Fighter Combat - Tactics and Maneuvering

TACTICAL INTERCEPTS 367
since additional, undetected, bogeys may take advantage of the hooker's
turn for a belly-side attack. If a shot is not forthcoming within about 90° of
turn in this environment, the hooker should break off the attack, perform a
rapid turn reversal to clear his belly, and rejoin in a good supporting
position with the leader. In such unknown situations the shooter generally
should avoid the acute position, since this requires greater than 90° of turn
to point at the bogey at the merge with the fighter lead. An abeam or
slightly sucked position necessitates less turning but also results in less
angular advantage for the hooker at the pass. With the resulting beam or
FQ geometry at the pass, the shooter's hopes for a quick kill may be
dependent on an all-aspect weapon or a bogey turning away from the
hooker's position.
Under the right circumstances the hook can be a very effective intercept
tactic, but it does require a well-trained fighter section for optimum
results.
Option
Description
The option intercept is essentially the single-side offset tactic described
earlier, with the added "option" of making a transition to a bracket attack.
Figure 10-13 illustrates an example of this tactic.
At time "I" the fighters detect the bogeys nearly head-on at long range.
The pilot with the first radar contact generally should assume the lead and
maneuver as necessary to generate displacement for a stern conversion or
FQ attack. In this case the wingman is already positioned on the side away
from the threat, so he stays on that side. The displacement turn into the
wingman may throw him a little acute, as shown at time "2," but this is a
temporary state of affairs, as the lead will soon be turning away to place the
formation back into combat spread. In a relatively controlled situation the
wingman may choose to accept the temporary acute position, but in a very
hostile or unknown situation he should maneuver as necessary (normally
zoom high in this case) to regain a more optimum defensive position
abeam the leader.
At time "2" the fighter lead determines that adequate displacement has
been generated for his desired intercept. Choosing between a stern conversion
and a FQ attack has been discussed previously, and the decision
usually depends on the tactical situation (degree of confidence in situation
Figure 10-13. The Option