I like your position!
However, I'd like to also state that Il-2 does not have that bad a damage model when compared to many other options available on the market (paid, free, old, or new). It's not that it should not be improved, but I'm not convinced it's as bad as you make it sound.
For instance, I remember playing WarBirds where losing anything other than an aileron was potentially a disaster. I can generally at least get back to friendly lines without an elevator in Il-2. I also generally don't feel like the sim has "hit points" when I fly. Other oldies-but-goodies, Like Falcon 4.0, have absolutely piss-poor damage models which can't be anything else other than HP models.
In contrast, I do wonder (and rage) about some damage effects - like how a seemingly random shot can knock out the flight controls on an FW 190, or how I could EMPTY a 20mm magazine into a Yak and see that dumpsterfire still flying around. Those issues probably are genuine bugs, however, and if legitimate bugs can be found and squashed, that's really what I think should be done first before decrying the DM as poor. My gaming experience is likely older and lamer than yours, but Il-2 has never left me thinking that it was lacking in general. The only other flight sim that has left me with a feeling like that was Parsoft's old A-10 Attack! simulator series, where indeed parts could be blown off the plane and it would handle accordingly.
So yes, I like your position, but mine would be that the bugs ought to be crunched first before the existing DM is.
Speaking of bugs... was the Horten IX / Ho 229 / Go 229 AI landing bug ever fixed? You know, when the AI attempts to land the plane, but rather than touching down, does a suicide loop into the runway instead?
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