Originally posted by Stang
He's right, it is all by instinct. I never have a planed merge move, it's just all a gut reaction to each individual situation as to how best deal with it. You have to be flexible in the ever changing MA, and having things planned out on charts or graphs either will get you killed or you'll run like a wuss calling bs when your "move" doesn't work and the enemy's all over your 6.
Stang, seriously now. noone on this thread said to map out your moves on graphs or paper. or fight using set prethought of maneuvers.
I agree one must be flexible, if you fly from instinct where did that instinct come from? it came from some type of experience unless everyone is like Robert Redford and are a "Natural".
a person studys the Energy Management charts and compares them, to gain knowledge of what and what not to do when they do encounter a fight in the arena. noone is saying draw out these graphs and draw out your manuevers on paper, then if you see that plane over there do this, then you should do this, and so on.......and fly by these set maneuvers and nothing else.
The charts are used to help build a knowledge base of the different planes performance and helps one compare them.
TC