A dogfight or dog fight is aerial combat between fighter aircraft. The term originated during World War I. Dogfight may refer to: Dogfight, a form of aerial combat Dogfight (film), a Vietnam war film Dogfight (1993 computer game), developed by MicroProse for DOS, Atari and Amiga Dogfight, a cyberpunk short story by M. Swanwick & W.Gibson, published 1985 in Hackers anthology of short stories DOGFIGHT, a song by... Combat has been fought in the air since 1911. ... An A-10 Thunderbolt II, F-86 Sabre, P-38 Lightning and P-51 Mustang fly in formation during an air show at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. ... “The Great War ” redirects here. ...

Modern terminology for aerial combat between aircraft is air-to-air combat and air combat maneuvering, or ACM. Air Combat Manoeuvring (ACM) is the art of manoeuvring a combat aircraft in order to attain a position from which an attack can be made on another aircraft. ...

F-22 Raptors over Utah in their first official deployment, Oct. 2005, simulating a dogfight.

Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 486 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (1947 × 2400 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 486 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (1947 × 2400 pixel, file size: 1. ... ...

History

World War I

Main article: Aviation in World War I

Dogfighting emerged in World War I. Aircraft were initially used as mobile observation vehicles and early pilots gave little thought to aerial combat—enemy pilots at first simply exchanged waves. Intrepid pilots decided to interfere with enemy reconnaissance by improvised means, including throwing bricks, grenades and sometimes rope, which they hoped would entangle the enemy plane's propeller. This progressed to pilots firing hand-held guns at enemy planes. Once machine guns were mounted to the plane, either in a turret or higher on the wings of early biplanes, the era of air combat began. The Germans acquired an early air superiority due to the invention of synchronization gear in 1915. Color Autochrome Lumière of a Nieuport Fighter in Aisne, France 1917 One of the many innovations of World War I, aircraft were first used for reconnaissance purposes and later as fighters and even bombers. ... For other uses, see Aviator (disambiguation). ... A brick in a wall An old brick wall in English bond laid with alternating courses of headers and A brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction and sized to be laid with one hand using mortar. ... A hand grenade is a hand-held bomb, made to be thrown by a soldier. ... Coils of rope used for long-line fishing A rope (IPA: ) is a length of fibers, twisted or braided together to improve strength for pulling and connecting. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... A machine gun is a fully-automatic firearm that is capable of firing bullets in rapid succession. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings of similar spans, normally one mounted above, and the other level with, the underside of the fuselage. ... Damaged propeller from a Sopwith Baby aircraft circa 1916/17 with evidence of bulletholes from a machine gun fired behind the propeller without an Interruptor. ...

During the first part of the war, there was no established tactical doctrine for air-to-air combat. Oswald Boelcke was the first to analyze the tactics of aerial warfare, resulting in a set of rules known as the Dicta Boelcke. Many of Boelcke's concepts, conceived in 1916, are still applicable today, including use of sun and altitude, surprise attack, and turning to meet a threat. Oswald Boelcke in 1916 Oswald Boelcke (19 May 1891–28 October 1916) was a German flying ace of the First World War and one of the most influential patrol leaders and tacticians of the early years of air combat. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

World War II

During the first part of World War II, the basic ideas behind dogfighting changed little. However, the aircraft were improved drastically over their World War I counterparts. Aircraft such as the Messerschmitt Bf 109 and the Mitsubishi Zero surprised the Allies with their superior maneuverability and speed. Allied fighter planes, such as the Supermarine Spitfire, would continually "bunny hop" with Axis planes, going through numerous variants in the continuing effort to gain technological superiority. German Airfield, France, 1941 propaganda photo of the Luftwaffe, Bf 109 fighters on the tarmac The Messerschmitt Bf 109 was a German World War II fighter aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt in the early 1930s. ... Mitsubishi A6M3 Zero wreck abandoned at Munda Airfield, Central Solomons, 1943. ... The Supermarine Spitfire was an iconic British single-seat fighter, which was used by the British Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries during the Second World War, and into the 1950s. ...

The outcome of the Battle of Britain was largely determined by dogfighting between British and German fighters. Combatants United Kingdom Including combatants from:[1] Poland New Zealand Canada Czechoslovakia Belgium Australia South Africa France Ireland United States Jamaica Palestine Rhodesia Germany Including combatants from Italy Commanders Hugh Dowding Hermann Göring Strength 754 single-seat fighters 149 two-seat fighters 560 bombers 500 coastal 1,963 total...

The American Volunteer Group (AVG), which was later better known by its nickname the Flying Tigers, led by Claire Chennault, was among the first to successfully counter the highly maneuverable Japanese fighter planes. Chennault interviewed Chinese pilots carefully and learned all he could about Japanese fighter performance characteristics, tactics and methods. He realized that the Japanese fighters were extremely maneuverable and classic tactics would not work against them, so he advised pilots to work in teams rather than alone and devised tactics to take advantage of the strengths of the P-40 and avoid fighting on Japanese terms. The “Flying Tigers” (Traditional Chinese: ; Simplified Chinese: ; Pinyin: ; Japanese: フライング・タイガース) was the nickname of the American Volunteer Group (AVG), a group of United States Army Air Forces (USAAF), United States Navy (USN), and United States Marine Corps (USMC) pilots and ground crew, recruited under a secret Presidential sanction by Claire Chennault... The “Flying Tigers” (Traditional Chinese: ; Simplified Chinese: ; Pinyin: ; Japanese: フライング・タイガース) was the nickname of the American Volunteer Group (AVG), a group of United States Army Air Forces (USAAF), United States Navy (USN), and United States Marine Corps (USMC) pilots and ground crew, recruited under a secret Presidential sanction by Claire Chennault... Maj. ...

The P-40 Warhawk had pilot armor, self-sealing fuel tanks, sturdy construction, powerful machine guns, and a much faster diving speed. It could defeat the more maneuverable Japanese fighters by remaining out of range and using diving attacks and reattacks after a zoom climb, or "vertically". This was important because their opponents could outmaneuver the Warhawk in a horizontal turning contest. Chennault also created a relatively primitive, but effective early warning network to enable his fighters to take off in time to gain an altitude advantage before the Japanese arrived. By using speed and resisting the deadly error of trying to out-turn the Zero, eventually the .50 caliber machine guns could be brought to bear and a single burst of fire was usually enough to shoot down the Japanese fighter aircraft, which did not have self-sealing fuel tanks or armor. In a time when most of the news was of defeats, the AVG was officially credited with 297 enemy aircraft destroyed (although author Daniel Ford discounts the total to 115). Even at Ford's lower figure, the AVG was a notable success in the first few months of 1942, when the Allies were being thrown back throughout the Pacific theater. The Curtiss P-40 was an American fighter aircraft which first flew in 1938 and played a vital role in the crucial middle stages of World War II. Developed from the pre-war radial-engined P-36 Hawk, the P-40 became known as the Tomahawk, the Kittyhawk, and finally... The Pacific Theater of Operations (PTO) is the term used in the United States for all military activity in the Pacific Ocean and the countries bordering it, in World War II. Pacific War is a more common name, around the world, for the broader conflict between the Allies and Japan...

Another pilot who realized that new tactics had to be devised was then-Lieutenant Commander John S. "Jimmy" Thach, commander of Fighting Three in San Diego. He read the early reports coming out of China and wrestled with the problem of his F4F Wildcats being relatively slower and much less maneuverable than the Japanese planes. He devised a defensive maneuver called the "Thach Weave" by LtCdr James H. Flatley, another fighter tactician and contemporary of Thach. LtCdr Thach reasoned that two planes, a leader and his wingman, could fly about 200 feet apart, and adopt a weaving formation when under attack by Japanese fighters. He later faced the A6M Zero during the Battle of Midway in June 1942 for the acid test of his theory. Although outnumbered, he found that a Zero would lock onto the tail of one of the fighters. In response, the two planes would turn toward each other. When the Zero followed its original target through the turn, it would come into a position to be fired on by the target's wingman, and the predator would become the prey. His tactic proved to be effective and was soon adopted by other squadrons. The Thach Weave helped make up for the inferiority of the US planes in technology and numbers, until new aircraft could be brought into service. The usefulness of this strategy survives until today. John Smith Thach (19 April 1905 - 15 April 1981) was a World War II naval aviator, air combat tactician, and Admiral in the United States Navy. ... Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat of VF-41, circa early 1942. ... An example of the Thach Weave The Thach Weave was an aerial combat tactic developed by naval aviator John S. Thach of the United States Navy early during World War II. Thach had heard of the Japanese Mitsubishi Zeros extraordinary maneuverability and climb rate before he ever experienced it... Then Lt. ... A wingman is a pilot who supports another in a potentially dangerous flying environment. ... Mitsubishi A6M3 Zero wreck abandoned at Munda Airfield, Central Solomons, 1943. ... Combatants United States Empire of Japan Commanders Chester W. Nimitz Frank J. Fletcher Raymond A. Spruance Isoroku Yamamoto Chuichi Nagumo Tamon Yamaguchi † Strength 3 carriers, ~50 support ships, 233 carrier aircraft, 127 land-based aircraft 4 carriers, 7 battleships, ~150 support ships, 248 carrier aircraft, 16 floatplanes Casualties 1 carrier...

The Lufbery circle was another defensive maneuver used when faced with attack by superior numbers or less-maneuverable opponents. The Lufbery is executed by several aircraft turning horizontally in same direction, which forces an opponent to get down into the same circle where an attack cannot be made without coming under attack by the following fighter. When the allies fielded the Hellcat and the Corsair in the Solomon Islands, the Zero could not outrun the faster Navy fighters and resorted to the Lufbery in an attempt to draw their opponents into a horizontal turning contest they could win. Luffberry Circle, also spelled Lufberry or Lufbery, is a defensive air combat tactic that was most commonly used during World War I. // This air-to-air tactic was purely defensive in nature, and could only be mounted by flights of multiple planes working together. ... Grumman F6F-3 Hellcats on 1 January 1943 F6F-5 ready in catapult on USS Randolph Grumman F6F-3 Hellcat on the flight deck of USS Yorktown (CV-10) prior to take off, having its wings extended Grumman F6F-3 Hellcats in tricolor scheme on the flight deck The Grumman... Look up corsair in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Modern air combat

Gun camera stills released by the Indian Air Force show FLTLT M.A. Ganapathy's Gnat scoring hits on FLGOFF Khalil Ahmed's F-86 Sabre over Boyra during the Battle of Boyra in the 1971 Indo-Pak war

Even in the jet age, modern air-to-air combat can develop into dog fights. A fighter can evade a missile by abrupt maximum performance turns and employing countermeasures such as chaff and flares, provided he can detect the missile via a radar warning receiver (RWR) or visually. If beyond visual range (BVR) missiles can be defeated, pilots can press the attack and very quickly arrive at the within visual range (WVR) arena. This will typically result in a high-speed neutral pass (or merge) from which the opposing pilots must decide to turn and continue the fight with his or her opponent or continue straight and 'bug-out'. The turning fight that develops can be commonly called a dog fight, or basic fighter maneuvering (BFM). Image File history File links Guncam. ... Image File history File links Guncam. ... The Indian Air Force (भारतीय वायु सेना : Bharatiya Vayu Sena) is the air-arm of the Armed Forces of India and has the prime responsibility of conducting aerial warfare and securing the Indian airspace. ... The Folland Gnat was an exceptionally small, swept-wing British subsonic jet trainer and light fighter aircraft originally developed for the Royal Air Force. ... The North American F-86 Sabre (sometimes called the Sabrejet) was a transonic combat aircraft developed for the US Air Force. ... A HAL Ajeet fighter . ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Bangladesh Liberation War. ...

Superiority in a dog fight can depend on a pilot's experience and skill, and the agility of his fighter when flown at minimum air speeds approaching loss of control (causing a danger of stalling); the winner typically plays to the strengths of his own aircraft while forcing his adversary to fly at a design disadvantage. Dogfights are generally contests fought at low airspeeds, while maintaining enough energy for violent acrobatic maneuvering, as pilots attempt to remain within air speeds with a maximum turn rate and minimum turn radius: the so-called "corner speed" that often lies between 300 and 400 knots, depending on conditions. Therefore a dogfight has nothing to do with supersonic speed, but much to do with the engine power that makes supersonic flight possible. The F-22 Raptor can stand on its steerable nozzles at less than 100 knots airspeed, yet quickly maneuver to bring its M61 Vulcan cannon to bear on a nearby evasive target, while an F-15 Eagle is more likely to use its thrust to maintain its relatively high corner speed, working to counter the drag caused by tight turns. In aerodynamics, a stall is a condition in which an excessive angle of attack causes loss of lift due to disruption of airflow. ... A knot is a unit of speed abbreviated kt or kn. ... The F-22 Raptor is a fifth generation fighter aircraft which utilizes fourth generation Stealth technology. ... Unmounted M61 Vulcan The 20 mm M61 Vulcan is a hydraulically or pneumatically driven, six-barreled, air-cooled, electrically fired Gatling-style gun with an extremely high rate of fire. ... The McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) F-15 Eagle is an all-weather tactical fighter designed to gain and maintain air superiority in aerial combat. ...

The continued importance of maintaining dogfighting proficiency was demonstrated during the Vietnam War. American pilots flew aircraft such as the F-4 Phantom II, equipped with long-range AIM-7 Sparrow missiles, and AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles. However, air crews were required not to fire any missiles without having visually identified the target first, to make absolutely sure they were not an ally, thus losing this technological advantage. The AIM-7 missile was also not very reliable, making heavy use of delicate components such as vacuum tubes which had to endure the SE Asia climate, carrier takeoffs, and high stress maneuvers. Also, they had semi-active radar homing, meaning that they used the carrier plane's radar signals to home in on the target. The missiles themselves did not have a radar system, but "listened" to the pings of the attacker's radar and used the reflection of the prey aircraft to home in on it. AIM-9 missile were heat-seeking fire-and-forget missiles, meaning that once they had a lock on a heat source, they would attempt to hit it. They were only useful in short range, and in many cases fail due to a number of factors including delicate instruments and false heat sources such as the sun. Additionally, early versions of the F-4 (prior to the E model) relied solely on missiles, having no guns nor lead-computing Gyro gunsight, and were therefore very vulnerable in the gun-range combat that could ensue. Combatants Republic of Vietnam United States Republic of Korea Thailand Australia New Zealand The Philippines National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam Democratic Republic of Vietnam People’s Republic of China Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea Strength US 1,000,000 South Korea 300,000 Australia 48,000... The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II[2] is a two-seat supersonic long-range all-weather fighter-bomber originally developed for the U.S. Navy by McDonnell Douglas. ... A RIM-7 Sea Sparrow being launched from the USS Essex (LHD-2). ... The AIM-9 Sidewinder is a heat-seeking, short-range, air-to-air missile carried by fighter aircraft and recently, certain gunship helicopters. ... The Ferranti Gyro Sight Mk IIc A gyro gunsight is a type of gunsight in which target lead (the amount of aim-off in front of a moving target) and bullet drop are allowed-for automatically, the sight incorporating a gyroscopic mechanism that computes the necessary deflections required to ensure...

IAF's Sukhoi Su-30MKI during a dogfight maneuver.

Lightweight, short-endurance, point-defense fighters such as the MiG-17 and MiG-21 are typically far more agile than heavy, long-range, fighter-bombers (see the F-105 Thunderchief). Still, using superior tactics, the AIM-9 Sidewinder short range missiles, and cannon fire, American pilots were able to gain significant victories in the air over North Vietnam, especially after the establishment of the US Navy's Fighter Weapons School (TOPGUN) to restore dogfighting ability to its pilots. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 534 pixelsFull resolution (1024 × 683 pixel, file size: 280 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Source:[1] Photo taken by ramkrsna and uploaded at Flickr. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 534 pixelsFull resolution (1024 × 683 pixel, file size: 280 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Source:[1] Photo taken by ramkrsna and uploaded at Flickr. ... The Indian Air Force (भारतीय वायु सेना : Bharatiya Vayu Sena) is the air-arm of the Armed Forces of India and has the prime responsibility of conducting aerial warfare and securing the Indian airspace. ... Sukhoi Su-30 MKI (NATO reporting name Flanker-H)[1] is a variant of the Sukhoi Su-30, jointly-developed by Russias Sukhoi Corporation and Indias Hindustan Aeronautics Limited for the Indian Air Force. ... MiG-17 at the Central Texas Airshow, USA, May 2003. ... Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 (NATO reporting name Fishbed) is a fighter aircraft, originally built by the Mikoyan and Gurevich Design Bureau in the Soviet Union. ... The Republic F-105 Thunderchief, commonly known as the Thud by its crews, was a single-seat supersonic fighter-bomber used by the United States Air Force. ... The AIM-9 Sidewinder is a heat-seeking, short-range, air-to-air missile carried by fighter aircraft and recently, certain gunship helicopters. ...

Referring back the the previous section which focused on tactics developed during World War II , the North Vietnamese MiG-17 resorted to use of the Lufbery manuever on occasion when cornered by faster F-4 Phantom fighters. Whereas the Thach Weave is used as aircraft move towards a point in space, the Lufbery is employed over a fixed point.† MiG-17 at the Central Texas Airshow, USA, May 2003. ... The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II[2] is a two-seat supersonic long-range all-weather fighter-bomber originally developed for the U.S. Navy by McDonnell Douglas. ...

With modern air-to-air AMRAAM guided missiles greatly extending the general engagement range of jet fighters, some experts hypothesize that dogfighting may be headed toward extinction, but others cite the occurrences in Vietnam as evidence otherwise. However, it is worth noting that there have been a great number of Beyond Visual Range (BVR) kills occurring during and after the Persian Gulf War. This was due to the improved reliability of BVR missiles, radars, and most importantly, the integration of C3I assets such as AWACS aircraft into the realm of aerial warfare. This provided Coalition forces with a superior picture of the battlefield, and in conjunction with airspace management allowed utilization of BVR weaponry. The AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range, Air-to-Air Missile, or AMRAAM (pronounced am-ram), commonly known to air crews as the Slammer, is a new generation air-to-air missile, developed as the result of an agreement between the United States and other NATO countries (see below). ... A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for attacking other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed to attack ground targets, primarily by dropping bombs. ... US Air Force E-3 Sentry AWACS aircraft is prepared for flight in November 1997 Cockpit of RAF E-3 Sentry undergoing upgrades Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) is a radar-based electronic system designed to carry out airborne surveillance, and C3 (command, control and communications) functions for both...

Despite this, the improvement of all-aspect IR missiles coupled with helmet-mounted sights has mitigated the necessity of tail-chase attacks. In addition, Russian development of tail-mounted radar and rear-firing missiles has reduced the vulnerability to tail-chase attacks. An all-aspect missile is one which is able to track a target no matter which way the target faces relative to the missile. ...

Yet because this feature is only present on the most modern jets, and missiles are a finite resource, The US Navy (TOPGUN) and Air Force (Red Flag) continue to teach postgraduate level classes in air combat maneuvering engagements. Russian aircraft manufacturers heavily emphasize superagility and dogfight capabilities in fighter design, with aircraft such as the Su-37 or the Su-30MKI demonstrating advanced thrust vectoring systems to achieve these goals, pushing the aircraft to its limits to give it an advantage in combat. USAF fighters such as the F-15 and F-16 tend to favor higher speeds because of their emphasis on high power-to-weight ratio and low wing-loading, although the F-22 have superagility with its own vectored thrust. TOPGUN is the code name and common name of the U.S. Navy Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor (SFTI) course. ... An Australian F-111 bomber approaching a USAF KC-135 tanker during Exercise Red Flag 06-1. ... Categories: Military stubs | Soviet and Russian fighter aircraft 1990-1999 ... Sukhoi Su-30 MKI, (Modernised-Commercial-Indiski), is the variant of the Sukhoi Su-30. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Seal of the Air Force. ... The McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle is an all-weather, extremely maneuverable, tactical fighter designed to permit the U.S. Air Force to gain and maintain air superiority in aerial combat. ... The F-16 Fighting Falcon is a modern multi-role jet fighter aircraft built in the United States and used by dozens of countries all over the world. ... Power-to-weight ratio is a measure commonly used when comparing various vehicles (or engines), including automobiles, motorcycles and aircraft. ... ...

See also

Wikisource has several original texts related to:

Audio recordings and transcripts with comments of actual Wild Weasel missions flown during the Vietnam War, including air combat with MiG-17s.

• Thach Weave
• The Scissors
• Immelmann turn
• Split S
• Lufbery
• Aerial warfare
• List of aircraft shootdowns

Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... The original Wikisource logo. ... An example of the Thach Weave The Thach Weave was an aerial combat tactic developed by naval aviator John S. Thach of the United States Navy early during World War II. Thach had heard of the Japanese Mitsubishi Zeros extraordinary maneuverability and climb rate before he ever experienced it... The Scissors is an aerial dog fighting maneuver, commonly applied by military fighter pilots. ... The Immelmann turn (also spelled as Immelman turn or Imellmann turn; also known as a roll-off-the-top, or simply an Immelmann) is an aerial maneuver, named after WWI German flying ace Max Immelmann who is the original founder of this maneuver. ... The Split S (also called a reversed Immelmann turn or spelled with a hyphen as Split-S) is one of the oldest air combat maneuvers, but is still considered useful, mostly to disengage from combat. ... Luffberry Circle, also spelled Lufberry or Lufbery, is a defensive air combat tactic that was most commonly used during World War I. // This air-to-air tactic was purely defensive in nature, and could only be mounted by flights of multiple planes working together. ... Aerial warfare is the use of military aircraft and other flying machines in warfare, including military airlift of cargo to further the national interests as was demonstrated in the Berlin Airlift. ... This is a list of aircraft shootdowns and dogfights from modern wars (1900s and 2000s) and other incidences. ...

References

• Shaw, Robert L. (1985). Fighter Combat: Tactics and Maneuvering. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-059-9. 

Footnotes

1. ^  Su-37 Flanker Report from Farnborough '96 (http://www.sci.fi/~fta/Su-27.htm)