Fighter Combat

FIGHTER WEAPONS 29firing zone by retarding power (or applying reverse thrust) and increasingdrag (speedbrakes, etc.) while jinking. Once the attack has been defeated, aclean-up and max-power are normally in order for either reengagement ordisengagement.If little or no closure exists and the defender has the capability ofoutrunning the attacker, a slightly modified jinking procedure may beuseful. Each jink can be continued until the defender has adequate rearwardvision of the shooter, and might be followed by an unloaded accelerationuntil the shooter repositions for another shot. Another quick jink andstraight-line acceleration should follow, with the periods of accelerationproviding the defender with a quicker opening rate until he reaches maxrange.Once again, the defender must have a roll-performance advantage ifhe is to have the luxury of any straight-line time. A detailed discussion ofroll and acceleration techniques can be found in the Appendix.The jink is also useful against a head-on shooter, but one or two jinks areusually sufficient to spoil this attack. Figure 1-4 shows that the effectivehead-on envelope is very narrow (if it exists at all), and high closuredecreases firing time to only a flash. Of course, the best defense againsthead-on guns may be to fire first and let the other guy worry about defense.It is very difficult to aim while dodging tracers. Such a game of "chicken,"however, is probably not advisable if the opponent has a more lethal gunsystem or a less vulnerable aircraft.About 3,000 yds. directly ahead of me, and at the same level, a [Me 109] wasjust completing a turn preparatory to reentering the fray. He saw me almostimmediately and rolled out of his turn towards me so that a head-on attackbecame inevitable. Using both hands on the control column to steady theaircraft and thus keep my aim steady, I peered through the reflector sight atthe rapidly closing enemy aircraft. We opened fire together, and immediatelya hail of lead thudded into my Spitfire. One moment the Messerschmitt was aclearly denned shape, its wingspan nicely enclosed within the circle of myreflector sight, and the next it was on top of me, a terrifying blur whichblotted out the sky ahead. Then we hit. 4 Group Captain Alan C. Deere, RAF22.5 Victories, WW-IIAnother effective tactic against a radar gunsight is chaff, the results ofwhich are discussed later in this chapter. Briefly, chaff denies the shooter'sgunsight accurate radar-range information, seriously degrading its performance.Chaff is particularly effective against range-only radars in therear quarter, as well as against many tracking radars in beam aspects.Automatic electronic-countermeasures "black boxes" may also degradesight performance. Another trick is to release something from the aircraft,such as drop tanks, bombs, or flares, which will tend to break the shooter'sconcentration and may require him to make an evasive maneuver to avoidcollision.[The Japanese] are excellent stick-and-rudder men, but their weakness is thatall their maneuvers are evenly co-ordinated. They make use of sharp turns