[Reinout]

Vin,

The question you ask is one that has puzzled many many before you - and will continue to puzzle others after you!

Sometimes, a man doesn't score for ages and then suddenly gets dozens in a short space of time. Take Jasta 11. Before MvR took over, the unit had not a single confirmed victory. The same pilots who had flown there for months weren't able to score. Then this MvR fellow popped in and those pilots without any confidence or ability (or so it seemed) became the deadliest unit of the time.

Best example is a WWII one. Willy Batz had flown fighters for one or two years on the Eastern Front and all he had to show for it was one victory at the most (don't remember when he scored his first victory). He was so depressed about it, he wanted a transfer, but his CO gave him two weeks of leave in the homeland instead. when Batz returned, he instantly became one of the most lethal airfighters of the war. This was somewhere in 1944 or perhaps at the end of 1943. He finished the war with 237 confirmed victories. What a story, eh?

Then there's Gerhard Barkhorn who scored his first victory on his 100th mission, hardly auspicious, yet he was to end the war with 301 and had to concede the topscoring honours to Hartmann only because of his injuries.

Kind regards,

Reinout