His
chances of escape are slender, because his antagonists dispose
themselves strategically in the air. The invader outpaces one,
but in so doing comes within range of another. He is so harassed
that he either has to give fight, or, finding his retreat
hopelessly cut off, he makes a determined dash, trusting to his
high speed to carry him to safety. In these driving tactics the
French and British airmen have proved themselves adepts, more
particularly the latter, as the chase appeals to their sporting
instincts. There is nothing so exhilarating as a quarry who
displays a determination to run the gauntlet.
The roving Teuton scout was considerably in evidence in the early
days of the war, but two or three weeks' experience emphasised
the sad fact that, in aerial strategy, he was hopelessly
outmatched by his opponents. His advantage of speed was
nullified by the superior tactical and strategical acumen of his
antagonists, the result being that the German airman, who has
merely been trained along certain lines, who is in many cases
nothing more than a cog-wheel in a machine, and who is
proverbially slow-witted, has concluded that he is no match for
the airmen of the Allies.
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