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Re: Allied Opinion of IJN vs. IJA Fighter Pilots
I have read that Johny Johnson indeed found Pips Prillerīs claims to be accurate. However, he was very doubtful with Marseilleīs claims (specially remarkable one day records) and made sceptical comments on them in his memoirs.
Going to IJA / IJN pilots, I do not know who of them or which units have been found to be the most accurate claim records. Who is the top Japanese ace or which is the top IJA/IJN unit by the verification of Allied records? It would be interesting to know - it might well be that the top pilots and top units were other than those ranked by official Japanese records!
I happen to know parallel from the Soviet-Finnish Winter War 1939-1940. Very top Soviet fighter unit was 7 IAP with 68 "confirmed air victories". The recent studies (using Finnish data) have dropped that figure to 9 verified air victories. Other Soviet unit 49 IAP was less successfull in Winter War with 16 "confirmed air victories". However 49 IAP was quite accurate in its claims and Finnish records have confirmed 9 of its air victories. 49 IAP was less rewarded and less famous than 7 IAP, but it destroyed equal number of Finnish planes as 7 IAP. The real difference between the two units was in their way of confirming air victories.
There may have been similar differences in IJA/IJN units depending on the commanders and some IJA/IJN pilots may have been more accurate in their claims than others.
Last edited by GuerraCivil; 21st November 2014 at 19:53.
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