granted, i don't watch dogfights anymore cuz the show has gotten a bit redundant in what it talks about. "he is here...the 109 is here....if he turns to the left he'll shoot him down, if he turns to the right the 109 will shoot him down".
JUST SHOOT THE BUGGER DOWN! :roll:
Hi,
Zoom and Boom
Though some of the best fighter pilots loved to dogfight, in World War Two most of the best simply avoided dogfighting. Eric Hartmann was the one and only ACE of ACES. He had 352 victories and survived the war! He used the common "Zoom and Boom" tactic of his entire unit, JG 52. Hartmannn said that he would dogfight only as a last resort when no other option was possible. The JG 52 fellows of his unit were the approximate equivolent in size to a USA fighter wing-several squadrons, basically. With this small number, JG 52 shot down a staggering over 10,000 allied aircraft! JG 52 had many of the absolute highest scoring fighter pilots in all of human history.
Learn from the best of the best
The tactics of JG 52 are considered to be the best of World War Two by most world-class tactics experts on the subject. Study them to join the school of thought.
Eric Hartmann's Last Resort
Eric personally is credited with inventing at least two fighter tactics. The Last Resort is to cut power almost OFF, full down on the stick, and hard left rudder-all at the same time. If the enemy is banking close on your six o'clock, then this tactic makes it almost impossible for him to get a solid hit on you. This tactic saved the life of Eric Hartmann on quite a number of times, according to him.
Simple things to remember
Stay with your flight. Remain paired with at least one other fighter at all times. Don't be a hero trying to shoot everything down. Use teamwork.
Keep your speed fast. Climb when not engaged. Use climbing turns to preserve energy whenever possible. Disengage to gain speed and/or altitude as soon as the need arises. Avoid fancy maneuvers as much as possible to preserve speed.
For defense as a last resort, use scissors maneuver and call your comrades for help! Last but most important is to check your six o'clock every other look.
