Kweassa's suggestions are only "spot on" if you take them in reverse, seeing as they would probably have the result of making people even more timid. Are you more likely to run if it'll take you 5 minutes to get back to the fight, or 20? This is confirmed in that this sort of timidity was less common in AW, where base distances were typically closer. The AH MA terrains typically have featured bases which are just a little too far apart to be ideal for "arena-style" combat. Kweassa's "advertising" of his idea reminds me of a Ron Popeil infomercial (I mean that as a compliment, as the latter gentleman is quite good at what he does). It's presented as the best thing since sliced bread, but in practice it'd just end up forgotten on the back shelf once the novelty wears off.
I suspect another large part of the timid behavior in AH stems from the "name in lights when you land" kill message setup, as someone else noted.
You will never have an arena with NO runners whatsoever, but it's possible to reduce them to a minimal amount. Sometimes running isn't such a bad thing; running away from a horde to deny them the skill-less kill just out of spite is very much in the "hate thy enemy" flight sim tradition.
J_A_B
