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"Scramble! Scramble! Bandit coming out of the sun at one o'clock."

"He's all yours, Ginger, and try not to prang it in the briny this time."

Now that's the sort of gung-ho atmosphere I was hoping would be generated by this Spitfire flight and combat simulation program. Alas, it was not to be.

While Spitfire '40 is quite a good little simulation, it didn't quite have the zip and excitement I had anticipated. Perhaps it was because I felt that much better use could have been made of the sound potential of the Atari.

The main screen is, as you would expect, a view straight ahead from your seat in the cockpit.

Not much to see, really, except acres of green grass and miles of the wild blue yonder.

Pressing the spacebar toggles you to and from the instrument screen. This shows fuel gauge, airspeed indicator, artificial horizon, VSI, engine rev indicator, slip and turn indicator, compass, altimeter, rudder and pitch indicator.

A further screen provides a map of South-East England showing your position and three areas which can be examined in more detail by a zoom feature.

You control the Spitfire using either a combination of joystick and keyboard or keyboard only.

Spitfire '40 lets you choose a practice flying session or to go straight into combat. Unlike many simulators, getting the plane off the ground and keeping it up there is pretty easy.

You give chase and manoeuvre your Spitfire to line the enemy up in your sights. When you fire, you hear the rat-a-tat-tat of your eight Browning machine guns and see the bullets spraying out from below both sides of your cockpit.

If the enemy craft is hit, it immediately but silently disintegrates and disappears.

Response to joystick and keyboard is a fraction slow but not so much that it spoils the gameplay.

Not quite the spiffing show I'd hoped for, old bean, but jolly fair nonetheless. Chocks away!