Aerobatics - Barrel Rolls

This lesson teaches you how to precisely perform barrel rolls using the P-51D from the flight simulator DCS World. A left and right barrel roll are demonstrated, and external views are provided to show off the helical path a barrel roll takes to aid in visualisation.

Clickable annotations are available which allow you to either watch what you want or replay a section in the video.
Comments and feedback are always welcome, so if this video helped you out hit the like button and let me know in the comments below. Cheers!

[ross]

Finally a video of an actual barrel roll and not another aileron roll!

[UMSLdragon]

Been playing DCS for a while now. Always wondered how they could stay on my 6 so much. Your video demonstrations are exactly what I need!

[philippkistler]

Great explanation. It took me a bit to get why the barrel roll is called barrel roll.

Wikipedia says it's like driving on the inside of an imaginary barrel.
This fits nicely with your explanation that you want to finish with the same heading and altitude.

[sl]

Thank you, I have a dogfight coming up on Sunday in Empyrion and I may need this to avoid heat seeking missiles

[old_guard]

Excellent again. I must have read a dozen descriptions of the barrel role, but this is the first thing I have seen that makes it comprehensible.

[GunSlingerAUS]

Awesome - I've been trying to learn how to do a proper barrel roll for years, but never figured it out. Your instructions are perfect, thanks!

[jg_skylon]

And again absolutely clear video and good explanation. Thank you!

[notarokescientist]

these vids are going to keep me out of trouble

[Bebert_vrt]

Just finished your bfm series, thank you so much it is so cool !

[jordigraner]

Well explained and demonstrated. Thanks!

[neilwillis]

Excellent, thanks for this. I'll be adding a link to your library on the RAF Air website. Very useful.

[PappyGunn]

I did aerobatics many years ago. Yup, this is how you do a barrel roll. Pick a reference off 45 (or even 30 degrees) pull up and roll around it until inverted then switch back to the original heading reference and complete the roll. Naturally, combat isn't pretty aerobatics, so you vary angle off and altitude as needed. In theory, you should be pulling positive Gs all through, and not a lot of them. In theory, you could do this with a glass of water on the dash and not spill any. Not sure if any idiots actually tried it. Probably.

[RealPoi]

How to do a Barrel Roll:
1. Press Z & R at the same time.

[nume]

Great Vid as Usual! Please keep them coming, they are so very helpful when learning simulated aerial combat.

[AlexsFlyingClub]

Excellent video! Thanks for taking the time to make it.

[ChuckOwl]

Great video, Requiem! Informative and to the point, like always.

I might nit-pick on one small insignificant thing though: when you add the TACView window like at 2:55, it takes about 1/9th of the screen. I have a 27 inches screen and even in fullscreen mode I'm having a hard time seeing the details in TACview. I would recommend you either enlarge it a bit so it takes a quarter of the screen or that you just present it fullscreen in another shot entirely. The video is not very long so I do not think an extra 20 seconds would be too much for your viewers to watch. 

[TheKeithvidz]

a manuever i've seen in acm, mostly to force a foe in front.

[MrEmilicious]

in video games, i'm used to doing it in 4 steps but synchronized fluent steps so I'm not sure if I'm doing right, I pich up to an angle, roll 90' 3 oclock and pitch untill I reach angle degree 0 (horizontal pose) then I roll abit more to flip the aircraft perfectly upside down then I pitch down to the same angle value I started but in negative degree, then roll 90' but in the other side 9 oclock..and then pitch all the way back to zero, this way it manners pretty robotic but it guarantees 100% the final heading is the same..i can also control the size of the s shaped loop whatever the size circle by choosing which angle value, I usually use the barrel roll to jump sideways on the same heading.

[andycaldwell]

Hi Requiem, I've been loving your videos for a long time! really amazingand useful help while in spins in a camel!! I'm trying to master the bf 109 f2 in IL2 BOS (great bf 109 F2 tutorial last week BTW) - I am really mucking up the barrel roll every time. I know there is some torque in the 109, and am compensating well in normal flight etc but i am struggeling with manovers. With the barrel roll in particular I have trouble knowing how much rudder, aileron and pitch to put it. Any ideas? Thanks for all you do!

[dustinchase]

Too many people think that an aileron roll is a barrel roll. I believe the barrel roll may have got its name because it sort of appears like one is rolling around a barrel.