Dive Toss in Five Minute-ish – F-4E-45MC

Rather than starting with a long introduction about the Dive Toss technique, here is a straight-to-the-point short peek. In-depth considerations, limitations, and tips will follow in another article.

What is Dive Toss?

So, what is Dive Toss? Abbreviated as “DT”, Dive Toss is an air-to-ground ordnance delivery method. This technique is generally much more precise than manual bombing and accounts for imprecision in the approach parameters, up to some extent.
This simple animation shows how the fighter dives and the pilot points its nose at the target. The WSO acquires the radar return, and the avionics does the rest.

Conventional vs DT

To better understand the advantages of Dive Toss, let’s have a very brief look at manual bombing.
The standard “stick and eyeball” delivery sees the pilot following pre-planned parameters such as speed, dive angle, release altitude, and more. Factors such as wind or changes in the plan can hardly be accounted for, especially if the pilot is new in this role.
During the attack, the pilot has to monitor the flight parameters, matching the pre-configured sight appropriately depressed, and the target. However, this is easier said than done. This animation shows the effects of errors in the flight parameters.

1. The first Phantom II arrives too fast, and the bombs fall too long.
2. The second is too high and the angle too steep. The bombs tend to fall almost orthogonal to the ground, missing the target.
3. The third F-4E arrives low and slow, and the bombs do not have enough energy.

Dive toss removes all of that.

Why Dive Toss works

This animation shows an approximation of how the APQ-120 is used during a Dive Toss attack.

1. Starting from a “standard” air-to-air mode, 1 bar with antenna nutation, the WSO selects air-to-ground.
2. The pilot points the aeroplane towards the target.
3. The WSO locks the ground return.
4. The pilot holds the release button, and the avionics decides when to drop.
5. After that, the pilot initiates the appropriate escape manoeuvre.

That’s it, it is as simple as that.

Modus Operandi

Both crew members need to configure their side of the avionics. For the purpose of this discussion, and if you are new to this, I recommend setting up the cockpit before reaching the target area. In the next, more in-depth article, we will discuss better practices.
Note that each crew member can do their part independently of the other.

Pilot

• Sight Mode [A/G]
• Delivery Mode Knob [DT]
• HSI Mode Switch [NAV COMP]
• Weapon Select Knob [BOMBS]
• AWRU + Interval + Quantity [SET]
• Nose/Tail Arm Switch [As Required]
• Station Select Buttons [Select Required Stations]
• Master Arm Switch [ARM]

WSO

• Radar Mode [AIR-GND]
• Radar Range [5nm or 10nm]
• Radar Power [OPR]
• Antenna Stab Switch [NOR]
• WRCS Drag Coefficient [SET]

These points can be set at any moment of the process. Additional actions are required during the dive itself. This time, the steps are sequential:

1. WSO: Receiver Gain [MIN]
2. WSO: Lock on Target and call out
3. Pilot: Bomb button [Press and Hold]
4. Pilot: Bomb button [Release]

In-game Example

The video linked above contains a Dive Toss example kindly recorded by Calir (WSO) and Essah (Pilot).

They fly in the 512th Virtual Squadron of the 86th Virtual Fighter Wing; a DCS squadron flying the F-4E Phantom on the Cold War Germany map, recreating USAF tactical fighter operations from the mid-1970s to early 1980s (Discord Server).

Conclusions

With very little practice, Dive Toss can become the crew’s best friend and a very efficient, flexible, and precise bombing method that can be combined with all sorts of plans and tasks, such as a pop-up or Close Air Support.
As mentioned, an in-depth discussion about Dive Toss will be released later on.

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