You guys are right in that it isn't right to use Vila's skill as a record to "prove" anything. I'm just trying to illustrate that there is no major problem with .50 cal lethality, or high-kill count sorties like that by anyone would just not be possible IMHO. My own record is more representative, since I have a reasonable number of sorties of the last 2 tours in both the 1D and 1C Hogs. I'm about even on them last time I checked as far as K/D goes. The real point here is that nobody is doing any concrete testing to prove one side or the other. My analogy may be flawed, but I haven't seen anybody else pull out any hard data on the topic. You guys keep quoting your experience, so I'm quoting mine. I fly the F4U-1D and I don't think there is a problem with the .50 cal lethality. Sure, snapshots are less likely to do critically damage an enemy plane, but if I make them in convergence range I find I can take them down some of the time. This is just what I expect to see.
Hangtime, the snapshot I used on HT WAS a snapshot. I was too slow to do anything else except hold my nose up and hose away as he flew through my bullet stream. I guess the only mitigating circumstance would be that we were both very slow, so he passed through the bullet stream at low speed.
In regards to the paper tail on the Pony, I don't have enough experience to make a comparison. Bottom line, why don't you keep the records you suggested and post your findings? Pyro has modelled it as best he can, and the only way you'll change his mind is to gather up some data.
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Lephturn - Chief Trainer
A member of The Flying Pigs
Visit Lephturn's Aerodrome for AH news, resources, and training data.
http://users.andara.com/~sconrad/"MY P-47 is a pretty good ship
And she took a round coming 'cross the Channel last trip
I was thinking 'bout my baby and lettin' her rip
Always got me through so far
Well they can ship me all over this great big world
But I'll never find nothing like my North End girl
I'm taking her home with me one day, sir
Soon as we win this war"
- Steve Earl