Manual

work load on the player. Aircraft avionicsand weapons perform just as theircounterparts do in real life.As more mission options are set toharder modes of play, the overall level ofdifficulty goes up accordingly. You canwatch this happen by changing themission options back and forth.Difficulty OptionsThere are ten difficulty options that needto be set prior to the initiation of anycampaign. Consider these optionscarefully. Once a mission begins it’s toolate to change your mind.WEAPON EFFECTIVENESSSTANDARD MODE: Your missiles arealways 100% effective. They always hitand they always kill. It’s hardly achallenge really, just aim and shoot.MODERATE MODE: Your missiles stilldestroy a target when they hit it but hittinga target has been made more difficult.Enemy aircraft can now avoid yourmissiles by using electronic countermeasures(ECM) or by out manoeuvringthem, if given a chance.AUTHENTIC MODE: The lethality ofeach missile is determined usinginformation drawn from a carefullyconstructed data-base. Over thirty uniquecharacteristics are taken into account toensure that each missile performs inFLEET DEFENDER just as it does inreal-life. This mode accurately models thedifferences between individual air-to-airmissiles.FLIGHT MODELSTANDARD MODE: Your F-14 almostflies itself in this mode, it’s very hard tomake a mistake. The aircraft performs thesame regardless of altitude. Roll inertiahas been removed from the flight modelin this mode. Adverse G effects have alsobeen taken out. The aircraft automaticallycalculates and inputs the proper amountof trim for you. The Automatic pilot isequipped with a terrain-following featureto keep you hitting the ground byaccident.MODERATE MODE: Unlike StandardMode, this flight model incorporates theeffect of air density (altitude) onperformance. In addition, you maydamage the aircraft by exposing it tostress resulting from high G forces.Roll inertia has been removed from theflight model in this mode as well and theproper amount of trim is input for you.The Automatic pilot is equipped with aterrain-following feature to keep youhitting the ground by accident.AUTHENTIC MODE: This flight modelincorporates the effect of air density(altitude) on performance. You may damagethe aircraft by exposing it to stress resultingfrom high G forces. (The G force toleranceof the aircraft has been reduced from that inModerate Mode.)Flight controls may seem a bit sluggish.This is because roll inertia has beenadded. You are also required to trim theaircraft frequently to maximise itsperformance. (Unless you are anabsolute fanatic for realism, trimming theaircraft can get to be annoying. If you findthe trim feature bothersome, press theAuto Trim Bypass (shift ] Key). Theterrain-following feature of the Automaticpilot has been removed. It only keepsyour aircraft flying straight and level.F-14 DAMAGESTANDARD MODE: Your F-14 can takean unbelievable amount of damage andcontinue to fly.MODERATE MODE: You can still take agood deal of damage but missiles shouldnot be ignored. Several hits are enoughto bring you down. Avionics and othercritical areas are assessed individually.AUTHENTIC MODE: Damage isassessed realistically according to thetype of hit your aircraft receives. For