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Finger-four
The finger-four formation (also known as the "four finger formation" and the "Fingertip Formation") is a flight formation used by fighter aircraft. It consists of four aircraft, and four of these formations can be combined into a squadron formation. Description The formation consists of a flight of four aircraft, consisting of a "lead element" and a "second element", each of two aircraft. When viewing the formation from above, the positions of the planes resemble the tips of the four fingers of a human right hand (without the thumb), giving the formation its name. The lead element is made up of the flight leader at the very front of the formation and one wingman to his rear left. The second element is made up of an additional two planes, the element leader and his wingman. The element leader is to the right and rear of the flight leader, followed by the element wingman to his right and rear. Both the flight leader and element leader have offensive roles, in that they are th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Werner Mölders
Werner Mölders (18 March 1913 – 22 November 1941) was a World War II German Luftwaffe pilot, wing commander, and the leading German fighter ace in the Spanish Civil War. He became the first pilot in aviation history to shoot down 100 enemy aircraft and was highly decorated for his achievements. Mölders developed fighter tactics that led to the finger-four formation. He died in a plane crash as a passenger. Mölders joined the Luftwaffe, the air force of Nazi Germany, in 1934. In 1938 he volunteered for service in Germany's Condor Legion, then supporting General Francisco Franco's Nationalist side in the Spanish Civil War, and shot down 14 aircraft. Following the start of World War II in 1939, he took part in the "Phoney War" of 1939–1940, the Battle of France of May to June 1940, and the Battle of Britain (July 1940 onwards). With his tally standing at 68 victories, Mölders and his unit, ''Jagdgeschwader'' 51 (JG 51), transferred to the Eastern Front in June ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fighter Aircraft
Fighter aircraft (early on also ''pursuit aircraft'') are military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air supremacy, air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the airspace above a battlefield permits bombers and attack aircraft to engage in tactical bombing, tactical and strategic bombing of enemy targets, and helps prevent the enemy from doing the same. The key performance features of a fighter include not only its firepower but also its high speed and maneuverability relative to the target aircraft. The success or failure of a combatant's efforts to gain air superiority hinges on several factors including the skill of its pilots, the tactical soundness of its doctrine for deploying its fighters, and the numbers and performance of those fighters. Many modern fighter aircraft also have secondary capabilities such as ground-attack aircraft, ground attack and some types, such as fighter-b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Günther Lützow
Günther Lützow (4 September 1912 – 24 April 1945) was a German Luftwaffe aviator and fighter ace credited with 110 enemy aircraft shot down in over 300 combat missions. Apart from five victories during the Spanish Civil War, most of his claimed victories were over the Eastern Front in World War II. He also claimed 20 victories over the Western Front, including two victories—one of which was a four-engined bomber—flying the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter. Born in Kiel, Lützow volunteered for military service in the ''Reichswehr'' of the Weimar Republic in 1931. In parallel, he was accepted for flight training with the '' Deutsche Verkehrsfliegerschule'', a covert military-training organization, and at the Lipetsk fighter-pilot school. Following flight training, he was posted to Jagdgeschwader ''Richthofen'' (Fighter Wing "Richthofen") in 1934. In 1937, he volunteered for service with the Condor Legion during the Spanish Civil War where he was appointed ''Staffelk ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vic Formation
The Vic formation is a formation devised for military aircraft and first used during the First World War. It has three or sometimes more aircraft fly in close formation with the leader at the apex and the rest of the flight ''en echelon'' to the left and the right, the whole resembling the letter "V". The formation's name is derived from the term that was then used for "V" in the RAF phonetic alphabet. The formation is still in use but has been superseded or replaced in some circumstances. History At the start of the First World War, little thought had been given to the most efficient formations to use for military aircraft. Groups of fliers, drawn from the various nations' army or navy, would fly in columns, or line, ahead as if they were troops of cavalry or flotillas of ships. That was soon found to be inefficient for several reasons. Firstly, the leaders and their squadrons could not communicate with each other except for the vague instruction to follow the leader. Secondl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Finnish Air Force
The Finnish Air Force (FAF or FiAF; ; ) is one of the branches of the Finnish Defence Forces. Its peacetime tasks are airspace surveillance, identification flights, and production of readiness formations for wartime conditions. The Finnish Air Force was founded on 6 March 1918. History The Finnish Air Force, one of the oldest air forces of the world, pre-dates the British RAF (founded as an independent entity on 1 April 1918) and the Swedish (founded on 1 July 1926). The first steps in the history of Finnish aviation involved Russian aircraft. The Russian military had a number of early designs stationed in the Grand Duchy of Finland, which until the Russian Revolution of 1917 formed an autonomous grand duchy under the Russian Empire. Soon after the Finnish declaration of independence of 6 December 1917, the Finnish Civil War of January to May 1918 broke out, in which the Soviets sided with the ''Reds'' – the socialist rebels with ties to Lenin's Bolshevik Party. Finland' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
10th AF Four Finger Formation
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sports, where it commonly denotes the first, leading, or top thing in a group. 1 is the unit of counting or measurement, a determiner for singular nouns, and a gender-neutral pronoun. Historically, the representation of 1 evolved from ancient Sumerian and Babylonian symbols to the modern Arabic numeral. In mathematics, 1 is the multiplicative identity, meaning that any number multiplied by 1 equals the same number. 1 is by convention not considered a prime number. In digital technology, 1 represents the "on" state in binary code, the foundation of computing. Philosophically, 1 symbolizes the ultimate reality or source of existence in various traditions. In mathematics The number 1 is the first natural number after 0. Each natural number, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heinkel He 51
The Heinkel He 51 was a German single-seat biplane fighter aircraft. A seaplane variant and a ground-attack version were also developed. It was a development of the earlier He 49. Design and development In 1931, Heinkel recruited the talented aircraft designers Walter and Siegfried Günter. Their first major design for Heinkel was the Heinkel He 49.Green and Swanborough 1994, p. 295. While this was officially an advanced trainer,Mondey 1996, p. 80. in fact it was a fighter. The type was ordered into production for the still secret ''Luftwaffe'' as the He 51, with the first pre-production aircraft flying in May 1933. Deliveries started in July of the next year. The He 51 was a conventional single-bay biplane, with all-metal construction and fabric covering. It was powered by a glycol-cooled BMW VI engine, with an armament of two machine guns mounted above the engine. The He 51 was intended to replace the earlier Arado Ar 65, and served side-by-side with the slightl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Polikarpov I-16
The Polikarpov I-16 () is a Soviet single-engine single-seat fighter aircraft of revolutionary design; it is a low-wing cantilever monoplane fighter with retractable landing gear, and the first such aircraft to attain operational status. It "introduced a new vogue in fighter design".Green, William. "Polikarpov's Little Hawk". ''Flying Review'', November 1969. The I-16 was introduced in the mid-1930s and formed the backbone of the Soviet Air Force at the beginning of World War II. The diminutive fighter, nicknamed "''Ishak''" or "''Ishachok''" ("donkey" or "burro") by Soviet pilots, figured prominently in the Second Sino-Japanese War,Liss 1966, p. 10. the Battle of Khalkhin Gol, Winter War and the Spanish Civil War – where it was called the ("rat") by the Nationalists or (" fly") by the Republicans. The Finns called the aircraft "(flying squirrel)". Design and development While working on the Polikarpov I-15 biplane, Nikolai Nikolaevich Polikarpov began desig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Second Spanish Republic
The Spanish Republic (), commonly known as the Second Spanish Republic (), was the form of democratic government in Spain from 1931 to 1939. The Republic was proclaimed on 14 April 1931 after the deposition of Alfonso XIII, King Alfonso XIII. It was dissolved on 1 April 1939 after surrendering in the Spanish Civil War to the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists led by General Francisco Franco. After the proclamation of the Republic, Provisional Government of the Second Spanish Republic, a provisional government was established until December 1931, at which time the Spanish Constitution of 1931, 1931 Constitution was approved. During the subsequent two years of constitutional government, known as the First Biennium, Reformist Biennium, Manuel Azaña's executive initiated numerous reforms. In 1932 religious orders were forbidden control of schools, while the government began a large-scale school-building project. A moderate agrarian reform was carried out. Home r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Messerschmitt Bf 109
The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a monoplane fighter aircraft that was designed and initially produced by the Nazi Germany, German aircraft manufacturer Messerschmitt#History, Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (BFW). Together with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the Bf 109 formed the backbone of the ''Luftwaffe's'' fighter force during the World War II. It was commonly called the Me 109 by Allied aircrew and some German aces/pilots, even though this was not the official model designation. The Bf 109 was designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser, who worked at BFW during the early to mid-1930s. It was conceived as an interceptor aircraft, interceptor. However, later models were developed to fulfill multiple tasks, serving as Escort fighter, bomber escort, fighter-bomber, day fighter, day-, night fighter, night-, all-weather fighter, ground-attack aircraft, and aerial reconnaissance aircraft. It was one of the most advanced fighters when the fighter first appeared, being furnished with an all-me ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of France
The Battle of France (; 10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign (), the French Campaign (, ) and the Fall of France, during the Second World War was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands) and French Third Republic, France. The plan for the invasion of the Low Countries and France was called (Case Yellow or the Manstein plan). (Case Red) was planned to finish off the French and British after the Dunkirk evacuation, evacuation at Dunkirk. The Low Countries and France were defeated and occupied by Axis troops down to the Demarcation line (France), Demarcation line. On 3 September 1939, French declaration of war on Germany (1939), France and United Kingdom declaration of war on Germany (1939), Britain declared war on Nazi Germany, over the German invasion of Poland on 1 September. In early September 1939, the French army began the limited Saar Offensive but by mid-October had withdrawn to the start line ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Battle Of Britain
The Battle of Britain () was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defended the United Kingdom (UK) against large-scale attacks by Nazi Germany's air force, the Luftwaffe. It was the first major military campaign fought entirely by air forces."92 Squadron – Geoffrey Wellum." ''Battle of Britain Memorial Flight'' via ''raf.mod.uk.''. Retrieved: 17 November 2010, archived 2 March 2009. It takes its name from This was their finest hour, the speech given by Prime Minister Winston Churchill to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons on 18 June: "What Maxime Weygand, General Weygand called the 'Battle of France' is over. I expect that the Battle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
