I think the Allied plans were a major cause of the disparity. I see 2 decisions made by the Allies that played into the hands of the Axis.
1.Minimal use of the Hurricane 2C.
I really wonder why the CiC's in all frames did not utilize the Hurricanes more. It seems to me that the huge increase in lethality makes up for the speed difference with the Spit 1. The 109's had very little to fear form the Spit 1. If the Allies used more Hurricanes, the Axis would have suffered many more losses. The lack of that knock-out punch allowed the Axis to prolong fights, gain a numerical advantage, and divert even more assets to the location of fights.
2. Attacking all 3 targets.
This is not to say the Allied plan last night was not crafty, because it was. But when given the option to only attack two of the three targets, why not exploit the fact that the Axis must be set up to protect all three. It should have been very clear that local numerical superiority could have been achieved by only attacking two targets and hanging the third groups of defenders out to dry.
Bfoot designed this event to give more flexibility to the attacking CiC's as that has been a common complaint by the armchair generals that think FSO should be more like Scenarios and less like chess.
If the decision was made to attack all three targets was made thinking it was a winning strategy then it was a major blunder.
But if it was made with the intent of upholding the spirit of FSO and ensuring that all players saw action, then you have my deepest respect.
