Level flight speed

[Plawranc]

Well recently in all aircraft ive flown ive come across a slower plane than I am in but they can keep up with me can some 1 explain this please

[Blooz]

Planes are same as cars on the road. Some are faster and some are slower. Some accelerate fast and some accelerate slowly. Some stop on a dime and some take forever to stop. Go downhill you speed up and go uphill you slow down.

In the HANGER (in game) you can access the planes speed and climb charts. Right click the plane in the list and select which one you want.

You can view those same charts here. click, Home, Game Info, Aircraft and Vehicle Charts

[Lusche]

Well recently in all aircraft ive flown ive come across a slower plane than I am in but they can keep up with me can some 1 explain this please

Max speed given on charts is maximum sustainable speed in level flight at a given altitude. But you can easily get faster by by converting potential energy  - you trade altitude for speed. How much faster you can get over your nominal maximum level speed, and how long you can sustain that "overspeed" depends on your plane's characteristics and your skill (always remember: "smooth is fast").

Also, while having the plane with higher top speed, you can still be catched in level flight by a slower plane that's simply better accelerating than you. A good example is P-51D vs Spit XVI:

Top speed at sea level: 369mph (P-51D) vs. 342 mph (Spitfire)
But acceleration 200 to 250 mph: 14 seconds (P-51) vs. only 11 seconds (Spitfire)

[Max]

Energy state also factors into the equation. You're at 5K at top speed...your opponent has just dropped in from 10k in a slower plane.

Also consider weights...fuel, ammo, rockets, bombs...they all contribute towards drag.

[Max]

Lusche beat me to it...pretty quick for a slug 

[CRYPTIC]

Trim is your friend. If you manually trim your plane this will help with speed. Also you may be putting input in and not realizing this, you can configure your stick to help this. As said already altitude has a lot to do with speed. Some planes are better or worse at different altitudes.

[BaldEagl]

I wish I had been filming so I could show you but yesterday I dominated an La7, then later a P-51D in a P-40B.  Even though both are faster planes as soon as I got them to turn at all I held the advantage.  I flew smoothly, conserving energy while they kept trying to dodge my occasional shots and continually giving up any E they had gained.

Speed advantages are often lost as soon as you start to turn.  The lesson is, don't let someone on your six to begin with because at that point all planes are dangerous.

[trotter]

Trim is your friend. If you manually trim your plane this will help with speed.

Don't listen to this at this point, with all due respect. Trim is not the problem here. You are obviously new to the game and trim is the last thing you have to worry about at this point. Here's a tip: use combat trim and keep it on until you get a joystick that has buttons to spare. I use combat trim all the time and, while it takes away from my overall potential, it never hurts me to the point where I have any trouble with being successful in the MA's. Once you get comfortable with the game, learn trim. Not now.

[Bronk]

How long it takes an ac to slow down should also be considered.