so the plane is "new" to me in the sense that I've never flown it for any significant period of time. To be candid I'm a bit suprised at just how mediocre it is. All in all its simply not a truely formidable airplane. I'm curious how many who bash it have spent any real time in it.
Now i'll qualifty the above remark by putting it in the context of how I fly. I dont ever B&Z and rarely am over 10k for long. I am a decent E fighter and so I do take fights "up" when possible. Obviously if you simply pick you can land kills in any fast plane (Tiffie, pony, D9, 109K4, P47N etc) but the lala is actually "prey" for these planes in general.
Here is a general overview of some glaring shortcomings (IMO)....
1) range
Yes you can throttle back but it only has 20 min or so at mil settings. I've actually fought it whole fights at reduced throttle (2100 rpm or so). In the MA enviornment the limited range does matter...
2) moderate performance at alt....
It's not bad at 10-12k but its sweet spot is pretty low. So as you get higher it is limited similiarly to the tempest.
3) marginal elevator control at high speed. The bird seems to want to nose up at high speed and requires trim.
4) Marginal rudder authority in the vertical. Just doesnt seem nimble on the edge in semi vertical reversals...
5) very weak guns...I cant believe the number of guys I've lit up who flew on. Usually I'd get the kill later if they died...but at least 5 of my 9 deaths are directly a result of having to "rekill" a guy (again I dont generally pick and run).
6) relatively poor visabilty/gunsight view. Not easy to hit at range or on snapshots..
7) marginal E bleed, the darn thing doesnt slow down well. That combined with the moderate control authority makes it tough against a well flown opponent.
Is it a bad plane no. Is it dangerous in the hands of a relatively unskilled pilot...yes. Is it an uber killing machine....not that I can see. All in all its about as good as a spitXVI which IMO is about the most overrated bird in the plane set. To me the B pony is as dangerous (or more so) then eother one of them....
