[WWFlybert]

May I suggest that part of the problem with dark night fighting in IL-2 is the lack of dynamic reflective lighting. What I mean by this, is that you won't see any glints of light, say from the moon or other light source on the aircraft surface to catch your eye at distance

I don't know if it is possible or feasible in the IL-2 graphics engine to have relective object lighting. Perhaps a workaround would to have night missions only with significant moonlight and for craft to be lit as they are by sun, only with much less intensity .. also cloud tops lit as though by moonlight so a plane above clouds would be visable to a yet higher altitude plane rather clearly as a silhouette. Still from underneath it should be just about impossible to see a plane at night of course, unless lit by searchlight

@nearmiss
Edit: I misstook what you meant by "shoot straight ahead" with artillery .. AT cannon has proper trajectory just low angle only I believe.. what is needed I think is a new cannon type like howitzer that uses long range, higher angle adjustable setup as you describe ..