[ACE-OF-ACES]

I really appreciate your detailed reply. I was just wondering if you have come across this book and if it might be useful for general purpose reading on WW II aviation: Luftwaffe test pilot: Flying captured Allied aircraft of World War 2, by Hans-Werner Lerche? I used to own a German copy of it a long time ago, but I don't have it anymore.

No I don't have that book, but I do have a couple of other test pilot books.

With all this, I have another comprehension question. How are aircraft performance data gathered? What I mean is, are the data that show up in the graphs from only a single flight (that would be unlikely, wouldn't it?), or are they an average, calculated from several performances under similar conditions?

I allready answered/covered those questions in my previous posts

RB: At the moment I don't. I will let you know when I find one.

Ok

I was thinking of discrepancies between prototypes and production aircraft. On top of that, at least in Germany, there was plenty of in-fighting between different aircraft manufacturers and various branches of government and the military. For example, in regard to the He-219, or the Ta-154 Moskito. I think that it is possible that in the course of these internal conflicts data may have been tampered with for political reasons. However, at this point, I cannot prove it, so it's a only theory at the moment.

I understand

We got more theories than anything else

Which is why I like to stick with the hard data

Nonetheless, based on descriptions of the political climate of a "culture of fear," that I heard from my relatives, friends and acquaintances who lived through the war in Germany, I think such things are entirely possible.

I covered that allready too

Where the case being if they knew in advance that thier data would never be validated by anyone else

All the time!

That is not a flight model issue as much as a game AI issue that allows the AI to do things real poeple can not do

I see. Are you saying that because the pilots were not necessarily in a neutral, or objective state of mind, the technical value of their observations is difficult, if not impossible to ascertain?

No

Just that the story is one sided, your only hearing the story from one pilot's prospective

The fact that he might be neutral or not objective or not does not mater as much as you know nothing from the pilot in the other plane

By the way, do you have any information on how performance data recorded in the 1940s would compare to performance data of restored aircraft of the same type flying today? Or is that not a valid comparison?

I dont know of anyone that would put thier restored aircraft threw such hell

But if they did you would be hard pressed to find a restored aircraft that matches the WWII configuraitoin

Something as simple as removing the WWII radio that was the size of a foot locker with a modern radio that is the size of a shoe box could make a big difference.

I only know of a few restored P51s that still have the guns and ammo trays mounted in the wings along with a gun sight in the cockpit