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Let's not beat about the aircraft hangar. ATF is a superb flight simulator. ATF stands for Advanced Tactical Fighter and is based on an aircraft currently being designed for the U.S. Air Force by Lockheed, Boeing and General Dynamics. What worries me is that the prototype isn't due to fly until 1990 (so says the blurb).

This either means Digital Integration have buddies at the Pentagon, or they're not too worried about details. The truth is neither - they've simply been browsing through lots of boffin aircraft mags for scraps of detail.

Anyway, what really sets ATF apart from the rest is its use of contoured landscapes. It's rather like flying over a huge hairnet, you can make out easily the undulations in the terrain by the contour lines. There are three types of terrain: green landscapes, the sea, and the Polar icecaps.

What's more, you get an on-board computer, sophisticated weapons, automatic flying and all kinds of hi-tech gadgetry that lets the pilot have a nap while his plane wipes out a complete enemy offensive. Actually, it's not like that at all, ATF keeps you on your toes like no other flight sim I've known - er, played.

Apart from mere flying, and zapping planes and enemy installations, there's a modicum of strategy involved too. More about that later. Added to that is control by both joystick and keyboard. The joystick obviously flies the plane, but there are lots of keys to press, which helps give the impression that you're actually controlling the instruments and on-board computer. But let's get the plane flying.

Like most flight sims, there are preparations to be made before taking off. First of all, you see a map of the world ("a new world is generated each game" says the blurb) on which are marked both Allied and Enemy installations, and the position of your plane. The world is wraparound which means you can fly off one corner of the map and appear at the opposite side.

Next you see a war report which tells you how enemy power lines up with your own. There are five categories: bases, land forces, sea forces, communications and industry (each has its own representative icon). It's important to remember what the relative positions in these categories are, so you know what's more important to knock out once you're airborne.

Finally, it's time to arm and refuel. You have 6000kg of free weight which must be divided between fuel and three types of weapon. The weapons are:

1. Cannon - Rapid cannon fire activated by joystick fire button, suitable for zapping enemy planes.
2. Maverick missiles - Easy peasy, these. They're controlled by the flight computer. Simply launch them when you're within range and wait for the bang. You don't even have to see the target.
3. ASRAAM missiles - Involve a lot more skill. These missiles are guided by your joystick to the target, once you're in visual contact.

Now for the screen display. This is divided into three, the biggest part being the flight screen. But it's not truly flight sim because you see your own plane towards the bottom of the screen. Apparently, the computer generates the view, imposing upon it both the plane and information on thrust, height, range, bearing and what missile is currently in use. All that lot is depicted very neatly right in front of your nose. To the upper right is a map view showing your plane, the immediate vicinity and any enemy missiles, planes and installations.

Bottom left is the computer screen, probably the most important item. This section has five screens that toggle when you press 'C'.

1. World Map - Indicates your position and the position of the enemy installation you selected in the computer database.
2. Database - Gives bearing and range for all allied installations and any enemy installations you fly over. The more you fly, the more information your computer acquires.
3. Weapons Status - Shows how much firepower you have remaining for each of your three weapons.
4. ATF Status - Gives you the status of your plane's vital functions in percentages.

Apart from that lot, in-flight messages scroll across the screen and, across the bottom, you have indicators for landing gear, approaching SAM missiles and a toggle-switch for auto-flying which hugs the contours of the land when engaged - take your hand off the joystick and watch the plane bob up and down across the terrain. Brilliant.

So how do you take out an installation? Typically it works like this. You choose a target from the computer database, and its range and bearing automatically appears on your flight screen. All you need to do is match your bearing with the installation's and wait until you're in range either to launch a Maverick or within visual range for an ASRAAM.

But it's not as simple as that. Enemy planes are constantly on the attack from all sides. Avoiding them usually involves swerving miles off course. Then there's the homing SAM missile warnings - quickly press the radar jamming button. There's height and thrust to watch too. These have a tendency to creep down the more you're damaged by enemy fire.

The thing that impresses me most is the ability to see enemy targets before you destroy them. Mind you, fly too quickly and you won't see any at all. This is the trickiest part of the game. Get well within range, slow down, watch the target appear, launch the ASRAAM and steer it towards the target with your joystick. It takes some doing.

Equally impressive is the automatic landing routine. You can land at any allied base to refuel at any point of the game. As soon as you're in the landing zone, an indicator flashes. Now all you need do is engage auto-land and the computer takes over. Sit back and watch speed and height indicators move down, watch the aerodrome tower appear - touch down.

My only criticism of ATF (and it's a minor one) is that enemy planes are pretty easy to evade. Simply bank away from them and they'll eventually go away!

ATF is a very classy piece of programming indeed. It's graphically superb. It has enough depth to keep you hooked for a long, long time (there are eight levels of difficulty) and it's incredibly good value for the money. What more can I say? If you're after a flight sim with knobs on, look no further.