UKC

I was surprised to see that the Germans did so well in this table:-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_World_War_II_air_aces


I suppose as with any form of killing, it gets easier the more you do it.

In reply to trevor simpson:

I think Matricide & Patricide get much more difficult after the first time.

In reply to trevor simpson:

Au contraire, have you tried killing a dodo recently?

In reply to trevor simpson:

Evidence would suggest there's an inexhaustable supply of time to kill on forums (fora?). But does it get any easier?

In reply to Clauso:

Is that similar to choking a chicken?

In reply to trevor simpson:

Surprised too. You have to go way down the list to get any non-Luftwaffe.

I guess a lot of those kills were crappy Russian aeroplanes?

In reply to trouserburp:

on that page it gives part of the reason as the Luftwaffe kept flying in combat until killed whereas the allies pulled them back into training roles.

In reply to trevor simpson:

Apparently, the highest kill rates in the Allies were achieved by Polish squadrons. T say they pressed home the attack would be an understatemnt.

As for me, I find owl killing is almost banal I do it that often.

In reply to trouserburp:
The leading one on that list scored nearly all of his kills against soviet aircraft.
From everything I have read for most of the early parts of the war it was a duck shoot against poor aircraft and pilots who had to go or be shot by their own side.
That said they still had to shoot people down to get on the list

In reply to trevor simpson:

You should read the "First and the Last" by Adolf Galland, superb book.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Galland

In reply to trevor simpson:

Flipping eck....you'd be hard pushed to find a better example of a textbook UKC uninformed platitude typed from the comfort of a chair than that.

In reply to trevor simpson:

It think it depends on how they were coutned as well. Some took "probables" as kills, some shared kills as a 1/2, some didn't count shared kills, and the US for example also coutned aircraft destroyed on the ground. Add to that the factors above (people keeping flying until they're shot down, and an imbalance of technology in some theatres) account for a lot.

Tim

In reply to nickinscottishmountains:
Maybe we should make a list of things that get easier to kill over time and things that don't to work out if it is accurate?

Things that get easier to kill:

Braincells (With beer)
Time

Things that get harder to kill:

....

In reply to John Rushby:

They also flew the most sorties per man.

If the Battle of Britain was the turning point in the war, the Poles helped tip the balance (both of my grandfathers were Polish servicemen)

In reply to nickinscottishmountains:


Do you disagree?

In reply to Reach>Talent: Hi mate, I'm totally lost by your post, me no understand!!

In reply to trevor simpson: It's just a generalisation, based on a hunch, isn't it? For some situations it might be true, for others it might not.

In reply to trevor simpson:

> Au contraire, have you tried killing a dodo recently?

Is that similar to choking a chicken?


It is if you've had a penectomy.

In reply to nickinscottishmountains:
Well you suggested that the idea that killing became easier was innacurate. I think we should test this hypothesis.

In reply to nickinscottishmountains:

Obviously it was partially tongue in cheek, but as an ex-pilot, I know you get better and more aware of the 3D airspace with experience.

I would imagine you were at greatest risk in your early combat missions, and once you'd got the knack of shooting other planes and avoiding being shot, it got easier to stay alive in pick off the nervous, inexperienced novices on the other side.

In reply to trevor simpson:

The German Officer ranking system was based on how many aircraft they had shot down, which is what led to this "optimistic" kill count.

In reply to nickinscottishmountains:

Historically, it seems to have generally been true according to a lot of people who *weren't* in armchairs issuing platitudes. But there are also other reported instances where killing became more psychologically difficult the more physically easy it became. There are accounts of German machine gunners stopping firing during WW1 because they just couldn't watch any more Allied soldiers collapsing in front of them. But the general thing definitely seems to be that people get used to it, and no longer find it as traumatic or significiant after the first few engagements. That's very extensively recorded in accounts written by soldiers.

In reply to Steve Parker:
I'm shocked Biggles is'nt on the list, surely some mistake?

In reply to JimR:

Biggles only flew on secret missions, you idiot. Now don't ever mention him again in case there are any Huns listening in.

In reply to trevor simpson:

most of WWII air fighting was over russia so not surprising