Jump to content

Dogfight

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Bensaccount (talk | contribs) at 02:43, 4 October 2009 (→‎Propaganda). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

For other uses, see the aerial combat maneuver.

A dogfight, or dog fight, is aerial combat between fighter aircraft. Dogfighting first appeared during World War I, shortly after the invention of the airplane, and has since became a component in every major war despite beliefs after World War II that increasingly greater speeds and longer range weapons would make dogfighting obsolete.[1] Modern terminology for aerial combat between aircraft is air-to-air combat and air combat maneuvering, or ACM, which, according to Robert Shaw, refers to tactical situations requiring the use of individual basic fighter maneuvers, (BFM), to attack or evade one or more opponents. This differs from aerial warfare, which deals with the strategy involved in planning and executing various missions.[2]

F-22 Raptors over Utah in their first official deployment, October 2005, simulating a dogfight.

Etymology

The term dogfight had been used for centuries to describe a melee; a fierce battle between two or more opponents. The term gained popularity during World War II, although its origin in air combat can be traced to the latter years of World War I. [3] The first written reference to the modern day usage of the word comes from Fly Papers, by A. E. Illingworth, in 1919, “The battle develops into a ‘dog-fight’, small groups of machines engaging each other in a fight to the death.”[4]

History

World War I

Main article: Aviation in World War I

Dogfighting emerged in World War I. The Wright brothers invented the first “heavier than air” aircraft to achieve flight in 1903, and immediately, people began to think of how to apply the new technology to war. Aircraft were initially used as mobile observation vehicles and early pilots gave little thought to aerial combat. Balloons had been used for this purpose since the Siege of Paris, by the Prussians, in 1871. [5] The new airplanes proved their worth by spotting the hidden German advance on Paris in the second month of the war.[6]

Enemy pilots at first simply exchanged waves, or shook their fists at each other. Due to weight restrictions, only small weapons could be carried on board. Intrepid pilots decided to interfere with enemy reconnaissance by improvised means, including throwing bricks, grenades and sometimes rope, which they hoped would entangle the enemy plane's propeller. This progressed to pilots firing hand-held guns at enemy planes, such as pistols and carbines. In August 1914, Staff-Captain Pyotr Nesterov, from Russia, became the first pilot to ram his plane into an enemy spotter aircraft. In October 1914, the first airplane to be shot down by a hand gun from another plane happened over Rheims, France. On July 25, 1915, British RAF Major Lanoe Hawker attacked three separate aircraft during a single sortie, shooting down two with a single-shot, bolt-action rifle which was mounted next to his cockpit at an angle to avoid hitting the propeller, and was awarded the Victoria Cross.[7] Once machine guns were mounted to the plane, either on a flexible mounting or higher on the wings of early biplanes, the era of air combat began.

The biggest problem was mounting a machine gun onto an aircraft so that it could be fired forward, through the propeller, and aimed by pointing the nose of the aircraft directly at the enemy. Roland Garros solved this problem by mounting steel deflector wedges to the propeller of a Morane Saulnier monoplane. He achieved three kills, but was shot down behind enemy lines, and captured before he could destroy his plane by burning it. The wreckage was brought to Anthony Fokker, a Dutch designer who built aircraft for the Germans. Fokker decided that the wedges were much too risky, and improved the design by connecting the trigger of an MG 07 Maxim machine gun to the timing of the engine.[8] [9] The Germans acquired an early air superiority due to the invention of the synchronization gear in 1915, transforming air combat with the Eindecker I, the first synchronized, forward firing fighter plane.[10] [11]

Battles in the air increased as the technological advantage swung from the British to the Germans, then back again. Pilots such as Max Immelmann and Oswald Boelcke began as lone hunters, shooting unarmed spotter planes and enemy aircraft out of the sky.[12] During the first part of the war, there was no established tactical doctrine for air-to-air combat. Oswald Boelcke was the first to analyze the tactics of aerial warfare, resulting in a set of rules known as the Dicta Boelcke. Many of Boelcke's concepts, conceived in 1916, are still applicable today, including use of sun and altitude, surprise attack, and turning to meet a threat.

British Brigadier General Hugh Trenchard ordered that all reconnaissance aircraft had to be supported by at least three fighters, creating the first use of tactical formations in the air. The Germans responded by forming Jastas, large squadrons of fighters solely dedicated to destroying enemy aircraft, under the supervision of Boelcke. Pilots who shot down five or more fighters became known as aces. One of the most famous dogfights, the death of Major Hawker, is described by the Red Baron, Manfred von Richthofen,

I WAS extremely proud when, one fine day, I was informed that the airman whom I had brought down on the twenty- third of November, 1916, was the English [version of] Immelmann.... First we circled twenty times to the left, and then thirty times to the right. Each tried to get behind and above the other. Soon I discovered that I was not meeting a beginner. He had not the slightest intention of breaking off the fight. He was traveling in a machine which turned beautifully. However, my own was better at rising than his, and I succeeded at last in getting above and beyond my English waltzing partner.... The impertinent fellow was full of cheek and when we had got down to about 3,000 feet he merrily waved to me as if he would say, "Well, how do you do?" The circles which we made around one another were so narrow that their diameter was probably no more than 250 or 300 feet. I had time to take a good look at my opponent.... When he had come down to about three hundred feet he tried to escape by flying in a zig-zag course during which, as is well known, it is difficult for an observer to shoot. That was my most favorable moment. I followed him at an altitude of from two hundred and fifty feet to one hundred and fifty feet, firing all the time. The Englishman could not help falling. But the jamming of my gun nearly robbed me of my success. My opponent fell, shot through the head, one hundred and fifty feet behind our line.[13]

By the end of the war, the underpowered machines from just ten years prior had been transformed into fairly powerful, swift, and heavily armed fighter planes, and the basic tactics for dogfighting had been laid down.

Spanish Civil War

Airplane technology rapidly increased after World War I. By 1936, dogfighting was thought to be a thing of the past, since aircraft were reaching top speeds of over 250 miles per hour.[14] This was proved wrong during the Spanish civil war, as quoted by the U.S. Attaché in 1937, “The peacetime theory of the complete invulnerability of the modern type of bombardment airplane no longer holds. The increased speeds of both the bombardment and pursuit plane have worked in favor of the pursuit … The flying fortress died in Spain.”

Large scale bombing of the civilian population, thought to be demoralizing to the enemy, proved to have the opposite effect. Dr. E. B. Strauss surmised, “Observers state that one of the most remarkable effects of the bombing of open towns in Government Spain had been the welding together into a formidable fighting force of groups of political factions who were previously at each other’s throats…”, to which Hitler’s Luftwaffe, supporting the Spanish Nationalists, generally agreed.[15]

During the war new tactics were developed, most notably by the Luftwaffe's Condor Legion lieutenant, Werner Molders. He advised abandoning the standard “V” formation used in combat, and grouping fighters in pairs, starting the practice of having a wingman at one's side. He advised that pairs of aircraft approaching a fight should increase the distance between them instead of holding tight formations, which became a precursor to the combat spread maneuver. He also started the practice of training pilots to fly at night, and with instruments only. Using the new tactics, and flying the newest ME-109 fighters, the Germans shot down 22 Spanish Republican fighters within a five day period, suffering no losses of their own.[16]

World War II

Strategies for fighter development

Fighter contrails overhead during the Battle of the Philippine Sea

During the 1930s two different streams of thought about air-to-air combat began to emerge, resulting in two different streams of monoplane fighter development. In Japan and Italy especially, there continued to be a strong belief that lightly armed, highly maneuverable single seat fighters would still play a primary role in air-to-air combat. Aircraft such as the Nakajima Ki-27 and Nakajima Ki-43 and the Mitsubishi A6M Zero in Japan, and the Fiat G.50 and Macchi C.200 in Italy epitomised a generation of monoplanes designed to this concept.

The other stream of thought, which emerged primarily in Britain, Germany, the Soviet Union and the United States was the belief the high speeds of modern combat aircraft and the g-forces imposed by aerial combat meant that dogfighting in the classic WW I sense would be impossible. Fighters such as the Messerschmitt Bf 109, the Supermarine Spitfire, the Yakovlev Yak-1 and the Curtiss P-40 were all designed for high level speeds and a good rate of climb. Good maneuverability was not a primary objective.

Intercepting a large formation of German bombers on their way to bomb an airplane factory, two Heinkel He 111s are shown from the guncamera in a British Spitfire Mark I. Tracer ammunition can be seen hitting the rear quarter of one plane.

Immediately following the Spanish civil war came World War II, during which, dogfighting was most prevalent. It was widely believed that strategic bombing alone was synonymous with air power; a fallacy that would not be fully understood until Vietnam.[17] After the failings in Spain, a greater emphasis was placed on the accuracy of air-to-ground attacks. The need to stop bombers from reaching their targets, or to protect them on their missions, was the primary purpose for most dogfights of the era.[18]

Dogfigting over Europe

Dogfighting was very prominent in the skies over Europe. The air force in France, while a major force during the first world war, was inadequate and poorly organized, and quickly fell to the German onslaught. Hitler believed that the British government was on the verge of collapse, and offered them a choice between peace and war, being quite astonished when Winston Churchill opted, without hesitation, for war. As the first battles began, the awesome power of the German’s anti-aircraft artillery became readily apparent, with 88 millimeter shells capable of firing 50,000 feet in the air. General Wolfram von Richthofen noted that these guns were equally destructive when used for ground fire, when they were not preoccupied with destroying airplanes. The German ME-109 and the British Spitfire were some of the most common fighters used in the European theater.[19] A typical dogfight is described by an unnamed pilot,

Pulling up into his blind spot I watched his plane grow larger and larger in my sight. But this German pilot was not content to fly straight and level. Before I could open fire his plane slewed to the right, and seeing me on his tail, he jerked back on the stick into the only defensive maneuver his plane could make. I banked my 47 over to the right and pulled back on the stick, striving to get him once more into my ring sight. The violent maneuver applied terrific G’s to my body, and I started to black out as the blood rushed from my head. Fighting every second to overcome this blackness about me, I pulled back on the stick, further and further, so that the enemy would just show at the bottom of my ring sight to allow for the correct deflection.

We were both flying in a tight circle. Just a little more and I’ll have him. Pressing the [trigger] I waited expectantly for the 109 to explode. I’ve hit his wing. A section two-feet long broke loose from the right wing as the machine gun cut like a machete through it. Too low, a little more rudder and the bullets will find his cockpit. I could see occasional strikes further up the wing, but it was too late. The 109, sensing that I was inside him on the turn, slunk into a nearby cloud. Straightening my plane, I climbed over the top of the bank, and poised on the other side, waiting for him to appear. But the 109 did not appear, and not wishing to tempt the gods of fate further, I pushed my stick forward, entered the protective cover of the clouds, and headed home.[20]

Soviet fighters

During this time, three new Russian fighters, the LaGG-1, the Yak-1, and the Mig-1 were just coming off of the production line. The Soviet Air Defense Force had been fraught with problems since World War I.[21] The German Barbarossa offensive on June 22, 1941, destroyed more than 2000 Soviet aircraft on the first day, and more than 5000 before October. With great desperation, the Soviets fought in dogfights over Leningrad, Moscow, and the Ukraine for more than a year. It became common practice at this time for Soviet pilots to simply ram an opponent.[22]

Struggling with morale problems, the Soviets slowly and methodically began to regain air supremacy after the Battle of Stalingrad in 1943.[23]

USA and Japan

After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, in the Hawaiian Islands, the United States entered the war. The Japanese used the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, an extremely lightweight fighter known for its exceptional range and maneuverability.[24] The U.S. military tested out an A6M2, which was captured intact in 1942, advising "Never attempt to dogfight a Zero."[25] Even though its engine was rather low in power, the Zero had very low wing loading characteristics, a small turn radius, a top speed over 330 MPH, and could climb better than any fighter used by the U.S. at that time, although it was poorly armored compared to U.S. aircraft.

A pilot who realized that new tactics had to be devised was Lieutenant Commander John S. "Jimmy" Thach, commander of Fighting Three in San Diego. He read the early reports coming out of China and wrestled with the problem of his F4F Wildcats being relatively slower and much less maneuverable than the Japanese planes. He devised a defensive maneuver called the "Thach Weave", (named by Lieutenant Commander James H. Flatley, another fighter tactician and contemporary of Thach). Lieutenant Commander Thach reasoned that two planes, a leader and his wingman, could fly about 200 feet apart and adopt a weaving formation when under attack by Japanese fighters. He later faced the A6M Zero during the Battle of Midway, in June 1942, for the test of his theory. Although outnumbered, he found that a Zero would lock onto the tail of one of the fighters. In response, the two planes would turn toward each other. When the Zero followed its original target through the turn it would come into a position to be fired on by the target's wingman, and the predator would become the prey. His tactic proved to be effective and was soon adopted by other squadrons. The Thach Weave helped make up for the inferiority of the US planes in maneuverability and numbers, until new aircraft could be brought into service. The usefulness of this strategy survives until today. Another effective maneuver used by the U.S. Pilots was a simple "break", which consisted of turning sharply across an attacker's flight path, which worked well because the large nose of the Zero tended to obstruct the pilot's view.[26] Still another good tactic was to dive upon the Zero, shoot in one pass, and use the speed to climb back above the fight to dive again.[27] By 1943 the U.S. technology began to produce planes that were better matched against the Japanese planes, such as the Grumman F6F Hellcat, and the Vought F4U Corsair.[28]

Technology

Technology advanced extremely fast during World War II in ways that would change dogfighting forever. Jet propulsion had been demonstrated long before the war, by a German named Hans von Ohain in 1934, and by a British engineer named Frank Whittle in 1937. The ME-262 was the first jet fighter to be used in battle, with a speed over 500 MPH, and began raiding Allied bombing missions in 1944. The British were testing a jet that same year, the Gloster Meteor, which would later see action in the Korean War. Although U.S. General Hap Arnold test flew the XP-59A in 1942, the plane was never used in combat. Other prime inventions of the era include radar and air-to-air missiles.[29]

Propaganda

During WWII the Luftwaffe tended to describe themselves as the knights of the sky, while calling their enemies weak and evil. For example in describing the Soviet tactics, the Luftwaffe claimed that, "The characteristic feature of the average Soviet fighter pilot were a tendency toward caution and reluctance instead of toughness and stamina, brute strength instead of genuine combat efficiency, abysmal hatred instead of fairness and chivalry...." [30]

Korean War

After World War II, the question began to rise about the future usefulness of fighter aircraft. This was especially true for the U.S., where the focus was placed on small, fast, long range bombers capable of delivering atomic bombs.[31] The Korean War began in June 1950, and the North Koreans were outmatched by the U.S. Air Force. The war was nearly over by October, with the surrender of North Korea when, on November 1, Chinese Mig-15s attacked. The Chinese began supplying North Korea with troops and provisions, and the war quickly resumed.

At 100 MPH faster, the Mig-15 was more than a match for the U.S. F-80 Shooting Star, using the same dive and shoot tactic that the American's found so useful against Japan. The U.S. jets had inferior weaponry, and suffered from problems with production and parts. The U.S. resorted to using mainly the more maneuverable propeller driven fighters during the war, such as the P-51 Mustang and the P-47 Thunderbolt, which were both carried over from World War II.[32]

The F-86 Sabre was one of the most common jets used by the U.S. at that time. The U.S. pilots had one major advantage over the Chinese, the G-suit. Chinese fighters were often seen spinning off out of control during a hard turn because the pilot had lost consciousness. The Chinese were very competent in a dogfight, and large swirling battles were fought in the skies over Korea.[33] Major Robinson Risner recalls,

Seeing one another about the same time, the Mig flight and my flight dropped [our extra fuel] tanks.. He was so low he was throwing up small rocks. I dropped down to get him, but to hit him I had to get down in his jet wash. He'd chop the throttle and throw out his speed brakes. I would coast up beside him, wingtip to wingtip. When it looked like I was going to overshoot him, I would roll over the top and come down on the other side of him. When I did, he'd go into a hard turn, pulling all the Gs he could. This guy was one fantastic pilot.[34]

The U.S. pilots, however, managed to adapt their tactics to defeat the Chinese in the air. By the time the war ended in 1953, 792 Migs were downed by the F-86 squadrons, which only lost 78 planes of their own.[35]

Modern air combat

Even in the jet age, modern air-to-air combat can develop into dog fights. A fighter can evade a missile by abrupt maximum-performance turns and employing countermeasures—such as chaff and flares—provided he can detect the missile via a radar warning receiver (RWR) or visually. If beyond-visual-range (BVR) missiles can be defeated, pilots can press the attack and very quickly arrive at the within-visual-range (WVR) arena. This will typically result in a high-speed neutral pass (or merge) from which the opposing pilots must decide to turn and continue the fight with their opponent or continue straight and 'bug-out'. The turning fight that develops can be commonly called a dog fight, or air combat maneuvering (ACM).

Superiority in a dog fight can depend on a pilot's experience and skill, and the agility of his fighter when flown at minimum air speeds approaching loss of control (causing a danger of stalling); the winner typically plays to the strengths of his own aircraft while forcing his adversary to fly at a design disadvantage. Dogfights are generally contests fought at low airspeeds, while maintaining enough energy for violent acrobatic maneuvering, as pilots attempt to remain within air speeds with a maximum turn rate and minimum turn radius: the so-called "corner speed" that often lies between 300 and 400 knots, depending on the aircraft's design. Therefore a dogfight has nothing to do with supersonic speed, but much to do with the engine power that makes supersonic flight possible. The F-22 Raptor can stand on its steerable nozzles at less than 100 knots airspeed, yet quickly maneuver to bring its M61 Vulcan cannon to bear on a nearby evasive target, while an F-15 Eagle is more likely to use its thrust to maintain its relatively high corner speed, working to counter the drag caused by tight turns.

The continued importance of maintaining dogfighting proficiency was demonstrated during the Vietnam War. American pilots flew aircraft such as the F-4 Phantom II, equipped with long-range AIM-7 Sparrow missiles and AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles. However, air crews were required not to fire any missiles without having visually identified the target first, to make absolutely sure they were not an ally, thus losing this technological advantage. The AIM-7 missile was also not very reliable, making heavy use of delicate components such as vacuum tubes, which could not endure tropical climates, carrier takeoffs, and high-G maneuveres. Also, they had semi-active radar homing, meaning that they used the carrier plane's radar signals to home in on the target. The missiles themselves did not have a radar system, but "listened" to the pings of the attacker's radar and used the reflection of the prey aircraft to home in on it. AIM-9 missile were heat-seeking fire-and-forget missiles, meaning that once they had a lock on a heat source, they would attempt to hit it. They were only useful in short range, and in many cases failed, due to a number of factors, including delicate instruments and false heat sources (such as the sun). Additionally, early versions of the F-4 (prior to the E model) relied solely on missiles, having no guns nor lead-computing Gyro gunsight, and were therefore very vulnerable in the gun-range combat that could ensue.

Lightweight, short-endurance, point-defense fighters such as the MiG-17 and MiG-21 are typically far more agile than heavy, long-range, fighter-bombers (see the F-105 Thunderchief). Still, using superior tactics, the AIM-9 Sidewinder short-range missiles, and cannon fire, American pilots were able to gain significant victories in the air over North Vietnam, especially after the 1969 establishment of the United States Navy Fighter Weapons School (TOPGUN) to restore dogfighting ability to its pilots. At this school, pilots learned to exchange airspeed for altitude, using maneuvers like the Immelman turn and the Split-S, and to master tricks that put him behind an enemy fighter, where the enemy is vulnerable to heat-seeking Sidewinder missiles.

Referring back the previous section, which focused on tactics developed during World War II, the North Vietnamese MiG-17 resorted to use of the Lufbery maneuver on occasion when cornered by faster F-4 Phantom fighters. Whereas the Thach Weave is used as aircraft move towards a point in space, the Lufbery is employed over a fixed point.

With modern air-to-air AMRAAM guided missiles greatly extending the general engagement range of jet fighters, some experts hypothesize that dogfighting may be headed toward extinction, but others cite the occurrences in Vietnam as evidence otherwise. However, it is worth noting that there have been a great number of Beyond-Visual-Range (BVR) kills occurring during and after Operation Desert Storm. This was due to the improved reliability of BVR missiles, radars, and most importantly, the integration of C3I assets such as AWACS aircraft into the realm of aerial warfare. This provided Coalition forces with a superior picture of the battlefield and in conjunction with airspace management allowed utilization of BVR weaponry.

Despite this the improvement of all-aspect IR, missiles coupled with helmet-mounted sights, has reduced the necessity of tail-chase attacks. In addition, Russian development of tail-mounted radar and rear-firing missiles has reduced Russian planes' vulnerability to tail-chase attacks.

Yet because this feature is only present on the most modern jets, and missiles are a finite resource, the US Navy (TOPGUN) and the US Air Force (Red Flag) continue to teach postgraduate-level classes in air-combat-maneuvering engagements. Russian aircraft manufacturers heavily emphasize supermaneuverability and dogfight capabilities in fighter design, with aircraft such as the Su-37 or the Su-30MKI demonstrating advanced thrust vectoring systems to achieve these goals, pushing the aircraft to its limits to give it an advantage in combat. USAF fighters, such as the F-15 and F-16, tend to favor higher speeds, because of their emphasis on high power-to-weight ratio and low wing-loading; although the F-22 has supermaneuverability with its own vectored thrust.

See also

Wikisource has several original texts related to Air combat in the Vietnam War.

Citations and notes

  1. ^ Storm Over Iraq: Air Power and the Gulf War By Richard P. Hallion – Smithsonian Institution Press 1992 – Page 1-10
  2. ^ Fighter Combat: Tactics and Maneuvering by Robert Shaw - Pages xi and xii
  3. ^ Books Google
  4. ^ Oxford English Dictionary
  5. ^ BBC
  6. ^ Public Broadcasting Service (PBS)
  7. ^ BBC
  8. ^ BBC
  9. ^ Public Broadcasting Service (PBS
  10. ^ BBC
  11. ^ Public Broadcasting Service (PBS
  12. ^ Public Broadcasting Service (PBS
  13. ^ The Red Fighter Pilot
  14. ^ Storm Over Iraq: Air Power and the Gulf War By Richard P. Hallion – Smithsonian Institution Press 1992 – Page 8
  15. ^ Air Power by Stephen Budiansky – Viking Penguin Books 2004 – Page 200-208
  16. ^ Air Power by Stephen Budiansky – Viking Penguin Books 2004 – Page 213-214
  17. ^ Storm Over Iraq: Air Power and the Gulf War By Richard P. Hallion – Smithsonian Institution Press 1992 - Pages 12-17
  18. ^ Storm Over Iraq: Air Power and the Gulf War By Richard P. Hallion – Smithsonian Institution Press 1992 – Page 8-13
  19. ^ Air Power by Stephen Budiansky – Viking Penguin Books 2004 – Page 219-235
  20. ^ Fighter Combat: Tactics and Maneuvering by Robert Shaw - Pages 19-20
  21. ^ Aircraft, Strategy and Operations of the Soviet Air Force by Air Vice Marshal R. A. Mason and John W. R. Taylor - Jane's Publishing Co Ltd. - Page 26
  22. ^ Aircraft, Strategy and Operations of the Soviet Air Force by Air Vice Marshal R. A. Mason and John W. R. Taylor - Jane's Publishing Co Ltd. - Page 26
  23. ^ Aircraft, Strategy and Operations of the Soviet Air Force by Air Vice Marshal R. A. Mason and John W. R. Taylor - Jane's Publishing Co Ltd. - Page 28
  24. ^ Public Broadcasting Service (PBS)
  25. ^ Fighter: The World's Greatest Aces and Their Planes by Edwards Park - Thomasson-Grant Inc. 1990 - Page 144
  26. ^ Public Broadcasting Service (PBS)</]
  27. ^ Fighter: The World's Greatest Aces and Their Planes by Edwards Park - Thomasson-Grant Inc. 1990 - Page 136
  28. ^ Air Power by Stephen Budiansky – Viking Penguin Books 2004 – Page 275
  29. ^ Fighter: The World's Greatest Aces and Their Planes by Edwards Park - Thomasson-Grant Inc. 1990 - Page 155-160
  30. ^ Aircraft, Strategy and Operations of the Soviet Air Force by Air Vice Marshal R. A. Mason and John W. R. Taylor - Jane's Publishing Co Ltd. - Page 26
  31. ^ Storm Over Iraq: Air Power and the Gulf War By Richard P. Hallion – Smithsonian Institution Press 1992 - Page 13-15
  32. ^ History of the U.S. Air Force by Bill Yenne - Bison Book Corp 1984 - Page 46-51
  33. ^ Fighter Jets by Bryce Walker - Time Life Books 1983 - Page 46-64
  34. ^ Fighter Jets by Bryce Walker - Time Life Books 1983 - Page 64
  35. ^ Fighter Jets by Bryce Walker - Time Life Books 1983 - Page 64-68

References

  • Shaw, Robert L. (1985). Fighter Combat: Tactics and Maneuvering. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-059-9.

Footnotes

  1. ^ Su-37 Flanker Report from Farnborough '96 (http://www.sci.fi/~fta/Su-27.htm)
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dogfight&oldid=317765677"