What's a "Cloverleaf" Maneuver?

(Corey C. Jordan) wrote:

On Wed, 20 Aug 2003 14:30:57 GMT, Ed Rasimus wrote:

To return to the original description of Lowell's maneuver, it sounds
as though he was exercising a series of high and low yo-yos. First, to
control overtake and reduce angles, he pulls the nose up to slow and
minimize overshoot of the target's turning circle. Then from high
slightly outside the target flight path in a lag pursuit position, he
rolls over and lowers the nose to take a cut across the target's
circle and gain closer. A high yo-yo, followed by a low yo-yo.

It's not a yo-yo maneuver Ed, it's purely a horizontal exercise. Let's see if I
can explain it this way for those unfamiliar with the ACM.

Picture a purely circular race track, You have two cars racing around the track,
one on the inside of the track, the other up along the outer wall. Periodically,
the car to the outside of the track pulls down to the inside edge. However, his
tires lose grip and he slides back up to the outer wall again.

In the instance where Lowell was dueling with the Spit XII, both aircraft were
flying in a lufberry. Periodically, Lowell would pinch in, momentarily pulling
lead. However, his P-38 would rapidly scrub off speed and begin to mush,
whereupon he would ease off the elevators and assume his position to the outside
of the Spitfire's turning circle.

This maneuver will only work once or twice, because the Spitfire's smaller
turning radius will eventually prevail. One could certainly pull the nose high
into a yo-yo and cut across the Spit's turn radius, diving into a low yo-yo to
repeat the process. Naturally this assumes that the Spit driver doesn't reverse
out of his lufberry and counter your yo-yo with a rolling scissors. Yet, with
that huge Griffon turning a 5-bladed prop, the Spit XII was loath to roll
against torque (though not as bad as the Mk.XIV) at low speeds. It's difficult
to force an overshoot when it takes forever (relatively speaking) to reverse
direction. Then again, the P-38 was sluggish on the ailerons at low speeds
itself, although a boot full of rudder helps some and will aid in scrubbing
speed. But, either way, the Spitfire has a clean stall speed nearly the same as
the P-38L with the fowlers nearly all the way out.

OK, I've got the picture now. Having not read the original account, I
was trying to visualize based on the postings and my own
super-imposition of what a "cloverleaf" is.

I recall an experience a lot of years ago in trying to teach a bit of
BFM to a couple of friends at Falcon Field outside Mesa AZ. One was an
AF associate, former KC-135 driver and was then a T-37 instructor with
me; the other was a former crop-duster type, then a TWA 707 captain
(and eventually the founder and namesake of Dillon Precision--the
company that makes probably the most famous ammunition reloading
pressses in the world.) These two guys had each bought a Canadian
surplus Harvard (equivalent to a US T-6.)

They were trying to learn how to fly formation and it routinely
degenerated into a rat race with the tanker driver always losing. I
was brought in as the "ringer" to ride with my co-worker and beat
Dillon.

Problem was, when it came to slow speed, low dynamic range fighting,
my jet fighter tactics weren't the answer and Dillon soundly and
repeatedly trounced me.

We'd wind up in a cranking, turning, one-circle fight and Dillon's
crop-duster experience would have him pulling lead into me until he'd
stall, then with deft application of top rudder he'd manage to keep
the nose up for a second longer than I could. I'd drop out of the
stall and he'd ease off to take a bit of lag spacing then pull back
into his lead. Nibble, nibble, nibble and eventually he'd have a good
extended gun solution.

Sound like what you're describing in the Lowell fight.



Ed Rasimus
Fighter Pilot (ret)
***"When Thunder Rolled:
*** An F-105 Pilot Over N. Vietnam"
*** from Smithsonian Books
ISBN: 1588341038

The cloverleaf was a horizontal maneuver that took advantage of the P-38's
exceptionally gentle stall characteristics.

C.C., I vaguely recall reading, many years ago, that Tom McGuire died
as a result of stalling his P-38 in a turn at a low altitude, which
gave me the impression that the P-38 must have had rather un-gentle
stall characteristics.

Is my memory playing tricks on me?

Thanks. vince norris