compare the people online between il2 firts of name and COD is not a good argument.
in fact even if COD was release with no bug or bad optimisation... there will be less people online than for il2 1946. during some years
why? because il2 is more than two hundred planes...communyty project like dynamic campaign, mostly all theatre of war are mapped.
the transfer of community between the two game will take much longer.
remember when il2 firts of name was release... lot of virtual squadreon have fly on il2 AND on european air war. why? because in the first release... il2 was only a simulation of eastern front.
the transfert between two game take a long time.