Could someone give me their take on flight characteristics of the two? and not just post their ratings already shown on the disc.

The difference for me is likened to wraith vs. a boss.

The surge is very wraith like, whereas the nuke is very boss like, imo.

that works for me. thanks

The Surge is very Wraith-like (see also the Rogue by DGA). On the other hand, my own impression is that the Nuke is more similar to the Katana, rather than the Boss.