I posted this a while back in answer to the same question. Unfortunately I don not know how to make a link to the other thread- maybe someone could explain how?
This is a long read. Those of you not interested or who have already read it can skip over it...
you both mention getting more effective at killing buffs. With all the dive bombing buffs, cv killers, etc, it's nice to have a sure-fire way to kill them-
IMO, bombers are best attacked from above or below. From the sides is rough, you get some pings, but you're not likely to get a kill in one pass unless you get the cockpit. HO works, but only for one pass, and is dangerous. Dead six is nuts. From the bottom means you are nose up and losing speed. This will normally mean you end up on their six eventually, which as stated is nuts. IMO, most folks attack bombers from the bottom or six. That means buff pilots/gunners get most of their practice here, and are most comfortable shooting here. That's bad from the fighter standpoint.
That leaves attacking from the top as the best choice.
The weakest spots on the bomber are the cockpit and wing roots/engine area. Those are easiest to target and hit from the top. Attacking from the top allows you to go back up- this means you can retain some E, which is good. Another point to consider is that if the gunner has no ability to see the ground as a reference, he is more likely to be at least somewhat disoriented, which will hopefully mess up his ability to lead you correctly. If he is pointing his gun upward, he can't see the ground. Attacking from the top means you have speed, which means he has to lead you a bit more, which he is unlikely to do. In AH, 99.99999999999% of the shots fired miss behind the intended target (IMO). Also, many of the bombers guns cannot point straight up, which means fewer bullets headed your way.
So you need to be above the bombers for best results. I like to be 1.5k-2k above, with sufficient airspeed (250mph for my corsair). Patience may be needed in setting up this position. If you don't have the patience you'll die often, which is fine for some folks. I won't teach you how to get killed by the buffs though...
I start directly above the bombers, and slightly in front. My tail would be slightly in front of the bombers cockpit. I roll inverted, and dive in. I aim for a point in front of the bombers until close, because I want to be attacking from D400-D600, from a point where I can fire downward at about a 45 degree angle in to the cockpit. If my position is off, I fire into the wing root, or a wingtip if I've been drinking. This will allow you to pull out of your dive at about 450mph, right through the formation, or very slightly below. By slightly below, I mean sometimes I lose my vertical stabilizer by scraping it along the bombers belly. If you go below the bombers before nosing back up you are blowing E. If you are beginning to black out at all you are also scrubbing E. Use your throttle and rudder to control your speed. Too fast is bad. Too slow is worse. If you dive at the bombers, or especially at their tail, you will be firing from behind, which will get you killed. Go for the cockpit.
After your pass, one of the bombers will be on fire or dead. You should be headed in the same direction as the bombers, and going back up. Don't go straight back up yet. Angle upward at about a 30-40 degree angle until out of range of the guns, and then go almost vertical. Your goal is to do a loop, with about 150mph airspeed 1.5-2k above the bombers, and be able to dive in exactly as you did before. This means your loop should be in front of the bombers, not overhead, or else you will be diving in on their six for your next attack.
I often time my loop so that a burning bomber will explode before I am close enough to fire on my second pass. This leaves the formation even more helpless.
It is somewhat important to target the correct buff in the formation. Don't start with the lead bomber. He's the one actually aiming at you, and will be the most accurate. The drones are aimed based off of him, and are really only converging at the same aiming point for a brief moment in your pass. Targeting a drone is safest. Also, if the buffs are driven by a new player, he may not bail out, which gives you the warping drones thing until he hits the ground. Targeting a drone first and second eliminates that. Save the lead bomber for last.
Targeting the right drone first is best. If you target the left drone first, when he dies the right drone will move into his position which makes for a more difficult pass on a moving target. So the order is- right drone, left drone, lead bomber.
A few fine points-
You may need to adjust the top of your loop so that you don't end up on the bombers six for your third pass. You will be losing E, and getting slower. If you do a loop, you may end up behind the bomber on the third pass. If so, you may need to roll 90-180 degrees on the way up after your second pass. This makes it more of a giant barrel roll or other maneuver than an actual loop.
Also, often on the way down in my dive, since I'm diving for a point in front of the bombers, I can't see them due to my cowling. I roll a little left/right, or in effect do a slow spiral on my dive to keep tabs of my target. I just make sure that my flight attitude is where it should be when I'm ready to fire. This is also how peregrine falcons maneuver in their stoops ( also due to vision concerns).
That rolling dive is also important when dealing with the buff drivers like 999000 and Tatertot. If you dive in nice and smooth they will still kill you. The rolling foils most gunners. Timing on preparing for your shot is a little difficult, but you'll get it eventually. An added benefit is that this maneuver will give you speed-control options. It is better to need to slow down a bit than to be too slow.
The way for bomber pilots to counter this move is to fly directly below the cloud layer. This is the safest place to be, as it limits the ability of the fighter pilot to see them. It is very hard to pull off the diving spiral against those bombers. Killing the low bombers is a piece of cake though.
I'm not really one for stating my accomplishments, but I will here as it shows the effectiveness of this bomber-killing method. A few months ago Saber and I checked our stats in detail to see where we were having the most difficulty (which planes killed us the most). This check showed that for that month I had a 98/1 K/D against bombers. The one bomber that killed me was a C47 ( I rammed him, lol). This is a very effective tactic once learned.
MtnMan
