I've scoured the rule book to see if there was some RAW I was missing, but I've come to the determination that the Aircraft rules are just plain incomplete.

The crux of the issue is the paragraph on pg. 213 that states "Whenever a model makes any kind of move . . . it cannot end the move within Engagement Range of any enemy Aircraft models." This wording essentially means that models cannot engage Aircraft in combat. Ever. There's no move that can end within Engagement Range of an Aircraft model, including charge moves, pile-in moves, Heroic Intervention, or consolidation moves.

This would be fine, and is specifically called out that they are ignored for the purposes of determining the closest model for pile-in, consolidation, and Heroic Intervention...unless they can Fly. And this is where the problems arise.

This second rule displays that there is some interaction between Aircraft and regular Flyers, but that rule only stipulates that Flyers do not ignore Aircraft when determining the closest model, it does not give them permission to move into Engagement range when piling-in, etc. Therefore, this leads to an abusive use of the rules where Aircraft can be moved near Flying units to prevent them from piling-in, etc.

Then, there's another apparent contradiction in the rules under the Aircraft appendix. It states that the details of how Aircraft work in the Movement Phase on pg. 212. This implies that the above rules only apply to the Movement phase, not other phases like the Charge phase. However, if this were true, then that opens up an entirely new can of worms, allowing any units, even infantry, to charge Aircraft in the Charge phase. I can see that this might just be an oversight, as such a prospect is clearly too ludicrous to be intentional. The problem is, the RAW of the FAQ seems to back up this insane proposition. The "Moving through Models" section clarifies that when models have a rule that allows other models to move through it (using the exact same language as the Aircraft rules referenced above), that models may end their move within Engagement range if they declared a charge against that unit in the charge phase.

So this is the quagmire I find myself in. Does anyone care to weigh in? Did I miss something? Are the aircraft rules just broken?

And finally, if they are broken and need fixing, what would you like to see them fixed to? I, personally, would prefer either complete non-interaction across the board, or allow for only Flyers to be able to engage Aircraft. The cinematic awesomeness of a Vanguard Veteran squad shredding through the hull of a Hemlock Wraithfighter with its Lightning Claws, or a winged Hive Tyrant tearing the wings off of a Valkyrie mid-flight is too cool to leave out of the rules.