That's because bombers were used as bait starting in January 1944. The idea was to lure the Luftwaffe fighters up so American fighters could destroy them. It worked quite well. Before January 1944 fighters were tied to the bombers. After that, they went on ahead on search and destroy missions. One of the benefits of this new strategy was bomber losses fell significantly. Thank Jimmy Doolittle for this.
because bombers were used as bait starting in January 1944. The idea was to lure the Luftwaffe fighters up so American fighters could destroy them. It worked quite well. Before January 1944 fighters were tied to the bombers. After that, they went on ahead on search and destroy missions. One of the benefits of this new strategy was bomber losses fell significantly. Thank Jimmy Doolittle for this.absence of German Luftwaffe planes able to conduct reconnaissance missions
It was amazing to read about the “strategy” of keeping the fighters where the bomber crews could be reassured by the sight of them. It’s so obviously impossible to engage enemy fighters on favorable terms that way.Hard to see how anyone ever sold that tactic when the Dolittle approach was so obviously the way to do it. It put our fighters on the attack, which is the only way you could possibly want to operate a platform which carries strictly forward-firing armament.