But, correct me if I'm wrong, ENY is an air-to-air rating. OBJ is an attack or bombing rating. There's no question the Jugs (minus the D11) are great Jabo's, and I can see a lower OBJ rating as a result, but the ENY shouldn't be low because its a great Jabo, right? The C-Hog is the only plane in the game with an OBJ of 5, and I was under the assumption it was because it could carry lots of ordnance, and still have all those cannon for strafing.
I think the N model Jug is a great air-to-air aircraft, no doubt--I fly it a lot and get kills. But, I just don't understand how the Pony D has a higher ENY than the N Jug. Climb rate (even on WEP), speed, turn rate are all in the Pony's favor. The only advantage the Jug N has on the Pony is 8 vs. 6 Ma deuce, slightly better roll rate, and a fantastic zoom climb (if you have speed) unless you're above 25K, then the Jug really starts to outshine the Pony. But, lets face it, no one flies that high in the MA to dogfight, and even if they did, all that altitude is too big a temptation for the Pony to dive away to thicker air, and much better performance.
Not gonna obsess about it, just hoping someone could provide a quantitative or qualitative justification...