Boelcke's Dicta
 

1. Try to secure advantages before attacking. If possible, keep the sun behind you.

2. Always follow through an attack when you have started it.

3. Fire only at close range, and only when your opponent is properly in your sights.

4. Always keep your eye on your opponent, and never let yourself be deceived by ruses.

5. In any form of attack it is essential to assail your opponent from behind.

6. If your opponent dives on you, do not try to evade his onslaught, but fly to meet it.

7. When over enemy lines, never forget your line of retreat.

8. Attack in groups of four or six. When the fight breaks up into a series of single combats, take care that several do not go for one opponent.

 

Boom and Zoom Tactics

The boom and zoom. It is my personal favorite way of attack. Otherwise known as 'B&Z'. It is quick, viscous and, in the case of the BF109, very lethal. In order to master this form of attack the pilot must be patient, picky and smart. An energy fighter can be almost impossible to defeat if the pilot knows what and when to strike. However, can be equally easy to kill if he gets impatient or does not follow the B&Z's strict rules.

The key to E-fighting is keeping that E state high. Your survival depends upon your ability to get away from the enemy plane after performing a strike. The first thing this dictates is that you want to be HIGH. Altitude = E(nergy)...E(nergy) = life...life = lots of dead Spits. When you make a strike on the lower opponent you want to follow the steps:

1. Observe the sector: once you see a low dot...circle...count the dots in the sector and try and account for all enemy planes (the last thing you want is to find out that this opponent isn't the lowest, and that he has 15 friends that are itching to get that high 109 who has been whacking their buddies). Once you are sure that his friends are far away or aren't higher (always attack the highest enemy first) you can drop in and attack.

2. Observe the enemy: after seeing that he is alone make a rule of asking yourself these three things:

• Where is he going? - if you have the altitude and time...try and set up above and behind him for the attack
• How fast is he going? - you want to make sure that he isn't hoarding speed to surprise you...I have seen this tactic used very effectively. They wait for the attacker to drop to them, make an evasive, and then rocket up with you...right on your tail the whole zoom up (btw this sucks)
• What is my egress path? - if for some reason you get stuck co-alt with this opponent...have a escape route laid out that isn't laden with enemies

3. Know your plane: To be at 700 kph in your attack dive and having the enemy 200m away is not the time to find out that you have absolutely no maneuverability at this speed. Know the limitations of your plane. Know at what speed your plane begins to become less responsive...work that throttle to keep your baby right below that mush speed and at peak attack performance. For instance my plane, the BF109...in a steep dive I begin to let back on the throttle at 600 kph and keep the speed right around there...in a shallow dive I know that I can hold off on this till 700 kph...knowing this lets me have maximum responsiveness from my plane while allowing me to keep enough speed to make my zoom.

4. Know your enemy's plane: In general, in my 109 there is only one thing that I am afraid to see...a Spit higher than me...anything else really doesn't bother me. The reason I do not like to see this sight in my 109 is the following...no escape (most of the time). The Spit at most alts is a little faster than my 109 and more maneuverable. I know that if I don't kill that Spit, I'm in trouble unless I get significant separation after the merge. I have absolutely NO fear of Hurris and Hawks. I know that I am faster than them when flying level. They won't catch me (unless they have a bit of an E advantage over me...but they won't because I would have bled it in order to run). Point being, know your enemy and know what to do if you get in trouble.

5. Make a hard deck for yourself: Have a hard deck altitude that you will stop the engagement at. I usually have a 1k hard deck...this means that if the combat broils down to an altitude of less the 1k...I'm outta there. The 1k gives me the altitude to escape either with a dive or with negative G maneuvers. It takes some practice, but it comes in handy sometimes. Ideally, a hard deck of 3K or so would be best, but game mechanics and visual limitations place most of the targets under 3K.

6. Make your attack: All the setting up comes down to this. Make your dive onto the bogey's high six (optimum attack position). Keep that speed high and just below the 'mush speed' of your aircraft. If the bogey breaks, don't follow him in his turn for more than 45 degrees as you want to conserve your E for the zoom. Remember this...if you zoom, you will be able to make a second attack...if u turn, you are going to die. Shoot and zoom. Get out of there and climb...this brings us to the next step. Never dive below your highest enemy...this means that if you are attacking a furball, do it from a shallow dive and gain a fantastic amount of speed...hit the "top" of the furball and try to hit the highest enemy...then zoom back out...never drop below the top.

7. Check around during zoom: on your zoom climb check your left/right and back-up views. You are looking for any dots that are higher than you. If you see a enemy dot that has snuck up to the fight...it's time to leave. I can't tell you how many times this scenario has happened...I engage a lower fighter...after my first couple zooms I see that a plane has snuck closer to the fight and is looking to capitalize on my lower E state. I zoom out and bug out of the fight. Little does he know that I am just beginning the fight. I leave, slowly banking as I climb away. Once they have forgotten about me (I now have an alt advantage), I come after them and kill him.

8. Make your second attack (if necessary): Upon reaching the apex of your zoom (and providing you see no enemies around you that are higher) and finding that your target is not dead...it's time for the follow up attack. I use two types of attacks after the initial zoom.

Type 1) Loop over the top of your zoom and hold at a level altitude inverted...acquire the target in your up or up-back view and proceed to fly inverted until u are directly over the target...pull back and dive right back on him (u should be about 1k - 1.5km over him after that first zoom)

Type 2) At the top of your zoom, begin a low G bank keeping the bogey in your 'over the shoulder' view. This slow climbing spiral turns you back around to the bogey and makes him (while climbing to reach you) turn...making him deplete more E. Once high and next to him...roll over and dive down on him...he will be low on E and slow...easy pickings (a variant of this maneuver is called the "rope-a-dope"). When doing this maneuver make sure that u have a definite E advantage over your opponent or you can get caught and whacked...be high over him on this maneuver. With good gunnery you should have him in about 1-3 passes.

9. Climb back to safety alt: As soon as you exit the fight...look for where the safest area in your sector is and go there...climb on the way and get that alt back...without it you're a dead man. My usual cruising alt is 4-5km but it varies upon map location. Now you are set to start the hunt again.

A RECAP:

• Stick above your hard deck
• Never drop below the highest enemy
• Attack with great speed so you can zoom out
• Know when to run and when to fight
• Know your plane's and your enemy's plane's limitations
• Be VERY aware of your enemy's activities

 The Sliceback Maneuver (by DocDoom)

The "myth" of the sliceback began back in AirWarrior ... where "spin fighting" became a viable method of ACM due to holes in the flight model, where in the Fw190 for example it was entirely possible to put the plane into a high speed flat spin, and then exit out of it at will to reverse the tables on your attacker in a manner that was very difficult to counter, esspecially if your opponent was flying "realistically" and not "gaming the game".

Players would validate this tactic as "realistic" because they would quote examples where real Luftwaffe pilots were trained in a tactic called the "Luftwaffe Stomp" which employed the high rudder authority of the Fw190 to "skid" the plane around the inside wingtip of a high speed high yo-yo and bring their forward vector around much faster than a genuine coordinated turn would manage.

Now ... the "sliceback" as I taught it in "The Butcherbirds Guide to a Free Lunch" is based on the real life "Luftwaffe Stomp" not the "spin turn" that was born in AirWarrior ... and as such this is how it works.

Have plenty of smash (airspeed) which is always wise in an Fw190 (or P-47 or F4U etc.) and pull up into what might be considered the initial stages of a high yo-yo ... a climbing turn, not too steep although in some circumstances (the need to bleed speed that would otherwise overshoot you too far beyond your target is a good example) you might want to be steep here ... and hold the rudder over in "top rudder" position, this will slew your nose UP and you'll be climbing a little sideways to your real flight path.

In other words, your nose will be HIGHER than your real vector indicates, so in a climbing LEFT turn you hold down RIGHT rudder in the climbing turn, or vice versa.

This is how a rally driver approaches a turn on dirt where he is going to "flick" the car around the apex, shortening the corner. He sets the car up going RIGHT on entry to a LEFT turn so he can "flick" it around the apex violently, rather than going smoothly around the radius of the corner.

So, you are climbing to the left, holding down right rudder to have your nose pointing higher than your climbing turn. You are skidding the plane a little as you climb in the turn, away from the direction you are going to turn in. This may seem un-natural (and does) to a lot of pilots, because it is the opposite of your instincts, ie: turning INTO the turn not away from it. The Barrel Roll Attack is the same, it is an un-natural set-up but that is why it works so well.

As you approach the "apex" of the climbing turn, where you are going to turn into and come down the other side, much like the rally car steering back into the corner from the initial set-up to the wrong side ... you mash "bottom rudder" and pull down, violently skidding the plane around the bottom or inside wingtip in a sort of "flick spin" for a brief moment, and what you have is a plane that was climbing (in this example) to the left, its nose held high by opposite (top) rudder ... when the time comes to go down from the highest point of the yo-yo, the apex or "corner" as it were, you throw in rudder to the complete opposite side (into the turn now) and pull the plane down into the descent side of the turn, and because of your rudder input changing sides violently, and timed to match you pulling the plane around with the ailerons slightly ... you "spin" the plane around the inside (down side) wingtip ... which is what a rally driver does when he "flicks" the car around the apex having set it up pointing the wrong way to the turn at the entry point. He'll do a full blown slide around the apex and exit going damn near straight after the "flick around". This is what you're doing with your airplane but in 3 dimensions not 2 like the rally driver.
You have a vertical element (the 3rd dimension) where the rally driver has only 2 being wholly in the horizontal plane of maneuver.

I hope this helps you, it is hard to describe but the 3d ribbon diagram in the book (page 54) should make it clearer if this parable explanation has helped at all. Note that in that diagram, there are TWO exit strategies after the apex "flick turn" ... depending on the bandit you are dealing with and what they elect to do as a counter to your "Luftwaffe Stomp."

Remember, stay fast, 400kmh is probably a little slow to pull this off properly. Think 500kph or even a little more as ideal.
 

BF 109e-4 vs Spitfire mkI

Winning in the Emil. The Spitfire mkI is the Emil driver's most deadly opponent. The Emil's strengths are dive performance, smaller turn radius, and most of all, firepower. The spitfire has superior roll, turning, and unknown by many; top speed. However, the Spitfire mk I's top speed is barely faster, and it will take him quite a while to catch you in a chase.

Attacking from above: The most effective way to kill a spitfire mkI is to dive from above on his high 6 o'clock position. If he doesn't see you, than wake him up with your 20mm cannon. If he does see you, he will most likely do one of the following: A hard barrel roll, a split s, a break turn, or if he's a newbie a zoom climb (in which case you shoot him dead).

If he barrel rolls beware of this opponent, as he is doing his best to conserve energy, climb up and shoot you after you make a failed guns pass. When you are diving on a Spitfire mkI, and he barrel rolls, break off your attack and execute a chandelle (simply a climbing turn) to reassess the situation.

If he does a split S, do not dive down and chase him. Execute a gentle zoom climb, look back, and reassess the situation.

A break turning spitfire is a very large target, and with practice you can kill break turning spitfires while diving in the Emil with vicious efficiency. There are two key factors you need to assess in mid dive. One is your closure rate, the second is when the spitfire mkI starts his break turn, the later the better. When your closure rate is very high, it may be wise to break off the attack, and zoom climb. Otherwise you risk collision, or completely overshooting the target and getting eight Browning machine guns firing at 120 rounds per second into your tail feathers! Determining a safe closure rate takes practice and experience, though it is safe to say that if your plane is buffeting you should break off!

Now that you are diving in on this Spit from his high 6 o clock (5 or 7 o clock is decent too) be ready for him to execute a break turn to either the right or the left. If he starts his break turn more than 500 yards out, zoom climb up and reassess the situation. Closer than 500 yards, follow a pure pursuit, until he's 200-300 yards away. Then, using your superior speed for a good instantaneous turn, switch to a lead pursuit and open fire. More often than not, he will be below your nose as you are firing, but he's there and with practice will be introduced to the mean end of your 109.

If you miss, don't sweat it. Zoom climb up, and reassess the situation. DO NOT turn with the spitfire mkI. Now you're at the top of your zoom climb, you need to decide what to do next to kill the spitfire below you. He is now either still turning, running, or is climbing in an effort to shoot you.

If he's still turning, hammerhead down and take care not to overspeed. Roll to match his turn from above, and open fire when you are within 200-300 yards. If you miss, zoom climb again, and repeat as necessary.

If he's running, you must decide whether or not to chase him. Check for other enemies in the area first, and if it's clear skies dive down on the fleeing spitfire.

When you are zoom climbing up, and the slower spitfire is chasing you up vertically, you are now at the beginning of a "Rope a Dope." Go vertical, wait till you stall out, hammerhead or loop over and kill him. He may be firing, but by now he's so slow he has no ability to aim. "Rope a Dope's" are one of the most satisfying ways to kill a Spit :)

The Merge: A less favorable position is to start the fight at the same altitude, with the same amount of energy. This fight usually starts with a "merge situation," or head on pass. Do not try to kill on the merge, for many reasons. Although you do have superior firepower, it's your shooting skill against his, and there's always someone who's better than you. By firing at the merge, u also risk collision which is the worst way to end the fight. Lastly, if your opponent is good, he will use the time you are firing at him to do simple evasives, and then gain the advantage in the fight.

The right thing to do in the merge is this: Fire a quick burst of mg from very long range, 1000-1200 yards away, this will make him think your intent is to kill him on the ho pass, and might tempt him to fire back, which is what u want. At 1000 yards, nose down a bit, and enter a gentle dive. Your intention is to go under him. This deceives your opponent Spitfire of your real intention which is to zoom climb up vertically. Start this maneuver at a distance of 100-250 yards away in the merge. Going under him will also make him lose sight of you for a few seconds, and in a dogfight losing sight of your opponent means losing the fight. Don't forget to hit WEP as you go vertical, in fact hit WEP when you see a merge situation developing.

As you are zooming up vertically, look back and see what the spit is doing. If he executes a turn, or split s (if you're really lucky) you have won the fight (assuming co e states at the time of the merge. Keep zooming up till you stall, hammerhead down and shoot him dead. This may become a "Rope a Dope" or it may be a shot where he is still turning, and you must use roll in the vertical to match his turn. If the spit zoom climbs up vertically like you did, then you are in trouble (unless your energy was considerably greater than his, if so keep zooming and gain as much of an altitude advantage as possible). This pilot is smart, and even if he's not as good as you, the spitfire's superior dogfighting ability will catch up with you quick, and send you home in small boxes. You may want to consider running, or some defensive maneuvers.

Defense: So you have a spitfire mkI on your tail, about to blast your emil any second. What to do, what to do, what to do? Don't panic! If there are friendlies around, call for "HELP" on the radio. If you are alone...what are you doing without a wingman?? Well, this text is intended for 1vs1 fights, so....

If you have any altitude, there is a great escape maneuver that can sometimes even turn the tables on the spit! A diving scissors is what I will call this for now until I see the real name in a book or some other text. This maneuver capitalizes on the 109's smaller turn radius. So, begin a standard split s, and apply hard down rudder (assuming your view plain is perpendicular to the horizon at this point) as you roll so that your split s is beginning before you are actually inverted. Pull hard, very hard out of your split s until you see the horizon again, now roll over inverted again (using rudder again to start the dive early) and repeat this until you will actually cross paths with the spit going in opposite directions (assuming he tried to match this maneuver and kept his throttle up). If you're still feeling gutsy you now can go vertical, and see what he does, or a wiser choice may be to keep going straight and run for home.

If the spit mkI is close on your 6, and you have no altitude, then you are really screwed unless you get lucky with some last ditch maneuvers. Try a scissors, or better yet a rolling scissors and hope he overshoots, and if you're really lucky you might even get a snap shot with your 20mm cannons.

When a spitfire mkI is diving from above on your emil, try not to bleed to much energy until you can execute an escape maneuver. Tangling with a higher spit is NOT recommended with the emil unless you can visually see that he's a real dweeb. So, he's diving down from above at your high 6 o clock position. A very good defensive maneuver is to enter a gentle dive and roll hard with a bit of rudder applied in the direction of your roll. Wait till he's about 1000-1200 yards behind you, then roll over, dive a bit inverted, and roll like crazy. This saves energy, and forces an overshoot. After he passes you, that is the time to perhaps split s and disengage in search of friendlies or the safety of your base.

Annoying A spit mk I pilot: If the spit is say d10 to d15 on your 6, and you have altitude, try the following: Start a shallow dive, then pull up in a shallow climb, then shallow dive again. Repeat as necessary, adding in more "dive" if he starts to get close. His engine cuts out in negative g maneuvers, thus he will have to be rolling to follow you correctly, or his engine will keep cutting out. Another fun thing is an outside loop (simply push forward on the stick until you are inverted), then follow up with a split s. The chasing spit's engine will either cut out, or the pilot will be forced to do some very funky maneuvers to stay with you :)

As a rule of thumb....In general, I recommend the following for cruising around:

NEVER try to win a dogfight with a spit1 if you haven't already done it in a few firing passes. The real Luftwaffe used hit and run tactics against the RAF, I suggest the same.

Always stay higher than any enemy you can see.

Return To Base (RTB) when you have run out of cannon. The 109e-4 has a truck load of 7mm for the machine guns, but their firepower is laughable, though you can get an occasional kill with them.

Most important of all, fly with a wingman, and you wont need the above information!

 

Last update on March 27, 2005