Don't forget that planes that are going to die, "aren't dead yet." As long as they have guns, they are a threat to others...and to me.
This applies way more to the burning plane than otherwise. Once a zeke starts burning, its PROBABLY going to die. (I've loved the few times I can lower and slow a burning plane enough that I can get a ditch when the wing falls off!) But some planes burn a really long time -- and while we're waiting for it to go, it can very easily drop its bombs or get a kill (or 2, since people may stop paying attention to it). So even if you've "earned" the kill on the torch, it isnt dead YET and its a fair target.
However, it also applies to other damage. I've often pulled off a target called out as "dead," that later turned out to be fine and quite deadly. (The caller landed some pings, then saw the plane spin out and thought critical damage was done.) I've landed planes with only wing stubs often enough to know that even losing major chunks can be overcome -- so if looks like its responding to controls, and it flies in front of me, it gets a burst.
So while I don't try to steal kills, my operating principle is now that if its still a danger, its a target. And, if it pops up in my gunsight, I will shoot.
And I don't care if "my" kill gets stolen -- its my fault, because if I had killed it well enough it couldnt have been stolen.
