Fighter Combat - Tactics and Maneuvering

SECTION TACTICS, TWOVERSUS-ONE 235
prolonged engagement with any one aircraft of a bogey section. Instead the
singleton pilot should maintain high energy and use his aircraft's superior
speed to separate from the fight whenever the opportunity is presented.
Time "3" in Figure 5-15 is such a point, following successive forwardquarter
passes with both bogeys. The high-T/W singleton may be able to
extend away from both bogeys (broken flight path to point "4'"), taking
care to watch at least the more threatening opponent, probably the one on
the left (original southern bogey) in this case. Against guns-only bogeys,
escape may be possible here. When the opponents are missile equipped,
however, it soon may be necessary to defend against a weapon, pass
through the bogeys once more, and attempt another extension. This process
can be repeated (i.e., attempting to get outside a bracket and passing
each bogey in turn as nearly head-on as possible) until the singleton can
escape ... at least theoretically. Problems most often arise when the singleton
pilot temporarily loses sight of one of the bogeys and then is
seriously threatened. Maintaining adequate energy is another problem,
especially when a singleton is required to defend against hostile missiles.
In addition, limited combat endurance may force an escape attempt under
less than optimum conditions.
In a scenario in which the single fighter has a very great T/W advantage
over bogeys that are not equipped with all-aspect missiles, the pilot of the
single fighter might choose to remain offensively engaged by employing
extension/pitch-back tactics as described in the last chapter (Figure 4-7).
As long as both bogeys can be kept in sight, the singleton pilot may be able
to make repeated passes through the hostile section at high speed, taking
forward-quarter gun or missile shots as they become available.
Summary of One-versus-Two Maneuvering
Although one-versus-two is certainly not an attractive scenario, there are
numerous examples throughout air combat history in which a single
aggressive, well-flown fighter has successfully made a shambles of an
enemy formation. The necessary ingredients include attaining an offensive
advantage by a surprise hit-and-run attack, maintaining high energy,
and knowing when to disengage. When he is caught in neutral or defensive
situations, the singleton pilot should maneuver to avoid brackets by keeping
both bogeys on the same side of his aircraft, try to keep track of both
opponents, maintain high energy, and watch for escape opportunities.
Forced to maneuver against two well-flown adversaries, the pilot of a
single fighter must be particularly aggressive in an attempt to cut the odds
quickly. Engagements prolonged by tentative maneuvering inevitably lead
to more serious defensive situations for the singleton.
Notes
1. Grover C. Hall, Jr., 1000 Destroyed, p. 209.
2. John T. Godfrey, The Look of Eagles, pp. 107-8.
3. Ibid., pp. 83-84.
4. Group Captain Reade Tilley, "Fighter Tactics," USAF Fighter Weapons
Review (Summer 1981), p. 10.