As I don’t have the game yet, I can’t help it but to ask whether there are any air combat in the Year One Edition, similar to the mini-games in the original XCOM: Enemy Unknown. I searched online and looked at the various gameplay videos, but found nothing pertaining to air combat.
Are air combats completely absent in the Year One Edition?
Is Festering Skies DLC the only way to experience and participate in air combat?
Air combat is only available with the Festering Skies DLC.
Yep. But you don’t miss too much. This game is not designed to hold air combat.
Thats a bit unfair. The OP is asking for air combat as minigames like in the first XCOM.
The air combat in Festering Skies is is exactly what the OP is asking for. A minigame, not dissimilar to the ones in the first XCOM, and is fair to say is a far superior version of it. A bit better than the redesigned air combat minigames of the Long War overhauled air combat.
But it is absent before Festering Skies DLC. That is main question. Before Festering Skies there was not even a hint about air combat.
I would like to skip discussion about quality of air combat… especially with comparison to 25 years old mini-game. Let’s don’t go back to it. We can say that Festering Skies introduces air combat… If that is the “feature” that OP seeks then, he can try that.
But @Kikume please first check some youtube videos showcasing some examples of that combat, to have at least hazy point of view about how it looks and works.
It was fairly clear, that air combat was only in the DLC. I did not add or subatract anything to that info.
You introduced the comment about the quality of the air combat in the discussion. I qualified your comment in the context of the OP.
On the other hand saying its not fair to a use a 25 year old game as a standard would be fair; if there was any modern game with much better air combat minigames. Which as far as I know there isn’t, at least till Xenonauts2, comes out.
I also compared the minigame in PP with the very simmilar Long War air combat, which is an improved version the XCOM remake air combat. And PP is an improved more deep version of that, thought it is not much better.
You may like it or not, I did not even commented on my opinion of it. So I find your reply to my comment to be pointless and out of place, honestly.
That is why I ask OP to first check it out before going for it. 
Because he may also not like it.
It may also be relevant to OP question that even with Festering Skies, the air combat purpose is different (and lacking) comparing to original Enemy Unknown. It is related to a side-quest and isn’t expanding the main game very much (if at all). After completing this sub-plot, the air-combat is gone completely and all aircraft weapons become useless.
Honestly i think that is only half true. The one thing I would say compared to XCOMs or Xenonauts, is that there are no land missions on alien crash sites. Which would be nice to have. But also not all games have to work the same way.
Otherwise being able to basically win the air game, and remove the air threat from the sky (which u can do at your own pace, deciding when to activate and if you want to rush or finish the air war) is in my book a positive. And despite what your comment suggest I don’t think most players would say they finish the air combat too soon. Im of the opinion that these minigames always overstay its wolcome, so being able to win the air combat, and other threads to focus on the main plot. Benefits the game for me.
It is true that it is not that well introduced (as with all other non mandatory content of the game), and is not very clear which mission activates what, or how engage with each DLC mechanics.
Still, even if you can basically not play the air combat, ot the ancient sites or use the muttons, or the augmentations, or ally with certain factions, or use vehicles, or raids, or if u can rush or activate stuf like corruption or the subject 31 subplot… I would not consider most of these side content. All those mechanics change the way the game works and are worth many hours of gameplay. The game is just designed to be non linear and different in every playtrough and in accordance to the player style as much as posible.
These mechanics are not explained very well, but the fact that players can engage with the game how they want, and at the pace they want to. Is a strength of the game, not a weakness. And the fact that u can rush certain missions and do them early if u want, is also good in my book. Even if people that rush them because they want to, later complain of being able to do it.
Still, it would be nice to have crashsite missions, or more integration with other game missions via some other way. Though I think the DLC actually improves the tactical combat a lot, and the way pandorans attack havens now is much more interesting with the DLC, which in turn makes the entire game better. Just my opinion.
Sorry, I didn’t mean to revive an old thread. I just noticed now people have actually replied to my question that I posted here a long long time ago. Not sure why I didn’t get any notification(s) about it via email or otherwise, though.
Anyway, I have a followup question in regard to one of the replies:
I presume you’re referring to Festering Skies DLC. How does that DLC alter the tactical (and not aerial) aspect of haven invasions? I have the Year One Edition, so the DLC in question is not included. If Festering Skies DLC does add several new tactical elements that really improves combat, I could be inclined to purchase the DLC at a later time.
It adds one type of enemy - Myrmidons (also Venomous and Acid variants). One of the 3 most hated enemies in the combat (along with Umbra from DLC2 and Acherons from DLC4) 
Why they are hated? Because they can surprise you with flight/jump out of nowhere and punch really strong attack at any of your soldiers - those with weak armor will probably suffer by disabled body part. And evolved variants are even worse as they have explosive death.
If that is improvement to combat by “a lot” then I’m sure that oSiyeza is happy with these enemies. I have mixed feeling. One one side it is good that there is such type of enemy, on the other I don’t like how powerful it is.
sir games are good but many people don’t have good pc performance and his thing is not good for user you try than liter and smarter game design to all gamers in low end systems.