Fighter Combat - Tactics and Maneuvering

230 SECTION TACTICS, TWO-VERSUS-ONE
and run unless one bogey is destroyed quickly or the singleton has a
significant advantage in weapons, performance, or pilot training.
Defensive Maneuvering
Generally speaking, unless the single fighter has a tremendous performance
or weapons advantage, prolonged maneuvering with a section of
well-coordinated opponents can be very unhealthy and is not recommended.
The element of surprise and an offensive advantage should be
sought in an effort to reduce the odds quickly to a more manageable
one-versus-one situation. If this goal cannot be achieved, the object of the
singleton pilot should be to disengage and live to fight another day.
Speed is life.
Israeli Tactics Manual
The luxuries of surprise and offensive advantage are not always available,
however, so the well-dressed fighter pilot should have some techniques
in his wardrobe to survive an attack by an adversary section until an
escape opportunity can be generated or until help can arrive. The general
theory here is to keep both bogeys in sight, or to have one in sight and have
a good idea of the other's position and threat potential, and attempt to
avoid critically defensive situations. As a rule, energy should be conserved
religiously, but there are occasions when energy must be traded for position.
The following examples should serve to illustrate some of these
techniques.
In Figure 5-14 the single fighter is approached by a hostile section that
begins an offensive split north and south at time "I" in an attempt to
bracket, as shown in Figure 5-3. The singleton pilot picks one side of the
enemy formation and turns sharply (but not depleting energy) in that
direction, trying to get outside the bracket (time "2"). In choosing a turn
Figure 5-14. Defending against a Bracket: Case 1