Nifty, the difference with my idea is that the best planes won't be as expensive as they are now, so that you can easily up one _if_ you get a kill or two first, _or_ you die a couple times consecutively without shooting anyone down. Then, as in CS, you get some "mercy" perks to get that ride you want. If you then screw up, like augering in without killing anyone, you lose it, and depending on how well you are doing that day, you might not have the perks to re-up in it right away.
Just like in a combat pilot's career, if you prove you can shoot a guy down in a lesser plane, you get a chance to fly an "Uberride". The end result is not to make the good planes unattainable, but to make them harder to hold onto if you don't 'deserve' to be in them.
If you've played CS, you know that within a couple rounds, you can get the best guns, regardless of how well you or your team is doing. However, if you then suck with that gun, getting no kills, and getting your bellybutton shot off, you are back to pistols. In that case, you have to use your head to get a kill. Hopefully, it would be the same in AH.
Also, since you lose the points at the end of the day, you can't hoard them, so they have less significance, and people can't obsess about them, like they do now. I can't overstress the importance of this. Points are made to use. If you want to hoard things, go play Monopoly.
darling: to clarify,when a person logs on he will of course be able to fly a plane right away. As in CS, you start with enough perks to afford any of the early war rides, and if you die you always get a "loser bonus" that allows you to re-up any of these planes. At no time, no matter how green, would you not have a ride.
Cheers
[This message has been edited by Niblitz (edited 05-21-2001).]