I used to play Falcon 4 years ago but gave it up for IL2. Is this the same old game?
The reason was that in WW2 era games you can dogfight and get close in to the action.
I found that with the jet era flight sims most times when you launched a missile, you couldn't even see the enemy. It was no fun.
Can't answer your question about Vista as I am still using XP, but I am wondering about the graphics and resolution of your card being compatible with the game.