Andre,

It would be interesting to hear from the Diana designers why they chose
the sidestick. You are correct about Airbus, of course.

As far as using a short sidestick, try resting your forearm on your
desk, and pretend you are holding a sidestick. Simulate moving the
"stick" in pitch and roll. You will find that it is hard to get much
motion in pitch (especially back) when your arm is resting on
something. Roll is OK, but it's harder to roll right than left (using
the right hand). The solution on fly-by-wire planes such as the F-16
is to use a force-sensing stick, so there is little motion of the
stick. I think Airbus is similar. I've flown a bit in F-16s, and
really like it; very responsive and natural. Have not flown any manual
sidesticks so I'm neutral on them. I do like the short center stick on
my LS6 - I often fly with my left hand while entering data in my GPS,
and at high speeds/low altitudes (contest finish) usually have both
hands on the stick to prevent PIO's.

Kirk