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I'm afraid I'm going to have to eat my words. In my last review I said Tomahawk was the best helicopter sim I'd seen. Well, Gunship is even better. The game is based upon the AH-64A Apache Gunship helicopter - quite a mouthful, quite a machine.

First impressions count for a lot and just picking up the very impressive manual inspires confidence - but more about that later. Like most good sims, you'll have to do some reading (not too much) before you can actually make for that blue horizon.

Gunship is a combination of flight and combat simulation. It involves a series of strike missions that increase in difficulty. To start with, you will have to do a few training flights to get the feel of the Apache and its weapons systems without getting yourself shot down.

You will find the Apache is a delight to fly. Unlike Tomahawk it will maintain a desired turn without the need for constant joystick input. Better still, it's limited to a 30 degree bank so you can't overbank and lose control.

Once you feel confident as a pilot, you should request reassignment on one of the four Operational Theatres. They are (in increasing order of difficulty): South East Asia, Central America, the Middle East and, most testing of all, Western Europe.

For each of these areas you can select three levels of quality of equipment used by the enym. So First Line troops get brand new equipment whilst Third Line reservists are stuck with obsolete weaponry - rather like Dad's Army. You can also select three different levels of Duty Assignment from regular missions to volunteering for hazardous duties. Pretty keen, eh?

As if that wasn't enough, you can choose between 'easy' and 'realistic' levels of handling qualities and weather conditions, both in day and night-time flying. And the range of options doesn't end there.

The loading procedure has various 'gates' which require action before you actually get to fly. So you've to identify a vehicle correctly, select your duty assignment, style of flying and enemy and reality levels. That lot leads you to the Briefing which contains your mission objective, target co-ordinates, weather and (most crucial of all) the password of the day.

You'd better have a pen and piece of paper handy for that lot because if you don't know the countersign to the password your friendly defence will assume you are the enemy and shoot you down.

Next you get the opportunity to assess your weapons status. If you want to make any changes to the standard armament for the region you are in, now's your chance. This finally completes the loading sequence and a cockpit display is now shown.

The display is even clearer than the one in Tomahawk, giving all the instrumentation and a forward view out of the cockpit window. Simply pressing buttons on the keyboard gives you side and rear views.

Instrumentation is comprehensive with Compass and Target guide information, engine, rotor and torque instruments, airspeed indicator and artificial horizon. There's radar, infra red warning, jammers as well as a Threat Display. The game comes complete with keyboard overlay which saves you thumbing through the manual for the right keys to press.

Dominating the centre of the screen is the CRT display, which has three modes of operation. Basically, it's a map that shows a small detail of the larger sector map. You get this by pressing the 'Z' key. This shows the whole terrain, complete with friendly and enemy installations and your own target. It also gives target and radio messages. Below that there's a screen that shows you which weapons are selected.

Once airborne on a mission, the navigation to the target is a simple matter and you can always refer to the large sector map to review present position in relation to the target. En route, you may well get warning of a target in the vicinity. Select Target Information to assess whether it is hostile or friendly. It's definitely not good news to go around zapping your own side.

If it is hostile, select an appropriate weapon to deal with it. For instance, the Sidewinder air-to-air missile is useless against ground targets so don't waste it trying to blow up a tank.

Once you have got to the Primary Target, deal with it as quickly as you can before setting off for the Secondary Target. Watch out all the time for hostile missiles and ground fire and be prepared to use radar and infra red jammers if necessary. You can also drop chaff and flare decoys to confuse enemy radar and missiles.

And do not forget in all this that you are still flying a helicopter, so watch your height and speed as well as the surrounding terrain. Fly too low and you will crash into mountains, stay too high and you are a sitting duck. Also, Mission Control may require you elsewhere, so keep an eye open for any radio messages.

One way or another there's a lot going on. Even when you get back to base for repairs and refuelling you are confronted with the password again. It really would ruin a good day if you got it wrong and your friends shot you down.

And now a few words about the 85-page manual. It's a beautifully presented piece of work that is very comprehensive and makes very interesting reading. It is also extremely well illustrated. The first half contains the operating instructions for flying the helicopter and for selecting the different mission options.

The second half gives you a wreath of information about the Apache itself, followed by a selection of helicopter aerodynamics, weapons and tactics. There is even a section on modern military equipment.

To summarise: I thought this was an excellent simulation with very clear graphics. The instruments and map display were particularly easy to read. The sound effects were a little weak and that's about my only criticism. Gunship is great fun and very informative. All in all, this is an outstanding battle simulation.