P2V-7 Searchlight

TARPSBird

TARPSBird

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I was flying the AlphaSim/Virtavia P2V-7 Neptune tonight and noticed that the high-power searchlight in the starboard wing tip tank is apparently non-functional. Maybe I'm missing a panel switch somewhere but I don't think so. Does anybody know if the searchlight works, and if not is there a light effect that can be used there?
 
The Alphasim P2V searchlight works, and also the taxi lights. The taxi light is on the nose wheel and doesn't show when the landing gear is up. The searchlight control is the Landing Light switch. If you fly under about 300 feet above ground you can see the effect (in spot view) on the surface, ground or water. You must be below 100' agl to see the effect from the copckpit views. Flying the P2V below 100' in the dark above water is challenging, but not unrealistic while hunting subs at night. Technique was to approach with searchlight off untill very close to the target and then turn the searchlight on ... surprise!

In the mid-60s I flew in the Neptune as aircrewman and well remember night operations. The view at night from the bow station was really magnificent! Best seat in the house. The Alphasim Neptune is my favorite aircraft, I fly it in both Fs9 and FsX. It brings back many memories.
 
Same technique I remember reading about being used by RAF Liberators over the Atlantic in WWII, against U-boats. They used ASV (Air-to-Surface Vessel) radar to line up for their pass, then held off switching on the Leigh light on their wing until practically on top of the target. By then the depth charges had been armed and the bomb bay doors run up, so when the light came on they were within maybe 150-200 yards of the target and there was virtually no time to react on the sub's part. Of course the sub, being diesel-electric, was surfaced recharging its batteries. The Germans then had FuMB receivers developed and installed on their subs to detect ASV emissions, allowing the sub to hopefully dive in time to survive. Submarine snorkels were then developed. A snorkel poked up through the waves reflects radar but would take a little keener eye to spot. The effect of an ASV attack would still be the same. When snorkeling subs began to be attacked, even at night, the FuMB antenna was installed on top of the snort mast to pick up the radar.

There was another night battle between the English and the Germans, and it wasn't going on over Germany and occupied Europe - but at sea . . .
 
llanning08, thanks for the reply, now I see how the searchlight works. I was hoping for a bit more awesome light effect (knowing how bright the light was in real life) but that's OK. When I'm down that low on the deck I'll probably crash anyway, LOL.
I flew in P2V's in the reserves at NAS Glenview, 1966-67. Too junior for aircrewman but our XO let me fly occasionally. You're right about the bow observer (nose) position, it's a real "God's eye" view of the landscape. The older guys in the crew (as in not 18 like me) didn't like having to crawl into the nose so I'd go up there. Bring my deluxe (hehe) Glenview box lunch with me and I was good to go.
 
TARPSbird: I was also a naval reservist 65-69 assigned to VP-934 at Willow Grove NAS, an AW2 Julie-Jezebel type. Flew in both the SP-2H and the older SP-2E. One of my most enjoyable flights was overnight Norfork NAS to Rosy Roads for ordnance quals. Crawled up into the bow station with my box lunch, thermos of coffee, and a couple of Roi-Tan cigars. Just sat there waiting for whatever was to happen as we transited the Bermuda Triangle in the wee hours. If we were gonna be mysteriously zapped, I wanted a good view! Dawn came and we were still amongst the current dimension.

As to the AlphaSim Neptune, I think I'll see if I can improve the searchlight with Shockwave 3Dlites. I love the P2V, have you discovered that it can back up (as can the real ones). Hope someday to get a 7W SP-2H repaint of both the Neptune and the S2F Tracker. I'm trying to figure out FSPaint myself, but I lack talent!

Here's my squadron logo, one of my rides, and my primary flight station ...
 
I flew in P2V's in the reserves at NAS Glenview said:
I was assigned to NAVSTA Great Lakes for 8 years, 1987-1995. We had a day office at Glenview, I used to man it periodically when the assigned agent was out of town. Right across from our little office at Glenview was a very large hangar made of wood, sat right on the ramp. You may not know it burned to the ground back around 91 or 92, I think. It had been converted to a number of things, including a full-sized basketball court. The only other wooden buildings like it were a couple of drill halls that were up at Great Lakes. I believe all those huge wooden buildings were WWII-era construction, part of the buildup after Pearl Harbor.
Click to expand...
 
SSI01,
I was long gone from Glenview when the Drill Hall burned down but I remember when it happened. My uncle still lived in Northbrook and he sent me a news clipping. I'm pretty sure the Drill Hall was used for that purpose only since it was built in WWII. The big main hangar where Base Ops was located dated back to before the war when the field was still Curtiss-Reynolds Airport. Now the whole area is upscale houses and condos and the only thing remaining from the NAS is the tower portion of the old hangar.
 
I was transferred to HI in the summer of 95 and haven't kept abreast of events around Glenview or Great Lakes since then.

One thing I do remember from Glenview is a National Biscuit Company (NABISCO) plant right down the street from one of the back gates. Wonderful smells came from that place when the wind was right!
 
nas glenview

I was an air traffic controller AC1 at Glenview from 1973-1977. I remember standing at the door of the gca unit and watching a P-2 go sliding by sideways on a slippery runway. The best thing about the neptune was the unique sound the made when taxiing.

SSI I also trained at NAS Glynco and at that time AC training included flying in the right seat of an S-2 as an observer in realtime PAR training. One of the best days of my life, still love the S-2.
 
I don't think there is a single USN aircraft here as a gate guard or otherwise displayed anywhere on the grounds of FLETC to mark the place's former days as a NAS. There is a very small museum display inside the visitors' center by the main gate that has one glass display case w/models, photos, some donated equipment to mark NAS days, and that's it. Too bad there isn't a P-2 somewhere that could be hauled here and set up near the front gate. We've got enough Navy retirees around here who could probably lend a hand in restoration, at least for display. There are two local American Legion posts and a VFW in town as well. They are using the runways now for high-speed drivers' training, and also a large skid pan for ice driving training.

If GR means what I think it does, you're on the other side of the state from my home town, which was a suburb of Detroit called Livonia.
 
llanning08 said:
TARPSbird: I was also a naval reservist 65-69 assigned to VP-934 at Willow Grove NAS, an AW2 Julie-Jezebel type. Flew in both the SP-2H and the older SP-2E. One of my most enjoyable flights was overnight Norfork NAS to Rosy Roads for ordnance quals. Crawled up into the bow station with my box lunch, thermos of coffee, and a couple of Roi-Tan cigars. Just sat there waiting for whatever was to happen as we transited the Bermuda Triangle in the wee hours. If we were gonna be mysteriously zapped, I wanted a good view! Dawn came and we were still amongst the current dimension.

As to the AlphaSim Neptune, I think I'll see if I can improve the searchlight with Shockwave 3Dlites. I love the P2V, have you discovered that it can back up (as can the real ones). Hope someday to get a 7W SP-2H repaint of both the Neptune and the S2F Tracker. I'm trying to figure out FSPaint myself, but I lack talent!

Here's my squadron logo, one of my rides, and my primary flight station ...
Click to expand...

Just wondering if you were able to improve the lights with 3D Shockwave? Maybe post your configuration? Am wondering if it is possible to increase the brightness of that spotlight? Thanks...NC
 
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