Here is a brief guide to efficient air to air gunnery,
- from a Gunnery Course Manual
used at No. 2 Bombing and Gunnery School -Mossbank, Saskatchewan during ww2
Search sky before take off and landing, your a/c is most vulnerable.
- If you are taken by suprise by enemy gun fire, search for fighters; take evasive action.
- Always watch your own tail.
- Conserve your ammo; if you’re fired upon from long range, instruct pilot to use evasive action.
- Never fly straight or dive when under attack.
- Use good team work - tell your pilot the enemy a/c's position
- Patrol across the sun, never into or away from it.
- Never turn away from an attack, always towards.
- If using tracer at night, remember it tends to momentarily destroy your night vision;
hold your fire until necessary.
- If on reconnaissance aircraft; your job is to return with information; not to seek combat with enemy aircraft.
- Aim of enemy fighter is to destroy; aim of bomber air gunner is to get safely to target and back to base.
- Never fire until fired upon.
- All aircraft approaching are considered to be enemy until identified otherwise.
- REMEMBER: TO BE SURPRISED IS TO BE LOST.
- If your own guns fail or are damaged during an attack use your ingenuity to outwit the attacker.
His favourite position, if he can get it, is to come from below and climb up to 300 yards from you, directly underneath, stall his a/c and rake your fuselage with machine-gun and cannon fire. So every now and then have your pilot do steep turns so you can search below the a/c for fighters.
Another important thing to remember as an Air Gunner is primarily to protect your bomber and not shoot down fighters. Never fire unless it is necessary. Always take evasive action. Firing gives your position away .
Evasive action should be practiced until the co-ordination between skipper and gunner is as though one brain controlled all concerned.
