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Pips: I think that one negating factor per the D.VII was the latter's high altitude performance, especially with the BMW engine. The fact that the D.VII could get above almost anything was a huge advantage that would negate some of the SPAds ability to initiate a slashing attack.
While the SPAD was faster and could dive better than a D.VII, it wasn't that much faster and it couldn't dive that much better. I imagine that a SPAD with an altitude advantage could dictate for a short period of time, but the D.VII's superioity in roll, turn, and cllimb - combined with the fact that its speed and dive weren't that much worse - would prevent the SPAD from holding the advantage indefinitely the way a P-38 could do to a Zero.
Of course, the best tactic of all was to find the other guy asleep at the stick ... fly up to him, put your guns in his cockpit, open fire, fly away. If you don't have to hang around the you don't have to worry about the fine points of relative flight envelopes.
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26 April 2008, 09:11 AM
Linear Mode
