This thread is a continuation...
This guy was good! I pushed my P-40 to the limits of its performance trying to bring him down. He was obviously one of the Luftwaffe’s more experienced pilots. Maybe even an ace.
He was shaking me every which way trying to get out of my grasp, diving, rolling, reversing, and climbing. I was unsure whether my P-40 could match the performance of the 109 and worst of all. I couldn’t get him in my gun sights.
My wingman “drkhorse”, still with me, makes a diving pass at the German fighter. The German pilot just wings over into a reverse down left dive. I am thinking to myself. “This guy is really good”!
His wild rolling maneuver slows his airspeed. I pull in close and
“HAMMER DOWN”!!! But he just rolls into a left dive and begins to pull away again. My bullets wiz right past his fuselage, I am more determined than ever now not to let him get away.
I continue the pursuit and manage to get a few pings on his vertical stabilizer. But he keeps moving like that fox.
Just then I hear a call over the radio from Ponyace, another group pilot from the 85th FS. “Redtail 109 on your six!” I realize that I am lucky twice in the same moment. The German fighter I am following executes a hard right diving turn. My nibble P-40 stays right with him. The German fighter on my six is carrying the 20mm wing gondolas and there is no way he can turn with me.
The three of us begin to spiral down to earth at high speed. The 109 on my six shoots a short burst and overshoots me. I shoot a few rounds his way as he passes by.
The 109 in front of me executes a even harder right turn pulling his nose up in hopes that I’ll blow right by him. No such luck for my able opponent. I shoot off a short burst and get meat. Now, I am smelling blood in the water.
The 109 begins to stream out fuel and oil. It shouldn't be long now. There is a view of the devastation at the port facility in the background.
My opponent doesn’t believe that it is over as we fly past the Italian air base on Pantelleria Island. He fights to the bitter end.
Then my opponent quickly and smoothly pulls his nose up as if to try and out perform my struggling P-40. It almost seems as if it will work, as the P-40 does just that. It struggles to stay with the wounded 109 in the climb.
My ever present wingman makes another diving pass as the 109 pilot pulls hard on the stick trying to get his nose over the top. Even with the damage to the 109, it begins to pull away in the climb.
Another battle unfolds outside of my canopy as Ponyace pursues the 109 that overshot me, who is now in hot pursuit of Slapshot, an ever present P-38 pilot from the 82nd FG. The 109 I am in pursuit of trying to get his nose over the top and then out run me on the ensuing dive.
Unfortunately, the 109 run out of “E” as my P-40 get its second wind. I climb up to the 109 and
“HAMMER DOWN”!!! There were so many hits along the wing, wing root, and fuselage that I knew the pilot wouldn’t last very long.
I rolled my P-40 inverted and pointed my nose down to break the combat.
The fighting over the Island is both furious and ferocious. I get a quick check six and I reply. “Roger, breaking hard right!” As I come out of the turn I spot an enemy fighter coming right for me.
Actually, it’s in hot pursuit of our ever present friend Slapshot. All three of us are knifes edge either turning hard to evade, pursue, or getting a firing solution.
I pull the nose of my P-40 hard and she response to my commands. It’s a C202 and he’s moving! I squeeze the trigger as he zooms by. I get hits but it’s not enough to stop him or even cause damage.
