exhausted

Well, whether it was USAF or USMC sending F-4s to Desert Storm for a shooting job, it was equally a waste. The difference is that the Air Force could justify that waste, even if the Phantoms it sent were literally on their way to the Bone Yard. The Marines had a ground role and a smaller air wing, thus it could not justify sending the F-4S to that Theater, given that they were confined to Sheik Isa, a couple FOBs and the floating bases. Since there is no Desert Storm, or even 1980s Gulf War, scenario in DCS, one could easily place the F-4S in ever scenario the F-4E would be present, and more.

No, the reason the Phantom (including the -E) was not the best choice for Desert Storm is the logistical issue. I'm not counting the F-4G, since it was highly specialized and as necessary as the early Stealths we sent in. Otherwise, we saw the USAF waste their effort by sending a squadron of F-4Es, only to fly four missions and drop ordinance only three times. In a realistic DCS scenario, placing the F-4S onboard in a carrier air wing or forward base, which there were several good candidates, is a much better use than sending F-4Es paltry into the grinder from several hundred miles away.

The reason the F-4S is a better fit during this timeframe is the -S has better avionics, a better radar and better flight performance than the F-4E. The F-4E is unnecessarily weighed down with a lot of additions necessary to turn the Phantom into an Air Force bomb mule. Being in Marine service in 1992, the -S would be more expeditionary and have a bigger relative role in the Corps' smaller air fleet, compared to the Air Force's massive air fleet of 4th gens. Not to mention, the F-4S is just much cooler than the F-4E. I would gladly take an RF-4C module that goes into depth on the recon mission for DCS.

They said it's the -E. The likelihood of more variants is probably extremely low. How many projects survive into further developments? There is more daylight between an F-4E and an F-4J than there is between an F-14A and an F-14B.

The F-4Es flew four missions in Desert Storm, and flew directly to the Boneyard/AMARC. The F-4S Marine'd on until 1992.

I also disagree with this. The selected planes should not be what was most used; they should be what plausibly would have been used during a certain timeframe. The F-4E variants we are getting are huge outliers, even for the late-80s scenarios people are making. The F-4S is a much better fit and it aligns better in terms of timeframe and doctrine. The last -S's were retired in the early 1990s, making challenges against MiG-29s and Su-27s possible. The -E variant is basically a Vietnam variant great for..... ?

Since when has historical combat use been a concern for DCS? They released the P-51 when the closest aircraft in time to the P-51's combat use were the B-52 and Tu-95. Similarly to your first point, the F-4E variant we are getting was already obsolete in the age of the F-15, F-16, MiG-29 and Su-27s it would have faced. In fact, the only USAF version that really would be at home with the DCS plane set is the F-4G Wild Weasel.

destroyed

I have found this persists, particularly when you're carrying GBU-12s

J and S... BEFORE the -E

I think this should probably include the Orkney and Faroe Islands, north of Scotland.

It will be MiG-31 and Su-27 galore! Kuznetsov might make an appearance, perhaps on fire or in a dry dock, which is on fire.

Totally stoked! With the probable addition of Finland and Sweden into NATO, Kola makes so much sense. You know what also makes sense? Hainan Island and the Paracels, and the Caribbean (Cuba and surrounding coasts and islands - See below) null

MiG-23BN is the main attraction to the MiG-23 series. Otherwise, it's just playing fighter bait.

Great idea!

having trouble doing LSS on TPOD

Beautiful work! Now the bad news: here come the A-37 Dragonfly skins

Well the big idea of my single sentence message is to convey I did not buy this module because of its price. People vote with their money, and I've voted. I love the Cold War, I love the level of depth people are able to go in this era. But we must make tough choices. The line has to be drawn by each individual, and there's a group that isn't willing to pay this much.

Price is why I didn't buy it.

The F-4G is the only air force variant I'd like to see. The N and S are the most interesting models available, followed by the K and the Greek AUP and Turkish Terminator.

You can trace back the lineage of using A- aircraft for CAP. During Vietnam, Marine A-4s even flew CAP for Dixie Station off the Yorktown.

Just confirming: we mean the throttle parking brake, right?

The Plus does not exist.

Hoping for a Greek or Gulf States 2-seat version as soon as possible. Will try the mod when it is updated to include other skins. Neat work, though.

Hello, I've basically learned how to start her up and get her into combat. But, sometimes I screw up on the startup and I want to reset everything so I can have another try. Also, how do you shut her down for repair?