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Re: So P-40s made mincemeat of Bf109s?
It is likely a lot has to do with the man in the cockpit. This excerpt from pilot interviews by Chris Shores and Hans Ring.
Prof. Dr. Ludwig Franzisket was Adjutant, then Staffelkapitän of the 1./JG 27, and one of the first three “Afrikans” to be awarded the Ritterkreuz:
“The appearance of the Tomahawks (in the Battle of Sollum, June 1941) was not very impressive. These units flew a very clumsy and tight formation, massed in immobile groups of thirty to forty aircraft. The tactics of the Bf 109s was to gain superior altitude very quickly and to dive down single-handed. The British squadrons answered only with an excited twisting and weaving. However it was a deadly mistake for a Bf 109 pilot to try and enter a dogfight with the Curtisses. I have seen the death of two or three comrades in dogfights with Curtisses, among them Leutnant Heinz Schmidt in June 1941.”
(Schmidt, a 6-victory ace of the 3./JG 27, was KIA 28.June 1941, 10km West of Capuzzo)
GRM
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