Reflections on the canopy from a distance

[YoYo]

I have another suggestion 😎. Actually, one rarely seen in simulators outside of... IL-2 "Cliffs of Dover".

Every plane basically generates reflections that come either from the repaint (if it is shiny/glossy) or from the canopy. In the case of silver planes, we have an additional effect here, partly resembling a mirror effect. Reflections appear depending on the aircraft's orientation relative to the sun. Sometimes they last longer, sometimes they flash but they always occur in the real world. 

I also want to add (having also read the memoirs of WWII pilots) that there were times when reflections revealed the positions of enemy aircraft. Or sometimes pilots saw these reflections from a distance and flew over to check them. This is a constant, something we ourselves observe. Personally, I've often noticed the relative position of another aircraft thanks to reflections that appeared in the sky for a moment, even from a distance of ... about 20 kilometers (e.g., with passenger planes).

Can you also implement such a feature in the IL-2 Korea? I think that since the IL-2 Cliffs of Dover simulates it, it should be implemented here as well. This would also be a step forward in terms of graphics, but also a step closer to reality. The flare should, of course, be small, like a star, and depending on the distance of the aircraft from the sun, it may last a little longer or shorter, even as a flash. In IL-2 CoD, it works and looks pretty cool and it's the only simulator that simulates reflections from a distance.

The problem is that after a certain distance, the plane becomes just a black dot and nothing more, and it should also generate reflections. This is how, for example, you could spot planes flying just above the ground from above with the sun behind them, especially on silver fuselages. It's an idea worth considering.

This effect can be called "canopy and body glint" and is described, for example, in this material:

https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GOVPUB-D301-PURL-LPS20514/pdf/GOVPUB-D301-PURL-LPS20514.pdf

Examples:

Francis "Gabby" Gabreski (World War II and Korean War Ace)
Gabreski, while flying F-86 Sabre jets in Korea, repeatedly spoke of the so-called "MiG flash." Chinese and Soviet pilots flew almost entirely unpainted, silver MiG-15s.

"The main way to spot MiGs from a distance, before radar picked them up, was to look for 'mirror flashes.' Over the Yalu River, in a clear sky, the sun would reflect off their polished aluminum and rounded cockpit fairings. You'd suddenly see a tiny, brilliant flash of light from 20-30 miles away. It was like flicking a rabbit with a mirror. You knew they were there and the fight was about to begin."

Robin Olds (USAF Legend, Vietnam War)
In his autobiography, "Fighter Pilot," Olds describes Operation Bolo (January 1967), in which his formation of F-4 Phantoms hunted North Vietnamese MiG-21s. He recalls an occasion when the sun revealed the enemy's position:

"I was scanning the air below, against the green jungle backdrop. Suddenly, far to my right, the sun flashed. It was a quick flash—a reflection off the cockpit canopy of a MiG that was just entering a turn. Had the pilot been flying straight, I probably would have missed him, as the camouflage blended in with the ground. But that split second, when the cockpit glass acted like a mirror, was enough for me to instantly recognize their position and turn the entire formation for an attack."

From the Perspective of MiG Pilots (Korean War)
Sergei Kramarenko, a Soviet ace from Korea (flying a MiG-15), recalled the same problem, but from a different perspective. American F-86 Sabres had very large, bulging, teardrop-shaped cockpit fairings, which gave the pilot excellent visibility but also acted as powerful searchlights:

"The Sabres were difficult to spot against the ground because of their bare metal, but their enormous glass canopies were our best navigational aid. Very often, we reported spotting the Americans before we could make out the silhouette of the plane. We simply saw rhythmic flashes on the horizon as their formation gently rocked their wings. The sun reflected off their cockpits from such great distances that it gave us time to take up a higher, better attack position."

---

In military aviation, this effect was colloquially called "the stroke of lightning." An aircraft flying at transonic speeds at a distance of 20 km appears to the human eye as little more than a pinhead-sized dot. However, the sun's reflection could flash with an intensity that immediately caught the pilot's eye (activating the so-called peripheral vision effect). For this reason, in later years, anti-reflective coatings on fairings and matte paints that absorb light began to be used.

Edited July 17 by YoYo

[Valis]

Only if it is done well. (Mig Alley in 1999 did it crudely but effectively)

The current HDR setting does something similar with the 'bloom' effect - but it's not good.

22 minutes ago, YoYo said:

The Sabres were difficult to spot against the ground because of their paint job

Maybe a mis-translation but an odd thing to say about bare metal aircraft.

Edited July 17 by Valis

[YoYo]

26 minutes ago, Valis said:

The current HDR setting does something similar with the 'bloom' effect - but it's not good.

It's important that this works not only with HDR but also without. Cliffs of Dover doesn't have HDR, and this one works decently.

I have HDR disabled in the IL-2 Korea (I fly in VR).

There should also be no different reception through other settings to equalize the settings for online fights.

Edited July 17 by YoYo

[Valis]

10 minutes ago, YoYo said:

It's important that this works not only with HDR but also without.

Agreed, it shouldn't be optional.

Here's Mig Alley from '99. Watch the first few seconds and you'll see the glinting MiGs.

 

Edited July 17 by Valis

[YoYo]

Oh, I didn't even know there was an effect there. Cool find ! The effect might even last too long here, but it also depends on the angle of the sun. That's exactly what I'm talking about. Such reflections could come from the canopy or the fuselage and wings themselves if they're bare metal. 

[YoYo]

Bump! 

This option would be very nice. So I'm reminding myself.