I think I was the first here to give a quick review of Strike Fighters the day it was released (yeah, I know this is an MS forum!). My first impression was pure awe. Then, as is often the case, some FS addon came out and I abandoned the game. Well, the new patch made me fire it up again and now I think I have given it a pretty fair shake. Impressions?- really really hard! The planes are very difficult for me to spot visually (probably realistic!). I use TrackIR which works quite well (although the sensitivity is up all the way and it still isn't enough) but the only way to reliably pick up a bogey is to cheat with padlock IMO.- The radar is kind of cool but I have no idea if it is based on reality or not.- Graphics are pretty smooth on my system and effects are good. The contrails during a dog fight are outstanding!- The fictitious country used for the scenery is very cheesy. I just can't get into the game fully because of that. I understand people are working on a Vietnam addon which should be great. It's weird that noone has really done a vietnam sim. Closest thing I remember was Gunship.- flight models seem weird but I have no idea how an F4 should fly. All I know is engine idle, air brakes, gear, and flaps and this thing still won't slow down!- No brake support on pedals. I thought we were done with this oversight.- I haven't found a way to start missions on the ground yet. I would hope this is possible.All in all, it is fun. It seems much more arcadish than I would have expected but that isn't always bad. You can find it pretty cheap already in EB or Best Buy.David

My F4's slow down fine, just reduce throttle, hit the "S" key for spoilers and she slows down fine, as do the rest of the planes that I've flown so far. Too weird.As for starting on the ground, check your options settings (available from the start screen), somewhere buried in there is a setting to change (I'm at work, or I'd say exactly where), but you can change it to start from the ground, just after take-off, or right at the action.BTW - lots of stuff on SF in the Combat Sim forum here.Jim

Thanks Jim. I'll check it out. Maybe my throttle isn't going to 0% or something.David

Doubt if it is your throttle. Even at say 15% throttle with the spoilers extended I still slow. It's the only way to land. Do an external view and make sure that they are extended? Not that a visual would imply the induced drag.BTW - I'm going to try to map the brakes to my rudder pedals tonight, if I figure it out I'll drop you a line. I think that the biggest issue will be the fact that they are either on or off.Jim

Wow! If you work out the brake thing please let me know. I'll work on my landings in the meantime.David

Ok, I got my brakes working. Note that it is only on/off though. All I did was go into the "Options" menu. Select the "Control" option. Then select "Customize", then scroll down to the Wheelbrakes toggle, click it then press your toe brakes.Worked for me.Jim