It's always been a monster on low fuel by the by
Agreed, the Mossy has always been formidable in the right hands.
Pretty sure I was going over 400mph at 44,000 feet.
Yes, it looks like the 152 can do that. Here is a speed chart for the 152 v Mossy
Regarding the flight model, I doubt it has changed, but if it seems that it might have I can check if needed, let me know.
The key thing here is that even a slower aircraft can out run a faster one, if it starts with an altitude advantage, the key factors can easily change from speed to energy retention and fuel endurance. That can happen because some aircraft can retain speed gained in a dive really well so that catching it can take more fuel than you have, particularly when the aircraft's performance differences aren't very big in the first place. The other thing that can make a difference is how the aircraft is being flown. Some players are just very good at flying for energy retention in a tail chase/intercept and are able to conserve every drop of energy. Another thing that can sometimes factor in are things that are hard to pin down such as damage. Sometimes an aircraft can lose a part and also lose the drag that went with it. That can help retain speed longer if any additional control drag necessary doesn't override the benefit gained.
Most frequently, an aircraft with only a slightly better speed can take a very long time to catch one that is theoretically slower, but started faster. I've had to give up many tail chases because I didn't have time before ack or other enemy aircraft interfered even when I might otherwise have had the fuel endurance required to eventually finish the job.
It can be complicated, because in a chase, even when you are the attacker and you start higher and faster and in the faster aircraft you are often forced to slow down to control your closure and avoid an overshoot. It is no easy task to judge that well and avoid overdoing it. Just losing sight for a second can see the defender extending in a slightly different direction with a small speed advantage that can take forever to recover. More often than not, top speeds won't be the decisive factor.
The final factor that can be important is acceleration because some aircraft accelerate differently at low and high speed. So even when you start out by gaining on them, as your speed increases your acceleration can reduce when theirs is increasing. They can gain separation that can take much longer to recover than it took them to gain. Some pilots use that to good effect by encouraging you to manoeuvre with them briefly, before extending away again and gaining separation before you can force them to rinse and repeat. Often, one or two evolutions is all they need to reach safety.
In reality even having a faster aircraft isn't always enough. That's why you can often see slower aircraft chase down, catch and kill faster aircraft when they start with an energy advantage. In many cases even having a faster aircraft won't help resolve initial energy differences.
It's the realistic complications that make this game so challenging and so much fun.
Hope that helps.
Badboy
