In alot of cases fighter rank has nothing to do with ones knowledge of ACMs. But rather ones skill at the art of playing the stats game. Yes there are several around here that are deserving of the fighter rank they have, but most are not IMHO.
The system also encourages team play: winging up (not whingeing), situational awareness mutiplied as a consequence of flying with a few mates and someone to clear your six. Similarly one persoan is unlikely to be able to cap a base.
Strangely I went to the lake in the DA last night and instantly got ganged by 4 guys. I thought the DA wsas for fighting duels?
So being a good fighter pilot in ww2 wasn't fighting a series of duels. I think it was about gaining the advantage and using it and people flew in squads not on their own.
I still see no way of improving the current system other than say damage points per hour instead of just damage maybe but this would encourage people to declare so to speak (a cricketing term) after maybe one hour of play and then go atack for the rest of the tour.
So its a good system which promotes realism and game play.
I think my squad has a good balance . People rip it up in the MA but also fight duels in the da.
The current system gives allot of different ways to play if you are interested in score as part of the fun
BTW the noe types can go and kill a load of radars before they launch. Tactics
Capping and vulching are another aspect of the game which it makes it more dynamic. If people choose to pad their scores in this way they are only benefiting from the foolishness of others who normally work it out eventually.