Hi, Joerg,
The majority of German aces tried to finish off the plane on the ground, if there was an opportunity to do so. Little of them shot the hanging parachutes. I have several cases with no clear indication who particularly did this.
As regards to Barkhorn, maybe he was so sentimental, however, I'am doubtful of this. If Mr. Barbas has the exact date when it happened I can point out Soviet pilot, who was "saved".
Quote:
Originally Posted by yogybär
Nikita, if that is true, it would fit into a picture of a "real warrior" who fights until total victory. Somewhere I read that Barkhorn had an astonishingly bad eyesight for a fighter pilot. But once his wingman showed him the enemy, he almost always "bit into the enemy (like a predator), until he went down" (translation of "sich in den Gegener verbeißen, bis er fällt"). Additionally, it also fits with the extremely high number of combat missions which Barkhorn flew - THE workaholic in JG52...
PS: "if that is true,..." does not mean that I have any reason to doubt in your statement  . |