Holy 
bill et john were awesome. They dont make em like that no more!
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Iāll just add you went after the Kuznetsov the wrong way.
The most effective way is with a floating dry dock.
Yeahā¦not sure but I think ED is out of the Viggen for a whileā¦Iāve crashed too many. 
(That is a running joke around here).
Re number 1 (Navigation) and 3 (Spatially Oriented)
Not sure how MP goes, but in SP you should be able to see your flight plan before you start in the mission editor. You should also be able to see it with the kneeboard cards. The F-15 and Mig-29 have simplified navigation modes using the HUD in navigation mode - essentially showing you a path to the next waypoint. Other older aircraft like the Viggen have a cruder navigation system but is essentially the same - fly where the hud tells you to fly.
IMHO, that does not really help you with navigation and situations awareness with regard to having a āgood feelingā that you know where you are at any given time inn a flight. I like the older aircraft with more primitive navigation instruments like TACAN and NDB (western aircraft) and ARC and RSBN for Russian aircraft.
Many of us started with civil aviation flight sims like FSX or XP and learned radio navigation that way, so the transition to DCS was fairly easy. With the older systems there is more āhead workā in navigating. You have to dial in frequencies, understand the difference between headings and courses and frequently double check where you are with landmarks or other navigation instruments. In doing so you begin to develop situational awareness of where you are ad what you are doing.
Lastly, try using the F10 in Map mode - that way you get used to using a chart and the transition to the knee board cards is smoother.
In the FC3 planes, options are limited. You cannot add waypoints in-flight in those jets. You have to rely on waypoints added in the mission editor. You can find all airfields, though. You can also get a TACAN track on the nearest tanker! Other than that, thereās not much you can do besides dead-reckoning.
Others have already mentioned various probable causes, but the scan volume is a very probable cause. Since you mentioned the bandit was contrailing, it is likely he was higher than you, and you might have had to shift the antenna elevation upwards. A nice tool exists that allows you to play with the F-15C radar that allows you to learn what you can and canāt see: Radar F-15 ā The Art of Warfare (it needs a bit of time to load) Another possible cause could be the PRF (Pulse repetition Frequency) in relation to the aspect of the bandit. Since you now own a mirage, you can get a similar radar display as the F-15 by selecting B-SCOPE. By selecting POLAR, you get a similar display as your MiG-29.
Now that you own the Mirage, its default campaign is an absolute fantastic starter campaign. You can just do its training missions and then directly hop into the campaign 
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I ordered a better HOTAS setup, the X56. Thereās things I needed to do and found myself fumbling for keys way too often. I spent a good amount of time last night studying up on the Mirage. Tonight hopefully Iāll get some flight time.
Thanks folks!
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Key mapping is somewhat of an art. There are several āphilosophiesā. The default FC3 key binds seems to use the number keys for radar and combat modes and also use letters that ālinkedā to the control, i.e. F for Flaps, G for landingGear, etc. Not my favorite.
I like to look at cockpit arrangements and set the key binds accordingly. Left side controls set up on left side keys like Q W E R, Tab, A, S, etc. Right side controls for I O P ; ā etc. I do a standard set for kneeboards using the arrow keys. Up key is Show/Hide, Left for previous page, Right next page and down to Mark position. In the Viggen and FA18 you can use the Number pad keys for the number pad in each aircraftā¦although the FA18 is flip-flopped - 1 2 3 at the top and 7 8 9 at the bottom.
I have also found the Cougar MFD peripherals very handy even for aircraft without MFDs - again sort-of, kind-of relating to the cockpit lay out.
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Situation Update : All is going well!
The startup procedure on the Mirage is starting to click. Iām fumbling for buttons slightly less often than I used to. Hopefully the X56 arrives soon as I donāt want to spend a ton of time binding my HotasX. The radar is falling into place, I dropped a handful of cargo planes and worked on detecting them at different altitudes, angles, and speeds. I havenāt gotten into any A2G work yet, but thatāll be once I can comfortably engage something and survive.
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While you are enjoying your baguette, start saving up for the hornet. Itās like the baguetteās overachieving if a little heavier big sister.
Notice the vertical bar instrument just to the left of your HUD controls. It goes up when you pull the stick, and back down when you re-center it. This is your AoA (angle of attack). Notice how pulling that over 10 units will make your beautiful big delta wing one big bad airbrake. Use this knowledge for good grasshopper.
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Another update. Mirage is going pretty good. Iām working through the escort-intercept mission and getting to the point where I actually survive and need to go get fuel or land at some closer airfield. Neither of which have ended in much success yetā¦
The X56 is very nice and has saved me some key fumbling. I still need to get some of the A2G stuff mapped but from what everyone is telling me it seems the Mirage doesnāt do multi-role terribly well. I might focus on the SU25 for that.
Iāve seen folks using an iPad with a virtual cockpit, neato or just a gimmick? Iām not using VR at all either.
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Have you noticed that big green number beneath the right dashboard cowling? Right next to the engine RPM counter. Itās your fuel flow. How much that engine is actually guzzling.
Notice how in cruise itās 20 to 30. Notice how in full afterburner it goes all the way to 240! That means one minute in afterburner is ten minutes in cruise gone. Be frugal with it. Only use it in short bursts and when needed.
The mirage is a fantastically slick airframe, it accelerates like mad when the AoA is low. So if you get slow, unload and get fast again. Try to find the moments where you donāt need to pull the pole all the way. It costs far less fuel than keeping the pole in your gut and the afterburner plugged. In the end you might even move better that way!
There is nothing a well flown mirage canāt beat.
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What?? Need it! More info please!
Oh yeah! Well Iāll put my Viggen up against your Mirageā¦ohā¦oh waitā¦you said well flownā¦yeahā¦never mind. 
Yep simvc, plus thereās an older one called iControl as well (with a free iOS version plus Android, but just A10C I think), but not sure of the current status:
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Cool!
Thinkingā¦if I cannot a couple of iPad Minis and fix them to the back of my Couger MFDs
Oh man thats really cool!
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