Controls Reference

Flight Controls

These keys work for whoever has the controls: the pilot seat, or the co-pilot seat once the controls have been handed over with T (see the note below).

Key	What it does
`W`	Nose down — pick up forward speed
`S`	Nose up — slow down, then back up
`A`	Lean left
`D`	Lean right
`Q`	Swing the nose left
`E`	Swing the nose right
`Shift`	Pull up on the collective — climb
`Z`	Push the collective down — descend
`P`	Autopilot. Opens the Pilot Panel map in autopilot mode. In the pilot seat, click where you want to go, press ENGAGE, and the helicopter flies itself there. Touching any flight control gives you the aircraft straight back. See Autopilot.
`G`	GPS map. Opens the Pilot Panel map in waypoint mode, to set a waypoint for the cockpit GPS. Pilot or co-pilot
`X`	Autohover. Slows the helicopter down and holds it still — same height, same heading, same spot. Steering does not switch it off; press `X` again for that. If the autopilot is flying, switching Autohover off cancels that too. Also used for ground flip recovery when you are on the ground and upside down.
`K`	Mouse Flight. Lets the mouse steer as well as the keyboard. Works from the pilot seat. Your choice is saved to your DayZ profile, so it stays set between sessions and servers.
`O`	Your settings — the Settings tab of the Pilot Panel: Mouse Flight, sensitivity, Collective Hold, HUD units, size and opacity, alert and radar volume, and more. Everything in it is yours alone and is saved to your DayZ profile. It opens from any seat in a helicopter or from its cabin, but not on foot, and never while you are typing in chat, another menu is open or you are looking through the chin camera.
`H`	Damage panel on/off — hides or shows the top-left panel (which also carries the battery, spotlight and navigation-light icons). Your own choice only; servers can remove the panel for everybody with `crew.damageZonePanelEnabled = 0`. It also gets out of the way by itself while your inventory or the chin camera is open.
`T`	Transfer Flight Control. Hands the controls to the player in the other front seat, without anyone moving seats; they hand them back the same way. Only the seat that has the controls can hand them over, and only to a player who is awake in the other seat. It doesn’t work from the cabin or while you are looking through the chin camera.

The pilot and co-pilot can both fly, one at a time. Whoever sits in a front seat first has the controls, and T hands them across. Flying, Autohover and the lights belong to the seat with the controls, and the HUD control indicator shows green in that seat. DayZ only lets the pilot seat control a helicopter from the player’s own PC. The co-pilot can’t, so when the co-pilot flies, the server flies the helicopter for them, and it may not feel as smooth or respond as quickly. We suggest always flying from the pilot seat for the smoothest, most responsive flying. See Flying & the Co-Pilot Seat.

Every key here can be changed in the DayZ controls settings. The defaults are: Autohover = X, Mouse Flight = K, Pilot Panel: Settings = O, Pilot Panel: GPS Map = G, Pilot Panel: Autopilot = P, Damage Panel = H, Spotlight = L, Navigation Lights = N, Dashboard Lights = I, Chin Camera = J, Transfer Flight Control = T, Admin Panel = F10, Free-look = one press of Left Alt. Free-look used to be a double-tap; if you are updating from an older version, press Reset All in your controls once so the new binding takes effect.

Tilt-Rotor Nacelles (Ospreys)

The CV-22B and MV-22B Ospreys have one extra control in the pilot seat: the angle of its two engine nacelles.

Input	What it does
Hold `B` + mouse wheel up	Tilts the nacelles toward helicopter — straight up
Hold `B` + mouse wheel down	Tilts them toward aeroplane — pointing forward

To flip the nacelles all the way in one go, hold B and left click: they swing to fully forward if they are more than halfway up, and straight up otherwise — still within the usual limits for speed and the ground. The hold key is B by default and you can change it in Options → Controls, where it is listed as Nacelles: Tilt (hold + scroll), next to Nacelles: Snap 90° / 0° (hold Tilt). Server owners can also choose the key their players start on — see Keybinds. Each click moves them a tenth of the way. By default they turn at 7.5 degrees a second (tiltRotor.conversionRate), about 12 seconds end to end, and the HUD shows the angle as NAC above the dials. See Tilt-Rotor Flight for how to fly the conversion. With the nacelles forward, two of the usual keys change their job:

Key	In aeroplane mode
`Shift` / `Z` (collective)	The throttle, like the real V-22’s thrust lever. It stays where you leave it, whatever your Collective Hold setting: centred is cruise power (about 246 knots), up is full power (about 275 knots), and below the middle the proprotors act as an airbrake, slowing you hard at speed, down to idle
`Q` / `E`	Weaker, like a rudder — turn by banking with `A` / `D`. Bank with `A`/`D` and pull `S` for a tighter turn — about 11° a second at 250 knots — and when you roll level the nose lines up with the way you are travelling. As a helicopter, and with the nacelles part-way forward at low speed, Q/E works as usual

In Simple flight mode the aircraft also holds its height on the wing: pitch with W / S to climb or dive, let go with the nose near level and it levels off. Leave the nose set well up or down (more than about 10° up or 5° down) and it lets you keep climbing or diving. Pull the throttle back and the height hold lets go, so you can come down on low power.

Chin Camera

On the nine aircraft with a nose camera, the pilot and co-pilot can look through it.

Key	What it does
`J`	Open or close the camera
`U`	Switch between DAY, night vision and the four thermal modes: white hot, black hot, red hot and fusion. If the server has turned thermal off, `U` switches between DAY and night vision only
Mouse wheel / `Page Up` / `Page Down`	Zoom, 1× to 40×
Left click	Mark the point under the crosshair and lock onto it
Middle mouse / `Y`	Clear the mark (or mark the point if nothing is marked)
`L`	Turn the camera’s spotlight on or off

The seat flying the aircraft needs Auto Hover or the autopilot on. While the camera is open your flying keys and the aircraft’s actions are switched off — press J to come back out. All the camera keys except left click can be changed in Options → Controls. Server owners can turn the chin camera off, or just its thermal modes or its spotlight, with crew.chinCameraEnabled, crew.chinCameraThermal and crew.chinCameraSpotlight (all on by default). See Chin Camera.

Taxiing (Helicopters on Wheels)

The helicopters on wheels — the MH-60L Blackhawk, AW101 Merlin, MH-47G and CH-47D Chinooks, Mi-24 Hind, both Ospreys and the Barrel Helicopter — can be driven along the ground. With the rotor at flying speed and the wheels on the ground:

Key	On the ground
`W`	Roll forward, up to about 14 knots. While rolling backwards, `W` brakes
`S`	Roll backwards, up to about 5 knots — keep the collective at the middle or below. While rolling forwards, `S` brakes. On the Ospreys the brakes are much stronger, enough to stop from landing speed without tipping onto the nose
`Q` / `E`	Turn. Rolling backwards, they steer like a car in reverse. At a crawl the nose wheel castors round smoothly to follow the turn, and when you let go it straightens out again, so the helicopter rolls straight. Most helicopters on wheels can turn on the spot; the Ospreys cannot — like a car, they need to be rolling to turn, they turn faster the faster they roll, and never tighter than a fixed turning circle
No input	The parking brake holds a stopped helicopter; one that is rolling slows gently by itself

The brakes only bite once the wheels have been on the ground for about a second, so a flare before touchdown cannot lock them. On the wheels the cyclic does not tip the airframe over onto its gear; it comes back into play as you raise the collective to lift off. Taxiing works with Auto Hover off and the autopilot not flying. Helicopters on skids (UH-1H, MH-6, MD500, Gazelle) don’t taxi. Their skids slide rather than roll.

Controller / Gamepad

Flying with a gamepad is built in. With one plugged in:

Input	What it does
Left stick	Lean and pitch
Right trigger	Climb
Left trigger	Descend
Right shoulder	Swing the nose right
Left shoulder	Swing the nose left
Y button	Autohover

These can be changed in the controls settings alongside the keyboard keys.

Engine & Lights

Action	Who	Notes
Start Engine	Pilot	Hold action — the hold lasts `flight.engineHoldTime` (default `1.0` second). Needs a fitted, charged Helicopter Battery (`CZ_HelicopterBattery`) in the `HelicopterBattery` slot, some fuel in the tank, and an undamaged main rotor (a destroyed or snapped-off main rotor blocks the start). A wreck will not start either: a destroyed airframe, a dead engine, or a Chinook with its rear rotor gone. The hold is timed from when the animation starts, and letting go early does nothing. The start fails if the battery is taken out or the fuel runs out during the hold. Not offered while the engine is already running.
Stop Engine	Pilot	Hold action, same hold time. Blocked while the helicopter is off the ground and moving faster than about 5 m/s — you cannot cut the engine in flight. Stopping uses no battery charge.
Spotlight (`L`)	Pilot	Long-range white searchlight. Everyone nearby sees it. Needs a fitted, charged battery to switch on.
Dashboard Lights (`I`)	Pilot	Lights the instrument panel and powers the GPS, gauges, radar and camera with the engine off. Needs a fitted, charged battery to switch on. See Cockpit, Radar & Warnings.
Navigation Lights (`N`)	Pilot	Red on the left, green on the right, white at the tail, plus a flashing red beacon. Everyone nearby sees them. Needs a fitted, charged battery to switch on.

With the engine off, lights drain the battery at battery.lightDrain per second (default 0.25) while any light is on — having several on costs no more than one. While the engine runs it carries the lights. If the battery goes flat, the lights switch themselves off.

Crew & Passenger Actions

Action	Who	Helicopter	Notes
Move to Cabin	Pilot, Co-pilot	UH-1H, Blackhawk, both Chinooks	Hold action. Look at a cabin seat behind you for the prompt. Puts you into Cabin Mode — walking about inside the cabin
Return to Cockpit	Anyone in Cabin Mode	UH-1H, Blackhawk, both Chinooks	Hold action. Puts you back in your cockpit seat
Open / Close Door	Any crew seat that has a door	MD500, SA342M, UH-1H, MH-60L Blackhawk, Mi-24 Hind (all seats); MH-47G Chinook (cockpit doors only); CH-47D Chinook (cockpit doors, and the forward airstair from either cockpit seat); AW101 Merlin (cabin side doors only — the cockpit has none)	While seated this is first-person only, unless the server sets `crew.doorAction3rdPerson = 1`. From outside the aircraft it works in any view.
Switch Seats	Anyone seated	All	Look at the free seat you want and tap the interact key, and you move straight into it. Pilot and co-pilot can swap this way on the helicopters where each has a door of their own — the UH-1H, Blackhawk, both Chinooks, MD500, MH-6 and Gazelle — in the air too; a pilot who moves across in flight leaves the aircraft in Auto Hover when the server has `autoHoverOnExit` on, as the co-pilot seat cannot fly. On the Merlin, both Ospreys and the Mi-24 the cockpit seats can’t be swapped: get out and get in instead (on the Merlin and the Ospreys, getting out leaves you standing in the cabin). In the cabins it works between seats along the same wall, facing the same way. You can’t move between a cockpit seat and a cabin seat this way, and the seat at the controls can’t move to a cabin seat in flight. In the air, the interact key never takes you out of the aircraft while you are looking at another seat — to get out, look away from the seats first
Sliding Window	Pilot, Co-pilot	Blackhawk only	Look at the cockpit side glass for the prompt — instant, no hold
Open / Close Rear Ramp	Pilot or co-pilot when seated, and anyone standing at the ramp outside	AW101 Merlin, MH-47G Chinook, CH-47D Chinook, CV-22B Osprey, MV-22B Osprey	Works in the air as well as on the ground. The seated prompt appears at the side of the screen, not the middle.
Raise / Lower Landing Gear	Pilot or co-pilot	AW101 Merlin, Mi-24 Hind, CV-22B Osprey, MV-22B Osprey	`F` key — needs the engine and rotor running and the helicopter more than 3 m above the ground. Raise it after take-off, lower it before you land. The gear is yours to raise and lower; the autopilot raises it in the climb and lowers it for landing when it is flying. The prompt appears at the side of the screen. Gear position is remembered across server restarts.
Remove / Replace Door	Any crew	MD500, SA342M, UH-1H, MH-60L Blackhawk, MH-47G Chinook (cockpit), CH-47D Chinook (cockpit doors and both airstair halves), Mi-24 Hind (both cockpit doors and all four cabin door halves), AW101 Merlin (cabin side doors), CV-22B and MV-22B Ospreys (both crew-door halves)	Removed doors become items you can carry

On the Chinooks the rear ramp is a cargo door, not a way in and out — you do not have to open it to leave the aircraft. On the AW101 Merlin and the two Ospreys it is the way in: getting out of a seat leaves you standing in the cabin, and you walk out through the open ramp (or, on the Merlin, a side door).

Cockpit Side Hints

The ramp, landing gear, sling, winch up, winch down and the seated door action all share the F key. Only one of them is offered at a time. The side hint row shows which one, and you change it with the mouse wheel:

Row	Action
1	Open / Close Rear Ramp
2	Raise / Lower Landing Gear
3	Attach / Release Sling Load
4	Winch Load Up
5	Winch Load Down
6	Open / Close Door

Only the row on screen answers to F. If F seems to be doing the wrong thing, or nothing, scroll the wheel until the row you want is showing. Rows that do not apply to your aircraft or your current situation are skipped, and if the row you are on stops being available the hint jumps to the next one that is.

Repair Actions

All repairs need a Helicopter Repair Kit (CZ_HelicopterRepairKit) in your hands. You must be standing outside the aircraft — not seated in it, not crouched or prone. The helicopter needs its rotor stopped and its engine off, and it must be sitting low enough: within 3 m of the ground for the rotors, 5 m for the body zones.

A destroyed main rotor lifts the engine-off requirement for every zone — it is a blanket exemption, not a per-zone rule.

Action	Who	Hold Time	Notes
Repair Main Rotor	Any player	`repair.rotorRepairTime`, default 45 sec	Brings the rotor back to full in one hold and fixes a snapped-off blade. Called Repair Front Rotor on the Chinooks and Repair Left Rotor on the Ospreys.
Repair Tail Rotor	Any player	`repair.rotorRepairTime`, default 45 sec	Same conditions as the main rotor — also a full repair in one hold. Called Repair Rear Rotor on the Chinooks and Repair Right Rotor on the Ospreys.
Repair Body Zone	Any player	`repair.zoneRepairTime`, default 30 sec	Fuselage damage. One damage level per hold.
Repair Engine Zone	Any player	`repair.zoneRepairTime`, default 30 sec	One damage level per hold.
Repair Chassis Zone	Any player	`repair.zoneRepairTime`, default 30 sec	Landing gear and skid damage. One level per hold.
Repair Fuel Zone	Any player	`repair.zoneRepairTime`, default 30 sec	Fuel tank damage. One level per hold.

See Repair & Battery for the full list of conditions.

Refuelling

Action	Who	Notes
Refuel from a container	Any player	Hold a fuel container (a jerrycan, for example), get within `fuel.refuelDistance` metres (default `5.0`) and look at the fuel filler point on the helicopter for the prompt
Refuel at a fuel station	Any player	Park within 12 m of a fuel station, walk to the helicopter’s fuel filler point with empty hands and hold `F` on “Refuel at Fuel Station”. No container needed. It fills at 1% per second, so an empty tank takes about 100 seconds whatever the aircraft. Works with anything DayZ itself counts as a fuel station: the pumps on every map, and pump mods built on the same class

The container prompt only appears when you are holding a suitable fuel container, are close enough, and are looking at the filler point on the model.

Cabin Mode Controls

While you are in Cabin Mode (UH-1H, Blackhawk or either Chinook):

Input	What it does
`W / A / S / D`	Walk about inside the cabin
Mouse	Look around
Weapons	All normal — draw, aim down sights, fire
Return to Cockpit action	Puts you back in your cockpit seat

Camera & Admin

Key	What it does
`Left Alt`	Free-look — one press turns it on, another turns it off. Look around without changing where the helicopter is going. This used to be a double-tap; after updating, press Reset All in your controls once so the new binding takes effect.
`F10`	Admin Panel — the in-game fleet management window, for server owners and admins.

Both keys can be changed in the controls settings. The Admin Panel only opens for players whose Steam64 ID is listed as an admin in permissions_admins_config.json in your server profile folder. Admins moved into that file from mod_config.json in v0.2.9; existing entries are moved across for you.

Setting crew.freeLookAlwaysOn = 1 in mod_config.json leaves free look permanently on so crew never have to toggle it. Change this when you want crew looking around freely by default. If free look seems stuck off for one pilot on such a server, it is because Mouse Flight is on for them — the mouse is steering instead. Press K.

Server-Side Control Settings

Setting	What it does	Default
`crew.doorAction3rdPerson`	`1` = crew can open and close their own door in third person as well as first. Change this when players complain the door prompt only shows in first person.	`0`
`crew.freeLookAlwaysOn`	`1` = free look stays on for crew instead of being a toggle.	`0`
`crew.damageZonePanelEnabled`	`0` = removes the top-left damage panel, and its battery and light icons, for everybody. Change this when you want a cleaner screen server-wide. `H` is the per-player toggle.	`1`
`flight.engineHoldTime`	How long, in seconds, the Start Engine and Stop Engine holds take. Raise it if you want starting up to feel more deliberate.	`1.0`

Getting Started

The Fleet

Features

Server Configuration

More

Flight Controls

Tilt-Rotor Nacelles (Ospreys)

Chin Camera

Taxiing (Helicopters on Wheels)

Controller / Gamepad

Engine & Lights

Crew & Passenger Actions

Cockpit Side Hints

Repair Actions

Refuelling

Cabin Mode Controls

Camera & Admin

Server-Side Control Settings

​Flight Controls

​Tilt-Rotor Nacelles (Ospreys)

​Chin Camera

​Taxiing (Helicopters on Wheels)

​Controller / Gamepad

​Engine & Lights

​Crew & Passenger Actions

​Cockpit Side Hints

​Repair Actions

​Refuelling

​Cabin Mode Controls

​Camera & Admin

​Server-Side Control Settings

Flight Controls

Tilt-Rotor Nacelles (Ospreys)

Chin Camera

Taxiing (Helicopters on Wheels)

Controller / Gamepad

Engine & Lights

Crew & Passenger Actions

Cockpit Side Hints

Repair Actions

Refuelling

Cabin Mode Controls

Camera & Admin

Server-Side Control Settings