I'm cautiously getting back into virtual flying. Some sacrifices had to be made - my Warthog stick died last year, so I'm back on the CH setup and it kinda holds up after all these years, but A2A refueling is an exercise in frustration. Ordered a ChinkWing Orion G2 stick, the Hog throttle should do fine still, but all I got for rudder is the cheap TM ones and the CH which I really don't like.
VKBs weird press-down rudder seems to be the only thing available for purchase now, but they are expensive and don't have brakes, though I really like the compact form factor - is this worth getting after my next paycheck?

On to the next thing, which is what is worth focusing on. IL-2 was always my go-to sim, but you all know how it is - it's got some issues like not all planes FMs being equally polished, AI sometimes being stupid (when the fuck will they fix the bug when AI wingmen don't drop their bombs!?), but it's still the best WWII SP experience.
I checked out DCS the other day and it's just not good. Some warbirds still have a bit too much power, the AI still cheats and the DM is still lacking. Add to that the absolutely unrealistic planeset for the maps and campaigns and it becomes a joke as soon as you look past clickable pits and operating the plane itself.
I'd say fuck it and just play BMS, but I don't find it fun on my own, always get impatient and do something stupid.
God, I'd kill for something like Nuclear Option, but with WWII inspired planes