The maneuverability of my larger ships is drastically increased with FA-OFF, heck I wouldnt be able to pull off half the stuff I do in my T9 or Cutter if I flew FA-ON
I contend that you can. I've flown the T9 and Anaconda too, with the correct control of throttle and lateral thrust (and perhaps use of boost, tied with that), you can achieve the same effect.
Bear in mind, of course, I use keyboard & mouse, and I believe you use dual joysticks - FA-off may feel more natural with that setup.