Understanding the maneuverability rating of ships

[ziphnor]

I noticed that quite a lot of ships have the same rating of 6 in maneuverability. For example a Viper has 6, as do the Cobra and Asp. If these ships get into a turning fight, can the (relatively) huge Asp really keep up with a Viper?

 

[ChubbyBunneh]

No. The Cobra and Asp skid very noticeably when you turn at high speed.

 

[RingoD123]

they may have the same rating but they handle in different ways. For example, one of them could be better than the others at yaw but worse at roll etc. So, to answer your question, in theory yes, but it all depends on if your able to change your flight style to match the ship your in.

 

[Shyeer Alvarin]

To the credit of the Asp, it does skid quite a bit, but when it comes to "drifting" (think racing) the Asp is far better at it.

Basically, just overshoot your turn and the mass of turn Asp let's you drift along your target during straight turns. Barrel rolling on the other hand... you better watch your Asp! (Zing!)

 

[Goilveig]

Mass plays a huge role. While theoretically my viper and cobra have equal maneuverability, in practice the much lighter viper handles noticeably better.

 

[ziphnor]

Sounds like the maneuverability rating is a bit useless then based on the comments here. I would have thought they took the mass for example into account.

I guess i can figure it out myself, its not that hard to do an experiment where you just pull back on the joystick and measure the time it takes to face forwards again, setting the thrust at 50%. I am sort of wondering how big a difference there will be for the same rating thrusters and maneuverability for different ships.