[Andreas Brekken]

Hi, Nick

I tried to start this message at least 10 times, but couldn't come up with a good way.... earlier experiences has shown that trying to post a message on this board where the 'amis' aren't the best in every respect tends to be quite harshly flamed...

I have been using a couple of weeks this spring researching parts of the Tunisian campaign, the results will be published late this year, must get some more ULTRA in it.

Ok, that's the backdrop, now for the message that no doubtly will not be appreciated:

An averagely trained Rotte from this period would probably be able to cut a non-suspecting formation of Spits to pieces. And the clues to how this happened in this instance is partly in the story already:

Part 1: The bounce! Correct positioning and dive would ensure that the first pass would get rid of (probably) the trailing two-ship part of the formation. Chances are even that the pilots shot down would have been unable to warn their compatriots, and if the zoom-boom was performed correctly, the Bf 109 pair would be at a height and thus power advantage again, unseen by the rest of the formation.

Part 2: Attrition. The rest of the fight would be for the Bf 109's to wait, pick a target and get there, never engaging in a turning fight.

This is not expert flying, it is textbook flying when it comes to tactics for a Bf 109 driver from this period.

We will probably never get to know who these pilots where, but You could probably chalk them up as Fw. This and Uffz. That from JG 27, JG 53 or JG 77, two ordinary guys doing their ordinary job in their Bf 109F-4.

Hehehe!!!

Regards,
Andreas