I've been running P3D V4.5 on my old desktop computer. I just don't have an extra $2.5K to throw at a new rig during these lean economic times.

I've always been an A-10 fanboi. One of my former employees helped design the gun feeding system BITD. A couple of years ago I downloaded the demo, but I never got fluent enough with the system to really try it out.

If someone could be so kind as to take a look at my specs and see if a DCS campaign featuring an A10 would run reliably on my system.

Thanks in Advance.

M Slim

Windows 7 Professional 64-bit SP1

CPU

Intel Core i7 6700K @ 4.00GHz 32 °C

Skylake 14nm Technology

RAM

16.0GB Dual-Channel DDR4 @ 1072MHz (15-15-15-36)

Motherboard

ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC. Z170 PRO GAMING (LGA1151) 34 °C

Graphics

Odyssey G5 (2560x1440@59Hz)

4095MB NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 (ZOTAC International) 33 °C

Storage

476GB Samsun SSD 850 PRO 512G SCSI Disk Device (SATA (SSD)) 29 °C

232GB Seagate ST325031 8AS SCSI Disk Device (SATA ) 30 °C

119GB M4-CT128 M4SSD2 SCSI Disk Device (SATA (SSD))

465GB NVMe Samsung SSD 970 SCSI Disk Device (Unknown )

931GB LaCie Rugged Mini USB3 USB Device (USB (SATA) ) 29 °C

My suggestion is to try it. DCS has a sale now.
U$7.49 A-10A Flaming Cliffs
Flaming Cliffs: Clickable Cockpits Continued

=================
Here's a reply from AI:
Short answer: Yes — your system can run the A‑10A Flaming Cliffs in DCS without any trouble. In fact, it will run very well.

✅ Compatibility Verdict

The A‑10A (Flaming Cliffs 3) is one of the least demanding aircraft in DCS World. It uses the low‑fidelity FC3 avionics, far lighter than full modules like the A‑10C II, F‑18, or F‑16.

Your system:

• Windows 7 Pro 64‑bit

• Intel i7‑6700K

• 16 GB DDR4

• GTX‑class GPU (Odyssey G5 monitor suggests gaming setup)

• Z170 motherboard

…exceeds the requirements for both DCS World 1.5/2.5 and Flaming Cliffs 3.

Even though Windows 7 is no longer officially supported by newer DCS builds, DCS 2.5.6 and earlier run fine on Win7, and FC3 aircraft—including the A‑10A—run perfectly on those versions.

📌 Performance Expectations

With your specs:

• 1080p → 60–120 FPS easily

• 1440p → 45–90 FPS depending on map

• Low‑fidelity A‑10A → extremely smooth

• Heavy maps (Syria, Marianas) → may push GPU harder, but still playable

The i7‑6700K + 16 GB RAM combo is more than enough for Flaming Cliffs aircraft.

🛠️ Important Note About Windows 7

If you are running DCS World 2.7 or later, Windows 7 may cause:

• Crashes on startup

• Missing DirectX 11/12 features

• Shader compilation issues

If that happens, install DCS 2.5.6 — the last version fully compatible with Win7.

✔️ Bottom Line

Your system can absolutely run the A‑10A Flaming Cliffs, and it will run it smoothly.

you can try dcs for free you only get the basic map and aircraft

Yes. Any aircraft. Here's what it says on the main page of their website:

"Free to Play Program

Digital Combat Simulator World Free to Play is now available.

Try out each and everyone of our products for 14 days per product during a six month period. You can play each module sequentially or any number of them at a time. The choice is yours!"