Spaceships: Fighter Jockeying and How to Dogfight in Jets: Air Combat Maneuvering: Flight Tactics 1960 USAF Training Film
Air combat manoeuvring (also spelled: air combat maneuvering, or 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. It relies on offensive and defensive basic fighter manoeuvring (BFM) in order to gain an advantage over an aerial opponent...
There are five main things which a pilot must remain conscious of when contemplating an aerial engagement, of which, getting and keeping sight is the most important. In Southeast Asia, over 85% of all kills are attributed to the attacker spotting and shooting the defender without ever being seen. Structural limitations of both the attacking and defending fighters must be taken into account, such as thrust-to-weight ratio, wing loading, and the "corner speed" (the maximum/minimum speed at which the aircraft can attain the best turning performance). Variable limitations must also be considered, such as turn radius, turn rate, and the specific energy of the aircraft. Position of aircraft must quickly be assessed, including direction, angle off tail (the angle between flight paths),[7] and closing speed. Also, the pilot must be aware of his wingman’s position, and maintain good communication.
A pilot in combat attempts to conserve his aircraft’s energy through carefully timed and executed manoeuvres. By using such manoeuvres, a pilot will often make trade offs between the fighter’s potential energy (altitude), and kinetic energy (airspeed), to maintain the energy-to-weight ratio of the aircraft, or the "specific energy".[6] A manoeuvre such as the "low yo-yo" trades altitude for airspeed to gain closure on an enemy, and to decrease turn radius. The opposite manoeuvre, a "high yo-yo", trades speed for height, literally storing energy in "the altitude bank", which allows a fast moving attacker to slow his closing speed.
An attacker is confronted with three possible ways to pursue an enemy, all of which are vital during chase. "Lag pursuit" happens in a turn when the nose of the attacker’s aircraft points behind an enemy’s tail. Lag pursuit allows an attacker to increase or maintain range without overshooting. "Lead pursuit" in a turn occurs when the nose of the attacking aircraft points ahead of the enemy. Lead pursuit is used to decrease the distance between aircraft, and during gun attacks where the cannons must be aimed, not at where the defender is, but where he will be when the bullets get there. "Pure pursuit" happens when the nose of the attacker points directly at the defender. Pure pursuit is when most missiles will be fired, and is the hardest position to maintain. These are known as pursuit curves...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvDz4MrYXNc
When one craft is hors de combat, you can always slip back to vic formation.
