CONTENTS
Introduction
Engagement considerations
Fuel
Enemy capability
Tactical situations
Tactical considerations
Individual manoeuvres
How to be offensive
Turn performance
Effect of vertical on turn performance
Combat manoeuvres
Conclusions
GRAPHICS
Fig 1. Relationship of total 'G' to radial 'G' in a constant speed loop
Fig 2. Effect of gravity on field manoeuvre
Fig 3. Nose to tail turn rate advantages
Fig 4. Nose to nose turn radius advantages
Fig 5. High yo-yo
Fig 6. Countering the high yo-yo
Fig 7. Countering defensive pull-up
Fig 8. Barrel roll attack
Fig 9. Low yo-yo
Fig 10. Vertical rolling scissors
Fig 11. Flat scissors
Fig 12. Countering the scissors
Fig 13. Horizontal rolling scissors
INTRODUCTION
1) The accepted definition of Air Combat Manoeuvring (ACM) is that phase of warfare in which the fighter operates within visual range of enemy aircraft, employing large scale three dimensional manoeuvres to bring its weapons to bear whilst denying the enemy a weapon firing opportunity.
2) Physically, the ACM environment is extremely demanding and requires great concentration and mental agility under stress. No other phase of air to air warfare places a greater demand on the pilot / aircraft combination. Success in air combat depends almost entirely upon the skill of the pilot in employing the performance and weapons system capabilities of his aircraft to exploit the weaknesses or mistakes of his opponent.
3) There are three basic rules for air combat:
a. Know the enemy's capabilities (strengths and weaknesses).
b. Know your own capabilities and limitations.
c. Have a plan.
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ENGAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS
1) In the presence of the enemy, ACM tactics must be thoroughly understood and the decision whether to engage the enemy must be made as early as possible. The correct decision cannot be made without a knowledge of fuel state, weapons status, enemy aircraft characteristics, mission objectives and the tactical situation.
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FUEL
1) The ability of a fighter aircraft to survive in a defensive situation, to outlast the combat or to disengage successfully is frequently dictated by the available combat time. The critical factor is the combat fuel available and the rate of consumption. The combat fuel allowance will be affected by the mission radius and the cruise conditions to and from the CAP area. Fuel consumption is dependant on the engine power requirements and a pilot should always be aware of the loiter time remaining. A running check relative to fuel required to complete the mission should be maintained.
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ENEMY CAPABILITY
1) There are many factors that must be taken into account when deciding on an opponent's potential combat performance. Factual evidence of his aircraft's characteristics from turn rate graphs, wing loading and intelligence assessments of his weapons system need to be viewed against less quantifiable factors such as quality of training, level of tactical development and the will to fight. These latter factors are subjective and cannot be assessed until the opponent has been engaged.
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TACTICAL SITUATIONS
1) There are three basic advantages that can be established prior to an engagement. These are POSITION, SPEED and ALTITUDE. Use of radar, stealth and low animal cunning could result in gaining surprise, tactical advantage or even a quick kill.
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TACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS
1) The Plan. Every combat engagement needs a "game" and "contingency" plan if the outcome is not to be victory for the opponent. If the type of threat is uncertain, the plan must consider:
a. Providing an attempt to obtain a firing solution, the success or failure of which will influence the decision whether to engage or disengage.
b. A disengagement criteria based on:
(i) Degree of advantage at the merge versus the opponents capability.
(ii) Fuel / Weapons state.
(iii) Command requirements (do or die).
2) The basic plan is refined by applying threat intelligence and, when applicable, section tactics.
3) Visibility. To fight any enemy, the enemy must be seen. This means more than having good vision and it is important to know where to look for an enemy prior to and during an engagement. There are times when he may be seen momentarily before manoeuvring into a blind area. To regain sight, the area into which he is going must be scanned; learn to use the mirror. Try different view positions to find maximum rearward visibility, employ the wing dip technique to reduce the aircraft's blind area in the rear hemisphere and don't neglect belly checks.
4) Radio. All radio transmissions should be brief but complete. A single, easily remembered call sign or name should be used for each section. Apart from prebriefed situations use the radio to keep the remainder of the formation aware of your intentions. If nothing has been heard on the radio for a while then check the mic / tel connections.
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INDIVIDUAL MANOEUVRES
1) Air combat can be likened to a game of chess; while there are an almost infinite number of ways in which an engagement can progress, there are only a few basic manoeuvres with which the engagement can be developed. To continue the analogy, the chess player cannot become a Master without first learning all the basic moves, following which he must learn either to counter a threat from his opponent or to take advantage of any opening which may occur, at the same time developing an understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of his opponent. Air combat places similar demands on the pilot; the strengths and weaknesses of any enemy may be analysed from a study of his aircraft's capabilities, while practise and experience should provide the essential skills. The aim of this chapter is to examine the basic air combat manoeuvres and discuss their value from an offensive and defensive standpoint.
2) Air combat takes place in a three dimensional environment and a pilot should appreciate the effect of gravity on his manoeuvring performance, and the inter-relationship of kinetic and potential energy. The manoeuvring envelope can be likened to the surface of an egg, with the pointed end uppermost. The turning rate (or pitch rate) of an aircraft is dependant on the radial 'G' as distinct from indicated 'G'. Thus when gravity is assisting the turn by providing an increment of radial 'G' the turning performance is enhanced and accounts for the pointed end of the ovoid. Figure 1 illustrates the indicated 'G' to radial 'G' relationship for a constant speed loop in the vertical plane.
RELATIONSHIP OF TOTAL 'G' TO RADIAL 'G' IN A CONSTANT SPEED LOOP
Figure 1
3) When an aircraft is manoeuvring in the vertical plane the turning (or pitch) rate is increased when the lift vector is below the horizon, and vice versa. Figure 1 illustrates the idealised situation of a constant speed loop in the vertical plane whereas in practise, manoeuvring takes place in all three dimensions and the speed is rarely constant; the tendency being to accelerate in dives and to decelerate when climbing. For maximum turn rate, a pilot should always manoeuvre so that gravity is favourably affecting the thrust and lift vectors. Figure 2 shows the effect on three dimensional manoeuvring as the plane of the manoeuvre moves from the horizontal to the vertical ie from a true circle to the most pointed ovoid shape. The concept of maximum performance manoeuvring within an ovoid forms the basis of the subsequent discussion on individual aircraft manoeuvring.
EFFECT OF GRAVITY ON FIELD MANOEUVRE
Figure 2
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HOW TO BE OFFENSIVE
1) In developing the theme of basic combat manoeuvres the offensive aircraft and its opponent have been considered as having essentially similar performances. Such a situation will rarely be met in practise and the performance capabilities of the opponent must be known so that manoeuvres can be selected which exploit his weaknesses.
2) The following paragraphs explain how an offensive pilot can:
a. Maintain the initiative by using 3-dimensional manoeuvres to consolidate his position.
b. Press home the attack for a kill.
3) But how does the offensive pilot get there in the first place? Firstly, what does 'offensive' mean in this context? Essentially, if a pilot can generate an angular advantage - ie manage to point his nose at the bogey before he is pointed at, then he has become the offensive pilot. This situation has two major benefits:
a. He has the first opportunity for a kill.
b. He will put the bogey under extreme pressure, causing him to react defensively, bleeding energy unnecessarily and perhaps causing him to make an irrational move - It is a well documented fact that he who is winning is able to think more clearly and fly his aircraft more efficiently. The pilot on the defensive will often subconsciously 'pull' too hard.
4) So the main aim in almost all 1v1 combat situations is to obtain angular advantage. Making the assumption that both fighters have achieved 'tally-ho' at an early stage, normally after the pre-merge exchange of shots, a zero aspect 180 out pass will ensue. Simplisticly an angular advantage can be obtained from two ways:
a. Nose to tail - Turn Rate advantage
The fighter with the ability to
obtain a higher rate of turn will
cover his 'circle' quicker than the
bogey therefore, therefore he will
be able to point his nose at the
bogey first.
Figure 3
b. Nose to Nose - Turn Radius advantage
The fighter with the smallest
radius of turn will be able to
'point' first. Here, a larger bogey
rate of turn is of no consequence,
since the fighter has been able to
stay within his circle. Although
this situation appears to give the
fighter the offensive position, he
must be careful because:
Figure 4
(i) He will probably be at a lower energy state than the bogey, therefore the bogey will have more options available to him during the next move.
(ii) Although the fighter has obtained angular advantage, he probably will be unable to effect a kill because the shot opportunity is too tight.
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TURN PERFORMANCE
1) Individual aircraft turning performance is affected by A/C weight, configuration, speed and altitude. There are three key elements of turning performance which affect the pilot's gameplan during combat. These, with their definitions, are listed below:
2) Minimum Radius Speed - The speed at which the fighter can fly a turn with the minimum radius or diameter. For most fighters this speed is normally at the lower end of the effective speed range.
a. If a nose to nose (single circle) fight is chosen, or forced, then the aircraft's turn radius is of greater importance than the turn rate. Although radius can be minimised by dynamic manoeuvre (combat egg) its success is very dependant on the bogie's plane of motion and thus the most dramatic reduction in radius comes from flying at the correct speed for a min radius turn. It remains vital that the merge is conducted in exactly the same way as for a max rate (energy or nose to tail) fight. You should merge at corner velocity - mincing in at low IAS is almost certain death if the bogey realises what's going on.
b. A study of sustained turn performance would show that large variations in the speed flown will produce insignificant changes in radius, but large alterations in the turn rate.
c. In the nose to nose fight it is the radius that will eventually settle the outcome in a guns only combat.
3) Maximum Turn Rate Speed - The speed at which a fighter can perform a turn with the highest possible turn rate. The speed at which this happens is known as 'corner speed'. The most important thing about a max rate instantaneous turn is to ensure that the merge is reached at the best instantaneous turn performance speed.
a. This gives you three options:
(i) Allow the speed to bleed back indiscriminately whilst continuing to point the gunsight at the bogey.
(ii) Maintain IAS thereby reducing the turn rate and increasing the turn radius (because 'G' cannot be maintained).
(iii) Maintain max 'G', allowing the A/C to decelerate to the speed that will maximise his turn rate (corner speed), then hold that speed while flying a lead, lag or pure pursuit turn.
It is obvious that the last option is the best, because it allows the A/C to maintain the "instantaneous" turn rate for a while, although at the expense of speed. This now leads us on to a discussion of sustained turn performance.
4) Maximum Sustainable Turn Rate Speed - At any given speed, there is a turn rate at which fighter potential energy is constant. Below this rate, the fighter will gain energy, and if level will accelerate. Above this rate the energy will dissipate. There is obviously a trade off between turn rate and energy. There is however an optimum speed at which not only is energy quite high, but the turn rate is acceptable. This speed and turn rate should therefore be flown during 'consolidation' manoeuvres when energy must be retained.
It is important that this manoeuvre is flown accurately with respect to speed; a small variation either way significantly reduces the turn rate.
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EFFECT OF VERTICAL ON TURN PERFORMANCE
1) Nose High Turn. A nose high turn will produce an increased rate of turn and decreasing horizontal turn radius as the aircraft is turned from a nose high to a nose low attitude. However, during the initial pull up, turn rate will be relatively low and horizontal turn radius relatively high. The overall advantage of a nose high turn is the decreased horizontal turn radius and the manoeuvring potential that is rapidly gained during the second part of the turn. Airspeed should not be allowed to fall off during the pull-up to the extent that manoeuvring potential is lost. From this discussion it can be seen that a nose high turn at high altitude may not be either possible or desirable. Manoeuvring potential will be reduced if the necessary nose high attitude is used and horizontal turn radius will not be significantly increased if airspeed and manoeuvring potential are maintained by using a shallower attitude.
2) Level Turn. A level turn will allow a rapid 180 degree heading reversal but gives a large horizontal turn radius and possibly a large decay in airspeed and manoeuvring potential. Manoeuvring potential, particularly at altitude is a function of radius of turn and applied 'G'. A level turn may be desirable at relatively low altitude and with the aircraft at an extremely high energy level. In this case decay in airspeed is traded for a gain in turn rate with airspeed still being high due to the initial speed.
3) Nose Low Turn. A nose low turn will produce an increased turn radius but provides an increase in airspeed manoeuvring potential. At high altitude it may be desirable and/or necessary to sacrifice altitude to gain manoeuvring airspeed. Potential energy (altitude) is an important factor prior to an engagement but once engaged, the most important consideration is kinetic energy (velocity) since this determines manoeuvrability. As the nose is lowered take care to keep the aircraft out of heavy buffet while accelerating, at the same time maintaining as high a rate of turn as possible. When the desired speed and 'G' are attained, start a rolling pull up being careful to maintain enough speed for the subsequent zoom back to the opponent's altitude. An additional advantage will be gained if the enemy turns level or nose high in that he will have to maintain visual contact against a land background. Low altitude may make a nose low turn difficult. If limiting 'G' is already available, do not dive down into an enemy who is below you as you will unnecessarily increase your turn radius and give your opponent an angular advantage if he turns level or nose high.
4) It can be seen now that a fighter's speed and type of manoeuvre will radically affect turn performance. A pilot must therefore manage his energy and make a game plan accordingly. The game plan will of course be affected by the pilot's interpretation of the bogey energy package also, so this must be monitored at all times.
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COMBAT MANOEUVRES
1) The following combat manoeuvres are aimed at achieving a rear quarter aspect as early as possible. Whilst this may not always be necessary to achieve a kill, it will enhance your chances as well as being the best form of defence. They also form a good vehicle for teaching the complexities of the 3D manoeuvring arena.
2) Generally it can be expected that once a defending aircraft has seen the attacker approaching he will evade by performing a defensive turn into the attack. If a pursuit curve attack is attempted from long range, the angle-off and 'G' will increase as the range decreases. If an attempt is made to decrease the angle-off then the defender can be expected to tighten his turn to prevent it. The aim of the defender is to force an overshoot. An overshoot can possibly be avoided by the attacker attempting to generate a rate of turn almost equal to that of the defender while closing the firing range - matching or exceeding the rate of turn will result in the attacker eventually finding himself in front of the defender. The defender can counter the attacker's almost equal turn-rate by tightening his turn and maintaining a maximum performance turn to force an overshoot, but this action will probably result in a loss of airspeed (and thus energy) and eventually a reduced turn rate. However, in the short term the counter may be successful if the attacker is unable to stay within the defender's turn radius. In the latter situation the attacker should manoeuvre in a plane other than that of the defender and initiate a yo-yo.
3) The High Yo-Yo. This manoeuvre is used when the offensive pilot wants to:
a. Prevent an overshoot in the plane of the enemy's turn.
b. Maintain an offensive advantage by maintaining nose-to-tail separation (see Figure 5).
4) The Manoeuvre. The moment you realise that you cannot stay inside the enemy's turn radius, roll slightly away from the turn and pull through the vertical plane, thus avoiding the fly through. Once the climb is established and the fly through has been avoided, roll to point the lift vector at the bogey, attempting to bring the nose to bear as quickly as possible for a shot. If the high yo-yo is used accurately, nose-to-tail separation will be maintained with little vertical displacement (low apex) and you should then be able to roll off or slide down into a firing position.
HIGH YO-YO MANOEUVRE
Figure 5
5) When not to Yo-Yo. The high yo-yo appears to be an excellent offensive manoeuvre to use when you have a rate of closure and cannot match a countering defensive turn. However, in a situation where the attack is at a high angle off the tail (>40 degrees) and at a long range, use of the high yo-yo is questionable. Under these circumstances, the yo-yo could require an extremely high apex to maintain nose-tail separation and allow the enemy to dive for separation and airspeed. You are then left in an over-head attack position with a low overtake speed and must initiate a new attack. The enemy can be expected to turn into the attack, generate a high angle off at long range and force you into another yo-yo with much vertical displacement. Once again, you start a new attack and the process repeats itself. The result is that the enemy counters each attack successfully, little additional advantage is gained and stalemate exists. The purpose of the barrel roll attack (see Figure 8) is to prevent this stalemate from developing.
COUNTERING THE HIGH YO-YO
Figure 6
6) Countering the High Yo-Yo. To counter your high yo-yo, the enemy must first attempt to force an overshoot (see Figure 6). The enemy will expect you to yo-yo high to maintain the advantage and must now determine your relative position and altitude before making his next move. If the enemy pulls up, he will position himself at your 12 o'clock, and if he maintains his turn, he will dissipate his airspeed and angular velocity; you should then be able to slide down to his 6 o'clock position for a low aspect attack. If you generate extreme vertical separation the enemy is likely to relax 'G' and dive 180 degrees away. Upon observing the greater turn radius and the nose down condition, you have the option of maintaining the yo-yo apex or attacking the descending enemy. You must press home the advantage or the enemy will increase separation and place you in an undesirable overhead position with no overtake speed. To accomplish this, you must drop the nose and attempt to position for the attack. When the enemy observes your commitment you must expect him to pull up into the attack. If he waits for the commitment and counters correctly, you will be placed in a nose-low attitude, while he is nose-high. Your airspeed will be greater than his and at the same time, since you are approaching the horizontal position and the enemy the vertical position, your radius of turn will be greater. As a result, you will be forced into an overshoot, below and forward of the enemy's line of flight. To gain the offensive after an overshoot, the enemy need only roll-off or slide down to your 6 o'clock position. Once again, if the enemy has little nose-to-tail separation, and enough vertical displacement, he should employ the roll-off in order to achieve an advantage.
7) Countering Defensive Pull Up. To manoeuvre successfully against the enemy's countering pull-up you must keep in mind the relationships involved. The effect of gravity causes your airspeed and turn radius to increase with respect to the enemy making an overshoot highly likely, dissipating energy rapidly in the process. This will have you in a position of disadvantage below the enemy with practically no excess energy to continue up towards the enemy. All initiative would now rest with our opponent. Therefore to avoid this situation your best course of action in this case is not to turn, but to maintain an airspeed advantage. At the instant you observe the enemy's rolling pull-up roll one quarter turn away from his line of flight maintaining nose-tail separation. At the same time commence a smooth pull-up behind the enemy's line of flight so as not to overshoot the altitude at which he started his pull-up. (An overshoot here would have the same effect as an overshoot in the horizontal plane before a high yo-yo). Since you started from a high position your airspeed at the bottom of the pull-up should be greater than the enemy's at the same level, with a resulting advantage. Now, if the enemy continues his pull-up, zoom to the vertical and if necessary displace roll to his six; the airspeed advantage has paid off in your ability to follow him in the vertical.
COUNTERING DEFENSIVE PULL-UP
Figure 7
8) When near the bottom of your pull-up, your airspeed is at the maximum while the enemy, near the top of the zoom, should be at his minimum. To counter, he must pull down back into you. If vertical separation is significant he will be in a nose low forward quarter attack. His airspeed will be increasing rapidly while yours is decreasing. The enemy is most likely to relax so roll through 180 degrees and continue to pull for the enemy's six. Once out of the manoeuvre you will be positioned at six o'clock but on an opening target.
9) Barrel Roll Attack (Lag Pursuit Roll).
a. When Used. When the attack is at a high angle off the tail (>40 degrees) and at long range. In this situation, a yo-yo would require an extremely high apex to achieve nose separation with an ensuing loss of airspeed. The lag pursuit roll can be used to consolidate an attacking situation by placing the offensive pilot in a deep lag situation, leaving the defending pilot little option but to continue his turn and accept that the offensive pilot will be able to point his nose earlier at the next cross.
10) The Manoeuvre. If you barrel roll in the plane of an opponents turn, your velocity vector is reduced along the axis of the roll. However, the roll will provide a line of flight tangential to your intended turn which increases angle-off and increases the possibility of an overshoot. If the roll is conducted in the vertical plane, combined with a high yo-yo, the result is quite different:
a. There is less vertical displacement than in an ordinary yo-yo because the vector velocity along the axis of the roll is diminished in the vertical plane.
b. Component velocity, in the plane of the enemy's turn, is diminished as a result of the yo-yo and the roll.
c. Airspeed is greater as a result of the lower yo-yo apex and the shortening effect which the roll has on the velocity vector in the plane of the enemy's turn. The shortening effect diminishes your rotation angle through the vertical plane and reduces speed decay hence allowing greater aircraft velocity to be maintained.
d. There will be no overshoot as a result of the roll, since the roll is not conducted in the plane of the enemy's turn. If the yo-yo with a roll is started below the enemy, the opportunity to gain a favourable position is increased. By starting from an inside low position you lower the apex of the manoeuvre and this gives the enemy less opportunity to gain separation.
11) To set up the manoeuvre, dive below and inside the enemy's defensive turn. Assume that you have the range/angle-off relationship previously specified and dive below to provide some additional airspeed. This will not increase eventual vertical displacement above the enemy, since airspeed can be easily killed during the forthcoming rotation through the vertical plane. If you approach the target from below and at a high angle-off, continue to cut off in an attempt to reduce angle-off until reaching the pull-up point. Pull-up on the inside of the enemy's defensive turn, then barrel role away from the turn. The roll is not a high 'G' barrel role which would result in a rapid loss of airspeed. As you roll nose-high through the inverted position, use stick and bottom rudder to obtain a nose-low 270 degree change of direction. From the inverted position to the 270 degree point of the roll, gravity assists in gaining a rapid change of direction towards the enemy's 6 o'clock position. If the entire manoeuvre from pull-up through the roll is on the inside of the enemy's defensive turn you will be above him at a reduced angle-off and in a position to dive below his line of flight into his 6 o'clock low. Longitudinal separation will not be great, for two reasons:
a. Vector velocity is reduced, but a higher aircraft velocity is retained.
BARREL ROLL ATTACK
Figure 8
b. The entire manoeuvre is performed inside the enemy's turn radius. There may appear to be alternatives to counter the barrel role attack, such as a high 'G' roll by the enemy when you perform the 270 degree change of direction or a pull-up under the same circumstances. However, the high 'G' roll is largely ineffective because it causes the enemy's line of flight to be tangential to his defensive turn and his vector velocity to decrease. As a result, you can follow his manoeuvre, slide towards his 6 o'clock position and have less longitudinal separation. The pull-up is also limited in effectiveness since you are not committed to a nose-low position when rolling from the inverted position. Since the enemy must roll away from his defensive turn to execute a pull-up, you have sufficient longitudinal separation and time to roll towards his 6 o'clock position. The only effective counter against a properly executed barrel roll attack is a dive for airspeed and separation at the moment you start the pull-up. This forces you to perform a 180 degree change of direction in the vertical plane even though you use the roll away. If considerable 'G' is pulled to acquire this change of direction airspeed will decrease considerably with respect to the enemy. If you use less 'G', vertical displacement is greater and in either case you are in an overhead attack position with no overtake speed.
c. To manoeuvre against the enemy's counter, deception may be employed to prevent him from diving for separation. Instead of pulling up inside the enemy's turn from an inside low position, pull up to the outside of his turn, thus maintaining nose-tail separation. To the enemy this appears as an overshoot so expect him to reverse nose-high in an effort to scissor you forward. However, if you overshoot and zoom this will be impossible. You have the advantage in terms of airspeed, nose-tail separation and a high rotation angle in the vertical plane. This means that you may zoom above and behind, but outside the enemy's turn and he will be unable to match your zoom. If the enemy reverses, as is likely, you will be above, behind and to the inside of the turn. This will reduce vector velocity, provide nose-tail separation and permit a roll down toward his 6 o'clock position. He will be in a poor position to counter, since his airspeed and angular velocity are diminished as a result of his turn and nose-high reversal. Should he attempt to pull-up into you, roll-off towards his 6 o'clock position. If he dives away, employ bottom rudder on your roll-off to prevent separation. In either case, you will be in a favourable position. If the enemy does not react with a reversal to counter the overshoot and roll-off, but instead dives away for separation, he will place you in an overhead attack position with not much overtake speed. The separation from this barrel roll attack will be greater than from the one conducted on the inside of the turn and it is difficult to determine which attack is best. However, if the enemy's conditioned reflexes are orientated towards a scissor manoeuvre in the event of an overshoot, employ the outside method; if not, employ the inside method.
d. The barrel roll attack need not be limited to the conditions specified. It may be employed at shorter ranges and lower angles-off. The purpose is to reduce the rate of closure and angle-off so that the enemy has little opportunity to gain separation. It is particularly effective when the enemy has superior turning power.
12) Low Yo-Yo.
a. The purpose of the low yo-yo is to enable you to cut the corner during a turning fight in order to close from the 6 o'clock position when at long range with no closing speed (see figure 9). To employ the low yo-yo maintain bank and lower the nose into the turn so that you turn through both the vertical and horizontal planes. As you turn below and inside the enemy, angle-off and airspeed will increase and your distance along the horizontal plane will decrease. To prevent an overshoot, you should pull-up and zoom towards the enemy's 6 o'clock position. The entire manoeuvre should be accomplished prior to reaching the line abreast position and should result in a reduced angle-off and range being achieved from the enemy. If you are still not in a lethal position, repeat the process. The advantage is gained in this manoeuvre because your airspeed loss is less than that of the enemy, assuming that he is in a level turn. When you dive to the inside airspeed increases and angle of attack decreases; the increased airspeed provides a greater mass airflow to the engine which therefore generates more thrust; the decreased angle of attack reduces induced drag and as a result, in the dive portion of the manoeuvre, you may not only have an airspeed advantage but also a thrust advantage. On the pull-up to the horizon, angle of attack and induced drag increase which prevents any further increase in airspeed. However, you still have a considerable airspeed advantage. In the zoom portion of the manoeuvre airspeed will decrease which will result in an increased angle of attack; the angle of attack is less than the enemy's because of the greater radial 'G' available in the vertical and horizontal plane as compared to the horizontal plane alone. Because of this, less airspeed is lost in a low yo-yo than is lost in a horizontal turn through the same distance. Therefore, you gain a more favourable position even though you fly a greater distance.
LOW YO-YO
Figure 9
b. The enemy cannot effectively counter a properly executed low yo-yo by tightening his turn, initiating a reversal, or by performing a high 'g' barrel roll. If he tightens his turn, he dissipates airspeed rapidly. You may even zoom out of a low yo-yo so that you can overshoot his flight path in the horizontal plane. If he reverses, you should roll off in a direction opposite to his turn and towards his 6 o'clock position. The reversal allows you to reduce 'G' more than is possible against a tight turn and as a result the rate of closure increases, enabling you to gain a favourable position more rapidly.
c. In an attempt to counter a low yo-yo the enemy may turn into the plane of the attack, in a diving turn at the moment when you begin your low yo-yo. This rotates the enemy into the plane of the attack and cancels a possible low yo-yo, which will force the fight to low level rather quickly. If the enemy rolls out of the turn, you will be positioned at his 6 o'clock. Thus, the enemy receives only a respite from a stalemate situation. The enemy must not only turn away, but must also do it in such a manner as to completely nullify your low yo-yo. He can accomplish this by first allowing you to dive below and inside his turn until you begin a pull-up. At this point he is in no immediate danger since you are diving away from his turning cone. As you begin to pull up from a nose-low attitude, the enemy rolls away from his turn and zooms in the vertical plane in a banked attitude towards your line of flight. Observing this, you continue to pull-up in an effort to move towards his 6 o'clock low position. By the time the nose reaches the horizon on your pull-up, the enemy will be nose-high in a bank towards you with considerably less airspeed than you. At this point he turns into you by changing from a nose-high to a nose-low position, through the vertical plane, into the attack. This places the enemy in a nose-low, nose-quarter attack with his airspeed increasing while your airspeed is decreasing. His reactions now depend on your subsequent moves. If you continue the zoom and turn 180 degrees through the vertical plane without cutting off, the enemy relaxes 'G' and dives for separation - this places you in an overhead attack position with no overtake speed. If you cut off and overshoot him in the vertical plane, he may employ a different counter, the vertical rolling scissors.
13) Vertical Rolling Scissors.
a. The vertical rolling scissors is a defensive, descending, rolling manoeuvre in the vertical plane (see figure 10). The purpose of the manoeuvre is to gain an effective advantage if the enemy overshoots your flight path while descending in the vertical plane. The manoeuvre may be entered from the following situations:
(i) At high altitude, when you have a low indicated airspeed, where you will be forced to perform a descending defensive turn to maintain manoeuvring potential. If the enemy, with a fair rate of closure, thinks you are attempting to gain separation, he may cut-off in an effort to prevent it and since his airspeed is higher, his radius of turn during the cut-off will be greater than yours. As a result, he can easily be forced to overshoot your descending flight path.
(ii) In a zoom manoeuvre in which the enemy is attempting to approach your 6 o'clock position. Observing the enemy's position, execute a pull through in an effort to gain separation, thus placing the enemy in an overhead attack position with low airspeed. In an effort to prevent this, the enemy may attempt a cut-off but because of his higher airspeed, his radius of turn will be greater than yours, and he should consequently overshoot your descending flight path.
(iii) In a 6 o'clock low attack, in which the enemy is approaching his pull up point. You may execute one of two manoeuvres, an immediate defensive turn down into the attack, or a pull up and zoom followed by pull through down into the zooming enemy. If the enemy attempts a substantial cut-off in either case, he can be forced to overshoot your descending flight path.
b. The enemy can counter the vertical rolling scissors when he has a substantial airspeed advantage if he does not attempt to cut-off your descending flight path. Instead, as he climbs past you in your dive, he should roll away or barrel roll to reduce his ascending vertical vector velocity and hence his yo-yo apex. This will allow him to complete his 180 degree change of direction with less vertical displacement and will position him at your 6 o'clock with less longitudinal separation and a higher rate of closure.
VERTICAL ROLLING SCISSORS
Figure 10
14) Flat Scissors Manoeuvre.
a. The scissors is a defensive manoeuvre in which a series of turn reversals are made in an attempt to achieve offensive potential after an overshoot by the enemy. The manoeuvre is illustrated in figure 11. If you continue to turn in the same direction after the overshoot, the enemy will have the opportunity to manoeuvre towards your 6 o'clock position, because you will be turning away from the attack. To prevent this, initiate a turn reversal as the enemy passes through your flight path. The decision as to when to execute the reversal will depend upon the enemy's rate of overshoot, angle off, and type of aircraft. A good rule of thumb is - rapid overshoot, early reversal, slow overshoot, later reversal. The turn reversal will place him at a high angle-off and will cause him, once again, to cross your flight path. You have now forced him into a scissors manoeuvre.
FLAT SCISSORS
Figure 11
b. A geometric analysis will show that the aircraft which has the shorter turn radius and lower velocity will force the other to the 12 o'clock position. In this manoeuvre you, the defensive fighter, have the advantage because, by virtue of forcing the enemy to overshoot, you have the lower velocity and if you employ the proper technique the enemy can easily be placed at your 12 o'clock. The techniques for flying a scissors manoeuvre are as follows.
(i) Obtain a nose high attitude. This enables you to reduce your turn radius as well as decrease your velocity in the horizontal plane. This can be achieved by 'pumping' the stick back (No aileron) to induce the nose to rise.
(ii) Manoeuvre the A/C with rudder alone - Any use of aileron will require a slackening of back pressure which will cause the speed and turn radius to increase.
(iii) Use maximum power, since this has the effect of reducing the A/C stalling speed, thus decreasing the minimum speed available.
(iv) Reverse on the bogey early if his overshoot is severe with overtake and late if the overshoot is low aspect with undertake.
c. If the enemy counters effectively and forces you low, manoeuvre in phase with him; this puts him at a visual disadvantage since you will be directly beneath him. In an attempt to find you, the enemy is forced to roll excessively in one direction or the other. This increases his stalling speed and forces him forward and down towards your flight path. The moment the enemy notices this, he will probably reduce bank and manoeuvre as smoothly as you, with a resultant stand-off. If and when this occurs, employ maximum thrust, relax 'G', and dive 180 degrees away from him. Initiate this manoeuvre immediately after the enemy has made his last observation, when he does not have visual contact. In this way, you have the opportunity to gain considerable longitudinal separation and place him in an overhead attack position with no overtake speed.
d. When employing the scissors manoeuvre, attempt to secure an advantage as quickly as possible, certainly by the second turn reversal. If you do not, you will rapidly lose airspeed and therefore manoeuvrability and will never acquire an advantage. Instead, you will be in a stand-off situation with marginal control and an easy target for another enemy aircraft.
15) Countering the Scissors Manoeuvre.
a. As previously stated, the scissors manoeuvre is a defensive manoeuvre designed to take advantage of an enemy's over-shoot. If you are attacking, employ the high yo-yo as soon as you realise that your rate of closure may cause a turn overshoot, thus enabling you to retain the offensive advantage. However, if you misjudge an enemy's turn and are forced into an over-shoot there is an effective counter to the scissors which tends to show that the scissors is highly over-rated as an easy method to achieve an offensive advantage.
COUNTERING THE SCISSORS
Figure 12
b. To counter a scissors manoeuvre (see figure 12) determine your manoeuvring potential with respect to the enemy. When attacking, you have a significant advantage in terms of speed that can be converted to a tactical advantage. Manoeuvring into a nose-high scissors is a mistake as this places you in front of or above the enemy and in a stalemate situation. However, if you use speed in this vertical plane in a zoom manoeuvre you can generate a significant advantage. As you realise that you are overshooting the enemy's turn, relax 'G' and deliberately slide to the outside of the turn. Relaxing the 'G' serves two purposes:
(i) It maintains a speed advantage.
(ii) It increases lateral separation on the overshoot. This reduces your velocity component along the axis of the enemy's flight path, thus maintaining nose-tail separation. Observing the overshoot, the enemy may be enticed to make a nose-high reversal in an attempt to gain an offensive advantage. If he continues the turn, try and slide into his 6 o'clock. In view of this, a reversal by the enemy is almost certain. As the enemy reverses, roll wings level and pull-up into a zoom; the enemy will be unable to match you because of his airspeed disadvantage. In this way, you reduce the horizontal vector to a value smaller than the enemy's even though you have a higher airspeed. As a result, you will be high with nose-tail separation while the enemy will have dissipated his airspeed with a consequent loss of manoeuvring potential. You should then be able to roll off his 6 o'clock position.
c. If the enemy pulls-up banked towards you, the o'clock position. The roll off increases nose-tail separation and prevents a possible overshoot.
e. To manoeuvre against your overshoot, the enemy must reverse and continue his defensive turn. If he does not reverse there will be no need to roll wings-level and zoom in the vertical plane as the enemy will turn away and place himself in your flight path. As a consequence, you can follow and manoeuvre towards his 6 o'clock position. However as you overshoot his turn, he may be able to execute a nose-high reversal which forces you to roll wings-level and zoom for altitude. If you pull too little or too late you will slide into the enemy's 12 o'clock high position. Therefore, you must rotate through a large vertical angle when the enemy executes his nose-high reversal to obtain considerable vertical displacement. Having placed you in this position, the enemy would probably turn 180 degrees in the vertical plane, relax 'G' and dive for separation although he must accomplish his turn before dissipating too much airspeed and acquiring an extremely nose-high attitude. As soon as you see the dive for separation, you should turn from an extreme nose-high position, 180 degrees in the vertical plane to regain an offensive position at 6 o'clock. The effect of gravity causes you to dissipate considerable airspeed. Thus, you are in an overhead attack position with no overtake speed, outside of gun firing range.
f. In Summary, the counter to the scissors manoeuvre is basically nothing more than a high yo-yo initiated after a turn overshoot. Relax 'G', roll wings-level and zoom in the vertical plane to retain or regain nose-tail separation.
16) Horizontal Rolling Scissors.
a. A variation of the slow speed scissors discussed in the previous paragraphs is the horizontal rolling, slow speed scissors (see figure 13). As the name implies, this type of scissors involves a series of barrel rolls with the axis of the roll being in the horizontal plane. The rolling scissors is a more efficient defensive manoeuvre than the horizontal scissors due to the utilisation of a three-dimensional manoeuvre (barrel roll). The rolling scissors may be used in nearly all situations where a horizontal scissors could be used, except when the defender does not have enough speed to roll over the top. It is most effective when the attacker overshoots the defender with a high angle-off below his flight path.
b. If you are being attacked, remember the rule of thumb; rapid overshoot, early reversal, slow overshoot, late reversal. As you reverse, maintain back pressure to attain the maximum 'G' available and utilise the rudder as the primary control for rolling back into the enemy. As you pass through the wings-level position during the reversal use any excess speed to zoom in the vertical plane, thereby further decreasing the forward velocity vector. As the enemy is sighted on the opposite side continue the roll into him, attempting to roll over the top of his aircraft. If he has continued his turn in the horizontal plane his forward velocity vector will be greater than yours and he will be forced out in front. Do not allow him to roll towards your flight path, but keep him out of phase by rolling in the same direction and continue rolling until he is forced out in front.
HORIZONTAL ROLLING SCISSORS
Figure 13
c. An alert attacker will not allow himself to be trapped in a scissors. If you are attacking, do not dissipate your airspeed advantage by attempting to turn with the enemy when it is obvious that you will eventually overshoot. If you press too close, overshoot then as the enemy reverses immediately level your wings and zoom in the vertical as the enemy attempts to roll over you. At this point the enemy should not attempt a scissors since your original airspeed advantage will allow you to rotate to a steeper attitude in the vertical plane and thereby decrease forward velocity vector to a component less than the enemy's. Once the enemy detects your pull-up, he may be expected to turn 180 degrees in the vertical plane and dive away in an escape manoeuvre. This will place you in an overhead attack position with low airspeed.
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CONCLUSIONS
Having considered how to fight an adversary of similar type, it is necessary to apply the basic skills and theories to fighting an opponent with completely different characteristics. It will more often than not be necessary to tailor the employment of the basic concepts you have already learnt but essentially, the fundamental theories will not change.
Having gone through all the various techniques if visual ACM is required, be aware of taking a bandit slow speed if there are any other bad guys around. You will become a sitting duck for a re-engaging wingman.
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