Pretty neat huh? If that’s your thing then there is also a pair of ‘Eng Oper’ switches that do the same thing on the main panel. Then you can retract them by pushing the switch forward and then you can forget about it because it will stay there and keep retracting. This allows you to deploy the speedbrakes ‘manually’ by pulling the switch back and holding it, and then stop deployment by simply letting go of the switch. On the subject of speedbrakes, the throttles have a switch that toggles to one position and sticks there like a normal switch, and then springs back like a button from the other position. As such, precise releases are a somewhat acrobatic two-hand job involving setting the throttle/speedbrakes and holding the stick steady while the throttle hand reaches for the release button. I’ve noticed people praising the Warthog’s perfect placement of everything on the stick, but with my tiny microhuman hands there’s absolutely no way I could get onto the release button while doing any maneuvering. With the rest of the HOTAS controls working perfectly I picked out some target trucks and put some Mavericks downrange. Even DCS puts a 50% central deadzone in by default because its centre point is so imprecise. It’s alright for occasional precise corrections to aim, but for broad movements like searching I found myself reverting back to keyboard slew very quickly. It’s like using one of those little nubs on a Blackberry phone that are so bad they have their own syndrome. The real A10C uses pressure sensors to determine how fast the slew control moves, but Thrustmaster’s offering uses a simple joystick control minimized into the back of the throttle. I powered up my weapons and targeting systems and quickly realized that the little slew control is rubbish. My flight continued as planned and I started to turn my thoughts toward more lethal intentions. Mercifully, even when stiff the throttles are very smooth and suffer none of the ‘stiction’ I would expect from such a large system. There’s also a throttle friction dial on the far side which isn’t actually the visible grey lever on the right side (that’s a non returning linear axis, so useful for constant things like zoom), this dial turns the throttle from sensibly light to silly stiff. The throttle is a similar story with full metal everything apart from a shiny lacquer faceplate, some of the throttle housing, and the buttons and flap switch. The quality of the stick itself is brilliant, with full steel construction going into the stick and lever with decent plastics for the buttons and hats. The Warthog doesn’t come with any stick extension by default so it’s just as sensitive as any other stick to begin with, so I would recommend sticking in a curve of 20-30 on pitch/roll to keep everything controllable. My nose went in every conceivable direction and I only barely made it off the ground. I smoothly took off, soaring majestically into the heavens. Once I’d mapped the lever on the stick to the wheel brakes (one of the few elements of the unit that isn’t present on the real deal) I ran up the throttles and began takeoff. It’s really nothing more than a novelty compared to the combative functionality of the system, but it’s a nice touch. I had heard that DCS automatically maps everything from the HOTAS to its in-game counterpart, but it really is great to start up the jet by physically flicking the APU switch, then moving the throttles off of their stops to start the engines, then setting the EAC and Radar Altimeter once alignment has finished. It’s based off of the control systems of an A-10C Warthog ground attack aircraft, so this obviously meant that I immediately plugged it in and hopped into DCS’ A-10C module for a ramp start and some circuits. Both units have rubber grips on the underside which proved very effective on my generic wooden desk, and they don’t move at all when flying. It comprises of a separate throttle and joystick setup (each with their own USB cables) and can either be mounted with screw holes or desk mounted as I did. Even virtual war is harmful to the environment! It’s supplied in a box which contained a box which contained two boxes which contained polystyrene form fitting containers. The Warthog is considered one of the best options available to flight simmers without going for something more highly specialized like a Komodo or VKB setup.
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