LW tutorial: how to deal with ennemy flaps

[JG27*Kornezov]

I know that a lot of LW pilots have terrible problems against Red aces that deploy flaps on them. This video is a help how to deal with that situation. The Russian planes can deploy flaps in an instant, combined with downward spiral that is an old ace level trick maneuver. The 109 cannot deploy full flaps in this situation to create enough drag. Also when the throttle is fully dropped it takes some time to get back to power, so the reds can have faster engine dynamics in that scenario from 0 throttle to full power.
This video is bread and butter on engaged maneuvering in 109, no boom - zoom here, no surprise either.

 

 

[Raven109]

Nice, using his own tactics against him. Wonder why he didn't take a shot from 450m when you started extending, probably too wobbly or he thought he could gain on you.

[JG27*Kornezov]

He was below me and slower,  I was above him and faster. If he wants to take a shot at 400 he has to rise up the nose and that would slow him down. The time he has the nose up I would be almost 500 m away and jinking. Also I was nose down too.  That is why he chose to rise the flaps and unload G to accelerate as much as possible. But deploying full flaps comes at a price. However if I was at his place I would shoot because that was his last shooting opportunity and some reds hit even at 800 m distance from behind.

Edited May 7, 2020 by JG27_Kornezov

[Raven109]

Right, I think at that point a pot shot would've made sense, he wasn't gonna keep up with you anyway, try your luck and shoot while you can still touch the target, then disengage to another direction to have time to get your speed up/altitude up. I've never flown the La-5, so I don't know how it handles during low speed flaps-down maneuvering.

 

I also think he lost a lot by doing that early aggressive lead turn at the merge, then he pointed his nose down, allowing you to get a snap shot opportunity, (apparently) increasing his turn radius.

 

Maybe one day flaps will jam if extended at high speeds.

 

Anyway, good explanation on extending and turning room for this situation.

Edited May 7, 2020 by Raven109

[JG27*Kornezov]

It was a tactical mistake to get into 1 circle flow in the first place with energy advantage and dropping energy by flaps to force an overshoot. But try to convince a red ace with more than 10 kills per hour that wins 90% of the dogfights anyway, he relies on his technique and 90 % of the time they win. They want the kill as fast as possible, it is a shame for them to disengage and reposition because doing that they will not achieve the kill /hour ratio, and most of the time if they do that another blue would bounce them.
The point of the video is to explain how to detect the flaps drops other than visual. In the first place the flaps drop was used to extend. If the la 5 did not drop the flaps I could not extend, then I had to stay in the  fight.
In the second part the flaps drop was used in the scissors to go vertical.

The downward spiral is a place where good red pilots know how to make you overshoot. I have to further test if I drop the gear  I can stay with them. In that way I have more options and I can be more unpredictable.

Another example of the same pattern, turning, flaps detection then extension.

 

Edited May 8, 2020 by JG27_Kornezov