Ki-27 too durable & strange behavior

[dimlee]

Originally Posted by Pursuivant

The same goes for pilots. If you were a British fighter pilot fresh from training in August 1940, or a Soviet pilot in 1942, or a German or Japanese pilot in 1944, you barely knew how to fly, much less how to shoot. The assumption was that you'd learn all that stuff once you reached your unit.

For many Soviet young pilots it was the same in 1941 as well. Fighter pilots programs were considerably reduced in 1940-1941 - simultaneously with increase of recruiting. Quantity instead of quality.
There were improvements from 1942 and on, of course, but even in 1943-1944 there were too many boys coming in with inadequate training. They were lucky if squadron/wing leaders were human enough to help them and/or their operational area was already cleared of LW opponents.