Shooter, SWAT3. I haven't tried it in F/A-18 yet.

One has to build an .ini file with the speech triggers for key commands, but it is pretty straightforward and the speech recognition engine seems to work quite well with minimum training!

Here is what I did:

1. Download and install the actcnc.exe shown above. After installation, a Wizard leads you through setup and training.
2. Unizip the Speechbuddy files.
3. Run SpeechBuddy and load one of the preconfigured .ini files. In DEBUG mode, practice speaking and checking to see if the right keys get triggered.
4. Loaded up SWAT3 and tried it out. Except for some commands that changed in the version I had, it worked great!

Let's see some cool F/A-18 ini files!!!!

These missions are based on NATO air strikes against Bosnian Serbs in the fall of 1995 when they shelled a market in Sarajevo, killing 38 civilians and injuring several others. For the past years of civil war in the Balkans, NATO had several times warned the Bosnian Serbs not to do anything that would violate UN protected "safe areas". The shelling of the market was a "test" from the Bosnian Serbs to see what the world would do, it was a bad mistake. US lead air strikes were launched soon after the shelling of Sarajovo to force the Bosnian Serbs into a sign a peace accord.

You'll be piloting an F-14 Tomcat from the USS Thedore Roosevelt.

IMPORTANT NOTE: This mission is built around TSH add-on number 1. You MUST have this add-on to be able to play this mission.
In the TSH installer, install these packages:

• TSH F-14D Cockpit (not needed but you are flying in the Tomcat so it is recomended)
• TSH Objects Package 1&2. If you use this mission without the TSH add-on, you'll probably experience CTD.
• Also download Rudels Imported Objects from Jane's F-15 (You'll also need this to play the campaign correctly)

Download Operation Deliberate Force

Poke in the Eye is an Offensive Counter Air mission where you must make a stealthy hit and run attack on an enemy AWACS with fighter escort. It can be flown as a single mission, or in Multiplayer.
The download contains both F/A-18E versions (no addons required) and a TSH compatible version which REQUIRES the TSH Addon (Player will fly an F-14D instead of an F/A-18E)

Download Poke in the Eye

M@verick brings us another TSH COMPATIBLE mission: The Battle of Kirkenes.
This mission is set in Norway/Russia as Red Russian ground forces launch an attack against Kirkenes. You'll be flying an F/A-18E with other allied fighter jets, supporting Norwegian and British ground forces trying to retake to town.

IMPORTANT NOTE:These missions are built around TSH add-on number 1. You MUST have this add-on to be able to play this mission. TSH Objects Package 1&2 are required. If you use this mission without the TSH add-on, you'll probably experience CTD.

Download The Battle of Kirkenes

M@verick brings us his mission based on Operation El Dorado Canyon. On 15 April 1986 the US Navy and Air Force launched air strikes against targets inside Libya, directed at Libya's state sponsored terrorist network in retaliation for the bombing of a disco in West-Berlin where 200 people were injured and two dead. One American service member died and 63 other service members were injured. You'll fly an F-14A Tomcat off the deck of USS America and escort the USAF F-111 strike package inbound for Tripoli.

IMPORTANT NOTE:These missions are built around TSH add-on number 1. You MUST have this add-on to be able to play this mission. In the TSH installer, install these packages; TSH F-14D Cockpit (not needed but you are flying in the Tomcat so it is recomended), TSH Objects Package 1&2. If you use this mission without the TSH add-on, you'll probably experience CTD.

Download Operation El Dorado Canyon

Download Operation Enduring Freedom - Mission Pack 7

Download Operation Enduring Freedom - Mission Pack 6 or see this and other M@verick missions at the Main Missions Section here

Download SAM City or get it from the main missions page with other missions by Dot here

Download Cluster Bomb Training or from the training missions page here

Download Operation Enduring Freedom - Mission Pack 5 or see this and other M@verick missions at the Main Missions Section here

Download Operation Enduring Freedom - Mission Pack 4 or see this and other M@verick missions at the Main Missions Section here

Operation Dancing Bear - Mission 1 970k
Operation Dancing Bear - Mission 2 550K
Operation Dancing Bear - Mission 3 350K
Operation Dancing Bear - Mission 4 200K
Operation Dancing Bear - Mission 5 160K
Operation Dancing Bear - Mission 6 300K
Operation Dancing Bear - Mission 7 350K
Operation Dancing Bear - Mission 8 570K
Operation Dancing Bear - Mission 9 1.2M
Operation Dancing Bear - Mission 10 1.0M
Operation Dancing Bear - Mission 11 670K
Operation Dancing Bear - Mission 12 420K
Operation Dancing Bear - Mission 13 530K

Download Operation Enduring Freedom - Mission Pack 3 or see this and other M@verick missions at the Main Missions Section here

Download Operation Enduring Freedom - Mission Pack 2 or see this and other M@verick missions at the Main Missions Section here

Download Operation Enduring Freedom - Mission Pack 1 or see this and other M@verick missions at the Main Missions Section here

Download Afghan Raiders here or see this and other LeadTurn_SD missions at the Main Missions Section here

Soon, we hope to add this mission and writeup to the Mission Builder Training section of the site, but for now, download DoubleTarget_AltPath.zip.

Download from the link above or from the Main Missions Section here

TACOPS and friends are greatly shocked by the events of September 11, 2001 and wish to express our great sorrow for those who suffered and our condolences to those who lost friends or loved ones in the attacks. We extend also our thanks for the countless acts of heroism which exemplify the finest and noblest human characteristics in the face of an example of the worst human cruelty.

We who wage virtual warfare in our simulations are only too well aware of what a deadly serious business real war can be, and we hope for a swift, but measured response by the United States of America to punish the guilty while striving to protect the innocent. As you fly some of the missions simulating raids on Afghanistan, stop and reflect upon how the luxury and freedom to do so has been and will continue to be brought to us by those who go into harm's way.

Download from the link above or from the Main Missions Section here

Download from the link above or from the Main Missions Section here

Download from the link above or from the Main Missions Section here

Download from the link above or from the Main Missions Section here

Download from the link above or from the Main Missions Section here

Download from the link above or from the Main Missions Section here

Download from the link above or from the Main Missions Section here

Download from the link above or from the Main Missions Section here

Download from the link above or from the Main Training Missions Section here

Download from the link above or from the Main Missions Section here

Download from the link above or from the Main Missions Section here

Download from the link above or from the Main Missions Section here.

Download from the link above or from the Main Missions Section here.

Both of these topics generate a lot of questions on the message boards, so head over to the Training Area and get these questions answered!