Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!att!cbnews!military From: Brian Ross (bxr307@coombs.anu.oz) Newsgroups: sci.military Subject: Battle of Britain kill ratios Message-ID: <11162@cbnews.ATT.COM> Date: 6 Nov 89 05:05:54 GMT Sender: military@cbnews.ATT.COM Lines: 32 Approved: military@att.att.com From: Brian Ross (bxr307@coombs.anu.oz) The biggest problem in trying to equate the different rate of kills between the two sides in the war is the different methods each had of recording kills. The Germans were much more lax about this and were willing to take the pilots word on the matter. They also accorded kills if the pilot observed his hits to go home and the target was observed to fly off with visible damage or smoke pouring from it. The British on the other hand has a very strict system where by every "kill" had to be witnessed by at least one other observer, either in the air and more preferrably on the ground. In addition an aircraft was credited as a "damaged" rather than a "kill" if the pilot didn't actually see it explode or hit the ground. This is why you have such big discrepancies in the number of kills accorded British and German Aces. You have German aces with kills in the hundreds and the best the British could produce was in the tens. It is also why German claims of "kills" should be treated with circumspection. Does anyone know how the Japanese or the US forces accredited kills? _-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_ | Brian Ross |Snail Mail:- "Bill Bracket the self-made man who came| in a a packet" | Brian Ross ----------------------------------------| Sociology Dept.R.S.S.S. E-Mail Addresses:- bxr307@coombs.anu.oz | Australian National University | CANBERRA,A.C.T.,2601, bxr307@csc.anu.oz | AUSTRALIA |