FIGHTING FLEETS IN THE AIR.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XLII, Issue 12823, 15 April 1916, Page 1 (Supplement)

FIGHTING FLEETS IN THE AIR.

At the begin Tung "of the great, war, fighting in the air was a new science. Aviators knew little about how to take care of themselves in this new form of warfare, or how best to attack opponents. In the limited use of aeroplanes in previous wars, there had been no aotual fighting. Eighteen months of experience, however, in actual warfare,' with thousands of aeroplanes in dailv use, has helped to develop the tactics of aerial fighting. Certain -definite methods have been evolved, and are adhered to when possible by opposing antagonists, although it is true that such tactics are subject to modification according to new developments in machines and the individual brilliance and initiative of the aviator. After nearly two years of active service, veteran aviators (says a writer in tho Automobil-Revue, of Berne) have, however, succeeded in laying down somo fundamental rules to be followed in the situations more frequently confronting an aviator. Thero are about half a dozen situations in Which the opposing machines usually find themselves: (1; passing each other in opposite directions, with ,the enemy to the left; (2) flying parallel ; (3) when a. weaker but taster machine seeks safety in flight; (4) when rising above the hostile machine; (o) when dropping below to a position where the plane of the enemy aeroplane shuts off tho view of'ite pilot; and (6) a circling attack of three or more machines upon a single craft. In tho first situation, where tho opposing machines pass each other, the advantage "of having your opponent on tho left lies in the fact (that it :s easier to turn to aim a rifle to the left. If, however, the fighting passenger happens to be a left-handed shooter, he can surprise his antagonist bv taking a position to his left and shooting towards the right. This element of right and left position is stilt more important when the aviators are flying parallel. Then the man passing his opponent to the right has him at a disadvantage, for ho can shoot to the left, while his opponent must aim ■toward the right The parallel flight usually comes as the result of the pursuit in which the faster machine overhauls the slower, ehoosing its own position and altitude. Should the .pursued aviator learn that his machine is slower than his opponents, he can then resort to a sudden drop, and endeavor to shoot his adversary from below, in this position, he would bo protected, in a measure by the wing of the opposing "Weather conditions sometimes affect -the struggle in the air. For instance, the pursued aviator, by flying directly towards the sun, may compel his pursuer to look directly- into its blinding dare in order to locate his P?ey.. Often, too, a cloud may providentially appear and serve to presed scout. Another trick that may serve a good purpse when being pursued is to slow down quickly, the enemy machine to pass by at high/ speed. The slowing down process, however, must be accompanied by a simultaneous drop, otherwise the machine would naturaly offer an easier target. Enormous air-pressure at high speea in the air makes it difficut t& Tiold and aim a rifle. Aeroplanes not fitted with regular machine .guns have, therefore, •several pivots attached to their aides -into which the rifle is set, th&e pivots permitting a certain restricted arc ot fire. In order to fire beyond this arc, the rifle must be changed from one pivot to another, a process which is not made easier by a speed of seventy or eighty miles an hour. Aiming at an aeroplane going at this speed is m itself difficult. To make a hit is fai more so. With a distance of; say, oOU feet between machines, allowance must be made for their relative, speed, and the fraction ot time required by the bullet for its flight. To make anything like an accurate under these conditions is far from nemg .easy or accomplishment., and a Int. is largely a matter of chance. . The . fundamenal rules evolved m

aerial warfare are not, oi course, monopolised hy any oue or tho belligerents, nor do they apply to an> particular machine. They an- simply tlie re-mlt of the r,raetica] experience or the aviators on .-,',1 suie-, and will doubtless Ho arkled to considerably as the war C"-s on and experience- in the usf (if the aerial arm continues.