Problems with planes!

[Clue]

Why is it that whenever I put an AI controlled plane into a mission, the pilot automatically starts the engine and drives into the nearest hill?

It doesn't seem to matter what type of plane it is, or where it is positioned. Even if the plane is empty and then the AI pilot gets in, he still heads off on his own! I have tried using a GET OUT waypoint but it is ignored.

Any help would be appreciated as I'm trying to make a mission using the Corsair and Mustang packs.

[Drozdov]

I think we need a bit more info. Is the plane already in the air? Are you trying to get it to take off? Or land? Tell me more!

[Clue]

At the moment I put myself as a civilian observer and place an AI controlled plane on the runway... that's all. Then I hit preview and the plane just taxis off on it's own (never taking off!) until it either hits something and blows up or falls off a cliff (and blows up!)

I would like to be able to have an AI controlled plane just sit where it's put until it needs to take off (either a trigger or radio call).

[Drozdov]

Try this...

planename stop true

When you want it to move, use this...

planename stop false

This plane behaviour is unknown to me, since I've never actually just stuck a plane on the runway that wasn't immediately about to take off. Maybe setting the behaviour to "safe" would help.

[KJAM]

i think that because the AI plane is on a runway it thinks its alright to take off how about using

plane setFuel 0

and then make a trigger that says:

plane setfuel1

after an amount of time to activate the trigger or the presence of something
this may work better than what droz said probably because if a plane ahs no fuel it cant move lol

[Drozdov]

Yes the setfuel 0 should work equally well   .

[Clue]

Cheers guys, bothof your solutions seem so obvious now that you mention them!
 

[Clue]

OK... after weeks of trying to sort this out (and getting nowhere), I have to appeal for more help. Whatever I do, the plane, once manned, will then ignore everything (even a direct order to stop!) and taxi off at high speed until it bloes up or falls off a cliff.  

 I have tried:

Setting fuel to 0. As soon as fuel is set to 1 plane taxis off on it's own.
Setting myself as group leader, hitting preview, and immediately ordering the pilot to stop. This is ignored and he taxis off at speed.
Start with an empty plane, and order a group member to board as pilot. Once he is aboard... he taxis into the nearest forest.
planename stop false also sends him off on his own.

 Even if the plane is perfectly straight on the runway, it will taxi off in some bizarre direction (usually south west on every island it seems!).

 I am trying to make a 'destroy an airfield' mission. The idea is that all the planes start on the ground, and the pilots only board them and take off when the enemy (player) has been detected. Hopefully the crafty player could wipe out most of them before they get off the ground, but if you're too slow, you'll be into a dogfight.


Am I missing something really obvious (like a take off command or something)?

[macguba]

As always when OFP is being arsy, go back to basics.     There is no takeoff command, it should be automatic, providing you are on a working airfield.   There is at most one per island, runway north-south.    Sounds like you might be on a non-working airfield.

Try and get this to work.   If you can, multiplying up to get what you want should be easy.

Start with a new clean mission.     Create an empty plane at a dispersal point about halfway down the taxiway.    (Use the airfield at the north end of Everon or Malden.)   Create the pilot:  give him a move waypoint near the plane, then getin.     Give him a move waypoint on the taxiway near the south end  and then another one miles away.

That's the basics.    It should work.    Assumng it does, the first development is to synch a switch trigger with the first move waypoint, so that you can control when the pilot gets into the plane.      In the planeu's init field put this setfuel 0 and use another trigger to setfuel 1 say 40 seconds after the pilot gets in.    

If you are using several planes put each in its own group and synch the taxiway waypoints, or put them in one group in column formation and ensure that they are set out in the right order.

[Planck]

I tried this on Everon Airfield.


I placed an Empty A10 on the taxiway facing South and named it plane.
I placed a pilot, named him p1, and in his init field I put:

p1 assignasdriver plane

Next I gave him a Get In waypoint on the A10.

He jumped in taxied away to the runway and took off.

I also tried putting the A10 already crewed on the taxiway with the same result......perfect takeoff.

Finally I placed the already crewed A10 at the end of the runway........result perfect takeoff.

As already stated, I think you may be trying this from a non-working airfield.......what island are you using?


Planck

[Clue]

Cheers guys!  

 Everything works fine on Everon and Malden... the problem must have been that I was using the Inv44 Sicily island! To test whether there was a working airfiled (on Sicily) I put myself as a plane in flight and hit the 'landing autopilot' button. The plane flew straight off the south-west corner of the map! Strangely, this also happened when I tried it in Kolgujev.  

 Thanks for all the suggestions and help, I guess my WWII mission will have to take place on one of the regular islands.

[Planck]

As regards Kolgujev........It doesnt have an airfield, so, that would explain why it doesnt work there.


Planck

[Kommando]

the problem is the AI thinks that the "runway" is on the upper left corner of map (on sea) and so it tries to land there with autopilot too

[Komuna]

Thanks for all the suggestions and help, I guess my WWII mission will have to take place on one of the regular islands.

You could make a take-off script, instead.
The basis of physics scripting can be found at this thread. It's a chopper landing script I made which has some usefull functions for getting the required values of acceleration and speed.

I hope that helps you.