I can definitely see both sides of this one.
Yesterday I was looking for buffs. I took up a 1C and was strolling around, when I encountered another Hawg, and he was a bit higher. Well, he naturally rolled over on what appeared to be an easy meal. He dove from my high six, I did the roll/split-S routine, and he overshot. He managed some damage on my vator, and I thought I was done. Luckily he tried a little too little to press his E advantage, and I was able to turn inside him and got him with a snapshot. He was dead.
Next came the 109. This guy played it better, working for my rear quarter and making passes. He would hit me, pull up, and roll over. I could roll and just about meet him on the under side of his barrel roll, but he just barely stayed out of range. Barely. He eventually took the other half of my vator and I went in. He congratulated me later on flying so well with a damaged vator- asked him how he knew it was hurt and he told me he could see it! Now that is keeping the fight close!
My point? Had I had all the vator at the beginning of the fight I would have killed him on the first barrel roll, easily. The snapshot would have made what was a very good fight impossible.
I wound up getting about 4-5 B26's, 2-3 C47's, 1-2 B17's, and various other a/c in the 1C (all in about an hour's time). I don't think I could have gotten so many buffs so easily in the 1D. I'm not sure how I feel about that. :/