Fighter Combat - Tactics and Maneuvering

ONE-VERSUS-ONE MANEUVERING, DISSIMILAR AIRCRAFT 187
airspeed limitations, and if not, they would certainly act as speedbrakes,
further increasing deceleration. Another problem with the lift-fan/lift-jet
design is fuel flow. Cranking up those jets for a magic turn can double total
fuel flow and greatly decrease combat endurance. The lift jets usually are
intended for use during takeoff and landing, and they must be carried as
dead weight during the rest of the mission. This feature generally increases
aircraft weight and decreases fuel storage space, and it also may result in
installation of a smaller main engine. All these handicaps tend to reduce
T/W and the combat endurance of the lift-jet V/STOL variety, which is
usually inferior to the pure thrust-vector type.
The unique characteristics of the V/STOL fighters make them well
suited to energy tactics. Their good sustained turn, acceleration, and zoom
capabilities can be capitalized on by energy methods. Some models are able
to vector exhaust nozzles well forward for use as airborne thrust reversers.
This feature provides very rapid deceleration and, possibly in conjunction
with increased instantaneous turn performance, may be useful in preventing
or causing overshoots. Rapid deceleration is also invaluable in the early
stages of a flat scissors or a defensive spiral. Normally, VIFFing should be
reserved for such defensive or terminal-offensive situations.
One glaring exception to this rule, however, is the vertical reversal after
a zoom climb. If the rear nozzles can be deflected downward (toward the
belly of the aircraft) while the fighter is near vertical in a slow-speed zoom
climb, the aircraft can be made to pitch forward and "swap ends" very
quickly to point down at the bogey. Alternatively, thrust vectoring may be
used to increase G over the top of a more conventional looping maneuver.
This capability, as well as the usually fine sustained turn performance and
good slow-speed control, also can make this a very mean opponent in a
rolling scissors. All these attributes, and small size, often result in a very
fine energy fighter; but energy tactics and the added complexity of operating
this type of aircraft require highly skilled pilots and extraordinary
air-to-air training.
The ability to swivel rear-mounted exhaust nozzles of a fighter upward
relative to the aircraft makes a V/STOL or other thrust-vector fighter more
compatible with angles tactics. When combined with an airframe that is
well behaved at a high angle of attack, VIFFing, much like the thrustvector
control system discussed earlier for missiles, can cause a fighter to
pivot about its CG and literally swap ends at virtually any airspeed. The
ability to point quickly in any direction can be extremely valuable, particularly
when the aircraft is equipped with all-aspect missiles. Again,
however, such thrust-vector maneuvers should be used judiciously because
of the rapid energy dissipation that results.
The hover capability of the V/STOL is often highly overrated in the
air-to-air environment. First of all, most V/STOLs lack hover capability at
realistic operating weights and altitudes. Even if these aircraft could stop
in midair, attitude control is usually not adequate for aiming boresight
weapons at an enemy fighter unless the bogey flies in front of the weapon.
Off-boresight weapons may make this tactic slightly more feasible; but
still, a motionless aircraft presents an all-aspect heat source and is a sitting