This feels like a fun UFO 50 game! My biggest complaint is that you can't see how far each ship fires and in what direction before firing, would like a visual indicator of some sort.
I too thought there should be more ways to get data on the "playing pieces," or even have a "back" functionality for orders, but did not have time to implement it. (Heck I added combat mechanics only on Sunday.) This game is basically a mash-up of Advance Wars and a miniatures game (Pirates of the Spanish Main) I played as a kid. Advance Wars had that kind of UI, so this should too.
I never heard of UFO 50, but sounds like people really like it, so I'll take that as a great compliment.