Dawger,
There's really nothing all that cosmic about tactical formation. It's just a basic visual lookout formation that works; real world and in here. Just a matter of applying it.
Yaeger,
Well, "tracers off" works well if one is consistently lethal with the first couple of rounds. With the first couple of "pings", game on and tactical maneuvering comes into play with effective mutual support. Tracers on or off doesn't matter at that point. A tally on the bandit pretty much nullifies the tracer issue. If a good sneak up on someones deep six that isn't checking six works(like Chilli pulled off on us the other day
), it doesn't really matter once the trigger is pulled. Boom, game over. It is interesting to hear the whining in the MAs when someone gets violated from deep six and no one called a check six for them. Your six belongs to you and no one else. If you aren't checking it frequently and someone sneaks it, then you've failed yourself. Yeah, it's great when someone else can, at random, check it for ya. Just another valid reason to fly formation and practice mutual support...all the way to the end of the landing roll.
It's all, as called in the real world, "technique only".
That was some great flying "in the phone booth" with you guys the other day with the Hurri's and us in the 109s. That Hurri is a tough one to maneuver against in a slow turning fight.