I am simply trying to point out that this is not a way to create false realism, it is about a challenging environment that will make you think/react differently that you otherwise would.
There's a long history of folks saying "no icons" is a challenge because it's harder. So why not fly at night with no ambient moonlight, no fog settings?
It's also quite challenging to fight with fuel burn set to 5.0
There's a lot of things ate make it a "challenging environment" but the one folks keep focusing on is only the they want because they think it's more realistic.
Not jumping on Gaidin. Just saying that comment isn't totally accurate. I do hope folks enjoy it. I'm not beating a dead horse. Matter of fact the only folks that call it a dead horse disagree with it.
EDIT: How about a series of these types of mini-events? Just choose another arbitrary point and make it challenging in different ways every time. For example, no icons one time, fuel burn 5x the next, night time with no ambient night the next, 25mph down draft the next, either highly reduced or increased weapons lethality the next, etc? No need to pretend it's "realistic" -- it's just challenging. Just a thought.