Quote:
Originally Posted by WTE_Galway
This factor was hugely significant with rookie pilots in 109's. There is abundant anecdotal evidence that the combination of the wings creaking loudly under high wing load and the slats pulling out and then slamming shut with a loud bang each time was enough to make rookie pilots avoid tight turns.
Experienced pilots of course had learnt to trust the aircraft, anticipate slat deployment (and take it into account when shooting) and flew quite differently.
Its quite possible this trait of the 109 partially explains the typical later Luftwaffe order of battle where one or two Experten in each squadron undertook most of the combat supported by a large number of less skilled pilots.
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It's partially possible: still I think the most important duty of the veterans was to keep the rookies alive for 4-5 missions and that's easily more a tactic matter then practicing "tight turns".
Probably in the training centers whose rookies learned how to fly/takeoff/land, acquainting themself with the plane (mechanically).
A combat mission was really a different thing.
You take some virtual rookies and they will do always the same errors during the first dogfights except for some guys who actually had enough prior experience: I used to have some 1v1 flying in a HurricaneMkI against anything they wanted to ride, above all against the cocky ones... after their 5th KIA they learned that good tactics are superior to raw performances (above all turn rate).
But these virtual pilots can actually die more times. The real ones had to learn what to do and not to do in combat: probably tight turning was not a priority.
Anyway, about the RAE mock fights:
- we know that Flying Officer J.E. Pebody had completed the handling tests, but we don't know how these were conducted... was he totally familiar with the plane? Hermann Graf had a very troubling training on the 109... he was almost to be thrown out of the door and he was more a lucky dogfighter than a silent killer as Hartmann. Could the RAE pilot really push the plane at his 100% also with the slats opened as the 109 veterans did?
- many pilots has flown against him: what about their experience? It's is possible that many (the statement says "large number") of them were not-rookies and still had
fear of stalling and spinning (ergo Spitfires could actually lose energy in turns), or maybe were those fresh rookies?
It would be a nice to have some info about that.