Fighter Combat - Tactics and Maneuvering

142 ONE-VERSUS-ONE MANEUVERING, DISSIMILAR AIRCRAFT
assumed to be good instantaneous turn performance, slow minimum
speed, and a tight sustained turn radius. In some cases this aircraft also
might have a significant sustained-turn-rate advantage. Its weaknesses
include inferior climb and acceleration performance under low-G conditions,
and slower "top-end" speed.
These characteristics are ideally suited to the use of angles tactics as
described in the last chapter. One of the problems of the pilot of a lowwing-loaded
fighter is how to get close to an opponent who has greater
speed capability. This may be accomplished with geometry by use of pure
and lead pursuit. High and low yo-yos and barrel-roll attacks also may be
useful. Since the high-T/W opponent has better climb capability and
vertical potential, the pilot of the low-wing-loaded fighter should attempt
to constrain the fight to the horizontal plane as much as possible. Nose-tonose
turns make best use of a turn-radius advantage, and lead turns can be
devastating because of instantaneous-turn superiority. A flat scissors
should be lethal to the high-T/W fighter since it suffers from both a
turn-performance and a minimum-speed disadvantage. The low-wingloaded
aircraft might also have some advantage in a rolling scissors because
of better slow-speed controllability, but usually not so great an
advantage as in the flat scissors. In cases where the high-T/W enemy has a
sustained-turn-rate advantage, the rolling scissors generally should be
avoided.
On the other hand, the pilot of a high-T/W fighter should concentrate on
energy tactics when he is engaging a low-wing-loaded opponent. Lag pursuit
and vertical/oblique maneuvers are necessary ingredients. Nose-totail
geometry is usually preferable because of the assumed disparity in turn
radii.
The defensive spiral might be handy if the pilot of the high-T/W fighter
finds himself at a serious disadvantage, A high-wing-loaded aircraft often
can generate much greater induced drag than a low-wing-loaded adversary,
which may lead to a rapid vertical overshoot and subsequent position
advantage for the high-T/W fighter. If this advantage cannot be capitalized
on quickly, however, the low-wing-loaded bogey may use its superior
low-speed turn performance to shallow out its spiral and regain the upper
hand as the maneuver continues.
The Angles Fight: Guns Only
The angles tactics recommended in the similar-aircraft guns-only scenario
are almost all relevant to the low-wing-loaded fighter in this case. There
are a few slight differences in detail, however. For instance, in the similaraircraft
case each fighter attempted to gain an energy advantage over the
other by climbing or accelerating before the first pass. In this case the
bogey's higher T/W may allow it to win this preengagement race and
achieve a speed and/or height advantage. To reduce this factor to a minimum,
the pilot of the angles fighter might choose to cruise at an altitude
well above that at which bogeys might be expected, so that his initial
height advantage may offset the bogey's preengagement performance and
provide the low-T/W fighter with an energy advantage, or at least make it