After Hours-Fleet Defender

Fleet Defender By Microprose

I’m feeling particularly cocky as I fly the F-14B Tomcat back to the carrier. This is my first mission on this simulation and I have just splashed three MiG-23s, one with a Sparrow, one with a Sidewinder and the last after a furious turning fight where I took a few hits myself, with guns. Now to attempt a carrier landing. Every other simulation I have tried that included carrier landings required absolute precision in the approach and landing. Most people simply do not have the ability, or the patience to develop carrier landing skills, and give up after a few attempts. Fleet Defender requires every recovery to be made onto a carrier deck. Is this a huge commercial risk, or has Microprose found some new way to guide the ab-initio carrier pilot safely back to deck?

I am using my new DX66 computer (more on that later), and the additional processor and graphics speed has greatly enhanced the frame rate of the simulation and controllability of the F-14, hence my snap guns kill. I select Nav mode and passing 20nm (37km) inbound, request a landing clearance. “Clear to land,” comes through the speakers, with a pronounced North American drawl. The CH Flightstick Pro allows me to quickly look up and down the cockpit displays using the witches hat. Looking down I see the HSI showing the bearing and distance to the carrier. The documentation (yes, I did glance at it briefly before flying) says that the carrier will always be sailing on a northerly heading, so I turn onto 210 for a while to enter the pattern on the port side of the ship. (See, this Navy stuff is not too hard when you are a hot shot ex-Air Force pilot!)

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