The Ishak was groundbreaking, but time caught up with it, making it a difficult bird to fly against most in this game. Quite a few planes out-perform it while turning about as well, even in EW. Most people have to carry the SHVAKs to be effective, and that load out plus 100% fuel (about 15 minutes in the MA, correct?) gives the I-16 a weight of 4330 pounds, carried by 156 square feet of wing, resulting in a wing loading of 27.75 pounds per square foot. Taking the lightest 3 gun package reduces this somewhat to 26.76 pounds, but getting kills with these guns is difficult. This compares to 28.5 pounds per foot for a HurricaneIIC at the 100% fuel, which loading gives the Hawker a lot more range. A SpitV at 100% has a wing loading of 27.5 lbs.
The I-16's horsepower to weight ratio is a very good .21 hp per pound, but judging by the climb rate chart, the two blade prop must not harness this power very efficiently.
So my salute to you for taking it up and making it work. It is a true handicap plane in most MA situations.
