On normal FSX acceleration carriers, what is the recommended way to stop aircraft from rolling over and crashing after catching the wire? Been having a tough time with this behavior with the Viggie.
Most tweaks I see like above (btw, the A-3 IMHO is the toughest to trap without a building crash in this regard) are to the length of the hook. Would making the cable force weaker/lighter make the aircraft more settled and level after hooking the wire?
Prepare for some long-winded babbling!
There's a trick I found on the FSDeveloper forums for adjusting the tailhook to stop the tipping over problem. Once you have the length right, move it farther aft. Like this: tailhook_position = -79.0, 0, 1.5//-49.0, 0, 2.5//-49.453, 0, 1.556 Note the increase in the longitudinal position, as we tested. Well, I did, anyway. I found that -79.0 made the plane stop straight ahead if you were within 3° of the centerline on touchdown. Farther out than that, up to about 10° off centerline, you might dip a wing, but probably not "crash". Maybe get some damage to the wingtip or nose, or both, however. Farther out than that, you still tip over onto the nose and one wing or 'tother.
The number required for longitude position is different for every plane. That one is what we came up with for the FSDT F/A-18C. It seems to work just about perfectly. The farther aft you move it, the less "tip-over" effect there is, so you don't want to over-do it, but you can't under-do it either. Takes a lot of experimentation.
Naturally, the contact point values #'s 9, 10, and 11 must be correct for the plane as well, to make for a "proper" recovery on the boat. Best to get those right for landing first, on a shore station, then do the tailhook work.
A value setting to help keep you from going on off the end of the deck in full MIL power after grabbing a wire is cable_force_adjust = 1.74. That value for the FSDT plane brings it to stop with the nose-wheel just a foot or two before the end of the angle, if the #4 wire is caught and the throttles are in MIL. Enough for turning the nose-gear to make the plane taxi safely away from where it stops. Again, it will be unique for every plane. Heavier planes need higher values, naturally. You do need to be quick on the brakes and to bring the throttles to idle after the trap, before the plane "spits out" the wire. Just takes some practice, is all.
All this fun stuff works together, naturally, to make for an accurate recovery aboard the boat. Really, if the wires are in the right place on the boat, then it's all up to the plane settings to make it right. Not exactly "real world", since the cable force is adjusted for each plane as it comes in on board the boat, but the closest FSX Acceleration can come.
Ok, I'm done. Sorry for the long-winded-ness

Pat☺